Automobiles

[jerk]

The only thing you need on the dash is a big tach with the red zone clearly visible.... oh wait, wrong car.

nah-- digital speedometer and map of the track and shift point lights on the steering wheel.

[Saab2000]

It's German manufactured and styled. The platform engineering is American though (same platform as a Chevy Malibu). I test drove one back in December (GM was throwing like $7k of incentives at them). It was a good car but the dealer didn't want to meet my price. I ended up scoring a Chevy Volt instead.

Well, which came first? I think the Euro versions actually. But it doesn’t matter. The platform was designed as a global architecture from the get go so many cars are made with similar attributes.

At this point it’s a fairly old platform and Opel has been sold to Peugeot SA anyway.

[AngryScientist]

or if you just really, really want a slower car that you shift yourself.

yes, that's me.

[Too Tall]

Some mornings I hang out with some Psychologists and counselors. Over coffee we solve the world's problems. When the subject of Mustangs and Corvettes came up one of my pals said "It's diagnostic". blink blink

[DOOFUS]

or if you just really, really want a slower car that you shift yourself.

or or the pleasure of interacting with the vehicle and having heel-toe blip fun.

as craig has claimed, getting a fun car with an automatic just means you can pass people on the highway. blah. the manual is about your connection with the car.

[Too Tall]

or or the pleasure of interacting with the vehicle and having heel-toe blip fun.

as craig has claimed, getting a fun car with an automatic just means you can pass people on the highway. blah. the manual is about your connection with the car.

Oooo wellll than you really want one of my part time jobs driving retired Trailways Bus. No power steering (not kidding), non-synchro first gear and a governor, Detroit Diesel AAAAnd a 50 lbs clutch yeah it's a stick shift hahahahah. Once you get it rolling is the last time you use the clutch until you stop. I was making extra $$ driving co-workers to the job site and back. In the morning there was many open cups of coffee, smooth driving was a good way not to get your ass kicked.

But wait Dr. Doof there are even more awesome stick shift driving experiences :) At the job site we had heavy haul trucks with gear splitters and hi/low over/underdrive (separate) gearboxes. Totally fun once you get it figured out. When you are at a stoplight and hear a big truck using all the gears g-d intended you gotta appreciate the skill set....and his left leg is twice the size of his / her right.

One of the old timer guys taught me to drive a crashbox truck with two OD boxes. Talk about a mind-fk.



Cars are awesome.

[j44ke]

Speaking of slow cars, our rental car in Japan was a domestic model from Toyota that was basically a small box with two bench seats and a steering wheel. Plus all-wheel drive. Like a miniature Kia Soul. Driving position was like sitting at a table in a kids chair. But it was a fun car, just because there really wasn’t much to it. And it had what felt like floor to ceiling windows and could park in a bathroom. 990cc motor if I remember correctly. Crosswinds are entertaining.



What I really want is one of the little pickup trucks I saw at every single warehouse and farm and driving here and there loaded with crap or tools or lumber and generally doing everything that most owners of Ford Super Duty trucks would ever actually need. Fold down sides and gate on the bed. 4wd. The Honda I peeked into had a 6 speed manual transmission.

[rydesteel]

Oooo wellll than you really want one of my part time jobs driving retired Trailways Bus. No power steering (not kidding), non-synchro first gear and a governor, Detroit Diesel AAAAnd a 50 lbs clutch yeah it's a stick shift hahahahah. Once you get it rolling is the last time you use the clutch until you stop. I was making extra $$ driving co-workers to the job site and back. In the morning there was many open cups of coffee, smooth driving was a good way not to get your ass kicked.

But wait Dr. Doof there are even more awesome stick shift driving experiences :) At the job site we had heavy haul trucks with gear splitters and hi/low over/underdrive (separate) gearboxes. Totally fun once you get it figured out. When you are at a stoplight and hear a big truck using all the gears g-d intended you gotta appreciate the skill set....and his left leg is twice the size of his / her right.

One of the old timer guys taught me to drive a crashbox truck with two OD boxes. Talk about a mind-fk.



Cars are awesome.

This is how it was done back in the day.

[sk_tle]

Speaking of slow cars, our rental car in Japan was a domestic model from Toyota that was basically a small box with two bench seats and a steering wheel. Plus all-wheel drive. Like a miniature Kia Soul. Driving position was like sitting at a table in a kids chair. But it was a fun car, just because there really wasn’t much to it. And it had what felt like floor to ceiling windows and could park in a bathroom. 990cc motor if I remember correctly. Crosswinds are entertaining.

