In the snow, yes. I live on a cul de sac. When I had BMWs with LSDs, every arrival home in the snow featured a 270 degree opposite lock pirouette into my driveway.

Yeah, it was $47k (I have the bill of sale) 7 years before your BMW but *I* didn’t pay that, nor would I have. “It’s nothing like a BMW” is exactly how I describe the ‘ride/handling’, such as it is, though I have recently taken a liking to the absurdly stiff Advanced setting.

Your $45k BMW is a better car than my $9000 Volvo? That comes as quite a surprise...

Good point. 

A friend is a recent Y buyer. Sprung for FSD (he didn’t ask my opinion!), which he received minus radar. I’ve only spoken to him briefly but he’s pretty impressed so far, FWIW.

No but it would be crazy to expect that doubling the HP (according to Unitronic - probably not quite that much) won’t ultimately shorten its life. The modern 1.8s (E888 Gen3?) put up with crazy turbo nonsense but presumably VW put a stouter crank in the GTI/R for a reason.

I’ve had it for 7 years. You don’t need to tell me what breaks. I replaced the angle gear and coupler already.

Thanks! Yes, it has Golf R springs and Koni SAs. Also an R antiroll bar in the rear.  

I’ll 2nd what ArrestMeRed said. I find Haldex systems to be pretty transparent in operation. I was really surprised at how often I spun a tire in my Volvo V70R when the AWD took a break. If you do anything even slightly serious with your Alltrack (I have an IS38, IE DP, and an intake on my Sportwagen), the Haldex will…

We were discussing AWD cars recently. For the record, I fixed my V70R for $127.46. That was the price for a used Differential Electronic Module delivered. My labor, as always, was free. While wheelspin in 3rd in the rain was amusing, it was not very useful.

Exactly.  My local Chevy dealer has so few cars on the lot I briefly wondered if they had gone out of business!

One reason someone might go that way: the AWD Sportwagen was only available in the lowest trim in the US. Alltracks were available at higher trim levels.

My local dealer, which I just drove by, has ZERO 911s, Boxsters, or Caymans. 1 Panamera. 2 Taycans. They have 61 cars on the website but 37 of them are not actually in stock - they’re incoming Macans and Cayennes.

I don’t know how it compares to a typical period of high unemployment but those numbers must be skewed more heavily to lower income earners than normal, not the ones buying stocks, cars, and houses. Our income did not change while our expenses fell through the floor. Most of my friends are in the same situation.

The hit turned his bars like a wheel overlap, sweeping the bike to the right underneath him. Watching frame-by-frame, any chance for a save was lost by the front tire running off the edge of the pavement. If he had braced for the hit, the outcome might have been different (her arm broken) but it looks like his…

If his relatives actually race dirt track, ask THEM to find a car. “You got it! We’ll just drop this 8000rpm small block from last season in the rusted out G-body behind the shed.” Done. Respect. “You don’t need a heater, do you?”

The AA rep didn’t say it but apparently a lot of pilots lost currency (too long between flights) and now the training facilities are all backed up getting guys legal again, particularly with 737s.

Before the pandemic, the airlines were coming around a little because they had no choice. There were a number of experienced GA pilots in their FIFTIES on a forum I read (I’m not a pilot - I have no idea why I read it) who got decent paying jobs at regionals. One guy had 2000tt, 500 multi (personal Baron). Started at…

Yep, exactly.

A guy on local MTB forum is a Mercedes tech (which sounds like a pretty decent gig as dealership techs g0). He sees that kind of thing all the time.