Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

In 2013, there were a few dealers that still stocked a ton of base-model 2011 Saab 9-5s for sale. Well now the same fate is befalling base-trim Jaguar XEs:
https://www.jaguarsudbury.com/new-i...racted=inventory-listing1-facet-anchor-year-1
This is pathetic.

I can count on my hand the amount of XEs I’ve seen here in Dallas. F Types and F Paces are all over by comparison.

I don’t think JLR has gotten it through their heads that no one wants entry level cars from them. The Germans have that market cornered. Granted, Land Rover had a modicum of success with the Freeloader and the Evoque(s laughter), but they were the typical 18 month wonder as far as I can tell.
 
In 2013, there were a few dealers that still stocked a ton of base-model 2011 Saab 9-5s for sale. Well now the same fate is befalling base-trim Jaguar XEs:
https://www.jaguarsudbury.com/new-i...racted=inventory-listing1-facet-anchor-year-1
This is pathetic.

Yes, the XE is pathetic.

I didn't know you could get a diesel XE in the US...

https://www.jaguarusa.com/owners/diesel-and-gas/index.html

Yup. About nobody bought them before VW's Dieselghazi came to light and now nobody wants them at all.

I can count on my hand the amount of XEs I’ve seen here in Dallas. F Types and F Paces are all over by comparison.

I don’t think JLR has gotten it through their heads that no one wants entry level cars from them. The Germans have that market cornered. Granted, Land Rover had a modicum of success with the Freeloader and the Evoque(s laughter), but they were the typical 18 month wonder as far as I can tell.

And there aren't that many F-Types running around.

The Jag dealer in Plano that invested heavily in XE inventory as they bet lots of people in that area would buy them has had their showroom closed by their new conglomerate owner (as nobody bought them and the dealer had to sell out); I believe they're going to firesale the XE inventory if it's still around by summer.

Things aren't helped by the fact that JLR isn't any good at figuring out how to design and make an entry level vehicle *and* they completely ignore the Asian competition, a fatal mistake in the North American market. Their entry level vehicles are neither as reliable as the Japanese offerings nor as good to drive as BMW, while often costing more than either when looking at the overall value proposition. Kind of hard to see how they figured people would buy them.

But then, these are the same idiots that thought that releasing a F-Type in USDM that cost more than a Corvette, was slower than a Corvette, didn't handle or ride as well as a Corvette, didn't brake as well as a Corvette, had a worse interior than a Corvette and had worse maintenance requirements than a Corvette while looking less impressive than a Corvette was a good idea. Now they're wondering why sales of the F are sucking.
 
And they haven't had a mid size performance sedan since 2015 yet they invested who knows how much in the SVR XE and F Pace. I see a decent amount of F-Types around houston however. I know you do not like the new or old XF but the XFR was a car that had potential imo outside of the crap water pump design on the 5.0 its biggest flaw was the infotainment system saying they were more than a "few" years behind their competition is an understatement.

The other problem with their designs they are generic and contemporary to the point of not having an identity anymore. Today at the auto show I looked at the XE it just looks blah they also didn't bring the XF(no one seemed to care) and had one XJ on display of course the I Pace was their center piece with the SVR F Pace right next to it.
 
The other problem with their designs they are generic and contemporary to the point of not having an identity anymore.
Seriously. Design-wise I'd rather have an S-Type (V6 manual of course). No matter what the journalists say, angry blobs does not equal Jaguar styling.
 
I have friends who off-road H1s, H2s, H3s, Blazers, and S10s. No Tahoes or Escalades though :roflmao:

An H3 is a tahoe...
 
A Colorado, actually
 
And they haven't had a mid size performance sedan since 2015 yet they invested who knows how much in the SVR XE and F Pace. I see a decent amount of F-Types around houston however. I know you do not like the new or old XF but the XFR was a car that had potential imo outside of the crap water pump design on the 5.0 its biggest flaw was the infotainment system saying they were more than a "few" years behind their competition is an understatement.

The other problem with their designs they are generic and contemporary to the point of not having an identity anymore. Today at the auto show I looked at the XE it just looks blah they also didn't bring the XF(no one seemed to care) and had one XJ on display of course the I Pace was their center piece with the SVR F Pace right next to it.
I saw a bunch of F types around NYC when they first came out but these days they are extremely scarce.
 
