Off-topic thread - talk about anything

[tunnanxwd]

Has it hit them yet that the more they strive to be "different" and unique, their seats and such resemble the furniture my parents had for a living room set in the 1950's? Well me Mum would love it but it needs a few copper knick-knacks on the dash, On the other hand, if you meet one in person and they are in "kit and kilt" fight the urge to ask what is worn under the kilt.

Reminds me of he old joke.

Why does a Scotsman wear a kilt?

So's e' can shat and run at the same time.

[bullet]

"Clown-ish" :-)

[Dave T]

Today, for the first time, I saw an Aston Martin Rapide (4 door sedan) driving on the highway. I looked it up and see that it was first built in 2010 and production is to end sometime this summer. Production was cut from 2,000 a year to about 1,000 last year. That might mean than 3-4,000 were built.

For those worried about Saab parts, how about Rapide parts? Maybe an owner might not care and gets rid of the car but there will always be a used car buyer.

[Dave T]

Electric cars might not be so far off for me. I think the Ford Focus electric will be in the mid US$30's. It has a 23 kwh battery. If I'm not mistaken, it's good for 75 miles.

The new Tesla sedan is coming out soon. After the initial special editions, it will be $50k, $60k, or $70k. That's for the 40 kwh/160 mi, 60kwh/240 mi., and 80 kwh/300 mi. The 300 mile version may work for me but $70k doesn't. If there could be a $40k / 70 kwh / 280 mi. version, that might do it. By the year 2020, maybe that is possible. If so, I hope the car is not extremely heavy and clumsy.

I wonder how common public re-charge stations will be and if any of them will be free. If so, some cheapskates might be able to re-charge entirely free and not recharge at night at home.

I do have concerns about battery longevity. My cell phone battery doesn't last that long, less than when it was new.

[rpiereck]

For those worried about Saab parts, how about Rapide parts? Maybe an owner might not care and gets rid of the car but there will always be a used car buyer.

It boils down to economies of scale. Rapide parts are probably very expensive because of their rarity and because of their target audience, but people who own Aston Martins usually have lots of money. So when the car is twenty years old and it needs some random electrical component the owner will shell out $3000 for some electrical box.

SAAB parts need to be made at a lower price point, since SAAB owners, especially used SAAB owners, aren't usually millionaires as a Aston owners (even used Aston owners). So for SAAB parts to be made inexpensively they must be made in large quantities. I doubt that SAAB owners will shell out $3000 for a DIC.

I think comparing SAAB parts with Aston parts is a poor comparison. A better comparison would be SAAB parts and Rover parts. Rover went down years ago, much like SAAB, it had a rather loyal following and Rover guys were crying their eyes out for their loved brand, and worried about parts, etc. Catterpillar Industrial (the same company that builds tractor) ended up buying the whole Rover Parts operation, to include license for all the parts, and today Rover parts are not too rare and if you have a Rover SD1 you can still get parts for it. Look at a site like Rimmer Brothers (Rimmer Brothers - Triumph Car Parts, MG Rover Car Parts, and Land Rover Car Parts and Spares), that thrives on parts for such dead brands like Rover, MG, Triumph, etc. Those parts are new because someone makes them. And if there is a market for Rover and MG parts there is a market for SAAB Parts.

Right now SAAB Parts is in a semi stable situation as the Swedish government decided to run the operation and make SAAB Parts. I imagine eventually they will sell SAAB Parts, and some enterprising industrial complex will understand that there is a market for SAAB Parts and that the business is viable. As far as I understand SAAB Parts was one of the few parts of the whole SAAB complex that was profitable, and hence was never included in the bankruptcy procedures. That says a lot about the business and the future for parts availability for our cars.

Heck, if you can find brand new door window weatherstrips for a Triumph TR6 then I am sure you will be able to find them for SAABs later.

Electric cars might not be so far off for me. I think the Ford Focus electric will be in the mid US$30's. It has a 23 kwh battery. If I'm not mistaken, it's good for 75 miles.

Teslas have been having problems with their batteries when they are fully discharged. Search the internet for Tesla Dead Battery and you will see that is a major problem now. And apparently one the manufacturer is reluctant to address. Once the batteries are completely depleted the car becomes paperweight, and since the manufacturer warned you on the manual not to completely discharge it, they don't want to pay to give you a new battery. Insurance companies won't help either. So the owner is left to buy a new battery bank that costs $8000. I don't understand what is the problem, why does the battery completely die out when discharged.

I think electric cars are unfortunately part of our future. For now they are a novelty for anything other than in urban settings. I wouldn't drive out of town with one, go on a road trip, etc. They are basically glorified golf carts. It is unfortunate too that electricity storage technology (aka battery technology) is one of the technologies that have evolved the least in the past 100 years. The batteries that most cars have under their hoods for starting up has a design that is so basic yet so efficient and inexpensive for its application that little has changed since Dr Ferdinand Porsche first designed the first hybrid cars, the Lohner Porsches of the early 1900s. Now that all of a sudden we are in need to get away from oil and people are looking at electrical there is a huge push for new battery technologies. In the last ten years a lot has happened but the technology is still evolving, still in its latent stages.

I think the milestone would be when battery technology gets to a point where they can get 300+ mile range, with decent power and no problems with complete discharge. Then the job will be to make the electric cars fun to drive.

They also need to make these green cars more exciting to look at. The Prius looks (and drives) as excitingly as a dish washer. Have you ever got excited about washing dishes? Me neither. The Nissan Leaf... stupid name and it looks ugly too. The Honda CR-Z doesn't look too bad but doesn't deliver in the power department. Even the Tesla roadster looks like a Lotus Elise that has been sterilized (which it is). When are green cars getting exciting?

[Nathan 9⁵]

HEY YOooooOOooU GUYS!!

[nordwulf]

Where have you been?? I actually was pretty close to El Paso at White Sands and was thinking of making a stop in EP. However... Running out of time as usual.

[Nathan 9⁵]

Been super ultra busy. And you were very close to El Paso! I had no idea you were traveling. I've been out of the loop for some time now. Where are you now?? Hopefully you've enjoyed your travels!

[nordwulf]

I have been on a road trip for the last 2 weeks. I am currently at my brother's near Dallas and heading back home again tomorrow. I wish i could be on a perpetual roadtrip and always be on the go...

I still have many pictures to add to my RT thread: http://saabworld.net/f172/road-trip-...-2012-a-26452/

It'll be more than 5k miles by the time I get home. That's a good road trip.

[J-Rod]

Hey everybody! Been awhile since I last visited. Been really enjoying my car-filled summer! Still driving the Saab and it's still going fine, but I've finally started finishing up my Mustang!



I've spent all my free time working on getting the interior buttoned up. I got all the interior painted, the dash pad on, door panels on, refurbished the gauges, glovebox door, and steering wheel center, among many other things. Carpet goes in next week, and I'm saving up to get my seats reupholstered. (Gotta get the A/C fixed in the Saab first though...)