The Car Thread ... !

[0388631]

Yes, well, having been in Boston a few times in the past, it's a remarkable city. Very rich in history and all that jazz. There's a stark contrast between affluence and lower income. Very little middleground IMO, but I didn't spend copious amounts of time. What time I did spend there, I observed more super cars than higher end luxury cars. I assume that's normal. As of now, I'll have to wait regardless of whether the new wagon is coming out this year or not. I want to do a dealer trade in and get my money's worth. Hopefully the Takata recall process speeds up! My only experiences with wagons have been the W123, which I drove for a few weeks many years ago. It was a family friend's who'd gone out of town and I was looking after the car. Very fun. I believe I've driven a BMW wagon once and sat in a Cadillac wagon. The Merc wagons were incredibly popular here in the old days, then the S class became more common. Anytime I see a BMW wagon, my breath hitches a little. They're very rare to see in California. Assuming the E400 wagon won't be slow, it might make a fine choice. But if the AMG price remains the same, then it makes sense to spend what I'd have spent on a new GL on an E63 wagon, assuming MBZ doesn't change the designation. My local dealers have anywhere from 4-15 E63 S AMG wagons in stock. Almost all are in Polar White. I'm fond of lunar blue metallic myself. It blends in with the crowd, it doesn't conform, but it also isn't shouty.

I saw a Ford Flex last week at Costco. In white. I walked passed it, stopped, trotted back and looked at it carefully before realizing it was a Ford and not a Range Rover. It's right up there with the Dodge Nitro in terms of odd looking cars.

 

[bunnspecial]

MG's seem to be very popular in your state and New England. What gives?

At least from what I've see, they don't seem to be terribly popular. I rarely see others on the road.

This week, though, we are over-run with them due to the national MG Show being in Louisville. There are hundreds in town. My left arm got plenty of exercise doing the "MG Wave" yesterday due to the sheer numbers I saw driving around. Heck, I even got the wave from a couple of Miatas and a guy in an XK8 yesterday!

Also saw an Austin Marina and a Triumph TR4 hanging around the hotel parking lot yesterday. I don't know who drives a Triumph to an MG meet, but it's someone begging to get keyed (not really-MG guys may like to use Triumph as a punching bag but we're all in the LBC bretherin together).

As a side note, I'd never seen a Magnette in the flesh before yesterday, and seeing a couple has me really itching for one . Magnettes are basically an upscale 4-door saloon built on a lengthened MGA chassis. Beats the heck out of a Morris Minor as far as I'm concerned

 

[A.Goldberg]

Yes, well, having been in Boston a few times in the past, it's a remarkable city. Very rich in history and all that jazz. There's a stark contrast between affluence and lower income. Very little middleground IMO, but I didn't spend copious amounts of time. What time I did spend there, I observed more super cars than higher end luxury cars. I assume that's normal. As of now, I'll have to wait regardless of whether the new wagon is coming out this year or not. I want to do a dealer trade in and get my money's worth. Hopefully the Takata recall process speeds up! My only experiences with wagons have been the W123, which I drove for a few weeks many years ago. It was a family friend's who'd gone out of town and I was looking after the car. Very fun. I believe I've driven a BMW wagon once and sat in a Cadillac wagon. The Merc wagons were incredibly popular here in the old days, then the S class became more common. Anytime I see a BMW wagon, my breath hitches a little. They're very rare to see in California. Assuming the E400 wagon won't be slow, it might make a fine choice. But if the AMG price remains the same, then it makes sense to spend what I'd have spent on a new GL on an E63 wagon, assuming MBZ doesn't change the designation. My local dealers have anywhere from 4-15 E63 S AMG wagons in stock. Almost all are in Polar White. I'm fond of lunar blue metallic myself. It blends in with the crowd, it doesn't conform, but it also isn't shouty.

I saw a Ford Flex last week at Costco. In white. I walked passed it, stopped, trotted back and looked at it carefully before realizing it was a Ford and not a Range Rover. It's right up there with the Dodge Nitro in terms of odd looking cars.

Mmm... Not so sure about a "stark contrast"- Boston proper is overall a very affluent City. First and foremost assuming ones wealth based off their car is not a particularly reliable method.

