I'm in automotive hell

[Drew Dowdell]

So as you may or may not know, I haven't owned a car in over a year. I've been sharing my boyfriend's CRV. I've never been a big fan, but it saves money and we almost never have a conflict on when we need wheels. Over the past year I've kinda just gotten used to it. It's inoffensive in every way.

Today the BF needed the CRV to go one place and I needed to go do construction work so I rented a Toyota Tacoma for 6 hours from Zipcar.

Let me tell you... when a very base, 4-cylinder, rental Tacoma feels positively CTS-like, your daily driver sucks. The Tacoma is slow, has more body roll than a '76 LeSabre with bad shocks, and feels like a Camry inside, but it's RWD and has one thing the CRV doesn't; TORQUE

So, now I think the real reason non-automotive people buy Hondas is because the cars give that pleasant numb feeling you get while taking a warm bath and overdosing on oxycontin.

To an auto enthusiast it's like laying in that warm bath while the blood slowly drains from the slits in your wrists.....

When I get the mustang rental in Florida next week, my head might just explode.

[Justin Bimmer]

*Hands paper bag to Olds so he won't explode his head*

(In Mr Myagi voice) Breath in through nose, breath out through mouth.

[Croc]

What year CRV is it? Honestly, I've never had those problems with the honda cars that I've driven. Compared to Toyotas, the Hondas are much sportier. Of course, it could also be that it is an SUV--the only SUV I have driven that was actually pretty fun to drive was the SRX. YMMV

[Drew Dowdell]

It's an '04. There aren't any problems with it at all other than a chronically out of balance right front tire. It's just numb in every way and you have to flog the hell out of the engine to get anything out of it.

[Teh Ricer Civic!]

I had always heard that Honda's were sportier than Toyotas.

But i guess if you dont like high engine RPMs you probably wont like Honda 4 cyls.

[Robert Hall]

Never driven a CRV....the Hondas I've had experience driving were fun to drive, IMHO--my sister used to have a '91 Legend coupe, my girlfriend in college had an '88 Accord hatchback, my friend Steve's '91 NSX, another friend's '97 Prelude--....haven't driven any recent ones, though.

Edited May 10, 2009 by Cubical

[regfootball]

i can't imagine anyone actually desiring to own and drive a CRV but as the phrase goes, you get what you ask for.

and yes, to piggyback on another thread, hondas are TORQUELESS. you'd think they would at least have a 6 speed to make up for the LACK OF TORQUE.

[A Horse With No Name]

Not real impressed with the CRV. One of my wife's friends replaced an Astro Van with a CRV, to me the Astro was a better vehicle and it wasn't one of GM's better efforts.

Be interesting to see what you wind up with when you wind up wherever your going to wind up.

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

...wasn't it one of the guys from Top Gear who said that driving a Lexus was like sitting in a vat of wallpapaer paste? Sounds like you had a similar experience.

Chris

[Drew Dowdell]

i can't imagine anyone actually desiring to own and drive a CRV but as the phrase goes, you get what you ask for.

and yes, to piggyback on another thread, hondas are TORQUELESS. you'd think they would at least have a 6 speed to make up for the LACK OF TORQUE.

This lovely 2004 model comes with a 4-speed! Oh the horror!

[A Horse With No Name]

The 4 speed probably isn't as smooth as the CTS auto either, is it?

Chris

[Drew Dowdell]

Not real impressed with the CRV. One of my wife's friends replaced an Astro Van with a CRV, to me the Astro was a better vehicle and it wasn't one of GM's better efforts.

Be interesting to see what you wind up with when you wind up wherever your going to wind up.

Chris

If I end up staying in the US, I'll probably get a used '07 or newer Avalanche. If/When we go to europe, I think we'll get a used CTS with a manual or one of the big german land yachts used. Those things depreciate like Towncars over there.... and if you're going to tour the continent by car, is there a better way to do it than S-Class, A8L, or 7-Series?

[Drew Dowdell]

The 4 speed probably isn't as smooth as the CTS auto either, is it?

Chris

Going from an '04 CTS and '03 Avalanche to an '04 CRV is a huge change....

The CRV 4-speed is fairly smooth, it just really hurts only being a 4-speed with no torque. Even mild hills a highway speeds can cause 4-3-2 downshifts.

