|
Agro ver Haus doom posted:Ah thanks for the info! Did you get to try out the Hyundai Sonata by chance? The Sonata and Optima seem like very similar vehicles and I was wondering why you chose the Kia over the Hyundai (assuming you test drove both). I didn't test drive the Sonata. A friend has one and it's very nice but I don't like the look as much as the Optima so I didn't bother test driving it. I assume it's made at the same Georgia plant as the Optima and shares most components with it though. I really dig the dual sunroof the Optima has, but I hope it doesn't bite me in the rear end later on. I never had a problem with my last sunroof but only time will tell.
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 19:25
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 27, 2024 08:12 |
|
|
bidikyoopi posted:There's something about the Flex ecoboost that hits the spot for me. The kind of people who buy a minivan/wagon for their family, but make sure it has 350hp and AWD are the kind of people worth meeting. Kind of like the CTS-V wagon or the E63 wagon. I commute too far to buy a Flex, but I really tried to get my wife to buy one instead of our new Ford Explorer. She hated the styling though, but I loved it. I remember the Space Wagon thread that was in here a few years ago. It just seems like the perfect comfortable family road trip car, and we're on the road for 1000+ Mile road trips almost 7 times a year. I was looking at gently used Ecoboost models at 40% off sticker. The Lincoln MkT is ugly as gently caress but is just like a Flex. 2nd row cooled seats too. davebo How's the gas mileage on that Optima? I'm looking at a Sonata to replace my car in a few years and am super curious about the real world mileage from that powerplant.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 20:32
|
|
|
My sister just bought a cpo Sonatta to replace her CTS. It is a nice car, about as big as my LeSabre. Only thing I don't like is the roof line. It is way to low and swoopy for 6'3" me. Wanged my head pretty good getting into the back and once in there had to tilt my head a bit. But it has the sunroof so I assume that eats an inch or two of headroom. I was skeptical of the I4 up front but it pulls the car around pretty good, more power than my 3800. As for gas she hasn't had to put any in and the computer was saying it averages 29.8. But time will tell how it is when she is sitting in Boston traffic.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 21:35
|
|
|
skipdogg posted:davebo So far I've only filled up the tank once and I got a bit over 25mpg. That was actually mostly highway driving, although a bit was bumper to bumper traffic on the highway and the rest was up and down the Appalachian mountains at 80+. People on optimaforums.com (ugh, makes me appreciate AI so much,) say they get about 30mpg on the highway as opposed to the 32 it claims, but Motor Trend confirms they got just over the stated 22mpg city, and gained about 1.5mpg with ECO mode turned on. A note about the eco mode, it's fine when you're driving around in traffic, doesn't do a whole lot on the highway, and if you floor it the car automatically drops out of eco mode temporarily so the main hassle is just a bunch of auto gear shifting to save gas. I've mainly left it off and I think next time I fill up I'll just do a whole tank with it on and see if I notice a difference.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 21:50
|
|
|
davebo posted:So far I've only filled up the tank once and I got a bit over 25mpg. That was actually mostly highway driving, although a bit was bumper to bumper traffic on the highway and the rest was up and down the Appalachian mountains at 80+. People on optimaforums.com (ugh, makes me appreciate AI so much,) say they get about 30mpg on the highway as opposed to the 32 it claims, but Motor Trend confirms they got just over the stated 22mpg city, and gained about 1.5mpg with ECO mode turned on. A note about the eco mode, it's fine when you're driving around in traffic, doesn't do a whole lot on the highway, and if you floor it the car automatically drops out of eco mode temporarily so the main hassle is just a bunch of auto gear shifting to save gas. I've mainly left it off and I think next time I fill up I'll just do a whole tank with it on and see if I notice a difference.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 22:30
|
|
|
I have no idea, but a guess would be ECO mode on that 2.0T engine would keep it out of boost use less gas along with other changes like modified shift points
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 23:12
|
|
|
grover posted:Is "eco mode" just a fancy term for a locked torque converter? I had a Kia Soul for a rental last week and really liked the car, but the bright green ECO light constantly flicking on/off was distracting as hell. Mmm, not sure about that, it seems like it's just keeping you in a higher gear than you might be otherwise, and just drops down if you really want to move. The ECO mode in mine though is constantly on or off. It's technically disabled for a few seconds if you pound the throttle, but it goes back once you ease off, so the light just stays on.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2012 23:17
|
|
|
On some cars, the eco mode just messes with the shift timing and throttle response. Or, on the least effort ones, all it does is give you a green light connected to a instantaneous MPG meter that turns off if you accelerate too quickly.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 00:43
|
|
|
I think the light is only there because the EPA test cycle mandates they must obey the light. Same with the bizarro shift lights nowadays. EPA test drivers must have an awful, hateful life.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 02:02
|
|
|
Cream_Filling posted:On some cars, the eco mode just messes with the shift timing and throttle response. Or, on the least effort ones, all it does is give you a green light connected to a instantaneous MPG meter that turns off if you accelerate too quickly. With the turbo model, it reduces boost and torque in lower RPMs as well. There were some reviews a while back where they complained a lot about the turbo lag on the car in eco-mode. Seat Safety Switch posted:EPA test drivers must have an awful, hateful life.  Hell yeah, I get to drive a Corvette today!*shifts into fourth at 7mph* 
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 02:31
|
|
|
Cream_Filling posted:Or, on the least effort ones, all it does is give you a green light connected to a instantaneous MPG meter that turns off if you accelerate too quickly. Yeah this is the best. My friend's lexus rx350 has an "eco light" that literally is just a light that goes like this: Is the gas pedal being pressed at all? --->If no, then light is on --->If yes, then light is off How is that useful? What meaningful information does that provide? Are people really so stupid that they don't realize it's just an idiot light connected to the gas pedal? And if you put it in sport mode the light just stays off.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 03:31
|
|
|
lazer_chicken posted:Yeah this is the best. My friend's lexus rx350 has an "eco light" that literally is just a light that goes like this: I've driven a friend's Lexus hybrid with this feature before, too. If you're super light and steady on the throttle, you can get that light to stay on all the way up to about 50 mph, after which the massive aerodynamic drag of the car means you have to put in more power than is "eco," apparently, just to get it to move at a constant speed. Giant hybrid SUVs are just the dumbest idea.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 03:42
|
|
|
Cream_Filling posted:Giant hybrid SUVs are just the dumbest idea. Haha yeah the best part of all about the rx350 is that according to the in-dash computer thing, the best mileage it's ever gotten from a tank is 21mpg and it has averaged 19mpg over the life of the car. Yep, that screams "eco" to me. It's so drat pretentious.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 04:08
|
|
|
Hey davebo, I test drove a fully loaded Optima EX today and wow! What a car! I can't believe you get so much out of a car for the price. It seems like such a good deal, I just don't even know. The model I test drove had a sticker price of $27,165. It was not the Turbo model though and didn't have the navigation system, but had the touch screen display, etc. I wanted to test drive the SX and the turbo EX, but didn't have time unfortunately. How did you like the turbo compared to the standard EX model? I also got the chance to test drive a Mazda 6 i Touring Plus and thought it was great as well. I thought the Mazda handled better, less road noise, and just felt more responsive than the Optima. That is not to say that the Optima drove bad by any means... It drove great. The 6 just felt better to me. But the cost of the Mazda 6 and the Optima were basically the same. But for the same price, you just get so much more car with the Optima. Like... I couldn't believe it came with all that. And to get the same features on the Mazda 6, the price would increase up to $31,000 roughly.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 04:15
|
|
|
lazer_chicken posted:Haha yeah the best part of all about the rx350 is that according to the in-dash computer thing, the best mileage it's ever gotten from a tank is 21mpg and it has averaged 19mpg over the life of the car. Yep, that screams "eco" to me. It's so drat pretentious. Even by the official EPA numbers, which are done with super slow acceleration, the hybrid gets just 3 mpg better highway, 14 mpg better city. All that for only 400 pounds and $7000 more than the regular version! Totally worth it! I mean, poo poo, I understand wanting to buy a bigass car to carry a bunch of stuff or haul a lot of people or just for the hell of it. I don't begrudge people's love of luxury branding. But don't kid yourself about it being eco anything. OXBALLS DOT COM fucked around with this message at 04:25 on Jun 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 04:22
|
|
|
Cream_Filling posted:Even by the official EPA numbers, which are done with super slow acceleration, the hybrid gets just 3 mpg better highway, 14 mpg better city. All that for only 400 pounds and $7000 more than the regular version! Totally worth it! Uh...an improvement of 14mpg in the city is actually a lot? Especially since for an SUV it's starting from a low figure. Large SUVs are the best application of a hybrid powertrain because going from 14mpg to 18mpg is a lot better than a small car going from 36 to 40. But yeah it's not RWD/a stick shift/Miata so who loving cares.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 04:40
|
|
|
Throatwarbler posted:Uh...an improvement of 14mpg in the city is actually a lot? Especially since for an SUV it's starting from a low figure. Large SUVs are the best application of a hybrid powertrain because going from 14mpg to 18mpg is a lot better than a small car going from 36 to 40. Large SUVs are pretty terribly unsuited to driving in the city, anyway. Spending a ton of money to make something more efficient at something it's bad at is a pretty dumb way to spend that money, in my opinion.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 04:54
|
|
|
Throatwarbler posted:Uh...an improvement of 14mpg in the city is actually a lot? Especially since for an SUV it's starting from a low figure. Large SUVs are the best application of a hybrid powertrain because going from 14mpg to 18mpg is a lot better than a small car going from 36 to 40. The point is that pretending a 20 mpg suv is economical in any way is disingenuous. People have every right to drive one if they want it but don't pretend it's eco friendly just because its a hybrid or had an eco light.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 05:16
|
|
|
lazer_chicken posted:The point is that pretending a 20 mpg suv is economical in any way is disingenuous. People have every right to drive one if they want it but don't pretend it's eco friendly just because its a hybrid or had an eco light. Here's one way a 20 mpg SUV is eco friendly - it's not a 12 mpg SUV?
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 05:38
|
|
|
Throatwarbler posted:I've never read a review that lists lack of IRS on the Cruze as a negative. It drives just as well or better as a Civic or Focus. If that's what's holding you back then you probably were never going to buy a Cruze anyway. Maybe the new Dodge Dart, which can be had with a 1.4t(with more power than the Cruze), manual, and IRS is more your thing. CAR trashed the Cruze. It is most certainly not a better drive than any Focus or the Civic Si. But not because of lack of IRS. Beam axles make more sense when dealing with terms of packaging and cost. You are never going to convince me that people buy these shitboxes for any other reason than easy driving and fuel economy. The days of the EF Civic and fun-driving econocars are gone, if you want something sporty go upmarket or to a coupe. I'm not buying a Cruze for driving excitement. I'm buying it because its a solid car with nice features at a decent price. In 15 years while the 2012 Mustangs and the like are still driving around in good numbers, the Cruze and its rivals will be rotting in junkyards (because they are appliances, you see.)
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 05:44
|
|
|
Every US version of the Cruze has IRS, except for the ECO model. And if I'm not mistaken, the only way to get the 1.4t with a manual is in the ECO.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 05:50
|
|
|
Throatwarbler posted:Here's one way a 20 mpg SUV is eco friendly - it's not a 12 mpg SUV? I think they point they are getting at is that the hybrid version is only returning 19 mpg real world, which is probably what the non-hybrid version would return anyway. That guy essentially spent $7,000 to look eco-friendly.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 06:09
|
|
|
lazer_chicken posted:The point is that pretending a 20 mpg suv is economical in any way is disingenuous. People have every right to drive one if they want it but don't pretend it's eco friendly just because its a hybrid or had an eco light. Have you seen the new hybrid Escalade? It's badging is so obtrusive it almost ruins the lines of the car. Not that the Escalade is a beautiful car by any stretch, but still:  In real life it looks loving HUGE. As if the word "HYBRID" itself is so big it redeems the Escalade for being one of the most unnecessarily large SUVs ever. Yeticopter fucked around with this message at 06:15 on Jun 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 06:11
|
|
|
skipdogg posted:The Taurus SHO was designed to compete against the BMW 5 Series. How? Its not even remote similar in any way, for a start its somewhat bigger than a SWB 7-series let alone a 5
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 07:07
|
|
|
assfucker420 posted:The days of [...] fun-driving econocars are gone Look at how wrong you are. Hot hatches today are more capable than ever. The Ford Fiesta and Focus, and the Mazda 2 and 3 are among some of the best-handling cars you can get for reasonable money. Even Kia and Hyundai are getting into the small fun car segment. If you can't find an economical car that is still fun to drive in today's market, you're just not looking hard enough.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 09:38
|
|
|
Yeticopter posted:Have you seen the new hybrid Escalade? It's badging is so obtrusive it almost ruins the lines of the car. Not that the Escalade is a beautiful car by any stretch, but still: if you like this, you'll love the Yukon version, which has HYBRID in italics written across the bottom 1/3rd of the doors! to be honest, I'm much more accepting of the hybrid Escalade than the Lexus. At least the former can be used as a fleet vehicle.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 09:56
|
|
|
Hot Cops posted:if you like this, you'll love the Yukon version, which has HYBRID in italics written across the bottom 1/3rd of the doors! Came here to post that. Ridiculous: 
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 15:04
|
|
|
KozmoNaut posted:Look at how wrong you are. Agree. My buddy has a Mazda 2 and that thing is a riot to fling around. He took it to an autocross event recently, and some big shot auto-x guy here in San Antonio competes in a Mazda2 as well. It's a fun little car for the money. Even driving the piss out of it he gets stupid good gas mileage. The Focus ST is coming out bringing competition to the hot hatch performance compact car segment. It's a good time for the car industry right now.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 15:18
|
|
|
Hybrid Tahoe has the same awful decals. 
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 15:21
|
|
|
skipdogg posted:Agree. My buddy has a Mazda 2 and that thing is a riot to fling around. He took it to an autocross event recently, and some big shot auto-x guy here in San Antonio competes in a Mazda2 as well. It's a fun little car for the money. Even driving the piss out of it he gets stupid good gas mileage. but but it doesn't have IRS  quote:Every US version of the Cruze has IRS, except for the ECO model. And if I'm not mistaken, the only way to get the 1.4t with a manual is in the ECO. All US market Cruze except the Eco, Buick Verano, and European Opel Astra have a torsion bar with Watt's Linkage, The ECO has only the torsion bar without the watt's link, and various Asian and other market Cruze models may have only the torsion bar, depending on year and trim level. 
Throatwarbler fucked around with this message at 15:36 on Jun 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 15:32
|
|
|
It's like some bizarre form of the car game, I love it. Why the hell does the EPA perform its tests in situations that have no resemblance to real-life driving? Is it just a "this is how the gubmint does it!!" type of thing?
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 15:59
|
|
|
Agro ver Haus doom posted:But the cost of the Mazda 6 and the Optima were basically the same. But for the same price, you just get so much more car with the Optima. Like... I couldn't believe it came with all that. And to get the same features on the Mazda 6, the price would increase up to $31,000 roughly. That's another reason I didn't wait to drive the Fusion, because Ford released the pricing configurator and for what I wanted to spend I'd be getting way less fancy doo-dads, which I wasn't at all concerned about when shopping for a car but if they're all included in the Optima then why not? I've heard a lot of the road noise is due to the crummy Hankook tires that come on the SX, not sure if that's the same on the EX models. I know it's prtty standard on modern cars in that segment but the biggest change for me is never having to get the key out of my pocket. It's been a few weeks and I still find myself grabbing for it before realizing I don't need it. skipdogg posted:The Focus ST is coming out bringing competition to the hot hatch performance compact car segment. It's a good time for the car industry right now. No kidding, I heard VW is putting like a 260hp engine in the next GTI, which I imagine had a lot to do with the ST's 250hp. Now if we can just get more manufacturers to sell wagons stateside.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 16:25
|
|
|
The Midniter posted:It's like some bizarre form of the car game, I love it. Have you seen how the average person drives? I would say glacial acceleration and early shifts are far more common than the alternative. Oddly enough, despite the fact that I flog the poo poo out of my car on a regular basis, I still get the advertised fuel economy. When I'm careful and drive the speed limit on the highway, I've also been known to beat it from time to time.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 16:38
|
|
|
If you don't mind me asking, what was the sticker price on your Optima SX and what did you actually pay for it?
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 16:39
|
|
|
davebo posted:No kidding, I heard VW is putting like a 260hp engine in the next GTI, which I imagine had a lot to do with the ST's 250hp. Now if we can just get more manufacturers to sell wagons stateside. Oh good, they're finally catching up to the Mazdaspeed3  (or  for the current generation!)
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 16:52
|
|
|
Throatwarbler posted:All US market Cruze except the Eco, Buick Verano, and European Opel Astra have a torsion bar with Watt's Linkage, The ECO has only the torsion bar without the watt's link, and various Asian and other market Cruze models may have only the torsion bar, depending on year and trim level. Whoops you are, of course, correct. Though the Z-link in the back of the Cruze does look pretty interesting. http://www.flickr.com/photos/chevroleteurope/5615999034/lightbox/
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 17:04
|
|
|
The Midniter posted:It's like some bizarre form of the car game, I love it. I just wish they would change their test to resemble real highway driving. Here in Texas most interstate roads are 75, and almost everyone does 80. Why not gear the cars for optimal MPG at 75 or 80? instead of whatever it's set to now. My current car (2011 Fusion Sport) spins at 2500 RPM at 80...wonder what kind of mileage it would see if it was down around 2000 RPM. The engine has enough torque to do it. I get 19 city and 25 hwy with a 21.5mpg mix on average in that car. I do know it's gotten better since the early 2000's. My old Civic was way up there at 80MPH since it was probably geared for max economy at 55 or 60. Maybe the newer transmissions with more speeds can help with that. Have an over-over drive if you will.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 17:19
|
|
|
I seem to remember there was a thread for awesome cars that will never be available in your country, but I don't think it really survived while this thread flourished.. so from the hot hatch capital of the world comes the king of hot hatches.. Affenbach has confirmed this beast is heading to European dealers. 
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 17:48
|
|
|
Was specing out a Sonic and stumbled onto this video of the new Impala. Handsome rear end car it is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnFO9oSYFb8
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 18:02
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 27, 2024 08:12 |
|
|
Local dealership has an Audi R8 GT Spyder, one of only 50 in the US, which looks simply incredible in person. Not sure exactly what they did to justify the price difference over the normal R8 Spyder ($232k vs $154k) besides ~40hp, but EPA says it gets better mileage- 13 city as opposed to 12! Must be all the carbon fiber. I must say, though, it's refreshing to see carbon fiber all over a car... and know it's actual carbon fiber. Was a bit disappointing that the same dealer that tosses me the keys to a $125k 911 GTS and says "have fun!" wouldn't even let me sit in it, letalone take it for a spin. Guess they're a bit paranoid. They even had the loving windows rolled up to keep people from leaning in. I took a slew of photos, but my smartphone (which locked up and needed a reboot a few minutes later) apparently saved every single one as a 0kb blank file. So, enjoy some stock photos off the web.  
grover fucked around with this message at 19:51 on Jun 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2012 18:06
|
|