Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

ab348

carnaught said:

@sda, watch out for the gators.

When I saw that lower deck level with posts going down into the water I had a similar thought.

kyfdx

qbrozen said:

@sda said:

Sea Pines off Plantation Dr. Gorgeous. Getting ready to ride bikes.

Yep. SW corner.

We looked at a townhouse there. You can get one for less than a condo on the ocean side.

We stayed in those Sea Pines condos about a dozen times between 1994-2011. Great family vacations! Condo prices are crazy, though.

driver100

@sda The Passat is a nice looking car, but they haven't changed them much over the years. Our 2013 looked the same, and the instrument cluster was exactly the same. I was impressed with the quality workmanship and the European handling - for a reasonable price. I guess the end is coming soon.

abacomike

@driver100 said:
@sda The Passat is a nice looking car, but they haven't changed them much over the years. Our 2013 looked the same, and the instrument cluster was exactly the same. I was impressed with the quality workmanship and the European handling - for a reasonable price. I guess the end is coming soon.

Driver, the Passat has grown in size since your 2013 and is much roomier inside. The shape is similar but the 2013 and the 2021 are merely related - definitely not the same cars. 🤓

abacomike

Speaking about inventory shortages, GM is suspending operations at all of its assembly plants due to semiconductor shortages! Can the other manufacturers be far behind? Probably not! Shortages of vehicles causes significant increases in prices. Going to be very slow introductions of 2022 vehicles because of this situation.

roadburner

abacomike said:

Speaking about inventory shortages, GM is suspending operations at all of its assembly plants due to semiconductor shortages! Can the other manufacturers be far behind? Probably not! Shortages of vehicles causes significant increases in prices. Going to be very slow introductions of 2022 vehicles because of this situation.

The GM at my BMW store told me that the main problem for them is the unavailability of certain options, such as wireless charging pads.

mjfloyd1

It’s only a 4 day shutdown when you exclude Labor Day.

abacomike

@roadburner said:
The GM at my BMW store told me that the main problem for them is the unavailability of certain options, such as wireless charging pads.

I have 2 ways I can charge my iPhone while in the car - USB cable or wireless charging slot in my console. I prefer using the USB cable because my phone charges faster and with less heat production. I have 2-USB slots - one for CarPlay and one for connectivity for the music on my phone. The phone charges using either slot.

dino001

The unit total production shortage across all brands and models will be in millions by the time it’s over.
Wireless charging pad may be a decent convenience, but not a necessity, plus I’m not convinced I’d by one from BMW at their proposed prices. Like $300 for Apple Play back in the day I bought my GC.

venture

abacomike said:

@roadburner said:

The GM at my BMW store told me that the main problem for them is the unavailability of certain options, such as wireless charging pads.

I have 2 ways I can charge my iPhone while in the car - USB cable or wireless charging slot in my console. I prefer using the USB cable because my phone charges faster and with less heat production. I have 2-USB slots - one for CarPlay and one for connectivity for the music on my phone. The phone charges using either slot.

I found the same thing when charging my phone in the Legacy. Faster with the cable, but I use the 12 volt option usually instead of USB. The wireless is slower and the phone gets pretty hot.

sda

oldfarmer50 said:

sda said:

We are spending the week in Hilton Head. The Passat is a great highway cruiser and got great gas mileage. Heavy traffic around HH brought it down from 43.4 to 41.


A couple of pics, the Q5, RDX, VW fleet were all loaded down.

Nice vacation spot, nice gas mileage. What engine do you have in the Passat?

2.0 TSI, 174 hp, 4 cylinder turbo. It takes RUG. Most of the time, good power, though there were a couple of time I wish it had more. Can’t complain about mpg and it is a smooth and very muted (noise) engine even when working hard.

driver100

abacomike said:

@driver100 said:
@sda The Passat is a nice looking car, but they haven't changed them much over the years. Our 2013 looked the same, and the instrument cluster was exactly the same. I was impressed with the quality workmanship and the European handling - for a reasonable price. I guess the end is coming soon.

