Regrettable Rides, Texas Trains, and the new Palisade

Climb aboard as we journey through Texas heritage railways and drive some of the most disappointing dream cars ever made. This episode starts with a nostalgic look at Texas' historic train routes transformed into tourist attractions. From the inmate-built Texas State Railroad to the Grapevine Vintage Railroad's themed excursions (including beer trains and Thomas the Tank Engine days), we explore how these metal ribbons of history now create new memories for visitors.

The conversation shifts gears dramatically when we reveal six dream cars that owners deeply regret purchasing. The Mercedes CLS Shooting Brake with its endless repair bills, the eco-friendly but perpetually broken Fisker Karma, and the gorgeous but temperamental Alfa Romeo 4C all made the list. These automotive heartbreakers promise exotic looks and driving thrills but deliver wallet-draining disappointment. We explore why the first-generation Tesla Roadster, futuristic BMW i8, and even James Bond's Lotus Esprit leave owners shaken, not stirred.

We wrap up with a comprehensive review of the redesigned 2026 Hyundai Palisade. This seven-passenger SUV impresses with its distinctive styling, comfortable interior with customizable lighting, and competitive pricing at $58,300 for the tested Calligraphy AWD trim. However, the 3.5L V6 engine struggles with the vehicle's substantial 5,000-pound weight, particularly during highway passing maneuvers. Is the Palisade the right family hauler for you? Listen to our full assessment and compare it to competitors like the Chevy Suburban Premier ($78,095) and Ford Expedition King Ranch ($86,000). Have you experienced any dream car regrets or train adventures? Share your stories with us!

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Transcript

Mars Driving Destinations: Riding the Rail

Speaker 1 0:05

All right time now for Mars Driving Destinations, Riding the Rail. So is this a story about going to get to the train? Nope, Because this is not a train show.

Speaker 2 0:14

Well, I understand it's not a train show and as I was putting the pictures together, I got really excited talking about the trains.

Speaker 1 0:20

You get excited about things like that. This is what happens in your old age and dementia.

Speaker 2 0:25

I remember when I was a kid that I got to ride on a train there in my, you know, in Nederland. You went into the drugstore and you bought your train ticket, and whenever the train stopped across the highway, you walked across the highway and you got on the train.

Speaker 1 0:39

Well, we just had a segment on walking across highways.

Speaker 2 0:42

Exactly. Well, he did it safely, obviously, but you're still with us.

Speaker 3 0:45

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, but that was because the train stopped at everybody's stop. Did you have that little stick and all your clothes in that little bag when you walked?

Speaker 2 0:52

across the hobo. No, they wouldn't let you take the stick on the train.

Speaker 3 0:55

Oh, but put your eye out, or something.

Speaker 2 0:57

Because they use it for the fire.

Speaker 1 0:59

So the actual passenger train that went through there.

Speaker 2 1:01

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 1:03

East to west.

Speaker 2 1:04

Well, it went from Port Arthur. No, it was kind of more north-south because Port Arthur is the end of the line. I mean you're in the Gulf of Mexico when you get to there.

Speaker 3 1:11

Okay, I'm being a chip channel. Please carry on.

Speaker 2 1:20

And you see things every once in a while in the news about these heritage runs that people and all these trains running around. So that people and all these trains running around. So I thought, well, texas has got a lot of trains. For example, the texas state railroad, which is often called the lone star or the eastern railroad. It's a 25 mile heritage railroad between rusk and palestine. Now this was built by palestine. Palestine, palestine depends on how far north you know, it depends on where you're from exactly what I said.

Speaker 2 1:42

But this was built by the inmates and it was started in 1883 because they wanted to haul raw materials to the smelter at the prison at rusk so and they did that up until 1921. Then they leased it out to a bunch of private companies. Anyway, it ended up through the parks and wildlife department and it was turned over to the newly created texas state railroad. So now it's just a scenic tourist line and you can get on it on a limited schedule and they've got five steam locomotives and you can take the round trip on it if you want to go take your kids for a round. You've done that, david's done that. There you go. Now there's another one up in that part of the world called Grapevine Vintage Railroad. Now this goes from Grapevine Vintage Railroad. Now this goes from Grapevine to the Fort Worth Stockyards. Now, this is a purpose-built railroad that's strictly for a tourist thing. It didn't start out as anything else other than.

