I genuinely don't know what car to buy (yes a what car)

I genuinely don't know what car to buy (yes a what car)

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XB70

2,483 posts

197 months

Wednesday 6th April 2016
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Bit left field here since it's older and well out of warranty but what about a Mercedes C55? Few for sale at the moment and about 40K.

In terms of bang for the buck, not a bad return on investment.

After_Shock

8,751 posts

221 months

Wednesday 6th April 2016
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Could offer you a 2016 S or V60 Polestar, done only 8,000kms, 2years/6months unlimited mileage warranty left remaining for 165k, quite left field, surprising fun and completely under the radar, except the colour.

Mansells Tash

5,713 posts

207 months

Thursday 7th April 2016
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I've got a 2014 Raptor Supercrew too and frikkin love it, I bought it at 9,000km at 6 months old and now it is on 29,800km. I'm already on my second set of tires and the brakes are not too far behind 9 this is because almost every weekend I am out in the desert in it. The only problem I've had was due to me crossing a sea inlet and the water hit the radiator fans while they were on, this shattered and destroyed both fans and the radiator, even though I wasnt even close to the wading limit and 2 raptors went through before me, Ford refused to honour the warranty (I never even told them it was from going through water, they just said not covered).

I still love the truck though. There are currently 5 brand new 0km ones at Ford here for 258,000QAR.

My fuel economy is 23.1L / 100km

F150 (Raptor or nothing for me)
Merc SL (AMG variant, massive bork potential)
Cayman (IMS/RMS/Bore scoring isnt an issue post 2009 as I understand)
Caddy CTS (the CTSV is the one to go for)
Corvette (Dont get a C6, theyre aweful and you'll hate yourself every time you see a Z06/ZR1)
Cherokee SRT (The current gen have a gearbox issue, my friends just lunched itself and he knows a few others that have done the same, Jeep replaced it on warranty as they know about the issue)

Edited by Mansells Tash on Thursday 7th April 05:54

Pennyroyal Tea

26,140 posts

215 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
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dxbtiger said:
Fats25 said:
Just about to tee off for 9 holes. Will respond tomorrow with some of my ownership experience - let me know if you want to know anything specific:
Just what they are like to live with day to day really!
I've got a 2011 Raptor Supercab that I'm thinking about getting out of. I want to liquidize it into two cars.

Per the comments above, it's a brilliant machine for this part of the world; has massive road presence; is quick enough to keep up with most traffic and goes anywhere you point it. Very relaxing to drive and has tremendous forward visibility to boot.

I run mine out of warranty as it's a US import, but I've found a decent local place here in AD who know their way round a spanner far better than the morons employed by the AT group.

I bought it last year from another UK expat (who imported it new from Texas) and he'd taken good care of it. In my 25k KMs it's needed a steering pump (very common issue), a high pressure refrigerant hose, discs and pads all round and that's been it. As far as I can tell, the tyres are still original and have done 90k! They'll need doing soon, though

Additionally, because I'm quite anal, I have serviced it twice, replaced all the fluids (gearbox/diff etc) and had the torque tube greased, because they're prone to going dry and groaning under initial pull-away.

I've had the 'mid-perch' adjustment done to the front suspension which raises the height to that of the rear (apparently what the car was designed to be, but US regs meant the headlight beam was too high otherwise). This really sorts the front end damping as well. The car also has a Hennesey CAI kit and a Corsa Cat-back. Combined, this makes it sound like the end of the world, but without any drone at a cruise.

Otherwise, I just get in and drive the thing. Can't really comment on off-road prowess as all I've done in that department it is drive it to MX Dubai. Otherwise it spends its life exclusively on tarmac, which seems a waste really (one of the reasons I want to move it on).

Fuel consumption is a steady 18l/100km for me too.

Definitely a bucket list kind of car.

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
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Update (of sorts)

I've had 2 test drives in a the regular cab GMC Sierra (the 1 door one) and driven two F150s today (the V8 and the turbo'd V6), Lariats though not Raptors

Prefer the look of the GMC, the F150 was nicer to drive, incidentally the V6 is a much nicer drive than the V8.