Driver, the Passat has grown in size since your 2013 and is much roomier inside. The shape is similar but the 2013 and the 2021 are merely related - definitely not the same cars. 🤓

That explains why the price has gone up, according to C&D they start at $28k+ and is their #9 choice. Most are around $25k with #1 being Accord, #2 was a surprise - Mazda 6, #3 Sonata which looks pretty nice with it's remodel - see below, #4 KIA K5 and #6 Camry at $26k.

Actually, $28k is pretty good because our 2013 was $23k and was a manual. It was also slow, I believe the new ones have more hps.

stickguy

C&D always rates the Mazda high, even though few people buy them. It is the best drivers car of the bunch, and they always prioritize that.

sda

@driver100 is correct. The 2018 is essentially the same as his 2013. It had a styling update in 2016 and multiple powertrain and equipment, features changes through time. The 2021 was revised again but is still the same car. It is a good solid no nonsense car.

sda

I haven’t had a real chance to use the adaptive cruise control until our trip. I followed my wife in the Q5, and my SIL in her RDX. I had our dogs riding with me. When we were on the interstate I set cruise on 80 even though we were going about 75. It was great as the car slowed down and sped up to speed as appropriate and kept a proper distance with the flow of traffic. I’m spoiled by it now. And speaking of spoiled, our dogs travel with us where ever we go. Their bed takes up my trunk. Everything else in the other vehicles.

Michaell

sda said:

I haven’t had a real chance to use the adaptive cruise control until our trip. I followed my wife in the Q5, and my SIL in her RDX. I had our dogs riding with me. When we were on the interstate I set cruise on 80 even though we were going about 75. It was great as the car slowed down and sped up to speed as appropriate and kept a proper distance with the flow of traffic. I’m spoiled by it now. And speaking of spoiled, our dogs travel with us where ever we go. Their bed takes up my trunk. Everything else in the other vehicles.

Curious how it reacts when you come to a stop - in the Subaru, the ACC brings the car to 0 MPH, then shows "HOLD" on the dashboard. When traffic starts to move again, a slight tap on the gas pedal resets the system back to the original MPH setting. Very nice.

bwia

oldfarmer50 said:

We were doing shuttles out of the airport today which is usually considered grunt work. One bright spot among the Accents and Versas was one Infinity Q70. It had one of the most beautiful interiors I’ve seen in a long time. Creamer colored leather with matching pleated door panels. Very comfortable, powerful even in 3.7L V6 form. Couldn’t tell much about handling in the 1 mile shuttle with the local constabulary staked out waiting for the over enthusiastic transporter but it seemed very tight and centered. Wouldn’t mind owning one if I had a few more bucks.

For some reason my Edmunds Cars and Conversations start page defaults to page 1595 (Nov 2018). And this @oldfarmer50 post featuring the Q70 still looks fresh. Good design or am I stuck in a time warp?

sda

Michaell said:

sda said:

I haven’t had a real chance to use the adaptive cruise control until our trip. I followed my wife in the Q5, and my SIL in her RDX. I had our dogs riding with me. When we were on the interstate I set cruise on 80 even though we were going about 75. It was great as the car slowed down and sped up to speed as appropriate and kept a proper distance with the flow of traffic. I’m spoiled by it now. And speaking of spoiled, our dogs travel with us where ever we go. Their bed takes up my trunk. Everything else in the other vehicles.

Curious how it reacts when you come to a stop - in the Subaru, the ACC brings the car to 0 MPH, then shows "HOLD" on the dashboard. When traffic starts to move again, a slight tap on the gas pedal resets the system back to the original MPH setting. Very nice.

I haven’t been brave enough to let it slow down below 40, my foot automatically goes to the brake pedal. From my understanding this setup only slows to 20 then the driver needs to take over, i.e. brake.

Michaell

sda said:

Michaell said:

sda said:

I haven’t had a real chance to use the adaptive cruise control until our trip. I followed my wife in the Q5, and my SIL in her RDX. I had our dogs riding with me. When we were on the interstate I set cruise on 80 even though we were going about 75. It was great as the car slowed down and sped up to speed as appropriate and kept a proper distance with the flow of traffic. I’m spoiled by it now. And speaking of spoiled, our dogs travel with us where ever we go. Their bed takes up my trunk. Everything else in the other vehicles.

