A thread all about... cars!

[tCook]

I used to think the Element was ugly. But you're changing my mind.

Plus, the Nissan Cube is just so ridiculously ugly that anything else is beautiful at this point.

The Element surely isn't for everyone, but with the Scion coming out around the same time and several more "boxy" style vehicles made since 2003, the Element's design stands out less.

[backpack]

The Nissan Cube was created to compete directly with the Honda Element.

One of our forum member tCook, owns the Element.http://forums.tombihn.com/customer-p...trip-bags.html

An Ixquick search of pictures of both cars, clearly shows the design edge of the Element.

There is even a picture of ridiculous Cube shag carpet cover which looks as good as a bad wig. A sliding plastic or pop up rubber cover would have been a much smarter way to work out this ingenious idea.

[Badger]

Ewwwwww It's just a circle of shag carpet? Ew..

It's the Cube's soul patch!

sorry.

[Katy]

Did you notice that the Cube has a weird thatch of carpet (?) on the dashboard? When we were in the Nissan dealership we inquired about it and the sales guy just gave us a pained look. Not a good sign at all.

I refuse to get close enough to one to know about the carpet piece. Brian's explanation makes sense.. but..wouldn't rubber be a better idea?

Ewwwwww It's just a circle of shag carpet? Ew..

[brian]

Did you notice that the Cube has a weird thatch of carpet (?) on the dashboard? When we were in the Nissan dealership we inquired about it and the sales guy just gave us a pained look. Not a good sign at all.

I think the idea behind that "feature" was to be able to put stuff up there and not have it roll around/slide off the dash. In actuality, I think the designers were just trying to be weird for the sake of being weird. I'm not too crazy about the Cube either, the asymmetrical rear hatch on these things drives me nuts!

[bltkmt]

I drive a 2007 FJ Cruiser (pic below) and love it. Tough as nails and very dependable - about 69k miles in. My wife drives a GMC Acadia and is pretty 'meh" about it. We just bought a third vehicle since my son is now driving - a 2007 Chevy HHR (pic below)...too early to tell about it, but they have proven pretty reliable so far.

[Badger]

the Nissan Cube is just so ridiculously ugly that anything else is beautiful at this point.

Did you notice that the Cube has a weird thatch of carpet (?) on the dashboard? When we were in the Nissan dealership we inquired about it and the sales guy just gave us a pained look. Not a good sign at all.

[Katy]

Hey, at least you *tried* to get an Element.

The best mpg I've ever gotten in the Element was 26, and considering I usually drive very short distances around town, I usually get <20 mpg ... the CR-V beats it for sure that way, along with some creature comforts (unless your "creature" is a dog!). The Element really is great for dogs, and that's the reason I got it after the Civic just wasn't cutting it for two 40-70 pound dogs and two adults. Life circumstances have changed and I don't have the dogs anymore, but a pug is on the horizon and she will surely have crazy pug dance parties in the spacious back.

One thing I really love is how easy it is to take the back seats out or hang them up on the sides. A negative for some, but not me, is that the Element only seats four - there's no third belt in the middle. I've had one seat out for quite awhile now, but it's going back in today. The versatility of the seats makes the Element a true utility vehicle and I take advantage of it all the time! Trips to Ikea, anyone?

The Element is also really modifiable. People in our Element Owners Club do crazy awesome mods! I've even taken apart the door panels and added sound deadening stuff, and I was never a person to work on cars before. I camp in it a lot, and love sleeping in the back (I'm 5'3" and fit just fine). Others have built great platforms that stretch the entire length of the interior. My platform just fits behind the front seats, but I usually sleep on the floor on a pad.

I'm bummed that they won't be made anymore, but my 2005 is paid off and has less than 80,000 miles on it, so it'll last me as long as I want.

Uh ... clearly I could talk about this car for a long time. I'll stop for awhile!

I used to think the Element was ugly. But you're changing my mind.

Plus, the Nissan Cube is just so ridiculously ugly that anything else is beautiful at this point.

