Support NeoGAF

[jongkookie]

Old article from Jalopnik, but I think this pretty much explains why a majority of R35 owners are your stereotypical rich dudes that aren't car enthusiasts(though to be fair, this also applies to majority of rich people who aren't enthusiasts).

Horsepower As A Status Symbol, And Why Slow People Buy Fast Cars

Summed up in literally two sentences:

Horsepower, as it turns out, isn't a drug. It's just a status symbol.

There's more to it than that, but basically the higher HP car you get, the more higher-end it looks, so yeah, still a status symbol coz of red brakes, accents, and all that other shit.

 

[Stinkles]

We, amazingly live in a world where we can buy reliable Japanese, US and european cars with what would have been considered supercar performance in the 80s, for the price of a family sedan. My car, ostensibly a safe, quiet highway muncher, has launch control. It can go from 0-60 in 5.3 seconds with a gas saving four pot. The top speed is over 150mph.

That's BONKERS. And I have one of the slower cars on this thread.

It has AWD and near perfect weight distribution, and if I was a proper man, I would be able to hurl it around corners at 1970s Le Mans speeds. Half of us won't ever get to experience even a fraction of what our cars are capable of.

Stuff like the Hellcat and Demon aren't insane because of how fast or powerful they are, they're insane because they finally handle well and won't fall apart before the first service. My car doesn't even get its first oil change till 10000 miles. My user experience in the vehicle was upgraded silently overnight, and amplified because Apple finally fixed a lot of Carplay issues. All for free.

This is the golden age of cars, and the last gasp of internal combustion engines.

What a time to be alive.

 

[OnkelC]

​

​

Had a day of mountain road fun near Frankfurt this week with an old friend and his Mini JCW GP 2 which came fresh from the tuner. At two degrees outside temp and snow, it was quite the experience on summer tires:

​

​

Thursday was washing day, I tried a few products from the Soft99 range, with shiny results.

​

​

​

​

​

Henceforth, the Fiesta shalt be called "Lardoghini", because it shines fat.

 

[No Love]

We, amazingly live in a world where we can buy reliable Japanese, US and european cars with what would have been considered supercar performance in the 80s, for the price of a family sedan. My car, ostensibly a safe, quiet highway muncher, has launch control. It can go from 0-60 in 5.3 seconds with a gas saving four pot. The top speed is over 150mph.

That's BONKERS. And I have one of the slower cars on this thread.

It has AWD and near perfect weight distribution, and if I was a proper man, I would be able to hurl it around corners at 1970s Le Mans speeds. Half of us won't ever get to experience even a fraction of what our cars are capable of.

Stuff like the Hellcat and Demon aren't insane because of how fast or powerful they are, they're insane because they finally handle well and won't fall apart before the first service. My car doesn't even get its first oil change till 10000 miles. My user experience in the vehicle was upgraded silently overnight, and amplified because Apple finally fixed a lot of Carplay issues. All for free.

This is the golden age of cars, and the last gasp of internal combustion engines.

What a time to be alive.

Yeah but it's an Audi. 😏

 

[Stinkles]

Yeah but it's an Audi. 😏

Haudi, pardner.

 

[golem]

Couple of shots from the local pca meet

 

[matmanx1]

Great pictures in this thread today, folks. Much appreciated. It's always nice to see people out and about with their cars or even out getting to view other folks' fine rides.

 

[No Love]

Haudi, pardner.

If you're still bald, I imagine you as a fancier Billy Corgan driving the shit out of that Audi on a daily basis.

 

[v1lla21]

Nice pics ^_^
OnkelC, your Fiesta looks great. Don't see em as much as the focus St out here.


Saw the new continental for the first time yesterday and man does it look nice. Of course an older couple were in the front lol.

 

[OnkelC]

Nice pics ^_^
OnkelC, your Fiesta looks great. Don't see em as much as the focus St out here.


Saw the new continental for the first time yesterday and man does it look nice. Of course an older couple were in the front lol.

Thank you!

 

[Evo X]

Saw a Viper ACR for the first time up close today. What a beast of a machine.

