Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

ab348

sterlingdog said:

My mirrors don't fold with a switch either. Still, I am so grateful to get my truck off the street that I don't mind doing it by hand. The one on the driver's side is a snap because I'm sitting right there, so it's just a little trouble for the one on the right. If my wife is with me, it's no trouble at all.

Maybe you can attach a rope to the one on the right side and run it into the cabin.

ab348

I always found it funny to read engine break-in instructions in the owners manual. If you are ever lucky enough to take a tour of an auto assembly plant, watch the area at the end of the line where the newly-built vehicle is put on rollers for initial start-up. Those guys beat on those cars in a way that you would not believe. Almost tortuous to watch. Seems to make the break-in instructions irrelevant.

imidazol97

sterlingdog said:

Still, I am so grateful to get my truck off the street that I don't mind doing it by hand. The one on the driver's side is a snap because I'm sitting right there, so it's just a little trouble for the one on the right. If my wife is with me, it's no trouble at all./blockquote>

May I recommend lowering the window and using a cane left in the truck to reach across and push the mirror out into place in case your lovely bride is not with you.

imidazol97

sterlingdog said:

I reached the break in section of my owner's manual for the truck. It says, "For the first 1,000 miles, do not drive fast or force the engine." I'm following that advice.

But be sure to give the motor the normal driving pattern and use some brisk accelerations as would occur in normal driving. Don't baby the car. Just drive completely normally for your driving. It's not likely you're going to climb mountains or drive at autobahn speeds.

stever

And so it begins. Don't drive fast - does that mean stay off the freeway? And change the oil at 500 miles. Unless it's a Honda with special break-in oil. Don't ever change that.

ab348

stever said:

And so it begins. Don't drive fast - does that mean stay off the freeway? And change the oil at 500 miles. Unless it's a Honda with special break-in oil. Don't ever change that.

That's no problem, though, because everyone on the internet knows that Hondas run forever, use no oil (and almost no gas) and never require maintenance, right?

driver100

robr2 said:

driver100 said:

Robr2 said: IMHO, those burned by the D3 20 years ago are not the people that Cadillac is targeting. Nothing personal, but people beyond the age of 55 or so are no longer the ones that Cadillac wants buying it's products. It's the 30 - 45 year olds that they have to reach as they have the potential to buy many more cars in the future.

Driver said: I once read this rule about business;

It's easier to keep your current customers than it is to try to get new ones.

Nothing personal for sure...you're just stating facts. However, the average age of a Cadillac buyer is still 55, the second highest after Lincoln's age 60. Some models have a huge percentage of buyers over 65. Even for the Audi A6, a comparable car the average age of buyers is much lower. Cadillac would like to get younger buyers, and they are managing to do that, but, it is a long slow process.

I guess another rule of business is if you burn your customers once, go out and find a new bunch.

imidazol97

ab348 said:

That's no problem, though, because everyone on the internet knows that Hondas run forever, use no oil (and almost no gas) and never require maintenance, right?

That's the story for many years. They never had failures. Then when I started reading their forums, problems were mentioned and the the defenders told them they were crazy and to go away. But eventually someone would say that it was a "known problem." This was especially true in the Civic discussions.

All cars put their wheels on one lug nut at a time (well, unless you have the special device used at the assembly plant that tightens all lug nuts at one time).

driver100

Michaell said: The two cars we've recently acquired had similar instructions - not to excessively rev the engine and don't drive at the same speed for too long. Was for the first 600-1000 miles.

No one mentioned fast braking. I remember being told don't stop suddenly because the materials in the brakes have to settle and combine with each other.

I haven't been given any instructions on how to drive a new car for at least 20 years. I think as long as you drive like you normally would, it is fine. No real break-in period these days, just be sensible.

driver100

ab348 said:

sterlingdog said:

My mirrors don't fold with a switch either. Still, I am so grateful to get my truck off the street that I don't mind doing it by hand. The one on the driver's side is a snap because I'm sitting right there, so it's just a little trouble for the one on the right. If my wife is with me, it's no trouble at all.

Maybe you can attach a rope to the one on the right side and run it into the cabin.

LOL Love that idea! I was also thinking of putting padding on the sides of the garage door openning. Then gently drive in and just touch the right hand mirror against the padding as you drive in. Kind of a Red Green (Canadian) invention.

jayrider

driver100 said:

Michaell said: The two cars we've recently acquired had similar instructions - not to excessively rev the engine and don't drive at the same speed for too long. Was for the first 600-1000 miles.

