Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

abacomike

There is a difference between Eastern and Central and Western Canada in how Canadian English is spoken.  In Western Canada, thy speak more Americanized English while the other two regions have more of a distinct dialect.  The same is true for the U.S.  In the South, it's a bit of a drawl.  In the Northeast they pronounce words a bit differently than the Midwest and Western Regions.  I used to have a distinct New York accent but when I moved to the Chicago area, I picked up a Midwestern twang and lost my NY slurring.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

dino001 said:

driver100 said:

We bought our 2012 Passat 3 years ago...this is the car that is in Florida.

So this morning I get a long distance call from Mike somebody who says "Did you read over your service policy when you purchased your car?"

So I said sure.

He said well do you know you owe us a payment for your service policy.

I said get lost.....slam down the phone.

I had once a message on my answering machine from "IRS" that they are going to sue me. Of course a robo-voice no details. They did leave a number to call back. I went on the FBI site to report it, thought perhaps if acted quickly they may give them a call and track those guys. These "IRS" calls are reaching epidemic proportions. As expected, no follow up. Your tax money at work.

The IRS scam. That is a popular one right now. They tell you to get a temporary credit card, load it up with $1000 or whatever you owe - and then call them back or you could be fined and go to prison.

That one and the grandson who is in trouble and needs some bail money. Something he didn't do but he doesn't want to go to prison. Please wire some money.

What a life....having to scam people to make a living.

You would think that no one would fall for that "grandma I need bail" scam but I know someone who was actually withdrawing the money from the bank when a sharp teller told her what was going on. She was a former school teacher so you'd assume she had heard every scam from her students over the years.

I guess everyone is vulnerable if caught at the right time.

Surprisingly, I think teachers may be more vulnerable than most people about these things. They live in a kind of ideal setting and don't experience the seamier side of business as much as some of the people who have to deal with scammers in the real working world.

I have read that doctors and dentists are vulnerable to scams, especially investment scams. They have the income to buy in but don't have the time to study things, and they aren't in contact with scammers during the course of their work day. A doctor friend agreed with this theory.

driver100

abacomike said:

There is a difference between Eastern and Central and Western Canada in how Canadian English is spoken.  In Western Canada, thy speak more Americanized English while the other two regions have more of a distinct dialect.  The same is true for the U.S.  In the South, it's a bit of a drawl.  In the Northeast they pronounce words a bit differently than the Midwest and Western Regions.  I used to have a distinct New York accent but when I moved to the Chicago area, I picked up a Midwestern twang and lost my NY slurring.

I have to agree. In far Eastern Canada we have Newfoundlers who speak a very sing songy but ultra friendly dialect. Some phrases are different, instead of saying this is the month of May they will say it is May month. It's kind of cute, you just have to like them.

In central Canada as in the city of Toronto, you get a bit of a lazy dialect and Toronto is actually pronounced Terrantah.

In the West I would call it very plain talking. Words are pronounced as they should be with no extra's put on the words. One of your great newscasters was a Canadian and he only had a Grade 9 education. You may remember Peter Jennings. And someone like the late Lorne Green had nice diction, and he was Canadian.

dino001

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

imidazol97 said:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-424-354-4130

Beverly Hills. Some said that automatic dialer often hangs up on people who do answer. Seems to
be car "warranty" sales company.

driver100 said:

Sarah Palen says, perfect American.

Unnecessary political comment.

Thanks for the info imid....now it makes sense.

Is there an agency that can look into this outfit and close them down.

I wonder how bad it would be if someone fell for their phony extended warranty program - try to collect on that!

Nah, not unnecessary political comment....just a came to mind, if Sarah said it I can quote it, has nothing to do with politics. If George Clooney, Hilary or Yogi Berra said it I still would have put it in.

A woman at work told me her daughter got a telemarketing job selling warranties over the phone. Seems she was pretty good at it and convinced many to buy. I guess all the hard sell and deception got to her after a while. She quit.

They called about every 2 weeks about getting the extended warranty and that scam could have some credibility, after all you assume the car dealer gave them your information. But, the car has about 5k miles on it in 3 years, and that was explained about the first 8 times they called. Several times they were asked not to call again, but I am sure they don't keep records of requests.

