February 14, 2014

Wow: Cadillac Ad Pitches Electric Vehicle to Pro-American Patriots/Conservatives, With Some Degree of Success
— Ace

What is the problem with electric cars, marketing-wise? (Let's put aside their technical problems, and the problem marketing a vehicle with technical problems.)

Well, for a lot of possible buyers, an electric car represents a buy-in to a specific mode of life that is alien to them -- granola-crunchy, limousine liberal, soft-headed and soft-handed, and suspiciously European in taste.

This is especially a problem for a Cadillac electric car, as (I'm just speculating here) the Cadillac brand seems to appeal to two groups:

1. Older, wealthier business-oriented buyers, who are probably conservative in culture and politics.

2. Rappers.

Well, this ad is designed to appeal to category 1.

So here's what Cadillac does: They pitch to that exact demographic by making fun of stuff that more conservative people make fun of, chiefly, the French.

They do not sell the car on the basis of environmental impact. They sell the car on the idea that you'll be teaching the French a lesson in How to Be a F***ing Man by buying a f***ing electric car.

It's a ridiculous, brazen effort to turn the electric car from being an effete progressive's Trader Joe Run puttermobile into a red-blooded American's middle finger to socialist decay, and yet... well, you be the judge. It's a good ad, let's just say that. I don't know if they could ever possibly sell this idea, but the ad is as good a shot at it as I can conceive.

The actor here will be familiar to most of you; he's Neal McDonough. He's in everything. He was one of Captain America's Howling Commandoes; he played psychotic blond hitman Robert Quarles in Justified a season or two back. (It didn't end well for him there.)

He famously refuses to do any sex scenes (or, I think, even use profanity) in his roles because he considers that part of his Catholic principles. (On the other hand, he plays psychotic villains a lot, and so he does all the violence and menacing stuff.)

So here's Cadillac attempting the impossible: Trying to convince conservatives that an electric car is kind of a conservative thing.

It's impossible, and yet, I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible.

This ad is a good illustration of the basic principle that many products are not sold strictly on utility. Many products are sold much more on the suggestion that they signal a cultural affiliation. Starbucks isn't just selling coffee, of course. The coffee they sell you costs a buck; the rest of the cost represents the sale of "The Starbucks Lifestyle."

I think this is all a little bit silly, that is, until I myself start looking at a personal purchase and wondering, "What would this particular purchase say about me? If I buy this notebook, as opposed to that one, what culture or tribe am I identifying myself with? If I buy that Moleskine notebook, am I trying to pretentiously advertise myself as a writer? And: Is it the case that I do in fact want to pretentiously advertise myself that way? And if so, how obvious do I want to be about that, or how subtle?"

Well, actually, I still think it's all very silly and irrational; I'm just confessing that I of course do it as well. We're all at least a little bit silly and irrational.

Update: As Ed Driscoll notes, and commenters have suggested, Cadillac's parent company GM -- or "Government Motors," as many say, post-bailout -- isn't really the most convincing pitchman for capitalist vigor:

I only wish General Motors walked the walk as well as their pitchmen talk it. As Jonah Goldberg said in 2009, the period in which General Motors transformed itself — at least for a time — into Government Motors, “the old adage ‘Everyone’s a capitalist on the way up and a socialist on the way down’ is kicking in. The thing is, if you’re a socialist on the way down, you were never really a capitalist on the way up. Capitalism requires putting your own capital at risk.”

Update: Upon further review, this is not an "electric car" per se, but an electric/gas hybrid.

Update: I think we've seen this ad before, haven't we?

I have to dock the ad because of this. Like a song you like because you liked another song just like it before, this ad follows the script of the Dollar Shave Ad very, very closely, in staging and script and tone and, well, everything, except the guy in the bear suit.

Posted by: Ace at 10:05 AM | Comments (458)
Post contains 781 words, total size 5 kb.

1 first

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:06 AM (bJm7W)

2

A good ad.  Not that I'd buy an electric car, but a good ad for one.

 

 

(Spin that snobbery around!)

Posted by: Mikey NTH - President's Day Sale - All Red Hot Rage 15% Off! at February 14, 2014 10:08 AM (hLRSq)

3 cadillac has transitioned into a girl car long ago - look at who is buying 'em. who cares?

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 10:08 AM (rDidD)

4 Humans are status monkeys. Always have been. Always will be. Human beings are, by nature, genetically, tribal and status-obsessed.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:09 AM (ZPrif)

5 I saw a Cadillac with a single exhaust recently and thought it looked like a fucking beater.

Posted by: Captain Hate at February 14, 2014 10:10 AM (c3zQp)

6 I am in no way an electric car fan but a good friend of mine has a Tesla and it is awesome.  He also has an Aston Martin DB9 and he likes the Tesla better.... probably because it is so much faster.

Posted by: AndrewsDad at February 14, 2014 10:10 AM (C2//T)

7 He's job-locked. So that's a plus.

Posted by: m at February 14, 2014 10:10 AM (omrQI)

8 nah, wouldn't buy a car because of an ad like this. Maybe if they threw in "and having an electric luxury car would get you lots a high quality tookie like Anna Kooiman".

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:10 AM (bJm7W)

9 Oh *that* guy. He's definitely a *that* guy type actor. I like him though. As for cultural signifiers. I drive a Grand Caravan. So...yeah.

Posted by: Lauren at February 14, 2014 10:11 AM (jOumW)

10 Good ad. I still wanna smash his face in with a baseball bat. But yeah, behind that, it's a Clio Award winner.

Posted by: Sean Bannion [/i][/s][/u][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:11 AM (yz6yg)

11 I don't understand why Cadillac woul make the vehicle at all when they've got so far to go to appeal to the regular customer base. Seems risky, unless there's already some demand (or more likely EPA enforces breathing down their necks).

Posted by: Xander Crews at February 14, 2014 10:11 AM (5IHRz)

12 re 5: if I'm thinking of the same thing, it reminds me of a butt hole.

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:12 AM (bJm7W)

13 I'm moderating on electric cars. Why? Because where do we get more and more of our electricity from? Natural gas. What do you need to do to get natural gas in the quantities required to run electric cars? Fracking. Your purchase of electric cars supports fracking. God Bless America.

Posted by: MMW at February 14, 2014 10:12 AM (kt/h1)

14 And we perceive status. Our own and others. It's a real thing. If you are in a room and you are high status, you will literally be expressing different genes and producing different proteins at a cellular level than if you are in the room as the low man on the totem pole. Genes are constantly being turned on off depending on how our senses perceive the world. And one of the things we perceive is our relative status.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:12 AM (ZPrif)

15 "he likes the Tesla better" Until it spontaneously combusts, right?

Posted by: Lauren at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (jOumW)

16 Cadillac...your tax dollars at work

Posted by: brak at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (NaTky)

17 I'd be surprised if the ELR battery could power the fog lamps on my F350.

Posted by: wth at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (wAQA5)

18 "It's impossible, and yet, I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible."

Guess it's time to start cheering on anyone that wants to try implementing communism.

Posted by: Golem_Master at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (L1K98)

19 As a Christian, what most amused me about this commercial was religious lefties blasting it for saying people should work: http://tinyurl.com/kyru9lx

Posted by: TenthJustice at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (qB8lN)

20 That's a really good ad.

Cadillac is one of the last really "American" brands.  If you buy into American exceptionalism, you will buy into an ad like that.

I personally have nothing against electric cars.  Once they get a good range and they come down in price, I will probably get one if all the tech kinks are worked out.

Neal McDonough is perfect for that ad as well, BTW.  He's a good actor.

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (Z7PrM)

21 f you are in a room and you are high status, you will literally be expressing different genes and producing different proteins at a cellular level than if you are in the room as the low man on the totem pole. Genes are constantly being turned on off depending on how our senses perceive the world. And one of the things we perceive is our relative status. Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 02:12 PM (ZPrif) I'm sorry. Did you say something?

Posted by: Barack Hussein Obama[/i][/s][/u][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:13 AM (yz6yg)

22 maybe they could do an ad with Joe Biden saying that an electric Caddy is a big effin deal. (Because as far as Biden knows, most Caddies in DC are black guys who run on Dewars)

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:14 AM (bJm7W)

23 Um, yeah. I live in one of the snow capitals of the world. The few enviro-tards that are stupid enough to try and drive e-cars in the winter around here are usually seen sliding to and fro on their teensy-weensy clown car tires and then crashing into snowbanks with panicked looks in their eyes. They are not only taking risks with their own lives, they are a hazard to everyone else on the road who has to watch out for them. (ever notice that "panicked" looks like it's spelled wrong, bit it isn't?)

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:14 AM (7ObY1)

24 Will Peter Graves be the spokesman?

Posted by: Angel with a sword at February 14, 2014 10:14 AM (hpgw1)

25 I think he should drive that POS into the pool to see what happens.

Posted by: wth at February 14, 2014 10:14 AM (wAQA5)

26 don't forget, Cadillac is the Rolls-Royce of American cars.

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:15 AM (bJm7W)

27 Wasn't the FLOTUS limo that got stuck on a speedbump in London a Cadillac?

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:15 AM (HfTw6)

28 Well, for a lot of possible buyers, an electric car represents a buy-in to a specific mode of life that is alien to them -- granola-crunchy, limousine liberal, soft-headed and soft-handed, and suspiciously European in taste.

Penumbras of eurotrash and metro-ghey images aside, buying an electric car makes you grid dependent and financially tied to the leasing model.  Who would buy a vehicle that needs an enormously expensive scheduled maintenance (battery replacement), lease it and drop that baby back in their lap before that hits.  Who would but a vehicle that can't get you to grandmas?

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 10:15 AM (4JkHl)

29 Good ad. The wife is quite hittable.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:15 AM (HfTw6)

30 'm moderating on electric cars. Why? Because where do we get more and more of our electricity from?

Natural gas.

What do you need to do to get natural gas in the quantities required to run electric cars? Fracking.

Your purchase of electric cars supports fracking.

God Bless America. Posted by: MMW
...............
Here in Illinois we get the majority of our power from nuclear...  that's even more fun to rub into libtard's faces!  But fracked natural gas is pretty close too!

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:15 AM (Z7PrM)

31 15 "he likes the Tesla better"

Until it spontaneously combusts, right?

Posted by: Lauren at February 14, 2014 02:13 PM (jOumW)

 

 

We were at dinner when a 3rd friend asked about the combustion issue, which first happened about half an hour from us and he gave a 1o minute lecture on the number of gas powered cars that catch fire.

 

Like I said, I am not a huge fan of electric cars but the Telsa is a fucking rocket.

Posted by: AndrewsDad at February 14, 2014 10:16 AM (C2//T)

32 The French (cheese-eating surrender-monkeys) are too easy to mock.

Posted by: Grampa Jimbo at February 14, 2014 10:16 AM (V70Uh)

33 Great ad, terrible car, horrible dead to me company. That said, if I had the scratch I'd buy a top end Tesla S as a toy. I don't want it because it is good for Gaia, fuck Gaia. I want it because if you disable the traction control t has enough power to cut the back tires loose at 85mph. In other words, the car has balls.

Posted by: DanInMN at February 14, 2014 10:16 AM (Z0Wdv)

34 I am always silly. Full 100% silly. It's due to my enormous testicles. Gigantic balls allow you to indulge in silly.

Posted by: Inspector Cussword at February 14, 2014 10:16 AM (FApZx)

35 He does all the violence and menacing stuff.

Nothing anti-Catholic about that.

Posted by: Knights of Malta, of Old at February 14, 2014 10:16 AM (4JkHl)

36 It's a take on Old Spice's "Smell like me" series. Really, really ghey. Butch, though.

Convince me GM execs take two weeks off. GM isn't morally confused because they're government lick-spittles, though. They got to be government lick-spittles because they've been morally confused for so long. Pity, really. Sad to watch.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 10:17 AM (xq1UY)

37 If McDonough had shot a Frenchman with that wrist rail gun he had in "Justified", I would buy one of these.

Posted by: UGAdawg at February 14, 2014 10:17 AM (ceoOP)

38 Commercial dad is doing that "if I leave my polo shirt untucked no one will notice my gut" routine. Not to Commercial dad: it doesn't work.

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:17 AM (7ObY1)

39 Three very popular cars with "1%ers" are the Tesla, the Mercedes E-class (not the S-class, too showy), and the Jeep Grand Cherokee. We've seen Jeep totally change the image of the GC to cater to that set. Caddy is just trying for someone with Tesla and E-class on his shopping list. Tesla isn't really a luxury car, and that Merc is seen as a bit old-fashioned and stodgy. So tak eit as one more attempt by Caddy to *not* seem old fashioned and stodgy. Yeah, I don't think it will work either, but I understand what they're going for.

Posted by: LGW at February 14, 2014 10:18 AM (+BmfA)

40 A simple example is visiting teams in sports. The visiting teams literally produce less testosterone. Your brain senses that you are in enemy territory and outnumbered and you involuntarily decrease testosterone production. Your brain is trying to force you to be meeker and weaker so you don't start a fight, don't look like a threat, and can get out alive. There's a part of your brain that reacts to being a visiting team as if you were out on a hunting party back in hunter-gatherer days and you got lost and accidentally wandered into another, stronger tribe's territory. That part of the brain is trying to shut down all your bravado genes and neural pathways and amp up your Please Don't Hurt Me, Yes I'm a Pussy, I'll Just Go Now genes and circuitry.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:18 AM (ZPrif)

41 Fuck Gaia Can I haz that on a bumper sticker?

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:18 AM (7ObY1)

42 I'd note ace, that while some things don't say much about us (like that notebook.) Cars do. It's a cultural thing yeah, but a car says as much about you as your clothes these days.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at February 14, 2014 10:19 AM (GaqMa)

43 When I first saw the ad during the Super Bowl I didn't even realize it was an electric car. I thought the car itself was really beautiful and breathtaking and focused on that. Then later I saw it and noticed the plug and thought it was even better, because it changed my mind about electric cars. I think their angle worked.

Posted by: Adrienne at February 14, 2014 10:19 AM (lVcuh)

44 I'm opposed to electric cars for two reasons; 1. Tax credits to purchase them? Screw that. Let the buyer buy what he wants. Why should my tax dollars get passed to Joan Sixpack to subsidize her purchase? 2. When they get used on the highway, beating up the roads like every other car, they aren't paying toward the cost of that abuse in fuel taxes like those included in every gallon of gasoline or diesel. No slick advertisement is ever going to change my mind about that. 'Going green' is a lifestyle decision, but pay your own way, deadbeat.

Posted by: Regular Moron [/i] at February 14, 2014 10:19 AM (CnA98)

45 You'll notice that the ad barely hints that the Cadillac in question is electric. You get one shot of him removing the charger from the car and that's it.

Posted by: joncelli at February 14, 2014 10:20 AM (RD7QR)

46

We like Caddys, but we prefer our Lexus SUVs.  Oh, and our lear jets.

Posted by: Sierra Club Members at February 14, 2014 10:20 AM (pmsMR)

47 DaninMN - Ariel Atom, and you can spend the money you save on insurance and a helmet.

Posted by: Knights of Malta, of Old at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (4JkHl)

48 Oh, so it doesn't qualify for massive government subsidies?

No?

Fuck off.

Sell it without subsidies and then come back and tell me it's "capitalist."

Posted by: RoyalOil at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (VjL9S)

49 Barack Obama is a stuttering clusterf*ck of a malignant traitor.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (PYAXX)

50 I don't understand why Cadillac woul make the vehicle at all when they've got so far to go to appeal to the regular customer base. Seems risky, unless there's already some demand (or more likely EPA enforces breathing down their necks).

Posted by: Xander Crews

CAFE standards aren't targeted to individual cars but the whole line-up. By adding one hybrid/electric to a line a mfr can allow the others to decrease in mileage a bit.

Plus if you're going to put out a HALO car, tech filled gadget cars are one route.

Posted by: weft cut-loop[/i] [/b] at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (aHw7C)

51 I don't think their target market is older anymore. These are not your grandfather's Cadillac. The styling and design is more cutting edge. A few of their cars have the Corvette motor.

Posted by: Titanium at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (oDFTq)

52 >>>You'll notice that the ad barely hints that the Cadillac in question is electric. You get one shot of him removing the charger from the car and that's it. Yeah I didn't even realize it was an electric car until that point. And when I saw him pull out the charging cord, I thought he was going to make a joke about "Real cars running on gas" or something.

Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 10:21 AM (/FnUH)

53 Based on how often other rappers talk about making money, I think that your two groups Cadillacs are targeted at may have more crossover than expected.

Posted by: Chief o' Beef at February 14, 2014 10:22 AM (iQOvp)

54 Can't watch it at work, but if it's the ad I've seen, it's actually quite effective. "We work so we can have stuff, dammit" seems to be the primary theme. A theme I can appreciate.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:22 AM (PYAXX)

55 You'll notice that the ad barely hints that the Cadillac in question is electric. You get one shot of him removing the charger from the car and that's it.
Posted by: joncelli
..........
Yeah.. it relies on the fact that if you are too stupid to notice that, you probably don't have the cash to buy one.

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:22 AM (Z7PrM)

56 If you like your garage fire, you can keep your garage fire.

Posted by: wth at February 14, 2014 10:22 AM (wAQA5)

57 I saw a Pious whilst driving in to work this morning...it was sporting a PSE Archery sticker on the back.  I remain puzzled.



Posted by: Bawney Fwank at February 14, 2014 10:23 AM (L8r/r)

58 So Julia Louis-Dreyfus however the fuck you spell it attends a State Dinner and immediately takes to Twitter to pimp for O-Care. Hey, remember when artists were all edgy and "spoke truth to power" and "stuck it to the man?" Good times, good times. Hey Julia, there's a reason you've been a failure on every show you've ever been on except Seinfeld. The reason? Jerry Seinfeld. But hey, you have a wonderful career ahead of you as a propagandist shill for the Regime.

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:23 AM (7ObY1)

59 >>>I'd note ace, that while some things don't say much about us (like that notebook.) Cars do. It's a cultural thing yeah, but a car says as much about you as your clothes these days. ... neither really says anything about you, except to the extent people have decided that these things say something about them, and thus tailor their purchases to signal what they wish to signal. Well, these things do signal fashion, taste, and tribal affiliation... but again, that's because we've communally decided they signal such things.

Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 10:23 AM (/FnUH)

60 Ace, you misspelled shibboleth.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:24 AM (0HooB)

61 Hey, remember when artists were all edgy and "spoke truth to power" and "stuck it to the man?" Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 02:23 PM (7ObY1) No. I remember when they were all leftist shills.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:24 AM (PYAXX)

62 Nicely done.  Anybody else noticed the actor buttoned both buttons of his suit jacket?  Looks weird.

That said, the car, and the attitude the ad projects, is sharp.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius at February 14, 2014 10:24 AM (BDU/a)

63 I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible. *** I will now whistle "Dixie" while drinking a beer... ...standing on my head... ...blindfolded.

Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at February 14, 2014 10:24 AM (g4TxM)

64 Here's what I think about electric cars.

I should be the ideal market for an electric car.  I don't need to worry about hauling around drunken midgets, I work within 10 miles of where I live and I mainly use my car to make Target and, yes, Trader Joe's runs. 


Had I been in an electric car when my 15 minute drive home from work took over an hour due to Snowmageddon, there is a very high probability that even if fully charged, my car would have died because of the extra time it took, the need to crank the heat all the way up to try to keep the windows defrosted and the minor fact that batteries discharge faster when it's cold out.


Hell.  No.   I am not buying a car that I cannot rely on to get me home even if I take the time to make sure the car is fully charged.   Hell.   No. 

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:24 AM (Gk3SS)

65 48 Sell it without subsidies and then come back and tell me it's "capitalist."Posted by: RoyalOil at February 14, 2014 02:21 PM (VjL9S)
It's the 21st century version of "capitalist".

Posted by: Bertram Cabot Jr. at February 14, 2014 10:25 AM (kVfSG)

66 Off sock!

Posted by: Country Singer at February 14, 2014 10:25 AM (L8r/r)

67 Also -- losing your job is an exciting opportunity.

Posted by: eleven at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (Hy7dS)

68 Show me the ad where a grizzled rancher unloads feed from his pickup for cattle out in the middle of nowhere deathscape desertville and then four wheels it back home to plug into his recharging station. Then you'll have something.

Posted by: Daybrother at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (qf1sn)

69 No. I remember when they were all leftist shills. That was sarcasm, my friend. They only spoke truth to power and stuck it to the man when "the man" was a Republican.

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (7ObY1)

70 If you like your garage fire, you can keep your garage fire. Posted by: wth
.........
Ha.  You noticed he kept it parked out on the driveway?

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (Z7PrM)

71 Well, these things do signal fashion, taste, and tribal affiliation... but again, that's because we've communally decided they signal such things. Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 02:23 PM (/FnUH) Perhaps. Although I'd note that it's a lot easier to decide that something outwardly (that is on display) says something about it. Indeed, how you spend your time and money is indeed your expression of self. The car is just a visible form of that. Other things may say something about you but they're just less obvious.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (GaqMa)

72 Hell. No. I am not buying a car that I cannot rely on to get me home even if I take the time to make sure the car is fully charged. Hell. No. Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 02:24 PM (Gk3SS) One of my Liberal brothers keeps trying to say how awesome electric cars are "in theory." My rejoinder is (and continues to be) "Get back to me when you repeal the laws of physics."

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (PYAXX)

73 re 43: see comment 3

Posted by: Mallfly at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (bJm7W)

74

McDonough had a fairly important role  in the earlier episodes of Band of Brothers too.

 

That didn't end well for him either,  if I recall. 

 

Had no idea about the no cursing/no sex scenes thing.  They came awfully close on Justified though.  We all know what he was doing with those young men.  Oh yes we do. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 10:26 AM (TOk1P)

75 How is Neal McDonough's role as Lynn 'Buck' Compton always overlooked?

Posted by: toby wan kenobi at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (QupBk)

76 I think the Caddy ad does a good job showing how rich you have to be to afford an electric car.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (zfY+H)

77 Its a nice swipe at the Cheese-eatiin'-surrender-monkeys, and socialism in general. They're trying to put the Government Motors thing to rest. Not gonna happen while the UAW runs them though.

Posted by: Iblis at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (U0ndG)

78 I have nothing against electric cars if they work as good as regular cars. There's nothing moral or immoral about gas vs electric cars. I just know that, for know, internal combustion engines vastly outperform electric batteries on price/performance basis. Gasoline is very energy dense. Much more so than current battery tech. And I'm unaware of any battery tech close to commercialization that will be competitive.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (ZPrif)

79 The commercial's great and I appreciate that they're trying to change the perception of the electric car.  It would have been nice to have an example of American greatness that wasn't from 30+ years ago.

Re. Tesla in Snow -- What is the top selling car in Norway?  Tesla Model S.

I realize many on the right like to conflate Tesla with Solyndra and Fisker, etc.  It's not the case.  Of course they take advantage of the federal tax credits.  You would too if you ran a business.  Once they've built 200,000 cars (another few yeats) those are gone.  They got a Federal Loan.  Horrors!  They've already paid it back with interest years ahead of schedule.

I'm not a Prius lover, but Toyota keeps selling them like hotcakes even after they've blown past the 200,000 limit.

Posted by: Fritz (not Fritz) at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (U0t2o)

80 It looks like Cadillac whiffed their effort. Battery technology just isn't really ready; not enough energy density. If, instead, they had put in a 275-350hp turbo-diesel with generator, a 100hp electric motor on each wheel, and a capacitor bank (to store braking energy, then dump it to the electric motors, for stop$#38;go traffic or maximum acceleration) they'd really have something. It seems that electric motors generate maximum torque at 0 (zero) RPM ... revving the TD up to maximum power output, with some trick software control of the electric power to the motors, the car could effectively max hp throughout its acceleration ... 275-300hp, with a boost from a 30kw-or-so cap bank, from a standing start to maximum speed, generates a lot of performance.

Posted by: Arbalest at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (FlRtG)

81 Yeah, that's Buck Compton from Band of Brothers....

Posted by: rc at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (9juRt)

82 Oh, and I'll never buy GM.

And I'd rather sock my money away in something that doesn't lose money as it gets older.

If that hurts my "status" with others, fine.

When they need $10k maybe they can borrow against the "equity" in their car.

No?




Posted by: RoyalOil at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (VjL9S)

83 How could a conservative not like a car that runs on coal?

Posted by: AmishDude at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (T0NGe)

84 Cadillac Ad Attempts the Impossible: Selling Electric Cars As A Pro-America, Patriotic, Anti-Socialist Statement of Principle


Cadillac, oh you mean that company that was bought out by Obama with my money and given to the unions?



I would not have one of those POS if they dropped it off at my house free.  And Ace, Cadillac has alway been the purview of all old men and women of wealth because it's name used to mean something in the 30s through the 50s.  They went to shit with the rest of GM in the late 70s.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (T2V/1)

85 I have nothing against electric cars if they work as good as regular cars. Which would be a problem.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (PYAXX)

86 You market an electric by appealing to stupidity and guilt, I suppose. There are old people who fit the bill, but rappers only have 50% or maybe Fitty Cent of that.

Posted by: tubal at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (YEQ2h)

87 Now that Julia Louis-Dreyfus is pimping O-Care I am SURE she's cancelled her plushy Screen Actor's Guild health insurance. Oh wait, all animals are created something something...

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (7ObY1)

88

Yeah, GM which accepted a government bailout and fucked over its bondholders is the new standard bearer of Old Fashioned American Values.

 

Ptooey.

Posted by: @JohnTant at February 14, 2014 10:27 AM (PFy0L)

89 Why don't we have an electric car with a steam-powered alternator? It would take a very small steam plant and dodge all the problems of running out of battery power every 40 miles.

Posted by: Chris Balsz at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (5xmd7)

90 Everybody who starts this anthropology bullshit about what cars do and don't mean is really dying to be asked, "So what do you drive?"

Followed by Car Thread, I Used To Have A, and a round of That POS.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (xq1UY)

91 This ad would've been much more fitting if it'd been for a gasoline-powered Ford F-2500 Earthfucker* Pickup Truck. *shamelessly stolen from earlier thread.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (0HooB)

92 Neal McDonough refuses to do sex scenes or use profanity , huh?

But insinuating that his character sexually abuses gay men to death - totally OK.


You know, I think that IS actually consistent, strange as it seems.


He did make an outstanding Psycho on Justified, though. I even felt a little bit of it creep in while watching that Cadillac ad.


Posted by: West at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (1Rgee)

93 FWIW, I buy Starbucks because I don't like the taste of straight regular coffee, and hot drinks put me to sleep. Starbucks pioneered mass acceptance of candy flavored coffee served both hot and cold. Therefore, I'm on Team Starbucks.

Posted by: arminius at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (cDnhR)

94 A while back I was at lunch with some bidness associates and the discussion got to electric cars. Everyone there pretty much agreed if the cost made sense and the ease of "fueling up" was there, they'd consider one.

I'd love a Tesla. They're just too damn expensive for what you get. In 5 years, the price might come down to where it might be affordable.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (0LHZx)

95 Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 02:24 PM (Gk3SS) Indeed. Until they get something resembling real mileage, I think they won't catch on. That's why the Volt was an intriguing concept. Electric car with gas backup. Having said that, when going out to dinner the other night I turned on my wife's car to find the tank more or less empty. So...there's that too .

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (GaqMa)

96 "Drunken midgets" I larfed.

Posted by: eleven at February 14, 2014 10:28 AM (Hy7dS)

97 About 20 years ago Microsoft proved that with a 200 Million dollar advertising budget that you could sell absolute crap to everyone. Surely you remember the progression of great disasters in human history? Vesuvius 79, Chernobyl 86, Windows 95.

Posted by: [/i] [/s] [/u] [/b] An Observation at February 14, 2014 10:29 AM (ylhEn)

98 >>I don't understand why Cadillac woul make the vehicle at all when they've got so far to go to appeal to the regular customer base. Seems risky, unless there's already some demand (or more likely EPA enforces breathing down their necks). Hmm. Why would a car company owned by the government begin developing electric cars across their brands when demand seems so low. Yea, gonna have to sit back and ponder that one for a while.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 10:29 AM (g1DWB)

99 Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty officially debuted at cpac in 2013. Besides the fact that the antidp movement is based on lies, this group is a front for a group Equal Justice USA run by George Soros. CPAC needs to vet the groups they allow to set up t their convention. This is bullshit.

Posted by: Judge Pug at February 14, 2014 10:29 AM (rfCrI)

100

I"ve noticed that in my neck of the woods, the push for EVs is in full swing.  Free charging stations are cropping up left and right.

These toys get a tax credit, no fuel taxes and free charging.  Who are the ones buying them?  I sure as shit can't afford a Tesla.

Posted by: Wyatt's Torch at February 14, 2014 10:29 AM (E0EDC)

101 "How is Neal McDonough's role as Lynn 'Buck' Compton always overlooked?"
Not by me, I loved that role. He's a great actor, always enjoy his work.
"What is the top selling car in Norway? Tesla Model S."
Well that's not exactly accurate. A lot of them are moving but they're so heavily subsidized its not so much people buying them as paying part of the fee to own one while the government buys them.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:29 AM (zfY+H)

102 57 I saw a Pious whilst driving in to work this morning...it was sporting a PSE Archery sticker on the back. I remain puzzled. Posted by: Bawney Fwank at February 14, 2014 02:23 PM (L8r/r) I saw one in 2012 with a Romney sticker on it...in Connecticut. I had to go home and lay down.

Posted by: [/i][/b][/u][/s] Tami at February 14, 2014 10:30 AM (bCEmE)

103 A great add, nice looking car. I'll be honest and say it seemed to work on me.

Posted by: Still no sign of sig at February 14, 2014 10:30 AM (q177U)

104 91 This ad would've been much more fitting if it'd been for a gasoline-powered Ford F-2500 Earthfucker* Pickup Truck.
===========
Canyonero!!!

Posted by: RoyalOil at February 14, 2014 10:30 AM (VjL9S)

105 Having said that, when going out to dinner the other night I turned on my wife's car to find the tank more or less empty. So...there's that too . Yeah, but if you run out of gas, your motor just stops. If you drive your car until the battery dies, you *can* (though it happens less now) brick the whole thing.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:31 AM (PYAXX)

106 Great ad, but I would prefer a CTS-V.

Posted by: stace at February 14, 2014 10:31 AM (9PXzx)

107 59 It's a cultural thing yeah, but a car says as much about you as your clothes these days. ... Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 02:23 PM (/FnUH)
My car says that I am not walking. My clothes say that I am not naked.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot Jr. at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (kVfSG)

108 I like the commercial. I'm never buying a GM but I like the commercial.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (0LHZx)

109 If America is such a "fuck you world, we do things our way", why would we let some pussy sell us anything without a turbocharger, slicks and at least a 454 in it? Oh, and a Confederate flag on top would be a nice touch! The most interesting man in the world might have something to say about this.

Posted by: Guy Fawkes at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (Djwm9)

110 Ike driving an electric car, 1952:
http://www.econogics.com/ev/EAA/fmsevers/ike.jpg

What could be more conservative?

Posted by: PersonFromPorlock at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (lILC0)

111 From what I remember of German culture, they do a lot of vacations as well, although I don't know if they take a whole month off at a time. It sounds like a cool idea, if you don't think of work as important or necessary, I guess.

Posted by: Barb the Evil Genius at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (yE8uc)

112 Anti-socialist?  By selling a vehicle with a greater subsidy than Solyndra?

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:32 AM (AskuI)

113 Electric cars need batteries that are lighter weight, smaller in volume, and have much higher energy densities. They also need to be able to be quick-charged in a time comparable to refueling a gasoline-powered car. Battery tech is not there yet. It's not clear when it will be. Battery tech is good enough for many markets, like the electric bike market or the upscale, status symbol car market. Batteries keep slowly improving. But we need dramatic improvements to compete with ICEs (internal combustion engines).

