Leaderboard

Had a good time at the Cleveland Auto Show. Pictures here. The Blazer and XT4 look better in person than in photos. And both as spec'd were close to $50k. (Blazer Premier FWD was $48k). First time I'd seen the new Silverados (regular or HD) in person...they look huge and strange in person, esp. the weirdness of the front fender corners and that vertical vent below the lights. The white Corvette ZR1 was striking. At the Buick stand, they had not one but two Cascadas..maybe the same two as last year. They had a red Regal GS, looked good though the seats looked weird with the grilles in the upper part w/ chrome surrounds. I guess I overlooked the GMC stand. Saw them last year. Liked sitting in the CT6 and CTS. I like the revised lighting and fascias on the CT6. Sat in the back seat of the CT6, funny...there is a recessed area ahead of the rear window my head fits in, but if I lean forward my head hits the raised surround for the rear sunroof. Lots of legroom in front and rear. As always, I enjoyed time at the FCA stand...they had a Gladiator on display. Several new Wranglers, a couple GCs, a Compass Trailhawk (neat!), green Challenger GT, a couple Chargers, a 300. The new Ram 3500 Mega Cab Limited was mega-huge. And brown The new Aviator looks really good in person. As does the new Explorer ST. Both were locked. The Shelby GT500 was on display, locked w/ dark window tint. Sat in a Bullitt (last year it was on a dais and locked). The Edge ST looks good, in that same sharp blue as the Explorer ST. They had an orange Ranger 4dr 4x4 on a dais, none you could sit in though. I hadn't paid much attention to them before, but the Accord and Insight look really good in person inside and out. I really liked the Volvos, esp. the S90 and V90 CC. Sat in both, along w/ the S60 and XC60...S60 felt tight inside, seat wasn't all the way back. I like their interior colors and materials. The classic car display (in a separate section of the massive hall) was nice, some 60s-70s big Buicks and Pontiacs stood out. After leaving, I realized I had completely missed the Mazda stand, would have liked to have sat in a couple models.

I just googled Susanna Hoffs and this GIF appeared. Its amazing...how just this moment in time... has been etched in my memory. And right here as a GIF...as it seems, has etched many male's memories. And to think, how sexy she is in that one moment...without her sexualizing herself to the point of sleeziness, but because she is a very naturally sexy woman. Just giving us guy fantasies with only the movement of her eyes!!! INCREDIBLE!

1984 Fiero Spyder concept. Factory job. Two prime examples of Pontiac engineering prowess that were smacked down by corporate.

Well to be fair, just like any new design, the highest-price trims are put on the lots first to try to bait the early adopters. Sinister plot.

I realize they are at the mercy of what Ford and Chevy send... but for less than $1,000 more, they could have had an ST with CoPilot and still been less expensive than the Blazer.

One-off prototype Studebaker : 1947 / 1970x / now ~

They're both 60 - try & tell me Curtis looks a day under 80. I don't know if Hoffs has had work done, but you look at her neck & her hands & I say no way. She could easily be Curtis' daughter... or granddaughter by appearance. 2018 : Not that I was in the Bangles tent back then, but she's sort of a 'thing' from that video- to the point of the gif. Very hot, great eyes. Plus, she's doing the '80s/ big/ Jersey hair thing. Still looks great.

Aging... and genetics is a very funny/tricky thing. Suzanna Hoffs, of the Bangles fame ~ Jamie Lee Curtis ~ Both born in 1954 sorry : 1958

They're still issuing new ones at work. So you can buy one, it's just the oldest model Apple still offers. I was more saying that if you bought a refurb or something some Ebay. 8 is probably the oldest I would go with new.

This thing is dear as heck. Transit Custom Nugget!

maybe crossovers will never be exciting. But they are practical. I would go for the ST Edge in comparison too. I wanted to go drive a Stelvio today. Didn't get around to it, but that starts looking like even an option in comparison, Fiat be damned.

After seeing and sitting in the Blazer, it does look better in person than in photos. Not for me, though. And $48k for a 2wd Premier trim seemed high IMO. The Edge ST looked nice, but the interior didn't impress. Saw a Stelvio at the show also, too many people in line to get inside, but it looked cramped.