It must be a real boiler room, and though that lady may have got lots of new customers for them, she probably got an earful most of the time too.

The more you talk, the more they call back. Just hang up, or better, don't pick up. I may be getting those calls, but I simply don't even know it. If it rings with a number I don't recognize, I ignore it. I get postcards with this junk, but you know where they go.

verdugo

driver100 said:

imidazol97 said:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-424-354-4130

Beverly Hills. Some said that automatic dialer often hangs up on people who do answer. Seems to
be car "warranty" sales company.

driver100 said:

Sarah Palen says, perfect American.

Unnecessary political comment.

Thanks for the info imid....now it makes sense.

Is there an agency that can look into this outfit and close them down.

I wonder how bad it would be if someone fell for their phony extended warranty program - try to collect on that!

Nah, not unnecessary political comment....just a came to mind, if Sarah said it I can quote it, has nothing to do with politics. If George Clooney, Hilary or Yogi Berra said it I still would have put it in.

Driver, if he called on your cell phone, it's easy to block the number. If he called your landline, well, why do you still have one? It's 2015. :-) I'm sure your phone company can help you block that number.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

imidazol97 said:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-424-354-4130

Beverly Hills. Some said that automatic dialer often hangs up on people who do answer. Seems to
be car "warranty" sales company.

driver100 said:

Sarah Palen says, perfect American.

Unnecessary political comment.

Not to mention he misspelled PALIN.

.

See, it was another Palen I was quoting....Sam Arnold Ronald Archie, SARA for short, Palen.

driver100

verdugo said:

driver100 said:

imidazol97 said:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-424-354-4130

Beverly Hills. Some said that automatic dialer often hangs up on people who do answer. Seems to
be car "warranty" sales company.

driver100 said:

Sarah Palen says, perfect American.

Unnecessary political comment.

Thanks for the info imid....now it makes sense.

Is there an agency that can look into this outfit and close them down.

I wonder how bad it would be if someone fell for their phony extended warranty program - try to collect on that!

Nah, not unnecessary political comment....just a came to mind, if Sarah said it I can quote it, has nothing to do with politics. If George Clooney, Hilary or Yogi Berra said it I still would have put it in.

Driver, if he called on your cell phone, it's easy to block the number. If he called your landline, well, why do you still have one? It's 2015. :-) I'm sure your phone company can help you block that number.

Verdugo, I wouldn't be without a landline in Canada or the US. And, I don't ignore all numbers I don't know because we have received some very important calls that we would have missed if I did that. We do have an unlisted number, so we get very few phony callers.

I hate using my cell phone. I know, I am a dinosaur, but I only call out on my cell phone about twice a month. I never bother to turn it on and I don't like taking calls when I am out and about. I have lived that way for over 60 years and I don't want to be tied to a cell phone so people can call me at their convenience. They can call me at home when I decide I want to talk to them.

I know people feel lost without their phone, they think it is like going into public naked. They have to have it on the table in a restaurant so they can watch it in case someone "has" to reach them. I have enough things going on in my life, I don't need people calling me when I would rather not have a conversation on the phone.

But, the suggestion is appreciated, I know you mean well, and for some people it suits them - and some, not so much.

stickguy

I work from home. The house phone rings regularly during the day. Rarely any speaking, but sometimes. I just look at the caller ID and ignore it.

if it is actually someone I need to talk to, and they start leaving a message, I can always pick up quick and talke to them.

suydam

I don't know too many people with landlines. If it's a number I don't recognize I don't answer. Anyone legit will leave a voice mail. If they don't I block the number.

imidazol97

As to the home phone, I bought a Panasonic model that blocks 250 calling numbers. When a number calls and I look it up and find it's one of the scam numbers, it gets blocked. If they call more than once and aren't in the scammer list on the google search, they get blocked when no message is left. I love my Panasonic home phone that blocks all those numbers. I have it set to not ring on the first ring: the phone lights up and scans the number. If it's blocked, the phone never rings. If not blocked, the phone give and audible ring on what is actually the second ring.

imidazol97

As to Sarah Palen misspelling, I just assumed that was the British spelling and didn't want to labour on about the point. LOL.

