mustang84

That interior does not look good. The center stack is cluttered beyond all belief with huge Playskool nobs. The only thing interesting is the double-layering of the dash, but Toyota has done that before. The door handles are nice too. But otherwise, pretty unimaginative and cluttered.

The really sad thing is that so many in Quixtar are convinced that they'll be retired and living in the Bahamas by age 30. Where it all falls apart is the fact that you have to continually keep recruiting people in order to make more money. And the uplines as they're called keep loading you down with more product to sell. Some get to a breaking point where Quixtar takes over their life and they have to abandon their jobs, families, and friends and anyone who has no interest in becoming their downline. One guy that was a high ranking member and left because of the dishonesty received death threats to both himself and his family. He has a free 300 page PDF book out called "Merchants of Deception" that I've read a little bit of and is kinda interesting.

I found out recently that my best friend from high school and his girlfriend are members of Quixtar, successor to the pyramid-scheme Amway that has been around since the 70s. He first mentioned something to me a couple weeks ago when we were golfing about making money and only having to work a few hours a week by selling things. I was kinda interested because it sounded pretty easy (I assumed it was just some on-line business type of thing) and he told me it was called Quixtar. But something about that name hung in the back of my mind later that evening when I was back home I remembered a guy trying to recruit me to Quixtar when I was a sophomore in college and thinking it was probably some type of scam so I just politely said I wasn't interested. Then tonight I get a facebook message from him to all of his friends saying how "this opportunity could change your life" and buzz words like "business-savvy" and got to thinking that this doesn't sound like the guy I have been friends with since 7th grade. Well, I did my research and sure enough, Quixtar sounds like a pyramid scheme. What the fine print tells you is that the average Quixtar IBO earns only $125 a month, and that doesn't include the $60 motivational books and videos that people get hooked on. Quixtar drums it into your head that if you aren't making lots of money, you just aren't savvy enough to run a business and you should buy some motivational books to help you get your feet planted. They have huge conventions in South Carolina that are pretty much like cult-fests where people pay to hear advice and tips on how to make more money...meanwhile, the guys at the top are making like 3/4 of their money off the motivational crap and not the actual product (and another secret...most of them have successful jobs that mask the fact that they only make pennies with Quixtar). Apparently some people get so addicted to Quixtar that ditch their long-time friends who have no interest in becoming part of the "family." They rely so much on these Quixtar gatherings and conventions and trying to recruit new members that they don't have time for those who have no interest in joining. I have no idea how long my friend has been a part of this but I hope common sense gets to him and he doesn't become one of them. There is no such thing as easy money.

80s J-bodies and A-bodies can be found in rusting abundance where I live; they easily take the cake for the worst rusting cars I see on the road on a regular basis. That Celebrity I posted a while back was the first time in my life I have ever seen an A-body from before 1989 without any rust. I can't even remember the last time I saw a Pontiac 6000 on the road. I've noticed that '83-'88 Thunderbirds and Cougars haven't held up throughout the last couple decades (whereas Lincoln Mark VII's usually still look pretty sharp). All the T-birds and Cougars I see usually aren't rusty, but the paint is badly faded and the bumpers usually have paint chips showing ugly yellow beneath them...and there's usually some serious bumper sag going on. G-body Cutlasses, Regals, Montes, and Grand Prix's tend to have bad issues with rust along the rocker panel that travels up into the door...which is unfortunate because they are some of my favorites. Toyota Tercels and Corollas get bad rust around the wheel wells....sometimes to the point where you could almost run your hand in a 90 degree arc between the rust. The paint fades badly as well...I don't think I've ever seen a Tercel from the early 90s with nice paint. Various Dodges, Plymouths, Chryslers, and Eagles from the 90s have extensive problems with paint peeling that leads to rust (especially on hoods and roofs). I see early 90s Grand Caravans and Intrepids driving around with huge swatches of primer because all the paint has peeled away...my buddy's '95 Intrepid is rusting on the roof after years of the paint peeling off. The same thing is happening with my other buddy's '97 Eagle Vision. Chevy also has problems with WHITE 2nd-gen Luminas that have whole chunks of paint peel off down to the primer. I see it all the time...and it only happens on white ones. All over the doors, hood, roof, and trunk you can find this problem. Taurus's and Sables pre-1990 generally haven't held up well. Most are beat up with faded paint and rust. Later generations are faring much better.

I saw none other than a London taxi cab driving down the 2nd Avenue in downtown Des Moines. We were eating lunch at the High Life Lounge (70s retro style place) when my co-worker who is also a car fan said "what the hell is that?" and pointed to a black vehicle driving by. It was really odd...I never have seen one of those in person before, and yet here it just happens to drive down the street as I'm eating lunch outside.

