Pinwheels and Orange Peels

Commitment

I'm a car nut (just ask this lovely gal).  That fact doesn't usually collide with my staunchly conservative, pro-family values, but when I saw this commercial I was shocked to see such a strong pro-family statement within:

Wow.  "Whatever happened to commitment?  To standing by our decisions?"  Contrast that with the Ford Motor Co's ardent support of gay activism.  Ford's support of the gay agenda eliminates any Ford, Volvo, Jaguar, Mazda, Lincoln, Mercury, or Land Rover from my consideration.  My sis-in-law is considering Hyundai's new Veracruz SUV.  And I like the look of the forthcoming Genesis.  What do you think?  Does (or should) a pro-family commercial affect your potential likelihood of choosing a particular brand?

I can see clearly now...

So, we moved to Illinois and I needed a replacement for my G35, but we also lost the COLA for Guam (~$700/mo), so I couldn't afford a new G (wah!).  So I went looking for something fun but relatively cheap, and found a 1997 BMW 328iC.  That "C" indicates the convertible model, and mine is a pretty decent example of the nearly top-end 3 series of that year.  Top down, it's a fun little car that seats four and drives quite nicely for a 9-year old car.  There was one glaring problem, though--I could hardly see out the plastic rear window (age unknown):

It was even worse in the rain or with the sun shining right down on it.  I was afraid I'd back over little kids or puppies.  If you've ever driven a convertible, you know the visibility isn't the greatest even if you can see out the back, so this was bad.

A quick stop at the BX yielded no plastic cleaners, so I headed down to the local AutoZone to see what I could find.  They had one product for cleaning plastic, but it was by a name I trust.  I walked out with a bottle of Meguiars PlastX cleaner.  This stuff is good, as you'll see in a minute.  It's like a wax, or RainX.  You rub it on with a clean, dry cloth, then polish it off with another cloth.  It's light blue in color and doesn't dry hard like some waxes.  It also doesn't have much of an odor at all, so you can use it in a stuffy canvas-topped convertible without passing out.  It wipes right off.

So, how did it do?  Click the expansion to check it out.

 

NISMO

Take a sneak peek at Nissan's new commercial for the 2006 350Z.  See that red one?  It has NISMO badges.  NISMO is Nissan's performance division, and this is the first time I know of where Nissan is offering a NISMO-branded performance package on a factory car.

This is a complete surprise to me--anyone else heard anything?

When the eagle lands on my lapel...

this is going in my garage.

I love this:

Barely a handful of carmakers offers an automatic with a rev-matching manual mode. For the rest that don't, here's a simple exercise: Make a fist with your right hand and hold it up to your forehead, palm facing out. Now point your index finger straight up and your thumb out to the left, forming a reverse "L." Now look in the mirror because you are a loser.

Fiesty Edmunds.  I'd love to take this new M for a spin, but for now I'll stick with my G.

Fix Or Repair Daily

I'm going to break from a longstanding rule and actually post about a Ford.  My wife's family and mine have owned Fords in the past and none have been great, and they're typically much less.  Pieces o' crap, in fact.  Money pits.  But wow, Ford.  What a looker.

Base price $25,705.  For a 300HP V8 and one stunning package.  The magazines are tripping over one another trying to out-drool each other.

In fact, American auto makers are going through something of a reawakening when it comes to the car.  Trucks and SUVs are something they do fairly well, although the imports are gaining on them.  Pontiac has the new GTO (now with 400 horses, up from 350) and Chrysler has the dynamic duo of 300C/Magnum.  Hemi power for all.  It's not all roses--Pontiac's G6 rates a "meh," and Chevy is still selling the awful Impala, Monte Carlo, and Malibu, although the new Aveo and Corvette are rather nice.  Ford's new Five Hundred is underpowered and lacks the styling to set it apart.

But there's hope.  American automakers are trying bold new directions accompanied by the things we like most--style, power, and reasonable prices.

New Photo Album

There's a new photo album up: "The G." If you want to see pics of the new ride, go there now!