As to the quote, it wouldn't be known if she hadn't indicated support for a popular GOP candidate. The media folks mostly of another party, like to make the other party folks look dumb or goofy by repeating quotes like this one, or by asking them penetrating questions on names they might not answer. The speaking goofs, from their main leader or from candidates on their party's side, might get mentioned once, but don't get mocked over and over and into late night TV on Leno's top ten list, e.g.. Don't know if this kind of shenanigan goes on in Canada or not.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

There is a difference between Eastern and Central and Western Canada in how Canadian English is spoken.  In Western Canada, thy speak more Americanized English while the other two regions have more of a distinct dialect.  The same is true for the U.S.  In the South, it's a bit of a drawl.  In the Northeast they pronounce words a bit differently than the Midwest and Western Regions.  I used to have a distinct New York accent but when I moved to the Chicago area, I picked up a Midwestern twang and lost my NY slurring.

I have to agree. In far Eastern Canada we have Newfoundlers who speak a very sing songy but ultra friendly dialect. Some phrases are different, instead of saying this is the month of May they will say it is May month. It's kind of cute, you just have to like them.

In central Canada as in the city of Toronto, you get a bit of a lazy dialect and Toronto is actually pronounced Terrantah.

In the West I would call it very plain talking. Words are pronounced as they should be with no extra's put on the words. One of your great newscasters was a Canadian and he only had a Grade 9 education. You may remember Peter Jennings. And someone like the late Lorne Green had nice diction, and he was Canadian.

Let's not forget Capt. Kirk from Star Trek.

abacomike

@verdugo said:  

"....If he called your landline, well, why do you still have one? It's 2015. :-)...."

I considered dropping my AT&T landline because I use it so seldom, however down here in Florida, hurricanes are always a threat.  I can't forget after "Wilma", we were without electricity for 4 days and 3 out of every 5 cell towers were off-line due to wind damage.  I was so thankful we had a landline because that was the only way to make and receive phone calls for many, many days.

I use the phone mainly to call the security gate when I am expecting a delivery or guests.  The security gate knows it's me calling from home, not an attempt by someone to gain entry to the community,  because their security traces the phone call to them through their computer network.  

ab348

robr2 said:

Ever get a call with nibody there?  That device doesn't do any good because just by answering the phone tells the caller it is a good number which is then sold to another company that uses live operators. 

I'd say it does a lot of good. It stops the damn phone from ringing, maybe makes the person in the boiler room at the other end a bit more frustrated, and if it ends up getting my number "sold" to another miserable outfit (why would they buy those?), then they have spent money on something useless. Win-win-win.

imidazol97

oldfarmer50 said:

I have to agree. In far Eastern Canada we have Newfoundlers who speak a very sing songy but ultra friendly dialect. Some phrases are different, instead of saying this is the month of May they will say it is May month. It's kind of cute, you just have to like them.

That may describe the speech pattern of the gentleman from Nova Scotia at Horseshoe Curve who spent his vacations each year documenting freight train cars. He was there the day we visited and had a speech pattern that sounded Scottish or similar to me.

Nice sounding speech is from North Carolina. Charlotte area has a very pleasing speech pattern. I'm from
east central Indiana. Not good.

ab348

imidazol97 said:

Nice sounding speech is from North Carolina. Charlotte area has a very pleasing speech pattern. I'm from
east central Indiana. Not good.

I dunno about that. Aren't both David Letterman and Jane Pauley from Indiana? Both made out pretty well in broadcasting.

stever

I think I'll go car shopping out of state tomorrow. Texas. Used to be accused of being from there as my Mississippi accent melded with all the oil patch transplants up in my Alaska years.

Bigger dealers in El Paso, closer than ABQ, and it's a good excuse for my bimonthly* Costco run. Not to mention a good tapas joint downtown. Hope to see a loaded '16 Soul and an Elantra GT. And hopefully narrow the possibles list down a little bit more.

