Ask the Car People.SM


Luxury Performance Sedans

10338 messages,  Last post on May 01, 2013 at 3:12 PM

You are in the Sedans Forum.

What is this discussion about? Lexus GS 430, Acura RL, BMW 5 Series, Volvo S80, Audi A6, Infiniti M35, Infiniti M45, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Cadillac STS, Sedan

Messages Page 292 of 1035

#2907 of 10338 I don't know where else to post this. . . by markcincinnati

Jul 05, 2005 (1:06 pm)

. . .so I will post it where the cars are that seem to be the most demanding of the gas we put in them.
 
I was surfing along over the long weekend whilst at my mother in law's and came across this web site:
 
http://www.toptiergas.com/
 
You'll certainly want to check this site out, but here is a brief tease:
 
"TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline is a recently established new standard for gasoline performance. Four of the world's top automakers, BMW, General Motors, Honda, and Toyota recognize that the current EPA minimum detergent requirements do not go far enough to ensure optimal engine performance.
 
Since the minimum additive performance standards were first established by EPA in 1995, most gasoline marketers have actually reduced the concentration level of detergent additive in their gasoline by up to 50%. As a result, the ability of a vehicle to maintain stringent Tier 2 emission standards have been hampered, leading to engine deposits which can have a big impact on in-use emissions and driver satisfaction."
 
There are only 8 retailers of gasoline that pass the TopTier standards -- the site lists them.
 
I pulled into my local Chevron station today -- and right on top of the pump was a plug for the TopTier gasoline standards and of course they are one of the 8 retailers. I'll have to check their prices -- but as far as I can tell there is no difference (in Cincinnati) as to brand, only as to location. If all the gas is $2.32 in the immediate area, the differences are never more than a penny. If the gas is $1.99 ditto. Today gas is back to $2.45. Yesterday on my long drive from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati the differences were as great as $.25 (speaking only of Premium juice, BTW) from station to station, again location dependant.
 
Check out TopTier -- I remember when we had our first BMW way back in time and the dealer was adamant that we used "BP" gas. For years the Audi dealer was equally adamant that we use either Marathon or Mobile or Chevron.
 
Hope it is not just marketing.

#2908 of 10338 Top Tier Gas by maxhonda99

Jul 05, 2005 (1:16 pm)

Interesting you came across that website.
 
Car And Driver in their August 2005 issue had a editorial article on Top Tier gasoline.
 
Speaking of BP, starting I believe next year, all Ford branded vehicles will have the BP logo on the gas cap!!

#2909 of 10338 markcincinnati by lexusguy

Jul 05, 2005 (2:33 pm)

"I use Tukans as my surround rear speakers, and although they are somewhat pricey, Linn does make good stuff. Then, again, there may be one issue -- is Linn TOO obscure (from a name standpoint)? "
 
Apparently Aston Martin doesnt think so. Linn DB-9 systems

#2910 of 10338 Re: markcincinnati [lexusguy] by markcincinnati

Jul 05, 2005 (3:01 pm)

Replying to: lexusguy (Jul 05, 2005 2:33 pm)
Well heck, for a lot of folks Aston Martin is obscure.
 
Maybe B&O was all that was left for Audi in the esoteric (but not TOO esoteric) space.
 
Said it before: I've not been a big fan of BOSE, but they have managed to put together some excellent in-car audio.
 
BOSE must be too "pedestrian" for Audi; or for the "Audi" Audi hopes and wants to become, one would imagine.
 
Shame on us, we're already (possibly) assuming that B&O will be all yak and no shak! All hat a no cattle, etc.
 
B&O certainly has made some cool looking stuff for the home (or Dr's office) over the years. I am just really enjoying the BOSE system in my new A6 -- more than I thought I would. Just got the new Van Morrison, "Magic Time" and Coldplay "X&Y" CD's for my traveling music -- the Mark Levinson system, I would hope, is better -- but this new Audi BOSE collaboration is, as I noted, the best Audi sound system ever. And, it is among the best I've heard regardless of mfg.
 
The Infiniti with the in-seat speakers was just a tad better but in fairness that was with a DVD-Audio source. Someone somewhere must know why Audi chose NOT to include DVD-Audio or SACD in this car (and I haven't forgotten the obvious answer: price.) Perhaps it is just because there isn't much of a selection of such media.

