balthazar
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Everything posted by balthazar
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1957 Chevy Bel Air 4-dr sedan, white over red, nice shape, cruised right past the Balthy Ranch.
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^ Gotcha. ATS 2.0T is rated at 23 combined MPG in a car about 3400 lbs with a 6-spd. Your Toro curb weight is 3700 (with the V6), I'll bet its more like 4100 with the 5.0 & options (but that's a guess). I assume you have the 5.0 / 3-spd / 2.41 gears, yes? That was rated then at 17/23 with a combined of 19. You desperately need an OD trans in there, if so. With that, you could get a bit better gear in the transaxle than the pathetic 2.41. Then, a mildly built 350 would put out easy 300 HP and you should edge into the low 20s combined. I just don't see it as cost-effective to plug a modern power train in there, what with the retro-fitting / re-engineering. The hours involved to figure things out to an acceptable level of reliability would be considerable. When did the E-cars get a 4-spd?
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Smog standards, at least in NJ, follow the year of the vehicle, not the power train. Can't say I can recall someone putting a considerably older engine in a model year X vehicle- the common practice is almost always newer, in which case you are improving your emissions. High performance builds generally are, naturally, much more efficient WRT emissions, anyway. Now, if one wants contemporary emissions in a greenie sort of way, that may be another matter. As far as MPG, gearing plays a huge part there. I don't see that as a primary concern to someone buying a 556 HP 6.2L. Still, no reason not to put the next generation -say- THM400 behind a vintage motor; a 4L80E. They can be installed sans computer connections, yet still give a nice OD.
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Most steel bodywork is replaced rather than repaired, anyway.
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If I had a -say- '59 Impala, I'd be far more tempted… tho there the price difference would probably be 50% cheaper, or better. And I say that fully aware that an LS engine is NOT a "Chevy" engine. These are appealing pieces, but at these prices they are primarily for the 'cost it little object', 'checkbook builder'.
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In that we know the CT6 is a sedan, it sure would be nice to read daydream comparisons to the Ciel rather than the ElMiraj coupe.
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I was finally in a Wrangler earlier this year & I thought it was nearly intolerable on a few major counts… but I recognize & respect that some folk love them. I certainly would not call it 'one of the worst' or whatever, especially since it's such a niche product with no competition.
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Generally, I agree with the sentiments above. Ferrari's never do much of anything for me, but I admit I like the Lambo Aventador. That's a lot of bad assery right there. The rest of the so-called super cars can get lost. Lambo's chronic problem is that the body envelope is OLD, the Countach (which everything has been based on since) was way ahead of things when first shown in 1970, but realize that there is NO WHERE forward to go for Lambo (or the others). Said it a number of times before; we're at the 95th percentile of advanced auto design. From here on out it's tiny details & fiddling with minor elements.
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Hand-cut gaskets for differential cover & axle ends :
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BMW i3. What a funny looking thing, so disconnected with the bland, dated stuff BMW is known for. '55 Bel Air 4-dr sedan, white over blue, solid, in garage with flat, customer's son's car (15 yrs old). Nice to see the 'utes' into cars older than their parents for a change. It was a '62 Ford Galaxie convert, rough shape but restorable.
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This is a lot about nothing IMO. The Elmiraj is clearly linked to the A&S language, but tho the body envelope is a beaut as a big coupe, the details are not refined enough to my eye, falling below those on the ATS & CTS. What I would least like to see is that huge, bland grillwork in the CT6. Overall, I give the Elmiraj a 7 and the Ciel a 9.
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balthazar replied to William Maley's topic in North American International Auto Show in Detroit (NAIAS)Weird how unharmonious the headlight cluster and the Nike swoosh LEDs are with each other.
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Maybach. Just to prove the point beyond the obvious, the 2.0 version is going to undercut the 1.0 in price by at least half, which will completely suck the tiny remaining 1.0 values right out from under it. Monetarily, it's worse than the Edsel by far.
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EPA should never have stuck its fingers into size classifications, they have no earthly idea what they're doing. Cubic feet of interior volume is a meaningless stat we've been dieting on for what- 20 years? I've said it before; unless you are delivering inflated party balloons in your car, you cannot utilize a large portion of the mathematical cubic volume of a vehicle's space and the stat is misleading. (A cargo van is obviously something else).
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^ Must be "terrible packaging".
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Sorry, I have no idea here.
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balthazar replied to Drew Dowdell's topic in North American International Auto Show in Detroit (NAIAS)Very very slightly, but no where near to a detriment. It's just got a busy, line-intensive design that really has no brand ID to it. IMO, I think despite many internet QBs chiming to the contrary; there's an SUV/CUV glut going on, and none (I would venture to say the Escalade is an exception) really stand out. Audi used to have a very slick design language figured out, but the marketers want constant 'progress', VW shuffles the deck chairs and here; folded & stacks many on top of some others. Somehow, it's both busy and bland.
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balthazar replied to Drew Dowdell's topic in North American International Auto Show in Detroit (NAIAS)That's the only new bit I see in the OP. Frankly, that's not something I would have any desire to have, and it alone is not going to turn one more sale IMO. The rest is frequently available already, elsewhere. Even the Q7 has had an 8-spd since '10.
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balthazar replied to Drew Dowdell's topic in North American International Auto Show in Detroit (NAIAS)• Has a real 'sucker fish' look up front, ringed with chrome like that. • Yet another squashed hexagon grille. • IMO there's nothing either new OR compelling here.
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