Acura RSX Returns, BMW M vs M, Ford's Model T Moment, The Escape is Dead

Hello and welcome to the AutoGuide show.

This week we have a lot of Ford news.

We compare it to BMWs and it's Monterey Car Week, but first a word from our sponsor.

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Okay, so before we get into the show, I clearly am in a new place again as my office still

goes under the renovation, scalpel, drill, everything.

All the above?

Something.

Yeah.

So I'm in a slummin' it in a Cadillac Escalade office, which I've got a screen here to

see myself, you know, HDMI plugs.

It's pretty nice.

Actually, I wasn't using my phone as a camera so you could see the setup, but...

I think the Escalade is still cheaper per square foot than a Toronto condo, so, you know, it's

kind of a deal.

Yeah, you're probably right, and it goes faster.

Yeah.

All right.

So it's getting a fast, getting things off.

We recently had two BMWs with N badges and six-speed manuals the way it should be.

Yeah.

So this isn't a typical comparison, I feel like we've been saying that a lot lately, but

it's more of a sibling rivalry because for 2025 BMW gave the M2 a little more power, and now

it has 473 horsepower, not that it needed more, but there you go.

That's always nice, right?

Except now it's matching the M3 and M4.

So we decided why not take a look at what they're like together and see essentially

if you really need the extra doors with the M3 and if they're basically the same car outside

of very different styling.

And Mike, it turned out that they're actually pretty different, right?

Yeah.

I mean, you know what?

Also, the M2 almost equals, besides power, curb weight.

So it really is very, there's like three cars with same power to right ratio, and

two of them have two doors.

Actually, two of them, I don't know, there's no M4 Grand Coupe.

Oh, I just gave BMW a bad idea.

Anyway, so yeah, the M3 that I got to drive more was not a heritage vehicle, but it more

or less was.

It was pretty much an entry level, as funny as that phrase may seem for an M3.

It had a couple options, still had like 10 grand options, but it had the Dakar Yellow

2 paint, which is a throwback to the classic 90s paint that like every M3 in every car

magazine was painted, silver wheels to match and just a black interior.

And yeah, I think the last M cars I've driven have been too optioned with the with the

automatics and too many driving assists and whatnot.

This just felt so nice to drive like it wasn't overly crazy Ross Sporty, but it was so fast

handled so well.

It was engaging.

It hit hit its weight pretty well.

It was just, yeah.

I ended up liking it way more than I thought I would and I really did think I'd like it.

Yeah, I was I was excited for you to drive it because I actually had already driven this

car months prior.

I drove it back in November of last year on winter tires.

So this gave us a unique opportunity to actually experience it on both.

And yeah, sure enough, I mean, everything you said checks out, right?

It doesn't feel as heavy as it is.

And it still has pretty good steering, whereas I find the more powerful all wheel drive

automatic M3s and M4s for that matter, just they become a little two one dimensional.

They're very accomplished and obviously super quick, but I feel like I'm a little more

removed from the fun and this puts you right in the center.

It also compared to the M2, I think we made this comparison.

We made it in the store and we made it a bunch of times in person.

The M2 is kind of a bulldog comparison.

It looks kind of like one.

It's got the big jowls and it just it's meaner.

BMWs fixed it in my mind because I never really loved the M2 or this

generation when it came out, but this one feels a lot more

sorted when you're actually pushing it.

But compared to the M3, it still wants to.

Rotate a little more than, you know, the sedan.

So yeah, I agree with what you're saying.

It's a rare vehicle and honestly, I'm not super crazy, but a lot of modern BMW

styling, but the M2, especially the M3, actually, like it kind of suits the giant

grill, but the M2's got this weird sort of blocky where I wasn't really sure

what it was trying to do, which is too bad because the two series used to be

such a great looking little car.

Yeah.

And I will say like the proportions I dig for the M2, right?

Like the rear three quarter, it just looks so obscenely muscular.

And so that I'm a fan of.

I think if I had to pick one now, I'd end up picking the sedan.

Yeah, I too.

That's the wrong course in this race.

It's yeah, me too.

It's, I mean, we have free cars to test for a week.

So of course, like we, we can't take that for granted, but the M3 was

one of those where we didn't want to give it back because I knew I couldn't

go buy one.

So I just went to hold on to as long as I could.

And yeah, it was, it was a fantastic car.

Yeah, it's just more of a winner.

Yes.

Yeah.

So Ford's Model T moment, nothing, nothing sets expectations quite

like bringing up the Model T.

So I guess I should start with the good news, right?

Ford is rethinking how it produces vehicles, specifically EVs.

So it is investing two more billion dollars into EVs to go on the three

billion or so that it already put towards a battery plant.

And that might seem like a strange thing to do in times like these.

But the idea here is to make something more affordable, right?

That's always the biggest critique of EVs.

And Ford sees a future with them, because I think out of the big three

or the big 2.5, Ford has more of a global footprint.

So it wants to compete.

And China is doing very quick improvements with EVs.

So so this is instead of a production line, it was described as more or less

a production tree where you have the front, back and middle.

And they all just kind of sync up together.

And Ford is really focusing on simplifying the production process

to make it quicker and easier and less stressful on line workers,

which then should knock down the price more.

And yeah, that was more or less all we heard.

We got to see Ford employees looking at the first vehicle

that is supposed to come off this platform, which is a Maverick-sized

EV pickup that is supposed to be about $30,000.

But that's all we got.

We were going to have to wait another year to see the actual vehicle.

The only real stats we got were that it would be more spacious inside,

inside the cabin than a current RAV4.

And it would be as quick in a straight line as an EcoBoost Mustang,

which you are pretty familiar with recently.

So yeah, that's I don't know, it's a lot of soon to be.

So lots of thoughts here.

First off, this $30,000 EV, like this, for some reasons,

the holy grail mark that everyone seems to go after Tesla for like a decade.

So they're making a $30,000 EV that never showed up.

Chevy Equinox EV was going to be $30,000 to start,

and that didn't actually happen either.

So this truck, I mean, yeah, go for it for it.

Let's see if you can actually do it.

The thing is, as the years go on, it becomes a harder thing to hit

because everything is more expensive.

They're claiming it has more space than the RAV4 and this and that.

That's great.

Then why did you use an image where the rear seat passengers' feet

and legs are underneath the front passenger

and I don't even know how a seat fits in that little gap between it?

Like you can make it look a little more spacious.

But anyway, just a little bit.

Yeah, if you're making the image for it, you might as well.

Yeah, it's a simple graphic.

It's not like you're strained by anyway.

But anyway, yeah, well, this is definitely a wait and see.

Yeah, I'm cautiously optimistic.

You're right.

I think the price is the biggest sticking point already

because look at the Maverick.

It was oh, it's a $20,000 truck when it launched

and it wasn't even $20,000 then because destination.

And now it's almost $30,000.

So moving on.

Yes.

All right.

