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brothergc
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Thu Apr 21, 2016 8:46 pm

Aranarth wrote:
brothergc wrote:
Go for it the mazda 3 rocks ! I just bought a new one in soul red and wow , good pick up and acceleration, and outstanding gas milage . only one flaw with these cars is that they allow a lot of road noise thru . solved most of that by taking it to zeibart and having them apply their sound deading treatment . worth it


Which engine did you get?

155bhp or the 180bhp?

What sort of mileage are you getting?

How much was the sound deadening treatment?

I bought the I sport which is the base model , 2.0 4 cyl and auto trans ... the sound deading treatment was about $275. worth it as it also adds underbody protection from salt ( live in indy here they use that green salt in winter ) . I get about 33 mpg . Nice to only have to fill up every other week ! :D
I just reciently added the "diamond gloss paint protection . wow ! You can comb your hair in the refection ! LOL
 
Waco
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Fri Apr 22, 2016 12:14 am

RIGHT NOW I'm not driving it...but I'm in the process of ordering an Exocet kit. :D
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localhostrulez
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Sun Apr 24, 2016 7:28 pm

Hmm, apparently Chrysler decided to kill the 200 (its current generation isn't even that old) and the Dart a few months ago. Sheesh, it seems like there's hardly anything they're released in the past 20 years and produced for more than a decade (2 generations or so) without changing the nameplate on a whim.

Meanwhile, the Corolla is (quite literally) as old as my mother. :lol:
 
JustAnEngineer
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Sun Apr 24, 2016 8:08 pm

http://www.chevrolet.com/suburban-suv.html
GM's been producing these high profit margin trucks since 1935, with very few design improvements since they got 12-volt electrical systems and a small-block V8 option in mid-1955.
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Chrispy_
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Mon Apr 25, 2016 7:55 am

WARNING: THIS POST IS ABOUT A VEHICLE WITH NO ENGINE.

Bought this a month ago as 2015 stock clearance, and finally had a chance to ride it a couple hundred miles at the weekend.

Image

I was looking for a trainer, something comfortable but with a decently aggressive riding position as my real love is singlespeed track bikes, but as a (mostly-ex) mountain biker, I was overjoyed by the progress they've made on composite road frames. TBH, I was expecting it to be more flexible than my track frame, and heavier (which it is) but at the same time - not really an issue for training - but I was NOT expecting it to be so fast:

So, the flex is up and down, by design, for comfort - which used to also mean side to side flex under power as the pedals try to tear the bottom bracket shell off the frame. Nope; This this is as rigid as stone in the bottom bracket.... :o

And it's heavier, right? Discs add weight and require lots of reinforcement of the frame! Well, no. They've gone disc-only which means they can remove the need for heavy brake boss reinforcement in the fork crown and seat stays. The reinforcement for discs only needs to be on one side of the frame, so that's half the frame weight of brake-boss reinforcement lost already. No reinforcement for brakes required in the seat stays means they shrank the rear triangle for stiffness and weight-savings. Plus, hydraulic discs on a road bike are soooooo nice. I'd just kind of got used to my ultegra Calipers and learned to adjust my stopping expectations accordingly.

The weight gains are there, about 500g for the on-paper weight-weenies. In reality,, by removing the rim braking surface, a whole bunch of (unsprung) weight has been taken from the outer edge of the wheel and replaced with a lighter disc that's in the middle (and has much less rotational intertia/resistance because it's much closer to the falcrum/hub).

What I'm saying is basically "OMG, bikes have moved on!" This is heavier, tougher, more comfortable overall than the best bike I could buy six years ago. It's also faster and feels lighter than the best bike I could buy six years ago. If you're looking at a new road bike, give these new disc-only options a test ride. Maybe your jaw will hit the floor as hard as mine did.
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Captain Ned
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Tue Apr 26, 2016 6:43 pm

http://autoweek.com/article/car-life/ja ... rd-festiva?

I wish I were driving this. A 1989 Ford Festiva with the mighty 3.0L V6 Yamaha-sourced Taurus SHO mill complete with nitrous.
What we have today is way too much pluribus and not enough unum.
 
localhostrulez
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 2:50 am

I saw a Pontiac Catalina driving around the other day: http://i.imgur.com/ySc1ot9.jpg

I don't see that many American cars around here, but that one... man, that's a beauty. No idea what year it is.
 
Captain Ned
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:02 am

localhostrulez wrote:
I saw a Pontiac Catalina driving around the other day: http://i.imgur.com/ySc1ot9.jpg

I don't see that many American cars around here, but that one... man, that's a beauty. No idea what year it is.

