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The Automotive Thread

Discussion in 'Permanent Threads' started by Backroom, Oct 19, 2009.

  1. Backroom

    Backroom
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    Post your automotive questions here.

    I'm no good at starting topics, but I know nothing about cars and have questions every once in a while that a google search can't necessarily find. Maybe we can start one in the permanent section.
     
  2. Supertramp

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    I'm not good with cars at all so I have a question:

    I have a cushy job with good pay and am looking to purchase my first car. My father recommends I lease a brand new car, he's usually smart but I feel that it's kinda stupid to lease a new car unless it's a luxury car (which mine won't be). Any thoughts?

    Also, I think I'm settled on the Volkswagon Golf. It's in my price range* and it's "cooler" than Ford Focus/Honda Fit/Toyota whatever. Any thoughts on that?

    *I'll go up to 21,000$ Canadian with freight and options included, before taxes.
     
  3. rei

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    Without knowing much about the mechanics, I do know the Golf is incredibly cheap to insure in Canada (vs anything Honda or Toyota make)
     
  4. Vanilla

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    The Golf seems like a pretty solid option. Very few cars with a half-decent cool factor fall into that price range and the golf is definitely near or on the top of the list. All the Toyota's and Honda's right now that aren't trucks are completely unappealing to me and I am not exactly a Ford/GM/Chrysler advocate. That being said, Hyundai is on the rise as a respectable car company, but they lack a cool factor. And then Nissan - I just hate them on the premise that their management actually approved that ugly PoS they call the Cube.

    So yea, I'm with you on the Golf. I would recommend taking a look at the Mazda3 Sport. It's the only thing I can think of off the top of my head that I like the look of in that price range.
     
  5. rei

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    the base model Subaru Impreza is also in that price range and features AWD
     
  6. Creelmania

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    If you're going with Volkswagon, take a look at the City's. Brand new, straight out of the factory cars, but they're the year or two old style.

    My friend got a City Jetta a while back and has loved it so far.
     
  7. Senna Vs. Prost

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    First off, thanks for starting this. For those of you who've avoided my self-promotional posts, I am an automotive journalist (yes, I get paid for it, barely) so anything related to new cars/pissing matches about cars you'll never drive, I am your man.

    Go for the Fit, it looks weird but drives like a dream and is eminently practical. Those City Golfs are based on a pretty unreliable car (MK4 Golf).
     
  8. BrianH

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    Get an E46 BMW. There is no reason to pay the incredible premium for a new car off the lot. There are a lot of extremely nice, under warranty, babied, low mileage cars out there well within your price range. Branch out a bit.
     
  9. Senna Vs. Prost

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    Beware of the maintenance costs, and the subframe cracking issues...thats a big one.

    I'm guessing Gring is a guy who doesn't give a shit about driving or what he drives. Dude, if you buy a Honda Fit thats a year old, or with low km's you can take advantage of the depreciation and have a car thats rock solid. If you want something luxurious or performance oriented, well, thats another story.
     
  10. Supertramp

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    I'm not really into performance per se. I've been driving an 08 Accent for the longest time (it's not mine though) and I hate that the RPMs are always at 2.5k, the milage sucks and the acceleration is terrible. But that's the extent of my knowledge with cars.

    I'm in the 19-22 range man, I'll take your advice if you say the Fit is a solid car. I'll look into E46's as well but the maintenance would be a killer, wouldn't it?

    Thanks everybody for their input, if you have any thing else to add feel free.

    I'm getting the car in about a month; this isn't a pipe dream, I live 90min from my school if I take public transport, I need a car.
     
  11. Stevo

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    I've had an 03 325ci for 5 years now and can agree that the costs for pretty much any repair are pretty outrageous. Never heard of/had any problems with that frame cracking stuff. But if you can find one used with like 20k-30k miles, it is a good dead. If I could go back in time, I'd still buy mine.
     
  12. Senna Vs. Prost

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    I've never driven an Accent but 2.5k is just fine for cruising. My Miata turns 3.5-4k on the highway and its the worst shit ever, just a constant drone. Drive a Fit, if you don't like it, come back here and we'll work something out, but I swear that most people living in an urban area would do just fine with one as their method of transportation though. It is a little sluggish, but not too bad.

