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The Car Thread


cv91915
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On 9/28/2019 at 9:45 AM, cv91915 said:

Off the top of my head, 147 horsepower, 150-mile range, and payments of $670 for 72 months.

I believe a baseball announcer would be calling that a strikeout on three pitches. 

 

I can live with no HP on a commuter, but the range is the killer.  They can go to a 300 miles range and it STILL does not work for me.  The EV market only works for those that strictly putz about town.  Anyone doing any measure of real distance is SOL with that one. 

 

Oh, and even with a $7500 credit, $670 a month for six effing years is crack-pipe worthy...

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17 hours ago, cv91915 said:

If you only have 30 seconds, skip to about 1:55.

 

 

I was still working for the State when Shamu (the sedan version) got added to the fleet...at least in West Texas, we got useful things like the early Yukons, complete with the cargo-space-robbing propane tanks.  BUT the additional range was a bonus...

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14 hours ago, Bad Doctor Frost said:

You mean the BMW Kia-Series? It's freaking front wheeled drive. I don't understand the thought process behind pushing luxury marques into the low-income zone. That's what used ones are for. 

Do you remember a 1995 BMW 318ti?

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4 hours ago, Bad Doctor Frost said:

Mazda doesn't build turds. In fact, I believe they're one of the few car companies left still trying to put soul and personality in their cars.

Yeah, they still have a bunch of turds...even the Miata has been overly bloated across the past decade.  At least they still offer it with a manual transmission though...

 

If they wanted soul and personality, they would offer a manual in ALL of their offerings.  Until then, they are still putting out some turds...

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1 hour ago, centex said:

Yeah, they still have a bunch of turds...even the Miata has been overly bloated across the past decade.  At least they still offer it with a manual transmission though...

 

If they wanted soul and personality, they would offer a manual in ALL of their offerings.  Until then, they are still putting out some turds...

Can't sell what no one wants. The take rate on manuals isn't enough to justify the cost of regulation. The current Miata is actually smaller than the NA generation, though it's obviously heavier due to all the nannies and safety mumbo jumbo. I mean, they even sold a minivan with a manual. They're better than most others. 

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1 hour ago, Bad Doctor Frost said:

Can't sell what no one wants. The take rate on manuals isn't enough to justify the cost of regulation. The current Miata is actually smaller than the NA generation, though it's obviously heavier due to all the nannies and safety mumbo jumbo. I mean, they even sold a minivan with a manual. They're better than most others. 

The take rate argument is a chicken/egg thing...plenty of people WANT them but, for the makes that actually HAVE them as an option, it is damned near impossible to FIND them outside of a special order.  Sadly, few people are willing to wait for the proverbial slow boat from China to have their spec'ed vehicle finally arrive.  And since MOST people want to drive off the lot the day they make their deal, I would pin the low take rate precisely on the management of the dealerships...

 

Had the F-Type not been offered with a manual, I would NOT have been a buyer.  My four-door X-Type was purchased SPECIFICALLY because it was equipped with three-pedals.  I WOULD have bought an XE if JLR would have brought the manual version to the States.  Instead, I would have to go gray market...damned Euros get ALL the good stuff.

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10 minutes ago, centex said:

The take rate argument is a chicken/egg thing...plenty of people WANT them but, for the makes that actually HAVE them as an option, it is damned near impossible to FIND them outside of a special order.  Sadly, few people are willing to wait for the proverbial slow boat from China to have their spec'ed vehicle finally arrive.  And since MOST people want to drive off the lot the day they make their deal, I would pin the low take rate precisely on the management of the dealerships...

 

Had the F-Type not been offered with a manual, I would NOT have been a buyer.  My four-door X-Type was purchased SPECIFICALLY because it was equipped with three-pedals.  I WOULD have bought an XE if JLR would have brought the manual version to the States.  Instead, I would have to go gray market...damned Euros get ALL the good stuff.

I think the number of people who SAY they want them is vastly more than those who actually do want them. Sure, everyone says they want their brown manual RWD Volvo wagon but the reality is that most people see cars as nothing but an appliance, and enthusiasts are few and far between. Kids these days are getting their licenses later than ever because they just don't appear to value driving or car culture. Unless something has changed recently, even the BMW 3-Series will be automatic only. Plus, with all the autonomous driving features and crash avoidance features, automatics are falling out of favor there as well. I would love to have another 4-door, 5-cylinder, 5-speed Audi again but that's not going to happen. I'll give credit for Mazda for at least making the manual live on a little while longer, though, oddly, it's only available in the top-trim Mazda3. Which is better than only being available on the poverty-spec model, I guess.

 

Really, though. As much as I love manuals, the ZF 8HP transmission is an utterly phenomenal gearbox. There are some manuals on the market that I would easily take the 8HP over, because they feel like churning a pot of cold gravel.

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49 minutes ago, Bad Doctor Frost said:

NA or ND for me. NB I can't fit in and NC is a whale.

Your comment on the NB surprises me...I didn't think the interior changed.  I thought the biggest change there was getting rid of pop-ups and a few other styling cues.  Don't remember if the tupperware was the NB or the NC...I do remember telling a dealership when that package came out that they would have a sale if they could delete it though...they refused.  I stayed with my BRG NA.  I have kept it stock save for adding the BBS wheels from a '92 B&T. 

 

I still want a Merlot though...

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55 minutes ago, centex said:

Your comment on the NB surprises me...I didn't think the interior changed.  I thought the biggest change there was getting rid of pop-ups and a few other styling cues.  Don't remember if the tupperware was the NB or the NC...I do remember telling a dealership when that package came out that they would have a sale if they could delete it though...they refused.  I stayed with my BRG NA.  I have kept it stock save for adding the BBS wheels from a '92 B&T. 

 

I still want a Merlot though...

I am all torso, and for some reason, I do not fit in them. A good buddy of mine has a 2005 MSM with Lotus seats (essentially a frame wrapped in leather and stuck to the floor) and, when I sit in it, the top of the windshield is right at the bridge of my nose. I can fit....but only with the top down. I look a little like Jeremy Clarkson when he bought the MG Midget clone at auction. I don't have this problem with NAs, nor do I have it with NDs. I can fit in NCs too, but they're just too big to be fun.

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