motor trend compares a ford to bmw!

[Speedaddicted]

Originally Posted by iTsLiKeAnEgG

It's not that I think this, I know this for a fact. I'm a member on many car forums including the cars that I own/owned. Currently that is G35Driver and 300ZXCLUB and I know a good deal about the aftermarket community. I've seen plenty of unmodified EVO's, WRX's and Cobra's. Magnaflow isn't exactly the most highly regarded exhaust manufacturer either. I would never install their products onto my cars.

Please post data of your "facts" on the percentages of performance cars that are modified vs nont. I'd love to see these facts.

The fact that you dont like magnaflow has little to do with anything relivant to the conversation. The sell TONS of aftermarket pieces as do Greddy, Tanabe, borla, etc etc etc. Thier numbers provide much more real infomation than your opinion on the aftermarket. Add to that the fact that while I am not only an enthusiast I am involved in the aftermarket industry I have seen many numbers that would dispute your claims. Bottom line, YES there are many stock cars out there, but the performance car segment has a great deal of modified cars. I dont know of many Z owners who have not done some sort of modification to thier car.

That said, I find it very very hard to believe that there are many more modd'd evos out there then unmod'd ones. I have been looking for a while now for a "virgin" EVO VIII and the pickings are slim, very slim. If you happen to know of a where I can find "plenty" of them by all means let me know.

[iTsLiKeAnEgG]

Originally Posted by Speedaddicted

Please post data of your "facts" on the percentages of performance cars that are modified vs nont. I'd love to see these facts.

The fact that you dont like magnaflow has little to do with anything relivant to the conversation. The sell TONS of aftermarket pieces as do Greddy, Tanabe, borla, etc etc etc. Thier numbers provide much more real infomation than your opinion on the aftermarket. Add to that the fact that while I am not only an enthusiast I am involved in the aftermarket industry I have seen many numbers that would dispute your claims. Bottom line, YES there are many stock cars out there, but the performance car segment has a great deal of modified cars. I dont know of many Z owners who have not done some sort of modification to thier car.

That said, I find it very very hard to believe that there are many more modd'd evos out there then unmod'd ones. I have been looking for a while now for a "virgin" EVO VIII and the pickings are slim, very slim. If you happen to know of a where I can find "plenty" of them by all means let me know.

If "your people" at maglaflow have been writing a research paper detailing what percentage of car buyers modify their vehicles I would love to see it. If they/you don't have this data then their opinion is as good as mines. It is well understood by most people that the majority of car buyers do not modify their vehicles, if you believe otherwise I really couldn't care less.

[JMadison]

Originally Posted by iTsLiKeAnEgG

LOL, sure. They are great as long as you're covered under warranty. Unless you are a good mechanic I wouldn't own one once the warranty expires.

I wouldn't own one at all, now that some 15% of them are coming out of the Pretoria plant.

Ah well, it reminds me of what U.S. pilots said about ME-262's when they got a chance to fly one. "Great plane when everything is working."

For my $$$ I'm going back to japanese cars made in Japan until the U.S. makers get it in their heads that we want sharp looking cars that perform and don't break.

Personally I wish a movement back towards owner serviceability would take hold. Simplicity and durability with sharp styling would probably sell a lot of cars. Even if they weren't exactly race cars.

Everyday, non-car-enthusiast types (and even an enthusaist like me) doesn't want to spend time, money and aggravation on garage time.

Make attractive cars that last and can be fixed without hitting a commercial garage and you'll have something.

[sean sean sean sean]

Bravo Ford, this car looks fantastic....I loved the original SHO, I had gotten a poster of it at the 1988 NY Auto Show that hung in my bedroom at my parents house for a long time haha. The one travesty seems that it won't be available with a manual transmission, as the 89-95 models were...but I bet they might add it later if there is enough demand.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by iTsLiKeAnEgG

But the SHO isn't good at anything BMW, Mercedes, Infiniti or Jaguar vehicles do (except maybe go in a straight line).

Rephrase that, and quickly. You mean "the SHO isnt good at SOME things that BMW, Benz, etc, do".

For one, its cheaper. Two, it out accelerates most Beamers short of M badges. Three, its braking is beter than most Benzes, Infinitis and all but the very most recent Jags (who can thank Ford for the engineering help). And IMO, the SHO looks better than 95% of the Beamers out there. And Benzes? Ugly, inside and out. Cold, soulless, boring, too similar looking.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Drover

I used to have a SHO, and to be honest I'd probably sooner get a Genesis than the new SHO if I had 40 large to spend on a car.

I suspect age has something to do with that.

j/k

The Genesis sedan is nice for what it is... but its still a big barge overloaded with ridiculous, driver-unfriendly technology.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

I suspect age has something to do with that.

j/k

The Genesis sedan is nice for what it is... but its still a big barge overloaded with ridiculous, driver-unfriendly technology.

I'd say the same thing for the new SHO but at least the Genesis gives you a lot more luxury touches than the SHO does for about the same price while giving up little in performance.

I'm not a huge fan of the Genesis; I'll gladly admit I like what it delivers at its price point but I'm just not too interested in a luxo-barge like it or the Q45 or the Lexus LS or whatever. So to me it's a shame that the Genesis and SHO are comparable at their price point because the SHO should perform rings around the Genesis. But instead it's a bloated pachyderm on wheels that just happens to have a very nice powerplant that's wasted on the car it sits in.

C&D Test results:

SHO:

Base price: $37,995
As-tested price: $43,280
0-60: 5.2
1/4: 13.7@103
70-0: 174 ft with "lots-o-fade"
Lateral Gs: .84
As-tested weight: 4,345lbs


Genesis V8:

Base price: $38,000
As-tested price: $42,000
0-60: 5.6
1/4: 14.1@103
70-0: 168 ft
Lateral Gs: .86
Manufacturer curb weight: 4006lbs

[NHDave]

Originally Posted by yachtcare

Never been a big Ford fan. But that is a sweet looking ride. Ford seems to be pulling their act together pretty well. Too bad GM and Chrysler didnt take note before it was too late for them......

Are you kidding me? I see nothing that sets the new Taurus apart from all the other cookie cutter sedans out there, and Chrysler has been ahead of the design curve for quite some time, they make some of the best looking cars and trucks in the US IMHO.

[yo vanilla]

Originally Posted by Speedaddicted

That single percentage makes up a BILLION dollar aftermarket performance industry.

Specifically speaking for the new SHO here. Which is the point. It's not the same buyer as the guy in a hopped up GTI. The BILLION dollar aftermarket industry all but won't apply to the new SHO.

The buyer of this car will probably be a guy like me: in his 30's now and has a family, probably is a car guy, maybe he's modded or built a few in his 20's. But these days he either has a "real" sports car in the third garage stall to play with, or he's just looking for a sporty daily driver and is otherwise done with all that completely.