Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

EyeMWing said:
I hold in my hands the most BULLSHIT traffic citation ever issued.

60 in a 55.
Points: 0
Fine: $35.

Alright, fine. I can live with that. It's stupid, it's the absolute bare minimum you can be prosecuted for speeding, but I'm not going to lose sleep over it.

... Total after fees: $119. WTF is this shit? Seriously?
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Wow, that cop must have been a major league dick. We're hauling ass in heavy traffic or something? Most cops I know won't bother with anyone unless they're doing more then 10mph over the speed limit, unless it's a school zone.
 
Spectre said:
Electric microswitches on the gearshift linkage that actuate the clutch.
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FIAT did something similar with the Palio.
And no, it didn?t worked well, it was crap to drive and sales were ridiculously low.
 
TomCat said:
Wow, that cop must have been a major league dick. We're hauling ass in heavy traffic or something? Most cops I know won't bother with anyone unless they're doing more then 10mph over the speed limit, unless it's a school zone.
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Dead empty road (actually a two-lane wide ramp). Mile long straightaway before merging with a 65mph Interstate (which is why the 55mph speed limit is bullshit anyway). I spotted him and slowed before I was even done going around the bend at the start of the straightaway which means he radar hit me from at least 1/4 mile down the road, going around a damned corner.
 
random thought: about a year from now i'm gonna need a new car: park avenues do not meet restrictions so i have to go the other side:

how much do jaaaaaaags depreciate in let's say a time frame of 5 years i don't think i will have much money 15k maximum and I'm just looking at options
 
Redliner said:
FIAT did something similar with the Palio.
And no, it didn?t worked well, it was crap to drive and sales were ridiculously low.
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killpanda said:
Well, a Fiat electronic system on something that important is just a recipe for disaster :-D
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VW did something similar with the 411s and 412s - it never worked well either.

klankymen said:
Well, I'm American, and don't know much what's under my hood. I can change oil, check oil level, refil wiper fluid, add antifreeze, change a tire and that's just about damn it.

Never would have associated power steering --> automatic transmission.
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You're more German than American as best I can tell. :mrgreen: On the other hand, you apparently know more than most of the Euros posting here.

Posmo said:
I'm insulted. :mad::p
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You're a Scandihoovian. You're different from the regular Europeans. Most of you Scandihoovians seem to understand that basic car maintenance skills are a must have because if your car breaks due to lack of maintenance in your winters, you can die. :p

gaasc said:
random thought: about a year from now i'm gonna need a new car: park avenues do not meet restrictions so i have to go the other side:

how much do jaaaaaaags depreciate in let's say a time frame of 5 years i don't think i will have much money 15k maximum and I'm just looking at options
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I don't know what your local market does, but in the US, 5 years will usually see a ~$90K Jag going for about $15-20K, or sometimes much less.
 
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Spectre said:
Most of you Scandihoovians seem to understand that basic car maintenance skills are a must have because if your car breaks due to lack of maintenance in your winters, you can die. :p
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Or have to walk in rain/icy slush. That sucks even more.
 
^^So what are you looking at? Or is that a discussion that I missed?
 
tigger said:
Now I have a 1996 Bonneville, probably the most shining example of GM's failure as a car maker (and anything else) ... and I get hit again. WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME GOD? :lol:

Actually, this Bonneville is probably some sort of fluke (in that it's great transportation). 190k miles on it, the "Sea of Gray" interior is not falling apart, it drives great, all the electronics work and the only rust is little bit on the left rear wheel arch.
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This generation of the Bonneville was actually one of the best cars GM ever made...in terms of build quality that is, not in performance ;)


EyeMWing said:
I hold in my hands the most BULLSHIT traffic citation ever issued.

60 in a 55.
Points: 0
Fine: $35.

Alright, fine. I can live with that. It's stupid, it's the absolute bare minimum you can be prosecuted for speeding, but I'm not going to lose sleep over it.

... Total after fees: $119. WTF is this shit? Seriously?
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That really is bullshit. I'm thinking, that if you actually go to court for that, the judge might cancel it if you explain yourself really well.
I mean it's your right - you are pauying a court fee, you might as well go see what's what.
 
