Car Thread

[Rufus T. Firefly]

...So, you're that guy on the DC Beltway doing 45 in the far left lane?

No, no, never. I stick to the far right lane, usually, unless there is an old bag doing 30-45 in her 70-something Lincoln or Buick, peering just barely over her steering wheel. But my days of feeling obliged by my youth to stay at 70+ in the far left lane are long discontinued. I leave that for my betters and to the occasional aggressive truck driver who seems in need of getting somewhere fast, or just in need of being the boss out there.

If you are not doing 65 or better on the DC Beltway, then it's a parking lot - all or none. Every morning I'm watching out for the folks that either are traveling through at 45 or are that 70+ person going even slower.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

When I am driving on Rts 80, 81, 17, 23, 287, for example, I usually go whatever the speed limit is, moisture permitting. That seems to keep me at-pace with those around me and gets me to where I am headed without being ticketed or aggravating anybody. Plus, I enjoy the speed of it. When I had my BMW 528, it was low-slung and seemed to enjoy speed, even when exiting on curves from highways, but the Benz SUVs seem a bit tall for such shenanigans, so I try to keep my head about it.

Here was the car of my Senior Year in high school that I used to drive, whenever possible, at 100 or 120, for a decent distance down local roads in PA. Such speed didn't seem to faze this car at all. No tremble; just whooooooosh. With the top down and 9 - 12 friends aboard, it was quite a rush. And we made it out of that stage in life alive, no less, and in one piece! We were crazy in love with life.

Two of those friends and travel companions never made it back from Nam. So I am all the more glad we did what we did in my coolest car ever, a '58Cadillac convertible.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

When I am driving on Rts 80, 81, 17, 23, 287, for example, I usually go whatever the speed limit is, moisture permitting.

I was on 81 just this past Fri. from 70 in MD going North. Slowest car/truck on the stretch I travel might have been doing 65. Trucks doing 75+. I try to avoid 81 since that's the one road where trucks seem to take routine action to just run cars off the road w/o warning.

[Mitch]

I grew up in the "MuscleCar" era. My first car after my service stint was a '69 Plymoth Roadrunner. 383c.i., 4 speed, limited slip differential with the "AirGrabber" hood. Hot car? Yeah, wasn't bad for the day. But we used to say "There's no substitute for cubic inches". Well, that's all gone now. Back in those days, horsepower was called "Brake horsepower", basically on a dyno with no tranny or differential. Todays engines are rated at the rear wheels.
Working in a dealership, I've roadtested a few of these late model beasts for the pre-delivery inspections, and I'm here to tell ya, I think these modern vehicles will blow the candles right out of the '60s muscle cars. You get a rolling start (so the 4 wheels don't spin and trigger the ABS) in a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, 6.4L, 450 hp, and nail it, and you go light headed almost immediately. The 8 speed electronically shifted automatic transmission slams through the gears so fast, and you look down, and in just seconds you're doin' 100 plus mph, and standin' on the 4 piston Brembo Brakes to pull it down to a reasonable speed. They're just awesome. And if you prefer a car to the Grand Cherk AWD, there's Challenger and Charger. You can get a Charger SRT with the same supercharged engine that comes in the Challenger Hellcat. 707 HP!! in a four door every day driver.

[rogruth]

Aren't you glad they don't make cars like they used to?

[robert.]

When I am driving on Rts 80, 81, 17, 23, 287, for example, I usually go whatever the speed limit is, moisture permitting.

I was on 81 just this past Fri. from 70 in MD going North. Slowest car/truck on the stretch I travel might have been doing 65. Trucks doing 75+. I try to avoid 81 since that's the one road where trucks seem to take routine action to just run cars off the road w/o warning.

I.81 is becoming an I.95 bypass. No tolls on I.81 Less trucks scales. MD. does not close it's truck scales on 95. If a A trip From Richmond Va to the New England area can run a guy with a tractor trailer $300+ with most of those tolls being paid south of Pa.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Aren't you glad they don't make cars like they used to?

Well, I LOVED those 1961-62 Lincoln Continental convertibles, and still do. And at least in those days, even a non-mechanical type guy like I am understood what was happening under the hood and what all the parts did. Nowadays, I am puzzled when I see a poor traveler pulled to the side of the road and he has his hood up while he is examining I-don't-know-what. What does he think he can accomplish looking puzzled under there, besides letting the traffic know he is discombobulated (you don't see that word often, huh.)
I'm not even sure a guy like Mitch with all his automotive skills could actually do something under that hood out there on the side of the road. Wouldn't a couple electronic/diagnostic machines (I don't even know what to call them) be needed, plus very specialized electronic parts?

I changed wiper-blades on my '72nPontiac Gran Prix, back in '75, once. Oh, and I filled the proper reservoir with antifreeze, a couple of times, back in the 80's. That was it.

P.S. Oh, and I figured out how to get the damheadrests up-n-down when I first got my Benz ML, back in 2015. Oh wait. That was a couple of seminarians who casually figured that out , on the way to Sunday luncheon, when getting in the car. But I watched very intently (!)

[up148]

Aren't you glad they don't make cars like they used to?

Yes, for the shear comfort, ease and pleasure of driving, today's cars are much more sophisticated than those of the 50's and 60's. But, for pure "Art on Wheels", the 50's and 60's are hard to beat. Most of today's cars are pretty boring to look at and it's even hard to tell one manufacture from another, without looking at the emblems.

BH

[v8vega]

A 2013 to 2017 V6 Accord coupe will beat most 400 cubic inch 60's muscle cars.

[webenda]

Most of today's cars are pretty boring to look at and it's even hard to tell one manufacture from another, without looking at the emblems.

BH

That reminds me of the new Mercedes X-Class pick-ups I was so enthusiastic about a few days ago.

What was offered.

Yes! The new classic Mercedes look! I want one!!!
https://www.mercedes-benz.com/en/merced ... t-x-class/

What we got.

Never mind, looks like a Nissan... boring!

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Never mind, looks like a Nissan... boring!

Sad, they had an opportunity to shine and wasted it.

[up148]

Most of today's cars are pretty boring to look at and it's even hard to tell one manufacture from another, without looking at the emblems.

BH

That reminds me of the new Mercedes X-Class pick-ups I was so enthusiastic about a few days ago.

What was offered.

Yes! The new classic Mercedes look! I want one!!!
https://www.mercedes-benz.com/en/merced ... t-x-class/

What we got.

Never mind, looks like a Nissan... boring!

Wayne, is your nose growing? I owned a 2013 and 2015 Frontier and that looks identical with a Mercedes emblem on the grill.

BH

[Tom Dempsey]

+1, "rebadging" is rife in that industry. Can't sell a Trouper II to save your life, call it a Honda and sell a million or three.

[webenda]

Wayne, is your nose growing? I owned a 2013 and 2015 Frontier and that looks identical with a Mercedes emblem on the grill.

BH

Check it out for yourself. Mercedes X-Class for 2018.=> https://youtu.be/pNWXcxCV4Pc

CNET says, The X-Class doesn't stray too far from the concept.

Underneath all the flashy bits, it's not entirely a Daimler product. The frame comes from the Nissan Navara, a truck that's not currently sold in the US. The previous-generation Navara, however, is still in the US -- it's just called the Nissan Frontier. The X-Class will be manufactured in a joint operation between Daimler and the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

It is still a Mercedes-Benz, though, and that definitely shows with its technological complement.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

I will look to see if I can walk right up to one and get inside it, when and if I am called to the dealership this week , and offer you guys a report/impression, if you wish.