So we're going to touch on some of the Monterey reveals

because when we were recording we were we were recording

right in the thick of all the craziest reveals

because that's just how things work.

So we are going to talk about the Acura RSX

and I can almost hear the hissing and gnawing of teeth.

Just from going to say, this is the craziest one

and I don't mean because it's like an outlandish concept.

I mean, because it's what?

Like, OK, already X is taken, but make a new letter of

call it the FDX or the DDL care.

I so I'm less bothered by the name

because don't call it the DMX.

I'm less bothered by the name only because the RSX existed

for like what, five years, everyone knows Integra

and everyone knows that the RSX wasn't Integra.

So recycling that name doesn't bother me too much

because the Integra exists.

I just think it's funny.

And I've said this a few times.

I say it in the headline.

This is what a CDX should have been.

It's a coob over and that's what the current CDX

probably should be instead of a repatch lyric.

So to clarify for any listeners who don't know

the current electric Acura, the CDX is a joint venture

with General Motors.

It will be the only Acura that is.

This is going to be the first homegrown all in-house

EV from Acura.

We don't know much.

We did some really half-assed photoshopping

to get a rough idea of the size of this.

It's like 10 inches shorter-ish, I'd say.

Maybe slightly shy of a foot than the CDX

and the wheelbase is about the same distance

or difference.

So it's going to be smaller,

but it should probably be fairly sporty.

I'm guessing over 400 horsepower.

Big tires, 265 width.

Yeah, and I think it looks good.

I mean, a little anonymous, if I'm being honest,

because it follows a lot of current design trends

and it has Buick headlights.

But it's good looking.

It's just...

Yeah, I don't know where this lands in the market,

especially considering where EVs are going

with North America.

So I will use the exact same logic you had

as to why this is a bad name.

As you said, the RSX was a one-generation,

basically rebadged Integra.

That had a bit of a following on what not,

but it's not this wholly historic name.

So why do they have to reuse it?

Like they could have just made up anything.

Or if you want a name that people remember

from the brand, Legend, Bigger,

like you have other ones in there

that lasted longer and actually were

for more than two passengers, really.

So it's odd.

I know they're trying to tie like,

oh, it's sporty because it's a Coupe-over electric vehicle,

but it's just called the Type-S.

Nothing else.

There's other things that could have done.

Oh, yeah, that's a fair point.

Like a Type-S, just as like a model on its own,

sort of like how BMW has XM or IX.

Yeah, because I get the logic of it being R blank X

because it's roughly RDX sized.

So I get that internal logic.

But yeah, I mean, yeah, might as well go wild with it,

call it something else.

Call it ASPAC.

RLX.

RLX will do really great.

Yeah, so I don't know.

We don't even see the production model for another year,

but I don't know.

Hopefully it's good.

Now that they've killed off your favorite sedan,

it's better impressed.

Yeah, TL name was available too.

TL says TSX, so it's TLX.

Anyway, moving on.

Moving on.

Another EV Coupe-over thing.

With Gullwing doors and more of ground clearance

than a Subaru.

Oh, can be mentioned as a Cadillac.

Yeah, so the Cadillac elevated velocity concept.

I sat in on the information for this one

because first, I just wanna clarify

for anyone who might be watching

or if you're listening, go look up pictures of this.

This is a runner.

It isn't just a styling exercise.

It does not have the performance

that Cadillac envisions.

But nonetheless, yeah,

I like that this actually rolls under its own power.

It is related to the opulent velocity

that launched a year ago in Monterey.

And sure enough, it's very similar styling wise,

very cool in my mind.

And I really like in profile,

you see these character lines in the bodywork

that look like the V symbol,

which I think is a really cool touch.

Huge Gullwing doors, like you said.

It is an EV of some sort

and it has a lot of red in the interior.

There are a bunch of different materials,

but all of them are red.

And yeah, there's two different modes, right?

This is meant to go off-roading.

It was inspired by Desert Polo, I kid you not.

There is a custom fit Desert Polo kit

that fits in the trunk.

If you're missing out on a helmet

and you just need that ultimate gift for somebody.

And if there's a sandstorm, you can get through it.

So I'm an absolute.

Sorry, you mentioned sandstorm.

You mentioned the sandstorm.

So I have to point out there is a drive mode

that uses an evolution of night vision

for if you get caught in a sandstorm.

That's what Cadillac says anyway.

So I'm a huge sucker for off-road cars.

I don't mean trucks, I mean cars.

Like cars are jacked up for off-road.

So this just speaks to me.

To me, this is peak Monterey too.

I mean, the one we just talked about,

that's an actual production vehicle coming.

So it's a little odd to do it.

And most of them are like,

here's our ridiculously exclusive Uber expensive car

and we took the top off

or we put a different kind of leather in.

And it's like, yay, this is Cadillac being,

hey, wanna see some crazy,

here's an off-road Gullwing car

that can see through sandstorms and is meant for Polo.

So yeah, this is never gonna make it.

But if they make,

if this is like a styling direction for future SUVs,

maybe, I don't know.

It looks like kind of like a AMG GT

kind of mixed with the lyrics.

So yeah, I think it looks great.

I think Cadillac has been at this design language

for a long time now and has really found its groove.

My only concern is that Cadillac is quickly approaching

like Pujo status in terms of making cool concepts

that never see the light of day.

You know, start putting some in production.

Well, except for that,

Celestic, that is a very limited production.

Yeah.

All right, moving on.

Moving on, so related to the Ford news,

because you have to build these new platform EVs somewhere,

the escape is gonna die.

Walmart.

And I know the escapes kind of floated in limbo

for I'd say the last decade,

kind of irrelevant or less relevant every year it seemed,

even though it's still decent vehicles,

just everything else in that class is so huge and competitive,

which I never understood why Ford

kind of ignored another abandoning,

which I know they have the Bronco Sport,

but I don't see many people looking at a CRV

around for on a Bronco Sport.

Like the Bronco Sport is being cross shopped

with maybe foresters and foresters.

It's tough because in my mind,

you're making a lot of sense.

The current escape is good

and the closest thing you can get to a regular car

from Ford now since not counting the Mustang.

But since the entire market seems to be moving more

towards off-roading models, right?

Like Subaru with the wilderness,

Honda with the trail sport.

The Bronco Sport suddenly seems to make more sense every year

because everyone else is kind of moving in on that territory.

It's small for what it is and it's pricey for what it is,

but it does have character

and it is pretty accomplished off-road.

But yeah, like to paint a different perspective,

the Escape was the second best-selling model

at Ford last year.

So, or I guess, so I read second,

but it must be third because F-series and then Explorer,

like Explorer must outsell Escape, but maybe not.

Anyway, I don't know, I'm sort of sad.

It seems ballsy to cut a model that's so popular,

but also, eh?

Yeah, and I'm kind of sad

because the little SUV Ford didn't start.

