I know why they didn't do it, but if the Shelby GT350 had been offered in a convertible, I'd be an owner.  ... View more

Given the same price for an old, old classic or a new car, I'm likely going new every time. Unless we're talking about a really rare beauty, like a vintage Ferrari (but then, that's going to be many times more expensive than new). So, I'd take the new Z over any of the prior versions. A new Bronco over any of the old. Etc. ... View more

So what? Every car screams that you can't afford a more expensive car then. 911 screams, "I can't afford the Turbo or GT3 RS" (or whatever). Maybe the Boxster is all the car fueledbymetal wants or needs. ... View more

Regarding #12, I don't think saving money on a vehicle-branded credit card is necessarily the best way to go. Typically, the cash back to be applied a new vehicle purchase is based on 1% cash back. I accumulate 5% on specialty categories, 4% on gas, 3% on restaurants and travel and 2% on everything else. All of the above in cash, not points. That's cash that can be taken to any dealership to buy any car (if I wanted) rather than one specific brand. ... View more

I'm waiting for my vehicle to be produced. In this market of up to $15K over list for the vehicle I have on order, I'd rather wait than over-pay. In a year or two, markets will return to balance and those who overpaid will be upside-down for the life of their loan. Meanwhile, I have a discount off MSRP locked in on my infamously-backordered vehicle. 🙂 ... View more

A '94 883 was my first bike. I didn't do a lot to it: Screamin' Eagle pipes to give it more sound but not make it obnoxious, and I upgraded the tank to the larger size (3.3 gallons, IIRC). The base tank was more traditional Sportster, but the extra gallon netted another 53 miles of travel. I remember the bike as being surprisingly heavy for its size, yet it was manageable. The unbalanced frame-mounted motor meant at some speeds the rear-view mirror was ineffective, and my longest ride of 750 miles was certainly less than ideal. But I bought it as a fun bike and daily commuter, and on those counts it delivered. I sold the bike for exactly what I paid for it, out the cost of only the upgrades. ... View more

I see your poem and raise you a haiku. 😄 So tiny, and yet Room for four in it, somehow Go, Minissima! ... View more

Note to anyone making a claim in the automotive industry: If you think you're the first to do something, you're probably not. 🙂 ... View more

The actor or the proctologist? 😄 ... View more

I don't think there will be an electric-V6 pairing, but you can expect electric to be added. Don't beg too much for the V6, as it may end up killing off the V8. ... View more

I agree with you that I'd like to see a different set of colors on the Mustang. When shopping for a Mustang, it came down to picking from the short list of colors after eliminating the colors that were non-starters. It was more a matter of picking the best-of-the-rest rather than having really good options. Ford tends to regularly rotate colors through the product lines, even when current colors are a really good fit, so I expect a few new colors among the staples. As far as interiors go, the Mustang doesn't sell in enough colors to offer completely distinct interior options, but at least there are five seat trim colors available, with a tan and a grey option available in addition to the standard black and two special trims. Where the dash and door finishes are not an all-black love affair but include many accent pieces, I think Ford has done about all we can expect with interior color options for a car with its sales figures. Heck, that Ford hasn't killed it off entirely is a reason to give thanks--Ford killed off other models that sold in higher numbers. ... View more

Platforms are not built like that anymore. It's a modular chassis. Think of it as a platform that happened to already have an SUV made from it. ... View more

Mitsubishi still sells vehicles in the U.S.? I wonder for how much longer. They sold more cars in 1987 than they did last year. More Honda Pilots are bought than the entire Mitsubishi brand. Same for Toyota Tacoma, Ford Escape, Hyundai Tucson, Mazda CX5. The list goes on an on. If all of Mitsubishi's sales were combined into one model, it still wouldn't come close to being in the top 25 vehicles sold. Gotta hand it to their leadership, they are persistent. Too bad they don't make a compelling product. ... View more