*Odd word, used here to mean once every two months, not twice a month.

imidazol97

ab348 said:

I dunno about that. Aren't both David Letterman and Jane Pauley from Indiana? Both made out pretty well in broadcasting.

Letterman also attended BSU as did I. He graduated 1969 and was a Sigma Chi member. Letterman and I overlapped by one year when he was a freshman.


I recall watching Jane Pauley doing the 11 pm news on Indianapolis TV . Somebody did something to crack her up and she absolutely couldn't talk for a half minute so with laughing. I had never seen someone lose control on television. She always seemed like a person I'd enjoy having visit and talking with while sipping a cup of coffee.

Can't find the video of the blooper. I know I saw it played when Pauley was leaving some show. But I found someone else's reference to it: - "Jane Pauley starting to laugh uncontrollably on the news set at WISH-8...and breaking up Mike Ahern and Stan Wood in the process. No one could regain their composure and the show ended up going to screen black before an extended commercial break. When they returned Pauley had left the set mid show."

http://www.radiodiscussions.com/showthread.php?464434-If-you-could-see-one-more-full-day-of-any-tv-or-cable-station-from-any-era/page2

carnaught

Wife got a call relating to that IRS scam. She told the caller that her sister works for the IRS, and will investigate why she is being called about an IRS infraction. The caller promptly hung up.

driver100

imidazol97 said:

As to Sarah Palen misspelling, I just assumed that was the British spelling and didn't want to labour on about the point. LOL.

As to the quote, it wouldn't be known if she hadn't indicated support for a popular GOP candidate. The media folks mostly of another party, like to make the other party folks look dumb or goofy by repeating quotes like this one, or by asking them penetrating questions on names they might not answer. The speaking goofs, from their main leader or from candidates on their party's side, might get mentioned once, but don't get mocked over and over and into late night TV on Leno's top ten list, e.g.. Don't know if this kind of shenanigan goes on in Canada or not.

All true! But, even worse, the quote was taken a bit out of context. What she actually said was " when you’re here, let’s speak American. Let’s speak English, and that’s a kind of a unifying aspect of a nation is the language that is understood by all.” She was making a statement but her thoughts got a bit muddled, but that part was left out.

I just put it in my post because it was a funny mistake, that almost anyone could make....my wife who is a grammatical guru laughed out loud when she heard her remark (of course it was chopped off after the word American). Being Canadian we are probably quick to pick up on her gaffe.

Canadians are are in election mode right now...major election happening in mid October, and it is getting nasty and ridiculous. The party that promises the most leads the polls, and people just don't realize who will be paying for all those promises. And yes, the media people lean to the left, especially since our current Conservative government wants to chop our national network (paid for by tax dollars).

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

There is a difference between Eastern and Central and Western Canada in how Canadian English is spoken.  In Western Canada, thy speak more Americanized English while the other two regions have more of a distinct dialect.  The same is true for the U.S.  In the South, it's a bit of a drawl.  In the Northeast they pronounce words a bit differently than the Midwest and Western Regions.  I used to have a distinct New York accent but when I moved to the Chicago area, I picked up a Midwestern twang and lost my NY slurring.

I have to agree. In far Eastern Canada we have Newfoundlers who speak a very sing songy but ultra friendly dialect. Some phrases are different, instead of saying this is the month of May they will say it is May month. It's kind of cute, you just have to like them.

In central Canada as in the city of Toronto, you get a bit of a lazy dialect and Toronto is actually pronounced Terrantah.

In the West I would call it very plain talking. Words are pronounced as they should be with no extra's put on the words. One of your great newscasters was a Canadian and he only had a Grade 9 education. You may remember Peter Jennings. And someone like the late Lorne Green had nice diction, and he was Canadian.

Let's not forget Capt. Kirk from Star Trek.

LOL How could I forget!

driver100

imidazol97 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

I have to agree. In far Eastern Canada we have Newfoundlers who speak a very sing songy but ultra friendly dialect. Some phrases are different, instead of saying this is the month of May they will say it is May month. It's kind of cute, you just have to like them.

