Automotive enthusiasts?

@The magic 🅱oi
What’s holding you back? They cost nothing.

@RD4590
Where I live they’re a bit pricy, and I want a manual 4x4. Those are $10,000+

Today, I finally bought and took delivery the dream car of my life!

I just learned that Zimmer sunk in 2020.

@𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐫
Tomica?

@RD4590
👍.

Interesting thought:
So, obviously, we had the Elantra coupe, Elantra Touring (I30 Wagon) and Elantra GT (I30).
Assuming that Hyundai sold the I30 3-Door (coupe) in the us, would it use the Elantra GT name?

@𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐫
👍

@Background Pony #1392
The closest we in America have to those are the Tiburon and Velostar. But being as those are still Hyundais, I personally wouldn’t want one.

@ᎶㄖҜㄩ 乃ㄥ卂匚Ҝ
I was talking about if they were sold in the us from 2011 to 2016 (Like the MD Elantra and GD I30), what would the name for the I30 Coupe be in the us?

@Background Pony #1392
I have no idea. I’m not a fan of Hyundai, Kia or Genesis; so I don’t really follow them.

The only I30 I’m familiar with is my dad’s 2000 Infiniti I30, and it’s just a fancy Nissan.

@ᎶㄖҜㄩ 乃ㄥ卂匚Ҝ
Hyundai also has a I30, too.

Ehh. Understandable.

@ᎶㄖҜㄩ 乃ㄥ卂匚Ҝ
Hyundai cars served me reliably for 16 years, but I can understand where you’re coming from. They’re like the Denny’s of automotive brands. You don’t set out to get a Hyundai, you end up in a Hyundai.

Somehow I want to see Mazda in touring car racing, with the RX8.

Just out of interest, how are vehicle inspections done in your locality?

In England once a car is over 3 years old it is inspected, as part of a “MOT” annually, the inspection takes about 30-45 minutes.

I was reading a post on FB that inspections in Belgium are required biannually after the car is 4 years old. The test takes about 20 minutes and is done as a “drive-though” service. Pretty bizarre to us Brits.

Also what can you drive on a regular car license?

In Britain you can drive any rigid vehicle up to 3.5T, if you passed prior to 1997 it’s up to 7.5T.

@RD4590
+1 to that.

@midob
In America, it depends. Emissions tests are almost-always mandated in urban and suburban areas, but most rural areas don’t require emissions. I believe California and New York State mandate emissions tests statewide, regardless of if you live in a big city or out in the middle of nowhere. Some states also have separate inspections for safety (i.e.: brakes, windshield, headlights, taillights, etc.)

In Utah County, Utah (where I currently live); we just take our car to Jiffy Lube or anyone who advertises they do emissions tests once a year. We used to do safety inspections as well, but we stopped in 2017. I’m looking to move to Las Vegas, Nevada or Phoenix, Arizona in the near future and I think both those areas just do emissions, too.

As far as “regular car license,” which is a Class D license in Utah, you can drive your typical personal vehicles from the humble Toyota Corolla to the big boy pickup trucks such as the Ford F-150 and even some RVs under a certain length. You’ll need a separate endorsement to drive motorcycles. And Class A, B and C licenses are for those larger commercial trucks.

@ᎶㄖҜㄩ 乃ㄥ卂匚Ҝ
Interesting, our emissions and safety checks are done at the same time.

Baffling that they would cease safety checks while keeping emissions tests. I guess if a car kills you or cripples you for life (due to failed brakes etc), you can die or suffer with the comforting fact that the car was compliant with emission standards 🤷

It’s a separate test here for motorcycles too; you can ride a 50cc moped on car licence though or a 125cc with L plates (you can’t have a pillion). As for vehicle dimensions there is no limit, you can drive a 12M/39FT x 2.5M/8FT vehicle granted it doesn’t exceed 3.5T.

@RD4590
Some interesting insights into the Chinese motor industry there.