The Maverick is probably all the truck that 50% of truck owners really need. If you have only one vehicle, it does so much so well, including getting great gas mileage for all those times when it's not being used as a truck. Which, is how most trucks are used. Bonus: if one buys a Maverick, they will save tens of thousands of dollars not buying other questionable choices. The prospect of spending $50-75K on a trailer diminishes greatly when one realizes a $50-75K truck needs to be purchased to go with it. 💀 ... View more

I think a good byline for this article is, "The truck you need is one size smaller than the truck you think you need." 🙂 ... View more

Looking at that teaser photo for the next "DeLorean" makes me feel that the name is hoping to grab some sales yet it seems that the name will not be needed at all. Thus far, from what ItalDesign is leaking, this car could sell without the DeLorean name, probably in equal numbers. If there was a more well-known name attached to the rear, it could probably far outsell the same car with "DeLorean" on it. ... View more

It seems goofy to let corporations sell their carbon credits to other companies. Most of the companies that have credits to sell didn't do anything to earn their credits. EV companies like Tesla aren't in the business of reduced carbon emissions, or they wouldn't be manufacturing vehicles in the first place. They are in the business of producing electric vehicles that happen to produce lower carbon emissions during the operating phase of their lifecycle. Here's a novel idea: what if the carbon tax was used to fund the woefully-underfunded budget for highway and bridge infrastructure? The money would actually do some good rather than line billionaire's pockets. ... View more

I agree. My memory of the Probe was that it was a pretty good car overall. I think the issue wasn't that it wasn't a good car, just that it wasn't what a Mustang should be. It's hard to imagine the Camaro become a front-driver in the '80s for the same reason. It surely would have felt anemic due to its size or had undesirable torque steer and front wheel spin if it actually had enough power to motivate its weight. ... View more

Next on the list of classics: Chevy Lumina, Dodge Stratus, Hyundai Accent, Kia Sephia, Oldsmobile Alero, and Suzuki Esteem! Find your best example now before prices skyrocket! 😄 ... View more

The Toyota examples suffer from simply not being as good as alternatives. In the case of Señor Dos, it was a letdown in as many ways (or more) than it was considered an improvement. The RAV4 of that generation is basically an appliance. If one was choosing a compact SUV of that era, the CR-V is a much better choice. Just because a vehicle is nearly the age required to be considered a classic doesn't mean a vehicle becomes classic. The vehicle should have been excellent in its design and technical merits. ... View more

I would go for that Lotus if I had reasonable assurance that reliability is good. Does anyone have any experience with late-model Loti and would care to comment? ... View more

I can tell you are hoping for more of a MicroBus look, but the front of this vehicle would not at all look good with round headlights. I imagine VW went down that design road. I think if people put this vehicle in a context of "How would the MicroBus look after decades of evolution?" rather than, "Can we make a MicroBus clone?" we can see this is a better result. Sure, not everyone will like every detail, but overall, it works pretty well. I'm not keen on the lower front fascia, either. It's as though VW needed it for air flow (it didn't). Maybe that will get tweaked in the U.S. version. At least it's not the worst I've seen. I'll call it livable, if not ideal. ... View more

A lot of negative comments from the MicroBus fan club. I've got no issue with the design, as it has a good amount of reminiscence without trying to be what it isn't. The only real limitations to its sales numbers are going to be the price (higher than we all will expect) and that as a 3-row-only offering, it cuts out potential customer like me who would look seriously at a 2-row but not even consider a 3-row. Maybe that will come later, but then again, this model isn't coming soon, so it's a bit much to expect potential customers to wait 4 or 5 years on a "maybe." (Actually, it isn't even a "maybe" right now, as there are no announced plans at all for a 2-row to come stateside.) ... View more

I'm not sure that's clever engineering as much as placement to create a look. I would bet that the suspension actually performs poorly. I'm not a mechanical engineer, but my understanding of how suspensions work makes me question the effectiveness of this layout. And putting the turbos up-front and down low and exposed to rocks and road debris makes no sense from an engineering point of view. Of course, it's not a problem for a car like this that will never move faster than walking speed. ... View more

