What is your next car purchase? revisited...

[regfootball]

John Cooper Works

Carbon Fiber > piano black > wood >dull gray plastic pretending to be brushed aluminum

(yes, thats another reason the Mini > Astra)

har har. seriously though, sounds like a fun car. will you even get to drive it?

for the record, i actually like the fake alunimun/matte finish in the astra. i don't like glossy/piano black or big swatches of real metal in cars. i don't care much for wood, either. i like the geometries of the design of the buttons and such on the astra dash. and the nice twin panel sunroof and electric shade and advanced audio EQ customization more than makes up for some painted plastic.

the mini also has a lot of interesting shapes and details inside, ok, a lot more, in my opinion almost to the point of being overstyled. i don't much care for the HUGE center gauge but what would the car be like without it? Probably would lose a lot of sass without it.

[vonVeezelsnider]

Congrats on the Impala man, I hope you enjoy it!

[A Horse With No Name]

I agree with you Moltar I like the new one better but the two door Rubicon is more my speed. Also the I-6's were sweet.

The Rubicon is more hard core off road. If I'm going to spend the money for an off road vehicle, its going to go off road.

The I-6's were sweet. I've always been an I-6 fan...BMW, 240Z, so many cool cars came with I-6.

Including the old Chevy/GMC I-6. I've seen some awesome resto's and retro rods with an I-6 Chevrolet...and those things ran forever.

Like I said, top down...summer...my kind of thing.

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

har har. seriously though, sounds like a fun car. will you even get to drive it?

for the record, i actually like the fake alunimun/matte finish in the astra. i don't like glossy/piano black or big swatches of real metal in cars. i don't care much for wood, either. i like the geometries of the design of the buttons and such on the astra dash. and the nice twin panel sunroof and electric shade and advanced audio EQ customization more than makes up for some painted plastic.

the mini also has a lot of interesting shapes and details inside, ok, a lot more, in my opinion almost to the point of being overstyled. i don't much care for the HUGE center gauge but what would the car be like without it? Probably would lose a lot of sass without it.

I love the MINI, but your right, the interior is a little overdone. We do work with a fab shop that makes trailer hitches and other parts for MINI's. A LOT of MINI owners feel the new interior is a little overdone.

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

Congrats on the Impala man, I hope you enjoy it!

+1

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

The one in my Jag is at least 1/2" thick - in good shape too.

(enter sarcasm mode)

Any chance you'd adopt a 43 year old son to help you enjoy that car?

(exit sarcasm mode...sort of)

66

[A Horse With No Name]

Will a convertible work? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-Trucks...%3A1|240%3A1318

Also, a real Kubelwagen: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-Trucks...%3A1|240%3A1318

WMJ, that ragtop would be sweet...maybe even sweet enough, restored to break sixty eight of his love of traditional hardtops.

(Just kidding 68...)

Seriously, though, Cadillacs of that era are amazing.

Chris

[Robert Hall]

The Rubicon is more hard core off road. If I'm going to spend the money for an off road vehicle, its going to go off road.

The I-6's were sweet. I've always been an I-6 fan...BMW, 240Z, so many cool cars came with I-6.

Including the old Chevy/GMC I-6. I've seen some awesome resto's and retro rods with an I-6 Chevrolet...and those things ran forever.

Like I said, top down...summer...my kind of thing.

Chris

I'd like to get an '05-06 or so Rubicon for a summer fun vehicle, to go off-roading in Colorado in the summers. I've taken my GC off road many times, but I'd like something smaller and more hard core so I can go on the more aggro trails.

I've been a straight 6 fan for the last decade, w/ my '96 M3 and the '00 GC.

[A Horse With No Name]

In your shoes, I almost like the idea of a Rubicon better than the idea of a new Camaro.

Chris

[Satty]

har har. seriously though, sounds like a fun car. will you even get to drive it?

If its anything like the Prius, I wont see it M-F, I'll drive it to run errands on weekends if she isn't using it.

[Camino LS6]

(enter sarcasm mode)

Any chance you'd adopt a 43 year old son to help you enjoy that car?

(exit sarcasm mode...sort of)

66

Umm, well, I can barely afford to take care of the dogs at this point.

But if I can't sell the Jag, I could use some help restoring it. :AH-HA_wink:

[A Horse With No Name]

I wish you lived closer, I'd love to give you a hand!

Chris

[Sixty8panther]

WMJ: I love they way you think. [typing "Tatra for sale in USA" into google]

1967-68 main-line Cadillacs always remind me of Russian Ice Breaker ships...

talk about presence.

[Robert Hall]

WMJ: I love they way you think. [typing "Tatra for sale in USA" into google]

1967-68 main-line Cadillacs always remind me of Russian Ice Breaker ships...

talk about presence.

