Will Your Next Car Be an Old One?

[garysanfran]

I want to hear about someone driving an EV from The Lakes Region, NH to Florida. Or cross-country. Share the experience!

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by garysanfran

I want to hear about someone driving an EV from The Lakes Region, NH to Florida. Or cross-country. Share the experience!

I haven't driven any car that far since 1985, so I'm not sure that's meaningful.
My longest EV trip was just a few hundred miles, and I charged the car while eating lunch so there was no incremental time.

Here's a guy who did 2700 miles https://cleantechnica.com/2021/04/14...-ev-road-trip/

[TiltonBB]

I have a 2022 Lincoln Aviator. As an "older" person the electronic features are a learning experience and continue to frustrate me.

I disabled all the "lane keeping" features. I don't want it to vibrate the wheel or auto correct if I choose to fade to the left or right of a lane.

The back up safety feature was on and when I tried to back up a trailer it repeatedly slammed on the brakes. It was so sudden and abrupt that I got out of the car to look and see what I hit.

On a recent long ride a screen kept popping up with a cup of coffee telling me to take a rest.

A few times with the cruise control on when I changed lanes a screen said "trailer swerving, cruise disabled, slow down". It also disabled the cruise control and the accelerator for a short time.

That is actually how people get into trouble and jacknife trailers. When it swerves, if it is safe to do so, you should be accelerating to pull it back to straight. If you step on the brakes it will only swerve more.

[Garcia]

I would love my next car to be old - I'm thinking a 1950s Powerwagon

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Garcia

I would love my next car to be old - I'm thinking a 1950s Powerwagon

You've got 24 hours to bid on one!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...power-wagon-7/

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

An awesome car! Very rare, almost everyone bought the roadster. I'm pretty sure you can turn off the stability control on all of them. Sadly, I think the ignition key would be $500. Key to the economics of an old BMW is an experienced non-dealer mechanic. There appears to be a guy in Holderness

Yes, very rare. People are fighting over colors! Their favorite is the glowing Malaga Blue.

My retiring experienced-non-dealer-mechanic says not to buy anything since 1991.

EDIT: I just checked again: They're fighting over Montego Blue, and paying almost double "book" price!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/20...upe-6-speed-3/

IF I get one I'll return to the track and try to catch those Porsche GT3s!

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by ApS

You've got 24 hours to bid on one!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...power-wagon-7/




Yes, very rare. People are fighting over colors! Their favorite is the glowing Malaga Blue.

My retiring experienced-non-dealer-mechanic says not to buy anything since 1991.

EDIT: I just checked again: They're fighting over Montego Blue, and paying almost double "book" price!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/20...upe-6-speed-3/

IF I get one I'll return to the track and try to catch those Porsche GT3s!

Understandable--during the 90s and 00s, BMW was adding electronics steadily. They moved away from being a car for great drivers towards a car that drove great for everybody. So the old guard has always maintained that the new cars were not as good as the previous. (Obviously, this is a matter of preference) Porsche 911 is the same in this regard, yes?

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

Understandable--during the 90s and 00s, BMW was adding electronics steadily. They moved away from being a car for great drivers towards a car that drove great for everybody. So the old guard has always maintained that the new cars were not as good as the previous. (Obviously, this is a matter of preference) Porsche 911 is the same in this regard, yes?

There's a Car Show podcast with Malcolm Gladwell discussing the "last best sports sedan," the BMW M5.

Sent from my SM-G990U1 using Tapatalk

[LikeLakes]

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

Understandable--during the 90s and 00s, BMW was adding electronics steadily. They moved away from being a car for great drivers towards a car that drove great for everybody. So the old guard has always maintained that the new cars were not as good as the previous. (Obviously, this is a matter of preference) Porsche 911 is the same in this regard, yes?

I think perhaps less so with 911's. The engine improvements were hard to ignore, and never became any less of a driver's car, at least into the 2010's. Not that there isn't, for every brand, a group that longs for the simple old days but I'm not sure that's a majority.

I think about getting an older car at times, '60's/70's era pickup or 70's muscle car. But if I ever do it will be modified, modern brakes, upgraded suspension, a/c, good stereo with bluetooth. I do get it when people want to keep things original though.

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by LikeLakes

I think about getting an older car at times, '60's/70's era pickup or 70's muscle car. But if I ever do it will be modified, modern brakes, upgraded suspension, a/c, good stereo with bluetooth. I do get it when people want to keep things original though.

