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Buying American Cars What Does It Mean?

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  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Oct. 2012 Oct. 2011 % change
    10 mos. 2012 10 mos. 2011 % change

    Porsche
    3,211 2,270 42%
    28,226 24,934 13%
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Heck, I worry about taking my Brougham out to Carlisle as well as it's a collection of 24 year-old parts driving down the turnpike in a very close formation.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Heck, grbeck and I were coming back from Carlisle in the Brougham and were almost rear-ended, by of all things, a LaCrosse!
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    Porsche must expect to sell a LOT of Cayenne diesels. I wonder if they will build an assembly plant for the Cayenne/Touareg?

    It's just an office building. I don't understand all the fuss.

    Must not be into the numbers game. Quality trumps quantity for Porsche...

    Oh Porsche is into the numbers game. It's just that it's measured based on the uber-expensive options.

    Cayenne S
    Add for carmine red paint: $3100. Do they have to fly a guy named Carmine in to paint it??
    Heated seats: part of the $4500 convenience package with nav and xenons
    For $65K base price, I should get heated seats.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    My friend paid $750 for "Footwell Lighting" on his.

    Perhaps to light up your wife's equally overpriced Manolo Blahniks.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,140
    You should see how I feel in the fintail when zooming down an interstate at 70 - I get a little worried sometimes in an unrestored nearly 50 year old car with a small displacement engine. Although, knock on wood (of which there is plenty), it has never really had a highway based failure. Well, other than the seized brake at 60mph, but that was a symptom of an earlier problem.

    The high build quality probably helps, might be a reason an old Caddy is probably better on that turnpike than a similar year Chevy.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    It's just an office building. I don't understand all the fuss.

    I'm trying to figure out what all those 400 people will be doing.
  • roadburnerroadburner Member Posts: 17,349
    You should see how I feel in the fintail when zooming down an interstate at 70 - I get a little worried sometimes in an unrestored nearly 50 year old car with a small displacement engine. Although, knock on wood (of which there is plenty), it has never really had a highway based failure.

    Since my last flurry of activity(heater box R&R, radiator/t-stat/hoses, 320iS Recaros, and Alpine AM/FM/CD/Sirius XM head unit) the '02 has been completely reliable. It's a bit noisy at 75 mph or higher as the frameless door glass needs adjustment. I drive it to work a few times per week, usually to hearings which involve less than a 200 mile round trip.

    Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive

  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    The list of Cayenne add-ons is unbelievable. I look at it and wonder if the car will run in its base form. The reason I would buy the Touareg TDI instead of the Porsche Cayenne TDI.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,140
    I drive my old car about 1000 miles a year, suburban puttering and one or two highway trips. New tires next year should cut out a little of my worry too - as the old ones date to the late 90s and have work a little oddly. Probably won't take it on the highway again until the new tires are on. The car had some minor hiccups when I was in school, and had revived it from infrequent driving. Now that it is driven regularly, it seems to be aging well.

    An old I6 MB at 70+ sounds like a very muted prop plane - there's a drone, but it is isolated and not unpleasant. Adds to the experience of actually being part of the driving rather than just a steering input.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    I'm trying to figure out what all those 400 people will be doing.

    It's just about the same number they have employed in Atlanta now. Pretty much all those folks are in sales and marketing in support of the dealer base. Porsche Financial is based in Chicago. I wonder if those folks will be moving to Atlanta.

    And I stand corrected - there will also be a test track there as well.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited November 2012
    Sounds like some redundancy. Not to mention there's already the I-285 Perimeter race course there now, so why build a track? ;)
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,147
    > I-285 Perimeter race course

    ROFLMAO.
    You've been there... :sick:

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    Sounds like some redundancy. Not to mention there's already the I-285 Perimeter race course there now, so why build a track?

    Isn't that a running race course?

    They are building their own because they want to offer driver events and probably do testing.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    +1.

    My thoughts exactly!
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,094
    From '83 to '85 I lived in Norcross on the NE side of Atlanta, just NE of where 85 and 285 met. It was insane then; I can't imagine it's better now! Gwinnett Place was a brand-new mall then; I was told 20 years later that it was basically a flea market now!