Curious how it reacts when you come to a stop - in the Subaru, the ACC brings the car to 0 MPH, then shows "HOLD" on the dashboard. When traffic starts to move again, a slight tap on the gas pedal resets the system back to the original MPH setting. Very nice.

I haven’t been brave enough to let it slow down below 40, my foot automatically goes to the brake pedal. From my understanding this setup only slows to 20 then the driver needs to take over, i.e. brake.

OK, that would be similar to the Toyota ACC - it shuts down when the speed drops below a specific threshold - I think 20 MPH, as well.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

abacomike said:

Speaking about inventory shortages, GM is suspending operations at all of its assembly plants due to semiconductor shortages! Can the other manufacturers be far behind? Probably not! Shortages of vehicles causes significant increases in prices. Going to be very slow introductions of 2022 vehicles because of this situation.

The GM at my BMW store told me that the main problem for them is the unavailability of certain options, such as wireless charging pads.

I can think of a half dozen useless gewgaws like that that I would never miss.

driver100

bwia said:

oldfarmer50 said:

We were doing shuttles out of the airport today which is usually considered grunt work. One bright spot among the Accents and Versas was one Infinity Q70. It had one of the most beautiful interiors I’ve seen in a long time. Creamer colored leather with matching pleated door panels. Very comfortable, powerful even in 3.7L V6 form. Couldn’t tell much about handling in the 1 mile shuttle with the local constabulary staked out waiting for the over enthusiastic transporter but it seemed very tight and centered. Wouldn’t mind owning one if I had a few more bucks.

For some reason my Edmunds Cars and Conversations start page defaults to page 1595 (Nov 2018). And this @oldfarmer50 post featuring the Q70 still looks fresh. Good design or am I stuck in a time warp?

Mine defaults to page 1534 where I saw this exchange;
jmonroe1 Pittsburgh areaMember Posts: 3,065 September 2018

imidazol97 said:

So far no one has commented on the data showing the Accord 2016, 17, 18 models are having higher repair problems. And the article will even let you read the types of problems real owners, not actors, are experiencing.

If this were about Malibus or other GM products, there would be comments.

You need to eat more pickles. Pickles have been claimed to grow thicker skin. That's why models don't eat them.
Just a suggestion.
jmonroe

Some things never really change

oldfarmer50

bwia said:

oldfarmer50 said:

We were doing shuttles out of the airport today which is usually considered grunt work. One bright spot among the Accents and Versas was one Infinity Q70. It had one of the most beautiful interiors I’ve seen in a long time. Creamer colored leather with matching pleated door panels. Very comfortable, powerful even in 3.7L V6 form. Couldn’t tell much about handling in the 1 mile shuttle with the local constabulary staked out waiting for the over enthusiastic transporter but it seemed very tight and centered. Wouldn’t mind owning one if I had a few more bucks.

For some reason my Edmunds Cars and Conversations start page defaults to page 1595 (Nov 2018). And this @oldfarmer50 post featuring the Q70 still looks fresh. Good design or am I stuck in a time warp?

Probably wanted to make sure you didn’t miss my witty banter.

driver100

sda said:

@driver100 is correct. The 2018 is essentially the same as his 2013. It had a styling update in 2016 and multiple powertrain and equipment, features changes through time. The 2021 was revised again but is still the same car. It is a good solid no nonsense car.

One odd thing...I never get comments about the E400, but I had 3 or 4 people comment that the Passat was a really nice looking car. The Sonata and KIA are flashier looking, but the Passat has nice clean sensible styling. I still don't know how they got the backseat area so large, it is like a limo back there!

jmonroe1

driver100 said:

sda said:

@driver100 is correct. The 2018 is essentially the same as his 2013. It had a styling update in 2016 and multiple powertrain and equipment, features changes through time. The 2021 was revised again but is still the same car. It is a good solid no nonsense car.

One odd thing...I never get comments about the E400, but I had 3 or 4 people comment that the Passat was a really nice looking car. The Sonata and KIA are flashier looking, but the Passat has nice clean sensible styling. I still don't know how they got the backseat area so large, it is like a limo back there!

