The MW Automotive Thread

[trueblueeyes]

Got any pictures of her Gaijin? There is a beautiful black '04 GTO from this area that has run as fast as 11.84 at 120.54mph (with a crappy 1.81 60ft because of the drag radials...still don't know what it would do with a nice set of real sticky tires). Stock bottom end with a super charger, but still a full weight car that has terrific street manners. I love that car!

There's no way to know what gains we're acutally seeing without a 'dyno

True, but I am referring more to some manufacturer's ridiculous claims. If I added up everything they claimed my '93 notch would have about 1,500 HP.

[myk]

Gaijin, I didn't know you had a GTO. Pictures please!

Speaking of snow, I'd love to see California drivers get a taste of driving in those type of weather conditions-the carnage would be awful...

Edited February 14, 2006 by myk

[Stamen0083]

Isn't the GTO being canned to make way for a new GTO? I hear something about a 2008 model being brand new.

[David Hingtgen]

Quck edit: I actually heard the 2008 Grand Prix was being canned, to bring back the Bonneville. Wouldn't surprise me for GM to do something that stupid--kill the best-selling Pontiac to bring back the one that was cut due to poor sales. (Hey, maybe the sunroof option package really is hitting GP sales really hard--not that GM would ever figure out why--are all their executives like 5'4?)

Anyways, living in a place with bad weather doesn't help much--people are still stupid. About 2 days ago it started snowing. Just a little flurry, nothing at all. I WAS going to go to the mall, but only got to the first intersection before I noticed things "weren't right" and my car's external temp gauge was clicking down. It was in fact 29 degrees. THE worst possible temperature. Not 28, not 30. 29. That means snow melts on hitting concrete but rapidly refreezes into ice. Spotted 2 cars crunched together at the intersection. Then I spotted a 2-block long back-up on the next curve (had already decided to go home after 90 secs of driving) and then noticed cars off the street on the other side of the same road! I had came to a complete stop to make a u-turn but still totally slid sideways when starting the actual turn, about the worst I've ever encountered in my life (and I had slowly accelerated to about 4mph, and I just got my new "highly-rated for snow" Traction T/A tires put on, and had full traction control engaged) (worst slide ever was at the mall, I actually hit the curb--to this day I still see people slide right into the curb at that spot, it's the slickest spot in town)

The news later reported 30 accidents within the first 45 minutes. People like me quickly realized it was SLICK out when we first got on the roads and carefully, slowly drove home. The other idiots of the town drove like they would any other day, and ended up in ditches. How the roads LOOK and how they ARE rarely coincide. They can look fine and be godawful (like that day), or they can look horrible but not be that bad. Fine line between ice, slush, and snow, and mixed layers of all. All look different, all behave different.

PS--the absolute worst, period, is someone in a pickup in snow. I swear, they get on a hill, and floor it, and fishtail widly, sometimes practically doing a 180 from the stoplight, and wonder why they can't go. Sign of an utter moron is usually to spin your tires widly, trying to go in snow. (There are a few rare situations where this is the only way to go, but it is rare and I've yet to see it done here---every spinning tire acceleration here is a result of having no clue whatsoever how to drive in snow/slush/ice)

It's to the point that in winter, I absolutely will not pull up next to a pickup at a stoplight. Period. I'll hang back 15 feet and have people honk at me--I've come an inch away from being sideswiped way too many times. Only pickups, only in winter. So many of their drivers just CAN'T figure out how to get going without having the back end swing out 5 feet. Plenty of people have figured it out (my parents for example) but I can't risk the other 80% of the population who are more likely to crunch my door than to actually go STRAIGHT from a stoplight in the snow.

Edited February 14, 2006 by David Hingtgen

[myk]

Glad you're allright, Dave. God damn. Driving in climates like that is just fraking heroic...

[Seven]

And here we are in sunny San Diego where it was like 80 degrees outside and the roads are hot enough to grill bacon.

Whats funny or sad is that people here are still moronic when on the road. You have a little sprinkle of rain and people start hitting thier brakes like its a damn monsoon. Or you have the same people tear down a downhill S during heavy rain and end up in someone's front yard.

