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

ateixeira

For that kind of money I want a whole new kit with a big "Brembo" stamped on the outside.

fintail

Saw a BMW X1 today, BC plates.

fintail

Those Jetta IIIs can be a headache. When I was in school, a roommate had a few year old Jetta of that era, this was around 1998. That thing ate wheel bearings and related components like a kid eating m&ms. Seemed every other week I was giving him a ride to pick up his car.

Funny thing though, a co-worker has I think a 98 Jetta, manual, got it from the original owner, it's up to like 150K now and he says it never misses a beat. Maybe a manual helps with those.

stever

Slugbug! Might be a slow game though.



Alaska beating out Hawaii is odd, but the Murano has AWD and good snow clearance for the winter.

ateixeira

So if you hate seeing them, move to Hawaii.

Saw a gaggle of hybrids today, Prius V and CT included, 2 cars apart.

ateixeira

Fin - saw a 250SL, white, hard top on, with "AUTOMATIC" on the rear deck.

Odd thing was a 2nd mirror on the front fender, like you saw on older JDM cars. Is that OEM? Did a google search and none have that 2nd mirror.

Looked like this one so I'm guessing 1967 also:

http://www.geevers-classic-cars.com/inventory/mercedes-benz_250-sl-automatic_340- -

fintail

250SL is an odd duck, I think all will be registered 67 or 68. The engine was the intermediary between the 230 and the 280. Rare, but really no value premium. The mirror would be an addon.

The mirror mention reminds me of something - the other day I saw an Escalade with a weird mirror on the passenger side front fender, kind of Japanese style too (small mirror).

ateixeira

Those were common (almost seemed mandatory) in Suriname. When I asked the driver told me it was to parallel park, so they could see the front wheels.

fintail

Seems like a good idea given the size of the vehicle, but I don't know if the skill of the typical big SUV driver allows them to use mirrors :shades:

ateixeira

They just drive over the curbs anyway.

Except the Dub wheel crowd, it's curb rash for them, parking by braille.

anythngbutgm

Speaking of dubs, saw a nice Carbon Gray RDX over th weekend with the optional accessory wheels. I absolutely hate the standard ones but the aftermarket for some reason work really well, even thought they are the same diameter...

Example (taken from Acura enthusiasts website):

2013 Acura RDX

ateixeira

The tires have a reasonable amount of sidewall, too.

fintail

That's a nice CR-V :shades:

Wheel design is too busy, trying too hard IMO

stickguy

Don't show my wife. She'll want that instead of the CRV.

so don't show her the CRV either...

tjc78

Dealer plated new Azera today. Nice looking, IMO. Lots of Sonata/Elantra influence.

ateixeira

With the gray wheels, really like that wheel color.

andys120

I got a quick glance at a Fiat 500 in a color I haven't seen on a new car in decades, non-metallic medium tan! Nice color I thought, but I'm not sure it's right for such a teensy car.

explorerx4

a silver CTS-V wagon. I pointed it out to my wife, who said it looked pretty aggressive.
I told her, you have no idea.
I thought it was a bit of a sleeper in sliver.

fintail

Stopped by a few lots today. MB dealer was packed, lots of people looking around and a big assortment of new Cs, including several coupes. Had a nice pano roof E wagon too, wish these came in diesel. Toyota dealer had about a billion new Camrys and many iQs. VW dealer had a pretty loaded new Passat - MSRP like 34K. Salesman there oohed and aahed over my car, which kills my desire to buy a new car :shades:

berri

Fin - a salesman is always gonna tell you that you've got a nice car and good taste until they talk to their cohorts in the break room - just kidding!

ateixeira

I was gonna say "until they appraise it as a trade...".

ateixeira

At a dealer, though, when I drove by 355 Toyota in Rockville, MD.

They even sold 86 in May, for the early birds who put down deposits.

Oddly, Subaru sold 271, even though Scion is getting far more supply (at least that's the plan).