That may describe the speech pattern of the gentleman from Nova Scotia at Horseshoe Curve who spent his vacations each year documenting freight train cars. He was there the day we visited and had a speech pattern that sounded Scottish or similar to me.

Nice sounding speech is from North Carolina. Charlotte area has a very pleasing speech pattern. I'm from
east central Indiana. Not good.

Very observant. Nova Scotia has a large Scottish contingent...makes up the largest group in that province...30%.

Mr_Shiftright

Actually the American-born children of immigrants speak very fluent English as a rule and speak their "native" language rather badly. After all, who wants to talk to their parents?

oldfarmer50

houdini1 said:

driver100 said:

dino001 said:

driver100 said:

We bought our 2012 Passat 3 years ago...this is the car that is in Florida.

So this morning I get a long distance call from Mike somebody who says "Did you read over your service policy when you purchased your car?"

So I said sure.

He said well do you know you owe us a payment for your service policy.

I said get lost.....slam down the phone.

I had once a message on my answering machine from "IRS" that they are going to sue me. Of course a robo-voice no details. They did leave a number to call back. I went on the FBI site to report it, thought perhaps if acted quickly they may give them a call and track those guys. These "IRS" calls are reaching epidemic proportions. As expected, no follow up. Your tax money at work.

The IRS scam. That is a popular one right now. They tell you to get a temporary credit card, load it up with $1000 or whatever you owe - and then call them back or you could be fined and go to prison.

That one and the grandson who is in trouble and needs some bail money. Something he didn't do but he doesn't want to go to prison. Please wire some money.

What a life....having to scam people to make a living.

Prison might not be so bad. Minimal work, if any. Free health care. Free dental care. Free rent. Free food. Free utilities. No telling what other free stuff they get. WHAT? NO CARS? Forget it.

Not only all those benefits but you're guaranteed a date every Saturday night....even if you don't want one.

graphicguy

Mr_Shiftright said:

Actually the American-born children of immigrants speak very fluent English as a rule and speak their "native" language rather badly. After all, who wants to talk to their parents?

So true. My parents were Italian immigrants....both bilingual. Unfortunately, my grasp of their native language has seriously eroded over time because I no longer speak it, or hear it with any regularity these days.

abacomike

My parents and 3/4 of my grandparents as well as 4 of my great grand parents were born in the U.S.  Just English was spoken, even by my immigrant grandfather (my Dad's dad).

My Mom's grandparents were all born here and one of her great grandparents was born in the U.S. as well.

Immigrants to the U.S. were intent on learning the English language and were intent on having their children learn the language.  They knew that it was the only way to make it financially and culturally in this country.  Recent immigrants do not seem as intent on learning English, however they insist that their children learn it and speak it.

English is a very difficult language to learn, conversationally as well as written.  

robr2

Mr_Shiftright said:

Actually the American-born children of immigrants speak very fluent English as a rule and speak their "native" language rather badly. After all, who wants to talk to their parents?

I agree. My parents are immigrants and I grew up speaking both Portuguese and English. Unfortunately my grasp of the former has slipped considerably. But my parents are both fluent in English.

I will say that I have relatives that moved to the U.S. to areas with lots of Portuguese immigrants. Their English after 50 years of living here is still limited. 

isellhondas

I just don't get the immigrants that come here and 40 years later can't speak English.

It used to be immigrants wanted to learn English quickly. Now, a lot simply can't be bothered.

fezo

You do hit situations where some just have too difficult time of it. My mom's family, particularly her mother's side probably date back further than Independence, but my dad;s parents both came over on the boat. I missed his dad by three years but he worked various businesses long enough that he must have adapted pretty well. What I always struck me about my grandmother is that while she spoke English well enough I always had the impression that she thought in Italian. She married my grandfather when he was 18 and she was 14 so it's not like she learned further in school and was a classic stay at home mom to 10 kids!

abacomike

fezo said:

You do hit situations where some just have too difficult time of it. My mom's family, particularly her mother's side probably date back further than Independence, but my dad;s parents both came over on the boat. I missed his dad by three years but he worked various businesses long enough that he must have adapted pretty well. What I always struck me about my grandmother is that while she spoke English well enough I always had the impression that she thought in Italian. She married my grandfather when he was 18 and she was 14 so it's not like she learned further in school and was a classic stay at home mom to 10 kids!

