A Horse With No Name

Parts for European cars are pricey, which is why I waited so long to get a MINI. Fixing the home A/C for the guy who owns the body shop that I posted the car pics of-the one that fixed the Miata and painted the Chevelle and 55 Chevy for me. He's fixing the A/C on a late model Benz in the shop....One A/C hose that is unique to that car...is $2000. I used to live near a shop that does resto and repair work on Rolls Royce automobiles-Don't even ask waht fixing those cars cost. As far as money and cars goes, here's my rule of thumb-ten cents a mile for depreciation, repairs, and maint.. Sounds cheap....but $1500 in repairs would mean they'd need to get another 15,000 miles of use out of that car. Probably about two or thre years, as much as it would get driven.... $1500 for two or three years is dirt cheap. Much cheaper than even a Chevrolet Sonic....which would have six or seven grand in depreciation during that time, along with a grand of maintenance and misc. I'd say tell them to fix the car and don't look back. I'm dumping about $2500 into my Miata over the next year to get everything refreshed....$1500 in repairs for a car that age is CHEAP!

It's worth a half-grand in scrap. It's definitely worth a grand from what we see. Bingo... I'd drop a grand into it if I had more room to restore it I've got six cars at the house...you have how many? Fortunately, there is no cure for automotive ADD. Here's to having even more cars and projects this time next year!

Fortunately, we can improve a car after it's built...

It's really a small car...really no bigger than a Miata...and it's a four seater. Test drove one...those back seats are TINY! Smaller, methinks than even a Porsche 911 or MGB-GT.

We had a nearly brand new SHO Taurus out Saturday at the SCCA autocross here... Very capable car... A SHO RWD would be lust worthy... But yeah, I like the fusion a lot better than the Malibu for a midsize four door car.

I like it with the V6, actually. That 3.5 is a strong mill, should be lots O fun!

Pretty much TDI drivers are a different breed...they keep their cars for a LONG Time. Guys in our local VW TDI club (of which I am a member) have Jettas with 350K they consider "just getting broken in."

I agree!

Thinking about one for my older son...NEAT little car. GM did nice work on the sonic.

Its an awful lot more car for about the same money...wy to go GM! I'm driving a relatively base Verano this week. It is a great little car and feels very premium. The Verano would be a car that could win me into a GM showroom next time we buy... It looks like a very good product, interested in your remarks about it. Manual would probably seal the deal for me....

How the can do such a great job on the Cruze and eff this one up so badly is beyond me....

One good reason to live somewhere like Seattle VS. Ohio... Salt destroys cars, the MINI is going in the garage for a long winters nap at thanksgiving.

I wish them the best!

Is that not why you then upgrade the system to aftermarket performance versions to resolve said issues? Because of the New Manly body design language or the diesel? Well I already did a review of the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle Turbo and really enjoyed the car. I like anything diesel, so I expect I would enjoy the Beetle TDI even more. That review Rocked It will be good to have you recap the Turbo and compare it to the Diesel when it is available. Two fun Performance rides. There are no aftermaket performance upgrades that Solve the Problem..More can be found on the TDI Club website...but VW has a real problem on its hands with these cars.

...or for those of who like small cars. Interesting, methinks.

Cadillac would be by far my first choice!

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/1208_40_mpg_compact_sedan_comparison/volkswagen_mazda_chevrolet.html What if GM took all those great, efficiency-enhancing insights they learned while developing the Volt and applied them to a conventional gasoline-powered sedan? Actually, that's just about what the Cruze Eco is. It's no secret the two cars share platforms, but nothing trains the mind on efficiency quite like creating a car that depends on a battery (at least sometimes), and many of the Volt's teensy and seemingly improbable efficiencies have reappeared on its much better-selling gasoline-only alter ego. Read more: http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/1208_40_mpg_compact_sedan_comparison/viewall.html#ixzz1xXHVRzso Looks like GM is finally getting some good press for their excellent work!

GM has two bigtime winners in the Sonic and Cruze. Everyone I talk to who has bought one is just head over heals in love with them. It gives me a lot of hope for GM.

Honda Motor Co. is carefully allocating shipments of cars to the United States because its exports there from Japan are "losing money," CFO Fumihiko Ike said. Honda won't cut off all shipments of those imported nameplates, including the Fit subcompact and the Insight and CR-Z hybrids, Ike said. But he said the company needs to minimize the impact of such shipments on its balance sheet. That means that in some cases dealers are getting fewer vehicles than they might like. ... Asked whether Honda makes any profit on Fits sent to the United States, Ike said flatly, "No." http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120611/OEM01/306119947/1117/honda-u-s-imports-losing-money I'll gladly help Honda be more profitable by not buying a fit...glad to help all that way I can....! ...and...IIRC...isn't the Sonic now outselling the Fit....?

Bingo..Napa it is! Sometimes it's not good to throw time and money away on Junk...

Agreed!

The only thing holding me back from a TDI (and I would take a Golf, not a bug) is the continuation of high pressure fuel pump failures and the intercooler icing issues...problems Vee-Dub hasn't been very effective at solving.

Olds...that's rather...twisted!

Yard full of rust...for someone with more time and patience than I have.

Sounds like you like running em hard once in awhile...which I support! (But not being stupid with them...)