What the hell? I thought they were significantly cutting back on fleet sales. Some really poor showings for some brand new vehicles on there. I hope this is somewhat skewed since it's just for the first six months, but damn....bad numbers all around. Shockers in bold Buick LaCrosse 29.2% Buick Lucerne 13.1% Buick Terraza 28.9% Cadillac CTS 9.0% Cadilac DTS 27.4% Cadillac STS 7.7% Chevy Colorado 21.3% Chevy Equinox 20.3% Chevy HHR 30.1% Chevy Impala 53.9% Chevy Malibu 58.8% Chevy Monte Carlo 46.5% Chevy Silverado 16.2% Chevy Suburban 20.6% Chevy Tahoe 11.0% Chevy Uplander 70.9% GMC Canyon 12.8% GMC Sierra 10.0% Pontiac Grand Prix 77.6% Pontiac G6 32.6% Pontiac Torrent 22.2% Saturn Aura 23.7% Saturn Relay 34.4% Saturn Vue 10.3% Ford Edge 32.0% Ford Escape 28.2% Ford Expedition 27.4% Ford Explorer 25.6% Ford Five Hundred 43.1% Ford Focus 26.5% Ford Freestar 43.2% Ford Freestyle 28.7% Ford F-Series 21.3% Ford Fusion 26.8% Ford Mustang 29.0% Ford Ranger 27.8% Mercury Grand Marquis 50.0% Mercury Montego 30.2% Volvo S40 37.5% Lincoln Town Car 58.5% Mazda 5 43.8% Mazda 6 42.7% Still, those numbers are nothing compared to Chrysler's. Chrysler 300 44.0% Chrysler Aspen 31.2% Chrysler Crossfire 70.6% Chrysler Pacifica 49.3% Chrysler PT Cruiser 61.8% Chrysler Sebring 63.5% Chrysler Town and Country 35.2% Dodge Avenger 79.4% Dodge Caliber 45.1% Dodge Caravan 54.8% Dodge Charger 56.2% Dodge Durango 33.0% Dodge Magnum 60.9% Jeep Liberty 32.8% MORE: Car Fleet Sales Truck Fleet Sales

I forgot all about Dodge, Chrysler, and Jeep but they all seem to sell to a fairly young and middle age crowd. Nissan and cars like the Charger and Magnum seem to hit that late 30s, mid 40s sweet spot where they aren't quite old enough to kill the car's reputation but they have a decent amount of money and purchasing power. I think a lot of it is because they have the performance and looks to back them up. I think the Malibu will do the same when it comes out, but the Fusion needs more power. I see Nissan in many cases as the 1960s Mercury and Pontiac of this generation...true mid-level performance cars that still retain some sensibility like four doors and interior space. Pontiac will get some of that back with the G8. Mercury needs a freaking performance car of any kind...give the brand some balls back. I didn't know it, but apparently the Marauder was supposed to get the Mustang Cobra 4V supercharged 4.6 but Elana Ford killed it because she didn't like performance cars.

I've noticed the same thing...I see a ton of older people (over 55, in many cases well over) especially in some of the smaller towns where Mercury and Buick are still fairly common but are starting to give way to Camrys. I can't help but think that the children of the generation below them may have had some influence on them purchasing a Camry ("Mom, you're not getting a domestic...I don't want you getting stranded on the highway at night"). But I rarely ever see young people in Camrys (and more and more, Toyotas in general). People in my age range or older seem to be going for the new GMs, new Fords, Nissan, VW, and Honda and Acura to a lesser extent. Nissan Altimas are popular among the 30s-to-middle age crowd around here, probably due to the performance. I rarely see new Accords here; I see tons of old Accords (mid-late 90s) but rarely any new ones. In fact, I see far more new Civics than I do Accords. The Fusion and Impala have their share of old people in them (less more-so for the Fusion), but far more younger people are behind the wheel than the Camry from what I see on my commutes. I see tons of young, blonde hot moms behind the wheels of new Mercurys so the Jill ads must be doing their work. :AH-HA_wink: Pontiac is still king among the 20somethings here; a recently-graduated friend of mine just bought a Pontiac G6 and another bought a G6 a few months ago. Lincoln is making a comeback in Des Moines, especially the MKZ and MKX. I see them quite often on the roads. Honda and Acura must sell well everywhere but here, because I hardly ever see new Hondas and Acuras on the road. Maybe Des Moines just doesn't have that many Honda dealerships or soemthing, I don't know. In fact, I can't remember the last time I saw a new Acura.

Was this the Ford hot rod that DLR drove away in at the end of the "Hot for Teacher" video? Yep, it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSdCPUoMAmQ

Kindly go back under the rock you crawled from. Judging by your first two posts, clearly you have nothing worthwhile to contribute to this site unlike Seigen, the O.C., and GXT.

Amazing how the A-pillar just crinkles up like a McDonald's straw. These death traps should not be sold in any market, even China.

