Random Thoughts Thread

[Robert Hall]

I wonder if Olds or Buick ever considered having an F-body version of their own...

[A Horse With No Name]

On 4/8/2021 at 5:03 PM, balthazar said:

'61 300-Gs have sold for well over $200 grand, so it's a lot more than merely the designer that loves them. ?

I quite loved it thank you very much. But in my automotive bipoalr nature, I would prefer a vintage Ford truck to this....still sweet though. 

22 minutes ago, Robert Hall said:

I wonder if Olds or Buick ever considered having an F-body version of their own...

Not sure it would have fit the brand image. 

On 4/9/2021 at 11:31 PM, David said:

@trinacriabobSomething like this one?

1978 Pontiac Bonneville | Legendary Motors - Classic Cars, Muscle Cars, Hot Rods & Antique Cars - Beverly, MA (legendarymotorsllc.com)

Lovely car, already sold though, a ton of great pics at the link above.

I miss that era of GM car, a ton of them around when I was a teenager, ton of good memories. Love the green. 

 

[Robert Hall]

1 minute ago, A Horse With No Name said:

 

Not sure it would have fit the brand image. 

Could have had a Cougar competitor..sporty personal luxury would have fit at Olds in the late 60s-early 70s.

[A Horse With No Name]

On 4/10/2021 at 9:10 AM, balthazar said:

Probably going to see a slew of these 'Pandemic Projects' emerge over the next few years.
I mean; I can only assume stark isolation / no contact with the outside world produced this build... 

Or extreme mental duress brought on by an odd variant of Covid. 

On 4/10/2021 at 4:19 PM, trinacriabob said:

Today's birthday directory / announcement says it's Sixty8panther's birthday!  One of the more colorful personalities who is / has been on the C&G forum.  I hope he's doing well.

I see him on FB now and again, seems to be doing great. 

3 minutes ago, Robert Hall said:

Could have had a Cougar competitor..sporty personal luxury would have fit at Olds in the late 60s-early 70s.

That would have been fantastic. 

[A Horse With No Name]

On 4/10/2021 at 7:58 PM, surreal1272 said:

For sale here.

 

https://greensboro.craigslist.org/cto/d/greensboro-1967-pontiac-gto/7304963595.html

I love vintage cars, but have grown beyond wanting one in my garage. Not that one would fit with my woodworking tools....a man can only do so much. Doing a lot of hiking, going to do some wheel throw ceramics and hand built ceramics, still interested in buying a motorcycle. Doing a ton of woodworking. Just started setting my Stereo back up and have a long list of things I want to listen to. My reading list grows by the day. More friends now than I have ever had. 

That being said, i would be astonishingly happy to dump 40 G's and own this. Although I prefer the 66 model year. 

21 hours ago, balthazar said:

Feda Ford Standard Service Garage
Harmony MN ~ 

Actually one of the best vintage photographs you have posted up. 

[A Horse With No Name]

9 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

 

 

This actually looks fantastic. 

 

On 4/9/2021 at 1:28 PM, ykX said:

I love Durango and would love to have either Hellcat or Jeep but you do realize at warmer temperatures Urus would probably win even in a straight line? And if there will be turns, like track or twisty road it will easily walk away from both of them.   Urus faster than most sports cars. 

Nevertheless, there is something infinitely cool about large three row SUV that is that fast.

Agree completely. 

 

[A Horse With No Name]

 

[oldshurst442]

Wasnt THE Trans Am version of the Firebird more or less a Cougar competitor?

Although I do agree that an Oldsmobile F-Body would have been a better fit.  Maybe.

It would have been a sportier version of a personal luxury coupe.  But it would have also  been a less expensive model of Oldsmobile's very own personal luxury coupe that is the Cutlass SX.  Would THAT be a good idea having a cheap pony car sold above the price tag of an already expensive Trans Am but being a cheap pony car non-the-less and offering not much more than what a Trans Am could offer anyway, and probably be LESS favorable  than the Trans Am OR the Cutlass SX? 

But then again, an Oldsmobile F-Body personal luxury pony car coupe would have fit in PERFECTLY just below that SX and the big daddy Toronado.    

But then again, the Cougar in the mid-1970s just became a bloated Ford Torino personal luxury coupe and strayed far far away from its original concept.

But then again, seeing that Pontiac made '70s history with their SD455 Trans Am and  made a stellar movie appearance with a black and gold 6.6 liter Trans Am...and later years actually HAD an Olds engine under the hood to satisfy sales and CAFE numbers...maybe an Olds rocket 455 or 403 in the later years of their very own F-Body doesnt sound that out of this world after all.  

