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I purposely and proudly own an evil, politically incorrect, gas-guzzling SUV. :worry: 2002 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer Edition with a V-8 that gets a whole 12 mile per gallon. I love it although to be truthful the gas does get a little expensive. Oh well, I wish I could find a "I LOVE WAL-MART" sticker to put on the back to really p*ss off all the lefties here in Michigan.

Sir, I salute you! :)

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I love red :thumbsup:

Why PT Cruiser? I have two big dogs and the back seats come out (Not just fold up, they come out) and its got more cargo space than my old Toyota 4Runner, and with better gas mileage, parkability in the city, and creature comforts like the heated seats. I can still tow the CBR1100XX behind it if I need to (and have, to OCON 2002).

My license plate frame on the Cruiser: "Thought first, emotions second". On the CBR: "Head first, heart second".

Edited by TomL
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I recently saw a show talking about the Ducati Superbike 999R, the fatest production motorcycle in the world. It's basically a street legal racing bike with the emphasis on racing. I think they say it can go around 190. It also costs around $30,000 USC.

Yeah, I've been salivating over that line since back in the 916 days. The non-R version has always been in the $16,000 range and is equally as awe-inspiring, at least on a more realistic level. I'd need to be much wealthier than I presently am to justify spending $30k on a motorcycle, but a guy can dream, right? :thumbsup:

4_800.jpg

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  • 1 month later...
It has a cap now, though...

V6, 6-speed manual, 240 horse, 4x4. ~23mpg

Great trucks, those. I have an '05 (For my wife... she loves pickups). Silver short-bed regular cab with the 2.7l 4 banger, 2wd, and the 5 speed manual. I'm driving it to work right now while my car is in the shop and I love the ride height for its added visibility.

It needs a bath, though. :thumbsup:

Edited by Inspector
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Does the 2wd Tacoma come in the Tundra body? I remember looking at the 4 bangers and they had smaller bodies. But yes, I love my truck.

Here's mine. (It's a Tacoma; is yours a Tundra? I can't quite tell...)

Can't beat Toyota on most everything.

Well, almost everything. :D:P

They make a nice truck, anyway!

post-781-1133573124_thumb.jpg

Edited by Inspector
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It needs a bath, though. :D

Aw come one. Trucks don't need baths. Trucks are like rugby players:bathe them and they loose some of their mystique.

The dirt is like a badge of honor, it says "I'm actually used like a truck should be." Or then again, it may be a Texas thing.

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Just a side note for this thread in case anyone wants to pimp their Objectivist ride. I own my mobile electronics business (The Quantum Mechanix) and subcontract out of most of the stereo shops around my area. I do stereo, video, and remote start/alarms along with most custom work. I do a premium install and charge a premium price for it. Also, I can get about any type of equiptment known to man. So, if anyone around the area is interested, hit me up. Pardon the interuption of my shameless self- promotion and back to your regularly scheduled thread. :D

Edited by EC
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  • 4 weeks later...

2003 Pontiac Vibe. I love it. It carried me, a friend, my dog, and all our gear across the country and back. Pretty good for a little car. The back seats fold completely flat so there's a lot of storage space. It's also deeper than most small cars, so you sit up in the seats rather than have your legs straight out in front of you. It also gets good gas mileage! Can't beat the dependability of Toyota and the exterior styling of Pontiac. It now has 75,000 miles on it, not a major repair yet.

These two pictures are in Oklahoma. My dog Moses just loved to sit in the driver's seat.

http://monicabeth.squarespace.com/display/...galleryId=14119

http://monicabeth.squarespace.com/display/...galleryId=14119

And this one is in Craters of the Moon National Park in Idaho.

http://monicabeth.squarespace.com/display/...galleryId=14119

Edited by Liriodendron Tulipifera
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It's a three-step procedure:
  • Enter "1989 Cadillac Seville <name of part>" into Google.

  • Place part into shopping cart.

  • Submit order.

:P

Aha. I was wondeirng if there was an American car parts dealership type affair there. Here in Houston we have an awesome chain of car parts dealers that carry just about every foreign car part known to man. So if you happen to have a Peugot or old VW, then they are literally the only place to go. Though I guess the internet is doing for car parts what it did for books etc. Though I imagine the shipping could hurt the wallet.

