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

ateixeira

These things are boxy and huge.

Wouldn't want to drive one in a strong cross wind. :surprise:

fintail

This morning saw a new style SL, an Infiniti minivan, and a new C63.

Also an old couple in an Equus with blingy wheels, and the boring looking Acura ILX.

andys120

I spotted a new Ferrari 458 Italia Spider in a very unlikely location, in the small driveway of a little house in a run down neighborhood . Rich relative? Drug dealer ? Both?

Bright red (Rosso Corso), top down.

ateixeira

Top down, even, wow.

Must be feared enough that no one would mess with it, so must have guns, I'm going with drug dealer.

tifighter

Yesterday saw a red 80's testarossa, red of course, and a black California spyder with the top down as well. Its that time of year.

ateixeira

Yes, indeed. Lows in the 50s, highs in the 70s. That's convertible weather, and that's what we got here in DC today.

First cool morning since...before summer!

Delightful weather!

tifighter

First cool morning since...before summer!

Fear not; Miata seat warmers are effective. Not to rub it in... :P

ateixeira

My top is down at 40 degrees to about 82.

explorerx4

or the car dealer across the driveway from it a black Audi R8.
On Saturday a red Chevy Captiva(?), with NY plates.
Kind of looks like an Equinox.

andys120

I saw a new Ranger Rover Evoque on the highway. In photos it looks like a refreshing change from the "tough Truck" designs that prevail in this segment but in the metal it just doesn't work. The main culprit is the slope at the back of the roof.

kyfdx

Captiva is the "old" Equinox.. rental car special..

qbrozen

Saw my first Murano Cabrio in the wild. It ain't any better looking in person. :sick:

anythngbutgm

Went to lunch today and saw a younger male, maybe 30-35 with his girlfriend/wife drive in with a brand new Lexus ES350. I gotts admit that it was a really sharp looking midsize and the driver was about 10-20 years younger than the typical ES owner that I see.

Also saw a white BR-Z and a revised RX350, the latter I have a seen quite a few of actually...

fintail

Probably his mom's car :shades:

I saw a facelift RX too, and 2 Velosters within a couple minutes of each other.

ateixeira

Saw one the other day with the top down, first time I'd seen that.

They copied the roll hoops from my Miata, so the visual effect is that of someone dropping a Miata from the roof of a building, that landed on top of a regular Murano.

Driver sits very high in those, too. It's actually pretty strange.

robr2

Captiva is the "old" Equinox.. rental car special.

Actually the Captiva is the old Saturn Vue.

ateixeira

That model was always the Chevy Captiva in some other markets.

Saturn went away so they rebadged it for the fleets here, probably to compete with base Escapes.

anythngbutgm

Ironically, I have dealers in my area that are selling them retail. My MIL was looking for a new ride and for gits and shiggles, she took one out for a spin. Dealer would have sold it to her if it wasn't such a chintzy pile of garbage (her words, not mine :P )

ateixeira

I test drove a Vue, didn't seem that bad. My one complaint was the numbest steering I've ever sampled (coming from a Toyota minivan owner, think about that for a second).

anythngbutgm

Ya, she's coming from a late 90's JGC Limited with about 300 thousand miles and looks like it's been through the war and back, so it must've been pretty bad.

I have no experience with the current one, but the first gen was super cheap to me. The problems with the CVT's and wheels that could come off if you took a corner too fast were just reinforcement... :sick:

ateixeira

The Equinox was a huge improvement.

fintail

Saw a blue Subaru Breeze today, and a recently plated E cabrio.

anythngbutgm

X1 35iXdrive in a chocolate brown color. Kind of trendy colorwise, but it looked good.

Saw a couple of ILX's yesterday and I swear I saw a 2013 Accord.

lemko

...black Scion FRS on Huntingdon Pike in Rockledge, PA.

ateixeira

Gotta love embassy row. Smallish van, a lot smaller than the Routan but more interesting as well.

Also a CR-V with temp tags.

Then finally an SL with a 55-60 year old with some body parts a lot less than that age, if you know what I mean.

explorerx4

A black Nissan GT-R and a Nissan Leaf, which is bigger than I though it would be.
It even had NY plates, despite being in the middle of CT.

stickguy

probably took 4 days to get there of course.

that would be a fun test. Drive a true electric like the leaf coast to coast. wonder if it is even theoretically possible? And if it is, how many months would it take? Or years?

explorerx4

I have idea how long this guy was waiting for someone to let him into traffic, but he was probably sweating bullets watching the miles tick down.

robr2

Saw one on Tuesday at the dealer. Nice styling, proper 3 series competitor size, pricing a little high but it was all tarted up with every box ticked.

