Into the Light
Banned
Its got a good growl at low RPM', and downshifting, but not annoying drone during highway driving. I imagine its personal taste.
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Automotive Discussion Thread | OT3 | Playing with our sticks while petting Jaguars!
- Thread starter AlphaSnake
- Start date
Its got a good growl at low RPM', and downshifting, but not annoying drone during highway driving. I imagine its personal taste.
33-Hit-Combo
Member
New CTR sounds pretty interesting too from the teaser, need to hear it in person though
nabe_shogun
Member
Yeah, SR20's are getting old as well. When I bought mine it was a 12 year old engine. These days most are probably in the 20 - 25 year old range. Unless I know the person I bought the engine from, the first thing I would do is tear it apart and re-do everything. I wouldn't want to waste my time putting in an engine that I might have to take back out again.
Which is why my new SR20 is in pieces in my garage currently. I'm mostly building for reliability as I drive the car quite a lot on the road. Also why I'd be fine with only like 220hp. Either way its a big jump from the probably 140whp my SR20DE currently makes.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
Saw a white Miata RF today. Veeeery pretty.
Hauled in a little gem this morning:
1974 Firebird Formula 400. Very rough but has some good parts. Someone had put a 455 Pontiac in it, it's got a good Formula hood, the small back glass and a 160 mph speedo. But it's rusty, rusty, rusty! Darn vinyl tops... So this one's going to parts.
And in other 2nd gen F-body news, somebody clipped my car in a parking lot. And of course, no note.
1974 Firebird Formula 400. Very rough but has some good parts. Someone had put a 455 Pontiac in it, it's got a good Formula hood, the small back glass and a 160 mph speedo. But it's rusty, rusty, rusty! Darn vinyl tops... So this one's going to parts.
And in other 2nd gen F-body news, somebody clipped my car in a parking lot. And of course, no note.
TheAbsolution
Member
Had a chance to check out the new Soul Turbo with the 1.6 at the auto show. shit was pretty awesome. Only thing that kinda sucked was the large amounts of turbo lag lol.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
I think I'm going to try and find an older Boxster or a 911 with an MT. I highly doubt I'll find any 911s, but a Boxster for around 15K should be feasible, no? Let's look...
Nice pickup. Been watching Mecum and the Firebirds seem to be picking up in popularity
Not so nice :/And in other 2nd gen F-body news, somebody clipped my car in a parking lot. And of course, no note.
TheAbsolution
Member
The Bolt EV is awesome. I repeat, the Bolt EV is awesome to drive holy shit. The pickup on that thing is insane.
I started ripping into the new car this week. All of my parts have show up, so its just a matter of finding time to install them. First up, coilovers!
I picked up the Xida clubsports from 949 racing. Really nice single adjustable coilovers for a good price. These things cost about 2/3rds the cost of my (cheap) car, but you can't really do much better unless you wanna spend $4K or more.
Front suspension taken apart
Comparison of OEM and the Xidas
Rear suspension back together
No pictures of the whole car yet. I still need to adjust the height, roll the fenders, and get some tires mounted on my new wheels. Hopefully I can take care of all that early this week.
I picked up the Xida clubsports from 949 racing. Really nice single adjustable coilovers for a good price. These things cost about 2/3rds the cost of my (cheap) car, but you can't really do much better unless you wanna spend $4K or more.
Front suspension taken apart
Comparison of OEM and the Xidas
Rear suspension back together
No pictures of the whole car yet. I still need to adjust the height, roll the fenders, and get some tires mounted on my new wheels. Hopefully I can take care of all that early this week.
jongkookie
Member
I'm at the Dallas Auto Show and one of the Alfa Romeo reps just told me this:
"According to AR's studies only 7% of Americans know how to drive stick and only 3% of those people would buy a brand new manual transmission car."
So AR decided to launch the Giulia in the USA with a automatic instead. She also did say that AR might offer a stick option in the future.
Also I know most auto show reps don't know shit but she threw out stats and seemed to be well informed so there might be a shed of truth there lol.
Finally, yes pics are coming when I get home.
"According to AR's studies only 7% of Americans know how to drive stick and only 3% of those people would buy a brand new manual transmission car."
So AR decided to launch the Giulia in the USA with a automatic instead. She also did say that AR might offer a stick option in the future.
Also I know most auto show reps don't know shit but she threw out stats and seemed to be well informed so there might be a shed of truth there lol.
Finally, yes pics are coming when I get home.
That sounds like 75% of stats are made up to me
jongkookie
Member
Lmao that's actually what I thought too. IIRC 9% of Americans bought a manual tranny in 2015 or 16 so idk.
Either way it's interesting that an auto show rep actually mentioned it. Most of these auto show reps are usually local models with only basic knowledge of the car. The fact that this person knew at least that much might mean Alfa acknowledges that the demand is there.
Hmm I bet more than 9% of Giulia drivers would opt for a manual though, especially in the top trim. I have no proof to back that claim up but I just think it would be that way. =)
SliChillax
Member
Audi has no shame, this fake shit shouldn't be acceptable in the cheapest model, let alone the most expensive SQ5.
jongkookie
Member
Alright, Flickr finally finished uploading the pictures so here they are. Get your 56k modems ready! I'll be posting all my faves(some with comments) and it's a lot lol.
Yep this is the brand new "sporty" Camry rotating on a slope for some reason.
Anybody know what this is? It really is a Kia btw lol.
Y'all ready for that vape life?!
The way the top opens and shuts is super fun to watch, unfortunately only a rep was allowed to do it and they only did it once and I forgot to video it. Fail lol.
This picture just doesn't do it justice but it really does look a lot better in real life.
Kinda excited for this Civic Si. Rumors say it has around 192 ft-lb of torques and somewhere around 220-250hp... if those end up being real, this might be an excellent daily driver and competitor to the GTI.
That DB11 is ridiculously stunning. That side profile is seriously hhhnnnngggg worthy.
This too is pretty sexy.
This one's for the Porsche fanboys lol.
And of course I haven't forgotten you Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag fans in here too.
Fun story about this car... the Fiat rep was so adamant that this isn't a Miata at all. She said the only thing Miata here is the chassis and that's it... obviously that isn't true at all. Hell look at the VIN plate... it says manufactured by Mazda for crying out loud lol.
Here's the two Alfa's. I forgot to take more pics coz I was talking to the rep haha.
Ford here with the most disappointing showing. There wasn't a Ford GT nor a Focus RS in sight. I asked a rep about the RS and she told me to go to a dealer and check it out. This 2018 Mustang is the only thing interesting they had on display(if you don't count both ST models that is).
And that? That's the 2.3L EcoBoost engine found in the Mustang and the Focus RS(I think). Yes, that turbo is hella tiny. My Mazdaspeed3 brother was laughing his ass off at how tiny it is before admitting that the turbo is small to decrease turbo lag or whatever.
Finally, there's this:
I haven't seen the Lego Batman movie but I thought this was super cool as you can see a lot of individual lego blocks that were used.
And that's that, I actually skipped some cars but there's more here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/27432612@N04/albums/72157679872467491/page1
Btw, lemme know if I should trim this down or not coz I will if y'all need me to.
Yup. I understand it wouldn't sell gangbusters but I think it could disrupt the market for those looking for a sports sedan that isn't German.
Yep this is the brand new "sporty" Camry rotating on a slope for some reason.
Anybody know what this is? It really is a Kia btw lol.
Y'all ready for that vape life?!
The way the top opens and shuts is super fun to watch, unfortunately only a rep was allowed to do it and they only did it once and I forgot to video it. Fail lol.
This picture just doesn't do it justice but it really does look a lot better in real life.
Kinda excited for this Civic Si. Rumors say it has around 192 ft-lb of torques and somewhere around 220-250hp... if those end up being real, this might be an excellent daily driver and competitor to the GTI.
That DB11 is ridiculously stunning. That side profile is seriously hhhnnnngggg worthy.
This too is pretty sexy.
This one's for the Porsche fanboys lol.
And of course I haven't forgotten you Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag fans in here too.
Fun story about this car... the Fiat rep was so adamant that this isn't a Miata at all. She said the only thing Miata here is the chassis and that's it... obviously that isn't true at all. Hell look at the VIN plate... it says manufactured by Mazda for crying out loud lol.
Here's the two Alfa's. I forgot to take more pics coz I was talking to the rep haha.
Ford here with the most disappointing showing. There wasn't a Ford GT nor a Focus RS in sight. I asked a rep about the RS and she told me to go to a dealer and check it out. This 2018 Mustang is the only thing interesting they had on display(if you don't count both ST models that is).
And that? That's the 2.3L EcoBoost engine found in the Mustang and the Focus RS(I think). Yes, that turbo is hella tiny. My Mazdaspeed3 brother was laughing his ass off at how tiny it is before admitting that the turbo is small to decrease turbo lag or whatever.
Finally, there's this:
I haven't seen the Lego Batman movie but I thought this was super cool as you can see a lot of individual lego blocks that were used.
And that's that, I actually skipped some cars but there's more here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/27432612@N04/albums/72157679872467491/page1
Btw, lemme know if I should trim this down or not coz I will if y'all need me to.
Yup. I understand it wouldn't sell gangbusters but I think it could disrupt the market for those looking for a sports sedan that isn't German.
^ Nice pics
I test drove a base 2015 GTI today. Had under 30k kms on it but the touchscreen was totally broken. That's really strange even by VW standards right?
Anyways, really fun car to drive, seems like it would be easy to live with every day as well. The base cloth seats are nice and I'd take them over leather easily.
I don't really understand why VW insists on making their option packages so frustrating though. The ONLY way to get the performance pack for 2015-2016 in Canada was optioning it to the top of the line 5-door autobahn, as we don't get S or SE models here. So a PP optioned GTI in Canada would have been a $37k+ proposition those years, which is within spitting distance of a base Golf R...
However, I went to spec a 2017 GTI and the PP is no longer available on any trim level in Canada. Trying to push people to the R? Trying to make my shopping experience shitty on purpose?
I test drove a base 2015 GTI today. Had under 30k kms on it but the touchscreen was totally broken. That's really strange even by VW standards right?
Anyways, really fun car to drive, seems like it would be easy to live with every day as well. The base cloth seats are nice and I'd take them over leather easily.
I don't really understand why VW insists on making their option packages so frustrating though. The ONLY way to get the performance pack for 2015-2016 in Canada was optioning it to the top of the line 5-door autobahn, as we don't get S or SE models here. So a PP optioned GTI in Canada would have been a $37k+ proposition those years, which is within spitting distance of a base Golf R...
However, I went to spec a 2017 GTI and the PP is no longer available on any trim level in Canada. Trying to push people to the R? Trying to make my shopping experience shitty on purpose?
Damn that sucks :/
Fallout-NL
Member
That shit is so fucking lame.
Even if that were remotely accurate, didn't they consider what type of niche you're appealing to with a car like the Giulia?
And in other 2nd gen F-body news, somebody clipped my car in a parking lot. And of course, no note.
Whenever stuff like this happens, I'm always reminded of that 'no trial, no jury' bit from Pulp Fiction.
Kia Stinger GT, launching this year. I'm rather excited for its launch. RWD, turbo V6 with 272kw and 510Nm. Hopefully it lives up to its stats.
Bound to be a good seller here in Australia, where the Kia brand is already very strong, and as of October this year, we will lose access to our locally made powerful RWD vehicles altogether as Holden close up shop on the Commodore.
http://www.caradvice.com.au/534541/2017-kia-stinger-gt-spied-testing-in-sydney/
33-Hit-Combo
Member
Maybe there was 2% who didn't know how to drive manual haha
Eugh, I think I'm going to check my exhaust later to see what's going on there! I have non-integrated bumper exhaust tips though, so think I'm ok
It just looks awful, why bother doing this, just round off the bumper, save some cost and go for the stealth look.
Those stats arent mutually exclusive though
Not saying that what the rep said is true, but maybe manual owners change cars more often?
nabe_shogun
Member
Is Australia going to make any cars anymore? Because I thought Ford Australia was also going to stop making cars.
