ich Kalliope

The Hunt is On...

Again.  Or I should say Still.  What's not really clear is the priority of the hunt.  If we're hunting for another car, we are, or another garage!  After many months of circling, looking, deciding, undeciding, a bad economy, a terrible economy, new, used... we got the 2007 Maserati Quattroporte and it's a beauty.  Exactly what we were looking for, the perfect balance of luxury, performance in an understated, but powerful design.  The first time ever, that I wish my daily commute was just a little longer. 

Done.

Not so fast.  Cars are not about the individual cars you own, if you own more than one, which we do, it's about the collection.  In our case a couple of weeks ago... a mini-fleet.  And as one hunt ends... another begins  It's what we do, it's who we are.  My husband and I are both car fanatics, so there is no one in this family putting the brakes on anyone.  Any car conversation is welcome in our home, any car purchase is worth considering.  Nice for us to have found each other huh?  I think so too.  We're on the hunt for a small car, a really small car,  and have landed on a Smart car.

Here's the big idea I'm onto now, I realized that for us, it's not about how many cars, we would own a bunch.  That's simple.  But a few years back we decided to move into the city, and we have a limited amount of parking options.  Can you hear the brakes screeching now?  It's about parking.  Oh... and did I mention that my husband takes the streetcar to work?  So now the hunt is on again, for a half of a parking space, maybe even a third.

Stay tuned.

 

Sworn Witness

 


Do you know where I'm going with this???  I was sitting in a meeting with seven other people, facing the window and witnessed the sum of these parts drive by.  No kidding, swear to god.  Readers of this blog know how I feel about teal cars, PT Cruisers and wood panels on automobiles.  So there would be no surprise to know that my mouth fell open, the meeting stopped, and I checked with my colleagues to confirm if any of them had seen the same thing or was it a figment of my imagination.  It wasn't, the sum of these parts is driving around in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.  Be warned.

Heart Skipping, Palm Sweating, Face Blushing

LOVE. OK, not face blushing, but I like things in threes!  I've met a car I love. 

The long and winding road to finding a car that I absolutely crave and covet, has taken more time than I could imagine.  Along the way, gas prices rose, the economy dove, doing more with less, and mindful spending was being bantered about as if it was some new age philosophy. 

So in the spirit of spending mind-full-y, my mind is full of the 2007 Maserati Quattroporte.  Pinenfarina designed, understated, powerful and luxurious.  Preowned by someone who was living the dream, a dream they could afford, or not.  Modena built, meaningful lineage and brings a smile to my face as a driver or a passenger.  This is going to be a sweet relationship.  Worth waiting for. 

Two Timer

I love cars.  Over the years I've had a few of my own, and have been an admirer of many.  But when I sat down to write this post about my all-time favorites, two came to mind... then blank.  Have I forgotten?  I've got favorite brands, Audi is at the top of my list with Porsche.  The list of cars I love is good sized, Aston Martin DB9, Porsche 914-6, 1968 Mercury Cougar, Mercedes SLK, Smart, the original Fiat Bambino... no trouble coming up with cars I love.  But all-time favorites, not so easy.

So I'm a two timer, 1996 Porsche 993 and the 1972 Gran Torino.  What are you're all time favorites, the cars you longed to have in your garage?

 

Cruisin' Warnin'

   

  

I'm always aware of random coincidences that become patterns.  You know... those observations that make you go hmmm?  It's definitely a trick of trend tracking, but most times, it just pieces things together to make me realize that something is occurring that is worth registering. 

The latest for me is what I'm calling the attack of the PT Cruiser.  The "gangster" Chrysler.  I don't know enough about the design of the car to understand what the consumer profile was for this car.  Who were they designing for?  But whoever they were designing for, is not happy.

As of late, they have realized their car is an albatross, no vroom, a ridiculous exterior... and they are angry.  At one point last week, I got cutoff by three different PT Cruisers in the short span of 10 miles!!  These are not happy people.  And they're taking it out on the rest of us.  Within the past two weeks, everywhere I look there's a PT Cruiser on the road, doing something PT Cruiser-ish, including trying to pass a Porsche 993 on an incline.  Silly car!

Yes I'm a car snob.  I love well designed, preferably German cars.  I make assumptions about cars and drivers without knowing who they are.  That's why I'm going on the record to say that those people in the "gangster" Chryslers are none too happy with the stereotype and out to prove it wrong. Silly drivers!

It's still an AUDI

And I'm still at it.  It's a bit more of a dream now, postponed for awhile.  So the pricepoint can go up and up and up in my dreams.  At the moment... for the last 4 weeks at least, it's been the Audi S6.  I'd take the Audi A6 with the S-Line body too.