No one mentioned fast braking. I remember being told don't stop suddenly because the materials in the brakes have to settle and combine with each other.

I haven't been given any instructions on how to drive a new car for at least 20 years. I think as long as you drive like you normally would, it is fine. No real break-in period these days, just be sensible.

The break in driving recommendations reflect the way I drive all the time. Easy peasy.

sb55

driver100 said:

sb55 said:

That's also a nice looking truck. So, what color is your truck so we can spend days looking for one to post?

How about the deal...what did you trade in? How com you slipped this one in under the radar?

I think this has been a pretty good year for number of cars bought around here...

Here is my truck: Brownstone Metallic color. I live on a dirt road, and know that it will rarely be clean, so I will call it "dirt road brown"

Mr_Shiftright

RE: Cadillac. The Cadillac debacle in the 1980s was pretty bad. I think the name is permanently scarred, like Comcast. The brand name is somehow radioactive. Some evidence for this is how well GM brands can do in China, where nobody knows the past history. The cars can succeed or fail on their own merits. But here in the USA, everyone who ever owned one during the Dark Days will have to die first, but even in their dotage, they influence their children and younger relatives.

Even Jaguar and Rolls Royce, which put out some gawd-awful cars in the 1980s, didn't willfully self-destruct as badly as Cadillac. It's a sad story, really.

That's why I was suggesting an autonomous new brand name for Cadillac. I know that Maybach failed, but Lexus sure didn't. I wonder of the old LaSalle name has any legs? Too old-fashioned probably. People like clean, techy names now, with no actual association to a real thing.

imidazol97

Mr_Shiftright said:

That's why I was suggesting an autonomous new brand name for Cadillac. I know that Maybach failed, but Lexus sure didn't. I wonder of the old LaSalle name has any legs? Too old-fashioned probably. People like clean, techy names now, with no actual association to a real thing.

I follow your logic. I suspect you are spot on. And the new name needs to be technical in nature to gain note by the younger folks. iAuto and iMobile are probably out, but paralleling the Apple mystique in their iThis and iThat is what needs to be done. They can use dual names to get recognition for a new moniker, and then "Cadillac" can be only a distance name that is remembered.

Mr_Shiftright

"Cadillac" was chosen at a time when a lot of people who knew that was...same with LaSalle and Chevrolet and Desoto and Plymouth (rock) and the Dodge Brothers and Ransom Olds and Chief Pontiac and David Buick and....duh...Ford....and Walter Chrysler.

Probably you wouldn't want to name cars Musk, Gates, Buffett, Bezos or Zuckerberg.

Explorers? Hmmm......the Armstrong? the Shackleton? the Ballard?

ab348

Maybe they can buy the rights to "Jordan" if they are for sale. Ned Jordan that is. Might be some other better-known Jordans, but Ned is the one with the automotive connection.

stickguy

Dual names? Like "Nissan by Datsun"?

ab348

driver100 said:

I was also thinking of putting padding on the sides of the garage door openning. Then gently drive in and just touch the right hand mirror against the padding as you drive in. Kind of a Red Green (Canadian) invention.

Even better would be a wheeled caster like on a furniture cart attached to the door frame at the height of the mirror. As you slowly drive in, the caster wheel contacts the mirror housing and pushes it closed without damage. Presto!

imidazol97

@Mr_shiftright But here in the USA, everyone who ever owned one during the Dark Days will have to die first, but even in their dotage, they influence their children and younger relatives.

I have posted before about the perpetuation of stereotypes against GM and we're alluding to that now, partly. I noticed another example in Motorweek's review of the TLX. Guess which has the most rear legroom, Malibu or TLX. Malibu at 36.8 in and TLX only has 34.5.

After all the whining about the rear seat in the Malibu for 2 years, I'd think Motorweek would have noted the deficiency in the Honda TLX. But, nope. Not a mention. I noticed the "tester" got into the rear seat from the other side of the car, away from the camera, and he kept his butt against the seat as he rotated in so that his legs stayed away from the front seats. I wondered if they moved the front seats forward to give the appearance of more room. This segment aired last Saturday. I'm going to look for their test of the Malibu, if any.

Their TLX review had some tepid points, but they emphasized that "It's a Honda" was the main thing to remember!

abacomike

UPSCALE CADILLAC SEDAN

I saw a picture of the car that a friend of mine had (partially covered in black camouflage) who works for one of the big Cadillac dealers down here.  It is long and sleek and quite low to the center of gravity.  Price estimate was $90,000, but that was merely an approximation.

