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

balthazar

In Hibernation
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    40,855

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    583

 Content Type 

Everything posted by balthazar

  1. balthazar
    To top it off, the Model S may sell in steadily, slightly increasing volume, but it still doesn't make the company one thin dime. They have to keep it going because it's the ONLY vehicle they have. Cadillac/GM, of course, have the room to speak on the ELR because it's one of a hundred vehicles built. Still, these guys don't understand marketing. It's one thing to (appear) candid in an interview, it's another to openly admit 'mistakes'. It gains you nothing.
  2. balthazar
    There is a slight, '90s-era stylistic vibe to the model S, but it's still sleek enough to work as 'current'. I'd like to see a MCE soon, tho. But the company's future rides on the model 3; it doesn't get here ASAP and rake in buyers, the company is done.
  3. balthazar
    Any updates on a projected intro for the Model 3? It can't get here soon enough...
  4. balthazar
    To me audi should be better than a VW, but for some reason you can get a VW 2.0 engine all the way up to an A6. Or…. this is also not a problem.
  5. balthazar
    '73 Caprice 4-dr hardtop, white vinyl top over dark green body, real solid original, dual exhaust/ moved like at least a 400 V8, rollin', complete with 'Jimmy Carter for president' bumper sticker.
  6. balthazar
    [goalposts so far in distance, can't see 'em from here]
  7. balthazar
    Thanks a lot, Escoda!! I pulled up my 'other computer' money spent list for this truck. What I used to do is 'apply' side profits to this truck to 'defray costs'… such as I sold the shell of a Nova convertible for $1000. So the bottom line number was artificially low. AFTER stripping out all that sort of 'feel-good' accounting, my spread sheet on this truck is already at 4750… and I know it will clear 5000 just in adding in the receipts from 2014-2015. I also paid 1750 for it initially, not 1250. Not mad, it's good to know these things & keep track. And I still shouldn't complain- that's still cheap for a running antique.
  8. balthazar
    Haven't experienced the turn dial selector, but I will say I would've preferred the MKZ's pushbuttons didn't take up a literal foot of vertical real estate.
  9. balthazar
    You'd think with "stupid overpricing' like those examples, there would be no way POSSIBLE to lose money on sports cars… but Porsche said they were. I'm not suggesting Cadillac build only SUVs, I'm stating that a brand known for a lot of hardcore sports cars now primarily exists to build SUVs. In other words, Porsche doesn't at all seem to mind being a SUV brand… and perhaps Cadillac doesn't mind also not selling proportionally as many cars as they used to. These things are really only of interest to Corporate planners, not enthusiasts or the general consumer. I've said it before, I really don't care how many vehicles Cadillac sells, I just want the marque to be healthy and last another 125 years.
  10. balthazar
    Ocn : correct on #2. Was in one last week and was surprised to see another pushbutton automatic. Cort, I believe you are quite correct: ChryCo last used pushbuttons in '64.
  11. balthazar
    Porsche flipped itself from a sports car maker to a sporty SUV maker. No doubt the profit margins are much higher than on the cars, which they were losing money on. What Porsche should have done is strived to make their cars cool again and make them the best in their segment. IMO, they took the easy way out. Jeep started the luxury SUV segment in the 1960s. Regardless of what some think is a 'luxury brand', individual product determines a 'luxury' label. mercedes, obviously, makes a number of non-luxury sedans; just because they all have the same grilles/emblems doesn't make those models 'luxury'. But today's market has largely & commonly placed SUVs on par with 'cars', erasing the 'detriment' a -say- 1975 Suburban or Land Rover had with a very plain & spartan interior and next to no amenities. Now a loaded Tahoe LTZ has just about all the common features lux SUV buyers are looking for and regardless of the emblem, it is outfitted & priced as a luxury product. Just like mercedes- not all are (or are not) luxury models under their respective brands.
  12. balthazar
    This is the very same boat Porsche (among others) is in. Porsche "convinced" everyone they need a SUV, and now they are primarily a SUV brand (65% sold last month were NOT cars)… because that's where the profits are. How will Porsche convince people that their sports cars are cool and convince them to buy them?? Or maybe… this is also not a problem.
