Car Thread - VROOM VROOM

[Thiletonomics]

Didn't they make TVs too?

View attachment 2436896

Daewoo made a ton of things back in the day, they even made pianos:

 

[The Last Stand]

Daewoo made a ton of things back in the day, they even made pianos:

My uncle had a Daewoo. I had never heard of it until I saw a TV with that name.

I am seeing more compact cars like Cruzes on the road.

 

[Thiletonomics]

View attachment 2436917

My uncle had a Daewoo. I had never heard of it until I saw a TV with that name.

I am seeing more compact cars like Cruzes on the road.

The Chevrolet Cruze is pretty much a descendant of Daewoos in the past, as it was developed in South Korea, under the GM Daewoo brand, after General Motors bought Daewoo Motors after they went bankrupt. The Chevrolet Spark is also a Daewoo descendant too, as it was called the Daewoo Matiz when it came out in the late 90's, which sold well enough to exist to this day as the Spark.

 

[The Last Stand]

The Chevrolet Cruze is pretty much a descendant of Daewoos in the past, as it was developed in South Korea, under the GM Daewoo brand, after General Motors bought Daewoo Motors after they went bankrupt. The Chevrolet Spark is also a Daewoo descendant too, as it was called the Daewoo Matiz, which sold well enough to exist to this day as the Spark.

I find those cars ugly. TIL that GM is a South Korean brand.

 

[Thiletonomics]

Oh I also forgot to mention this moment from a Daewoo:

 

[WhatInTheActualFuck]

Cars are rad. Daewoos aren't. That said, Korea makes some fun stuff now.

 

[Cup Noodle]

I like cars and have respect for pretty much every car community. I think it's really gay when muscle car guys shit on imports, import guys shit on trucks, and all that infighting.

That being said, Gran Turismo 1 really shaped my youth so I've always been a fan of the late 80's/early 90's Japanese import scene. FD RX-7, 4th Gen Supra, R32 GTR, all that fun stuff. As an adult I've really warmed up to the Porsche 911s of that era. It so cool that a performance car stuck to old-school air-cooled technology for so long.

It's a shame that most of the cars of this era, particularly the super high performance models I mentioned above, are getting scarce and expensive. I'd love to get my hands on one of the more reasonably-priced Japanese cars of this era, like the SW20 MR2 Turbo or a FC RX-7. But even they're getting pricey.

If you want to get a cheap JDM you have to get the jump on the competition. People are already buying R34's and paying to have them stored in Japan until they are US legal in 2023.

1. Old cars don't suck, they're just primitive, and that's what appeals to me. I grew up knowing how they work and they're effortless to work on compared to anything made beyond the mid 80s with computer controlled ignition.

2. I'm not a purist, my Galaxie has 4 wheel discs, and the engine is modified. Old

3. The engines are fine, and the extra gas spent is worth every penny.

4. Don't get in an accident lol

5. New cars suck because they're disposable, and a waste of money. It doesn't matter how good they are right now, they won't be that good in 5 years, because all of the tech in the car comes with an expiration date. Standards move on, and the infotainment unit directly tied into your body computer so you can't remove it, won't keep up. Bluetooth and Cellular Radios don't age like AM and FM did. Old cars have none of that to begin with, and that is always a plus, no always on driver camera, no always on GPS and cell radio, no candy crush on muh big dashboard iphone. Just a car. A pure experience. I haven't even gotten into what a scam MSRP is on a modern car. If cars were all $15k cheaper than they are now, they might be something to consider, but I can buy a house and land for what it would cost just for a mid-range Ram 1500. The second that car breaks a part the OEM doesn't make anymore, or never had available at the parts counter (like the injection moulded plastic brake lines with a proprietary connector on the 2008 Chevrolet Equinox), you might as well just start parting out the car, because it's done for.

1. The reason they suck is that they are primitive. If you can learn to post on this forum, you can learn to diagnose and tune post 96 EFI. I don't even fuck with pre 96. That was a mess.

2. "Modified" Yes. I modify my vehicles also. Otherwise I wouldn't bother to drive them. I can drive them stock, but I prefer not to.

