Gonna be in Roswell, NM in about 2.5 weeks...

[Mephistopheles Janx]

I'm flying out to Roswell, NM to purchase a vehicle assuming all goes well with the pre-purchase inspection that will be taking place on Monday.

The plan is to fly in, pick up the car, grab some food, then start the trek back home. This will be my first, and likely only, time ever in Roswell, NM. Outside of the kitschy alien shit all over the place... is there anything there that I absolutely need to go see, do, or eat before heading back?


---

For those who will ask... I'm probably picking up a 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP with 91k miles. I'm gonna get to go autocross racing again!

https://i.imgur.com/o27tyYI.png

https://i.imgur.com/M9LKL1r.png

https://i.imgur.com/55Mk5Zh.png

https://i.imgur.com/eh4wze0.png

[Imon Yourside]

Enjoy your anal probe :D

[ptlyon]

Enjoy your anal probe :D

That is a MUST IMO

[Lzen]

That is a good looking car. But........it's a Pontiac.....uuhhhhh.....good luck.

[MahomesMagic]

Drive out of Roswell at night and it is different.....

[loochy]

Roswell is awful. It's a terrible part of New Mexico with NOTHING there.

[ModSocks]

Roswell is awful. It's a terrible part of New Mexico with NOTHING there.

That's kind of how i envision all of New Mexico.

[ptlyon]

That's kind of how i envision all of New Mexico.

Oh no dude. Gotta get up towards the hills, Angelfire

[Hydrae]

I am going to Roswell at the end of next month for a birthday trip. Planning to visit the UFO museum of course. Then either White Sands or Carlsbad Caverns to wrap up the weekend. White Sands in particular is close, maybe 2 hours away.

[KCUnited]

SE NM may as well be west TX and the drive back to MO from there is poop

SW NW going into AZ is where its at

I recently drove NM hwy 117 through the El Malpais conservation area. I was the only person on the road and it was fantastic

Like looking into what land costs beautiful

[FlaChief58]

The Mrs and I were there last year. We had breakfast at a little coffee house across the street from the alien museum. That's pretty much it as far as we could tell. Honestly, we wouldn't have even done that if it hadn't been on the way

[seclark]

Those goats are going to eat the shit out of the top of that rig.
sec

[el borracho]

That's kind of how i envision all of New Mexico.

The fifth-largest state in the country with mountains, forests, high desert, great sand dunes, hot springs, extinct volcanoes and The Rio Grande is "nothing?"

[AdolfOliverBush]

Don't come back without proof of extraterrestrial intelligence.

[loochy]

That's kind of how i envision all of New Mexico.


The north-central part, from Santa Fe up to the Colorado border is absolutely beautiful...pine forests and 13,000+ peaks.


https://cdn-assets.alltrails.com/static-map/production/area/10118573/parks-us-new-mexico-carson-national-forest-10118573-20201213080103000000000-1200x630-3-41607857236.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Wheeler_Pk_from_Valle_Vidal.jpg


https://www.williamhortonphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Rio-Grande-Gorge-05.jpg

[ptlyon]

Ya that's what I'm talking about loochy. When I visited Angelfire, in one trip to the"top of the mountain", we saw deer, elk, a porcupine, eagles, bear. You name it. And we fished a local lake for trout while I was there too. Absolutely stunning.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

That is a good looking car. But........it's a Pontiac.....uuhhhhh.....good luck.

The thing is powered by one of the most reliable GM, and most powerful, 4cyl motors (Ecotec 2.0L LNF) which is mated to the 54L0-E trans which is found on BMWs and Caddys and, generally, has good reliability as well.

No rust as the car has been in NM its entire life.

It was owned by an old man who passed two years ago and his son (55ish year old man) is the new owner. No child has ever touched the steering wheel of this car which was a major attractor vs pretty much any 350z or Golf GTI I could have found out there.

That old man put an average of 7k miles on the car per year and changed oil, often based on time instead of mileage. Carfax shows oil changes spaced out by 700 miles, after 8 months, at times.

[IowaHawkeyeChief]

Keep the top up on that Solstice, I heard it's a lot harder for the Greys to beam you up...

[displacedinMN]

I did Tuscon to MPLS a few years ago. Posted about it.

