Hi all, I just purchased my first "proper" car.
Got my hands on Merc A200 AMG with all the bells and whistles (reverse cameras, voice control, self parking etc etc)
But what do you keep inside your car that's practical? This includes gadgets.
What's your tech setup like? Anything useful/cool?
What about xiamoi products?
Thanks!
Nope, he uses xiaomi
No I assure you I'm not one of them. I just got a stupidly good deal which I couldn't refuse
What was the deal ?
Maybe he got a used older model (2013 ?) like this for $28,000 ?
https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/pascoe-vale/cars-vans-utes/m…
…still a rip-off if you ask me, unless its required by his work as a High Yield investment
Yeah kind of. Except I got a 2015, top of the line (AMG + Every other option pack), low km, beautifully maintained for about the same price.
@Halo375: Unless you got the A45 AMG, the A200 is a crap car.
Sporting a 1.6L tubro, the car hardly hits 120KW. Waste of 40K IMO
Notice how OP tried to fool us by calling it an "A200 AMG". Ha ha ha! No such thing exists. The only A-Class AMG is the A45.
@unistudent1:
An A200 isn't top of the line. The AMG badge on the A200 refers to the extra bit of body kit and interior styling. Nothing else.
It was the entry level up until the A180 was introduced.
It is still a decent car but it's no power house, and certainly far from top of the line.
@Drifter:
The A45 is arguably not even a traditional AMG as all the true AMGs of the past used the same core components (save the chassis) for many of the AMG cars.
However, Mercedes is now playing the same game as everyone else - diluting the standards of their flagship badge to sell more cars to people who want to be seen with a "flagship".
@unistudent1:
Well you obviously didn't score a brand new A200 with AMG pack for $15k (in that case it's worth it)
As such, with whatever "massive discount" you got, you still have a lemon with Mercedes keys.
I don't even know how AMG agreed to kit-up an entry level A200 1.6L car.
@frostman:
Parent company tells them to, they comply. The 43’s are technically not pure AMG’s either (1 man 1 engine) but they’re still kitted out with oomph and I’d call them AMG enough.
@ATangk: Depends what you call "AMG"
Other than body and interior changes, AMG represent a racing breed engine that's not present in the standard lines.
So the A45 AMG is not just a 2.0L engine with a dropped turbo, it's tuned for racing which is why it hits 4.3s @ 0-100.
Same goes with all the tossers that get AMG styling and calling it an 'AMG' and having ebay AMG stickers everywhere.
haha “AMG”, “top of the line”. No, it’s the bitch version.
parents paid for it
@frostman:
I am not an expert on Mercedes and I am trying to figure out which car he has?
From his comments, he says a 2015 A200 AMG but there is no such thing, as far as I can find out there are two cars:
The basic hatch:
2015 Mercedes-Benz A200 (2015 price $41,800)
The sport hatch:
2015 Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG (2015 price $75,700)
So the A200 AMG does not exist and he has the basic A200?
So the A200 AMG does not exist and he has the basic A200?
Yes, but as with any Mercedes, you can add options to it, there is an AMG Package available which pretty much just adds some nice carpet mats, larger rims, leather trim with red stitching, etc. But it's a long shot from a real AMG
I just got a stupidly good deal which I couldn't refuse
Doesn't exist for a merc when a $5k Camry does the exact same job.
Good point
A $5K Camry is more powerful, bigger, tows more, requires less maintenance, less to insure, not a thief and vandalism magnet, infinitely more reliable, has better resale… etc etc… lol
Argh this poor horse is well over-beaten.
I'm mechanically minded and pedantic but
-Dash cam (my number 1 recommendation, paid for itself already!)
-Tissue box
-Glass wipes
-Aux cable
-12V to USB adapter + USB to phone cable
-Sunglasses
-NRMA card + NSW Police 'what to do in a crash' pamphlet
In boot
-First aid kit (your Merc being European may have one?)
-Fire extinguisher
-1L engine oil
-Sunshades
-Warning triangle (your Merc being European should have one?)
-Jack/spare wheel (factory standard)
Longer or remote trips
-Tool kit with sockets/spanners
Thankyou. Yes it has everything you said
Any recommendations for a car charger ?
Kmart 8$ dual car charger
I got one off ebay, ymmv
Depends on your phone. If your phone supports it, get a quickcharge qc3.0 charger.
Does your car have a spare tyre, runflats, or tyre inflator kit? Check which one you have and research how to use the last one.
This is a good point. My mate had an AMG A45 with run flat + tyre repair kit (i think) and no spare. He hit the rim on the curb and bent it. found out the hard way his $100K car didnt come with a spare.
@paaj: If you are spending 100k on a car you wouldn't you double check everything and assume very little?
@paaj: Hijacking this post…
I've always been curious - if a stock standard vehicle comes with say 18" wheels and then you change your entire set for 4 rolling to say 20 = can the spare tyre still work?
someone told me something about rolling diameter being the same
but on the other hand i have a mate that argued to earth's end that the 19" would still work as a spare to get to the shops even though there is such a gap of 2" ?
thoughts?
