My wife watched the LotR Amazon series and asked if I wanted to watch: "I would rather gouge my eyes out, thanks."
ST:D I watched all two free episodes and never another. Just label it something else, it's clearly tonally wrong and a distinct vision of the future.
Part of me wants to give them the benefit of the doubt that they're trying to leverage existing IP and a built in fanbase. Ok, why do they continually produce stuff that's anathema to said fanbases? Too many errors in one direction.
About ninety percent of everything you see, hear and read can be explained by this one simple concept: there are people out there who have a concept of "normal, decent Americans" and they will not rest until those people have been forced to eat shit via every available avenue, from destroying their jobs to perverting their cherished stories and history.
I've clocked out of new media almost entirely. I haven't bought a new comic book from a comic book store in over 12 years. My wife and I watched the first episode of the awful Picard show in horror and then went back to TOS. I didn't even bother with the LotR show on Amazon after getting only 15 minutes into their Wheel of Time series before I couldn't take it anymore. Any new entertainment I enjoy is stuff I write myself, although I'm still waiting for your fiction!
I don't have many principles, but one of them is never doing business with Amazon. That means that one of the things I kinda sorta miss out on is Prime Video, which people wouldn't shut up about since it came "free" with a Prime subscription. Well, there is no free lunch. About the only thing on there that really piqued my interest over the years was The Grand Tour, but I've done just fine without.
Even if I didn't object to subsidizing Bezos' half billion dollar yacht that was launched on the backs of people who don't get bathroom breaks, I'd still pass on that LOtR series. Even more unpopular opinion than not using Amazon: I read the books as a middle schooler circa 1999 and the movies bored me when they came out.
They were movies based on books about people with un-rememberable names walking places. I fell asleep in the theatre watching one of them; one of my fondest middle school memories...
Some might think so, but every C8 owner I know (5) is a boomer in the strongest sense of the word. It's funny to watch them struggle in and out of them, but they're living the dream.
It occurred to me (very much a core millenial) recently that I could afford a C8, gen V Viper or any number of desirable sports cars, but then I'd have clear space by sgetting rid of my home built 1320 drag pack swapped 300C, Hemi swapped '63 Thunderbird, EFI small block '76 Charger, high top Dodge B250 camper, Jeep WJ rock crawler and a few other low value but tremendously fun machines.
I don't even like washing or waxing my cars. If I get a Vette, it'll be a C4 ZR1 or flogged C5/6 Z06/GS
Are people seriously that sensitive about getting post in their email? What is the issue? Are they printing out all their emails and leaving them around ?
I use my work email address. Now, I don't care because I'm at a level where no one else is looking at my email but I could see how other people do. Kevin doesn't want his executive assistant reporting him to HR because rodney beat the shit out of a robot
That occurred to me, but I just couldn’t imagine why you’d use a work email for this anyway. Nothing against you if you are using work email, since you obviously know it wont be a problem, but there are a million free email services if you have any question.
That just makes too much sense for it to have happened. No different from Ford not using a more relevant past model name (Falcon, Galaxie, Maverick just to name a few) for the Mach-E rather than the absurd Mustang tie in they chose to go with.
Honestly, from a business standpoint, it was a wise choice. Ford pissed away all their brand equity. Mustang is the only non-truck nameplate they have that's still remotely worth a shit. And since they're all in on EV, it's not like the real Mustang has a future, so they might as well milk it for all it's worth.
It didn't have to be that way. They didn't have to let the original Taurus rot on the vine as a fleet queen. When the Fusion, Focus, and Fiesta started earning them rave reviews again, they could have addressed the quality issues and kept the cars updated, but they didn't do that either. And they could have used the Mustang's platform to make a RWD Crown Vic replacement to compete with the Charger or a host of Lincolns that might actually be worth talking about, but...well you get the picture.
I read somewhere, maybe the Mustang Club mag, that the 28 Mustang is likely to be the last internal combustion iteration. That’s probably why they did such a half-assed job on the new version.
