Most Viewed Automotive Blogs (377)

I was a kid when the movie Ben-Hur came to theaters. 1959 to be exact. One scene was the Chariot Race and if you were like me... you were hanging on the EDGE OF YOUR SEAT!!
The scary part was Messala, the bad guy who had a chariot equipped with a sharp pointy wheel axle that would break the spokes of the chariot driven by Judah Ben-Hur (actor Charlton Heston) and her was nearly victorious, but Ben-Hur out maneuvered Messala and won the race.
Note: I knew Messala was the bad guy because he had a team of black horses!

Anyway a few thousand years later, we've got our own chariot drivers with sharp pointy wheel hubcaps. I refer to them as Spartacus hubcaps. Judge for yourself...



Flashback to the Ben-Hur chariot Race

Yeah, they're called frits. The perimeter of a car windshield (windscreen if you are in England) has a series of graduated dots that transition into solid black. The graphic pattern is enamel that is baked to the glass and used as a primer to hold the windshield to the adhesive that secures it to the frame of the car.
Primer is part of the function as the graduated pattern hides the glue line of the adhesive making a nice aesthetic finishing touch.

Last year I had a cracked windshield (probably from a stone on the highway) and the insurance company offered me an aftermarket windshield that was readily available, or an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) from Toyota that would take a few days to get. Since the crack wasn't through the glass safety laminate and I had time, I opted for the OEM glass and the frits were the same.

I was on the highway at 9 this morning headed to a meeting with a real estate agent. They forgot to alert me today was the contest to see who could out maneuver who. I wanted no part of it, especially knowing this road is notorious for unmarked Highway Patrol cars... including the 'wanna race?' setups.

Oh, you didn't know about them?? A friend of mine decided to be part of a race already in session and when they came over the ridge, several police (with radar guns) were waiting to 'see your drivers license, registration and proof of insurance.'

Back to the drive... Sunday morning is great if you want to see people with vintage vehicles out for a Sunday drive. Today I got to see a nice roadster. I'm guessing a 1930's Ford. It had lots of high performance modifications like wide tires, big carburetors and short header exhaust. The car had a blue license plate signifying 'antique' so it was the real deal and not a 'put together' roadster.

Years ago, a client of mine had a 1957 Bel Air convertible with a Corvette engine in perfect condition. He 'ball parked' the value over $200,000 to the right buyer. He would take it to classic car shows and on rare occasion drive down 'the strip' on a Saturday night.

The coolest (in my opinion) antique car I've seen on the road happened to be early one Sunday morning, I pulled alongside a Ford roadster that must have been late 1920's to early 1930's. It was immaculate, you would think it came here via a time machine. The light turned green and some guy in an SUV behind the old car starts blowing the horn!

Obviously, he didn't appreciate Sunday drivers...

I caught a local news story about the driver of a Lamborghini who was speeding and ran a stop sign. He was T-boned by a Nissan SUV that caused the Lamborghini to flip an land on a house.

A mistake in the reporting:
(1:45 seconds) "the person in the 2nd car who was hit by the Lamborghini..."
No lady HE hit the Lamborghini, not the other way around.

The driver of the Lamborghini fled the scene, which is a felony in the state of Florida.





Link to Yahoo story:

The entire state of Florida is engulfed in heavy rains and extremely high winds as a result of a low pressure system in the Gulf of Mexico. I was out a few times today and witnessed it raining sideways, about the same as a direct hit from a tropical storm. Most wind gusts are around 25 to 30 miles per hour with a few bursts of 45 miles per hour.
The wind report is easy, it's the local flooding that could occur, especially near the East coast. The warnings went out yesterday.

Some of my neighbors have moved their cars to higher ground, I'll keep watch and if I think there's a chance my street will flood, I'll move my car too. Years ago, a few of us lost cars to extreme flooding that was nearly 2 feet deep in the middle of the street. I heard it was fault of the waterway management system who failed to turn on the pumps that take sewer water into canals and reservoirs. After four hours of steady rain, It was half the night waiting for the streets to drain.