I'm sure those numbers will go way up as dealers get their allocations, but the interesting thing is that the BRZ's presence helped the WRX spike up 159% in sales as well.

A lot of that gain was due to a shortage of WRXs last year, due to the tsunami, but certainly not the whole 159%.

Remember, the WRX is still based on the previous Impreza.

My theory - people go in, either find the BRZ too small or no turbo, then buy a WRX instead.

Edit to add link:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/subaru-of-america-inc-breaks-may-sales-r- ecord-156380495.html

PS Check out the new Impreza - yikes!

fintail

Funny thing, salesman at the local MB dealer actually told me to let him know if I was going to be parting with the beast, as he'd want to buy it rather than have it be traded. Not many around like it, but not many who want it either due to maintenance and fuel costs.

fintail

When I have told them about the ideal car I want, they do give me kind of an odd look. E350 bluetec with sport, pano, quartz blue with almond or beige interior. Also deflates them as they know that identical car won't be on the lot.

ateixeira

I'd list on a specialist site or AMG club, something very targeted.

Better yet, don't sell it.

My E class wouldn't be far from yours - just make it a wagon. I'd prefer something smaller, though. Maybe the next B class, when I'm ready to downsize from the van.

fintail

I'd likely offer it to an enthusiast group, or hit up this salesman and see if he was serious. But I have no plans to sell. However, if I actually bought another car, I would have to - I simply wouldn't have a place to store it, as I have another old thing taking up space as it is. The newer car isn't collectible, just rare and odd. As its peers age off and become neglected, nice ones become hard to find.

AMG wagons are seriously rare, especially in NA. The city mileage is my biggest turn off, I don't know if any future car will be in the sub 15mpg club like this car. The 25mpg highway is the savior.

ateixeira

Saw and drove these yesterday.

I'll share more details in CCB, since that's an active thread and people may be shopping actively for these, but quick summary:

C240: nicer-than-I-recalled interior, small Navi screen but HD resolution, hard seats, warm/cozy interior. Tech interface is actually tolerable now. Throttle lag is not. Deal killer slow throttle response in E mode, merely bad in Sport. Plus Toyota steering, i.e. numb. Good ride isolation on Luxury model. Decent sunroof size. Cream colored interior reflected heat well.

328i: steering also too light, throttle lag is present but tolerable, felt tighter. Better power train, minus the start/stop, which was like an earthquake of rattles. Awful - have they ever been in a Prius? There's an off switch, thank God. Black interior got baking hot in the sun. Also felt smaller inside, very cozy. No wonder people buy X3s.

I preferred the way the Bimmer drove, but the Benz' interior. To be honest I wouldn't want either as a daily. People will miss the straight 6. Both 4 turbos need more refinement.

fintail

You mean C250, right? Or did you go back in time? :shades:

Would be interesting to see how an uber-base IS would compare.

berri

Ateixeira, how dare you besmirch German vehicles - how politically incorrect. Nice to see an honest assessment - they aren't all superior engineering.

ateixeira

C250, yes, thanks.

I drove an IS250 a while ago, it had more body roll than either of these, but throttle response was far better (small V6 with Direct Injection).

I'd take the Benz interior, with the Lexus V6 and the Bimmer steering and suspension.

Overall I think I'd take an Audi A4 over any of them. BMW went backwards with this redesign.

ateixeira

The 5.8 quake we had a little while ago was smoother than the start/stop on that Bimmer.

No joke. The whole car rattles and shakes.

At least there is an off switch. The system needs 2 to 3 generations of refinement.

fintail

Oh yeah, no 4cyl gas IS anywhere with the current style. Would make like for like hard...I wonder if Lexus will come out with a 4 banger. Base A4 wouldn't be able to be quattro either.

I don't like stop-start, seems like a lot of things to break, especially in a German car.

ateixeira

Funny thing is the EPA number do not go up, though real-world FE would.

At least everything kept working, even the A/C (on low).

fintail

But there might be a longterm cost to it...I guess I am old fashioned.