I was already hoping for a pushrod Godzilla motor in the final GT350. I’d have been a definite customer.
Instead they came up with the Dark Horse. The logo looks like a bad guy from The Tick.
Personally, I think there’s going to be a belated realization that they blew their load prematurely on the EV thing. There isn’t a hope in hell that this country’s infrastructure will be ready for even a small electric fleet by 2030.
I go apoplectic every time I see one of those four door blobs with the galloping stallion pasted onto it’s bodywork. Fucking sacrilegious even when taking some of previous duds with the same nameplate into account. My sister-in-law had a Mustang II when we wuz kids, and that thing was a piece of shit. Horrible to drive.
The thing is that given any other name/logo, the EV is not a bad looking ride with some originality to it’s shape and styling. I totally buy into the Galaxy idea, but that’s clearly a missed opportunity.
And now the General is about to go down the same path? We must revolt against this injustice!
My grandparents last car was a white 63 Galaxy. I learned to drive in a 67 Galaxy wagon, hilariously badged “Country Sedan” which never made any sense to me.
Non-sequiter but I am flipping channels and the goodwood festival of speed is on. The commenters are breathlessly describing the "action" as if there is actual racing going on.
Dec 17, 2022·edited Dec 17, 2022Liked by Jack Baruth
today's generation will remember the z06 as being a better screaming V8 Ferrari at half the price of one for better or for worse
tomorrow's generation will have a z06 that will probably need a DLC to get it out of the house let alone to get more than the 50 miles of alloted range before they need to leave their "multicultural high-density sustainable communities"
also pissed at GM because they killed the z28 camaro, as ugly as the 6th gen is, that would have gotten the LT6 engine, and the proper 3 pedal option.
Excellent column on the coming “Vette”. This is when you are at your best.
Having said that, Corvette has been dead to me since the elimination of the 3rd pedal. Similar to Ferrari, it’s gone— part of me doesn’t give a damn what they do with it now.
And by the way, I wear New Balance. I don’t want to. Once you hit 55 years old; it’s required. (So I’ve been wearing them for a while.)
"And by the way, I wear New Balance. I don’t want to. Once you hit 55 years old; it’s required."
I call B.S. ~ my feet are in rough shape yet I still wear leather shoes, I recently shared some pictures of an engine I'm building and the geezers all were amazed I'm wearing wingtips....
They're 25+ year old and have steel toes and arches, when new I got razzed constantly about my 'Banker's shoes' but once they couldn't be shined anymore they became my work/shop/junkyard shoes .
I'm actually less bothered by the lack of a manual on the C8 than I am by the mid-engine configuration (although I still think automatic 'Vettes are for geezers). I generally dislike the proportions of mid-engine sports cars, and think that the Corvette lost a lot of its character by giving up that long hood (and I still miss the pop-up lights). If they moved the engine in 1975 or so, like GM originally teased, that'd be one thing. But to throw away 70 years of front-engine heritage, right before they turn the nameplate into some bullshit electrified SUV "brand" like everything else, is just a slap in the face.
Dec 18, 2022·edited Dec 18, 2022Liked by Jack Baruth
The 1970’s Aerovette was a beautiful mid-engine study that had an American design ethos. My biggest problem with the C8 is that it’s an ungainly proportioned European based design. Chevy turned their back on 70 years of American design and there was no reason to do so.
I love the 308 and the Miura. Hell, I even like the Fiero.
It's stuff like the Countach and its successors I can't stand. Ferrari started to lose me with the 360. The "spyder" versions of these cars are the worst; chopping the top just exaggerates the proportions and, with modern beltlines that go up to the neck, people just look ridiculous in these things.
Everybody hates on the C4, but I always liked it. The C5 hasn't aged well and the C6 is pretty forgettable.
