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

stickguy

but it is a late harder to text while you are driving.

fintail

EVs will be the nail in the coffin. FWIW it's probably been 20 years since I have been behind the wheel of a manual car, and I have no desire to get one.

stickguy

it has been too long since I owned one, but I really do want another one before it is too late.

tjc78

I’ve never owned one. I can drive one…. but it’s not pretty. At this point (especially with my taste in cars) that I’ll ever have a stick in my driveway.

kyfdx

texases said:

A waste of time for a near-extinct technology.

Hey, now!

kyfdx

Not counting my wife's vehicles, I've only owned four cars that were automatic.

'70 Ford Galaxie (owned for 6 months)
'95 Nissan Pathfinder SE (3 yr lease)
'02 Honda CR-V (6.5 yrs)
'13 Audi A3 TDI (5 months)

48 yrs of car ownership, and only 10 yrs of daily driving in an automatic.

texases

Don’t get me wrong, I drove manuals for the first 30 years and enjoyed it. I just think they’re now a tiny part of the car world, and dropping with every new car announcement.

kyfdx

texases said:

Don’t get me wrong, I drove manuals for the first 30 years and enjoyed it. I just think they’re now a tiny part of the car world, and dropping with every new car announcement.

I agree.. just makes me sad

fintail

I've never owned a manual either. If I want to row my own, I will just shift the fintail manually - it has an unusual non-linear shift pattern that kind of feels the part, and you can eke out a little extra speed by being strategic now and then.

explorerx4

A Lexus RX500 H. Looked like an RX350.

explorerx4

I've seen a lot of the new Chevy Trax, maybe a couple of dozen of them.

ab348

explorerx4 said:

I've seen a lot of the new Chevy Trax, maybe a couple of dozen of them.

They are getting very positive reviews, unusual for the automotive media with a Chevy.

ab348

My new favorite reviewers, Andrea and Zack, really liked it:

https://youtu.be/VLq6XuHtHAc?si=eI5BQ9QdwuJpOYXH

texases

Saw one recently, talked to the owner, they really liked it. Quite a nicer looking car than the prior version.

Sandman6472

I park in a handicap spot most days but I have a handicap license plate on my Golf. Have the blue placard for when I go in the Kona or Accent which definitely helps. On Tuesdays at work, if I don't get there by 7:30, a new employee parks in it but first come, first served. It helps to be close to the front door on those days where walking is a real issue which lately is happening more often unfortunately. Figure I'll know when it's time for me to finally stop working...but that time has just not come yet.

Sandman6472

Really do like the new Chevy Trax but it's a bit too long for my side of the garage. But will still check one out when the time does come where I am forced to replace the current Golf.

Enterprise gave the kids a fairly new 2024 Kia Soul Friday with just under 6K miles on it. Son said it drives very nicely. It's a really red red color and will be hard to not find anywhere. A bit bland inside for my tastes though & probably something I'd never consider as my d d. But have decided to never say never going forward. Think I'll put off looking till the 2026 models come out. I'll still be just around 80K by then, if that.

fintail

A Rivian SUV just drove down my street, maybe not a big spot if one is in techdorkland etc, but around here it is still pretty unusual (the pickups are becoming common enough to not turn my head much).

ab348

First review I’ve seen of the new Ford Ranger. Interesting that it will have the 2.7 turbo EcoBoost as an option. The old Ranger is pretty much invisible locally and hasn’t sold well here. This one may do better. Also coming in a Raptor version.

https://youtu.be/k-AsebgjnWY?si=zb7b-0ahewZE_U6D

Michaell

ab348 said:

First review I’ve seen of the new Ford Ranger. Interesting that it will have the 2.7 turbo EcoBoost as an option. The old Ranger is pretty much invisible locally and hasn’t sold well here. This one may do better. Also coming in a Raptor version.

https://youtu.be/k-AsebgjnWY?si=zb7b-0ahewZE_U6D

I was reading the C&D article on that. Ford seems to be out of the basement in the mid-size pickup wars, with this offering.

stickguy

I bookmarked the TFL truck preview to watch later. Maybe I should upsize my Ford. while downsizing mileage.

Michaell

stickguy said:

I bookmarked the TFL truck preview to watch later. Maybe I should upsize my Ford. while downsizing mileage.

The big news is that a 4x8 sheet of whatever will fit between the wheel wells.

stickguy

and hang out past the tailgate.

Michaell

stickguy said:

and hang out past the tailgate.

You can’t have it all…

ab348

stickguy said:

and hang out past the tailgate.