Speaking of '60s Cadillacs, the owner of the local pub where I hung out from '02-06 had a '67 Caddy Fleetwood 75 limo, dark blue w/ the pub's logo on the rear doors. I rode in it a couple times w/ some of my buddies...fun big beast.

[2005 EquinoxLS]

+1

Chris

I liked it when I test drove it and I did so in a snowstorm. My Mom and Dad had a 2002 before they and I got our Equinoxes. And they like theirs. Like I said I took advantage of the bad economy and got a really good deal on it.

Edited December 5, 2008 by 2005 EquinoxLS

[Satty]

Just happened across a '98 Grand Prix GT coupe that might be just reasonable enough to get me into something fuel injected for not too much. I wont know how much til tomorrow, but it shouldn't be too bad. Miles are high, but thats not a huge concern for me with a 3800.

[vonVeezelsnider]

Just happened across a '98 Grand Prix GT coupe that might be just reasonable enough to get me into something fuel injected for not too much. I wont know how much til tomorrow, but it shouldn't be too bad. Miles are high, but thats not a huge concern for me with a 3800.

Make sure that if applicable the recall on the engine bay fires is done...

[Satty]

Eh, I've been driving around in one car thats liable to start on fire, so thats nothing new. I think I'm going to go lot hopping this afternoon. Its nice out and I want to get a feel for prices. If I do find something decent on a used lot, it will have to wait until after the first of the year. Right now I'm thinking a good, cheap midsize coupe, Grand Prix (no GA) or Monte Carlo. Choices are pretty slim beyond that, although I wouldn't mind having another Century. Those things are dirt cheap, I saw a 2000 Century for $1800 the other day.

[A Horse With No Name]

Eh, I've been driving around in one car thats liable to start on fire, so thats nothing new. I think I'm going to go lot hopping this afternoon. Its nice out and I want to get a feel for prices. If I do find something decent on a used lot, it will have to wait until after the first of the year. Right now I'm thinking a good, cheap midsize coupe, Grand Prix (no GA) or Monte Carlo. Choices are pretty slim beyond that, although I wouldn't mind having another Century. Those things are dirt cheap, I saw a 2000 Century for $1800 the other day.

I kind of like this thinking, we are going to have two more drivers in the house and I am going to have to have another cheap, reliable car.

Chris

Edited December 14, 2008 by 66Stang

[vonVeezelsnider]

Eh, I've been driving around in one car thats liable to start on fire, so thats nothing new. I think I'm going to go lot hopping this afternoon. Its nice out and I want to get a feel for prices. If I do find something decent on a used lot, it will have to wait until after the first of the year. Right now I'm thinking a good, cheap midsize coupe, Grand Prix (no GA) or Monte Carlo. Choices are pretty slim beyond that, although I wouldn't mind having another Century. Those things are dirt cheap, I saw a 2000 Century for $1800 the other day.

Make sure you check out the 97-05 Regal... it's got the 3.8L which is a stronger Engine and the GS is of course supercharged... Not that the 3100 in the century is bad or unreliable but it's weak.

According to JD Power that generation of Centuries and Regals were the most reliable midsizers of their day, remember.

Edited December 14, 2008 by vonVeezelsnider

[Satty]

I had a '96 Century that I traded in on my L200 way back when, so I'm familiar with the 3100. Centuries are significantly cheaper than Regals and are much easier to find, most of them have pretty low miles. I found an '03 Monte Carlo, but its at a Buy-Here, Pay-Here lot and I dont know if they'll sell it outright for less than what Joe Bankrupt will end up paying.

[A Horse With No Name]

I tend to avoid buy here pay here like the plauge.

Find a one owner car, and negotiate a fair price. GM built eleventy-billion of what your looking for...so finding a good car shouldn't be hard.

Chris

[Satty]

Coupes tend to be hard to find in these parts. After I wrecked my Solara, I searched high and low for another, but there were issues with the few that I came across.

I'll start looking after we get back from vacation, I should have plenty of time on my hands to look, since our yearly ice storm should be hitting sometime in early-mid January.

[Sixty8panther]

I like the Unlimited, though I think a fixed roof version could have done well also. I do wish they had updated and kept the straight 6, V6s are so pedestrian.

So true. The loss of the INLINE-6 is THE worst thing to happen

to the Jeep lineup in three decades, no V6 will ever be better

than an INLINE-6 of the same pedigree.

EDIT:

I'm still waiting for Pontiac and Buick to bring back the inline-8.

How cool would that be?

(spare me your safety-nazi bull$hit.)

Edited December 15, 2008 by Sixty8panther

[PONTIAC06]

So true. The loss of the INLINE-6 is THE worst thing to happen

to the Jeep lineup in three decades, no V6 will ever be better

than an INLINE-6 of the same pedigree.

I have to agree...driving a V6 Jeep seems totally different than driving my Grand Cherokee (4.0 I6)...at least to me...

