trinacriabob

This thread just sort of showed up (and I noticed it) on the main page. I feel that about 200 hp will enable you to deal with almost all situations and make your car feel responsive enough. My current car has exactly that. I'm very okay with it. Going forward, I think I could work with about 150 hp, but this would also be on vehicles that might be a little bit smaller and lighter. A rented VW Jetta I had in the Houston area made 147 hp and it could handle just about anything that Houston driving and traffic seemed to dish out over about a week's time.

Random thought: I can and do inhale French onion dip.

I sort of remember a discussion on here about "keystoning," the upcharge for parts that go into an automotive repair. Keystoning is where the mark-ups are a little out of hand, and repair shops definitely do it. This is how I understand it, using simple round numbers: Retail price of an auto part to a consumer: $ 100 Price of that auto part to the repair shop who probably has an account with a supplier: $ 80 Assume the mechanic habitually marks up at 50% Marking up on their cost would make the part show up on your repair bill as $ 120 Marking up on retail cost would make the part show up on your repair bill as $ 150 That's an added cost of $ 30, which seems like keystoning, which you'll also be paying additional taxes on. @David does the above sort of represent the logic? If it's a small amount, I won't bother. If it's a large amount, the person has hopefully gotten the estimate in advance, checked retail prices on the parts, and will pass on that shop. Sometimes, when something breaks without warning, it makes for a more vulnerable situation for the consumer.

Love that car in the garage. While I obviously like the shrunken down and refreshed colonnade coupes of about the same time and which had a fairly vertical backlite, they took the rear window all the way out to the edges, and that's where the moldings were installed. On the Toro-Riv and Eldorado of this genre, the rear window has that slight inset away from the edges, either with a vinyl roof or with a regular sheet metal surround that was the same as the body color. The latter was less common, but definitely interesting to look at! It gave them a limousine type look. The shrunken down and newly FWD Cadillac Coupe and Sedan de Villes used the same treatment when they were not decked out with a vinyl roof. However, like yours, most of them seemed to have vinyl roofs. This must have been a while back. Look at the price on the windshield. I'd even hop on a Greyhound to purchase this one. Looks like Texan suburbia. Nice! How I miss an all-brick ranch home with lower pitched hip roofs. I used to live in one when I lived in Atlanta. With all the red brick, the carport under the roofline on one side, and all that Southern pine making it seem like you were living in a forest, it was nice to come home to.

This visit was brought about by getting an oil change and wandering around the sales floor while it was being done. The GMC Yukon of 2021 vintage was at one corner, taking up a lot of room. This one was an SLE yet, somehow, it had cloth interior seating. Pros: - big and roomy, with 3rd row seats - commanding seating position; seating comfort was acceptable - 5.3 liter V8 that puts out over 350 hp, coupled to a geared automatic transmission ... this engine was previously badged a Vortec, but is now an Ecotec product - simple layout of engine bay - nice enough instrument cluster, with dash mounted gear selection through buttons - climate control panel layouts keep getting more sensible - wide and spacious console - attractive alloy wheels - safe, traditional styling Cons: - a little challenging for individuals of average height (or less) to get into the driver's seat - visibility out to the rear is sub-optimal - seating wasn't particularly impressive in its finish, and, while I like cloth seats, this vehicle costs too much to have had cloth seats - not a fan of the infotainment center - some generic styling aspects and typical cavernous GMC grille that has been around for a while, it seems - $ 60K MSRP ... PLUS a market adjustment of $ 5K (what happened to going in the other direction from the MSRP?) Neutral (factoids): The 5.3 liter V8 engine is a 318 c.i. and it is definitely an American built GM V8 engine. (A Mopar 318 V8 was what would have powered your childhood friends' parents' Dodge Dart Swinger one level up from the base "Slant Six.") Engine displacements can be "funny." The number 307 clearly belonged to Chevrolet small blocks at one time, seen in Impala/Caprice, Malibu/Chevelle, and Nova. Years later, the Olds 5.0 liter V8 was also a 307 c.i. engine, but it stuck around to power the top of the line Cadillac sedans, such as the Fleetwood Brougham, and full-size Olds/Buick wagons up to about 1990. But, back then, it made less than 200 hp. - - - - - PHOTOS Side view Front view Rear view It sits a good ways off the ground Nice alloys; expensive tires when it's time to replace them Thankfully, there is at least one keyed door lock From this vantage point, it looks like a nice dashboard, comfortable cabin, and the console is wide Cloth seating When you open the door, you get this I liked when Chevy/GMC had 4 analog gauges across the top; here, they're digital while speedo and tach remain analog. This set-up is the inverse of some mid-'90s Caprices, where the speedo readout was centered and digital, with 4 analog gauges inside small rectangular boxes This is not a Plymouth Barracuda from the '60s. Things and styles often come full circle, like these automatic transmission buttons. "Hey, buddy, you left your laptop open." Simple yet easy to use corporate GM switches Climate control panel layout makes sense (photo a little grainy) Wow, those are some pillars ... (photo a little grainy) Amazing that OBD II diagnostics seem to be conceptually much the same, but there's the new GM logo This is the view of the engine compartment after lifting the hood ... this is an Ecotec small block V8 with a cast aluminum block and cast aluminum heads, which has been the norm since the late '90s You can count ... there are 4 spark plugs on each side ... and, at 355 hp, this is not your grandparents' 318 c.i. V8, either. - - - - - End of review and photos