Rain water drainage is an issue...
As far as the high winds... Let it blow, let it blow, let it blow.

My car is under manufacturers warranty and I'm entitled to some free oil changes. I booked an appointment about a week in advance and they confirmed by email.
The email also contained an advertisement.
The next day, I received another confirmation of the appointment and like the first, it contained an advertisement. The third day... you guessed it. Another reminder of the appointment along with an advertisement. Okay... Enough.

I clicked the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email and 2 more days of emails and advertisements. Obviously they are unaware I clicked the link to unsubscribe.

We're past the oil change. While I was there, I looked at one the the new models for 2022. It's not what I expected, nor am I inclined to pay $6,000 over sticker price, give a deposit and wait 4 to 6 weeks for a car to arrive. However a few emails came through from the dealer... sales rep and one from the sales manager. That unsubscribe button is getting lots of use so I actually replied formally requesting they stop sending me emails.

Sheesh!
Don't call me, I'll call you...

Last week I read that Elon Musk donated ventilators to a New York hospital. I believe the quantity stated was 1,000 units.

Then I read it was 40 units and the hospital couldn't use the machines as they weren't ventilators, they were BiPAP (air pressure) machines used for obstructive sleep apnea.

Elon claimed he sent the exact specifications to the hospital. They confirmed they would be critical. He's now being criticized for sending BiPAP and not life-support ventilators.

Last week I did a blog about ventilators and CPAP/BiPAP machines as the FDA recently stated they could be substituted for ventilators if hospitals are facing shortages. Obviously the FDA and hospitals aren't on the same page.

From the sound of things, there appears to be confusion about bilevel non-invasive ventilators, commonly referred to as BiPAP machines and ventilators.

Elon stated he would deliver more intensive ventilators last Thursday.

Also in the news... Tesla engineers announced a prototype ventilator that is designed from many of their car parts. YouTube video below.
One story already has him delivering 1,000 units to a California hospital.

Why do I believe this is merely a publicity stunt?
All the other manufacturers have to go through FDA approval.
Something doesn't add up.

I know BMW advertises their cars as the ultimate driving machine, but in the hands of an idiot, they become the ultimate crashing machine. When the Highway Patrol pull you over, they come to the passenger side of the vehicle for safety.
A Police officer in Fairfax, Virginia was speaking to a driver he had pulled over. The dash-cam shows just that and in the distance an 'out of control BMW' slides across the median backwards then side swipes the stopped car with such force that is bends the guard rail, hits the police car forcing it to slide back a car length.
The office saw the BMW and tried to run for cover but was struck to the ground, literally inches from disaster.

It's reported the BMW was driving more than 120 miles per hour when it lost control and spun around.

Video clip:


News link:







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COVID knocked out car manufacturing worldwide. New cars, factory parts, after-market parts. Everything.
If you were lucky enough to 'get in line' for a new car, the wait (in the beginning) was months. Because of this, the value of used cars went up.

No secret here. It's supply & demand. Cars that are 3 years old selling for the same price as when they were new.

I don't 'need' a car, but I've been eyeing the market and shopping for a 'future car' as the one I currently own should easily last 10 years, I'm just considering something a little larger.

Visiting a dealer for a model I wanted to test drive, they only had one to demo. It's not for sale. They are taking orders on it that are approximately 6 to 8 weeks out depending on the color and options.

I asked the price and was told some 'strange code' like 6250. I asked what is a 6250 and the salesman mumbled something. Figuring where he was going, I clearly asked "Are you charging $6,250 over sticker price" his response was "It's negotiable"

An associate of mine sold cars and told me the hottest SUV right now is the KIA TELLURIDE at a sticker price of over $42,000.
Currently, there are bidding wars with people paying over $10,000 sticker just to get one!

I went to the KIA site to check availability, but I was unable to get information on this model. It's not found in inventory for all the local dealerships.

At some point, chips and cars will become available and the demand for new cars will diminish. Those inflated used-car prices will begin to level out too. That means (just like house buying) if you paid too much for a car now, in a few years your devalued used car price will be giving you sticker shock!