I spotted a NEW (insert make/model) today!

fezo

Hey! If you had one in black you've got my wife's car!

I have to admit I'm liking it. Killer stereo which, combined with the Camry quietness makes a heck of a rolling listening room. It's quick even with the 4 even if admittedly numb about the handling. I can understand why it's the best selling car.

stickguy

last time I drove one was back in about 2005 (it was a loaner while my tC was being worked on). Brand new, with like 20 miles on it.

I could not for the life of my figure out why anyone would buy one. Interior was cheesey, and the ride was downright scary being so floating. And the steering was like spinning the wheel on one of those arcade driving games.

I do remember that it was amazingly quiet. So I guess if that is all that matters to you, go for it.

'I also believe that a large percentage of the population knows nothing and cares less about cars, and have no clue what actual driving control is. They just want cheap an reliable (unless they have more money, in which case they want a snobby brand name).

Oh, they also want gadgets. Lots of gadgets.

fintail

My mother's Camry is that era, and that describes the steering to a tee. Lifeless.

fezo

Yep. But my wife likes it - really loves it - and it's her car. In addition it's great on highways and certainly on flat straight roads which abound in these parts.

Were I back up north in the hills with the twisties, which could happen in a couple of years, that would change the equation for me.

Personally I'd still take an Accord for myself.

fintail

Yeah, my mom loves hers too, it is quiet and smooth and doesn't burn much gas. I'd probably roll it if I drove it like I do the E55 :shades:

lemko

...white Buick LaCrosse turning left onto Tabor Road from Levick Street in NE Philly.

boomchek

We had an 89 Chevy Caprice wagon. You could steer it with a pinky and my mom loved driving it more than any other car because of how easy it was to steer.

Many people don't care about road feedback, or handling. They want to get in and float away.

bhill2

Many people don't care about road feedback, or handling. They want to get in and float away.

You are exactly right. I learned to drive in the 60s, and back then almost anyone would interpret any feedback as 'fighting the steering' and carefully avoid it. They also avoided any suspension that would jiggle your bottom going over anything less than a cliff. For most people, I think, not much has changed.

andys120

I saw my first Acura ZDX today. I didn't get a long look at it but I thought from behind it looked interesting and different but the parrot beak really ruins the front for me.

I do have a predilection for slope back cars, having owned a couple of Saab 5 doors.

Speaking of slope-backs I saw a Panamera at a dealer some time ago and rather liked it. It looked dramatic, fast and very much like a Porsche, something I can't say about the Cayenne.

No, it's not a 4-door 911 but then there is no such thing, nor should there be.

ateixeira

Just spent 4 days there, and saw quite a few wild rides:

3-4 Ferraris
2 Aston Martins
Panamera

And a Hummer with 26" chrome rims and a couple of Hoochies standing in the back dancing to music with way too much bass.

Crazy town. Even the manequinns are, um, "enhanced". :surprise:

ateixeira

Lincoln sponsored an art show at the convention center in Miami, so I got to see these up close.

The MKT was locked, but gosh I can't stand that grille. I know it's inspired by early designs that are attractive, but on this it just isn't. It looks like a whale.

The MKS looks much better and was open. Very plush inside. Black on black, so it was a bit dark and dreary. Huge inside, acres of room. Very plush and comfy, double-stitched leather, padded surfaces, fabric wrapped pillars, the works.

Very nice, but I couldn't help but think it was an old man's car. Nothing youthful about it. It would sell well in Florida, but only outside of trendy Miami Beach.

ateixeira

texases

Har har har, April Fool, right Juice?

fezo

Wow. Are they actually building that?

ateixeira

I thought it would last a bit longer than that.

stickguy

but I like it way better than the sedan!

3233

Plenty of new E Classes rolling around in my area. I like how Mercedes seems to have avoided the super-high trunk/belt line that plagues Lexus (I'm sure you've seen the gawdawful-looking HS250 and the "I hope there's nothing behind me" IS).

Saw some new Terrains, Equinoxes and SRX's too. The Terrain's back end could be 10 years old, the Equinox looks like a Saturn, and the SRX actually looks decent, to be blunt.

And then there's the guy who apparently owns a Murcielago as a daily driver who goes past me every day. He downshifts and guns it too, just to rub it in my face :mad:

fintail

There's an older [non-permissible content removed] in a newer Quattroporte with a tuned exhaust who likes to taunt me by downshifting on the hill where I live... show offs

boomchek

Bunch of new rides:

-New 5 series BMW - much better looking than the outgoing model.

-Accord Crosstour - oh my what an odd looking thing. For $42k CDN I'll take an Audio A4 Avant thank you very much,

-Acuras - (and Hondas) - very disappointed in their curret lineup. I officially dislike the plastic silver Acura beaks; I wonder how they'll look when the silver color chips off after a few years.