Anyone ever seen the movie Starship Troopers? Reminds me of some of the alien bugs in that movie. It's also as bad as that movie was. Real talent is knowing how to marry design and engineering. Make something technically great that also looks great. It's a constant battle that requires the most imagination and ingenuity. Merely slapping on more parts and slathering on coats of paint and chrome does not cut it. This car can't even be driven as-is even if you wanted to. Those turbos would be destroyed before long. ... View more

It's not worse, because nothing that existed was taken away. Any legal vehicle from before is still allowed. This expands upon what was already legal. Maybe it didn't give us everything we wanted, but it didn't take anything away. ... View more

At first thought, that seems like an area where a compromise could be made. However, even low operating miles on an old engine can far outweigh much higher operating miles on a new engine. Just 100 miles on an engine from 1970 would be equivalent to 10,000 miles on a modern vehicle. ... View more

If any competently build motor is pretty clean, then it would have no problem meeting current emissions and therefore could be used. I think the problem is that "pretty clean" doesn't come anywhere near the 100x cleaner that a current engine is compared to one from 1970. Thus, even if those old engines could be made 10% or even 20% cleaner, they are still far dirtier than a modern engine. ... View more

I would love a company to create a 246 GT/S Dino as a replica. These cars have a beautiful design yet have reached stratospheric prices such that even if I already owned one, I'd be afraid to actually drive it and enjoy it. I could think of a number of other cars that would make great replica choices, but the cost is enough that the original needs to be expensive enough to allow a replica to be made at a price significantly lower than buying an original. ... View more

Whenever my mother is asked about something she doesn't like, her answer is, "It's different." About this car, I would say, "It's different." 💀 ... View more

If I understand correctly, Ford had already designed the Futura concept and Barris just got permission to use it and made rather minimal modifications. Essentially what you are saying, but I'm just clarifying that the design was done before Barris even thought of mods--it wasn't like Barris came to Ford with a drawing. ... View more

I can say that this is probably the worst Corvette I have ever seen. If it didn't have Barris' name on it, it wouldn't even be in Mecum's conversation. Frankly, this does more to tarnish his reputation. ... View more

The question is, which is the better buy, this or the Si? (And yes, I realize Honda is targeting two different types of buyers with the two variants.) ... View more

T ... View more

Agreed. I don't think sedans or hatches need be AWD. FWD works well in all but the snowiest climates and winter tires resolve any issues there. Besides the AWD buyer is only looking at crossovers and SUVs, anyway. ... View more

You ever feel like auto makers just don't want to make the perfect car? It's like they are afraid they won't be able to improve on it. If they do a great power train, they have to screw up the styling or the interior. If they do a great style, they have to neuter the power train. ... View more

Is that a tune that can be reversed and re-applied at will, or is it a one-and-done thing? ... View more

I think it's because people are greedy. They like the idea of getting a great deal. I'd bet if these "cars" were priced close to fair asking price that no one would jump. But the thought of getting a great deal for only a "little work" is too tempting to P.T. Barnum's customers. ... View more

Wow, this type of scam has been around for YEARS. I can't believe that people are still trying it. Then again, people are still falling for it. After all that happened and the person still had to ask, "Am I being duped?"! The quick question to ask is, "Would I do what the seller is doing if I was in his shoes?" This is where all the red flags should pop up. Why sell a car for such a low price if the market will easily pay more? Why ship a car at seller's cost without any guarantee of a sale? Why doesn't the seller have *anyone* local to help with a sale? For probably less the cost of a heavily discounted car and shipping costs, the seller could easily consign the car to a legitimate dealer. ... View more

Your experience is not atypical. An LED may be slightly brighter than a halogen, but not necessarily. It may be more "white," (a higher color temperature with more of a blue, rather than yellow cast). But LEDs achieve their best performance when paired with a light housing designed to take advantage of them (and usually more than one LED bulb). ... View more

Everyone should own at least one convertible in their lifetime. I had the opportunity to own one with a very well-executed triple layer top that never leaked, looked great and was power-operated, so it was easy to go top-up or top-down in no time. There will be another convertible in my future. 😄 ... View more