Yes--suspension and brakes are amazing today compared to the 70s, and it's very easy to forget that until you drive an old car. I loved the original Charger, and their remake looks great, though I have not driven one. Dodge is rolling out electric versions in another year or two with the goal of keeping the spirit of gas muscle cars

[LikeLakes]

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

Yes--suspension and brakes are amazing today compared to the 70s, and it's very easy to forget that until you drive an old car. I loved the original Charger, and their remake looks great, though I have not driven one. Dodge is rolling out electric versions in another year or two with the goal of keeping the spirit of gas muscle cars

I thought about getting a Challenger for a while, was looking at 3-6 year old ones, only interested in the 6.4. I test drove a few, ended up deciding on something else. But .... After driving a 6.4 powered SRT, I stopped and literally sat there thinking about how far the tech/engineering has come. 475 hp in a naturally aspirated V8 that idles completely smoothly, you could drive it all day in comfort on the highway, yet is so powerful that coming out of 2nd gear you realize you have to let off or get a ticket. I'd love a '60's/'70's Challenger and the sound and power and feel would be awesome, but you still have to admire what they've been able to do with modern cars.

[Garcia]

Originally Posted by ApS

You've got 24 hours to bid on one!

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...power-wagon-7/

That would be perfect!

[Garcia]

Back in high school in the 1980s, I had friends with a 1965 GTO, 1962 Corvair, 1970 something Camaro, 1967 Firebird, a couple of VW Bug and a microbus, a BMW 2002, an International Scout, a Barracuda, and more. To have any of those today...

Today everything is electronics - and the screens are way too big. I am more confused by them and long for good old fashion knobs, dials, and switches.

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by garysanfran

I want to hear about someone driving an EV from The Lakes Region, NH to Florida. Or cross-country. Share the experience!

My experience was a disaster! It's fine if you stay close to home.
Audi lent me an e-tron to showcase at last year's Longroof Rally. Picked up vehicle in Hartford CT and drove to Lime Rock CT. to start the rally. Lime Rock has charging stations. We had a slow start as the rally was waiting for the e-Tron to fully charge for the trip to Stratton VT. I told the rally to head out without me as I had to recharge at the closest station I could find near Stratton in Bennington VT.
Arrive in Stratton a couple of hours late due to charging. The rally was staying overnight so it's really not a big deal. The e-Tron was a nice vehicle for travel but I miss the engine noise and the stick. I'm a stick fanatic.
Spent a half hour online trying to find charging stations between Stratton and Jay Peak. Burlington VT was my best bet. I would have to fully charge in Burlington so I can get to Jay Peak and return to Burlington. The rally would need to continue without me. I met up an hour later at Jay Peak. Again an overnighter before heading out to Saddleback Me.
This is where I had to turn back. No charging stations between Jay Peak and Saddleback. The rally continues on without me.
During this transition from gas to electric, I'm going to stick with gas until there are enough charging stations for a meaningful trip. Also, the time to fully charge a vehicle needs to be addressed. An electric vehicle would never win a rally!
BTW the missus won the rally in my 2005 MB wagon. MBs are bulletproof!

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

My experience was a disaster! It's fine if you stay close to home.
Audi lent me an e-tron to showcase at last year's Longroof Rally. Picked up vehicle in Hartford CT and drove to Lime Rock CT. to start the rally. Lime Rock has charging stations. We had a slow start as the rally was waiting for the e-Tron to fully charge for the trip to Stratton VT. I told the rally to head out without me as I had to recharge at the closest station I could find near Stratton in Bennington VT.
Arrive in Stratton a couple of hours late due to charging. The rally was staying overnight so it's really not a big deal. The e-Tron was a nice vehicle for travel but I miss the engine noise and the stick. I'm a stick fanatic.
Spent a half hour online trying to find charging stations between Stratton and Jay Peak. Burlington VT was my best bet. I would have to fully charge in Burlington so I can get to Jay Peak and return to Burlington. The rally would need to continue without me. I met up an hour later at Jay Peak. Again an overnighter before heading out to Saddleback Me.
This is where I had to turn back. No charging stations between Jay Peak and Saddleback. The rally continues on without me.
During this transition from gas to electric, I'm going to stick with gas until there are enough charging stations for a meaningful trip. Also, the time to fully charge a vehicle needs to be addressed. An electric vehicle would never win a rally!
BTW the missus won the rally in my 2005 MB wagon. MBs are bulletproof!

Bummer. I agree that an EV owner needs to understand the charging situation for his particular car. Every owner should get a home charger for their garage or driveway. Tesla has "Superchargers" every 50 miles or so, pretty much everywhere, they will add range at a super fast rate (up to 400 miles/hour), and they are located next to food, so on the occasions when your trip is hundreds of miles, you can get what you need while eating lunch or drinking a cup of coffee. Road trips are easy, and I definitely spend less time charging than I spent buying gas every week or two. But I do not know about highway charging for other brands.

Also a bummer about the stick situation. My last of several sticks was 2001, could not find one after that...