I am no closer to knowing what I want so I am off to test drive a 370Z sometime this week hehe

Pennyroyal Tea

26,140 posts

215 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
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dxbtiger said:
Update (of sorts)

I've had 2 test drives in a the regular cab GMC Sierra (the 1 door one) and driven two F150s today (the V8 and the turbo'd V6), Lariats though not Raptors

Prefer the look of the GMC, the F150 was nicer to drive, incidentally the V6 is a much nicer drive than the V8.

I am no closer to knowing what I want so I am off to test drive a 370Z sometime this week hehe
Well, IMO the Raptor is a different game to the standard truck. It has worse road manners owing to the huge tyres, but will go places no F150 or Sierra can hope to. It also clears the outside lane better than anything this side of a 6 wheel Brabus G-wagon.

370Z is surely eclipsed by the manual Camaro, no?

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
quotequote all
Pennyroyal Tea said:
Well, IMO the Raptor is a different game to the standard truck. It has worse road manners owing to the huge tyres, but will go places no F150 or Sierra can hope to. It also clears the outside lane better than anything this side of a 6 wheel Brabus G-wagon.

370Z is surely eclipsed by the manual Camaro, no?
I've no doubt you're right re the Raptor, I'm struggling with the man maths of dropping that much on a truck at the moment, I'm also paying for a wedding in September.

On the Camaro, I kind of feel anything American should have 8 cylinders and I also spent 7 years in the Mustang so looking at other options really.

Sincerely

Confused of JVT

Pennyroyal Tea

26,140 posts

215 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
quotequote all
Well if it helps, I'm in the same boat.

As I said above, I find the Raptor is wasted on me (although I can't think of a better car for negotiating the squalid st-hole where I work, known as Mussafah). Hence, this has reignited the "what car shall I buy today" part of my brain, which had been otherwise been dormant for the latter part of last year.

Hence I decided that what I really needed was a motorway express train; a luxo-barge capable of cruising at high speed and getting there quickly too. Obvious answer is something like an S500 or LS460, so I duly tootled on up to Dubai Auto Zone on Thursday afternoon and found myself in cheap, Jap import paradise.

Pick of the crop was this monster:



However, in the interests of not looking like a plonker at work, I have managed to pry myself away from it. You can't argue with the numbers though:

2007
AED 70k
70k Kms
512bhp
830Nm torque

My only problem is that I actually cannot think of anything I want instead! No Porsche, No BMW, no nothing! I tried a CLS 550 and it felt like a Toyota by comparison.

If there's a point to this little anecdote, I guess it's that DAZ is the sort of place where you might find inspiration by just kerb-crawling from one shady looking vendor to the other. There is literally nothing you won't find there!

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Saturday 16th April 2016
quotequote all
haha, that's a healthy torque figure!!

Al Awir I'll get up to at some point, although I am not actually in Dubai the next 3 weekends (AUH, then Amsterdam, then Rome).

Another month or two in the Figo won't kill me (I hope).

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Sunday 24th April 2016
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Another mini update.

Drove the 370 yesterday, liked it a heck of a lot more than I expected to!!!

Going back this evening armed with a golf bag to see if it fits...


Pennyroyal Tea

26,140 posts

215 months

Sunday 24th April 2016
quotequote all
dxbtiger said:
Another mini update.

Drove the 370 yesterday, liked it a heck of a lot more than I expected to!!!

Going back this evening armed with a golf bag to see if it fits...

Is it just the photo, or is the car wearing front wheels on the back? The offset looks all wrong.

I went to have a look at a manual Camaro SS on Friday, which promised much but in reality had been driven with the sort of sympathy one might offer to a ginger step-child.

Hence, I'm keeping the Raptor. For now. Maybe.

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Sunday 24th April 2016
quotequote all
Pennyroyal Tea said:
Is it just the photo, or is the car wearing front wheels on the back? The offset looks all wrong.

I went to have a look at a manual Camaro SS on Friday, which promised much but in reality had been driven with the sort of sympathy one might offer to a ginger step-child.