I have (kinda forcibly) decided to halve my budget for my next car :(
 
Spectre said:
I don't know what your local market does, but in the US, 5 years will usually see a ~$90K Jag going for about $15-20K, or sometimes much less.
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i'm bringing this up to annoy my dad, who is the sort of man who thinks you should buy a car only for us as a tool (the mitsu really is a tool, a tool i'm quite fond of, a lovely tool but a tool nevertheless), he is the sort of guy that buys a KIA Rio and has no understanding of the interwebs I'm gonna buy from the US so the max 15k lowers to 12k or something-i just want a XJ6 with a tan interior and not red
 
Testing the waters.

So. RWD, manual gearbox, reliable/cheap to run, run till 250k miles, <$5k used. Does it exist?
 
gaasc said:
i'm bringing this up to annoy my dad, who is the sort of man who thinks you should buy a car only for us as a tool (the mitsu really is a tool, a tool i'm quite fond of, a lovely tool but a tool nevertheless), he is the sort of guy that buys a KIA Rio and has no understanding of the interwebs I'm gonna buy from the US so the max 15k lowers to 12k or something-i just want a XJ6 with a tan interior and not red
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So you want a link or something?
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detai...kId=20066&rpp=50&feedSegId=28705&aff=national
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/XJ6-...cks?hash=item4148cd67ed&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245$7000 XJ6 Vanden Plas
 
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Why you don't want a Smart:

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02eghIfyHP0[/YOUTUBE]
 
thanks man, but it's a bit of forward planning now that VP is SWEEEEEEEET I'm asking just to go into uber money saving mode and knowing that maybe, just maybe i will be able to procure myself a 2006 XJ6 (stupid Hondurans started importing wrecked old cars so now you can buy and import < 5 year old cars see: Britain's 70MPH speed limit) in about a year or so, if it didn't that VP would be in my hands by now
 
_HighVoltage_ said:
That really is bullshit. I'm thinking, that if you actually go to court for that, the judge might cancel it if you explain yourself really well.
I mean it's your right - you are pauying a court fee, you might as well go see what's what.
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No, actually, I'm *NOT* paying a court fee. That's AN EXTRA $20. It really isn't worth going to court over, because my entire argument will be based on "Your speed limit is bullshit" (because, yes, technically I *WAS* speeding - I saw it with my own eyes) and I'm pretty sure it's been tried thousands of times and the judge responsible for the area (being PA, a "courthouse" consists of one judge in an office, and there are a BILLION courthouses) because this strip of road is infamous for being a revenue generator for the state police (huge, wide road, the same size as the Interstate itself and built to a higher design speed, very low traffic counts and very, very straight - but a STUPID speed limit.
 
EyeMWing said:
No, actually, I'm *NOT* paying a court fee. That's AN EXTRA $20. It really isn't worth going to court over, because my entire argument will be based on "Your speed limit is bullshit" (because, yes, technically I *WAS* speeding - I saw it with my own eyes) and I'm pretty sure it's been tried thousands of times and the judge responsible for the area (being PA, a "courthouse" consists of one judge in an office, and there are a BILLION courthouses) because this strip of road is infamous for being a revenue generator for the state police (huge, wide road, the same size as the Interstate itself and built to a higher design speed, very low traffic counts and very, very straight - but a STUPID speed limit.
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Court fee? That isn't legal. Also most people win in traffic court.
 
argatoga said:
Court fee? That isn't legal. Also most people win in traffic court.
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It's Pennsylvania. They may have written the Constitution here, but a cash-strapped state with a the most fractured legal system you can imagine (Seriously. Different court jurisdictions every zip code, different police forces every named city/town/township - so slightly less often than every zipcode.) is not terribly apt to follow it in spirit, only in letter. I'm still entitled to a trial, but I have to "rent the room" so to speak. I'm surprised you haven't noticed that the overall trend throughout the country is to remove more and more due process from the traffic court system in order to "streamline" it (aka cut costs) - and then to charge additional "processing fees".

Check out California's cell phone law if you want a prime example.
 
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