Jump to content
News
Reviews
Discussons
Activity
Create New...
Close

smk4565

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    13,686

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    11

 Content Type 

Everything posted by smk4565

  1. smk4565
    I have an 08 E550 with 83k miles, I got it 2 years ago. Aside from a panoramic roof repair that was 37 days at the dealership (probably best to skip that option), it has had very little go wrong between me and the previous owner. I think the car fax showed one repair for moon roof by the previous owner. I had a check engine light that was a camshaft sensor, there was also a slight oil leak and the dealer fixed both for about $400. Where a Mercedes can get expensive is routine maintenance. An oil change is about $150 for a V8 at the dealer, although it does last 13,000 miles. Transmission fluid service is $420. So the routine upkeep can be costly but their cars last and run forever. The dealer gives free loaner cars too.
  2. smk4565
    The XTS was around in 2012 too, there have to be some cheap XTS out there. Or Chrysler 300C, Hyundai Genesis, get cheap used too, Lincoln MKZ as well. Those bigger cars geared toward the older folks are cheap when they get past 3 years old. I still think a 2011-2012 E-class will out last any of those cars though.
  3. smk4565
    I think the Impala looks better than the Buick, and feels roomier, because it it is a little larger. But that could be good or bad depending on how big a car you want.
  4. smk4565
    Depending on the car maybe. My car makes max horsepower at 6,000 rpm, but has a 6,500 rpm redline.
  5. smk4565
    A good decision, they should work on coming up with VWs that sell, like a crossover, or cars regular people buy. Luxury buyers will just buy an Audi over the Phaeton anyway.
  6. smk4565
    I think the pricing is pretty good. As people want more and more performance, price goes up. $40,000 for a V8 is pretty expected, anything with a V8 is pricey because they want to sell the cars on the plus side of the CAFE equation. The old school Camaros that were $22,000 also had 200 hp and a junk interior. I think the pricing on this Camaro is pretty good value, a 335 hp coupe for $30k, that is a good deal. You could spend $30k on a 4-banger Malibu and the interior on the Mablibu isn't any nicer than the Camaro.
  7. smk4565
    If the 4.3 was so great, they'd use it in the Lambdasm or even the Colorado. They must prefer the 3.6 DOHC for some reason. And however the Corvette and Hellcat sound, compare that to a V12 Aston Martin or a Ferrari 458, or a Lamborghini or a Veyron, etc. No contest.
  8. smk4565
    The Pushrod engines don't have the refinement and NVH that the DOHC engines do. And when you rev a pushrod and get into that 5,000 rpm area they sound horrible, where as a DOHC engine usually sounds better the more you rev it. There is a quality to the DOHC sound and feel, that regular consumers want for their CamCord, and luxury consumers want in their S-class. And the pushrod V6 didn't lose as much to the DOHC V6 as it lost to the DOHC inline-4. Look at the Malibu, Terrain/Equinox, Impala, Regal, Verano of today with 4-cyldiner DOHC vs the Alero, Monte Carol, Impala, Malibu, Regal, Lesabre, etc of 2002 that had a pushrod V6.
  9. smk4565
    I am a DOHC fan of course, but I will say the GM 4-speed automatic killed the pushrod V6 because the Japanese cars had 5 and 6 speed at the time. A 4-cyldiner dohc and 6 speed combo was able to provide the performance and better fuel economy than a 4 speed and 3500 v6 combo.
  10. smk4565
    I think the only way a Chinese built car (and especially a Chinese branded car) sells in the USA is if it is dirt cheap. a made in China car is a tough sell.
  11. smk4565
    Until we see the production version of the Continental and get a price tag I don't think we can evaluate it at all. A lot gets cut from concept to production on any car, and you can't predict how it will sell until you know what it costs. People thought the Cadillac Converg concept was cool, then the ELR got priced at $75k and was DOA.
  12. smk4565
    I think the Continental looks a bit like a jelly bean. The Avenir has a terrible rear end, it is part SUV and part Panamera. And the Panamera might be the ugliest sedan on the market.
  13. smk4565
    The Cummins Titan will be interesting for sure. I think the Jeep Renegade is an intriguing car right now. It has a cool, sort of classic Jeep look, that removable roof section, and more capability than the typical compact SUV. I am curious on what the production Continental looks like and how they price it, and how the Cadillac CT6 is priced. I feel like both cars if done and priced right could have some impact, but one little mistake and it could be a disaster like the ELR.
