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ShadowDog

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Everything posted by ShadowDog

  1. The Sierra looks more natural across the chassis-line (1500-2500-3500). I like how that was kept together. Both the Sierra and Silverado would seem to be fantastic machines for the heavy-duty work. Now months after, I still can't warm up to the interior; but after seeing them at the dealership, most people wouldn't really care of the difference next to the previous model. Still, I had to wonder why the salesman kept hinting at me that he could find a buyer in less than a day for a great trade value on my '13... salesmen, sheesh, I just want to see the new rides. Leave me alone. I couldn't put my finger on it, until now, that the Silverado, with all those blocks and bars of chrome, reminds me of a 80's action flick that starred a futuristic, heavily armored, post-apocalyptic special forces machine. I mean, it really does look a little overkill. Mind you, if today's movie producers need something that looks like a futuristic, heavily armored, post-apocalyptic special forces machine, they need only budget for the Silverado and a few cans of flat-black spray paint.
  2. DAMNIT! I forgot my meter change in the outhouse! NOW where am I gonna park?!
  3. ocn - those were damned funny. Man, how things have changed since then. Watching a carload of folks bounding down the corners, banging their heads, and when the car rolls, you see a bunch of $hit flying out of every opening as if they were heading to a family picnic and decided to stop off and the 'ring for a lap. Yup, roll over, crawl out of the window and dust off your button-up shirt and corduroy bell-bottoms. "Whew, what fun!" Good God! I nearly $hat when I saw those four yaahoos in the convertible Beetle! Imagine if that bugger rolled?!
  4. Good News: You notice your Ex Wife's lover was the drunk guy at Barrett Jackson whom bought your busted-ass Cimarron.
  5. Kinda flies in the face of everything being lamented by so many that small-displacement turbo was the way to go. It might seem there is some work to be done if there is to be any appreciable benefit. I wonder how everything fairs with long-term maintenance thrown in the mix.
  6. Captioned a blank image sent to me last fall.
  7. I figured this would have been up already:
  8. I bought a standalone Magellan GPS so I could have a portable device. Having one hard-wired into a vehicle just seems so impractical for the expense.
  9. I'm going to say the Silverado has some enhanced appearance over the previous version (I was never a fan of the bulky corner chrome bumpers that looked like big bumper covers). It has a cleaner style throughout. Certainly not innovative or worth recognizing over another make, but fresher and reasonably better than before. I also recognize how it previously had that ass-up stance with wheel arches so massive it made 20" wheels look puny, especially in HD configuration... almost like someone spent their money on a lift kit but not enough was left for larger tires... disproportionate. Let's hope the HD configuration isn't more of the same. The Sierra takes an interesting departure from heritage, jumping more into that in-your-face Tonka styling. I have a monochromatic preferrence, but I don't think it's possible to have that with the new design. That's not a bad thing; considering the enthusiasm among buyers for crap-loads of chrome, so it's giving a healthy dose here. I'm o-k with it, buuut, I'm more a fan of the previous design - a little more conservative and clean looking for my taste. Comparing interiors, seeing as I've had my truck only since November, I can clearly see things that set this design ahead a bit. The 110v receptacle and multi-port USB directly up front is a big improvement... sad to say. There's plenty of 12v outlets in mine for all things needed for travel with two toddlers and a techno-geek wife; however, I'd have selected better placement regions. Maybe the former design was meant to have things cleaner for less aftermarket cables everywhere; but, it could have been better. This new interior shows what I'd have appreciated; of couse, depending upon what's inside the armrest box and in the back (crew cab model). I think I like the previous model layout better. There's only one knob I don't like having to reach for in my truck because I need my seat all the way back. Other than that, I really like the clean and simple design. This refresh seems a bit unnecessarily busy. Overall, I'm liking it better than Ford's homage to Duplo Building Blocks. The instrument info screen is a nice touch; however, I tend to have less distraction looking at my centre screen than my instrument info display, so I'm not sure it's an improvement. I'm definitely not a fan of those small steering wheel button panels. The new placement of the trailer-brake