The wing on that thing makes mine seem like child's play. Lol

 

[op_ivy]

Saw a Viper ACR for the first time up close today. What a beast of a machine.

The wing on that thing makes mine seem like child's play. Lol

I think that's my next car. Won't look too silly in a high school staff parking lot, right? Guys?

 

[Randolph Freelander]

I traded in my 2013 Santa Fe today, got a new Kia Niro. I've even named it. Wait for it, this is original.

Brother Niro.

It's been pouring down rain all day, so this is the only image I took of it before driving it home. It's the touring trim with the advanced tech package. Basically, it's loaded. The coolest thing to me is the daggum thing has cooling seats. And they actually get cold! The second coolest thing is the smart cruise control that automatically slows you down if someone's in front of you and speeds you back up when they get out of the way (or you change lanes yourself).

I got 44MPG on the trip, which was mostly highway (~80 miles, I bought it in Greensboro, NC, and I live in Charlotte).

 

[SiteSeer]

^ sorry, but that is about the most boring angle you can use to shoot that car. we get a really good idea the shape of your gas cap and c pillar door jam and almost nothing else. lol. congrats on the new car though!

 

[Randolph Freelander]

^ sorry, but that is about the most boring angle you can use to shoot that car. we get a really good idea the shape of your gas cap and c pillar door jam and almost nothing else. lol. congrats on the new car though!

It was raining pretty hard! I just hopped out, got far enough away to get the whole thing in the shot, and got back in. I got some better shots with my last car.

 

[golem]

I got 44MPG on the trip, which was mostly highway (~80 miles, I bought it in Greensboro, NC, and I live in Charlotte).

Lawd I can only imagine. Is a hybrid? Congrats!

 

[Randolph Freelander]

Lawd I can only imagine. Is a hybrid? Congrats!

Yes. This trim rates 46 city/40 highway (so I was extremely pleased with getting 44 on highway), but other trims go as high as 52/49. In fact, some hyper-miling maniac drove one coast-to-coast on 4 tanks of gas, getting 76.6 MPG.

 

[AlphaSnake]

I traded in my 2013 Santa Fe today, got a new Kia Niro. I've even named it. Wait for it, this is original.

Brother Niro.

I wouldn't have gotten this if it weren't for their return at Wrestlemania. LMAO.

 

[Mattlikewhoa]

As for the R34, yeah... it's happening already. R32's are basically mid 20's right now and it's progged to go higher for the next 5 years or so until the R33's become available here in the States. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if R34's are going to be higher than 60's once they finally become available over here... I've heard Canadian prices are basically at that point as well.

Anyway, I hope people keep disregarding the R33 as it's the one I really want lol.

You're in foe a bad time if you're American and want a BNR34. Once they are legal, it's going to be $80K+ easy... Hell, I've been keeping track because I keep flipping between a 34 and 35 (since they are pretty much the same price.

A nice clean, B auction grade BNR34 right now is about $60-70K. The prices have been going up since I've started looking at auctions, and it's not going to slow down. After speaking to a few owners in Canada, it might just be worth it to fly to Japan and hit up specialty shops like Global Auto to make the purchase.

Whoa, I had no idea this was a thing. I totally want to go drifting in Japan. How cheap are these cars usually? I'd totally buy a beater, drift it, then take it back to the US. And I'd be able to register it because there's no inspection where I live.

Also, I'm glad there's another person that recognizes the superior DR30 skyline. I honestly really want one

There's plenty of tracks, but the most popular for obvious reasons is Ebisu since they have the Drift Matsuri events a few times a year. I'm planning to hit it up with a few friends for some solid seat time. 24 hours of drifting on 11 various tracks/circuits!

You can make a purchase of a car at Power Vehicles. They are on the circuit and have a shop that you can rent space out of incase you have something that can't be fixed in the pits...

Anyways there's more information here:

Power Vehicles Drift Heaven

 

[YuriLowell]

You aren't in the states, right? Because, as far as I can tell, the prices are hitting damn near bottom on E36 right now. I had to fight tooth and nail with my insurance to get anything decent for my M3/4/5.