Speaker 1 2:33

Is it a?

Speaker 2 2:33

steam locomotive, or is it? They have steam and diesel.

Speaker 1 2:34

Okay.

Speaker 2 2:35

Apparently looking through some of these things. If a steam engine goes down, it takes a couple of three years to get it built and back up. Oh boy, so some of them. They've got diesels for backups, but it uh started using it. Uh, the train excursions they use 1896 steam locomotive is their prime one. And then they've got some 1920s era victoria coaches that people can ride in. You get on and get in grapevine at the main street station and you take 21 mile route over to fort worth, to the stockyards, and then you get on it and you come back. Uh, one of the special things that they do, since this is strictly tourists, they have several special events day out with Thomas. You remember Thomas the train.

Speaker 2 3:12

I do, thomas the tank engine yeah, yeah, yeah so it's a 25 to 30 minute trip and once one weekend a year they rebuild the Thomas, the tank engine. It kind of comes to Grapevine and it goes back and forth on this short train.

Speaker 2 3:27

You know, over and back so the train looks like thomas yeah, just one day, one weekend a year, so the kids can get there, you can take pictures. They have a lot of activities on both ends magic shows, live performance, storytelling, all kinds of things for the kids. For thomas train. Now for your older people, they they also have Kiss Me I'm Irish Express. Now, this is another round that's offered one Saturday in March. You've got to be 21 in order to ride the Kiss Me I'm Irish. You get Irish. You get two free glasses of beer and an Irish-style dessert on this train. Is the beer used as a chaser for something else? A dessert, I'm not talking. So they also have a jazz wine train for people that are more into wine and jazz. Or if you need to act like you're that way to make your wife happy, then this happens in mid-March. Again, you've got to be 21, or older.

Speaker 1 4:16

Why would you say that? Do you have some?

Speaker 2 4:20

experience in that regard. I've been married long enough to know that you've got to once in a while.

Speaker 1 4:23

Give her some wine once in a while.

Speaker 2 4:25

Yes.

Speaker 1 4:27

Like a lot If you're lucky.

Speaker 2 4:28

Often, if you're lucky, you can get away with a lot.

Speaker 3 4:31

I ain't saying anything.

Speaker 2 4:33

21 and older they have live jazz music in each coach. You get meals, wine tastings and all kinds of things going on. Then you have around the holidays Thanksgiving. They have Witch's Brew Train again 21. Halloween-themed food and entertainment. You've got two free glasses of craft beer, a souvenir stein. Costumes are highly encouraged, as well as pants, but they're not required. And then they also have several trick-or-treat trains for the kids.

Texas Heritage Railroad Tourism

Speaker 2 5:00

I like the pants-free train, exactly exactly Austin Steam Train Association. That's a train that runs up through the hill country. It makes different stops. It uses a 1912 steam engine to pull it. Amtrak Texas Eagle this is more modern. You can go from Chicago to San Antonio, to Los Angeles by train.

Speaker 1 5:21

Don't ever do that.

Speaker 3 5:22

Oh no, because it stops in Dallas, oh my.

Speaker 1 5:24

God, what does it take you five days to get there.

Speaker 3 5:26

When I was a kid we took vacation to California. We took a train out of Detroit, went to northern, went to southern route to LA and then a week later we went up to San Francisco and took a train back from San Francisco to Detroit and you had a good time on that.

Speaker 1 5:46

Well, I was a little kid. So, yeah, you have a good time. You got room to play Running through the train cars and all that. Yeah, I was probably nine years old. I like those when you're parked in some train yard for five hours at a time, just sitting there waiting for the next diesel to come along and hook up.

