Car Talk

Pimpernel Smith said:
They're mega popular over here, if you work for local government in any kind of management position you tend to get a Tesla as part of your package. Then you can virtue signal and slag of the oil industry and nasty petrol heads as far as the limited range will take you.
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Not to mention their torque/acceleration is fcukng amazing
 
fxh said:
Not to mention their torque/acceleration is fcukng amazing
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The problem as I see the whole electric car phenomena: initial cost, range and the fact, at least here in The Netherlands, if you're charging at home the cost is more expensive than petrol. And I have no doubt if everyone was in electric cars it would be even higher. Hybrid remains the way to go, at this stage, and certainly electric isn't viable in emerging markets for a time yet.
 
The time has come to get a new car....and being a sensible, modest sort of chap it is the Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI 70kW 7DSG Comfortline with the Active Info Display and automatic gears. Boring, moi?! It was either that or the Toyota Auris. There's a five month waiting list for new Polo's in the Netherlands at present, but I managed to bag myself one of the few ready models with a decent specification, although the white silver metallic wouldn't have been my first choice colour wise.

My missus won't get rid of her Prius although she wants the Toyota C-HR, she's well passed the optimum moment to sell. So hopefully I can get her to pull the trigger before it becomes the proverbial old banger.

I suppose at my time of life I should have a better car, but I can't really get excited about higher specification cars. Been there done that and got ripped off paying to keep the buggers on the road whilst finding myself stuck in the same traffic jams along with the plebs.
 
Pimpernel Smith said:
The time has come to get a new car....and being a sensible, modest sort of chap it is the Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI 70kW 7DSG Comfortline with the Active Info Display and automatic gears. Boring, moi?! It was either that or the Toyota Auris. There's a five month waiting list for new Polo's in the Netherlands at present, but I managed to bag myself one of the few ready models with a decent specification, although the white silver metallic wouldn't have been my first choice colour wise.

My missus won't get rid of her Prius although she wants the Toyota C-HR, she's well passed the optimum moment to sell. So hopefully I can get her to pull the trigger before it becomes the proverbial old banger.

I suppose at my time of life I should have a better car, but I can't really get excited about higher specification cars. Been there done that and got ripped off paying to keep the buggers on the road whilst finding myself stuck in the same traffic jams along with the plebs.
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Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI 70kW 7DSG Comfortline as much as you may want it, falls into the mid-range, but high quality. A canny buy. And I know diplomats who drive Volkswagen Polo 1.0 before other ranges. It says you cannot be bought.

So away with your pretence and BS.
 
FriendCustomer said:
Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI 70kW 7DSG Comfortline as much as you may want it, falls into the mid-range, but high quality. A canny buy. And I know diplomats who drive Volkswagen Polo 1.0 before other ranges. It says you cannot be bought.

So away with your pretence and BS.
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I knew you would say that, and you didn't disappoint.
 
Pimpernel Smith said:
I knew you would say that, and you didn't disappoint.
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doghouse doghouse whats your take on nano or ceramic coatings? I was talking to some mobile car wash guys and they were touting this, seeing how ive only managed to wash the car once in almost a year.

The idea of protection for a year appeals to me in a very obvious way
 
Rambo said:
doghouse doghouse whats your take on nano or ceramic coatings? I was talking to some mobile car wash guys and they were touting this, seeing how ive only managed to wash the car once in almost a year.

The idea of protection for a year appeals to me in a very obvious way
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I've done two boats with it, it is very good stuff. I would check the references of the guys you use though, they could wreck your fucking paint if they dont know what they are doing.
 
doghouse said:
I've done two boats with it, it is very good stuff. I would check the references of the guys you use though, they could wreck your fucking paint if they dont know what they are doing.
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Why havent you done one of the cars?
 
Rambo said:
Why havent you done one of the cars?
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You can still get a little better depth in the finish with wax/sealant. But it's a small difference that most probably wouldn't even notice, and an awesome option for people who dont want to put so much effort in. Mercedes offers it on new cars, so its obviously pretty decent.

The main thing to watch for is your car's paint needs to be prepped by opening the pores up, and you really don't want some monkey trashing your paint.
 
I picked-up the new Polo TSI today and there's some super wax deal on the paint guaranteed for 3 years:

IMG_1243.JPG


I know a lot of the forum members find such cars distasteful and not fitting in with the bespoke select circles they move in. But you need to remember in places like The Netherlands we're paying double the price of cars that say Americans pay for equivalents including VW's. Then there's the running costs that for certain performance cars when including all the get-you-off-the-road taxes will push the cost of the car up to 2 grand a month to maintain and keep on the road. That's 4 grand before taxes.

Hence when people come over here from the UK and USA to visit they don't quite get it why we're all running around in modest cars.

In saying that the 2018 VW Polo is state of the art for a supermini and the Active Info Display version is a winner. This latest generation of the Polo is a big step-up in terms of design and feel. It has real character and so no wonder there's a several month waiting list here.

I've a nice little mission in northern France to run it for the next day or two.
 
What I'm hearing is a lot of bullshit excuses why you don't have an appropriately stylish and/or aristocratic car.
 
doghouse said:
What I'm hearing is a lot of bullshit excuses why you don't have an appropriately stylish and/or aristocratic car.
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There's a bit of method in this, my missus has held onto the Prius way longer than she should against my advice. And so she needed some encouragement to get rid. She's now jealous as hell, although the option is there with the automatic drive that she takes over and has the Polo. Then I'm stuck with the ageing Prius. But if it comes to aristocratic cars you need to go second hand every time. Great deals out there for luxury cars several years old that will give you all the refinement and class you need.
 
Pimpernel Smith said:
But if it comes to aristocratic cars you need to go second hand every time. Great deals out there for luxury cars several years old that will give you all the refinement and class you need.
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New Polo is like 15k, more or less? As you say, you can get a nice second-hand car for that. Last time I checked (many many years ago), e.g. a nice Maserati Spyder was well below 15k. There is really no excuse for driving a Polo once you are past college. Even if your company isn't paying for it, even if you're not really into cars, etc. No excuse.
 
güero said:
New Polo is like 15k, more or less? As you say, you can get a nice second-hand car for that. Last time I checked (many many years ago), e.g. a nice Maserati Spyder was well below 15k. There is really no excuse for driving a Polo once you are past college. Even if your company isn't paying for it, even if you're not really into cars, etc. No excuse.
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My automatic version is 25K in NL. Back in my day, unless you were getting subsidized by the bank of mum and dad you couldn't afford a car as a student unless it was a dog turd coloured 1970s Allegro for a couple of hundred quid. No excuses: if I need a fancy car, I just call in the driver. And that's what I do. You don't keep a dog to bark yourself.
 
One of the kids school chums just got back from their annual skiing trip to Austria....in a Tesla!

This trip normally takes 12 hours in a petrol car. This time it took from 4am to midnight, that's an extra 8 hrs. So they were having to stop for an hour(?) recharge every 1.5hrs, maybe 2hrs all bladder breaks and non-recharge stoppages included. That's one hell of price to pay for so called technological advancement!

No energy revolution in the history of mankind has delivered less efficiency in energy or time.
 
Pimpernel Smith said:
One of the kids school chums just got back from their annual skiing trip to Austria....in a Tesla!

This trip normally takes 12 hours in a petrol car. This time it took from 4am to midnight, that's an extra 8 hrs. So they were having to stop for an hour(?) recharge every 1.5hrs, maybe 2hrs all bladder breaks and non-recharge stoppages included. That's one hell of price to pay for so called technological advancement!

No energy revolution in the history of mankind has delivered less efficiency in energy or time.
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I have to take these times with a grain of salt given I know which industry you work in.
 
I'm driving one of the last FJ Cruisers to roll off the US production lines and am still reasonably happy with it, but the fuel economy is really poor. Started eyeing the new WRX and wondering if that could meet my 4WD camping and adventuring , taxiing kids around and general city commuting needs along with being a little fun to drive.
 
Pimpernel Smith said:
One of the kids school chums just got back from their annual skiing trip to Austria....in a Tesla!

This trip normally takes 12 hours in a petrol car. This time it took from 4am to midnight, that's an extra 8 hrs. So they were having to stop for an hour(?) recharge every 1.5hrs, maybe 2hrs all bladder breaks and non-recharge stoppages included. That's one hell of price to pay for so called technological advancement!

No energy revolution in the history of mankind has delivered less efficiency in energy or time.
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The Tesla only has a range of about 500Ks.
Why T F would they take it on a 12 hour trip??
 
fxh said:
The Tesla only has a range of about 500Ks.
Why T F would they take it on a 12 hour trip??
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A good question easily answered: their other car, like most families in the Netherlands, is a small car and the Tesla is a company one and the cost of the recharging will be paid for. Throw in a bit of virtue signalling with the status and pride of travelling 1000kms+ all electric and you can see how enticing this road journey was.

The model they have is the X 100D. Here's a table on how far your Tesla will go at 80mph:

Tesla.JPG


Most of the travel would be done at 100-130kms at fairly constant speed. According to the chart at 80mph the range is 233miles. That's 128kph and a range of 375kms. I make that only 3 recharge stops if we say it is 1000kms. Here's where anecdotal findings should not be ignored: likely a combination of luggage and cold winter weather reduces the range significantly.
 
Yes but Pimpy you are forgetting that these things actually drive themselves. Taking the company Tesla on a trip from Sydney to Melbourne is a good opportunity for some much-needed shut eye or to catch up on your social media posting. I’m actually ‘driving’ right now as I write this.
 
prince nez said:
Yes but Pimpy you are forgetting that these things actually drive themselves. Taking the company Tesla on a trip from Sydney to Melbourne is a good opportunity for some much-needed shut eye or to catch up on your social media posting. I’m actually ‘driving’ right now as I write this.
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Has Prince Nez posted since the above post?

Or did he perish in a fiery conflagration as the Tesla ploughed into the side of a semi-trailer that the Tesla Autopilot entirely failed to notice?
 
Journeyman said:
Has Prince Nez posted since the above post?

Or did he perish in a fiery conflagration as the Tesla ploughed into the side of a semi-trailer that the Tesla Autopilot entirely failed to notice?
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Reports of my demise have been exaggerated.
 
Was pulling out onto the main road this morning and saw an Escort XR3i, the same emerald and cabriolet version as the photos below, so I guess it's this exact car:
ascona-escort-xr3i-convertible_02.jpg

escort-xr3i-233198_01.jpg


They had a bit street cred when they first came out, later a boy racer's favourite on account of being easy to steal.
 
^Saw that car again today.

Tesla's are toy cars over here for the very rich, they still keep their SUV's for long journeys, and they've become mundane now. This will be the Tesla killer:

Zerohedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero
www.zerohedge.com www.zerohedge.com
 
^ Essentially, the new Defender's styling seems to be a combination of the immediate past Land Rover Discovery and Range Rover models. There's very little of the Defender remaining at all.

I really don't understand why Jaguar Land Rover didn't try to retain more of the styling cues from past Defender models. It's a highly recognisable car, with a large, very devoted following but they've chosen to trash that and to instead move upmarket and homogenise the styling across their range.

Still, as a friend of mine who owns one of the last of the 2016 Defenders quipped to me yesterday, the resale value of his Defender probably just increased considerably!
 
Journeyman said:
^ Essentially, the new Defender's styling seems to be a combination of the immediate past Land Rover Discovery and Range Rover models. There's very little of the Defender remaining at all.

I really don't understand why Jaguar Land Rover didn't try to retain more of the styling cues from past Defender models. It's a highly recognisable car, with a large, very devoted following but they've chosen to trash that and to instead move upmarket and homogenise the styling across their range.

Still, as a friend of mine who owns one of the last of the 2016 Defenders quipped to me yesterday, the resale value of his Defender probably just increased considerably!
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Still looks good to me. But after the costs of my Ranger Rover HSE 4.6 SUV's are banned in my household.

Unlike the Subaru Forester cult, the Defender one is well worth joining.
 
fxh said:
I don't get SUVs
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Best driving experience ever: high above mere mortals like a truck driving man. Not as smooth as my old Daimler Six series mind you. That was something else the most serene drive ever. Very popular here 15 years ago, now you never see them.
 
Was accosted by one of the neighbors yesterday, to inform me did they know that someone had crashed into my car. No, on checking what looked like dirt on the front bumper was impacted. A couple of the dog walkers saw it and said it was a young guy in a Toyota Yaris and he had come out of the neighbors house, the one next door. He had stopped and then drove off.

Very embarrassing, so I've called at the neighbor's now on and asked I'm just checking with the neighbors to see if anyone knows anyone with a black Yaris as they bumped my car and didn't stop and he said ''No''. A blatant lie as his son does indeed own one.

Now the missus has come in and said I should have said ''I know that your son has a black Yaris.''

Not worth getting in a campaign over this, just roll the dice and take the loss. And spread the word around in the neighborhood.
 
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