Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Honestly, who cares about property damage of a hedge or a sheep if the Volvo, compared to the Corsa, could save god damn human lives.
As we've been discussing all along, insurance companies.
 
Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Honestly, who cares about property damage of a hedge or a sheep if the Volvo, compared to the Corsa, could save god damn human lives.

The Volvo would also be more likely to *take* lives - the lives of those that it hit. Which, again, increases the amount of a claim. Sadly, drunk drivers usually don't die in their collisions no matter how shitty their car or how serious the crash.

Insurance companies are not charities; if they have to pay more claims or more money in claims (especially wrongful death $$$$$$$$$uits) for a class of vehicle combined with a class of driver, they will charge more for coverage of those two classes. Simple math.
 
Last edited:
I see ads sometimes for "pay per mile" car insurance.

It's an interesting concept but I can understand the privacy implications behind not doing it (it's not like they'd just trust you submitting your mileage yourself I assume).
Why dont we have these in the states, btw what does that holden badge with the helmet mean? He has had some work done to the car.

2mwuqg7.jpg
IIRC, we came close to getting this but then the bankruptcy happened...

In other news, discovered this yesterday morning:

30Annuk.jpg


9K17X8w.jpg


Damn! On one hand, it would be nice to get a replacement windshield that wasn't so hazy/scratched.

On the other, people report that they're gotten windshield replacement on XJ's and leaks into the footwell happen due to incorrect installation so maybe I should see if safelite can just repair it.
 
This *may* have something to do with the low legal drinking age there - which is just about equal to the minimum age for a driving license; there are studies that show conflicting results on that.

Meanwhile, you yankees got the whole thing backwards :

"Happy 16th Birthday, son. Here's the keys to your new Camaro/Suburban/Fteenthousand. But God forbid you even thinking about beer until you're 21 !"
 
I see ads sometimes for "pay per mile" car insurance.

It's an interesting concept but I can understand the privacy implications behind not doing it (it's not like they'd just trust you submitting your mileage yourself I assume).
Milage-limited insurance over here is pretty much standard. It's pretty simple: You submit the mileage when you start the policy, and if you get into trouble with a higher mileage on the odo than you should have, they void your coveragemake you pay the difference plus a penalty.
 
Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

You can't repair that kind of crack.

When we had by mile insurance in Texas, it worked really well. You simply took a picture of your odometer next to your license at regular intervals and sent it in. However for many people who weren't like me (multiple vehicles to spread mileage on) it didn't work out economically. People also tended to underestimate their anticipated mileage and either had overage charges or lapses. The companies offering it exited the market a few years back. Shame, because it saved me a lot of money.
 
Last edited:
Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Meanwhile, you yankees got the whole thing backwards :

"Happy 16th Birthday, son. Here's the keys to your new Camaro/Suburban/Fteenthousand. But God forbid you even thinking about beer until you're 21 !"

Seems to keep auto insurance pricing for young Americans down, relatively speaking, though. Under 25s can afford a car *and* insurance on their own here - even in no-fault states. Their claims rates are far lower than the same demographics in Ukania.
 
Last edited:

I never quite understood Boss 302, it's much slower than a Shelby and not much faster than a normal GT but costs noticeably more. I can (somewhat) understand track day specials on something like a Porsche or a Lambo/Fezza as they are essentially toys for rich people. But on an every day car like Mustang doesn't seem to make much sense, you could turn a normal GT into a Boss 302 for way less (and even retain factory warranty).

- - - Updated - - -

Meanwhile, you yankees got the whole thing backwards :

"Happy 16th Birthday, son. Here's the keys to your new Camaro/Suburban/Fteenthousand. But God forbid you even thinking about beer until you're 21 !"

It's a practicality issue, aside from a couple of cities (and in some of them depending on where you live) getting around without a car is nearly impossible.
 
Milage-limited insurance over here is pretty much standard. It's pretty simple: You submit the mileage when you start the policy, and if you get into trouble with a higher mileage on the odo than you should have, they void your coveragemake you pay the difference plus a penalty.

You can't repair that kind of crack.

When we had by mile insurance in Texas, it worked really well. You simply took a picture of your odometer next to your license at regular intervals and sent it in. However for many people who weren't like me (multiple vehicles to spread mileage on) it didn't work out economically. People also tended to underestimate their anticipated mileage and either had overage charges or lapses. The companies offering it exited the market a few years back. Shame, because it saved me a lot of money.

Damn, oh well, scheduling service now then.

Interesting to know about per mile insurance. Thanks to both you and dr. grip.
 
Every day I see this car which gas been left to rot, I did some asking around during and fundamentally the car is sound. I hope one day someone will rescue and get it back on the road.

AC0lwzIh.jpg
 
Milage-limited insurance over here is pretty much standard. It's pretty simple: You submit the mileage when you start the policy, and if you get into trouble with a higher mileage on the odo than you should have, they void your coveragemake you pay the difference plus a penalty.

That sounds terrible. I usually have recreational insurance on the Miata and set it to something like 6k miles. What if my friend invites me to an unplanned weekend roadtrip down to the Tail of the Dragon and I go 200 miles over or something. Why do I need to pay a penalty for something so insignificant.

I never quite understood Boss 302, it's much slower than a Shelby and not much faster than a normal GT but costs noticeably more. I can (somewhat) understand track day specials on something like a Porsche or a Lambo/Fezza as they are essentially toys for rich people. But on an every day car like Mustang doesn't seem to make much sense, you could turn a normal GT into a Boss 302 for way less (and even retain factory warranty).