I get your comment about mid-engine cars now; although the styling of the 360 has never bothered me. (And you could still get a proper gated shifter!) I think the big issue with modern mid-engine Ferraris (and other such cars, including the Vette) is that they are too damn big. I guess swelled for fat Americans and our safety regs. That’s probably what’s causing your objections to the proportions. Now, to the Countach— I always liked the original design. It’s not pretty, but it’s just brutally cool. Once they made it look like a JC Whitney catalog threw up on it, they lost me. All those wings, spats, etc— horrible!
Putting your (my) fat ass in first then sitting down and lastly pulling your legs inside helps old fat & stiff guys get into and put of tiny little proper Sports Cars .
I'm convinced the only reason why GM survives is their true believers, their stock price, and the people who have just always bought their trucks.
So thankful you steered me away from super high mile Suburbans. Holy heck... the coatings are worse than the bad years of Nissan interiors. Gotta pay to keep those many factories humming somehow, right? Oh wait, everything is getting shipped to Mexico.
Well, the do make a hell of a motor though. Jerks.
Dec 16, 2022·edited Dec 16, 2022Liked by Jack Baruth
Mustangs are life style vehicles first, and RWD sport coupes second, so they can get away with it. There are no V6 Corvettes. You have brought this up before, but electric cars will be more homogenous than the competing crossovers of today are, similar to all the different bodied Corollas that are sold as a myriad of different models in Japan. They have the freedom to make the big brother to the cute delivery robot or the Suzuki Jimny, or something that actually looks like a Corvette, if they wanted to.
I share the distain for the gang rape of "brand equity". They should kill the Chevrolet brand altogether and rebrand everything as "Corvette". I mean why not? Chevy is worthless, might as well exploit what's left.
Meanwhile, I'm learning everything about an entirely different kind of automotive culture. Studying the rise of the aptly named Genesis brand has been profound. Imagine creating something new and successful in this industry rather than exploiting any bit of remaining blue sky left.
I’m sure the Corvette SUV will go as well as the Ford Woman Only Woke Super Duty Launch.
FFS I can't* believe someone is doing EV SUV "Corvette."
It isn't that nothing is sacred, it's that they must defecate on anything anyone loves.
*read can
“The Skin Carcass: Identify a respected institution. Kill it. Gut it. Wear its carcass as a skin suit, demanding respect.”
My wife watched the LotR Amazon series and asked if I wanted to watch: "I would rather gouge my eyes out, thanks."
ST:D I watched all two free episodes and never another. Just label it something else, it's clearly tonally wrong and a distinct vision of the future.
Part of me wants to give them the benefit of the doubt that they're trying to leverage existing IP and a built in fanbase. Ok, why do they continually produce stuff that's anathema to said fanbases? Too many errors in one direction.
About ninety percent of everything you see, hear and read can be explained by this one simple concept: there are people out there who have a concept of "normal, decent Americans" and they will not rest until those people have been forced to eat shit via every available avenue, from destroying their jobs to perverting their cherished stories and history.
I've clocked out of new media almost entirely. I haven't bought a new comic book from a comic book store in over 12 years. My wife and I watched the first episode of the awful Picard show in horror and then went back to TOS. I didn't even bother with the LotR show on Amazon after getting only 15 minutes into their Wheel of Time series before I couldn't take it anymore. Any new entertainment I enjoy is stuff I write myself, although I'm still waiting for your fiction!
That’s why I used to reread Crab Spirit’s posts on TTAC. Sci-fi car goodness.
Like some of the stories I would make up about how a car arrived in that condition with all of those stickers and lack of maintenance. So good.
I don't have many principles, but one of them is never doing business with Amazon. That means that one of the things I kinda sorta miss out on is Prime Video, which people wouldn't shut up about since it came "free" with a Prime subscription. Well, there is no free lunch. About the only thing on there that really piqued my interest over the years was The Grand Tour, but I've done just fine without.
