REAL bad ideas: Deutchland Style!!!

[12,000 RPM]

Now Soup I like the bad idea idea but a 914/2002 are very small commitments in the context of how really bad a German used car purchase can be. Those were some pretty cheap + simple cars. The cars of this list shot for the moon and missed majorly... and absolutely decimated anyone who had the gall to purchase (not lease) them.

Here are some photos of them... 1 ideal, one in its realistic current average context

BMW 850CSi

^^^Ideal

^^^REAL

MB CL600 BI KOMPRESSOR

^^^Ideal

^^^MAD REAL

MB SL600 BI KOMPRESSOR

^^^Ideal

^^^"Nigga these REAL diamonds, we shinin"

VW Phaeton W12

^^^Ideal

I had my first electronic/electrical problem within 1.5 hours of leaving the dealership on my way back to Houston. Since then it has been constant. The Phaeton had a 5 yr / 50k warranty through 4 April 2009, I was having so many electronic problems that we held back driving it to make the mileage last as long as the 5 year warranty. It is now 7 August 2009, 4 months after the warranty expired. The car has 51,142 miles on it and is basically undriveable unless I take her in to the dealer monthly to have the system "reset". IF it is not driven daily, then the computer system starts turning "systems" off. At the present time, it will actually turn itself off while I am driving down the road, unbelieveably dangerous. Most of the time it simply turns itself off at a stoplight, it "waits" 3 - 4 minutes then decides to let us proceed on. We have driven it less than 1,200 miles since March 2009, about 210 miles per month, that is NOTHING in Houston, Texas.
We bought our 2004 Phaeton in Dec 2006, it had 17,400 miles on it.
My partial list of problems with our 2004 Phaeton W12 is below, ALL maintenance and / or repairs have been done at a Certified VW dealer:
- trunk will not open with remote, 'repaired and/or replaced' components - 4 times
- system fault reset, at least 4 times
- turns itself off, 3 times, not including present situation, which makes 4 times.
- alarm does not work, including now ... third time.
- transmission fluid pan drips, has been 'repaired' twice, is leaking again now for third time
- rear engine seal leaks, has been 'repaired' twice, is leaking again now for the third time
- rear battery has been replaced twice, will not hold charge now, needs to be replaced again now ... third time
- the car MUST be driven at a minimum every other day, for at least 20 miles, otherwise it starts turning off electronic systems in the car
- 'flat tire' light is consistently coming on, the valve antennas have been replaced once. I got it to go off now, by over inflating the tires.
Our Phaeton has been IN the VW shop for at least 3.5 months of the 32 months that we have owned her, two of the times were for a month each time.
Because VW sold so few here in the USA, they do not have technicians (mechanics) who are capable of working on the Phaeton, especially now that they have not been sold here for several years.
When it decides that it wants to go, it is a GREAT car, we love it, but most of the time it doesn't want to go, she is a lot like a cat, when she wants to be stroked, GREAT, when she doesn't want to be stroked ..... LOOK OUT!

^^^SHIT GETS REAL!!!!

Which one of these impulse machines would you buy to only regret owning later?

[CALL_911]

850, no question. I never cared for that CL, despite how fast it was. I'm a fan of both the SL and Phaeton, but I'd take the 8.

[Cookie Monster]

BMW.

[Vinsanity]

I won't lie; I actually do like that silver Benz coupe

[3.0L V6]

Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes CL600

[Laconian]

Nikasil linings? How much life does it have left?

I'd take the SL.

[mzziaz]

850, no question. I never cared for that CL, despite how fast it was. I'm a fan of both the SL and Phaeton, but I'd take the 8.

My thoughts, exactly.

[Laconian]

IIRC the V12 on the 8-series was like a twinned I6, with independent cooperating ECUs and everything.

That just sounds like a recipe for awful.

[MX793]

IIRC the V12 on the 8-series was like a twinned I6, with independent cooperating ECUs and everything.

That just sounds like a recipe for awful.

It was still a single engine (single crankshaft).  From an engine management standpoint, I'm not sure 2 ECUs (one for each bank of 6 cylinders) is really any worse, or any more complex, than one ECU controlling all 12.  The reality is, cylinder 1 doesn't really care what cylinders 2-12 are doing and doesn't need to be operated in concert with them.  Everything that an individual cylinder cares about (cam timing, ignition timing, fuel injection timing) is based on the crank position.  Since each bank likely had its own dedicated intake and exhaust MAF and O2 sensors, each bank could easily be managed by a separate ECU.

[Soup DeVille]

The point behind the bad ideas threads was that they were something that I might personally might be tempted to actually follow through on, even though I know there's a good chance it'd end up a garage ornament.

Anyways: I'd go for the 850 myself, no question. Far cooler than the other two, and being older likely to avoid a lot of the electronic difficulties the other two would encounter.

[12,000 RPM]

If the circumstances were right I would try the 850 too. One of my dad's friends is a pilot who imported one to Ghana But since then I have always had a soft spot for them.

[Raza]

850 without a doubt.  But, a CL just seems so black guy, so in your position.....

[12,000 RPM]

The only boat I want is one that goes in the water. Phaeton is a cruise ship. CL is a yacht. SL is a speedboat. 850 is the closest thing to a driver's car on this list.

Besides, black guy + CL on Rent A Rim 22s is so obvious. I like the surprise factor.

[Raza]

The only boat I want is one that goes in the water. Phaeton is a cruise ship. CL is a yacht. SL is a speedboat. 850 is the closest thing to a driver's car on this list.

Besides, black guy + CL on Rent A Rim 22s is so obvious. I like the surprise factor.

Good on you for bucking the stereotype.  Did you legally change your name to David yet?

[Laconian]

SLs are cool. I love the dark red leather interiors too.

[Raza]

SLs are cool. I love the dark red leather interiors too.

I do like SLs.  But I'd rather have a real sports car (like a Z4) or a real cruiser (like an 80s SL).

[Secret Chimp]

I like the idea of the 8-series better, but it seems like the CL would be more mechanically robust despite being boosted to fuck-all.

[J86]

a real cruiser (like an 80s SL).

yeah boyee!!!

[Lebowski]

I actually liked the Phaeton, but the 850 is my fav on this list by far.

Never been a big SL fan, and really don't like the CL.

[Onslaught]

BMW. It's probably one of the best looking BMW's ever made.

[12,000 RPM]

Good on you for bucking the stereotype.  Did you legally change your name to David yet?

Naw. I am going to put out a feeler resume though.