[Flinx]

I like my old beater - a 1993 Dodge W250, extra cab, long bed, 4x4, 1st gen Cummins. Still gets about 17 mpg too, loaded or not.

I would get a better ride out of a covered wagon though.

[brian]

Maverick - I love those Mercedes Sl's! It is a shame yours had to meet with an untimely end. The Subaru Legacy is a great car too, Subarus seem like a particularly good idea in Seattle with all of the rain and steep hills.

AVService - I have no personal experience with Toyota trucks, but they certainly seem invincible. I remember an episode of Top Gear UK in which the presenters tried to kill an older one and couldn't. My dad has one of those Sprinter Vans; he loves the fuel economy but I think he is looking at an American-built van for his next van purchase.

[AVService]

Had to chime in on this from my 17' Casita Fibwerglass Trailer in Brown County Park in Nashiville Indiana.
Got here with my '01 Tundra V-8 4wd Standard Cab Longbed pickup.
This is my 2nd 1st Gen. Tundra and I love them.
I tow this combination all over the place and et around 13 mpg towing and maybe 15 mpg not towing. This one has around 93K on it and they go forever without incident.
I drive between STL and South Florida several times a year and out to Colorado a few times and to Boston a few times,I drive a lot!

I also have an '05 Sprinter Van,it is a 118" Window model with the Mercedes 2.5Liter Turbo-D and it weighs around 6500 lbs,is huge and I get around 25 mpg around town!
It will also tow the Casita but I have only done so Local to date. It has around 150K on it and they are known to reach 500K before needing and overhaul.
Amazing vehicle great mileage and can get 6 50" plasma tv's in her while getting 25 mpg and mine is the baby Sprinter model.

I also have a 94 Land Cruiser and an 00 Odyssey.

I have a thing for wheeled vehicles too.

Right now there are 3 Fiberglass Rv's in the Driveway.

Who is surprised?

Ed

[backpack]

I think the Elements could easily be converted into Electric Vehicles when the moving parts of the motors star being a bother.

I believe this is what account for the obsolescence of most contemporary cars, the newest one, made from fiberglass should be way more resistant to rust.

[tCook]

Hey, at least you *tried* to get an Element.

The best mpg I've ever gotten in the Element was 26, and considering I usually drive very short distances around town, I usually get <20 mpg ... the CR-V beats it for sure that way, along with some creature comforts (unless your "creature" is a dog!). The Element really is great for dogs, and that's the reason I got it after the Civic just wasn't cutting it for two 40-70 pound dogs and two adults. Life circumstances have changed and I don't have the dogs anymore, but a pug is on the horizon and she will surely have crazy pug dance parties in the spacious back.

One thing I really love is how easy it is to take the back seats out or hang them up on the sides. A negative for some, but not me, is that the Element only seats four - there's no third belt in the middle. I've had one seat out for quite awhile now, but it's going back in today. The versatility of the seats makes the Element a true utility vehicle and I take advantage of it all the time! Trips to Ikea, anyone?

The Element is also really modifiable. People in our Element Owners Club do crazy awesome mods! I've even taken apart the door panels and added sound deadening stuff, and I was never a person to work on cars before. I camp in it a lot, and love sleeping in the back (I'm 5'3" and fit just fine). Others have built great platforms that stretch the entire length of the interior. My platform just fits behind the front seats, but I usually sleep on the floor on a pad.

I'm bummed that they won't be made anymore, but my 2005 is paid off and has less than 80,000 miles on it, so it'll last me as long as I want.

Uh ... clearly I could talk about this car for a long time. I'll stop for awhile!

[Badger]

I drive a Honda Element, and there are many of us who are crazy Element lovers! We have a club and such. I've camped with Element owners on the East Coast and the West Coast. I've driven hundreds of miles to hang out with other Element people. It's ridiculous and awesome!

Last year, I took a 9,500 mile 6.5 week road trip around the country. The Element is an excellent road trip car due to the spacious cab and interior, and I still got 25 mph ... for a car not known for its aerodynamics, that was pretty good!