Hence, I'm keeping the Raptor. For now. Maybe.
Just the photo.

It will need 20mm spacers on front and 25 mm on back should it be purchased though.

XB70

2,483 posts

197 months

Sunday 24th April 2016
quotequote all
Pennyroyal Tea said:
Well if it helps, I'm in the same boat.

As I said above, I find the Raptor is wasted on me (although I can't think of a better car for negotiating the squalid st-hole where I work, known as Mussafah). Hence, this has reignited the "what car shall I buy today" part of my brain, which had been otherwise been dormant for the latter part of last year.

Hence I decided that what I really needed was a motorway express train; a luxo-barge capable of cruising at high speed and getting there quickly too. Obvious answer is something like an S500 or LS460, so I duly tootled on up to Dubai Auto Zone on Thursday afternoon and found myself in cheap, Jap import paradise.

Pick of the crop was this monster:



However, in the interests of not looking like a plonker at work, I have managed to pry myself away from it. You can't argue with the numbers though:

2007
AED 70k
70k Kms
512bhp
830Nm torque

My only problem is that I actually cannot think of anything I want instead! No Porsche, No BMW, no nothing! I tried a CLS 550 and it felt like a Toyota by comparison.

If there's a point to this little anecdote, I guess it's that DAZ is the sort of place where you might find inspiration by just kerb-crawling from one shady looking vendor to the other. There is literally nothing you won't find there!
What manner of beast was it? The photo does not appear for me :-(

Pennyroyal Tea

26,140 posts

215 months

Sunday 24th April 2016
quotequote all
XB70 said:
What manner of beast was it? The photo does not appear for me :-(
It's a Yakuza spec W221 S600; mercifully devoid of any AMG added tat. Other-wordly to drive, such was the nuclear delivery of that bi-turbo V12.

IanUAE

2,930 posts

165 months

Monday 25th April 2016
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dxbtiger said:
Just the photo.

It will need 20mm spacers on front and 25 mm on back should it be purchased though.
For spacers go and see Jon Simmonds at Motorsport Wheels.

After_Shock

8,751 posts

221 months

Monday 25th April 2016
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If you manage to get a golf bag in a 370z I need photo evidence, the space inside is comical and beyond belief to the point I had to buy a second car just to be able to do anything like collecting people from the airport, even doing a big shop (was getting tiring taking a right turn and ending up with the shopping on my lap).

Great value car for what you get though, fuel consumption is beyond a joke though for the size of the thing, just be glad they have a reasonable size tank.

dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Monday 25th April 2016
quotequote all
IanUAE said:
For spacers go and see Jon Simmonds at Motorsport Wheels.
Aren't they ridiculously expensive?

210 quid for four (H&R, 2x25 & 2x20) from the UK, I will check though.

After_Shock said:
If you manage to get a golf bag in a 370z I need photo evidence, the space inside is comical and beyond belief to the point I had to buy a second car just to be able to do anything like collecting people from the airport, even doing a big shop (was getting tiring taking a right turn and ending up with the shopping on my lap).

Great value car for what you get though, fuel consumption is beyond a joke though for the size of the thing, just be glad they have a reasonable size tank.
Carry bag went in no problem, both diagonally and also across the bottom nearest where you stand.

Woods will have to come out but they can go by the strut, I actually think my tour bag will fit and probably 2 carry bags if needs be.

Didn't take a photo but plenty available on google as below.

Deposit paid, the dark grey with black interior, off to Amsterdam tonight and then Rome a week Thursday so will collect when back.



dxbtiger

Original Poster:

4,392 posts

174 months

Monday 25th April 2016
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1,850 AED from MSW hehe

After_Shock

8,751 posts

221 months

Monday 25th April 2016
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Nice, enjoy.

Im sure those golf bags are Nissan specific ones to fit!!!

TNW

536 posts

203 months

Tuesday 26th April 2016
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Bargain gt3rs, grab it before some lucky bugger snaps it up!
http://tnydu.biz/DOsae3