    One time I pulled up at a car wash behind a guy using a vacuum cleaner on the interior of his car. The wash bay in front of him was empty. I pulled around and backed into the bay to wash my car. The guy at the vacuum said, "Yankee?" and I said "yes". He said, "Figures".

    He may have had a point! LOL
    2024 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 2LT; 2019 Chevrolet Equinox LT; 2015 Chevrolet Cruze LS
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    In Chicago he would have just shot you!
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    In Detroit, you would have been shot, and your car taken.... Then, found abandoned and burned.

    Still, it seems Atlanta is adopting some of that same behavior as well...
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I found the people in the Atlanta airport rather rude compared to other places in the South. It was not that way in the 1970s when I went to several schools there. Maybe all big cities are becoming cesspools filled with hateful people. Probably all the foreign car buyers. :shades:
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    You want snotty airport personnel, I'll vote Philadelphia and Miami. On a consistent basis I haven't found worse! Don't miss either.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Isn't that a running race course?

    Oh yeah, the perimeter road around Hotlanta is either running 85 mph or jogging at 3 mph.

    Two guys supposedly went from my neck of the woods to Florida non-stop one time back in the 70s when freeways were still relatively new and wound up on I-285 in the wee hours. The owner of the car got tired and told his buddy to take over. A few hours later the guy wakes up and asks his buddy if everything was going okay. The buddy says yeah; funny thing, every hour I keep passing a big Levitz furniture outlet like clockwork. The South must be full of them.

    Only in America?
  • dieselonedieselone Member Posts: 5,729
    I found the people in the Atlanta airport rather rude compared to other places in the South.

    That's because they only have 15 minutes to catch a connecting flight and their departure terminal is in a different zip code;)
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    edited November 2012
    But that's because unlike O'Hare, ATL has a smart runway set up so things don't tend to get all backed up in weather. So chances are if you're flight is running late, the connecting one is not (well, unless it's a commuter!).
  • dave8697dave8697 Member Posts: 1,498
    The only options this one has are the chrome wheels and aftermarket tint. The seller had the power window motors replaced in 3 windows, both front struts, and the intake manifold gasket replaced. He also had the car mounted keyless entry reciever replaced just recently. It's a nice step up from the '99 Sonoma for my younger son. He is driving 20 miles each way to school and 5 miles to work. On the school trips, he could come close to the 27 mpg hwy rating since it is mostly interstate.

    The oil dipstick reads that it is about 1 qt overfilled with 56% remaining oil life. Think I should drain some out?

    The only thing I have found so far is a dirty cabin air filter and the cargo net is gone. He thinks the rear deck center speaker could use replacing. The brakes seem OK but I still want to take a look with the wheel off so I know how long they have.
  • iluvmysephia1iluvmysephia1 Member Posts: 7,704
    edited November 2012
    about the Atlanta airport when I was there in Oct. 2008 was that there was a brand new 2009 Kia Borrego in the middle of one of the floors inside. Cool to see it there, I believe it was a silver Borrego. Everything else I recall about the place was pretty standard international airport stuff, really.

    I didn't notice the employee snobbishness, gagrice, but wasn't really on the lookout for it, either. Mighta been there. ;)

    2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick

  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    As for the Atlanta airport. It was not the help I found to be rude as much as the people in the airport. I noticed it especially in the underground subway system. Maybe I am not used to that many people thinking they have a right to my space. I held tightly to my wallet and carry on bag. Lots of pushing and shoving.

    Still in love with your Mitsu?
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    Well Gary. I'm guessing you were in a cluster heading to the Philly and Newark/ LaGuardia flights - or the International terminal! You know, out your way everyone stereotypes LA as laid back, but LAX can be a hellhole of stress and jerks. I always found Orange County (John Wayne) and San Diego more civilized.
  • marsha7marsha7 Member Posts: 3,703
    that work at ATL airport are simply not civilized...:):)...as far as I-285, it does go either 80 mph or mimics the L.I.E. (Long Island Expressway) as a huge parking lot...

