kevin@voder.UUCP (The Last Bugfighter) (01/31/85)
> Mazda > and Subaru aren't that stylish, and have inferior reliability also. > > Mike Gray, BTL, WH *** The piston engine goes boeing...boeing...boeing *** I can't say about Subarus but as far as Mazda is concerned I think you're nuts. I've owned two ROTARY Mazdas, an Rx-4 and an Rx-7, which have given me far less problems than any other car I've owned (two American, one Japanese, one German). And that includes any problems with the engine, granted that the early Rx-2 and Rx-3 had an engine reliability problem I know of no Rx-7 owner who has had that problem. If the Rx-7 or the 626 isn't stylish I'd hate to see your opinion of style. I know several people who have PISTON mazdas including my father who has a GLC and a late model 626, both of which he is extreamly pleased with. I asked around here at work where I found three 626 owners and one GLC owner, all of whom were generaly pleased with their cars and would recommend the model to someone interested in it. So there! -- Kevin Thompson {ucbvax,ihnp4!nsc}!voder!kevin "It's sort of a threat, you see. I've never been very good at them myself but I'm told they can be very effective."
chris@leadsv.UUCP (Christopher Salander) (01/31/85)
> > Comments? --J. Abeles. > Yes!! I went through the same process you described! I am 6'4" and cannot tolerate driving is a seat that is tilted too much. As a result, I found that I cannot fit in: 1) ALL Japanese cars ( the Mazda 626 came close, though). 2) ALL French and Italian cars. 3) ALL British cars except the Jaguars. 4) ALL German cars except the largest Mercedes. 5) ALL American cars that are "compact", "subcompact", or "sporty". The April issue of Consumer Reports is an excellent reference for buying a car. I found all its numbers to be close to what I discovered for myself. Use their size table to figure out if you can fit in a car. It saves visiting all those car lots. Also, I will not fit in a Volvo if it has a a sun roof. My father has either fixed cars, sold cars, or registered cars for about 40 years now. He says, given any amount of money, he would buy the 12 cylinder Jaguar as "the best car made today". Given an engineer's income, he recommends a Volvo. (Everyone I know who has a Volvo has had no problems, but this is California). Since I presently have the same car the police use (an V8 Plymouth), I also want POWER. Since I cannot afford a Jag., and the Volvo is under-powered, I have decided that my preference would be for a Ford Thunderbird. The Thunderbird - 1. It has the room 2. It has the power (V6 or V8) 3. Good mileage (not great) 4. Very reliable, compared to other U.S. cars The Cougar is suppose to be even more reliable, but it has a lot of fancy extras that I don't want to pay for, and the designer is uglier. Why not Chrysler? - Almost all their cars have no power, except the ones that are too small for me. The one V8 model left gets 12 MPG, and is very unreliable. Why not GM? - Most of the cars are too plain, and are more unreliable than other U.S. cars. A Buick might be a possibility, but think of all the cruisin' music that you can play that's been written about T-birds!!
brahms@spp2.UUCP (Bradley S. Brahms) (02/02/85)
> Since I presently have the same car the police use (an V8 > Plymouth), I also want POWER. Since I cannot afford a Jag., > and the Volvo is under-powered, I have decided that my preference > would be for a Ford Thunderbird. > > The Thunderbird - > 1. It has the room > 2. It has the power (V6 or V8) > 3. Good mileage (not great) > 4. Very reliable, compared to other U.S. cars One of my friends manages a rent-a-car agency. Of all the cars that they have, he has had the most trouble with Fords. At one point, they had just gotten 8 new T-birds ('84 model year). Well, within a couple of weeks, they all had troubles. I did drive one of the T-birds for a week (my car was in the shop). I did like the ride, the room (I'm 6'5") and the "niceties". However, I would have second thoughts about getting a Ford. -- Brad Brahms usenet: {decvax,ucbvax}!trwrb!trwspp!brahms arpa: Brahms@usc-eclc P.S. Of the american cars, he has had the best luck with GM cars.
luria@ucbvax.ARPA (Marc Luria) (02/03/85)
In article <363@leadsv.UUCP> chris@leadsv.UUCP (Christopher Salander) writes: > Yes!! I went through the same process you described! > > I am 6'4" and cannot tolerate driving is a seat that is > tilted too much. As a result, I found that I cannot fit > in: > > 1) ALL Japanese cars ( the Mazda 626 came close, though). > 2) ALL French and Italian cars. > 3) ALL British cars except the Jaguars. > 4) ALL German cars except the largest Mercedes. > 5) ALL American cars that are "compact", "subcompact", or > "sporty". I also had to look for cars with leg and headroom. I found that the car I bought a Fiat Strada, had more room for me than any of the other cars I tried. It is no longer sold new in this country but is popular in Europe, and is available used. It looks like the Rabbit from the outside but there is much more headroom inside.
srradia@watmath.UUCP (sanjay Radia) (02/04/85)
I own a Nissan stanza and haven't had reliability problems in the last
1 and a half years (during warranty I needed to have my gear shifting bushings
adjusted but that was covered by Nissan). Also I have two friends who
own the same car and are again happy with the car. The only thing
I don't like about the car is that I would have prefered a slightly harder
suspension.
--
sanjay
UUCP: ...!{ utzoo,decvax,ihnp4,allegra}!watmath!srradia
ARPA: srradia%watmath%waterloo.csnet@csnet-relay.arpa
CSNET: srradia%watmath@waterloo.CSNETwoods@hao.UUCP (Greg Woods) (02/05/85)
> I am 6'4" and cannot tolerate driving is a seat that is > tilted too much. As a result, I found that I cannot fit > in: > > 1) ALL Japanese cars ( the Mazda 626 came close, though). > 2) ALL French and Italian cars. > 3) ALL British cars except the Jaguars. > 4) ALL German cars except the largest Mercedes. > 5) ALL American cars that are "compact", "subcompact", or > "sporty". I find this interesting. You must have a relatively long upper body and shorter legs than I. I am 6'5" tall, and I am quite comfortable in my Tercel. I also sat in (and fit in) a Dodge Omni, a Nissan Stanza, a Honda Accord and Ford Escort. I also used to own an Audi 100LS which I fit in quite nicely. --Greg -- {ucbvax!hplabs | allegra!nbires | decvax!noao | harpo!seismo | ihnp4!noao} !hao!woods "...sometimes the light's all shining on me; other times I can barely see..."
chu@lasspvax.UUCP (Clare Chu) (02/05/85)
Has anyone heard anything about the new Subaru
2-door hardtop? It's supposed to be a totally new
car. I'm wondering if anyone has had any experience
driving one and if it is worth considering to buy.
I am also considering the Honda Civics both the S
and DX versions. So if anyone has any comments both
positive or negative, please forward them to me.
Thanks, as always, in advance.
Clare Chudave@rocksvax.UUCP (02/05/85)
Having rented one of those T-Birds I can say - YUKKKKY. What
a mush bucket!!! Got sea sick riding through the windy roads in N. Calif.
Don't flame about the rental, I consider rentals an accelerated life test.
If that is an indication of what that thing will be like in 2-3 years
you can have it.
