Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

i still call it petrol..gas is for making chips and heating my house:thumbup:

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Completely untrue batman:) My choice for cars is not necessarily driven by what others think or how they perceive my status. I have always believed in investing in a car that offers impeccable driving pleasure, precision, efficiency, reliability, and not to mention great resale value, and I cannot look past a German car (VW, AUDI, adn BMW) for that. I have never owned a Golf, but I once had a two year old AUDI A4 and I had horrid experience with it. I am not implying that all Audi's are bad but I wasn't lucky with the only one I had. I got a 320D after the AUDI, since then I know visibly where my loyalties lay.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

And you think the BMW X6 does that? My, I'm glad you don't run my portfolio (not that I really have one but, if I did, I think Bernie Madoff's would be safer hands for it).

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Yes I do. Can you elaborate on why you think it doesn't? What do you actually know about it's performance and we are not talking ill-founded infos here?

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

you could get a Range Rover for the same price.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Thanks. I will pass on that.:p

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Your choice but BMW hardly have a good rep when it comes to 4X4:thumbdown:

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Invest? The value of the thing will drop like a stone. The fuel consumption will be such that it's much more expensive to operate than a Smart car. It's not a useful thing and it's not a thing that will rise in value. Rather than an investment, it's a vastly expensive toy. Not that there's anything wrong with expensive toys, boats and nags have cost me a bundle, but I make no pretence that they're an investment in anything but pleasure.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Sadly I have been known to call it that.

You must be one of the very few on whom advertsing is wasted then ;). Impeccable driving pleasure, love that phrase.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Why do you want skinny tyres in the winter? Don't wider tyres distribute the weight better in snow?

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Yes, and that's the problem.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

You want to cut a groove down to the hard surface, something thin is better able to do that. I suspect a 2CV would go better in deep snow than an X6 though a 2CV carrying an X6 would be even better due to having more weight.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Take a look at something like the Swedish round of the World Rally Championship on You Tube. The tires are almost comically skinny given that the cars have 300+ hp.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

:rofl:

yup....they corner like a dream in all road conditions :D

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Sadly I have been known to call it that.

You must be one of the very few on whom advertsing is wasted then ;). Impeccable driving pleasure, love that phrase.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

consider trying to ice-skate on a pair of skis rather than actual ice-skates...


On the diseasal debate...I read that it's to do with the NOx levels they emit

In Europe, diseasal engines are measured and approved on their Co2 emissions as opposed to NOx that they measure here, and I assume that most manufacturers must fall short of that?

No idea how much truth is in it though, just a few postings on a local car enthusiasts message board

However, Chrysler are releasing the RAM 1500 with a 3.0 V6 Turbodiesel, the same one that comes in the Jeep Cherokee in Europe, later this year.

http://media.chrysler.com/newsreleas...id=13869&mid=2

Now, the 4.7 Ram 1500 is dogshit slow compared to the HEMI, so the V6 TDi will need to be something special to tempt buyers...

I for one am very interested in it. I personally don't really like diesels, but would like the practicality of a full size truck with decent fuel economy.

Diesel here in Calgary was cheaper than gas when I first moved here in August, but it's now slightly more expensive as gas prices fell to 94.9 and diesel didn't really change from around the 119 mark (or not that i noticed anyway).

Most gas stations around here have diesel pumps too...although I'd be wary about owning a diesel in Albertan winters, as you'd have to have the block heater plugged in constantly whenever you weren't running the car surely?

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

My diesel farm machinery was parked outside year round. In the winter it was often used from 4am onwards to clear snow. Never needed a block heater, just healthy glow plugs.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

do modern diesel engines still use glow-plugs? i remember about 15 years ago, with my parents VW Vento TDi, you had to turn the ignition on and leave it for a couple of mins until the glowplug light went out before starting

Everyone around here with the Heavy Duty trucks have them plugged in over night when it gets below -10, and they're out starting them half an hour before they leave for work!

i know diesel starts to congeal when it freezes, so obviously wouldn't be very good to try and run an engine on...but thats about as far as my knowledge of diesel goes :lol:

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

The fuel parts for a diesel cost more also as parts for diesel cars are heavier duty than the petrol counterparts.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

I've just seen an X6 in the high street here. My God that's an ugly thing! Still, I chuckled when I saw an Asian woman at the wheel.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

:rofl: What's your obsession with Asian people and X6? Do I sense jealousy or envy?:) Perhaps Asians are well off to be able to afford one of them, even though you think they are ridiculously expensive.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

+1

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

I do think it's an interesting phenomenon that certain behemoth SUVs, perhaps other vehicles too, sell into specific demographics. The X6, the Infinity Q56(?), sell to Asians, the Cadillac van to African Americans. It's very rare that you see these vehicles driven by someone of another background. The Mercedes tank thing, otoh, sells to all sorts of people. I wonder if that's the consequence of specific marketing campaigns. Does BMW, for example, have a significant presence in China?

