What You Said (9/13-9/19)

2009 Audi S5: Two Little Things

So, I Guess You Don't Have To Worry About Tickets
By matt310 on September 14, 2009 1:21 PM
My brother's a highway patrol officer and he says they're perfect targets for radar guns. :)

Rock On
By esoterica on September 14, 2009 1:27 PM
Tough looking? They look like eyeliner. So maybe in a hair band sort of way...

Agreed
By huyracing on September 14, 2009 8:45 PM
unfortunately many people are allowed to drive when they should not be... and that is why DRL's are a nice feature.

2009 BMW M3 Sedan: Tour de Airbox

Heh
By briancam on September 14, 2009 12:26 PM
I see you found my pet moth.

2009 Dodge Ram: Junk Yard Dog

So Funny, Actually You Should Read This Whole String
By wrinklebump on September 14, 2009 1:43 PM
What the hell are birds of paradise and why would anyone want to throw one away.
Tell me this country hasn't sunk to the point where people are throwing dead parakeets in the dustbin.

2009 Hyundai Genesis V6: Help, I Can't See

We Like Smart Comments
By mercedesfan on September 14, 2009 11:37 PM
@hybris-Actually, the added weight from higher-grade steel hurts more than gas mileage. It increases emissions by taxing the engine more and significantly harms cornering performance by concentrating more weight high in the chassis. Secondly, higher-grade steels are brittler than the alloys used today, meaning they are only adequate in rollovers and plain poor in side impacts. The alloys used today are actually much stronger and more versatile than the steels of the past with less weight penalty. (Sorry, my background is in material science and I couldn't resist commenting).

2009 Ford Flex: Bachelor Party Approved

No Girls In Cakes?
By desmolicious on September 14, 2009 3:45 PM
A college buddy of mine had a bachelor party in Big Bear. It was fun for about the first few hours. His fiancee and her g/fs had their's in Vegas.
Ya can tell who wore the pants in that relationship...
As for the Flex? Yeah, it's nice. Nicer than the minivans.

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: HVAC By the Numbers

The Best Car Is The One That's Best For You
By TheChameleon on September 14, 2009 6:17 PM
Honestly, I have no problems with the Tribeca, its a perfectly fine crossover. I was just being a smart@$$. :) You shouldn't worry so much about what others think about your car, aslong as you love it whats it matter what others think?

2009 Nissan GT-R: The 5 things I hate about you

No comprende!
By blau32 on September 15, 2009 6:44 AM
So who's to blame here? All of these commenters for not understanding, or Albert Austria for being too hard to understand? (I lean towards the former...)

2010 Chevy Camaro SS: Youth Please Ignore

"I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore!" (throws TV out window)
By pengwin on September 14, 2009 9:09 PM
I'll start the trek to 10,001 posts to convince you.
I'm 20 and I think the Camaro looks tough

By uncanny_man on September 14, 2009 9:19 PM
I'm 23, but I can easily remember that people said the same thing about the 2005 mustang redesign. You know what? It looked good then and it looks good now because it was a good design to begin with, not just because of nostalgia.

By cobryson on September 14, 2009 9:21 PM
But you're missing a key point here...a lot of the current 16-25 year old currently or have previously owned the last-gen Camaro. In fact, I'd wager it's one of the more popular first or second cars for new drivers. In my case, I started out at 16 with a '98 Mustang and a friend down the street started with a '99 Camaro. As a result, I was/am really interested in the new Camaro...and sure, I think it looks tough.

Scary thought
By vt8919 on September 14, 2009 9:36 PM
I'm 20 and I think the Camaro looks tough.
That said, I wonder what the Camaro would have looked like if the car was kept in production and the redesign took a different path instead of the current "retro" look.

Business Up Front, Party In the Back
By stephen987 on September 15, 2009 5:10 AM
The new Camaro looks great--muscular and distinctive.
The previous three generations go much better with a mullet.
'Nuff said.

Ugh Is Right
By bal169 on September 15, 2009 6:23 AM
I'm 42 and honestly never cared for the 1993 - 2002 Camaro stylings. That era reminds me of when they came out with the redesigned GTO, it might of been a decent car, but when you looked at it it sure didn't have that GTO "look". This whole retro-thing is ok, both the new Camaro and Challenger are decent cars, but I'd like to see something new from this generation. I've done bellbottoms, old-style muscle cars and tie dyed t-shirts, show me something new... show me more cars like the G8.
On the other hand, my 11 year old son loves the new Camaro, every time he sees one he says, "Look, here comes Bumble Bee".. ugh...