[A Horse With No Name]

The newer Avalanche without the plastic body cladding looks much better, IMHO.

Your going to kill me for this, but I think the Avi looks good in the bright yellow they offered it in a few years ago.

Chris

[Drew Dowdell]

The newer Avalanche without the plastic body cladding looks much better, IMHO.

Your going to kill me for this, but I think the Avi looks good in the bright yellow they offered it in a few years ago.

Chris

Why would I kill you for it? I love that color too. It's one of the only other colors other than black that I would go for. (the other being that sunburst orange)

[A Horse With No Name]

The sunburst orange looks soooo goood also.

Good luck with wherever you and the BF end up. Back on the Honda end of things...I think they have killed their fun to drive thing. The older cars (Prelude, older Accords, Civic Si's et al) were decent handling and driving cars.

The only "new" Honda I'd even remotely consider is the Civic Si and Honda pretty much killed the steering on the latest Si, it just doesn't have the feedback of the earlier cars.

I liked the previous gen Fit, but hate the restyle the more I look at it.

And IMHO the new Accord is "dumbed down" in the way it drives. If I want a Buick, I want a proper Buick dammit, not a pretender to the throne.

The only Japanese car company I like is Mazda...although the 370Z is growing on me.

Chris

[Robert Hall]

Why would I kill you for it? I love that color too. It's one of the only other colors other than black that I would go for. (the other being that sunburst orange)

My favorite color on the Avi is a really bright metallic lime-oilve green from a few years ago..only seen a couple in that color, would look great on the '10 Camaro.

[daves87rs]

My buddy's wife's 07 CRV is not bad...granted it has the 6 I think...

And I've driven an 08 Accord...it sucks. It's huge, and it drives like it too...

[ocnblu]

A four cylinder Equinox or Terrain would convert him for life, I predict. But I understand you want something gently used to save money v. the same vehicle new.

[Drew Dowdell]

A four cylinder Equinox or Terrain would convert him for life, I predict. But I understand you want something gently used to save money v. the same vehicle new.

Well he understands that he has bought his last import. If we stay, the CRV will get traded in for the new SRX.

edit: If I can convince him that if I get the Avalanche he doesn't need an SUV and the CTS coupe can be had with AWD, he's getting that instead.

[Drew Dowdell]

My buddy's wife's 07 CRV is not bad...granted it has the 6 I think...

You can have a CRV in any engine size as long as it's a 2.4 litre 4-cylinder.

The engine in the '07 is the same one as in my BF's '04, however the '07 got a 5-speed auto to compensate for gaining over 200 lbs.

Must be a real treat to drive.

[daves87rs]

You can have a CRV in any engine size as long as it's a 2.4 litre 4-cylinder.

The engine in the '07 is the same one as in my BF's '04, however the '07 got a 5-speed auto to compensate for gaining over 200 lbs.

Must be a real treat to drive.

Yeah, I forgot.....

Then again, I've been driving nothing but GM 4 bangers lately..

[A Horse With No Name]

My favorite color on the Avi is a really bright metallic lime-oilve green from a few years ago..only seen a couple in that color, would look great on the '10 Camaro.

The retro green looked good on the newer stangs, that green would look even better on the Camaro, methinks.

I've seen I think maybe one (avi) that color combo, Cubical.

Chris

[Robert Hall]

The retro green looked good on the newer stangs, that green would look even better on the Camaro, methinks.

I've seen I think maybe one (avi) that color combo, Cubical.

Chris

It's a really interesting color, hard to describe, other than 'electric lime' or 'electric olive'.there seemed to be a lighter and a dark version. I saw one at sunrise a few years ago, and it was really striking w/ the sunlight on it...the Aztek had a similar color at one time, IIRC. The Camaro would look great in it. There were some really nice greens on the '69 Camaro, would like to see some today.

[A Horse With No Name]

The orig. 69 Camaro looked great in that dark metallic green they had for it. Used to be an RS/SS 396 Car that was dark green with white stripes running around my home town when I was a kid.

Looking at that car was like looking at Lee Ann, the girl next door, in her tiny, tiny little bikini. It did horrible things to corrupt my mind, and here 35 years later I still remember them both very clearly.

