balthazar

BMW hasn't learned about U-joints / swivels yet ??

IMO, design also enters into the assessment of 'cheap', as in little time was spent conceptualizing/designing it. Assembly is partly the responsibility of the line worker/ sub-contractor- and while certainly appreciable.... a well-assembled Walkman isn't all that aspirational in 2009, either. At the typical BMW (over-)price(d) point, interiors should be class-leading in all regards.

^ What a cheap-assed, horrible interior. That's the VERY SAME rubber disc in the middle of the steering wheel Pontiac slapped on their base wheels in the mid 1970s. Please tell me that's a late '80s pic....

That's obviously the FG operational model. Federal Government.

Buick was far more 'comfy'-oriented when the GN / GNXs were wildly popular, yet Pontiac was meanwhile pedaling Firebirds / TAs with little problem. I have no issue with a refined yet in-yer-face Buick the likes of the GN again- there's no ideaological reason I can see to vote against it. That said, the marque & the product has to be positioned right. 'Buick go after Pontiac buyers' ?? 'How is B-GMC supposed to compete with Chevy dealers' ?? Old GM think.

The diff twixt the 2 was the C-pillar. 'A' came off as 'sportier' to me because it evoked the '70s Corvettes. But I did have a hard time getting past the intial reaction (as whiteknight stated) : body-to-greehouse porportions are too 'econo / mainstream' rather than sporty. Very tough to get sporty out of such a stubby proportion (167" x 57") without getting radical with the 2- / 3-boxes in relation to each other. IE; the concept Spark had a very high cowl- this 'switched it up' WRT the car's visual interpretation. Radical / shocking comes off as more 'hardcore' (since it's less mainstream)... and look where the production Spark was 'forced' to go- more mainstream and more... dumpy.

The B-60 is what a B-59 buddy calls a 'worn bar of soap'. It's the same from the beltline up, tho. :wink: I like the B-60 (funkier interior), but it's distant 2nd to a B-59, which is far more elemental. The Shelby Daytona had better be a kit/repro; SA only built 6 originally and they're solidly over $1M ea. Looks repro from here. Nice pics, FOG.

one of the few holes in my library- sorry.

Progress = a way to take a newspaper and require you to burn non-renewable electricity to read it, forcing many to read it in one spot in their home (uhhh: not everyone has portable wi-fi), yet it disappears after maybe a month, preventing any future reference. But the larger problem is the quickness & interconnected-ness of media has severely constricted the number of sources & the time to research anything, ultimately 'corrupting the spring' so to speak. The ubitquitous focus on the balance sheet forces editorial slants to follow popular opinion rather than truth, leaving us with very little reliable truth at all. Thus, even tho it is in some instances 'easier', it's more expensive and less reliable. Still, like the crow, most folk are attracted to shiny things.

What an amazing load of crap.

Opel = 'Wir leben Autos'. VW = 'Das Auto'. Stirring stuff.

Craftsmanship IS a good defense, IMO. Those that can do, do. Those that can't, hire those that can. There's not really less trade work out there, just more folk temporarily holding off. If the economy puts a bunch of tradesmen into another line of work, as things slowly perk back up, those left are going to be swamped, IMO. Then again, I work in one of the country's most affluent areas...

Too tough to call on vagueries. Depends on the transgression and the importance to you that person commands. Good luck w/ yer situation, CM, consider carefully before you undo what cannot be redone.

Well & good enough... I've just read a goodly amount of Cadillac-centric posting on your part here (& there ). Why not go whole hog and shoot for a 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible. -- -- -- -- -- For myself, I would regret not owning ANY '50s GM concept car. Supposedly, 2 are rumored to survive, hidden away, IN MY STATE. Do you know how my head swivels driving around on weekends (when most garage doors happen to be open) ??

>>"1959 Coupe DeVille Convertible"<< C'mon, Mr Caddy... you should know it would be a '1959 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible'... not to mention even in the later years, you cannot combine 'Coupe' with 'convertible'.

Aren't the vast majority of modern tires SBRs (if not all) ???

I only referenced mine because SBRs were what it was originally equipped with. Again- you have to follow TIRE manufacturer recommendations - I have no idea what you have on there now vs. the OEM tire. Owner's manual has the OEM tires in mind when written.

>>"I am not sure I buy the non-functional features like the fake hood scoop or the three vertical indentations ahead of the rear wheel well either."<< Scoops are one thing (and even 'functional' ones are often not ducted to the air intake, likewise rendering them non-functional in reality), but the 3 indented curves in the quarter panel are character lines; they're not supposed to be 'functional' other that appearance-wise.

I have an 'idle stumble' in my DuraMax- the Lucas has done nothing to eradicate it. However, it's difficult to find a diesel-compatable FI cleaner. I need to go to the 'diesel truck' message boards....

You must follow tire manufacturer recommendations, IMO. Indivudal opinion shouldn't enter into it. If your tire service center wants to rotate counter to manufacturer instruction- find another. Now for my opinion : I can not see how reversing the rotation of a SBR would have any adverse effects, but I'm not a tire engineer. I have my '94 F-150 owner's manual handy- it says to swap sides for rotation.

Prolly. Kodak is what I always bought. The pic was taken in 1990.

>>"balthazar...LOVE the B-59 in the barn. I love living in the midwest, and fall is my fav. time of year. The B-59 photo has a very mellow, fall like feel to it. You'll probably shoot me for saying this, but I love Japanese watercolor as an art form. That photo is so subtle and so good it reminds me of a good Japanese watercolor."<< LOL - it's "so good" because it was shot with a 1964 camera on 35-mm film, then scanned with a $99 scanner. I shot the pic- that's my baby before The Teardown. Glad you liked it, I do too.

I've used their PS / leak stop - it worked well there. Also used their fuel injector cleaner, but have not noticed it's done anything. Have not tried any oil-related Lucas product as of yet.

Man makes his own 'Stonehenge' in his backyard : More common sensical, man & his mind stuff !