Good morning ... I think I might have some "slight" OCD issues ...

I don't have a joke for the joke thread, with a punchline and all, but this reminds me of: "I think I need to talk to my doctor about my thyroid." "I think you need to put down the fork."

Yesterday, I was at a lunch buffet (I'll spare you the photos of it), this came on: The lady who was working my area, and whose area I ask for, and I both agreed that THIS was real music. I also told her I once had a Cutlass Supreme to round out the situation. She laughed and said she had one, too. Karma, I tell you.

Happy belated b-day. I usually spot these.

No separate thread needed. Less is more. Today, the 14th, marks 14 years of ownership of my sled. Back then, I got the keys to this LaCrosse with the odometer reading less than 20 miles. This morning, the odometer showed 112,023 miles. (The last one - more or less the same type of vehicle - probably had TWICE the above miles on it at 14 years.) Happy Friday, folks.

It looks like this was the SE model, based on the small air fins at the edges of the rear bumper. Photographed in a cool place ... you may think it's Florida, but it's not. Front 3/4 view with the grille it has had for a few years. Nice alloy wheels and, if I recall, a remote fuel door release. This is what it looks like under the hood ... 2.5 liters of normally aspirated power, with most things reachable and checkpoints identified/labeled We've come a long way - first, "no adjustments needed," and, second, recent cars usually conform to both U.S. and California emissions From this vantage point, it appears to be a nicely put together dashboard and cabin and, for the most part, it is I do not like this sweep The bucket seat design is unique and the ribbed upholstery in the insets is a little unusual. The ergonomics were mostly okay, but I prefer "squarer" and more bolstered bucket seats This is the rear of the cabin and kudos for the integral rear headrests, which are less intrusive The rear legroom is fairly generous The visibility to the outside and to the rear is very good, and is augmented by the rear view camera - - - - - End of photos

