I'm sure the ricer types would be greatly offended that you put them in the same class as gang-bangers.

And vice versa.

 

I guess my advanced age is showing since I do not know the subtle differences between ricer-types and gangbangers. Back in my high school days here it was the greasers and surfers!


Doug

 

LOL! Ricers drive the Japanese/Korean cars and they do things to them to make them appear as if they have more power than they actually do. They put 4 inch exhaust tips on a car with a 1.8 liter engine. They put giant wing spoilers on the trunk lid as if the car needs extra downforce to keep it on the road. They put glowing neon lights under the car so you think it might be powered by a matter/antimatter reactor from a UFO.

Gang bangers want to intimidate you. They don't care about performance. They drive old Cadillacs and Buicks and lift them 2 feet so they can install 30 inch rims and tires with 1/4 inch of sidewall. They put lots of chrome and gold on the car so you'll know that they have more money than you. They used to use spinner rims when spinners were $4000 a set, but now that spinner wheel covers sell for $100 or so, the spinners are no longer intimidating. Some gang bangers do the opposite of lifting the car, and instead they install hydraulics so that the car can drag on the road and throw up sparks. Sometimes they'll pull up next to you at the stoplight and start raising and lowering their car so you'll know that they have lots of money to spend on hydraulics and stuff.

 

Hi Reverend Sam! i'd like to pinpoint some of the keywords which you were asking..

looks like to me the appearance comes first on your reasons for buying the maserati GT.. and i don't blame you because we share the same sentiments.

I buy cars for their art... and aside from the modern sleek designed supercars of today (astons, lambos, ferraris, porsches, etc), the maserati GT does remind me of the xk because of their curves and the front nose... and the maserati GT also belongs to my list of future buys.. same goes with the Alfa Romeo 8C ("can a car ever be art" asked by Top Gear host J.Clarkson).

Some people buy paintings, others buy sculptures... I am happy to know that while Most people buy cars for their performance, horsepower, speed, handling, comfort, etc, there are still others who disregard these and just go for the delight of their eyes....

I have always said this, i don't give a damn f#ck if i get to build my own hangar with 50 of the worlds most beautifully designed cars in the history all without their engines, id still be the happiest just to be able to look at them everytime after work and just admire their beauty... (and thank its designers to have built beautiful pieces of sculptures!)

for me these three cars are some of the worlds best designed sportscars (inlcuding the jag e-type) and if design tops your priority (and you can afford it), by all means.. Go For It... I envy you.. Good Luck!

 

I definitely think a car can be art. When I bought my XK I was primarily buying it on looks. The 300 horsepower engine was a nice bonus, though.

On the other hand, I also have a Ford Expedition which is great for it's purpose, but not the best looking car in the world.

 

I definitely believe that, overall, the XK8 has to rank as one of the most beautiful cars built that are at least somewhat accessible to the average Joe (of course not when new but on the resale market). I am glad that it does not have the brute looks that will attract every other car on the road to race you since, even in XKR form, it is not all that fast by current standards.


Doug

 

yeah i love those old s classes out there with fake "AMG" stickers and 20 inch chrome mercedes knock off rims...

 

What I was more thinking of were the "boy racer" types that go for those idiotic body kits with tacked-on looking faux side scoops/coves, spoilers, sill skirts, matte black paint jobs, etc. etc. It seems that the high-end Mercedes have become today's versions of 1970s souped-up muscles cars. This might have been fine for Chevys, Pontiacs, and Plymouths but really seems out of place with Mercedes.


Doug

 

Reverend Sam,

I haven't seen one in real life, but I recently saw a few pics in a magazine. I too was struck by it's similarity to our cars. I absolutely love the look of the Maserati. It is a true masterpiece aesthetically. If I could afford one, I would get one!

 

Here's my vote for a car I MIGHT trade my xkr for.

 

That is a 6 Cylinder Aston Martin DB7 (Pre-2000). I have driven them. Compared to the XKR they are SLOW, SLOW, SLOW!!

 

EH..... too old. I'd rather have the '07 and newer xkr!

 

I know, I know. It's old and probably slow. I've never driven one, but the interior is one the nicest I've ever seen. Makes my xkr look kinda plain. And it still costs about $15,000 more than I gave for my xkr. Don't get me wrong. I love my Jag, just thought this was particularly gorgeous.

 

 

While I like the outside of the DB7 better, I actually prefer the Jag interior.

 

The first time I say this car was a year ago while riding around town and thought DAMN those Buick boys finally figured out how to design a car for the enthusiast.
Only to find out it is an over priced Italian. Can you picture the general with this in the Buick stable and call it a Rivera!!!!!!!!!!!

But it is really nice in white. I would not turn it down.

 

I guess that I am different than some of you guys. I fell in love with the XKE when I came out of a post office in around 1967 or so and saw a brand new one parallel parked in front of my mother's car, when I was 14. In about 1973 I had a little money saved up, and I was upgrading from my 1968 fastback Barracuda (wish I had it now, it would be worth more than my XK) I actually looked at several XKE's and everyone told me, "You can't have this as your only car, you have to have another car too." Bought a 340 Duster. Around 1997, driving down the interstate, I saw a car carrier full of XK8's next to me and said, "I've got to have one of these." as I saw it as the almost perfect projection of the XKE. I am happy with what I have.

 

I have a similar story. My XK8 is the XKE that I couldn't have when I was in high school.

Jack

 

If you stumbled into the Maserati dealership here in Atlanta today this is what you would have seen...

http://www.ferrarimaseratiofatlanta....220--c-182.htm

A few more shekels than the Maser, but I would like this car. Who wouldn't? Saw one in the museum at the Nurburgring in 1994.

Jack

 

Seems like we are kindred spirits albeit about 10 years apart. I grew up back east and have pretty vivid recollections of when my dad took me to the New York Automobile Show in 1961. I was about 11 or 12 at the time and can still recall falling in love with the XKE. I bought the souvenir book for the show and can remember continually going to the page that had photos and specs of the XKE. I was also into building those plastic model car kits that were popular in the day and clearly remember putting together an XKE coupe that I painted red. I kept fantasizing that once I was old enough to drive I would either win one of these in a sweepstakes or somehow get one.

Of course this never happened but along the way I also was the proud owner of a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda and a 1970 Roadrunner (both would have been worth fortunes today). In 1995 I satisfied one dream buy getting a Corvette. I loved the XK8 when it came out but these were clearly priced well beyond my budget and I always felt a pang of disappointment when seeing the occasional XK8/XKR. Obtaining my 2005 XKR was a real highlight of my life and I feel like that "kid" that first glimpsed the XKE at the auto show.


Doug