That thing is a rebranded Daihatsu Sirion (Toyota own Daihatsu). I almost bought one 9y ago instead of my Mazda 2. Basically I bailed out because my partner was pregnant and the trunk was a bit too small to accept a decent kid stroller. That car, and most daihatsu to be honest, are magical. They feel much roomier on the inside than they are on the outside. The one sold in europe had a larger engine 1.3L and was thus a bit peppier. Although it is the opposite of a sports car and is basically an appliance, the association of a the sound of a 3 piston engine and narrow tires makes it quite entertaining to drive in a spirited manner. In my memory there was also a gazillion of storage compartiments in the cockpit.

I'm in seek of a well maintained example of her biggest (well it is relative) sister, the Daihatsu Materia:

[Too Tall]

Frank, that's it!!! Of all the stupid trucks I drove the Greyhound was the coolest (deathtrap). It was simple, powerful and ancient.

[dgaddis]

In daily life it's more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.

[j44ke]

Appliance is a good description. A driving appliance. And yes, tons of nooks and spaces in which to stash things, including a shelf the same width as the dashboard that could hold pens, coins, phones, handguns, crowbar, whatever.

BTW I never saw anyone talking on the phone or texting while driving in Japan. As a result, the level of awareness of Japanese drivers was startlingly different than the US. We have a real problem here I think, akin to a lot of other addictions.

And with the Japanese GPS system built into cars, you route to a location by entering the phone number. So brilliant for tourists trying to drive to a restaurant or hotel.

[DOOFUS]

Toots -- I want to see you, and some others of your tree-tribe, race some Greyhounds. Big men in big buses with big engines and big footwork to keep those babies moving -- slowly -- around a big track. No stewards and all the contact you want. I'm thinking this, just with huge rigs:

[rmplum]

I think Craig's mostly correct (as per usual) and now that my driving requirements include less & less long-distance driving I can imagine myself in an electric.
Maybe.
I'd still rather have an AllRoad for $50k..

Volkswagen eGolf. Find one. If you can deal with 115 miles of range (or 80-90 from the first couple of model years) and don't want all of the weird $hit - that's the option. All the VW stuff you like, and so pleasant to drive around town.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, BMW i8s have also also depreciated quite a bit. That thing was 500% more interesting to drive than any Tesla we've had. I don't think you can get one for $50k but maybe. Add a Seasucker and you get two handfuls of miles worth of electric range, exotic looks that have held up and controls that will immediately feel comfy to anyone who has spent time in a modern, and a car that you can take on a road trip as long as your luggage fits. It even has back seats! That thing gets crapped on all the time but I miss ours quite a bit.

[lumpy]

Toots -- I want to see you, and some others of your tree-tribe, race some Greyhounds. Big men in big buses with big engines and big footwork to keep those babies moving -- slowly -- around a big track. No stewards and all the contact you want. I'm thinking this, just with huge rigs:

Our local dirt track has school bus racing as part of its annual Vestalia, the Eve of Destruction. I'll attest that it's impressive in person; some of those woodchucks are really fast.



I understand some venues do this in a figure 8 configuration, but I've never seen that for myself.

[Too Tall]

Nice one Lumpy, I was going to say schoolbus racing. That's as much fun as you can have legally.

[jerk]

That car, and most daihatsu to be honest, are magical. They feel much roomier on the inside than they are on the outside. T

this is precious. our own contrarian pal Thomas whom I've never heard speak effusively about ANYTHING- and generally is here to point out the cold hard realities of all our dumb fetishizations....just called a fuckiking DAIHATSU "magical".


today is a good day.

[jerk]

Volkswagen eGolf. Find one. If you can deal with 115 miles of range (or 80-90 from the first couple of model years) and don't want all of the weird $hit - that's the option. All the VW stuff you like, and so pleasant to drive around town.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, BMW i8s have also also depreciated quite a bit. That thing was 500% more interesting to drive than any Tesla we've had. I don't think you can get one for $50k but maybe. Add a Seasucker and you get two handfuls of miles worth of electric range, exotic looks that have held up and controls that will immediately feel comfy to anyone who has spent time in a modern, and a car that you can take on a road trip as long as your luggage fits. It even has back seats! That thing gets crapped on all the time but I miss ours quite a bit.

my ex's favorite car in the world aesthetically is an i8.

if it ever depreciates enough i could see owning one.

[rmplum]

my ex's favorite car in the world aesthetically is an i8.

if it ever depreciates enough i could see owning one.

I bet that where you live you could Turo one of those for a weekend to see if I'm on crack or not. Also a good chance to practice your ingress and egress - the carbon side sill is really high. No point in having a rad car if you look like a goomba getting in and out of it each time!

[zachateseverything]

or or the pleasure of interacting with the vehicle and having heel-toe blip fun.

as craig has claimed, getting a fun car with an automatic just means you can pass people on the highway. blah. the manual is about your connection with the car.

You still get to interact with the car with a dual clutch transmission. Heck even the current gen stick shift GM cars are going to rev match for you and do a better job of it than a human can. It's all about freeing up mental resources to get better at the stuff that actually matters like line choice and car control.