Marcia, Marcia, Marcia
By jkp1187 on September 15, 2009 8:13 AM
I'm 35, and I'm a little disdainful of cars that are styled to look like they came out of the sixties and sold to nostalgic baby-boomers. It's a little like the constant (and pathetic) stream of movies and television shows we see that aren't just retreads of similar ideas that have come and gone, but retreads of the SAME FRANCHISE that has been around for 20, 30, 40 years. It takes a lot of creativity to take a car that is aerodynamically styled to maximize performance and fuel economy and make it look new, modern, fresh. It takes considerably less creativity to just copy something and "update" it. If I want a modern American muscle car, I'd take a Pontiac G8 over the Camaro any day of the week.

Please Say You're Joking
By greenpony on September 15, 2009 6:11 PM
The only good looking Camaro was the first generation. For all the other ones I wonder why someone would waste their money. I understand that people often buy into the hype, but come on. I'd rather drive a Mustang II. With a 4-cylinder.

2010 Chevy Camaro SS: Lets Take The Hood Off

What Not To Wear
By robert4380 on September 15, 2009 3:17 PM
Forget the exterior. If you're really going for the Camaro experience, and since you all seem to hate the steering wheel anyway, why don't you replace it with one of those ones that's made out of chain links?

2009 Nissan GT-R: Another Challenge Denied

I Wonder What the Fine for That Is
By hybris on September 15, 2009 7:12 PM
How about painting the car in police colors and mount a fake light bar to the dash to give it a undercover cop look that will keep the tuners away.

2009 Nissan 370Z: Happy Birthday Mr. K

The Best Birthday Present
By wavehogger on September 15, 2009 7:00 PM
Thank you very much Mr. Katayama, I hit 100 on the speedo just for you today! Then I added 15 more just in case.

By srlracing on September 15, 2009 7:24 PM
Mr.K is one of my heroes in the automotive world. It is not that I am a huge fan of the Z but his rouge spirit is something to be admired and emulated in this day where blending in and walking the narrow path is more emphasized than ever.

2009 Suzuki SX4 AWD: Suspension Walkaround

The Zombie Apocalypse Happens Every Day at Rush Hour
By dougtheeng on September 16, 2009 10:55 AM
Earthquake in CALIFORNIA?? C'mon now! If you'd said "zombie apocalypse" I would have been more likely to believe you.

2009 Mini E: I Did the MPG Math

What He Said
By Mad_Science on September 16, 2009 5:38 PM
A few notes from an engineer who's bored at work:
1) For the love of God, why can't we use Joules or kilojoules as a unit of energy?!!?! It makes the math so easy!
2) Chasing down equivalence to MPG is silly. We don't really care how many gallons of gas our car uses, we care -->what it costs per mile to operate<--, meaning basically option (3), but don't convert it back to MPG.
This is why you have to do math every time someone talks about MPG or cost of diesel, biodiesel, LPG or Ethanol. LPG's cheap, but you get lousy mileage.
The real problem is that kW-H/100 miles is an upside-down efficiency metric compared to miles/gal. They should flip it to miles/kW-H.
Either way, they should just break it down to cost/mile for comparison sake.
You're roughly $0.0396/mile and a 30mpg car is $0.0852.
Last caveat: if you're drawing a lot of power charging your electric car or plug-in (I have no idea how many kW-H I use in a month), you could push yourself of the graduated rate scale to something like .36c/kW-H.

2008 Mitsubishi Evo GSR: GT30R Hearts AMS Widemouth At RRE

Designer Genes
By oldchap on September 17, 2009 9:44 AM
As an oil refiner, let me assure that unless a particular fuel station has some source contract with a fuel refinery, all stations in the area draw from the same fuel terminals. Usually these terminals are supplied by pipelines that draw from multiple refiners, so there is essentially no reliable difference between the base fuels of the same octane. But, each different fuel station will add proprietary additives and detergents to the fuel as they load their tanker trucks at the terminals. If a particular brand is using junky additives, there's no reason to fear other-branded fuel stations in the area.

