The Future Automotive Thread

[cdlong]

Doesn't Liberty Walk do kits for Lamborghinis and such? My level of disintrest is so high, some might think it circles all the way around to interest. It doesn't. This is not really new and will be a small portion of a small portion of the market.

Also, one company making a body kit that cost as much as a new car is hardly noteworthy in this context.

[exitspeed]

Originally Posted by cdlong

Doesn't Liberty Walk do kits for Lamborghinis and such? My level of disintrest is so high, some might think it circles all the way around to interest. It doesn't. This is not really new and will be a small portion of a small portion of the market.

Also, one company making a body kit that cost as much as a new car is hardly noteworthy in this context.

Soooo we shouldn’t discuss expensive RWD cars? Any particular reason?

[mechanicalmoron]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

Infiniti’s Q Inspiration Concept. I like that they are cleaning up their design. Less excessive creases and odd shapes. It’s a little more derivative, but I think it’s an improvement over their current design language.

It's like they set out to make a nondescript picture, of a nondescript car, that you can't even see if you squint.

The most exciting suppository?

[BOROSUN]

the new tesla? lol

[simmode1]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

Thoughts?

https://jalopnik.com/i-am-very-pleas...-to-1821709120

I know this “look” is both loved and loathed by people on here. But it’s cool a $100k Lexus IS being modded no?

It's got some polarizing trends going on here, but I love the fact that they're being tuned. There a crapton of cars floating around with performance potential but their aftermarket is nonexistent. No matter how you feel about the drift, stance & show scenes... they do contribute to the proliferation and development of aftermarket parts, just in a different way than the race crowd. No one says you have to build your car to the same extreme. But just be glad that someone else jumped on the grenade, developed the parts & gave you the option.

[cdlong]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

Soooo we shouldn’t discuss expensive RWD cars? Any particular reason?

Because this is a forum based on cheap simple RWD cars? I guess I don't get how there now being an aftermarket body kit that no one here will buy for a car that no one here will buy is in any way relevant to other cars that already have aftermarket support, or development of other more affordable RWD options. Liberty Walk is small time, high end equipment. Their affect on market trends is virtually non-existent.

Plus, personally, if I had $100k to spend on a car, buying an LC is somewhere around 47th on the list of things I would do, after a Class A motorhome, or a BRZ plus a Sienna and a WRX.

[exitspeed]

Originally Posted by cdlong

Because this is a forum based on cheap simple RWD cars? I guess I don't get how there now being an aftermarket body kit that no one here will buy for a car that no one here will buy is in any way relevant to other cars that already have aftermarket support, or development of other more affordable RWD options. Liberty Walk is small time, high end equipment. Their affect on market trends is virtually non-existent.

Plus, personally, if I had $100k to spend on a car, buying an LC is somewhere around 47th on the list of things I would do, after a Class A motorhome, or a BRZ plus a Sienna and a WRX.

Do you still only buy and drive cheap simple RWD cars or have you moved on? I personally haven’t owned a 240 in a decade or even a RWD car for that matter. Again the intent of this thread is to talk about the larger picture. RWD cars and the industry as it relates to RWD cars.

I agree though, the LC isn’t for me, but it’s worth discussing.

[exitspeed]

https://a19.asmdc.org/press-releases...lean-cars-2040

So CA car culture will be dramatically different in 22 years if this goes through.

[cdlong]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

Do you still only buy and drive cheap simple RWD cars or have you moved on? I personally haven’t owned a 240 in a decade or even a RWD car for that matter. Again the intent of this thread is to talk about the larger picture. RWD cars and the industry as it relates to RWD cars.

I agree though, the LC isn’t for me, but it’s worth discussing.

I actually still own the same 240 I bought 13 years ago, the same one pictured in my sig, and that picture is at least 11 years old. I own two other RWD cars though they're far from the topic of this thread but just happen to be RWD so I don't see the point in discussing them here. The DD's aren't simple RWD cars, but they're about as close to that as reasonably practical while meeting my requirements for DD duty.

So a techno-wonder $100K car is not really interesting to me personally. If I had that kind of money to spend on a single car, it would probably be an AWD Panamera Sport Turismo, but I don't really see that car being relevant to the topic at hand either.

