Hey Mr. Wannabe politician: Don’t be an idiot - call a few weeks ahead and make an appointment. I would check in at 2:15 for a 2:30 appointment and would be out of there by 2:25. You’re welcome.

I know what you mean. When I bought my car there was a whole slew of colors - if you wanted an automatic. If you’re some kind of freak, like me, that wants to shift their minivan for themselves you had a choice of just three colors. Thankfully two of the three colors (a dark red and a dark grey) came with beige…

It’s working for Jay Leno...

I had a similar experience, but I think it had more to do with the things in unspeakably bad taste that my grandfather used to do to these poor cars in the mid to late ‘70s in the guise of ‘improving’ them. I remember one red and black checkerboard vinyl top that was so ugly I managed to spot it in the parking lot at…

Three yellow vehicles and one was a school bus? What’s wrong with us...

It’s amazing how many of those fancy press photos don’t show the front end. After the first few pictures I thought I liked this car, then I saw the front. Ewww...

I got screwed by this when I was unemployed and my credit rating dropped a bit. Funny thing was, when I was unemployed I was actually driving much less, which you would think would make me less of a risk.

After driving a 5-series E34 with a manual, like the one above, I am happy to drive a Mazda5 with a similar interior layout:

My first thought when I heard that there were tapes of Jared and Ivanka I immediately thought they were sex tapes. After getting over my revulsion and cleaning up the contents of my stomach from the carpet I realized that this was not the case. I sure as hell hope not...

How about having a 747 tail stand on the back of your tug and then ignore every safety rule you were ever taught and try to take a shortcut under the wing. It does not turn out well. If you weigh less than 300+ lbs like the idiot employee of mine that did this, it’ll probably kill you, driving the center of the…

$3K is just the down payment, metaphorically speaking. As numerous family members besides myself can tell you, all from first-hand experience, there’s nothing on the planet more expensive than an out of warranty German car. I have the receipts to prove it.

Yeah, that ended with the eighties. Shall I regale you with tales of my W210? Never again...

Don’t bother. There is absolutely nothing satisfying about rowing your own in an SLK. I test drove one when new and it was garbage, and I’m sure a decade and half has not made it better. I’m a manual transmission die-hard, happily shifting for myself in my old 525i as well as my DD, a Mazda5, so I think I know what a…

My experience is limited to vehicles sold new in the US in the last 30-40 years. I rushed down to the dealer when the SLK was first offered with a manual, but found the whole experience lacking. And I tested out a 240D for a friend out of state. As much as I love I6 engines, manual transmissions and R129 SLs, I…

I was so happy to see a manual when I looked inside of another 2012 Mazda5 near me at a gas station the other day. I didn’t get a chance to chat with the owner, but it was nice to see another like-minded individual out there with similar quirky taste in vehicles.

Any Mercedes with a manual probably qualifies. I’ve tried a few, from a W123 to an SLK, and have found that they’re all terrible and better with an automatic (except the SLK which was universally terrible and wasn’t going to improve regardless of what options it had).

Exactly.

People are always surprised to see the manual in my Mazda5. I’m not working as an engineer these days, but I am not at all surprised by this common trait that we engineer types tend to share.

I had 231,000 miles on the 525i when I let a co-worker drive it. I was hoping to get at least a quarter million miles out of that clutch, but his 5th to 1st downshift vaporized what was left of the friction material. If it wasn’t for all that wear the damage might have been much, much worse.

Agreed. My dad, who has been driving German cars for nearly 40 years leased a Volt recently and is quite pleased with it. It’s no MB, mind you, but it’s a great vehicle for the price.