Re: G M is still number one

Weight transfer.

Ever try to tow a trailer, even a small trailer, up a loose or semi-slippery slope with FWD? The same thing would happen with a loaded FWD pickup.

Go watch the boat ramp this summer if you don't believe me.

I guess we can assume you are not an Automotive engineer or tech, race car driver, insurance agent or physics professor, if that is what your believe, right? LOL

mike hunt

Can we assume you are a youngster that never owned a RWD vehicle? LOL

mike hunt

True.

However the rear tires wear very little, so a bit of rotation gives very high mileage per set. Having had FWD for 25 years, I'm seeing about 60,000 miles per set of tires, well if Michelin.

I'm sure he is talking normal legal street driving.

Racing and towing heavy trailers is not normal driving and the vehicle requires a design best suited for that use. I certainly wouldn't drive a race car to the ski hills in the winter.

That is because you are not an automotive engineer or tech, race car driver, insurance agent or physics professor and assume, as many mistakenly do, that because a FWD vehicle may have an advantage when driving in unplowed deep snow or mud, that it also HANDLES better in normal legal street driving on the plowed, wet or icy roads that one drives on much more often than they drive in unplowed snow or deep mud. ;)

mike hunt

While I agree with much of what you've posited, I feel a couple of disavantages are an overpacked engine compartment with less room to work, a tranaxle that is much more difficult to remove than a rear wheel srive transmission, and expensive and hard to repair axles & CV joints and front wheel bearings.

Wayne

I guess you've never worked on a Corvette, Firebird/Camaro with the Tuned Port v-8, or a Caddy SRX....XLR....CTS/V....etc.

a tranaxle that is much more difficult to remove than a rear

I guess you've never worked on a Dakota 4x4 truck....Astro van AWD....etc.

Ian

He never worked on a '95 Contour either :)

That thing is a real bitch to work on...

Waterpump driven by the timing belt?

(When I had that pump replaced, they had to change the pump itself, I told them to change the belt while they were at it, they had to change a pulley and a tensioner too. they had to take half the engine appart)

Any other great ideas like that Mr Blue Oval?

Was it that hard to have the waterpump driven by the _accessory belt_ ?

Geez, even my low-end '92 Cavy VL had its waterpump driven by the ACC belt. And its engine had a timing *CHAIN*, not a rubber belt...

I used to work on my 62 Vette. I guess the most complicated thing I did was pull the tranny, drop the pan, put in a new "rope" type rear main seal, then a new pilot bearing, clutch and throwout bearing. Had no help and it took maybe 4 hours or so. Plenty of room, compared to today.

I helped my son pull out an repair te 5 speed tranny in his 1982 Jeep CJ7 a couple of times. Plenty of room to work

I changed two front axles and 4 wheel bearings in my 1979 Honda Civic. It was a bitch of a job!!

Todays cars are getting too complicated Lots of gadgets that are not needed We need less expensive and better cars to just get from A to B

Let us know what you are willing to give up in today's cars.

I'm willing to give up: Sunroof rear windows that go up and down lighted vanity mirrors rear dome light

I enjoy and use steering wheel mounted controls, heated mirrors, heated seats, power windows and locks, seats, remote trunk release, climate control. Love the rain sensing wipers that adjust to weather and turn on the lights, the DIC with all the information, the Eng/metric switch for when I go to Canada

Present cars do not have memory modes and remote start, but that is something I want in the next.

Those gadgets are there because consumers have come to expect them. Less-expensive, less-complicated cars are available fo those who want them. Examples include the Chevy Cobalt, Dodge Neon, Ford Focus, Scion xA and xB, and offerings from Kia and Hyundai.

Geoff

My earlier cars used to have a lot of space around the engine

They were easy to maintain

It was easy to keep the engine clean and easy to fix

Some of my favorites were Volvo Amason, Chevrolet Impala, Willis Jeep

Most of my recent cars have been so complicated I have need to take them to a dealer who has a specialised computer with a program to find why there is a light somewhere in the panel

The trouble with my old cars used to be related to them being heavy with bad tires

I would like to get my old cars back with new materials and better tires

In a car I need reliability, heating ok the rest is obsolete

Unfortunately current federal environmental, crash and CAFE standards prevent manufactures from offering cars like that today.

mike hunt

You want to go back to cleaning spark plugs at 5k, replacing points, rotor,and plugs at 10k, rings and bearings at 50k? How about the 2 speed Powerglide? Plugged heat risers for the choke? Flooded carburetors? How about cleaning the oil bath air filters every few thousand miles? Fading front brakes? Much as I love the older cars for styling, the running gear in today's car is far superior.

I do have fond memories of my '53 Merc Monterey, even if every fluid it held leaked.