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

All luxury brands do - China's their growth market and cash cow:

China premium car sales will probably surpass the U.S. as early as 2016 and equal that of Western Europe by 2020, driven by rising incomes in the world’s second-largest economy, according to McKinsey & Co.

Demand for luxury vehicles in China is expected to more than double by 2020 to 3 million from the 1.25 million cars sold last year, outpacing the total market, McKinsey said in a report released today. Deliveries of upscale autos will probably reach 2.25 million by 2016, according to McKinsey’s estimates.

Automakers from General Motors Co. (GM) to Nissan Motor Co. (7201) are expanding their premium brands to compete for luxury buyers in China, where German marques led by Volkswagen AG’s Audi account for about 80 percent of sales, according to McKinsey. Ford Motor Co. plans to start sales of its Lincoln nameplate in China next year, while PSA Peugeot Citroen is readying its flagship DS dealership in Shanghai.

“Even now, China’s premium car market presents a sizable opportunity for latecomers,” Sha Sha, Theodore Huang and Erwin Gabardi at McKinsey wrote in the report. “Japanese and U.S. attackers still have a chance to create a market footprint.”
Luxury car sales have increased 36 percent annually in the past decade, compared with the 26 percent rate for the total passenger-vehicle market, according to McKinsey. The segment remains attractive for automakers as 111 large Chinese cities still don’t have premium car dealerships, according to Morgan Stanley & Co.

Premium Sales

Audi sales in China and Hong Kong rose 30 percent last year to a record 405,838 units. German luxury nameplates accounted for 80 percent of premium car sales in China last year, with the remaining shared by other European, U.S. and Japanese brands, McKinsey said.
In its survey of Chinese consumers, 59 percent of respondents said they won’t choose a local brand when buying premium vehicles, while 16 percent believe a Chinese automaker will never be able to produce a luxury model that garners global recognition.
Women are also becoming more important as buyers of premium cars and they value exterior styling, safety and comfort, according to McKinsey, which surveyed 1,200 consumers in 12 large Chinese cities for its report.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-0...s-by-2016.html

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

I think you're over-egging things somewhat. Leaving glow plugs for several minutes will soon kill your battery, and there's no need to leave a diesel running for half an hour before driving it in the winter. A block heater just makes cranking easier on battery and engine.

Diesel has additives that help prevent the effect of cold weather on its viscosity.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

How about pastel coloured VW Beetles, I would guess their demographic would be young women, there could exceptions however!

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Not the same though as skates cut into the ice to gain traction, whereas skis distribute weight on snow, which is why I don't understand why there's an issue with wider tyres? Is it driving on ice or snow that is being discussed?

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Read this: http://www.motortrend.com/womt/112_9...y/viewall.html

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

That's a very good web page. Still doesn't make sense to me, but I suppose it must be so.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Gay men. Of course, not 100% of male Beetle drivers are gay but the generalisation is fair.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

In some Asian cultures ostentatious display of wealth is accepted. If you don’t have a lot of wealth to display ostentatiously then driving an obviously expensive car is the next best thing.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Baseless, hearsay, ill-founded....shall I go on? Still find it laughable why anyone will associate specific demographics with certain make of cars.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

You might wish to know that the poster who's opinion you're decrying has an Asian other half.

I was a marketing consultant for a number of years on behalf of several premium brand automotive manufacturers. You might find it laughable, but demographics have a very important role to play in vehicle branding and promotion, just like any other product.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

The thing is, people are aware of the distinct demographic categories, but refuse to believe they apply to them... A view, which ironically, is promoted as another function of marketing - to make everyone feel special.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Have you considered a lease take-over company such as:

http://www.leasebusters.com/en/default.asp

That way you do not have the long term risk if things did not work out on the work permit.

Also I agree in the most part that a front wheel drive car is fine in winter if good winter tyres but I did have issues a couple of times this winter in ice on hills where our SUV with decent all-seasons didn't skip a beat. Though the front-wheel drive car is definitely the more fun car to drive in winter :)

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

He may have the same issue - credit history, or lack thereof.


Amended for accuracy. :)

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

And of course over time categories can change, outside of manufacturers control or influence. Look at something like the Subaru Impreza, initially revered by enthusiasts as a rally car for the road, to live out their Colin McRae fantasies, while still ferrying kids to school. Affordable performance with legitimate motorsport provenance. Once the cars had changed hands a few times and were the affordable choice of boy racers that wanted baked bean can exhausts, noisy dump valves and Kenwood decals in the rear windows, the image shifted to something shadier and less desirable.

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

True. This could henceforth be referred to as "The chav paradox". ;)

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

Except that not all boy racers are chavs...and there's no real paradox... :confused:

Re: Advice on 4X4 lease and types.
 

They are. And there is. ;)... It's a contradictory effect to that which the was initially intended. It happens all the time in marketing. A product/service marketed to a higher demographic inevitably appeals to lower groups also. Making what was once exclusive common place, so no longer as appealing to the original target group. (Think Burberry).