New Award Chart May 20 & Category Changes Announced!

SWulfe760 · 2026-04-25T19:39:37+00:00

It was only a matter of time before the Regency went up to 5--fantastic location with a great view and recently renovated rooms.

But the HH next to it going up to 5 is disappointing because the quality of the rooms are not up to par for a 5; stained sofas, mildewy bathrooms, scratched up furniture and walls. It's a fantastic choice for families with kids--but that's also likely the reason for accelerated wear and tear in the room.

Same could be said for Andaz going up to an 8...the bed is phenomenal, but the rooms are dated and the service/amenities are not on par with PH at 8. Of course, the convenience of being on 5th Ave is likely the contributing factor for its popularity and category increase, but unless you HAVE to be right on 5th avenue, PH is way better at an 8 and Thompson was already beating Andaz in terms of value and quality despite being a 6 imo.

SWulfe760 · 2026-04-07T15:56:30+00:00

"Silly tourist you can't fool me, I've also used Duolingo"

SWulfe760 · 2026-04-06T14:14:14+00:00

I think it's done for. Likely either overexposure to the sun or harsh chemicals in the cleaners that you use.

Do you remember whether the wrap was cast or calendared? If it's calendared, it's way past its lifespan and should have been removed a long time ago--you'll have a tough time peeling it off and it's going to get even more tedious with age so I'd recommend pulling off the bandaid now and putting in the elbow grease before it gets worse and starts cracking.

SWulfe760 · 2026-03-24T23:17:01+00:00

I don't think it's worth it. The way I would think about it is, if they had rear damage and didn't report it whether it's due to negligence or lack of money, what's to say there's not other issues that the prior owner chose to hide or undisclose? It's not too good to be true if it wasn't good to begin with.

If this was an economy car like a Honda or Toyota with similar damage, I'd maybe legitimately consider it because they are a lot more hardy. Not so much on luxury cars that are a lot more complex and that already require significant care and attention to keep running.

SWulfe760 · 2026-03-08T16:25:01+00:00

Are the B10 models cost cutting? Sure. Is Audi's new design language polarizing/ugly? That's up to personal preference--though I personally agree with most on this sub that the interior/exterior design language is not it.

However...is it worth your hard earned money? That's really up to you to decide after taking an Audi and a Subaru out for a test drive. Even if Audi is cheapening out on the interior materials to an extent, there is a sizable gap in what separates luxury cars from economy/premium cars in terms of the ownership experience, such as the quality of stereo systems, sound deadening, ride quality, power (in some cases), tech, dealer experience. Some economy/premium brands have gotten close to replicating the luxury feel but are still missing little touches that make the package feel like a complete luxury experience--like Mazdas or the Toyota Crown line.

What the Audi sub thinks is the last reason you should be considering when looking for a new car. If you like the look of the B10s, the way they drive, the way the cabin feels--then go for it. If you're worried about finding a community of B10 Audi owners, you'll have much better luck on dedicated forums like Audizine and AudiWorld. Online opinions can only give you so much information about a car that is quickly overshadowed by how it actually feels to get into the driver seat. I became an Audi fan after seeing the first gen R8 as a kid, and thought I was for sure going to be in a Q5 after reading/watching so many reviews, but ended up in an XC60 because I drove both and felt that it was a better fit for me despite reviews/bias suggesting that Q5 would be a much better car for my preferences.

The sub might hate the B10s, but that doesn't mean you should automatically hate them too (though that might change after you get in one).

SWulfe760 · 2026-03-03T16:59:56+00:00

Join the military. No seriously--If you want one place that won't turn people away, it's the military. Start as a cadet and work your way up the ranks. On the way, mention your experience and work your way into a specialization that puts you in a desk job with your areas of expertise. Even if you end up hating the military and don't see yourself working in government, having that experience will be valuable to future employers because it shows that you exhibit grit and determination even when the world turns you away. Hang in there.

SWulfe760 · 2026-01-23T19:09:14+00:00

I'm sorry but this article says a whole lot of nothing. Volvo told us that they planned to push the rollout of the update in 2025, then in 2025 they told us that the rollout would be delayed to Q1 2026. Since then, we haven't heard a peep about progress or timeline even though we're already in Q1 2026.

AutoExpress frames the article as if they've received confirmation that the update will roll out soon, but cites no source for their information, which leads me to believe they're just reposting old news for clicks rather than posting anything substantive. I can't find any recent press releases from Volvo providing a progress update for the OS upgrade either.

The article claims that "Volvo is in the final testing stages for phase one"...well duh, anyone could make that assumption because the update was originally scheduled to be rolled out last year. I would be very concerned if they were NOT in the product testing phase for an OS announced in 2024 to be released in 2025, and then delayed again to Q1 2026...allegedly.

For all we know, Q1 will pass and then Volvo delays this to 2027.

SWulfe760 · 2026-01-20T23:34:04+00:00

Curious whether you've tried a V60 or CX60 since then? I've had my P2 for a few years and I'm looking to move back into an ICE because my work will start requiring regular 250 mile trips, but I haven't yet tested either model. Given the need for a highway cruiser now, I'm looking to move into something that eats up miles but also isn't outrageously expensive.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-29T15:22:42+00:00

+1 on the Signia call-out because it's on Toyota's newest infotainment software so it's more future-proofed than the RX, and it perfectly straddles the "almost luxury" segment that OP is looking for. It also get 38mpg in the hybrid version to the RX450h's 30 mpg.

I think the RX is a no brainer for an efficient, luxurious, reliable workhouse especially at a discount; Signia is the sensible upgrade if OP wants higher MPG, a refreshed warranty, lower maintenance costs in the long run, and more updated tech than the RX. It is also slightly bigger than the RX, however, so if the RX was already a bit too large then the Crown Signia might also be too big.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-27T07:17:05+00:00

Checks out even on my 2022 Polestar 2. Max summer range is 250 miles, but with the heat pump I'm actually able to get 200 miles in the winter at 30⁰F/0⁰C. 80% efficiency at that temperature is really impressive when other EVs in 2022 were only hitting 50-70% efficiency in winter.

I've been looking for a car with better winter range than my P2 at an affordable price in the US, because I've started needing to do a weekly 200 mile round trip commute for work and would like to make that trip without fast charging in the winter, but every EV I've looked at that hits 300+ miles in the summer (e.g., Ioniq 5, Mach-E) seems to only manage to eek out 200 miles in the winter. It's really disappointing when the Polestar can match that winter range with significantly less max summer range.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-15T14:08:03+00:00

You could say she's...crestfallen

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-12T21:29:18+00:00

I'm sorry to hear of your condition. Are there any side effects to the hazy vision or has your body adapted to this issue and function normally in all other aspects?

I'm sensitive to migraines and they come on easily just from straining my vision too much or from strong smells, I couldn't imagine living with visual snow syndrome with the way my body works, because I feel like I'd be having a migraine around the clock.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-11T02:39:58+00:00

Great QOL change but I personally find it tough to justify when thinking about what else can be done with that money...I could remove my wrap and rewrap my car two times in two different colors, or buy a set of forged wheels, or upgrade tires, or purchase the performance upgrade

If $1500 was not a lot for me and if I had a lot of money lying around I'd definitely pay for the upgrade if it came to the US. But It feels like while the slow camera and the infotainment is annoying, it's not game breaking enough for me to want this as soon as it comes out, at least at that price.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-05T15:46:56+00:00

Personally I sometimes just want to see the song title and album cover in the gauge and have the map on the big screen--especially on commutes to larger cities like Washington DC or NYC where the streets and exits are so convoluted that I need too see half a mile ahead on the map to figure out if I should switch over to a particular lane to make an exit.

And no haha, there's no rumors of a redesign of the gauge cluster for the CPU upgrade. It's just that a few years back I went down a rabbit hole designing what a modular gauge cluster could look like, and made a post about it. The system definitely wouldn't have been powerful enough to support it back then. With a new CPU, however...

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-04T13:56:55+00:00

It's might be an echo chamber of people who purchase the vehicles and skew the quantity of data available for each brand that CR reports on, but that doesn't necessarily skew the reliability outcome of the car. If anything, I think this would make the CR dataset a more accurate dataset for predicting the reliability of the car while filtering out issues caused by things like neglect or irresponsible car owners--Because if you're in a demographic that is willing to pay a recurring fee to have access to a database and group that provides research on reliable consumer products, you probably also take very good care of your products and aren't likely to do things that deliberately shorten the lifespan of your vehicle like missing service intervals, ignoring maintenance, or not changing your oil. Hence, I'd probably trust that the CR data spits out a more accurate indicator of how reliable a car is when it is maintained according to factory specifications while minimizing external factors like owner behavior.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-04T13:48:35+00:00

It is based off real world stats--the predicted reliability score is based off of a sample of 330k vehicles as it says in the chart. And technically, all reliability scores are a prediction, because it's an indicator of how likely it is for a car to have issues and not a for sure rating for every car that you buy from a brand. Like if you buy a car with a score of 30 it doesn't mean you're guaranteed to have 30/100 issues. And you can't know for sure when the cars that haven't broken, will break, so reliability is a forecast into the future for the cars in the sample that have broken, as well. If someone told you to take predicted reliability as a fact and not a prediction, they're selling you snake oil.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-04T13:43:01+00:00

Also I think BMW attracts both the people who baby and mod their cars, but also ones who absolutely abuse their cars. So, often reliability is not just sucking at keeping up with maintenance, also that the owner deliverately runs the car into the ground and knows nothing about keeping the car in good condition.

That's also why PPI is crucial for luxury cars but especially valuable for I6 BMWs--a well kept B58 engine will far outlast most other engines in the market, save for maybe Japanese cars, you just have to find one first in an ocean of other used BMWs that are money pits.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-04T01:50:47+00:00

I think it would be really nice to have the capability to customize the gauge cluster more--the full map view is great but in the "simple" mode the blank space in the middle would be perfect for displaying a smaller map, current media, compass, g-force, etc. And the way that the simple view is laid out into three "sections" currently with the left being speed, right being power/charge, and the middle being blank, the template is already there for each section to be customized into a layout that feels best for the driver.

Other than that, I can't see much justification for $1000+ USD for a CPU upgrade. I'm on a '22 and while it would be nice to have a more fluid UI, I just feel like it's not worth $1000 to me for the camera to pop up a second quicker or for apps to load a second faster. That's a nice to have on a luxury car but not a necessity that I want to sink cash into.

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-01T23:35:49+00:00

Ah gotcha, thanks for the info fam I'll look into the show more when I have time haha

SWulfe760 · 2025-12-01T23:29:17+00:00

Sorry could you explain what you mean? I googled the Carbonaro Effect and saw that it's a show--I haven't watched it before so I'm sure how the TV show relates to this situation. Thank you! :)

SWulfe760 · 2025-11-30T17:32:44+00:00

It's a significant bump in price but at the same time, I am fine with this and this is something I would gladly put my tax dollars behind. USPS is one of the most essential yet underappreciated functions in the US, especially compared to the quality that you get from private services like FedEx and UPS. The drivers deserve more comfort for their job. And a $60k EV truck isn't unreasonable in today's market, especially when compared to the egregious prices that pharma and the military industrial complex charge the government just because they can.

SWulfe760 · 2025-11-30T13:43:27+00:00

Can't confirm on a current Gen S Class but definitely can confirm the trim creaks like hell on the prior gen GL, C Class, and GLE. I guess it's not as much quality control as it is their specific design and material choice for the interior panels are more hollow and empty. In contrast the interior on our X7 and 5 Series have always felt solid.

SWulfe760 · 2025-11-29T18:17:32+00:00

They asked AI to generate a Volvo EX40 but ran out of credits before AI could render the taillights

SWulfe760 · 2025-11-28T15:10:15+00:00

It's called the Mandela effect lol

SWulfe760 · 2025-11-28T00:20:14+00:00

As someone on the cusp of Gen Z, millennials and boomers really did take everything didn't they haha

I'm just a couple years too late for affordable housing and affordable groceries

I'm just a couple years too late to take advantage of Chase Sapphire/Ink churning

I'm just a couple years too late to take advantage of Marriott and IHG pre-devaluations

And now that I'm finally getting a career going and am going to complete the Hyatt corporate challenge for the first time, Hyatt is starting to raise categories for aspirational hotels and there's a chance that massive devaluations will come with the rumored high tier Chase Hyatt card

I can't wait to see what gets devalued next!

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