Top Gear on 60 Minutes this Sunday
POSTED BY: pizmobeach
UPDATED: Thursday, November 4, 2010 23:11
VIEWED: 8680
PAGE 4 of 5
Oh man, they've no mercy at all, do they ?
I must say, the Germans took it well - the double decker cars kinda reminded me of american chain racing, a lil bit...
Now THAT, would be an idea - get them at a down south smash up derby, with the school bus races, full contact racin, chain racing, gauntlet and a demo derby of what they didn't manage to kill in the other events, they'd love it, especially Hammond, who seems to have a mild case of redneckitis goin on now.
(In fact, I'd like to see HIM drive the gauntlet car and the other two as some of the chasers!)
The Dodge Viper clip about killed me.
"It really is, a mother of violence, this, a big, red, V-10, AXE MURDERER.....
...
I do like it, though."
The LOOK on his FACE when he says that, just slays me, hehehehehehe
Shit, is this available on DVD ? Region 1 ?
Cause I MUST HAVE IT!
*scampers off to check*
ETA: Something else about this, it shows up just how shitty american cars ARE, the fuel tank challenge, even the SPORTS car OBLITERATES *any* american car, even the fuckin hybrids, on mileage, and good holy gods of the north, SEVENTY FOUR miles to a gallon ?
(VW Polo Bluemotion)
WHY cannot I not have this car in the USA, WHY GOD WHY ?!!!
-Frem
I do not serve the Blind God.
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Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:
In case you're a fan - that's tomorrow Sunday. They'll have the bit where they drove through Alabama with "Nascar Sucks" on their cars... funny guys.
It's true. Nascar does suck. A lot.
"The modern definition of 'racist' is someone who is winning an argument with a liberal."
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Quote:
Originally posted by Fremdfirma:
Oh man, they've no mercy at all, do they ?
I must say, the Germans took it well - the double decker cars kinda reminded me of american chain racing, a lil bit...
Now THAT, would be an idea - get them at a down south smash up derby, with the school bus races, full contact racin, chain racing, gauntlet and a demo derby of what they didn't manage to kill in the other events, they'd love it, especially Hammond, who seems to have a mild case of redneckitis goin on now.
(In fact, I'd like to see HIM drive the gauntlet car and the other two as some of the chasers!)
"It really is, a mother of violence, this, a big, red, V-10, AXE MURDERER.....
...
I do like it, though."
The LOOK on his FACE when he says that, just slays me, hehehehehehe
Shit, is this available on DVD ? Region 1 ?
Cause I MUST HAVE IT!
*scampers off to check*
ETA: Something else about this, it shows up just how shitty american cars ARE, the fuel tank challenge, even the SPORTS car OBLITERATES *any* american car, even the fuckin hybrids, on mileage, and good holy gods of the north, SEVENTY FOUR miles to a gallon ?
(VW Polo Bluemotion)
WHY cannot I not have this car in the USA, WHY GOD WHY ?!!!
It's bad isn't it? My wife and I taped the BBC marathon that was on a month ago, and bought a dvd, AND downloaded 2 seasons, and we've been parsing out an episode a day trying to make it last. So far there's only been a couple so-so eps, but mostly just lmao every show. And where else would you get a chance to see all of these flippin' great cars? The Bugatti Veyron? 1000 bhp and 1.5 million US bucks, built as a PR car by VW (who bought Bugatti?) completely impractical, just to see if they could??
fwiw I want to thank CLJohston for getting me hooked - he posted a Reliant Robin clip here a while back and it got me to take a look... thx!
And the show is very useful for showing the differences between the US and Europe/World just in the cars we make. Seems like countries can't help but make cars that are mirror images of themselves. At the end of the Viper clip Clarkson says: "there's no doubt there is an appeal to the Viper... it's cheap, it's big on theatre and it's hugely exciting... can't imagine where they get the inspiration from..."
+ Europe = lots of tight, twisty roads, US = lots of wide, straight roads.
And I second your outrage - why can't we
A: build great cars, and
B: why can't we get those cool, cheap, great gas mileage cars in the states??
The answer is obvious (sell more oil, sell more expensive cars) - do you think the EPA and whatever other gov health and safety group are working to restrict these imports for the WELFARE of GM? and not the consumer? Just maybe???
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The shits of it is, U.S. automakers DO make great cars - they just don't sell them here. The Opel/Vauxhall Speedster, Ford had a great little rocket with the Cosworth RS, and even with the Focus RS. Great-handling, tiny cars like the Ford Ka (even the name is tiny, like they shortened it from "Kar"!)... They're out there.