Thanks for the Info
By misterfusion on September 17, 2009 10:44 AM
Don't forget that there are some gas stations in Southern California that sell racing fuel. The Unocal 76 near my work (Citrus Ave in West Covina) has a 100 octane pump. It'll cost you, but at least it's available out there.
This website has a pretty good list (despite looking like a Geocities page from 1996):
http://www.davebarton.com/Unleaded_Racing_Fuel_in_SoCal

2010 Chevrolet Camaro: Why Silver?

Aw, Nuts
By blue_martian on September 17, 2009 1:32 PM
You're all bloody nuts.
Has anyone seen the Camaro in Cyber Metallic Grey? Especially with the RS package? It is the embodiment of badass.
It looks like the F-22 Raptor...not that having a car that evokes one of the most wasteful defense projects in U.S. history is necessarily a good thing, but still. Made of pure win.

Green Will No Longer Be a Dirty Word, Um, I Mean a Clean Word, You Know What I Mean
By stovt001 on September 17, 2009 4:15 PM
I'm completely sold on red jewel tintcoat for now, but rumors are circulating that we'll get a green option next year (and by green I mean the actual color, not the pathetic image thing) so I might have to change. I agree completely with the color sentiment. As it is, I'm tired of getting on the road and seeing nothing but black, white, and silver. It makes me sad that we're so averse to some individuality and imagination. Color is even more important on the Camaro. The first 5th Gen Camaro I saw on the road was ignition orange, and the first thought that came to mind was "that is one car that simply needs a bright, flashy color. Anything else wouldn't do it justice."
The Camaro looks beautiful in silver, no doubt about it, but it just doesn't have the right presence that the car should be giving off.

2009 Mini E: 3 Month Service

It Pays To Be Good With Words
By greenpony on September 17, 2009 7:05 PM
Mike, you are my hero. (Im)patience, wit, humour... and working for Edmunds.
 
 

2009 Dodge Challenger R/T: Which One?

The Debate Continues...
By alman08 on September 18, 2009 9:58 AM
thanks for providing these photos. I have never been a big fan of American muscle cars, but looking at these photos, I think Dodge has done a better job in the retro dept than both Ford and Chevy.
And I like the new 09 one better because it's modern yet retains most of the cues from the old one.

By stovt001 on September 18, 2009 11:21 AM
The original. It was relevant for its day and an original design at the time. To me, the new one just screams Uncle Rico reliving the glory days of high school football

By wrinklebump on September 18, 2009 11:54 AM
The answer is you sell your girly-man luxury car made by a dude named Hans and buy both of them

2009 Audi S5: Child Safety Seat Fitment Issues

Thanks for the Tip
By marcvill on September 18, 2009 1:08 PM
As a Child Passenger Safety (CPS) technician, any coupe is difficult to install a seat. Did one today in a Honda Civic that wasn't easy. If you were a contortionist, it wouldn't have been to bad. The problem is you can't get the leverage you need to get the straps tight.
The LATCH system is in every passenger vehicle that is built in 2004 forward. Some '03 vehicles have them too. So not to sure what other qualities Motherproof.com was using to recommend the Audi. Car seat will usually ruin the leather seats if you put them in correctly and use them for awhile. Seats are also getting wider due to side impact protection.
Anytime a person comes to our office with a coupe I cringe. I know what is involved. It is going to be hard to do and hot in the process.
If Brent actually owned this car and brought it to my office, we would tell you to get a different seat or a different car because these two don't match well at all.
FYI - Use some shelf paper, the rubbery kind, before you put the towels down. It will help everything from sliding.

2009 BMW M3: Seat Wear Already

Like Automotive Journalists, Leather Gets Better With Age
By miraa on September 18, 2009 12:18 PM
It's patina! Like a knotty pine floor, a well-loved leather jacket, or that perfect pair of Levis. Then again, my favorite jeans have a hole in them. I guess that's what you have to look forward to in your red leather seats.

2009 BMW 750i: Sorry Officer, I Was Looking At That Billboard

Doh!
By tshoe on September 18, 2009 3:31 PM
Congrats to the good press IL. However, I wonder why BMW didn't post: Edmunds choses a Ford Flex and Hyndai Genesis (which are less than half of the price) over our 7 series for road trips and weekend use. LOL

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor