Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

oldfarmer50

tjc78 said:

Since we talk about everything....

Gin, anyone?

Want to start making some Gin cocktails (well...wife does). I don’t know Gin other than Tangerey, Beefeater, or Bombay. Any lesser known that’s good stuff and won’t break the bank?

Gordon’s is pretty cheap I think. My mother used to make gin & tonic with it.

stickguy

Might as well get Pub Club if you are getting that! But for G&Ts, it works.

suydam

tjc78 said:

Since we talk about everything....

Gin, anyone?

Want to start making some Gin cocktails (well...wife does). I don’t know Gin other than Tangerey, Beefeater, or Bombay. Any lesser known that’s good stuff and won’t break the bank?

Hendricks and Blue Sapphire.

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

Might as well get Pub Club if you are getting that! But for G&Ts, it works.

I never had the sophisticated palette for expensive booze. It all tasted like turpentine regardless of cost. Back in college we could only judge the quality of the stuff we were drinking by which lawn you woke up on.

kyfdx

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

Since we talk about everything....

Gin, anyone?

Want to start making some Gin cocktails (well...wife does). I don’t know Gin other than Tangerey, Beefeater, or Bombay. Any lesser known that’s good stuff and won’t break the bank?

Gordon’s is pretty cheap I think. My mother used to make gin & tonic with it.

When I was young and worked at the liquor store, we sold most of the Gordon's by the 1/2 pint.

graphicguy

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe1 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

cdnpinhead said:

The farmer has spoken. It's interesting to see the breadth of knowledge available on here, and in time it's possible to glean the wheat from the chaff in terms of the source of it. In any event, this sure sounds like the real deal.

Once you’ve made enough mistakes you become an expert.

When I was a working stiff there were times when I was called an expert. To satisfy my ego I just let them talk but I figured they knew something given they knew me way back when.

jmonroe

Every time someone called me an expert or a professional I knew they were getting ready to screw me somehow.

Reminds me of the adage...”If you think you’re the smartest guy in the room, you’re in the wrong room.”

explorerx4

@kyfdx,
When I worked in a liquor store, the most popular was a quarter pint of rum with a can of coke.
We were near a factory and the workers would buy that on one of their breaks.

abacomike

Never could acquire a taste for gin with the exception of "gin" rummy! 🤪😜🤓

abacomike

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

ab348

explorerx4 said:

@kyfdx,
When I worked in a liquor store, the most popular was a quarter pint of rum with a can of coke.
We were near a factory and the workers would buy that on one of their breaks.

When I worked for the liquor board here sometimes I would man a customer sampling table for a few hours in one of our newly-opened stores to talk to people about what they liked and didn't like about the new facility. The one I remember was in the shopping mall podium of a high-rise office tower complex. I was working it from noon until 3PM on opening day with the thought that a lot of office workers would come down to the adjacent food court and check out the new store. I was astounded by the number of office types. both men and women, who descended on the place to buy a single can of beer, a 50 ml airline bottle, or a half-pint or pint of booze, and just stick it in their pocket or purse. It was actually rather depressing.

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

Might as well get Pub Club if you are getting that! But for G&Ts, it works.

I never had the sophisticated palette for expensive booze. It all tasted like turpentine regardless of cost. Back in college we could only judge the quality of the stuff we were drinking by which lawn you woke up on.

Sounds like you knew even back then that you’d make a profession out of staying close to the earth.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

You should be grateful. From what I hear that dust makes hurricane formation unlikely. A car wash seem like a fair trade. Up here it’s pine pollen that forms a yellow sticky dust on the cars to the point that a freshly washed car is filthy again the next day.

I just washed the Mustang and found an interesting design defect.

The hood has air extractors which are there to let out some heat and prevent air buildup at high speeds. Enhances stability. Unfortunately, when the car wash high pressure jets are blasting the dirt, they’re also pushing water through the hood onto my CAI filter.



I assume this does no harm but I’m wondering if I should tape those openings off before I run through the wash.