    When I came to Atlanta in 1971, after 6 pm, I-285 was virtually empty...not so now...

    Gwinnett Place Mall was built when Gwinnett County became the county of wealth in Atlanta...now that the population has...uh...changed...the place has gone downhill...that was the reason for building the Mall of Georgia, as the affluent keep moving farther north to get away from "whatever it is they try to get away from"...

    Same thing in Cobb County on the northwest side...when Cumberland Mall opened in 1972, it was in a pretty wealthy county...now that nobody there speaks English, the others have moved north into Kennesaw and beyond, avoiding the criminal element...at least in Kennesaw, it is "mandated" that you own a gun...very intelligent, IMO...

    Back to American cars, y'all know I occasionally rail against the unions, altho not too often...:)...

    I must be intellectually honest...for all of my screaming about the UAW, my 2004 Crown Vic just passed 194,000 miles on the odometer...dashboard squeaks and rattles, other things go wrong, but it does run fairly well...where's Rocky when I need him???
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    Heck Marsh, I think I've got some years on you because I can remember when I was in the military that there was actually a stretch of country between Atlanta and Marietta, and a lot of vacant land around parts of the rather newly built I-285. I was too dumb and young to invest. Back in those days I was like most young lieutenants - the checks went to booze and broads!
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I avoid LAX at all costs. It is not so bad if I fly in on a commuter from SD and take a shuttle within the airport. I used to fly in there every 3 weeks and have to go out of one terminal and walk to another go through security at the commuter terminal. That was so I could get home in one day. I finally gave it up and stayed over night in Seattle and flew out the next morning. If you were gold on AK Air Seattle security was a breeze back in 04-06. Our last flight was in 2010, and probably will not fly until they end their silly xrays and groping procedures.

    Plenty of nice places in the USA to drive in my mostly American made Sequoia. ;)

    PS
    San Diego was one of the first to go with xray and grope. If our government cannot help but abuse the 4th Amendment, we just won't play their game.
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    SAN is America's mini version of the old Hong Kong airport - scan the rooftops, clear the parking structure and plop 'er down. Giddy Up!
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    the others have moved north into Kennesaw and beyond, avoiding the criminal element...at least in Kennesaw

    I spent 12 weeks at a Western Union school in 1973. The first week I fell in love with a girl from Kennesaw Mt. Met her at Ruby Reds in the Atlanta underground. I thought Atlanta was a great place back then. Went back for a visit in 1985 and it had changed for the worse.

    We are planning a road trip for the Spring, to Florida and then up to Indiana. We will avoid ALL big cities including Atlanta. I like to "Take the Roads Less Traveled".
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I don't think you can take off with a full load of fuel in a 747 out of Lindbergh field. Air Force one usually lands at the Navy runway on Coronado. I did see one land there from Mr A's restaurant one evening. MD11s and L1011 was about the limit for our airport.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited November 2012
    My brother-in-law had a place in town there that was right on the flight path. They wouldn't let the planes land after 10(?) PM but after dark it was a hoot hanging out in his living room and getting lit up by the landing lights of the jets right overhead.

    Jay Leno and other greenies vote and the Ford Fusion wins 'Green Car of the Year' title. (Detroit News)

    Made in Michigan and Mexico (with parts sourced from all over).
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    Mexico is America.....

    I think Ford is positioned to bail out of the USA at the drop of a hat. They will stay as long as the UAW allows them to stay in business here. This is NOT 1936.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Mexico is America..... . Right in keeping with the topic. :shades:

    Ford's not going anywhere. The sunk costs alone in Michigan are huge.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    It is all a write-off. If the UAW gets too pushy Ford will head to friendlier places. Just got a FB message from our friend Rocky. He just got laid off today. Been at that company about 6 months. Not sure if they are losing business or what. This economy sucks for the middle class. And it ain't gonna get better.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    edited November 2012
    The oil dipstick reads that it is about 1 qt overfilled with 56% remaining oil life. Think I should drain some out?