Ummm, the Boss and the Shelby are two totally different cars with two different purposes. Even though the Boss has 218 less ponies under the hood, it will outperform the Shelby in any competition except a straight line drag race. The 662hp in that GT500 is simply too much for the chassis and the car is pretty much useless. Having driven both, I'd take the Boss 302 any day without even a 2nd thought.

And the Boss was never meant to be used as a daily, much like the more expensive track toy specials you mention. Its just that due to its price point, people end up using them as dailys, and I don't blame them, I would too.

As for turning a regular GT into a Boss, its easy, but not significantly cheaper (if we use a new 2013/14 GT price, not used). And you'll actually void the warranty on a bunch of components, so I wouldn't recommend it if you're planning on relying on the warranty.

Even if we bring the 2015/16 GT into the mix, I'd still probably end up choosing the Boss. While the updated interior and the IRS are huge improvements, I just still think it feels less spirited than my GT.
 
Every state seemed to have a mix of newly finished roads that were great and ones that needed some attention.

You are busy hitting those national parks. How do you have time to enjoy them on such a short schedule?

Some are close to each other and doable on the same day (Teton and Yellowstone). Some I've been to before (Arches, Zion). Some are just quick scouting trips to see if I would like to spend more time in future. I have an Annual Pass which I highly recommend.
 
Got stuck behind a red Lincoln Towncar today, with the custom license plate BLACK, driven by an old white man.
 
That sounds terrible. I usually have recreational insurance on the Miata and set it to something like 6k miles. What if my friend invites me to an unplanned weekend roadtrip down to the Tail of the Dragon and I go 200 miles over or something. Why do I need to pay a penalty for something so insignificant.
You misunderstood. There's only a penalty if you go for an insurance claim and your mileage is higher than agreed (if at all, depends on the insurance company, I guess). If you see you're going to need more mileage in advance, then it takes a simple phone call to the insurance company to adjust the limit just in case. Of course you'll have to pay the difference then, but no penalty.
Plus, the price difference is not that high. I just put in roughly my data into an online calculator and for full coverage, the difference between insuring the car for 10,000 and 15,000 km/year is ?30 per year. So, the cost of not even half a tank for 5,000 additional kilometres. In any case, there's no reason to skimp on the limit. I've had it set about 35% higher than needed for the whole life of my car... which means I could set it to 1,000 km per year now and be safe for another three years.
 
Last edited:
Is anyone else bugged by cars that have had their trunklid badges removed and reinstalled wrongly? Like, after a paintjob or whatnot.

Just the other day I was behind a W210 "200 E" (it's E200, goddamnit) and I've seen so many cars where the badges were in the wrong place.

There are probably hundreds of thousands of C or E class drivers that think they own a "Mercedes 200" even though MB dropped that naming scheme in the mid 90's.
 
Pay by the mile sounds horrible. I live in a rural area and just commuting to work I drive 20,800 miles a year, that doesn't count the 34 mile trip up to my closest medium sized city or when I start school back up again.
 
Is anyone else bugged by cars that have had their trunklid badges removed and reinstalled wrongly? Like, after a paintjob or whatnot.

Just the other day I was behind a W210 "200 E" (it's E200, goddamnit) and I've seen so many cars where the badges were in the wrong place.

There are probably hundreds of thousands of C or E class drivers that think they own a "Mercedes 200" even though MB dropped that naming scheme in the mid 90's.

YES! It bugs the hell out of me. Especially since I recon about 50 to 70% of people driving said cars don't know that work has been done to them and assume everything's fine.

If the badges are not reapplied right, what else is shoddily repaired?

Someone at one of the schools i work at drives a last gen Altima - every letter in "Altima" is out of vertical alignment with one another AND too low on the trunklid. Looks terrible.
 
I'd say its arguable as bad when the designers put the badge god knows where. See the new SS Camaro's rear SS badge.
 
Ummm, the Boss and the Shelby are two totally different cars with two different purposes. Even though the Boss has 218 less ponies under the hood, it will outperform the Shelby in any competition except a straight line drag race. The 662hp in that GT500 is simply too much for the chassis and the car is pretty much useless.
I get that, and have heard it before that it's too much power.
And the Boss was never meant to be used as a daily, much like the more expensive track toy specials you mention. Its just that due to its price point, people end up using them as dailys, and I don't blame them, I would too.
That's the thing though, I just don't see the point in a Mustang track day special, just not a car I would choose for track duty in general.
As for turning a regular GT into a Boss, its easy, but not significantly cheaper (if we use a new 2013/14 GT price, not used). And you'll actually void the warranty on a bunch of components, so I wouldn't recommend it if you're planning on relying on the warranty.
I'll obviously defer to you on that ;)
Even if we bring the 2015/16 GT into the mix, I'd still probably end up choosing the Boss. While the updated interior and the IRS are huge improvements, I just still think it feels less spirited than my GT.

The 15+ feels much more like a legitimate all around sports car very similar to Europeans, our cars still retain that muscle car feel.
 
Priz, before you got your 'stang I had already built up a fair bit of driving experience with an '06, and two '13 GTs, and the '13 Boss 302. While the cars may appear similar on paper, until you have driven one you have no idea just how much more than the sum of its parts a Boss 302 is.

I want a SRT Challenger, a GT350, a C7 Grand Sport.... And if I could actually have all of those things, I'd then add a Boss 302 to the lineup. It's an incredible driving experience.
 
Last edited:
Top