Plenty of places to look at rocks, which I liked. But you will miss white sands and Texas canyon.

Stop at the twister museum if you want off the main hwy.

[ptlyon]

Plenty of places to look at rocks, which I liked.

They have a sex stone?

[displacedinMN]

I-40 in New Mexico sucks. I-40 in Texas is amazing.

[KS Smitty]

My SIL and her husband were there a couple of weeks ago. This was his comment about the food they had there: "of all things they have a great Long John Silvers, I was look'n through best restaurants and LJS came up as one of the top so we took a chance, it was a goooooooooooooooooooood one".

Been waiting to share this on CP lol.

[Pablo]

The fifth-largest state in the country with mountains, forests, high desert, great sand dunes, hot springs, extinct volcanoes and The Rio Grande is "nothing?"

https://media.tenor.com/86nvNyljaz8AAAAC/dumb-and-dumber-uh.gif

[notorious]

Roswell is awful. It's a terrible part of New Mexico with NOTHING there.

This. It’s terrible out there. Only thing that was cool was the midget 747s they were tearing apart at the airport.

I flew a family/business to Santa Teresa often and it took us over Roswell, which we stopped for fuel at every once in a while. Fuck that place.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

What I'm gathering from the responses here is that I don't need to find something to do there... I need to GTFO and start heading home as soon as I have the keys.

To be honest... that is pretty much what I expected to hear. I was hoping that someone had capitalized on the whole alien thing the town has going on and made something worth stopping for. Alas, I just need to get on the road.

Thanks for the replies everyone!

[HonestChieffan]

Drive back is not great. Food is horrendous in Roswell and crime is a bit of an issue. Fun to run out to airport and drive perimeter lookin at all the decommissioning aircraft. New Mexico green chilies super selection at the main nice grocery store. West Texas you hit the big dairy area, then beef feedlots and railroads. Hereford Tx. Brahms dairy places from Amarillo to Carthage Mo. lots and lots of small Mexican places to grab a taco.

[Lzen]

The thing is powered by one of the most reliable GM, and most powerful, 4cyl motors (Ecotec 2.0L LNF) which is mated to the 54L0-E trans which is found on BMWs and Caddys and, generally, has good reliability as well.

No rust as the car has been in NM its entire life.

It was owned by an old man who passed two years ago and his son (55ish year old man) is the new owner. No child has ever touched the steering wheel of this car which was a major attractor vs pretty much any 350z or Golf GTI I could have found out there.

That old man put an average of 7k miles on the car per year and changed oil, often based on time instead of mileage. Carfax shows oil changes spaced out by 700 miles, after 8 months, at times.


Sounds like you really did your research. Good, I think you will be very happy with that ride.

And yeah, I admit that I may have an irrational hatred of GM products. That is probably due to some bad experiences I've had with them over the years. But I do realize that it depends on factors such as model/year as well as some other items that you listed.

[FlaChief58]

Drive back is not great. Food is horrendous in Roswell and crime is a bit of an issue. Fun to run out to airport and drive perimeter lookin at all the decommissioning aircraft. New Mexico green chilies super selection at the main nice grocery store. West Texas you hit the big dairy area, then beef feedlots and railroads. Hereford Tx. Brahms dairy places from Amarillo to Carthage Mo. lots and lots of small Mexican places to grab a taco.

The feedlots were an amazing sight, I've never seen anything like it. Steak on the hoof as far as the eyes can see

[stanleychief]

Drive back is not great. Food is horrendous in Roswell and crime is a bit of an issue. Fun to run out to airport and drive perimeter lookin at all the decommissioning aircraft. New Mexico green chilies super selection at the main nice grocery store. West Texas you hit the big dairy area, then beef feedlots and railroads. Hereford Tx. Brahms dairy places from Amarillo to Carthage Mo. lots and lots of small Mexican places to grab a taco.

HonestChieffan is honest and correct. If you like green chilies, pick some up to take home, or have a dish with them in it while you are there. They are pretty fantastic. Once you get east of Albuquerque, I-40 is pretty boring.

If it were me, and I had time to kill, I'd spend a day in Santa Fe and the surrounding area. For the drive back, I'd look at taking 54 highway to get back to KC. I'm not going to lie.. it's not super exciting, but you aren't going to be staring at the back of a semi for hours on end.

