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Laguna, NM Car Consumer Discussions

Re: the original kojak's car [stephen987]

by andre1969 on Tue Nov 18 06:59:13 PST 2008

For the '70s survivors out there (like me), here's a '75 Century Colonnade Coupe. (note the Century script on the lower front fender). The Regal from that year had a more formal roofline. Yeah, the quickest way to tell the Century/Regal apart, other than looking at the badging, is the roofline on the coupes. The Regal used a more formal roofline, which it shared with the Cutlass Supreme, Grand Prix, and Monte Carlo. The opera windows had a forward slant to them, but had more pronounced corners. And the rear window, IIRC, was sort of vee'd toward the center of the car. The Chevelle/Malibu, LeMans, Century, and cheaper Cutlasses used a more fastback roof. I think what might lead to some confusion though, is that there were several quarter window treatments available. Standard was a large, triangular window that made for a slim C-pillar. It was popular in 1973, but became less so in the later years. Pontiac didn't offer it at all in '76-77. One option was a louvered quarter window, which was common in cars like the Pontiac Grand Am, Laguna S-3, and LeMans Sport Coupe. I can't remember seeing any Cutlasses or Centurys with it, though. The other option was the small opera window, which is what the Century you posted is sporting. That, plus the landau padding, give the roof a more formal look, that at a quick glance might look like the roofline of a Regal, Grand Prix, etc. But to see them side by side, the difference would be much more noticeable. But then, just to be annoying, in 1976 the Century coupe started using the more formal roofline. There was a Century Special that still used the more fastback roof, though. Also, to add to the confusion, when the cars went to rectangular lights for 1976, the treatment was different on coupes versus sedans. Sedans, both Century and Regal, used the stacked quad headlights, with the turn signals mounted inboard of the lights, while the coupes used more conventional side-by-side lights, with the turn signals underneath them. BTW, I like that '75 Century coupe you posed, Stephen. That color looks close to my '76 Grand LeMans, although my vinyl roof is burgundy as well. I wonder how white would look on it, if I ever needed to replace it?

Brake failure

by steel8 on Mon Nov 10 21:42:20 PST 2008

On 10/29 mileage on vehicle was 19,758. vehicle was being driven by my wife on a flat city street in Laguna Hills CA @ approximately 10 am @ approx 40 mph and the day was clear and warm. She applied the brake pedal to slow down and the brake pedal was hard and would not depress and the vehicle would not slow down and a grinding noise came from the front wheels and the front end was shaking the antiskid light came on (while she continued to press down on the brake pedal) and the the brakes did not engage until the vehicle traveled approx 100 feet. The vehicle slowed and she pulled into a parking lot at a slow speed and it happened again.Towed to closest dealer. That dealer ffound no problem, and no codes showed up. Took it to dealer that sold the vehicle to us. They can't replicate the problem, but are still researching.

Re: Advice on 2009 GL450 [alo2]

by tracy_socal on Thu Nov 06 16:03:51 PST 2008

I would like to know more about how one can purchase a new car below MSRP, especially an 09 GL. Perhaps if you're not fussy about the color and options, they may be willing to make a deal. I agree, high-volume dealerships are the place to start. Fletcher-Jones are known for great deals. There are three MBZ dealers in So Cal known for offering better prices: Walter's Mercedes Benz in Riverside, South Bay Mercedes in Torrance, and of course Fletcher-Jones, as you have mentioned. I might suggest obtaining quotes from all three at the beginning of Dec, then perhaps approaching Laguna Niguel and asking if they can offer a better price. With the Winter Event, hopefully they'll be offering factory to dealer incentives at get us below that MSRP. I'm planning on purchasing the GL 320 at that time. I would like to hear your views and experience on this topic. Thanks again and best of luck!

Advice on 2009 GL450

by alo2 on Wed Nov 05 20:59:36 PST 2008

I am planning to buy the GL450 in December. I've bought at Laguna Niguel before and have gotten a good deal on the C-class. I know Fletcher Jones is a volume mover but I have never liked their sales people. I've been getting alot of phone calls from both dealers almost on a daily basis. Does anyone have any advice as how much below MSRP I can get the car for? I am looking at P2 package. Thanks!