We keep being told that "small cars don't sell" - but there's often a waiting list to get a decent Honda, Hyundai & Kia are two of the fastest-growing car companies selling in the U.S., and Hummer and Mercury, purveyors of huge landbloats for years, are gone.
The modern definition of "socialist" is anyone who's winning an argument against a tea-bagger.
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Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.
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Which is, of course, bunk - firstoff you can't really GET a small car in the states, and secondly nobody is gonna pay the insane price.
I mean, here, 24mpg is "super efficient" and anything more you're looking down the barrel of an extra 10-20K ??!!
Bull Shit.
If the american automakers didn't spend so much time trying to push the car THEY wanted to sell you, and sold the cars people WANT, they wouldn't be in the fuckin mess that they are - not that there isn't a market for the $30,000 TWO WHEEL DRIVE penis extension for people who wanna pretend it's not really just a minivan...
But all I need, all I WANT, is a tiny little minimalist car which has enough room for a couple bags of groceries, gets good mileage and can reliably hit and hold 60mph, and has a simple design rather than some overcomplicated and impossible to repair lunacy.
But no, $13K for a SmartCar, which IMHO gets SHITTY mileage for what it is, one of my buddies cars, this ancient piece of shit four door Datsun510, got like 28mpg, and the fucking Renault LeCar got more than that!
If that damn VW Rabbit Diesel I wanted a while back hadn't been in such bad shape, I *would* be stomping even the SmartCar, at 45/57 Mpg, AND coulda run it on Bio-D, but noooo.
Or, I could pay $24k for a fuckin Prius, a flimsy underpowered deathtrap, as some folk learned last sunday to their peril on US23 when they went head to head with a Chevy Blazer - everyone inside the Prius was prettymuch instantly killed, and at first they couldn't even IDENTIFY it, cause there wasn't enough LEFT of it.
The closest decent option is the Nissan Versa, at about 12K, but it's still far more than I want or need.
Even if they DO get the Bluemotion here, they're gonna want $25k for the little fekker, which defeats the entire purpose of the damn thing - I can buy a goddamn brand new Mitsubishi Lancer for that, with options, AND have enough left over to cover the difference in fuel several times over, not to mention the ability to find a mechanic willing to work on it!
Here's a hint: if your itty bitty little high efficiency car costs MORE than 8K, then you have ZERO hope of selling it to the people who WANT one, cause you defeat the entire purpose of them seeking one in the first place.
-Frem
PS, Not only did my jaw drop at the Bluemotions 74mpg - I was grinding my teeth in rage at the notion they'll jump the price like that if they DO ship it over here.
I do not serve the Blind God.
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Versa's good. The new Juke has some promise - same platform as the Versa, but with "funkier" looks and an added turbocharger for a bit of urgency, still around 17K.
Honda Fit is quite decent, but still a bit overpriced.
Honda really blew it with their CR-Z. They could've shaved 600 pounds or more and gone with a higher-performing gas engine instead of the hybrid arrangement, and they'd have been able to pull of better performance AND better efficiency. As it stands, they brought us a car that gets worse mileage than my '91 CRX, *AND* worse acceleration *AND* worse handling. All for a price of around $23-24K, versus the under-11K for a loaded-up CRX Si.
There's a very strong cultural difference in how we view small cars. Here in the States, we view them as "cheap transportation". Overseas, in Europe and Asia, they don't measure worth by size or weight. There were versions of the CRX sold in Japan and Great Britain back in the day that were sold as sporty personal-luxuty coupes, with features that were never offered here at any price: cruise control, automatic climate control, power windows, mirrors, door locks, full leather interiors, and a nifty full-panel tinted glass roof (not a sunroof - the whole roof panel was bronzed glass). Power comes via either a 130hp twim-cam 1.6 liter 4-cylinder, or a 160hp DOHC VTEC 1.6. (I actually prefer the 130hp engine, because it's a bit more "tunable", a lot more livable, and a good deal lighter to boot!)
http://www.shoden.org/images/cars/CRX/CRX_Exclusive_800.bmp
They're quite sought after now, of course. And old enough that they're allowed to be imported into the U.S. now without having to go through the onerous federalization process.
Somewhere, there's a happy medium between size and luxury - a small car that is fun to drive, economical, comfortable...
The modern definition of "socialist" is anyone who's winning an argument against a tea-bagger.
AURaptor's Greatest Hits:
Friday, September 24, 2010
I hate Obama's America. You're damn right about that.
Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.
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Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Somewhere, there's a happy medium between size and luxury - a small car that is fun to drive, economical, comfortable...
VW is doing something weird/interesting with the Jetta and it may be just what you're talking about.
It use to be their middle car above their fox, golf, beetle, and rabbit, but for 2011 it's their least expensive.
http://m.vw.com/hi/jetta/trims/s/basics/
$15,900
I don't know what that's done to the build quality, but the 2 I had were great little stylish runabouts that were put together pretty well.
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I'm intrigued by the Jetta's downmarket move. All my VW buddies (I'm a Honda guy, but have several VeeDub friends that I hang with from our days racing each other) have moved on, and without exception, they've all gone to Subaru. Seems there's something about a WRX that reminds them of the best of the VWs in some way. Danged if I can figure it out, but it's like a "hive mind" decision, in that they all swapped loyalties within the space of a few months!
The modern definition of "socialist" is anyone who's winning an argument against a tea-bagger.
AURaptor's Greatest Hits:
Friday, September 24, 2010
I hate Obama's America. You're damn right about that.
Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.
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By the way, I think VW's move down the income scale is intrinsically linked to their recent takeover/merger by Porsche+Audi. VW tried a palace coup and tried to take over Porsche, and overplayed their hand, and ended up being absorbed by the (much) smaller brand in a rather shocking turn of events.
In truth, all three makers - VW, Porsche, Audi - were already linked in many ways, and shared many parts and facilities, but this takeover married them even more officially, and further enmeshed their connected futures and fortunes.
So, similar to what GM did many years ago when they positioned Chevrolet as the "entry level" maker, Buick as the "grown up" marque, and Cadillac as their luxury leader, with Pontiac as the rebel teenager in the family, VWGroup will be trying to position itself for market share and market future. A VW would be the car you get as the first new car you buy. Later, when money is better and family comes along, you move up to an Audi, and it feels familiar because it largely IS familiar. And when you hit it big or hit that mid-life crisis, you grab a Porsche as a third or fourth car, your weekend toy. They want customers from cradle to grave, like everyone else wants, and they figure this is the key to it.
In other markets, of course, they have other makers as well. SEAT, Skoda, etc.
And if you REALLY hit it rich, they'll be happy to sell you a Lamborghini, of course. Or a Bugatti if the Lambo isn't exclusive enough. ;)
But here in the U.S., they WON'T sell you a VW Lupo or Polo, or a SEAT of any kind. :( I see quite a few SEATs around Austin, up from Mexico. Ford Ka and Puma, too. And the occasional Dodge Ramcharger (it's the Dodge equivalent of the full-size Ford Bronco or Chevy K5 Blazer - bigger than the Durango, and built off the full-sized Ram platform).
I really like the Golf & GTI, though; they seem to have that right blend of sport and luxury in a small package. Now if they could just pull the price down on those models!
The modern definition of "socialist" is anyone who's winning an argument against a tea-bagger.
AURaptor's Greatest Hits:
Friday, September 24, 2010
I hate Obama's America. You're damn right about that.
Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.
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Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
I'm intrigued by the Jetta's downmarket move. All my VW buddies (I'm a Honda guy, but have several VeeDub friends that I hang with from our days racing each other) have moved on, and without exception, they've all gone to Subaru. Seems there's something about a WRX that reminds them of the best of the VWs in some way. Danged if I can figure it out, but it's like a "hive mind" decision, in that they all swapped loyalties within the space of a few months!
My first car was a hand me down vw bug from an older brother, zero flash but great for a first car. He and I have been pretty staunch VW people, while my dad was all Honda (reliable, etc), and my oldest brother... wait for it... was a Chrysler person. He was one of the very first proud owners of a Dodge Omni. I think the name comes from Chrysler's mandate for the Omni, "Make it ALL Bad!" I can even see the board room meetings with a lot of, "we can certainly make this cheaper," followed by a chorus of "yeah, lots cheaper!" After only 6 months you had to help the windows up when you tried to crank them, kind of typical of the whole car. You'd be riding with him and go to turn on the radio and he'd say, "yeah, doesn't work unless the door's open... electrical thing." In spite of this being pretty typical for their cars imo, they sold about 5 billion Caravans and changed US automotive history, which makes you wonder which is worse: American cars or American consumers?
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