Random smile for the day

This comment in a jalopnik article made me laugh

"If you tell someone “I drive an Acura” at best I think you can reasonably expect that person to think “Oh. Okay, this person is doing alright, I guess.” That’s at best. Unless that “Acura” is followed by three letters found in the bee-shilled pharmaceutical Nasonex, I just don’t think most people really give a shit."

Full article:
http://jalopnik.com/acura-rdx-vs-mitsubishi-outlander-is-it-worth-spendin-1719977621

That was a great article for both some laughs and some interesting perspective, thanks for posting! It's also a reminder that I need to check Jalopnik more often. Although, the money shot summary statement from the article really also depends upon a person's preference or indifference to Honda products as well as how much $15k relates to their salary and bank account balance. But it was nice to be reminded that Mitsubishi is still making cars. Who knew?!

This was a good line too:

Beating an underpowered (166 HP) tall station wagon with a CVT in driving enjoyment and performance is like having a sandwich contest against a used Subway Cold Cut Combo that’s been urinated on ... and winning with absolutely any other sandwich. It’s just no contest.

Great article. Unfortunate that Acura has slipped so far, but it's true.

FF Drifter said:

Great article. Unfortunate that Acura has slipped so far, but it's true.

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I don't disagree! But I don't think Honda's alone in that department by a longshot. Anyone know of any other thread where folk talk about what they think Honda/Acura needs to do to get its groove back? I don't want to thread-jack.

Yinzer said:

That was a great article for both some laughs and some interesting perspective, thanks for posting! It's also a reminder that I need to check Jalopnik more often. Although, the money shot summary statement from the article really also depends upon a person's preference or indifference to Honda products as well as how much $15k relates to their salary and bank account balance. But it was nice to be reminded that Mitsubishi is still making cars. Who knew?!

This was a good line too:

Beating an underpowered (166 HP) tall station wagon with a CVT in driving enjoyment and performance is like having a sandwich contest against a used Subway Cold Cut Combo that’s been urinated on ... and winning with absolutely any other sandwich. It’s just no contest.

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Yea Jalopnik actually has some good stuff recently, their editor in chief just changed not too long ago and rumor has it he owns 3 veneno's therefor he gets a thumbs up from me. i only ended up reading this article because i currently have a 2015 rdx that they gave me as a loaner before i pick up my nsx again but this was funnier than i thot it be.

as to the what does honda/acura need to do, im curious if that is a thread too. my answer, make the damn s3k to rival the new z5 from bmw, bring a version of the s660 here that would be similar to a new delsol, acura needs a real flag ship sedan instead of charging 55+ thousand for the RLX, and launch the NSX already lol

They need to get back to the "light is fast" mentality...

Recently it hit me: which maker of sub-$30k cars really has its groove on nowadays? Who stands out now like in the 90's? Back then the gaps between makers were ginormous -- a million miles of difference between my buddy's pre-owned Legend and my family's Pontiac 6000. I don't think it was as hard then as it is now to stand out and create new unique miracles (ahem, NSX........or VW becoming hipster-meets-yuppie cool out of nowhere with clean design and fun motors/gearboxes beyond just its slick marketing.....Hondas being efficient nerd-cool performance from which you'd graduate into Acuras if you worked hard...). Today, all cars look alike from 100 feet, all grilles look like angry sea monsters or lemming Audi copies, every automaker has copped each others best-in-class bits & tech and kept up with the Jonses to the point that nothing really stands out IMHO...every car has high beltlines, is 125% the size it was 10 years ago, and is laden with heavy complex tech... Also it seems anyone can own any car below $100,000+ supercars.....BMW's were something you'd see once a month 20 years ago while now every other college graduate picks up a pre-owned 3-series as their first car.

Zoom said:

They need to get back to the "light is fast" mentality...

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I've been thinking the same thing about Honda or any maker for a while now. Perhaps the only way left to stand out and get back into the groove is to stop adding & copying and instead go Less is More. Downsize Civics so they're no longer Accord-sized....no more 25-button steering wheels (is that that hard to reach to the radio/infotainment area)...simplified & less sculpted jewel LED light clusters...."tiny" 17 inch wheels....no more stupid Lexus spindle grilles....less wacky artistic 5-color dashboards....and instead put the value/$ into efficient tight mechanical performance and fuel economy gains from lighter weight and more balanced/optimized power trains. Or just buy a 90's Honda/Acura and shut up and enjoy the hell out of it.

I'm realizing that this is why I enjoyed that Jalopnik article so much. Less can be a lot more sometimes.

Yinzer said:

Recently it hit me: which maker of sub-$30k cars really has its groove on nowadays?

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I was wondering that too and the answer for me is "Alfa Romeo" for now. They really stand out. Their latest designs are small wonders, the 4C has won "most beautiful car" award everywhere it has been shown, for a good reason (even at Geneva auto show, where the competition level is high).
I also like what Mazda has done with the new Miata: smaller and lighter, clean lines, good design, they are opposite of the general trend indeed.
Honda should do a new CRX in the same spirit as the first one, bring it on, a small 800Kg coupe with good aerodynamics...

Good article. I agree with you post Yinzer. The ironic thing is that Honda (or any company for that matter) could probably sell the light weight version of their cars for more (Porsche...Lambo) I just watched a video on Youtube that compared the Integra Type R against the 2013 Civic Si. When you compare the dash boards of both the cars it's amazing the difference. The Type R was so simple and light. It beat the Civic on the track by the way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc5UU_EksNk

To expand on Zoom's mention of the Miata, Mazda may just be what Yinzer is looking for...a maker of sub-30k cars that really has its groove on. Their cars are, for the most part, lighter than competitive offerings from Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Chevy, and Ford. The 3 and 6 receive universal praise for handling, efficiency, fun-to-drive, and interior ergonomics. They make cross-overs that actually drive like nice cars. And (clincher) they make the MX5. I may have to drive on over to the Mazda dealer when I look at my next car.

Mazda. The best lineup of cars that nobody seems to know about.

Yinzer said:

Also it seems anyone can own any car below $100,000+ supercars.....BMW's were something you'd see once a month 20 years ago while now every other college graduate picks up a pre-owned 3-series as their first car.

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Lol too tru, sadly i kinda fall into this category... except it was a used m3 e46 csl(clone) laguna seca blue 6MT (i add details for my taste level at 19) and i was still in college, just graduated this year :biggrin:

as for sub 30k car new, depends on what u need really but i recommend brz/frs/86 (not personally a fan), fiesta/focus st (depending on if you need size), fiat abarth (if you dont care about reliability), new miata, and technically the 370z is under 30 (big emphasis on technically)

95nsxtc said:

Lol too tru, sadly i kinda fall into this category... except it was a used m3 e46 csl(clone) laguna seca blue 6MT (i add details for my taste level at 19) and i was still in college, just graduated this year :biggrin:

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Nothing wrong with that at all! My sentiment was more in regards to the fact there's a lot less "specialness" between cars nowadays than there was in early 90's, and so it's hard to stand out like we all think Honda did back then. Those decreased gaps are in regards to "good vs. bad" (Civic vs. Chevette) as well as entry-level vs. "special" (Civic vs. BMW 3 series). All cars have gotten so much better in overall quality and performance but that's partially from their becoming so really similar. Once college grads started being able to buy pre-owned 3- and 5-series as starter cars, and once you started seeing numerous X3 & X5 BMW suv's daily, the specialness of owning a BMW sporty car has pretty much fizzled. And I'm not talking about the status fizzling but am talking about that inner-feeling specialness. If I passed four NSX's daily during my work commute I sure wouldn't feel the fizz I feel each time I walk into the garage, you know? Then again, as much as I say the gaps have closed and there's less room to stand out as being a great car like we felt Hondas were in the 90's, there's a lot of good in the fact that so many cars are pretty advanced & reliable now....

95nsxtc said:

as for sub 30k car new, depends on what u need really but i recommend brz/frs/86 (not personally a fan), fiesta/focus st (depending on if you need size), fiat abarth (if you dont care about reliability), new miata, and technically the 370z is under 30 (big emphasis on technically)

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Yeah none of those do it for me either. BRZ/FRS/86 too vanilla, fiesta/focus too "young" for someone over 40, fiat too...I don't know....feminine (no offense to anyone! If I really wanted a fiat type hot hatch I'd buy a fiesta/focus!) and blah reliability, Miata too feminine, 370z has lousy cockpit feel and is too much a pig, especially for someone like me who owned a 90's 300ZX.

Honestly, it's also driven me to realize my next car will be a truck/SUV...Toyota Tacoma or Honda Pilot, maybe an Explorer...

tof said:

To expand on Zoom's mention of the Miata, Mazda may just be what Yinzer is looking for...a maker of sub-30k cars that really has its groove on. Their cars are, for the most part, lighter than competitive offerings from Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Chevy, and Ford. The 3 and 6 receive universal praise for handling, efficiency, fun-to-drive, and interior ergonomics. They make cross-overs that actually drive like nice cars. And (clincher) they make the MX5. I may have to drive on over to the Mazda dealer when I look at my next car.

Mazda. The best lineup of cars that nobody seems to know about.