Like there were RAV4s and Foresters and CRVs,

and they were all kind of different.

Like the Forester was really just a kind of big wagon

and the RAV4 was, you know,

you could take the top off and stuff, there's two doors.

And then Ford saw that class and said,

people want performance

and they want it to basically be a car just up top.

And like that original Tuna Horsepower V6

and this thing flew

and it kind of made all the other ones look slow

and kind of cumbersome.

And then the second gen with the 240,

like it was one of the ones to have

and the tributes twin, like they were everywhere.

And then the third gen just kind of, yeah, I don't know,

they like missed something

and everyone just kind of passed them.

Yeah, and I feel like the third gen

kind of just became a fleet special, right?

Like that's where you saw it all the time.

Yeah, I don't know, it's sad, but.

Yeah.

And the third gen, the two liter turbo,

like it was one of the sportiest ones,

that had great steering and everything.

That had a lot of focus in it, but whatever.

Well, we got one more bit of news, I believe

and it's about Ford.

So this might lean a bit towards both stories

is Ford wants to make cars again,

which isn't a surprise.

They might have been a little premature

and going all SUV,

although a lot of luxury vehicle brands

are going that way,

like Volvo this week announced that sedans and wagons

are dead in North America after next year.

Well, they didn't announce,

but they also didn't say they're gonna still be here.

So yeah, read between the lines.

So that's kind of sad.

And we know about Buick and Lincoln,

but we've talked about sedans dying consistently.

I don't think Ford means they're gonna bring back

the focus or the fusion or anything.

They're looking, and this picture shows it,

things that are blurring the lines

between SUVs and wagons.

And I think that's a growing segment, like we've said.

Subaru had the formula forever

and maybe some people are figuring it out now.

And this is gonna be maybe the next thing

where they are cars just slightly lifted

as opposed to SUVs, although Subaru just ditched that market.

So the all roads and all terrains

and that sort of market, right?

Like, I mean, even something like an IONIQ 5.

IONIQ 5 outside of the XRT trim,

basically feels like a car.

So yeah, so that news, going back to the EV news with Ford,

they introduced an animation for this new platform

and it showed a bunch of different shapes.

And one of them did look like a medium-sized hatchback.

And so maybe, you know, like,

if everything's on the same platform,

it's kind of easier to do that.

And maybe we'll just see a family hatchback.

I don't think cars are ever gonna get back

to where they were in terms of market share,

but it does seem like we're seeing people start to,

you know, almost miss cars.

How light they are, how easy they are to drive.

Well, no, you make a good point.

And we've talked about this before

and I think we're definitely seeing it

as the SUV fatigue starting to set in.

I mean, everybody had coups.

And then people were like,

well, wait, having an extra set of doors

is way more practical.

So then sedans and then,

hey, if we have a wagon body, that's even better.

And then people will wagons or, you know,

soccer mom, suburban dad, we don't want that.

So many vans became the thing.

And then that went out of favor for SUVs.

And those went out of favor

for our modern crossover SUVs.

But like you said, everything's going off roadie

and trying to be more rugged

because we're trying to find the next market.

And I think Ford and other manufacturers

are kind of babbling here and there

to see what's the next thing

because SUVs as we know it

aren't gonna be around forever.

They've had a long run, but tastes are gonna change.

Every generation doesn't wanna drive with their parents

so we'll see.

Yeah, and specifically with EVs,

I would say, you know, like range,

you're only gonna get better range if you go car-shaped.

So yeah, I mean, good for Ford.

I'm glad that they're figuring this out.

I'm curious what we'll get.

And if any of it will be related to the cars

they still sell in China.

Maybe the Echo and the SX-4 were ahead of their time.

We're gonna get high-riding cars.

So you have that high seating position

and tall roof of an SUV, but you're still on the car.

It's a Polestar II world.

I can just make it less awkward and silent.

Yeah.

All right, well, I think that's all

because we do have news

that we're gonna just talk about next week, right?

Because there's a lot coming out as we see.

Yeah, we'll cover the rest next week

and we'll have more reviews and whatnot,

but we'll take a quick break here

on the Autobike Show, brought to you by eBay Motors.

And when we come back,

Kyle and I will be talking to our special guests

for the week.

And then after that, I'll call them on to talk F1

and then Kyle will be back to talk about what's next.

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Hello and welcome back.

We have a special guest with us today.

If you could just introduce yourself

and what you're up to.

Hey, my name is Patrick Min.

I am the vice president here

of the Washington Automotive Press Association.

Also car blogger at CarSplain

and also dabble in some automotive product planning.

That's quite a full plate.

I just say I drive cars, sounds a lot worse.

So maybe I need to just up my titles.

Kyle also gets more than one title.

So I'm behind you guys.

You're also in AJAX.

So, well, so are you.

Yeah, you have a role.

I just show up and drive cars.

Like I said, I drive cars.

That's what connects us all.

That's why Patrick's here.

I like to drive slow cars fast, right?

Exactly. It's the most fun.

Especially these days,

because fast cars are just ridiculously fast.

Too fast.

Yeah, exactly.

So we'll get into this in detail.

So you and I have known each other for quite some time

through previous lives.

And then we both kind of came back to this world

at the same time.

We're also members of the Midwest Automotive Media

Association.

So that's where we get to see each other at least

once a year.

So that's fun.

You saved me this year because I

brought a car that they needed for the event.

And then I was suddenly carless and I couldn't get anywhere.

So Patrick gave me some rides to it from the track.

I didn't think it through too well.

But less to learn for next year.

So we always ask this off the bat.

What got you into cars?

Were you born into a car family or just something

you developed on your own?

Born into a bit of a car family.

Like my dad and my uncle were always into cars.

And I say like when I was five,

I really wanted to be a car designer.

But then by the time I was six, very self-aware child,

I realized I suck at art.

Like I couldn't draw like a wheel.

So I was like, be done.

But always loved figuring out like what

do people like about their car?

What do they not like?

What cars become really popular?

And I even made like my own like lineups at the time.

Again, very nerdy kid.

They have like Greek litter names

like they started with the Min Alpha.

And then like the Min Delta and all the way to like Omega

gave them like powertrains, like feature lists.

So yeah, and my parents owned a small business.

And I knew all the customers by their car.

Like I was like, oh, Red Audi A4.

That's Mr. Bowman.

Like OK, get like his order ready and stuff like that.

So yeah, cars through and through.

So it's going to succeed because Lancy and Opel

like becoming after you for copyright infringement

on some of those car names.

That's that's what I was I was going to ask,

like, did GM come to you about their platform names?

Right.

And I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, lambda for crossover?

Like nothing.

That was not the original intention.

This is not what I envisioned when I was six.

Yeah, all right.

That's very upset.

It's funny to say about knowing people by their cars

because that was like my life too.

Anywhere, even like as I got older,

I remember being at work and interviewing people.

I couldn't remember who I interviewed,

but I can remember what car they drove in.

