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Drew Dowdell

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Everything posted by Drew Dowdell

  1. Drew Dowdell
    Why would U compare the LaX with the ATS anyway? The LaX should be viewed as a step down from the CTS. The ATS more in line with the Regal or even Verano in terms of steps. Because he seems to think that anyone with $40k to spend is going to go the same direction he is... that RWD trumps everything else including size, or that someone looking for the size and comfort of a Lacrosse is going to downsize in to a really small CLA because glowing-pointy-star. Do people not read? I would prefer an ATS over a LaCrosee, but I prefer performance over length and interior dimensions. I said you can argue one over the other. If your view of luxury is leg room and a soft ride and some tech gadgets, you may want a Kia Cadenza or similar. Different strokes for different folks. You have argued consistently over the years that the Lacrosse is not a luxury car in your view simply because you value other factors more. Are you changing your argument to say that the Lacrosse IS a luxury car, but just not your style?
  2. Drew Dowdell
    Because reviewing cars is different than giving advice as to which car a certain person should buy..... and as I also pointed out above, often those people already made a decision on what they are buying or have bought, and just hoping you'll justify their choice. My favorite question I get </s> is "What's the best car to buy?"..... that's it... no qualifying criteria, no budget, nothing. I like to answer "The Bugatti Veyron, it'll run you a million dollars".... to which they answer "Oh, I have an Accord LX... is that a good car?".... to which I reply... "Sure, but it's not a Veyron". I'll direct you this comment It isn't I don't like giving advice, but it seems most people have their made up. Basically, I try to guide the process along with said vehicle along with a few other choices. I'm willing to help out someone, but I can't be sure if it's because they need justification or actual help. I do the same thing.... I find out what they are most interested in and then also suggest viable alternatives they might not have thought about.
  3. Drew Dowdell
    Why would U compare the LaX with the ATS anyway? The LaX should be viewed as a step down from the CTS. The ATS more in line with the Regal or even Verano in terms of steps. Because he seems to think that anyone with $40k to spend is going to go the same direction he is... that RWD trumps everything else including size, or that someone looking for the size and comfort of a Lacrosse is going to downsize in to a really small CLA because glowing-pointy-star.
  4. Drew Dowdell
    Most people asking for car buying advice don't actually want advice... they just want you to justify the decision they already made so they can say "Well a car guy told me this was the best choice"
  5. Drew Dowdell
    Buick's compact car, the Verano may not see an encore after the model run is up at the end of the 2017 model year according to a report on AutoNews.com. With the addition of the Buick Envision going on sale in a few weeks, Buick see crossovers making up 70% of its sales going forward. It's not hard to see why Buick would come to that conclusion. GM sales figures for December 2015 show the Verano moving 31,886 copies for the year while the similarly priced Buick Encore sold 67,549 units. Buick's strategy lately has been to fill "white space" in the market. Offer models that don't quite have an exact match to offerings from any other brand. When the Verano debuted in 2011, it filled such a white space being a small car with premium features like heated steering wheel, large for the time entertainment screen, and a powerful turbo option. Since that time, redesigned versions of the Chevy Cruze and Honda Civic have started offering those features and more. Canceling the Verano makes it a one-and-done model. The writing apparently has been on the wall for the Verano for a while. In December we noticed that the Turbo model was apparently being dropped for 2017 as it no longer appears on the Verano's VIN card. The biggest impact will be to Buick dealerships who will now have to convince 30,000 customers a year that they don't want a sedan and what they really want is a shiny new Encore or Envision. Source: Autonews.com View full article
  6. Drew Dowdell
    2017 Buick Verano VIN Card
  7. Drew Dowdell
    More information about "No Encore For Buick Verano"