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I liked Mazdas a lot when I worked at Ford in the late 90's, as Mazda was partially owned by Ford then and we had good access to them. Everything you say is true and resembles (I think) the things that made us like 90's Hondas. Hondas and Acuras of the 90's were not only amazing functionally but also aesthetically; classic lines without any dumb styling cues and which appealed to all ages & types. Nowadays I just don't like Mazda styling especially the contrived chrome mustache line in the fascia. Mazdas to me look like Hyundais which look like wavy sea monsters, and I gotta have something that I find visually appealing or at least non-stomach-turning to look at.

Yeah...when it comes to today's cars I completely realize I'm like that bored 15 year old in summer living in his parents house on a golf course at their country club with 250 channels on the 65" TV and a swimming pool out back and saying "I'm bored, there's nothing to do."

Not much wrong with a 3 in White:


And the 6 makes a lovely shooting brake.



The interiors are really nice, too.

tof said:

Not much wrong with a 3 in White:
View attachment 126254

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tof -- GPW does look nice! until you view from the side - the battering ram pedestrian-safe fascia really takes a lot away from it, which you really can't hold against Mazda.

You know, this thread has been really therapeutic. I think I'm getting over my angst, realizing that it's not so much that today's car designs have changed for the worse as much as I've just not moved on with time, ha ha! I suddenly have visions of a 68 year old neighbor rolling thru the neighborhood, reeking of deep pride & satisfaction in his *p-r-i-s-t-i-n-e* brown Trans AM and wearing a Van Halen concert shirt and jeans, all 3 of which he purchased new in 1979....with a thought bubble floating thru the T-tops saying "wow anything made after 1990 was crap...last time cars had any soul was the 70's."

I think my rant's over. I'm free! Bring on the beaks, 25" wheels, & sea monster styling!

Andy, look at what we've become:

FF Drifter said:

Andy, look at what we've become:

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Fred, as much as you're sadly likely correct, at least our car tastes aren't out of touch!

95nsxtc said:

Full article:
http://jalopnik.com/acura-rdx-vs-mitsubishi-outlander-is-it-worth-spendin-1719977621

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"Life’s too damn short to be stuck driving some cushy crossover that you paid too much to really have fun with and that you’ll never really love. Get something cheaper, and then get something that actually makes you excited to drive.

If you don’t have room or the means for a second/project/fun car, or you’re not that interested in cars, then, I still don’t think spending $15,000 more is worth it. The Acura just isn’t engaging enough.

Keep the $15,000. Go on a trip. Have some custom underwear made from thinly-sliced salmon. Help a friend out of a bind. Go on a bender. Whatever. Nicer-feeling plastics won’t really make you happy, but I bet you know something that will."

Amen to that.

I love to eat thinly-sliced salmon. Especially raw salmon.

JLCoolman said:

I love to eat thinly-sliced salmon. Especially raw salmon.

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Me too. Though best for me if smoked, and then covered with cream cheese & stuffed between two toasted bagel slices. With capers and some celery salt.

Yinzer said:

Me too. Though best for me if smoked, and then covered with cream cheese & stuffed between two toasted bagel slices. With capers and some celery salt.

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Smoked is good too. Although I feel like the rest of that takes away from the flavor, lol.

Good stuff. I’ve owned a number of Toyotas and Acuras over the years, starting in the 80s, including an 89 MR2 which I road raced in ITA/ITB for 20 years in the SCCA. Bullet proof and fun, 105 screaming HP at the rear wheels, either flat out or on the brakes, a “momentum” car. I won’t bore you all with a long list, but my last Acura, before the 95 NSX, was a used 2005 TSX. We had bought a new 2005 for my wife and I was impressed, so after my wonderful 95 GSR got T boned in the driver’s door and totaled, and being a penny pinching used car hunter, I found a very nice example with 55K miles on it, manual of course. A couple years ago it needed the AC serviced at the dealership, so they gave me a new TSX loaner. It was a huge disappointment. Vague steering like an old Buick, Nannies going off every 15 seconds, and I was challenged to figure out how to tune the radio or AC controls using the touch screen. Give me a break! When I returned the car, my long time Acura sales guy asked me how I liked it, obviously with ulterior motives. I told him it was a POC and I’d be driving my 110K mile TSX until the wheels fell off. You shoulda seen his face!
He and I had a number of conversations about Acura’s slow decline when we bought my wife a new 2015 Mazda3S at the same sister dealership (great fun car, BTW). When the 95 NSX popped up on my radar last fall, again at the same dealership, (it was displayed in the showroom back to back with a white 2017 NSX) he and I again discussed the fall of Acura in the last few years, and he complained about the huge drop in sales for all their current models. The new NSX is very impressive and it certainly indicates a new direction for Acura, but out of the question for most car guys & gals. I admire the concept and I’m definitely rooting for it in IMSA at Sebring tomorrow!
AJ

My wife ran the Mazda at an SCCA PDX event last year. Made me proud!