Speaker 3 5:53

No it was nothing like that.

Speaker 2 5:55

No, these are a little more timely than that they have to be. But the other one I wanted to mention just real quick. Am runs, since it runs across texas. You can go from new orleans to houston el paso and if you've ever been out here, state 10, and way off in the distance you see a train out in the middle of nowhere. That's this train. If you want to see a different part of texas, that'd be a way to go. There's more. Just look up trains in texas if you're looking for a train to ride. Thank you so much in real time.

Six Dream Cars Owners Regret Buying

Speaker 1 6:18

Car talk continues. After this quick break, time now for Jeff's Car Culture. Six dream cars. Owners regret buying.

Speaker 3 6:31

There you go. So dream cars. We've all fallen for that dream car at some point. The glossy ad, the jaw-dropping design, promises of speed and status. But sometimes, once you've been handed the keys, reality hits hard. Breakdowns, repairs, endless bills turn these beauties into burdens. So here we go. First one is a Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake. Oh God, that's ugly. It seemed cool and adventurous, but if you own one you quickly realize that it really meant endless repairs and repair bills Air suspension failures, expensive parts, tech that didn't work more than it did.

Speaker 3 7:07

bad roofline combined in the wagon as a money pit. But you know what I'd drive that?

Speaker 2 7:13

I would, I would. How far is the question at?

Speaker 3 7:15

least to the mechanical shop. There you go, and the next one we have is a fisker karma who hadn't heard of one of them. It's an eco-friendly vehicle, promises. Uh kept not really. People who bought it thought they were helping the earth, the smile of the joker on the front.

Speaker 1 7:31

There you go.

Speaker 3 7:31

The car had battery failures, electrical issues, recalls upon recalls. I thought it was a Ford at first. Turns out owners weren't just saving the earth, but they also saved mechanics businesses. So people got rich off of that car and it wasn't the owner. The next one we have, michael, is an Alfa Romero 4C. It's a lightweight, exotic looks, italian passion. What could go wrong? Well, you see, it's in the shop already. A lot Owners first discovered the brutal ride cheap-feeling interior, never-ending reliability quirks. It was like dating a gorgeous supermodel who shows up late, complains constantly and eats all your money. So there you go and eats onion rings. There you go, okay. Next one, mike, is a Tesla Roadster. It's the first generation, not the second. This was Tesla's first attempt at revolutionizing cars. While it broke ground, it also broke down. While it broke ground, it also broke down. Based on a Lotus Elise, it had charging issues, poor build quality and repairs that took months to get it running.

Speaker 1 8:32

It's not a bad looking. I've never seen one before. It's a first gen.

Speaker 3 8:35

I did not know that I haven't seen one on the road either, but that is a good looking car.

Speaker 2 8:39

There's a reason for that.

Speaker 3 8:40

Well, you put an LS in it. That's what you need.

Speaker 2 8:42

There you go.

Speaker 3 8:42

Okay, michael. The BMW i8. The i8 looked like a spaceship and promised hybrid supercar thrills, but it wasn't that fast, it wasn't that efficient either.

Speaker 1 8:52

Was it unpainted on the nose? No, it's just reflection, just reflection.

Speaker 3 8:58

It wasn't efficient. It wasn't even practical. Owners loved showing it off until the repair cost came in, and it was worth more than their mortgage in some cases was that a bmw, yeah, bmw, ia turns out w stands for uh, uh, well, it's a british motorworks, break my wallet okay turns out that the i8 was more flashy than substance.

Speaker 3 9:19

But uh, it's a good looking car. It really is, mike. And the last one we've got here is a Lotus Esprit, Made famous by James Bond. This car was cool, but owners quickly discovered that British electronics were questionable, build quality was poor and repair costs worthy of a secret agent's budget. It looked pretty cool, but having one meant becoming very close with friends of your mechanic. So there you go Pretty much, and then we got a bonus shot. I believe here's a bonus shot. So there you go Pretty much and then we've got a bonus shot. I believe there's a bonus shot. That car is gorgeous. Look at that.

