j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
Tesla's body shop initiative started in 2018 after much customer moaning and groaning (and finger pointing at Tesla from independent body shops) with only 8 locations in the US. Just this year they opened the 9th location in Denver. Body shops are different than the Tesla service centers, which Tesla has always had.
Tesla has their own body shop here at the actual plant where they develop the instructions to train independent shops how to fix their cars. Cars that can't be fixed by independent shops get sent there. One of the big issues being the repair and/or replacement of aluminum, which is obviously easier to damage and harder and more expensive to repair/replace than steel in the average car.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
They had to assuage the people who wanted more power, because the base model is pretty slow. Of course the turbo can get better mileage and that is definitely part of it. They went turbo to not have to build an additional motor in the flat 6. The 2.4 is going in many of their cars now. The MOTOR is heavier, not the car as a whole. They've added a lot of safety features and rigidity to the chassis, which is why the Outback is basically one of safest cars on the road right now.
Hard to buy added safety argument since 2018 was already 5+ stars and afaik nothing fundamentally changed. They did move to the new platform, which I am not a big fan of ride style - feels too much like a Lexus SUV - very disconnected from the actual road surface. The base car has 2.5L, where the turbo is 2.4L - not sure why the difference in volume.

I have to also be totally honest, I really do not like most of the driver aid features. I don't like the car to second guess me. Far too often it brakes unnecessarily. I don't like that it turns on the auto-shutoff at a light feature every time you get in (was told there is no way to fully disable that). The lane departure warning is acceptable, though it has to tell you about every little line it sees and the logic is not really there to handle anything but those lines. If there is a bike or someone turning and you have to perform a minor avoidance, the car has to let you know. It is annoying, but you can turn that off. I got to try it out a lot on the ~5hr drive to and from LA. The auto-distance cruise control is actually one of the nicest features because it actually worked most of the time, including on the Grapevine. I turned it off in actual traffic because I don't trust it in a busy situation.
Agreed on safety features, especially lane assist was crap, supposedly fixed in 2021 models, but I haven't had a chance to test it.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Fast isn't what makes a couch sporty :)
From wiki:
A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, or thrill of driving.
So acceleration and top speed are definitely part of what makes a "sports" car. Agreed, without good handing, it's at best straight-line driver :) That said it is possible to build SUV which handles very well (case in point: Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio)
 
John Parks

John Parks

Audioholic Samurai
From wiki:

So acceleration and top speed are definitely part of what makes a "sports" car. Agreed, without good handing, it's at best straight-line driver :) That said it is possible to build SUV which handles very well (case in point: Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio)
They sound pretty nice as well...
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
Alfa not known for their reliability though :) A neighbor has a Giuilia and it does sound great and someone at work has the Stelvio, which is essentially the same platform.

I didn't say there weren't SUVs that perform, they just are going to cost more lol. Love me some Cayanne GTS, but out of my price range.
 
dolsey01

dolsey01

Enthusiast
There are still 2020 MDXs available now that the 2022 is out. You should be able to grab a remaining 2020 AWD Base for $350 a month or less depending on your sales tax rate with only first month payment and acquisition/dealer/registration fees. Very good incentives along with super-cheap money factor. Supposedly there are still a few thousand around the country on dealer lots. Check out Leasehacker.com for other great deals available.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
There are still 2020 MDXs available now that the 2022 is out. You should be able to grab a remaining 2020 AWD Base for $350 a month or less depending on your sales tax rate with only first month payment and acquisition/dealer/registration fees. Very good incentives along with super-cheap money factor. Supposedly there are still a few thousand around the country on dealer lots. Check out Leasehacker.com for other great deals available.
you must be ducking with me. Leasehacker.com is a parked domain.
Edit:
Holey Moses. the domain is https://leasehackr.com/
and some deals are jaw-dropping:
I checked the inventory of my local Accura dealer for 2020 MDX SH-AWD - they have 25 in stock!
 
Last edited:
Mikado463

Mikado463

Audioholic Spartan
From wiki:

So acceleration and top speed are definitely part of what makes a "sports" car. Agreed, without good handing, it's at best straight-line driver :) That said it is possible to build SUV which handles very well (case in point: Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio)
and from what I've read expect Alpha to be gone from North America in 5 years or less ........
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Alfa not known for their reliability though :) A neighbor has a Giuilia and it does sound great and someone at work has the Stelvio, which is essentially the same platform.

I didn't say there weren't SUVs that perform, they just are going to cost more lol. Love me some Cayanne GTS, but out of my price range.
 
M

Midwesthonky

Audioholic General
Don't know if you are still considering the Subaru Ascent. The better half has a 2018 and it's been a great and solid car for us. Good fuel mileage, good ride, great in snow. Comfortable and gets up and goes when you want it too.

I know there are issues with auto makers getting chips and steel & aluminum prices are crazy right now. So that's driving up costs everywhere. So good luck!
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Don't know if you are still considering the Subaru Ascent. The better half has a 2018 and it's been a great and solid car for us. Good fuel mileage, good ride, great in snow. Comfortable and gets up and goes when you want it too.