[scho63]

Head south to Belize

[notorious]

HonestChieffan is honest and correct. If you like green chilies, pick some up to take home, or have a dish with them in it while you are there. They are pretty fantastic. Once you get east of Albuquerque, I-40 is pretty boring.

If it were me, and I had time to kill, I'd spend a day in Santa Fe and the surrounding area. For the drive back, I'd look at taking 54 highway to get back to KC. I'm not going to lie.. it's not super exciting, but you aren't going to be staring at the back of a semi for hours on end.

Holy hell, 54 is nothing but semis in southwest Kansas.

Come to think of it, all of them are like that.

[Bump]

you're probably going at a good time tbh (or bad if that recent alien news creates more tourism for that town and you don't want to deal with traffic or something).

[Stryker]

You lost me at this...I'm probably picking up a 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP with 91k miles. That is crazy in it self! 91K? On a Pontiac? Yes, I hope the anal probe puts you back in time and the car has 91 miles on it. Then come back. :thumb:

[Mephistopheles Janx]

You lost me at this...I'm probably picking up a 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP with 91k miles. That is crazy in it self! 91K? On a Pontiac? Yes, I hope the anal probe puts you back in time and the car has 91 miles on it. Then come back. :thumb:

Yeah... that car with 0-20k miles is selling for $17k. 30-50k miles for 14k. 70-90k miles for $11k.

I'm not paying anything near that $11k.

Any suggestions on what I should get instead for around $7k?

My requirements:

* No econo-boxes... the car has to have a soul
* 250+ HP
* Something unique and on the smaller side.
* No muscle cars... I don't need or want a Camaro, Firebird, Mustang, Corvette, Charger, Challenger.
* No luxury cars... I already have a big comfy truck.
* No mods. No stage 1 anything. No ECU mods. Not even a CAI. ALL STOCK.
* Impeccable maintenance records
* No one between the ages of 18 and 28 have had regular access to the car. Better if they never touched the steering wheel

[Stryker]

Yeah... that car with 0-20k miles is selling for $17k. 30-50k miles for 14k. 70-90k miles for $11k.

I'm not paying anything near that $11k.

Any suggestions on what I should get instead for around $7k?

My requirements:

* No econo-boxes... the car has to have a soul
* 250+ HP
* Something unique and on the smaller side.
* No muscle cars... I don't need or want a Camaro, Firebird, Mustang, Corvette, Charger, Challenger.
* No luxury cars... I already have a big comfy truck.
* No mods. No stage 1 anything. No ECU mods. Not even a CAI. ALL STOCK.
* Impeccable maintenance records
* No one between the ages of 18 and 28 have had regular access to the car. Better if they never touched the steering wheel

Ok, it is a gorgeous vehicle no doubt but, it is WAY not worth it. It will cost you so much in the end that supersedes the initial chase for said vehicle. If this is what you want then please do not let me stand in your way. God Speed!:thumb:

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Ok, it is a gorgeous vehicle no doubt but, it is WAY not worth it. It will cost you so much in the end that supersedes the initial chase for said vehicle. If this is what you want then please do not let me stand in your way. God Speed!:thumb:

The reply wasn't a snarky one. If you have suggestions I'm 100% all ears.

I looked at 350z, G35, Golf GTI, BMW Z, Porsche Boxter, Hyundai Veloster, Volvo C30 R / Polestar.

At the price I am getting this vehicle... I could drive it for 2-3 years, sell it, and likely still make money on the back end.

[Megatron96]

Been a long time since I've been in Roswell, so might be out of date here.


I don't remember a lot of things to see; there's a lot of antiquey shops, art galleries, that sort of thing. There's a park that has a lot of art in it if you're into that sort of thing. Nearby is a bird sanctuary.

They've got some good places to eat. In particular the Cowboy Cafe or Martin's have very good food, and one of them had some great pie.

[notorious]

Yeah... that car with 0-20k miles is selling for $17k. 30-50k miles for 14k. 70-90k miles for $11k.

I'm not paying anything near that $11k.

Any suggestions on what I should get instead for around $7k?

