Autoguy

• Ecological Devastation and Me Or swimming in ...

  Number of comments: 9
  Ecological Devastation and Me Or swimming in an oil spillI am at the forefront of the ecological devastation of the world because of fossil fuels and I only realized it today. The religious holiday of Eid has passed, and my company gave me three days off. For those in the [...]
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  Posted: October 25, 2006, 6:58am EDT
  

• My car has been repairedFor about a ...

  Number of comments: 1
  My car has been repairedFor about a couple weeks now, I have been back driving. Total cost to repair the damage: 350 dirhams (95 dollars). My insurance company will cover any damage up to 5000 dirhams worth (1359 dollars) for each claim, and all I have to pay is the [...]
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  Posted: September 03, 2006, 5:50am EDT
  

• Uh-ohI less than 4 weeks of ownership, ...

  Number of comments: 2
  Uh-ohI less than 4 weeks of ownership, I have already damaged my car. I bumped into a pole while reparking the car and following the orders of a worker who was trying to direct me against incoming traffic. The damage is on one door, and on a rear panel above [...]
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  Posted: August 09, 2006, 6:49am EDT
  

• I am MobileA few days ago, I ...

  Number of comments: 2
  I am MobileA few days ago, I purchased a brand new 2006 (as opposed to a 2007) Opel Astra. A few days ago, I purchased a car from General Motors.I like this car.Kind of a shocker right? An American buying American? Well it's not really an American car. It uses' [...]
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  Posted: July 25, 2006, 9:31am EDT
  

• GM and Renault and NissanI was planning ...

  Number of comments: 2
  GM and Renault and NissanI was planning on doing a series on what people drive in Dubai, and their place in the city's caste system, but because of this enormous piece of news, I must make a comment.As most of you know by now, Renault/Nissan and the infamous Carlos Ghosn' [...]
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  Posted: July 05, 2006, 12:36am EDT
  

• 1.6 litre or 2.0I have all but ...

  Number of comments: 9
  1.6 litre or 2.0I have all but given up purchasing a used car. Now my goal is to buy an Opel Astra, perhaps one of the few quality small cars GM produces. This car intrigues because of the fact that it is not sold in the US (but will be [...]
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  Posted: June 20, 2006, 5:33am EDT
  

• Buying a Car is HellThe search for ...

  Number of comments: 2
  Buying a Car is HellThe search for a used car has probably met an end as I simply cannot find a quality used car in this country that I trust or like. I have test driven five vehicles, and I feel the used car dealers in this country are not [...]
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  Posted: June 18, 2006, 4:18am EDT
  

• What about Rover?As a sufferer of attention ...

  Number of comments: 0
  What about Rover?As a sufferer of attention deficit disorder, I routinely change my mind when confronted with new stimulus. Today that stimulus came in the form of an advertisement in Dubai's Gulf News classifieds, with a notice for a 2004 Rover 75 for sale at a little less than 50' [...]
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  Posted: May 28, 2006, 9:20am EDT
  

• Another Possible CarI'm developing a hankering for ...

  Number of comments: 3
  Another Possible CarI'm developing a hankering for the Peugeot 306, though a part of me says no. The Peugeot is available very cheaply here, and there are quite a few of them. It also fulfills my crazy requirement that the car I drive not be available in America. However the' [...]
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  Posted: May 23, 2006, 10:23am EDT
  

• I Need a Car or I will ...

  Number of comments: 1
  I Need a Car or I will DieTaking a cab in this city is quite easy. There are an abundance of them. Getting to your destination without trouble is another matter entirely. Cab drivers aren't the most professional, and I have had to deal with at least two who did' [...]
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  Posted: May 21, 2006, 8:21am EDT
  

• Seatbelts OptionalThe driving habits of the developing ...

  Number of comments: 0
  Seatbelts OptionalThe driving habits of the developing world can be summed up in one word: "interesting". I have not yet bought a car, and I routinely share cab rides with my colleagues back and forth to the hotel my company has put me up in for temporary accomodation until I [...]
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  Posted: May 21, 2006, 7:32am EDT
  

• Something I NoticedOne thing I can't get ...

  Number of comments: 1
  Something I NoticedOne thing I can't get over, is that even with oil being as cheap as it is in this country, the cars are still slightly smaller than in the US. There are still many European hatchbacks, very few pickup trucks, and all the taxis are FWD Toyota Camrys,' [...]
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  Posted: May 13, 2006, 4:28am EDT
  

• Welcome to Car ValhallaWell please forgive me ...

  Number of comments: 0
  Welcome to Car ValhallaWell please forgive me for the lack of updates but I hope you can understand that I have just moved to another country, and the rigours of setting myself up have taken up all my time. I am now writing this blog from Dubai in the United [...]
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  Posted: May 11, 2006, 8:36am EDT
  

• Auto Company Primer: Running a Car Manufacturer ...

