oldshurst442

55 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

Saying the Impala competes with the E-class is like saying a Subaru BRZ competes with a Corvette.  Not even close.  

As far as Mercedes not getting anything going until the 80s, in the 1950s Mercedes made the first Super Car also the first car with direct fuel injection, 1960s Mercedes had the most luxurious most advanced sedan in the world in the 600.  AMG was founded in 1967, the 450SEL 6.9 was the first luxury sport sedan, they were doing it before M cars before V-series, before Audi RS.

HA!

One car in the 1950s...

I mentioned that!

I also gave you the  "most luxurious most advanced sedan in the world in the 600" by saying  1967 or 1968...But still only one car!

And as for your AMG...

AMG was an INDEPENDENT hot rodding company..NOTHING TO DO with  Mercedes-Benz...

The W123 is from the 1970s...1976 to be exact....

This was its predecessor

Introduced in 1968

You think that this car had a leg up on this one? (Its just the Caprice)

Impala 327 SS interior

Let alone other GM divisions that are higher on the scale from a lowly Chevy....

Built like a tank the W123 is....

But you really think that the 3rd world's taxi cab has a leg up on North America's taxi cab and police car for the same late 1970s-mid 1980s time frame?  Because this Caprice/Impala/Bel Air was also built like a tank!

Because this is the best the W123 could do interior wise

Because as a Chevy....in 1984...this is quite comparable WITHOUT the leather seats of the W123...

Mercedes Benz AFTER WW2 had to cater to the masses...

1947

And thanx to AMERICAN MONEY BUILDING UP THE COMPANY AGAIN!!!

We all know what  Cadillac done in 1949...

Like I said...Mercedes Benz took off as a luxury  car maker in the late 1970s and the people took to them in the 1980s when Cadillac really started to crumble...

Hell....this is when the Japanese got cocky and introduced Infinity, Acura and Lexus JUST BECAUSE Cadillac was falling down and Mercedes Benz was nowhere near the top!

Remember Amati?

That was to be Mazda's luxury marque...that is how cocky the Japanese were JUST BECAUSE MERCEDES BENZ WAS NOT A PURE LUXURY BRAND IN THE 1980s!!!

BAMBOOZLE somebody else....and if it aint that....SMARTEN UP!!!

2 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

Ill agree.....

BUT!!!

From 1939-1945...this is where things get  murky for Mercedes-Benz..

After 1945, the only VICTOR that came out on top....from Duesenberg (which folded  before the war even started), to Auburn (which also folded before the war even started) to Rolls Royce and Mercedes-Benz.....

CADILLAC was the ONLY game in town!

Lincoln was a FIERCE competitor too!

In the 1940s and into the 1950s, 'twas Cadillac on top of the world.

Mercedes built something of value and desire  with the Gullwing, but that was about it!

It took M-B in the late 1960s to gain what Hitler and Nazi Germany destroyed what M-B had before 1939...

In the 1970s...Cadillac was still on top of Mercedes-Benz. Although  Cadillac's shine was losing its luster quite quickly!

So..it is false for you to advertise Mercedes-Benz as a leader and luxury car maker from 1945-1967 or 1968....

And....lest not you forget that the W211 W123 Mercedes, although built like a tank....was NOT a luxury car.

It was a CHEVROLET at heart which helped propel Mercedes back into the luxury game because it was built like a tank! Where as  Cadillac cars and GM  in the late 1970s were not! This is where Mercedes got its claws on Cadillac and never let go!  Coincidentally, all other M-B cars other than theW211 W123 were also just as crappy as  Cadillac cars were! This is where Lexus  comes in!

But, in hindsight, had the D3 NOT been so stupid in the 1970s, I dont think  M-B would have this resurrection that they had....but that is more on the D3 than M-B!

That should be written as W123 Mercedes....not the W211...

41 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

So Cadillac can't beat a Chevy/Toyota level company?