Talk about robbing the cradle - 14?  

All kidding aside, it was not uncommon for girls to be married soon after puberty.  In agrarian societies, it was essential to have as many offspring as possible to work in the fields or dairy or vineyards.  Italians, French, Polish, Germans, Irish, to name just a few, were agrarian societies for many generations prior to emigrating to the U.S.

Even in the U.S., with western expansion, the average family had many, many offspring for the same reasons.

stever

I think it'd be fun to be an ex-pat for a while but some of us just don't have a knack for languages. Be a real struggle doing ESL and trying to figure out the nonsensical stuff (see @dino001's sig).

Had two great test drive experiences at the Hyundai and Kia dealers in El Paso. The Elantra GT was a nice ride and my wife really loved it (I think she pretty much loves 'em all). The Soul is still my fav, although today's test was a bit limited since the '16 we drove still had most of the protection materials all over it.

Can't get over how much better visiting the dealers has gotten - maybe I've just read too many horror stories here over the years.

dino001

Many can't master their first language, so the second one is a total mystery for them. My signature is actually picking on the natives, as those of the ESL speakers, who mastered the language at sufficient level would rarely write "there", if they mean "their", or "it's" when they mean "its". These are amongst first things they teach you on ESL courses. These errors are mostly committed by natives, as they often never bother learning writing skills, just like many Poles can't spell our crazy written language. ESL's errors are mostly in grammar, word choice and sentence structure. My main struggle is articles in formal writing. I know the rules, but Polish has no articles whatsoever, so they are not in my natural way of thinking, becoming afterthoughts.

abacomike

dino001 said:

Many can't master their first language, so the second one is a total mystery for them. My signature is actually picking on the natives, those of the ESL speakers, who mastered the language at sufficient level would rarely write "there", if they mean "their", or "it's" when they mean "its". Those are first things they teach you on ESL courses. These errors are mostly committed by natives, as they often never bother learning writing skills, just like many Poles can't spell our crazy written language. ESL's errors are mostly in grammar, word choice and sentence structure. My main struggle is articles in formal writing. I know the rules, but Polish has no articles whatsoever, so they are not in my natural way of thinking, becoming afterthoughts.

My opinion is that you ARE a master of the written English language, dino!  There are not many people who write as well or better than you.

I was (am) a linguist.  Writing is just not "taught"!  If it is not taught, how can one learn?  Skills, such as noun-verb agreement, punctuation and verb tense, are just not stressed in today's schools.  Modern education approaches stress expression of one's thoughts using the written word without equally stressing grammar.  Grammar is secondary and transference of thought to paper is primary.  My philosophy in educating children and/or adults to become competent writers is to stress both grammar and self expression equally as well as simultaneously.

A student must have a purpose or motivation to write.  Without that motivation and purpose, the student will be unable to acquire and utilize (learn) effective writing techniques.

What hampers the teaching and acquisition of appropriate/adequate written language skills is the advancement of technology in the last 15-20 years whereby a writer uses built-in and self-correcting word processing software for correct spelling, word usage, noun/verb agreement, punctuation, paragraphing, etc.

What helped me become a good writer was first becoming a good speaker.  A good speaker must organize his/her thoughts into a cohesive oral language presentation.  A good writer must accomplish this as well.  The only difference in the two is that oral language does not require punctuation or correct spelling.  Appropriate writing skills must be taught and then learned through repetitive trials (exercises aimed at using the learned and/or acquired language skills in the writing process).  I believe in teaching not only the writing "process", but the skills necessary to write correctly and proficiently simultaneously.

I rest my case.

stever

I find that my Spanish is much improved by a couple of Cuba Libras. And I'm only half joking....

abacomike

stever said:

I find that my Spanish is much improved by a couple of Cuba Libras. And I'm only half joking....