I don't blame my readers for not taking my car posts seriously.  But seriously, I'm still at it.  Stick with me.  Look for a vote coming up soon here! 

    

    

A New Twist

It's coming up on one year that I first met the new Audi S5, and on November 4th it will be exactly the one year anniversary of my first blog entry of my ongoing adventures to find a new car.  Many of you have been following the excitement and turmoil of my decision, and on July 6th of this year I announced my final decision, right here on this blog that we were going to purchase the Audi S4. 

Well... I've changed my mind.

We want the S5.  We need the S5.  We love the S5.

The S5 makes my heart skip a beat when I see it.  I need my car to do this for me, the same way the Porsche 993 does everytime I see it. 

A car needs to have spirit, excitement.  The new S4 is nice.  Nice isn't a requirement.

Some of the same issues still exist with the S5 that veered me away from it oh so long ago... for example, it's a two door, we would prefer a four door.  My car-obsessed husband and I cannot get out of the backseat without significant effort.  But it's when we can't get out of the front seat that we'll start to be concerned!

So on November 4th, the one year anniversary of our first date with the Audi S5, and coincidentally Election Day here in the US, when Barack Obama becomes the 44th president of the United States, to express our optimism and confidence in the future... we're going to go buy this car!

If the scary guy and his terrifyingly inept sidekick win, there is a good chance we'll be picking the S5 up in Ingolstadt, Germany, and driving it back to our new home in Munich. 

A Backseat Driver he can Love

My dear husband is an excellent driver, or at least that's what he tells me. 

No really, all kidding aside, he is an excellent driver, or at least I thought so. 

Yes really, I'm going on the record and saying he is one of the best drivers I can think of, except when he's driving in the city where we live.

After years of speeding along the German Autobahns, in fast cars, very fast cars, and driving in big cities like Munich, Berlin, Paris, Athens, London, Boston and anywhere except the city where we currently live, I sat silently and might I add, sweetly at his side.

With that one exception, he's still at the top of his driving game.  Or at least that's what he tells me!!

You wouldn't know it if you heard some of our conversations while navigating the streets of our lovely hometown of Portland, Oregon!  I become a backseat driver as soon as we pull out of our garage.  We both agree on one thing, it's the drivers here, not us. 

We're not sure what happened over the ten years we've lived here, the car chatter is rather new in our world.  I love riding shotgun, taking long road trips and driving fast.  In the past I have even been known to fall into a sweet sleep in the passenger seat of our Porsche 911 going well over 200 kmh, because the sound of the engine at that speed can rock one to sleep. 

Not now, not here.  That's why I found this Bizarro comic in yesterday's paper so, so funny! 

Rentals Matter 2

Seat Leon                                              Fiat 500                                          Mini Cooper

One of the many, many things I enjoy about Europe are the variety of cars that are offered there.  Cars that we have with a few exceptions, absolutely no visibility to here in the USA.  As the Buick Lucerne continues to sell more of that particular model than all the BMW's sold in the US, I question why isn't good design and great economy more important to my fellow Americans?  We have never been a country that settles for mediocre, so why do many put "Made in the USA" over quality, safety, beauty and just plain fun to drive?

In Germany, we rented the SEAT Leon.  Spain's division of Volkswagen is putting out some great cars.  The Spanish have lots to be proud of these days, Rafael Nadal, Euro Champs 2008 and SEAT!

Nissan Micra                                   Peugeot 207CC                                                Lancia Ypsilon

Car-watching in Greece was a blast.  Greece doesn't manufacture any cars, no country loyalty comes into play.  The cars on the road were great fun, small, powerful, great colors and finishes.  We were constantly commenting that it's a pity we can't get that in the US. 

We did a lot of driving on our roadtrips in Greece, we put over 1,200 miles on our rental car.  So in hindsight we should have paid a bit more attention to what we drove away with from the Hertz lot at the Athens airport. 

It was a decent little car, a Hyundai Getz, the color was a bit odd, but in the shadow of the underpass which was the Hertz lot, it looked "interesting".  It had a couple of scratches and little dents, but nothing major.  It screamed "this is not you, or anything like you, or anything you would have driven ever", but it had AC, and it was what we were given.  They practically made it seem as though it was an upgrade, so who are we to question. 

We're "Car People", even rental cars matter.