It was as low as my CLS550 and sleek - a little boxier looking (less rounded in front and back).  Obviously it was a prototype vehicle and I suspect they will be making some changes before releasing it.  It looked expensive like a Rolls Phantom, but longer and sleeker.

imidazol97

abacomike said:

saw a picture of the car that a friend of mine had (partially covered in black camouflage) who works for one of the big Cadillac dealers down here.  It is long and sleek and quite low to the center of gravity.  Price estimate was $90,000, but that was merely an approximation.

Mr_Shiftright

The whole point is that a company DOES get punished long beyond the time of its mistakes and it DOES get rewarded long beyond the time of its triumphs.

I try to overcome my biases when car shopping, or when advising friends, but it's difficult I have to say. I think I've overcome it with trucks, but not so much with sedans. I just can't quite bring myself to say to a friend who trusts me: "No, NO, don't buy that Lexus or that Benz--buy a Cadillac!"

Can't do it. (yet).

imidazol97 said:

@Mr_shiftright But here in the USA, everyone who ever owned one during the Dark Days will have to die first, but even in their dotage, they influence their children and younger relatives.

I have posted before about the perpetuation of stereotypes against GM and we're alluding to that now, partly. I noticed another example in Motorweek's review of the TLX. Guess which has the most rear legroom, Malibu or TLX. Malibu at 36.8 in and TLX only has 34.5.

After all the whining about the rear seat in the Malibu for 2 years, I'd think Motorweek would have noted the deficiency in the Honda TLX. But, nope. Not a mention. I noticed the "tester" got into the rear seat from the other side of the car, away from the camera, and he kept his butt against the seat as he rotated in so that his legs stayed away from the front seats. I wondered if they moved the front seats forward to give the appearance of more room. This segment aired last Saturday. I'm going to look for their test of the Malibu, if any.

Their TLX review had some tepid points, but they emphasized that "It's a Honda" was the main thing to remember!

robr2

Then new Cadillac flagship will take cues from the Ciel and Elmiraj concepts shown over the past few years:






IMHO, they are absolutely stunning and much better looking than anything coming out of Germany or Japan.

stever

I just got new front pads and rotors on my minivan this morning and didn't think to ask the guy about bedding them in. That requires moderately fast speeds and moderately fast braking. Moderation in everything.

roadburner

I agree with PMD over at Autoextremist : it takes a long time to build a reputation in the marketplace and a nanosecond to completely destroy it. Take note, Munich...

roadburner

And speaking of Cadillac and PMD:
On the Table

driver100

Here is my truck: Brownstone Metallic color. I live on a dirt road, and know that it will rarely be clean, so I will call it "dirt road brown"


The 3 major truck lines GM, Ford and Dodge all make very different but very nice looking trucks. Based on looks alone I would find it hard to choose which one I would actually buy. I guess it would depend on how it drives and how it feels to me.

This will be a bit hard to answer, but, is there a reason you chose the GM over the others, or was it an automatic choice?

driver100

Mr_Shiftright said:

RE: Cadillac. The Cadillac debacle in the 1980s was pretty bad. I think the name is permanently scarred, like Comcast. The brand name is somehow radioactive. Some evidence for this is how well GM brands can do in China, where nobody knows the past history. The cars can succeed or fail on their own merits. But here in the USA, everyone who ever owned one during the Dark Days will have to die first, but even in their dotage, they influence their children and younger relatives.

Even Jaguar and Rolls Royce, which put out some gawd-awful cars in the 1980s, didn't willfully self-destruct as badly as Cadillac. It's a sad story, really.

That's why I was suggesting an autonomous new brand name for Cadillac. I know that Maybach failed, but Lexus sure didn't. I wonder of the old LaSalle name has any legs? Too old-fashioned probably. People like clean, techy names now, with no actual association to a real thing.

Agree 100%, perfectly stated. How about Cadillac Platinum, Gold and Silver?

This is a Cadillac 16 Concept Car:


I don't really like it. Not just saying that, I find it too swoopy and futuristic looking. I know these are matters of personal taste though. I also think it looks very uncomfortable...but, must be aimed at a younger demographic than me.

Mr_Shiftright

I think the Ciel is as ugly as a moose. We really don't need another '58 Imperial or shovel-nose Avanti----- but I like the other design quite a bit; however historically cars with a protruding snout (conspicuously past the headlights) have never been very popular with American buyers, so I'd have to see it in real life.

driver100

robr2 said:

Then new Cadillac flagship will take cues from the Ciel and Elmiraj concepts shown over the past few years:






IMHO, they are absolutely stunning and much better looking than anything coming out of Germany or Japan.