Of course, you could do what Triump owners do here. Have 2 Triumphs: 1 is your driver and 1 is the parts car. Which the practice of said idea lead to the saying "Nobody owns just 1 Triumph."

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Of course, you could do what Triump owners do here. Have 2 Triumphs: 1 is your driver and 1 is the parts car. Which the practice of said idea lead to the saying "Nobody owns just 1 Triumph."

LOL, my Grandfather used a variation on that with Model A's (And VW beetles):

1) Buy two broken cars

2) Use the parts to build one working car

3) Sell the result for profit! :P

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  • 1 month later...
My second has an awesome paint job. He's an Appaloosa, so he's very spotty and unique. He stands out everywhere - high-milage horse and smart enough to figure out anything. :)

Any other equestrian Oists here?

It's a true rarity to see "appaloosa" and "smart" (at least not followed by @ss) in the same sentence.

My wife and I have Arabs. Which are the definition of "Too smart for their own good."

My "ride" is a 95 Ford F-250- 7.3 Turbo Diesel, given to me by my parents for graduation (college). Knowing, then, that my fiance' (now wife) would be hauling horses. The body is getting pretty beat up, but the engine is doing just fantastic. And considering the price of trucks (and reliability of the new ones) I'll definitely be putting money into this one so long as the engine continues to run.

Edited by Styles2112
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  • 1 month later...

504295033_l.jpg

I seem to be the only one on here concerned with speed instead of economy. :\

I suppose I could say my motorcycle gets great gas mileage, but I didn't really get it for that reason. Nor do I have a picture of it. :\

I DONT use this as my daily driver though. All the goodies that make it go faster also make it get about 8 mpg.

Yeah, I've been salivating over that line since back in the 916 days. The non-R version has always been in the $16,000 range and is equally as awe-inspiring, at least on a more realistic level. I'd need to be much wealthier than I presently am to justify spending $30k on a motorcycle, but a guy can dream, right? :pirate:

4_800.jpg

And on that note of salivating over motorcycles....

506529668_l.jpg

Dodge Tomahawk. Viper v-10 engine, 400 mph top speed. Not road legal (I think). Noone has had the balls to test the 400 mph speed max, I might add. Or the will to die. XD

Oh, and... its a concept with a 450,000 dollar pricetag. I think 10-15 were made? Saw this bad boy in real life. Its NICE.

Edited by Illuminaughty
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  • 2 months later...

Bear with me folks, this is long. I tried to make it interesting, but I apologize if you get bored. Obviously, stop whenever you like. ;)

I have once again demonstrated to myself that it's not always good to avoid something that is popular SOLELY because it's popular. Yea, I know that should be obvious.

That said, I have a confession to make. (Glance left, glance right) I'm a Harley owner now. There, I said it.

Okay, let me back track to a couple of weeks ago, Memorial Day weekend. My son's high school band was selected to perform a youth concert at the Kennedy Center. (Yes, this is very cool in it's own right, GO KYLE!!!) My wife and I arrived in DC three hours early so we decided to walk around a bit. I didn't realize it at the time, and for those of you who don't know, Memorial Day weekend in DC means Rolling Thunder. An estimated 100,000 bikes descended on our nation's capital to pay homage to warrior's who have fallen in battle. 100,000 bikes, and more bikers since some come two to a bike!! They either throw out the law for the weekend, or they designate certain public areas as festival areas and people can drink alcohol freely. With 100,000 bikers, there's little the cops can really do anyway.

As we walk around and look at all the bikes, there is one predominant brand that stands out in sheer numbers. I'd estimate that 90-95% of the bikes we saw consisted of the various models of the Milwaukee Iron Horse known as the Harley Davidson. Of particular interest to me were the Electra Glide Classic and the Electra Glide Ultra Classic touring bikes. I had started riding longer and longer distances when I had the chance, and I needed some storage space as I have started considering multi-day road trips. Also the comfort features of the touring bikes were obviously a plus for the long haul.

As my desire (okay David O. my need :P ) for a slightly bigger beast which was more functional for my taste in riding grew, I started looking at a couple touring bikes. Now mind you, another reason why I had not seriously considered Harleys before was the monetary issue. Many Harley models are significantly more expensive than their comparable Japanese counterparts.