Getz at Schinias                                   Getz overlooking Elatos                          Getz heading up the Κουρελεϊκα

Once in the bright Greek sunshine, the interesting color was a flat taxi cab yellow.  The number of people who tried to flag us down and get in our backseat was minimum, unless we were in a city.  We had no trouble finding our car in a parking lot. The car ran perfectly.  We didn't have a moment of trouble with it, but... it wasn't fun.  It wasn't us.  But it's family now.  It was part of all the wonderful memories.  With my sweet husband at the wheel, it got us everywhere we needed to go, and sure beat the donkey my Υιαγια rode around Elatos.

Quick and Smart

I know that I've kept many of you waiting with my decision about THE car.  Sorry, but it really has taken this long.  And as luck would have it, the car I want now, won't be available until end of this year or maybe early 2009!  That's right - here I go again.  Lusting after a car that doesn't yet exist in a form that I can visit! 

But I'm feeling confident that this is it.  Drum roll please...  the 2009 Audi S4. 

Latest news is that Audi will use the V6 engine, instead of the V8 to lighten the car up, and to be more fuel efficient.  It's super-charged, bringing more power at lower revs (that's what my husband says, and I believe him!).  Heck, it practically sounds like a hybrid now!  So until then, I'll whip around in my 3.2 liter A3, wishing it was bigger, heavier and more luxurious.

Now let's talk color.  It's going to have to be a dark color, and I'm not necessarily sold on black.  I would like a really, really, dark blue metallic.  Like the night sky in the photo of Toronto below.  Beautiful.  Also not available as yet... but since when does that stop me?

Teal it like it is

After extensive research, and testing my hypothesis, I'm going to go public with my findings that if one drives a teal colored car, made in the 90's or later, one is a lousy driver. 

Wow Weary

It's not over.  Even though I said it was, it's not.  I'm sorry.  I'm weary from it.  I cannot find the perfect car.  I've never had this problem before, and I'm not sure why I'm having it now.  My dear husband went to the Auto Show and saw the new Audi A4 (not the S4) and was not "wowed" by it.  We want "wow".  Let me state for the record, I have not laid my own eyes on the actual car, but I can tell, he's not into this car.  Oh jeez.  So here's what has his eye, the Mercedes CLS550 Coupe. 

We went to visit it today.  It's tough, it's exterior is wow, the interior is fine.  I like it from a form and detail perspective, but it's not all-wheel drive, and it's not an Audi.  What's a girl to do when she wants a new car and can't seem to meet the right model?

Now that's original

Lamborghini 2008 Murciélago LP640 Coupé, Gallardo Spyder and Roadster

Bottoms up!  The personalization, customization trend has finally made it's way to the high end.  In the car world, mass-customization has been lead by the smaller vehicles.  Think Mini-Cooper, Fiat 500, Smart and the Lancia Ypsilon.  Launched in 1996 the Lancia Ypsilon, an unfortunate looking vehicle with an amazing offering of over 100 custom colors at a more than reasonable price.  There has not been much done at the high end where it seems an obvious fit.

Well, add Lamborghini to this list.  Don't call it personalization or customization call it exclusive, or as Lamborghini states in their Ad Personam personalization program "think of the impossible" and create your own "original". 

I've visited the Detroit Auto Show a number of times, and always get excited when I come up on the traditional yellow and black of Lamborghini.  I'm not going to Detroit this year.  With brands like Porsche pulling out of this show, it's not hard to talk yourself out of spending a week in Detroit in the middle of January!  But, I need to figure out a way of laying my eyes on these new Lamborghini colors and finishes.  Matte, yes matte finishes!  Blu Cepheus, which needs no further description other than the photo and Marrone Apus, which in my extremely-limited Italian, I know has to do with Chestnut.  I love it already!

Congratulations, it's a "Bamborsche"!

Check out this car, it's real, not some photoshop rendition.  Some crazy Greek guy in Athens took a Fiat 500 and gave it the Porsche treatment.  It's been spotted in the Glyfada suburb of Athens, and has the nickname "Smorsche".  At first glance it's a little jarring, but I've studied it awhile... and it's grown on me.  Fun, tough, refined and sweet.  Just what you'd expect if the 911 and 500 were to breed!

 

Happy New Year!!

Wishing all the best for the new year!  Happiness, health, peace and love.  And all that 2008 holds.  A sabbatical, elections, adventures, good deeds, an Audi S4... elections.  What's on your list? 

The long and winding road

I know the suspense is killing many of you out there.  What car will it be?  It's been a long and winding road, the saga continues.  Believe me, it's just as hard on me, cause I'm ready to go.  In my mind, my sweet A3 is history, although I will most likely be driving it for at least another half year based on what happened today.

