You do realize the show is reruns .
If you are open to small cars, consider a VW Beetle. They have a surprising amount of room for the driver and are fun to drive. It has a turbocharged engine, and you have to change the oil at least as often as recommended by VW. It also comes as a convertible if that interests you. Iāve had the hardtop and convertible as rentals, and I would be happy to rent one again.
I donāt think Ryan is going to be satisfied with a 4 banger Accord or Camry
IMO he will feel they are gutless
He would be better served with the optional V6, if he is considering those cars
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If I were trying to merge into heavy traffic, Iād definitely prefer to have lots of power on hand to be able to hit an open gap at speed. (Between your comments here and in the other thread, it appears that we donāt see eye-to-eye on the value of having sufficient power available in certain driving situations.)
If you are using your car to make a living and are driving a lot of miles, you need a suitable vehicle. A high powered V8 will cost a bundle in gas. But a V6 Camry might be a good compromise.
I have a friend who had the exact same job (selling medical instruments) some years back. His car was a Toyota Cressida which he put 300,000 miles on with very few repairs. The current version would be a Toyota Avalonā¦ To him, highway comfort, low maintenance & repairs and decent gas mileage was important. The Cressida was better than any US car at the time; I drove an Olds Delta 88 V8 and is was less reliable and guzzled gas by comparison. But the company picked up the tab, so I did not really care.
If I was paying for repairs and maintenance myself then I would try and stay away from Chrysler products because even though they are fun cars in the long run they would probably give you more headache.
I also think you would not be happy with the Prius, but a Camry Hybrid might do the trick. The electric engine kicks in when you need the extra power; if that doesnāt do it then go with the V6.
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I second the motion. Fiat - Chrysler a merger of two struggling brands. Who knows what the future for them brings.
The future for Fiat Chrysler does not look good. The chairman (an Italian Canadian) has publicly revealed he would like a āmergerā with GM. So far Mary Barra, GMās CEO says they are not interested.
The combination of low Italian productivity, militant Italian unions opposing any rationalization, and poor quality across the board has all the ingredients for imminent failure.
The marriage reminded me of two losers marrying and trying to build a new life without changing any of their bad habits.
When they go out of business, the US plants will likely be picked up by GM for a song and the Chinese or Indians may pick up Fiat.
Stop-and-go Houston traffic?? Mileage allowance AND a monthly stipend? Big Guy? Fusion Hybrid, Accord Hybrid Camry Hybrid all great choices and more reliable than any Chrysler product you could name. A V6 Charger makes more noise than speed (my SIL has had 2) so I understand that issue.
With speed come poor fuel economy. But there are options that balance both. So maybe Acura RLX Sport Hybrid SH-AWD with 377 hp and gets 30 mpg combined.
I think Marchionne made his desire for a GM merger public as a wide area announcement that Fiat was interested in merging with another auto company. While their choice might be GM first, Iām sure they would be open to other large manufacturers. Like GM, Iām not sure anyone would be interested in FCA. While Marchionne might want to get better through a merger, darned few companies would consider a merger with FCA a step in the right direction.
Just because itās a 4 cylinder doesnāt mean itās gutless. Our 4 cylinder accords had plenty of power. Yes the v6 Lexus has a lot more power, but that doesnāt mean the Accord didnāt have enough power. It had plenty.
Didnāt we go through this in 2000-2004?
;-]
I responded to @Docnick. You got a problem with that?
This was before the merger with Fiat. Chrysler would have gone under by itself. The worldwide shakeout is continuing. Even good companies like Mazda may not survive on there own due to their small size. So design and manufacturing ng tie-ups with Toyota and Fiat to spread development cost make sense.
Industry experts forecast that there will only be 7 major car companies worldwide when the rationalization is complete. No one will say which seven, but Ford, Toyota, Nissan-Renault, Volkswagen, GM, Hyundai-Kia, and who knows who else will be there.
I think GM would be very wise to NOT entertain any ideas of a merger with FCA
Iām referring to the previous failed purchase of Fiat by GMā¦what are you talking about???
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Do you mean the alliance in 2000 or something else?
Some CEO with racing heritage in his blood (canāt think of any offhand) would lust for Ferrari and Alfa access. Other than that, thereās not much of value from the Chrysler stable anymore.
With Brexit taking Britain out of easy access to the Continent as a market, maybe some descendant of Colin Chapman might think he can see a future there.
Agreed. The three main Japanese carmakers (Toyota, Honda, Mazda) all have very strong four-bangers in their midsize cars (2.4 L displacement). They are very capable in traffic, with surprising acceleration for merging, yet deliver good fuel economy - and outstanding durability. I left Mitsu out because of their impending exit from North America (due to chronic low sales) even though their engines are also capable. (It seems the engineers have inherited the companyās engine-design prowess from their Zero-building ancestors)
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I recall this forecast from at least twenty years ago. It seems to be an ongoing thing in the industry.
At that time, I think Chrysler may have been still allied with Rootes Group (just kidding). Seriously, it was the āDiamond Star Allianceā which combined Chrysler (Pentastar) and Mitsubishi (Diamond) and gave Chrysler some small car technology for a while.
Also, at that time, Nissan and Renault were separate companies, we had no knowledge of anything from Korea, especially cars, and one company that was expected to be absorbed by a larger entity was BMW.
Times have changed, even if the narrative has not.