Mercedes was the premier car brand in Europe in the 1900-1970 time frame, just as Cadillac was in the USA during that time.  But when globilazation happened, Cadillac never really got out of the USA until they went to China late, and they went from #1 to #5 or 6 in the USA. They lost their way and I am not convinced that Johan knows how to get them out of the woods.

Ill agree.....

BUT!!!

From 1939-1945...this is where things get  murky for Mercedes-Benz..

After 1945, the only VICTOR that came out on top....from Duesenberg (which folded  before the war even started), to Auburn (which also folded before the war even started) to Rolls Royce and Mercedes-Benz.....

CADILLAC was the ONLY game in town!

Lincoln was a FIERCE competitor too!

In the 1940s and into the 1950s, 'twas Cadillac on top of the world.

Mercedes built something of value and desire  with the Gullwing, but that was about it!

It took M-B in the late 1960s to gain what Hitler and Nazi Germany destroyed what M-B had before 1939...

In the 1970s...Cadillac was still on top of Mercedes-Benz. Although  Cadillac's shine was losing its luster quite quickly!

So..it is false for you to advertise Mercedes-Benz as a leader and luxury car maker from 1945-1967 or 1968....

And....lest not you forget that the W211 Mercedes, although built like a tank....was NOT a luxury car.

It was a CHEVROLET at heart which helped propel Mercedes back into the luxury game because it was built like a tank! Where as  Cadillac cars and GM  in the late 1970s were not! This is where Mercedes got its claws on Cadillac and never let go!  Coincidentally, all other M-B cars other than the W211 were also just as crappy as  Cadillac cars were! This is where Lexus  comes in!

But, in hindsight, had the D3 NOT been so stupid in the 1970s, I dont think  M-B would have this resurrection that they had....but that is more on the D3 than M-B!

Wow...this WOULD be a tough decision to make!

Both are GREAT little vehicles that do an awesome job in what they are meant to do!

You guys really cant go wrong with either choice.  We took a test drive of the Encore when my wife was looking to replace her Mazda3. She had the same feelings towards it as your wife did. We (she, as it was her decision in the end) decided to go with the Fusion as it was a slightly bigger vehicle. She did not want another smallish car.

I think this is just hijacking tactics by the German unions to keep jobs safe in Germany.

PHOQUE GERMANY!

The Euro-zone is crumbling because there only a few countries that benefit from factories...

Greece is blamed for its problems because

1. Greeks are lazy

2  Greece and its socialist government

3. Greece is corrupt

Yet NOBODY mentions outside of selling olives and feta cheese and a couple of tourists coming to see the Parthenon and swim at her beaches, there are NO jobs!!!

Germany keeps ALL her manufacturing to HERSELF(or is it himself as Hitler called Germany the Fatherland)

Anyway!

PHOQUE Germany! I hope PSA buys Opel and moves ALL of Opel's factories in France!!!!

Yes....that is my beef too with the SRT8.  It is an older car with some mileage. But it is pampered. I know those miles were not hard driven. The only problem he has had with it was a brake issue 3-4 years into the ownership of his car.

With that being said, surprisingly, Id take the Audi S4.

Its the gasoline that would kill me as a daily. Yes, the thread is about these cars being daily drivers as that is how these real owners of the cars use them.   Had the thread been them being week-end cars, Id take the big, black Dodge!

This one is actually hard for me to choose.

425 horsepower V8 as a daily driver in Quebec is a very costly affair...

On the other hand, a small Audi is not my cup of tea for a daily driver...

Ill choose right after I come home from my daughter's softball practice.

Im assistant coach for my son's baseball and my daughter's softball teams this year!!!!  YAY!!!

So...my neighbour 3 houses down to the left of me honks his horn in front of my house yesterday. He sees that I dont react so he rings the doorbell. I answer in my PJs (track pants and T-Shirt) just to see him smile.

I say to him: "Hi! So...wha sup)

Giggling like a school girl he says hi and points outside.

(although the pic below aint an S4, this is what I see...a black Audi! Similar mags and tinted!)

All of a sudden, I started giggling like a school girl myself and gave him several high fives.