I’ve had a few Chinese vehicles, a few pit bikes with the Loncin and Lifan engines (Honda clones) which were great bikes, really good fun, a Can-am knock off (V-twin CVT atv buggy thingy) which was an abomination both mechanically and to drive and a stealth bomber knock off ebike which I still have and is pretty good.

I also had a 150cc CVT unbranded buggy which was a great drive, mechically pretty decent and pretty nippy up to 40mph; pretty sure that used a GY6 engine.

I rented a new Chevrolet Silverado from the hardware store to haul some roofing panels. Maybe it’s an unfair comparison, but it’s incredible to me how big a difference there is between that base Silverado and the F-150 XLT I drove. The F-150 was better in every way.

@midob
I believe inspections vary by state. In Wisconsin every two years I have to take my vehicle to an inspection site where they hook up a hose to something on the driver’s side to measure emissions. It’s a drive-thru service at a local dealership. That’s it. The government doesn’t care how safe it is in a collision.

A regular car license covers any regular vehicle you can buy, a Fiat 500 to a F-350. There’s a separate license for motorcycles and for extra large trucks, but I don’t know exactly where the lines are drawn.

@midob
Why on earth would you buy a Chinese knockoff when Honda makes some of the best engines? I would never do that, both from a reliability and ethical standpoint.

Sacrilege I know, at the time I was 13/14 years old and didn’t have the pennies for a Honda. A 2nd hand Honda would’ve cost ~700 quid where as the Chinese stuff cost around 100, better suited for tearing up the local fields (and didn’t really matter if it was confiscated).

I still have my first motorcycle which has been passed down my family, it’s a 1979 Honda 50cc, still starts with the first kick, fully original except I upgraded the electrical system from 6v to 12v (the headlight was as about as bright as a fag nub end).

Nothing beats a Honda, the best, most refined motorcycles by far in my opinion. Despite that I’ll be on the lookout for a Honda monkeybike clone soon, I’d love a Honda DAX but they’re fetching silly money now days, and I only want it to keep in the garage of my motorhome as a run about.

@midob
I know absolutely nothing about motorcycles. 😂
And I don’t really know how our vehicle inspection works, but it’s definitely not in par with UK. I think it’s once every two years, depending on age.

@midob
I can understand that, but it’s cheaper for a reason.

My Dad had a Honda motorcycle back in the 70’s that he’s always spoken highly of.

I never got into motorcycles, but admired some from afar. I could buy a nice motorcycle if I wanted to. It’s just that I’d probably maim myself riding it.

@kleptomage
Honda is impeccable of course, but 20 years ago most people in China couldn’t even afford a Honda. That’s why the knock-offs became popular at the first place. Same story went into cars. And sadly even though most Chinese people can afford more expensive cars and bikes these days, the copycat mentality has already rooted in the design philosophy of our carmakers.

Basically they never spend time developing their own unique design language, somethimg instantly recognizable and related to the brand (i.e. double kidney grille on a BMW). And some do have their signature designs but they’re fuck ugly.

Kind like how Xiaomi is Apple esque, not original or unique in design. I do love Xiaomi stuff though, more than Apple stuff ironically.

@midob
Apple was so ahead of its time. I think you can find traces of it from all the tech companies nowadays. But still Xiaomi put a roadworthy car into production ahead of Apple.
Xiaomi is more focused on home decor. Their new phones are barely recognised. But they have a whole range of smart furnitures and they are all connected. For example you can start your robot vacuum cleaner by voice command while driving. They made an unimaginable life unimaginably cheap.
The SU7 has its quirks and features (i.e. umbrella storage space, backseat screens, on a £‎30k car). And if they can get away from the “fake Porsche” image, it would be good. But I don’t want to buy a car made by a smart tech company. That center console makes the whole car look like a tablet, and I don’t appreciate it.
Ironically I still think Xiaomi SU7 looks more like a car than many so-callesd cars on the market these days, and Xiaomi has put more effort in making a likeable car than some so-called manufacturers.