The New Car Fanatic Thread

[Chewbacca 7664]

Yeah, but anything with good 33’s and any type of power can navigate all but the most rutted up logging roads and passes.   Is auto sway bar disconnect cool? Yeah.  Do you need it for 99% of the “trails”’ your driving?   Neither are making it thru hells revenge without some work. 

Right, but most people don't want to drive over Hell's Revenge.

[fattyflattie 4631]

1 hour ago, Chewbacca said:

2 hours ago, fattyflattie said:

Yeah, but anything with good 33’s and any type of power can navigate all but the most rutted up logging roads and passes.   Is auto sway bar disconnect cool? Yeah.  Do you need it for 99% of the “trails”’ your driving?   Neither are making it thru hells revenge without some work. 

Right, but most people don't want to drive over Hell's Revenge.

That’s my point. I’d add the new bronco to the stock capable list, too.  But with good tires and good power, you’re about as capable as anything else until you start fucking with the specialized guys.  Add in a locker which everyone has had for awhile and you can do a lot until you make the big leap. 

[52-80 19015]

9 hours ago, Sam Lin said:

Re: Tesla compared to other cars, whynotboth.gif

It's pretty clear you've each made up your minds. The car market will make its own mind. FWIW my dad has a Tesla and it is a perfectly fine (fast) appliance. It's a very good choice for him.I was literally speechless when I found out that rain sensing wiper was still a "Beta" function - the Taiwan owner base describes the function as "mentally retarded."

The auto wipers were about 85% effective when I first got the car. Its now 95%+. Same for auto-high beams. 

Other things updated through software wirelessly include things BMW would legitimately charge for as standalone features: 360* surveillance cam with in-car playback (caught a guy dinging my door); track mode and control over cooling and power distribution; cabin camera streaming surveillance; and legit safety stuff like active, predictive seatbelt pre-tensioning. 

I myself described the car long ago upthread as an “appliance”.  The functional essence of a car as transport for people and cargo, its superlative.  Its cavernous for its size, has vast visibility, is seamless in operation, and if you need to merge in traffic - it effortlessly spanks an X5M to the 1/4 mile.

If we’re talking about best off-roader: get a 4Runner or whatever.  Most thrilling sports experience: assemble a Caterham in your garage.  If @cabowabo is looking for a *car* to get around in, a Tesla at current prices is a stonking product.

[G650 13618]

1 hour ago, 52-80 said:

ther things updated through software wirelessly include things BMW would legitimately charge for as standalone features: 360* surveillance cam with in-car playback (caught a guy dinging my door); track mode and control over cooling and power distribution; cabin camera streaming surveillance;

BMW doesn't charge me for that stuff just as a data point. I use it as a party trick sometimes

I guess the traffic camera information is a subscription though, I got a notice about that.

[52-80 19015]

I mean there are things that didnt exist when you buy a car - the agreement to pay $X to get Y - which are then later provided for free and of genuine functionality and value.  It happens continuously. 

Except Autopilot/FSD. People who already agreed to pay $X with the promise of eventually getting Z….sounds like a suckers bet.

Never cared for it. Still dont. (If I wanted to be driven ill hire a taxi). Car itself still great. 

[G650 13618]

Soft roading the iX this morning.

[USCATX 1064]

The ZL1 showed up today, pretty much the perfect day to get a convertible in the hill country.  And oh my god, this thing is so fast.  2nd gear 30-60 is like a 2 second dab of throttle followed by the rowdiest decel popping when you lift. Also, I love these seats so much.  

[tbone_ 14014]

That looks really good. Whadda they whack a guy for on something like that?

[USCATX 1064]

38 minutes ago, tbone_ said:

That looks really good. Whadda they whack a guy for on something like that?

$79.5K OTD which is about $3500 under MSRP.  

[elfenix 34148]

First Z I've seen

[LebongJames 1772]

12 hours ago, elfenix said:

First Z I've seen

Do you drive a boat? Never mind I think that’s a photo of your side view mirror.

