So I stopped by a Saturn dealership today to test out a Redline.

Turns out there is a bit of a waitlist for Redlines, but they did have a regular Sky that I could tool around in a bit.  Fair enough.  Apparently they drive about the same, except for the engine.

But here's the issue:  The guy takes me on a test drive that consists ENTIRELY of straight lines.  The only turns had stopsigns attached.  He found me ONE little bitty s-turn, but that was it.  And then he had the audacity to tell me I was speeding.  As if I didn't know that.

So, having now test driven a Sky, I know that it is underpowered and that it is a pretty comfortable ride for a little sports car, but I know absolutely nothing about how it handles or corners.  Totally useless drive.

Seriously - if you are trying to sell sports cars, shouldn't you have a route planned that has some turns involved?

Grr. 

Dye Playa wrote: why would you ever get a sky? they look good, but like you said, it's a saturn. for roughly the same price as the sky, why not get a v-8 mustang gt? that would kill a sky in performance, looks, sound, the whole 9 yards.

Might as well pick up a 6 pack of budweiser, a leather nascar jacket and a pack of Marb reds while you're at it. 

white trash here we come!

I also wasn't initially planning on buying a Saturn, and I was a little turned off by the brand.  But I really like the way the Sky looks, and the performance reviews were consistently good (once the engine issue was resolved), so I figured I would give it a go.

Which is why the test drive was so disappointing - I got no chance to feel the handling.  I drove an SL550 a few months ago in the same neighborhood, and that dealer had no problems finding me an interesting drive.

As to the Mustang - not on the list, will never get on the list.  As Sandman guessed, I am looking for that small-car zippy feeling.  I also want a car with decent mileage, and preferably something fairly unusual.  The Mustang fails on all of those counts, image concerns aside.

But while we've got the car crowd interested - any thoughts on the Z4 or SLK?  Do I surrender my penis by sitting in either of those cars?

That's my feel of the SLK as well...  unnecessarily expensive and a little girly.  The killer on the SLK is that it is almost impossible to get a stick version in the US.

I do like the hardtop, though.  True ragtops still bother me a bit.

The Z4 is looking pretty good, although there are a lot of them on the road.

Haven't driven either one yet, though.  The Sky was the first test drive in this cycle.  We'll see. 

SandMan wrote: One note... After some looking online when we were looking at them, I heard the Z4 is monumentally bad on slick roads. Something to do with being light, RWD, and very wide tires.

I've heard that as well.  Not too worried, though - if I follow through with this plan it would be a pure toy car, and probably wouldn't get much winter drive time.  So general practicality is not a particular concern.

Da Hui wrote: Zippy? 2007 Toyota Camry SE V6. The SE is lower than the standerd Camry, with a sport tuned suspension. They handle great. Also the V6 is pretty quick. And you can move 5 people in it. Also its only around 25K brand new.

I dont think Rambs is going for an econocar brand.

*WIGGLYING PINKIE FINGER!!!*

Tesla is still the dream car, but there are two problems with it:  First, the 100k+ price tag.  Second, no availability for at least two years. 

But so I stopped by the Porsche dealership on the way home today. What a contrast from the Saturn guy!  Granted this guy only sells sports cars, so he has a major advantage, but still.

Took two cars out for a spin.  The route was full of turns and angles, with plenty of room to move.  The whole time the dealer was egging me on to go faster.  At one point I was approaching a hairpin at about 50ish, and he tells me to not touch the brakes.  I chicken out at the last moment.  At his suggestion, we go back and do it over, this time at 60, no brakes.

I left with a giant grin on my face, instead of the grimace from the Saturn dealership.  Granted the cars aren't a fair comparison, but what was really highlighted was the difference in presentation.

Can't go wrong with a Porsche .  My uncles got one from the 80s and its still amazing with no problems.

choopie911 wrote: Maybach ftw

lol - but then I would have to get a chauffeur as well...   :)

Ghost-Rider wrote: Not big on Porsche, chrome plated VW. IMO

You are of course welcome to your opinion, but that particular opinion makes no sense.

VWs are nice cars, but they are closely related to Audis and not Porsches.  You would never mistake a Porsche for a VW after driving one - nor do they come with significant amounts of chrome.

Has anyone mentioned a Lotus Elise? European flair FTW.

Kinda contradictory considering my musclecar preferences, but hey. Anyone can appreciate a nice exotic.

I remind myself of my favorite car. The Hennessey Venom. Do it. Now.

thghst wrote: the ae86 and the rx 7 and the wrx not to mention the camaro the family mans sportscar and good cares that anyone could aford and not some car that you dream you could

Uhh, I'm pretty sure Rambs isn't looking for a drifter or a muscle car.

Multi-response:

Definitely not looking for a muscle car or "drifter" - although any car, driven properly, is perfectly capable of drifting, of course.

As to the BMW 325/M3/M5, all AMG vehicles as well - Great cars, but I am looking for something more pure.  I am not trading in my sedan, so I don't want to feel constrained by practicality limits (within reason, anyway).  And then there are mileage concerns for the M/AMG cars as well.

Maserati - not a big fan of the body styling.  The only Maserati I kind of like is the Quattroporte, but then I am back in sedan land.

Ferrari - seriously considered.  Beautiful cars, and still the gold standard for +penis driving.  But the mileage again becomes an issue, and maintenance as well.  They really aren't meant to be driven that much, and I fully intend to drive my new toy a lot.

Venom - hadn't heard of it.  Very interesting, and nice-looking.  Still not quite the kind of car I am looking for, and the mileage will be unacceptable, I am sure (as well as the price).

Lotus - Next to the Tesla, the Lotus Elise is on paper the perfect car for me, and very much on the list.  Main problem is that the nearest dealer is 2 hours away.  This makes it harder to test drive, and will make maintenance/repair a concern as well.  I may also discover that Lotus is too extreme - all reports are that they are not exactly comfortable.  We shall see.  I will definitely test one at first opportunity.

Quick note on Maybachs - I recently test-sat one (in the back, where the owner would sit).  Very nice indeed.  The special holder for the custom champagne flutes was a nice touch.

That's kind of my analysis too.  And even though the older Ferraris look great on the outside, the interiors look very dated, and I'm not really looking for a "classic" car at this point.

But hard to beat Corvettes for performance-per-dollar, regardless. 

Rambino wrote: So I stopped by a Saturn dealership today to test out a Redline. Turns out there is a bit of a waitlist for Redlines, but they did have a regular Sky that I could tool around in a bit.  Fair enough.  Apparently they drive about the same, except for the engine. But here's the issue:  The guy takes me on a test drive that consists ENTIRELY of straight lines.  The only turns had stopsigns attached.  He found me ONE little bitty s-turn, but that was it.  And then he had the audacity to tell me I was speeding.  As if I didn't know that. So, having now test driven a Sky, I know that it is underpowered and that it is a pretty comfortable ride for a little sports car, but I know absolutely nothing about how it handles or corners.  Totally useless drive. Seriously - if you are trying to sell sports cars, shouldn't you have a route planned that has some turns involved? Grr.

They probably dont want some idiot killing themselves in it.

Anyway, I have always been a fan of the Mustangs. Im not the kind of person to ever drive THAT fast though.

Is the Sky plastic?

SandMan wrote: Hey, have you looked at the Mini's at all? If you get the S model, I hear they're QUITE zippy... And I also understand they carry all the quality of their BMW manufacture from some owners I know.

Invert Minis?