  Number of comments: 2
  Auto Company Primer: Running a Car Manufacturer in the 21st Century:In my arrogance based on voracious reading/viewing of car related material over the past decade (car magazines, news articles, Top Gear episodes) I'm going to set forth some rules I think are important for a car company to follow for' [...]
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  Posted: April 06, 2006, 4:43pm EDT
  

• Should governments intervene in their auto industries?It's ...

  Number of comments: 2
  Should governments intervene in their auto industries?It's a question that recently faced Great Britain with MG-Rover, the last mass market British automaker, and the US faces with General Motors and Ford. Should a government support and foster its automakers or allow them to compete freely in the market? George Bush' [...]
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  Posted: March 09, 2006, 3:20pm EST
  

• The Car Mags Get it WrongVirtually every ...

  Number of comments: 5
  The Car Mags Get it WrongVirtually every car magazine stateside has done a comparo with the new Mazda MX-5 (Miata) and the Pontiac Solstice. And in virtually every comparo, the Mazda wins. The journalists will take the two cars out on tracks, accelerate them to their max, run them through [...]
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  Posted: February 07, 2006, 10:59am EST
  

• Two Not So Good IdeasThis:And this:Are not ...

  Number of comments: 4
  Two Not So Good IdeasThis:And this:Are not the best ideas for their respective marques. Why? In the first case, the newest XK for the Jaguar brand is simply ugly. In the history of Jaguar, I am at pains to find an example in that brand's esteemed history as to when' [...]
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  Posted: February 04, 2006, 6:34pm EST
  

• Understanding Auto ShowsRecently we have seen the ...

  Number of comments: 3
  Understanding Auto ShowsRecently we have seen the Los Angeles and Detroit Auto shows come and go. What can be drawn from these press party PR galas? I think a lot.If a car brand has only concepts showing, and no new models, you can expect their sales to decrease for the [...]
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  Posted: January 20, 2006, 11:11am EST
  

• The Japanese: Predictions for 2006Toyota: As an ...

  Number of comments: 4
  The Japanese: Predictions for 2006Toyota: As an American living in Europe, I am not used to seeing a powerful company like Toyota be an also-ran to not one, but many other companies. Quite simply Toyotas are not the best selling vehicles in the UK or Europe. They are respected and [...]
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  Posted: January 19, 2006, 2:08pm EST
  

• More Predictions for 2006: The EuropeansFrom what ...

  Number of comments: 0
  More Predictions for 2006: The EuropeansFrom what I've garnered through years of reading Automotive News Europe, and finally moving over here, I see Europe as a very crowded and super competitive market for the car. Most cars are very small, which means smaller profit margins for manufacturers. The prices to' [...]
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  Posted: December 28, 2005, 7:27am EST
  

• Predictions for 2006I've decided to be ahead ...

  Number of comments: 1
  Predictions for 2006I've decided to be ahead of the curve and make my predictions for the 2006 calendar year for which car companies are going to do well, and which ones aren't. I think making predictions for the upcoming year is relatively easy, any time period beyond that becomes very [...]
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  Posted: December 26, 2005, 2:12pm EST
  

• Young American in Europe Wants to Buy ...

  Number of comments: 7
  Young American in Europe Wants to Buy a CarI'm not actually in the market for a car (yet), but like anyone fascinated by the subject of cars, I continuously dream about what my first car would be once I get the chance to purchase one. I have some requirements:1. The' [...]
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  Posted: December 17, 2005, 9:34am EST
  

• Toyota: Paper TigerThe great supposed "threat" to ...

  Number of comments: 3
  Toyota: Paper TigerThe great supposed "threat" to the Big 3, at least in the media's eyes, is Toyota. To them Toyota is the perfect representative of the Japanese perfect car. It is a car that is utterly reliable, non-polluting, and inoffensive. It is something though that does not exist.Toyota is' [...]
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  Posted: December 07, 2005, 4:48pm EST
  

• Why the Large SUV Strategy is FlawedA ...

  Number of comments: 1
  Why the Large SUV Strategy is FlawedA company that shall remain nameless (cough GM cough) has put a lot of hope on renewed versions of their upcoming large and full size SUVs and pickups. This strategy is flawed. Why? Large SUVs sell only in an economic climate where fuel is [...]
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  Posted: November 28, 2005, 9:42am EST
  

• The Japanese in EuropeAs a foreigner living ...

  Number of comments: 0
  The Japanese in EuropeAs a foreigner living in London, I notice things that a native born person probably wouldn't. For instance there are an enormous number of Japanese tourists in this city. Japanese are very sophisticated dressers and almost never travel alone. The Japanese in their 20s dress in various' [...]
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  Posted: November 24, 2005, 10:57am EST