An intersesting "what-if" ... 

[daves87rs]

2 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

gogo dancers!     

 

 

 

Yes, they really need some! ? 

[A Horse With No Name]

2 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

Wasnt THE Trans Am version of the Firebird more or less a Cougar competitor?

Although I do agree that an Oldsmobile F-Body would have been a better fit.  Maybe.

It would have been a sportier version of a personal luxury coupe.  But it would have also  been a less expensive model of Oldsmobile's very own personal luxury coupe that is the Cutlass SX.  Would THAT be a good idea having a cheap pony car sold above the price tag of an already expensive Trans Am but being a cheap pony car non-the-less and offering not much more than what a Trans Am could offer anyway, and probably be LESS favorable  than the Trans Am OR the Cutlass SX? 

But then again, an Oldsmobile F-Body personal luxury pony car coupe would have fit in PERFECTLY just below that SX and the big daddy Toronado.    

But then again, the Cougar in the mid-1970s just became a bloated Ford Torino personal luxury coupe and strayed far far away from its original concept.

But then again, seeing that Pontiac made '70s history with their SD455 Trans Am and  made a stellar movie appearance with a black and gold 6.6 liter Trans Am...and later years actually HAD an Olds engine under the hood to satisfy sales and CAFE numbers...maybe an Olds rocket 455 or 403 in the later years of their very own F-Body doesnt sound that out of this world after all.  

An intersesting "what-if" ... 

That just looks badass in white. 

 

[A Horse With No Name]

[A Horse With No Name]

 

[trinacriabob]

I was laughing pretty hard at this.  (I know that everyone on C&G wants it to be multilingual.) 

You can check out this goofy video to see if any of it strikes a chord ... or focus on the background scenery and what sounds like the sonorous strumming of a mandolin.

And, of course, they focus on the differences, which are quite a few.  But they don't tell you that ~ 60% of the words are about the same.

[A Horse With No Name]

[oldshurst442]

@trinacriabob

 

 

 

I was listening to those clips above and others a few weeks back. I was shocked to see that in some parts of Southern Italy, Greek is spoken still and mixed with Italian.   I knew that about Sicily, but not on mainland Italy.  

I was even shocked to learn, this was yesterday, that a classic 1980 Giannis Poulopoulos song was but a cover. An Italian cover. From 1974.  And there is a catch, the song was written and sung by a very popular Italian singer, but the song was written and sung...in Greek.

 

 

Original  Mia Martini

 

Una faccia, una razza! 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yDqhw4Vhh-I/Tvr6TfymTmI/AAAAAAAABiw/ia8Zwy4TxDI/s1600/ItaliaGreciaBandiere.jpg

 

 

Edited April 12, 2021 by oldshurst442

[trinacriabob]

1 hour ago, oldshurst442 said:

 I was listening to those clips above and others a few weeks back. I was shocked to see that in some parts of Southern Italy, Greek is spoken still and mixed with Italian.   I knew that about Sicily, but not on mainland Italy.  

I was even shocked to learn, this was yesterday, that a classic 1980 Giannis Poulopoulos song was but a cover. An Italian cover. From 1974.  And there is a catch, the song was written and sung by a very popular Italian singer, but the song was written and sung...in Greek.

Yes.  Along with a few remote villages in Sicily, some remote villages on the heel of the peninsula have retained modified forms of Greek.  Probably because they're even closer to the Peloponnesus. 

Greek (this brings back memories):

"Ohi" means "no," but

"Ne" means "yes" 

My favorite Greek surname:  Papadiamantis, also the name of the main street on the island of Skiathos

Italian and Greek:

I know of only one word that is common to both Italian and Greek:  pantofoli (bedroom slippers), thought there are surely others

Sicilian and French:

The 200 years of French Norman rule is seen in the Sicilian dialect, where some words come from French, like some of the ones in the video:

where:  "unni" from "ou"

work:  "travagghiu" from "travail"

buy:  "accattari" from "acheter"

and many, many more

Sicilian and Italian (per video):

Most words in Sicilian use "u" sounds for the "o" sounds in Italian, which makes it sound more guttural... that's the biggest difference.

I have rarely heard cheese called "tumazzu," as in the video.  Most people just call it "furmaggiu."