Yes. Insurance does not value these cars at all.
5 years ago you could get a decent E36 M3 for like 6-7k.
Now you need at least 10-12k for one around here.

 

[m_shortpants]

Think what you will of 'Ring laps, but the new Civic Type R did a lap in 7:43:8.

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/hot-hatch/honda-civic-type-r-has-new-nurburgring-record

Pretty insane how fast these sub 40k FWD cars are getting. Absolutely crazy.

 

[Futaba]

Yit might just be worth it to fly to Japan and hit up specialty shops like Global Auto to make the purchase.

If you do, you should hit me up, see some local stores with decent prices, eg:
http://www.be-take.com/
http://www.veruza.jp/

There's a section of road not far from me that literally has nothing but 32's, 33's 34's, 180SX, S14, S15, etc, too.

 

[xDUMPWEEDx]

Think what you will of 'Ring laps, but the new Civic Type R did a lap in 7:43:8.

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/hot-hatch/honda-civic-type-r-has-new-nurburgring-record

Pretty insane how fast these sub 40k FWD cars are getting. Absolutely crazy.

They also put out a promotional video for this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1YiQwqYV4s

I was planning on getting an RS, but I've since cancelled that idea and looking at the Type R now instead.

 

[KRaZyAmmo]

If you do, you should hit me up, see some local stores with decent prices, eg:
http://www.be-take.com/
http://www.veruza.jp/

There's a section of road not far from me that literally has nothing but 32's, 33's 34's, 180SX, S14, S15, etc, too.

I'm bookmarking these. Just in case I see an PS13

 

[Flo_Evans]

So I caught a nice big nail in one of my tires. Put a plug in it but obviously I need new tires soon.

I have the michelin AS3s on there now, pretty good but I'm wondering if anyone has a better preferred all season sport tire.

I would probably upgrade to the AS3+ (newer version) supposed to have better snow/ice performance.

 

[Shadoken]

The TypeR seems brilliant. But I wish they sold a slightly less aggressive-looking version of it too. Some of the parts of that body kit just has too much going on.

 

[SliChillax]

They also put out a promotional video for this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1YiQwqYV4s

I was planning on getting an RS, but I've since cancelled that idea and looking at the Type R now instead.

Wait for the new Megane RS to be unveiled

 

[ameratsu]

Think what you will of 'Ring laps, but the new Civic Type R did a lap in 7:43:8.

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/hot-hatch/honda-civic-type-r-has-new-nurburgring-record

Pretty insane how fast these sub 40k FWD cars are getting. Absolutely crazy.

That time is within 2 seconds of a Cayman GT4... that's incredible.

We are basically at the point now where 99% of modern cars on the road will never be driven anywhere near their limits. The capability bar for even sub 40k cars is so high and there are so few places to take advantage of those capabilities, let alone the driving skill involved, that you can't drive at >7/10s for more than a few seconds without killing yourself or going to jail.

 

[GHG]

Think what you will of 'Ring laps, but the new Civic Type R did a lap in 7:43:8.

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/hot-hatch/honda-civic-type-r-has-new-nurburgring-record

Pretty insane how fast these sub 40k FWD cars are getting. Absolutely crazy.

Fantastic video. If only I was 20 again. Honda is back.

 

[v1lla21]

That time is within 2 seconds of a Cayman GT4... that's incredible.

But is it as fun tho? 😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎

 

[Smokey]

It's cheaper to lease a M3 vs a M2 even tho the former is more expensive.

Also no option to lease a M5, but I assume that's because new model is coming fairly soon? I'm sure you can go to a DS and lease one like nor Al, but thought it was weird that the M5 isn't currently in the M lineup on the site.

 

[SliChillax]

It's cheaper to lease a M3 vs a M2 even tho the former is more expensive.

Also no option to lease a M5, but I assume that's because new model is coming fairly soon? I'm sure you can go to a DS and lease one like nor Al, but thought it was weird that the M5 isn't currently in the M lineup on the site.