Same. '02 is apparently when Camry quality started going down. I've read lots of comments from people who owned '97, '98 Camrys and then bought an '03, '04 etc. and noticed that materials and fit weren't as good. Not to mention the horrid styling of the '02-'06...the '07 looks somewhat awkward, but the previous gen just looks awful (especially in LE trim). The ones in the late 90s were bland but still had decent lines.

Damn, those figures really speak how bad of shape downtown Detroit is in. Des Moines had 8,500 people living downtown in 2005 (up from about 6,500 in 2000) and the city proper is only about 200,000 people. Meanwhile, Detroit is over 900,000...But this is good news for both GM and Detroit. There is a lot of potential in old rust-belt cities redeveloping their riverfronts. Both Omaha and Des Moines are nearly finished and it really does a lot to clean up the downtown area when you get rid of the rusty chemical tanks and abandoned warehouses.

I'm in the minority too...I did like the looks of the Monte even though it could have been better. SS models looked good, IMO. I hated the redesign in '06 originally but it has grown on me. It just kills me what GM did with the Monte, Cutlass, Regal, and Grand Prix...all once great cars that were just left to rot / go FWD / go on rental lots / or get decontented the hell out of. If GM was still making an Oldsmobile Cutlass coupe, that would be THE car I would be buying when I graduate in 11 months. I would buy it over a Mustang and a number of other cars I have been lusting over. But Olds is dead, the personal coupes are dead...pretty much the cars I loved most from GM are dead. Monte Carlos were very popular in my high school, old and new...they were still decently competitive in the 90s. But after Ford killed its big coupes, GM just let the Monte rot away...what a shame.

That's probably what you have to be on to think those 1980s vinyl graphics look dope.

Squandered potential, IMO. GM could have done so much more with this car than they actually did. I really hate to see it go, even the wrong-wheel drive versions.

http://economy.autoblog.com/2006/01/05/toyotas-yaris-trd/

Old people need big mirrors to see out of.But the IS isn't that bad looking of a vehicle, I will admit. It's easily the best product Toyota has in production right now.

The raw sewage in lard was pretty bad too.They used to make jokes about KFC and putting weird stuff in the chicken, which was actually just an urban legend. But Chinese chicken, on the other hand...deep-fried in medical waste vats for that extra delicious chicken flavor!

I usually find his shows funny, but it seems like lately I'm seeing more episodes where he blatantly skews things. There's no way in hell Stig was mashing on the gas in that Ram, and I can't help but think that all the swerving off the track was done on purpose. How much do you want to bet the AC in that Park Avenue was working fine before Clarkson got his hands on it. By fabricating all kinds of problems, he keeps the stereotypes going. I too would like to see him focus on the bottom half of British society for once. I haven't been to Britain, but when I lived in Italy last semester it was clear that there are those who are educated and cultured and those who frankly weren't (and they tended to be the ones that thought all Americans were rich, spoiled, and lazy). I'm sure it's no different in Britian. Go outside of the posh flats and into the drug-infested ghettos of London and lets see what Clarkson has to say about that. Let's see Clarkson name all 50 capitals of the US; I know I can name the capital of nearly every European country....London, Dublin, Edinburgh, Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Helsinki, Stockholm, Oslo, Madrid, Lisbon, Rome, Vienna, Bern, Warsaw, Luxembourg, Amsterdam, Budapest, Prague, Bucharest...as well as at least two dozen European non-capital cities. Yeah, we're all a bunch of dumb, fat, lazy slobs that eat all the time and inbreed with our cousins. Sure, there are some really dumb Americans out there, but doesn't every society have that? Let's see him take us through the backwater parts of Britain for a change where they speak English so poorly that a native speaker can hardly understand it. Clarkson is the prime example of British snobbery.

You guys out east are getting what we had over the weekend. Hot, humid air with NO wind whatsoever. Right now, the weather is great...low humidity and a high in the upper 70s with a light breeze.

Have fun Bob! Io manco Italia! I can't wait to go back someday.

Dumb oil industry

'64 T-bird '75 Ford Maverick '66 Impala '70 Challenger R/T '70s Toyota truck...probably the oldest Toyota I've ever seen '87 Plymouth Gran Fury (I don't know why but I really like the M-body Chryslers....Gran Fury, Diplomat, and Fifth Avenue)

Interesting numbers. I do notice a decent amout of hybrids here in the Midwest (mostly Priuses and Escapes, sometimes Civics) and they usually seem to be driven by women older than 40 years old. Now that I think about it, I don't know if I have ever noticed a guy driving a hybrid...maybe once or twice. 80% of the time it seems to be a woman in her 40s or 50s behind the wheel, sometimes one in her 70s...which is kinda odd because you would think young people would pick up on them more. You're probably right about the flex fuel vehicles skewing the numbers...ethanol is getting pretty big here.