Chris

[Robert Hall]

The orig. 69 Camaro looked great in that dark metallic green they had for it. Used to be an RS/SS 396 Car that was dark green with white stripes running around my home town when I was a kid.

Looking at that car was like looking at Lee Ann, the girl next door, in her tiny, tiny little bikini. It did horrible things to corrupt my mind, and here 35 years later I still remember them both very clearly.

Chris

I remember that color, was Fathom Green, I think...kind of a medium dark green. They also had a very nice silver green--Frost Green, was used on alot of GMs from around '68-71.

Edited May 10, 2009 by Cubical

[daves87rs]

I remember that color, was Fathom Green, I think...kind of a medium dark green. They also had a very nice silver green--Frost Green, was used on alot of GMs from around '68-71.

Nice!

[A Horse With No Name]

Hey...also 396 powered...I remember a 71 Camper Special Longbed Chevrolet truck that used to run around outside of my old hometown of Muncie, Indiana. It was that lighter frost green you were talking about.

That was a nice looking truck....

Nice how on C and G we can start out talking about Hondas and wind up talking about some nice vintage GM stuff, Vs. the other way around.

Chris

[A Horse With No Name]

...but Verdero Green is still my fav. GM green....I've talked about it before, but down in Washington Court House, Ohio, about 35 miles from here a guy has a Verdero Green GTO hardtop that is just amazing, and an untouched survivor. You can still see the original chasis markings on the underside of the car, and the original exhaust still has some clean, non rusted areas.

I wouldn't kick an Orbit orange 70 GTO out of the garage, though...

Much nicer than a CRV, I think. Part of me realizes the good old days ain't never gonna come back...and the CRV actually makes me think about what life would be like without a car. The Element is also bad, overly tall and under-powered for it's size and weight.

Chris

[Robert Hall]

Hey...also 396 powered...I remember a 71 Camper Special Longbed Chevrolet truck that used to run around outside of my old hometown of Muncie, Indiana. It was that lighter frost green you were talking about.

That was a nice looking truck....

Nice how on C and G we can start out talking about Hondas and wind up talking about some nice vintage GM stuff, Vs. the other way around.

Chris

I can still remember as a kid in the late '70s in Steubenville, Oh, the neighbors across the street had a black '68 Impala fastback, a Frost Green '69 Impala Custom coupe, black vinyl top, bumper guards, Rally Wheels. I remember when they traded their maroon '74 Caprice 4dr ht on a new downsized '77 Caprice, in dark red w/ a white vinyl top.

Neighbors next to them had a black '67 Olds Delmont 88 and a gold '71 Olds 98 4dr ht (that my brother backed his '74 Vega V8 into once...). Neighbors on the left had a lt blue '72 Skylark 4dr sedan and a white '74 Apollo 2dr, neighbors on a right a black '68 Eldorado and a series of black '71-79 Fleetwoods (he was supposedly the local Don), and we had a variety of cars the 10 years we were there--my Dad's '67-68 Cougars, the '69 Mustang, his '71 Marquis and later Town Cars, my sister's '76 Pinto, and my older brothers' endlessly changing variety of cars (the V8 Vega, a '74 Firebird Formula 400, various '60s Mustangs, a '59 Thunderbird, a '65 GTO, etc).

..on the weekends, we often went to our farm in the country (where my Mom still lives), where my folks kept 5-6 cars and the John Deere tractor, and later, the motorhomes.

Happy memories of a simpler time and space..

Edited May 10, 2009 by Cubical

[A Horse With No Name]

...actually...now I am confused...or maybe it is because I haven't seen the Camaro I described for 30+ years...but IIRC it had a bumblebee stripe and not the over the car stripes that the Camaro does in your pic, Cubical.

SS cars came with the Bumblebee stripe around the front, right? Didn't the Z cars get the over the car stripes? Or am I wrong?

Chris

[Robert Hall]

...actually...now I am confused...or maybe it is because I haven't seen the Camaro I described for 30+ years...but IIRC it had a bumblebee stripe and not the over the car stripes that the Camaro does in your pic, Cubical.

SS cars came with the Bumblebee stripe around the front, right? Didn't the Z cars get the over the car stripes? Or am I wrong?

