The Official Car Talk Thread

Sad there's a lack of car culture. Honestly it seems like Americans don't really give a damn overall about cars besides point A to point B, except for a smaller subset of people.

You have the S-Class AMG, right? I had a friend with the C55 AMG and it was insane. I can only imagine the S-Class is just as crazy. I've always heard: AMG is basically this beast that loves to destroy tires and scare the piss out of the driver, whereas stuff from BMW M-Power, and the RS line from Audi a bit more refined for track stuff that just all-out-craziness. If that's as true as I hope it is, it just makes the AMG's all that more fun.

I drove the regular as a rental last time I was in CA. I absolutely hated it. Slow, uncomfortable, just overall, blah. I bet the ST will be a little better, but still.. ugh.

You are used to a BMW 3 series so yeah.

That is an awesome BMW!!!! I'm guessing you live in a southern state where you can drive these cars year round? I'm in NY so my husband has a Ford Focus (or Fukus as he calls it) as his everyday driver. The Ford is actually a decent car. The Boxster just stays in the garage for the winter. He starts it up and pulls it into the driveway every week when winter hits and lets it run a bit. I guess it has something to do with the tires. Not sure why he lets it run because he puts some kind of stabilizer in it. I don't even know if it could make it through snow, not to mention the salt tears up the underneath of every car around here. We've had a few dustings of snow so far and he only took it out once about a week ago after a heavy 2-3 day rain assuming that DPW salted during those light snowfalls.

I bought it in 2010, and the first owner bought it in 2008. They ordered everything they could, including a chrome rim and tire package that I found a receipt for in the center console....$7995 The sweet part was that the original tires and rims were never used but they kept them and gave them to the dealer when they traded it in. (tires still had those little hairlike nubs) I had dealer install the originals and they used one of their utility vans to haul the chrome rims and tires to the dealer close to me. One of the guys at the dealer stored them there and sold them for me and I split the profits for his time and allowing me to store them there. The tires were a bit larger which is fine with me but the rims....I don't care how much they cost...were major pimpified and hideous. IMO that much chrome esp on that vehicle looks moronic. I love the original Hummer rim or a black powder coat rim if I were to change them.

So I wanted to ask you your opinion on a trade. I started with an H3....doesn't compare AT ALL to the H2. It had a V5 of all things. At first I liked it but when I started looking at the 2008 H2, it was like night and day. Engine, interior, options, and looks. Now I've been looking at the H1. I've been researching pros and cons for a few months. One model looks very similar to the H2 but noticable differences that I love are the center separation in the windsheild and the bolts in the doors and other parts. They have a beautiful rim and are wider (not sure how much) but I like that too. I also like the model (Alpha I believe) that has a removable top and extends out in the back. Not sure if they come in hard top. The engine is still a V8 but I think they are 6.8L or around that, where mine is a 6.2. They run on diesel. The interior is not that great.

My biggest issue is that they stopped production of those in 2006 so GM will stop making parts in 2016 or so. If I do this I would keep mine until it's paid off....about 2 years. I bought a bumper to bumper GM extended warranty that will still be in effect after it is paid off. When I looked at the hourly rates for repairs and knowing anything can happen, I chose to buy that so I didn't have to pay for any major repairs while still making a payment. My original warranty ran out a few months ago....because of time not miles. It has about 46,000 right now. I doubt the extended will run out due to miles either....95,700. I'm adding this info because I know I won't be able to get an extended GM warranty on an H1 because they are all out of original warranty by now. I know there are "independent" warranties but I have never heard anything good about them.

I know repairs will be more on a diesel and there are other things that run different on the
H1 that would be expensive to repair. Again, if an extended GM warranty was an option I wouldn't care. There is no doubt I would be looking into payments again even with my paid off trade. Actually I would sell it on my own because at this point I could still get what I paid for it. They aren't depreciating, and I'm actually get letters every few months from the dealership that still services the Hummers(made up of several brands)offering to buy it because people are looking for them.

I just have reservations because I would be financing something older, with no warranty, that has expensive repair costs. I don't care about the small amout of extra power, so I really need to think about it. I have gone off road with mine and it has had no issues. I've had it in water that was probably way too high for what is recomended and it has no issues at all. I've had it checked out after going out with the Hummer Club in this area and it's always been fine. The dealer takes off your skid plate and step bars and puts them back on when you get back, no charge.