My requirements:

* No econo-boxes... the car has to have a soul
* 250+ HP
* Something unique and on the smaller side.
* No muscle cars... I don't need or want a Camaro, Firebird, Mustang, Corvette, Charger, Challenger.
* No luxury cars... I already have a big comfy truck.
* No mods. No stage 1 anything. No ECU mods. Not even a CAI. ALL STOCK.
* Impeccable maintenance records
* No one between the ages of 18 and 28 have had regular access to the car. Better if they never touched the steering wheel

Original Acura NSX is the perfect car for you. You could get one for cheap 10 years ago, but now they are insane.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Original Acura NSX is the perfect car for you. You could get one for cheap 10 years ago, but now they are insane.

I would agree. I've long enjoyed the looks of the NSX. The Honda S2000 would be a consideration as well if it didn't require the driver to be the size of an American 7th grader.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Just got a call from the mechanic. These are the issues he found.

https://i.imgur.com/37uRU3j.jpg

The original owner has agreed to fix the issues with the serpentine belt, the electric fan, and the AC without changing the agreed upon price.

The only thing on me to fix is the weeping around the timing cover which needs new tensioners put on for the chain anyhow. I am having the shop put in a fresh water pump as that, along with the timing chain tensioners, are the single biggest engine killers on these cars.

[notorious]

"Bounceing"?

LMAO

[kc rush]

We were there a couple of years ago and there isn't much to the town. Goofy alien stuff is fun for about a minute, but that is about it.

We did enjoy eating here though - https://thecowboy.cafe/

Carlsbad Cavern to the south is cool and Santa Fe (north) is great. Santa Fe and Taos had a lot of cool things to see.

[notorious]

We were there a couple of years ago and there isn't much to the town. Goofy alien stuff is fun for about a minute, but that is about it.

We did enjoy eating here though - https://thecowboy.cafe/

Carlsbad Cavern to the south is cool and Santa Fe (north) is great. Santa Fe and Taos had a lot of cool things to see.

Taos has the Rio Grande bridge (awesome) and where Red River and the Rio Grande meet (super awesome).

Eat at Michaels. Get green chile on everthing

[Simply Red]

lots of good pussy down in New Mexico.

[Ming the Merciless]

enjoy your anal probing

and you dont even get a spaceship ride




http://www.quickmeme.com/img/6b/6bf9fc25618952a60a72e9c05b032c6893b68692626c73cc8d9d6b0d003a78fe.jpg

[stanleychief]

Holy hell, 54 is nothing but semis in southwest Kansas.

Come to think of it, all of them are like that.

Maybe I got lucky, but it didn't seem as bad. I think I recall as I got closer to Dodge City it got worse, but for quite some time, it was free of semis. I met up with some bikers and we were moving along at a good clip for a long while. Not a lot of gas stations though. I was a bit nervous at one point.

Now that I'm looking at the map, I bet I took 412 and 56 instead of 54. I'll have to see if I saved my GPS tracks from that trip.

Edit: Yeah, that's the route I took. I see that Google suggests that route from Santa Fe to Dodge City as well. 420 miles using 412 & 56 vs. 460 miles on 54.

[Ocotillo]

We were there a couple of years ago and there isn't much to the town. Goofy alien stuff is fun for about a minute, but that is about it.

We did enjoy eating here though - https://thecowboy.cafe/

Carlsbad Cavern to the south is cool and Santa Fe (north) is great. Santa Fe and Taos had a lot of cool things to see.

Alien museum is meh. Smells too.

Carlsbad Caverns would be the place to visit, but it's in the opposite direction that the Mephistopheles is going.

Ruidoso, an hour or so west of Roswell, is a neat, mountain town. Neat if you from dry West Texas or southern New Mexico, but not that fascinating if you're accustomed to Colorado mountain towns. Ruidoso has a horse track that is still in season.

[Buehler445]

The feedlots were an amazing sight, I've never seen anything like it. Steak on the hoof as far as the eyes can see

This might be the first time I’ve ever seen anyone ever post anything positive about feedlots.

Hey man if you want to see one I can get you up close and personal.

Holy hell, 54 is nothing but semis in southwest Kansas.

Come to think of it, all of them are like that.

HEY HEY HEY MOTHERFUCKER

Sometimes you run across a semi with a wind turbine blade on it. Going 50 MPH and being unable to pass ever is refreshing and a great stress reliever. ROFL

[KCUnited]

I recently took 400/54 to 40 out of Wichita and it was smooth sailing

All the trucks and other traffic was going north

Of course it was on a Saturday evening so maybe that helped

I stopped for the night in Liberal and actual had some decent BBQ

[Bob Dole]

It’s awesome ducking with the top on and looking over the windshield with it off.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

It’s awesome ducking with the top on and looking over the windshield with it off.

The head of Pontiac, for whom the Solstice was their personal pet project, was 6’4 and fit just fine with the top up.

[stevieray]

Have you had the opportunity to sit in one /drive it?

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Have you had the opportunity to sit in one /drive it?

Many many many many years ago I got to sit in one at a race I was driving my Focus SVT in. The guy I'm buying it from was kind enough to send video of him (5'11 / 230) getting in and out of it with no issues at all.

Didn't get to drive it though.

Have you? If so, what did you think?

[notorious]

I recently took 400/54 to 40 out of Wichita and it was smooth sailing

All the trucks and other traffic was going north

Of course it was on a Saturday evening so maybe that helped

I stopped for the night in Liberal and actual had some decent BBQ

Holler next time KCU. Not far from me.

[notorious]

This might be the first time I’ve ever seen anyone ever post anything positive about feedlots.

Hey man if you want to see one I can get you up close and personal.



HEY HEY HEY MOTHER****ER

Sometimes you run across a semi with a wind turbine blade on it. Going 50 MPH and being unable to pass ever is refreshing and a great stress reliever. ROFL

Oh god. Instant casserole of angry and frustration when one of those mother fuckers is in front of you.

[stevieray]

Many many many many years ago I got to sit in one at a race I was driving my Focus SVT in. The guy I'm buying it from was kind enough to send video of him (5'11 / 230) getting in and out of it with no issues at all.

Didn't get to drive it though.

Have you? If so, what did you think?

No.

I hope it works out for you. Always nice to see people take care of vehicles and being helpful.

One thing for sure, you'll know how comfortable it is after that drive.

Have fun on the way back (listen to good tunes) @ good fortune in your purchase!

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Heading out in 21 hours. I arrive in Roswell at 11:30 PM where dude is going to meet me at the airport and I'm gonna drive it first to my folks home in OKC... then onward back to the farm.

The car has been checked by an independent mechanic of my choice who identified 3 major issues. No AC, electric fan wasn't working, and the serpentine belt was missing ribs. All issues have been addressed, at a cost of over $1k to the current owner, and the car is fully functional.

I'll post an update with photos in about 26 hours.

[BigOlChiefsfan]

Santa Fe. Get almost anything that comes with green chile, enjoy!

https://www.santafe.org/dine/?msclkid=6630255740101641f3524181a7593d04&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=FY24_TSF_BING_DO_SEARCH_PILLARS&utm_term=best%20restaurants%20in%20santa%20fe&utm_content=Cuisine%20-%20Broad%20Match

[Mephistopheles Janx]

Final bump on this thread. I made this video for another forum that is specifically about this cars but you will get the point.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gOVW0elWNMA" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The one major issue is that the tech had a massive miss when he didn't spot the HUGE GOUGE in the rack and pinion which is causing the car to make a clunking sound when I turn the wheel at lower speeds/still. Thankfully there is an online "junkyard" that caters to these cars specifically and I was able to get a rack and pinion that was pulled off a Saturn Sky Redline with 71k miles that will work perfectly for $150. The job seems straightforward enough.

https://i.imgur.com/gLcpuMr.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/gmavKA6.jpg

The seller had the car listed for $8,500 but I got it for $7,250, The seller paid $1k in repairs (electric fan, AC, and belt). Hagerty has the value of this car at $11,600, Carvana offered me more money than I paid for the car when I plugged in the vin to their site just to see what they would offer.

I think I did just fine.

[Zebedee DuBois]

No reverse-engineered technology?
No metal alloys unknown to human kind?
No runes in the VIN?

Most disappointing Roswell story ever!

[srvy]

The mechanic obviously drive the car in his inspection.

[Mephistopheles Janx]

The mechanic obviously drive the car in his inspection.

Yup... don't know if he thought the noise was normal or what. Complete and total whiff.