    I would just change the oil now to establish a base line. Actually, for all the fluids. Trans/gear box, diff, brake fluid, etc.

    I bought an 8 year old (at the time) NA Miata and the seller had all the service receipts. The rear diff oil looked like melted chocolate.

    This was at 26k miles, and she had done the 30k mile service early!

    You never know...
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    In that case Brazil is (south) American, too. ;)

    I have observed a double standard, people generally seem fine with Canada but balk at Mexico.

    Perhaps it's those wage numbers we read about earlier.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited November 2012
    Too bad about Rocky. I see a company downstate missed projections and is getting rid of 5% of their employees (1100 of them) and a "small" (150 employee) bakery in Detroit is folding.

    There is a Ford plant getting partially razed for a Menards, but the factory is 55 years old. But the initial plan was for the battery/solar industry to move in, not retail jobs. (Detroit Free Press)

    Juice, ha! Got me. :shades:
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    My 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis LS is at 104K miles. So far, so good. Absolutely no squeaks or rattles despite the daily beating from the harsh urban environment of Philadelphia.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Oh rats! I see Rocky on FB all the time. It sucks to be laid off as it is, but it's worse when it's right before the holidays. The grinches at his company sure stole Xmas! I bet they're doing alright and will be buying their trophy wives Lexus RX's!
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Good jobs are being replaced by crap jobs. Two big industrial sites in Philly that not long ago provided well-paying jobs were replaced by shopping centers full of low-wage jobs: Whitman's Chocolate factory and the colossal Sears warehouse complex.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,681
    Wow, sorry to hear about Rocky. Hope he lands on his feet and things improve for him. Let him know we're pulling for him!
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,094
    edited November 2012
    I have observed a double standard, people generally seem fine with Canada but balk at Mexico.

    Perhaps it's those wage numbers we read about earlier.

    It's pretty apparent why people consider Canada and Mexico in a different light.

    Canada is not unlike the U.S. in many ways and has been for decades and decades.

    Items that used to be made in the U.S. (and Canada, for that matter) for decades, only started to be built in Mexico, for U.S. consumption, since NAFTA. Who here could compete with Mexico's wages? A lot of people remember that. In my wonderful little hometown, a railcar plant that was in operation for 80 straight years, had moved to Mexico within two years of NAFTA. The town hasn't recovered yet.

    Plus, there is rampant crime in a lot of places in Mexico. Personally, I'd feel less safe travelling there--and I have been to Cancun. On top of that, I don't think the U.S. has a big problem with illegal Canadians. ;)
    2024 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 2LT; 2019 Chevrolet Equinox LT; 2015 Chevrolet Cruze LS
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,140
    edited November 2012
    Yeah, a "double standard" would mean the comparison is apples-to-apples, which of course it isn't. Too much one worlder shtick in here sometimes.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited November 2012
    Cancun really isn't all that representative of Mexico imho. It has that "built" resort area feel. It's fun, but it's kind of like going to the Vegas Strip or Gatlinburg where the tourists outnumber the locals. Let me take you to lunch in Mexicantown in SW Detroit sometimes. Gotta be almost as safe as Toluca (and probably has similar numbers of auto workers hanging out).
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    When I'm in SE DC I think every back fire is a gun shot so I duck. :D

    Now they're putting in a new casino...that'll help!
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    Gary, IIRC there is a runway around 10K at SAN, so it can probably handle a B747. In fact, I think Delta once flew DC-8 service into there which in some configurations requires comparable runway length. However, that airport is pretty tight, so taxiway configuration might be less than friendly. I suspect there isn't the passenger or cargo demand count to support 747's out of there. AF One will often use a nearby military base over a commercial airport because it requires ground stops that can disrupt flight operations. Plus I think it has extra fuel tanks which might mess up the length and/or weight calculations for SAN? A 747 into SAN might scare the crap out of some of the people on the ground or on I-5 though! ;)
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    I think some look at Canada different than Mexico because despite NAFTA, I don't think Mexico is as open of a trade market. For example, they severely restrict petroleum out of there.
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