Chris

There were many stripes... in '67, SSes had the bumblebee stripe, '68 SSes had the bumblebee and also one that goes over the nose like the bumblebee but down the sides, ending on the doors (my brother's LeMans blue '68 SS 396 had that). The '69 SS had a hockey-stick style stripe that started by the marker light and came up and went down the side, just below the beltline. I think the Z28 style stripes may have been an option on SSes, I've seen many in pics and in person done that way.

( I'm by no means a Camaro expert, I just sorta kinda know this stuff from researching stripe options, etc for model car builds).

Edited May 10, 2009 by Cubical

[pow]

Unless there's something wrong with the CR-V, its performance shouldn't be any different from other four-cylinder cute 'utes of similar age. Frankly I've never heard anybody complain about the CR-V's performance. Hondas tend to be harsher and noisier, with more feedback and less isolation, not numb.

The '04 CR-V weighs 3300 lbs and has 162 lb-ft at 3600 rpm, and I've driven cars with similar torque-to-weight ratios and they all drive fine. Perhaps it's the four-speed weighing it down, though it did get a five-speed auto for 2005.

[A Horse With No Name]

Unless there's something wrong with the CR-V, its performance shouldn't be any different from other four-cylinder cute 'utes of similar age. Frankly I've never heard anybody complain about the CR-V's performance. Hondas tend to be harsher and noisier, with more feedback and less isolation, not numb.

The '04 CR-V weighs 3300 lbs and has 162 lb-ft at 3600 rpm, and I've driven cars with similar torque-to-weight ratios and they all drive fine. Perhaps it's the four-speed weighing it down, though it did get a five-speed auto for 2005.

Which is why I just hate MOST autotrajics....they just seem to feel numb, no matter what the car is.

Even a Vette or a 350Z with an auto feels a little bit numb to me.

Now a Z06 with a 6 speed...

Chris

[fightingbee]

Might be. My '03 VUE w/ the manual trans. actually pulls it's weight around pretty decent IMO. Of course the 2.2L Ecotec despite being a little smaller in cubes probably has a flatter torque curve.

[Drew Dowdell]

Unless there's something wrong with the CR-V, its performance shouldn't be any different from other four-cylinder cute 'utes of similar age. Frankly I've never heard anybody complain about the CR-V's performance. Hondas tend to be harsher and noisier, with more feedback and less isolation, not numb.

The '04 CR-V weighs 3300 lbs and has 162 lb-ft at 3600 rpm, and I've driven cars with similar torque-to-weight ratios and they all drive fine. Perhaps it's the four-speed weighing it down, though it did get a five-speed auto for 2005.

My previous rides were an '04 CTS and an '03 Avalanche.

Edit: Also, this is an AWD CRV.

[regfootball]

Going from an '04 CTS and '03 Avalanche to an '04 CRV is a huge change....

The CRV 4-speed is fairly smooth, it just really hurts only being a 4-speed with no torque. Even mild hills a highway speeds can cause 4-3-2 downshifts.

the new equinox would be a revelation in comparison to that.

[regfootball]

...but Verdero Green is still my fav. GM green....I've talked about it before, but down in Washington Court House, Ohio, about 35 miles from here a guy has a Verdero Green GTO hardtop that is just amazing, and an untouched survivor. You can still see the original chasis markings on the underside of the car, and the original exhaust still has some clean, non rusted areas.

I wouldn't kick an Orbit orange 70 GTO out of the garage, though...

Much nicer than a CRV, I think. Part of me realizes the good old days ain't never gonna come back...and the CRV actually makes me think about what life would be like without a car. The Element is also bad, overly tall and under-powered for it's size and weight.

Chris

my cousin stopped by this weekend. he used to have a 3 series bmw he had to trade because it died on him and it was going to need a spendy fix. his new wife forced him into the CRV. it was funny to see his wings clipped like that. I shoulda asked him if he liked it.

I like the element to a point, and i agree with your crticisms of it. its too tall, it should be wider. my ex coworker gave me a couple rides and yeah its cheap and buzzy inside. he told me it gets 20 in town and 25 on hwy. same as my aztek which is bigger and quieter and smoother. the element if they redid it they should widen the proportions, make it a true 4 door, and then make it actually pleasant to be in. it feels like a garbage can inside. Not even any GM car is that plasticky.

