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Drew Dowdell

Editor-in-Chief
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Everything posted by Drew Dowdell

  1. Drew Dowdell
    One of my favorite One and Done in these years is the Cadillac Allante. While they had electrical gremlins, I still find them striking today.
  2. Drew Dowdell
    no one shopping these cars is going to worry about 0.2 seconds to 60 mph....not even you, all you worry about is the badge on the grille. The XTS has more passenger room, more trunk space and a more comfortable (and adjustable) ride, far more practical reasons to choose a car in this class than 0.2 seconds to 60. All I'm saying is that for a car that gets so maligned by so many enthusiasts, I see a heck of a lot of XTS V-Sports around, probably more often than I see CTS V-Sports.
  3. Drew Dowdell
    As a blanket statement like that, no it's not. However, lots of tech companies have a non-compete clause, they're probably going after him with this. He probably signed something.
  4. Drew Dowdell
    What's your favorite model that was a one and done? The rules are: One generation only with no major refreshes. Minor refreshes are allowed. An example of the maximum minor refresh would be something like the Cadillac Catera which got updates front and rear fascias and lights, but otherwise remained unchanged in looks. The Catera was a one generation model. No cheating with sub-models that are based off of some mainstream model (Typhoon, Syclone, GNX are examples) unless that mainstream model was also a One and Done. A nameplate that fits the One and Done criteria, but who's name had been used decades before and brought back will still count (Roadmaster is an example) You can pick any car that was in production and sold in your market from 1990 - 1999. ... and GO!
  5. Drew Dowdell
    In case you wondered what a self driving Volvo XC90 looked like
  6. Drew Dowdell
    Thanks again Bobo. I look forward to this every year. Sorry I've been so busy I didn't get to read it until now.
  7. Drew Dowdell
    the GMC looks darker
  8. Drew Dowdell
    420hp 390 lb-ft of torque and AWD in a big comfortable luxury car that has a bit of handling prowess (not the best, but enough) for $65k before incentives isn't a bad deal. You can spend that much at Audi and come up 90 HP / 75lb-ft short.
  9. Drew Dowdell
    The XTS sticks around because they still sell 3,000 of them a month and a lot of the parts are shared with other vehicles like the Lacrosse, XT5, and Impala, so it's relatively inexpensive to manufacture. I see an unusual number of V-Sports here in Pittsburgh.
  10. Drew Dowdell
    yes, I did mean the GLE "crossover coupe"... which is really a 5-door hatchback.
  11. Drew Dowdell
    Everyone I know who has one loves it.
  12. Drew Dowdell
    Refreshed XTS predictions: mild update to front and rear fascias. Base powertrain matches the Buick Lacrosse. . slight interior nip and tuck. V-Sport dropped. Possibly the 3.0TT as option engine upgrade. Introduction of Cadillac's SuperCruise is a possibility, I've seen test mule XTSes in Pittsburgh and there is a lot of self driving car research going on here.
  13. Drew Dowdell
    We need to start calling some of these "crossovers" like the GLA, QX30, GLE, X1, etc, what they really are.... hatchbacks.
  14. Drew Dowdell
    3 Tesla Model-S and one Model-X in my parking garage downtown suddenly.... never saw a cluster like that there before.
  15. Drew Dowdell
    Pick a Sedan, a coupe/convertible, a wagon, an SUV/CUV, a truck, and a wildcard. Any era. Wildcard - The Milwaukee Road Hiawatha observation car.
  16. Drew Dowdell
    I understand that. We're talking about EVs and Hybrids that screw up the math by no longer buying gas.
  17. Drew Dowdell
    Seems to depend on the model. The Intrigue doesn't look too bad, it all just dumps into the oil drain pan. My Encore I did once and now it goes back to the dealer every time. The honda has a traditional filter and doing the oil change is terrible... yet I keep doing the oil change myself because I am a masochist or something.
  18. Drew Dowdell
    Is everyone who is using DEF using the MB version these days? I haven't heard of GM, BMW, VM, or Fiat diesel using MB tech for their DEF. Why couldn't VW have developed their own? They're the diesel masters we were told. Who's tech is the DEF solution that VW is using now?
  19. Drew Dowdell
    I am moving on. I'm just not going to another Corporate America job. But even then, when you are trying to put other goals in place, corporate america can suck the life out of you. @Cubical-aka-Moltar knows what it's like. As far as the promotion thing is concerned. I'm not a kiss-ass. I don't suck up to management. I'm not into office politics at.all. In my observation, it is those people who get promoted regardless of, and sometimes in spite of, their skills and competence. This also isn't my first time at the rodeo.... all of my other corporate jobs have been like this, though obviously for not as long. I come from a line of at least 4 generations of entrepreneurs. It's time to make it a 5th generation... full time.
  20. Drew Dowdell
    I've worked for the same company for over 10 years. I've survived 5+ mergers and I don't even know how many downsizings.... they just announced another round of downsizing again, yet I've been marked exempt from the get-go..... so I must be doing something right. I break my back for this company. People know me as reliable and very knowledgable about our internal I.T. structure. People know that if I don't know the answer, I know who talk to to get the answer. (Why do I say this? I just had my year end review and it was brought up). I spend 90% of my job fighting just to be able to do the right thing and 10% of it actually working. Yet in that 10 years, I've had 1 minor promotion and 1 big promotion. There is a common joke at the company that the only way to really get promoted is to quit and go work somewhere else for 6 months then get hired back, largely because it's happened so many times. To answer your final question, it's my optimism for my own future away from this company as I build one of my own. As negative as I seem about my employer, and while I still have my eye on the exit, my work ethic dictates that I still bust my ass for them every day. 2017 will hopefully be the year I can finally break free from them.
  21. Drew Dowdell
    The oil changes aren't any harder than any other car, but you do need a specific socket wrench for the Olds 3.5 oil filter cover to get the filter out. This is the time when GM was experimenting with cartridge oil filters and couldn't decide where they wanted to put them, but in this case, they're right in the bottom of the oil pan. Just keep an oil filter on hand ahead of time because more often than not, it will need to be ordered. http://www.autozone.com/external-engine/oil-filter/mobil-oil-filter/276027_0_0?checkfit=true
  22. Drew Dowdell
    It would probably also need to be weight based somehow. Why would a Fiesta pay the same tax per mile as a F-250?
  23. Drew Dowdell
    Shortstars use oil by design. Keep up with oil changes. Buy oil filters online because they're expensive everywhere else. Intrigue is a great car and the 3.5 was a great engine when new... but for someone concerned about maintenance costs, a 3800 powered Intrigue may be a better choice.
  24. Drew Dowdell
    Not necessarily handouts, but there is no more working while going to school and coming out of school debt free anymore. It doesn't exist without some sort of handout in the form of scholarship or grant money. My parents could work while they went through school and still afford to rent a small place in Philly and come out of it mostly debt free. They bought a house, raised two kids, mom stayed home till we were 8 and 10 respectively, then went back to nursing and they paid off the house in 15 years. The difference is, it could be done back then. It can't now. You can't get a University of Pennsylvania Nursing degree, rent a small apartment in philly, work part time, and come out of that debt free anymore. It's impossible. And that is the situation faced by so many people these days... they don't want a handout, but they do want a fair shot without having oppressive debt for the next 40 years. In most cities, the cost of decent housing has skyrocketed out of the reach of most people so that the only places they can afford are hours outside of where the jobs are. The system is rigged by those who have money against those who don't already have money. It's only going to get worse.
  25. Drew Dowdell
    and no crippling debt? How unamerican! Oh he's not born American? That's why he's got two bachelors degrees without debt.
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