controls is more prominent - not that I really have much of an issue operating mine on the lower panel without looking at it. I suppose other people need to see it clearly, but that top-left placement seems overkill. Not a huge minus, but that left pod really looks too aftermarket to me. Specific climate control buttons are a throwback from the current multi-selection input and viewscreen. Perhaps it just makes for quicker input selection, which makes sense. I know the existing version requires numerous button presses to do everything from turning fan speeds, temperature and modes up and down. This looks like it makes it quicker and simpler. Not at all bad to consider. I'm willing to bet the IntelliLink and touch menu controls are pretty good, but just another gizmo to keep up with the rest of the crap everyone else is throwing in vehicles these days. I'll finish just saying that I really do prefer my '13 more. The new Sierra has some desireable traits, both cosmetically and mechanically; however, I'm in no hurry to replace mine for just a couple improvements or features. Am I attracted to the Sierra enough that if I didn't have mine now I would choose it over a '13 if they were side-by-side? Well, considering the hefty incentives that would likely be hanging on the '13s to get rid of them, probably not. Given no other choice, yeah I would probably choose the new Sierra over another make, since when I bought mine, I 'was' looking at everything on the market. I think GM did okay here. Nothing earth-shattering, but nice, necessary refresh. I don't think these are the days of major innovations, but mostly technological advancements to aid in fuel economy and paying attention to the family-oriented capabilities truck buyers are searching for. Well, that's my LONG WINDED thought.
  10. That was an interesting few hours I had the television on in the background with those cars. Quite a few exceptional late 60's era muscle cars, and a number of seven-figure sales. Rick Hendrick made off with no less than four cars that I saw. He won the bidding on the '68 L88 Vette for $1M. He also won the bidding on the being the owner of the first 2014 Stingray that will come off the assembly line with the 0001 VIN number. The price? $1.1M that GM is donating the proceeds to benefit the College of Creative Studies. There was also a perfectly restored '69 Camaro that he scooped. Can't remember the price. Funny how the Chevy guy ended up with George Bush Jr.'s F150 King Ranch for $300K. Those proceeds were going to a veterans assistance program. I was rather surprised at how relatively inexpensive some of those cars were selling off for. But the one-off and ultra-rare cars definitely fetched a huge price. I thought the 71' Cuda for $1.32M was an amazing piece.
  11. There's a reason I hate smart phone cameras. Yes, it's steel grey. I actually find it peculiar GM offers limited colour selections on the All Terrain package. If they had this in blue, I'd have been too excited and probably end up paying too much! Most people around here have every shade of silver. It's quite odd this colour makes it more unique. I also liked the deeper tone as a contrast to the low-level chrome. My van is silver. My wife's car is silver. I don't hate silver now, but it suuure is gettin' old. They have that colour on the brochure model, and that white one is sweet-looking. Some say it's too much like plastic. I see the point, but I also like the differenciation to everything else on the road. My Monte Carlo Z34 was white with white wheels, and wow do I wish that car didn't get written off. I'd have a tough time choosing between the trucks if I had that side-by-side. The crew cab was an absolute must for me. Despite only having a 5'8" bed, and apparently GM going longer in 2014 to match Ford with a longer bed on the crew cab, it'll meet our needs far better than the van just adding utility alone. The price was a tough call against the SLE I originally intended to buy, but the dealer's offer down to nearly wholesale cost, combined with zero interest financing was the moment for me to wonder how much better it could possibly get? The standard chrome is interesting. It'd be a complete reversal here in that one would have to add the chrome package to the All Terrain model. In this case, for me, adding chrome ends up making it look like every other one out there on the road. My wife's co-workers practically fight over the new aftermarket catalogues at work, challenging each other to one-up their chrome accessory purchase. When they saw my truck, they kept telling me all the chrome bits and pieces I could add. I guess it's a truck-guy thing. Having driven cars half of the time, I got to think chrome was too ricey. Apparently, it's the exact opposite on a truck. Thanks for the congrats from all. Again, I'd have more pictures... if it would ever just stop fricken' raining.