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (ZPrif)

114 Electric cars don't 'voom' when you hit the gas. Electric cars whine.

Posted by: --- at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (MMC8r)

115 You want to move product, you need some elbows.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (RhERp)

116 I thought people doing electric car commercials were required to wear a 'onesie".

Posted by: Judge Roy Bean at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (cCxiu)

117 Really?  Really?  What difference at this point does it make?!!?!?1!?1//1/?/??

Posted by: Hillary Clinton at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (GjPnA)

118 One of my Liberal brothers keeps trying to say how awesome electric cars are "in theory." My rejoinder is (and continues to be) "Get back to me when you repeal the laws of physics." Electric cars have been produced here for over 100 years. If, after all that time and all the scientific advances, they still aren't better than gasoline-powered cars, we should've learned a lesson. It's like wind and solar power: if it made sense, we'd already be doing it.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:33 AM (0HooB)

119 Awesome ad. Will not buy car. (It's electric and too expensive.)

Posted by: chique d'afrique (the artist formerly known as african chick) at February 14, 2014 10:34 AM (r+7wo)

120 It looks like Cadillac whiffed their effort. Battery technology just isn't really ready; not enough energy density.

Posted by: Arbalest
............
It's a plug-in hybrid.  Best of both worlds.  It's got a 4 cylinder engine/generator besides the electric engine.

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:34 AM (Z7PrM)

121 RE:  Tesla - I was stuck in traffic a few weeks ago behind a cherry red Tesla Roadster.

I very nearly got out of my car to go lick it. 



Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:34 AM (Gk3SS)

122 ---at"... you mean they whine like the drivers?

Posted by: tubal at February 14, 2014 10:34 AM (YEQ2h)

123 from now on it's Mazda / Honda only.  Maybe a Ford, but almost certainly not


we've got two Malibus, old and decaying, and they've been a Pain in the Ass

Posted by: Jules ( turning Chinese ) at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (omBWL)

124 Someone forgot to tell the GM marketing guys about how     working much less is a good thing....

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (AskuI)

125 Corvette engine in a Cadillac? Sonnyboy, in my day, when the Corvette had the Blue Flame straight six and a two-speed automatic (not a bad engine BTW), you put a Cadillac into the Corvette.

Bob Lutz committed perhaps up to half the moral failings I hold against GM. Nevertheless, he's partnered with some fatcats who are trying to buy up the Fisker bodies, smack that stupid smirk off their face, and install Corvette drivelines. And for that he deserves my grudging respect. So, consider it grudged.

I know where there's about 8 Corvette drivelines available cheap. In a hole in Ky.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (xq1UY)

126 They've been trying to make a working electric car since the 1800s and they still haven't got there yet. This is like working hard to get rabbits to be big enough to ride when you live on a farm with 50 horses: we already have the technology you're trying to create. Cheap, powerful vehicles.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (zfY+H)

127 If you run out of gas you can fill up a gallon gas tank at a local gas station. It really is an amazing amount of portable liquid energy.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (ZPrif)

128 Electric cars whine.

Posted by: --- at February 14, 2014 02:33 PM (MMC8r)


Just like so many of their lefty owners.

Posted by: Retread at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (G+w7R)

129 The only electric car for the Cadillac buyer is a golf cart.

Posted by: --- at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (MMC8r)

130 >>From what I remember of German culture, they do a lot of vacations as well, although I don't know if they take a whole month off at a time. It sounds like a cool idea, if you don't think of work as important or necessary, I guess. The French and the Italians are the worst in my experience. I've actually had an Italian tell me when I was trying to schedule a meeting in August that they would be closed. Not one or two people, not for a couple weeks, the entire company for all of August. Can't understand why they aren't leading the world in productivity. They sure are rested.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (g1DWB)

131 I LOVED this damn ad. Particularly the part about-- "..got a car up there, left the keys in it--know why? Cuz we're the only ones going back up there--that's why!"

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (RJMhd)

132 Battery tech is not there yet. It's not clear when that it will be. Fixed for accuracy. Right now the only thing we've got is "We need some unobtainium." I mean, just look at your checklist: Lighter weight, smaller volume, more power (so not just more energy density, but likely more than an order of magnitude more), able to be quick charged (which also assumes being able to survive the quick-charging process enough times to be economically viable). Is there any suggestion that such a material is even on the horizon?

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:35 AM (PYAXX)

133 also, the local plods use GM sedans as unmarked cars.  I - 95 is full of them


bad ju-ju

Posted by: Jules ( turning Chinese ) at February 14, 2014 10:36 AM (omBWL)

134 102 57 I saw a Pious whilst driving in to work this morning...it was sporting a PSE Archery sticker on the back. I remain puzzled.


Posted by: Bawney Fwank at February 14, 2014 02:23 PM (L8r/r)


I saw one in 2012 with a Romney sticker on it...in Connecticut.

I had to go home and lay down.

Posted by: Tami at February 14, 2014 02:30 PM (bCEmE)


_____________


Sit down for this one....


I see a Subaru Forster (yes a Forester) with a  Choose Life sticker on it around my 'hood. A Subaru driving so-con is one things. A Subaru **FORESTER** so-con...dude that's like take a picture cuz you'll never see this thing again type of rarity.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:36 AM (0LHZx)

135 I'm opposed to electric cars for two reasons; 1. Tax credits to purchase them? Screw that. Let the buyer buy what he wants. Why should my tax dollars get passed to Joan Sixpack to subsidize her purchase? 2. When they get used on the highway, beating up the roads like every other car, they aren't paying toward the cost of that abuse in fuel taxes like those included in every gallon of gasoline or diesel. No slick advertisement is ever going to change my mind about that. 'Going green' is a lifestyle decision, but pay your own way, deadbeat. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ This. x 1000!

Posted by: rickb223 at February 14, 2014 10:36 AM (GjYxB)

136 Someone forgot to tell the GM marketing guys about how working much less is a good thing....

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 02:35 PM (AskuI)


No doubt they will get a phone call from the White House.

Posted by: Retread at February 14, 2014 10:36 AM (G+w7R)

137 I swear my alter ego wrote this DAMN commercial. SUCK IT MORONS!!!!!

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (RJMhd)

138 Here is the more popular electric Cadillac among conservatives.

http://www.cutecarts.com/caddy.cfm

Posted by: Buzzsaw at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (tf9Ne)

139

Surely you remember the progression of great disasters in human history? Vesuvius 79, Chernobyl 86, Windows 95.

 

-

 

I'd kill for windows95 back.  The last time I had a computer that I didn't have to reboot constantly?  A Compaq, running 95.  Both gone.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (AskuI)

140 a lot of German factories shut down for all of August.  Many other holidays, there are.  Nov 1, May 1---- saints and commies

Posted by: Jules ( turning Chinese ) at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (omBWL)

141 When someone makes a 3/4 Ton with a 650 mile range, I will consider one.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (RhERp)

142 130 >>From what I remember of German culture, they do a lot of vacations as well, although I don't know if they take a whole month off at a time. It sounds like a cool idea, if you don't think of work as important or necessary, I guess.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 02:35 PM (g1DWB)


_________


Oh yeah they take a lot of vacay too, August is pretty much a holiday in all of W. Europe.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (0LHZx)

143 About 20 years ago Microsoft proved that with a 200 Million dollar advertising budget that you could sell absolute crap to everyone. Surely you remember the progression of great disasters in human history? Vesuvius 79, Chernobyl 86, Windows 95.
Posted by: An Observation

Then they disproved it with Bob

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (4JkHl)

144 Well, it's anecdotal, but my husband sells Caddys here in Central FL and they've had two of the new ELRs in. Both of them were sold within a few hours of arriving at the lot. And, again anecdotally, you would be surprised at the age shift of Caddy buyers. They're really beautiful cars and the age range on the typical buyer is still older, but it is getting younger every year. Lots of mid-40s business types come in to buy as well as the retirees.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 10:37 AM (qFpRI)

145

It's nice that Cadillac came up with an ad that, you know, targets the cars fucking buyers!!!

 

B/c all of us w/o a Swiss bank account but successful in our own right.  Yeah, we exist.  We're the 85% of the people paying taxes you mofos.

Posted by: prescient11 at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (tVTLU)

146 The ELR is not a pure electric. Like the Volt on which it's based, it has a "range extender" gas engine for when the battery runs low or there is more power demand.

Posted by: Waterhouse at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (t8ySh)

147 Well I will give them credit, it's the best car ad I have seen in a while. The dogs driving the subaru's are pretty funny. But this is far and away better than those Honda "today" ads which is the worst thing on tv right now.

Posted by: Adam Smith's Invisible Pimp Hand at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (WdbF7)

148 "we already have the technology you're trying to create. Cheap, powerful vehicles." yep. The main upside is we can, potentially, use less polluting sources of electricity for electric cars. Natural gas or nuclear power plants vs gasoline combustion. Of course, we lose a lot of energy transporting that electricity around the country.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (ZPrif)

149 So,,how you doin?

Posted by: Cherry Red Tesla Roadster. at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (GjPnA)

150 The only reason there's this flood of electric cars and charging stations out there now is massive federal subsidies and tax breaks. There's no demand, the cars aren't any better, and they are still insanely overpriced. But there's a ton of product being made and pushed at us.
Imagine what an electric or hybrid does for your auto line for CAFE standards. Average mileage is way down.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:38 AM (zfY+H)

151 Is it based on the Volt? Then it SUCKS and should fail miserably.

Posted by: © Sponge at February 14, 2014 10:39 AM (xmcEQ)

152 Just curious, is this re-badged car called the Cimmaron II?

Posted by: drill_thrawl at February 14, 2014 10:39 AM (rdiUQ)

153

Out of context, McDonough's monologue is kick-ass. But climbing into that stupid electric car really killed the buzz quickly.

Kind of like a manly man doing an ad for Maker's Mark, then walking into a church to attend an AA meeting.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Ready to get Liquored Up at February 14, 2014 10:39 AM (K+mtQ)

154 yeah Windows 95 was a pretty good product. Its every other version of Win that is horrible. Windows 8 being the latest piece of trash.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:39 AM (zfY+H)

155 Is there any suggestion that such a material is even on the horizon? Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It.

Other then gasoline?

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 10:40 AM (4JkHl)

156 I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil.

Posted by: Mike H at February 14, 2014 10:40 AM (LllJT)

157 I LOVED this damn ad.

Particularly the part about--

"..got a car up there, left the keys in it--know why?

Cuz we're the only ones going back up there--that's why!" Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 02:35 PM (RJMhd)


I liked the one kid building a model of a double helix. 

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:40 AM (Gk3SS)

158 Surreal this is like selling Das Kapital as a treatiste on economic growth and innovation..... Govt Motors just the folk to tell you how great Rugged Individualism....

Posted by: sven10077 at February 14, 2014 10:40 AM (bZFdW)

159 Other then gasoline? Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 02:40 PM (4JkHl) Well, we *were* talking about electric vehicles... so, yeah- "other than gasoline."

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:40 AM (PYAXX)

160 I LOVE this ad! Fantastic. I hope they follow up with other ads like this.

Posted by: debiesam at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (BIngp)

161 I agree. Battery tech has advances very slowly for decades despite billions thrown at the tech by every big country and big industry. A lot of people I know think battery tech has advanced because their iPad lasts all day. No, computer chips have gotten much more energy efficient and your iPad has a giant battery in it.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (ZPrif)

162 144 Well, it's anecdotal, but my husband sells Caddys here in Central FL and they've had two of the new ELRs in. Both of them were sold within a few hours of arriving at the lot. And, again anecdotally, you would be surprised at the age shift of Caddy buyers. They're really beautiful cars and the age range on the typical buyer is still older, but it is getting younger every year. Lots of mid-40s business types come in to buy as well as the retirees.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 02:37 PM (qFpRI)


_____________

If it weren't made by GM, I'd be all over the CTS. But I will never buy a Big 3 union made care as along as I live.


Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (0LHZx)

163 Caddy looks like Toyota/Infiniti/Nissan/Mercedes - which means it looks like a suppository with wheels. I really don't see how they differentiate themselves - they all look the same. Noticed this at the DC Car Show - all the cars, except for the Fiat and Mini, looked alike. So how exactly do you tribally mark yourself when all the bling looks alike?

Posted by: Chaos the other dark meat at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (oDCMR)

164 I've added a bunch of updates, including one that notes that this ad rips off the basic concept of the Dollar Shave Club ad.

Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (/FnUH)

165 I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars Besides the facts that they suck and my tax dollars are going to subsidize them? I can't for the life of me think of a reason.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:41 AM (PYAXX)

166 Yeah, oil is magic technology that we're trying replicate. If only we had some magical, energy dense, portable liquid we could use to power stuff!

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (ZPrif)

167 Yeah, oil is magic technology that we're trying replicate. If only we had some magical, energy dense, portable liquid we could use to power stuff!

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (ZPrif)

168 Still not buying it (the Cadillac).


Posted by: looking closely at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (6Q9g2)

169 Still not buying it (the Cadillac).


Posted by: looking closely at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (6Q9g2)

170 A few more plug in electrical cars and the infrastructure will fail. Need moar transmission lines and power plants. In the summertime the power system is on full load now. When they start building more generation and delivery I will know they are getting serious.

Posted by: Bob from table9 at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (jsa6I)

171 A few more plug in electrical cars and the infrastructure will fail. Need moar transmission lines and power plants. In the summertime the power system is on full load now. When they start building more generation and delivery I will know they are getting serious.

Posted by: Bob from table9 at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (jsa6I)

172 156 I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil.

Posted by: Mike H at February 14, 2014 02:40 PM (LllJT)


________


Because liberals like electric cars, it means we must hate them. Didn't you read 10 Rules For Being a True Conservative? Sheesh.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (0LHZx)

173 156 I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil.

Posted by: Mike H at February 14, 2014 02:40 PM (LllJT)


________


Because liberals like electric cars, it means we must hate them. Didn't you read 10 Rules For Being a True Conservative? Sheesh.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:42 AM (0LHZx)

174 Neal McDonough refuses to do sex scenes or use profanity , huh? But insinuating that his character sexually abuses gay men to death - totally OK. You know, I think that IS actually consistent, strange as it seems. Sex scenes and profanity are things that he has to do as an actor. Things that are said about his character are about his character. It doesn't seem like he is making a big soapboxy statement about such things, it's just that he doesn't want to do them.

Posted by: AmishDude at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (T0NGe)

175 Neal McDonough refuses to do sex scenes or use profanity , huh? But insinuating that his character sexually abuses gay men to death - totally OK. You know, I think that IS actually consistent, strange as it seems. Sex scenes and profanity are things that he has to do as an actor. Things that are said about his character are about his character. It doesn't seem like he is making a big soapboxy statement about such things, it's just that he doesn't want to do them.

Posted by: AmishDude at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (T0NGe)

176

Basically as an old conservative man.  Major strikes against this Caddy.

1. Government Motors

2. Electric Car

3. Government Motors

4. Government Motors

I would rather walk than buy a new Government Motors car or truck.  That goes for Chrysler too.  I am sure that I am not the only one who feels this way.

Posted by: Truck Monkey, Gruntled New Business Owner at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (jucos)

177

Basically as an old conservative man.  Major strikes against this Caddy.

1. Government Motors

2. Electric Car

3. Government Motors

4. Government Motors

I would rather walk than buy a new Government Motors car or truck.  That goes for Chrysler too.  I am sure that I am not the only one who feels this way.

Posted by: Truck Monkey, Gruntled New Business Owner at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (jucos)

178 >>>I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil. i was never against electric cars until the government began subsidizing them/mandating them.

Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (/FnUH)

179 156 Mike H, We can tell the ME to go fuck itself tomorrow if we get EPA's chokehold on the energy sector. We haven't built a new refinery in decades AFAIK.

Posted by: sven10077 at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (bZFdW)

180 >>>I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil. i was never against electric cars until the government began subsidizing them/mandating them.

Posted by: ace at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (/FnUH)

181 156 Mike H, We can tell the ME to go fuck itself tomorrow if we get EPA's chokehold on the energy sector. We haven't built a new refinery in decades AFAIK.

Posted by: sven10077 at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (bZFdW)

182

The  Cadillac sedans look like  slightly fancier  Chevy Malibus. 

 

So I always figure  half the cost of the thing is the car, the other half is that pretty emblem on the front. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (TOk1P)

183

The  Cadillac sedans look like  slightly fancier  Chevy Malibus. 

 

So I always figure  half the cost of the thing is the car, the other half is that pretty emblem on the front. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (TOk1P)

184

I'm through with "American" cars. There's no way that I'd buy a GM after they screwed over so many people with the bailout.

2 of my 3 Fords have been eating money. My Escape has peeling paint that Ford won't address unless I sue them. Chrysler is an Italian company now.

The Canadian made Lexus has been a dream. ZERO breakage in 80,000 miles.
I'm looking for a North American made "foreign" label next. I'm sorry that I won't be getting another Mustang GT Convertible but I just can't risk having to pour more time and money into a daily driver.