This rental consisted of a much welcomed upgrade from a compact and being upgraded to a full-size though, in my estimation, this Toyota Camry base sedan looks more like a mid-size to me. That's based on full-sizes looking more like American boulevardiers. They didn't have many cars ... just a lot of SUVs, so I asked for something with a bona fide trunk. Better yet, I got to enjoy having this car in a temperate climate when winter is treating other parts of the country more harshly. I've reviewed this vehicle before, and appended many photos. This is a brief update highlighting pros and cons. PROS: - A 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine with an 8 speed automatic transmission ... am I dreaming? "Who'd have thunk" anybody would be marveling over an engine without 150 cubic inches, in old school car talk? But it's a normally aspirated engine - Ample power to do what you need to do ... merge, pass, etc., noting that you can still get into trouble with around 200 hp - Beautiful shift quality of the automatic transmission, with purposeful yet barely felt shifts from 1-2, 2-3, until you can't really feel the higher shift points. I noted the same of the automatic transmission in Toyota's Rav 4 in another review - Surprisingly good fuel mileage for a N.A. engine and a geared transmission ... about 35 to 36 mpg, mixed, but mostly highway - Comfortable highway ride and nimble in tighter maneuvers, such as parking - Twenty years or so has taught Toyota engineers how to incorporate road feel into an easy, "relaxed" power steering set-up - Roomy interior and roomy trunk - Good sight lines from inside for rear visibility - Legendary reliability CONS: - The front fascia, the front fascia ... and did I mention the front fascia? - The unattractive 45 degree sweep of the diagonal at the base of the center stack ... you've got a harmonious looking dash in front of you, and, then, there's this overstyled feature that even hinders use - The engine can get still get a little grainy under throttle - While it's a minor issue, the rear sail panel looks like a throwback to a '68 Caprice coupe, but it sure beats a lot of current sedan rooflines that have too many (fixed) side windows in their greenhouses - It's a decent value in base trim, but, with a V6 and higher trim levels, it can become pricey for what it's supposed to represent: Toyota's value laden full-size sedan - Not that many colors to choose from and, for what should be conventional enough colors, they offer some weird ones - Similarly, not many interior color choices for base trims, in addition to an unusual bucket seat design with horizontal ribbing in the insets - - - - - Like I said, this Camry has more brains than beauty. The driving experience has become much more refined and, I hate to say it, feels like what one of the better, large, and more recent American sedans felt like, which I consider a good thing. It rides and handles smoothly, and it has come to offer an acceptable level of road feel. The Camry has some decent angles, but the straight on and 3/4 views of the front grille and fascia are clunky. This "appliance" look seems to be shared by Toyota-Lexus and they need to come up with something less burdensome to the eye. Similarly, "less is more" when it comes to the dashboard. The upper part of it is nice enough, though. This is it. It's one of the better normally priced sedans out there with a good track record and, mostly, a normally aspirated 4 cylinder engine with a slightly higher displacement coupled to a geared automatic transmission. I hope Toyota, and others, keep putting out such a product for those who still like and seek this combination in their powertrain. Mostly, I enjoyed having this vehicle for a week. - - - - - End of review Photos forthcoming

You find some good GIFs. That lady is funny. Now, let's bring on the blue dresses. (This never fails to make me laugh.)

Good morning ...

I'll do this minor update with pros and cons, since it's just an update and it's easier. I had a white 2019 Malibu sedan that I drove for about a week from Michigan's U.P. to the Twin Cities. I've probably had a handful of this generation of Malibu as rentals. Pros: - familiar and popular - the 1.5 liter engine is up to the task, but that's probably because of the assist from the turbocharger - roomy interior and trunk - sensible dash layout and cluster arrangements that are easy to learn - respectable fuel mileage, especially on the highway - fairly comfortable seating - nimble and connected handling ... seems to be at its best on winding, rural 2 lane roads at 35 mph to 45 mph - the auto-stop/start can now be deactivated from the dash - the rear fascia, with its lip, and the taillamps are attractive, especially with the more recent redesign Cons: - the CVT isn't too too bad, but it's not as much fun to drive as when it had a geared automatic transmission - for a somewhat large car by today's standards, the price is a little high for 1.5 liters, or about 90 cubic inches - I'd rather not have a turbocharger - down-market fabric and interior bits on LS and LT base versions; color choices, especially for interiors, are very limited - no leather steering wheel on the one-up LT version ... to get it, you have to get leather seats and a whole bunch of other stuff ... similarly, it would be nice to order up a power driver's seat by itself and not be forced to get one of the additional packages - no remote release fuel filler door - every rented Malibu I've had with over 25,000 or 30,000 miles has had a drone of sorts from the rear, and it leads me to wonder if it's a hub bearing or a tire ... or if they're just not driven and maintained with a lot of care - not as quiet on interstates as a heavier GM midsize of yesteryear, especially where the paving hasn't been updated in a while - the styling is quirky in parts - the roofline of the cabin looks too elongated and the window/roofline at the rear pillar looks odd, the front grilles of this model have always been tall and segmented in an awkward way - the base price of simpler models doesn't offer compelling value This car is a real mix of pros and cons. This generation, with this turbocharged engine and transmission, has only been around for half a decade, so we won't know with more precision about its longevity and reliability. I don't know what Chevrolet is going to do with this car. I wish they'd keep it and improve it. I know what I'd like to see, since I prefer sedans and coupes. Even if the geared automatic transmission doesn't come back, could you at least throw in a normally aspirated engine with a larger displacement? Toyota's Camry has a bigger 4 with a geared automatic, and it gets commendable highway gas mileage. Some of the vantage points of this car are somewhat attractive and some aren't. Could the greenhouse be "jelly beaned up" a little to get rid of the elongated look and kinks in the window profiles? Can you throw in a leather steering wheel and maybe even a power seat into the basic LT? Photos: Exterior side view - see my comments about the rear 1/3 of this vantage point Front 3/4 view: the lattice effect on the grille helps some over the earlier ones, but they could redesign it Rear 3/4 view: attractive enough treatment of the rear Dashboard and instrument cluster: pleasant to look at, easy to learn, and I like the digital setting for the speedometer (not yet set to do that) Center stack: mostly engaged as opposed to upright, so it looks decent. Both the infotainment system and the climate control panels are easy to operate - - - - - End of review and photos

From glancing at auto ads, the best thing is probably to stay out of the auto market - if you don't have to be in it - until the dust settles somewhat. There is some crazy sh!+ I'm seeing.

The counts are going to be inaccurate because of the different sources and they way they count. This isn't like ballots, with a controlled population/sample size. But I do believe that the unvaccinated are more likely to be hospitalized ... and to be in ICU. With all the changing viral forms, breakthrough infections are going to be more of a problem. Just from glancing at my homepage, it looks like obnoxious Jimmy Fallon and Whoopi have contracted it, and they're vaccinated. The thing that bugs me is medical people who do not want to get the vaccine. I know one person like that ... a nurse who says, "I don't trust it." A lot of medical people have training and education, but, sometimes, it's "STEM lite" and doesn't go as far as where some people's education goes. They may have not taken classes in bacteriology and virology nor in statistics, yet they are still so damn sure of themselves. Then there are the people who don't have good education (or any), yet they have an even more forceful "telling" conversational style when it comes to health matters, politics, and financial matters, as opposed to stating that these are opinions or how they feel about things. Most people have done a lot of housecleaning with their friends and relatives during the last 2 to 5 years. It's something that sometimes needs to be done.

I'm not sure if it cracks me up, per se, but assume you've got some people vehemently objecting to vaccination, their job is on the line because of the employer or state they live in, and they sheepishly "cave in" to getting vaccinated. And, then, nothing adverse happens to them as a result of it. Which then brings up the question: "WTF was all that grandstanding about?"