Edited January 18, 2023 by LebongJames

[52-80 19015]

13 hours ago, elfenix said:

First Z I've seen
 

looks like the new character in a Pixar Car movie

[tbone_ 14014]

$79.5K OTD which is about $3500 under MSRP.  

Probably not bad at all when you think about the performance you are getting.

Always wished they had resurrected the Z28 badge with these latest hot rod Camaros.

[USCATX 1064]

8 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Probably not bad at all when you think about the performance you are getting.

Always wished they had resurrected the Z28 badge with these latest hot rod Camaros.

They should put the flat plane v8 from the new Z06 in one and call it the Z28.  
 

And speaking of the Corvette, that new E-ray looks great.  I love the idea of the Z06, but I’m not a track guy and the E-Ray would probably be a lot more fun, comfortable and faster on the street. 

Edited January 18, 2023 by USCATX

[elfenix 34148]

Haven't seen this collectible in the office garage before

[Duane Moore 5236]

On 1/15/2023 at 11:40 AM, cabowabo said:

We have a 2018 Volvo XC90 and I will never buy another Volvo again.  Has had numerous issues.  Last week, the turn signals and all steering wheel controls stopped working. I knew it was a faulty steering wheel module, but did not want to DIY it because of the airbag.  $700 later to dealership we are back in business.  I hate the engine stop shit mentioned and the HVAC is loud as shit even in the low setting. I can’t stand that everything is controlled on the touch screen.  I fucking hate this car.  
 

With the recent Tesla price drop and the $7500 tax credit, thinking about trading the Volvo for a Model Y.  Aside from my wife not being able to figure shit out on a Tesla, any other reason why I shouldn’t?

 

On 1/15/2023 at 2:15 PM, cabowabo said:

The Tesla would mostly be for in town driving/charge at home.   One question I have is about highway charging stations.  For you Tesla/EV owners, on road trips do you ever have to wait for a charging station to open up when stop to recharge?  Not sure I could deal with that if that is a common thing. With more and more EVs on the road, I could see that being a problem. 

I’m no mechanical engineer or gear head, but I got a Tesla Model 3 last fall after 10 years in a Lexus LS460 and I am loving it so far. It’s not a rolling bank vault with doors that close in a satisfying “thunk” like the Lexus and German sedans, but it is quieter than I expected and I haven’t had any build defect issues yet. The user interface learning curve wasn’t that bad, and I’ve taken it on multiple long road trips and the seats have been comfortable to me during long stretches of driving. I don’t have the full self driving package and wouldn’t recommend it. It’s nowhere near ready yet and very expensive as an add on. I haven’t had any issues with the basic autopilot function so far. 
 

Do the research for yourself, as I did, but I found the Tesla network of superchargers to be way more ubiquitous and convenient along most major highways than the non-Tesla options. I haven’t had to wait for a charger space to open up at one of the Tesla Supercharger stations yet, but that may become an issue the more of these get sold. 
 

Personally, I was starting to look around for a new car after 10 years, and $5/gallon premium gas (plus $130 oil changes and the high cost of maintenance) made me go in a different direction than I ever would have considered in the past.  Electric cars in general have advanced to the point where they are just a lot of fun to drive. I’m kicking myself that I bought before the price drops and incentives went into effect, but I’m very happy with my purchase. Depending on your requirements the Model Y long range might be worth a test drive. 
 

Good luck!

[A-Tex Devil 2441]

May not be best thread for this, but any recommendations for no drill front license plate mounts for Panamera?  It’s unclear to me whether the two I’ve found (platypus and carbonio) will work with sensors, cameras etc.  And they are expensive.  

[midtown 3339]

I put mine in the tow hook. Is there not a Porsche board with recommendations?

[nolongerU2horn 740]

On 1/14/2023 at 11:10 AM, USCATX said:

Does anybody have a PPF guy in Austin (west side ideally) that they like?  I want to get the ZL1 front end done because daily driving was hell on the GT350 paint.  