But they didn't include one of the most humorous differences of them all: 

snail:  "lumaca" (in Italian), but "babbaluccia" (in Sicilian) (bubb-a-looch-cha)!

Edited April 12, 2021 by trinacriabob

[Robert Hall]

Lots of Italians, Sicilians, and Greeks in Steubenville, Ohio where I spent my childhood.  Our next door neighbors had immigrated from Palermo.   

[ykX]

On 4/9/2021 at 4:13 PM, Robert Hall said:

 

The Urus is just an Audi Q8 in Lamboish sheetmetal, though...nothing special.  It lacks the true weirdness of the LM002...doesn't even have a Lambo engine--has an Audi engine. 

Sure, nothing special.  I am not a Lamborghini fan but at Car and Driver Lightning lap Urus ran 2.55.8.  Just for comparison Cadillac CTS-V did in 2:56.8, Camaro SS 1LE did the lap at 2:54.8, C7 Corvette Stingray did it in 2:53.8.

It is much faster than Q8

[A Horse With No Name]

[balthazar]

[A Horse With No Name]

8 minutes ago, balthazar said:

Amazing, love it....!

 

 

 

 

 

[oldshurst442]

[oldshurst442]

On 4/12/2021 at 2:19 PM, A Horse With No Name said:

 

Warped phoquing people.

These people are NOT Christian.

Nowhere in the bible does it say that sex is bad/evil/sin...

Its just says that EXTRAMARITAL sex is a sin.  Marriage is a HOLY bond between a man and his wife...no funny stuff OUTSIDE of the marriage...  Immoral sex has NOTHING to do sex before marriage or who is your partner. homosexual sex.    Immoral sex is cheating on your spouse.  

Married folk SHOULD have LOTS AND LOTS of sex.  Procreate. Be fruitful and multiply it says...

THAT is all it says...

Phoqued up folk translate that into other shyte... 

 

 

 

[balthazar]

On 4/12/2021 at 10:48 AM, Robert Hall said:

...sporty personal luxury would have fit at Olds in the late 60s-early 70s.

They did it; the Starfire, then the Toronado.

[trinacriabob]

Random thought ... random palm tree ...

 

[G. David Felt]

Seems Hyundai has an amazing Van but it will not be coming to the US. Diesel or V6 gas are the engine options.

Hyundai Staria specs revealed, but the stunning van isn't coming here | Autoblog

Quote: Hyundai promises two engine options for global markets. Europe will enjoy a 2.2-liter turbo-diesel engine that produces 175 horsepower and 318 pound-feet of torque. They’ll also have the choice of a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission, making us all the more jealous. Other markets will have the option of a 3.5-liter V6 instead of the diesel. This engine makes 268 horsepower and 244 pound-feet of torque.

I will say that the dash reminds me of what we are seeing in EVs today.

Looks nice in executive trim.

[G. David Felt]

Very cool Read on a modern take from Hyundai on their legendary Pony car.

Hyundai Pony Heritage Becomes Design Studio Centerpiece (thetruthaboutcars.com)

[A Horse With No Name]

[G. David Felt]

Fords agreement with VW will have Ford for their European operations in Cologne Germany using the VW MEB EV platform. Fords first auto will be an undefined utility EV equal in size to the VW ID.4

Ford's VW-based EV will be a utility vehicle, report says (autonews.com)

[A Horse With No Name]

[G. David Felt]

5 minutes ago, A Horse With No Name said:

Should be posted in the Vaccine thread.  

[G. David Felt]

Seems Europe after digging into the data of PHEV auto's is finding out they are not green at all and as such, have already started to draft legislation that will have PHEV auto's dead by 2030. Currently for Auto Companies plans by 2028 they show 28 PHEV's and 86 BEV's for 2028 on the market. With EU regulation considering banning PHEV starting in 2030, this would make one wonder if PHEV will not get killed of sooner as this regulation would tend to kill market demand to buy something that has such a short life span.

PHEV cars, once considered green, lose their appeal to EU regulators | Autoblog

With the above regulation, it makes me wonder if this could be the last update to the BMW X5 xDrive45e PHEV which has been getting solid reviews.

2021 BMW X5 xDrive45e PHEV First Drive Review | Better Bimmer with a bigger battery | Autoblog

[G. David Felt]

France has joined a growing list of European countries that are pretty much paying for you to move to an electric bike especially if you live in the city. Trade in your gas auto to be crushed and France will give you $2,991 US or $2,500 Euro's to buy your new electric bike. In many cases top of the line Electric bikes like those built by Peugeot cost $2,500 making it a no cost option to change over to an electric bike form your to quote the French Government, inefficient gas auto, reducing the need for insurance, gas, maintenance, etc. With France having free chargers all over their cities, this will help to clean up the air, reduce noise pollution and increase the healthy life style of the citizens by having them use an electric bike.