    Buick's compact car, the Verano may not see an encore after the model run is up at the end of the 2017 model year according to a report on AutoNews.com. With the addition of the Buick Envision going on sale in a few weeks, Buick see crossovers making up 70% of its sales going forward. It's not hard to see why Buick would come to that conclusion. GM sales figures for December 2015 show the Verano moving 31,886 copies for the year while the similarly priced Buick Encore sold 67,549 units. Buick's strategy lately has been to fill "white space" in the market. Offer models that don't quite have an exact match to offerings from any other brand. When the Verano debuted in 2011, it filled such a white space being a small car with premium features like heated steering wheel, large for the time entertainment screen, and a powerful turbo option. Since that time, redesigned versions of the Chevy Cruze and Honda Civic have started offering those features and more. Canceling the Verano makes it a one-and-done model. The writing apparently has been on the wall for the Verano for a while. In December we noticed that the Turbo model was apparently being dropped for 2017 as it no longer appears on the Verano's VIN card. The biggest impact will be to Buick dealerships who will now have to convince 30,000 customers a year that they don't want a sedan and what they really want is a shiny new Encore or Envision. Source: Autonews.com
  8. Drew Dowdell
    Do you lift, dfelt???? Am I talking to a fellow gym rat and didn't know this whole time??? Need you both to kick my butt into the habit once I'm done all of this travel at the end of the month. I was taught to never ski while tired or you'll end up hurting yourself, and I imagine the same is true for lifting. I can't get over the exhaustion to go make myself more exhausted at the moment. LOL, Yes, I was 6 ft tall at age 12, totally a mess in coordination and my dad took me to the Washington state body building competition which is now the Washington State Natural Body building competition. Saw Arnold and fell in love with the sport. I did everything I could to build myself and eventually bought his Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding and never looked back. Highly Recommend this book: ArnoldBible.jpg Even if you do not want to be a full blown body building but just to tone and shape up, this shows step by step the safest ways I know to lift free weights and build your body into a strong solid frame. At 48 years Old, I ski harder than most teens and 20's according to my son. Still hit the parks, jumps, etc. I truly believe being a Gym Rat is an important part of long life with little down time. Drew, best way to ease back into it when the Gym has not been a consistent part of your life is to have some dumb bells at home, not 20, 30 40 lbs, but simple 3,5 & 8 pound dumb bells, so you can do bicep curls and tricep presses while watching TV. Forearm curls to help strengthen and keep from having issues with your fingers and forearms for those of us at the computer all day. You can also then use these same dumb bells to do lungs while watching TV or a movie. Standing squats if you want to get a bit heavier dumbbells can be done also. This will get you into a routine and then you can slide back into the gym. So yes, a fellow Gym Rat and now hopefully people can understand why I find anything other than a full size SUV at 6'6" tall and 280 lbs to be a small comfy auto for me. Happy LIfting! How do you get around the pre-existing exhaustion?
  9. Drew Dowdell
    Shooting Brake is a body style. Balth can explain
  10. Drew Dowdell
    Size.. Cutting down a platform is easier than stretching one beyond its design.
  11. Drew Dowdell
    I have "status" because I rent with national so much. The selection in Pittsburgh has been unusually lame lately.
  12. Drew Dowdell
    I usually get something nice. Loaded Grand Cherokees or 300s. My last rental was a Maxima and it was fine
  13. Drew Dowdell
    I bought out the lease a year ago
  14. Drew Dowdell
    BMW fans won't buy a Cadillac at any price no matter how good it is and no matter how many times it laps a BMW around the Ring. Just like you still wouldn't buy a Cadillac even if it was a rebadged S Class. You like to make up stories about why your pet brand is so much better, but you keep having to move the goal posts when Cadillac meets or exceeds them. That's what's annoying about brand fans like you. You simply cannot admit that there are areas your brand falls down in.
  15. Drew Dowdell
    I guess that's another factor. I can rent something larger than our Encore. I'm reserved for a midsize, but because of my status with national, I can take anything on the lot.
  16. Drew Dowdell
    I'm not 100% sure they will, but I am 100% sure it doesn't matter. The Housewives of Miami who will buy this can't even pronounce Nurburgring.
  17. Drew Dowdell
    That's probably as close as we got lately..
  18. Drew Dowdell
    The majority of coupes we have today all seem to tumble forward rather than sweep back. None of the sedans seem to sweep back... That would immediately show up on my radar.
  19. Drew Dowdell
    Uh, no. That is a completely dishonest comparison..comparing when the torque peaks occur is basically immaterial. The BMW and Cadillac produce the same amount of torque within 500rpm of each other, but the Cadillac goes on to produce even more as the RPM climbs while the BMW gets left behind. No one ever in all the history of automobiles is going to complain about 590 lb-ft @ 2000 rpm (plus more later) verses 590 lb-ft @ 1500 rpm (absolute max)... Except of course you and your badge snobbery.
  20. Drew Dowdell
    Your information, as usual, is erroneous. BMW V-12 : 592 HP / 590 TRQ Cadillac V : 640 HP / 630 TRQ Already puts the smack down on the V-12, with a half-liter less displacement & 4 less cylinders. And no smoothness penalty. BMW's 12 needs a major overhaul. I think I read some rumor where BMW might up the power of the V12, as Rolls Royce will use it too. But if it is the 592 of the 760 which it probably will be, that engine does make peak torque at 1,500 rpm, which is really low. The CTS-V makes peak torque at 3,600. Regardless though, it is physically impossible to make a V8 as smooth as a V12 or an inline six for that matter. The V12 is the smoothest engine configuration. So wait.. the BMW "only" makes it's 590 lb-ft at 1,500 rpm, and that's the most you'll ever get..... and the CTS-V makes that same 590 lb-ft at 2,000rpm and will continue to deliver another 40 lb-ft once reaching 3,600rpm... . but somehow the BMW is better and has better power delivery? What exactly have the Germans been putting in your Kool-Aid?
  21. Drew Dowdell
    The quality of the materials in the interior is exactly my point. A Cadenza has nicer materials than an Optima. An Avalon has nicer materials than a Camry. A Maxima has nicer materials than an Altima... etc. A Lacrosse has nicer materials than an Impala and a Regal has nicer materials than a Malibu. Agreed. And a Lexus ES nicer than an Avalon, and Infiniti Q50 nicer than a Maxima, etc. You can get luxury features like a heated steering wheel in a Kia Forte, doesn't make the Forte a luxury car. It is harder to say what is more luxurious a Cadenza or an A4 the Cadenza probably has more equipment and features, the A4 better build quality or materials. In that overlap price point in the mid $30s buyers could have different opinions of luxury. I still think materials and driving experience are what set the true luxury cars apart, which is why I think a rear drive chassis is important, because you can create that premium feel, long wheel base for smoother ride, 50/50 weight balance for better handling. These are the things a Toyota Avalon can't do, the Avalon will still drive like a Camry. Comparing base to base... yes. But a loaded Avalon is about the same as an ES (I'm not all that impressed with the ES anyway, so there's that), I'd take a Maxima Platinum over a Q50 any day all day, the Maxima is just that good. The Cadenza... eh, it's a half hearted effort from Kia, so I wouldn't go there, but a K900? Sure! The Lacrosse over an Impala for the same price? No contest. The lower model Audis have not been impressing me at all lately. I see a lot of VW in them. I'd love an A8L, but that isn't the level of effort Audi is putting into the A3/A4 these days. I really dislike the A3, the automotive writer in me can see all of the Jetta hardpoints in it and it does not feel premium to me at all... it's a premium over a Jetta... but not premium over other cars for its price. And no, the Avalon doesn't drive like a Camry... Toyota tried too hard to make it a "sport sedan" so now it doesn't have any of the cushiness it was once known for. The suspension is stiff and it slams over the pavement... the ES is equally as bad... but that's a Toyota engineering decision, not anything else.
  22. Drew Dowdell
    I dare Cadillac to look at their most iconic vehicles from each decade and try a reproduce few of those formulas with modern requirements. Pull from their history. I would start with a '39, '48 Jetback, '57 Eldorado, '67 Eldorado, a '75 Seville, an '85 Seville.... I don't mean copy the styling... I mean copy the formula. Most of the ones I listed were when Cadillac dared to be different in some way. That said... as I'm sure Balth would point out a pattern in my selection..... I would totally be in line ready to sign up for a long hood, short deck, swept back coupe or sedan from Cadillac.
  23. Drew Dowdell
    I found you one. The CLA/GLA. Same platform, same engines. CLA250 FWD - 26/38 GLA250 FWD - 25/35 CLA250 AWD - 24/32 GLA250 AWD - 24/32 The GLA is just a CLA hatchback with a 0.75 in ride height increase... so maybe not what you're looking for. Edit: Another one... Infiniti Q40 (the old G-series) and QX50 (same platform as the old G-series) Q40 - 19/27/22 QX50 - 17/24/20
  24. Drew Dowdell
    The quality of the materials in the interior is exactly my point. A Cadenza has nicer materials than an Optima. An Avalon has nicer materials than a Camry. A Maxima has nicer materials than an Altima... etc. A Lacrosse has nicer materials than an Impala and a Regal has nicer materials than a Malibu.
  25. Drew Dowdell
    So I usually like shooting brakes, and this could have worked... But somehow I think it looks like someone grafted a second gen Pruis onto the back of an FRS
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