Posted by: Max Entropy at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (cgtTL)

185

I'm through with "American" cars. There's no way that I'd buy a GM after they screwed over so many people with the bailout.

2 of my 3 Fords have been eating money. My Escape has peeling paint that Ford won't address unless I sue them. Chrysler is an Italian company now.

The Canadian made Lexus has been a dream. ZERO breakage in 80,000 miles.
I'm looking for a North American made "foreign" label next. I'm sorry that I won't be getting another Mustang GT Convertible but I just can't risk having to pour more time and money into a daily driver.

Posted by: Max Entropy at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (cgtTL)

186 No sex scenes? As I recall, his character on Justified (Peace Be Unto @YesNickSearcy) used to finish the evenings by gay sado-sexing young boys to death. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Posted by: motion view (@motionview) at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (e6TyM)

187 No sex scenes? As I recall, his character on Justified (Peace Be Unto @YesNickSearcy) used to finish the evenings by gay sado-sexing young boys to death. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Posted by: motion view (@motionview) at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (e6TyM)

188 "I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars "
Its not actually the cars we dislike. They're okay for what they give you; if you are really rich and need a car to get to work and back (provided you live close to work) fine.
What we don't care for is having them shoved down our throats with our own tax dollars. We recognize them for what they are: a dream project with virtually no chance of success, 19th century technology being pushed on us despite the tech being unequal to the task.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (zfY+H)

189

I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil.

-

We don't need their oil now, assuming that the regime were to open up drilling on public land.  Within a few years, we will be outproducing Saudi.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (AskuI)

190 "I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars "
Its not actually the cars we dislike. They're okay for what they give you; if you are really rich and need a car to get to work and back (provided you live close to work) fine.
What we don't care for is having them shoved down our throats with our own tax dollars. We recognize them for what they are: a dream project with virtually no chance of success, 19th century technology being pushed on us despite the tech being unequal to the task.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (zfY+H)

191

I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars. I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil.

-

We don't need their oil now, assuming that the regime were to open up drilling on public land.  Within a few years, we will be outproducing Saudi.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (AskuI)

192 How much is the avg subsidy per electric car? 1) How much is it per purchase? 2) How much is it in annual operating costs? Many HOV lanes let electric cars use them. That's a subsidy.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (ZPrif)

193 How much is the avg subsidy per electric car? 1) How much is it per purchase? 2) How much is it in annual operating costs? Many HOV lanes let electric cars use them. That's a subsidy.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (ZPrif)

194 I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil. Posted by: Mike H

We could do that right now.  Without the electric cars, burning oil from our own hemisphere.

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (4JkHl)

195 I PRAY for the day when we can tell the middle east and the rest of OPEC to go F%*K a camel because we have absolutely no need for their oil. Posted by: Mike H

We could do that right now.  Without the electric cars, burning oil from our own hemisphere.

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (4JkHl)

196 Of course, we lose a lot of energy transporting that electricity around the country. Posted by: Flatbush
.............
Micro-nukes in every neighborhood.. that's the ticket!

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (Z7PrM)

197 Of course, we lose a lot of energy transporting that electricity around the country. Posted by: Flatbush
.............
Micro-nukes in every neighborhood.. that's the ticket!

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:43 AM (Z7PrM)

198 Anyone use Dollar Shave Club? Been thinking about joining, but don't know anyone who has.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (RhERp)

199 Anyone use Dollar Shave Club? Been thinking about joining, but don't know anyone who has.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (RhERp)

200 It's not as if I'm opposed to all things battery powered. Batteries *are* getting better and lighter. I bought a battery powered vacuum cleaner recently and I luv the little sucker. No more power cord, you flit from room to room quickly, and the battery lasts just about as long as I feel like using it. Battery powered vacuum cleaner? It's time had come. Automobiles aren't there yet. Certainly not to the point that they deserve any sort of subsidy.

Posted by: Regular Moron [/i] at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (CnA98)

201 It's not as if I'm opposed to all things battery powered. Batteries *are* getting better and lighter. I bought a battery powered vacuum cleaner recently and I luv the little sucker. No more power cord, you flit from room to room quickly, and the battery lasts just about as long as I feel like using it. Battery powered vacuum cleaner? It's time had come. Automobiles aren't there yet. Certainly not to the point that they deserve any sort of subsidy.

Posted by: Regular Moron [/i] at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (CnA98)

202 It's insane for the US Govt to be subsidizing luxury status goods for the Ruling Class to lord over the peasantry.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (ZPrif)

203 It's insane for the US Govt to be subsidizing luxury status goods for the Ruling Class to lord over the peasantry.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (ZPrif)

204 I was given to understand that the charging stations were already on the decline. Several private-public partnerships (read "rent-seekers") had the subsidy run out.

That car we left on the moon? Mostly Philco-Ford, some Studebaker components. Not a god damned GM part on it. Not that the cokeheads at the ad agency care.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 10:44 AM (xq1UY)

205 Imagine what an electric or hybrid does for your auto line for CAFE standards. Average mileage is way down. Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 02:38 PM (zfY+H) We just put some cash down on new Yukon XL. They won't put all-terrain tires on it for us because that would mess with their fleet CAFE mileage. We're going to have to get the good tires put on after market.

Posted by: stace at February 14, 2014 10:45 AM (9PXzx)

206 The people that push hardest for electric cars are also closing all the coal plants. And going NIMBY on all other types of electrical generating facilities.

They are of the mind that electricity is magic since they can't see it.

Posted by: Buzzsaw at February 14, 2014 10:45 AM (tf9Ne)

207 As great as the bear is in the Dollar Shave Club commercial, and it is great, I think the random machete use is my favorite part. 

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:45 AM (Gk3SS)

208 you should join the dollar shave club and shave in your new electric Caddy


zen...

Posted by: Jules ( turning Chinese ) at February 14, 2014 10:45 AM (omBWL)

209 For me, the Catch-22 with electric cars is this-

They'd be a good second car for people like me who have a short (11 mile round trip) commute through city streets.

But having a short commute means I don't buy a lot of gas, so I wouldn't save enough money to justify the cost.

Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 10:45 AM (SY2Kh)

210 >>Anyone use Dollar Shave Club? >>Been thinking about joining, but don't know anyone who has. I thought you were a beard guy.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (g1DWB)

211 Most of the money for those chargers were in the American Recovery Act, which is all used up now. Amazingly enough, the public didn't rush to buy overpriced, underpowered cars with a short range.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (zfY+H)

212 I really don't understand why conservatives have such hard ons against electric cars.

My parents live 531 miles from my house. I don't have enough PTO days in a whole year to make the drive to their house and back in an electric car.

I'm tired of people telling me I'm unreasonable because I wish to be able to go further than a ten-mile radius from my home.

Posted by: HR at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (ZKzrr)

213 I'll stick with my Wagon Queen Family Truckster, thank you very much.

Posted by: toby wan kenobi at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (QupBk)

214 We don't need their oil now, assuming that the regime were to open up drilling on public land. Within a few years, we will be outproducing Saudi.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 02:43 PM (AskuI)


___________


We will be outproducing Saudi. But not outproducing Saudi, Kuwait, Iran, Oman, UAE, Mexico, Russia, Venezuela, Brazil combined.


We consume more oil than we can produce, even if all the public lands were available tomorrow and fully operational.



Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (0LHZx)

215

And another thing, anyone who does business with Europeans knows how absolutely insane it is trying to get something done in August.

 

Good luck.  I'm amazed they haven't collapsed as of yet.

Posted by: prescient11 at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (tVTLU)

216 I was given to understand that the charging stations were already on the decline. Several private-public partnerships (read "rent-seekers") had the subsidy run out. They're still popping up here & there. But that's the other problem, of course- I don't want a car that I have to "gas up" at every single stop. Sometimes I want to pull up to the curb while someone runs in and grabs something and then runs back out. For a gas (or diesel) powered car- no problem. For an electric? Well, you won't want to do it very often in one trip.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:46 AM (PYAXX)

217 No new GM products for me. Effem. And I truly don't give a crap about status stuff. That's probably why I've only bought a new car once (so the wife would have a more reliable car with a new baby in the house).
 
So I guess this Neal feller wouldn't make a good Jules for a Pulp Fiction remake. He can do the ultraviolence, but "Say what again, buttercup. Say what one more time. " just doesn't have the same zing.

Posted by: GnuBreed at February 14, 2014 10:47 AM (cHZB7)

218 lick it ? oh ..so it was a female car then.

Posted by: Chamuco at February 14, 2014 10:47 AM (qQk+U)

219 The problem with battery technology is a technology issue. It has nothing to do with whether liberals like electric cars or not. Only an idiot would say that.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:47 AM (ZPrif)

220 I drive a gas car specifically to gunt-punch that bitch Gaia.

Posted by: --- at February 14, 2014 10:47 AM (MMC8r)

221 I have 2 Hondas now.  One I own has 300,000 miles on it and requires minimal maintenance.  It is accidental that I still own it because I had no idea that cars could last this long.  The Honda place says that they see my same Civic roll through there with as many as 600k miles on them.  I wish I would have taken a bit better asthetic care of the thing.

Posted by: Truck Monkey, Gruntled New Business Owner at February 14, 2014 10:47 AM (jucos)

222 My Hyundai Santa Fe is approaching 170,000 miles and still runs fine.  Been looking for a new car lately, but I will probably go back to Hyundai again as they are one of the few auto makers with a decent warranty.  ForD? Chevy? still 3yr/36,000 miles.  I reach 36,000 in two years.  Fuck 'em.

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (Z7PrM)

223 Not sure about the product, but a great ad. The only way this would be more of a smack is if he grabbed his wife, swept her into a kiss and then kept walking. I also liked when he hi-fived his kid as he walked by.

Posted by: Aetius451AD at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (TGgNi)

224

156 -

 

That's  nice.  In the mean time, the cars are unreliable, the rabid environmentalists  (in and out of government)  have effectively stopped any new nuclear power plants from being built, and the Sierra club  types are trying to get your old coal burning plants shut down. 

 

If you think fuel is expensive now,  wait until we stop needing oil. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (TOk1P)

225 As previously mentioned, the sole reason alone not to by it is "GM".

Posted by: Gmac - pondering the stupidity, wishing it burned at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (4pjhs)

226 Good commercial but ugly car. Caddys are just fugly to me the last 10 years or so.

Posted by: Schwalbe: The Me-262© at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (9Bdcz)

227 "Only an idiot would say that."
You must not have noticed who wrote the comment.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (zfY+H)

228 Of course random machete use is your favorite part! By the way I will be celebrating half price chocolate day in solidarity with you tomorrow. I hope I will still be able to get candy conversation hearts too because I totally forgot to buy some for my kid this year.

Posted by: ParanoidGirlinSeattle at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (RZ8pf)

229 "Let's put aside their technical problems. . ."

Uhm, that's where you lost me.

Posted by: Marmota monax, It's a type of squirrel at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (trum0)

230

We consume more oil than we can produce, even if all the public lands were available tomorrow and fully operational.

-

Just watch.  we will be a net exporter, if the feds will once again allow it.  Texas alone will produce more than Russia on a monthly rate this year.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:48 AM (AskuI)

231 lol @ Chamuco

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 10:49 AM (Z7PrM)

232 Some people I know charge where they work. I imagine there is some sort of tax break for this huge corporate hq that is by me. But every time I run by their parking garage the lower floor has a charging station that is always busy.

Posted by: Adam Smith's Invisible Pimp Hand at February 14, 2014 10:49 AM (WdbF7)

233 190 For me, the Catch-22 with electric cars is this- They'd be a good second car for people like me who have a short (11 mile round trip) commute through city streets. But having a short commute means I don't buy a lot of gas, so I wouldn't save enough money to justify the cost. Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 02:45 PM (SY2Kh) We generally buy used cars. I home school the kiddos, so my driving every week is 18 miles (round trip) to Mass on Sunday morning and two miles total to get groceries on Monday. So we bought a used Ford Fusion hybrid. I fill up once every month to month and a half. I've stretched it out to two months before. It's worked out really well for us.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 10:49 AM (qFpRI)

234 Of course random machete use is your favorite part! By the way I will be celebrating half price chocolate day in solidarity with you tomorrow. I hope I will still be able to get candy conversation hearts too because I totally forgot to buy some for my kid this year. Posted by: ParanoidGirlinSeattle at February 14, 2014 02:48 PM (RZ8pf)


*fist bump*


Half Price Chocolate Day is the happiest day of the year.

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:49 AM (Gk3SS)

235 170 Neal McDonough refuses to do sex scenes or use profanity , huh?

According to Hollywood legend actor Patrick McGoohan (The Prisoner), turned down the original cinematic role of James Bond in Dr. No, because he thought the character was immoral.   He also turned down the lead role in The Saint, for similar reasons.



Posted by: looking closely at February 14, 2014 10:49 AM (PwGfd)

236 Electric bikes are selling very well in many parts of the world. Battery tech has advanced to the point where electric brikes are useful and reliable and convenient and affordable. And they don't have to be subsidized. People are buying them on their own merits. That's all I want.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (ZPrif)

237 There once was a time when cadillac was the ultimate car. They were fast, powerful luxurious, comfortable, and looked amazing. They were the combination of everything you want in a car.
Now they're just expensive, although I guess the SRX is fast at least.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (zfY+H)

238 I doubt that rappers would go for the electric caddy... The thing would stop cold once the 15" subwoofers kick in.

Posted by: Weew at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (JnmYX)

239 We consume more oil than we can produce, even if all the public lands were available tomorrow and fully operational. You should recheck your sources.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (0HooB)

240 207 I have a problem with a lot of the GM styling. They seem to still want to emphasize sharp lines (fenders, hoods, etc.) I am sorry, I like curvy cars with a nice ass. Not hard planes up front and a gigantic rounded rear end. I am not voting for Hillary folks.

Posted by: Aetius451AD at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (TGgNi)

241 Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 02:50 PM (ZPrif) If I can get it without the side order of sanctimoniousness, that would be better.

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 10:50 AM (PYAXX)

242

He famously refuses to do any sex scenes (or, I think, even use profanity) in his roles because he considers that part of his Catholic principles. (On the other hand, he plays psychotic villains a lot, and so he does all the violence and menacing stuff.)

 

 

----------------------------------------------

 

 

I guess it comes naturally to Catholics for some reason or other.

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (nFviW)

243 I thought you were a beard guy. Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 02:46 PM (g1DWB) The neck beard gets shaved.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (RhERp)

244 84 VIC

Cadillac Ad Attempts the Impossible: Selling Electric Cars As A Pro-America, Patriotic, Anti-Socialist Statement of Principle


Cadillac, oh you mean that company that was bought out by Obama with my money and given to the unions?

_________________________________
Vic

When I first read your post, it came out
"given to unicorns" in my head.  Funny that


Posted by: NCwoof at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (aUQgu)

245 177 19th century technology being pushed on us despite the tech being unequal to the task.Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 02:43 PM (zfY+H)
Like "light rail" and "high speed" trains.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot Jr. at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (kVfSG)

246 If this vehicle   were actually practical (it's not), and not subsidized (it is),    and     reasonably priced    (it's not, even with the subsidy), it is still made by GM.   I will never purchase a new GM product.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (AskuI)

247 We generally buy used cars. I home school the kiddos, so my driving every week is 18 miles (round trip) to Mass on Sunday morning and two miles total to get groceries on Monday. So we bought a used Ford Fusion hybrid. I fill up once every month to month and a half. I've stretched it out to two months before. It's worked out really well for us.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 02:49 PM (qFpRI)


______


Uhh you don't go anywhere else but church and the grocery store? Your kids don't do soccer or music lessons or any activities? Dude!

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (0LHZx)

248 Isn't this car the shitty Volt with a Caddy emblem on it?


The last I saw that POS sold for almost $50K and wasn't worth a shit.  The base price on this POS (with no add-ons is $76,000.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at February 14, 2014 10:51 AM (T2V/1)

249 I think his character in Band of Brothers ended up as a Section 8 or whatever they call a psychological discharge.  He did a great job in that series - one of the best things ever put on television.

Posted by: Guy in Texas at February 14, 2014 10:52 AM (AcmH4)

250 Amishdude, I was applauding, not criticizing.

Posted by: West at February 14, 2014 10:52 AM (1Rgee)

251

In CT I've been involved with refurbishing all the rest areas in the state.  Tesla has installed charging stations at several locations.  Additionally, Northeast Utilities have added their own.

