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[JumpJeff84]

Okay, so the Soul I was looking at is a no-go. Turns out it's standard, but I need automatic.

Crazy question: I just saw a 2005 BMW 325ci. Price seems good, and I like the look. Am I asking for trouble going for a German car, though? I assume gas mileage is shit?

 

[Souldriver]

Okay, so the Soul I was looking at is a no-go. Turns out it's standard, but I need automatic.

Crazy question: I just saw a 2005 BMW 325ci. Price seems good, and I like the look. Am I asking for trouble going for a German car, though? I assume gas mileage is shit?

My dad always told me that buying a BMW for a good price is only half the story; the maintenance and garage costs are very high compared to other (more modest) brands.

This is from a European perspective though, which is very different from the US one I guess. For example, Volkswagens for Europe are made in different factories than those for the US, and the quality and reputation of VW in Europe is much higher as a result of it.

 

[JumpJeff84]

My dad always told me that buying a BMW for a good price is only half the story; the maintenance and garage costs are very high compared to other (more modest) brands.

This is from a European perspective though, which is very different from the US one I guess. For example, Volkswagens for Europe are made in different factories than those for the US, and the quality and reputation of VW in Europe is much higher as a result of it.

Kinda what I suspected. I think I may just bite the bullet and get a new Soul.

 

[DasRaven]

Kinda what I suspected. I think I may just bite the bullet and get a new Soul.

Yeah, I'd say, just do that since you're in the love camp. Do get the" party-piece" Audio system upgrade if you buy a lower model. You can kill most of the principal with your cash reserve and have a nice new (warrantied) car for almost nothing per month. And if you're buying new, definitely get all the dealerships in the area to make you offers on the exact vehicle you want.

I think you can actually do a mass email to all local dealers through edmunds.com. I did that for my last car and it was amazing some of the offers I got with a simple "XXX offered me the vehicle for $YYY. Will you take $ZZZ?" emails. I never set foot in a dealership until time to pay.

 

[JumpJeff84]

Yeah, I'd say, just do that since you're in the love camp. Do get the" party-piece" Audio system upgrade if you buy a lower model. You can kill most of the principal with your cash reserve and have a nice new (warrantied) car for almost nothing per month. And if you're buying new, definitely get all the dealerships in the area to make you offers on the exact vehicle you want.

I think you can actually do a mass email to all local dealers through edmunds.com. I did that for my last car and it was amazing some of the offers I got with a simple "XXX offered me the vehicle for $YYY. Will you take $ZZZ?" emails. I never set foot in a dealership until time to pay.

Awesome. Thanks!

 

[JumpJeff84]

Took a 2010 Honda Fit for a test drive, and yeah, I'm in. Gonna finalize it all tomorrow. Wanted the Soul, but the price difference was too much to justify.

Thanks guys!

 

[PumpkinPie]

I just ordered a new Fiesta...I was thinking of something more upmarket, like a MINI Cooper S but all of the car magazines in the UK are saying that the Fiesta is the best small car you can buy. I ordered the top of the range Titanium model with keyless entry, push button start and individual leather interior and it also comes with a Sony radio system, privacy glass, automatic folding mirrors, anti-glare rear-view mirror etc:

I know a lot of people on here have Ferraris and whatnot so this is probably nothing to you, but I'm happy and very excited. I picked the Fiesta over more expensive cars because of some of the cool features it has, although the Fiesta itself is not exactly cheap at £15,000 ($24,000 in US Dollars).

 

[akachan ningen]

I just ordered a new Fiesta...I was thinking of something more upmarket, like a MINI Cooper S but all of the car magazines in the UK are saying that the Fiesta is the best small car you can buy. I ordered the top of the range Titanium model with keyless entry, push button start and individual leather interior and it also comes with a Sony radio system, privacy glass, automatic folding mirrors, anti-glare rear-view mirror etc:

I know a lot of people on here have Ferraris and whatnot so this is probably nothing to you, but I'm happy and very excited. I picked the Fiesta over more expensive cars because of some of the cool features it has, although the Fiesta itself is not exactly cheap at £15,000 ($24,000 in US Dollars).

That's insane. That car is like 16,000 usd here. Without all that nice equipment though.

 

[Gouty]

Holy shit dude, they installed the wheel on the wrong side of the car!

edit: I was in such a rush to be an idiot I almost forgot to say I really like that interior!

 

[exarkun]

fuuuuuuck Euro Fiesta's are so much nicer than US ones. Which is so, so stupid.

They said they were going to change that for the 2012 editions, but I don't know.

I heard the engine on the top tier Fiesta is actually pretty zippy. Lemme know how it drives.

 

[Gibbo]

Guys I just got my first car - 2010 Mazda 3. Just wanted to ask whats a good scent to use for the car?

 

[PumpkinPie]

fuuuuuuck Euro Fiesta's are so much nicer than US ones. Which is so, so stupid.

They said they were going to change that for the 2012 editions, but I don't know.

I heard the engine on the top tier Fiesta is actually pretty zippy. Lemme know how it drives.

Will do, gotta wait 8 weeks until the car arrives though the 0-60 time is 9.9 seconds so it isn't too bad, suits my needs anyway. I got the car dealer to put those smaller wheels on because I live out in the country where the roads are terrible, they are not an option usually but we did a trade for the wheels on a car they already had on display.

The price is ridiculous and the £15k is after the discount, if I had paid full list price it would have been over £17,000 I think...but I feel like treating myself. A the moment I have a 1.8 Yaris TS:

Thanks for the comments

 

[ClassyPenguin]

Guys I just got my first car - 2010 Mazda 3. Just wanted to ask whats a good scent to use for the car?

sex

 

[twinturbo2]

The Singer 911, in Autoblog gallery form.
More info

 

[Zyzyxxz]

nice but $200,000!

I'd rather buy an older body myself and restore it, although I wouldn't have the power at least it'd look as nice.

 

[robox]

i prefer rauh-welt porches

 

[opticalmace]

Guys I just got my first car - 2010 Mazda 3. Just wanted to ask whats a good scent to use for the car?

New car smell.

 

[twinturbo2]

i prefer rauh-welt porches

The thing I don't like about those Porsches are the wings, they're a little too much. The widebody kit on those is teh sex, though.

I wonder if Singer Vehicle Design can do a RUF CTR Yellowbird replica.

 

[Conceited]

:'(

Sad day for automotive enthusiasts, Tsukuba and Ebisu have both been seriously damaged in the Earthquake in Japan today.

This is so depressing, Tsukuba has been my favorite track since I first visited it 13 years ago.

Ebisu Garages from Kumakubos blog;

 

[Zyzyxxz]

Aww man not Tsukuba!

 

[BoobPhysics101]

What do you have?

Oops, missed this...

I have a track-ready, slightly pimped out Honda S2000. Carbon fiber Mugen hardtop, KW V3 coilovers, full bolt-ons, lots of audio goodies, Recaro seats, etc. Daily driving or track, it's a joy. I think it'd hold muster at Cars & Coffee even with all of the Porsche and Lambo madness...

 

[BoobPhysics101]

Aww man not Tsukuba!

Depressing... the disaster in Japan has really messed up everything for them. I can't wait for them to bounce back, such an amazing country.

 

[AlphaSnake]

Tsukuba was awesome. =(

 

[twinturbo2]

To lighten the mood a bit, here's McLaren's MP4-12C GT3 track machine. Why? Because racecar, that's why.

 

[Alucrid]

So I went home today for the first time in like...six months or so. Apparently my brother bought a brand new car...a 2011 Subaru Legacy. Apparently it's a four cylinder and he got it for 20k ish. I drove it and it seemed nice...but after driving a BMW for three years I probably couldn't take it as a daily driver.

 

[deviant1]

Picked up a new camera for my honeymoon next month, still trying to get the hang of shooting with a DSLR since I'm a complete photography newb. Still mostly stock at this point, I've got a 3" downpipe waiting to be installed and I'm hoping to get coilovers this summer.


wlp2 by afestino78, on Flickr


wlp5 by afestino78, on Flickr


wlp3 by afestino78, on Flickr


cluster2 by afestino78, on Flickr

 

[YuriLowell]

Looks good.

The pureblood in me wont buy anything thats not RWD.

Almost finished with my STX E30 build. Just need to put on these new front control arms, and then time to beat the piss out of it.

 

[Fallout-NL]

i prefer rauh-welt porches

Wow, those are pretty damn awesome.

 

[Mobius 1]

Picked up a new camera for my honeymoon next month, still trying to get the hang of shooting with a DSLR since I'm a complete photography newb. Still mostly stock at this point, I've got a 3" downpipe waiting to be installed and I'm hoping to get coilovers this summer.

Why hello cousin. What are you using to feed data to your phone? An OBD-II dongle?

 

[deviant1]

Why hello cousin. What are you using to feed data to your phone? An OBD-II dongle?

I'm using a PLX Kiwi Bluetooth OBD-II adapter. I'm using a Droid 2 running the Torque app. It's a pretty robust app that can display a ton of info, but it's not responsive enough to replace real gauges.

 

[Conceited]

Thank god theres only one of them, what a waste of a car.

On the other hand, this is cool;

 

[Zyzyxxz]

that motor bike is comical!

 

[YuriLowell]

I have never gotten those bluetooth obdi2 connectors to work properly on any of my bmws.

 

[Squash]

Thank god theres only one of them, what a waste of a car.

On the other hand, this is cool;

I think it's ok, better than making it all gold or something.

 

[iidesuyo]

Volkswagens for Europe are made in different factories than those for the US, and the quality and reputation of VW in Europe is much higher as a result of it.

Volkswagen in Europe seems to be quite different than VW in the rest of the world. In Brazil they're still selling the T2 bus:

and they have cheap "Gol" versions for poorer countries (no airbags or ABS!).

Most VWs for the US are made in Mexico with a rather bad reliability. They also downgraded the Jetta for the US to make it cheaper. The Jetta base version is only 16.000$ for the US version compared to 31.000$ in Germany.

 

[Zyzyxxz]

Volkswagen in Europe seems to be quite different than VW in the rest of the world. In Brazil they're still selling the T2 bus:

http://brasilienmagazin.net/media/t2_brasil_kombi1.jpg[IMG]

and they have cheap "Gol" versions for poorer countries (no airbags or ABS!).

Most VWs for the US are made in Mexico with a rather bad reliability. They also downgraded the Jetta for the US to make it cheaper. The Jetta base version is only 16.000$ for the US version compared to 31.000$ in Germany.[/QUOTE]

Which sucks since I liked the Jetta before they ruined it for the middle class folks now.

 

[dubc35]

:'(

Sad day for automotive enthusiasts, Tsukuba and Ebisu have both been seriously damaged in the Earthquake in Japan today.

This is so depressing, Tsukuba has been my favorite track since I first visited it 13 years ago.

Ebisu Garages from Kumakubos blog;

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/198956_10150180455925809_125281815808_8317592_737786_n.jpg[IMG][/QUOTE]
Kind of late but man that is depressing. This is the first I've heard of it. That's a huge hit on Best Motoring too as those are their main tracks (at least have been in the past, I haven't watched one in several months). Best of luck to them rebuilding, and to all the Japanese for that matter.

 

[twinturbo2]

Finally, it's arrived, Tony!

Also, as an aside, the 500C should be available in a couple of months, in time for summer top-down motoring.

 

[ascii42]

I went to the Atlanta International Auto Show today. They had a bunch of GM cars, a few Toyotas, and the Kia Optima available to drive. I didn't drive any of the Toyotas or the Kia, but I did get to drive this baby:

I can't think of a single thing to say against this car. It's absolutely amazing. The interior is great, and the 556 hp engine sounds so very American. I only wish they had the Wagon version to drive.
While I was there, I also got to drive the regular CTS Coupe, the Escalade Platinum Hybrid, the Chevy Volt, the Buick Regal, and the GMC Sierra 2500 Diesel.

The Escalade drove pretty well considering its size, and the interior was very well done. It's hard to tell that the vehicle is a Tahoe at heart. I liked the Volt. It was quiet, as expected, but it had a pretty good amount of pep, thanks to the electric engine's instant 273 lb-ft of torque. The Regal was nice, but I think I'd get the LaCrosse over it. I suppose the Regal is sportier, but the LaCrosse's quiet comfort is more my style. As for the GMC, it was...huge. I'm not really a big truck person, but if I were to get one, I suppose it might as well be that one. 765 lb-ft of torque would be handy the next time I need to tow a building.

 

[AlphaSnake]

The interior has quite a lot of cheap materials and plastics around it. Otherwise, I like the car very much.

 

[Pterion]

Not a fan of the looks of the CTS. The next M5 looks mean as hell though. Can't wait to see it in person.


What do you guys think of the latest AMG C63 coupe? If I had the money, I might try that over a M3.

 

[ascii42]

It's probably a blast to drive, but I've never really liked it when Mercedes puts the logo in the grill. It looks so much classier as a hood ornament, as in the E63 AMG.

 

[AlphaSnake]

No manual in either...meh. AMGs are soulless.

 

[DasRaven]

No manual in either...meh. AMGs are soulless.

By that definition a big rig with an Eaton Fuller tranny has "more soul" than a 458 Italia.

 

[BoobPhysics101]

Picked up a new camera for my honeymoon next month, still trying to get the hang of shooting with a DSLR since I'm a complete photography newb. Still mostly stock at this point, I've got a 3" downpipe waiting to be installed and I'm hoping to get coilovers this summer.

Awesome! Gorgeous WRX, and very nice photos.

I noticed you use the Torque for Android app... awesome app, I use it on my S2000 for datalogging. If you haven't already, buy the paid version, the dev is a champ.

Edit: You've inspired me to post pics of my S2K, just put new rims on yesterday and the 'look' is finally complete (although I'd like to upgrade the front bumper). I'll throw them up in a couple of days

 

[AlphaSnake]

By that definition a big rig with an Eaton Fuller tranny has "more soul" than a 458 Italia.

The hell? How are you comparing a rig to a car? That simply makes no sense.

And while we're on the subject, quite honestly Ferrari has gone to the shitter in my book. The 458 is a technical marvel, super fast, super slick, super precise, but (much like the GTR) super boring.

Don't even get me started on the sacrilegious atrocity that is the Ferrari FF.

Btw, don't mistake me as being some sort of manual transmission elitist. My 350Z was a 5-speed auto, which I enjoyed because the rest of the car allowed me to have my fun. My 370Z on the other hand I enjoy even more because it's a 6-speed manual that improves on virtually every facet of the original car, without taking away any of the fun.

Likewise, last year I drove a 2009 Aston Martin V8 Vantage, and even though it too was an automatic, it was still an absolutely enthralling ride, nearly perfect in every way, even if it isn't the fastest car for its price tag.

 

[BoobPhysics101]

Btw, don't mistake me as being some sort of manual transmission elitist. My 350Z was a 5-speed auto, which I enjoyed because the rest of the car allowed me to have my fun. My 370Z on the other hand I enjoy even more because it's a 6-speed manual that improves on virtually every facet of the original car, without taking away any of the fun.

Likewise, last year I drove a 2009 Aston Martin V8 Vantage, and even though it too was an automatic, it was still an absolutely enthralling ride, nearly perfect in every way, even if it isn't the fastest car for its price tag.

On a tangent, how do you live with that godawful clutch? 370z has one of the worst clutches I've ever experienced. Nissan seems to be aware of the issue because I know quite a few 370z owners that have stated how horrible it is.

Other than that, the 370z's performance is pretty awesome... but the clutch ruins the whole package for me. I also wish the VQ engines had more character and spirit (especially towards redline), but that's what you get when you use a jack-of-all-trades powerplant for your trucks, cars, and SUV's. Love the low-end torque too.

 

[AlphaSnake]

On a tangent, how do you live with that godawful clutch? 370z has one of the worst clutches I've ever experienced. Nissan seems to be aware of the issue because I know quite a few 370z owners that have stated how horrible it is.

Other than that, the 370z's performance is pretty awesome... but the clutch ruins the whole package for me. I also wish the VQ engines had more character and spirit (especially towards redline), but that's what you get when you use a jack-of-all-trades powerplant for your trucks, cars, and SUV's. Love the low-end torque too.

I've made adjustments to the clutch shortly after buying it. I had the engagement point lowered as much as it could go (two turns of the adjuster), and now I'm fine with it. This is my first MT too, but I've learned to work the clutch no problems. It's a very on-off feel, but once you get used to it, you know precisely how much slip it has in travel.

Stock the clutch used to catch waaaay up top, something like 3/4 high. The worst part of the original engagement is that's where the pedal gets really springy and just forces your leg back. Now it's about 1/2 way up to engage, right in the softer spot, which made for a tremendous difference.

 

[BoobPhysics101]

I've made adjustments to the clutch shortly after buying it. I had the engagement point lowered as much as it could go (two turns of the adjuster), and now I'm fine with it. This is my first MT too, but I've learned to work the clutch no problems. It's a very on-off feel, but once you get used to it, you know precisely how much slip it has in travel.

Stock the clutch used to catch waaaay up top, something like 3/4 high. The worst part of the original engagement is that's where the pedal gets really springy and just forces your leg back. Now it's about 1/2 way up to engage, right in the softer spot, which made for a tremendous difference.

Exactly! That's what I hated about it. It engages way higher than you expect, and like you said... when it gets close to the engagement point it suddenly springs up. So the bottom part is soft, and... BOOM. Really sucks, but I'm glad that you got it fixed.

How is the gas mileage on those? I know it's horrible on the G35 and the 350z but I wonder if Nissan made efficiency improvements. Also, are you going to track the car? I think the 370z would be ridiculously fun on the track because you can probably just throw it into turns and it'll stay pretty planted.

 

[AlphaSnake]

Exactly! That's what I hated about it. It engages way higher than you expect, and like you said... when it gets close to the engagement point it suddenly springs up. So the bottom part is soft, and... BOOM. Really sucks, but I'm glad that you got it fixed.

How is the gas mileage on those? I know it's horrible on the G35 and the 350z but I wonder if Nissan made efficiency improvements. Also, are you going to track the car? I think the 370z would be ridiculously fun on the track because you can probably just throw it into turns and it'll stay pretty planted.

No tracking here, it's just too much abuse for a daily driver like mine (well...daily except for snow and rain). The MPG was fine on my 350Z - I'd get 300 to the gas light, and that's a 5-speed in NYC driving. The 370Z is a little bit better at the moment it seems.