Back at ya on the "half joking"!

dino001

abacomike said:

My opinion is that you ARE a master of the written English language, dino!  There are not many people who write as well or better than you.

I was (am) a linguist.  Writing is just not "taught"!  If it is not taught, how can one learn?  Skills, such as noun-verb agreement, punctuation and verb tense, are just not stressed in today's schools.  Modern education approaches stress expression of one's thoughts using the written word without equally stressing grammar.  Grammar is secondary and transference of thought to paper is primary.  My philosophy in educating children and/or adults to become competent writers is to stress both grammar and self expression equally as well as simultaneously.

A student must have a purpose or motivation to write.  Without that motivation and purpose, the student will be unable to acquire and utilize (learn) effective writing techniques.

What hampers the teaching and acquisition of appropriate/adequate written language skills is the advancement of technology in the last 15-20 years whereby a writer uses built-in and self-correcting word processing software for correct spelling, word usage, noun/verb agreement, punctuation, paragraphing, etc.

What helped me become a good writer was first becoming a good speaker.  A good speaker must organized his/her thoughts into a cohesive oral language presentation.  A good writer must accomplish this as well.  The only difference in the two is that oral language does not require punctuation or correct spelling.  Appropriate writing skills must be taught and then learned through repetitive trials (exercises aimed at using the learned and/or acquired language skills in the writing process).  I believe in teaching not only the writing "process", but the skills necessary to write correctly and proficiently simultaneously.

I rest my case.

I appreciate the compliment, Mike.

suydam

Cuba libres?
Or Cubans born under the sign of Libra?

stever

Okay, rum and Cokes then.

My wife really enjoyed the Elantra GT we tested today, but is still lobbying for the Encore.

fezo

"What hampers the teaching and acquisition of appropriate/adequate written language skills is the advancement of technology in the last 15-20 years whereby a writer uses built-in and self-correcting word processing software for correct spelling, word usage, noun/verb agreement, punctuation, paragraphing, etc."

I don't know why but that reminds me of Tom Lehrer on new math, "the idea is to understand what you're doing RATHER THAN get the right answer....

You have to watch on those Cubans. Last year a friend went up to Niagara Falls. I tell him to bring me back a couple of Cubans. Now I'm sure he knew what I meant but I did send a follow up email to say I wanted cigars, not actual Cubans.

suydam

Does the hatch version of the Elantra have better rear visibility than the sedan? I'd like to hear your impressions of the 2 vehicles. I would think the Elantra would drive more nicely than the Soul so I'm interested to hear why you preferred the Soul. It does have a more spacious feel inside. I went with a friend to test drive an Elantra sedan. She was replacing one that had been totaled. This time around she chose a Prius.

[Deleted User]

Did anyone else notice the spy pics of the 2016 Honda Civic yesterday? From an aesthetic perspective, it's been a long, long time since I've liked anything manufactured by Honda, but this Civic has caught my attention. Make it a 5-door hatchback SI or R turbo with a manual transmission, as is rumored, and the GTI may be knocked off my shopping list for the "fun" option.

digitaltrends.com/cars/2016-honda-civic-sedan-spied-pictures-specs/

driver100

tyguy said:

Did anyone else notice the spy pics of the 2016 Honda Civic yesterday? From an aesthetic perspective, it's been a long, long time since I've liked anything manufactured by Honda, but this Civic has caught my attention. Make it a 5-door hatchback SI or R turbo with a manual transmission, as is rumored, and the GTI may be knocked off my shopping list for the "fun" option.

digitaltrends.com/cars/2016-honda-civic-sedan-spied-pictures-specs/

That Civic looks nice...they have really improved the looks even though it has the same basic theme. A lot of cars seem to use that curve affect over the front wheels...Mazda for one and I think Nissan, and probably the Elantra. Personally, I prefer that fender line to be straighter, but if I liked the car I would still consider it.

http://icdn8.digitaltrends.com/image/2016_civic_front1-970x0.jpg

driver100

Elantra GT


Buick Encore


What are the +'s and -'s?

houdini1

Who actually builds the Encore. Is it imported from S. Korea?