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

You were saying?

jmonroe

andres3

Can anyone explain why California still has insurance minimums at 5/15/5K, with a uninsured property limit MAXIMUM of $3,500 if you don't have collision? These are the same minimums that have existed for as long as I can remember, and that's more than 2 decades.

Has the State forgot about inflation?
The profit margins on "minimum coverage" buyers must be HUUUUUGE! Only Insurance could be behind this.

andres3

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

fintail said:

What kind of Lexus is replacing the E? Will he be one of the 9 people this year who buys a GS?

I have a friend who bought his dad's 08 E320 Bluetec (short run model) when his dad tired of it. Around 120K on it now, no issues, my friend will probably keep it forever. He's a MB enthusiast too, and knows the car is pretty rare being a diesel with P2 and pano etc.

driver100 said:

A fellow at Tennis today asked how I liked my E. I said it was great, how do you like yours? He said he loved it.....it is a 2007, 270000 kms, about 150000 miles....never a problem. He is getting a new Lexus tomorrow. For a 2007 it still looks great....it is champagne color and he said he has never waxed it.

I didn't think to ask....whatever model he gave me wouldn't have any meaning to me. I'll watch for it and let you know.
He loved his Mercedes, I get the impression he decided to sit in the Lexus and he was impressed with it compared to his 12 year old car. From my experience, the Lexus looks and feels luxurious....but, just not quite the same as an MB.
Maybe Mike can explain it, since he sold both....and now he gravitates to MBs

Has nothing to do with snobbery - preferring Mercedes over Lexus, that is! The Lexus is a great luxury automobile as is Mercedes. The difference is "soft" luxury (Lexus) vs "sport performance" luxury (Mercedes).

When I owned a 2001 Lexus GS300 and a 2015 Lexus GS350, they were not great handling cars nor were they fast. They were beautifully appointed and were typical of Japanese engineering and styling. Loved the soft leathers and the fit and finish of both cars. They were inexpensive to maintain and very classy looking.

Mercedes automobiles, on the other hand, have that classic look and feel of a German engineered car. They tend to be sportier and possess more horsepower, in general. They are more up to snuff in terms of safety and technology. It's the handling and performance that separates the two makes.

I've owned or leased 2 ES and 2 GS Lexuses so I have experience with the brand - and I sold them for 4 years. If you want a reliable, comfortable and softer handling and performance vehicle, go for Lexus. If you want a car that corners, performs and gives you a better feel of the road with great technology and a superior audio system, go for the Mercedes.

I think you had it backwards, your supposed to get the MB when your old but not that old, and you get the Lexus when your REALLY old. Basically the Lexus is your last car, kinda like Buick used to be.

andres3

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

fintail said:

What kind of Lexus is replacing the E? Will he be one of the 9 people this year who buys a GS?

I have a friend who bought his dad's 08 E320 Bluetec (short run model) when his dad tired of it. Around 120K on it now, no issues, my friend will probably keep it forever. He's a MB enthusiast too, and knows the car is pretty rare being a diesel with P2 and pano etc.

driver100 said:

A fellow at Tennis today asked how I liked my E. I said it was great, how do you like yours? He said he loved it.....it is a 2007, 270000 kms, about 150000 miles....never a problem. He is getting a new Lexus tomorrow. For a 2007 it still looks great....it is champagne color and he said he has never waxed it.

I didn't think to ask....whatever model he gave me wouldn't have any meaning to me. I'll watch for it and let you know.
He loved his Mercedes, I get the impression he decided to sit in the Lexus and he was impressed with it compared to his 12 year old car. From my experience, the Lexus looks and feels luxurious....but, just not quite the same as an MB.
Maybe Mike can explain it, since he sold both....and now he gravitates to MBs

Has nothing to do with snobbery - preferring Mercedes over Lexus, that is! The Lexus is a great luxury automobile as is Mercedes. The difference is "soft" luxury (Lexus) vs "sport performance" luxury (Mercedes).

