dutchie01

Thats a big jump from repairing your car and driving on to a brandnew BMW for 540/month. That monthly sum can be temptive but how does it look if you have to pay 1 invoice per year for 5 years of 6480? and in the  end you have to give it back and have no car? 

How about leaving the shocks, get the Battery repaired as cheap as possible so the light goes out and swap it for a newer model?

Its only for 2500 mls a year? 

On 6/13/2024 at 10:20 AM, Malc1 said:

 

Lexus and Monaco go way back. Click below link and you will see some background pics. It is His Serene Highness aka Head of the Tax Office aka The Ultimate Wife Cheater picking up his new car.

https://fr.motor1.com/news/236070/prince-albert-de-monaco-ls-500h/

On 2/8/2024 at 7:40 PM, Malc1 said:

Yes I remember he had the Lexus Landaulette special car ….. there’s a post here somewhere about that I believe  🤔

Malc 

its this one.

https://caratduchatelet.com/lexus-landaulet/

Is that a two stroke? Bit of a classic it will be easy to sell. Long ago i had an RC350LC twin 2 stroke. Hated that bike! The smoke on start up was enough for the fire brigade to panic and it was so peaky that below 7000rpm nobody was home and then all power came at once. Too difficult to ride for me you always had to mind the revs in corners make sure you are in the powerband or it will throw you off.  Hated it. Got a Suzuki GS550 4 cylinder after that. 

Maybe the difference is that China has long term planning and interests and we do the 100 mtr sprint going from politician to politician

and NO this is not a request to abolish democracy!

In the West we are too naive and continue to look at situations through our western eyes with our values. China has been undermining western economies for decades by undercutting all they supply heavily in price compared to our home production. And we all fall for it. Buy jeans for 9 euros, fake cartridges, cheap toys and so on. It is only now with the EV business that it gets more attention. In the same time we are witnessing european de industrialisation with companies de investing and moving production out of europe. Automotive, chemicals, steel the list is endless.  Remember China is subsidising all export they are fighting a war without guns.

Some in the West are more afraid of a trade war with China Malc. Biden just increased import tariff for Chinese cars to 100%

Thankfully i have never lived through war which seems exceptional if you look at wider European history. My Parents on the other hand had to live through WW2 and my grandparents through 1 and 2. That seems good progress to me.

11 hours ago, Boomer54 said:

Perhaps we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves. Apart from the first item on your list any student of history could reasonably say the rest have been with us since  we first crawled out from our cave. Even a generation that lived through such an age of dynamic change should be modest enough to accept you cannot unravel what is so firmly imprinted onto human DNA. Let's leave future generations something to do.

Iife expectancy did improve a lot since the eighties as did healthcare. Economic growth has lifted millions out of poverty, Animals seem to live on just like they did 45 yrs ago and the overall quality of life, in our part of the world, has never been better. We can travel freely wherever we want and are free to speak our opinion. I am not too pessimistic.

Are you happy with the car? What is the range you get out of it or doesnt it matter as you charge at home?

Could wrapping be an option? its not only used for the tuning scene to create bizarre colors but can well replicate original paint colors. Cheaper than a respray i think?

2 hours ago, Mincey said:

Just like Lexus Leicester did with me. Took my IS in for a recall, was given Betsy for the day and the paperwork was all ready for me to sign when I took her back.

true professionals and that should be the standard

17 hours ago, Gary H said:

Unfortunately I wouldn't touch a Stellantis-based Vauxhall and now it's a brand I purposefully avoid for that reason. It pains me to say that because they're a brand which I spent quite some time growing up with (with the factory nearby) and of course, friends and family who worked there for decades. My late grandfather was in the first batch of employees at the Ellesmere Port factory. I've owned a few, my father has owned several and both of us together have driven countless Vauxhalls and enjoyed them over the years. A Stellantis Vauxhall though? No. Sorry. They're poorer products after the takeover (obviously being little more than a mildly re-styled Peugeot/Citroen) and those 1.2 Puretech engines are showing themselves in their earlier French stablemates to not age very well at all. 

I don't understand car-pricing these days. We're seeing Fords, Vauxhalls, Kias, Hyundais e.t.c all trying to sell cars for premium prices. It's ludicrous. 

Speaking of hire cars, about six years ago I owned an Audi Q5. A fabulous car which unfortunately the nearside rear door ended up with a stone flicking up onto it whilst the grass was being cut in the unit next to ours (I was at work). It ended up putting what resembled an air-rifle like pellet dent right in the middle of the panel. So, I popped along to Audi for the repair only to be told all their cars which need repairs like that go to Volkswagen. Fair enough - the parent company. So, I drove along to the VW dealer where indeed repair the door flawlessly. Full credit to them. The problem? I was given a base model VW Up! as a hire car. 