[exitspeed]

You’re missing the point of this thread. Go back to 06 and start reading from there I guess.

It’s titled RWD Coupes but it’s really just the best place on the forum to talk about non240 related cars, the car industry, and a place for us all to bitch about how much Nissan sucks now. So there’s no point in constantly pointing out what is relevant in this thread or not. It’s a OT catch all.

[exitspeed]

In Nissan news...record sales off of Utlity Vehicles backs.

https://www.autoblog.com/2018/01/04/...-sales-record/

My take on this:

Why can’t these record sales be used to bolster Z and sport car development? Nissan is sooooo faceless right now. Do they even have a tag line anymore? They’ve always had tag lines that emphasized their sporty past and present. It’s just nothingness right now. I wonder why they are even producing the Z right now. They can’t be making a profit on it. It’s certainly not helping the brand like the Z always has. The GTR, same boat. It’s a halo car that lost its halo.

[cdlong]

I think I've read most of this thread from the beginning and even responded several times in '07 and '08. I get that we've strayed from the post title, but I've always thought it's basically been about what cars we could obtain that would replace the 240. A $100k Lexus isn't that. A Stinger or something, sure. Not a coupe, but I certainly could see one of those in a Zilvian's driveway.

You asked for thoughts and what I owned and such. I didn't think it was relevant or terribly interesting but if you think so, feel free to continue discussing it.

[dorkidori_s13]

love how all these environmental idiots fail to see that all theyre doing is shifting carbon emissions from one place to another...

http://www.nationalreview.com/articl...rse-advertised

how is it people are so stupid anymore?! OH JUST THROW A BAND AID ON THE PROBLEM!!! ITLL GO AWAY ON ITS OWN!

[MightyMouse13]

It's depressingly safe to assume people I meet are stupid until proven otherwise.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dbeiler]

Originally Posted by dorkidori_s13

love how all these environmental idiots fail to see that all theyre doing is shifting carbon emissions from one place to another...

http://www.nationalreview.com/articl...rse-advertised

how is it people are so stupid anymore?! OH JUST THROW A BAND AID ON THE PROBLEM!!! ITLL GO AWAY ON ITS OWN!

Currently, EVs are not as environmentally friendly as most would like to believe. Doesn't matter. EVs have a future. EVs ARE the future. IC engines are on their death bed.

IC engines are wasteful and inefficient. No amount of technology and mechanical design improvements will bring an IC engine even close to the efficiency of an electric motor. There is nothing efficient about a V8 Suburban idling at a traffic light for 15 minutes of every 30 minute commute. There is nothing efficient about the incredible amount of waste heat being generated by combustion. So much heat and waste fuel a catalytic convertor manages to sustain 700F. So much heat the engine must produce additional power just to run radiator fans with the sole purpose of getting rid of heat. There is nothing efficient about multiple pistons going from a dead stop to 30mph 5000 times a minute (at 2500rpm) just to move a vehicle down the highway.

Batteries are heavy, but have you weighed IC engine emissions equipment? Catalytic convertors on each bank, steel exhaust pipe running the length of the car, charcoal canister, fuel tanks, EGR valve and piping, secondary air pump and piping, O2 and wideband sensors, purge valve, and canister vent valve. This is all dead weight an EV won't have.

Emissions equipment on IC engines fail regularly. I should know, I fix that crap on a daily basis. This comes at great cost to the vehicle owner. Now they must make a trip to the service center. Now their friend/relative must follow them to the service center to give them a ride home. Now they have no vehicle for a day or two. Wasteful, wasteful.

I will always have an IC engine performance car in my possession as long as I live. The exhaust sounds are something that simply can't be replaced by EVs. That's where the love ends. Apart from the sound aspect, there is ZERO point in keeping IC engines around.

[exitspeed]

I agree they are the future. I just don't think mandating them by 20XX is the answer. The market should, and IS moving towards EVs. But right now, not only are they not as environmentally friendly as IC cars, they are also insanely more expensive. The only people buying EVs right now are wealthy people and people who really believe in the cause. If the government subsidies stopped EV sales would TANK. Its happened in other countries. Subsidies stopped and EV sales went to virtually 0. People are only so virtuous.