[Deleted User]

Yep, South Korea for the U.S. versions. It came from the Opel division originally. I think China builds some, too.

imidazol97

Every time I see SteveR mention his interest in the Soul, along with Encore and Elantra currently, I think of my morning coffee stop. In a small nearby city an engineering/survey company has Souls as its work vehicles. One or two Souls would stop loaded to the gills with survey equipment. They had a lot of stuff in those cars trucks SUVs.

Another area surveyor uses regular work vans. But those Souls have enough soul the other company can get all their equipment in. Yes, the rear suspension height was down a little with the weight. The cars are years old and the "headquarters" still has them parked around it last time I went by. I'd love to know how many miles they have on them.

I did sit in an Encore and they are nicely appointed. That's a couple years back. I'll have to check out the Encore again later this year.

graphicguy

My realtor has an Encore. Pretty nice inside. Rides well. I've never driven it, just rode in it, so don't know how it drives.

The only thing I can comment on about the Elantra is my son had one all through high school and college. Aside from the fact that I don't think he ever washed it, and there were some pretty serious suspension issues that they took care of under warranty (and 4 years into the car's hard life), all he did to it in it's 150K service to him were batteries, brakes, tires, wiper blades, one clutch, one timing belt, one tune up. To me, that was all routine maintenance. It never failed to start. It was getting a little rusty around the edges. But, I sold it for $1,500 and it still ran great.

Civic...I had one I bought used (a '99) with 80K miles that I used as an airport runner and a mulch getter (trunk was a bit small, but I made it work). I put another 40K on it. Never did a thing to it except gas and oil changes. It didn't have many frills....just an automatic and A/C...crank windows, no cruise, AM/FM. Everything worked on it. It was tight and ran well. I think I was averaging 32 MPG overall. Sold it for what I paid for it 3 years later.

carnaught

tyguy said:

Yep, South Korea for the U.S. versions. It came from the Opel division originally. I think China builds some, too.

Correct. I noticed on mine that it was built in S. Korea. Not sure about those being built and imported from China though. Although somewhat sluggish, the car seems tight, well put together. The a/c (important to me) seems more than adequate.

robr2

carnaught said:

tyguy said:

Yep, South Korea for the U.S. versions. It came from the Opel division originally. I think China builds some, too.

Correct. I noticed on mine that it was built in S. Korea. Not sure about those being built and imported from China though. Although somewhat sluggish, the car seems tight, well put together. The a/c (important to me) seems more than adequate.

Because they aren't. The Chinese made units are staying in China as they plant is at over capacity trying to supply the Chinese market.

stever

I posted my Elantra GT impressions here and did a cursory review of the '16 Soul here.

Thanks for posting the pics, @driver100 - pretty much the same colors as the Elantra GT and Encore we tested. The blue is nice.

@suydam, it's hard to tell from these short test drives, unless the ride is really noticeably bad. But yeah, the Elantra GT does seem to ride a tad better than the Soul. My wife commented that she could fell the road bumps more in the Soul. Neither are as plush as your Encore.

Haven't looked at the sedans so can't comment on the visibility. Both the Elantra GT and Soul have good visibility. One recent model we drove seemed to have some interferring side mirrors but I'd have to go search to refresh my memory on which model that was.

And yeah, my wife has noted the Korean assembly and Opel heritage of the Encore.

@imidazol97, there's just something about funky boxes that appeals to me. A mini minivan if you will. Not quite ready to revisit a Transit Connect however, I want something a bit more refined and less trucky.

@carnaught, I've really been paying attention to the AC now that we're living in the Southwest. That was a real deal killer on the HR-V; it just couldn't keep up.

@graphicguy, I dunno about the quality comments. The salesperson made a big deal out of the fact that Hyundai makes their own steel unlike any other car manufacturer. I didn't tell him that my nephew works for a steel company down in Alabama and they source roll steel for some car makers. Cars are so much better these days it's really hard to cross out a whole brand because of their reliability reputation (although I'm not shopping FCA or MINI and VW gives me pause).