So when I came back for a second interview,

I'm like, oh, it's that person.

OK, it's blue Accord.

All right.

Yeah, resumes, which is like blue Accord.

Oh, what's your work history?

Like, eh, huh.

I don't really care what your work history is

because yeah, someone showed up in a WX earlier.

So they're probably getting in the job.

They're probably going to be late and terrible at the job,

but, you know, got a cooler car.

So fast forward a couple of years.

Did you get into the industry sort of right out of school,

or was it sort of a sideways path like most of us take?

Kind of sideways.

Like first job out of college, I worked for Boeing.

So it was an aerospace.

A lot of time.

Went through like consulting, but then realized, you know,

I love cars.

I'd rather, if I'm spending, you know, 50, 60 hours a week

doing something, I'd love it to be somewhat fun.

They always say, you know, do what you love

and you never work a day in your life.

But really, it's, I found it's true.

Like, if you like sausage, don't go see sausage being made.

Like, it will ruin it for you.

No, it has completely ruined it.

But it was after grad school, so I went to Michigan

for my business school program and decided

to try to make the pivot hard into automotive strategy.

And that's where I wound up at Toyota after that.

I did an internship at General Motors during and loved it.

And so got into product strategy, product planning,

was head planner over Tacoma for several years

and helped create what's known today as TRD Pro.

So that was like a fun process,

very data driven slower culture, I would say at Toyota.

And always having to explain to headquarters in Japan

like why we not only need one truck, we need two trucks.

And, you know, what do American people do

with these big, you know, 220 inch long trucks,

you know, all day long.

So got into that and then got pulled

into a couple of different areas.

So at ALG was at looking at residual values.

Again, if you love cars, staring at depreciation numbers

all day long and oh, a good car only loses 50%

after, you know, three years.

Yeah, it really makes it hard to like go out

and like buy a bunch of new cars.

Except Tacoma was always really strong in residuals.

So, but it was like, how do you help like product

planners with either their strategy or contenting

to help improve that.

So got to work a couple of different angles

in like product strategy that way.

And then worked around a couple of different projects

around like mobility as a service.

So with a classmate of mine, we launched one

of the first subscriptions, I would say to vehicles

back through a mobility accelerator program

back in Detroit, back in already 2017.

And then again, journeymen of automotive

helped with Amazon standing up the Automotive Marketplace

or Amazon Autos.

So now in the States, at least so far, you can buy new Hyundai's.

I think they just announced used vehicles kind of going on.

So now you can buy a car on Amazon through local dealers.

And so yeah, all different parts of kind

of the automotive customer experience.

I think I've tried to capture in terms of overall exposure.

I don't know what would be next to like fill out the circle.

But it was as I worked on different projects here and there,

the love of the vehicles itself never went away.

And that's where I started to lean more

in terms of the writing, the reviewing

and some like the content creation that way.

And that keeps me at least close to cars

in some way, shape or form.

It sounds like you need to get a dealership

or maybe an auto recycler or something next.

Right. Or at least put like the wacky, inflatable guy outside my house.

And so I feel like I'm like a dealer that way.

So I think the I think you have to go full circle.

I think you have to end up on the design team that I would love it.

But then I feel like they look at like how I'm dressed.

I'm like, oh, is that really the right color?

They're like, really, you're going to judge me with like your

like ragged T-shirt and cargo shorts, dad mode.

I'm like, OK, never mind.

Design minivans are, you know, say who's better suited.

Yeah. Right. And it's not ragged.

It's it's well used and thus more sustainable.

I like it. I like it.

I'll add that to the resume.

It's funny how you mentioned like you're falling in the cars.

Like, I like airplanes a lot, too.

But I can just imagine how tedious most like

ninety nine percent of the jobs would be

because it's not like you're there designing a plane.

That's like, you know, a fraction of a person gets to do that.

So with cars, like we first met when I was at an OEM and you were at ALG.

And yeah, like product planning sounds like this amazing job.

And it is. And if you're really into data and cars, it is.

But it's not you designing the car as Kyle was my choice.

You were given a giant spreadsheet of bits and pieces

and another spreadsheet of sales data and consumer interest.

And then you've got to mix and match and make the bottom end all work out.

And it's more math than it is having fun making a car.

So yeah, it's like you said,

you don't want to see how the car is made, then you don't want to see how the car is made.

Now, it is a unique world, that's for sure.

Well, so related to that, though, I mean, have you

did you find that you took a very data driven process to your own vehicles?

Oh, I would say over the last

about eight years or so, I think I have in terms of

my friend and I called it like Carbetrage.

And it was like really fun during like COVID because it was like

I could find a really discounted car by that.

And so that case in point was like our first TV was an Audi e-tron

like the full EV, which today is called Q8 e-tron.

But it like didn't have any demand when it first hit the lots.

And so I think we bought like it was like a leftover 2019 model year.

The sticker price is something like eighty three thousand dollars.

But on the lease, the year later, they're like giving

I think the cap cost was like sixty something.

And so, you know, really cheap lease.

And then during COVID, the values went up because like,

you know, cars are just in short supply.

So we actually were able to trade out of it, out of a lease,

get equity back and like use that to like, you know,

pay for the lease of it was our Polestar two at the time.

And similarly, mini van for dad mode, Pacific hybrid

had like no demand, got like a really crazy

discount at that time on it and then was able to flip that

for like the refreshed Pacific hybrid.

And even that was like a good discount.

And a year later, flipped that like we made somehow

like either came out even or like slightly ahead

for some of these.

So I guess that was like kind of the mathematics or analytics

in terms of like trying to find pockets of data.

So, yeah, I probably look at like wholesale data

way more than anyone should, as well as like scouring

like the least hackers and like other sites of the world

and try to compare like pricing.

But that has kind of let us like leapfrog into again.

I've probably changed cars more than some people

like go clothes shopping.

So I don't know, but it's been fun.

That's a way to do it.

Get as many cars as you can.

Yeah, you get to experience more.

My own press suite.

Yeah. Yeah.

So how you're talking about like the sales values.

Remember when I was working at the manufacturer

and walked your LG, so you were the one helping us do this.

But whenever the residual rates would come out,

that was like Christmas because you'd look at every trim

of every car's residual and be like, oh, this one's super high.

And then that would be the next car I want to lease

because I would get such a ridiculous deal on it because yeah.

But it was like, you had no idea what it's going to get.

It's like, ah, maybe I'll get this car in this trim.

It was like, no, no, that went over there.

I could get for, you know, less than some people would go

to like a baseball game for a month.

And my last lease was through COVID as well.

I got it. I supposed to pick it up actually January 2020.

It had an issue on an event not involving me.

And it was delayed every then I was supposed to pick it up.

No, no, actually this one was I supposed to pick it up in March,

but it hadn't been repaired and COVID hit.

So I ended up getting it in July, but it was already locked

into my rates and everything.

And after three years, I sold it and got 6,000.

So I didn't sell it.

I gave it back on lease and got six grand in my pocket

for how much it was worth.

And they turned around and sold it for the exact same MSRP.

It was three and a half years earlier and sold it in no time.

Because yeah, it was just crazy.

Then we dumped all out into our current lease

and we have such a great week.

Keep telling my family, like the next one's going to be

a lot more money because this isn't going to happen again.

So that is going to be interesting.

Yeah, yeah, the lucky days of that are over.

So before we get too far into this,

you've obviously owned a lot of cars.

You just told us that.

Can you pick a favorite?

One of my favorites, like it's hard

because one of my years is like very early.

My dad had the first model year Honda S2000.

And that was just like amazing to have and like drive around.

I would go through that as much as I could.

Beyond that, I would say the.

Two thousand six, it was the first year, E ninety three series.

I had that three thirty I.

So it was like there again, three liters is like the first

and only year of the naturally aspirated in line six.

It had like two hundred fifty five horsepower,

had the sport package, manual transmission.

And that was just a wonderful blend of like sport,

like luxury and like handling and balance.

I think that was like one of the last generations

of like hydraulic power steering for like three series.

And that to me just maybe it's because it was like, you know,

a little bit out of college.

We had to got a pretty phenomenal car.

That to me just it was so versatile.

I got the cold weather package so that had the fold down rear seat.

And so, you know, what else did you need is like, you know,

kind of like this mid twenties kid driving around Seattle,

although it didn't have all wheel drive.

So that was a bit of a hurt in the Northwest,

but it was still just fun.

Like you weren't going to get into too much trouble

because again, two hundred fifty horsepower.

But it was so fun to drive.

Yeah, it's funny because people are like, oh, just a three series.

But when you get into like the specific of what came with it

with some of those cars, they're they're amazing.

And that first year as two thousand with the smaller engine.

Yeah, I didn't have as much torque,

but man, you could really rev that thing.

That was my first introduction to summer tires.

And then growing up in Chicago,

like as it turns like October, November, I'm like, oh, what's happening?

Why is like, why is my back end going in front of me right now?

Like, yeah, oh, summer tires get really like cold and hard

when the temperature dips like, OK, need to wait.

Yeah, my family wasn't car people.

So I started driving.

We had a 94 Cavalier and a 96 Safari.

So I learned rear wheel drive in snow real quick with all seasons,

which was last, but it was until I got my own car that I had summers.

And yeah, when it gets cold or something

or on the different kinds of summers when it rains, even you're like,

oh, this is a different world.

So OK, go on.

Oh, I was I was just going to add of my own little anecdote about that,

of my my mom's Integra when I was in high school.

She got summer tires put on it because they were on sale at,

you know, Walmart or somewhere like that.

And she's like, oh, I got them for a good deal and they have more grip.

And I was like, no, mom, they only have more grip in the summer.

She's like, no, they have more grip.

And sure enough, in the rain, I spun it Integra.

Whoops. I'm sure it's like the big end of summer blowout.

Like here you go.

Yeah, yeah.

And it was just like, oh, it was late at night

and I just took a corner and just the back end completely went sideways.

And I was like, well, good thing it's late and there's nothing around me.

Yeah, you learn liftoff, throttle, liftoff oversteer.

I learned that on the highway in my cobalt SS.

Like I done some driving stuff, but nothing professionally trained yet

that we come pretty much right after this happened.

But I was going real fast on an off ramp and I think something had dropped

oil because there's just like real dark streak is like, oh, what's that?

So I let go of the throttle at like almost my limits.

Probably not the car's limits, but close.

And all of a sudden the backs are going around at like 70 miles an hour.

I was like, oh, no.

Somehow, no, I kind of have stability control.

It didn't exist yet in those cars.

Somehow it stayed straight.

And yeah, I went and bought a lot of tickets and that was really funny.

How like, yeah, everyone's first reaction is like, liftoff.

Like, oh, slow, no, that's the first and last time I did that.

Yeah, different vehicle.

It was a growing up friends had a lake house

in like the northern edge of Wisconsin and snowmobile.

And we were probably like no more than 10 at the time

and hit like a slushy patch.

And my first thought was like, oh, like, slow down.

And I can still hear my friends

dead yelling at me from across the lake.

He's like, don't slow down.

And like, yeah, he got back on and he was like,

if you had slowed down like a hair more, it's like it would have been

like the cartoon where you see the bottom drop out.

An expensive lesson.

Yeah. So we're all still here.

So it's OK. Exactly.

You know, you learn stuff in your youth, hopefully.

Not all of us do.

So you've owned tons of cars.

What's the one you haven't owned yet that you're either missed back in the day

or you've just been waiting years to get your hands on?

So the biggest miss, I would say, was when the Chevrolet SS came

in the mid 2010s, right?

Like, those were sitting and like should have picked up

like the six speed manual.

And then like the second they announced discontinued,

like couldn't find them anywhere.

And now those are still selling for like $40,000

when it was like discounted to 40,000 new.

So that was it.

I would say it was like the one that had kind of gotten away.

I still haven't scratched off V10 or V12 off the Carbingo card.

I've had a couple of V8s.

I had the V8 S4 Avant with six speed.

So had picked up one of those.

It was only a few years ago, so it was, you know, over 100,000 miles

and pretty rusty from living its life in Chicago.

But at least wagon V8 all wheel drive manual.

That was crossed off.

But yeah, V10 has been somewhat elusive.

Yeah. So no, like beyond eight cylinder engines as of yet.

I'll have to try to figure out what's that fine line

between being able to afford purchasing it

versus being able to afford maintaining it like once you have it.

And I feel that kind of way with like Porsche to you.

I guess that's like one of the bigger brands

that haven't been able to dip my hands into ownership as of yet.

Because again, I don't know what that line is

between being able to afford buying it

versus if it's below that price point,

being able to afford all the maintenance that kind of comes with it.

I by all means do not take this as as authoritative.

But a few of our journalist friends in Canada

all have boxers, first gen boxers.

And it seems like that is a financially soundish move

because it sounds like the market is more or less bottomed out for them.

They're not going to get any cheaper.

And then it's like they're just going to start appreciating soon.

So if you keep it for a year or two and it's having the IMS

taken care of and things like that, you could actually not lose money on it.

As long as something else doesn't go wrong, right?

With a 25 year old mid-engine car.

How do you behave this, Kyle?

I don't need to refresh all my car searches.

I'm just every boxster and like a 300 mile radius.

I'm sharing this because I can't do a two seater.

So because we'd have to be a one car household.

So we need a small backseat.

So so, you know, if you can have a two seater, I'm just I'm just throwing it out there.

And I would like to help you with your B10.

So I mean, you're a few and far between there.

I mean, an older M5. Right.

Viper, I mean, not exactly Washington winter cars, really.

But like 2010 S6 was going to say the Audi S6 and RS6 of Vance and what not.