He just bought it, used....a 2015 S4. It is slightly modified on the exterior from the previous owner.

The front end and grille resembles the pic below (without the red side mirrors, his mirrors are all black)

with the rest of the car looking like that too (without the red side mirrors, and the wheels are not as deep and the tires not as wide)

Its a good representation of how he bought it.

About 50 000 miles on the odometer.

My other neighbour on the opposite side to the front of me 3 houses down is the original owner of a 2005 Dodge Charger SRT8. That car is also black!

About 120 000 miles on his odometer, but such a clean ride. He takes care of it, washes it every 3rd day and drives it like a grandma. He is my age. 44 years old. He is also Greek!

He just has tints on his car.

This is a  very good representation of his  car

So....what fire breathing daily driver would you rather have in this week's edition of A "Would You Rather" thread?

I heard these guys are pretty good at what they do!

Nice ride!

Id love the exhaust too!

Plus the revving and the acceleration!

From the link:
 

Quote

 

It’s important to note that, so far, these are consumer statements. There’s not yet any accusation from regulators or any federal investigation announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/car-technology/a9942689/general-motors-accused-of-rigging-diesel-pickup-truck-emissions/

from the link above:

Quote

A class-action lawsuit accuses General Motors of rigging emission-control systems on 2011–2016 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD pickups with GM’s Duramax turbo-diesel 6.6-liter V-8 engine. If the allegations are proved true, the environmental damage from these 705,000 trucks, which the lawsuit said emit two to five times the legal limit of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in typical driving conditions, could easily exceed that of Volkswagen’s emission-test-cheating TDI engines.

And although my rolling coal pic was just showing how no matter what the news is regarding ANY fossil fuel POLLUTING makes tree huggers clamour to EVs....as proven by some posters wanting to hang me by me just posting a bloody rolling  coal pic and telling me my argument is incoherent yet he never realizing that HE HIMSELF MADE THAT CORRELATION and I NEVER said ANYTHING of that sort just stating that:

Good news for electric power.

Anything that deals with fossil fuels being dirty and the tree huggers just strengthen their love for electrics.

Coal powered electric farms could be used as an argument...but pictures like these make tree huggers turn a blind eye to it....

Ironically, the name of this type of action does NOT help the coal powered electric farm argument...

The pic of the rolling coal Chevy was throwing IRONY into the  mix...

The above link just stipulates that if this is true....700 000 GM diesel trucks SURPASSES VW TDi pollution....

1:1 or cumulative....if true....does it really matter at this point?

3 hours ago, balthazar said:

In the 2nd Model 3 pic above, you can see the intrusions from below the rear window, like everything has there now- speakers & such, it's a killer. My comment is not about cubic feet but the opening- it looks clearly smaller than the 3-series to my eye, and about the smallest I've ever seen. The late '60s F-bodies created the space saver spare because a full-size tire wouldn't fit thru the short opening. How come Ford was able to get the Fusions hatched but Tesla decided against it?

Mine too was about the opening....

The BMW 3 Series goes further on top. If the Tesla Model 3 did not have that glass, then the Model 3 would probably have a similar opening where the glass like the BMW 3 Series.....

About the Fusion....that hatch is for China and Europe only...and since the Fusion's trunk is about the same type of wide opening as the Model 3 and I own a Fusion and I do not find any real problems with it then this complaint really is much ado about nothing.

OK...I would have bought that hatch style Fusion if it were offered here in North America, but it aint bad at all this way!!!

This is the actual  video where the second pic comes from....

Its still the prototype of 1 year ago...the dude says the opening will be a little bit larger than that on the production car...but even it stayed that way....its comparable to MANY MANY MANY sedans in this vehicle size range!

@3:23 is where the trunk thing starts at.

 In the first pic, you could tell its wider top to bottom wise...

Bitchin' just to bitch part deux!!!

If Im not mistaken, this is a Model 3 trunk

Its not so bad....the Model3 is said to be BMW 3 Series sized...

Advantage BIMMER!  BMW engineers thought this out very well!!!! KUDOS!!!

But lets take a look at a Ford Fusion...a slightly bigger car I believe

Looks about the same as the Tesla Model 3....it really is not soooo bad!!!!

But yes....a hatch would do wonders....

Here....a Fusion hatch or I should say the Mondeo hatch...

Bitchin' just to bitch...

Modern cars....not from the 1960s and 1970s when this was super common but during the beginnings of the SUV craze....

 Mid-1990s FoMoCo Taurus and Sable station wagon

early to mid 1990s General Motors  Caprice Station wagon, Buick Roadmaster station wagon and Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser

And even more modern cars during the HEIGHT but NOT EVEN peak of the SUV craze as SUV madness is growing...

2001 Volvo V70

2014 Mercedes E Class

And Tesla....

Not too shabby for it being just a hatch style-'4 door coupe' low and sleek design! 

And NO!

The heads are NOT sooooo close to the window or rear, its very comparable to any station wagon that is sold....OR 3rd ROW SUV seating!!!

3rd row SUV seating...2013 GM  FULL PHOQUING SIZED SUV....

The only advantage is that the seats are forward facing...

Not everyone WANTS a freakin' SUV!!!

Not everyone NEEDS a freakin' SUV 24/7/365!

Cars with hatchbacks or station wagons fill that need quite nicely and in MOST cases HAUL MORE stuff than their CUV/SUV equivalent...without the EΧCESSIVE BULKINESS AND WEIGHT of a SHYTY  CUV/SUV all in the while HANDLING BETTER, BRAKING FASTER!!!

2 minutes ago, frogger said:

NSX.. I also prefer the 993 to 996.

 

 

Me too.

If it would have been a 993, Id take the Porsche over the NSX myself.

2 hours ago, Cubical-aka-Moltar said:

The Juke is distinctive, doesn't look like anything else on the road.   Sat in one at an auto show once, the rear seat area seemed cramped and it felt very narrow inside...

Now that you said it, I think I like it because of what you said: It is distinctive and doesn't look like anything else on the road and I do find it visually appealing.

I think those are good enough reasons to like it...but Id never be caught dead in one!

Id take the Maxima in a heartbeat though!

2 hours ago, Frisky Dingo said:

This was my squadron- 5 MXS, 5 BW- flagship, aircraft # 0005-

Id up vote this pic 1000 times if I could!

For the fact that it was YOUR SQUADRON! 

Also....I LOVE how you gave a description of all your choices and how your chosen machines DOMINATED, DESTROYED and DECIMATED their respective enemies! (yes....even for the Tiger II tank which decimated our allied forces) and Id up vote you another 1000 times just for the descriptions!

I coudnt bring myself to post a pic of a Luftwaffe FW 190 especially one with a Swastika on its tail wing but the Nazi war machine did have some awesome weaponry!  As I grow older, I see myself more and more incapable of "flaunting" Nazi paraphernalia...

I like the Juke for whatever reason.

Not that I would be caught dead or alive seen in one.

But I find something interesting about it. I cant seem to put my finger on why I like it, but I do!

Life is strange this way sometimes!

Chalk up another NSX!

27 minutes ago, ykX said:

@oldshurst442 absolutely!

However, since the Memorial Day is in memory of US servicemen I tried to pick equipment only used by US military

HA! HA! HA! (laughing with sincerity and affection)

I did not make that correlation! I am Canadian after all!

But sure!

Love and respect brother!

Just to kinda respond to what @Drew Dowdell said in his above post semi-defending myself and semi agreeing to what Drew said and semi-agreeing to what @smk4565 said....

Ive been very critical to what Cadillac has been saying they wanna do and what they actually are doing myself. Since 1997, Cadillac has been over promising us and under selling us to what they have promised us!

However, this time, what they are actually doing, what they are promising us and what they are giving us is quite promising. This time it is for real.

All what SMK is saying that Cadillac needs will come in due time.

Nothing is rushed at Cadillac anymore.

That is why it seems like forever for the lust products to come out.

In. Due. Time.

I for one, am excited for the future of Cadillac.

The convertible will come.

The Tesla fighting EV will come.

The S Class BEATER will come.

The crossovers to fluff up necessary sales and to build a solid customer base from will  come.

Actions DO speak louder than words. And Cadillac's actions speak for themselves...

The Caddy that Zigs was fluff!

The beginnings of Arts and Science was 1 step forward 2 steps back.

The head exploding show cars like the Sixteen, Cien, Ciel and El Miraj was nothing but smoke and mirrors.

The Evoq and Converj was blundered....but going forward, the Escala really looks like Cadillac has finally got it right and really is moving forward with it! Not backwards!

Actions DO speak louder than words.

The guy from cross town rival....his marketing guy....well, it was all words!

Johan too, has talked a tough game trying to bully his former German bosses and their cross town rival as well...but, Johan had shaken Cadillac's roots and core so his tough words towards the Germans...I believe them! 

Johan is NOT a typical GM "yes man" lifer!

Moving forward...Cadillac is in GREAT position to reclaim lost territory!

To this I also point out that GM is FINALLY getting us a mid-engined Vette!

To this I also point out that GM is FINALLY letting engineers do the talking....

Example....letting the Camaro EXCEL and NOT be shackled just because the Vette is in front of it.

The V Series Cadillacs...there is nothing else to say about them! Just....PHOQUE YEAH!

The XT5 is huuuuuge success!

The ATS and the CTS when they are brought into the new nomenclature with their new underpinnings along with the upcoming V8 for the CT6 will come into their own which also coincides with 2 new crossovers.....sales will EXPLODE by LEAPS AND BOUNDS here and ESPECIALLY in China by 2021!!!

@ykX

WW2 aircraft are simply gorgeous and awesome machines. Its hard to EXCLUDE the Spitfire, the Mustang, the BF109,  the Zero. And those are the stereotypical fighters of WW2. There are many others!

As far as WW2 tanks go, the Tiger I and the T-34 are  EQUALLY my favorites!

I LOVE the Huey helicopter. Easily my #2 aircraft for the Vietnam war era.

AIRPLANES!

To me, they are like cars, its just impossible to just pick 1.

Ive excluded the F-15 Eagle, The Mustang, the Spitfire the P-40, the MiG 25/31, the Mirage 2000, the Rafale, the BF109, the B-17, the Hercules, the C47 Skytrain(DC-3)and many many others and it hurts!!!

Like always, I saw these 2 awesome cars this past week just driving around doing errands with the family. I have no exciting details or anecdotes to reveal this time around regarding the cars in question other than when I pointed them out to my wife and kids, I was responded back by silence and I could sense the ambience was a big fat MEH!

I, on the other hand was super delighted!

A Silver 996 911 GT2

Im posting this pic like that from that angle as that is how I saw it on the highway when I passed it. The driver looked like an older gentleman driving his sports car without any intentions of breaking any speed limits. It seemed like he was babying his ride!

Below is the frond end which I did not get a chance to observe as the highway was starting to get dense in front of  me and I had to get  my eyes to focus in front of of what was happening....DUH!

Or a red 1990ish Acura NSX

I was stopped at a red light when the NSX drove in front of me. The driver was coming from the right of  me turning left heading the opposite direction to where we were going. The pic above is representative of what angle I witnessed the NSΧ.

The driver of the NSΧ was also an older gentleman but this guy seemed to be actually driving his ride the way these machines were meant to be driven.

I really cant conclude to the driving habits of these guys, but in my mind, THAT is how I wanna perceive this reality!

OK...which of these 2 sports  cars would YOU  choose?

Just now, roadwarrior said:

What exactly was the argument?  Diesel can be dirty, so can gas.  Beyond that, maybe it's my ignorance of certain elements, but all the stuff you posted above the picture didn't seem to contain a cohesive argument, per se.

Sure....whatever you say....