When I owned a 2001 Lexus GS300 and a 2015 Lexus GS350, they were not great handling cars nor were they fast. They were beautifully appointed and were typical of Japanese engineering and styling. Loved the soft leathers and the fit and finish of both cars. They were inexpensive to maintain and very classy looking.

Mercedes automobiles, on the other hand, have that classic look and feel of a German engineered car. They tend to be sportier and possess more horsepower, in general. They are more up to snuff in terms of safety and technology. It's the handling and performance that separates the two makes.

I've owned or leased 2 ES and 2 GS Lexuses so I have experience with the brand - and I sold them for 4 years. If you want a reliable, comfortable and softer handling and performance vehicle, go for Lexus. If you want a car that corners, performs and gives you a better feel of the road with great technology and a superior audio system, go for the Mercedes.

I think you had it backwards, your supposed to get the MB when your old but not that old, and you get the Lexus when your REALLY old. Basically the Lexus is your last car, kinda like Buick used to be.

houdini1

dino001 said:

I'm doing the same, as long as my mother is here with me. I'm really scared for her flying back home in two weeks. There is an explosion of new cases here. Basically all went out of the window and now we're all left to fend for ourselves, old folks you can just lay down and die, we just don't care anymore. Seems for some "freedom from mask" and any other kind of common sense thing is so much more important that some old lady not going under respirator. I guess it's understandable, she is far away, who cares. I guess people will start believing when somebody they actually know will fall gravely ill.

I thought we were doing OK until couple of weeks ago, but it's clear some people simply don't get it, they never did and they probably never will. The opening for them meant it's all good, danger gone, not real, probably all scam by fill-the-blank.

I heard a great comment this weekend, somebody said it seems like large portion of American people think they can simply will the virus away by the power of their mind, or spirit (or whatever you say). That is a very sad testimony on the science education in the society. I kind of knew that before, but this is a final piece of evidence to me regarding misery of American education system. People seem to be completely impervious to knowledge, scientific inquiry and method and resistant to even acknowledge their not knowing anything. Overlay that with attitude "nobody will tell me what to do" and you get what we have now.

BTW, this is not "second wave" as they call it. This is first wave, we just decided to open levies.

Agree on first wave, it's just that now we are testing by the millions. Those "new" cases have always been there but mostly asymptomatic.

andres3

ronsteve said:

benjaminh said:

I think you can see why this is one of my favorite roads in Louisville to drive on....

Hopefully not too much hard performance driving, because it's in a park!

The big downside of the Louisville Loop is that it's almost entirely concrete, so sometimes in Beckley Creek I will run on the road just to give my shins a little less stress.

Does a park need to be driven slower for some reason? I don't see it that way.

I would slow down for people though, but if the park is empty, all bets are off.

andres3

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Call it what you like......hard for me to imagine paying $29000 for it.

You're not a used car kind of guy. How about a brand-new leftover 2019?

https://www.macdonaldbuickgmc.com/inventory/new-2019-cadillac-cts-v-rwd-sedan-1g6a15s6xk0138215/

Well, now it makes a little more sense but I guess I am suffering sticker shock....$95k for a Caddie just doesn't make sense to me....I don't think the name or track record equates to that kind of pricing. I like the looks, and the power.....but, I wouldn't risk $95k on one...or $29k for a 2011.....call me crazy!

It's a heckuva deal, originally $104K, so it's $9000 off! Tell Mrs. Driver you'll be saving her almost $10K by buying it... :laughing:

lol.....$9000 off on a one year old car that is going to depreciate 25 - 30% as soon as you drive it off the lot.

Pretty sure in typical GM fashion, those cars were depreciated 25-30% before they even sold or left the lot. So $80K new actually meant $60K or so.

andres3

stickguy said:

never heard of that one, but we don't drink much Vodka, but when we do it's Tito's.

that place is really close to Evil Genius beer co. I want to get down there someday. And walking distance to the Carvana vending machine!