Dave
arpa: Sewhuk.HENR@Xerox.ARPA
uucp: {allegra,rochester,amd,sunybcs}!rocksvax!davejeb@eisx.UUCP (Jim Beckman) (02/06/85)
I have decided to replace my current car, and have narrowed the choice down to two alternatives. I would appreciate comments or advice from anyone who has had experience with these or similar cars. The two finalists are: 1964 Ford Fairlane - 2-door, 260 in. V8, 3-speed standard, needs clutch replaced, slightly over 100K miles, engine running good, $450. 1965 Dodge Dart - 4-door, 225 in. Slant 6, 80K miles, automatic trans, good mechanical condition, usual rust, $600. Other considerations are that I could do the Ford clutch job myself. The Dart has fewer miles, but the Fairlane seems to have a lot of life left in it. And of course I would prefer the "sports car" image of the Ford since it only has the two doors. And I really hate driving with an automatic transmission. Any suggestions? Since I expect interest will run high in this comparison, I will be happy to summarize for the net. References to recent Consumer Reports tests of these cars will also be appreciated. Jim Beckman AT&T-ISL South Plainfield, NJ eisx!jeb
mark@cbosgd.UUCP (Mark Horton) (02/12/85)
In article <363@leadsv.UUCP> chris@leadsv.UUCP (Christopher Salander) writes: > I am 6'4" and cannot tolerate driving is a seat that is > tilted too much. As a result, I found that I cannot fit > in: > > 1) ALL Japanese cars ( the Mazda 626 came close, though). I have a friend who is 6'8". The ONLY car he fits comfortably in is a Honda Civic. Mark
sah9577@ritcv.UUCP (Scott Hossler) (02/14/85)
jeb@eisx.UUCP (Jim Beckman) in Message-ID: <862@eisx.UUCP> writes: > I have decided to replace my current car, and have narrowed the > choice down to two alternatives. The two finalists are: > > 1964 Ford Fairlane - 2-door, 260 in. V8, 3-speed standard, $450. > > 1965 Dodge Dart - 4-door, 225 in. Slant 6, 80K miles, $600. Both cars sound like excellent choices but I tend to lean towards the FORD. Last January I purchased a 1966 Mustang for $200.00 and have not had to do a thing to it other than gas and I think one quart of oil. After 4000 miles the brakes are finally getting a bit iffy so I just took it off the road rather than fix them to pass inspection. It has been an excellent car. On the other hand The slant six is a good engine. I had a 74 Charger with one and I never had to tune it and it always purred. I kept it a little over a year and a half and ended up selling it to get a Rice-Hauler because of it's smaller size. You have a TOUGH decision ahead of you. I wish you luck! scott hossler rochester!ritcv!sah9577
kellym@iddic.UUCP (Kelly McArthur) (02/19/85)
In article <862@eisx.UUCP> jeb@eisx.UUCP (Jim Beckman) writes: > >I have decided to replace my current car... I would appreciate >comments or advice from anyone who has had experience with these >or similar cars: >1964 Ford Fairlane - 2-door, 260 in. V8, 3-speed standard, >needs clutch replaced, slightly over 100K miles, engine >running good, $450. >1965 Dodge Dart - 4-door, 225 in. Slant 6, 80K miles, >automatic trans, good mechanical condition, usual rust, $600. Well Jim, I don't envy that tough choice, but I have to admit that my preference has always been for state surplus Chrysler products. Have you considered an appliance-white Fury III with a 454 and no hubcaps? There is a lot of discussion going on in this group about what sort of car handles best; rear engine cars, front wheel drive cars, expensive European cars--well I think that nothing handles better than a *cheap* car. You can go faster, turn corners sharper and throw the transmission into reverse while going forward at a higher rate of speed in a cheap car than in any other kind (except perhaps a rented car). Now, your Fairlane is great for kicking open the passenger door and taking out rural mailboxes, but you really need a four-door if you want to jam a couple kegs in the back seat and go possum huntin'. Take the Chrysler's fine handling characteristics: whenever I'm in a high speed four wheel drift across six lanes traffic, I can't think of a car I'd rather be riding in. If she hits the median and starts to roll, just dive under the dash and ride the sucker out. But perhaps I digress... Whatever you get, I'm sure you'll be happy with it. Especially when you're parked at K-mart and that housewife with the Darvon addiction sends her Vista-Cruiser careening through the presto-logs and mashes your rig beyond recognition. At least it won't ruin your whole day... Kelly McArthur 63-281 tektronix!iddic!kellym Information Display Division Tektronix, Inc Wilsonville, Oregon 97070 (503) 685-4536 -- "Why Robin, that's childs play for the Batcomputer." Kelly McArthur 63-281 tektronix!iddic!kellym Information Display Division Tektronix, Inc Wilsonville, Oregon 97070 (503) 685-4536