The sales tax stings when you purchase a new car. Other than that, not bad. Plus, IIRC, there is no sales tax on food at the grocery store. Sometimes, just not filing a state income tax return is a nice thing. Weird how Washington and Oregon are next to each other, but so different as to how taxes affect you. Oregon doesn't have a sales tax, but their income tax rates are brutal because the marginal tax rates get very high at low levels of income. Overall, as a whole, Washington is far more cosmopolitan and worldly than Oregon. Portland is an overrated and overpriced river town. Every single secondary market in the West has been "exposed," so real estate prices are high: Denver, Sacramento, Phoenix, not to mention the PNW. I've lived in the South and I liked it for the short time I lived there. Atlanta's difficult summer weather lasts about 2.5 months. The rest of the year is great. Some places in the South have 4 months of high heat. I was discussing thermal comfort with a teacher in a continuing ed. class and she said that people do abhor high heat, but that extreme cold will finish you off faster than high heat. That's true. On some levels, California is not as prohibitive to live or retire in. That's depending on where in it you live and if you've managed the house or condo purchase. The other things that might be expensive are car insurance and fuel. Groceries, utilities, and income taxes are decent. Their income tax scales are very gradual and the brackets are very fair. The issue with California is how it's now overpopulated, too scruffy and not updated, and even sort of "ghetto," for lack of a better word. California to the PNW can be culture shock. SoCal is, or was, socially free wheeling and sort of obnoxious. NorCal is a little less so, because of the more P.C. Bay Area. By comparison, the PNW is uptight. I was once told, "You should move back to California. We're liberal here." I got more comments like that directed my way and it was hard to take. (When I lived in Atlanta, even being a Yankee, I felt welcomed.) California is certainly not conservative. It has a more balanced mix than does WA or OR, though. - - - - - If Montreal's winter were more like a Boston or N.Y. winter, I would have probably attempted to live there at some point in the past. I love that place and have felt very at home there. Not so much in Toronto. The big deterrent was that, to get any sort of license or board certification, you have to take the exams in French. Mastering a language on a conversational level is one thing. Mastering a language on a commercial level, including writing in it, is an entirely different ball game - much more difficult.

It's sort of a coveted thing to live in the hilly parts of Los Angeles and its suburbs. However, these guys always make the news, since they live in and roam those hillside canyons ... and get a little too close, sometimes. Maybe it's safer, and cheaper (not at all, really), to live in "the flats." - - - - - @balthazar Where's the Los Angeles area on your list?

Maybe you watched the movie called "Lake Placid." It's kind of hokey, with a dumb premise and not that much suspense. There are great whites in the Med. They track the attacks and the percentage of which are fatal. Most of them were, in fact, in Italy and Greece, both with a lot of coastline. Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt had a shark problem a couple of years ago, which the locals supposedly underreported, and which angered a lot of people, to keep their critical tourist business levels normal. - - - - - Coincidentally, I was at the supermarket today. Within the last few weeks, I had a cup of Greek yogurt with the flavor of Toasted Marshmallow. I didn't know if I'd like it or not. It was beyond delicious. Today, I couldn't find that particular flavor. Some servers in bar/pub joints handle this situation differently. I recently had a very good pizza and ordered a soft drink, like I usually do. I wasn't charged for the soft drink when she put the tab on my table. It's probably because they sell so much liquor. They know that, if a person notices that omission, it will go right into their tip, unless the person is a total cheapskate. It went into her tip.

That's it! And the title was so obvious. Ok. Efharisto! It's on my to do list. Even though it might be swimmable, I wouldn't do it. I've got my reasons. I've been liking lakes and swimming pools more and more over time.

I want to go back. I've only been once ... to Athens and also to 3 of the islands. The next time it will be more of Athens, Corfu (Kerkyra), and possibly Zakynthos. I love their food (seasoned and tasty without being spicy) and their pastries. - - - - - Ok, I need some help identifying a movie. I saw bits and pieces of it. I want to get it and watch it without interruption. It's an action-heist-thriller type movie. Parts of it took place in Venice. I saw the part in which they are after a big crate of something with valuables stashed in a palazzo (mansion) on or near the Grand Canal. Someone set up explosives to only affect the concrete slabs where this crate of valuables was held up above. When it went off, rectangular parts of the floor dropped and the crate went onto a boat in the "boat garage" on the canals and they sped off, after which I'm sure there was a chase scene. It was a popular and successful movie. I don't even remember which stars are in it.

Damn, this stuff (^) is spreading like (O/o)micron.

This man from Brazil obviously does not know his political geography too well. I don't know if I'd call him fat, but he's definitely dumb and happy. I had neither the money nor the time to buy a complicated ship model when I was an early teen. However, I did build some less expensive models of 747s I had bought.