by "MM54" (mm54mk2)
Published 04/09/2017 at 21:07
by "MM54" (mm54mk2)
Published 04/09/2017 at 21:07
Tags: Rentals
STARS: 1
Same old blah blah work trip rental car.
Yes it’s an automatic (it’s a rental what do you expect), yes it would be more fun with a manual. I was really surprised to see this in the line-up at National. It’s got 18k miles on it and a weird rattle from underhood.
"DC3 LS, will be perpetually replacing cars until the end of time" (dc3ls-)
04/09/2017 at 21:09, STARS: 0
How’s the steering feel? For a modern car.
"BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo" (bluemazda2)
04/09/2017 at 21:10, STARS: 0
As someone who is still considering one, everything. I want to know everything.
I really like the regular Cooper Hardtop, whether 3 or 5 doors.
"dogisbadob" (dogisbadob)
04/09/2017 at 21:16, STARS: 0
How many times has it stalled?
"Frank Grimes" (FrankGrimes)
04/09/2017 at 21:17, STARS: 0
does it do good burnouts? How much does it weigh? Is John Cooper turning in his grave?
"Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies" (jordanwphillips)
04/09/2017 at 21:20, STARS: 2
Weren’t you having Lemon VW problems? BMW engined Mini’s are nice and lemony as well apparently.
"The AE86 of Mt. Akina (Hachi)" (theae86)
04/09/2017 at 21:20, STARS: 0
Is it at least more enjoyable to drive than the average car?
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/09/2017 at 21:23, STARS: 1
It’s pretty good for a modern car for sure. Airport to hotel was mostly highway, I’ll actually drive a bit more tomorrow but I’ve been pleased so far.
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/09/2017 at 21:24, STARS: 1
None yet. We’ll see how that keeps up (I am familiar with the reliability of these...)
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/09/2017 at 21:25, STARS: 0
I haven’t tried (yet), I don’t know how much it weighs (probably quite a bit), and possibly - it’s not exactly mini in size (though compared to other cars of the same era it’s pretty small).
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/09/2017 at 21:25, STARS: 0
Definitely way better than the average rental
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/09/2017 at 21:29, STARS: 0
Not a function of the rental, but I wouldn’t want to own one based on the reliability factor. These things have serious problems if you look in to it. A friend of mine has a r56 JCW that shit out its engine at like 22k miles, some research said that’s not uncommon. Even the base models seem to have fairly serious problems with concerning frequency.
"fintail" (fintail)
04/09/2017 at 21:49, STARS: 1
I like how BMW has mixed German and British quality issues in one car.
"BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo" (bluemazda2)
04/09/2017 at 21:56, STARS: 0
Eh. I don’t know a single person, whether family or friend, who has had a problem with a BMW to date. We’ve had multiple cars that were supposedly unreliable, yet they were problem-free for us.
Also, whatever I get is my parents’ decision. I’m considering everything from a Cooper Hardtop to an F150 XLT Sport to a 320i.
I’m just hoping for the best here.
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/10/2017 at 18:34, STARS: 1
They really have. I went to go grab lunch today and found the HVAC and radio had changed (the temperature went up and the radio changed to a station that doesn’t exist) - they’re channeling the English electrics!
"fintail" (fintail)
04/10/2017 at 21:08, STARS: 1
They’ve got the British/VAG electronics thing down, apparently, now they need an Airmatic-ABC/head bolt/VANOS/HPFP/IMS style achilles heel to round things out.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
04/29/2017 at 08:52, STARS: 0
That’s a funny quip. I owned and or drove several VWs: ‘82 Rabbit, ‘79 Golf Diesel (German-built, round headlights), ‘84 Jetta Turbodiesel, ?? Dasher Wagon Diesel... The ‘82 had some issues, but my folks bought it new and the dealership fixed the issues. They were all good cars, and because Volkswagen, I went along with all of the door knobs falling off, and such.
And a manic mechanic story: In the 90s, California changed the formulation of diesel fuel by removing sulfur for air polution reasons. The sulfur enhanced lubricity of the fuel. All over the state, rubber seals in diesel injection pumps failed and fuel poured out. I removed the pump and took it to a shop and had it rebuilt and it cost $325 with tax. I saved the receipt. A year later, the California Air Resources Board got funding and allowed schmucks like me to file a claim, and I did, and I got my $325 back from the state.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
04/29/2017 at 08:53, STARS: 1
I find those cars a curiosity, but the clock-sized, center panel-mounted speedometer is so monumentally stupid that I can’t get past it.
"fintail" (fintail)
04/29/2017 at 11:02, STARS: 0
VW has had issues like that for 40 years, it seems. I had a co-worker who was a VW nut. A New Beetle turbo had constant electrical hiccups, and the turbo died at about a year old. The replacement, a diesel Jetta, also had electrical issues, and dealer service for both was some kind of revenge for 1945, He then jumped ship to Subaru, and never looked back.
I guess you have to be into it, like MB. I can accept the sometimes insane maintenance for how nicely I perceive the car to drive.
California is a cool place to visit, but I am usually glad I don’t live there :)
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/29/2017 at 11:47, STARS: 0
I agree. Fortunately this rental didn’t have that setup, it was much more ‘normal’ - the tach and speedo were side by side, in front of the driver (mounted to the steering column, so when you tilted it they weren’t obscured by the wheel - neat).
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
04/30/2017 at 00:42, STARS: 0
I used to tell my students I had a Beetle Turbo S.
You can live in one of the other 49 states, own a machine gun, and shoot someone with it on the street corner and claim you were standing your ground, but you still won’t have the weather.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
04/30/2017 at 00:44, STARS: 0
Maybe they’ve gotten away from that. If they have, I might even take an interest in the car.
"fintail" (fintail)
04/30/2017 at 01:54, STARS: 0
I can live in an area that probably has less crime than much of CA, and not have to worry about smogging a 25+ year old car :)
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/30/2017 at 08:19, STARS: 0
It was a fun rental but I wouldn’t own one. Do a bit of research into reliabilty - they have major, major problems pretty frequently (the sort of stuff that shouldn’t be happening on a modern car). Electrical meltdowns nearing Lucas-scale? For sure. Catastrophic engine failures at 30k miles? You bet. Even my rental (18k miles) had some very concerning rattle underhood that became more of a banging on the highway.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
04/30/2017 at 21:57, STARS: 0
Wow. I’d expect much more.
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/30/2017 at 22:03, STARS: 0
A friend of mine has an R56 that got a whole new engine under warranty at 24k miles (warranty goes to 25k, it was a close one).