Now you know how I feel when I got several nice comments when I had the black 2015 Altima rental for 2 days when Mrs. j’s 2012 Subie was in the shop having the right front fender replaced as a result of being hit by a pickup in a youth hockey arena parking lot. I never got that many complements about my 2015 Jenny in such a short period of time. :@

jmonroe

snakeweasel

ab348 said:

Just had to post this BaT auction result for a beautiful restored/modified 1950s travel trailer that sold for $630K.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1950-westcraft-capistrano/

Wow thats nice.

snakeweasel

qbrozen said:

@imidazol97 said:

Yes it is. Who says camping while traveling is cheaper than staying in motels/hotels...

Does anybody? If they do, they’ve never looked at the nightly prices of rv parks.

Although I wouldn’t call it camping. Camping involves no more than a tent for shelter, IMHO.

I say it's cheaper, but then again to me luxury camping is a tent I can stand up in that has a floor, an inflatable bed and a flush toilet within a half mile walk. Most places i have camped in were $25 or less with the vast majority being under $20.

snakeweasel

sda said:

We are spending the week in Hilton Head. The Passat is a great highway cruiser and got great gas mileage. Heavy traffic around HH brought it down from 43.4 to 41.

Our weekend trip we got in the low thirties for the whole trip. However our trip involved no interstate driving and was all on back country roads. The driftless region is very rugged and hilly making most of the driving there on hills with tight turns so hard to keep a consistent speed which hurt our mileage.

Here is where we stayed, it's on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi.

venture

Michaell said:

sda said:

I haven’t had a real chance to use the adaptive cruise control until our trip. I followed my wife in the Q5, and my SIL in her RDX. I had our dogs riding with me. When we were on the interstate I set cruise on 80 even though we were going about 75. It was great as the car slowed down and sped up to speed as appropriate and kept a proper distance with the flow of traffic. I’m spoiled by it now. And speaking of spoiled, our dogs travel with us where ever we go. Their bed takes up my trunk. Everything else in the other vehicles.

Curious how it reacts when you come to a stop - in the Subaru, the ACC brings the car to 0 MPH, then shows "HOLD" on the dashboard. When traffic starts to move again, a slight tap on the gas pedal resets the system back to the original MPH setting. Very nice.

Yeah. My Legacy and Ascent do that too. Nice feature, but I always have my foot hovering over the brake pedal.

benjaminh

Got to try out my new Michelin CrossClimate tires in the rain yesterday, and as expected they are really good. Even got to test them in an empty school parking lot, and the wet traction is impressive. Glad I splurged on these tires, even though now I need to economize in other areas to pay for them.

driver100

jmonroe1 said:

driver100 said:

sda said:

@driver100 is correct. The 2018 is essentially the same as his 2013. It had a styling update in 2016 and multiple powertrain and equipment, features changes through time. The 2021 was revised again but is still the same car. It is a good solid no nonsense car.

One odd thing...I never get comments about the E400, but I had 3 or 4 people comment that the Passat was a really nice looking car. The Sonata and KIA are flashier looking, but the Passat has nice clean sensible styling. I still don't know how they got the backseat area so large, it is like a limo back there!

Now you know how I feel when I got several nice comments when I had the black 2015 Altima rental for 2 days when Mrs. j’s 2012 Subie was in the shop having the right front fender replaced as a result of being hit by a pickup in a youth hockey arena parking lot. I never got that many complements about my 2015 Jenny in such a short period of time. :@

jmonroe

Maybe people are more comfortable relating to someone who is driving a car they can identify with. 30 years ago I liked watching Motorweek on PBS. I watched when they tested cars I might be interested in buying....I lost interest when they started reviewing Maserati's and Ferraris every week......what good does that do me?

ab348

driver100 said:

One odd thing...I never get comments about the E400, but I had 3 or 4 people comment that the Passat was a really nice looking car.

I was watching Leno review movie director John Frankenheimer's 1965 Rolls-Royce Sliver Cloud and he made a comment about how that is the type of car that people tend to be a bit intimidated by when they see it - assuming it is someone who is very wealthy or famous inside. Could the same be happneing with your E-Class?



OK, I guess not...

sda

@carnaught said:
@sda, watch out for the gators.