 

Outside of Fairfield county, I've never seen them being used.

 

Now, the shithole city next town over from me wants to add a couple stations in the urine soaked municipal garage downtown.  Subsidized, of course.

Posted by: Wyatt's Torch at February 14, 2014 10:52 AM (E0EDC)

252 The reason you haven't felt it is because it doesn't exist. What you call love was invented by guys like me, to sell nylons. You're born alone and you die alone and this world just drops a bunch of rules on top of you to make you forget those facts. But I never forget. I'm living like there's no tomorrow, because there isn't one. Oh, and the Dollar Shave Club guy should sue GM.

Posted by: Don Draper at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (8g9qq)

253 120 Chi-Town Jerry It's a plug-in hybrid. Best of both worlds. It's got a 4 cylinder engine/generator besides the electric engine. All current hybrids include a battery pack. Virtually all of them are underpowered, but this is because mileage is the point. At the very least, lose the differential and add a duplicate electric motor to the other drive wheel, then replace the stock engine with a 150hp+ TD and more SW control options ... see some serious performance and mileage.

Posted by: Arbalest at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (FlRtG)

254 Something that isn't noted in talks about electric cars and especially ads is this.
Mileage is done in a car without passengers. They run the car empty on a roller. That's why your car doesn't get as much, because it has to haul you around as well as its own weight, which uses more energy. Put another passenger in, and you start to notice handling problems as well, its just not as nimble or maneuverable.
Just you in your e-car, and you could theoretically get decent mileage (until the batteries start to decay and you get less and less recharge). Put someone else in, or groceries... well that range gets less and less. How much less? Who knows, until you try?

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (zfY+H)

255 In CT I've been involved with refurbishing all the rest areas in the state. Tesla has installed charging stations at several locations. Additionally, Northeast Utilities have added their own.

Outside of Fairfield county, I've never seen them being used.

Now, the shithole city next town over from me wants to add a couple stations in the urine soaked municipal garage downtown. Subsidized, of course. Posted by: Wyatt's Torch at February 14, 2014 02:52 PM (E0EDC)


So, what, you can just plug your hybrid into it for free?

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (Gk3SS)

256 174 The Cadillac sedans look like slightly fancier Chevy Malibus. So I always figure half the cost of the thing is the car, the other half is that pretty emblem on the front. Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 02:43 PM (TOk1P) Again, hubby sells Caddys. Cadillac stopped doing that in babe very early 2000s. If I remember correctly, the last vehicle they sold that was a cross-over brand body was the Escalade pick-up truck. All of the current Caddys are their own thing and are not modeled on any other GM vehicle.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (qFpRI)

257 >>As previously mentioned, the sole reason alone not to by it is "GM".

That's one additional reason not to buy THIS electric car.

The reasons not to buy ANY of these right now have already been mentioned:  limited practical range, difficulty and delay in recharging, limited expected vehicle battery life.

I'm not at all against electric cars. . .and in fact, living close enough to where I work, I'm probably one of the few who actually could get away with one. . .but they're just not practical vehicles for the majority of drivers, let alone as "only" cars. 

Posted by: looking closely at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (PwGfd)

258 this ad follows the script of the Dollar Shave Ad very, very closely, in staging and script and tone and, well, everything, except the guy in the bear suit.

Close it up
Posted by Ace

I bet if you look hard enough you'll find a dozen examples that predate the Dollar Shave one and probably a dozen more music videos from the 80's.

Nothing new under the sun.

Posted by: weft cut-loop[/i] [/b] at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (aHw7C)

259 I'm also annoyed at the bulb ban and it has nothing to do with liberals supporting it. If and when LED or CFL bulbs became technologically superior on a price/performance/features basis then they would succeed in the marketplace without being forced onto the public.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (ZPrif)

260 "many products are not sold strictly on utility. Many products are sold much more on the suggestion that they signal a cultural affiliation" they sold ghey marriage this way. It is the fault of smart people to fall into the delusion.

Posted by: fromabroad at February 14, 2014 10:53 AM (rnV3B)

261 182 Anyone use Dollar Shave Club? Been thinking about joining, but don't know anyone who has. Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 02:44 PM (RhERp) I do, but I'm thinking of stopping. The blades aren't as sharp as the best premium blades at the store. But I do like the convenience.

Posted by: AmishDude at February 14, 2014 10:54 AM (T0NGe)

262 228 We generally buy used cars. I home school the kiddos, so my driving every week is 18 miles (round trip) to Mass on Sunday morning and two miles total to get groceries on Monday. So we bought a used Ford Fusion hybrid. I fill up once every month to month and a half. I've stretched it out to two months before. It's worked out really well for us. Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 02:49 PM (qFpRI) ______ Uhh you don't go anywhere else but church and the grocery store? Your kids don't do soccer or music lessons or any activities? Dude! Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 02:51 PM (0LHZx) See, we live in this thing called a neighborhood. Has lots of other people in it. Maybe you've not heard of such.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 10:54 AM (qFpRI)

263 >>The neck beard gets shaved. Ah. I buy safety razor blades from Amazon. You can get 100 for about $12. I don't get great ads but I save enough on those multi-blade pieces of crap to feed my heroin habit.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (g1DWB)

264 OK, Gaia-rapers, I gotta go get ready for my evening gig tonight. Y'all have fun and try not to trash the place, 'k?

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (0HooB)

265 The US has enough oil to keep the country and it's cars running for the next 430 years, and enough Natural Gas to provide electricity for the next 575 years, and enough Coal to provide electricity for the next 500 years.  This info is from The Institute for Energy Resources.   

Posted by: Truck Monkey, Gruntled New Business Owner at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (jucos)

266 The actor here will be familiar to most of you; he's Neal McDonough... _______ it has probably already been said, but he'll always be "that guy from Roadhouse" to me. Didn't know about his moral stance scenes / lines he won't I, but I like him even more because of it.

Posted by: shredded chi at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (z65A/)

267 That commercial loses me at the line where he says the USA is the only country going back to the moon... sorry Cadillac.

Posted by: AAA at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (fG412)

268 On the flip side, I am seriously considering buying a Zero electric motorcycle. http://www.zeromotorcycles.com

Posted by: toby wan kenobi at February 14, 2014 10:55 AM (QupBk)

269 Y'all have fun and try not to trash the place, 'k? Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit at February 14, 2014 02:55 PM (0HooB)


You're not the boss of me!

*releases the weasels*

Posted by: alexthechick - oh great SMOD can you wait til curling's done at February 14, 2014 10:56 AM (Gk3SS)

270 So we bought a used Ford Fusion hybrid. I fill up once every month to month and a half. I've stretched it out to two months before. It's worked out really well for us.

As a second car for a family that needs two cars, there's a good argument to be made for them.

I know a guy with a new Hyundai hybrid he (supposedly) bought for his wife.  I tried giving him shit about it but it's actually a pretty nice car.

Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 10:56 AM (SY2Kh)

271 We have a weird sort of Socialism in America where Obama subsidizes toys and luxury status goods of the Rich. Don't Socialists countries usually subsidize shit for the poor? I guess we're doing both.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:56 AM (ZPrif)

272 My  problem with the ad is the GM is using Neal McDionald who will forever be remembered as Robert Quarles, the psycho hit man from DEE-troit in Justified.
One of my favorite lines is when he gets his arm chopped off by Raylin ...who says "I disarmed him'...
I know he has been in other roles, but Hollywood seems to love him as the evil, blue eyed white man/fat cat/bad guy. Did GM's ad people know think the same ?
Do they watch movies ?
My take is that this is aimed at the country club crowd...the engineers I know have bought the pulg-in because they are interested in the technology. Why would anybody but a volt, a signularly ugly car to begin with. So GM slaps a new shell on it and trys to make more money.




Posted by: standfast24 at February 14, 2014 10:56 AM (wx/BY)

273 Just you in your e-car, and you could theoretically get decent mileage (until the batteries start to decay and you get less and less recharge). Put someone else in, or groceries... well that range gets less and less. How much less? Who knows, until you try?

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 02:53 PM (zfY+H)


__________


Well all MPG is done like that. The 33 highway MPG you see advertized is doing 55 mph on a flat piece of road in 70 degree weather with no cross winds and nothing in the car except for the driver who weighs 140 lbs. You know, real world situations for every day driving.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 10:57 AM (0LHZx)

274

237 -

 

With all due respect, I  don't believe it.  It may be what they claim, but  that would require us to believe  GM is  doing  separate  R ampersand  D  in  the different divisions.

 

That would not make any sense, business-wise. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 10:58 AM (TOk1P)

275 You'll get the same level of cost savings with a diesel, although for some crazy reason they're hard to find in the US.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:58 AM (zfY+H)

276 I bet if you look hard enough you'll find a dozen examples that predate the Dollar Shave one and probably a dozen more music videos from the 80's. Nothing new under the sun. Posted by: weft cut-loop at February 14, 2014 02:53 PM (aHw7C) The thing about the DSC ad is that it is for a tiny Internet startup. That's what makes it so charming.

Posted by: AmishDude at February 14, 2014 10:58 AM (T0NGe)

277 so, I finally watched it so I could hate it more efficiently. 1. when he walks by his wife and she hands him his paper he should hav swatted her on the ass with the paper or his hand. 2. real men do not button both buttons on the front of a two button. 3. he is a fat fuck, even with his manx on.

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 10:58 AM (rDidD)

278

>> ForD? Chevy? still 3yr/36,000 miles. I reach 36,000 in two years. Fuck 'em.

.

.

.I am the opposite.  I reach three years with less than 30,000 miles usually.  Well below the threshold of where stuff starts breaking.

Posted by: Registered Voter at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (0DC/m)

279 Not interested in watching an ad, but one can say this: Pre 1970 Caddys...pretty cool now. Post 1970, not so much with a few exceptions as they have made a few hot rod models that could be fun, though I haven't driven any of them.

Posted by: Meremortal at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (1Y+hH)

280 Oh, turns out the new giganto solar plants they are building in the desert are acting like giant heat rays and torching birds that fly over head. They'll be exempted from laws prohibiting industrial plants from slaughtering birds, of course. Also was given free federal land to build on.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (ZPrif)

281

I wouldn't buy any post '95 GM or Ford cars simply due to the fact that they have lowjacked your shit via data recorders.

 

No thanks.

Posted by: prescient11 at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (tVTLU)

282 Neal McDonough is the greatest That Guy ever.

Posted by: eleven at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (Hy7dS)

283 "Well all MPG is done like that. The 33 highway MPG you see advertized is doing 55 mph on a flat piece of road in 70 degree weather with no cross winds and nothing in the car except for the driver who weighs 140 lbs. You know, real world situations for every day driving. '
Technically accurate (as I said in the post), but with a gasoline car the range is much, much further, its easier to find more fuel, it takes less time to refuel, and you can't carry electricity in a gas can.
So basically electric cars take all the drawbacks of a gas powered motor and multiply them by several magnitudes.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 10:59 AM (zfY+H)

284 I disagree that the Cadillac ad is like the Dollar Shave Club ad, for the simple reason that the dollar shave club is selling something inherently manly in a man-appeal way.  The Cadillac is trying to recast something perceived as not-manly as indeed-manly.

In that sense, the Cadillac ad is EXACTLY like Dollar Shaving Club's SECOND ad... about moisturized butt-wipes for men.  Really.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FOae1V1-Xg#t=11

Posted by: Rusty Nail at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (WtVhX)

285 Now they're just expensive, although I guess the SRX is fast at least. Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 02:50 PM (zfY+H) The CTS-V is faster. 556 hp. My dad loves his, and he's owned some high end Euro sports cars.

Posted by: stace at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (9PXzx)

286 All current hybrids include a battery pack. Virtually all of them are underpowered, but this is because mileage is the point.

At the very least, lose the differential and add a duplicate electric motor to the other drive wheel, then replace the stock engine with a 150hp+ TD and more SW control options ... see some serious performance and mileage.


Posted by: Arbalest
............
Yes.. it is a piece of crap as far as performance goes.  But a lot of people really don't give a crap about performance.

Definitely not for everyone, though.

Posted by: Chi-Town Jerry at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (Z7PrM)

287 I loved the ad but laughed when he came outside and pulled the plug out of the car. Good work McDonough but no sale.

Posted by: rrpjr at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (s/yC1)

288 At least it wasn't the Ravage that AtC released... Bye, babies.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy, who did not vote for this shit [/i][/s][/b] at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (0HooB)

289 That car only has a 35 mile range on the battery.  And that is what THEY advertise for a new battery.  In other words, unless you are going a short damn distance you will not be using the battery.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at February 14, 2014 11:00 AM (T2V/1)

290 Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 02:59 PM (ZPrif) You mean a vast array of parabolic solar amplifiers might generate heat along the line of the parabolic axis? No way!

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 11:01 AM (PYAXX)

291 I love the Top Gear episode where the guys build an electric car: The Hammerhead Eagle i Thrust! lol http://tinyurl.com/34cze99

Posted by: Mainah at February 14, 2014 11:01 AM (659DL)

292 Well all MPG is done like that. The 33 highway MPG you see advertized is doing 55 mph on a flat piece of road in 70 degree weather with no cross winds and nothing in the car except for the driver who weighs 140 lbs. You know, real world situations for every day driving.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 02:57 PM (0LHZx)


----


Burning REAL gas with no ethanol....

Posted by: fixerupper at February 14, 2014 11:01 AM (nELVU)

293 I have to dock the ad because of this. Like a song you like because you liked another song just like it before, this ad follows the script of the Dollar Shave Ad very, very closely, in staging and script and tone and, well, everything, except the guy in the bear suit. ********** Damn it! The Deuce you say--they could do 20 more commercials like this and I would be all--- OOOOOOhhhh Yaaaaaaa!!!! I do not give a crap all about getting critiqued about corn ball patriotism. That Olympic sweater? Want it. Would fucking SLEEP in it if I could. In your face USA HATERS!!! SUCK IT!!!! (ya--I gotta get another line.)

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 11:01 AM (RJMhd)

294 He was also in that horribly violent Band of Brothers miniseries that glorified the illegal war in WWII.

I applaud Cadillac's effort to make a more environmentally sound car.

Posted by: Mary Cloggenstein from Brattleboro, Vermont at February 14, 2014 11:01 AM (dqSmk)

295 The US has enough oil to keep the country and it's cars running for the next 430 years, and enough Natural Gas to provide electricity for the next 575 years, and enough Coal to provide electricity for the next 500 years. This info is from The Institute for Energy Resources.

Posted by: Truck Monkey, Gruntled New Business Owner at February 14, 2014 02:55 PM (jucos)

 

 

--------------------------------------------------

 

 

And this is just from known fields.  There's no  telling how much we'd have if we could actually do some fossil fuel exploration. 

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:02 AM (nFviW)

296

230 -

 

I thought he was the guy who sorta disappeared on D-Day.  He  either made the jump and was never seen again, or he was in a glider that crashed... I don't really remember.

 

I guess that means I need to watch it again. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 11:02 AM (TOk1P)

297 In CT I've been involved with refurbishing all the rest areas in the state. Tesla has installed charging stations at several locations. Additionally, Northeast Utilities have added their own. Outside of Fairfield county, I've never seen them being used. Now, the shithole city next town over from me wants to add a couple stations in the urine soaked municipal garage downtown. Subsidized, of course. Posted by: Wyatt's Torch at February 14, 2014 02:52 PM (E0EDC) Stamford had them in their public parking lots. I never noticed how much (or if) they charged for the plug in or if they also charged the same amount to park them too.

Posted by: [/i][/b][/u][/s] Tami at February 14, 2014 11:03 AM (bCEmE)

298 @254 - actually, that 33 highway MPG is based on an EPA dynamometer test (the specs are out there) and it's back-calculated based on the vehicle's emissions and then subjected to some adjustments 'cause someone decided they were consistently too high. It's somewhat more reality-based than, say, the climate alarmist's myriad software models, but there's still a lot of loosy-goosey in it. Automakers routinely game these tests - the legitimate stuff, like using smaller brakes and gas tanks to take weight off a car to fit into a lighter EPA dynamometer setting, to the dubious (GM got busted a couple decades ago for coding a super-lean cruise calibration into their ECUs that was selected only when a certain combination of settings were active - AC off, and a couple other things - atypical of the real world but how the EPA specced things for the dyno test.

