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What do the Americans think of...

Jostyrostelli

Jostyrostelli

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Joined
May 29, 2004
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I assume there are a lot of American members on this forum, and I was wondering: What do you all think about

-The diesels in Europe
(as far as I now you don't have that many diesels in the US)
-The stickshift, do you prefer automatic or would you rather see all
cars with manual gearboxes?
-The size of the cars/engines (I prefer big engines but I can imagine
that you hate them after a while, those big heavy loud engines)
 
we hate diesels

we are too lazy to use the manual so autos rule

bigger the better is our philosopy on everything...even our waistline :lol:
 
Sadly dukenukem is right and its a shame :( . Finding a used car with a manual takes some looking. A diesel would be nice to have however since almost half the vehicles on the road now are trucks or SUV's that barely get double digits for MPG, fuel friendly isn?t a word we in the US have used since the gas shortage in the 70's. Americans will bitch until the sun goes down that gas prices are up to $2 a gallon but wont think twice about getting the SUV to haul around their 1.2 kids.

I would love to see more V8 options in the US or at least more powerful V6 options. Displacement is an American past time but hp per liter doesn?t seem to be...lol.
 
dukenukem said:
we hate diesels

we are too lazy to use the manual so autos rule

bigger the better is our philosopy on everything...even our waistline :lol:
Click to expand...

i agree with all of that.
 
Yea, it's hard to find good cars that have both options for Manual & Auto. Only vechiles that are deisels are trucks, some SUV's and those turbo'd Mercs from the 80's.

I'd like to see stronger V6's and more V8's in cars as an option at least. Most American V6's put out no more than 220hp at best which is pitiful when i4 imports are hitting those same numbers.

It is nice to see rear wheel drive starting to make a comback again tho.
 
American cars can have manuals with 4cyls but most of them don't offer it in the upscale, more powerful V6 models :roll:

go european cars!

anyway I'm not american so I think diesels are a good thing and I'd like to have more of the nice little cars you have in Europe.
 
The preconceptions are mostly true.

In America, we still have the idea that diesels are dirty and noisy. This stigma really keeps buyers away. I'm well versed in the world of cars and I know the diesels now are as quiet, refined and almost as clean as modern engines, but there's still that stigma. I have memories of my elementary school teacher's diesel Mercedes that sounded like a farm tractor.

Transmissions, it's sad, but the majority of American cars are ONLY available with automatic transmissions. American cars (Ford, Chevy, Dodge) are usually only available with automatics (which aren't even that good). So I guess when an entire generation grows up not knowing how to use a clutch, the manual transmission slowly dies here. Myself, I'd rather have a manual transmission, but while looking for my firs car, my father is forcing me to buy auto.

Displacement is more of a misconception. I guess, down south there may be more good old boys who revere the American big block, but here in Boston, the people drive around in Celicas, Integras, Minis more than they do Mustangs or Camaros.
 
Here is something that really really pissed me off.....me, my cousin and his friends ...all about 21-23 yr olds were chatting about cars and stuff and most of the guys said they were car enthusiasts like us ....but the saddest thing is only me and one other fellow actually knew how to use a manual tranny..... :shock:
 
Well I can understand people buying automatics because when you only do city driving a manual can be a PITA in the traffic.
 
I guess I'm either subconsciously picking my friends on them being able to drive a stick, or it's just luck, but all my friends including their wives / girlfriends know how to operate a manual.
 
Going back to diesel...
Last year my Corrado (VR6, 190Hp) was in the shop at a local VW dealer.
They loaned me a Golf GTi PDi 150. That's a GTi set up Golf with a 1.9 liter, 150Hp Pumpe Duse (Common Rail Direct Injection) diesel with a 6 Speed box.

To be Brutally Honest... It shocked the hell out of me...
If you floored it in first the front wheels just evaporated in wheelspin.
OK, change to second and floor it again, more wheelspin (all this with the traction control OFF :D )
I have a friend who has a '95 Honda Civic Coupe LSi (125 Hp 1.6 (Not as common in Europe as in the USA)).
He'd never driven a turbo diesel before, so I let him have a go.
I didn't say a thing, but the look on his face while bouncing the off the rev limiter at 5000 rpm with the wheels still spinning, then changing to 3rd was hilarious.

When I picked up my Corrado, I ended up thrashing it through the gears trying to match the acceleration rush the diesel gave me...

The Corrado is definately faster, but the Torque of the diesel Golf has to be experienced to be believed :shock: :shock: :shock:
 
The only VW diesel (they put it in the Passat, Golf, Jetta, Beetle) we have is the TDi 115... hopefully when the new Golf comes here they'll bring the 150. Mercedes is also making a Diesel E class. Other than that if you want a diesel you have to buy a truck or pickup
 
Hehehe, I drove the new VW Golf V TDI 150bhp..I know what you're talking about, the newest Turbo Diesels are very fast, with an average turbo diesel you can easily keep up with most cars. I drive a Mercedes 311 CDI for DHL (courier company) And that thing is really fast, turbo all the time... :lol:
 
In the future diesels will be even faster than they are already...

BMW and Opel/Vauxhall both already have diesel-engines with 2 turbos, those are not exactly biturbos, they're "two-stage turbocharged". A small turbo for low revs and a bigger turbo for high revs. This way you have less turbo lag and in the end even more power than with one turbo.

Vauxhall/Opel's engine is a 1.9 (4cylinders) and has 220hp. :shock:
Bmw has a 3l (6 cylinders) engine with 275 hp which will actually be on sale soon!

cya
Oli
 
Yup, the 335, (sounds like a 3.5, but is a 3.0 biturbo diesel) cant wait for the reviews of that one...

Also Audi and Jaguar (Peugeot engine) have twin turbo diesels
 
Kind of funny anyway that the American Car of the Year in 2004 was the Toyota Prius...

I've taken one for a test drive and it's nice in fact! The ideal urban communting car. And it's not

Prior to the VX220 Turbo I've owned two 330d's as I was doing more than 30k miles a year... This car was great. How is a 1600 kg car which achieves more than 35 mpg (US gallons) while "cruising" at 75? And this was two years ago, now these engines achieve even better.

When is the E320 CDi supposed to go on sale in the US?
 
idletask said:
Kind of funny anyway that the American Car of the Year in 2004 was the Toyota Prius...

I've taken one for a test drive and it's nice in fact! The ideal urban communting car. And it's not

Prior to the VX220 Turbo I've owned two 330d's as I was doing more than 30k miles a year... This car was great. How is a 1600 kg car which achieves more than 35 mpg (US gallons) while "cruising" at 75? And this was two years ago, now these engines achieve even better.
Click to expand...

That Prius, how was it like to drive? I mean, what kind of sound does the engine make? How was the acceleration? Tell me, I'm curious :lol:
 
jostyrostelli said:
That Prius, how was it like to drive? I mean, what kind of sound does the engine make? How was the acceleration? Tell me, I'm curious :lol:
Click to expand...

Ever driven a scooter? Well, as to the engine note it works basically the same (except that the engine is off at a stop or at low speeds or even while going downhill).

There's no proper gearbox in that car, the planetary gearset acts like a CVT. So, when you accelerate, you ask full power and the petrol engine delivers it - ie it revs up and stays there, and you gather speed. Strange sensation, in fact you are under the impression that there is a clutch and that it just slips, but no. And when the engine revs, well, it just sounds like a four pot, nothing really exciting. But then again this is not the goal of the car. At crusing speed you barely hear it. Except when you're on cruise control at quite high speed and arrive at a steep incline.

Acceleration is decent enough, and reaccelerations are very swift, worth the ones of a half more powerful turbo Diesel engine - the 420 Nm from the electric engine help a lot here.
 
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