What Makes Your Car Worth It?

[Vlad Soare]

I agree. Only curious... What brand models are popular in Eastern Europe? In Italy I saw a lot of Audi A2s, Renults, and Peugets. Probably butchered their names but I don't care to be honest lol.

The best selling brand in Romania is Dacia, which is only to be expected, since it's a Romanian brand. But it's owned by Renault, so what it makes are mostly lower-cost versions of Renault models. They're relatively inexpensive, and really rather good for the price. They're quite honest cars, not meant to be flashy, but to be functional, dependable and well equipped.

The most popular foreign brands are by far Volkswagen, Audi and BMW. Ford is also not far behind. There's also a Ford factory in Romania, where they make the Puma, which I understand is selling quite well, as well as engines (and I think gearboxes) for other European models.
Then there's the Czech brand Škoda, which is owned by Volkswagen. Like the Renault/Dacia team, Škodas are low-cost versions of Volkswagen models and attract people who would love to have a VW but cannot afford one.

Then come Japanese brands, Toyota/Honda/Mazda. These have a small but loyal customer base. Nissan isn't so popular, probably on account of being owned by Renault and offering the same cars that are available with a Renault badge, only more expensive and with exotic names.

Opel used to be very popular until about fifteen years ago, but its populariry has diminished drastically. There are fewer and fewer of them on the roads.

Oh, and of course we have a lot of supermarket cars, i.e. Kias, Hyundais and the like.

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[Sivi70980]

The best selling brand in Romania is Dacia, which is only to be expected, since it's a Romanian brand. But it's owned by Renault, so what it makes are mostly lower-cost versions of Renault models. They're relatively inexpensive, and really rather good for the price. They're quite honest cars, not meant to be flashy, but to be functional, dependable and well equipped.

The most popular foreign brands are by far Volkswagen, Audi and BMW. Ford is also not far behind. There's also a Ford factory in Romania, where they make the Puma, which I understand is selling quite well, as well as engines (and I think gearboxes) for other European models.
Then there's the Czech brand Škoda, which is owned by Volkswagen. Like the Renault/Dacia team, Škodas are low-cost versions of Volkswagen models and attract people who would love to have a VW but cannot afford one.

Then come Japanese brands, Toyota/Honda/Mazda. These have a small but loyal customer base. Nissan isn't so popular, probably on account of being owned by Renault and offering the same cars that are available with a Renault badge, only more expensive and with an unpronounceable name.

Opel used to be very popular until about fifteen years ago, but its populariry has diminished drastically. There are fewer and fewer of them on the roads.

Oh, and of course we have a lot of supermarket cars, i.e. Kias, Hyundais and the like.

Saw a few Opels in Germany my short stent I was there.

 

[Vlad Soare]

Lane discipline is very good in Europe. Even in Romania, which is probably the country with the worst drivers and most chaotic traffic on the whole continent, lane discipline on motorways is really good. Sure, you get the occasional lorry driver who wants to do exactly 60 mph and must necessarily overtake the other lorry driver who's only doing 59. But even this is rarely more than a momentary annoyance, since they never pull out right in front of you, forcing you to brake or to take evasive action. As a consequence, European motorways, including Romanian ones, are quite safe. I feel really safe doing 130 mph when traffic allows it.
Sadly, I can't say the same about other kinds of Romanian roads, but that's a different story.

I love driving in Germany. I adore Autobahns. Despite having no speed limit, they're some of the safest roads in the world. Which goes to show that "speed kills" is utter bullshit.

 

[Sivi70980]

Lane discipline is very good in Europe. Even in Romania, which is probably the country with the worst drivers and most chaotic traffic on the whole continent, lane discipline on motorways is really good. Sure, you get the occasional lorry driver who wants to do exactly 60 mph and must necessarily overtake the other lorry driver who's only doing 59. But even this is rarely more than a momentary annoyance, since they never pull out right in front of you, forcing you to brake or to take evasive action. As a consequence, European motorways, including Romanian ones, are quite safe. I feel really safe doing 130 mph when traffic allows it.
Sadly, I can't say the same about other kinds of Romanian roads, but that's a different story.

I love driving in Germany. I adore Autobahns. Despite having no speed limit, they're some of the safest roads in the world. Which goes to show that "speed kills" is utter bullshit.

I heard something about when they do have accidents on the Autobahn they're most likely fatal though.

 

[Vlad Soare]

I don't know. Could be.
But then, so are plane crashes, and that doesn't stop us from calling the airplane the safest means of transport.
I feel really safe on an Autobahn.
Besides, having some unrestricted sections doesn't actually mean that they're full of people flying at 200 mph. Most of the time they're so congested and full of roadworks that you'd be lucky to reach 70, let alone 100 or more. And even when they're not congested, most people do not exceed 85 mph, perhaps 90 at best. Not many people feel comfortable driving faster than that. There are a few car enthusiasts who do, but regular commuters, who account for most of the traffic, don't. Most of the time, the occasional Porsche or M-series BMW notwithstanding, it feels just like any other motorway.

 

[Sivi70980]

I don't know. Could be.
But then, so are plane crashes, and that doesn't stop us from calling the airplane the safest means of transport.
I feel really safe on an Autobahn.
Besides, having some unrestricted sections doesn't actually mean that they're full of people flying at 200 mph. Most of the time they're so congested and full of roadworks that you'd be lucky to reach 70, let alone 100 or more. And even when they're not congested, most people do not exceed 85 mph, perhaps 90 at best. Not many people feel comfortable driving faster than that. There are a few car enthusiasts who do, but regular commuters, who account for most of the traffic, don't. Most of the time, the occasional Porsche or M-series BMW notwithstanding, it feels just like any other motorway.

I agree the Autobahn felt safer for sure and also experienced mostly traffic and road construction. But the MAJOR difference between there and the states...the Autobahn is CLEAN! Always some sort of debris along our roads state side.

 

[Vlad Soare]

Indeed, I can imagine how dangerous debris can be at high speeds. I've never thought of that. We don't have this problem around here.

 

[Rael]

What makes my car worth it is every single errand I get to run for my wife, or for any other any-day reason.

 

[Sivi70980]

What makes my car worth it is every single errand I get to run for my wife, or for any other any-day reason.

I just got butter for her last night. Annoyed cause shoes were off and car was in garage but once I hit that start button...I came home about an hour later with butter.

 

[TexasMetallic5.0]

My truck gets 14 mpg. The Mustang 25ish. With as much driving as I do, that makes it worth it alone.

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