Now, I'm generally not a snob. A hire car is a hire car at the end of the day, but surely if you take a mid-size SUV in for three/four days, surely someone there must have some sort of common sense to assume the smallest city car wouldn't be a suitable replacement? I would have been perfectly happy with a Golf or a Passat. But no - a dinky city car. A car which was fine pottering around town in, but back and forth to work (involving two motorway journeys a day) was a real chore. When I first started dealing with Audi on a personal basis in 2008 - you were basically given a courtesy car of similar size/spec to what you took in. For instance, when I had an Audi A4, they always given me an A4 at servicing time. On one occasion they given me an A6 Avant. I even managed to get an A3 Cabriolet and a TT coupe (with the Golf GTi 2.0TFSI engine) on other occasions. It was only in that final 18 months or so during my time with Audi they seemed to care much less and it was one of the main reasons why I moved. 

So many lost opportunities in sales it is frightening. A courtesy car is a once in a ownership lifetime opportunity to sell a car. Come in with a Q4, give a Q5 etc. prepare an offer and when the customer returns the car go for it. It just seems not recognized or is too much trouble. I received dirty cars with personal belongings ( Jenna from admin normally drives this sir) or empty tanks, so i had to fill up, car parked in between others so i had to wrestle my way out. In all cases the sales department was not envolved they did not even know i was there. Only with Lexus this was different got a nice RX when bringing my IS in for service

I once had a Honda Jazz Hybrid as a rental and that for me was the surprise of the year. Great little car and due to the hybrid fast in city traffic. Great little thing and what more do you want from alittle runabout. BTW not so special for a Honda to reach 100k miles. Now , if it was a Range Rover...

6000 miles in some years time. isnt using a taxi cheaper?

10 hours ago, Malc1 said:

 

Also reading the piling high of EVs at docks and ports globally where they're being effectively stored coz no dealers want to buy them for stock holding and not being able to shift them to retail punters  .................. 

Possibly not much demand for 2ndhand EVs, even Porsche 😂  

Malc

European ports are completely full with Chinese EVs. Hamburg, Zeebrugge, Antwerp, Rotterdam and so on. Previously cars were unloaded and then disappeared to the end customers mostly through dealers. The Chinese have a different approach they just use those ports as storage area. Some cars have been there for 1.5 yrs. Chinese manufacturers get paid per car by the Chinese government so keep producing my friends happy days and who cares if nobody buys them ?!

Demand for 2nd hand ones is very low out of consumer fear. What are you buying? what is the state of the Battery? High electricity prices make EVs as expensive as petrolcars? In most countries you pay roadtax based on weight and that is much higher with a Battery? How about value will they continue depreciating like crazy? From the model you are interested in for sure there will be newer versions withmore range faster charging so why buy this one? In short there are too many uncertainties for private buyers. Like before the market is driven by companycars only.

You know when you feel a dinosaur? When your five year old grandson can operate the satnav better and faster then yourself ( without any form of explanation whatsoever) !!!

The sound warning when driving over the speedlimit is new regulation. all new cars do have this now, just wait until they introduce the next step in limiting your speed so even if you want you cant go faster.

The LBX dash and infotainment seems relatively simple compared to some of the German competitors with humongous screens and a thousand options. They design this to impress customers in the showroom. First time a potential customer sits in the car they have to be wowed and immediately the car is sold especially with the younger generation. That you never use 95% of possibilities does not seem to matter.

I like the LBX, it looks good and is the right size for what it needs to be. If you want a small car and like some more upmarket feel what is the competition?

Dont underestimate the power of food. Connoisseurs of risotto likewise paella are to be found in every region and all claim their way of cooking is the original best and forget about the rest. This runs deep. Remember Jamie Oliver some years ago? He published his Paella recipe and the highest diplomatic circles were working overtime to prevent Spain from declaring war! 

Chefs surprise dinner at an Asian fusion restaurant with trendy purple lighting and too beautiful people ( me not included). So basically i have no clue..

Will you make an offer?

https://www.knightfrank.co.uk/properties/commercial/for-sale/burgh-island-hotel-burgh-island-bigbury-on-sea-kingsbridge-devon-tq7/HTV012399404

just did a quick google. 208 million scam emails were received by UK residents in 2023.  69000 cases of identity theft were reported.  46% of UK consumers have been victim of cybercrime.

I knew it was bad but this?

On 3/21/2024 at 4:27 PM, Boomer54 said:

Doesn't time fly when you are having fun?

As I was reminded upon receipt from DVLA of a need to re apply for my driving licence.

Compete with photo now of course. Wife took one for me and I swear I have no idea who this old geezer is who is impersonating me. 50 years leaves a mark. However, wear it with pride I say to which end I updated my avatar although I dare say you can hardly tell (sic).

Great phote but are you sure its you and not Andy Warhol?  ( only joking...)