Yeah, it's really silly because it's basically impossible to find my desired combination (5 door/cloth/manual/pp) at a decent price because it was only available on the Autobahn. I'm under the assumption that it's rare for any 15-16 Canadian GTIs to be specced that way.
My LS 430 was wrecked the other day and I need something else. ive been thinking about a used 07-10 LS 460, and a Cayman S under 25K. Since both cars are at completely different, is there a compromise with a used manual luxury car that is reliable ? I was thinking ATS but haven't researched potential issues.
I think it's a pretty cool car - it's faster than a FiST in a straight line, is a practical hatch, and gets pretty good range. I've already seen quite a few out in the wild and it doesn't have any real competitors until the Model 3 comes out, so I think Chevy will sell a decent amount of them.
Yeah, terrible. It's either a brilliant move by Audi if they know that their customers don't care about that kind of stuff or a lame cost-cutting move that cheapens out a $50k+ vehicle.
Thanks for the great photos and commentary! Yeah I'm excited to see how the Si performs because of the great reviews even the base model has been getting. I've seen a few CX-9s IRL and they always stand out because I love that exterior design.
As for the Kia Stinger, I don't think it will do very well. Not only because the market has shifted towards CUV/SUVs nowadays, but also I don't think folks will care for another expensive Kia sedan (see Cadenza and K900 sales). I hardly even see their other sedans on the road (see tons of Hyundais though).
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
Definitely an ATS-V.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
Maybe...but the very popular theory says that Alfa didn't want to bring an MT here just yet because of crash ratings. They were concerned about the clutch pedal potentially breaking someone's leg. The firewall still retains the whole for the assembly and everything.
I think it'll make it here, eventually.
33-Hit-Combo
Member
Just saw an RS6 and Audi had done the same again
.Detective.
Member
Yeah, I was watching that YT Motortrend video on the Giulia because I have now added it to the list of considerations for my next car, in addition to the S3, XE and Q60, and they mentioned the same thing about the crash test issue in Europe.
I was also trying to figure out whether the electronic components would be sourced from a NA Chrysler plant or not, because that was my concern with Italian origin vehicles and their history of electronic hangups.
Skel1ingt0n
I can't *believe* these lazy developers keep making file sizes so damn large. Btw, how does technology work?
Those pics earlier reminded me... someone in my neck of the woods has a brand new white NSX, and holy shit, it does absolutely nothing for me.
I don't know what it is, but after seeing it in person, it would be one of the last cars in that range I'd be interested in. I know this is unfair and super vague, but it just really lacks an ... identity?
I don't know what it is, but after seeing it in person, it would be one of the last cars in that range I'd be interested in. I know this is unfair and super vague, but it just really lacks an ... identity?
I know the feeling, heck after going over all the pics pretty much the only thing that drew any interest for me was the Lego model, the rest I don't even know, there was a nice blue? That's about all I can say.
And the new nsx to me doesn't look appealing at all.
The luxury/super car market has really stagnated, Lamborghini. Porsche and Aston Martin especially.. when you need to break out google to figure out which model the car is (or a sizable knowledge of the particular car) and can't just name it off the bat, you're in "looks exactly like the last one" territory.
There's very little these days that gets shown that has me contemplating breaking out the Chequebook
Then again when you consider how long cars have been made and how many variations there is, it seems only natural that as time goes on the chance of something standing out decreases.
They've steadily gone up in value in the last 10-15 years.
Hadn't seen it in a long time so I had to look it up, but yes. Lol
Alright, Flickr finally finished uploading the pictures so here they are. Get your 56k modems ready! I'll be posting all my faves(some with comments) and it's a lot lol
Nice pics! New Mustang front end is growing on me.
It'll be the 2.0 turbo, dont have V money.
Yeah Ford Australia are an import only setup these days, having stopped production of the locally made Falcon last year.
The Aussie market will definitely respond well to the RWD Stinger. SUVs are still big sellers here, but they aren't the force they once were. Dual Cab utes (like the Toyota Hilux, Isuzu DMax, VW Amarok etc) are huge here at the moment, the car du jour really.