This is the only answer

https://www.padtx.com/

[royiv 9076]

4 hours ago, A-Tex Devil said:

May not be best thread for this, but any recommendations for no drill front license plate mounts for Panamera?  It’s unclear to me whether the two I’ve found (platypus and carbonio) will work with sensors, cameras etc.  And they are expensive.  

I had a Harris County Constable pull me over a couple of weeks ago for no other reason than I don't have a front license plate. What a waste of time.

[Okie State 3731]

I had a Harris County Constable pull me over a couple of weeks ago for no other reason than I don't have a front license plate. What a waste of time.

I got a ticket for it and had to waste a whole bunch of time to get it dropped. I have a front plate now.

[USCATX 1064]

2 hours ago, nolongerU2horn said:

This is the only answer

https://www.padtx.com/

Thanks, I’ll see what the wait is. 

[A-Tex Devil 2441]

1 hour ago, royiv said:

I had a Harris County Constable pull me over a couple of weeks ago for no other reason than I don't have a front license plate. What a waste of time.

Right.  Which is why I need one.  I drive past Rollingwood PD every day on my way home, and now that temps are no longer on, I'm 

 

4 hours ago, midtown said:

I put mine in the tow hook. Is there not a Porsche board with recommendations?

Thx.  They recommend these two, but then they both have a ton of bad reviews.  May be user error.  I'll give the Platypus a shot.  

[fattyflattie 4631]

40 minutes ago, Okie State said:

1 hour ago, royiv said:

I had a Harris County Constable pull me over a couple of weeks ago for no other reason than I don't have a front license plate. What a waste of time.

I got a ticket for it and had to waste a whole bunch of time to get it dropped. I have a front plate now.

Got a ticket from a motorbike cop during a rainstorm once. They were camped out under the overpass and checking every sticker and bumper than made that turn.  Was a dumbass teenager and didn’t take care of it.  Got pulled over a year later and cop said you know you have a warrant?  Let me clean it up. Ended up costing something like 10x the original ticket.   Lesson learned.  

[Gladeite 375]

Reminds me of my teenage days.  When seatbelt laws were first enacted, got stopped in rural East Texas.  Wadded the ticket up and threw it out the window after the stop.  Fast forward several years, now out of college and driving a new Vette.  In same rural East Texas, but this time parking with the local doc's daughter.  In the tricky stage of the evening, removing pantyhose and maneuvering in a Vette.  Lights come on behind us.  Sheriffs department runs my DL and comes back with a warrant.  Take me into custody, have girl drive my car to her parents and her parents come bail me out.  Fun times.  

[Fat Bastard 591]

Anyone have any experience with or have friends who have the BMW M8 Gran Coupe? Ever since I got rid of my M5 been itching to get another M car. Love the way the 8 looks. Need 4 doors unfortunately 

[Chad Fuck 17406]

Saw this lined up with the taxis in Seoul.

[USCATX 1064]

On 1/20/2023 at 10:46 AM, nolongerU2horn said:

This is the only answer

https://www.padtx.com/

It’s going in on the 31st for a full front plus rockers and front edge of rear quarters package.

Can’t wait to get this knocked out plus the break-in so I can really let it rip.  I did a little run under 4k rpm on Fitzhugh yesterday and the supercharger torque already has me addicted. 

[G650 13618]

21 hours ago, Chad Fuck said:

Saw this lined up with the taxis in Seoul.

I actually saw a McLaren here the other day, which is very uncommon.

[Anton Chigurh 3317]

The GT is a little goofy looking for me.

[Chad Fuck 17406]

The GT is a little goofy looking for me.

This is the automotive equivalent of “she has pointy knees. Would not bang.”

[Gravy Train 970]

1 hour ago, Chad Fuck said:

This is the automotive equivalent of “she has pointy knees. Would not bang.”

