Long time viewer from France here. Couldn't agree more, i'm keeping my OM60x powered vehicles until the end. I'm convinced that keeping those cars on the road is the right thing to do regarding environmental matters, one doesn't have to be a rocket scientist to under that. You should really make a podcast Pierre! Cheers.
100% agree with this video Pierre, I got a Mercedes w123 200D for that same reason and I am extremely happy with it, it has been a ride to learn how to maintain it myself but after a year of renovations I finally have it where I wanted it to be and have even done some long trips with it around Lanzarote and Tenerife :D
Thought of selling my 126. But everytime when I park my car, turn to look back at it, it's still look gorgeous and it feels like I've just bought it. And the fact that they don't build them anymore, just makes it even more difficult to sell it.
I love your truth!You tell like it is! Thanks bro! I am driving a 80 model 240 D automatic taxi cab special every thing else manual, with 405000 showing (I don’t know how long it has been broken) my daily driver. I have been a Mercedes Man since I was 20years young. Rode my first one in Rotterdam 1975! A taxi, said to myself I have got to get me one of these.
Cant stand drive by wire. As slow and as underpowered my 240d is , its actually a nice feeling that when you sneeze and tickle the accelerator pedal that the car actually responds. Deive by wire, i think theyve programmed that out. The only thing that might help dbw is turning off traction control, it does help throttle response but will never beat a good old cable.
I was in an i4 (EV) the other day and while the car performed well and had great handling, I felt no joy in it. I have also driven the Model S, Model 3 and the EQS as well. While they have great off the line performance, they are all the same. Whereas in an ICE car there are differences. You can take a C-Class and a CLA class, and you can tell there is a difference. Or take a C-Class and compare it to a 3 series or an A4. All offer a 4 cylinder, but they perform different. As for self driving, I don't mind it, but I also like to be in control. Great video. :-)
8:00 i drive a 2021 ford transit 250 for work. It shouldnt take 3-5 botton presses thru a few menus to reset a trip odometer. This is what they call progress.
Sad trajectory we are on..for myself the only car I have is a 40 yr old 300SD, shortly after getting it I realized I was a curator and not really an owner.
First and foremost i love Mercedes gas, diesel, and hybrid. I'm in San Francisco California and work with self driving. I've been in all of them and my fellow Co workers who worked as test drivers, i was a driver myself. They have their little issues you see on the news. I personally trust them but waymo has the best. Seeing what it can do in traffic is insane and i see it everyday.
So what happens when you have an accident in self driving mode? Is it your fault? The manufacturers faults? Insurance will be having a blast figuring out this liability!
I'm in San Francisco and we have self driving cars. I actually worked at 2 of the company's. Long story short if you're in a self driving taxi it's the car/companies fault.
I completely agree with this opinion, but the concern is what do you buy to daily? A 50 year old Mercedes would be idyllic, but I don’t think it is practical. It sounds like the solution is a forced multi-car per person household with a poorly built “new” car and something that you and your partner can be passionate about and enjoy (of course, then we go into the where to park everything issue…)
I went with a second generation Porsche Cayenne S with the V8 for the wife and baby. Certified pre-owned 2012 half financed with 3 years of warranty. It has been a long and bumpy road to arrive at the V8 Cayenne.
Imo, the perfect daily is something from the late 2000's til about 2011. Perfect balance of tech you "need" (& can still bypass/ignore), still diagnosable, still diy friendly, modern enough that parts availability & safety aren't issues, but are still real cars & are priced right (mostly). I daily a pre facelift C207 chassis E350 coupe. Easy to wrench on, 120k mi, fully sorted & clean.
I have this question too; I have looked and every vehicle in a low-price range is a project car. I don't need to spend $10,000 on something just to drive to get a haircut, or to the pool, or the grocery store.
Your ending statements are those I tell everyone I can every day, but your opening statements are a take I actually never considered. Equally sad & interesting. Very insightful & impossible to argue against (as for the EV idiots who would try to.)
This all boils down to government regulation and always has. Even back when the EGR was first dreamt up, most manufacturers wouldn't have installed one unless they were forced to. The reason you cant buy a small passenger diesel in the US anymore? Emissions regulations. Why cant you buy a small, basic pickup truck? Emissions regulations. Even the tiny Maverick is shrunk down as absolute small as they can make it without having to pay the government penalties. We get what we vote for.
Hey Pierre, about what you said that auto companies make crappy controls, maybe they do it for some simple reason, e.g. moving all the controls to a touch screen is way more cheap because software is much easier than hardware engineering. Or because Elon woke up one day with the idea of ultra minimalistic design and everyone else copies Tesla. Exactly the same with phones with glass back: they are fingerprint magnets, make the phone more fragile and slippery, but Apple did it and everyone copies Apple. It doesn't mean necessarily that a smartphone lobby one day decided to put glass backs to make us spend more for phones. Maybe we just vote with our wallet and we vote like idiots. Every car company is moving their controls to touch screens, even brands who are not investing in self driving cars, brands that used to 'sell' driving experience and are not competitive in the AI race. Brands like BMW or Porsche. Why would they make their car controls crappy as well, instead of trying to keep a slice of the 'purists' market? Why unless it's just another stupid trend? My point is, you have no way of knowing and proving to me that the auto industry is making car controls worse because they want people to lose their confidence and start trusting self driving. Well, for one thing, I don't think these people are actually smart enough to plan ahead and pull of something like this. These are theories and truther talk, not facts.
I had to beg to buy a junk yard car and i had to sign a waiver that i will not be registered it was a fiat 131 coupe totally restorable .. and yes we will title it ...too many cllector cars including benzes get destroyed
I will never own nor drive in a self driving car. But I'm 56 so heading towards the time when my opinions count for less and less. What occurs in the US is no longer the deciding factor in terms of vehicle development. The US is maxed out in terms of wealth and opportunity and as such will not be setting an automotive agenda. This will be China. GM for example already sells more cars in China than the US. I'd love to agree with Pierre about the feasibility of keeping the greatest cars ever made on the road but the reality is that as time progresses it's simply going to become impossible unless you are extremely rich.
Long time fan here, I love your work and appreciate all the experience you're sharing for free, but on this video you sound like a truther and I really wish I could unwatch it Please don't don't ruin your work, associating classic cars with "Unpleasant truths" and "coglomerates who want to supress out free will",
Don’t care if diesel won’t be available any longer. It’s fine I will make bio diesel and run my w126 on it. Conversely my mustang runs just fine on alcohol!
Yeah if I want to be driven, I’ll take public transportation or order an Uber. The ICE, done properly, is still superior to EVs overall and the intentions of those pushing this unproven technology on us have nothing to do with saving the environment.
Car ownership will become like gun ownership, I'm calling for a constitutional amendment to protect "the right to haul my own ass". Self-driving cars would have great utility for elder-care, e.g., a retirement home with a half-dozen cars which can be reserved by clients for a doctor appointment, shopping etc.