They're kind of high in value.

So I guess the best is Huracan.

Just got it. It's all wheel drive.

You're good to go all winter.

Throw on your nose and off you go.

Yeah, problem solved.

Or maybe an R8.

We are being practical if you want the poor man's Huracan.

Right.

Yeah, but it's bigger.

Iron man drove one.

Come on. Yeah, he did.

Yeah, he did.

And the convertible.

Although the thing with the first gen R8, again,

I haven't been lucky enough to drive them.

But all I've ever heard is that the V8 manual is the is the choice.

Yeah. So the V10, it's like.

Yeah, the gated shifter.

That's also a gated shifter has not been across off the bingo card as of yet.

So yeah, two birds with one stone.

There we go.

Yeah, my bingo card's far worse than yours.

So you're doing great.

Four cylinder B6.

OK. Oh, turbo.

Rotary.

Oh, yes, rotary.

I guess I assume flat flat six, flat four.

Yeah, I guess I've got some configurations.

Yeah, flat six is when a lot of people have it.

And it's like, yeah, we got a Porsche.

No, we did not have a super 3.6 are my friend.

I had a 3.3 engine in the SX.

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, because yeah, the legacy and outbacks were three or three six.

That three three snuck in for that one overpriced weird model.

And it's one of those two, like how we're talking about you missed the market.

Like I bought mine at the perfect market

and I had such a good condition one for so little and I sold it.

And now they're not crazy expensive for what you get.

It's hard to rationalize.

They have to be a complete nut like me that loves them.

But I'm like, oh, that's not much.

But like no one's spending 20 grand on an SVX except for us weirdos.

So and I don't have that kind of money

to just dump on a car that's going to sit around either.

So right, you know, so I have a slightly different question here.

You know, without trying to get to work oriented.

But Patrick, you've had a few EVs.

In fact, as far as I know, you currently still have at least one.

Yeah, we're full EV right now.

So oh, excellent.

So so then my question is considering everything that's happened

in the last six or eight months, do you see

what do you see the short term future being for EVs in North America

as much as you can answer that in a non work related way?

No, I think it's the people that have it that will continue to love it.

And so I think the like loyalty kind of within the space will stay there

and be strong because, yeah, once you if you have access to easy charging.

And so, yeah, if you can charge at home, if you don't need to,

you know, spend 30 minutes at like a DC fast charger, it is phenomenal.

Like we have a level two charger in our garage.

So we can charge overnight when we need to.

I don't go to gas stations.

I, you know, don't watch the gas station prices.

And when we go on road trips, I have two young girls, two and six.

And so they can't last longer than the battery lasts.

And so, yeah, we do need stops.

And, you know, up and down the East Coast here,

the charging channels along the interstates are great as well.

So I've had good experience there.

So I feel like we'll probably slow down a little bit in terms of like new people jumping in.

But there's still a lot to be seen.

Like we're I'm watching what like Equinox EV seems to be doing right now.

And potentially one of the first non Tesla's to break like 100,000 units a year.

I think it's pretty phenomenal.

And it's, you know, people shopping in those brands that, you know, get that exposure.

It really still is kind of the old adage.

And, you know, Mike knows this as well.

Every OEM is convinced, you know, once we get the butts in the seats,

like that is going to like change, you know, people's worlds.

And that's how everything rises to 10 percent market share.

And then the total pie is like a 6,000 percent pie

because everybody has 10 percent market share.

But it's, you know, like I truly feel like EV is one of those ones

that like once people do experience it like it's smooth, it's quick,

you know, less maintenance, you know, day to day.

It does change like what you need to do from like an ownership cycle.

And so the people again that have it will continue to love it.

We'll continue to kind of re up as like their next purchase comes about.

You know, the technology will continue to improve.

We'll see range improvements.

We'll see efficiency.

I'll be at a bit of a slower pace.

I'm sure. But with I think the big names like Tesla is not going to slow down.

Rubian is not going to slow down.

I think Lucid will, you know, continue to push.

I mean, just to see like all the announcements that will happen

like at Monterey and like all those elements as we see more concepts there.

But I think overall again, a bit of a slowdown in terms of like overall trends.

But people like saving money on gas.

So hybrids, EVs all kind of fit in that mix.

And it's really what fits your lifestyle.

Like if I was towing and hauling thousands of pounds,

like hundreds of miles every week, then no, doesn't fit the use case.

But for the 90 plus percent of people that don't need to do that,

I think it's still a terrific option.

But I still in my heart of hearts want one option that is

rumbly, row your own.

And so I think that has its place to and will continue to have, you know,

hopefully some support in place for quite some time,

because I do want to teach my daughters how to drive a manual transmission

and do you want to, you know, have them experience kind of, you know,

the thrill of like an exhaust that's not a what is it?

What does Dodge call it?

Like a frets on a frets on a frets on.

Yeah. Yeah.

So not quite just a speaker rumbling in the back.

I'd love for them to, you know, hear like an engine.

And so I like sharing that.

And so, yeah, I think support all kind of avenues

of like what an enthusiast looks like.

And there are absolutely the enthusiasts.

There are, you know, V10 and V12 enthusiasts

and like everything in between.

And like enthusiasts and for the V10 and V12 enthusiasts

who are listening, if you have a lead on a really affordable.

Yeah.

If you got that 1980s Jaguar,

that you want to just get rid of for a thousand dollars.

Oh, I must have leaper on the hood.

I don't like the little like circle badge.

But so if you were someone who towed and you want manual and all that,

there's this Tacoma TRD Pro that someone helped, you know,

a watch that's that I just drove.

And we'll be talking about on a future episodes.

There you go.

That's cool. Yeah.

I love seeing tacos that will always have a strong place

in my heart whenever I see tacos on the road,

which is all the time because they're everywhere.

It was like, I mean, I loved doing the research.

It was like number one vehicle, like in Hawaii.

It was like the number one Toyota seller, like in Colorado.

Like it was like the like

and some it was either Maine or Vermont or something like that.

It was like head out to like Camry or something

at some point for some of those regions.

So always, yeah, proud of that.

It's good.

And I'll always remember the X runner.

Oh, yeah.

That was special that I remember we still had one in the fleet.

And it was like, oh, yeah, I'm driving a supercharged V6

rear wheel drive six speed manual Toyota.

And like we didn't have like super

everyone's like, what Toyota has something like that?

I'm like, yeah, and it has a T break parking break.

How do you like them apples?

And they're like, oh, X runner.

They're like, no one ever drove it in the Toyota

marketing and like product planning fleet.

And so, yeah, I could have like free use of it.

And you said the magic

rear had that like nine thousand dollars

supercharger from the factory, however much that thing was.

Like no one really bought those super expensive.

Yeah, but it really transformed it

because it was like like two forty I think on its own, right?

And I put it up to like three

and now you had a real sport truck and it looks so good.