Did you say GATORS? Picture taken from top level of deck.

stickguy

Scratch Hilton Head off the list of places to move to.

I don't do gators.

mlevine

Any thoughts about the volvo XC 60 or atlas cross sport. Need new vehicle as lease is up.

abacomike

@driver100 said:
Maybe people are more comfortable relating to someone who is driving a car they can identify with. 30 years ago I liked watching Motorweek on PBS. I watched when they tested cars I might be interested in buying....I lost interest when they started reviewing Maserati's and Ferraris every week......what good does that do me?

Entertainment? 😜🤪🤓

sda

Has anyone been in contact with Mr_Shiftright? I hope he is enjoying his retirement.

bwia

Neil deGrasse Tyson and Malcolm Gladwell were on the radio discussing the technology behind self-driving cars. In essence, they concluded that the technology does not sufficiently take into consideration human behavior--rational or irrational.

Take for instance, the simple act of J-walking. If a person walks in front of an autonomous moving vehicle, the car will stop and so will all traffic that follows. Fair enough, but in a city where people constantly walk in and out of traffic, that is a recipe for perpetual gridlock. Getting to work in the morning would be a nightmare scenario. While this might appear to be a trivial point, it’s not really, if all other vehicles on the road are also self- driving. Eventually, passengers will get to their destinations, late and frustrated. So, instead of solving a problem, self-driving cars potentially create a new one that cannot be easily solved by artificial intelligence.

imidazol97

sda said:

Has anyone been in contact with Mr_Shiftright? I hope he is enjoying his retirement.

Same here!

ab348

sda said:

Has anyone been in contact with Mr_Shiftright? I hope he is enjoying his retirement.

After he first departed here I encountered him a few times on Twitter, but none that I can recall recently.

imidazol97

@driver100 said:

Maybe people are more comfortable relating to someone who is driving a car they can identify with. 30 years ago I liked watching Motorweek on PBS. I watched when they tested cars I might be interested in buying....I lost interest when they started reviewing Maserati's and Ferraris every week......what good does that do me?


That show tested few cars I'd be interested in buying.

snakeweasel

@bwia said:

Take for instance, the simple act of J-walking. If a person walks in front of an autonomous moving vehicle, the car will stop and so will all traffic that follows.

As apposed to now where the driver doesn't stop and simply runs over the J-walker?

bwia

Nice way to spend Labor Day if you can get away with it.

imidazol97

benjaminh said:

Got to try out my new Michelin CrossClimate tires in the rain yesterday, and as expected they are really good. Even got to test them in an empty school parking lot, and the wet traction is impressive. Glad I splurged on these tires, even though now I need to economize in other areas to pay for them.

Glad to hear the good news.

roadburner

@sda said:

@carnaught said:
@sda, watch out for the gators.

Did you say GATORS? Picture taken from top level of deck.

This guy was outside our condo at Kiawah:

carnaught

On another subject. 40lbs of seedless watermelon sliced in cubes - I expect every piece sweet, juicy and crunchy like the last two.

snakeweasel

@carnaught said:
On another subject. 40lbs of seedless watermelon sliced in cubes - I expect every piece sweet, juicy and crunchy like the last two.

Crunchy? Are you sure it's seedless?

imidazol97

Looks good. I'll have to pick up a watermelon at Kroger while they're in season here.

oldfarmer50

sda said:

Has anyone been in contact with Mr_Shiftright? I hope he is enjoying his retirement.

Didn’t he pass away? Or am I thinking of someone else?

Michaell

oldfarmer50 said:

sda said:

Has anyone been in contact with Mr_Shiftright? I hope he is enjoying his retirement.

Didn’t he pass away? Or am I thinking of someone else?

He just posted on FB the other day.

explorerx4

Back from my trip to Ohio.
Left at 5am Thursday. Rain and wind from Ida had stopped by then.
At 10am a charter jet crashed just after takeoff a half a mile from my house.
It crashed into a local business and 2 employees were injured.
4 people on board the plane, unfortunately none survived.
One of my kids went to school with one of the victims, sadly, an expectant mom.
Husband and wife were on the plane without their, now parentless, 1 year old.
Very sad.