Even if I didn't object to subsidizing Bezos' half billion dollar yacht that was launched on the backs of people who don't get bathroom breaks, I'd still pass on that LOtR series. Even more unpopular opinion than not using Amazon: I read the books as a middle schooler circa 1999 and the movies bored me when they came out.
YOU DESERVE EVERYTHING BAD THAT COMES TO YOU MR DOESNT LIKE LORD OF THE RINGS
They were movies based on books about people with un-rememberable names walking places. I fell asleep in the theatre watching one of them; one of my fondest middle school memories...
Yaaaarrrrr, matey. lookmovie2 dot to
Don't give money to people who hate you.
That said, I won't even hatewatch that abuse of Tolkien. Whatever little respect they had for the source material faded fast after the FotR.
I don't hatewatch anything lest I pump their viewership numbers.
LOTR films to me: TLDW
They're trying to get some of that sweet porsche suv money before all the boomers die and nobody buys corvettes anymore
I think they've already moved on from the boomers with the C8.
Have you been to a cars and coffee meet in the last two years?
They're awash with legions of boomers with identical red C8s talking about which options boost resale value
The one by me is full of Ferrari guys sneering at Lamborghini guys and 911 guys sneering at Cayman guys. What a shower of cu**s.
_SAD_ .
I've not been to a Cars & Coffee in some time, maybe it's time to go back in one of my junkers .
-Nate
Some might think so, but every C8 owner I know (5) is a boomer in the strongest sense of the word. It's funny to watch them struggle in and out of them, but they're living the dream.
It occurred to me (very much a core millenial) recently that I could afford a C8, gen V Viper or any number of desirable sports cars, but then I'd have clear space by sgetting rid of my home built 1320 drag pack swapped 300C, Hemi swapped '63 Thunderbird, EFI small block '76 Charger, high top Dodge B250 camper, Jeep WJ rock crawler and a few other low value but tremendously fun machines.
I don't even like washing or waxing my cars. If I get a Vette, it'll be a C4 ZR1 or flogged C5/6 Z06/GS
I am not a boomer but I'd take the C7 every day and twice on sundays over the C8.
My favorite comment about the C8 was from a fellow C7 owner:
“I’m sure the C8 is a nice car, but it’s not a Corvette any more”.
No manual kills it for me
This used to be a criteria for me, but I now get my manual fix from motorcycles and older vehicles.
I doubt it will cease to be a requirement in my case. I have never bought a vehicle (for me) that didn’t have a clutch pedal.
Neither am I, but I think I'd take the C8 over a C7, just marginally.
Every executive everywhere: The value is in the name!
It Works for 5 years because inertia, momentum or whatever $10 word you'd like to use
Consumers, eventually: Remember when these weren't shit?
But by then, Mark's stock options are cashed and it's the next guys problem.
Are people seriously that sensitive about getting post in their email? What is the issue? Are they printing out all their emails and leaving them around ?
I use my work email address. Now, I don't care because I'm at a level where no one else is looking at my email but I could see how other people do. Kevin doesn't want his executive assistant reporting him to HR because rodney beat the shit out of a robot
That occurred to me, but I just couldn’t imagine why you’d use a work email for this anyway. Nothing against you if you are using work email, since you obviously know it wont be a problem, but there are a million free email services if you have any question.
I've gotten enough feedback on it that it's worth being careful. I never want anyone to REGRET subscribing.
Absolutely. This is your business, you have to do what you need to protect it. It’s just mystifying to me that it was an issue.
Some folks just go looking for things to complain about .
-Nate
Whenever you write an article for another site let us know. We all get to read it and that site gets more clicks it's a win win!
Just saw a story about a coming “Camaro” SU(E)V. How about this:
A “Silverado” pony car.
A “Suburban” two seat sports car.
Make them naturally aspirated V8s with manual transmissions and I’ll bite.
I’ll take a Suburban based sedan.
I really wish they were going to call the new Corvette EV/SUV the Nomad.