As stated in the story, many families that have two auto's might still need one for long distance road trips and with e-bikes being cheaper if it is an import from outside France could make it a 2 e-bike family with a single auto for long distance road trips still making it a great deal.

Another major EU country to offer $3,000 e-bike credit to trade in your old gas car (electrek.co) 

[trinacriabob]

1) My take on how I roll with salespeople (and how I think others should roll):

If the item or service can wait, and you push me, I won't be buying from you.  If you do not push me, but seek to inform me, I will be buying from you. *

* as for the $ 1,400 stimulus payment, I went out and bought a 3 over 3 (cushions, that is) sleeper sofa to put in the room where the desktop computer / printer are. (I'm also giving a token amount to humanitarian causes ... i.e. disaster relief.)  The salesman was polite, patient, and mild mannered, so I filed his business card away that he gave me when I had gone in prior to the pandemic.  When I went back in after a year of pandemic, the price quote had only gone up about $15.  Done deal.  I will post a photo when the ordered sleeper sofa arrives.

2) Advice given to me by a professional on handling administrative matters:

If you get an e-mail, text, or other communication that gets you riled up, do NOT answer it that day.  Sleep on it and address it the next day.

[A Horse With No Name]

[balthazar]

5 hours ago, David said:

this would make one wonder if PHEV will not get killed of sooner as this regulation would tend to kill market demand to buy something that has such a short life span.

Proposed future legislation has zero effect on the life span of said vehicle.

[oldshurst442]

19 hours ago, David said:

from Hyundai on their legendary Pony car.

 

You called it legendary, yet you find most Ferraris 'meh'

Edited April 14, 2021 by oldshurst442

[oldshurst442]

I wonder if Madoff will ponzi scheme his way in acquiring a coin for the Ferryman

 

 

 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

You called it legendary, yet you find most Ferraris 'meh'

Just quoted the linked info which calls the Hyundai that. ?

Yes, Ferraris are Meh to me! Could die like Alfa did and would not be a big deal. Sadly, they brought Alfa back and still is a Meh, no big deal auto.

[daves87rs]

4 hours ago, A Horse With No Name said:

Quoted for truth......

[balthazar]

Happiness is... a brand new (fine) wire wheel disc and grinding stone on your bench grinder.

[trinacriabob]

2 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

Madoff

ponzi scheme

I knew about him and what he did when it was hot off the press.  But today, I read a little blurb about him.  I was disgusted to learn that he looked down his nose at prospective very wealthy clients who wanted to invest somewhat more moderate sums with him and that, unless they invested more, he would not take them on as clients.  Those were the conditions he put forth.

Madoff is an appropriate surname for this dude:  he MADE OFF, all right.

Good riddance.

[oldshurst442]

25 minutes ago, trinacriabob said:

he would not take them on as clients.

Lucky folk, though.  It was a blessing for them if not for his other victims.

I found it more appalling when back in the day, news media, journalists, analysts, bankers, politicians, etc...revered this thief and swore by him.

 

[trinacriabob]

3 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

Lucky folk, though.  It was a blessing for them if not for his other victims.

I found it more appalling when back in the day, news media, journalists, analysts, bankers, politicians, etc...revered this thief and swore by him.

Many wolves in sheep's clothing in the world.  Many.  

[oldshurst442]

5 minutes ago, trinacriabob said:

Many wolves in sheep's clothing in the world.  Many.  

True. But we (our modern society) seem to WANT to be seduced by these wolves in sheep's clothing.  Our morals and scruples  seem to have been loosened over the years. And when we do that, we beget more and more wolves in sheep's clothing until the wolves our brazen enough to not even disguise themselves as sheep.  Look at the last President...   

Money...the root of all evil.  

 

 

[trinacriabob]

38 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

But we (our modern society) seem to WANT to be seduced by these wolves in sheep's clothing. 

Exactly.  And what's even more perplexing is how some of the most self-righteous people who play the "holier than thou" card, and should know better, are either swayed by it, choose to look the other way, or are wolves themselves.

