balthazar

neither does anyone else, IMO. -- -- -- Back to the ATS.... One wonders how mercedes turns away so many buyers from it's c-class; it has the worst of the 3 (ATS, 3, C) front legroom. It also has LLEESSSS rear legroom than the ATS, wonder the F how THAT escaped so many rag journalists? Why exclude "so many" potential buyers????????????????? BMW 3 : 42.0 / 35.1 = 77.1 Audi A3 : 41.2 / 35.1 = 76.3 ATS : 42.5 / 33.5 = 76.0 <---------- best in class front legroom MB c-class : 41.7 / 33.4 = 75.1 <---------- worst in class overall legroom. Yeah, let's all moan & groan over JUST the ATS rear legroom again- feels so go-oooood to vent those fact-supported frustrations.

what full size sedans??

It's all marketing- no one has any Earthy idea what platforms are under what models and no one cares. If 'K' means 'compact', why was the old C230 hatchback a 'C'?? If the numbers are engine size, why is the S550 not the 'S470'? Daimler is just farting around with alpha-numerics with little direction.

a LOT of folk overlook flaws to protect the status quo…………………… . . .. .. . .. . . .. . .. . . .. . . . .

I stuck this here 'cause I'm not sure what year this might be: I stuck this here because I'm not sure what this intention might be: Saw Rick Dore walking around- 1st tier car builder and on the show 'Masters of the Car Hoard' or whatever it's entitled. Saw a flyer with this car pictured on it: … Dore built it for James Hetfield, tho this car wasn't there.

Some stuff from a north Jersey car show, in reverse chronological order :

Not in this neighborhood- industrial zone. Warehousing is all I can see going up. Time will tell.

Today's pics. Plant will probably be totally flat by the end of next week. Compare to old pic above:

Exhaust tacked, final checked, then finish welded. Here's the 'tacked' pics of the 2 driver's-side pieces : Nice smooth mandrel bends for that screaming 105 HP.

Probably not, but they should. It's more appropriate here than even with the Silvie, IMO.

^ the measurements are posted above; length is pretty much the same, but height & width are up. I agree with summer cruiser; would like to see a regular cab 2WD unit (not that these will ever appeal to me; I'm a full-size truck buyer).

So it's relatively the same length/WB, but it's a foot taller and half a foot wider. I'm not sure it's not a smidge too large- the width is nice but the height is of no advantage.

^ ...when they finally come in.

Metuchen/Edison did have a good rep, unlike nearby Mahwah (which actually got the axe because of quality & environmental issues.) Wish I knew what plant my '40 Ford was built in. It wasn't Metuchen/Edison- that opened in '48. This is the Metuchen/Edison plant site as of when it was demolished circa 2008/9 (it closed in 2007): That patch of 'grass' to the far left is home to a Sams' club now, the rest of the property is still empty. How many F'ing Starbucks, Targets & pizza places does NJ really need??

On a 2-car trailer going down the highway: 1st gen Corvair convert, black over yellow, very clean, and '60 Eldorado Seville hardtop, pale icy green, very nice shape.

I have witnessed (in that I have seen the before & afters with my own eyes) the demolition of both the local GM Linden plant & the Ford Edison plant here in NJ. GM-Linden is still a huge fenced lot of small piles of concrete rubble, Ford-Edison has the questionable 'improvement' of a Sam's Club and... weeds. My '64 Catalina was built in Linden, so on occasions I would drive by the plant in it, I would yell out my open window '834L88280 STILL ON ACTIVE DUTY!' I'm nuts like that. Just this week I am likewise witness to the demolition of the New Brunswick Delco plant, built in 1946 for battery production to support the East Coast assembly plants. Had a neat, low appearance with a number of rounded exterior 'corners' in a orange-ish brick. My father-in-law worked there for a short while. Delco #12 was a steady producer, getting plant enlargements over the years to at least double it's initial size. Plant enlargements: It was sold off in the GM-Delco spin off, to Delphi, then Johnson Controls owned it. This site has been dormant since 2007. Now it's coming down. I for one will miss it's silent symbolism of iron-backed manufacturing. I doubt anything will go in the hole to replace it- the immediate area will not support retail there.

...now. But they JUST introduced a FWD econosedan priced under the median new car price, in their most important market in the world (AND killed off their top-shelf lux sedan to boot). They are definitely changing course...

Hard to tell from these pics, but I agree it looks pretty big. Whats the exterior specs vs. an S-10?

Let mercedes follow Chevrolet & toyota in continually pushing global sales (at the expense of perception). Cadillac can stay truly exclusive. Cadillac has no need to challenge anyone on sales volume, that's low-level pedestrian brand territory. Mercedes has no choice. I will be watching maybach 2.0- other than a longer WB, it's not another body style, just a stretched version of the existing. What will really be interesting is the perception of failure around maybach 1.0 and how will that effect sales. I predict it flops again & gets pulled inside of 5 years. MB is willing to blow more billions on this trim package, yet the CLAh is FWD.

It still belays the ideal that you are getting something for the increased MSRP, it's not design, it's not powertrains, now I see its not interior legroom, either. And that just a 3 vs 5 commentary, nevermind the 3 vs 3L (answering the O/P point). Why are these commonly held up as the segment 'way to do it' again?

BMW 3-series WB : 110.6", RR leg room : 35.1" 5-series : 116.9", RR leg room : 35.3" 3-series L : 114.9" Is this some of the worst packaging in the industry? Couldn't quickly find the RR legroom of the 328iL, but if 6.3" of WB is only good for 0.2" legroom, the 328iL must only provide 0.1" more legroom.

'71 Plymouth 'cuda, lime green, resplendent, rollin', then, about a quarter mile behind it on the same road; '69 Dodge Charger R/T, lime green, resplendent, aftermarket rims.

As it is, generally speaking, the size gaps in many brands is too small, plus adding maybe 2 inches (and the millions required) seems totally pointless to me. If the manufacturers package things well, there'd be no call for 'splitters' in between 2 lines. At the top is another matter, but IMO the size increases there are still pointless; add a foot or more. The prime issue is not interior length, but WIDTH.

I consider myself a Ford truck man (have had 4), but I drive a Chevy and I think the current Rams are often gorgeous (in some trims/colors). IMO, there's not a thing "wrong" with this : ...and one guy moving to Dodge is meaningless. Mercedes gets about a 30% loyalty figure. No vehicle is for everyone.