We totally wanted an Element, but when we finally decided to get a new car, there were none to be had (new or used) at the largest Honda dealer in Wisconsin. At that point, we couldn't even consider taking our 92 Accord down to the even bigger dealership in Chicagoland because it had a terminal illness, and was not highway safe.

We ended up with a CR-V, which gets similar mileage (25-29 mpg). The cargo space in the bag is big enough for two corgis, each in his own traveling crate. (The Element would have been much, much better for traveling with dogs, though--sigh.)

This past summer, we drove from Indiana to Oregon and back, from Indiana to Tennessee and back, and from Indiana to Iowa (twice). While I wouldn't want to do that much driving every year, it was an unbeatable way to see parts of the country we would normally just fly over. Although, I'm ashamed to say that we also bypassed the Corn Palace. We were even in the town that had it! It was hot and we couldn't leave the dog in the car for very long.

[maverick]

my favorite ride over the years has been a 1988 mercedes-benz 560sl convertible. it bought it in 2002, i think, from a gentleman in maryland. he was going to a newer sl class vehicle, and was looking for a new home for this lovely vehicle. it was cabernet in color, with a tan interior.

it was a screamer!

at 14 years old, it didn't feel it! with 8 cylinders under the hood, this baby could scream down the road.

there is a certain joy that comes from driving with the top down.

alas, our love affair was short lived. i think about 2 years after i bought it, it met with an accident. i was going straight, a woman in a honda civic was turning left, and we had an unplanned meeting.

fortunately, no one was hurt.

the honda ran into the left front fender. the damage to the honda was much more significant than to my convertible. i had the weight advantage, so the fender, bumper, and hood were damaged. the front of the honda got smashed in.

still, the repairs were significant in cost. the way the insurance company wanted to take the less expensive route, and i wanted it fixed right. so we decided instead to declare it a total loss.

the vehicle was towed away and ended up later on the auction block. the insurance company wrote me a check, and i began an unsuccessful quest for a replacement.

i wanted another sl class vehicle from the same generation (1986-1989), and even considered earlier editions of the sl. you could find them, but not in the condition that mine was in. the previous owner had taken good care of it. he had serviced it at silver star motors in vienna, va, and i continued to take it to the same place. they work on just mercedes, they are excellent, and they know the car.

the only thing that came up while it was under was a window control needed replacement ($70 repair). other than that, it was just oil changes every 3,000 miles.

unable to find another sl class vehicle, i decided to get another mercedes - a 560sel sedan.

this thing was a boat, and a comfortable one.

this is what you call a land yacht. with huge, comfortable seats, tremendous legroom in the front and in the back, and spiffy safety and luxury features for a car of that time, it provided a different kind of fun.

while it was the ultimate comfort ride, it proved expensive to maintain. i spent more on maintenance over the years than i did on its purchase, and ultimately decided that it was time for it to move on.

the idea of the convertible hadn't left my heart, and next came the slk320. the smaller brother of the sl, the slk was also a lot of fun! it was a newer car, unlike the previous mercedes vehicles i had driven. the hardtop electronic roof made the car a joy to drive year round (the 560sl also had a hard top, but the only time i had it on the car was when i brought it home and when it left for the auction lot).

the thing with a convertible with on back seat is that it doesn't work well when you have a kid. so the slk moved on, also. and i bought a subaru legacy. that's what i've been driving since 2008.

it's not a big fancy car. it's not a convertible. but it's safe, it's reliable, it has a back seat and cargo room to boot. plus, the 4 wheel drive is nice when we get snow.

i still every now and then about getting another land yacht or another convertible. i drove my cousin's lexus ls recently, and it reminded me of the ride of my 560sel. and i thought, the next car is going to be a mid-late-2000's lexus ls.

but my conscience tells me that my next car should be a plug in electric hybrid sort of car. something that does right by the environment.

as far as milage, if i remember correctly, the 560sl had under 120k miles; the 560sel made it to 160k or 180k before i got rid of it; the slk320 had just under 50k miles, and the subaru just hit 75k miles.