  14. smk4565
    That is true.
  15. smk4565
    Well personally I don't think you can do better than this 2012 certified E350 4Matic for just under $30k. Only 22k miles and under warranty. http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=17601&endYear=2014&modelCode1=E_CLASS&showcaseOwnerId=0&startYear=2010&makeCode1=MB&searchRadius=75&maxPrice=30000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=[MB[][E_CLASS[]]]&listingId=406647478&Log=0 If the choice is limited to Buick and Chevy, and you and your wife want a larger car, then I'd say the pre-owned LaCrosse Premium is the way to go. If she wants the white diamond, I am sure CarSense will get one in within a month. Not like the LaCrosse is a hard to find car.
  16. smk4565
    The new Lexuses are butt ugly, I don't get why people buy them. I am just glad now that they can't make an ad about how it has more standard horsepower than the Germans. Because for years the GS had one engine choice, the 306 hp V6 which was indeed more than competitors base model, but all those competitors had 400 and 500 options that Lexus failed to mention.
  17. smk4565
    The pushrod V6 not only lost to the DOHC V6, it lost out to the DOHC inline-4 as well. Most mid-size sedans have a 4-cylinder, the Camry is 93% 4-cylinder, while Malibu, Sonata, Optima are 100% 4-cylinder. The full size sedans and mid-full size crossovers are now V6, and DOHC is what the people want, because they want power with refinement when paying $35-40k for their Avalon or Acadia or Pilot. The pushrod works on Chevy trucks because Chevy truck guys that are brand loyal will buy it regardless of what is under the hood. With the Corvette it is sort of a heritage thing, they use the small block V8 they have used for 50 years because that is what the Corvette faithful want. Audi and Mercedes are both introducing 4.0 liter DOHC V8s with 600 hp next year, that is quite a hp/liter argument and allows them to meet emission regs, , displacement taxes, etc. You need 6.2 liters of supercharged pushrod to make that power and you have to put a dome in the hood because the engine is so tall, so much for packaging.
  18. smk4565
    I think if a model is called "sport" then you can pretty much be sure that it isn't sporty. They don't make a Porsche 911 "sport" or Nissan GT-R "sport" yet they do make a Hyundai Sante Fe Sport and a Ford Fusion Sport.
  19. smk4565
    "sport" packages are what marketing types do to appeal to younger buyers. Except younger buyers don't want a Camry Sport or Buick LaCrosse Sport. And younger buyers have this thing called the internet and they can look up horsepower ratings on it.
  20. smk4565
    The difference between the Hyundai concept and the Avenir (aside from number of doors) is Hyundai probably has the guts to build their car, the Avenir will probably sit on the shelf because the bean counters won't be able to "build a business case" for it. If you want a full size, V8, rear drive coupe, there is the Challenger, or spend over $100k for an S-class coupe or over $200k for a Bentley. Pretty limited choices.
  21. smk4565
    Lexus needs a more viable 3 row crossover for that reason. If you drove an RX and now need something bigger, you have to buy American or spend a lot more on a German 7 seater.
  22. smk4565
    ST sounds like a Ford. Lexus puts dark finish allow wheels and a spoiler on a car and calls it F-sport, so Buick might as well too.
  23. smk4565
    The Enclave is 15 inches longer and 800 lbs heavier than an RX350. That is about the gap on a CLA and 300.
  24. smk4565
    Vehicles compete mostly on size and price. The Enclave for example is a 3 row full size SUV. The Lexus RX is on the small side of the mid-size SUVs and seats 4 adults. That is why I don't think they compete with either other. Just like a Mercedes CLA and Chrysler 300 despite being the same price don't compete with each other, because one is full size, one is compact.
  25. smk4565
    I like how it looks from the front or side, but the back looks odd. Looks like they stole Jag XJ tail lights, but it also looks like a mish-mash of Regal and XTS from the back. I like that there is no B pillar, but somehow I guess if this made production the B pillar would be in there and it would be less cool. Good engine with the V8, a V8 luxury coupe would be cool since Lincoln won't do a Mark VIII successor and Buick has no Riviera and Cadillac no Eldorado.
×
×
  • Create New...

Hey there, we noticed you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

I've whitelisted
Continue without support

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search