Was that a play on the Dos XX commercials for Tito's?

roadburner

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

You should be grateful. From what I hear that dust makes hurricane formation unlikely. A car wash seem like a fair trade. Up here it’s pine pollen that forms a yellow sticky dust on the cars to the point that a freshly washed car is filthy again the next day.

I just washed the Mustang and found an interesting design defect.

The hood has air extractors which are there to let out some heat and prevent air buildup at high speeds. Enhances stability. Unfortunately, when the car wash high pressure jets are blasting the dirt, they’re also pushing water through the hood onto my CAI filter.



I assume this does no harm but I’m wondering if I should tape those openings off before I run through the wash.

Before I looked at that 2013 Boss 302(that the imbecile previous owner had modded), I noticed from the ad that the car had an Airaid CAI, I checked the Mustang forum and it proved to be a setup everyone liked. However, there were some complaints about water from the hood vents dripping on the filter- but that Airaid now had a shield to prevent that. I called Airaid to ask about the cost of the shield and the young lady offered to send it to me for free. I declined, since I had yet to look at the car- which turned out to be a dog's breakfast, as the Brits say.

dino001

houdini1 said:

Agree on first wave, it's just that now we are testing by the millions. Those "new" cases have always been there but mostly asymptomatic.

"More testing" excuse just doesn't pass basic scrutiny. Percentage of positive results shot up from 2 to 10-20, depending on the state. This would mean that they magically got a xray vision to select more asymptomatic people for testing than they had during the lockdown when they tested mostly people with symptoms. If the spread was similar or just a small tick up, you should see the percentage should go sharply down, not up. Just doesn't pass the smell test.

28firefighter

Not to mention the available ICU space plummeting below 20%...would indicate these aren't just asymptomatic folks.

dino001

Looks like some people decided that "American spirit" is something that means we can will the virus out and when we don't we simply close our eyes and ears and "decide" it's fake data.

dino001

Here is how this "increased testing by millions" looks like in reality. What? Numbers of tested people in Florida just went down in last two weeks? But the Governor said... Exactly

houdini1

dino001 said:

Looks like some people decided that "American spirit" is something that means we can will the virus out and when we don't we simply close our eyes and ears and "decide" it's fake data.

We'll see, I think as more time goes by things will become clearer. Then we can revisit this conversation.

bwia

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

Well, down here in the Caribbean, the Scirocco (remember the VW by that name) dust storm is not only sand blasting our vehicles but is also blocking our Covid-19 masks making breathing difficult at best.

What's worse, when the dust settles at the bottom of the ocean it kills the corals an important food source and habitat for commercial fish species.

dino001

bwia said:

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

Well, down here in the Caribbean, the Scirocco (remember the VW by that name) dust storm is not only sand blasting our vehicles but is also blocking our Covid-19 masks making breathing difficult at best.

What's worse, when the dust settles at the bottom of the ocean it kills the corals an important food source and habitat for commercial fish species.

Doesn't sound right to me. Saharan dust clouds have been regular part of life cycle in the Americas. I watched once a documentary showing it's vital to Amazon jungle, bringing certain nutrients and minerals, making it what it is. So if it kills the coral, it must be because it's up for a renewal, kind of like naturally-originated forest fires. Unpleasant perhaps, hard to watch if we anthropomorphize the nature, but necessary for the renewal.

kyfdx

dino001 said:

bwia said:

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

Well, down here in the Caribbean, the Scirocco (remember the VW by that name) dust storm is not only sand blasting our vehicles but is also blocking our Covid-19 masks making breathing difficult at best.

What's worse, when the dust settles at the bottom of the ocean it kills the corals an important food source and habitat for commercial fish species.

Doesn't sound right to me. Saharan dust clouds have been regular part of life cycle in the Americas. I watched once a documentary showing it's vital to Amazon jungle, bringing certain nutrients and minerals, making it what it is. So if it kills the coral, it must be because it's up for a renewal, kind of like naturally-originated forest fires. Unpleasant perhaps, hard to watch if we anthropomorphize the nature, but necessary for the renewal.

Our local weather people say the Saharan Dust is on it's way here, as well. (Cincinnati area)

driver100

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

dino001

I guess we have to exhaust all other options before doing the right thing, as usual.

Next time I hear about awesome American exceptionalism, I think I'm going to point to this graph. We are exceptional alright. Or perhaps exempt.

tjc78

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

My mom couldn’t tell you what trim her car is, etc etc. She never drove her last few cars before buying them. She tells me what she wants, color and budget. I pick the highest trim level/combo of options for the money. When she got into her latest one she was thrilled to have a power seat and Apple CarPlay. She doesn’t even realize it has the upgraded screen size and some other stuff along with it.

houdini1

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

Did he know he was currently driving an E class, or was he just struck dumb today?

andres3

dino001 said:

I guess we have to exhaust all other options before doing the right thing, as usual.

Next time I hear about awesome American exceptionalism, I think I'm going to point to this graph. We are exceptional alright. Or perhaps exempt.

CA if more like Europe (except in our driving habits and law enforcement shortcomings) than the US, is California's curve different?

suydam

We ‘re only more like Europe in some parts of the state. There’s a lot of anti-mask and anti-distancing behaviors too. Depends on which part of California you live in.

dino001

andres3 said:

dino001 said:

I guess we have to exhaust all other options before doing the right thing, as usual.

Next time I hear about awesome American exceptionalism, I think I'm going to point to this graph. We are exceptional alright. Or perhaps exempt.

CA if more like Europe (except in our driving habits and law enforcement shortcomings) than the US, is California's curve different?

My understanding CA is also spiking. For all those complaining how "hard" it was under some of those lockdowns here, you have absolutely no idea how strict they were in France, Spain or Italy. People had to ask permission to leave the house (like print a pass). It was a bit of honor code (you were allowed to leave your quarters for only select number of activities) until you got caught. The fines were really steep. Some orders were a bit "stupid" (like closing the forrests or disallowing even basic recreation), but they worked in terms of creating a vigilant mindset of the population. Yes, they're seeing some resurgence, too, but just see what level they're starting from - gives them time to react.

I have two largest grievances - one is inconsistency of message, when unnamed clown, then second unnamed clown, then unnamed third clown (etc.) all do exactly opposite from guidelines given just two minutes before. Second is there seems to be no commitment whatsoever to give resources into proper contact tracing once the declines occurred (not at the same level as Europe, but they were there). It was just like I showed, we won, let's go home, or better yet let's go to the bar.

fintail

Sounds like the demographic

Keeping two cars for one person when one isn't some kind of classic is kind of funny, and unless the car is absolutely like new, I suspect trade in could be lower than that. Sell it privately or let it go, it's not going to appreciate.

Reminds me of the prior (original) owners of my old W126, who in early 2001 replaced it with (drumroll).....an Avalon. The ES should serve him well and is no doubt a fine car at a relatively reasonable price.

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

fintail

I genuinely suspect Americans are going to be barred from entering a number of countries in the not-so-distant future. And I can't blame the sentiment. Maybe instead of Germany again I'll finally visit Russia, I suspect that door will remain open.

Here in WA, some areas with a large base I'd call "stubborn" have remained in "phase 1" although more densely populated and populous areas have advanced. I've heard 100% of hospital beds in Yakima are now in use. I have family in the stubborn area, many of whom are the types who still think it is all a hoax etc or they "feel" it isn't necessary to take precautions, so this doesn't surprise me. Not planning on taking a road trip through those areas anytime soon, either.

dino001 said:

I guess we have to exhaust all other options before doing the right thing, as usual.