[gm4life]

2005EquinoxLS on the new Impala, it is a great American sedan and you can't beat them for the money.

[A Horse With No Name]

I'm still waiting for Pontiac and Buick to bring back the inline-8.

How cool would that be?

Really cool if we could wrap it in some 50's bodywork. I saw a preview of a movie filmed about the last days of Cuba before Castro...LOTS of great restored 50's cars.

I would LOVE a strait 8 and a whole lotta chrome....

Make mone a Pontiac, please.

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

2005EquinoxLS on the new Impala, it is a great American sedan and you can't beat them for the money.

They are a sturdy as hell car too. Taking my daughter to the library the other day, I came across an accident-Impala vs. Semi, with very substatial damage to the Impala.

Owner of the Impala was standing by the side of the road bull-shooting with the police....

Sturdy, well engeneered car indeed, methinks...

Chris

[Robert Hall]

They are a sturdy as hell car too. Taking my daughter to the library the other day, I came across an accident-Impala vs. Semi, with very substatial damage to the Impala.

Owner of the Impala was standing by the side of the road bull-shooting with the police....

Sturdy, well engeneered car indeed, methinks...

Chris

I'd love to have seen a production version of the Buick LaCrosse concept built with a modern straight 8. Or the incredible Buick Blackhawk concept..imagine a production version of that w/ a straight 8. Drool.

[vonVeezelsnider]

They are a sturdy as hell car too. Taking my daughter to the library the other day, I came across an accident-Impala vs. Semi, with very substatial damage to the Impala.

Owner of the Impala was standing by the side of the road bull-shooting with the police....

Sturdy, well engeneered car indeed, methinks...

Chris

Aye, ours feels really solid, I know that in terms of frame rigidity and whatnot the Epsilon platform is probably better but it feels almost like an isolated space...

[GMTruckGuy74]

I have no idea why I keep torturing myself...

First, I found this '05 Yukon XL SLT online and for a couple of days couldn't get it out of my mind:

As soon as I "move on" with the Yukon XL, I find this '06 Sierra:

Now that's one truck I can really see myself driving on a daily basis!! Even though I'm not at the point where I could get into a new vehicle (my SmartLease doesn't expire until Nov '09), I went ahead and sent the GM dealership that's selling the Sierra an e-mail asking if they can help me get out of my lease if I purchase their truck. Figuring dealerships are hurting for sales, maybe they can work some magic with GMAC?!?! If so, I may seriously look into that Sierra ASAP

[A Horse With No Name]

Nice looking truck!

Chris

[Blake Noble]

What to replace the Sonoma with ... hmmm ...

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/953009909.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/ctd/959443844.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/961876873.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/962837096.html

http://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/936370571.html

http://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/942771317.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/963706345.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/963592794.html

http://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/963386325.html

Much like myself, my options are slightly bi-polar (although admittedly I am leaning towards seriously buying a 3er or 5er).

In any case, when I do finally purchase the replacement for my truck, it will not cost too much. I have to keep paying for the Cutlass and the money I've used to fix it. I know for a fact the Sonoma will not suffice to get me through my four years of college. Something new on it breaks just about every other week and I've grown tired of repairing it. The repair list grows larger and longer constantly it seems. I mean, the engine and transmission are mostly fine, but interior bits and pieces are breaking, cracking, and falling off, and other people have beat the exterior to $h!. The gauges sometimes work, sometimes they don't. I'm almost convinced that the driver's side door, which has been repaired once already, is going to fall off of the hinges right as I'm driving down the interstate.

[ocnblu]

Mr. Jacket, hinge pins and bushings are a fairly simple repair, but yes, the disintegration of brass door hinge bushings is one of my peeves with GM trucks. I think that's all changed on the GMT355 and 900, though.

[deftonesfan867]

MIGHT be a 2000 Cavalier Coupe LS that has a few mods on it, but after I get to PA I'm thinking bout an older S10 Blazer or Jeep Cherokee. Either one of them has to have 4WD tho as it will be the winter driver.

[GMTruckGuy74]

YellowJacket, now why did you have to remind me about Craigslist???

I decided to give good ol' CL a check, this time though not in my area (I choose central NJ instead of southern). This is what I found:

http://cnj.craigslist.org/cto/956793470.html

The best thing is that the truck is located about 15-20 miles away from where I live!!! Now I'm torn - do I see if the GMC dealership can get me out of my lease and try to buy the '06 Sierra as my daily driver, or do I see if I can get my bank or wife's credit union to give me a loan to buy the Syclone (and use it as a fair-weather toy until eventually I can restore it)???

[Oracle of Delphi]

YellowJacket, now why did you have to remind me about Craigslist???

