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balthazar

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Everything posted by balthazar

  1. balthazar
    That's insane if that happens. RIght now the ATS as configured has numerous advantages over the CLA, primairly much better interior room and RWD / RWD proportions.
  2. balthazar
    What's the interferance/overlap? Room to raise the door tracks/motor? Or... slam the 4x4.
  3. balthazar
    ^ Didn't I see this in Robocop 5?
  4. balthazar
    IMO: "released" = production, "revealed" is better suited to things like concepts, which no one can get their hands on. Like the Tesla semi, or the Tesla Roadster. Where the Model 3 falls here is open to debate.
  5. balthazar
  6. balthazar
    That. Is. Tasty! Can't quite get a 3-D impression of what's going on in those front corners... or of the contour on the front fender. Eager to see more pics, esp of lower-line trims. This'll be every bit of a $50K sticker, yes?
  7. balthazar
    Oh; they're going to wait, all right.
  8. balthazar
    So what was the thinking when MB dropped their inline 6? Was the V6 "better" then?
  9. balthazar
    I don't think smoothness and noise are irrevocably linked. Vibration is, but unless things outside then engine are loose- it's not going to be quieter, especially if we're only talking about a few seismic percentage points difference. IOW; I think just as much sound (road, exhaust, solenoid, fan, etc) deadening is going to be utilized. If the V6 was really rough, I could see more noise issues being present.
  10. balthazar
    Another reality question : were consumers complaining about the roughness of MB V6s? Anywhere? If the answer is 'no', then is the 'increased smoothness' even going to be noticable? Is it worth publicizing to try and gain sales? Or is it worth publicizing to deflect attention away from a move to economies of scale?
  11. balthazar
    1 : I take all OEM announcements with a 5lb bag of salt. Case in point: Tesla, in general. 2 : The credits, or the suspension of such, is a discussion for now... when EVs become profitable is in the future. I expect at some point for them to be profitable, yes. But OEM R&D expenditures must also be tabulated in any overall discussion of profitability, and those are huge and running counter to economies of scale. We'll see. I'll state again- at this point I have no issue with EV credits- the cat is out of the bag & well down the street. 3 : diesel will never see $22.50... or $10/gal anytime in the next 20 years. EV's (painfully slow) expansion takes demand off of diesel/gas, increasing supply. The wildcard is the reduction of production. Keep in mind that the $140/barrel was purely speculative- I don't think we're going to see such a market focus on petroleum again. Investors are forward looking, and idealogically, "EV power is the future".
  12. balthazar
    Not quite. I believe what happens is that after 200K units are sold, it drops 50% to $3750 the second quarter after the 200K mark is hit. The 4th quarter after the 200K mark it hit it drops to 25% ($1875). So after the 200K mark is hit, the credit switches to a quarterly-based timetable vs. production volume. That makes sense if the idea is to 'get EV sales rolling'. I still feel that there are a HUGE quantity of Model 3 depositers that were counting heavily on $7500 off of the announced $35K = a '$28K Tesla mini Model S'.
  13. balthazar
    Inline 6s are pre-1920, likely pre-1910. Any 6 from this far back was inline, most 8 cylinders were inline also. Again I state; if inline 6s are going to be the new/old thing, I want to see some inline 8s. - - - - - MB going to an I6 is only "huge news" if it 's addressing decades of harsh, vibrating Mercedes V6s. If that's factual- why did Daimler wait however many years/decades to replace the V6? If it's NOT factual, increasing smoothness is a 'solution' to a non-problem. Which is why I believe the likely motivation has been mentioned here; a move to save money by following the old GM example of sharing parts within different engine cylinder counts, IE: the Series 71 engines.
  14. balthazar
    If the EV credit is preventing sales from 'cratering', are not Tesla and GM teetering on such a cratering in 2018 when their credits begin to ratchet down? What manufacturer is going to spend 'billions' to sell 200K units all at a loss, then see that segment cease to exist?? No; OEM EV development is not tied to the tax credits the purchaser sees. OEMS are betting on future sales to continue to grow & spread. Their foresight reaches well beyond 2018 here. IF the credit were immedaitely killed, development would continue unabated. - - - - - At this point, talking about keeping/killing the EV credit is largely inconsequential- those talking about it on the Hill are evoking ideology, not financials. So wish it were the other way around, in general.
  15. balthazar
    IMO, "recently released" implies 'in production'.
  16. balthazar
    Exposed hinges CAN have an industrial look to them, agreed. Even exposed screws -such as around fender flares, for EX- can 'work'. But too much of the G-wagon is just 50-yr old (or older) body hardware tech. Old MBs -and the G-wagon- are horribly outdated in body construction engineering. This is circa 1985, and on the flagship SL : Why is that thick rubber gasket so exposed? It's not 'rugged', it's slop.
  17. balthazar
    But can it be a retro touch if it's currently in use?
  18. balthazar
    Here's to hoping all the exposed screws & gaskets on the exterior are finally brought up to 1979 standards, nevermind 1939 standards.
  19. balthazar
    This double-sided porcelain dealership sign hangs in my shop. Scarfed it from a defunct antiques shop... probably in the late '80s. Durant Motors was, of course, William Durant's 2nd auto empire, 1921-1931. Star was one of it's divisions, existing from '22-28.
  20. balthazar
    "By 2019"?? Not likely given the track record. Maybe 2022.
  21. balthazar
    ^ Right now the federal gas tax is 18.4 cents & the tax on diesel is 24.4 cents.
  22. balthazar
    DuraMax don't know the meaning of 'can't':
  23. balthazar
    I believe it was canvas that had been sun-bleached back to white in the many years (circa 1959-1989) it sat outside. BTW- Pontiac also showed the same formal configuration in '53 :
  24. balthazar
    dfelt- those 4 circles in the rear bumper are lights- the exhaust is fed thru the bumper corners, under the bullets & thru grilled ports. The EBTC recently took a trip back to Warhoops where it was rescued from, circa 1989 :
  25. balthazar
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