  13. balthazar
    '40 Willys coupe, tubbed & hot rodded, metal flake pink, big dollar, snorting & growling as it rolled.
  14. balthazar
    How much spent? Hmm… I bought it for $1250 without a grille, which cost 800. Rebuilding the seats/upholstery cost 500. Beyond those costs, I would guess I only have about 400 more into it- I have a log on another computer but haven't kept it updated over the last 12 months I've been back to work on it… but I would estimate I only spent 150 in that 12 months. That's about $2950 total. I would like to keep the overall number as low as possible. This is a 'get it running & drive it' project; the plan is preservation, not restoration. If I could get this driving relatively reliably for 3500, that would be pretty awesome. Escoda- where are you located?
  15. balthazar
    1.) What was the first year for an automotive fuel gauge? 2.) Chrysler Corp made the pushbutton automatic famous in the late '50s and early '60s, before the nannies in Big Gov't pushed ChryCo to "standardize". When was the last American car push-button automatic built? 3.) How many production Oldsmobile vehicles used the '88' designation at least in part?
  16. balthazar
    Tire outfit (which does a lot of HD truck & farm equipment) gave my 2 front tires a thumbs up. All mounted, new tubes, flaps, valves stems. Put them up front, where the bulk of the weight is. Hoping to button up the axle & rear drums this week. Also cut a chunk out of one of the junk tires. It was 'only' 8-ply, had dry rot cracking on the sidewall… but there's no way in hell you could blow them apart unless maybe they got really hot- those plys run bead-to-bead and the woven nylon belts are really hard to tear. I'm reassured. New pic to pump (well, probably just me) up :
  17. balthazar
    mercedes van certainly isn't new- it dates to 1995.
  18. balthazar
    Sure, like 'Malibu Classic'…
  19. balthazar
    What is the marketshare, overall, of hybrids in the U.S. market?
  20. balthazar
    'Continuity' drives homogenization. Look at the kindergarten-level naming & styling schemes audi & BMW have bored everyone with. Remember when Ford announced it was going to name all future cars beginning with 'F'?… then they remembered they had this lil moneymaker called the 'M'ustang? I would hope Cadillac is above such grotesque simplification. Buyers should be smarter than kindergarten-aged children. In other words, except for the psych ward and Gymboree demographics, it's totally fine to go with a proper name and an alpha-numeric. That said, I hate 'CT6' emphatically. I don't believe people will be confused, but it just doesn't roll off the tongue at all. At least 'CTS' does.
  21. balthazar
    They didn't buy the german 318ti, or the C230 hatchback, or the r-class minivan, or the maybach 1.0, or a host of other failed attempts. ​This is your prediction that the plug-in 3-series will outsell the gas 3-series. OK; let's wait & see how THAT pans out.
  22. balthazar
  23. balthazar
    The theory that people are going to lay in a sensory-deprivation chamber, only hearing the names of potential autos and them deciding which to purchase, is most hilarious. One could make the same 'point' thusly : Good luck to audi trying to convince people their "8" is on par with the big german "550" and "750" models.
  24. balthazar
    Doesn't matter "what they think", only what the consumers think/how many they buy. C'mon, sales charts are your reason for getting out of bed in the morning!
  25. balthazar
    Here's a snapshot from a 1949 Ford truck brochure: It has some interesting factoids. The difference between 'tractor' & 'truck' should be well known, and the gearing is the primary difference. "7.2" means a 7.20:1 axle, which is why the tractor is 'so much' slower at 46 MPH vs. the 5.83-geared truck at 53 MPH. Whoo-hoo! I should be able to top 50 MPH!! I've had a few discussions with my brother, who -as the owner of a tandem-axle Mack- sniffs at my truck as 'medium duty at best, but more like light duty'. Sure, compared to a Mack that can haul 18 tons payload, but 16000 lbs as a truck is pretty decent, IMO. As a tractor moving 28,000… that's no light duty truck. - - - - - Got 5 junk tires demounted this week, might be 2 sellable rims in there but the rest are garbage. Monday I get the new tubes/flaps installed w/ the cleaned-up old tires on the cleaned-up rims. Reading up on wiring practices in the meantime…..
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

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