  12. The All Terrain package adds body-colour grille and front fascia. I like chrome less than the next guy. It's one of the reasons I like the GMC more than the Chevy. This truck in black is drop-dead-gorgeous... if one puts a lot of effort into keeping it that clean. I certainly don't have the time for that.
  13. Deal is done. I did some cross-comparisons and came to the conclusion that, like the van, for the amount of time this truck will be used primarily as a family transport, I'd have come to regret not getting the additional options for more comfort on the long-hauls. The point of doing something a little extra for me was a good one. Even my wife said I don't think of myself as often as I should. Anyway, I consulted a co-worker of my wife's whom has made a great living as an auto salesman. I took my time reviewing the bill of sale and managed to cut out some costly details and added running boards. By the end of the deal I came out comfortably better than my monthly budget limit by $154, so I'm satisfied. The salesman was a great guy, too. I never got the impression he was "trying" to sell. I think he knew I had done my research, so he didn't need to sugar-coat features or options, or point out unnecessary whoopdeedoos. The real truth is, I had a really crappy day before I got to the dealership this afternoon to pick the truck up, so that kinda ruined my excitement. Once I can get some daylight and drive time, I think I'll quickly figure out why I should be happy. Soon, I'll get some images of it somewhere nice. Thanks for the input you guys gave me. In all truth, it helped me make that final choice.
  14. Well, good point... I suppose I just mean on the basis of comparison next to that SLT. Yeah, that package for that price really shows good value. I'm crunching numbers and it's tough to ignore the dollar difference for essentially the same truck! The difference lies in things like the sunroof, leather bucket seats, wheels... just feel-good upgrades, really. This decision is tough for me.
  15. Yeah, and the decision just got a little more tough. The build sheet for the SLE shows it has the Special Edition and chrome package with the perfect mix of back-road and hauling upgrades. http://www.kalawsky.com/new/GMC/2013-GMC-Sierra+1500-547d28ec0a0d06490046752dc91c4ec6.htm# That one can be had for just under $37,000 I just have to decide if, this time, I'm going to go ahead with my 'wants' over my 'needs'. My last two purchases were the minivan and my wife's car... not exactly excitement-inducing purchases. The deal breaker would be if the All Terrain is too rough for my taste on the highway as compared to the SLE. But if it's reasonably as smooth as the SLE, the only thing left to decide is ... uh, if I deserve to spend a little more for something unique?
  16. Hi all. I'm truck shopping. Getting rid of the mini-van now that I need something to better meet the family needs. I've looked at all makes, questioned new owners, examined build-lists, optioned-together glorified "I wish" truck builds, came back to Earth, and started searching for deals. The 2012 clearouts for 0% financing held few to be desired, so I waited... until I saw an ad at the local dealership for an "End of the World Sale" - one day only. They're discounting everything on their lot, including 2013 units. Test drove a 2013 SLE with the 1SB package and a couple add-on options and liked it, but stopped cold when I saw an All Terrain with the Offroad package sitting on a hauler, awaiting delivery. I walked around it, noticed its obvious option upgrades and inquired on the pricing for the sale date. MSRP (CDN) is $55,785 pre-tax (or $8,330 more than the SLE I test drove) Discount offers and customer puppy eyes took it down to $46,581.54 (factoring additional costs to haggle around, the savings is about $9,693) If I feel satisfied, I'll be heading in Sunday, Nov 4th for either that truck, or seeing if I can get that SLE 1SB down below $40k with this deal. Is the All Terrain worth it? Or can I do better? Thoughts? Images attached
  17. A 70's stub-nose Ford panel van. I wasn't driving, but my friend was towing, starting to bog down in the RPMs up a hill and got muddled up in the gears. In frustration, he asked me 'WTF gear am I in?!' ... I couldn't tell from the passenger seat because the handle was so loose, it kind of had its own personality. We came to a stop on the side of the road while he 'practiced'.