Posted by: Future Hillary Bundler at February 14, 2014 11:03 AM (o+SC1)

299 255 237 - With all due respect, I don't believe it. It may be what they claim, but that would require us to believe GM is doing separateR ampersand D in the different divisions. That would not make any sense, business-wise. Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 02:58 PM (TOk1P) Well, believe what you want. And I understand it because it's what all the other companies do. Caddy as a brand has been doing their own thing for a while now. For the better part of a decade their mission is not to compete with Lincoln, but with Mercedes and Audi, and the other high-end brands. They do their own thing because you're not going to get a Mercedes buyer to spring $60K for a Chevy with a wreath and crest slapped on the front.

Posted by: Mandy P., lurking lurker who lurks at February 14, 2014 11:04 AM (qFpRI)

300 "I fill up every month." Where I come from we call that computation Girl Mileage.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 11:04 AM (xq1UY)

301 I like how Mark Wahlberg describes Will Ferrell's car in The Other Guys: Wahlber: What the hell is this? Ferrell: It's my car. It's a Prius. Wahlberg: I feel like we're literally driving around in a vagina. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sg-6Aje-vtM 7:30+ mark

Posted by: artisanal 'ette: ♥♥♥ Day at February 14, 2014 11:05 AM (IXrOn)

302 Contrast this to the BMW 8i Both cars are hybrids. Both cars are good looking - very good looking for the Caddy, and unbelievably good looking for the BMW. One is made by a company that has focused on building nothing but great cars for as long as I can remember. That company builds cars that hold their value, largely because they run forever. The other is made by a company that, until recently, built shit. Large land-yachts that made you puke when you drove them, followed by good looking cars with nasty interiors and corvette engines. Now we have this - a Chevy Volt in Caddy clothing? I don't know. And, oh yeah, they took my tax dollars and never said thank you. I like the French, btw. If I didn't, I think buying a German car pisses them off more, but that's not why I'd buy the BMW. I'd buy the BMW because it's a brand that has been focused on making great cars for a long time, while Cadillac has been focused on screwing me with crappy cars, bailouts, and scams for the same amount of time. Pity, because that Caddy sure is pretty. But Barack Obama's name is attached to it. That, right there, revulses me. I'd buy a Peugot first (btw, I rented one in Europe - not too shabby...)

Posted by: RobM1981 at February 14, 2014 11:05 AM (zurJC)

303 I have a five o'clock shadow by noon. And I get razor bumps from most blades. The only blades that can mow through my whiskers are the super-expensive Gillettes. And that's after I scrub with Clinique for Men (the Macho Camacho of face scrubs.) If I don't, I end up a bloody, bumpy mess. I wish I could use something...anything cheaper. But it just ain't gonna happen.

Posted by: BlueStateRebel at February 14, 2014 11:05 AM (7ObY1)

304
Nope:

He was the seargeant that got shot thru both buttcheeks in Holland, then saw saw his two buddies vaporized by an 88 at Bastogne. 


Posted by: fixerupper at February 14, 2014 11:06 AM (nELVU)

305 why do we care about what this just-shy-of-an-albino freak appeal actor thinks about anything? by the way, if you make a typo when typing "an-albino" and forget to put the hypen in it makes a whole new weird word. not sure what it means but probably nsfw and not appropriate for polite society, wherever that is hiding these days.

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 11:06 AM (rDidD)

306 And they do the same sort of gaming with electric vehicle ranges. Its never going to be nearly as far as advertised - which is already too short - and when you actually use it for real in the world it gets even shorter. Add in any weight, and it gets even shorter.
In a gas powered vehicle, that's annoying but you still get enough distance its not a concern. In electric car, you better charge every time you get to a destination, and hope its not too far away.
Oh, and their estimates about how long the battery will last before needing replacement? Even worse. But don't fret, its only about $10,000 to replace the battery.
Or you could buy a diesel.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:06 AM (zfY+H)

307

>>The US has enough oil to keep the country and it's cars running for the next 430 years, and enough Natural Gas to provide electricity for the next 575 years, and enough Coal to provide electricity for the next 500 years. This info is from The Institute for Energy Resources. 

.

.

.I think that estimate on coal is off by about 500 years.  Last I saw (cant remember where) but we have enough coal to last for about 1,000 years using our current electricity usage as a base.  China has about three times that much.

 

I will have to look that up.

Posted by: Registered voter at February 14, 2014 11:06 AM (0DC/m)

308 Na, na, na--the second commercial does not even come near to what the first commercial does. It doesn't flirt with the dangerous--the faux pas. It doesn't burst through the wall of American Apologetics. Pfffttttttt.

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 11:08 AM (RJMhd)

309 Oops, sockfail. Hey, as one of those nasty reactionary conservatives Chuck Schumer would like the Intestinal Research Service to do a full colonoscopy on, I think electric cars are great. I think natural-gas fueled cars are great. I'm fine with hybrids. What matters is that they're halfway interesting to drive (which a Tesla is and a Prius is not.) I'm not so happy with the subsidies, but the reality is that for an $85K Tesla the piddly-ass little government money is like half a pound of cheddar. The subsidy that MATTERS to the buyers is the non-monetary one - that in California you get access to HOV lanes even if it's just you and your dick.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:08 AM (o+SC1)

310

280 -

 

That's  some mighty  wishful thinking there, for them to believe they compete with Mercedes.

 

They don't. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 11:08 AM (TOk1P)

311 The east coast snow storm forced utility companies to use more coal power -- coal power from the same plants Obama is shutting down.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 11:09 AM (ZPrif)

312 I think that estimate on coal is off by about 500 years. Last I saw (cant remember where) but we have enough coal to last for about 1,000 years using our current electricity usage as a base. China has about three times that much. I will have to look that up. Posted by: Registered voter at February we are out of coal?

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 11:09 AM (rDidD)

313 Add in any weight, and it gets even shorter.

Turn on the AC and you might as well walk, but Gaia!

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 11:09 AM (4JkHl)

314 "Automakers routinely game these tests " My beloved 2008 Nissan Frontier's manual instructs me to keep my tires inflated to 38 pounds. This no doubt increases the gas mileage by a tenth or so. At the expense of wearing the $700 tires out prematurely in the center. So, 35-36 it is.

Posted by: Meremortal at February 14, 2014 11:10 AM (1Y+hH)

315 >>> I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible. You mean like sucking an ostrich egg?

Posted by: fluffy at February 14, 2014 11:10 AM (Ua6T/)

316 I don't care, I love the ad.

I love that it's running during the Olympics and it is offending people for being so unabashedly pro-American and because the guy is not only successful, but smug about it.

After the parade of hoodie-wearing hipster dudes and doofus dad commercials we've had to endure for years, it's a blast.

Posted by: Lizzy at February 14, 2014 11:11 AM (POpqt)

317

And even though I won't buy it, the top of the line Caddie CTS frigging moves.  It might be another model, but it's the one w/ 500+ horses.

Posted by: prescient11 at February 14, 2014 11:11 AM (tVTLU)

318 Electric cars are like trying to power cities with solar or wind--a misapplication of a sound concept. Electric vehicles either need to go big like trains or trolleys, or just be golf carts. Small scoot around town/scoot around the neighborhood size vehicles are already practical and popular. I have to drive the Villages in Fl quite a bit and the place just swarms with them.

Posted by: the guy that moves pianos for a living... at February 14, 2014 11:12 AM (P/gm7)

319 @280 I'll grant you that it's not a Cimarron, but the CTS has come with a Corvette mill for quite some time. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but you can't say that GM doesn't leverage between the brands. And, for whatever reason, GM continues to build cars with interiors that feel cheap - or at least they did last time I checked. I haven't looked at a Caddy in a couple of years, so maybe they finally woke up, but a couple of years ago they still had that "GM Feel" on the inside - and that's really not a good thing. I love the new Caddy styling. I get that it's a love it or hate it kind of thing, but I fall in the "Love It" camp. I just can't imagine buying a Government Motors car. What they did was wrong.

Posted by: RobM1981 at February 14, 2014 11:13 AM (zurJC)

320 I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible.

You mean like sucking an ostrich egg?

Posted by: fluffy at February 14, 2014 03:10 PM (Ua6T/)

 

 

---------------------------------------

 

 

Or fucking a wild pelican in a high wind?

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:13 AM (nFviW)

321 @287 - oh, no question that a diesel makes more economic sense. Or at least aside from all the particulate traps and urea treatment hardware that the automakers still haven't completely come to grips with. If you commute ten miles to work and make the occasional restaurant run, and you own a home where you can install a charger (or have an office that provides charging) a Nissan Leaf or Chevy Spark EV is exactly what you need. It's probably not the ONLY car you need, and EVs as they stand right now are not anyone's first car maybe second, third, or fourth and you've got the GL550 or the Tahoe or the 535i for everything else. Battery life is an evolving question, and I think some of the EVs out there will do much better than others on this front.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:13 AM (o+SC1)

322 Electric cars is sort of a misnomer - should be called coal-powered cars seeing as the electricity they use is generated from coal, not unicorn farts or some third-world, fair-trade priced unobtanium.

Posted by: Lizzy at February 14, 2014 11:14 AM (POpqt)

323 status-obsessed.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 02:09 PM (ZPrif)

you misspelled "bewb"

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:14 AM (x3YFz)

324 Cool ad, but for this. Right now the Chinese are on the moon, not us.

Posted by: blaster at February 14, 2014 11:15 AM (q2M2e)

325 If an electric car made sense to me, I would build one up on an old VW bug chassis using lead acid batteries.

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 11:15 AM (4JkHl)

326 I love that it's running during the Olympics and it is offending people for being so unabashedly pro-American and because the guy is not only successful, but smug about it.

After the parade of hoodie-wearing hipster dudes and doofus dad commercials we've had to endure for years, it's a blast.

Posted by: Lizzy at February 14, 2014 03:11 PM (POpqt)

 

 

----------------------------------------------

 

 

Don't forget the thug  hoodie-wearing rats.

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:15 AM (nFviW)

327 @285. Close. Lieutenant Buck Compton. College football hero before the war, successful business man after the war. He died last year.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Ready to get Liquored Up at February 14, 2014 11:16 AM (K+mtQ)

328 Update: Upon further review, this is not an "electric car" per se, but an electric/gas hybrid. ************** Holy shit--I might actually do this damn thing. Hmmmm..... --btw-- Some of you dudes could over-analize sex with kate Upton and ruin it. Jeebus.

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 11:16 AM (RJMhd)

329 If you commute ten miles to work....etc. By the time you finish with all the requirements for an electric car to be practical, it's mainly practical for certain urbanites who don't need cars at all.

Posted by: Meremortal at February 14, 2014 11:16 AM (1Y+hH)

330 Oh, another Tesla caught fire -- this time while parked and charging -- in Toronto.

Posted by: Flatbush Joe at February 14, 2014 11:16 AM (ZPrif)

331 >>> Or fucking a wild pelican in a high wind Pics, etc

Posted by: fluffy at February 14, 2014 11:17 AM (Ua6T/)

332 I don't watch TV. And I urge other morons to forgo this active assault on Reason and Proportion.
I never bought a Lada, a GAZ Volga, a Jugo, nor a FIAT during the dark days. And I will never buy a product from Government Motors, now that they're Socialist, too.

Posted by: Criminal Reactionary Element, with a primordial nuclide at February 14, 2014 11:17 AM (1/4XQ)

333

>>we are out of coal?

.

.

.OMG, eleventy we are at Peak Coal.....

Posted by: Registered voter at February 14, 2014 11:17 AM (0DC/m)

334 Some of you dudes could ->>>over-analize sex<<<<- with kate Upton and ruin it.

Jeebus.

Posted by: tasker at February 14, 2014 03:16 PM (RJMhd)

Um.  It's Freud.  It's for you.

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:18 AM (x3YFz)

335 And even though I won't buy it, the top of the line Caddie CTS frigging moves. It might be another model, but it's the one w/ 500+ horses. Posted by: prescient11 at February 14, 2014 03:11 PM (tVTLU) Yea. I love fast, luxurious cars. I love to travel by car, and I love the power of a V6+. Never owned a V8... but, I bet it kicks.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette: ♥♥♥ Day at February 14, 2014 11:18 AM (IXrOn)

336 Nice ad; too bad it's for a pimped-up Chevy Volt.

Posted by: Sarge at February 14, 2014 11:18 AM (We5IL)

337 That commercial should have ZZ Top playing in the background.

Posted by: Petulant Klown at February 14, 2014 11:18 AM (5fSr7)

338 I've got principles too, buddy, and I'm not buying any form of electric transportation that doesn't fly.  If the anti-grav generator doesn't do 0 to 60ft in 3seconds, it's shit.

Posted by: Fritz at February 14, 2014 11:19 AM (rV80K)

339 Or fucking a wild pelican in a high wind? Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 03:13 PM (nFviW) I know the perfect rock for you...Come on up to the Missouri and fish with me. I'll hook you up and run the camera.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 11:19 AM (RhERp)

340 The Prius has been around for over 10 years, but Google "Prius battery replacement" and see what you get. Not a lot of them have failed yet, and that's certainly not because of low mileage. People drive them. Also, the replacement cost is way down. It's under $5,000, and more like $3,000 is reported. Granted, that's the price of a transmission, but it's also the price of 2,700 gallons of gas - which you will go through in 30,000 miles in, say, a Durango. Me? I'm in the diesel camp. If I want great mileage and reliability, I'd go diesel - but that's an expensive fill up these days.

Posted by: RobM1981 at February 14, 2014 11:19 AM (zurJC)

341 I don't like Caddilac styling, either by the way. They just don't look good to me, even the CTS-V. BMW consistently makes beautiful cars, Mercedes Benz makes beautiful cars. Even Alpha Romeo makes pretty cars. Not so much GM.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:19 AM (zfY+H)

342 I predict that this will sell worse than the Volt.

Posted by: Rusty Nail at February 14, 2014 11:20 AM (WtVhX)

343

So here's Cadillac attempting the impossible: Trying to convince conservatives that an electric car is kind of a conservative thing.

 

And here’s liberal site Jalopnik hating it for just that reason: “This Cadillac ELR Ad Will Make You Hate Electric Car Buyers.”

 

Posted by: CJ at February 14, 2014 11:20 AM (9KqcB)

344 Sticker price on the ELR starts at $75K

So basically you're paying 75 grand for a compact because of "attitude"

The first time the Jack Klompus's from Boca Raton bitches that he can't figure out how to get the thing to work, he'll badmouth it to everybody in the condo association

Posted by: kbdabear at February 14, 2014 11:20 AM (aTXUx)

345 So here's Cadillac attempting the impossible: Trying to convince conservatives that an electric car is kind of a conservative thing.

That a failed Chevy is a Cadillac.

Posted by: DaveA[/i][/b][/s] at February 14, 2014 11:21 AM (DL2i+)

346 That reminds me of a running gag I have with a client... He brings a different friend fishing almost every time he comes. He tells them all that my off-season hobby is traveling around the country (and the rest of the world) raping endangered species. Makes for some funny hours in the boat.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 11:21 AM (RhERp)

347 >>Me? I'm in the diesel camp. If I want great mileage and reliability, I'd go diesel - but that's an expensive fill up these days. I was shopping for a Jeep a few weeks ago. The up charge for diesel in a Grand Cherokee is about $4500. I would never make that back.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 11:21 AM (g1DWB)

348 321 The Prius has been around for over 10 years, but Google "Prius battery replacement" and see what you get.

Not a lot of them have failed yet, and that's certainly not because of low mileage. People drive them.


Posted by: RobM1981 at February 14, 2014 03:19 PM (zurJC)

I'll certainly offend someone by saying this but... a man driving a Prius?

shame shame shame


Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:21 AM (x3YFz)

349 "Also, the replacement cost is way down. It's under $5,000, and more like $3,000 is reported. Granted, that's the price of a transmission, but it's also the price of 2,700 gallons of gas - which you will go through in 30,000 miles in, say, a Durango."
Plus the cost of labor, which isn't part of that deal. And the Prius battery is 10 year old tech. Manufacturers give their replacement time at 10 years, and over $8000 as a low end estimate for just the battery.
And since the Prius cost almost as much as 2 Durangos 10 years ago, you're still ahead buying it. If it didn't have a crappy drive train to begin with.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:21 AM (zfY+H)

350 You think I've never ridden in a Cadillac? I've ridden in a Cadillac HUNDREDS of times!!!


Posted by: Jack Klompus at February 14, 2014 11:22 AM (aTXUx)

351 cadillac is a girls car, all their sales growth is with middle age girls.