3. No. Just fucking no. Quick example. You can have a 70's or 80's 350 smogger that makes 180hp and gets like 10 miles to the gallon or a 5.3L that makes 280 and in the same vehicle will make 30 miles to the gallon.

4. No airbags. Real men die. I get it. I live it. The new crumbly cars have saved countless lives though and for the general populace that is a huge plus.

5. Modern cars are built with a ten year life expectancy where as in 1950 it was 5. Also consider people drove less then. A '50 sedan was expected to go into a chevy dealership once a year for a checkup. The modern car is basically built where modern maintenance (change the damn oil) is enough for the life of the car. I've never seen a car from the 50's or 60's on the original engine over 50,000 miles. 70's and 80's it can get up to 100,000 miles. I've seen a modern LS platform engine with 300,000 miles on it. I actually replaced it. I also rebuilt it and put it in a race car.

 

[Cup Noodle]

Daewoo made a ton of things back in the day, they even made pianos:

View attachment 2436917

My uncle had a Daewoo. I had never heard of it until I saw a TV with that name.

I am seeing more compact cars like Cruzes on the road.

The Chevrolet Cruze is pretty much a descendant of Daewoos in the past, as it was developed in South Korea, under the GM Daewoo brand, after General Motors bought Daewoo Motors after they went bankrupt. The Chevrolet Spark is also a Daewoo descendant too, as it was called the Daewoo Matiz when it came out in the late 90's, which sold well enough to exist to this day as the Spark.

I find those cars ugly. TIL that GM is a South Korean brand.

The Chevrolet Cruze is pretty much a descendant of Daewoos in the past, as it was developed in South Korea, under the GM Daewoo brand, after General Motors bought Daewoo Motors after they went bankrupt. The Chevrolet Spark is also a Daewoo descendant too, as it was called the Daewoo Matiz when it came out in the late 90's, which sold well enough to exist to this day as the Spark.

I find those cars ugly. TIL that GM is a South Korean brand.

Oh I also forgot to mention this moment from a Daewoo:


View attachment 2436987

Cars are rad. Daewoos aren't. That said, Korea makes some fun stuff now.

The Korean war was a mistake. It was a forgotten war for a forgotten generation but we have to live with this god forsaken brand. The only foreign brand that GM took on that turned out decent was the Australian Holden.

 

[WhatInTheActualFuck]

The Korean war was a mistake. It was a forgotten war for a forgotten generation but we have to live with this god forsaken brand. The only foreign brand that GM took on that turned out decent was the Australian Holden.

GM makes a lot of mistakes. They have flashes of brilliance, but the bulk of their production is pretty dire.

That said, Hyundai/Kia are making genuinely interesting and desirable products now. The Kia Telluride has had a waiting list since before COVID, which is insane.

On top of that, Hyundai is turning out genuinely trackable from the lot drivers' cars now with their N badged stuff.

 

[ArnoldPalmer]

@Cup Noodle Just because I can fuck with late model cars, doesn't mean I want to. Have you ever worked on a newer Mini Cooper? It takes a criminally long time to do anything. I will agree that smog era cars aren't fun at all, but pre-smog is fine, because at least you were pissing your gas money away for gains. I don't care if it's inefficient. Cars are a hobby first, transportation second. As for saving the general populace? I think we fetishize safety, and it's keeping people alive who would not be able to pass on their genes in nature. Let the GP die a little. It's good for the gene pool. My Galaxie is on its original engine and the odometer has rolled over at least once, plus 31k. It is in beautiful mechanical shape, and will likely remain so for a little while longer.

New cars aren't built with a life expectancy. You're missing the point on that one. Expectancy isn't the concern, it's "how soon can they reliably and gradually die within a certain time frame so we can sell another". They're built with, programmed using, and maintained on, systems that become obsolete within 7-15 years, and parts made up of form-fitting one-off plastic bits that go out of print in a year or two. There isn't really a parts bin anymore. Generic parts aren't an important focus, and that's why you will never see anything currently on the road in a museum in 40 years.

 

[Red Hood]

Where the hell is my Soobrew in that list?