They don't make the F10 anymore, the M5 production stopped a few months ago iirc.

 

[golem]

It's cheaper to lease a M3 vs a M2 even tho the former is more expensive.

Not at all dealers lol

 

[matmanx1]

They also put out a promotional video for this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1YiQwqYV4s

I was planning on getting an RS, but I've since cancelled that idea and looking at the Type R now instead.

Not going to lie, that video stirred my driver's soul a little bit. Good job, Honda! I really have to go check one out for myself someday...

 

[boltz]

Not at all dealers lol

Damn and I thought folks were crazy for paying scalper prices for a Switch...there's no way anyone is going to pay that right? Right?

 

[m_shortpants]

That time is within 2 seconds of a Cayman GT4... that's incredible.

We are basically at the point now where 99% of modern cars on the road will never be driven anywhere near their limits. The capability bar for even sub 40k cars is so high and there are so few places to take advantage of those capabilities, let alone the driving skill involved, that you can't drive at >7/10s for more than a few seconds without killing yourself or going to jail.

Faster than a Zonda C12 and M3 GTS. It is crazy how technology is advancing.

If it weren't for the inevitable stupid dealer mark up, I would buy one of these. We shall see...

 

[burgerdog]

Not at all dealers lol

That is fucking ridiculous.

 

[jongkookie]

Good lord that's fncking ridiculous. You could buy a CPO 3-series for that market adjustment price...

You're in foe a bad time if you're American and want a BNR34. Once they are legal, it's going to be $80K+ easy... Hell, I've been keeping track because I keep flipping between a 34 and 35 (since they are pretty much the same price.

A nice clean, B auction grade BNR34 right now is about $60-70K. The prices have been going up since I've started looking at auctions, and it's not going to slow down. After speaking to a few owners in Canada, it might just be worth it to fly to Japan and hit up specialty shops like Global Auto to make the purchase.

Aaaand that is why I, as much as I love Skylines, just sorta don't care for them as much. I've kinda placed it in the category of "cars I'll never own so it's useless to dream/aspire for them" which basically comprises of every car that is too damn expensive lol.

A current gen 911 is on that list, but depreciation should eventually tank the prices 10-20 years down the line, similar to how 996's are starting to break the sub-$25K mark right now. But the Skylines? They're going to remain classics and I honestly don't see their prices tanking at all in the future, it's gonna stay at some ridiculous base price making it unattainable for most.

If you do, you should hit me up, see some local stores with decent prices, eg:
http://www.be-take.com/
http://www.veruza.jp/

There's a section of road not far from me that literally has nothing but 32's, 33's 34's, 180SX, S14, S15, etc, too.

Any FD RX-7's??

If so...

They also put out a promotional video for this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1YiQwqYV4s

I was planning on getting an RS, but I've since cancelled that idea and looking at the Type R now instead.

I love the video, I love and want the Type R(mostly because of it's boy racer looks tbh) but I just don't know if it's worth the mid $30K pricing especially knowing that I'll probably only take it to the track once or twice in my entire ownership of it.

Like ameratsu said, you're not going to be able to drive 7/10's of the car on the road so the realist in me is asking why I should even buy it lol. But at the same time, it looks like hot shit(the good kind of hot shit lol), it's fast, mod potential is there, and it's probably reliable as fnck being a Honda so it might actually be worth it at the end of the day.

 

[Futaba]

Any FD RX-7's??

If so...

https://www.gtnet.co.jp/usedcar/00400_10406/index1.html
The silver one in particular is clean as hell.
First one has only done 20,000 km

Or you can buy crazy stuff at auction, like this
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/q152868818

 

[KRaZyAmmo]

I saw a decent PS13 on that Gtnet.jp site you just posted Futaba. If there's any PS13

 

[golem]

Or you can buy crazy stuff at auction, like this
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/q152868818

Damn that looks amazing

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

Hi, auto-gaf. I'm looking for some input. I'm going to purchase a car entirely on my own for the first time (parents helped last time around) in about 2 months. Efficiency is a big selling point to me because I live in traffic-laden Los Angeles where you're lucky to ever exceed 70 mph anytime other than 3 A.M, so performance just wouldn't matter a whole lot. I wouldn't mind something with a little pep and decent acceleration, but at the same time I have no interest in plunking down crazy money on a car that could do 160 mph when it's realistically never gonna go past 85.