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 11:22 AM (rDidD)

352 For what it's worth, JD  Power  now  ranks Cadillac #3 in Most Dependable category.

Posted by: CJ at February 14, 2014 11:22 AM (9KqcB)

353 I love fast, luxurious cars. I love to travel by car, and I love the power of a V6+. Never owned a V8... but, I bet it kicks.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette: ¢¾¢¾¢¾ Day at February 14, 2014 03:18 PM (IXrOn)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

 

V8's have a feel and sound like no other engine.  V8's are American.  I love 'em.

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:23 AM (nFviW)

354 333 For what it's worth, JD Power now ranks Cadillac #3 in Most Dependable category.

Posted by: CJ at February 14, 2014 03:22 PM (9KqcB)

Wonder what that cost?

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:23 AM (x3YFz)

355 He tells them all that my off-season hobby is traveling around the country (and the rest of the world) raping endangered species. Makes for some funny hours in the boat. Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 03:21 so, what is the joke he tells?

Posted by: yankeefifth at February 14, 2014 11:24 AM (rDidD)

356 Cadillacs are a GM product, which means they are made by UAW labor.

i wouldn't drive one if you gave it to me, and i damn sure aren't going to buy one.

F them AND their stupid commercial: their product is crap.

Posted by: redc1c4 at February 14, 2014 11:24 AM (q+fqH)

357 Wonder what that cost? IRS Audits left undone are free.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 11:24 AM (RhERp)

358 You know... as much as I complain about working at work, it really sucks when I have work to do, but need information from someone else- and that someone else never responds to me. *sigh* If I had lesser moral character, I'd just head home now...

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 11:25 AM (PYAXX)

359 Cool ad, but for this. Right now the Chinese are on the moon, not us. Posted by: blaster

We're on Mars.  Our robot taking pictures of the Moon on which their robot isn't working.

Posted by: Jean at February 14, 2014 11:25 AM (4JkHl)

360
F them AND their stupid commercial: their product is crap.

Posted by: redc1c4 at February 14, 2014 03:24 PM (q+fqH)

Not sure I'd have phrased it that way, but I also choose not to buy union-made cars, on principle.

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:25 AM (x3YFz)

361 Windows 95 sucked so badly that Leno did jokes about it on air, and everyone got them. When was the last time anyone did a Windows joke on prime time?

You people have some selective memories if you think 95 worked well. Windows XP was a huge upgrade in reliability compared to 95.

By the way I run Linux for my serious work - quad core 64 bit processors with 8 GB of memory on Ubuntu 13.10 blows a Cray 2 away - better than a gigaflop out of that PC. Its exactly like having a major University's computer center sitting on my desk.

Posted by: [/i] [/s] [/u] [/b] An Observation at February 14, 2014 11:26 AM (ylhEn)

362

...And a machete, Ace.

 

The Cadillac Ad ..."follows the script of the Dollar Shave Ad very, very closely, in staging and script and tone and, well, everything, except the guy in the bear suit"....and the machete.

 

I guess they figured that the Blades Ad was obscure enough that no one would notice that they ripped it off.

Posted by: wheatie at February 14, 2014 11:27 AM (eCZwh)

363 I know the perfect rock for you...Come on up to the Missouri and fish with me.

I'll hook you up and run the camera.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 03:19 PM (RhERp)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

 

Heh.  btw.  Are Missourians fucking anyone outside the state yet?

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:27 AM (nFviW)

364 V8s I've had and loved: Ford 351 ci, 2-barrel carb, (the "Cleveland")amazing sound and reliability. Ford 302, the regular, not the high output, in a pony car. Er, peppy!
My fave motor was in my dad's Jaguar Mk X sedan: 4.2 L inline 6 with 3 (count 'em-- 3) Weber carbs on top.
O
M
G
!

Posted by: Criminal Reactionary Element, with a primordial nuclide at February 14, 2014 11:27 AM (1/4XQ)

365 And here’s liberal site Jalopnik hating it for just that reason: “This Cadillac ELR Ad Will Make You Hate Electric Car Buyers.” It takes so little to trigger liberal hate. I have nothing against electric cars so long as I'm not forced to buy one. I think anyone that wants one should buy one and I hope they love it. They aren't very practical out here in the sticks, with cold and long distances over 11,000 foot elevation passes, etc.

Posted by: Meremortal at February 14, 2014 11:28 AM (1Y+hH)

366 @300 - Detroit, across the board, began to abandon the high-end of the market in the early '60s and completed the process in the mid '70s. By the late '50s Lincolns, Cadillacs, and Chryslers were nicely-built big Fords, Chevys, and Plymouths, by the end of the '60s they were just big, and by 1980 they were just junk, doing the lemming-march over the cliff to wrong-wheel drive. And they stayed that way for a long time. With the 2012 update the 300 is almost competitive at the 5-series level in trim, but it's the only Chrysler product that plays at that level. Ford hasn't a clue what they're doing with Lincoln. GM's making a seriious if inconsistent effort with Cadillac, the original SRX and CTS were a good start mechanically but badly trimmed, the STS was bland but a step up in touchy-feely quality, the current ATS and CTS are very much competitive in their classes but the SRX went in the toilet with the swap to the Equinox/Vue platform and the big sedans have never really gotten out of the Depends market.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:28 AM (o+SC1)

367 I predict that this will sell worse than the Volt. Posted by: Rusty Nail at February 14, 2014 03:20 PM (WtVhX) I bet they sell well. Cadillac owners buy Cadillacs. If the luxury and smooth, quiet ride is still there, they'll buy up, as they do a lot anyway. The Volt was a "new" car that didn't fit any particular style from the past. It was just the new trendy green shiny object.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette: ♥♥♥ Day at February 14, 2014 11:29 AM (IXrOn)

368 The 70's DeTomaso Panteras had 351 Clevelands in them. You can build the shit out of that engine.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 11:30 AM (RhERp)

369 "It is good to hate the French."
-- Al Bundy

Posted by: Herp McDerp at February 14, 2014 11:30 AM (7QRNd)

370 You people have some selective memories if you think 95 worked well. Windows XP was a huge upgrade in reliability compared to 95.

Sure, but consider what came before Windows 95.  Win 3.1 wasn't exactly user friendly.

Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 11:31 AM (SY2Kh)

371 Windows 95 worked fine for me, I never had any problems with it. Windows MT was awful, then XP was great, then Vista was an abomination, then 7 was tolerable... they're like Star Trek movies, every other one is pretty good.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:31 AM (zfY+H)

372 Just got back from lunch at the home of one of the original 1%ers, the Reynolds Mansion and Gardens built/owned by RJ Reynolds' daughter, Katherine. Those people knew how to live, indoor shooting range, bowling alley, pipe organ, roller skating area, bars, swimming pool, aviary, and on and on and on.

Posted by: Lincolntf at February 14, 2014 11:31 AM (ZshNr)

373 "1. Older, wealthier business-oriented buyers, who are probably conservative in culture and politics."

Not always a safe bet, especially in a blue state. 

Posted by: flounder at February 14, 2014 11:31 AM (Kkt/i)

374 We have an Acura, Nissan and Mazda in the garage.  (just me and the missus... we use the Mazda for long trips:  42 mpg).

Only domestic union vehicle I'd even consider would be a Ford truck, but it'd be 1970's and something I could work on myself (parts being findable, of course).

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:32 AM (x3YFz)

375

Who's on the moon?

 

 

Whitey's  on the moon.

Posted by: eleven at February 14, 2014 11:32 AM (fsLdt)

376 @322 Caddilac and Alpha? You missed the "Romero."
There is just no better way to express how utterly weightless one's thoughts are.
You need a Ford. It's easier to "speel."

Posted by: Stringer Davis at February 14, 2014 11:33 AM (xq1UY)

377

344 I know the perfect rock for you...Come on up to the Missouri and fish with me. I'll hook you up and run the camera.
 

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 03:19 PM (RhERp)
 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

 Heh. btw. Are Missourians fucking anyone outside the state yet?

 

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 03:27 PM (nFviW)

 

----------------------

 

I think he may mean the Missouri River, Soona.

Posted by: wheatie at February 14, 2014 11:33 AM (eCZwh)

378 A Lexus 300H hybrid sedan starts at 40K, is much roomer than the Caddy ELR as well as starting 30K less and being a higher quality

As someone with an elderly parent, the big thing is that it's harder to get in and out of the car when you're old, and the ELR looks cramped.

GM is making the same mistake as they did with the XLR, trying to sell 2 seater sports cars to older guys with money who could get a Corvette for the same price range

Posted by: kbdabear at February 14, 2014 11:34 AM (aTXUx)

379 Best sounding V8 I ever heard, Holden Commodore. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4O0CnNT6f4 When you hear one of these coming you know exactly what it is.

Posted by: JackStraw at February 14, 2014 11:35 AM (g1DWB)

380 <i>216: According to Hollywood legend actor Patrick McGoohan (The Prisoner), turned down the original cinematic role of James Bond in Dr. No, because he thought the character was immoral. He also turned down the lead role in The Saint, for similar reasons.</i>

And in <i>Danger Man / Secret Agent</i>, McGoohan's character John Drake never carried or used a gun.

Posted by: Herp McDerp at February 14, 2014 11:35 AM (7QRNd)

381 It would be a hoot to do a remake of Smokey and the Bandit, or any of those epic chase movies, with electric cars, and have the protagonists stop every 50 miles for a recharge.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at February 14, 2014 11:35 AM (yDmQD)

382

352 -

 

7  is a memory hog, that  impedes the  stuff  you're doing  in the foreground when it's busy doing stuff in the background. 

 

8 is just your smartphone/tablet's  interface, tacked onto all devices, big and small.  I use it occasionally at work, and much of its stuff is counter-intuitive, and too unlike the previous versions of Windows for anyone who is used to  how Windows does things. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 11:36 AM (TOk1P)

383 Windows 95 worked fine for me, I never had any problems with it. Windows MT was awful, then XP was great, then Vista was an abomination, then 7 was tolerable... they're like Star Trek movies, every other one is pretty good. It went like this: Win95 was really just Windows 3.5. Same kernel and everything. It worked considerably better than 3.11, but nothing to write home about. Win98 broke everything good in Win95, but fixed a lot of its bugs. Win98SE fixed most of what 98 broke. WinME was designed so you'd hate it. And also to introduce the new "look and feel" of WinXP. WinXP was great. The unified kernel (between the Home lineup (95, 98, etc) and the Network lineup (NT, 2K) made life a lot easier for most people. Vista* was designed so you'd hate it. And also to introduce the new look and feel of Windows 7. Windows 8 is really Windows 7.5 with a new GUI. I have had no problems with Win8 that I didn't have with Win7. *Of those OSs listed in this comment, Windows Vista is the first one I *didn't* have to support for home users

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 11:36 AM (PYAXX)

384 In the end A car is a tool. So total cost of ownership is the real calculation when comparing similar size/capacity cars. Electric is not there yet when this calculation is done. I can buy a lot of gasoline with the $10-15K price point difference.

Feelings seem to be mostly being argued here.

Posted by: Buzzsaw at February 14, 2014 11:36 AM (tf9Ne)

385 @360 Sweet!
Got the burble and blat and rumble...

Posted by: Criminal Reactionary Element, with a primordial nuclide at February 14, 2014 11:37 AM (1/4XQ)

386 oh shit

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:37 AM (x3YFz)

387 /facepalm

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:38 AM (x3YFz)

388 Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 03:37 PM (x3YFz) I'm not sure there's a barrel big enough. "What did you *do,* Ray?"

Posted by: AllenG (DedicatedTenther) Ah, F It. at February 14, 2014 11:38 AM (PYAXX)

389

358 -

 

He's right though.  Cross-state sexual encounters are somewhat  difficult, especially for those of us who have the Mississippi river between us and our dates. 

Posted by: BurtTC at February 14, 2014 11:38 AM (TOk1P)

390 @348 - no, all those Cadillac buyers have died. GM sold them a '72 Sedan DeVille, an '82 Seville (a POS but Caddy buyers were loyal back then), maybe a DTS in the early '90s if they weren't confined to a wheelchair by then, and then they died. I guess they still sell a few XTSes to the youngest of that crowd but they won't live much longer and anyone younger doesn't want what that car represents. Period. Cadillac's last real claim to be the Standard of the World was in the 1930s, they were still something special in the '50s, they were trading on reputation by the '60s, but by 1973 the wheels were falling off that bandwagon.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:38 AM (o+SC1)

391 Holy crap WTF was that?

Posted by: eleven at February 14, 2014 11:39 AM (fsLdt)

392 Wow. Just. Wow.

Posted by: garrett at February 14, 2014 11:39 AM (RhERp)

393 Wow, tango9....that was a breath-taking embarrelling.

Posted by: wheatie at February 14, 2014 11:40 AM (eCZwh)

394 Someone please clean up 'War and Peace' up there, either that or republish it at Amazon and get it out of the comments...

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:40 AM (o+SC1)

395 /releases Red Button

whoops.

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:40 AM (x3YFz)

396 I did that once tangonine....but there weren't nearly that many comments included. You'll be going to the barrel inside the barrel.

Posted by: [/i][/b][/u][/s] Tami at February 14, 2014 11:40 AM (bCEmE)

397 This has never happened before.  I've run out of paste!

Posted by: Ctrl-V at February 14, 2014 11:40 AM (tv7DV)

398 Remember the moon?
Every year we used to go to the moon like clockwork, we never missed a trip.
Then we just stopped. No one said a thing. Billions of dollars -- nothing!
Did we just come to the conclusion that the moon's not really that great?
What happened, did one astronaut come back, "yeah, I went to the moon. Pshh. Sucked."
You can tell the moon sucked, because nobody who ever went to the moon ever volunteered to go back. Its a @(#&^@y vacation.
"Oh yeah I'd really love to go back; I'm in the middle of a root canal, I got the kids driving me crazy, I love it -- YOU go though, its fun, you know. Little... tiny ship, no air, you crap in a bag. Its a good time, don't get me wrong..."
-Dana Gould http://youtu.be/aN5NdE-aBVw

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:41 AM (zfY+H)

399 speaking of McGoohan, in addition to being in a few Columbo episodes, he directed one you know who else directed an episode of Columbo? Steven Spielberg

Posted by: Soothsayer in Ten Forward at February 14, 2014 11:41 AM (VLyds)

400 He was also the bad guy in the remake of Walking Tall.  Love the ad.  Will never buy a GM car.

Posted by: John Teh Libertarian at February 14, 2014 11:41 AM (qmTBz)

401 The whole family goes in the barrel for that mess. And pets.

Posted by: Dr Spank at February 14, 2014 11:41 AM (38LLM)

402 Roses are red
Violets are blue
"Select all" is bad
To the barrel with you.

Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 11:42 AM (SY2Kh)

403 I think he may mean the Missouri River, Soona.

Posted by: wheatie at February 14, 2014 03:33 PM (eCZwh)

 

 

-----------------------------------------------

 

 

I know what he was alluding to.  I was just making a very old joke.

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:42 AM (nFviW)

404 Nood

Posted by: [/i][/b][/u][/s] Tami at February 14, 2014 11:42 AM (bCEmE)

405 This has never happened before. I've run out of paste! *sad face*

Posted by: Joe Biden at February 14, 2014 11:42 AM (PYAXX)

406 Tami is nude?

Posted by: John Teh Libertarian at February 14, 2014 11:43 AM (qmTBz)

407 @387 - Joe, we told you to stop eating your paste.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:43 AM (o+SC1)

408 I have a simple understandable policy regarding Government Motors products:

Not buying them.

Posted by: torquewrench at February 14, 2014 11:43 AM (gqT4g)

409 Tangonine - what were you trying to accomplish?  Longest cut and paste at AoSHQ?

Posted by: Mikey NTH - President's Day Sale - All Red Hot Rage 15% Off! at February 14, 2014 11:44 AM (hLRSq)

410 >>>Roses are red
Violets are blue
"Select all" is bad
To the barrel with you.

I am unretiring for a single post to say how much I fucking love this.