The Ferrari California can justify such an opinion

[Your Mom 4763]

Pretty good assessment of the state of EV charging stations and range estimates for EVs on road trips right now.  5 different EVs on 5 different road trips and their experiences.  

https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/road-tripping-in-our-long-term-electric-test-cars/

tl/dr:  There are still significant reliability problems with lots of the charging stations.  You need multiple options and should expect to find broken or slow chargers.  Cold weather can render the range estimates completely worthless.  None of this is new information, but it paints a pretty good picture of what to expect on a road trip and how to counter it.   No Teslas were involved in these trips, their network seems to have a clear advantage still, but hopefully not forever.  

[Brew 2954]

Wife decided she wanted to go look at Range Rovers again, since it is about her normal trading timeframe. The dealership we have used in the past has an 18-24 month wait on the new ones with people putting down $5000 non refundable deposits. They have something like 300 vehicles on order between them, the RR Sport, and a few others. That is pretty damn nutty for a niche vehicle. You can drive off in a Defender but that was it.  Saved me the trouble of buying one, but there is no telling what she comes up with next.

[fattyflattie 4631]

10 hours ago, Brew said:

Wife decided she wanted to go look at Range Rovers again, since it is about her normal trading timeframe. The dealership we have used in the past has an 18-24 month wait on the new ones with people putting down $5000 non refundable deposits. They have something like 300 vehicles on order between them, the RR Sport, and a few others. That is pretty damn nutty for a niche vehicle. You can drive off in a Defender but that was it.  Saved me the trouble of buying one, but there is no telling what she comes up with next.

I need to find a way to buy your “old” stuff about once every 10 years. Between the 250 and Escalade, I’d be set for 10-15 yrs and do it again. 

[noharleyyet 2826]

CLS replaced....Grandparenting embraced

 

[Sam Lin 3538]

For Mercedes, I've been eyeing some infotainment flash options from RJ Automotive. They can unlock a lot of factory options if you didn't buy them, they can also set some user preferences to default to settings you prefer on startup (example, set to Individual drive mode instead of it always defaulting to Comfort). I'm not a customer yet, but am planning to do the multibeam headlight and the Distronic radar cruise control on my GLS.

https://rjautomotive.net/

Edited February 5, 2023 by Sam Lin

[PittsburghTiger 6099]

On 1/17/2023 at 7:18 PM, USCATX said:

The ZL1 showed up today, pretty much the perfect day to get a convertible in the hill country.  And oh my god, this thing is so fast.  2nd gear 30-60 is like a 2 second dab of throttle followed by the rowdiest decel popping when you lift. Also, I love these seats so much.  

That's a damned good looking convertible. In my view they shouldn't even make a hard top version.

[tbone_ 14014]

Well you can’t see shit from inside the hard top

[Bob Lives! 900]

Life's too short.
 
 

Lesson learned. Never leave an extra key fob inside your car. This bad boy got stolen last night from the hotel we were staying at due to the power outage. Long boring story about why the extra fob was in there, related to power outage. Car burglars smashed window on another car too, but I guess when they found my key they went for a joy ride. I found it the next morning off Riverside using a tracker. Car destroyed.

[tbone_ 14014]

Damn. Those cunts should be launched into the sun.

[Sam Lin 3538]

Goddamn, that sucks.

[TwiceHorn 30924]

On 1/17/2023 at 6:18 PM, USCATX said:

The ZL1 showed up today, pretty much the perfect day to get a convertible in the hill country.  And oh my god, this thing is so fast.  2nd gear 30-60 is like a 2 second dab of throttle followed by the rowdiest decel popping when you lift. Also, I love these seats so much.  

The other thing that idle observers may not know is that that isn't just some straight line monster.  The Alpha platform is saweet. GM finally out BMWed BMW with it. I bet that's just a hell of a lot of fun even if you aren't leadfooting it.

[PittsburghTiger 6099]

On 1/20/2023 at 6:59 PM, Fat Bastard said:

Anyone have any experience with or have friends who have the BMW M8 Gran Coupe? Ever since I got rid of my M5 been itching to get another M car. Love the way the 8 looks. Need 4 doors unfortunately 

Yeah, December 2021, I drove a buddy to the BMW dealer to pick up his new one. There are pictures here on this thread. It was a cold day, about 26F, and I picked him up with the top down in the 911. He wanted the top put up, I said he could go get a hat to wear.