Truly a personal taste thing. It does nothing much for me. I give them credit for a totally new design, but just too jazzy and space agey to me. Reminds me of the fancy boom boxes that they try to jazz up, when just simple lines would work so much better.

Just me, but I prefer this;



OR;


But, one looks good to one may not be so appealing to someone else....that's why they have different makes and designs.

stever

I kind of like it - not a huge fan of all the Darth Vader/catfish mouth grills out there. But mostly it's what's inside that counts unless you drive by lots and lots of plate glass windows all day long.

cdnpinhead

roadburner said:

Take note, Munich...

Yeah, but, does Munich even give a rip about the enthusiast market anymore? The lemmings drive these things because they think it makes their genetalia more attractive or something of the sort.

Drivers who desire a simple vehicle that handles extremely well need not apply.

There are many fewer of us than them, and here we are.

abacomike

imidazol97 said:

abacomike said:

saw a picture of the car that a friend of mine had (partially covered in black camouflage) who works for one of the big Cadillac dealers down here.  It is long and sleek and quite low to the center of gravity.  Price estimate was $90,000, but that was merely an approximation.

The top picture is the one I saw, but more of a side view than a diagonal view.

abacomike

driver100 said:

robr2 said:

Then new Cadillac flagship will take cues from the Ciel and Elmiraj concepts shown over the past few years:






IMHO, they are absolutely stunning and much better looking than anything coming out of Germany or Japan.

Truly a personal taste thing. It does nothing much for me. I give them credit for a totally new design, but just too jazzy and space agey to me. Reminds me of the fancy boom boxes that they try to jazz up, when just simple lines would work so much better.

Just me, but I prefer this;



OR;


But, one looks good to one may not be so appealing to someone else....that's why they have different makes and designs.

Actually, I like the looks of the Cadillac much better than the E Class Coupe. What you need to do is pull up a picture of a CL550 if you want to compare the two vehicles - the CL550 is longer and wider and is more in line with the Cadillac.

abacomike

@driver100‌

Driver, I just got a call from the dealership and my car is on a ship and due to dock at Brunswick, GA on October 1st. Then, they ship it to Jacksonville for prep and then on to the dealership from there - I am about 300 miles south of Jacksonville so they told me it should be at the dealership on or before October 15th.

Also checked on fleet discounts I am entitled to. USAA's incentive from Mercedes is $3500 and the MBCA incentive from Mercedes is another $500. So things have worked out perfectly. Honestly, I did not expect USAA's to be that high on a new model, but I am not going to argue, that's for sure!

mako1a

Am I the only one to notice? On the fancy cars, they forgot to install door handles.
I'm sure it improves MPG via wind resistance, but not more than being unable to get in and drive.

sb55

driver100 said:

This will be a bit hard to answer, but, is there a reason you chose the GM over the others, or was it an automatic choice?

For me, it was fairly easy to pick the GM. I've had GM vehicles before and actually traded a 2010 GMC Sierra and got a nice price on the trade. The 2014 is the 1st year of this model and is really nicer than the 2010, plus deals are pretty good on the 2014's and I had $500.00 on a GM card to help out. I looked at the Ford, but 2014 is the last year of that model and it didn't seem as refined as the GM. There will be a whole new Ford truck in 2015. As for Dodge, nice looking but I don't think that I could own a Dodge so never drove one

robr2

driver100 said:

Truly a personal taste thing. It does nothing much for me. I give them credit for a totally new design, but just too jazzy and space agey to me. Reminds me of the fancy boom boxes that they try to jazz up, when just simple lines would work so much better.

Just me, but I prefer this;



OR;


But, one looks good to one may not be so appealing to someone else....that's why they have different makes and designs.

Those aren't too bad IMHO. Personally, MB is going overboard with their styling on the front of the E, CLA, C and S classes. There is too much going on up there with various air inlets, bars, illuminated badges, et al.

I've been a fan of the Art and Science design language since Cadillac introduced it. IMHO, it stands out without being garish.

Mr_Shiftright

Looks like it wants to be some kind of Bentley without admitting it. With everything designed by computer now, there's a lot of copying going on. I can still see a 1996 Audi TT in the roofline.

driver100

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

robr2 said:

Then new Cadillac flagship will take cues from the Ciel and Elmiraj concepts shown over the past few years:






IMHO, they are absolutely stunning and much better looking than anything coming out of Germany or Japan.

