***Wimmer Munich Sightings Part 13***

[cawimmer430]

More old pictures. 

BMW E39 5-Series Police Cruiser


Corvette C5 cruising through traffic






VW Thing



Fiat 500 followed by another Fiat 500 a few seconds later, same street.



Bentley Continental GT



Audi S6


Audi S8



Chevrolet Suburban


Cadillac Seville


BMW E39 Touring Police Cruiser. The cops inside must have been like "WTF!?" when they saw me.


Looked like some tuned Porsche, or with a terrible body kit.



BMW M5


Whoa! BMW X6, Bentley Continental GT and another BMW X6 with a temporary license plate. Must be a North American doing the European Delivery Program!



Mercedes SL55 AMG from Switzerland.


Volvo 244DL Taxi I believe. <--- MADMAN, expert info needed. 


BMW 3er Police Cruisers


Badass looking Cayenne


Mercedes C43 AMG - hot. The W202 C-Class looked classy, but it looked really cool in AMG trim.



Hummer H2 - make sure you guys drink PIMP JUICE!


BMW M3



Porsche 997 Turbo



This is where I panicked because I spotted the new BMW 7-Series (this was way before its official release). My camera wasn't set properly so the pictures are really bad.







Alpina BMW Z8





Nuevo Fiat 500


Porsche 997 Turbo Convertible



Porsche Cayman in white. Looking good.


Porsche 996 Turbo


Audi A4 S-Line trim - very tastefully done.




Toyota Landcruiser - excuse me, sorry, my bad! Lexus LX470. Sorry! They look so similar!!! 



Hope you liked the pictures. :t-cheers:

[CJ]

The Volvo is a 245.

[hotrodalex]

The wheels on that Z8 are sweet.

[cawimmer430]

The Volvo is a 245.

[Rich]

The wheels on that Z8 are sweet.

Must be a bitch to clean too

[Madman]

Yep, that's a Volvo 240.  (specifically, it's a 245.)  What's an old sled like that doing being used as a taxi?  I noticed in another one of the Munich threads that a Mercedes Benz 190E was also being used as a taxi.  Both the Merc 190E and the Volvo 240 ended production in 1993.  Is it common to see taxis that old in Germany?

In 1987, I rode in one of the last Checker Marathon taxis in service in Chicago.  This was only five years after Checker production ended.  The Chevrolet Caprice was also a very popular taxi.  Caprice production only ended in 1996 and yet I haven't seen a Caprice taxi in years.  It seems to me American taxis have a much shorter service life.  Undoubtedly, this is probably due to American cars not being as well built as European cars.  I guess that's why I drive Volvos! 


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[cawimmer430]

Yep, that's a Volvo 240.  (specifically, it's a 245.)  What's an old sled like that doing being used as a taxi?  I noticed in another one of the Munich threads that a Mercedes Benz 190E was also being used as a taxi.  Both the Merc 190E and the Volvo 240 ended production in 1993.  Is it common to see taxis that old in Germany?

In 1987, I rode in one of the last Checker Marathon taxis in service in Chicago.  This was only five years after Checker production ended.  The Chevrolet Caprice was also a very popular taxi.  Caprice production only ended in 1996 and yet I haven't seen a Caprice taxi in years.  It seems to me American taxis have a much shorter service life.  Undoubtedly, this is probably due to American cars not being as well built as European cars.  I guess that's why I drive Volvos! 


Cheers,
Madman of the People

Most modern taxis in Munich and in Germany are W210 / W211 Mercedes E-Classes. Comfortable, easy to run and maintain, durable and economical. Just what the taxi fleets are looking for. Then you have some other Mercedes models like the W203 / W204 C-Class or the W245 B-Class, which tend to be rarer. For really spoiled customers who insist on only riding in the best, there are some W220 and W221 S-Class taxis available. Viano vans from MB are also used. Naturally BMW, Audi and some Japanese cars as well as VWs and Opels are also used as taxis, generally among private taxi drivers who're looking for something cheaper to purchase etc.

Really old taxis tend to be rare here. I know that Cologne has the oldest still operational taxi in existence in Germany - a 1970s Mercedes W115 220D with millions of km's on the odometer. Once in awhille you'll spot some W124s and a W201 (190s). A few weeks ago I spotted a pristine condition Mercedes W123 Taxi (have pictures, but will post them when the time is right) infront of the Munich Opera House. Now that car is hot! 


Say, I've been meaning to ask. How come cars like Ford Crown Victoria or Chevrolet Caprice Classic were basically total failures in the private market, yet were gobbled up by police, taxi and government fleets.

[CJ]

They're cheap and durable. 

[cawimmer430]

They're cheap and durable. 

But why did the private civilian market never care much for them? 

[2o6]

But why did the private civilian market never care much for them? 

During the 70's and 80's they were as common in civilian use as commercial use. However, during the 90's and 2000's, people shifted in to more space efficent, fuel-efficent, sportier cars. The Taurus, Malibu, Accord, Camry and other midsizers took off in sales, but the old Caprice and Crown Victoria were a bit too large, ill-handling, and thirsty for the average user. However, they were quite durable, reliable, and easy to fix. When equipped with larger engines, they were quite fast, as well. Also, the FWD craze started, and these RWD large sedans were just too much for the average person who only had a few kids and a Smaller Malibu or Taurus was just fine.

[cawimmer430]

During the 70's and 80's they were as common in civilian use as commercial use. However, during the 90's and 2000's, people shifted in to more space efficent, fuel-efficent, sportier cars. The Taurus, Malibu, Accord, Camry and other midsizers took off in sales, but the old Caprice and Crown Victoria were a bit too large, ill-handling, and thirsty for the average user. However, they were quite durable, reliable, and easy to fix. When equipped with larger engines, they were quite fast, as well. Also, the FWD craze started, and these RWD large sedans were just too much for the average person who only had a few kids and a Smaller Malibu or Taurus was just fine.

Great info. 

One more question. If the Crown Vic and Caprice were bad on gas, then why did police and taxi fleets use them? Space and comfort is one thing, but poor fuel economy is going to make your running costs go up up up.

[2o6]

Great info. 

One more question. If the Crown Vic and Caprice were bad on gas, then why did police and taxi fleets use them? Space and comfort is one thing, but poor fuel economy is going to make your running costs go up up up.

Police: The Large engines are really fast, great for highway pursuits.

Taxi: Until the switch to Minivans and Hybrids, Running costs WERE high.

[cawimmer430]

Police: The Large engines are really fast, great for highway pursuits.

Taxi: Until the switch to Minivans and Hybrids, Running costs WERE high.

Did some Crown Vic's have a police interceptor V10 from the Excursion?

[2o6]

Did some Crown Vic's have a police interceptor V10 from the Excursion?

Nope. Just a tuned version of the 4.6L found in many Ford Cars. It produced 250HP, but around 300 ft/lbs of torque.

[cawimmer430]

Nope. Just a tuned version of the 4.6L found in many Ford Cars. It produced 250HP, but around 300 ft/lbs of torque.

Shouldn't you change your car of the week?