I'll never own an SUV if I can help it (unless I can suddenly afford a Model X), so I'm definitely part of the fan base keen for powerful large RWD family cars that the Stinger will slot into.
I'll have to pull my finger out and share a pic of my current wheels, to that end.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
Oh, I thought an LS460 + Cayman would be about the value of an ATS-V. They're not that expensive, imo. I think they can be had under 60K
Shortt Sirket
Member
Does anyone here watch Obsessed Garage? I'm not sure I like but I can't seem to stop watching.
His voice is almost...hypnotic in how boring it is.
His voice is almost...hypnotic in how boring it is.
mmazurkiewicz
Member
I used to before it was called Obsessed Garage.
Honestly, the dude is lame. He cares more about detailing his cars then driving them and isn't really all that great a detailer anyway.
Honestly, the dude is lame. He cares more about detailing his cars then driving them and isn't really all that great a detailer anyway.
jongkookie
Member
I'm pretty sure that's the case so I think Alpha maybe on the money about the firewall being the issue instead of lack of sales.
Ding ding ding!
That car was one of the few interesting cars on the show tbh. I've heard of the Stinger GT Coupe but I didn't know they were also doing a sedan version. I personally am not interested in it but it's cool to see Kia doing new things.
Lmao IIRC the numbers were actually for brand new MT cars instead of a combo of new and used.
As mentioned above the numbers were for brand new MT cars so I'm not sure where Alfa got their numbers from.
Agreed with the Civic. I honestly was kinda tempted with the MT version but apparently it's basic as fnck so no thanks lol. I need just a little bit of creature comforts these days... especially after daily driving a stiff ass suspension for 5 years.
I've heard of those rumors too but as usual rumors are rumors... I figured an Alfa rep would have more insight about it especially since she's mentioning it out in the open.
But yeah I agree. It has to come out eventually... like Cammisa said in the Motor Trend video, a lot of the specs FCA/AR put out mentioned a 6-speed manual before pulling the plug on it.
You're absolutely correct actually.
From afar and pictures the NSX looks uninteresting to say the least. But it looks a lot better in person imo. It definitely is still pretty vague and it's hard to tell that it's an Acura but it looks good albeit unforgettable.
Like I was intrigued when I saw it, but ultimately I had to see my pictures to be reminded that the NSX actually looks good.
Same here. I know in the last thread we all had a laugh at how ugly the redesign was but I think it's another one of those "looks better in real life" type of situations. There was a current gen Mustang next to it actually but I was too tired to care so eh lol.
TimeEffect
Member
I am trying to invest in a dashcam.
What kind of dashcam is recommended? And how many? Ideally, Id like every angle recorded, even when not driving, but I know that's a crazy set up. A119 looks expensive but best.
What kind of dashcam is recommended? And how many? Ideally, Id like every angle recorded, even when not driving, but I know that's a crazy set up. A119 looks expensive but best.
nabe_shogun
Member
So then I guess there will be no more of the car based utes? Like the falcon and commodore. Are they still popular or has everyone moved to hilux's, navara, ect?
With the closure of Ford and Holden last year and this, the utes have had a resurgence with many cashed up people loading up on the 'last evers', like this 410kw hay-hauler (lol 'sif it will ever see a bale of hay) for example:
An absurd vehicle by any measure with the LSA engine plugged in to it... but kind of awesome.
But yes, the crowd that would have ordinarily flocked to the sedan-based ute have now moved almost fully over to the dual cab segment, which is why that segment has had year-on-year sales growth, and to be the segment leader there is to be the sales dominant brand, almost.
33-Hit-Combo
Member
Hmm, I've seen some people hook up front and rears, and then soldering them in, but this drains your battery and a lot of new cars don't like this and throw codes.
Some people set up a secondary battery and circuit to avoid interrupting anything.
I was looking at something pretty straightforward like a Transcend 200/220, just to catch the front.
whatsinaname
Member
I looked into it as well and recording when not driving is just not worth the trouble unless you consistently park in dodgy areas of your city.
I just use a front one - Xiaomi Yi. Works fairly well in Michigan winters too (though it did refuse to stay charged on a couple of days when it was really cold).