Truly a personal taste thing. It does nothing much for me. I give them credit for a totally new design, but just too jazzy and space agey to me. Reminds me of the fancy boom boxes that they try to jazz up, when just simple lines would work so much better.

Just me, but I prefer this;



OR;


But, one looks good to one may not be so appealing to someone else....that's why they have different makes and designs.

Actually, I like the looks of the Cadillac much better than the E Class Coupe. What you need to do is pull up a picture of a CL550 if you want to compare the two vehicles - the CL550 is longer and wider and is more in line with the Cadillac.

OK

driver100

abacomike said:

@driver100‌

Driver, I just got a call from the dealership and my car is on a ship and due to dock at Brunswick, GA on October 1st. Then, they ship it to Jacksonville for prep and then on to the dealership from there - I am about 300 miles south of Jacksonville so they told me it should be at the dealership on or before October 15th.

Also checked on fleet discounts I am entitled to. USAA's incentive from Mercedes is $3500 and the MBCA incentive from Mercedes is another $500. So things have worked out perfectly. Honestly, I did not expect USAA's to be that high on a new model, but I am not going to argue, that's for sure!

$3500 is incredible. Glad you got your dates. I don't think my guy is allowed to tell me that tracking info. I get the impression they don't want to be held to a date...too many things can go wrong. If they give you a date, and it doesn't come in ontime, they could get a bad survey from someone. The public always takes dates as gospel when it is in their favor.

abacomike

@driver100‌:

That's the one.  My brother has one and not only does it look magnificent but it drives like a dream!

oldfarmer50

Thanks for the info on the bedliner. I'll see what my dealer is offering. My mirrors don't fold with a switch either. Still, I am so grateful to get my truck off the street that I don't mind doing it by hand. The one on the driver's side is a snap because I'm sitting right there, so it's just a little trouble for the one on the right. If my wife is with me, it's no trouble at all.

Richard




No problem, just get yourself one of these:

http://www.mountainside-medical.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/p/i/pikstik-reacher-grabber-tool.jpg

imidazol97

$1.99

http://www.harborfreight.com/36-inch-pickup-and-reach-tool-94870.html

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

robr2 said:

Then new Cadillac flagship will take cues from the Ciel and Elmiraj concepts shown over the past few years:






IMHO, they are absolutely stunning and much better looking than anything coming out of Germany or Japan.

Truly a personal taste thing. It does nothing much for me. I give them credit for a totally new design, but just too jazzy and space agey to me. Reminds me of the fancy boom boxes that they try to jazz up, when just simple lines would work so much better.

Just me, but I prefer this;



OR;


But, one looks good to one may not be so appealing to someone else....that's why they have different makes and designs.

I'd take that second Caddy in a heartbeat.

oldfarmer50

mako1a said:

Am I the only one to notice? On the fancy cars, they forgot to install door handles.
I'm sure it improves MPG via wind resistance, but not more than being unable to get in and drive.

Don't you know, they open telepathically. The latest tech to attract young buyers.

abacomike

@driver100 said:

"Glad you got your dates. I don't think my guy is allowed to tell me that tracking info. I get the impression they don't want to be held to a date...too many things can go wrong."

Yes, the ship could sink, the car could be damaged in transit, Mercedes could hold up cars at the port for reasons of model introduction timing, to name a few.

Originally, they told me 5 weeks from the date of manufacture which would be around October 10-15.  I do know that the first cars shipped out to dealerships are those that are special orders with customer names assigned as opposed to dealer inventories.

We shall see.  They don't even know what the final EPA mileage will be on the E Class.  I know on the C Class, that engine gets 20/29 city/hway.  But that's on the AWD C400.  The RWD E400 should get about the same considering that the E is a bit heavier.

bwia

Not sure what is going on but Cadillac just announced it's planning to move its headquarters to New York.

A bold move or a huge blunder?

abacomike

bwia said:

Not sure what is going on but Cadillac just announced it's planning to move its headquarters to New York.

A bold move or a huge blunder?

Smart move.  New York has been offering amazing tax incentives to companies moving to their State.  Probably a good financial move.

driver100

bwia said:

Not sure what is going on but Cadillac just announced it's planning to move its headquarters to New York.

A bold move or a huge blunder?

Really want to break away from the rest of the GM group, so they will be seen as a separate company, probably a smart move.