Drew Dowdell

That's the wheel that comes only on the Caliente trim. I have e-bay searches out for one in my color.

It may not be real wood, but I'm partial to this for obvious reasons. It's got good style and a comfortable layout. Cars today all try to have that fighter cockpit layout that I think is completely unnecessary and space consuming for anything not named Supra, Camaro, or Mustang. Hip room in modern car is measured in inches.... hip room in my Toronado can be measured in feet.

Eh, I think if you narrow it down to like 1987ish through 2002ish with allowances for some exceptions that might be true. That was certainly the malaise era for car interiors. But even as bad as most of the 80's powertrains were, the interiors of the mid-lux and up at least had some style even if they weren't made from top end materials.

Photo uploads are fixed No, the Bolt in both forms is still not an Impala/Fusion/Taurus replacement.

This is fixed

vacation photos of me… also to test that photo uploads are working again.

Her commute is that long? she may say she wants a mustang, but in my observation of women of a particular generation… they say that but end up in a small to mid-size crossover anyway for practicality reasons.

What's the opinion on the Mustang Mach E then?

Could a Rivian R1S perhaps be a useful conveyance for Mrs. Balth (price aside).

I like it for a sedan, but I will likely end up with a Rivian eventually instead

Yes. The use profiles of government security vehicles is substantially different. My Avalanche sat in warehouse the first 7 years of its life only accumulating 12,000 miles in that time. Secret Service vehicles get used and abused.. My Avalanche is still under 28k miles and already had its first set of front brakes because of a stuck caliper from under use. If it weren't for the time limit, my Avalanche would still be under mileage bumper to bumper warranty from GM. But again, what is a minor inconvenience to you and I could be a huge deal to the Secret Service. The standards of reliability are so much different for government than for civilian duty. I have to replace the generator in the building I work and because we have a 911 call center, the specs make it expensive. But as I learned after multiple generator/battery failures this summer, if we're in a situation where we need a generator, we're probably also in a situation where we're getting lots of 911 calls. It's been a major learning experience for me on just how different the reliability requirements are just for local government work. I'd imagine it is equal or higher for the Feds. They're probably already tearing down and rebuilding Suburbans now just to keep them on the road with their requirements.

I am absolutely baffled. I have no idea what changed, but everything is working find now. We're back to our original configuration.

As @David pointed out, the last time GM built these vehicles was 2017... so yeah, they are reaching the end of their service lives. And also, read between the lines.... this is basically a contract for Secret Service support vehicles. They have a duty profile unlike most any other in the world. The existing vehicles last entered service 5+ years ago. You're correct that they won't get passed down to other departments but they're also such a tiny percentage of the overall federal fleet that they're less than a rounding error. Also, the current administration did not put a timeline on when the fleet conversion would be completed and they were likely informed by GM and Ford (the likely only two bidders on the contract) that there would not be a BEV platform that meets the requirements of the Secret Service (and similar) in time for when the 2017 units need to be retired. Along with these, the government is going to have to replace the aging Fusions and Impalas as they reach the end of their service lives. Bureaucrats driving these cars are going to switch to.... what? What is on the market as a BEV that will: 1. Be a like for like replacement for a Fusion or Impala 2. Be cost effective 3. Be built in the US with US parts As for the need, the standards of reliability are so much higher for the Secret Service that it is more economical to replace the entire vehicle than to do tear down and rebuilds at 50k miles (just a guess on the service interval). You can't have a Suburban breaking down over a bad lifter actuator while the Pope or Queen Elizabeth is visiting. Things that are inconveniences to you and I are international incidents to any administration. We have 50% more police cars than officers on duty at any given time for exactly this reason.

Depending on their purpose, the vehicles they are replacing will filter to other agencies. The Suburbans referenced are likely only for the highest level security detail and the units they are replacing are reaching the end of their lives for front line use... but they'll get passed down to other agencies/departments. When Obama came to office he started the program to replace the government fleet with more efficient vehicles. This was partially to help the domestic auto makers during the financial crisis, but replacing general purpose V8 Crown Vics with 4-cylinder Focus, Fusions, and G6es matched up with the desire for a more fuel efficient fleet. And when you think about it... why do some Dept. of Transportation worker need a 22mpg Crown Vic when at 32 mpg Fusion will do? At the Municipality where I work we repurpose old police vehicles to other departments when possible. We have our own TV station/New Station and the TV Station Director just got a decommissioned Police Explorer with all of the armor removed. When the public works director gets a new truck, her old one goes to one of the lawn crews. A lot of those cars started to age out of the system at the beginning of the prior administration and started to get replaced. That batch will begin to age out by the end of the current administration. The current admin has also not put a timeline on BEV conversion which gives them a lot of wiggle room. But by declaring their intention now, they can encourage manufacturers to get production ramped up to replace those vehicles when the time comes. It won't be the entire fleet all at once like during the financial crisis.

Server is a little shaky at the moment and I can't find the cause. I am literally on the sand at the beach right now, please be patient.

2000 Oldsmobile Profile concept with a light bar on front.

Yeah, as long as it has a quick detach mount id be fine with that. I’m going to need tires in the spring and I don’t mind making a bit more scrambler looking

I know, I know, but the risks are much lower. It also wasn’t really feasible with what we were doing. I need to find a bag solution that works with a second rider. My current bag that I use for commuting leaves no place for him to put his right leg.

Why even bother with this as a concept? It looks like a cartoon clown car. Virtually none of it is buildable. I don’t even care about it’s propulsion since it wouldn’t be legal as a vehicle in any 1st world country. people get paid to come up with this crap?

The dealership has no say. When I bought out the Encore I just arranged my financing through the credit Union and they sent the buyout to Ally bank. Dealership was never involved in the process at all.

This has been such a cool trip!

Na, it was all slow speed cruising. 90% under 30mph and the other 10% under 55 on some 2 lane highways. Aside from a cicada to the face shield I didn’t get hit with anything. Higher speeds than that, yeah I wear gear.

leader of the motorcycle gang waiting for the ferry back to Rehoboth Beach.

Third adventure sticker achieved. This morning we got on the bike and took the ferry to Cape May. Toured the Victorian houses, got some seafood for lunch, went to the boardwalk at Wildwood NJ (90% closed for the season), and then went to the Cape May lighthouse to wait for the ferry back. If you’d like to see some of the other pics you can follow my Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rocketfella307/

So I’m riding this all the time now and I finally got Albert to 2up with me a couple days ago. I always intended to take it on adventures so I bought some plain black plastic frame fillers and I’m collecting stickers on it from the places I go. Back in July I loaded it up on the truck and drove down to Miami with it to finally go riding with my dad which was a bucket list item for me. On that trip I also rode the bike from Miami to Key West with my sister and nephew following in the car. So I got badge one: Today I scored badge 2 for Rehoboth Beach Delaware: Sometime next week Albert and I are going to take the ferry over to Cape May and score badge 3.