Yeah, so good.

Yeah, those those old trucks,

we went on about this not too long ago

because I just drove the Ford Maverick logo.

Have you driven that yet?

Yeah, yeah.

I think we got to see that the mama rally, right?

So yeah, the low ride hide trucks have all but disappeared.

Right.

Like the four by twos used to on the taco

had like the five lug axle and, you know, it was really low to the ground.

So I was like, what are all the

landscapers in Southern California going to use now?

Like everything is like ultra high ride.

The landscapers around here all use

like you haul trucks now with like a ramp on it.

And I'm like, oh, I missed like just

seeing like the low pickup truck they could like throw everything into.

But everything is like chest high now.

So yeah, I know it's true.

And for a little while, you had those little cargo vans,

but they all got killed off too.

And those have become like, hold on to those.

If you have a N and V 200 or, you know,

from actually connect, yeah, yeah.

Because it's one of those things they didn't sell.

I guess it's dramatically high as the manufacturer's expected.

But there was a market and it's just big void right now.

Yeah.

Even the middle, like Metrus disappeared too.

Right.

Like so everything south of the full size vans is gone again.

So yeah.

All right.

We got to get back into the Min Automotive company

that you imagined all those years ago.

And we'll just make mid-sized trucks and fans.

Yeah, sounds good.

No one does that.

I was a Greek naming.

Yeah, the alpha.

Yeah, let's just do it.

Just so stripped out vans and trucks.

No one does that.

Like that could be like, you know, how there's lucid.

It only has the EVs out of your specialty.

Electric, hybrid, gas, stall, base model,

steelies for everybody.

Hey, Quebec special, right?

Oh, yes.

Well, we'll put AC in ours.

I don't I think that's finally stopped up there.

But yeah, that was great.

We got so many cars that lasted longer in Canada

because of Quebec's level of manuals and base models.

Like the Sentra survive forever, but the manual base,

I think it's finally gone now.

No, we still get SR with the manual.

Yeah, but the S is gone.

Oh, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

You're still to get like a five speed Sentra for like nothing

with nothing in it.

And it was great, but they pay you.

Yeah, please take this car.

So before we let you go, Kyle, just maybe think of this

when he was talking to you, the games you played,

looking at residuals and doing all that.

Have you got a new game with the tariff game?

Like, oh, this car is getting so hard right now.

Why buy it?

Once these terraces appear in a couple of years

because we know they will, I'll be able to flip it.

Like, is that a whole new like level of the game?

But the tariffs change every week.

I feel like we'd be stuck somewhere.

That's a day like dangerous one to play.

But yeah, I would love to like maybe maybe any S

that'll be the big target in terms of like

they're layered with like tariffs and like chicken taxes

on like the quarter master or whatever.

So maybe that'll be the one.

Yeah, nice, small, easy to maneuver truck.

It's got the two horn.

That's the best part.

Did you drive it in mama?

I drove it. It was so much fun.

And that one had the shovel and everything

and had the full package.

This the spare wheel sideways in the bed.

It was awesome.

Yeah. All right.

Well, we will let you get back to your day.

So where can people see your reviews currently?

Carsplain.

And so that's the name across the channels

primarily like YouTube, Instagram,

a little bit of TikTok and then carsplain.com.

All right.

And I expect in your product planning role

to develop this affordable van and truck in the coming year.

So we'll look for it, you know, put a little

a little nudge so you know it was yours,

like try to sneak in and delta or something on there.

Yeah, it'll be etched into the window

like every other Easter egg.

So yeah, you have a Greek letter on every little bit.

One in the headlight, one of the tail light,

one in the window, one in the center console.

Perfect. Yeah.

Well, thanks for coming on the show.

We will definitely have you on again

and enjoy the rest of your week.

Appreciate it. All right.

Thanks. Thanks, guys.

Nice.

All right.

Welcome back to the Auto Guy show

brought to you by eBay Motors.

We once again have Colomwood joining us to talk F1

and there's no racing, but there's always stories.

How do you like there?

There certainly is good to be here.

Maybe the first story I'll kick off one

is a particularly juicy wild one.

I'll walk into this.

So the photo here for those who are listening

is from Hyundai's official Instagram account

and it shows a picture of looks like a Formula One car

with a Hyundai logo on the back

and some lights garage, etc.

And the words what if.

So this is actually from several months ago

and it was immediately pulled down

from the Hyundai official channel.

So I don't know if it's just that some intern

got access to the channel

and posted something wild and crazy,

but Hyundai apparently didn't like it,

removed it, no problem.

Right. That's one thing.

This is several months old,

but just like yesterday or the past two days,

there has been a story by a website

and I'll check it out.

It's called mk.co.kr and they have suggested

they have a whole article there

and exclusive talking about how Hyundai

is going to be joining Formula One

under the Genesis brand

and how this is actually happening.

And to make it even juicier,

that article was shortly pulled from their website as well.

So a lot of this info comes via

the Korean car blog website

and they actually have a screen cap

of that other website story.

So it looks very interesting.

I still find this hard to believe.

At first, I thought this is like

an April Fool's Day or something

and I had to check my calendar.

But yeah, anything is possible, I guess.

Yeah, you never know.

Maybe this is just some big marketing ploy

where they're putting little teasers here

to get people talking.

Maybe there's someone in Hyundai

like a secret department inside

that's looking for this and pulling it down.

But Kyle and I talked about this well over a year ago.

We were talking about brands that should go racing

and we were just talking about Genesis

and we said F won't be awesome for them,

but world endurance would be the real sweet spot

and they're going there.

Like, I guess they agree, but F won't still be cool.

I don't see Hyundai ever going F won.

I don't think that would make sense.

Why would you put your mainstream brand?

I know it's a bigger name,

but it's Genesis you'd want to push, right?

Yeah, yeah, I think so too.

Genesis is the way to go.

I think maybe the the I read some some comment

on one of these posts, they'll steal their idea that

they should just buy Alpine and then problem solved.

Slab the Genesis badge on it, boom.

And then worry about, you know, the rest of it later on.

So there's like you said, there's the, you know,

there was the Red Bull Infinity using Renault engines

or whatever the heck it was, right?

Like it wouldn't be the weirdest, you know, brand.

And heck, you know, I keep thinking that Toyota's going to buy

Haas or something and they're running Ferrari engines.

So anything's possible.

Exactly.

You could be just a badge.

You could be McLaren where you make your car

and use someone else's engine or you could go all in.

And I wouldn't think they'd go all in.

But then again, they just built an entire drive train

that they don't have for world endurance.

They have a V8 and whatnot.

And they don't make one of those anymore.

So if there's one brand, I'd never put anything past.

It's the Hyundai Kia Genesis brand.

They just seem to, they have the money and they have the,

I don't know if it's the will or the daringness

to just try things.

They just like new style, new segment, new whatever.

Sure. Make an N version of our electric car.