    A strong contender is a gently used Mazda3. More power, more fun, not as functional as a fit but again, a lightly used car is smart. Try those two and see what you like.
     
  13. Backroom

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    I'm driving an 04 Santa Fe, when I start the engine it begins to screech, as I accelerate it changes tones (mostly to a higher pitch). This lasts between 2 seconds and 2 minutes. I just had all the belts/fuel pump changed a few months ago. My check engine light has been on for about a month. Is this something I need to be worried about or just nuisance?
     
  14. Senna Vs. Prost

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    Hard to diagnose from here, but it could be that a belt was incorrectly tightened.
     
  15. Diablo

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    Hey all, I'm looking to add some performance upgrades to my '08 Infiniti G37s and was looking for input. I'm currently looking at getting the following:

    Injen CAI
    Or
    Stillen Gen3 CAI
    Berk Tech High Flow Cat's
    and possibly a Borla Stainless Steel Cat-back Exhaust

    If anyone has any experience, input, suggestions, etc on these parts, I'd greatly appreciate it.

    ps. I'm not the best with underbody work, these would be my first mod's. And I'll be living with a buddy soon who has all the tools necessary to complete all these.
     
  16. Senna Vs. Prost

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    Don't expect a serious horsepower gain from this stuff. Your car will be a little louder, but thats it. Not sure how the VH37s are, but the VQ35s took immense work just to make a measely 300whp (when they dyno'd around 240 stock). You drive a nice, good handling luxury car? Stay away from the teenage riceboy shit and enjoy it. Hell, but some good tires and take some racing school classes. That will take you much further than stupid bolt-ons. Is this shit even a manual? 95% of them are.
     
  17. mad5427

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    I'll second getting a Subaru. My wife and I have a Forester and it has been the most reliable car we've ever had. It's her primary car and when I needed a new one, we couldn't quite afford an Impreza, so I got a Toyota Corolla. I do some serious driving for work and wanted to get the best mileage, cheapest, most reliable vehicle in my range and it was the Corolla. It suites my needs for now, but the Corolla is what it is. A reliable workhorse of a car.

    If I could of swung the extra few thousand, I would of jumped on the Impreza. I will most certainly get one when I get another new car down the road. We've had nothing but amazing experiences with the Subaru dealers where we've lived. The vehicle has had no problems in almost 5 years. Just regular scheduled maintenance. Nothing seems to be on the verge of going. I can't speak about what it'll be like when things do start going wrong on the car, but if our experience thus far stays similar, I'm sure we won't be disappointed. We know a few people who have only been driving Subaru's for years and won't touch anything else. These friends and myself aren't in a league to own more luxury vehicles than this at this point, so I can't speak for the quality of higher end cars like BWM, etc., but in the class you are talking about, definitely check out Subaru.
     
  18. Racer-X

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    The best first step is to decide what you want to accomplish with your car. If you want a little better sound and a slight bump in power, a CAI and exhaust are pretty good choices. Realize that the engine in that car, the VQ37VHR, will never sound much better than a truck engine.

    If you want to do trackdays or autocross, start with your tires, suspension and brakes.

    If you don't have a plan to begin with, chances are you will end up with mods that you have to replace somewhere down the line.
     
  19. Diablo

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    I was looking for the sound and power bump as the exhaust doesn't quite get the deep growls I'm looking for. I've watched video's of before and after installations of some of the parts and it seems the HFC's and the CAI would give me the deeper sound and the boost in power I'm looking for. I'm just not sure that I even need a new exhaust, the stock sounds pretty good on its own.

    Possibly somewhere down the line (read: when I get more money) I'll turn it into a track car...but those mods just cost too much right now. Oh, which reminds me, does anyone know of any good websites or places to buy performance tires? I was looking at some Michellin Pilot Exalto pe2's, and was looking for a reliable place to get em.
     
  20. Vanilla

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    My buddy put a Borla exhaust on his Mustang and can't stand it. It's very loud. I live on the 3rd floor of my apartment building and can hear when he's pulling in with construction going on next door. That being said, if you are looking for your car to get looks because it sounds like a cement truck or something is driving by, it would seem this exhaust system is for you.