 

[Cup Noodle]

GM makes a lot of mistakes. They have flashes of brilliance, but the bulk of their production is pretty dire.

Yes.

That said, Hyundai/Kia are making genuinely interesting and desirable products now. The Kia Telluride has had a waiting list since before COVID, which is insane.

Eh. I've been working in a more niche world of auto mechanics for over a decade, but if they have gotten better more power to them.

@Cup Noodle Just because I can fuck with late model cars, doesn't mean I want to. Have you ever worked on a newer Mini Cooper? It takes a criminally long time to do anything. I will agree that smog era cars aren't fun at all, but pre-smog is fine, because at least you were pissing your gas money away for gains. I don't care if it's inefficient. Cars are a hobby first, transportation second. As for saving the general populace? I think we fetishize safety, and it's keeping people alive who would not be able to pass on their genes in nature. Let the GP die a little. It's good for the gene pool. My Galaxie is on its original engine and the odometer has rolled over at least once, plus 31k. It is in beautiful mechanical shape, and will likely remain so for a little while longer.

New cars aren't built with a life expectancy. You're missing the point on that one. Expectancy isn't the concern, it's "how soon can they reliably and gradually die within a certain time frame so we can sell another". They're built with, programmed using, and maintained on, systems that become obsolete within 7-15 years, and parts made up of form-fitting one-off plastic bits that go out of print in a year or two. There isn't really a parts bin anymore. Generic parts aren't an important focus, and that's why you will never see anything currently on the road in a museum in 40 years.

Imagine not having the skill to build your own parts. I recently put a coyote (380 horsepower) motor from a 2011 F150 into a 1971 F100 (does a 71 F100 even know what a horsepower is?) I've done countless LS swaps and even modern Hemi swaps. I even turned a Jeep Wagoneer into a low rider a few months ago. That was fun. Custom made hand built air ride suspension. I live cars. It is literally what I do every day. Why am I even here. I'm going to go to bed and wake up tomorrow to build more cars.

 

[Yamamura]

That being said, Gran Turismo 1 really shaped my youth so I've always been a fan of the late 80's/early 90's Japanese import scene. FD RX-7, 4th Gen Supra, R32 GTR, all that fun stuff.

Yeah the prices have really just skyrocketed to the point where some of the prices are just meme worthy at this point. I've basically been looking at cars that commonly get overlooked, like the G35/G37 which is basically just the poor man's 370z or the Toyota Aristo/Lexus GS which has the 2JZ in the older ones.

It's kinda weird that whenever I watch Fast and Furious movies I always find the background cars to be more interesting. For example I like the Monte Carlo and Viper at the opening of Toyko Drift or the Saleen Mustang in 2F2F. Maybe I've become fond of the 2000s American bubble style of cars because they bring back feelings of nostalgia for the dot com era when I was younger and looked at everything with childlike wonder.

 

[Pee Cola]

View attachment 2436917

My uncle had a Daewoo. I had never heard of it until I saw a TV with that name.

I am seeing more compact cars like Cruzes on the road.

Fun fact: Daewoo was indirectly responsible for GM pulling out of Australia, killing the Holden brand with it. The decade or so of godawful rebadged Daewoo shitboxes, most notably the Craptiva, really put a dent in Holden's reputation down here. Granted, GM didn't shut Holden down until a few years after they stopped importing Daewoos, but the damage was already done.

Another fun fact: A lot of Aussies called Daewoo "Gaywoo".

 

[ArnoldPalmer]

Imagine not having the skill to build your own parts.

Imagine thinking anyone would fab parts for newshit when it can just be crushed. Better yet, imagine 'over 300 confirmed kills'ing at me because you can't accept that someone might enjoy something for reasons other than pure practicality. Reliability, cheap parts, and ease of access are about the only 3 things old cars have going for them, but I'd drive just a frame and driveline with a seat if I could get away with it.

It's not practical. It's just better.

 

[Thiletonomics]

Fun fact: Daewoo was indirectly responsible for GM pulling out of Australia, killing the Holden brand with it. The decade or so of godawful rebadged Daewoo shitboxes, most notably the Craptiva, really put a dent in Holden's reputation down here. Granted, GM didn't shut Holden down until a few years after they stopped importing Daewoos, but the damage was already done.

