QOTD: Would You Ever Pay For A Stripper?

[87accordlxi]

No nav. No leather. No premium or power nuttin’. All yours for $12,800 before fees, tax, tag, title. You don’t want it? Don’t think you’re alone. Strippers have represented America’s premiere unsellable car for quite a while now. Everyone says that they just need a car to get from A to B. But easy credit […]

More... (http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2014/06/qotd-would-you-ever-pay-for-a-stripper/)

[87accordlxi]

Used cars make the stripper irrelevant, unfortunately. Late last year I was in the market, and I thought real hard about a base model Fiat 500 since I only live about 4 minutes from work. Ended up with another used Saab since it was more comfortable and cost about the same.

We still ended up with a Fiat later on, for my fiancee. But of course that one had to come with leather, sunroof and AT...

[Dr_Snooz]

They are almost impossible to find. Heck, I keep my old cars because they don't have GPS and MP3 and Bluetooth and OnStar and all that BS that wastes my time, increases the price and never really works the way I want it to. (Not really, I keep old cars because I'm poor, but even if I was rich I wouldn't have a car with all that jazz). I swapped out my AT for an MT and I could live with vinyl seats. Vinyl seats used to be crap, but the newer formulations don't seem to disintegrate after 5 years. Most stereos are flashing distractions that sound horrible so I'm not into those. I'd rather put in my own system. So yeah, I guess I would pay for a stripper.

A/C however, is non-negotiable here. The car absolutely has to have it. And I can't stand new car smell, so I'm pretty much stuck with buying used cars. I guess I wouldn't buy a stripper after all.

[2drSE-i]

Heck, I keep my old cars because they don't have GPS and MP3 and Bluetooth all that BS that wastes my time, increases the price and never really works the way I want it to. (Not really, I keep old cars because I'm poor, but even if I was rich I wouldn't have a car with all that jazz). Vinyl seats used to be crap, but the newer formulations don't seem to disintegrate after 5 years. I'd rather have leather, but could live with vinyl now. Most stereos are flashing distractions that sound horrible. I'd rather put in my own system.

Can you even buy a car with crank windows anymore?

There are still a few models with crank windows, but not many. As for the Fiat 500, those things are so underpowered it's scary

[lostforawhile]

the DX would be this car, although a lot of them did come with AC, and power steering was standard, but manual locks, manual windows, basic stereo, etc. They at least had nice cloth seats. It was a big deal that they came with a lever for the gas door and hatch release though, I remember reading an ad on how much of a refinement it was

[87accordlxi]

There are still a few models with crank windows, but not many. As for the Fiat 500, those things are so underpowered it's scary
We ended up with a Sport model, which still has the base non-turbo engine, and it's quick enough to be fun around town. Runs out of breath a bit on the highway, but it's nothing scary, and that's generally not what we use it for anyway.

The Abarth is in my sights as a fun car once the Saab is paid for.

[gfrg88]

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff206/gia1624/iLoveStrippersSignRedHeart.jpg (http://s242.photobucket.com/user/gia1624/media/iLoveStrippersSignRedHeart.jpg.html)

[Accordtheory]

Wow, that title really threw me off. So I'm going with my original interpretation. I've been to a few strip clubs, but man, I'd never pay one of those girls for shit! Lol.

Same thing as far as stripped down cars, no way. I was pissed after I bought my 2011 Golf TDI when I found one on cars.com with the full leather interior. You cannot get leather in the TDIs in america. That car must have been a canadian import or something. I have the headlights that aim with the steering wheel, and the sunroof, but I'd love to have that leather. You can get that in the GTI and the Golf R, but not with the diesel, which is upscale, it makes zero sense.

But at the same time, some of these newer cars take it way too far the other way. I don't need electric seats that move 50 different ways, or massage your back while you drive, or an electrically moved steering column, or electric brakes (lexus, mercedes E320, etc) or dynamic stability control that can't be turned off. I don't need a steering column that moves up and "out of the way" when I get in/out, or side mirrors that aim down to show the curb when I put the car in reverse. All that shit is just more stuff to break, and it does unnecessarily add a little weight to the car. I also don't need or want a car that can parallel park itself, seriously, what the hell!
Same with the nav, I can take my garmin from car to car without having to pay extra for a permanent system in each car. Not to mention, how long before those permanent systems become outdated?

What I really want is the basic stuff, (power windows, door locks, mirrors, cruise, leather, sunroof, good efficient a/c that doesn't kill the mpg, and good sound dampening and door seals) with a good build quality.

[2oodoor]

Yes, anything else? I concur with all said here :D

[Vanilla Sky]

Want to know why companies don't build stripper models? No one actually buys them. If anything, they end up being sold as fleet vehicles.