Some people are never satisfied.

stickguy

I wonder if it has the adjustable tailgate like the Maverick. You can adjust the tailgate cables to be half length, so the tailgate opens at about 45degrees instead of 90, making the top edge even with the top of the wheelwells, so provides support for you 4x8 sheets.

explorerx4

Since 4 ft plywood fits flat between the wheel wells, the half open position wouldn't help.

stickguy

oh, on the flat part. I thought was on top. Maverick is skinnier so it goes up there.

can still do the half down, to angle it up. less likely to slide out!

tjc78

Do we really need three sizes of pickups? The mid size ones are so crazy priced I see no reason not to buy a full sizer. It’s not like they are that much better on gas

stickguy

It’s a size thing. I could deal with a ranger most likely but would not want something as big as an F150

You can do it in reverse too. Why get a full size when the bed is only 6” longer than. Mid sized?

ab348

If you look at what used to be a full-size pickup, let's say a '72 Ford F-100, the new Ranger is actually longer by a little over a foot. The '72 is 3 or 4 inches wider though.

fintail

Saw a Defender knock-off Santa Fe today

tifighter

@fintail said:
Saw a Defender knock-off Santa Fe today

They must be selling well because I feel like I’ve seen a ton of them in the past few weeks.

explorerx4

This guy is pretty funny. He's at a Lada dealership in Russia.
If you watch the first 8 minutes or so, you should laugh a bit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syyxu4M6j2Q

fintail

Crazy, YT suggested that one for me a few days ago. We must be in a similar algorithm. He has some other fun car videos too. He's apparently a big fan of American cars, and had an Escalade that he loved.

explorerx4 said:

This guy is pretty funny. He's at a Lada dealership in Russia.
If you watch the first 8 minutes or so, you should laugh a bit.

explorerx4

ANother good video was when he went to the dealer selling all the stolen american trucks and suv's.

ab348

The $10000 Niva he showed at the start looks the same as the one sold in Canada 20 years ago.

He is pretty funny. "Who needs airbags? You go down with your ship, just like a Captain!" His companion Evalina looks like how I would imagine a Russian spy/femme fatale to look.

Ladas sold here in the early '80s only because they were cheap. One of the selling points was that they are made with hot-rolled steel, but they still rusted just as badly as anything else if not worse. My cheapskate brother bought one new. It was indeed tough, but he soon discovered there were certain things that were impossible to fix. I recall carburetor icing was a constant problem, odd for a Russian product. It sounds like they are still using the same engine.

explorerx4

@ab348,
That line cracked me up too.

explorerx4

I saw what I think is a Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic sedan today.
Also, what I think is a Hyundai or Kia 2 row electric CUV.

stickguy

I don't know if it will be new, but I am really leaning toward a winter beater and funner car that hibernates in the winter now. Too stressful worrying about taking the nice car out in the evil salt and chemicals that rot them out up here.

Thinking that I should look at new trucks and hope for a decent lease deal. That would serve the purpose of utility truck, and drive in the winter knowing after 3 of them it goes back and is someone else's problem!

fintail

Took the wagon in for its 5 year service today, saw some new cars in the showroom while I waited. 2x S580 - both around 140K, an EQS580 SUV, I think 130K, a well equipped GLS450 at around 105K, a nearly zero option GLE350 at 63K, and a well equipped GLE450e at 85K, and a GLB35 AMG at something in the 60s. Talked with the salesman who sold me the wagon off lease 2 years ago, he mentioned the EQ cars are slow sellers here too. I forget the deal he mentioned, but I swear it was an EQS580 with a 130K MSRP on a 2 year lump sum lease of 12K. He also mentioned those cars have high insurance premiums.

tjc78

I can testify that the insurance on the EQ is ridiculous. Double what the XC90 was.

ab348

The insurance issue is probably the battery. If you have an incident that damages the battery pack (sometimes it only takes a minor thing), they are typically unrepairable and in many instances that can cause a write-off of the entire vehicle. Hyundai Ionic owners have experienced that.

texases

Followed a Lyriq for a while. Those droopy lower tail lights looked odd when lit:

fintail

Saw another Santa Fe Defender, probably different enough to at least be an initial sales hit.

kyfdx

Tesla Truck

My first sighting in the wild. Had temporary tags.

This is a bigger screw up than Elon's Twitter purchase.

texases

Yep, that truck makes the ‘Falcon Doors’ on the X a genius design in comparison.

stickguy

A Santa Fe in my neighborhood. From the rear it reminded it of a Lada

explorerx4

Saw a 24 Lincoln Nautilus. Wasn't sure what it was until I saw the spear on the side.
Only saw the back and driver's side.

thebean

Two new Lucid Air’s out and about this morning in north Dallas. I’m starting to see a few of these in the wild.

laurasdada

I'm debating attending the New England Auto show next week in the Boston Seaport area. There's a Lucid showroom a couple of blocks away, so if I go, likely I'll check stop by the Lucid store.
Sat in one in California last year at an open-air mall, was impressed. But was dragged away by family (actually, they just moved on, not noting that I was still in the car!) before I could really start tearing it apart.