My first car (66 Galaxie) had stop-start, but it didn't work right - when cold, it would stop when accelerating from a light, guess the tech wasn't worked out yet :shades:

texases

It was fine, you just got the wrong option: "Start-Stop"...

ateixeira

That's what BMW decided to show off in a heads-up comparison with Mercedes and Audi.

The staff pointed out the off switch, so you know others are complaining...

tjc78

even the A/C (on low).

Only on "low". So you get in the car, its screaming hot and you pull to your first light, stop and then the air goes to low. You could be at that light for two-three minutes, sweating.

And Fintail, I agree no car (especially German) needs to put any more abuse on critical components. I'll bet dollars to donuts that these cars will be in for premature starter motor failures.

kyfdx

The stop/start is a lot smoother on the 335i...

The 328i that I drove wasn't bad, though.... you might have had a bad one...

ateixeira

It got hot yesterday, A/C was on. Black interior didn't help.

Still, the transition is anything but seamless.

kyfdx

Yeah... cool and 65 last Friday, when I did it..

fintail

I bet having the AC on makes it worse. Car probably had 2000 miles on it, which means the system is halfway worn out, too :shades:

fintail

I wonder if the starter itself is anything different from a conventional unit. A car starting 20x per day vs 4x per day will have some negative effects.

ateixeira

So you drove a 335i and what else?

ateixeira

2000 miles on it, which means the system is halfway worn out

I took a short drive and it probably shut itself off 6 times or so.

It's ironic because I've been screaming for start/stop in the Diesel thread, and they offer it, and I hate it!

It can work, just needs to be much smoother.

kyfdx

328i, 335i and an A4

The A4 was front-wheel drive, though... which is pretty lame for the snow belt... You couldn't even find a FWD Audi in town, unless it was a convertible... (or an A3).

I used to think the 2.0T engine in the Audi was pretty good, but it's definitely down on power from the BMW...

That said, I'd trade either one for an NA straight-six..

explorerx4

as a Drive for Team USA event?
What did you think overall?

bhill2

The 5.8 quake we had a little while ago was smoother than the start/stop on that Bimmer.

One of the enthusiast rags (R/T?) checked out the start/stop on several cars. Not surprisingly, the gas jobs gave the same impression you got. The start/stop on the mild hybrids was almost seamless, because the electric motor was much more powerful than a starter and could easily kick the gas engine into life.

odie6l

I got to follow a Porsche Panamera and a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder around for a bit today in Hershey. the Lamb looks outstanding but good god, what was Porsche thinking when they created that thing.

Hershey is having their "The Elegance at Hershey" car show and Hill Climb this weekend. There will be alot of really expensive and very odd looking vehicles around here through monday.

Odie

iwant12

Saw a new JX 35 yesterday coming to work. Nice looking, IMO. Not any larger than my '11 Grand Cherokee, but it has seating for 7. Too bad it's FWD.

ateixeira

Yeah, BMW donated $10 per attendee. Since I dragged my wife out they donated $20 for us. :shades:

I'm sure BMW will take the feedback and hopefully replace the starter or some how balance the engine better during start up and shut down.

Overall the event was a disappointing, they keep cutting costs and you can really tell.

5 years ago we had an autocross at the FedEx Field parking lot with pros coaching us on driving. Awesome! They had a virtual spa for the wives, cooking classes with a gourmet chef while the hubby drove the cars.

Then they moved to a smaller lot the next year. Still fun, less fluff.

Then they moved to a dealership last year, but still provided lunch. Test drive on public roads, though.

Now it's at the dealer and you get a cookie and a soda. Whoop-de-do.

Sign of the times, I guess.

A local Chevy dealer has their inauguration tonight but I have a conflict. Bummer. Kinda wanted to sample the Sonic turbo and maybe the Malibu (the latter mostly out of curiosity).

My next car will likely be an efficient 5 door hatch, though. I'm thinking the fun ones - Focus SFE, Mazda3 SkyActiv, Golf TDI, or Impreza.