He loves his car. His is all blacked out. It’s an M8 Competition. 

[Fat Bastard 591]

2 hours ago, PittsburghTiger said:

Yeah, December 2021, I drove a buddy to the BMW dealer to pick up his new one. There are pictures here on this thread. It was a cold day, about 26F, and I picked him up with the top down in the 911. He wanted the top put up, I said he could go get a hat to wear.

He loves his car. His is all blacked out. It’s an M8 Competition. 

Picked up a fully blacked out M8 GC comp last Tuesday. Fucking love it. It has been impossible to keep it under 4500 rpm tho for the break in period. 😁

[Planet Houston 4919]

Ugh. I had a year-old new Bronco that just got totaled when an asshole with no license and no insurance blew through a red light and broadsided me on the passenger side (thank god). I am very lucky to have walked away fine, and even luckier my wife and kids (8-yo twins) weren’t in the car. I also would have flipped but for rolling into an F-150 waiting to take a left going the opposite direction on my street. Oh and this happened all of 5 blocks from my house. 

So with all that being said, I think I’m in the market for a safe, luxury SUV. Not sure I need a full-size model as long as I have a tow hitch - we have a great trailer-mounted tray and bag that solved long trips with the smaller cargo space of my Bronco - so I’m looking at mid to large luxury SUVs that are above all safe. Performance is important-ish, I certainly don’t want to be driving a 4 cylinder, but I’m also not looking to break the bank to upgrade to souped up models of the below ideas I have. 

What say you, Shaggy? What I’m currently contemplating is Tahoe/Yukon, Escalade, X5/X7, GLE/GLS, GV80, XC90, Range Rover Sport, Expedition, Navigator. I left off several I know, and that list is a bit all over the place, but curious what y’all think. 

[Da Fino 2708]

16 minutes ago, Planet Houston said:

Ugh. I had a year-old new Bronco that just got totaled when an asshole with no license and no insurance blew through a red light and broadsided me on the passenger side (thank god). I am very lucky to have walked away fine, and even luckier my wife and kids (8-yo twins) weren’t in the car. I also would have flipped but for rolling into an F-150 waiting to take a left going the opposite direction on my street. Oh and this happened all of 5 blocks from my house. 

So with all that being said, I think I’m in the market for a safe, luxury SUV. Not sure I need a full-size model as long as I have a tow hitch - we have a great trailer-mounted tray and bag that solved long trips with the smaller cargo space of my Bronco - so I’m looking at mid to large luxury SUVs that are above all safe. Performance is important-ish, I certainly don’t want to be driving a 4 cylinder, but I’m also not looking to break the bank to upgrade to souped up models of the below ideas I have. 

What say you, Shaggy? What I’m currently contemplating is Tahoe/Yukon, Escalade, X5/X7, GLE/GLS, GV80, XC90, Range Rover Sport, Expedition, Navigator. I left off several I know, and that list is a bit all over the place, but curious what y’all think. 

A bunch of my buddies that had always been Tahoe guys have made the switch over to Expedition and are happy. My wife went from Range Rover to X7 and will probably be a BMW person for life. 

[fattyflattie 4631]

Closing in on 325k women driven city miles over last 2 Denali’s here.  No real issues to speak of. Nothing that ever went to shop to be fixed, anyhow.  Big fan of the 6.2 

But they’re all good.  Well, maybe not the RR. 

[A-Tex Devil 2441]

We love our GLS.  If you want smaller I am sure the other GL classes are comparable amenity wise. 

[Da Fino 2708]

4 hours ago, fattyflattie said:

Closing in on 325k women driven city miles over last 2 Denali’s here.  No real issues to speak of. Nothing that ever went to shop to be fixed, anyhow.  Big fan of the 6.2 

But they’re all good.  Well, maybe not the RR. 

No transmission issues?