Most of the touristy areas of Boston don't have a to of residential housing- or parking. A lot of Boston was underwater not too long ago. Parking is expensive- resident street parking is good way to ruin a luxury car. Go look at the lower Comm Ave area- one of the most expensive areas of Boston. Boston is really not a driving city at all. You also have a massive population of college kids, most of whom won't be driving $50,000+ cars, though you'd be surprised what some have.

In terms of the metro west areas of Boston- Brookline, Chestnut Hill, Newton, Wellsley, etc are swamped with Audi, Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, etc. My neighborhood is full of brownstones, BMW 3/5, Lexus RX, Audi Q5 seem to be the favorites in the allies behind buildings. BMWs in general seem most prevalent overall. The soccer moms love their Land/Range Rovers, GL, Q7's, X5's, XC90's, etc from the more residential areas of town. A fair number of super cars too- I've basically been seeing a Bentley or a Rolls everyday this summer- probably some Celtics or Bruins player's wife. We also have a ton of liberals, so prius are common. Subarus are common.

That said, the single family houses in my neighborhood cost a minimum $2m+. It's not uncommon to see people with Toyota and Hondas parked in the driveway. Not everyone needs to flaunt their wealth or find a luxury car a necessary investment. Some of the richest people with I know drive Fords and Toyotas, despite owning houses worth $10m+.

 

[bunnspecial]

Seeing this "in the flesh" was one of the highlights of the day today. These will be 25 years old in 2019, which is a "magic number" in terms of difficulty of importing to the US. I can't wait!

BTW, could tell if this was LHD or RHD, although I think all were built as RHD. I REALLY need to find an old postal service Jeep or something to get use to an LHD car if I'm going to try and import one of these. This one had Ontario tags on it.

As a side note, the current MG line-up has some not half bad looking cars. Fiat and now Alfa Romeo have made come-backs to the US market in the last couple of years. Granted, with the exception of British car nuts, MG probably isn't as widely known but I'd love to see new ones come back. BMW also brought the Mini brand back, and they have sold like hotcakes, although there again the modern MGs don't have the recognition or "quirkiness" of the Mini.

 

[bunnspecial]

Sorry to keep posting gratuitous MG photos-please tell me to shut up at any time! I'm just on overload now!

Here's an Australian car that was shipped to South America, driven all over the continent, and then up the Pan American Highway. It's truly a "world traveler"

I spent some time admiring the TD in front of me while I was waiting for my turn in the rolling tech session.

And the master working on my car

 

[iLog.Genius]

Alrightee fellas,

The time has officially come to replace my suspension. They should have been replaced earlier but I've never felt the effects until this past weekend. But at 194,000km, I think it's time to do a swap.

Anyone have any experience or thoughts on Bilstein B4's or B6's? I'm only looking at these because the current ride height (wheel gap) with 18" M3 wheels is perfect for DD and not looking for anything aggressive - I leave that for the R56 MINI. KW has a set of comfort coilovers but it's way more than I want to spend on an aging car.

 

[2298754]

Came across this on Youtube earlier. Watch the entire clip. Pretty funny

 

[AustinIllini]

It's like the old "mac vs pc" commercials

I'm a Mercedes

...and I'm a Jaguar

 

[bunnspecial]

Went out for a drive this evening...

 

[Three141]

Came across this on Youtube earlier. Watch the entire clip. Pretty funny

I never found Jag's response funny it just seemed cheesy, I felt Merc's was a creative advert.

 

[determined09]

Deleted post

 

[0388631]

Scheduled a test drive for next week with my local dealer for the current E63 S wagon. I'm interested in next year's model, the W213. Spoke with the missus about not getting the GL and instead going with the wagon. If the E400 Wagon will make me happy, I'd get that and not bother with the top of the line, unless some middleman AMG comes and it makes sense to buy it over the E63 model, if it's offered on the W213. We discussed safety, MPG, space and versatility and cost. With the options that make sense, it's cheaper than the GL/GLS AMG model and it looks better. It makes a lot more sense to get a wagon instead of a big hulking SUV. We barely use the third row for people. Before the kids, we only put groceries stuff in the rear seats and even the trunk space. I still do that, even with the car seats. The E interior on the W213 looks better, even though I hate the giant iPads. Better than MBZ's current perma stuck iPad design. Better visibility, easier parking, and better handling due to the lower center of gravity.