Sure. Like they just go for it.

Yeah. They have ambition, which is, which is nice.

You know, it's like, well, they're just going to do crazy stuff.

So go for it.

Speaking of ambition.

Okay. So this is my latest attempt at a Cadillac rendering

using Google Gemini.

I always have a little fun with this.

So there's almost no end of rumors here, right?

The Botas, Perez, blah, blah, blah.

The latest rumor, one of them is that Perez

is going to be joining the team after the race in Italy,

which is like early or mid-September.

Also another rumor that Alex Dune,

who's a F2 driver could be sort of a potential

to join the team as well,

giving sort of an experience and a rookie.

But maybe the craziest story I've heard yet

was the German website, Auto Motor and Sport

is reporting that Cadillac is apparently interested

in Christian Horner to maybe run the team.

So that would be an interesting turn of events

in the industry for sure.

I would think there's someone in Cadillac

who'd be like, you know what?

This might give us some decent success,

but at the same time, it's horrible optics.

Regardless of what you think data didn't happen,

there's that stigma and OPTIQ within right now.

And it's too soon, you know?

It's like the best for you.

It's too soon, Junior, like maybe in a couple of years.

But right now, mm-hmm.

Agreed, agreed.

I think it's unlikely,

but an interesting story nonetheless.

So we'll see what happens.

I saw a joke online, a meme of, you know,

they signed Christian Horner

and then Paris would be in the door in moments, right?

He's like, I know who I like and know and stuff.

Although I don't know if really they left on the best term.

Yeah, that's good to say.

I don't know if that ended too well

with him constantly throwing presents at the bus.

Yeah, yeah.

All right, what do we got next here?

Oh, here we go.

Clarence.

Yes, yes.

So this is apparently,

so this is apparently the first time this is happening.

McLaren, ahead of the,

which race is it, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix,

they're going to be auctioning off cars.

Now, normally, auctioning off a Formula One car,

a race car is not unusual,

but usually it's of a historic car.

They're gonna auction off the rights

to their future cars, which is very unusual.

So you will be able to buy,

they're gonna have the 2026 F1 car,

the 2026 Indy 500 car,

and then the 2027 World Endurance Championship car.

And I guess it's a huge gamble

if the cars are exceptional championship winning machines,

that's probably worth a lot of money.

And if they're turds,

well, you just blew a lot of cash on a car.

So it'll be interesting to see how this turns out.

I've never heard of this before, so.

I, yeah, I wonder how much pedigree of what it won

and didn't win affects the value down the road.

I'm sure Ayrton Senna's F1 cars are worth a lot,

but I think that's more because he drove them

and they won so much,

but a random Ferrari F1 car from the 80s,

does it matter if it won or not to buy?

Maybe it does, maybe right away it does,

but it is interesting.

The Indy car is the easiest gamble.

They're competitive now,

they're not gonna change much.

The F1, well, all new regulations and the endurance.

I mean, that's a whole new program.

It is, yeah, yeah.

I mean, I don't know that people pay big bucks

for the others, but the F1 cars could be,

and I think you're right,

it's probably more about the driver

and their history of legacy, et cetera,

which could, you know, like,

imagine Piastri ends up winning 10 championships

in the course of his whole life

and he's like the, you know,

like things that we never would have dreamed of.

So, and this is like the second car

he won in or something, right?

Who knows?

Or some tragic accident involving it

and, you know, there's all kinds of stuff.

So I think it's more likely that that would change

the value than anything else.

And I don't know how it works.

Like I understand, I think Ferrari is very particular

in that even if you buy one of those cars,

you can't operate it without Ferrari being there.

They're very particular.

I'd have to look that up,

but I know I've heard rumors about such things.

So.

Oh yeah, they'll fly on a team of mechanics.

Even some of their hyper road cars were like that.

Like they had to be specifically maintenance

and they would fly people in

or they would pick your car up and fly it out.

Yeah, so I'm all brands I would assume

that's in the case of the Morris McLaren.

I think they'll be like,

hey, take it to your weekend track day

and show off Land O's F1 car and have fun.

Exactly, have fun.

Don't do it, it's not a frat house

of hazing rituals, et cetera.

So yeah.

All right, well, thanks for joining us.

Next week, we'll probably take a break

as it's vacation time for a lot of us.

And then we will be back

to start the second half of the season.

Hoot rock, can't wait, can't wait.

So excited, need some F1 back in my life.

Yeah.

All right, talk to you soon.

Thanks, bye.

See ya.

Okay, so that just about wraps up another episode.

This week we have been out and about driving cars.

I, like I said, in an Escalade

because, hey, guess what?

I'm reviewing an Escalade this week.

And there's also a house in the driveway this week

and that's more of a family consumer review

because it may be something that my family's buying.

We're testing it out because it's got the eight speed auto

which is such a game changer for that vehicle.

Kyle, what do you drive?

I also have two vehicles this week, both German.

One is also a big fancy SUV.

It is my first time in, full breath, big name,

the Mercedes Benz G580 with EQ technology.

Yep, I have never driven a Galantabaggan

and this seems like a good starting point.

I don't, look, my initial impressions

and I'm sorry to all parties involved.

It's the world's fanciest Wrangler.

And I mean that in a good way.

It's just, it's so funny because it's so fancy inside

and everything is heavy, like the doors are heavy to close

that tailgate is so heavy.

But then you're riding high up.

I have to hoist myself up and it's quick, it's quiet,

which I don't know if people want in a G-Wagon.

I don't know, it's, there's a lot.

There's a lot to unpack here.

And then my other vehicle, what were you gonna say?

I was gonna say, you're completely correct

about the G-Wagon.

Like the Wrangler is such not a practical car to drive

day to day and so many people do.

So many of them don't go off road.

And it's like the worst suited car for that.

But it's got that image and that following and persona.

And the G-Wagon, same thing.

In an electric SUV, it's the least practical,

most expensive, worst driving one,

but it's got that image and persona and people want one.

Yeah, yeah.

So I'll have a whole bunch of thoughts on it soon.

And then the other one is a family vehicle,

just like the Tauce, really practical.

The Porsche 911 T.

The only manual regular 911 you can buy currently.

So it is the 388 horsepower version, rear drive,

and a six speed.

Funny thing is, it used to be a seven speed, right?

Previous generation.

I can't get an answer as to why they dropped that.

It's just, yeah, we just went with a six.

I'm guessing it's because everything else

that uses a manual still uses six.

So why keep two transmissions around?

Shrinkflation, they cut two cylinder,

so they shrink the size to put the turbos on,

they cut a gear, everything just gets a little smaller.

Yeah, yeah, they cut a lot of weight.

Yeah, so I'll have more thoughts on that too,

but it's the enthusiast model.

All right, and next week we have just a Monday

hybrid comparison, which we'll talk about more next week,

and lots more news and reviews.

So until then, have a great week.

So long, everybody.

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Bye.

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