Our "own" car reviews

2008 Mazda MX5

Great car.

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Funny though. :lol:
 

Well, I guess "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.", eh? :p
 
2011 Smart Fortwo... not a car but a disease.

And that is meant serious. End of review.
 
2011 Smart Fortwo... not a car but a disease.

And that is meant serious. End of review.

:lmao: that bad huh? :p I admit, the novelty of it seemed cool.....until the drive. Then it all falls apart.
 
They gave one to my mum over the weekend, while she had hers in for inspection. They didn't even bother to explain to her the half-automatic. So she drove home in first gear and complained about the car not shifting up and reving so high.
 
I didn't say that. But it still is an annoying system. I mean why? Why not a manual or a real automatic?
 
I didn't say that.

You did call the car a "disease", didn't you? I was just wondering how you could hate the car, on the basis alone that your mom didn't know how to change gear in it.

Apart from that, I agree with you. But some car companies seem to like this type of gearbox, especially Citro?n/Peugeot.
 
Aren't Smarts built by the French? That would explain a lot...
 
I didn't say that. But it still is an annoying system. I mean why? Why not a manual or a real automatic?
Well why they didnt for a torque converter is easy, eats up all the fuel of the world, which is bad in a ultra-economy car. Why they didnt go for a manual, well it's probably because the designers at Mercedes thought they didnt like manuals. Or they couldnt make one that fit. Or the powertrain group was drunk off their heels and played hide and seek around Sindelfingen during the entire project. Or were busy hiding their money so it wouldnt be nabbed up by the feds and given to poor people (everybody outside of Baden-W?rttemberg). I'm sure there's some stupid reason for it.
 
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Well, to act totally German I've to point out engines and transmissions are made (and I guess also designed) in Unterturkheim. Assembly and body manufacturing for various models are in Sindelfingen. :p
 
Well why they didnt for a torque converter is easy, eats up all the fuel of the world, which is bad in a ultra-economy car. Why they didnt go for a manual, well it's probably because the designers at Mercedes thought they didnt like manuals. Or they couldnt make one that fit. Or the powertrain group was drunk off their heels and played hide and seek around Sindelfingen during the entire project. Or were busy hiding their money so it wouldnt be nabbed up by the feds and given to poor people (everybody outside of Baden-W?rttemberg). I'm sure there's some stupid reason for it.

They should have used a DSG. But this is Mercedes.
 
You did call the car a "disease", didn't you? I was just wondering how you could hate the car, on the basis alone that your mom didn't know how to change gear in it.

Apart from that, I agree with you. But some car companies seem to like this type of gearbox, especially Citro?n/Peugeot.

Okay, the long version of my review: The Smart is a car you're dreading to get into, you're afraid to be in, when it drives, and you're glad to finally get out of.

That better? :)
 
They gave one to my mum over the weekend, while she had hers in for inspection. They didn't even bother to explain to her the half-automatic. So she drove home in first gear and complained about the car not shifting up and reving so high.

a coworker of mine did the same thing in a brand new Merc E. She complained about the car not shifting up despite getting an auto box. Turns out she put the thing in "1" and just went off. After 10 or so seconds of redlining the car's anti engine exploding device (it's real look it up) shifted up out of safety concerns. Same thing happened on EVERY upshift

she did not know what all the letters on the gearbox were for though....
 
I used to hate the fourtwo, but now it's just the best fun.
Rented a few different ones a year ago for about 3 weeks, older version, never version, "convertible", and it was hilarious. You just have to drive it flat out, everywhere, all the time. Manually shifting did help a bit with control over that chunk of demon soul, often enough it was 2nd & 3rd anyways. Fuel economy remained very reasonable. It is a city gokart.

Drive responsibly.
 
1989 Mercedes 300SE

The car popped up on craigslist last night. I'm not searching too hard for a car right now, but with school coming to an end a second vehicle would be nice so neither my wife or I is stuck relying on our spotty transit system to get to work. This particular car caught my eye as it had cloth seats, something very seldom seen on North American Mercedes; so I popped in to take a look today.

Got to the small used car lot which consists of stock that was traded in at the downtown BMW dealership; so lots of Mercedes, Lexus', BMWs and Audis that are too old for the dealership to worry about. The car was a trade in that had been in BC for a while (as evidenced by some old parking stickers), originally it was imported new to Japan from Germany which explains the odd specifications and then at some point was brought across to BC.

The car had cloth, non-power, non-heated seats, power windows, locks and mirrors and was generally a base level car. Nice when dealing with a older car that is generally complex.

The body was in fair shape, a solid 20-footer. Paint was still nice and glossy but was let down with a number of chips and a few scratches. The rockers were rust free but the passenger rear fender had a fair bit of rust, as did the drivers quarter panel at the rear corner next to the trunk. A quick clean up and spot respray would save it for the winter but I would replace the metal for added insurance.

The interior was in good condition. Very little wear on the seats, everything accounted for, just the centre consle needing some new "wood".

The car has 225,000kms on it. Started up instantly from cold and had no noticable valvetrain noise. Exhaust was almost brand new. Brakes were new, new hoses and belts underhood and transmission was seamless. Also had brand new winter tires on it, but no mention made of all seasons. Small bit of oil leakage but it appeared to be a weeping pan gasket.

The car drove as a W126 should. It was quiet, comfortable, ironed out bumps and felt very big and secure. While not as torquey and commanding as the 560SEL I drove a few months back, it was still more than adequate with power. I also get the feeling we wouldnt get bullied about in traffic quite as much as in the Accent.

Seriously considering the car, all the advantages of the W126, quiet, comfortable, excellent highway cruiser, reliable; but simpler, more economical, and cheaper than the loaded North American S-classes with bigger engines.
 
They should have used a DSG. But this is Mercedes.
Probably won't fit. Don't know dimensions but some googling shows that the current fortwo gearbox weighs 30kg, a DSG gearbox is 80. I'm pretty sure size constraints are why the Smart gearbox is the way it is.
 
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