I know there are issues with auto makers getting chips and steel & aluminum prices are crazy right now. So that's driving up costs everywhere. So good luck!
I’m considering ascent. See https://forums.audioholics.com/forums/threads/new-lease.121841/post-1475435
My annoyance with Subaru is they priced outback xt limited and ascent limited at exactly same money.
It doesn’t make sense to me
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Since no one guessed correctly, My lease offer for Honda Passport EX-L with AWD is $460 with $460 down.
Sure as poop beat $475 for the smaller Outback. Thursday going to visit Acura dealer. Since they have a whooping 25 2020 MDX-AWD in inventory - I am sure that they will be more than a little motivated to move them, since 2022 model already out.
 
T

TankTop5

Audioholic General
The Tahoe I priced out had the 6.2 liter version of the same engine. The GM 5.3/6.2 has little commonality with a 1960s 327. The 5.3/6.2 is architecturally based off the 1997 Corvette C5 LS1, which was so different from a 327 that the only similarity I can see is a 90 degree V8 architecture and a single cam-in-block / OHV strategy. Even the LS1 block architecture is different, as the cam is higher up in the block than the old design, because they wanted shorter pushrods. The 5.3/6.2 includes continuously variable valve timing and cylinder deactivation under light loads, direct fuel injection, and completely different intake, exhaust, and ignition systems. This is essentially all new technology with dramatically increased complexity, and any reliability advantage from being an architectural derivation from a 1960s engine is, IMO, non-existent. I'm not a truck guy at all, but catching automotive news clips now and then shows that these engines are not especially trouble-free either, but GM seems determined to stick with large displacement naturally aspirated V8s while trying to maintain competitive fuel economy. Not that I'm picking on GM, Ford and Ram seem to have similar strategies for their heavy duty models. The few people I know who are serious about towing get the diesel versions with all three brands.

The GM 10-speed transmission, which was created in a joint development with Ford, has no lineage to a Turbo 350.


A body on frame design is superior for towing, but you can get that from GM, Ford, Ram, and Toyota. I am grateful trucks have never fascinated me. I have enough expensive preferences as it is.
Crap, you’ve undone done 20 years of factory training with a brief Google search, well maybe not. I won’t bother bringing up the boat motor you mentioned that Chevy thought would be a good idea put the water pump on the other side of the block and call it a sports car, my uncle was not exactly happy when he was running the department that wrote the service manuals for Chevrolet back then.
 
T

TankTop5

Audioholic General
Horizontally opposed engines always use more oil over time, because the remaining oil in the cylinders on shutdown doesn't drain back to the sump, and then it burns on start-up. Porsches have the same behavior.
My friends who are service advisors at Subaru claim the service department does two things, quick lane and the engine replacement department with two guys doing head gaskets. According to Subaru consuming 1 quart of oil per 3000 miles is normal, until they replace the engine under warranty.... :rolleyes:
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
updated April deal:


**Year, Make, Model, and Trim: 2020 Acura MDX AWD Base
**MSRP: $47525
**Monthly Payment: $ 356
**Drive-Off Amount: $ 2865
**Months: 36
**Annual Mileage: 10,000
**MF: .00010
**Residual: 54%
**Available Incentives: $500 college rebate 750 active military
**Region: NJ NY
Leasehackr Score: 9.7
 
Irvrobinson

Irvrobinson

Audioholic Spartan
Crap, you’ve undone done 20 years of factory training with a brief Google search, well maybe not.
How insulting! Thinking I had to do an internet search to learn about Chevy engines. I learned about the LS1 history the same way the engineers did, in my signed copy of the book "All Corvettes are Red".
 
T

TankTop5

Audioholic General
How insulting! Thinking I had to do an internet search to learn about Chevy engines. I learned about the LS1 history the same way the engineers did, in my signed copy of the book "All Corvettes are Red".
I’ll have to go read it but it sounds like some key bits may have ended up in the editors circular file.
 
T

TankTop5

Audioholic General
Just for kicks I’ll throw in a 327 isn’t really 327 cubic inches, it’s close but changed between years and applications. When GM went from the 5.0 and designed the Vortec 5.3 they used the 327 block as the basis for their design but no a 5.3 and classic 327 are not the same and parts are not interchangeable. Aluminum block, water jacket cooling among other things forced changes in the design. Now 20 years later and I’ve forgotten how many generations at this point and I doubt you can exchange any components off a 2003 and 2021 5.3 Chevy engine.
 
T

TankTop5

Audioholic General
Oh yeah, and whoever thinks a Chevy Ford or Dodge full-size truck is not efficient in a V-8, how many Prius would it take to haul a family of five and their two German shepherds and all their stuff, a 20 foot travel trailer a quad and four motorcycles to Yellowstone for two weeks? When used correctly a full-size American truck is incredibly fuel-efficient.
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
While I (in a partnership) did lease vehicles to a company I was part of once....never leased one myself. Now in my dotage and not really caring what happens in the long run any more, maybe a lease could be a good way to go if I wanted to drive more but not too much where the leases penalize ya.....might have to get the ol' calculator out, as having an EV might be interesting and a lease could be a good way to go?
 

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