We went back to introduce ourselves to the Audi A6 today.  And by the way, had a decent experience (dare I say, almost enjoyable) at our Audi dealership.  Having decided that the S5 Coupe doesn't make sense when you already have a classic, all-wheel drive, German coupe in your garage.  But the S6 isn't right.  Now what?  The BMW 535xi is still in the mix, but deep down we're Audi people.  We're trying to keep an open mind. 

Enter the new 2009 Audi S4.  Well, I think this might be it.  It shares a lot of the same strong, muscular with edge body-styling of the S5, not to mention it's engine.  There's a good review of the A4 in the December 2007 issue of Automobile.  It's not available until mid-2008, which gives us a little time to decide between the S4 Sedan and the A4 Avant.  I'm feeling the pressure to decide, I hear you out there, it's getting close.  If I were still living in Munich, I'd be driving this beauty a lot sooner.

Sweet Bambino

I snapped these photos on one of my favorite streets in Munich, Tal.  The Fiat 500, incredibly restored, and wedged about as tight as you can get into a parallel parking space.  The parking abilities of the German city dwellers is second to none.  Respect.

Another 50th worth celebrating

As 2007 comes to an end, a number of "us" celebrated our 50 years on this planet.  One worth mentioning is the Fiat 500, the iconic Cinquecento was always a favorite of mine.  The kind of car that just made you smile when you saw it.  Plus how fun is it to say "Chinko-chvehnto".  Fun right?  This year Fiat reintroduced the 500 in July, and it's still special. 

I haven't seen the new version in person yet.  It appears that the exterior maybe be lacking some of the character of the original, the almost upright windshield and headlights were very iconic.  Not very aerodynamic.  The interior of the 2007 model, in my humble opinion, makes up for any character the exterior maybe missing.  Fabulous.

It is so customizable, they claim over 500,000 unique variations can be had.  I believe it, I just went to the website and built my own.  Try it.  I believe if I was in Europe I would have clicked the order button.  I'm in the USA however, and there are no plans to bring the Fiat 500 to this country.  Fiat will be opening Alfa Romeo dealerships in the US, but won't be selling Fiats... yet.  Again, an intelligent, fun and thoughtful automobile doesn't make it to these shores.  Understanding it's because of a lack in a dealer network, versus the car itself is promising. 

Happy 50th Cinquecento!

It's the experience stupid

The decision had been made, the Audi S5 it was.  Love at first sight.  Problem is I got "engaged" to the car, before I started "dating" the dealership.  The last few weeks has been so painful trying to order this car, from the local dealership, or getting information from Audi in general.  They don't get it.  Their cars are spectacular, but the experience is like going to the dentist.

So I started looking around... hanging out at other car dealerships... flirting with the competition, not acting like an engaged customer at all.  Today I met the BMW 535xi in the middle of the afternoon, and it's got me thinking.  Weighing my options.  Service at the BMW dealership was great, just what you'd think when you were getting ready to lay this kind of cash out for a car.  They had answers to all my questions, and even answered a few before I asked them. 

Hmmmmmm.........

Honed to Perfection

honed (verb) to perfect or make more intense or effective
American Heritage Dictionary

The decision's been made.  It's the Audi S5, in Spring 2008.  My dear, car-co-dependent husband and I went to see the new S5, and within seconds we knew this was it.  This is the only car at the moment that will make us trade our spunky A3.  In all honesty it didn't take much!  If it wasn't for the fact that we want to wait until the DSG (automatic with "tiptronic") we would have placed our order a week ago.

V8, 4.2 liter quattro, 354 HP... ridiculous.  Embarassing really.  Gas guzzling, more powerful than what the USA roads allow for our driving enjoyment, but never-the-less... this is it.  For the record, I am concerned about the environment, our relying on foreign oil, our carbon footprint, the need for more alternative fuel cars, all that.  But, I have gone through the exercise in my head, and have justified the need for us to have this car, with a RED leather interior.   

Done.  Yes.  Is it spring 2008 yet??

"Fuer Elise"

If you have the chance to own a Lotus Elise, here's a color tip before you buy that car.  Today I saw an Elise in Anthracite.  Poor Elise.  It looked like a black & white photo in a color world, and not in the good black & white photo kind of way.  It looked like a teenager in Greek widow garb.  So unfortunate.  So "Fuer Elise" , be one of the colors that makes this car so fun to look at.  No Anthracite, no Black, not even a Dark Navy.  You're not intimidating enough, nor should you be, to dress in austerity.  Go for it, you have the right body, the attitude and stance to pull it off!!  Solar Yellow.  Krypton Green.  Chrome Orange.

