- #8800 of 13340
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Re: acura tsx/tl or lincoln mkz [bhmr59]
by m6user
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Feb 12, 2008 (5:28 pm)
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Replying to: bhmr59 (Feb 11, 2008 7:18 pm)
Sorry if this may be of limited interest to others. My first car was exactly this car you've described. I turned 16 in summer of 1966 and my father bought the 1960 Falcon new. It was rear ended badly in 1965 and totalled by insurance company. Dad bought a totalled by front end collision from a junkyard and my brother and I cut both cars in half. Over the winter of 1965/66 we welded the two good parts together, put in new seats, floormatting(no carpet), new headliner(what a pain of a job), painted it red with white top. I got 4 new tires for my 16th birthday and I was good to go. What a first car. Every time I hit a dip in the road I was nervous that the thing would break in half but it held up fine through a lot of rough treatment. I lived in the country and used to spin out on the gravel roads a lot. Anyway, sorry to bore others but your post brought back a lot of memories.
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- #8801 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [plekto]
by jeffyscott
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Feb 13, 2008 (5:30 am)
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Replying to: plekto (Feb 12, 2008 2:41 pm)
Still, Toyota doesn't HAVE to start making cars that drive like Buicks.
start?... 
Hasn't Toyota always made soft riding, vague handling cars? Has the Camry ever been anything but that? Being that it is the top seller, I'm not sure what the motivation would be for changing the character of the vehicle.
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- #8802 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [jeffyscott]
by colloquor
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Feb 13, 2008 (10:27 am)
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Replying to: jeffyscott (Feb 13, 2008 5:30 am)
I disagree. I've either owned, or currently own, a late model Camry and an Accord. The current gen Camry's handling and ride, especially in the SE trim, is very acceptable. It's a nice combination of compliant ride and decent handling. On the other hand, the Accord is superior in the handling department, but inferior in the ride department.
I also just spent a week with a "brand spanking new" 2008 Hyundai Sonata GLS from Hertz (6 miles on the odometer), and although the ride is decent, the suspension is simply not in the same league as either the Camry or Accord. I've been a supporter of Hyundai on these boards, and I have no basic qualms with the Sonata's front suspension setup, but the rear suspension suffers from several dynamic problems, including under dampening, and shock control. I know they are addressing this in the 2009's, and well they should.
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- #8803 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [jeffyscott]
by plekto
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Feb 13, 2008 (11:46 am)
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Replying to: jeffyscott (Feb 13, 2008 5:30 am)
Still, Toyota doesn't HAVE to start making cars that drive like Buicks.
start?...
The previous ones were kind of still "Japanese", but the recent generation Toyotas are solidly GM clones. Or vice-versa. It's hard to tell which is copying which anymore.
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- #8804 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [plekto]
by karsick
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Feb 13, 2008 (12:47 pm)
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Replying to: plekto (Feb 13, 2008 11:46 am)
It's always been my contention that, as far as luring away domestic car owners, the Asians (especially Toyota), tailored their cars SPECIFICALLY to the Buick/Olds/Mercury/Chrysler spectrum. They've even been building USA-only models for several years (the bigger,floatier USA-model Accord vs the "TSX" Accord for the rest of the world).
The European makes' attitude here has primarily been one of "take it or leave it  " when it comes to attracting Americans. As one who favors nimble handling over advanced cupholder technology, I was a sucker for light, responsive Saabs, GTI's, Triumphs, etc.
I'm happy that in the past 15yrs or so, the Asians have seen fit to offer models that appeal to people trading out of Euro-cars (IS300, WRX, Evo, TSX, TL, newer Civics, G20, G35) while still making models that attract former Land Yacht owners (Avalon, Amanti, Pilot, Highlander, Endeavor).
Now we can have a mix of Euro-flavor  without the headaches of poor reliability and expensive "Jag-You-Arrhhh" or "Bring My Wallet" servicing  !
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- #8805 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [plekto]
by captain2
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Feb 13, 2008 (2:44 pm)
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Replying to: plekto (Feb 12, 2008 2:41 pm)
GM also has this exact same problem. World-class engines
OK I'll bite - what engines would those be?
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- #8806 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [captain2]
by thegraduate
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Feb 13, 2008 (4:13 pm)
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Replying to: captain2 (Feb 13, 2008 2:44 pm)
The 3.6L DI is a nice one, and the 6.2L in the Vette isn't bad at all.
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- #8807 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [colloquor]
by bhmr59
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Feb 13, 2008 (7:01 pm)
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Replying to: colloquor (Feb 13, 2008 10:27 am)
Which trim line was your rental Sonata, GLS, SE or Limited? 4 or 6 cyl?
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- #8808 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [bhmr59]
by targettuning
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Feb 14, 2008 (4:32 am)
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Replying to: bhmr59 (Feb 13, 2008 7:01 pm)
He stated it was a GLS, no engine type stated.
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- #8809 of 13340
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Re: An hour with a Camry LE-V6 [thegraduate]
by captain2
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Feb 14, 2008 (6:09 am)
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Replying to: thegraduate (Feb 13, 2008 4:13 pm)
Inclined to give a pass to the 3.6HF V6, although it is still unproven in terms of longevity - just like the 2GR. Efficiency if you look at both power per unit volume and FE lags just a bit. Thought we'd hear something about the Northstar which was certainly a good engine in its prime, but also lags by today's standards or any of the multitude of pushrod V6s which actually account for the bulk of GMs efforts and are anything but 'world class' just like the 4 banger 'Ecotecs'. As GM finally gets production of the 3.6 up enough to use it on pretty much their whole line (just like Toyota & Nissan do with their 3.5s), and finally puts things like the 3.5s, 3.8s and 3.9s out to pasture - that will be the point that GM can be claim to make some good engines. Getting 400hp out of 400 CI V8s doesn't really count IMO, not that it is a bad engine, it just is what it is.
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