[exitspeed]

We should basically all get Mustangs and stop bitching about Nissan.

https://jalopnik.com/a-stock-2018-mu...sec-1821805981

What a time to be alive indeed.

GM needs to hurry the damn next gen Camaro up!

[lunchmeat]

Pretty much the plan for next year when my raise comes up in March. Say goodbye to the 240, and find a 2015+ mustang, preferably a gt.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

[drift freaq]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

We should basically all get Mustangs and stop bitching about Nissan.

https://jalopnik.com/a-stock-2018-mu...sec-1821805981

What a time to be alive indeed.

GM needs to hurry the damn next gen Camaro up!

Lol you have been possessed by Corbic.

[exitspeed]

Originally Posted by drift freaq

Lol you have been possessed by Corbic.

Hey now, your just as bad with the FiST. Lol.

[drift freaq]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

Hey now, your just as bad with the FiST. Lol.

Hahahaha yup, it's like everytime I am at a dealer ( just about to close a deal) I tell myself must not drive Ecoboost Stang , must not drive FoRS. Lol

[zerodameaon]

Originally Posted by drift freaq

Hahahaha yup, it's like everytime I am at a dealer ( just about to close a deal) I tell myself must not drive Ecoboost Stang , must not drive FoRS. Lol

Ford did the same shit that Nissan did but have only limited it to the US. They replaced their small performance car, well really the whole model not just the sporty one, with a CUV. I think this is the way we will be going in the US permanently, but at least we still have the Mustang which is likely to always be around.

It should have been obvious when Nissan tried to pass off the Juke to us as a good autocross car that we are never going to see a small RWD sports car again.

[exitspeed]

Originally Posted by zerodameaon

Ford did the same shit that Nissan did but have only limited it to the US. They replaced their small performance car, well really the whole model not just the sporty one, with a CUV. I think this is the way we will be going in the US permanently, but at least we still have the Mustang which is likely to always be around.

It should have been obvious when Nissan tried to pass off the Juke to us as a good autocross car that we are never going to see a small RWD sports car again.

It’s not just Ford and Nissan. I’ve posted ad nauseam about the shift in the industry. EVERYTHING is going CUV. No two ways about it.

[dorkidori_s13]

didnt we see the same trend in the 90s when everything was going toward SUVs... then it died off toward the mid 2000s?

[zerodameaon]

Originally Posted by exitspeed

It’s not just Ford and Nissan. I’ve posted ad nauseam about the shift in the industry. EVERYTHING is going CUV. No two ways about it.

I only use them as examples because this is a Nissan forum, and Ford is really the only one making anything even close to the S Chassis. I know it has been posted a lot, but with the recent death of the Fiesta and the ST trim and the replacement being a lifted MK7 Fiesta that someone farted in its relevant right now.

Originally Posted by dorkidori_s13

didnt we see the same trend in the 90s when everything was going toward SUVs... then it died off toward the mid 2000s?

It never died, it just slowed its expansion.

[drift freaq]

Originally Posted by zerodameaon

Ford did the same shit that Nissan did but have only limited it to the US. They replaced their small performance car, well really the whole model not just the sporty one, with a CUV. I think this is the way we will be going in the US permanently, but at least we still have the Mustang which is likely to always be around.

It should have been obvious when Nissan tried to pass off the Juke to us as a good autocross car that we are never going to see a small RWD sports car again.

Of course because outside the U.S. Fiesta's and especially ST's ar bonifide hits. They sell tons of them all over the world the ST community is pretty big outside the U.S. and not shabby here. In fact ST's had a higher rate of sales than regular Fiesta's here lol.

On and ya the Ecosport is a MK7 Fiesta chassis based vehicle. After 2018 no more Fiesta and the 2018 Fiesta here is a 2017 with backup camera added so they could call it a 2018 and get one more new model! Model year out of left over build stock.

They are not killing the Focus yet but the Focus in comparison outside of the RS is like a poor mans FWD pseudo BMW just like the Mazda 3.
RS is a beast like the Fiesta ST.

I know a guy in Vegas who had a 500HP Ecoboost Stang. It was at SEMA . He owns a FiST and a Ford aftermarket performance parts business.