Bar none stupidest I've seen is where a guy with a brand new STI managed to take out a fire hydrant sliding into it sideways in the middle of a block on a straight 4 lane boulevard!!! How do you do that on a straight wide dry road with an AWD car?! There weren't even any turnoffs in the middle of the block!

[yellowlightman]

Another funny question for the people with modded vehicles.  According to the manufacturer of your mods, how much horsepower should you have?  I just love manufacturers claims (and I don't buy the..."it is measured at the crank with no accessories running"...excuse either.)  Parasitic losses will account for some HP/TQ difference but I still think they are pulling the numbers out of their rears or testing their mods on a engine that is far from stock.

369987[/snapback]

The springs in my RX7 went in like butter.

[Gaijin]

Got any pictures of her Gaijin?  There is a beautiful black '04 GTO from this area that has run as fast as 11.84 at 120.54mph (with a crappy 1.81 60ft because of the drag radials...still don't know what it would do with a nice set of real sticky tires).  Stock bottom end with a super charger, but still a full weight car that has terrific street manners.  I love that car!

370012[/snapback]

I only have some older pics from quite awhile ago alongside with my '99 'Hawk which I sold last year. The car really is great...I like it even more than all the F Bodies I've owned. Interior is solid...very un-GM like in it's feel. Seats are prob the best I've had in a muscle car. Only thing is the bolsters get in the way when I'm working (with duty belt, it's a lil uncomfortable but I've managed).

This was a few weeks ago with my camera phone:

I'm not sure why but I always take pics of cars before I wash them and never when they're nice and shiny after a good Zaino polish.

[Gaijin]

Isn't the GTO being canned to make way for a new GTO? I hear something about a 2008 model being brand new.

370026[/snapback]

The current Monaro/GTO was only supposed to be run until the new one appeared which was supposed to be based on the new Zeta platform.

[myk]

Why'd you sell the 'Bird?

[areaseven]

Nice GTO you got there, Gaijin.

[Gaijin]

Why'd you sell the 'Bird?

370135[/snapback]

Don't really need two muscle cars in one garage. I need a lil pickup truck to haul trash and stuff.

Nice GTO you got there, Gaijin.

370137[/snapback]

Thanks!

[emajnthis]

The one Gaijin has pictured is the one i want because the resale value on them is so poor (when they gave it the twin tail pipes and the hood they started to sell better). Then I can talk to my buddy and find the all aluminum 6.2liter Variable Valve Timed V8 out of the new Escalade and throw that in their (for whatever reason, the LS7 isn't VVT, and I live in an area where wrecked Escalades is about as common as wrecked Civics) because i like the smoother wind up and the improved power band. Then leave it cosmetically static and drive it into the dirt.

The one thing I noticed in my area is that when it snows/rains/sleets everyone wants to drive within an inch of your bumper, almost like if they don't keep near you, the road beneath them will disappear. It is polar opposite of how people drove in Michigan, where EVERYBODY drives properly and takes all of the necessary actions to prevent a tight situation (since winter is about 3 seasons out of the year).

I've seen so many people totally wreck their WRX's because unlike the EVO (and this is good and bad dependent on the driver) the WRX gives the driver more sensory control, allowing you to feel where the suspension is taking you (eventhough the suspension is way cheap, but predictable). But for drivers who aren't acustom or experienced with the signals a car sends you through the clutch, the steering wheel, and just the overall stance, then this pretty much means nothing to them and they lose control of their car (they panic). I can't tell you how many of my friend's who have owned nothing but Civic's and Accord's finally grab hold of an STI and wreck it in the first week. It's really sad how cocky some people are about their driving.

[myk]

Why'd you sell the 'Bird?

370135[/snapback]

Don't really need two muscle cars in one garage. I need a lil pickup truck to haul trash and stuff.

370150[/snapback]

Argh...That decision would've torn me in half. At the very least, will you be getting a "hot" little pickup-like the Ram SRT-10? lol...

[pfunk]

nice goat Gaj

Emag, The only reason to go VVT is to meet emissions at low rpms (which the feds test at) to get longer duration and lift at higher RPMs, just put the bigger cam in and adjust the computor accordingly. I ussed to know a guy at GM who worked in the "Lab" (basterdized cars like a all wheel drive monti with 600hp and a really cool AWD firebird) he was going to get me a caddy motor for a guy who was putting it in a 59 caddy with twin turbo, unfortunatly that fell through and the motor got scrapped and i loss touch with him

[reddsun1]

For those wishing to make the ultimate Alpha Male statement, there's the upcoming Porsche 911 Turbo. The boys from Stuttgart seem to be able to do something that so many other manufacturers seemingly can't--that's introducing new models that continue to surpass the previous ones. Other automakers usually end up resorting to making them bigger, heavier and redesigned over ad nauseum until the model loses sight of the original, and is eventually supplanted by an all new model that must try to recapture the spirit of the one its replacing.

But anyway, the numbers on the 911 Turbo are impressive. HP jumps to 473, Torque increases to 457 lb/ft; and an impressive torque band it is--max power is available from 1950 rpm right up to 5000 rpm. With the Sport Chrono option, the overboost function will allow 501 lb/ft for 10-second spurts. Extensive use of aluminum makes this model slightly lighter than the 996 incarnation. Torque reproportioning between the front and rear axles ranges from zero to nearly 100 percent at either axle.

It's then that one should note the price; at $130K, one could afford a standard 911 AND a Lotus [or at least a darn good down payment on the second].

[Agent ONE]

Best car ever... I love it.

[emajnthis]

maybe i stand alone, but i've never really been a porsche guy, mostly because they don't make sense. They put everything rear engine, and then once they realize rear engine is obsolete, they just cater the entire car around its platform as not to lose face. Then when they create models which are better (i.e.:Cayman) rather than jam the most powerful motor they can and the most advanced all wheel drive, they detune it so it doesn't detract from their original star line up. As I stated previously, get a RUF, you get a REAL Super car with half (or sometimes less than half) of the super car price. I'm just waiting for him to do a RUF Cayman.

funk: Yeh, but i absolute love how the car just opens up once you get it close to red line, plus it's different. I actually am a bigger fan of the Caddy motors than the motors GM sticks in their other divisions, mostly because i think Caddy is the only one that seems to be innovative. If GM would allow it they could easily get mountains more power out of the Supercharged Northstar motor they put in their STS-V. Then it could compete with cars like the M5, S55, and A8, but i know they won't because then the motor will have better power to weight than the LS7, and that's just not allowed.

Edited February 14, 2006 by emajnthis

[myk]

What can you guys tell me about these Bimmers with the M3 badges on their tails? I realize it's their performance division but I don't know much about foreign makes. I'm asking because I...... ....got into it with an M3 ragtop today and I have to say I was impressed...

[Stamen0083]

An M3 is the top of the line of BMW's 3 series. Basically, it's a better tuned 3-series with more power.

It's like a regular Mercedes versus an AMG tuned Mercedes.

[Agent ONE]

An M3 is the top of the line of BMW's 3 series. Basically, it's a better tuned 3-series with more power.

It's like a regular Mercedes versus an AMG tuned Mercedes.

370329[/snapback]

I am not enough of a car snob to care, but the M3 isn't a 3 series, its an M series. They share a frame, thats it. Go to the BMW dealer and get the book for the 3 series, the M won't be found there.

[Agent ONE]

What can you guys tell me about these Bimmers with the M3 badges on their tails?  I realize it's their performance division but I don't know much about foreign makes.  I'm asking because I...... ....got into it with an M3 ragtop today and I have to say I was impressed...

370313[/snapback]

Many people put the M3 badge on the tails of a regular 3 series, because they are posers, but a real m3 is a bad ass car.

[Stamen0083]

A professor or someone on campus has a beautiful red BMW M5. It is just absolutely STUNNING. First time I saw it, I was late to class because I wasted half an hour looking at it.

[myk]

Many people put the M3 badge on the tails of a regular 3 series, because they are posers, but a real m3 is a bad ass car.

So, the M takes the 3 series and enhances it, then? I'm going to look up 'specs on them because that car was pulling like a 'mother...

Edited February 15, 2006 by myk

[Stamen0083]

333HP better pull like a mother. Did it look like an older model though?

[myk]

Either this car was an immaculately detailed older car, or a newer one; I would say it was definitely newer as this car was sharp....

[PC Valkyrie]

Have to chime in here from time to time.....

Yes, the new 911 Turbo certainly looks very impressive on paper. The performanc stats are in supercar territory. This is a supercar which I can drive everyday as a daily driver!! While the Corvette Z06 still delivers more bang for the buck, the 911 gets you more exclusivity, and bragging rights. With AWD, a rear seat to place little kids in, and a decent sized trunk in the front, it's the most practical supercar I know of.

What I found interesting is that the factory numbers from Porsche indicate that the tiptronic is FASTER than the manual gearbox. With torque converter lockup in the forward gears and very fast shift times, the traditional power loss and delays in shifting associated with "slush boxes" are no longer an issue with "performance oriented" automatic transmissions like Porsche's tiptronic and AMG's Speedshift. And with manual modes on these automatic transmissions, you can still get complete control of the gear selections when you want.

* Top track speed: 193mph

* 0-60 mph: 3.7 sec. manual/3.4 sec. Tiptronic S

* 50-75 mph: 3.8 maunal/3.5 Tiptronic S

* Acceleration 1/4 mile: 11.8 sec. maunual/11.6 sec. Tiptronic S

[PC Valkyrie]

I am not enough of a car snob to care, but the M3 isn't a 3 series, its an M series.  They share a frame, thats it.  Go to the BMW dealer and get the book for the 3 series, the M won't be found there.

Oh come on A1, you know the M3 is a 3 series that's heavily modified by BMW's Motorsport division. When I last looked at the 3 series brochure in 2005, the M3 coupe and cabrio were in there.....

Naturally aspirated high reving 3.2L inline 6 making 333 peak HP and a relatively low 262 lb-ft of peak torque in North American trim.

0-60mph in under 5 seconds according to most car magazines, and 1/4mile time of low-mid 13's.

The current E46 M3 is in the last year of production (the new E90 M3 will debut sometime in 2007/2008 with a new V8 making >400HP). The current car is a great handling car which provides very high levels of driving involvement and thrills if you can take the car to its limits on a track. The steering feel and balanced weight distribution contributes to high levels of confidence for the driver driving at the limits. I've experienced this on an autocross course and the M3 is impressive indeed.

I almost bought one last year, but the practicality and convenience of 4 doors for my family and a slightly more comfortable ride made me go for the C55 AMG instead (which has 95% of the handling of the M3 and 105% of the straightline acceleration).

Edited February 15, 2006 by PC Valkyrie

[Agent ONE]

Mine is the previous version.

http://www.eecs.berkeley.edu/~dtlee/Pictur...os/IMG_0788.JPG

[PC Valkyrie]

Mine is the previous version.

http://www.eecs.berkeley.edu/~dtlee/Pictur...os/IMG_0788.JPG

370406[/snapback]

That's a great looking ride. I actually like the lines of the E36 over the E46 3 series. I feel ashamed for asking (because I should know this), but what's the power output from your engine?

[areaseven]

Awesome ride you got there, A1.

[areaseven]

This has got to be the baddest thing on four wheels...

Ariel Atom

[Stamen0083]

A7, old news? :-P

Ariel Atom is one cool freakin' car. Civic Type R engine for a 1000 pound frame... Amazing. I loved how the car warped Clarkson's face as he drove it around.

[yellowlightman]

The Atom is a motorcycle for people who are too afraid of a motorcycle.

[emajnthis]

the cheap version uses the B16, the newest one uses a supercharged K20A2 motor, which makes this even more dangerous and fun than it was before.