Speaker 1 9:48

David and Jeff spent all day finding that location so he could take a picture of his car you betcha.

Speaker 3 9:55

That's out in front of your new place, yeah.

Speaker 1 9:58

Yeah, that's the county jail out in Fort Bend County, oh boy.

Speaker 3 10:10

Well, there you go, there you go.

2026 Hyundai Palisade Review

Speaker 1 10:11

Perfect Time now for this hour's car review. I had a chance to drive the 2026 Hyundai Palisade. It's been around a while. The final assembly location is Ulsan, korea. All right, 11 trim levels, 11. Count them. It's just too many to relay to you. Go online and find out. If you're interested, I would encourage you because this is something that I think that you may be interested in. The reviewed trim level was the Calligraphy all-wheel drive. This is a standard SUV and competes against all the big boys from all of the big manufacturers. Seats, including the driver, up to seven.

Speaker 1 10:52

Exterior changes from last model year, complete redesign for 2026. This is the second generation of the Hyundai Palisade. Very linear shape, straight line from the front fender all the way back to the D-pillar Concentric wheel openings. Rectangular grille with a similar front lighting design. Rear lighting mimics the front design. What I liked about it? The exterior gets high marks for a unique modern styling element throughout with high quality materials.

Speaker 1 11:29

What could use improvement? Nothing. Interior highlights Integrated instruments with the infotainment encompassed in the dash and in the infotainment system. It interfaces in a center stack design, easy to understand and use controls, comfort controls and through entertainment infotainment screen. I don't know what I meant by that, but I'm sure it was good. The thought process was there, but it just kind of didn't work out the way I wanted it to. Sorry, big Area for the cargo area back there with the third row down. What I liked Changeable interior lighting colors. It's fun. What could use improvement? I don't know. It has a 3.5 liter V6 motor in it Gasoline, 287 horsepower, 260 pound-feet of torque, eight-speed automatic transmission with a tow rating of 5,000 pounds Gets 18 in the city, 24 on the highway for a combined of 20. I got 18.8 miles per gallon over 409.4 miles. What I liked about it? Well, the powertrain may be adequate for a soccer mom, okay, but well, I'll tell you.

Speaker 3 12:55

Not a lot of stuff it could use improvement.

Speaker 1 12:56

It needs an optional engine with a little bit more power, because the thing weighs 5,000 pounds. I was going to ask it's very heavy, it's pretty big.

Speaker 1 13:05

Yeah, downshifting this thing. It's slow to recognize the fact that you're trying to go on the highway. You're at 50 miles an hour, you need to pass somebody, so it's a lag. It's not a lag, it's short on getting downshifted. Okay, it won't downshift fast enough. And then when it does, then it downshifts too far and you're back in the seat. There's a little issue For me, like I said, soccer mom probably wouldn't be a problem.

Speaker 1 13:38

What I liked about it, I liked the compliance. It's not your father's Oldsmobile, but boy is this thing sweet. I just say fix the underpowered motor to react to the 8-speed automatic transmission. That's all I can say. Fix the underpowered motor to react to the 8-speed automatic transmission. That's all I can say. Base price it's not cheap $56,000, $55,000 is the base trim price. Price is tested $58,300. But you can get in one of these for $40,930. So here are the competitors in size Chevy Suburban Premier $78,095. Now, remember, the one that I tested was 58 3. So the chevy suburban premier, which is up the scale, 78 000. Kia telluride, its sister or brother, sx prestige starts at 52 885 and the ford expedition king ranch 86. I had no clue that they were that expensive. No, but the big Ford Expedition is $86,000. That's a long money there for a Ford Expedition, just saying.

Speaker 3 14:41

Well, you pay for the recalls.

Speaker 2 14:43

I was going to say. Good news is it'll get recalled and get fixed Mm-hmm.