  18. Glad to see you're among the few outside of the disposable culture. While my grandfather was quite the resourceful and inventive fellow, my mom pretty much hangs on to everything broken that might end up being Frankensteined into existence again. She had four electric trimmers and I could get one working with all the parts; however, I calculated what my time was worth away from my wife, kids and other items on my job list and handed her a new $300 Echo gas trimmer and called it a day. ...I know, not very resourceful, but there's only so much I can take. What you did was something I would have done before a wife and kids. Now... I'd have given it all to someone like yourself with the time and effort. Good on you. That was a fine job!
  19. In any event, it would appear there was no longer the capability to correct the problem from in the cab; i.e., it broke.
  20. He says, "Do you like attention when you go to the mud hole?" Seeing the lady in the photo makes me hope he's still talking about the truck.
  21. I'm not sure if it was mentioned, but if you look at the passenger side wheel right before the moment of failure, the suspension lifts it completely off the ground and the front end slams down. That looks more like a hydraulic action took place to retract the wheels. If anything, I wonder if the operator meant to engage lift to assist ground clearance over the hump and accidentally engaged retract? In any event, I'm sure plenty of 'American girth' jokes were let loose.
  22. A quality synthetic oil or synthetic blend can be beneficial in the long run. Comparing them is the hard part. Still, IMHO, having to spend considerably more for a synthetic oil brand over a superior dino blend when most value-priced synthetic oils already offer superior-superior protection, begs the question, "Does that mean I get superior-superior-SUPERIOR protection? What does this really mean?" Bigger picture than just the protection of your vehicle is an investment in time. I change my oil myself because I like to know what's going on with my cars. I do all of my general maintenance myself unless I'm under time constraints. For me, after doing the math for what I buy oil at (cost-wise), having an oil change interval at around the 8,000 km mark with synthetic costs about the same as using quality-conventional oil at 5,000 km intervals, but I save time. Even if I took the car to the shop, the hassle of adhering to appointments, dropping off the car and picking it up is a big deal for me because my preferred shop is a 30 kms drive. They're also the only ones whom offer courtesy cars, so using the local shop still means having to arrange for a ride to-and-fro. Time is money, and doing it myself is actually faster in the long run. Synthetic oil helps me out there with extended change intervals. Protection-wise, synthetic has removed that ruddy-cold start dry-tick my OHC engines have; most certainly important during winter around here. With the Cummins Fleetguard synthetic media filters I have an 'in' on, I can't go wrong.
  23. I view the product differentiation the same way so many others do. The Silverado has been more of a work-body unit around here, while Sierra trucks have been the option-laden and upper-model choice. I notice more predominantly pavement-pounding HD units around, shiny and spotless, as a choice of many upper-crust buyers. Of these buyers I know, many are business owners with some sense to know they would be looked at rather differently if they were behind the wheel of an Escalade, or some other high-end utility vehicle. They can surely afford an X5, but they're not stupid enough to be seen in one. As one put it, these are interesting economic times. When so many are struggling to stay ahead in their business, his business caters to them for heavy-duty repair. While they drive around in 5-10 year old trucks, he's in a fully-loaded Sierra 2500HD Denali. Even that, he says, is pushing the envelope when it comes to perception and image. He likes the truck because it is perfect for utility, but high-end enough for his taste in enjoying the fruits of his labour. All the while, it doesn't make him stand out completely like a rich man taking from the working man. Nobody ever bothers to mention his wife and her Lexus RX. GMC can certainly benefit from going even further upscale for buyers just like the guy I mentioned above. The Ford SD King Ranch caters to a certain upper level working class; however, I believe even the Denali nameplate has added even more class-distinction in upper categories. The question is, to what end? Are we looking at motivating buyers into a realm of higher performance for road-goers only? More feature-laden with luxury options narrowing the gap between Denali and Escalade? Or just trim, bits and pieces as optional equipment for image-sake?
  24. No doubt this was a 'check for leaks' morning. There are some insanely wild YouTube videos related to expert handling of equipment. Somewhere on there is one of a company building a massive steel tower that enabled a crawler to lift itself up, one step at a time, to demonstrate its ability. I don't know about the machine; rather, it's the operators' expertise that really impresses me.
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