   

Decisions, decisions

I want a new car... again.  I believe this is a record for me wanting to flip a car.  I love my car, just a mere 17 months ago I was singing the praises of our new Audi A3.  But this desire to get something new, has been tapping me lightly on the shoulder for a solid 2-3 weeks.  I'm afraid it's not going away.

So I mentioned it to my sweet husband two days ago.  Music to his ears of course!  As I write this entry, I look up, and he is sitting at his computer looking at cars.  No twisting of the arms in this family when it comes to buying and selling automobiles.  It's a co-dependent relationship, one of us does not help the other control ourselves at all.  I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!

So here are the three I'm considering (this evening).  All ideas are welcome of course!

1. Audi A5

2. BMW 535 Sport Wagon

3. Audi A6 Avant

Starts with C,

with flipup headlights, has signature taillights with vertical lines...

I have always loved cars.  Growing up, there were a few people around me who loved cars too, an uncle here, a cousin there, but neither of them spent too much (any) time discussing them with me.  I secretly prided myself in the fact that during long rides in the backseat of my parents' Oldsmobile I could identify, make and model year of almost any car on the road.  American cars of course, and the occasional Volkswagen that was brave enough to drive around midwest steel country.  Cars that still standout from back in the day, the 1968 Camaro, 1972 Ford Gran Torino, 1968 Pontiac GTO and the 1968 Mercury Cougar.

   

The Cougar.  I started this entry a couple of days ago but came to a bit of a bump in the road when for the life of me, I could not remember the name of this car.  Knew it started with a C, new it came from the Lincoln Mercury line... blank, blank, blank.  My husband (another car fanatic) and I were having a wonderful dinner last night, sitting outside at our favorite pizza place, and we started to discuss my stalled blog entry.  He said, "oh I'm sure we'll see one soon and it will spark your memory".  I answered with, "not likely, you don't see many of these around".  A few minutes go by, and he points at a car that took off up the road, and says "that's hot".  I turn my head to see the signature taillights driving away!  Really.  No kidding.  He confirmed that the name started with a C, but still no closer.

Thanks to the internet I was able to solve the dilemma, and finish this entry!  Along the way I discovered some wonderful websites with posters of car ads from the 60's and early 70's that were equal to the wonderful cars being designed and built in the U.S. They really messed up the Cougar in the early 70's.  And it's re-release in 1999 was just plain sad. 

Anyway, the 68 Cougar was a great example of some innovative thinking around components.  This was a beautiful car, perfect size and power.  My high school cheerleading coach drove one.  I never thought she was cool, until she gave a couple of us a ride home after practices.  She was very cool after that.

I really want this car now

I may have to wait until April 2009 to get this Audi A5 Sportback.  Isn't it a beauty?  2009 looks to be a good year, a new Audi and hopefully a Democrat in the White House.  Sweet.

   

Emotional Connection

 

Pretty heady title to this post, that simply describes my reaction to the photos my husband took yesterday of our sweet vintage Porsche 914-6 in it's storage garage.  It's an equation made up of many of my obsessions.

Car + Color + Compostion = Connection

4 C's, C4... hmmmmmmm?

Stirred not Shaken

"They need to look great, sound great and have power and performance to stir the soul".

This is how Aston Martin describes the DB9.  My soul has been stirred.  My soul wants this car.

Best in Show

The Audi A3 Quattro.  This is the best car I've driven in ages.  The only car that I like better at the moment is our 1996 Porsche 911.  We waited for the 3.2 liter, and it was worth the extra 4 months wait.  This car is smart, tough and fast.  It's actually one of the toughest small cars I've seen.  The design is tight, with Audi starting to adopt some of the flame surfacing that BMW's Chris Bangle introduced to the automobile industry a few years ago.  The contrast of the more muscular Audi shape with a sharp edge makes for a fresh new form.

We have some good friends who live in West Vancouver, B.C.  We met through the Porsche Club, and share a love of high speed German cars.  A few months ago they shared with us that they had just taken delivery of their latest German car - an Audi A3.  We then shared that the day before we had also placed the order for the same car.  Of course, the next question was what color?  Both of us ordered the same color, Lava Grey.  A couple of weeks ago we brought the two together.  Too funny!!

Perfection

The Porsche 911 is in my not-so humble opinion the most beautiful car ever made.  It's uncompromising lineage in performance and aesthetics has never been repeated by another automobile or product.

Even in a lineage as strong as this, there is always a favorite.  Mine is the Carrera C4, 993 series, made in the mid-90's.  The 3rd from right in the above image, and the one below.  They got it right _  perfect really.