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El Kabong

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Everything posted by El Kabong

  1. El Kabong
    I do not recall anyone saying that it didn't win the Head2Head. But by the same token I'm not too concerned, either by the margin of victory or the time and manner in which GM can respond. It's a nice victory. But let's not forget it was once again against an out-of-production car.
  2. El Kabong
    The pricing is pretty realistic as far as I can figure. The 1SS is a legit 37 large (or 36 depending on source). The brakes add 6-ish grand, the rims about an extra grand (smaller diameter offsets better alloy), the carbon fibre bits five grand. You save cash on the back seats going away, and you take that savings and throw it on another grand for the Recaros. The battery is small potatoes. Poof-50 large. The 2SS costs what it does because of the bling it provides, as well as mass. Neither is desirable for a GT350R fighter (which, let's not forget, offers an electronics package as an option). Even if you want to throw in the added weight and cost of magnetic ride you're still looking at a 52-grand car that has a 140-ish pound advantage over MT's test Shelby. And that's not even touching the engine.
  3. El Kabong
    Edit: make that 150 pounds or so. Still
  4. El Kabong
    Let us say for the sake of argument that Chevy does NOT debut some kind of engine upgrade over the LT1 for the Camaro in Detroit in January. What would it take to get it to go toe to toe with the 350R regardless? Let's start with a 1SS six-speed. It weighs 3,670 pounds. Now, let's leave the carbon wheels to Ford and let them be the guinea pigs. Instead, just carry over the carbon ceramic brakes from the Z/28. That'll save 5 pounds per corner. While we're at it, let's also take 19" rims of similar width and construction too. Maybe another 2 pounds per corner? So we have about 30 pounds shaved off, at a price bump of, say, 8 grand over the 1SS. Then, screw it. Throw in the Zedder's Recaros too, for another 20 pounds lost. Throw out the back seat. Another 20 pounds, and trim a bit of coin off the price. And just like that you're at 3,600 pounds, with upgraded brakes and tires, with no loss of electronic goodies and a decent stereo. All for about 45 grand. Now, if you want to push it to 50, let's talk carbon fibre hood and trunklid for an expensive way to shave 20 pounds, and a smaller-amperage battery as a cheap way to shave another 10. At this point you're comfortably 200 pounds lighter than a 350R. For fifteen grand less. No worries.
  5. El Kabong
    ROFL Indeed I do
  6. El Kabong
    I understand that the Ford's interior is newer and therefore better. I get that magnetic ride is better when it's properly sorted. And if the Z/28 was still being built it would have a price disadvantage. But I look at the Shelby's curb weight and think "carbon wheels and no back seats only get you to the weight of a stock SS?" Then I look at the dyno sheets and think "is the Voodoo overrated or the LS7 underrated?" Finally, I look at the margins of victory. Even if you only consider the Z/28 a three year-old car... It's a three year-old car. With a ten year-old engine. Bottom line: Congratulations, Ford. But they really haven't advanced the state of the art that much. I think GM has this under control.
  7. El Kabong
    Oops, just checked out the curb weights. The Ford weighs 3,714, the Z/28 weighs 3,882. Good on Ford-stripping out the back seat and using carbon fibre wheels really helped get the weight down to roughly Alpha Camaro levels.
  8. El Kabong
    ...well. It appears that the cheering is a bit subdued. Ok then: from a GM perspective there is some interesting stuff to take away from this one. Most notable is the apparent discrepancy in power and torque numbers as shown by the chassis dyno. GM claimed 505hp and 481lb/ft of torque for the last run of LS7 engines. The chassis dyno, not surprisingly, showed a power loss at the rear wheels: 469hp-36 less horsepower 437lb/ft-44 less torques Conversely, Ford claims 526hp and 429lb/ft for the 5.2. The dyno numbers here were less flattering: 471hp-55 less horsepower 375lb/ft-54 less torques Food for thought, fer sure
  9. El Kabong
    I'm cool, meng. Chillin' like a villain
  10. El Kabong
    Maybe. Or maybe not Now. Lincoln.