Next time I hear about awesome American exceptionalism, I think I'm going to point to this graph. We are exceptional alright. Or perhaps exempt.

andres3

The epitome of American Exceptionalism is the engineering and build quality that went into this engine and head gasket:



And then add the fact that we bailed out this epitome of American Exceptionalism not once, but twice with billion dollar boondoggles.

driver100

fintail said:

Sounds like the demographic

Keeping two cars for one person when one isn't some kind of classic is kind of funny, and unless the car is absolutely like new, I suspect trade in could be lower than that. Sell it privately or let it go, it's not going to appreciate.

Reminds me of the prior (original) owners of my old W126, who in early 2001 replaced it with (drumroll).....an Avalon. The ES should serve him well and is no doubt a fine car at a relatively reasonable price.

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

My guess is ........I think this fellow bought the E as a status symbol, more than for the fun of driving it or for appreciating its qualities. He needs a luxury car for his ego, and even though his E is 14 years old, it is still an MB. He needed a newer car, he didn't choose the Lexus for its reliability, he claims the MB was reliable, but, to him it has a luxury name, and the price was right. Model doesn't matter because it is a Lexus!

tjc78

andres3 said:

The epitome of American Exceptionalism is the engineering and build quality that went into this engine and head gasket:



And then add the fact that we bailed out this epitome of American Exceptionalism not once, but twice with billion dollar boondoggles.

Lots of companies had head gasket issues; Subaru comes to mind.

houdini1

driver100 said:

fintail said:

Sounds like the demographic

Keeping two cars for one person when one isn't some kind of classic is kind of funny, and unless the car is absolutely like new, I suspect trade in could be lower than that. Sell it privately or let it go, it's not going to appreciate.

Reminds me of the prior (original) owners of my old W126, who in early 2001 replaced it with (drumroll).....an Avalon. The ES should serve him well and is no doubt a fine car at a relatively reasonable price.

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

My guess is ........I think this fellow bought the E as a status symbol, more than for the fun of driving it or for appreciating its qualities. He needs a luxury car for his ego, and even though his E is 14 years old, it is still an MB. He needed a newer car, he didn't choose the Lexus for its reliability, he claims the MB was reliable, but, to him it has a luxury name, and the price was right. Model doesn't matter because it is a Lexus!

Odd that he didn't buy a C class 14 years ago if all he wanted was a cheap status symbol.

fintail

I think MB used this slogan in the UK some time ago "A used Mercedes is still a Mercedes". I can go with that.

A 2007 W211 like that would be a facelift car, and I think most of the real issues had been worked out by then (IIRC 2003 models are troublesome). I think the only real Achilles heel on E of that era is head bolts on the E63.

driver100 said:

My guess is ........I think this fellow bought the E as a status symbol, more than for the fun of driving it or for appreciating its qualities. He needs a luxury car for his ego, and even though his E is 14 years old, it is still an MB. He needed a newer car, he didn't choose the Lexus for its reliability, he claims the MB was reliable, but, to him it has a luxury name, and the price was right. Model doesn't matter because it is a Lexus!

graphicguy

driver100 said:

fintail said:

Sounds like the demographic

Keeping two cars for one person when one isn't some kind of classic is kind of funny, and unless the car is absolutely like new, I suspect trade in could be lower than that. Sell it privately or let it go, it's not going to appreciate.

Reminds me of the prior (original) owners of my old W126, who in early 2001 replaced it with (drumroll).....an Avalon. The ES should serve him well and is no doubt a fine car at a relatively reasonable price.

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

My guess is ........I think this fellow bought the E as a status symbol, more than for the fun of driving it or for appreciating its qualities. He needs a luxury car for his ego, and even though his E is 14 years old, it is still an MB. He needed a newer car, he didn't choose the Lexus for its reliability, he claims the MB was reliable, but, to him it has a luxury name, and the price was right. Model doesn't matter because it is a Lexus!

Agree. I know in my neighborhood, those that drive German iron or Lexi really needled me about the Kia Stinger. That is, until they saw it in my driveway, sat in it, or let me take them for a ride. Now, I don't hear a peep from them about the car I bought.

stickguy

so what engine exactly is that?

driver100

houdini1 said:

driver100 said:

fintail said:

Sounds like the demographic

Keeping two cars for one person when one isn't some kind of classic is kind of funny, and unless the car is absolutely like new, I suspect trade in could be lower than that. Sell it privately or let it go, it's not going to appreciate.