Since I had ALL Hondas in the past, my first stop was the local Honda shop to look at the Gold Wing. If there is a motorcycle "bell or whistle" in existence, it's probably on the Gold Wing. Stereo, GPS, CB, rider/passenger intercom, cruise, etc. The 2006 model can even come with ABS and an airbag. AN AIRBAG on a motorcycle!! I sat on it and it was a bit too tall for my taste, but the balance was still very nice. My largest problem with it was that it just doesn't look like a motorcycle so much anymore. It looks more like a private jet which is ironically consistent with the recent ads showing it in a hangar. My wife did not like the look of it either, and in particular the look of me on it by myself. She said I should be 20 years older before I consider it again. :D The Gold Wing I looked at cost around 23,000 with a slight mark up for this area due to "rarity". The dealers usually get around one a month based on what the sales guy told me. Hmm, I'm looking at Harley money now.

I also looked briefly at Yamaha's entry in the touring market. It definitely looks more like a motorcycle than the Gold Wing. Somewhat less expensive than a Harley, but the bike did not grab me.

Then I went to the Harley dealership. Unlike years past when one had to order Harley's well in advance and stay on waiting lists for long periods of time, many dealerships now have bikes on the lot that can be prepped and driven off on the purchase date. They had EG Classics ($20,000) and Ultra Classics ($22,000) available right then and there. I liked the look already after having seen many of them in DC. I did't buy that day, but I was fairly convinced at that point that that I wanted the Ultra Classic.

Harley Davidson makes special edition bike for Shriners, Firefighters and Peace Officers. In the case of the Peace Officer's bike, they make the Ultra Classic in three different color options, and my preference was black. These bikes are offered to current and retired Peace Officers at $1000 over invoice which computes to about $2000 cheaper than the comparable non-special edition. The bikes are exactly the same save the logo on the tank and the paint schemes. You do not frequently see these bikes at dealerships because, well, the market is significantly smaller.

So, what do you imagine happens the next time I go to the Harley dealership? Right out front in all it's glory sits a black Peace Officer edition Ultra Classic. If I recall correctly, they had just gotten it in the day before. It practically has my name on it already. I brought both my Honda's up there for trade-in and made the deal with a salesman. The only negative aspect of this experience is that I lost money on the Hondas. The summer was coming, the bike was there and I was not going to let it go.

When you go buy a Honda, there's a brief blurb about the local chapter of Honda riders and some talk about the weekend rides. Mostly my Honda buying experience was like "buy the bike, you go now". When buying a Harley, half of the conversation is about the Harley community or family, and all of the events they do, the meetings, etc. They really try to welcome you into a community of people with a common interest, riding. It's all about the ride. The Harley folks were by far more pleasant to deal with than the Honda folks, at least at my local stores.

When all was said and done, it was time to take the bike off the lot. I had not actually ridden one before, having only sat on it couple of times before in the store. It was slightly higher than my VTX, but I could still flat-foot both sides at the same time. Test riding motorcycles is not so abundantly available as test driving cars. The VTX I had been riding was about 120 lbs lighter, and it turned like an arrow. That may be exaggerating, but it was a piggy bike in the turns. Now I'm on a bike that's almost 800 lbs. so I was expecting a lighter more 'pigginess'. Man was I WRONG! This bike turned on a dime (well, maybe a quarter. Naw, I'm sticking with the dime.) It glides through turns. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to handle. The stock seat was also very comfortable. Because of break-in miles, I have not put it through any serious paces yet in terms of speed or acceleration, but it seems beefy enough in those areas.

All in all, I'm very happy with the bike. The only noticeable negative difference is the engine heat. Being air-cooled instead of liquid-cooled, it eminates quite a bit more heat for the rider. When your moving it's not a problem. Stop at a light for any period of time in 90 degree weather and your inner thighs start cooking. This is a plus for winter riding though. :)

So to conclude, I am going to state again, but much more vociferously this time; I OWN A HARLEY MOTOR BIKE AND I'M GLAD I DO! Who cares if it's popular? ;)

I'll post pics when I have a couple.

Edited by RationalCop
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