BBC takes a trip

I recently went up to *redacted* in *redacted*, *redacted* so *reeeeeeeedacted*. On the way, we stopped over at *redacted*, hereby known as El Mucho Biggo Dealer (EMBD, for short).

These three are of the same 2011 GT500 in Kona Blue. This one is different from the other pictures in that it is from a different dealer from EMBD, but still from a large place. The reason I don't have more pictures of this one was because there were suspicious individuals (salesmen) hanging around, and as I appear somewhat older than I am (I've been offered test drives before), I get accosted by sales guys on a regular basis. I didn't want to deal with that, so I got a set of hurried pictures, hopped into the minivan, and got out of there.

What a beautiful car. Interior:

I put it in gear for these pictures. Having considerable experience with S197 Mustang interiors, I found this example to shift solidly, and the interior was free of nasty smells (besides carpet cleaner, which a fellow browser could smell. I couldn't, but I am currently afflicted with a cold so my opinion doesn't really matter). I am bothered by the way the steering wheel feels in this era of Mustang and Nissan Z car. They tend to feel quite rubbery after some time sitting in the sun. Ours is garaged, so it doesn't have this issue. Would this steering wheel issue stop me from taking the car if it was offered to me? No.

(yes, my psyche is deeply disturbed by the Car Fox. So I blurred him out. *shivers* Now it's after me....)

The EMBD has three G8s now, but at the time of this picture they only had two. All are 3.6 V6 models. This was one of them, somewhat obviously. I love the styling of this car, but certain relatives of mine hate it. That doesn't bother me too much.

I liked the feel of this interior. It was my first time sitting in a G8, so I had to familiarize myself with everything inside. It felt very well screwed together...

...except for the rear doors, which made a tinny noise when I shut them. It reminded me of the noise that a Ford Crown Victoria's driver door makes when you shut it. That was an unpleasant surprise, as was the recent news that the G8 turns into a reliability nightmare if it gets in an accident, but hey - this one has a clean *shudder* Carfax! *Psycho theme*

Oh my. This would be the perfect Competition Orange Mach 1 if it weren't for the purple window tint, which is more evident in the interior shots. The Shaker scoop is as awesome as always.

The tint is most visible on the passenger's side of the dashboard and on the corresponding side view mirror. Notice the cool gauges, "Comfortweave" style seats, aluminum pedals, and cue ball shifter. All are throwbacks to the original Mach 1. Speaking of that shifter...

It's in the Reverse position in this picture. I took a video of the shifting action, but upon uploading to YouTube, it was apparent that it was not good enough to post (credit the extremely cold temperatures, and the fact that BBC does NOT have steady hands). Also note the bezel around the shifter; doesn't seem stock.

I sense a bit of competition on the lot. A drag race of this Trans Am WS6 vs. the Mach 1 would be interesting to watch. Also, make sure to have a look at that Ram Air hood!

The seats, while almost going over-the-top with the side bolsters, didn't feel any nicer than the thrones in the Mach 1. Something odd that I noted was that in all my time sitting in cars of many ages and market segments, I have never found a shifter I couldn't get my (sizable) hand around. Until this Trans Am.

This picture doesn't even begin to illustrate how odd the shifter feels, mostly because there isn't a whole lot of shifter in it. I mostly took this picture for the '80s-tastic radio instrumentation. Speaking of instruments....

Note the C5 Corvette-style gauges.

Oh, shoot. I seem to have uploaded another picture of that Trans Am's interior. Let me delete... hey, wait a minute! That Cavalier-esque shift knob... those (rather comfy, especially for being 11 years old) cloth seats... that strange, undecipherable name on the radio... it seems to remind me of something, but I can't quite place it.

Oh. That's why. Please note the awesome (you can find it by following the green arrows) and move on.

What I was thinking in real time is the best way to express how I feel about this Camaro. Let's see:

"Hmm... I've seen this one on the website before. Let's check it out! I like the grille, as well as the other body mods. I think I'll have a look at the interior." *I open door*

"AAAGH! WHAT is THAT SMELL?!"

"Oh... that would be the great disease that plagues so many cars across the country, feeding upon their resale value and draining the money of its owner due to medical bills.... cigarette smoke." *slams door*

Aaah... Ford chemicals make a much better smell than cigarette smoke. This was a fresh-off-the-truck 2012 Mustang V6 Premium automatic convertible. The price? $34,464.

When was the last time you saw an interior like this in a V6 pony car?

The wind was ferocious, so I was blown about and thus the picture wasn't on center. The car still looks glorious, though.

I tried one of my favorite angles for our own Shelby Mustang and V6 Mustang. It works pretty well on a 2012, too.

After that, and a brief cruise around the Mazda lot ("Why won't this Miata open?! I want to drive the Miatahahaha.... *sobbing, wailing, and gnashing of teeth"), we headed home.

Or did we? I spied this 2012 Mustang V6 (actually, we all did. Grabber Blue is not exactly the most subtle color you can pick), and hopped out to get pictures. Sticker price? A hair shy of $23K. Of course, it had cloth seats and a manual transmission (translation: base), but it was still awesome. Besides, the only options I truly need on my car are a heater and A/C. Truthfully, if it's a convertible, you don't even need A/C. Just put the top down and presto! Instant A/C. (I intend to avoid sitting still more than absolutely necessary)

(not pictured: 2009 Honda Accord Coupe LX-S. I sat in it to avoid a *redacted* edition Mustang V6, and I knew it was a manual. I think it may have been in a bad accident, because the shifter is WAY off to the right. Felt very strange to operate. Ran it through the gears and hopped out. Not a bad looking car by any means, but in the price range that it's being sold in I'd look elsewhere.)

After that, we REALLY went home.

Haha! Silly me, I should have said "we REALLY went back to my hometown"! My sincere apologies. This Challenger is, despite its awesome stripes, a simple SE, so it's the V6 for this guy.

Note the chrome fuel door. I don't have any pictures of the interior (ever since this dealer sold its 2011 Charger R/T, it has had this Challenger locked), but I've sat in it before. It's the same as the other Challenger SE on the lot; namely, very gray. It's almost nautical in that there's a rather large-looking steering wheel that makes no pretense of being sporty, a long hood to look over, and boat-like acceleration and handling (that is to say, not too much of either). At least it rides nicely.

I've been reading about these little guys for a while, but this is the first Chrysler 200 I've ever actually seen. Let's take a look inside:

I raised the parking brake (ever since that episode with the Cobalt, I've been weird like that), and it was very light. It's down in this picture. The car felt very solid and secure, with the doors making a nice thunk when they shut. The seat leather was nice, definitely outclassing a number of its competitors in that aspect.

The dials didn't go back and forth when I shut the door! The Ford Fusion has the 200 beaten in that respect.

I know this picture is blurry; it's like that because I had to hurry up and was hastening to get pictures for this post. From what I've read, the transmission in this car is very slow and dim-witted, taking your requests through the -/+ gate as suggestions rather than commands. At least said shifter looks good and feels meaty in the hand.

Classy plow truck, that. I bet the employees at this dealer just fight like crazy over who has to is condemned to is rewarded with getting to drive this thing.

As can be expected, this vehicle is privately owned, but I saw it during that particular excursion so I'm putting it up.

We have something of a debate over whether or not this is a real SLK55. It doesn't make a whole lot of "55" or "AMG" noises. There's a "C63 AMG" in town that sounds NOTHING like this:



Of course, it never gets driven hard enough to make nice noises like that. Just trundling around town. It's the same way with this SLK, and the Aston Martin DB9 in town.

That's all I have to say for now; thanks for reading!