On giant iPads screens, call me old fashioned but I prefer analog clusters for speed and RPM. Digital is iffy to me. Though I do like Audi's take on digital clusters. More polished than MBZ's based on pics. Also I believe the Audi digital dash offers way more customization.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Deleted post

It was a nice looking car, did you take it back?

 

[0388631]

You returned the ES?!

 

[determined09]

View attachment 637205

You returned the ES?!

It was a nice looking car, did you take it back?

No. I still have the ES! Thank you. I like it because it looks sporty than the other ES's that I usually see.
Sorry about removing the photo.

 

[D.T.]

View attachment 637205

No. I still have the ES! Thank you. I like it because it looks sporty than the other ES's that I usually see.
Sorry about removing the photo.

That's so weird, someone spray painted your username on the wall behind your car ...

 

[2298754]

Scheduled a test drive for next week with my local dealer for the current E63 S wagon.

@A.Goldberg and I have been seeing these around town recently. Pretty cool car IMO.

It's impressive that Mercedes-Benz even brought it here. They can't be selling more than a few dozen yearly? Audi has used every excuse in the book to never bring us the RS6 Avant.

 

[D.T.]

Oh yeah ...

 

[0388631]

That's so weird, someone spray painted your username on the wall behind your car ...

It's an element you see. Wankers walking around spraypainting people's online personas on buildings. Bloody hipsters.
[doublepost=1466552418][/doublepost]

@A.Goldberg and I have been seeing these around town recently. Pretty cool car IMO.

It's impressive that Mercedes-Benz even brought it here. They can't be selling more than a few dozen yearly? Audi has used every excuse in the book to never bring us the RS6 Avant.

Mercedes has always brought the E class wagons since the E class premiered. And before the class divisions, Mercedes would bring wagons. The very old and before your time W123 class had wagons with a T attached after the model. For many years I thought it meant turbo. Except SD models of the W123 were turbos and the regular Ds being regular diesels, otherwise known as death machines. You won't find the E class wagon in low economic areas. In high income areas such as mine and I'm sure some of Boston to an extent, and any generally affluent city, Benz will have customers who buy it. It's a nicely designed car, the price is alright and it's very, very understated. A GL casts attention to itself. Not that it's expensive, though I suppose $80,000 starting (back then) is expensive to most people out there, but it's gargantuan. An E63 sedan? Yeah, it gets people's attention thanks to its exhaust. The E63 S AMG wagon? Yeah, it burbles, it hits 60 mph faster than an M6, IIRC, but no ones going to give it more than a casual glance. Unless they're into cars and notice it's not your typical E wagon. Also because it's a wagon. Most people presume wagons suck and are slow. The general public who aren't much into cars can't tell the difference between BMW classes let alone MBZ ones, at least now. Anyway, I digress.

I have a feeling it's not the sales issues, because I see E class wagons often on my way to work and to home, but as I said, it's area dependent. It's the upscale choice for those wanting room, but don't want an SUV or a mommy mobile AKA a crossover. And I get the feeling that Audi is trying to build up brand reputation even though they don't need to, like Jaguar for instance, who is in the middle of building up reputation... again. I think too many people got burned by bad Audis in the mid 2000s and associate it with a ****** brand. I have my own issues with Audi. But as I said, I love their new digital dash. Merc should take note. You asked me once, while mad, why I would choose a MBZ over an Audi, even though on paper the Audi is a better car. Apart from my own issues, it's brand loyalty. My grandfather owned MBZ cars, his father did back in MBZ's very olden days, my father owned several, and I've owned quite a few, as have my siblings. Every decade or so, MBZ builds a car that lasts forever it seems. People make memories in that car... and I'm not talking about sex in the backseat. It's all very relative for me.

The S class is an impressive car. The current one and the last few generations. It's very luxurious, but it's like driving a boat and it's huge. And it attracts unwanted attention.

It's been hard for me to accept carbon fiber trim pieces, aluminum or titanium trim, and the abandonment of fine, real wood interiors for modern design. Clearly a first world problem. It's why I've found most Audi interiors a bit jarring. But the RS6 has more horsepower, it stands out thanks to its aggressive design and yada yada.