I decided to give good ol' CL a check, this time though not in my area (I choose central NJ instead of southern). This is what I found:

http://cnj.craigslist.org/cto/956793470.html

The best thing is that the truck is located about 15-20 miles away from where I live!!! Now I'm torn - do I see if the GMC dealership can get me out of my lease and try to buy the '06 Sierra as my daily driver, or do I see if I can get my bank or wife's credit union to give me a loan to buy the Syclone (and use it as a fair-weather toy until eventually I can restore it)???

Now that OPEC has decided to cut millions of barrels of crude a day, have you thought about what might happen if gas prices go back up?

[GMTruckGuy74]

Yeah PCS, I though about that (another reason why a new 2009 Sierra Crew Cab 4WD is off the lsit). That's why I like the idea of the Syclone, because that would be an occasional-use vehicle (aka "toy") and I could then find a smaller, more money & fuel-efficient new car to own as a daily driver (like a Chevy HHR, though I'm not a real 'small car' kind of guy).

But... I have for the LONGEST time wanted a full-size GMC pickup. Seeing as how I was comfortable in my Envoy, but not anything smaller (like my AURA & the wife's G6) for extended drives, leads me back to the '06 Sierra. Being 'used' means I can have what I almost want (yeah, I'd much rather have brand new) and pay much less for it. The key would be to get the '06 Sierra dealer to lower the price a bit (it's a GM Certified program truck, so I'm thinking they'll try to hold out on negotiating, but with the lack of sales now, maybe they'll move a bit).

The key doing anything now with the Sierra is to find an affordable and easy way of getting out of my lease. With the Syclone, depending on how good of condition it's in, the issue is getting a loan that I can afford.

And let's hope that gas prices remain low for the forseeable future regardless - I do like paying less money at the pump with the AURA! However, I will say though that while I like saving gas money, I'm not happy with what I'm driving (hence the constant online 'window shopping' of pickups). I'd gladly pay a little more at the pump to enjoy the vehicle I prefer more.

[Blake Noble]

YellowJacket, now why did you have to remind me about Craigslist???

I decided to give good ol' CL a check, this time though not in my area (I choose central NJ instead of southern). This is what I found:

http://cnj.craigslist.org/cto/956793470.html

The best thing is that the truck is located about 15-20 miles away from where I live!!! Now I'm torn - do I see if the GMC dealership can get me out of my lease and try to buy the '06 Sierra as my daily driver, or do I see if I can get my bank or wife's credit union to give me a loan to buy the Syclone (and use it as a fair-weather toy until eventually I can restore it)???

That's a very nice Syclone. If I didn't find a regular cab truck completely useless to me, I would be considering one of those as well. Now the Typhoon, though ... that's another story.

[gm4life]

GMTruckGuy get that sweet Syclone! If I had to choose between the Yukon XL and the Sierra I would go Yukon anyday. I know lots of people with GMT-800 SUV's and they love them. They are well made and drive great.

[1990Suburban]

Next vehicle purchase will be a cheap(5K or less) 4x4 that gets 18+mpg highway. I've been looking at a 1994 Ford Explorer

[Satty]

Everytime I drive by the Honda dealership, the Accord coupe calls out to me.

[Camino LS6]

At this point I simply have no idea what's next for me.

Whatever it is will be small compensation for what should have been.

[NOS2006]

My next car will most likely be an LS1 Trans Am.

Which, by the way, will have an M6 transmission, t-tops, and one of the first mods will be these seats (and possibly the leather kit in the second link, as shown on a Camaro in the picture):

http://streetimports.com/product_details.asp?id=370

http://store.specializedstainless.com/serv...er+Interior+Kit

[daves87rs]

Small car for me...small SUV for the wife...that is all I know....

[ZL-1]

Since Saab might be going to Hell, and I was waiting for the 9-1, I have no freaking clue what I'll buy as my next vehicle...

[Intrepidation]

Next car: 300M

Future car: Challenger R/T w/ Track Pak

Beyond that: G8 GT or GXP, Camaro RS, Magnum SXT AWD, maybe a Fiesta, a `73 Satellite Sebring

I have a long wish list.

[Satty]

Yummmm.....

Edited January 16, 2009 by Satty

[Robert Hall]

Alot of it depends on where I'm living and the economy in 2010. I don't need a new car currently, as long as I'm in Phoenix, I'm content with my Jeep and driving my sister's old Mercs. If I move back to Denver fulltime (which is quite likely), I'll probably get something else, keep the Jeep for winter.

If I have a good bill rate and the job market and economy has improved in '10, I might spring for a new CTS (for a daily driver) or a '10 Mustang GT convertible (I really, really want a convertible for a toy). Though I've also thought about something much cheaper, like a used Crown Vic PI, '03+ Town Car, or an old Mercedes diesel.

Edited January 16, 2009 by moltar

[Intrepidation]

I still like the Accord coupe, although for some reason I like it less after seeing it more than I did initially.