That just makes too much sense for it to have happened. No different from Ford not using a more relevant past model name (Falcon, Galaxie, Maverick just to name a few) for the Mach-E rather than the absurd Mustang tie in they chose to go with.
Honestly, from a business standpoint, it was a wise choice. Ford pissed away all their brand equity. Mustang is the only non-truck nameplate they have that's still remotely worth a shit. And since they're all in on EV, it's not like the real Mustang has a future, so they might as well milk it for all it's worth.
It didn't have to be that way. They didn't have to let the original Taurus rot on the vine as a fleet queen. When the Fusion, Focus, and Fiesta started earning them rave reviews again, they could have addressed the quality issues and kept the cars updated, but they didn't do that either. And they could have used the Mustang's platform to make a RWD Crown Vic replacement to compete with the Charger or a host of Lincolns that might actually be worth talking about, but...well you get the picture.
I read somewhere, maybe the Mustang Club mag, that the 28 Mustang is likely to be the last internal combustion iteration. That’s probably why they did such a half-assed job on the new version.
I was already hoping for a pushrod Godzilla motor in the final GT350. I’d have been a definite customer.
Instead they came up with the Dark Horse. The logo looks like a bad guy from The Tick.
Personally, I think there’s going to be a belated realization that they blew their load prematurely on the EV thing. There isn’t a hope in hell that this country’s infrastructure will be ready for even a small electric fleet by 2030.
I go apoplectic every time I see one of those four door blobs with the galloping stallion pasted onto it’s bodywork. Fucking sacrilegious even when taking some of previous duds with the same nameplate into account. My sister-in-law had a Mustang II when we wuz kids, and that thing was a piece of shit. Horrible to drive.
The thing is that given any other name/logo, the EV is not a bad looking ride with some originality to it’s shape and styling. I totally buy into the Galaxy idea, but that’s clearly a missed opportunity.
And now the General is about to go down the same path? We must revolt against this injustice!
Every time I hear the word galaxy, I get wistful for the great rear wheel drive four-door sedan that Ford should be making right now.
The earliest car I remember was my dear old Dad’s Galaxie 500. Black with a red interior. Sigh.
My grandparents last car was a white 63 Galaxy. I learned to drive in a 67 Galaxy wagon, hilariously badged “Country Sedan” which never made any sense to me.
My Dad’s was a ‘65.
Non-sequiter but I am flipping channels and the goodwood festival of speed is on. The commenters are breathlessly describing the "action" as if there is actual racing going on.
today's generation will remember the z06 as being a better screaming V8 Ferrari at half the price of one for better or for worse
tomorrow's generation will have a z06 that will probably need a DLC to get it out of the house let alone to get more than the 50 miles of alloted range before they need to leave their "multicultural high-density sustainable communities"
also pissed at GM because they killed the z28 camaro, as ugly as the 6th gen is, that would have gotten the LT6 engine, and the proper 3 pedal option.
[hums first verse of Red Barchetta]
Excellent column on the coming “Vette”. This is when you are at your best.
Having said that, Corvette has been dead to me since the elimination of the 3rd pedal. Similar to Ferrari, it’s gone— part of me doesn’t give a damn what they do with it now.
And by the way, I wear New Balance. I don’t want to. Once you hit 55 years old; it’s required. (So I’ve been wearing them for a while.)
"And by the way, I wear New Balance. I don’t want to. Once you hit 55 years old; it’s required."
I call B.S. ~ my feet are in rough shape yet I still wear leather shoes, I recently shared some pictures of an engine I'm building and the geezers all were amazed I'm wearing wingtips....
They're 25+ year old and have steel toes and arches, when new I got razzed constantly about my 'Banker's shoes' but once they couldn't be shined anymore they became my work/shop/junkyard shoes .
Wearing tennis shoes is asking to get crippled .
-Nate
It was a joke about the official shoes of old men. Gads.
I wear proper protective shoes when needed. Like while riding motorcycles, to tie it in to another comment you made.