To me it's the perfect dad car. You get utility out of it plus it's not freaking boring or slow. Or doesn't weigh the same as an Asian elephant, like the GL. Anyway, in terms of unicorn cars, the BMW wagons are far more rare than MBZ ones. Audis are very rare too. I've seen just a few and spotted one in Austin, Texas a few years ago. I've spotted BMW wagons on less than 7 occasions in the last 16 years.


And as far as seeing them, the E64 S Wagons now more than before, I believe it's because MBZ is running a silent special on them before the new models come in. MBZ doesn't produce a lot by any means, but I've gotten around six calls regarding my interest in the car since setting up my appointment.

 

[silentownage001]

It's been hard for me to accept carbon fiber trim pieces, aluminum or titanium trim, and the abandonment of fine, real wood interiors for modern design. Clearly a first world problem. It's why I've found most Audi interiors a bit jarring. But the RS6 has more horsepower, it stands out thanks to its aggressive design and yada yada.

I can't speak for everybody in the younger crowd, but I don't like wood interiors and I don't know anyone who really does. To me wood makes it look like an old person's car. Or some crap car from the 90s.

 

[Alphazoid]

I like wooden trims when done properly like the matte ones MBZ offer in the C-Class

Aluminium and Titanium is very utilitarian to me and forgettable. But on the flip side its easy to clean and remains intact for a long time. Carbon fibre in anything other than supercars feels pretentious to me. Piano black just irritates me full stop. Dull and a PITA to clean.

 

[2298754]

I can't speak for everybody in the younger crowd, but I don't like wood interiors and I don't know anyone who really does. To me wood makes it look like an old person's car. Or some crap car from the 90s.

I'm fine with wood, but I hate the cheap looking shiny wood trim that's been used for years. The Germans have really stepped up their trim quality recently. I love the open-pore/matte finish (with Alu inlays) of newer Audi and Benz products.

 

[0388631]

I like wooden trims when done properly like the matte ones MBZ offer in the C-Class

Aluminium and Titanium is very utilitarian to me and forgettable. But on the flip side its easy to clean and remains intact for a long time. Carbon fibre in anything other than supercars feels pretentious to me. Piano black just irritates me full stop. Dull and a PITA to clean.

Piano Black trim is an expensive option. It's difficult to make and as you said, it's irritating for people who like spotless anything.

I'm fine with wood, but I hate the cheap looking shiny wood trim that's been used for years. The Germans have really stepped up their trim quality recently. I love the open-pore/matte finish (with Alu inlays) of newer Audi and Benz products.

I really like this. I saw the open pore wood in an Audi A6 a while back. And saw them in a few Audi forum posts. I believe Volvo has or is beginning to use open pore wood. As I said, I'm a huge fan of burl. It's a premium wood even though it's messed up wood (read up on burl), but it looks very nice.

Does open pore require extra maintenance or is it sealed using a matte coating? But it's good to know you and @Alphazoid like wood. Oh deary me, it seems I've pulled a Goldberg.

 

[2298754]

Piano Black trim is an expensive option. It's difficult to make and as you said, it's irritating for people who like spotless anything.

I hate Piano Black too. Never understood why they charge extra for that.

Also, Lexus used to have some horrific wood trim back in the day. Basically plastic

Now they have bamboo trim, which looks great

Does open pore require extra maintenance or is it sealed using a matte coating? But it's good to know you and @Alphazoid like wood. Oh deary me, it seems I've pulled a Goldberg.

I think it's sealed, but you can feel the grain, which is nice. It doesn't scratch up like regular gloss wood.

Mercedes used to offer stone trim in their designo program years ago

Bentley is starting to offer it now for $$$ (http://www.autoblog.com/2016/01/04/bentley-stone-trim-option-official/)

 

[iLog.Genius]

I can't speak for everybody in the younger crowd, but I don't like wood interiors and I don't know anyone who really does. To me wood makes it look like an old person's car. Or some crap car from the 90s.

I think it depends on the type of wood/veneer pattern. I definitely prefer an aluminum trim (have it on my E90) but if I didn't retrofit it, I wouldn't mind a dark fineline anthracite wood trim. The wood trims a hate are the ones that show the knots.