I've never known my Android to have better battery life than my iPhone, though I use my Android a lot heavier than my iPhone. The nice thing about Apples is that if you do have a defective/dying battery, it is easy to just take it to an Apple store and have it replaced. I had to have the battery replaced on my Nexus and it was a production. The different vendors for Android is a downfall in my opinion these days. I'm a #NeverSamsung kinda guy, I've been burned by their phones too many times. You're at their mercy for getting software updates and then the carrier also potentially blocks a software update also. I'm assuming this phone is for @balthazar and not "a friend". One of the things you're not going to like is the cost... An iphone 8 will suit you just fine, no need to go all the way up to the top of the line phone.. but if you do, an XR is what my partner has and he likes it a lot. iPhones last longer than Androids do simply because Apple supports software updates for a lot longer. Unless you're looking to replace a phone every 2 years, go with iPhone. I was planning on moving to iPhone about 6 months ago, but then I dropped my Android Nexus 6P and it was replaced under insurance with a newer Pixel. The Pixel has been fine and is just something for me to use till I'm ready to upgrade. I have to change carriers also because my carrier only works on certain Android phones. Balth, if you do go with Android instead of iPhone, go with Google Pixel instead of Samsung or LG. Motorola is a good second place pick because they don't muck up their OS with garbage like Samsung does.

I have been on Android as my personal phone pretty much ever since they came out. Before that I was on Blackberry and on Windows phone. I carry a work iPhone so I have experience with that as well. For years I have stuck with Android in spite of its less than steller compatibility with other devices. My current Android is likely my last Android. Next time around I will be going with iPhone simply because I no longer have the interest or desire to hack my phone just to make it work with other things. My music is spread out over several apps just so that I can have all of it. It's annoying and it will be a project to consolidate all of it once I switch, but it will be worth it. Android Auto is decent for vehicles that don't have an Android Auto compatible head unit because you can run it as its own head unit for easy use of Navigation, Music, texting, and calls. Apple Car Play can't do that. While you may not have a vehicle now that can handle either of these systems, if you buy any 2017+ truck, it will have them. Once you have a head unit that can handle Car Play or Android Auto, the advantage for Android goes away. TL/DR - get an iPhone.

:) I believe that's 'ViewMaster'. Hess & Eisenhardt built 6, I think 3 were 'Skyview's which had long glass panels in the roof. These were 4-row wagons.

GM is finally discounting the new trucks (of course the crewcab shortbed is the one they're pushing). Anecdotally these trucks are still a rare sight on the roads round these parts.

DOH! Again! 2019 Chevrolet Blazer RS and 2019 Ford Edge Titanium Face Off: Which Is Detroit's Best Two-Row Mid-Size SUV?

Cadillac Custom Man Martian. Rare bird indeed!

I imagine every brand will have a down year, that 7 year run of increases is over.

Everything except Genesis posted. They used to post with Hyundai, but not anymore.

The Polar Vortex and other shitty weather in many parts of the country limited the days one would want to venture out to a car dealer...

All of south Florida, Save for the L in Fort Lauderdale and perhaps Palm beach, seems to have become a rathole. Tampa seems to be the only civilized place in teh state, and I really despise Orlando.

In 1985, I was 12 years old. There were Porsche 911s on my radar. The A-Team GMC van, the 3rd gen Pontiac Trans Am and KITT that I loved, but like every teen aged boy during this time.... I saw both movies at the cinema... A red Countach is what I wanted then as a 12 year old and going back into time for 1985, a red Countach for a dream garage for when I was 12 years odls is what I would want now... At 22 years old, in 1995, A 1995 Pontiac Firebird Firehawk or 1995 Trans Am is what I wanted then...and now. I was 32 in 2005, and although I bought a 2005 Impala SS in 2005, but I really wanted a Chrysler 300C, the car I truly lusted over was a 2005 M-B CLS 55 AMG. The CLS 63 AMG is want I really want but that came out in 2006. So Ill stick to the CLS 55 AMG of 2005 I was 42 in 2015...and I was and still am tempted by the Devil with the Hellcat! The Demon is in the Motley Crew video, but its ther Hellcat that was available in 2015 and its the Hellcat that I still want! And although Im not 52 yet, tomorrow I get to be 46...God willing. So we do 2019 as 2025 is still a ways away... Cadillac CT6-V So much for the EV movement in this dream garage!!!

3800 powered. Wouldn't the final Aurora be Oldsmobile's last car? The Bravada was the last refresh to be introduced, but maybe that doesn't count as a car.

Montreal is a beautiful city. Not more than any other city on this planet. But Montreal is unique. It has English and French architecture. Its got both old world European flair with modern American panache. Cuisine? Montreal always had world quality restaurants. Las Vegas, Boston, Houston are some North American cities that have equalled and perhaps surpassed Montreal in that area..but...Montreal, along with NYC still remain surprisingly relevant. What makes Montreal (and especially NYC) that great in all these areas? Montreal (and NYC) are trully real cosmopolitan cities. For a couple of centuries now. Food is where this shows. Walk the streets of Montreal in the summer and then you get to see how cosmopolitan Montreal really is. its just not the architecture that is stunning, just how NYC stuns you with its high rises....its how the people interact with each other. All the colours of the ethnics...how each is represented in the city. Its great!

That's pretty disappointing. I feel like my Encore does better than that.