Reminds me of the prior (original) owners of my old W126, who in early 2001 replaced it with (drumroll).....an Avalon. The ES should serve him well and is no doubt a fine car at a relatively reasonable price.

driver100 said:

Particularly for Fintail. I saw the tennis guy this morning who is getting a Lexus, later today. I asked him what model.....he said he doesn't know. There was a fairly new ES350 next to his 2007 E, so I asked if it was like that. He said he doesn't know. How can you buy a new car and not know what model it is? I asked if he was trading in the MB, he said he would probably only get $5000 for it, so he'll keep it for now. I'll check next week to see what he got.

My guess is ........I think this fellow bought the E as a status symbol, more than for the fun of driving it or for appreciating its qualities. He needs a luxury car for his ego, and even though his E is 14 years old, it is still an MB. He needed a newer car, he didn't choose the Lexus for its reliability, he claims the MB was reliable, but, to him it has a luxury name, and the price was right. Model doesn't matter because it is a Lexus!

Odd that he didn't buy a C class 14 years ago if all he wanted was a cheap status symbol.

You see quite a few C's, but an E is still fairly rare. Also, I am finding as I get older, I don't drive as much and without a full income it is a time to start to economize when possible - if necessary. Prices can double every 12 to 16 years or so, so if you have been retired for that amount of time, your income is about the same, but prices have doubled....have to watch the budget a little closer.

*** to calculate when prices will double take the inflation rate and divide into 72. If inflation is 5% prices double in about 14 or 15 years. In some cases savings are being depleted, and prices are rising.

ab348

stickguy said:

so what engine exactly is that?

One from a company he has a grudge against.

driver100

ab348 said:

stickguy said:

so what engine exactly is that?

One from a company he has a grudge against.

But, it could be one of 3 of them!

oldfarmer50

andres3 said:

Can anyone explain why California still has insurance minimums at 5/15/5K, with a uninsured property limit MAXIMUM of $3,500 if you don't have collision? These are the same minimums that have existed for as long as I can remember, and that's more than 2 decades.

Has the State forgot about inflation?
The profit margins on "minimum coverage" buyers must be HUUUUUGE! Only Insurance could be behind this.

I think minimum in NY is something like $10k so not much better.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

Well, I washed my car yesterday for the first time. This morning, my car had a layer of Saharan Dust on the hood, trunk and glass roof - and here I thought the worst would be that it would rain and ruin the nice shiny finish.

It seems that this huge layer of dust from Africa is upon us again this year, but with a vengeance. It's the broadest and thickest layer in recent history. At least it won't rain because the air is so dry!

You should be grateful. From what I hear that dust makes hurricane formation unlikely. A car wash seem like a fair trade. Up here it’s pine pollen that forms a yellow sticky dust on the cars to the point that a freshly washed car is filthy again the next day.

I just washed the Mustang and found an interesting design defect.

The hood has air extractors which are there to let out some heat and prevent air buildup at high speeds. Enhances stability. Unfortunately, when the car wash high pressure jets are blasting the dirt, they’re also pushing water through the hood onto my CAI filter.



I assume this does no harm but I’m wondering if I should tape those openings off before I run through the wash.

Before I looked at that 2013 Boss 302(that the imbecile previous owner had modded), I noticed from the ad that the car had an Airaid CAI, I checked the Mustang forum and it proved to be a setup everyone liked. However, there were some complaints about water from the hood vents dripping on the filter- but that Airaid now had a shield to prevent that. I called Airaid to ask about the cost of the shield and the young lady offered to send it to me for free. I declined, since I had yet to look at the car- which turned out to be a dog's breakfast, as the Brits say.

That might be a solution but since the filter is washable I figure I’m ahead of the game by getting it wet.