1959 or 1960 with those fins. Classic Harley Earl design.
What we have today is way too much pluribus and not enough unum.
 
Ikepuska
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:57 am

Anyone else planning on preordering one of those ND MX-5 RFs? They look absolutely AMAZING. I took the softop ND for a test drive recently and the handling is amazing. Knowing Mazda I have high hopes the RF won't change that any.
 
superjawes
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 9:43 am

I'm curious, does anyone have any idea on where/how to learn to drive stick? I'll probably be getting a new vehicle in the next year, and I'd like to learn manual to get something a little more fun than my current commuting vehicle.
On second thought, let's not go to TechReport. It's infested by crypto bull****.
 
just brew it!
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 10:51 am

superjawes wrote:
I'm curious, does anyone have any idea on where/how to learn to drive stick? I'll probably be getting a new vehicle in the next year, and I'd like to learn manual to get something a little more fun than my current commuting vehicle.

Know anyone who has one who is willing to teach you?

Believe it or not, I taught myself... the first time I test drove one. I did stall it a couple of times, but I think I did OK, considering. :lol:

My odds of owning another one any time soon are pretty low though, as my wife refuses to learn how to drive stick and I can't afford to have my own mid-life crisis car.
Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
 
The Egg
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:01 am

superjawes wrote:
I'm curious, does anyone have any idea on where/how to learn to drive stick? I'll probably be getting a new vehicle in the next year, and I'd like to learn manual to get something a little more fun than my current commuting vehicle.

Hmm.....do rental car places offer anything with a manual?
 
superjawes
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:17 am

superjawes wrote:
I'm curious, does anyone have any idea on where/how to learn to drive stick? I'll probably be getting a new vehicle in the next year, and I'd like to learn manual to get something a little more fun than my current commuting vehicle.

just brew it! wrote:
Know anyone who has one who is willing to teach you?

Possibly, but in the event that I don't have anyone with a manual (or one that they're willing to let a "student driver" use :lol: ) I'd like to have a backup plan.
Believe it or not, I taught myself... the first time I test drove one. I did stall it a couple of times, but I think I did OK, considering. :lol:

That is a funny story, but possibly useful. Maybe I can find a dealer willing to let me test drive a manual knowing that I have never driven one before. All I need to know is whether or not they have MTs in stock. If they're trying to sell stick shifts, maybe I'm not the only one asking for test drive lessons.
The Egg wrote:
Hmm.....do rental car places offer anything with a manual?

This was the first thing I looked into...and no. I think rental companies are banking on lower maintenance costs by taking stick shift out of the equation.
On second thought, let's not go to TechReport. It's infested by crypto bull****.
 
just brew it!
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:19 am

superjawes wrote:
Believe it or not, I taught myself... the first time I test drove one. I did stall it a couple of times, but I think I did OK, considering. :lol:

That is a funny story, but possibly useful. Maybe I can find a dealer willing to let me test drive a manual knowing that I have never driven one before. All I need to know is whether or not they have MTs in stock. If they're trying to sell stick shifts, maybe I'm not the only one asking for test drive lessons.

I doubt a dealer would be willing to do that. This was a purchase from an individual who was eager to unload a rusty old beater for some quick cash.
Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
 
ludi
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:57 am

superjawes wrote:
I'm curious, does anyone have any idea on where/how to learn to drive stick? I'll probably be getting a new vehicle in the next year, and I'd like to learn manual to get something a little more fun than my current commuting vehicle.

IMO, best way to learn the art of gear rowing is with a patient friend and a beater. A majority of US-market vehicles sold with MTs these days are sport/performance oriented, and that tends to get you short throws and light clutches. While that's great for the driving experience, it's pretty brutal for teaching (both to the driver and to the transmission).

My wife learned to drive manual in mixed sessions, one round on an old Mazda Protege with a friend's wife, and then a couple rounds with me in an old Corolla. After that she was able to drive the Corolla without a copilot, but being short, she still has trouble feathering the gas and clutch concurrently when starting the vehicle.

If you can afford to spend $900 on a Craigslist beater with MT (late-90s/early-00s Civics and Corollas are both plentiful and reasonably forgiving), you might find it worthwhile to buy it and drive it for a while just to get comfy with the method and with hill starts, and thus, avoid putting that same $900 of wear and tear into your new toy.
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superjawes
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:38 pm

ludi wrote:
If you can afford to spend $900 on a Craigslist beater with MT (late-90s/early-00s Civics and Corollas are both plentiful and reasonably forgiving), you might find it worthwhile to buy it and drive it for a while just to get comfy with the method and with hill starts, and thus, avoid putting that same $900 of wear and tear into your new toy.
This does seem like the direction I am going. Local CL has a few possible candidates. Just have to filter out all the stuff that doesn't run...
On second thought, let's not go to TechReport. It's infested by crypto bull****.
 