I know the sales manager and he hadn't driven it yet but the sales reps had. The 3.6L in that car is a hoot.

lemko

...white Chrysler 200 convertible at Rising Sun and Oxford Avenue in NE Philly.

qbrozen

There was a magazine that ran such an article. I can't remember if it was actually coast to coast... I kind of think it was. I also can't remember which vehicle it was. Possibly it was a Volt, which is kind of a cheat, I guess.

stickguy

a volt is a definite cheat. Pure electric baby.

I figure the logical use for EVs is the post office, since the trucks do very few miles, all stop/go, and sit in the same place overnight every day.

qbrozen

yeah, I think this is the one I was thinking of.

tjc78

Seeing a few new Altimas a day now. I think Nissan did a nice job with it. Haven't seen the interior up close yet.

fintail

In a less developed (to put it nicely) part of the region today, saw a new Malibu (possible rental - out of state plates and no frames) and a Verano. Also a F10 5er parked at an awful thrift store - something that new and expensive is rare in this area.

robr2

(possible rental - out of state plates and no frames)

I've seen you mention no frames as a sign of a possible rental. Do most folks out in Seattle keep those awful dealer plate frames on?

Here in MA, the RMV started cracking down on plate frames. During the annual inspection, plate frames that obscured any part of the plate - including the state logo - were removed. In reality they broke them off. So no plate frame really doesn't mean anything here.

fintail

Yes, in WA , the vast majority of later model cars wear dealer plate frames. Most people either can't be bothered to remove them, or maybe want to show off where the car was purchased. The registration stickers are located so a frame can't really obscure them. No inspections in this region either.

On the same subject, combined with no plate frames, barcodes are the easiest giveaway, as gated communities who use similar are virtually unknown in this part of the country, and from what I can see, the gate opener stickers are different looking anyway.

lemko

...pearl white Hyundai Equus on Magee near Oxford in NE Philly. Also spotted a black Scion IQ.

explorerx4

The first Tesla S was delivered to CT, not far from here.
Tesla S photos

stever

Cruised 1,000 miles the last week and noted some new iron on the Interstate leg that I haven't noticed before. Two Cruzes, a Sonic and (all of these plus various Impalas were spotted around Saginaw) and a Forte. Also thought I had stumbled onto a manufacturer review event at Tahquamenon Falls SP when I spotted 10 new looking Dodge Rams lined up by themselves in a section of parking lot, all side by side. Upon closer inspection, there were a couple of Fords mixed in.

I did get a lot of seat time in my brother's newish 2012 F-150 when we met them at Traverse City for some camping earlier in the week. Nice rig, lots of bells and whistles. Climbing in and out (even with the running boards) got to be a bit of a chore, especially after the 4th or 5th winery tour. The topside of the bed rails is about even with my shoulder. The beds on these things have gotten so high, I don't know how anyone gets stuff in them. His had the side step things as well as the "senior's grab bar" and built in pull out step in the tailgate.

fintail

Saw 2 new Accords at the little Honda dealer out here in the small town world.

anythngbutgm

My neighbor brought home a new RAV4. Not surprised, his wifes 2006 sounded awful under acceleration, turns out the was a balancer shaft within the engine that was going on it. Thing had almost 200 thousand miles on it and needed nothing but routine maintainence up till that point so they liked it so much, they bought a 2012.

Co-worker here bought a new Mini Countryman Alltrac, I've been looking forward to checking it out.

qbrozen

200k in 6 years. Impressive.

stickguy

I will be interested to see the upcoming redo on the RAV. I think it is supposed to be out in January maybe. We sat in the current one while car looking recently, but that was a non-contender for a few reasons. And really long in the tooth!

anythngbutgm

Ya I thought that was pretty crazy too but they only have the one car in the family, his other vehicle is on older Tundra which he uses for his Landscaping company.

I also never know what to believe when somebody says "Almost 200k", I once knew a person back in College who sold a car with "Almost 200 thousand" and turns out it only had about 187,000 or so...

tjc78

Once a car is over 150K, does it really matter? The condition is more important than 10 or 15K miles.

anythngbutgm

New Hyundai Sante Fe on the back of a Car carrier. Looks nice, not very daring like the Sonata or the new Elantra.

Also saw a big van type thing that was marked in huge letters "MV-1". Never seen one before so I had to google it...

VPG MV-1

Lastly, an accident on the way in to work with what looked like a brand new Altima that got creamed by one of those "Blinged out" Cadillac Schoolbuses. The Caddy one that fight...

robr2

The MV-1 is a purpose built vehicle for the disabled. Great idea and it costs less than a conversion van.

fintail

I got a Lexus promotional email today, touting the new ES and LS facelift. The copy reads "creative innovation" while showing a taillight that has the "tubes of light" style that BMW started, what, 4 years ago? Yeah, creative.

berri

...and the Plymouth ad says "Suddenly It's 1961". Anime must be going retro in Japan these days. Wonder if they are going to put the rear view mirror on the dashboard next?