@porkupine888: Vehicle and wheel dependent.
The issue is for an all wheel drive it will likely destroy the transmission/diff.
For a 2wd, it would probably work (assuming the vehicle has an open diff and not a LSD).
The other potential issue is the ABS/stability control may go haywire as it thinks one wheel is spinning slower (slipping).
@porkupine888: haha no worries!
@thetrain is correct - the car would be very unstable as one wheel is travelling at a different speed to the others -if the others are larger, they have a slightly higher distance to travel on each rotation than the smaller wheel.
I wonder if that would also confuse the computer in a modern car into thinking that the car is slipping on the smaller wheel and engage traction control?
Both previous replies somewhat incorrect.
Legally, you need to.have the same diameter outside diameters for all your tyres to.ones that are fitted from factory +/- ~5% (might be less).
Say the car comes with 18" rims stock, with 225/40R18 tyres (225mm wide, 40% of the 225mm width is height, 18" is the diameter of the steel/alloy rim.
If you buy 20" rims, you will need to buy approximately 225x20R20 rims, or an equivalent tyre which will be within ~5% of the original tyre diameter.
Due to how the system works, you don't always get exact matches, so the 20" rim and tyre combo might yield close to but not exactly the original outside diameter, but close enough.
I'm terms of running a spare, if the outside diameter of the new tyres are exact, it will be fine, if it's very close you will get away with a short distance without wrecking your diffs (drive slow). This is of more importance on an awd car. If on undriven wheels of a 2WD car then lesser importance but as previously stated in another post, can negatively impact abs/stability control.
Subaru tell people to change all their tyres at the same time to avoid differential wear, cause even uneven wear on tyres can negatively impact on differential life
@paaj: / @andreabbbq: / @thetrain:
thanks for your input :
above mentioned is all i understand and come from an engineering background too - which "logically"& rationally makes sense that if 3s'rolling diameter is say 20"and one is 18"then it'd be no different to eating on a dinner table with one leg shorter… just keeps doing that humpty dump thing every time it tries to come into contact with the ground.
my concern / real issue is : is it a feasible / useable (obviously to individual discretion) wheel as a SPARE to get to a workshop say 10-20km down the road - reason being because this is installed in a female driven car - so i don't want a SPARE in there that's üseless or would cause more problems right?
@andreabbbq: getting technical - if say the ori is 195/45/14 and the new one is 205/55/16 could the ori still be used as a SPARE? it's a smaller rim, i understand but someone mentioned a hack of getting a bigger diameter tyre or something which to me doesn't terribly make sense…
TIA
If you are running that much difference in tyre diameter, you have illegal sizes on your car and your Speedo will be way out. If original is 195X45R14, the 16" should be around 205x20R16.
I think you may have a typo somewhere, and generally you have zero idea of the concept put forward I think lol. Also "female driven car"? What?
Anyway, search tyre size calculator in Google which will give you appropriate answers, otherwise talk to your tyre shop.
I would get a quick charge one. Something like this:
https://www.4cabling.com.au/rapid-car-charger-3p-quick-charg…
Umm are you sure you don't have a USB input in the centre console?
I recommend getting a "name" brand charger.
The cheap no-name chargers I've had kept blowing fuses after a few weeks.
The brand name ones worked much better.
Portable Jump Starters best investment.
which dashcam do you recommend?
I'm running a Navman Mivue 358, haven't had or used any others.
I have the ThinkWare F770. Rock solid reliable with no issues. I couldn't tell you how many times it's caught idiot drivers on video.
Street Guardian dual cam.
https://streetguardian.info/sg9663dc
They're good brand, good support, never had any issues with mine.
The above link is their brand new dual cam setup.
I've run one of their older models with no issues at all. Upgraded after I accidentally put my cheap Chinese cam through the wash.
Will be switching to the above dual cam version soon.
Thanks - Looks good but is expensive at $549.00 AUD
Is it front and rear in one unit or 2 - i read the FAQ's but this wasnt clear (to me at least)
$549!!!!!!!!!!?????????????
It's two units but the rear plugs into the front and recording is made on the front only.
Also means alerts or event saving is done for both at the same time.
The single (front only) unit I currently use is this:
https://www.blackboxmycar.com/products/street-guardian-sgzc1…
It looks like it's on clearance for $169usd which is a really good price.
The cheap no-name versions all sit around $100aud, so it's not much more.
It's a brand new model which literally just came out.
Most dual dashcams are around the $400-600 mark.
If that's too high for budget, then a front-only is better than nothing.
I just bought a xiamoi for $36 AUD delivered. I’ll buy a second and pocket the other $490 thanks!
Each to their own I guess. Hope it’s worth the cost for you.
Also forgot I have jumper leads too!
I have ditched my jumper leads for those little jump starter battery packs (they look like a power bank for charging phones). Then you don't need to find someone else's car to connect your jumper leads to.
Cheap suaoki ones from eBay have worked great for me. Super powerful and started engines much bigger than they are rated for.
Just don't leave them in your car. Li-Ion batteries at some point can get unstable. Quite possibly, will explode.
Chances are greater the cheaper the unit and circuit design.
I too have the Suaoki too (not a copycat one), I don't leave it in the car though. Interior of even a white car reaches 70 degrees in the sun, maybe more. My Suaoki cost 2-3x the cheapest equivalent.
All these little LiIon gadgets are a worry- dashcams, torches, which will be the first to explode?
That said, most only go wrong during charging. I think… (?!?!) in which case no Tesla should ever have exploded whilst driving, completely incinerating its occupants as well.
Airliners and BT headphones, Samsung Galaxies… thankfully it is yet to get very common, however LiIon and LiPo batteries are fast becoming the standard in the cheapest devices.
A good list. I'd add:
- aerosol spray tyre filler/puncture repair. They are useful for fixing small punctures without changing the wheel.
wait you don't have california scents or myshaldan? https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/303135
what are you…
You forgot a torch.
Yep, what thettrain said plus: torch (with spot beam, lamp and flood light capabilities, self-standing, magnetic base), wet weather gear, spare clothes and shoes, tools, street directory (book), pen, cash, windscreen chip patch, spares (bulbs, fuses, etc), and St Christopher medal (in case I forgot something :)
No jumper leads?
I’ve always thought about carrying a fire extinguisher in the car boot but actually have no idea if say 40 degree days, where it gets even hotter inside, would be bad for it.
Actually would like to know, if it’s all good then I’ll put one in and not have to think about it. Can anyone advise?
Not sure if 40+ degree days are bad for them, but the ex-police cars at car auctions have them and I've had one in my boot for years without incident
You know they have an expiry…?
How long do they last?
@BrodenIt:
5 to 15 years, just get it inspected once a year or two and you'll be fine.
The pressure gauge needle should stay in the green, otherwise get it serviced.
@Drew22: They're about $15 at Bunnings, why would you bother getting it serviced? I can't see a call out being less than $100!
Yep! I think I'll replace it when it hits 5 years (and maybe the car too!)
Just make sure the fire extinguishers are 'secured.' My mate had one moving around in his empty boot. Eventually it got triggered and had to stop car as he couldn't breathe.
TRIGGERED
@ZubatRingo: Could have been worse.
Unsecured in the car during an accident it could become an internal projectile, make its way through an auto seat, a human body… become an external projectile and keep going. Crash engineers love to tell us about tissue boxes on parcel shelves" blowing people's heads off in a prang.
They should be fine, I think. My extinguisher from supercheap has a pressure gauge on it. I actually have it due to CAMS (Confederation of Asutralian Motor Sports) regulation which also requires it to be no more than 3 years old (or since check/refill/service).
Yeah I had my fire extinguisher mounted on a bracket in the passenger footwell for CAMS use too but with the daily car sitting in the sun all day while I'm at work, I get worried that it might be bad for it.
I guess given the responses here so far though, nobody has had any issues so I'll chuck one in the boot.
I'm guessing you've blown your budget and eaten into some of your savings. Lets just hope it's got good ground clearance. Hint: the A200 doesn't.
If you try that shit in your new wheels while rocking your AUX cable then you'll be dirtying up your Timberlands and breaking nails pushing the car off the next traffic island.
It's got Bluetooth ;)
Hahaha let's just say I like having options.
You mean your first high yield investment car?
Nope. I've got ETF's for my high yield investment!
rookie mistake, should always start off with CFDs
Shovel
Why did you feel the need to state the car you bought, doesn't really have relevance to the question you are asking. Comes across as gloating…from memory a lot of your previous posts come across that way (to me). Is that your intention?
Yes, i agree.
Typing this up with my $1800 iphone x 256gb
Agreed
Sending this via wifi in 1st class on my way to Monaco for a quick weekend getaway
If you don't have a Chauffeur you are just slumming it.
I am here too, I have spare room in my yacht, if you want a lift back, if you don't mind the inconvenience of a 4 week stop over in Bahamas and the caymans first. I need to attend to my bank accounts, and visit my mistresses.
Definitely not gloating.
*Typed this on an $1400 iPad Pro 10.5" carried in a US$5000 bag in the Qantas first class lounge in Sydney Airport while wearing my $545 RM Williams.
I'm a student with an ipad pro and RMW boots… Use the hell out of them both. Great products. Don't understand the joke…
I've got a pair of $2 Australia Day thongs from the Reject Shop.
Lol, $545 rms? Aren't those the pleb varieties. You need the signature alligator hide ones or why would you even bother.
I'm a cracked screen S7 Kind of a guy
I'm a crack ed screen s7 kind of a guy
FTFY
unistudent1, did you just get a job at Westpac?