Drew Dowdell
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Everything posted by Drew Dowdell
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It doesn't matter if 90mph is normal for a Zafara driver, just the fact that it can do it is enough. An insignia driver, certainly can be doing 90 regularly. I've driven on the autobahn a number of times. In the free zones with no speed limit, anything under 80 and you'll get run over.- 12 replies
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- Emissions
- Emissions Device
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90mph on the AutoBahn is pretty standard.
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So Sorry By Drew Dowdell Today, our newsletter app got stuck in a traffic circle and emailed out our weekly newsletter to a number of our users 7 to 10 times . We believe we have fixed the issue and it should not happen again. Sorry for any inconvenience. Drew
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Okay... so some clarity is in order. Nearly all cars will turn off and on their emissions controls a various stages of driving... You don't always need EGR to be turned on at all times, and you don't always need air injection (when equipped) to be turned on at all time. If the emissions control systems in these two cars (they don't mention the engine, but the Zafra has the 1.4T and that's available in the Insignia as well) are shutting down over 90mph, it's probably because they don't need to be running with the engine operating at that speed. I can tell you from experience that 65mph in my Encore 1.4T means about 2,500rpm, and while I've never had it to 90mph, I assume the engine would be turning well over 3,000 rpm just to maintain such a speed. The Zafara and Insignia are both heavier vehicles, so the engine would be working even harder at that 3,000+ RPM just to keep them there. Very very few cars operate at that RPM for extended periods of time, so I can certainly believe GM's statement that the engine would need to be protected. However, that's also the range where emissions correction is less needed because the fuel is burning in the most efficient manner and the catalyst would be glowing hot. But sheesh... 90mph in an Insigna Wagon 1.4T? That's really gotta be pushing the limits on that little motor. Edit: They do share some diesel engines too... so if could be one or both of them.
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2016 (all new) Chevy Cruze LT 1.4t automatic
Drew Dowdell replied to regfootball's topic in Reader Reviews
It probably is. -
The only way to get to $35k is to select the upgraded engine. The upgrade option on the '17 will become available as soon as you step up to the convenience group which starts at $27k btw. How much the upgrade will cost, I don't know.
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I wish they'd gear the Spark a little better and give an optional engine upgrade. It would make it more suitable for the long distance driving you do. but I haven't driven the new one yet, so maybe the CVT makes the difference.
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GM News: GM Readies A Plan To Compensate Crossover Owners
Drew Dowdell replied to William Maley's topic in General Motors
They'll get a $50 gift card, max.- 8 replies
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- Buick Enclave
- Chevrolet Traverse
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One can get more cylinder volume per dressed weight and and external dimensions, thus being able to make up for less HP/L. The icing on the cake is that two valve heads tend to flow better at low rpms; that combined with more displacement gives more area under the torque curve in the rpm range that engines spend most of their time. I never had anything against pushrod engines. Exactly.... even my '81 Oldsmobile feels quick off the line. It's only a 3-speed auto, so max 0-60 isn't up to modern standards, but in typical traffic I move along just fine without a struggle. Double the number of gears (or more) and that old engine with 140ish horsepower would probably move the car along very nicely.... and why? Because it has 255 lb-ft of torque at about 1500 rpm. That's more torque than nearly all modern non-turbo DOHC V6es see period... and those that do exceed that torque spec don't do it till they've hit 5 times the RPM of my 307. HP/L is just about the dumbest metric we've ever had for passenger cars and everyone is worse off for the industry moving in that direction.
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Someone previous mentioned that I should use a rental because it would mean having to replace the tires a month sooner because I was about to put 900 miles on them. The "hard stop" is that they have to be replaced by end of July regardless because they are already in a condition that they would fail inspection..... so might as well burn as many miles off of them as possible before I am forced to replace them anyway.
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Sinus infections suck
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The big difference between the Trax and Encore is the level of sound isolation. The 1.4T in the Trax is not a pleasant sound without the active noise cancellation the Encore has. Driving the Trax after spending so much time in my Encore it was immediately noticeable and completely turned me off to the car.
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Cheers for the model... but jeers for this particular car. Don't like the continental kit and where did the original wheel covers go on a car with such low mileage? They look like Cheapo PepBoys replacements.
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I ended up using the Buick. I have a hard stop in July on the tires as they won't pass inspection then (they wouldn't pass inspection today). So, instead of renting I decided to just save the money from renting the car for the new set of tires in July and burn as many miles off the old tires as possible till then. It was a little snug with 4 of us in the car, but it was fine.
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DOHC only really helps a V configuration engine if you are displacement restricted. If there is no restriction on displacement (government regulation, corporate edict) then the best way to get the most power is to fill the engine bay with as many cubic inches of displacement you can.... and the best way to do that is with pushrods.
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It's not like Buick couldn't change the catalog tomorrow.... At this point, they're selling as fast as they can build them.
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They've been selling at a rate of over 60k a year with the existing engine.... I don't blame Buick for not giving away the upgrade for free.
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The 138 hp 1.4T is standard across all trims. The upgraded 153hp 1.4T DI is available on all trims above the base level as an additional cost.
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It's situational. Anywhere you can fit a DOHC V8, I can fit a pushrod multiple liters larger, and probably add a supercharger on top. Pushrods are so much smaller in their eternal dimensions it lets them have much much larger internal dimensions. And really... the CTS-V engine is far superior to the M5 or E-AMG in power... and not just by a little bit... there are significant power advantages in the CTS-V.
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You certainly have a way with (not) words....
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I think its platform is going away as the Cruze/Volt moves on. They'd have a much bigger redesign challenge than you suggest.
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I actually really like it.
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You can find ELRs with under 5k miles on them for about 50% off sticker.... they'll even extend the warranty for you.
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- Cadillac
- Cadillac ELR
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My desktop at work is still saying the server is down (moving to a new server)but the site works from my phone. Just a heads up incase this isn't isolated. Refresh your DNS or reboot. All that is showing is that your DNS servers haven't received the updated location of the website yet.
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It's a shame. If I lived in a different climate, I'd drive one.