[A Horse With No Name]

Like a rubbermade trash can inside is a good description. My wife liked them until she saw the inside...

Chris

[Drew Dowdell]

Oh yea, and 19mpg at last fill up. We never get more than 250miles to a tank.

[G. David Felt]

Like a rubbermade trash can inside is a good description. My wife liked them until she saw the inside...

Chris

LOL, my wife thought they were ugly and then saw the inside and thought WHY, why did they waste the time and create all that CO2 on such an ugly car that youth do not drive and so far here in Seattle you see only old white haired people driving.

[Cory Wolfe]

Going from an '04 CTS and '03 Avalanche to an '04 CRV is a huge change....

The CRV 4-speed is fairly smooth, it just really hurts only being a 4-speed with no torque. Even mild hills a highway speeds can cause 4-3-2 downshifts.

Atleast it downshifts.

[Robert Hall]

LOL, my wife thought they were ugly and then saw the inside and thought WHY, why did they waste the time and create all that CO2 on such an ugly car that youth do not drive and so far here in Seattle you see only old white haired people driving.

I know two Element owners, both are couples around 60... one couple are artists, they like it for loading supplies and their chihuahuas.

[Drew Dowdell]

Atleast it downshifts.

True I guess. My other cars didn't need to on the same highways.

[regfootball]

Oh yea, and 19mpg at last fill up. We never get more than 250miles to a tank.

yet, hondas are known for their 4 cylinder economy.

i hope we see real world highway mpg numbers like 35+ out of the equinox. with the ecotec and 6 speed, i would bet with some drivers it is possible!

what is the fuel tank size on the equinox? 32 mpg at 16 gallons is over 500 miles! no bladder can last that long.

i have to admit, the vue was in my sights for my wife down the road but the equinox ought to trounce it overall in many ways. (I love the edge for her in the future but the edge doesn't get the best f.e......maybe with ecoboost four it will).

[Robert Hall]

yet, hondas are known for their 4 cylinder economy.

i hope we see real world highway mpg numbers like 35+ out of the equinox. with the ecotec and 6 speed, i would bet with some drivers it is possible!

I doubt if the mileage will be that good...I would think the Equinox will be as heavy or heavier than the Vue (which is over 4000lbs)--it's larger than the Vue, I think.

Edited May 11, 2009 by Cubical

[A Horse With No Name]

The ideal thing would be an HHR with a small diesel and a slick shifting 5 speed. That would be good for hauling paint, etc, for Oldsmoboi's rentals, look about a billion times better than the CRV, and be equipped for "other activities" like the Roadmonster and the Avi were.

That and a CTS wagon would be nice pair of vehicles for Oldsmoboi and Co., methinks.

Too bad we don't have a small diesel for the HHR...Chryco has a small diesel for the PT in Europe...

[Robert Hall]

The ideal thing would be an HHR with a small diesel and a slick shifting 5 speed. That would be good for hauling paint, etc, for Oldsmoboi's rentals, look about a billion times better than the CRV, and be equipped for "other activities" like the Roadmonster and the Avi were.

That and a CTS wagon would be nice pair of vehicles for Oldsmoboi and Co., methinks.

Too bad we don't have a small diesel for the HHR...Chryco has a small diesel for the PT in Europe...

Alas, as long as gas prices stay cheap, I don't see the domestics seriously considering diesels for the NA market... I'd much rather have a diesel w/ a manual than a hybrid. And in bigger vehicles--esp. trucks and SUVs, diesels would be a natural..a great way to bring up the CAFE.

Edited May 11, 2009 by Cubical

[A Horse With No Name]

...but they need to think ahead, dammit. Thinking 6 months ahead is what brought us to our current cluster****. Two years from now, fuel prices will be way up, and given peak oil and the middle east cluster**** they ain't gonna go back down.

HHR Diesel FTW!

Chris

[Drew Dowdell]

The ideal thing would be an HHR with a small diesel and a slick shifting 5 speed. That would be good for hauling paint, etc, for Oldsmoboi's rentals, look about a billion times better than the CRV, and be equipped for "other activities" like the Roadmonster and the Avi were.

That and a CTS wagon would be nice pair of vehicles for Oldsmoboi and Co., methinks.

AHAHAH I had to read that 4 times before I got what you were saying..... :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao: