Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

[jmaister]

Maintenance aside, do you have a *cough* a v6/v8 of some sort? (or had)

[Jules Winfield]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

I used to have an '83 Camaro Z28 and a couple GMC/Chevy trucks back in the day.

I got tired of emptying my wallet into the gas tank so now I have a '73 VW Super Beetle I use as a daily driver.

[jmaister]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

I see. So there would be inevitably a transition from big engine to small and fuel saving car..

Dang...

[Jules Winfield]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

I see. So there would be inevitably a transition from big engine to small and fuel saving car..

Dang...

Not necessarily, I plan on getting either a station wagon type car or SUV for taking the wife and kids out. The bug is for going back and forth to work...

[jmaister]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

What i like is at least a v6 power plant... But i dont hhink i can afford the gas bill...

Service guys drive v6? I'd like to do that one day.

[TheOwl]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

What i like is at least a v6 power plant... But i dont hhink i can afford the gas bill...

Service guys drive v6? I'd like to do that one day.

I drive a slightly tickled V6 everyday for work!!!

[kingarthur]

[Ollie1981]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

With the fuel and insurance prices being how they are over here in the U.K a V6/V8 equipped car is very much in the luxury/executive bracket and usually not affordable for working joes like yours truly. The only exceptions I can think of being the Vauxhall Monaro/VXR8 (pretty much a rebadged version of the Holden Monaro sold down under in Oz) and Rover/MG did a lairy V8 version of the Rover 75 a few years ago before the whole company slid down the toilet (laughably the Rover 75 was perhaps most beloved by pensioners rather than testosterone junkies so I wonder who their target market was? Perhaps they were trying to recapture some of the glory of the Rover SD1 from the 70's with it's Buick sourced V8, I dunno, didn't work though as I never saw one of these in the wild and a large amount of SD1s back in the 70s were Police interceptors anyhow).

I myself have got a Vauxhall Combo Van provided by the company, basically a Vauxhall Corsa compact car cut in half with a metal box welded on the back powered by a 100hp 1.7 litre turbodiesel engine. For me, I can't complain about it, it gets the job done with as little benefit in kind tax liability as possible. My own car however is a Seat Leon FR, again diesel powered with a 2 litre 170bhp engine, it's plenty quick enough for day to day driving, 0-60 in 8 seconds (not earth shattering I grant you, but noticably quicker than most other cars I've driven) and still gets 50-55 miles per gallon if you are gentle on the gas pedal (although I understand a US gallon is actually smaller than a UK imperial gallon, so I think that mileage figure might be more like 40-45 US mpg).

The Leon was a compromise between me and my other half, I wanted a Ford Focus ST but she wanted something that wasn't quite as thirsty, I got a "hot hatch" style car and she got a diesel car with better fuel economy.

[prntrfxr]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

I had a Volvo S60 T which is a 5 cyl. More power than the Honda Accord I drive now, but less than the Pontiac Grand AM GT I used to drive. The Grand AM was more fun to drive because it had the sports suspension, but the paint chipped off; the Volvo had heated leather seats and all the other bells and whistles (I was so very spoiled), but it fell apart... literally; and the Honda,... (sigh) what can I say,...hmm... more fuel efficiency (plus I drive half as far now)? Yup that's about it. Well, ok it has more direct steering,...nope that's it.

My brother had a Ford Ranchero (1/2 car, 1/2 truck) with a 351 Cleveland Engine in it. He had it geared for drag, so you just lifted off the break to go. If you wanted to lose some rubber you **gently** touched the gas. It didn't have a horn, so he went to a flea market and bought one. He found out after he installed it that it was a police siren. Man the trouble we got into with that car. He said he out-dragged a Corvette with a 400 Police car engine in it. I totally believe it, because if I had to say if there was a car that truly scared me (how much power it had) that one was it. One day my car was in the shop and my mom (she's only 5'3" tall) drove me to work. When she dropped me off she noticed the guys hanging out in the parking lot. She did 3 doughnuts in the parking lot, peeled rubber out of the drive, and hit the siren at the same time. After that, all I ever got from the guys is, "When is your mom going to drive you to work again?"

[jmaister]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

Doh forgot the european region

Pocket rocket euro style anyone? Well doesnt have to be big engined. FORCED INDUCTION is awesosme too.

Well anything youre proud of as a keeper is nice car.

[fixthecopier]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

Oh memories. My monster was a 1967 Super Sport Chevelle. It had a454 with a Holley 780 double pump carb and Corvette Ralley rims. I think it got every bit of 5 to 7 miles per gallon. I painted her silver blue.

[Iowatech]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

For what it is worth, I've got a 2003 Mustang convertible out in the garage right now. It has the 3.8 liter V6 in it. I scared the crap out of my self a few years ago while driving it around in the winter, so I don't get it out that often this time of year anymore. Still, after the first couple of times of getting crispified by the sun with the top down when it warms up, that car is a blast to have!

[Shadow1]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

Used to drive a Dodge Intrepid as a service vehicle. Got 30MPG and would move like a scalded dog when you put your foot down.

[prntrfxr]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

Used to drive a Dodge Intrepid as a service vehicle. Got 30MPG and would move like a scalded dog when you put your foot down.

The "scalded dog" analogy...oh how wonderful southernisms are. LOL! Thanks for the laugh shadow! It just made my day.


But I've driven a Dodge Intrepid. It has about the same kick as the Grand AM I used to drive. Totally fun! I will still interject that the 351 Cleveland V8 in that Ford Ranchero would scare the pants off you. I would break out in a cold sweat if a cop came up to a traffic light I was already stopped at. The last thing you could do is touch the gas. There was no way to go from a stand still by pressing the gas unless you wanted to lay down rubber. It was impossible. Forget yourself and it was instant ticket time (same thing if you touched the horn). To go 0-45 simply release the brakes.

[JimHegs]

Re: Are you a car guy? (petrol/gear head?)

My better half has a Chrysler 300c SRT-8, 425+ HP, it goes real fast and it's definitely fun to drive, it also uses lots of gas and tires. Between that and my Suburban we get a combined 13 MPG downhill with a tailwind.