In case you missed it: it's a 2004 Infiniti G35 "6MT" in Diamond Graphite with the Premium Package, Sport Package, and Aero Package. The only thing it's missing is the navigation system, which is pretty useless out here on Guam. It has Nissan's incredible 260HP/260Tq 3.5L V6.

I stopped by the dealership one day and drove the coupe and sedan, but they didn't have any manual transmission models. The salesperson told me I'd have to special order a sedan with the 6MT, so I wasn't going to do anything. When we got back to her office she checked her inventory sheet and, wonder of wonders, my car had just come out of the container that day. I drove it the next day and was hooked!

BTW, I also shopped Mazda's RX-8, favorite vehicle of the Instapundit, but Mrs. Pinwheels didn't care for it. BMW's 330 is another car people compare to the G35, but it's nearly $7,000 more, and ubiquitous at that. I love Nissan/Infiniti and this one has just about everything going for it.

Baby G had 25 miles on it when I took delivery, and two weeks later it has over 700. Got to get over the break-in period. It's hard to do when the island is only 35 miles long.

Next album will be of my cannonball run around the island with a motorcycling friend of mine.

Automobile, Shmautomobile

I picked up a copy of Automobile magazine yesterday and was reading through an article on the surprising new Scion tC when I found this little gem:

One remaining question is whether Scion's core, xB-buying urban audience will like the tC quite as much once it's in the hands of people who own Kelly Clarkson CDs, watch The Price is Right unironically, and think a suction-cup Garfield is a neat aftermarket accessory. Keep your eye on the blogs to find out.

Emphasis mine. There are so many things wrong with that whole statement. First, while Scion's core market is the younger crowd, car makers the world over make different models for different people. I won't even think about buying an xB (think breadbox on teeny-tiny wheels) but the tC makes perfect sense as a second car. Next, they assume there are only two types of people the tC could possibly appeal to: fast and furious wanna-bees and (I'm guessing here) boring people who have lives, spend their money sensibly, and actually enjoy the little things in life. Finally, are they implying that only teenagers have blogs? Or is it the Garfield-ites with the blogs? I can't tell. I don't think they can, either. They've obviously never even dipped their pinky toe into the blogosphere and actually checked out the swirling miasma of opinion, commentary, and utter inanity that exists here.

Now I remember why I quit reading Automobile. Check out the far superior Road and Track courtesy of the new link on my sidebar.

Subaru WRX a little much for you?

If you're like me and drool over the stunning mechanicals under the Subaru WRX's sheetmetal, but don't love the boy-racer looks, Saab has your answer. The Saab 9-2X takes the fabulous 227HP turbocharged boxer engine and rally-bred four-wheel-drive chassis and drapes it in sophisticated Swedish styling inside and out. Unbelievably, the pricing is darn near the same as the Subaru.

I'll take mine in silver, please.

American Iron

The North American International Auto Show is going on right now and it's got some fantastic new cars from around the world. I can't find much about it, but MSNBC has a decent overview article and a nice slideshow here.

I'm reserving judgment on the C6 corvette until I see better pictures. The new small SUV from Nissan and the Pontiac Solstice also piqued my interest.

Mazda Hits on All Cylinders

I have a passion for cars. I will drive anything with more than 2 wheels, anytime, anywhere. I have pushed rental cars to their screaming limits, leaving them panting with steaming brakes and scuffed tires. I LOVE to drive. So it was with great anticipation I visited the local Mazda dealership last weekend. How could I resist? They had about 15 of the awesome new RX-8s out front. Just for fun I dragged my father- and brother-in-law with me. The salesperson was outside in a flash, and as usual I knew more than he did about the car. Oh well. He was nice enough and very enthusiastic about the RX-8.

In an ideal world all dealerships would have demo cars for all their model lines. Most don't, and it can be unbearably difficult to get a test drive in a hot car unless you show them money. In this case, the dealer had a silver Sport Package RX-8 already plated and prepped for test drives. "Why, yes, I'd love a test drive." If you're not bored already, click to open the rest of the review.