drivetofive

Odometer (ILX):  106,585

I was at dinner this evening with 5 friends at a local taco place.  The subject came up about planning a weekend trip to San Francisco for next March in celebration of a couple of birthdays.  “Airfares are $74 one way,” Scott began to tell the group, “but that doesn’t apply to Tyson because he’ll be driving there anyway.”  Do my friends know me well or what?  My Mapquest mind had already started calculating the drive time, distance, and best route.

That distance, by the way, is about 758 miles each way and you can bet I’ll be rip-raring to take that trip when the time comes next year.  Today I have just a few assorted bits of news to share as we kick off the weekend (well, kick off our pre-weekend, anyway).

Last weekend was the Phoenix International Auto Show.  Though it pales in comparison to the Los Angeles show which I saw just a few weeks ago, it was still a nice look at some of the latest offerings from each automaker.  I couldn’t even get through the front door of the Phoenix Convention Center without being stunned by this drop-dead gorgeous Ultrasonic Blue Lexus RC coupe.  A Lexus product specialist approached me, along with my friends Chris and James who I was with, about taking a test drive in one of the cars from the fleet.  While the RC was booked out for the rest of the afternoon, I did get the chance to drive a Lexus NX Turbo.  It was a super-smooth crossover.

Just inside the front door, this Rolls Royce Wraith sparkled in all its high-class glory.  I think I have a thing for blue cars.  But $366,850?  Dang, I forgot my checkbook that day.

Cha-ching.

My 1992 NSX came out of the garage a few times this week after getting a fresh battery.  At just under 99,000 miles, I’m dreading the 100k roll-over but can’t resist taking it out for a spin every once in awhile.

Loop 202 eastbound:  Just before the car got rained on for its first time in 3 years.  Those of you who are as obsessive-compulsive about keeping a clean car as I am will understand my angst about that.

On Tuesday, I had lunch with Joe who you met on the Canyon de Chelly drive.  He recently had the rear bumper of his 1995 Legend LS coupe refinished and it looks brand spanking new.  His Legend is just under 170,000 miles now.

Nice looking coupe, Joe!

We interrupt this news broadcast to show you the Toyota Prius with a Mercedes license plate frame that I saw a couple of days ago.  (massive eye roll here)

Moving on.  Do you remember when I got an up-close look at the all-new 2015 Ford F-150?  Well, the truck that I’d seen there was just a prototype.  The time has finally come that I was given the chance to put some actual miles on one of those beauties.  I attended a “Drive the Future of Tough” ride & drive event in Phoenix on Tuesday.

This F-150 “Lariat” model rings up at right around $50,000 as I recall.  It’s a hefty chunk of change, but it’s a hefty chunk of truck too.  This thing had more bells & whistles than I could wrap my head around.  Look into those LED headlights and you’ll be mesmerized.  Or blinded.

My tester had over 13,000 miles on it and was in the middle of a cross-country tour from the east coast all the way to San Diego.  I hit the push-button start and it came to life.  I commented to Service Zone Manager Jasen Turnbull in the passenger seat, “Is this thing even running?  I can’t hear it.”

Before leaving the parking lot, he taught me about some of the gadgets that the truck has, including this “360-degree” view of the truck – made possible thanks to the myriad of cameras mounted around the vehicle.  Seems like that would be a handy feature when parking a truck of that size.

As for driving impressions, I walked away thoroughly impressed.  For being a truck, it rode really smoothly.  Power was more than ample and there was just a ton of space inside.  This would be a rock solid cross-country rig.

Innovations abound here, like a rear tailgate that locks when the doors to the truck lock.  Clever.

Amenities are nice on the inside, too.

And finally, I bring you news of both a happy and a sad nature.  Chuck, a long-time friend from here in the Phoenix area, said farewell to his 1993 Legend LS Coupe 6-speed after a decade of ownership.  At just 32,900 miles on the odometer, his coupe was a mere baby.  Its proud new owner is another friend of mine, Scott.

I was present for today’s key hand-off ceremony (pictured above) at Acura of Tempe.

This coupe is going to a good home.

Scott sent a few pictures from the drive back that I felt were blog-worthy.

Looks like the clouds parted for him eventually.

I received a text message from Scott after his 4-hour drive home to Palm Springs where he acknowledged just how great of a road-trip partner those old Legends can be:

Pit stop at Courtesy Diner in Blythe, California.  Best grilled cheese around.

And a final shot in Desert Center.

Thanks, Scott, for sharing the pictures.  And congratulations on your new (old) ride!

Edit 12/5/14:  A friend just posted this on Acurazine and I was a little surprised.  Another ILX is right on my heels in mileage.  This 2013 2.0 liter automatic with Tech package is right around 103,000.  The chase is on!

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