Another fun fact: A lot of Aussies called Daewoo "Gaywoo".

Daewoo's cars also caused Suzuki to pull out of the US market as well in a similar manner, as Suzuki got rebadged Daewoos in the Forenza/Reno and Verona, which were the Daewoo Lacetti and Magnus, respectively. Neither of those cars sold well for Suzuki at all.

As for my favorite cars, I don't really have any loyalty to a specific brand or model, but given the choice of being able to pick any car, with no monetary restrictions, these cars would come to mind:

-Ford Transit Connect, given that smaller size vans are only a commercial-only thing in the US.
-Dodge Charger, given that it's one of the few remaining large sedans in a dying segment in the US. (The Taurus, Impala, Azera, and Cadenza were killed off in the US, and the Avalon will be killed off next year.)
-Kia Stinger, given it's similarities to the Charger.
-Chevrolet Bolt, which is the only EV that would fit what I want, and doesn't have the annoyances and drawbacks that other EVs have, i.e. Leafs only using passive air-cooling for their batteries, and Tesla interiors are too minimalistic for my tastes.
-Kia Soul, pre-2020, because the 2020 models on are now saddled with CVTs, in which I don't have to explain why.

 

[Delta Integrale]

probably 70s-90s cars that allowed for car companies more leeway with the design before safety regulations started influencing the designs more.

I've love to own a car that I could actually tinker with. Cars nowadays have so much technology baked into them, it seems intimidating for a beginner to just buy one and tinker with it. Not going to be long before cars go the way of phones where everything is closed and you'll be forced to discard it and buy a new one if it has a semi-large problem.

Favorite luxury brand: Mercedes.

Any reason why or just because?

 

[The Last Stand]

Any reason why or just because?

They look nice, particularly the E-Series. You see a Benz, you assume they are doing well. And the seats feel comfy. I love the name as well.

Looks like something from a Bond movie. Funny story: that '53 Ferrari 375 MM was meant to be for Ingrid Bergman from her husband. BUT she didn't like how it looked, so Rossellini kept it.

 

[Yamamura]

Fun fact: Daewoo was indirectly responsible for GM pulling out of Australia, killing the Holden brand with it.

That was actually rather upsetting to me even as non-Aussie to hear Holden become defunct because I've always looked at their HSV line with a sort of fascination. I always kinda liked the El Camino so when I saw the Ute as a kid I thought that was really cool to have a muscle car truck hybrid.

They look nice, particularly the E-Series. You see a Benz, you assume they are doing well. And the seats feel comfy. I love the name as well.

View attachment 2437222

Looks like something from a Bond movie. Funny story: that '53 Ferrari 375 MM was meant to be for Ingrid Bergman from her husband. BUT she didn't like how it looked, so Rossellini kept it.

If you like old Euro/classic cars in general you might enjoy watching Archer. As they tend to feature a lot of vintage vehicles in a sort of James Bondesque style in a action comedy cartoon. Where they frequently use the cars in shoot outs and chase scenes which are a throwback to old movies. Plus it's a fun show to watch in general if you haven't already.

---

I tend to notice more and more SUVs get performance variants, like the Ford Explorer ST or Toyota 4Runner TRD. Which does tickle my fancy in a sort of way, but I've also noticed some models like the Land Rover Defender get some of the most neutered looking appearance changes just when America started importing them.

IDK I think they should have kept more elements from the old design similar to how Mercedes or Ford made the modern G-Wagon/Bronco look more similar to their predecessors. Because the old Defender has a more iconic design that I feel like they missed the mark with on the new one. It doesn't look bad it just looks kind of generic in my opinion.

 

[The Last Stand]

If you like old Euro/classic cars in general you might enjoy watching Archer. As they tend to feature a lot of vintage vehicles in a sort of James Bondesque style in a action comedy cartoon. Where they frequently use the cars in shoot outs and chase scenes which are a throwback to old movies. Plus it's a fun show to watch in general if you haven't already.

I love Archer! I should get back to that show.

Hedy Lamarr's '58 Cadillac.