All of the Acuras and Lexuses (oddly no Infiniti or Nissan at the show) are priced well in the german car territory but in my opinion don't offer the same heritage, dynamics, or engineering. Their allure 10 years ago was that you got similiar performance at a great discount. Now I see no incentive of buying one over a german counterpart.

Rolls Royce Drophead convertible - what ahuge car!
Aston Martin Rapide - very nice proportions.
Ferrari California - the retractable hard top has roof and trunk lines similiar to the Lexus SC.
Porsche Panamera - I like it a lot. Super comfy inside!
New Jag XJ - much nicer in reality than in pictures. Has lots of presence.

MB had their SLS at the show. Very nice!

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

Highlight of the show: A local exotic car tuner called SR Auto Group had a client's SLR 722 S that they modified, and another client's Lambo Reventon - #3 out of 20 in the world! That's in addition to a modified Aston and a LP640. Wow, I never knew Vancouver has these exotics around!

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

fintail

I think I got a pic of the Jag, I will have to look. It's a huge departure from the painfully slow evolution of previous models. Time will tell if the Jag customer embraces that or runs away.

I am still shocked at how insanely high new car prices are in Canada, with the respective dollars being virtually at par.

Some other new ones (to me) at that show: MB E-class cabrio, German Buick Regal, new style A8, a couple of Fiestas, Cruze

fintail

Here's the Jag, in case anyone cares:





The SLS there didn't make me swoon, as I got to see it at the source:

ateixeira

So awkward looking.

boomchek

Thanks for meeting up at the show and for the brochures and the magazines Fintail. I had a look through some of them yesterday and enjoyed them!

fintail

No problem, I knew you'd appreciate them, beats most of that stuff ending up in a recycle bin.

Oh yeah, I was emptying my trunk yesterday and found I forgot to give you something - that calendar. I'll hold onto it for next time, it'll probably be a minor collectible in time.

boomchek

Ok, no problem! Thanks!

qbrozen

Of note:
2011 volvo S60. Not as dramatic in person. Also, very disappointed in the back seat space. Less than my '01 V70.

Fiat 500. SO SMALL. But still cool looking. Too bad nobody was allowed within 15 feet of it.

Fiesta. Actually allowed in it this year. Again, back seat too small.

Mazda2. Couldn't get in and all the windows were blacked out so you couldn't see inside. I got close to one and could see it had an interior. Maybe it was prepro and not up to scrutiny?

Nissan Juke. I really really like the looks of this. Again, a hands off display. I'm tall enough I could peek in and saw it was a right-hand drive model.

Mini Countryman. You could get right up and touch and walk around this (they had 2), but they were locked. This seems like a very good-sized vehicle. Looks to seat 4 comfortably.

As to the Mazda2 and Fiesta ... one of these days, a manufacturer has to come up with a subcompact where human adults could actually occupy the back seat. As it is, anyone who is over 6 foot and has kids (which, believe it or not, is about half the guys I know) has no chance in hell of ever being able to use one of these cars on a daily basis. It is a shame.

ateixeira

I think the benchmark for back seat space should be the old, original Scion xB.

Amazing back seat room. Incredible, really. I sat in that, and then a Lexus LS, back-to-back, and I swear the Scion was roomier.

PS You like the Juke? Seriously? :P

texases

I wish I could get the headroom of an xB in any, repeat, any regular car

qbrozen

agree on the xB.

yeah, i dig the juke. it borrows a bit from the FX/EX, which I also like. And a small, low sport ute (like the countryman and juke) makes sense to me.

ateixeira

The idea, yes.

The execution is a mess, though. Way too many gills/fangs/accessories.

stickguy

kid down the block has a brand new GTI. he was driving a couple of gen old 2.0 GTI. No idea where the $$ came from (or the insurance),since he is 19 and I am not quite sure if he actually graduated with my son (they were in the same class). He is kicking around at some menial job I believe, and if his parents gave him this, they are insane (and I don't think they have that kind of money, unless it is from the college fund he doesn't seem likely to ever need!).

Dark gray. I love it myself, but would want the 4 door.

The other one? A graphicguy mobile. Girl across the street (actual college grad with a job) seems to have traded in her prior gen (probably a 2008) TSX for a new TL. Dark Blue (almost like my 2000 TL, but maybe a touch darker) with gray leather.

Shockingly, I find it to be very good looking. Even the beak isn't too bad in that color combo. Not sure if it is just seeing it up close more, or the color which I love, but dang it is pretty sharp.

pretty sure it is just the base car. Did not peer inside to see if it has tech package.

ateixeira

A body color grille would go a long way.

stickguy

even if it was a darker color instead of shiny silver. But, I know there is already 1 aftermarket grill (that I did not care for), so at some point, a body colored one will be available.

kyfdx

We call it the Dr. Doolittle car... :P

stickguy

In case he needs to move on from the Celica.