And they haven't had a mid size performance sedan since 2015 yet they invested who knows how much in the SVR XE and F Pace. I see a decent amount of F-Types around houston however. I know you do not like the new or old XF but the XFR was a car that had potential imo outside of the crap water pump design on the 5.0 its biggest flaw was the infotainment system saying they were more than a "few" years behind their competition is an understatement.

The other problem with their designs they are generic and contemporary to the point of not having an identity anymore. Today at the auto show I looked at the XE it just looks blah they also didn't bring the XF(no one seemed to care) and had one XJ on display of course the I Pace was their center piece with the SVR F Pace right next to it.

Yeah, the "Generic Asian Sedan Design #7" looks aren't cutting it.

Interestingly, the F-Pace's sales were *way* down last year. 12,997 sold in 2018 vs 19,238 in 2017, a drop of -32.4%. The XE's numbers plunged even worse - 4,704 vs 9,278, down -49.3%.
 
Rally start in 33 hours.
- Car... Uh, well, the guys who were building it managed to break the parts car windshield, but they say they have one lined up tomorrow morning and will drop it in, slam it in the trailer and go. And they're an 8 hour drive from the start line.
- License plate and insurance... They exist.
- Getting to the starting line... Uh, well, my ride backed out, so I'm trying to arrange alternatives.
- Packing... I've decided i'll be going with "racing onesie" as cold weather gear because it's thematically appropriate and, honestly, the most insulative piece of clothing I own. Also, a helmet, because this stupid thing has a cage and braining myself on it is not the best idea. Contemplating a HANS because why the hell not.
- Tools... $35 Harbor Freight toolset procured.
- Sanity... Missing.
- Girlfriend... Convinced I'm about to die.
 
 
Went to the Detroit Autoshow yesterday. Was a total snoozefest.

Notes:
  • The Jeep Gladiator is awesome. My pick for best car at the show. FCA is going to print money with that thing. I would take a Gladiator over a similarly priced Ford Ranger or Toyota Tacoma any day of the week. I did find a rather significant design flaw on the thing though. In a lot of press shots they show the truck hauling dirt bikes with the tailgate down and they even had one at the show set up with dirt bikes. The big problem there is that the only CHMSL is on the tailgate, meaning when you want to haul your dirt bikes, kayaks, plywood, etc, you have no stop light.
  • New Ram 1500 interior is fantastic, though I'm still not sold on Uconnect. The UI is a little bit getter on their new 12" screen than it is on the 8" thats found in all other FCA products, but I still find it too busy and slow.
  • VW is bringing back exciting colors on the Golf GTI and R (see photo below). That's a plus. Everything else was pretty lackluster. Interior in the Atlas is pretty terrible.
  • Talked to a Mahindra engineer about the Roxor. Their business plan is actually genius and doesn't align with their advertising campaign at all. Rather than going for the outdoors enthusiast like their advertising wants you to think, that thing is actually perfect for railyards and mining companies that currently use expensive side-by-sides. Mahindra also takes the honor of having the best warning label on any automotive product (see photo below).
  • The Infiniti Prototype 10 is gorgeous. (photo below).
  • I'm pretty sure Kia was piping V8 engine noise through the overhead speakers at the Telluride "offroad experience." All the Tellurides there were using for the demo were also lifted, on aftermarket tires with cut up exhausts and in no way representative of cars customer's are actually going to get.
  • The Supra is very meh in person.
  • Didn't bother trying to get close to the GT500 (afterall, I see them daily).
  • The Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition is neat. The Aviator is a gorgeous 3 row family SUV. I don't think Cadillac's new XT6 has any chance against it.
  • Overall exhibits were way down this year as evident by the giant food court that they had set up that wasn't there in years prior.
  • Probably some other things I'm forgetting to mention, so ask.
wpOsmkj.jpg

ryC9dbv.jpg

WnMIRbf.jpg
 
Last edited:
Of the midsize trucks of note, Colorado/Canyon, Ranger, Gladiator, Tacoma, and Frontier (unchanged since 2005). I would take them in the following order.
  1. Gladiator (simply because of the off road ability out of the box and the diesel option on the way)
  2. Ranger (best visibility and comfort)
  3. Colorado/Canyon (good interior, acceptable visibility)
  4. Frontier (comfortable, dated, uninspiring)
  5. Ridgeline
  6. Wheelbarrow
  7. Tacoma
The Tacoma was the least comfortable, had the worst interior, the worst visibility, and has all the charisma of a beige Corolla.
 