[2oodoor]

^^^Actually built for fleet sales, and as for govt fleets, it takes lines of justification to get approvals for options. Like power windows and pwr mirrors I justify those as being safety items, drivers shouldnt be leaning over to operate the opposite side of the car right...

[Vanilla Sky]

Agreed. Having things such as standard power steering, power door locks, power windows, power mirrors, and all of those power options make assembly easier since they can optimize manufacturing for only one assembly. The savings in the engineering department is big as well. Now days, everyone expects cars to be filled with gadgets, so again to optimize manufacturing and engineering and reducing parts count saves manufacturers money and allows them to charge more for the value-added options.

There is a movement toward making ICE and nav systems in cars more updatable. Since it takes years to design a car, they are usually behind the tech curve by several years. That means the phone in your pocket is more powerful than the expensive car you drive, and why aftermarket stereos end up in most of my cars pretty quickly. The manufacturers of aftermarket systems can be on the bleeding edge of tech, and since they are standard sizes, with companies like Metra and Scosche can make adapters pretty quickly and easily, especially with 3D scanning and printing becoming rather inexpensive.

[FederalSecurity]

No...not when there are so many dirt-cheap cars on craigslist with so much character.

[Vanilla Sky]

I have to be honest, but manufacturers really don't care about the second buyer of a car, since they only make money on the initial purchase.

[2oodoor]

I have to be honest, but manufacturers really don't care about the second buyer of a car, since they only make money on the initial purchase.

Im not sure if that's entirely accurate, they have a lot of investment in franchises and those seem to seek late model used cars to supplement lots with more choices. Honda is regular at trying to buy back my mom's CRV FOR TOO MUCH MONEY! So what does that mean I wonder. just an interjection for thought

[Accordtheory]

They care about marketing, right? So how could they not care about the second buyer of the car? Especially if the car was still under warranty, that's marketing. When they stop caring is when the car is old, but still their reputation is based on everything they've done and do. If they built crappy cars years ago, they have to work that much harder to overcome that if they build good cars now.

[Vanilla Sky]

Alright, then they really only care about CPO cars and cars that are still under warranty. Dealers may look for specific vehicles that sell well, but that's the dealer network seeking good condition used vehicles, not the manufacturer trying to buy them back to sell them again.

When dealerships "want" your used car, what they really want is for you to trade in your used car for a new car, which gives them a used vehicle they make more money from than a new car, and it moves inventory from their lot. Better for them if they can certify it as a CPO vehicle, but the qualifications for CPO vary from make to make, not just manufacturer to manufacturer.

[Oldblueaccord]

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Dodge sold Challengers that way I dunno if they still do but I think they sold well.

[Vanilla Sky]

Yeah, but those cars were built for the guy that's going to strip it out and go drag racing. Lump that in with the other in-house tuner cars, especially considering it's from their in-house performance development group.

[Oldblueaccord]

Yeah, but those cars were built for the guy that's going to strip it out and go drag racing. Lump that in with the other in-house tuner cars, especially considering it's from their in-house performance development group.

No thats a drag pak car. There stripped out weight wise for N/SA racing. I dont think there street legal.

Cores just have cloth seats,non heated, and bilstien shocks instead of the nivomat adjustable suspension(rear)cast not forged wheels.There about 5k less then an SRT car. There some left overs at pretty decent discounts.

[Accordtheory]

Alright, then they really only care about CPO cars and cars that are still under warranty.

I'd say if that is the case with a particular company, that is a mismanaged company. Look at VW, for example. Their dealers always brag about how VW is going to be #1 sales in the world, and VWs have such good build quality, fit and finish, etc. But their reputation in the streets is the exact opposite. #1 thing I always hear about VWs is reliability, the cars are not reliable. Especially compared to the Japanese big 3, toyota/nissan/honda. "GTIs are fun to drive, but I'd rather buy a WRX, etc, cause it won't break".

As a result of that, look what is going on. VW's sales in america is nowhere near what they predicted, and those morons are "scrambling to figure out why", but all you have to do is read the comments below every article. Reliability/build quality concerns. So that's what they get for "only caring about new cars and cars still under warranty"...way fewer sales. Sure they have other problems with their products, like bland, boring styling of the passats, totally unsporty styling of the jettas, etc. But reliability is still the biggest concern I believe, because the japanese companies sell boring, appliance like cars all day, although I have to give nissan credit for doing that the least.

[Vanilla Sky]

What can I say? The Japanese People build a good washing machine.

[Vanilla Sky]

FWIW, I have a German car, built in Austria, badged as a US car. Low end German workmanship is close to that of BL when they finally folded.