I'd hate

by dhamilton on Sat Oct 25 09:36:09 PDT 2008

to see this thread get shut down............................. Laguna Seca was beautiful. Audi qualified 9,10 and still finished 1, and 2. Their domination of motor sports is breathtaking. So the wife get's a new car in a week or so. She has gone back and forth about a million times over what she wants. Funny, I'm in the car business and my wife is a customer I dread, uninterested in the process until the last minute, wants the best car for 0 money. Hilarious... I've put my foot down. Their will be no Lexus in my driveway. She's free to look at anything else. If it must be Japanese, it's going to be Acura. I'm not comfortable with the Lexus safety record, or lack there off. Stirs up hornets nest, runs for cover............................

no title

by nobodyspecial on Thu Oct 16 19:15:41 PDT 2008

........Christ.......touche' It becomes a shade more painfully obvious that I am outclassed here. Although I have no idea what the 4th dimension (time) or how Stephen Hawking and Michio Kaku are relevant to the situation other than to be a jab. Although if you want a summation of their theories and thinking (minus the mathematics involved) feel free to read Steven Kings "Dark Tower" series it's a great deal more entertaining and doesnt require a Doctors of Philosophy degree to understand the implied ideas contained therein and at least doesnt make you sound like an idiot to every sober person at a cocktail party when you start spouting off about it. Sorry, I know the history of the Skyline, but I don't think that has any bearing upon the issues facing the GTR in the U.S. The Skyline seems to have taken so many forms over the years (sedan, coupe, GT, but never a real sports car) that it would take a Nissan fanatic or forensic scientist to trace any DNA connection betwen the Skyline and the Nissan GTR. You're kidding me here right? I dont mean to sound like a spastic Nissan fan here but...... "Between 1969 and 1974, and again between 1989 and 2002, Nissan produced a high performance version of its Skyline range, called the Nissan Skyline GT-R. This car proved to be iconic for Nissan[6][7] and achieved much fame and success on road and track. The Nissan GT-R, although no longer carrying the "Skyline" badge, has heritage in the Nissan Skyline GT-R. Like the Skyline GT-Rs R32 through R34, the Nissan GT-R is all-wheel drive with a twin-turbo 6 cylinder engine; however, the evolutionary, incremental changes between Skyline models R32 through R34 have been done away with. The four-wheel-steering HICAS system has been removed, and the traditional straight-6 RB26DETT engine has been replaced with a new V6 VR38DETT.[8] Because of the GT-R's heritage, the chassis code for the all-new version has been called CBA-R35,[9] or 'R35' for short, carrying on the naming trend from previous Skyline GT-R generations. The GT-R has also retained its Skyline predecessor's nickname Godzilla.[10][11]" Oh my god, I'm not an engineering student! I'm a Forensic Scientist!!! Who would have guessed at that! ............Unless heritage means something other than inherited traits?.....Wait thats it! Maybe I'm wrong here, maybe it actually means something along the lines of "It once split the rent on an apartment for a month with your third cousin." .......and with that I return your forum and solitary square of control in the universe or at least that denoted by "String" or "Universe on the Brane" theory unto you so that you may once again collapse back into semantics over which car you would never own because it has such and such problem when in reality none of us would post in ANY x vs. y forum if we truly had the money to freely purchase either car x or y, all the while (usually) anonymously singing the praises of car Z which is indeed the one that we own in real life be it an S2000 a tubby bitch 350z or even a 90's civic si hatch (oops guess I'm guilty too) Now as for the dude who said the driver makes the car. You're right SCCA and Laguna Seca for life kids. By the way for what it's worth and from what I have found the transmission is not actually of nissan manufacture, its from a company called B&W and they are the same company that did the tranny for the Bugatti Veryron (which apparently had a shitload of problems initially as well) ........thats all the effort I'm putting into this.