My thought is that the fact that mine will be easy to get parts for even after the ten years that GM will make parts when production stopped (2010). I'm pretty sure my chassis is based on that of a Tahoe/Yukon, which makes sense since it is one of GM's larger platforms. It's modified to fit the width of the H2 and is actually assembled in 3 different hydroformed sections to handle the weight and size. Do you think this will be an issue if repairs are needed way down the road in that it is a unique chassis?

Landers,

I think I mentioned the site to order gear...It's Porsche Design not Direct Direct kind of sounds like a discount shop....yeah, no discounts there

Anyway here is the site http://shop2.porsche.com/usa/

I ordered the 75th anniv hat.....it's pretty cool.

Sorry for the delay on this one. So much info to process and I haven't had a ton of time in the office to sit down and actually formulate a reply.




Probably a good idea. I'm lucky I live where I do. If I wasn't in Texas I probably wouldn't even be considering the Porsche as the next car.



What? You didn't keep those pimp uber chrome wheels on there? That'd been ill, yo!



I'm not the biggest H fan, but out of all of them the H1 is easily my favorite. It's just beastly looking.


Instead of getting an extended warrant on any new H1, I'd probably see if you can find a good, reasonable indy-shop to do any work you need that you or your husband can't do on your own. I dunno how handy you are, but I imagine with the H1 you could probably crawl into the engine bay which would make some stuff a bit easier to do on your own.



I dunno too much about the H1 engines, perhaps someone else here has an opinion on typical issues seen after certain ages for these engines? I'd probably check out a hummer forum and just research the hell out of whatever model you want to buy. That's what I did the last two times I bought a car. Helped to get a good understanding of general reliability straight from the consumer, find common issues, etc.

I do understand that there are turbo and non-turbo models. I'd be careful about buying a used turbo vs naturally aspirated. Just make sure you know what you're getting into and that engine isn't known for having major turbo issues. Those can be pretty expensive to work on.


If you still like your current one and can still have fun with it, maybe stick with it for a while? If I were you though, I'd try and get the vehicle that I want and do what I could to minimize my overall costs: working on it myself when possible, verify any known major issues had been taken care of prior to purchase, get a good vehicle history, etc.



From my quick research looks like it's modified version of the GMC 2500HD chassis. I imagine the base 2500HD chassis is pretty typical for most truck mechanics, but I don't know enough about that. Might be a good idea to talk to a good indy shop and see what they have to say on it.

I know, I'm sorry My question became more of a short story!!! I thank you very much for your input and information.

My husband has done alot of work on his own cars but I AM NOT handy in that department. That's a good point though to see what work he would be able to do if needed to cut down on cost. I guess it would also depend on any special tools that they may require.

The H1 is my favorite also....same reason as you...it's the meanest looking of them all! Although not as mean, I do like the look of my H2 and everything else about it. I'm def paying it off (about 2 years) which gives me time to think about it and research it. Who knows, maybe my husband will talk me into a Porsche by then If we lived in a year round warm climate I would, but here I would need a second car for winter also.....too much when I can just take his out to enjoy it in the summer.

Yeah, the chassis front section is a modified GM 2500 series - the middle section is a new piece and is fully boxed - and the rear section is the modified GM 1500 series and upgraded for weight.

BTW I looked at the Cayman on the Porsche site.....it is unreal in that yellow!!! I don't know if you like the yellow but IMO Porsche is one brand that can pull it off and it looks amazing on that model!

Expect the range-topping model to be called the Porsche Cayman Turbo. Its 2.5-liter boxer engine is said to be good for 350 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque, and it will come bolted to Porsche's dual-clutch PDK transmission only.

http://www.motorauthority.com/new...-auto-show



Uhm... yes. Please. Now.

http://www.motorauthority.com/new...-auto-show



Uhm... yes. Please. Now.

Why buy regular 911 if you can get a Cayman/Boxter and save about $30k. Of course I can afford neither (by a long shot) so the closest one to my paycheck is always going to be more appealing.

Sometimes I wish I had lived when parts to build things like this were laying around behind every shop and barn and could be had for the asking.





Gotta love the taillight.