I'm actually less bothered by the lack of a manual on the C8 than I am by the mid-engine configuration (although I still think automatic 'Vettes are for geezers). I generally dislike the proportions of mid-engine sports cars, and think that the Corvette lost a lot of its character by giving up that long hood (and I still miss the pop-up lights). If they moved the engine in 1975 or so, like GM originally teased, that'd be one thing. But to throw away 70 years of front-engine heritage, right before they turn the nameplate into some bullshit electrified SUV "brand" like everything else, is just a slap in the face.
The 1970’s Aerovette was a beautiful mid-engine study that had an American design ethos. My biggest problem with the C8 is that it’s an ungainly proportioned European based design. Chevy turned their back on 70 years of American design and there was no reason to do so.
I’m a geezer and automatics aren’t for me! Ever!
And it is complete BS, I agree.
How do you feel about the first Dino, the 308, the X/19, the Pantera, the Miura?
The last good looking Vette, in my opinion, is the C4. They have gotten increasingly unfortunate looking since.
I love the 308 and the Miura. Hell, I even like the Fiero.
It's stuff like the Countach and its successors I can't stand. Ferrari started to lose me with the 360. The "spyder" versions of these cars are the worst; chopping the top just exaggerates the proportions and, with modern beltlines that go up to the neck, people just look ridiculous in these things.
Everybody hates on the C4, but I always liked it. The C5 hasn't aged well and the C6 is pretty forgettable.
I get your comment about mid-engine cars now; although the styling of the 360 has never bothered me. (And you could still get a proper gated shifter!) I think the big issue with modern mid-engine Ferraris (and other such cars, including the Vette) is that they are too damn big. I guess swelled for fat Americans and our safety regs. That’s probably what’s causing your objections to the proportions. Now, to the Countach— I always liked the original design. It’s not pretty, but it’s just brutally cool. Once they made it look like a JC Whitney catalog threw up on it, they lost me. All those wings, spats, etc— horrible!
TIP :
Putting your (my) fat ass in first then sitting down and lastly pulling your legs inside helps old fat & stiff guys get into and put of tiny little proper Sports Cars .
You're welcome .
-Nate
I kind of like the C6. They lost me with the rear end on the 7. The 8 is an impressive car, though it pains me to say it.
Understood.
For me, flappy paddles will never be impressive. The mind (and heart) are completely closed.
I’m with you on the C6. Just a pure design that says Corvette.
The C6 ZR1 in particular has aged incredibly well.
I think they still make some in the USA.
They absolutely do.
I'm convinced the only reason why GM survives is their true believers, their stock price, and the people who have just always bought their trucks.
So thankful you steered me away from super high mile Suburbans. Holy heck... the coatings are worse than the bad years of Nissan interiors. Gotta pay to keep those many factories humming somehow, right? Oh wait, everything is getting shipped to Mexico.
Well, the do make a hell of a motor though. Jerks.
Still can't figure out a transmission. Nearly everyone I know with K2 GM truck has had their transmission rebuilt around 100k miles.
Mustangs are life style vehicles first, and RWD sport coupes second, so they can get away with it. There are no V6 Corvettes. You have brought this up before, but electric cars will be more homogenous than the competing crossovers of today are, similar to all the different bodied Corollas that are sold as a myriad of different models in Japan. They have the freedom to make the big brother to the cute delivery robot or the Suzuki Jimny, or something that actually looks like a Corvette, if they wanted to.
I share the distain for the gang rape of "brand equity". They should kill the Chevrolet brand altogether and rebrand everything as "Corvette". I mean why not? Chevy is worthless, might as well exploit what's left.
Meanwhile, I'm learning everything about an entirely different kind of automotive culture. Studying the rise of the aptly named Genesis brand has been profound. Imagine creating something new and successful in this industry rather than exploiting any bit of remaining blue sky left.
I didn’t know the Examiner was simping for pharma money so much but the full-screen Moderna ad that interrupted your article says otherwise
As long as I get paid!