  11. El Kabong
    I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about admin. It was a productive discussion. Beyond that I'm not divulging any details. :D
  12. El Kabong
    Never let it be said that I am not an even-handed kinda guy. They put the Zeta Z/28 against the GT350R and it lost, fair and square. 2 tenths slower in the quarter, 1.4 slower around the road course they used. Still not a bad showing for a five year-old car and a ten year-old engine tho. ...also, there's the small matter of ONE of these cars being off by 25hp or so on their actual hp numbers. Either that, or one uses raw bitumen as gear lube. In any event, here's the link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLA97180860447EE6A&v=vtdtGgf1BF0
  13. El Kabong
    *checks recent PM activity* *checks above post* *waits for verdict* ...in the meantime, ya. Lincoln. ... Ya. Lincoln
  14. El Kabong
    Hahaha no $h!? That's pretty crazy. Well, I guess that makes things a little easier in some ways. It makes you wonder which outfit got the talented one and which one got the copycat. Then you look at the Fusion grille and realize that JagLandRover doesn't own Aston Martin. ...alrighty then. Mystery solved
  15. El Kabong
    I fail to see how the other poster's handle is appropriate to use, if your last statement is accurate (and for the record I believe it is). Just an observation.
  16. El Kabong
    They didn't have the 300C I requested so they offered it to me as a "free upgrade." It was the first time I'd ever been in one so I figured I'd see what the deal was. The deal was: it's an oddly-styled high hatchback with a torquey but thrashy engine, married to a transmission that reacted slower to throttle inputs than Kobe Bryant. Not quite what I was hoping for, to say the least.
  17. El Kabong
    After driving the new Lincoln MKX, Ezra Dyer just seems to have gotten mad: "The MKX faces the same challenging family dynamic as all current Lincolns, in that it’s a first cousin of a Ford—in this case, the Edge. And herein lies the problem: If the Ford version of a vehicle isn’t impressive, then the Lincoln version isn’t likely to fare better. And if the Ford version is great, then why not just buy the Ford?" "People don’t buy a Lexus ES350 because it’s so much better than a Toyota Avalon. They buy it because that L on the grille means something, and it means something because there’s an LS and an IS and an RC, cars without a Toyota equivalent... the upcoming Continental is the only Lincoln without a direct Ford counterpart—and even that one is based on a stretched and upfitted Fusion. Acura is Lincoln’s closest competitor, but Acura will soon have the NSX." "I’d raise hell at corporate over the lockstep-Ford model strategy. If we’re gonna do that, then where’s my Lincoln Mustang? My Lincoln Raptor?... Stop holding out on me, Ford." Much more thought-provoking commentary by Mr. Dyer at the link: http://m.caranddriver.com/news/ruminations-on-lincoln-from-the-only-auto-journalist-who-owns-a-new-ish-one-column
  18. El Kabong
    Could be worse. My last rental was an Infiniti QX50.
  19. El Kabong
    "If for nothing else, halo cars should be appreciated for one thing: the trickle-down effect. Now, owners of standard Corvette Stingrays can benefit from the go-fast development that produced the wicked Chevrolet Corvette Z06." Sounds like something I'd write, actually Anyhoo, if you're allergic to superchargers/a track rat, Chevy has just the plan for you. Read more at the link: http://www.motortrend.com/news/2016-chevrolet-corvette-stingray-ultimate-performance-package-quick-drive-review/
  20. El Kabong
    Ok, that was pretty funny.
  21. El Kabong
    Oh ya, Americans. We had ours a few weeks ago. Enjoy, folks!
  22. El Kabong
    Camaro? Wrong thread Maybe you should read the entire conversation leading up to that statement before making silly accusations. Couldn't have said it better myself Or perhaps the backing. Certainly they didn't when Mullaly was at the helm. Fields has promised D6 and that's a big improvement all by itself. But it takes time. And time is definitely not on Lincoln's side anymore.
  23. El Kabong
    Passing the Germans... that's the reward.
  24. El Kabong
    But you do all the time.
  25. El Kabong
    To me it just shows they don't have a lot of faith in the Continental.
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