Ikepuska
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:44 pm

Technically some of the new simulation racing games can teach you the basic skills, but... it's not the same unless you end up spending much too much money on the gear to simulate the feedback that the pedals give you.

More realistically there are driving schools that teach stick, and you can often combine it with the advanced defensive driving courses that lower your insurance premiums by having. I can honestly say that the advanced driving courses are really good to go through just on principle. I went through one of those and the one for PPD(personal protection detail) personnel and they have saved my life in near accidents more than once.
 
notfred
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:19 pm

http://www.proshift.ca/

I'm from the UK, only ever driven manual transmission before I came to Canada, and hence wanted to rent a manual. No rental places will rent manual transmission as they are worried that the clutch and gears will get trashed.

In the UK if you take your driving test in an automatic then you get a licence for automatic only. If you take it in a manual then you get a licence that lets you drive both. Hence all UK driving school cars are manual transmission.
 
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:37 pm

Rentals with automatics were difficult to find in Ireland when we were there ~20 years ago. I asked for one (I figured driving on the wrong side of the road was going to be challenging enough without also having to shift with my other hand), but no dice, all they had was stick. Add narrow country roads and roundabouts to the mix, and driving in Ireland was pretty stressful.
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localhostrulez
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 3:33 pm

ludi wrote:
If you can afford to spend $900 on a Craigslist beater with MT (late-90s/early-00s Civics and Corollas are both plentiful and reasonably forgiving), you might find it worthwhile to buy it and drive it for a while just to get comfy with the method and with hill starts, and thus, avoid putting that same $900 of wear and tear into your new toy.

Definitely, I like the idea (shoot, even for letting a teen learn to drive at all, I think an old beater is a good idea). Although I've never been happy with Toyota's late 90's/early 00's clutches - always seemed a little difficult to me, compared to my 05 Civic (which has an easy going, non-aggressive clutch). Maybe I should try one again, now that I know how to drive a manual half-decently. :lol: You know, I wouldn't mind buying some old piece of junk for under a grand just so I can take it apart, do whatever I want with it, beat it up, etc. If I get a year out of it, I've done fine. I don't have the space or time for that as a student though.

I mostly learned on my own - youtube tutorials, reading, and trying it. I did drive my friend's car a few times (99 Rav4), but didn't actually let him teach me. Mind you, there's a 35mph winding downhill road from my town to the next city over, and he throws the car in neutral while doing that (exactly what I've been repeatedly told NOT to do; it's not as safe; it wears the brakes; the fuel injection can't cut out). I stay in gear or downshift one, then let the brakes have a rest. He tends to hit the clutch as soon as he starts slowing down at all (i.e. I leave it in gear until I'm nearing 1000RPM, then go to neutral or downshift).

And yeah, a lot of people can't drive them, but when you're a college student with roommates (or will have them next year) then that's a boon. Most people can't borrow your car. :) Only problem is my mom can't drive it, but meh, that's an old problem (dad had manuals for years, she couldn't drive those either).
 
ludi
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 3:50 pm

localhostrulez wrote:
And yeah, a lot of people can't drive them, but when you're a college student with roommates (or will have them next year) then that's a boon. Most people can't borrow your car. :)

Hence, this little gem:

Image

https://kurtsthoughts.com/2016/01/07/mi ... ft-device/
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 4:46 pm

I learned to drive in the UK and stick shift was something I nailed (and the instructor expected students to nail) in under ten minutes on my first lesson.

I'm sure you could work it out for yourself in a parking lot in under 20 minutes, even if you're a slow learner; The rest of it is just subconscious fluidity through practice.
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superjawes
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:08 pm

Yeah, I have no worries about actually learning it because I already have a general idea of what I'm supposed to be doing and why I do it. I think I really just need to find a vehicle to practice in for a week or so, or as long as I need to be confident behind the wheel of a new vehicle.
On second thought, let's not go to TechReport. It's infested by crypto bull****.
 
Captain Ned
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:16 pm

Try learning on a 1960 Willys CJ-5. Not only did you have a 3-speed box (no synchros on 1st), there were also separate levers for 2WD/4WD and high/low range (that one was really stubby). Three levers in all, which would mystify today anyone who has never driven one.
What we have today is way too much pluribus and not enough unum.
 
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:39 pm

superjawes wrote:
Yeah, I have no worries about actually learning it because I already have a general idea of what I'm supposed to be doing and why I do it. I think I really just need to find a vehicle to practice in for a week or so, or as long as I need to be confident behind the wheel of a new vehicle.

Best way to learn is to simply buy a manual car. You have no choice but to learn. :P
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Captain Ned
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 5:48 pm

ludi wrote:
If you can afford to spend $900 on a Craigslist beater with MT (late-90s/early-00s Civics and Corollas are both plentiful and reasonably forgiving), you might find it worthwhile to buy it and drive it for a while just to get comfy with the method and with hill starts, and thus, avoid putting that same $900 of wear and tear into your new toy.

If you want to find a beater late-90's Corolla for even less $$, look no further than a Geo/Chevy Prizm. Pure Corolla but with a Chevy badge. Clutch on the wife's base/stripper '98 didn't have much feel, but never burned up. That was her "I'm getting laid off from GMAC so I need a cheap employee-discount car". Kept it for almost 10 years and sold it to a nice couple looking for a college car for their son. It was a perfect fit. Damn thing was indestructible, and hella ugly. Even drove it to DC once just to prove I could. I would not be shocked to learn that it still runs. With good snow tires it was actually somewhat fun to flog around on snowy roads as it didn't have anywhere near enough power to get you in trouble.
What we have today is way too much pluribus and not enough unum.
 
localhostrulez
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:23 pm

ludi wrote:

You people and your fancy 6-speed manuals. (My grandma thought that my 5-speed was a lot. Pretty sure it's been decades since she drove a stick...)

Seriously though, I'm hesitant to own an automatic while in college for this very reason.

And right, I forgot about the Prizm.
 
Captain Ned
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 7:31 pm

localhostrulez wrote:
You people and your fancy 6-speed manuals. (My grandma thought that my 5-speed was a lot. Pretty sure it's been decades since she drove a stick...)

Heh, try to shift smoothly (or even find a gear, any gear) with a three-on-the-tree. Talk about Rube Goldberg devices ...
What we have today is way too much pluribus and not enough unum.
 
Ragnar Dan
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 9:55 pm

This Honda is fairly close to what I learned using a clutch on. :wink: Though it was a 75 rather than 80, only a 4-speed, and less aggressively off-road. And I was 9 or 10. As my elder siblings got cars or permission on our parents' cars, they let me try theirs once my legs were long enough that I could see over the steering wheel OK (kidding), mainly in empty parking lots.

Captain Ned: The 3-speed CJ-5 I drove as a high high school vehicle was a '79 with a ... 304?... I forget the exact size since there were so many around that size back then, but being such an old design it held together well (for those not particularly aware of the era, high inflation added onto earlier problems meant a collapse in quality for many products). Being a real 4WD, it had great/strong gears, & you could hear the synchros through the shifter cover, as well as through the rubber mats. My favorite thing about that Jeep was the bar mounted right in front of the passenger seat at about the level their teeth would be in a crash if they were wearing a seatbelt. Genius! :lol:

To the recent point: buying an older manual car, if cheap enough, does seem like a good idea, though you may be able to convince a seller to teach you/let you teach yourself for a small sum. Never hurts to ask.
 
localhostrulez
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Re: What are you driving RIGHT NOW?

Wed Apr 27, 2016 10:28 pm

Ragnar Dan wrote:
This Honda is fairly close to what I learned using a clutch on. :wink: Though it was a 75 rather than 80, only a 4-speed, and less aggressively off-road. And I was 9 or 10. As my elder siblings got cars or permission on our parents' cars, they let me try theirs once my legs were long enough that I could see over the steering wheel OK (kidding), mainly in empty parking lots.

OK, wow... For $2500 new, I'm extremely tempted to get something like that at some point. Only thing is, where do you actually ride them?

I wouldn't bother asking a seller to teach you - just buy the car, make sure you can get it home somehow (or bring a friend to drive it home for you), then practice all you like. Start with parking lots, then flat/quiet neighborhood streets. And beware - I managed to drive a few cities over in my friend's car (which is generally a slight downhill), but kept stalling when I tried to go back (lots of slight uphill starts).

My dad went with me when I bought my car, and he followed me home (unlike a lot of people these days, he actually understands what stalling is/doesn't honk). Only stalled twice over that 20 minute drive (most of it was highway, so that helped). :)

Edit: Browsing around the Corvallis craigslist... I've seen several decently running 1990's Accords (5th and 6th gen, even 4th gen) for $1200 or less - both automatic and manual. Shoot, if I had the space, I'd totally buy one of these just to play with it and beat it up. :lol:

Edit edit: I could buy a running/decent condition mid-90's Chrysler LeBaron or Concord for $600 around here. Wow.

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