With that in mind, I've been considering the Hyundai Ioniq Electric. I'm going to list the pros here, and I'd appreciate it if the aficionados could point out any cons I might not be considering.

-Decent range. It's not a model S or even a Chevy Bolt, but It's a step up from most EV's. It's rated at 124 miles on a full charge. I don't see myself using more than that in one day very often.

-effiency. Even among EV's, this is a very efficient car. It gets 136 MPGe. It has a 28kw battery but gets better range than the leaf or i3 with their 30-33kw batteries. As far as I'm aware, it's actually the most efficient production car available. And thanks to this efficiency I could charge the battery 80% in 23 minutes, making long distance travel feasible, albeit not ideal.

-charging. Comes standard with DC fast charging up to 100kw or whatever the measurement unit is. In a lot of EV's this seems to be an upgrade that costs $750 or so.

-price. Hyundai offers a program that makes this similar to a phone contract. It is a flat fee of $275/month for 36 months for the base model, which includes the cost of tax, title, license, etc. and it comes with no annual mileage limits on the lease. They also offer charging reimbursement with this program, so my first 50,000 miles of charging are totally free. Additionally, California offers a program to people who buy EV's which would fully reimburse the initial $2,500 down payment. I just have to own the car for 30 months or else I'd have to pay back that rebate.

-design. It's not exactly going to turn heads, but it isn't a weirdmobile like almost all other EV's and it has at least some style to it unlike, say, the volkswagen e-golf.

So, those are the advantages I see behind owning the car. I personally am really excited about the Ioniq and EVs in general, but I'm also not exactly a "car guy". It may have some disadvantages I'm not considering. So, gaf, do you all know anything about this car, Hyundai in general, etc that I should be aware of? Or do you have a case to make for an alternative hybrid/EV? Would love everyone's input before I make such a big decision.

 

[Pinewood]

Id personally wait for the Ioniq plug-in hybrid if you consider doing longer trips. you still get EV mode for stop-go and city driving + petrol for extended range. Have done "long" trips (250km) in the EV and charging it gets old and annoying fast.

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

Id personally wait for the Ioniq plug-in hybrid if you consider doing longer trips. you still get EV mode for stop-go and city driving + petrol for extended range. Have done "long" trips (250km) in the EV and charging it gets old and annoying fast.

Which EV were you driving if you don't mind my asking?

Edit: oh, I think you meant the EV Ioniq. My context clues failed me for a second.

 

[rokkerkory]

Not at all dealers lol

This cant be right... market isnt that crazy for m2 anymore.

 

[nabe_shogun]

https://www.gtnet.co.jp/usedcar/00400_10406/index1.html
The silver one in particular is clean as hell.
First one has only done 20,000 km

Or you can buy crazy stuff at auction, like this
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/q152868818

Is there a good place to buy older cars? mainly stuff 25+ years old? Because the only place I know of that I see a lot is on yahoo.
This place
https://ucar.carview.yahoo.co.jp/

Because on there I see stuff like this that I want
https://ucar.carview.yahoo.co.jp/model/nissan/skyline/6713273861UC/?page=1#mnc

 

[Pinewood]

Which EV were you driving if you don't mind my asking?

Edit: oh, I think you meant the EV Ioniq. My context clues failed me for a second.

Nah, I havent driven the Ioniq. Ive driven the first Leaf (though they are all pretty similar) and the Kia Soul EV, both for extended periods (AMA lol)

I guess it comes down to - how long is your daily commute and how often do you need to go beyond the EV range (if its 2-3 times a year you can just borrow someones petrol car)

 

[boltz]

Hi, auto-gaf. I'm looking for some input. I'm going to purchase a car entirely on my own for the first time (parents helped last time around) in about 2 months. Efficiency is a big selling point to me because I live in traffic-laden Los Angeles where you're lucky to ever exceed 70 mph anytime other than 3 A.M, so performance just wouldn't matter a whole lot. I wouldn't mind something with a little pep and decent acceleration, but at the same time I have no interest in plunking down crazy money on a car that could do 160 mph when it's realistically never gonna go past 85.