Someone visiting (I think, unless it stays around) across the street had a very new looking Porsche Carerra convertible. Looked like a light bronze/moondust color (in the dark).

And man, skinny little tires. Looked like rubber bands on the wheels. And with the bumper crop of potholes this year, I would be afraid to take it out of my driveway!

fintail

Grocery store parking lot last night, new W221 S600, sitting there idling with no driver, but a passenger sitting reading a newspaper. Another person who shouldn't be driving such a car

3233

The Infiniti QX56 has, by far, the most spacious rear seats of any vehicle I've been in-pro basketball players would have no trouble with head/leg room. But for that you have to spend 60,000 dollars and live with a gas guzzling truck with tank-like driving dynamics, and the 3rd row is little bigger than that of a Rav 4.

It seems that while cars have grown in the past decades, interior room has not caught up, with most of the expansion being safety or design related and not improving interior space, headroom especially. My father purchased a new A4 recently to replace an older Maxima, and while it has decent legroom the headroom is pitiful. Granted, it's a "sporty" car, but there's no reason for such a lack of headroom in a mid-sized sedan.

Back on topic, I saw a new Toyota Sienna today. The back looked good, kind of like the Venza, but the front just looked like the poor van had gotten beaten and was swollen. The number of Camaros has grown exponentially as the economy began to picked back up here in Atlanta during the last few months. The more I see these plastic, Hot Wheels-looking cars, the more I appreciate the more subdued styling of the Challenger and the Mustang. I'm also looking forward to seeing the new Infiniti M around town. It's a beautiful car from what I can tell, and should sway some people over from the mainstay MBs and BMWs, since it seemed like the styling was the big factor in limiting the car's success during the last generation.

ateixeira

It's hard to make a van look good. They're basically one giant box.

Having said that the new Sienna is the least ugly.

lemko

...white Mercedes-Benz E-Class travelling west on Levick Street near Montour in NE Philly.

ateixeira

Saw another E coupe yesterday, very slick.

ghulet

My twin brother had a GTI-16v ('91) when he was 23-ish. Danger, Will Robinson. Too much fun for too immature a person, is, well, y'know. And now they have 80% more power and half as much more weight. Eeeeek.

ghulet

that sorta thing happened when I was in high school....another car geek and I went shopping, at formerly-fancy (now, not so much) Oak Brook Mall, see a running Ferrari Mondial convertible in the 'drop-off' circle, no occupants. We kinda looked at each other, but walked away. Coulda been a John Hughes movie moment, for sure.

fintail

Maybe it was a filming scene for "Weird Science"...it was filmed in suburban Chicago, had a Mondial, and a mall scene. Hmmm...

ghulet

I know the coincidence sounds like something I made up, but this was actual and factual (I think that's in a song); and, yes, Hughes customarily filmed in (usually north shore chi-chi) suburbs; Oak Brook is west, but still kinda fancy. Sadly, we had to return to (I can't remember, it was 1986), either my Caprice or my companion's Scirocco and left the (usual red w/tan interior) Mondial alone.

fintail

Ah yeah, Weird Science was released in 85, so you were late. All I know about the Chicago area I have seen on Hughes films, Blues Brothers, and Married With Children :shades:

Thinking back to idling cars, I still remember a year or two ago when I saw some over-monied fool in a new E63 leave it running while he ran in to drop off some dry cleaning. Those people deserve to lose their cars.

anythngbutgm

"Tommy Boy", "the Dark Knight"...

One of my favorite cities in the entire Country.

fintail

Ha, forgot about Tommy Boy...that poor GTX :shades:

kyfdx

... I spotted a new Bugatti Veyron... :surprise:

3233

I think the Odyssey (current one) looks the best. The Sienna just looks like Camry headlights slapped on to a huge front fascia, making the whole front end look awful and bloated. I'd prefer the sharper looking Highlander if I was in the market for a people carrier, sacrificing a little room for better fuel economy and a halfway decent looking vehicle.

I saw a Porsche Panamera S today. A good looking car in person, if a little ungainly from some angles. I still can't understand why Porsche/Aston/Bugatti can't make a proper, 3 box four door, but if it goes fast while being practical I guess I can let it slide.

I also saw a 335d today. I know they've been out for a while but they're rare in the Atlanta area, at least compared to the ubiquitous 328i. I bet that car's awesome off the line with that torquey diesel and gets great mileage too. It's about time for the diesel stigma to go away here in America (taking the higher diesel taxes along with it).

ateixeira

I'm not a fan of the Highlander. It's hard to make big boxy shapes look good. The Volvo XC60 is one of a few exceptions.

You reminded me, I saw a Panamera as well. Still getting used to that big rump.

I do like the AM Rapide, very much actually. Have yet to see one in the flesh, though.