Question of the Day

Question of the Day: Do Big Trucks Make You Nervous?

By Robert Farago
September 27, 2008 -

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 54 comments

Question of the Day: Don’t They Build ‘Em Like They Used To?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 23, 2008 -

Justin called me grumpy. That would be like the son of a Navy Admiral who’s been a high profile Senator for nearly three decades while marrying a billionaire beer distribution heiress calling the mixed-race son of a single mom from Kansas “elite.” But I digress, I was not so much grumpy as surprised that the new Audi S4 has less power than the new S4. Kinda surprising. That said, I always liked the older S4 with the twin-turbo 2.7-liter V6 more than I ever did the newer, heavier V8 powered S4. Sure, a WRX of the time (2002) ran circles around it, but you could slap a Stage IV kit on the old-old S4 and POW! Straight to the moon, officer! However, by all measures (both SAE and my fat butt) the C6 Corvette is the best ‘Vette ever. It just is. Sure you could factor in looks and interior (looks: C3 > C6 — interior: C2 > C6) but Corvette owners don’t factor in looks and/or interior. Meaning we’re not going to either. And if the new Camaro ever shows up, it will be miles better than any of its ancestors. I know this because the 2015 (or is that 2010?) Camaro is based on a shortened version of the Zeta Chassis that underpins my new love, the Pontiac G8 GT. However, however — what about the BMW M5? If you pull the limiter off the new one (E60 M5), it can go over 200 mph and it seats five. 507 hp V10, too. But, compared to the E39 M5, the new M5 is Robocop II. Bigger, louder, more deafening but ultimately not nearly as satisfying or more importantly fun as plain old Robocop. That’s right, I’m calling the E39 M5 Robocop. [Ed - you bet your ass it is]. Newer cars might have better stats, but sometimes they just don’t have the spirit. You?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 41 comments

Question of the Day: What’s Your Favorite Road

By Jonny Lieberman
September 22, 2008 -

Like many of you, I grew up in a car seat lashed to the front seat of my father’s Datsun 280Z while being flung hither and tither in the canyons between Malibu and the San Fernando Valley. Strike that “like many of you” part. Still, that’s how I came into this world. Dad was an avid Sunday driver, in the sense that his favorite thing to do was to get in the car and just drive around for the day. We ran many miles on many of the nation’s (if not the world’s) best driving roads. One sticks out in particular, however — Decker Canyon. It’s an 11-mile stretch of tortuous asphalt that connects Westlake Village to the Pacific Coast Highway. Also known as California State Route 23, Decker has always been the first place I’ve taken whatever car I just purchased first. And why not? “This portion provides numerous beautiful vistas of the Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean during daytime, but extreme caution is advisable, especially as the road nears PCH. It is a notoriously dangerous road, and the rusted chassis of cars that have gone over the side can still be seen. Bassist Philip Taylor Kramer of the rock band Iron Butterfly allegedly committed suicide by driving his van over the side along this route.” For pistonheads, Decker is the Garden of Eden, baby. However, since the 1970s more and more houses have sprouted up along the once pristine driving road. Meaning that more often than not you are stuck behind a PT Cruiser. Why not pass? Because a Buick Enclave is without question coming the other way. These days I have a new favorite — Little Tujunga Canyon Road — “Li’l T” to those in the know. It’s hard to argue with a sign saying, “Curves Next 18 Miles.” Plus, when you’re passing BMWs on blind corners you’ve only got oncoming Ducatis to worry about, not Buicks. And now, you?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 52 comments

Question of the Day: Bought Any New Cars Lately?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 17, 2008 -

From time to time, even those of us on the inside of TTAC forget that one of our primary missions to help you make smart, informed purchases. Some of you might remember my friend who was torn between a slightly used Honda Accord and a slightly more used Infiniti G35 (she would up with a brand new Mazda 3 thanks largely to our 10 Best list). However, she ain’t a TTAC reader. You are. But, in addition to TTAC, you probably read other stuff. Like maybe a newspaper. And that newspaper might have informed you that thanks to Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and AIG getting so smacked by the sub-prime mess that your 401K is now puny and sad. I know that’s what happened to me. However, I also know that lots of good folks are desperate to get out of their big ole SUVs and into cars that suck a little less gasoline. I know it ain’t news (or is it?) but times are tough. Personally, I was pretty desperate to get my girl out of her rapidly dying 2001 Ford Focus and into a brand new Mazda Miata. But then I fixed her cooling system and we’ve decided to wait until the Focus kills itself. I give it 18-months. But what about you? Bought anything new lately? And if you have, has TTAC (or someone else) helped you make that decision?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 93 comments

Question of the Day: What’s Your Favorite GM Car?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 15, 2008 -

Tomorrow marks the 100-year anniversary of General Motors. It also marks a 6am reveal of the Chevy Volt at the RenCen (we have got to talk to the postman). Anyhow, one whole century is a whole lot of cars. Like, a whole Hell of a lot of cars.  In fact, I’m starting to realize the ludicrous scope of this QOTD as I type it. With so much history (and much of it so good), even just picking my favorite decade is difficult. A few cars jump to mind. Cadillacs from the 1950s. Corvettes from the 1960s. Oh jeeze, a 1965 Pontiac GTO, right? But wait– what about a 1970 Judge? And we can’t forget the Corvair, now can we? And now my mind is filled with thoughts of the 1986 Buick GNX. Definitely the best GM car ever. Except for the new CTS-V and ZR1. And I might even like the C4 ZR1 best of all. This is a tough one. My first car was a 1985 Pontiac Parisienne Safari Sation Wagon. It was set up for towing, so instead of the standard 140 hp 305, it had a 400 from a Chevy truck with an unspecified amount of power. It also (supposedly) had truck brakes and a truck transmission. Well, the “Lieberwagon” did make it to 283k some miles before turning itself into a seven-cylinder. And before it did, I once took eleven humans and a drum set from Sonoma County to Sacramento then back. So, that’s my favorite GM car. Yours?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 102 comments

Question of the Day: Brand New MB S600 or Slightly Used Maybach 57?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 9, 2008 -

You want to know a secret? Justin and I spend way too much girlfriend angering time on eBay looking for screamin’ deals. OK, it’s a pretty lousy secret. But it yields fun finds. For instance, your new Editor in Chief found a 2004 Maybach 57 with only 30k miles on the clock for the low, low (well, not that low) buy it now price of $164k. Sure, that’s more than a house costs in middle America. But we’re all plutocrats here, so what do we care? And remember, these babies are $339k new (about $7,075 a month). Of course, things haven’t been so hot in the plutocrat biz lately. Sub-prime crisis, Russian mob muscling in on the rest of your business and all those divorces. I mean, $164k is a lot of scratch for a used car that has no chance of ever appreciating. Maybe then you should do the smart thing. For about the same number of greenbacks, you could get your driver behind the wheel of a brand spanking new Mercedes-Benz S600. Like the Maybach. it has 12 cylinders, two turbochargers, as much power as certain Greek gods and the hides from several dead cows. Newer chassis, too. No need to be frivolous. But… Maybach. I’m torn. You?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 27 comments

Question of the Day: $50b loans for American jobs?

By Robert Farago
September 7, 2008 -

Ford, GM and Chrysler want $50b worth of low-interest federal loans. At the moment, the loans are specifically restricted to adapting 20-year-old manufacturing plants to build fuel-efficient cars. The money is, in the parlance, “earmarked.” Detroit would like you to believe that the limited use makes the moola a “green” initiative rather than a bailout. But it’s obvious enough (if you think about it) that any money spent re-tooling factories saves The Big 2.8 money that they would have spent re-tooling factories. Which can then be spend on whatever they damn well please. And that brings us to the inconvenient truth that a lot of Detroit’s products, and billions of dollars worth of parts that make their products, don’t come from the U.S.A. In the pre-election shuffle, Barack and friends are making noises that the federal loans will protect American jobs. But aren’t The Big 2.8 complicit in eliminating American manufacturing jobs? And if it’s all about jobs, well, there are roughly 400k Detroit auto workers. Why not just give the workers an option of a $125k buyout apiece, courtesy of Uncle Sam? Or spend the $50b on lowering barriers for other automakers to build in the U.S. Seriously. What’s your idea for a better way to spend this money to create/protect American automaking jobs?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 44 comments

Question of the Day: Will You Cry For Pontiac?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 5, 2008 -

Here we go again — the always churning, ever yearning, never learning rumor mill is speculating that Pontiac might be headed for an Oldsmobile style fate (i.e. murdered without dignity). But I remember that when Olds was put down, it had no reason to live. Does Pontiac? And seeing as how my very first car was a Pontiac, do I care if the brand gets driven off one final cliff? Looking at their line up, that’s a tough call. Shall we go one by one? G6 — meh. G5 — double meh. The new G3 (a rebadged Chevy Aveo) is actually grounds for homocide. Grand Prix? OK, that’s just sad. I mean, it’s old, not much bigger than the G6, and its only selling point — you can get the maniac GXP version with a V8 — has been rendered moot by the G8. Torrent — what the hell’s a Torrent? Anyhow, I couldn’t care less. The all new Vibe is a Toyota Corolla. So far, I wouldn’t shed a tear. The Solstice. Oooooh. Suddenly my heart is in this. The Solstice is gorgeous, and a wonderful counter punch to all that the General has accomplished over the last three decades (outliers like the Vette and GNX excepted). Then there’s the aforementioned G8. You will be reading my review of this car next week but let me just say that in my mind the G8 and the G8 alone is reason enough not to kill Pontiac. What do you think?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 99 comments

Question of the Day: Ferrari or Lamborghini?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 4, 2008 -

Y’all ready to impersonate 12-year-old boys? Cool. Hunter S. Thompson had a quick question he used to sum people up, “Beatles or Stones?” I’m thinking “Ferrari or Lamborghini?” is the automotive corollary. So let’s stop and think for a minute — both makes offer gobs of power from exotic engines, savage shapes and the type of instant prestige you can only hope to buy. Ferraris are pretty sweet. I mean, the racing history alone might grab a few (or many) votes. From the 166M to the 250 GTO  to the 333 SP the results speak louder than my best metaphors. And that’s not even taking into account F1. And what about the road cars? Daytona? 288 GTO? F40? F430? Etc, etc? Like wow, dude. But then you have the raging bulls, the supercars that Ferruccio Lamborghini built specifically to spite Enzo and his long standing “the customer is always wrong” policy. I’m talking Miura, Countach, Diablo, Murcielago and Gallardo here. Not to mention the LM002 and Espada. There’s also the fact that most Ferrari owners would happily pledge Omega House. I’m not saying that Lamborghini owners are necessarily Delta Tau Chi material, but what do you think Bluto, D Day and Otter would drive?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 59 comments

Question of the Day: What’s the Most Un Car-Guy Car?

By Jonny Lieberman
September 3, 2008 -

Car Guy: 1. A person that lives and breathes cars; can tell you not only the make and model of every car on the street, but the displacement and power ratings as well. 2. A car enthusiast that values performance over practicality, comfort, reliability and efficiency (see Alfa Romeo Owner). For today’s QOTD purposes, lets stick with definition number two. Good? That said, I’m fortunate enough this week to be blasting all over Los Angeles in a Pontiac G8 GT (that’s the one with the 6.0-liter 361 hp V8 — more later). In my eyes, the Pontiac from down unda is a car guy’s car. Potent, fairly crude, not so hot on gas and a genuine thrill to drive. This morning (doing about 90 mph up a 6% grade) I passed a New Beetle Convertible. It had an orange top and matching orange rims. My gut, reptilian brain reaction was to smash it off the road. Who would drive such a dorky buggy? But is the Bug that J Mays penned any less of a car guy car than a Toyota Corolla/Camry? What about a (perish the thought) minivan? Or, the press car I traded last night for the G8, a Lincoln MKX? Yeah, the Ford Edge with 50 Cent’s teeth. I’m going to stick with the sherbet New Beetle. You?

Posted in News Blog | Question of the Day | 118 comments