Posted by: Jeff B. at February 14, 2014 11:44 AM (ewYO6)

411 Someone give this note to my wife if I'm never seen again.

Posted by: tangonine (Space Shuttle Door Gunner) at February 14, 2014 11:45 AM (x3YFz)

412

Every year we used to go to the moon like clockwork, we never missed a trip.
Then we just stopped. No one said a thing. Billions of dollars -- nothing!
Did we just come to the conclusion that the moon's not really that great?

 

 

----------------------------------------------

 

 

The reason we haven't been back to the moon can be summed up in one word:  Socialism.

Posted by: Soona at February 14, 2014 11:45 AM (nFviW)

413 The ideal technology for electrics is self-contained electrical generation such as hydrogen fuel cells

I'm not a scientist or engineer, so maybe one of you who are could tell me what the obstacles are right now to fuel cells that already exist in R and D departments of the major automakers

I figure it's cost right now, nobody is going to plunk down a million for a new car that doesn't go 250 mph

Posted by: kbdabear at February 14, 2014 11:46 AM (aTXUx)

414 366 tangonine The Barrel ... with a couple of golf-cart batteries, in order to remain on-topic ...

Posted by: Arbalest at February 14, 2014 11:48 AM (FlRtG)

415 "You can tell the moon sucked, because nobody who ever went to the moon ever volunteered to go back."

John Young.

Gene Gernan.

Posted by: torquewrench at February 14, 2014 11:48 AM (gqT4g)

416 Indeed. Until they get something resembling real mileage, I think they won't catch on. That's why the Volt was an intriguing concept. Electric car with gas backup. Having said that, when going out to dinner the other night I turned on my wife's car to find the tank more or less empty. So...there's that too . Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at February 14, 2014 02:28 PM (GaqMa) Isn't the Caddy ELR really nothing more than a rebadged Volt. Caddy has put out other cars that were rebadged Chevies. Cimarron, anyone?

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at February 14, 2014 11:49 AM (yDmQD)

417 Blah. Real men drive Dodge Ram trucks. "and on the eighth day, God made a farmer..."

Posted by: Patrick in Michigan at February 14, 2014 11:49 AM (OhrW4)

418 "Gene Gernan."

Cernan. Bother. Sorry about that. Hard drive is dying in primary machine. Switched to backup with a different, less capable display.

Posted by: torquewrench at February 14, 2014 11:50 AM (gqT4g)

419 Zero Motorcycles? $16,000.00? WTF?

If you like throwing your money away, give me the money, I'll give you back a new Ducati and still pocket a couple o' grand.

This from a guy who just upgraded from a 37-year-old bike to a relatively new 20-year-old one.



Posted by: West at February 14, 2014 11:51 AM (1Rgee)

420 @395 - but how do you get hydrogen? This is where the technical illiterates like that catastrophe Schwarzenegger fall down. Hydrogen is reactive. It's like Charlie Sheen. Left alone, it'll find ANYTHING to mate with, and sometimes it produces a hell of a rash in the process. Hydrogen is an energy transport medium, like batteries, and just about as inefficient. You use enormous amounts of electricity, or catalytic reactions with typical hydrocarbons (like gasoline) to produce it, but when you consume it at the other end you get a fraction of what you put in.

Posted by: JEM at February 14, 2014 11:52 AM (o+SC1)

421 you know who else directed an episode of Columbo?


Steven Spielberg

Posted by: Soothsayer in Ten Forward at February 14, 2014 03:41 PM (VLyds)

 

The one about the authors, with the Adam-12 guy, right?

Posted by: CJ at February 14, 2014 11:53 AM (9KqcB)

422 Yeah it takes more energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen than you get out of the hydrogen.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:53 AM (zfY+H)

423 >>We consume more oil than we can produce, even if all the public lands were available tomorrow and fully operational. Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at February 14, 2014 02:46 PM (0LHZx) I know it's way up the thread but I am third gen oilfield and Mr. Mau Mau is as full of shit as a Christmas turkey.

Posted by: Mr. Dave at February 14, 2014 11:55 AM (8mhW/)

424 "John Young. Gene Gernan."
That's a joke, son!
http://youtu.be/KTwnwbG9YLE

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:56 AM (zfY+H)

425 Ike driving an electric car, 1952: http://www.econogics.com/ev/EAA/fmsevers/ike.jpg What could be more conservative? Posted by: PersonFromPorlock at February 14, 2014 02:32 PM (lILC0) That car, I believe is a Baker Electric, circa 1912. Built and sold (quite well, too) without the aid of a government subsidy. So it is, in fact, a legit ride for a conservative. You know what sounded the death knell for electric cars in the 'teens? The advent of the electric starter for gasoline powered cars, pioneered by, wait for it, Cadillac.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at February 14, 2014 11:56 AM (yDmQD)

426 "Mr. Mau Mau is as full of shit as a Christmas turkey. "
Remind me not to eat Christmas dinner at Dave's place.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 11:56 AM (zfY+H)

427 "The ideal technology for electrics is self-contained electrical generation such as hydrogen fuel cells"

Protip: if it's necessary to keep pumping stuff into the car, it's not "self contained".

As JEM points out, hydrogen is enormously problematic as a fuel.

The Schwarzenegger types (don't blame me, I voted for Tom McClintock) go on and on about how hydrogen is the most abundant element in the Universe. Fuel everywhere! "Hydrogen highways"!

Except the hydrogen you find all over the place isn't in a conveniently usable form as fuel. There are no wells gushing the stuff. It's chemically bound up with stuff that makes it unusable as fuel until separated and purified and compressed. Which is comparatively simple to do but costly as hell. It would be do-able with "too cheap to meter" nuclear fission. Not expecting that to return any time soon.

Posted by: torquewrench at February 14, 2014 11:57 AM (gqT4g)

428 I've noticed there seems to be a trend to going back to double-edged safety razors. In my case it's the ridiculous prices of blade inserts for Fusion & Mach 3. Yeah, nicks & styptic pencils. But cheap blades are all over Amazon. Get to your door in two days. Why bother with the fancy stuff?

Posted by: backhoe at February 14, 2014 12:00 PM (ULH4o)

429 "That's a joke, son!"

[Astronauts not wanting to go back to the Moon.]

Parsed as such. Just a stickler for the record.

There was actually one single Apollo astronaut I know of who did decline the chance to go back. Mike Collins, command module pilot of Apollo 11. Deke Slayton, running the astronaut office, thought Collins had performed superbly at that, and he made it clear Collins could ask for a commander's slot and a chance to walk on the lunar surface on one of the later missions.

Collins passed. I do not know why. Perhaps it was because he had been part of making history already, and figured that was enough for one life.

Posted by: torquewrench at February 14, 2014 12:01 PM (gqT4g)

430 Isn't the Caddy ELR really nothing more than a rebadged Volt. Caddy has put out other cars that were rebadged Chevies. Cimarron, anyone?

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at February 14, 2014 03:49 PM (yDmQD)



The Volt, at the price, is a bit too upscale for Chevy. It should have been the ELR first. And they priced it higher than they should have for THAT.

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at February 14, 2014 12:02 PM (Nk6GS)

431 And now, as its Valentine's Day, something for all the 'ettes to pant over.
http://tinyurl.com/le7uoxc
Yes, that's John Wayne.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 12:03 PM (zfY+H)

432 They'd be a good second car for people like me who have a short (11 mile round trip) commute through city streets. But having a short commute means I don't buy a lot of gas, so I wouldn't save enough money to justify the cost. Posted by: Hollowpoint at February 14, 2014 02:45 PM (SY2Kh) That's actually a pretty astute observation. You are paying a lot of money for the privilege of saving very little money. The opportunity cost of money, how ever does it work?

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at February 14, 2014 12:06 PM (yDmQD)

433 If my math is correct, charging a car with the energy equivalent of 15 gallons of gasoline in five minutes requires a six megawatt power line.

Posted by: whoever at February 14, 2014 12:14 PM (kGSN0)

434 A lifelong friend of mine is a liberal living in the LA area, and he recently bought a Nissan LEAF for his fairly short commute. He's a doctor and makes a really, really good salary.

We were speaking a couple of days ago as he was commuting home, and he asked me if I thought he should charge his car at home that night, or get a free charge at the gym the next day at lunch. I asked the state of charge, and he replied that it was about 40%.

I said to him, "Bob, you make several hundred thousand dollars a years, and you would rather risk not getting a free charge at the gym (because someone was already using it) and possibly not make it home, rather than spend twenty-five cents for a home charge? That's nuts!"

He replied that when I put it that way, his thought of a free charge at the gym seemed rather silly, so he would charge it at home.

Posted by: Reno_Dave at February 14, 2014 12:23 PM (bsDPd)

435 You know, Ace, I like you... quite a bit. But not everything in the world is a "teaching moment" -- especially with this group. Sometimes disliking something is just letting your inner weasel out for a romp. Resist much we can.

Posted by: Gerard Van der leun at February 14, 2014 12:23 PM (cmkMu)

436
Well, if you're gonna be a bear, be a Grizzly.

Posted by: IllTemperedCur at February 14, 2014 12:24 PM (TIIx5)

437 Meh. I drive a Civic Hybrid with a CZ75 sticker and a range officer at my home shooting range drives a Prius with a USPSA license frame. Good engineering is efficient engineering.

Posted by: ExurbanKevin at February 14, 2014 12:28 PM (5Il8S)

438 Yeah. That Caddy will work out real good when the zombie times come.

Posted by: Erowmero at February 14, 2014 12:29 PM (OONaw)

439 I didn't realize I was the target demo for Cadillac until I read the comments. Their ad guys are freakin geniuses. When you're a 50 yr old woman, McDonough looks quite delicious and his attitude is smokin hot. I wanted the car so badly the stupid electric-powered part went in one eyeball and out the other without touching a single brain cell.

Posted by: Alice's Clone Army at February 14, 2014 12:41 PM (Pdt+k)

440 Anti-socialist? how much of a subsidy does each one of those beasts get? $40K like the Volt and Leaf??? Anti-socialism: you're doing it wrong.

Posted by: I R A Darth Aggie © at February 14, 2014 12:48 PM (1hM1d)

441 I concur with the Ace. This is about selling you aesthetics more than a product. Whatever. As for docking it for aping dollar shave club, that's just the atmosphere we live in, note all the man-ads out there now, especially the old spice ads, especially old spice with terry crews ads. It too is an aesthetic that Americans realized they love. Hey, every male in America is just a corporate cog being beaten down by: a. female HR cougars b. ghey mafia c. the demands of the mortgage d. the ladies all of who demand we act like post-testosterone PC drones. so, while we struggle through life, not letting on that we vote Republican, even though the bad guys *know* we're probably voting republican, these ads give us a sense that maybe we're right. Even though we're really wrong...at least to the cougars in HR, once they find out what websites we watch.

Posted by: oejay44cday at February 14, 2014 12:51 PM (IRZSU)

442 >>I've noticed there seems to be a trend to going back to double-edged safety razors. In my case it's the ridiculous prices of blade inserts for Fusion Mach 3. Yeah, nicks styptic pencils. But cheap blades are all over Amazon. Get to your door in two days. Why bother with the fancy stuff? Posted by: backhoe at February 14, 2014 04:00 PM (ULH4o) << You can get Personna blades 5/$1 at 99 cents only. I think I have had one bum blade per 200. The main thing is to have a decent razor. You pay $10 for a Weishi crackerjack prize, your face will look like you caught birdshot. Merkur and Parker have good razors from $29 up.

Posted by: Chris Balsz at February 14, 2014 12:52 PM (5xmd7)

443 About double edge razors - work great - just don't use one after you drop it; knocks them out of adjustment and you will slice and dice your face. Drop it - throw it away and buy a new one.

Used them for years till I couldn't find a replacement at the drug store. Also Burma Shave works really well also.

Posted by: [/i] [/s] [/u] [/b] An Observation at February 14, 2014 01:00 PM (ylhEn)

444 Wtf is this WIn95 nostalgia? It was crap, and yes, needed to be rebooted often due to guaranteed memory leaks. It doesn't hold a candle to XP, let alone Win7.

Posted by: [/i]KG at February 14, 2014 01:16 PM (p7BzH)

445 Its not so much love of Win95 as a reaction to someone saying it was total crap sold to us by clever marketing. It was a pretty good product for its day, but I agree XP was fantastic.
Honestly, I don't understand why they even replaced XP. Upgrades were all it needed.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 01:24 PM (zfY+H)

446 I got here late to this thread, but here's my 2¢. I don't object to electric cars, but there are two main problems that I see: 1. Shortened battery life in cold weather. 2. If electric cars were widely adopted, we would need to greatly expand our electrical generating and transmission capacity. We're doing precisely the opposite. I don't agree with government subsidies at all, but that is an objection to government policies rather than to the cars themselves. As for the performance shortcomings, future technological breakthroughs may solve them. I keep hearing that nanotechnology will lead to new kinds of materials with different properties. That could be a game-changer.

Posted by: rickl at February 14, 2014 01:32 PM (zoehZ)

447 I have a $17,000 (my cost) Chevy Cruze Eco 6M that gives me 40 MPG even in cold weather with the shitty winter gas. And it heats up quick.

The cost for anything else (electric, hybrid, NG, diesel) doesn't add up for me.

Posted by: Buck Farack, Gentleman Adventurer at February 14, 2014 01:43 PM (Nk6GS)

448 When I saw NM in Justified, I was like, "I know that face, but from where?" He was Lt. Hawk in ST: First Contact. Much slimmer back then--hey weren't we all--but those eyes are unique.

Posted by: baldilocks at February 14, 2014 01:48 PM (36Rjy)

449 Michael Sam will buy an electric Cadillac when he makes the big time.

Posted by: That Or A Powder Blue Prius at February 14, 2014 01:56 PM (nbGZj)

450 We just put some cash down on new Yukon XL. They won't put all-terrain tires on it for us because that would mess with their fleet CAFE mileage. We're going to have to get the good tires put on after market. Posted by: stace at February 14, 2014 02:45 PM (9PXzx) No, Stace. The dealer is feeding you a complete line of bullshit. CAFE is not figured at the individual sales level. They're flat ass lying to you so they don't have to make the effort.

Posted by: Bill H at February 14, 2014 02:19 PM (3sZO1)

451 Those EcoBoost engines by Ford are amazing, that's some good new tech not a friggin electric Cadillac.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 14, 2014 02:22 PM (zfY+H)

452

@427

Security holes big enough for a Canyonero that would get closed only with a complete redo. That does NOT excuse Vista, I repeat NOT.

Posted by: uwcryptocon at February 14, 2014 03:04 PM (6qMMx)

453 Despite the tiny fraction of electricity generated by wind and solar, most of our electricity comes from coal, nukes and natural gas fracked from Gaia's unwilling bosom. What is not to love about that? Throw in the part about making the Muslim world irrelivant and disposable and electric cars look even better. It is not just improvements to batteries that can improve range. Electric motors still have room for improvement in cost, weight and efficiency.

Posted by: Obnoxious A Hole at February 14, 2014 05:09 PM (TKk/U)

454 "It's impossible, and yet, I applaud anyone who attempts the impossible." It is impossible to get Socialism to work right, and I DON'T applaud anyone who attempts it.

Posted by: jim at February 14, 2014 05:51 PM (VwhRo)

455 McDonough is likely more famous to the Cadillac demographic as the heroic bad-ass Easy Co, 2nd Battalion, 506th Regiment 101st Airborne Lt Buck Compton in the heroic bad-ass HBO series Band of Brohams.

I could care less about the Captain America hipster movies but I'll never forget Lynn "Buck" Compton.

Posted by: miked at February 14, 2014 06:16 PM (xaIQZ)

456 Neal McDonough has religious beliefs that push him into a prudish position on sexual morality, and as a result he turns down roles which require him to act against those beliefs. He doesn't want to nude it up, and doesn't want to get all steamy with a woman other than his wife for a role. I don't happen to share those beliefs, but I respect the hell out of That Guy forcing Hollywood to accept his personal boundaries.

Posted by: Brendon Carr at February 14, 2014 09:33 PM (/wNYl)

457 I applauded when I saw this ad. Not so much for e-car that's being hawked, but at the thought at just how upset the left would get over it.

Posted by: Physics Geek at February 15, 2014 07:50 AM (llWHs)

458 ... hipster comic book movies? What the...

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at February 15, 2014 11:42 AM (zfY+H)

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