Went to the Detroit Autoshow yesterday. Was a total snoozefest.

Notes:
  • The Jeep Gladiator is awesome. My pick for best car at the show. FCA is going to print money with that thing. I would take a Gladiator over a similarly priced Ford Ranger or Toyota Tacoma any day of the week. I did find a rather significant design flaw on the thing though. In a lot of press shots they show the truck hauling dirt bikes with the tailgate down and they even had one at the show set up with dirt bikes. The big problem there is that the only CHMSL is on the tailgate, meaning when you want to haul your dirt bikes, kayaks, plywood, etc, you have no stop light.
  • New Ram 1500 interior is fantastic, though I'm still not sold on Uconnect. The UI is a little bit getter on their new 12" screen than it is on the 8" thats found in all other FCA products, but I still find it too busy and slow.
  • VW is bringing back exciting colors on the Golf GTI and R (see photo below). That's a plus. Everything else was pretty lackluster. Interior in the Atlas is pretty terrible.
  • Talked to a Mahindra engineer about the Roxor. Their business plan is actually genius and doesn't align with their advertising campaign at all. Rather than going for the outdoors enthusiast like their advertising wants you to think, that thing is actually perfect for railyards and mining companies that currently use expensive side-by-sides. Mahindra also takes the honor of having the best warning label on any automotive product (see photo below).
  • The Infiniti Prototype 10 is gorgeous. (photo below).
  • I'm pretty sure Kia was piping V8 engine noise through the overhead speakers at the Telluride "offroad experience." All the Tellurides there were using for the demo were also lifted, on aftermarket tires with cut up exhausts and in no way representative of cars customer's are actually going to get.
  • The Supra is very meh in person.
  • Didn't bother trying to get close to the GT500 (afterall, I see them daily).
  • The Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition is neat. The Aviator is a gorgeous 3 row family SUV. I don't think Cadillac's new XT6 has any chance against it.
  • Overall exhibits were way down this year as evident by the giant food court that they had set up that wasn't there in years prior.
  • Probably some other things I'm forgetting to mention, so ask.
wpOsmkj.jpg

ryC9dbv.jpg

WnMIRbf.jpg


CHMSL? Speak English to us industry outsiders.
 
Of the midsize trucks of note, Colorado/Canyon, Ranger, Gladiator, Tacoma, and Frontier (unchanged since 2005). I would take them in the following order.
  1. Gladiator (simply because of the off road ability out of the box and the diesel option on the way)
  2. Ranger (best visibility and comfort)
  3. Colorado/Canyon (good interior, acceptable visibility)
  4. Frontier (comfortable, dated, uninspiring)
  5. Ridgeline
  6. Wheelbarrow
  7. Tacoma
The Tacoma was the least comfortable, had the worst interior, the worst visibility, and has all the charisma of a beige Corolla.


Wheelbarrow...


:ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:
 
CHMSL? Speak English to us industry outsiders.

Center high mount stop light. Aka 3rd brake light. I thought that one was more or less well known.
 
Nope, I did figure it out, but it took me a few minutes.

As far as your criticism, the other 2 taillights are visible, so it really does not matter if you can/'t see the third one.
 
Per regulations it must be visible on non-commercial vehicles while in operation. Especially on vehicles that still use red turn indicators (base model Gladiator does, looks like premium Gladiator does too) its incredibly, its pretty critical to have a CHMSL. But even some applications of amber turn indicators are poorly executed (see 2019 Ram 1500, when your turn indicator is on, that side brake light is off despite being a different color).
 
Nope, I did figure it out, but it took me a few minutes.

As far as your criticism, the other 2 taillights are visible, so it really does not matter if you can/'t see the third one.
Police might (and likely will) take a different view from yours.
 
Top