With that in mind, I've been considering the Hyundai Ioniq Electric. I'm going to list the pros here, and I'd appreciate it if the aficionados could point out any cons I might not be considering.

-Decent range. It's not a model S or even a Chevy Bolt, but It's a step up from most EV's. It's rated at 124 miles on a full charge. I don't see myself using more than that in one day very often.

-effiency. Even among EV's, this is a very efficient car. It gets 136 MPGe. It has a 28kw battery but gets better range than the leaf or i3 with their 30-33kw batteries. As far as I'm aware, it's actually the most efficient production car available. And thanks to this efficiency I could charge the battery 80% in 23 minutes, making long distance travel feasible, albeit not ideal.

-charging. Comes standard with DC fast charging up to 100kw or whatever the measurement unit is. In a lot of EV's this seems to be an upgrade that costs $750 or so.

-price. Hyundai offers a program that makes this similar to a phone contract. It is a flat fee of $275/month for 36 months for the base model, which includes the cost of tax, title, license, etc. and it comes with no annual mileage limits on the lease. They also offer charging reimbursement with this program, so my first 50,000 miles of charging are totally free. Additionally, California offers a program to people who buy EV's which would fully reimburse the initial $2,500 down payment. I just have to own the car for 30 months or else I'd have to pay back that rebate.

-design. It's not exactly going to turn heads, but it isn't a weirdmobile like almost all other EV's and it has at least some style to it unlike, say, the volkswagen e-golf.

So, those are the advantages I see behind owning the car. I personally am really excited about the Ioniq and EVs in general, but I'm also not exactly a "car guy". It may have some disadvantages I'm not considering. So, gaf, do you all know anything about this car, Hyundai in general, etc that I should be aware of? Or do you have a case to make for an alternative hybrid/EV? Would love everyone's input before I make such a big decision.

I'm a fan of the Bolt - it has decent driving dynamics and has a 0-60 time of 6.5 per C&D, which makes it the fastest EV in its class. The Hyundai sounds like it may be more efficient and cost effective, but personally I would be willing to trade some efficiency for more driving fun. And performance helps in plenty of daily situations, such as pulling out of parking lots, getting around someone off a light, freeway passing, etc.

 

[Futaba]

Is there a good place to buy older cars? mainly stuff 25+ years old? Because the only place I know of that I see a lot is on yahoo.
This place
https://ucar.carview.yahoo.co.jp/

Because on there I see stuff like this that I want
https://ucar.carview.yahoo.co.jp/model/nissan/skyline/6713273861UC/?page=1#mnc

the majority of sellers either cannot be bothered to sell themselves or leave it up to dealerships who take their vehicle in part exchange when upgrading, it just isn't within native Japanese residents nature to deal with buying and selling used cars it seems.
So most just end up going through auctions, which is where you will find the majority of cars in japan, you can of course find smaller lot-dealers dotted around but most of their stock was bought at auction too, or in trade-ins for other vehicles they have stocked.

Many private sellers just use yahoo, or advertise locally in mall message boards and such, which makes buying them over the internet near impossible.

Believe it or not your best bet for a bargain is just to drive around until you find a house with a car you'd like parked outside looking unused/unloved (quite easy in japan because generally people take good care of the vehicles they currently use), knock on the door and ask if they would sell it to you, in many instances they will, because a profit to get rid of what they consider unsightly junk is better than spending the cash to have it removed and recycled. (costs a lot here).

if you're looking to buy over the net, auction houses are your best bet, though.
So long as you have the cash ready to go and are quick on the trigger finger, it's quite easy.

 

[Mr. Pointy]

Nissan Skyline 60th birthday event.