[exitspeed]

Originally Posted by dorkidori_s13

didnt we see the same trend in the 90s when everything was going toward SUVs... then it died off toward the mid 2000s?

Sales became more parallel. SUVs were becoming popular, but they weren’t selling anything like mid size sedans. Basically all of the 80’s, 90’s and 00’s the mid size sedan was THE segment.

Everyone was trying to add SUVs to their portfolio by the late 90’s (lol I just was texting Phlip about how rappers used to make up SUVs in songs back in the 90’s) but again it was still just an attempt to add sales. Compared to now where CUVs pay your bills and sedans are “extra” but not necessary. We don’t have to look any further for proof of that than the fact that Ford has no plans for a next gen Fusion. Think about that. When that current generation of that car debuted it was soooooo important. Now Ford gives zero fucks.

Remember the CUV as we know it (RX300) wasn’t even invented until 1998. And what was it built on? A midsize sedan platform.

You can even see how “compacts” became more “midsize” in dimension because you basically couldn’t have enough mid sizeish size cars. It’s exactly like we’re seeing now with CUVs where there’s 3-4 CUVs from small to large.

Some people wonder if we’re on the verge of another SUV bubble but there are some big differences now. Mainly, there’s no end on sight to cheap gas. Also, CUVs are becoming genuinely efficient. Additionally, whether some want to admit it or not, our economy is just ramping up. All signs point to a very strong economy for the foreseeable future. SUVs are more expensive, but shit doesn’t matter when everyone has some money in their pockets. Manufacturers are also spending tons of money on making them even more efficient as well.

This really does seem to be a long term market shift. But it took 20 model years.

I think EVs will take just as long or maybe a little to see the same shift. And again, that will really depend on how cheap the technology can become.

[zerodameaon]

Originally Posted by drift freaq

Of course because outside the U.S. Fiesta's and especially ST's ar bonifide hits. They sell tons of them all over the world the ST community is pretty big outside the U.S. and not shabby here.

I own a FiST and think it is as fun as my S13 in its own way. They should have been flying out of dealerships but for very american reasons they had a hard time selling 5000 a year. Instead us Americans would much rather much rather buy a lifted hatchback that someone tries to pass off as a "sport" utility vehicle. I can't really fault Ford for going where the money is because that is where Americans are demanding they go.

Originally Posted by exitspeed

You can even see how “compacts” became more “midsize” in dimension because you basically couldn’t have enough mid sizeish size cars. It’s exactly like we’re seeing now with CUVs where there’s 3-4 CUVs from small to large.

In the case of Ford and Toyota they have overlapping CUVs. Almost identical in size but one is a few thousand dollars more.

[drift freaq]

Originally Posted by zerodameaon

I own a FiST and think it is as fun as my S13 in its own way. They should have been flying out of dealerships but for very american reasons they had a hard time selling 5000 a year. Instead us Americans would much rather much rather buy a lifted hatchback that someone tries to pass off as a "sport" utility vehicle. I can't really fault Ford for going where the money is because that is where Americans are demanding they go.

Another FiST owner! It's funny how many like minded I run across that have come from RWD sports cars to buy FiST's . Oh and yes I agree that American consumer is caught up in Truck,SUV,CUV love.

You could blame it on marketing and cheap gas. Marketing because Companies like Ford do not even advertise cars like the Fiesta and it's top of the line FiST.
All we see are truck and SUV commercials. GM is guilty of that as well. Nissan and Toyota too. All these companies shove trucks and SUV's down the American consumers throats and dare I say it the average American laps up what ever is heavily advertised to them.

If they pushed station wagons instead people would buy them but they don't. They push the vehicle that nets the most profit and that's Truck and SUV's with CUV's closely following.
Through cheap gas in the mix and people are like why not. In the past station wagons were the bigger family vehicle now it's SUV's and CUV's . I see it all the time . I have three kids now I have to buy a bigger vehicle hmmm SUV or CUV is main option being pushed in my face.

[zerodameaon]

It took me a long time to accept that FWD was OK in its own segment. I went to the dealer intent on walking out with a Ecoboost Mustang but upon test driving the FiST it just felt more fun, it was also a much better price. It makes me wish that someone would put out a modern car setup like a second gen Toyota Starlet.

Also you can send that PM now, I cleaned out my inbox.