Without getting into politics, I have no clue how people could stand to watch more than 3 minutes of "The Apprentice," where any douche bag with pearly whites can show up to be a "project manager."  It didn't look like many of those contestants were schooled in engineering, construction, finance, IT, and the hard sciences that would even allow them to put parameters around a project.  That's because most of the folks who ate that sh!+ up ("The Apprentice") wouldn't even think of asking something like that. 

[daves87rs]

Sadly snowing outside....

[ykX]

20 hours ago, David said:

Seems Europe after digging into the data of PHEV auto's is finding out they are not green at all and as such, have already started to draft legislation that will have PHEV auto's dead by 2030. Currently for Auto Companies plans by 2028 they show 28 PHEV's and 86 BEV's for 2028 on the market. With EU regulation considering banning PHEV starting in 2030, this would make one wonder if PHEV will not get killed of sooner as this regulation would tend to kill market demand to buy something that has such a short life span.

PHEV cars, once considered green, lose their appeal to EU regulators | Autoblog

With the above regulation, it makes me wonder if this could be the last update to the BMW X5 xDrive45e PHEV which has been getting solid reviews.

2021 BMW X5 xDrive45e PHEV First Drive Review | Better Bimmer with a bigger battery | Autoblog

https://www.torquenews.com/1083/toyota-rav4-prime-2nd-fastest-selling-vehicle-america

Toyota RAV4 Prime Is 2nd-Fastest-Selling Vehicle In America.

A new study ranking the fastest-selling vehicles in America puts the RAV4 Prime second only to the Chevrolet Corvette.

-----------

Seems at least for now, people prefer the flexibility of PHEV over pure EV.  (Also number one is a kick ass ICE vehicle )

 

Edited April 15, 2021 by ykX

[A Horse With No Name]

11 hours ago, balthazar said:

Happiness is... a brand new (fine) wire wheel disc and grinding stone on your bench grinder.

I have multiple bench grinders. They are one of the most used tools in a shop full of well loved tools. 

21 minutes ago, ykX said:

https://www.torquenews.com/1083/toyota-rav4-prime-2nd-fastest-selling-vehicle-america

Toyota RAV4 Prime Is 2nd-Fastest-Selling Vehicle In America.

A new study ranking the fastest-selling vehicles in America puts the RAV4 Prime second only to the Chevrolet Corvette.

-----------

Seems at least for now, people prefer the flexibility of PHEV over pure EV.  (Also number one is a kick ass ICE vehicle )

 

It actually is a damn fine product. I would proudly put one in the driveway next to the Ranger. 

6 hours ago, daves87rs said:

Sadly snowing outside....

I love Michigan, but you folks never catch a break ever on anything. Ever. 

Maybe you can sell the Detroit Lions to some Third world country....throw in the Redwings....take the proceeds and everyone in the state can move to Tenneseee or some place warm.

9 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

Exactly.  And what's even more perplexing is how some of the most self-righteous people who play the "holier than thou" card, and should know better, are either swayed by it, choose to look the other way, or are wolves themselves.

Without getting into politics, I have no clue how people could stand to watch more than 3 minutes of "The Apprentice," where any douche bag with pearly whites can show up to be a "project manager."  It didn't look like many of those contestants were schooled in engineering, construction, finance, IT, and the hard sciences that would even allow them to put parameters around a project.  That's because most of the folks who ate that sh!+ up ("The Apprentice") wouldn't even think of asking something like that. 

It's low level manufactured drama, the stuff that our nation has thrived on for hundreds of years. It's exactly why we have so many televangelists and so few people who actually follow the teachings of Christ. I love a lot of things about America, but this wing of the country isn't one of them. 

 

9 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

True. But we (our modern society) seem to WANT to be seduced by these wolves in sheep's clothing.  Our morals and scruples  seem to have been loosened over the years. And when we do that, we beget more and more wolves in sheep's clothing until the wolves our brazen enough to not even disguise themselves as sheep.  Look at the last President...   

Money...the root of all evil.  

 

 

The Denial of reality is I think the root of all kinds of evil. And it isn't just one president. Bushes, Reagan, Nixon, others were human shit stains also. 

[A Horse With No Name]

12 hours ago, David said:

Just quoted the linked info which calls the Hyundai that. ?

Yes, Ferraris are Meh to me! Could die like Alfa did and would not be a big deal. Sadly, they brought Alfa back and still is a Meh, no big deal auto.

To each his own!

11 hours ago, balthazar said:

Happiness is... a brand new (fine) wire wheel disc and grinding stone on your bench grinder.