I think all of those examples are considered well-bought and well-sold. They seem to be about market-correct to my non-professional eye. I've got no idea of the market for the Citroen, but I know *I* certainly wouldn't have bid that much! 😄 ... View more

Having never watched the Sopranos (horrors, I know! 😄 ), that one was lost on me. I read that some others missed the Dr. Evil connection. This calls to mind the perils of tapping into nostalgic references for ads. However, I would that thought more people would have been aware of the Austin Powers movies and characters. It's definitely a tricky balance. If the reference is too new and maybe it only tracks with a limited audience that knows about it. If it's too old, maybe it is remembered only by a certain generation. If it's neither, maybe it's considered tired and played out. ... View more

I'm just going to pipe in and say that wanting to improve a situation is not an either/or thing. It's possible to improve our own country while simultaneously using our position to get other countries to improve as well. We can leave the specifics of *what* should be improved to another place. ... View more

I didn't see all of the commercials, but I thought BMW's Zeus commercial played better than Kia's EV commercial and several others. Nissan's Z commercial was a little fun, but it felt over-the-top without a real point. I thought the GM Dr. Evil commercial was clever and fun and would have given it a field goal. Vroom's commercial was a fumble. It seemed like a classically misguided over-budget Super Bowl commercial. I had no idea what the point was and no interest in re-watching it to figure it out. Weather Tech's commercial seemed like it was influenced by the advertising firm, which should be fired: "You're spending $4M on the spot, so you need to spend equally big on the production." They spent a lot of money on a dumb idea that didn't connect to the product at all. ... View more

And for some of us, it didn't even take aging. I'm impressed if any of these die-hard manual fans truly love rowing a manual in traffic. I never did enjoy that, so most daily drivers in my garage were automatics. If I could have a manual that could self-shift in traffic, that would be a win to me. ... View more

Money is relative. $500K to a hundred-millionaire is like $500 to someone making $100K/year. It's just not a purchase you would have to give much thought to. And eventually, when you get to the point where you are making so much money that you don't know what to do with it, it doesn't even matter if a purchase makes any financial sense. For example, you could spend $20-$40K per ticket for 50-yard line Super Bowl tickets and arguable have a better view on TV. But if you've got nothing else to do with the money, you don't think twice about it. At some point, even using the money to make more money doesn't really have "value." ... View more

Your visual sounds more like a '70s Mafia guy. 😄 I think the "fat-pig hedge fund managers" are a different, more modernized kind of skeezy. 🤣 ... View more

Cars are not investments. Even these seemingly meteoric rises in prices really don't show the whole picture. First, you'd have to be incredibly lucky to time the buy and sell transactions to take best advantage of the most price movement. But you'd also have significant costs: insurance, transportation, auction fees, etc. Let's compare a Ford GT bought new: $150K in 2005 (ignoring any optional features or dealer markup) $798K in 2022 (ignoring any costs and fees) 452% gain over 17 years, or 26% average annual gross gain (net after sales commission, but no other expenses included). True gain after estimated costs is more likely closer to 20%/year. The same money invested in AAPL (not a sandbag pick, as I've been invested in AAPL, but AMZN or several other companies could have been chosen here 😞 Stock price June 30, 2005 (adjusted for splits 😞 $1.32 Stock price today: $171 (+/-, price has been higher often recently) 12,954% gain over 17 years, or 762% average annual return. AMZN would have returned 549% average annual. TSLA would have returned %1033% average annual since June 30, **2010** Yes, those stocks might be considered outliers, but they weren't exactly hidden finds. They've been very much in the public mind and press and were easily accessible to investors. For those who say, "but that's investing all in one stock, which is not a wise investment strategy," I say, the same money was invested all in one other investment (a single car), which is equally wise/unwise. Even investing in the NASDAQ composite index would have netted 40% average annual return, or double the return on the car. Bottom line: buy the car if you want, but at least ENJOY it. DRIVE it. ... View more

If the Opel GT that you saw is the one in the photo, you made a HUGE mistake passing that one up! You could have flipped it on BaT and it would have cleared $12K easily. ... View more