#2911 of 10338 Re: Finally Some Good News for Audi [markcincinnati] Where the .... ???? by greenbelt

Jul 05, 2005 (8:00 pm)

Replying to: markcincinnati (Jul 02, 2005 8:36 am)
Where in the world did these numbers come from? I think your calculator blinked.
 
Generally, the top of the line Lexus (like the SC430) will have a rating something like 63 problems per 100 vehicles or about .63 per car in the initial quality studies and the 80 problems per hundred vehicles in the long term study.
 
Industry average for the most recent JDP Vehicle Dependability Study was 237 PP100 or 2.37 per car. The only European companies above the average was BMW at 225 and Porsche at 149 (just behind Lexus' leading 133). See http://www.jdpower.com/news/releases/vds2005089.asp for the VDS.
 
The JDP Initial Quality Survey showed significant improvement in recent models for Audi, Jag and even Mercedes. It's at http://www.jdpower.com/news/releases/pressrelease.asp?ID=2005069&search=1
 
I checked Consumer Reports April Auto issue today and there reported numbers were pretty much in line with JDP. Both sample sizes are similar and statistically significant.
 
Regards

#2912 of 10338 markcincinnati by lexusguy

Jul 05, 2005 (10:23 pm)

TAS made mention of the fact that B&O had previously been known more for fancy wall hanging CD players than stuff that necessarily sounds good. The Beolab 5 though is supposed to be a suberb speaker, (havent actually heard it myself) and the author of the article said that he was in an A6 test vehicle that B&O was working on and it apparently sounded pretty good.
 
While I think the Lifestyle systems, Wave Radios, and "Quietcomfort" headphones are all junk, I agree that Bose has done some nice work in cars, but they've done just as many cars that are mediocre at best. Very hit and miss. I think I can understand what Audi is thinking though. Bose is used in a lot of cars, including mass market cars like Nissan, so having the Bose logo on the head unit is just not that impressive, especially for audiophiles who dont drink the Dr. Bose kool-aid, and like to watch a few minutes of the infomercials just to laugh at them (ok, maybe thats just me).
 
Maybe a top Audi guy likes B&O, or maybe B&O wanted to get into the car business and approached Audi? There's definitely no shortage of speaker and electronics companies to choose from though, and actually I'm kind of surprised that Mercedes or Audi havent turned to German audio companies. German speaker and electronics maker MBL AkustikgerŠte GmbH for example, makes some of the best gear in the world, easily the equal of a Mark Levinson.

#2913 of 10338 new suspension technology by syswei

Jul 06, 2005 (5:17 am)

Speaking of Dr. Bose, have people on this board seen the following? I think it looks absolutely revolutionary, and Automobile magazine calls it "the first mega-breakthrough in car suspensions since the gas-pressurized shock....astonishingly silken ride and...remarkable level of handling achievable without compromise in the same vehicle":
 
http://www.automobilemag.com/news/0410_bose/
 
Coming soon to a Lexus near you (I hope!)
 
P.S. make sure to check out the video by clicking on the old-style LS400, about midway through the article...you will be impressed!

#2914 of 10338 Re: Finally Some Good News for Audi [markcincinnati] Where the .... ???? [greenbelt] by markcincinnati

Jul 06, 2005 (5:38 am)

Replying to: greenbelt (Jul 05, 2005 8:00 pm)
If I copied wrong, I apologize -- as far as I can tell, I did not, however.
 
"Audi Improves Ranking in Consumer Reports Reliability Survey"
 
Survey finds European vehicles continue to be among the least reliable overall
 
Mar 7, 2005
 
source: Consumer Reports

#2915 of 10338 Re: new suspension technology [syswei] by designman

Jul 06, 2005 (5:43 am)

Replying to: syswei (Jul 06, 2005 5:17 am)
Thanks for the link. Indeed, that’s impressive.

#2916 of 10338 speaking of by hpowders

Jul 06, 2005 (5:50 am)

Speaking of CR, in the latest issue they indicate that next month they will be testing 5 "luxury sedans." They are the Acura RL, Audi A6, Cadillac STS, Infiniti M35 and Toyota Avalon.
Wouldn't you think the new GS300 would have fit in better in this group than the Avalon?
I can see it now in the next issue of CR, "You don't have to spend 45-50k as the 33k Avalon clearly shows." I predict it comes in number one in this group in the Toyota-crazy CR next issue.

Messages Page 292 of 1035

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement