Here is a list of Automotive Blogs ordered by Last Commented, posted by members. A Blog is a journal you may enter about your life, thoughts, interesting experiences, or lessons you've learned. Post an opinion, impart words of wisdom, or talk about something interesting in your day. Update your blog on a regular basis, or just whenever you have something to say. Creating a blog is a good way to share something of yourself with others. Reading blogs is a good way to learn more about others. Click here to post a blog.
police car chases,,,
we often see on the news , police chasing either stolen cars or criminals , which amounts to the same thing , a felony has occurred ,
so why do these chases turn into a nascar race ,,
they start off with a couple of cruisers sitting a safe distance behind the offender ,
and if by magic every cop and his dog joins in on the action , is it because the longer the chase lasts then it will be shown on the news via helicopter and this will be their 15 minutes of fame,
and you can be sure by the end of the chase there will be anything from 10 to 20 squad cars around the offender plus a police helicopter hovering above ,,
that is a lot of tax payers hard earned bucks being wasted,,
and as we often see a lot of these chases usually end up with the car being wrecked or hitting innocent drivers along the way.
now a simple solution to this problem , would be to have two squad cars pursuing the vehicle along with the eye in the sky.
and if the vehicle will not stop , the the over head chopper should armed with a mini guided missile that will totally take the car out when there is the opportunity to do so .
it will save on the insurance pay outs save on court costs as there will be nobody to go to court ,
and it will save tax payers money as the other 18 squad cars can do some proper work ,,
and will also serve as a deterrent for car thieves and criminals running from the police ,,
so why do these chases turn into a nascar race ,,
they start off with a couple of cruisers sitting a safe distance behind the offender ,
and if by magic every cop and his dog joins in on the action , is it because the longer the chase lasts then it will be shown on the news via helicopter and this will be their 15 minutes of fame,
and you can be sure by the end of the chase there will be anything from 10 to 20 squad cars around the offender plus a police helicopter hovering above ,,
that is a lot of tax payers hard earned bucks being wasted,,
and as we often see a lot of these chases usually end up with the car being wrecked or hitting innocent drivers along the way.
now a simple solution to this problem , would be to have two squad cars pursuing the vehicle along with the eye in the sky.
and if the vehicle will not stop , the the over head chopper should armed with a mini guided missile that will totally take the car out when there is the opportunity to do so .
it will save on the insurance pay outs save on court costs as there will be nobody to go to court ,
and it will save tax payers money as the other 18 squad cars can do some proper work ,,
and will also serve as a deterrent for car thieves and criminals running from the police ,,
a ban on cars,
the uk has announced that it is to ban ,the sale of petrol and diesel cars ,,
now as a regular driver i can see many misgivings with this,
electric cars are ok to pop to the local shops or drop the kids at school ,
but could you imagine the dread of a long trip in one ????
imagine your batteries are low ,,and hey presto there is a powercut ,,,
or you pull at a charging station and there is a queue waiting ,,
and these cars dont recharge that quickly ,yes a quick 30 minute charge will get you on the move but not very far,
so is it a good or bad thing ????
now as a regular driver i can see many misgivings with this,
electric cars are ok to pop to the local shops or drop the kids at school ,
but could you imagine the dread of a long trip in one ????
imagine your batteries are low ,,and hey presto there is a powercut ,,,
or you pull at a charging station and there is a queue waiting ,,
and these cars dont recharge that quickly ,yes a quick 30 minute charge will get you on the move but not very far,
so is it a good or bad thing ????
online today!
Spartacus Hubcaps...
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
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
online today!
Keyfob aka the lump in my pocket...
My car is equipped with a keyless entry system. To make it work, I have to have the keyfob remote entry transmitter with me. I approach my locked car, put my hand in the door handle and it unlocks the car. It's programmable that only the driver's door unlocks or I can specify the other doors also unlock.
This keyfob is 4 times larger than the one on my previous vehicle, probably because it has more technology packed inside. If I want to leave the car running and run into the store for something... forgetaboutit, the car begins to beep letting me know that the keyfob is out of range. Actually, it beeps if I step out to open the hatchback. That feature is on my list of annoying safety features.
I always keep my keys with me as I learned from a coworker's trouble many years ago. He had a habit of leaving his keys everywhere but his pocket. Assigned to a project where he could leave his tools overnight. The keys were on the top of his rolling toolbox. He and his helper were the last out of the building that evening. The door locked behind them and no way of reentry. Realizing the keys were inside, he panicked. They had to go to a pay phone to call me and I was lucky enough to get security to unlock the building for him to retrieve his keys.
I'm not liking the lump as all my keys are on it, but I haven't figured an alternate way around it.
This keyfob is 4 times larger than the one on my previous vehicle, probably because it has more technology packed inside. If I want to leave the car running and run into the store for something... forgetaboutit, the car begins to beep letting me know that the keyfob is out of range. Actually, it beeps if I step out to open the hatchback. That feature is on my list of annoying safety features.
I always keep my keys with me as I learned from a coworker's trouble many years ago. He had a habit of leaving his keys everywhere but his pocket. Assigned to a project where he could leave his tools overnight. The keys were on the top of his rolling toolbox. He and his helper were the last out of the building that evening. The door locked behind them and no way of reentry. Realizing the keys were inside, he panicked. They had to go to a pay phone to call me and I was lucky enough to get security to unlock the building for him to retrieve his keys.
I'm not liking the lump as all my keys are on it, but I haven't figured an alternate way around it.
OK, automotive options have gotten just a bit excessive
This is real, not a joke;
I can see this leading to - "Honest honey, it wasn't me. I paid extra for that option."
What's next various puking sounds ? Different whistles for the construction worker crowd ?
In response to:
Tesla Drivers Now Have Access to a Library of Fart Sounds in Their Car
BY Shaunacy Ferro
Tesla’s latest software update includes more than just a few technical tweaks. It also turns the electric vehicles into on-demand fart machines, according to Inverse.
Tesla’s Emissions Testing Mode lets drivers choose different fart sounds from the car’s touchscreen, giving electric-car owners a good sense of Elon Musk’s sense of toilet humor. There’s “Short Shorts Ripper,” “Falcon Heavy,” Ludicrous Fart,” Neurastink,” “Boring Fart,” and “Not a Fart,” all of which are named after some Musky in-joke. (The last one is a play on the Boring Company’s Not a Flamethrower.) Should drivers find it impossible to choose between all the sound effects, the “I’m so random” will shuffle through them automatically.
Users can program the fart sounds to play when a turn signal is activated or when the driver touches the left-side steering scroll wheel.
Farting functionality isn’t the only whimsical edition to the software. At this point, Tesla's in-car software comes with a variety of Easter eggs for users to unlock, including games, special lighting effects, and more. In addition to all the flatulence, this update includes a Romance Mode that brings up video of a cozy, crackling fire on the central console and prompts the car to blast the heat and turn on some sensual tunes.
Tesla Drivers Now Have Access to a Library of Fart Sounds in Their Car
BY Shaunacy Ferro
Tesla’s latest software update includes more than just a few technical tweaks. It also turns the electric vehicles into on-demand fart machines, according to Inverse.
Tesla’s Emissions Testing Mode lets drivers choose different fart sounds from the car’s touchscreen, giving electric-car owners a good sense of Elon Musk’s sense of toilet humor. There’s “Short Shorts Ripper,” “Falcon Heavy,” Ludicrous Fart,” Neurastink,” “Boring Fart,” and “Not a Fart,” all of which are named after some Musky in-joke. (The last one is a play on the Boring Company’s Not a Flamethrower.) Should drivers find it impossible to choose between all the sound effects, the “I’m so random” will shuffle through them automatically.
Users can program the fart sounds to play when a turn signal is activated or when the driver touches the left-side steering scroll wheel.
Farting functionality isn’t the only whimsical edition to the software. At this point, Tesla's in-car software comes with a variety of Easter eggs for users to unlock, including games, special lighting effects, and more. In addition to all the flatulence, this update includes a Romance Mode that brings up video of a cozy, crackling fire on the central console and prompts the car to blast the heat and turn on some sensual tunes.
I can see this leading to - "Honest honey, it wasn't me. I paid extra for that option."
What's next various puking sounds ? Different whistles for the construction worker crowd ?
online today!
MINI... Cooper that is
Before I had a drivers license, I fell in love with the Mini. Made in England by various manufacturers in the 1960's, there were several different styles and models. I recall names like Austin Mini, Morris Mini and the Mini Cooper S.
Weekend activities in Miami always had something interesting and when a parent volunteered to drive kids to see car races... there were more kids than room in the car and usually the older kids got first choice to go. On my first trip to see a race, they had the mini-class and a handful of Mini Coopers were on the track. Small, low and fast. If you have seen any British spy movies, a mini was usually the getaway car of choice!
I wanted a Mimi and every weekend I'd scan the Sunday newspaper looking for a used one. Typically, they were already sold before I could get there to make an offer.
One problem with Mini's were emission controls... they didn't have any!
Imported to America prior to regulations, the older cars were exempt from having add-on devices to pass the pollution standards of the newer vehicles. As far as I know, no new Minis were coming to America. If you had the money and connections, you could import a used one under the 'grey market' and get around some of those regulations.
As a touring musician, I was 'star-struck' when I traveled to Canada and saw Minis everywhere. By then, emission control standards were getting difficult so It wasn't practical to bring one to America. Life changed for me and I purchased a Honda. :-(
One of the amazing things about Minis is their engineering. Up until that time, car engines were inline... the cylinders were arranged front-to-back. When you revved the motor, the car often shook sideways from the torque. The Mini engine was transversely mounted (as in sideways) so the torque pulled forward and the side tilting was eliminated.
Mini production halted more than a generation ago and only in the last decade did BMW bring a redesigned Mini to market. While it shares the name and some visuals, we all know it's not the same car.
My car is in the repair shop this week and the rental company offered me a Mini. It's the Countryman, a longer hatchback model. While I've only put 20 miles on the car Wednesday, I've got 3 outside appointments today and expect to have the car for the weekend.
What do I think so far?
Solid, quiet interior, lots of gadgets. All wheel drive so I wasn't able to screech tires on the takeoff!
My immediate dislike are the small rearview mirrors. Fashion over function. I consider them a safety liability as the view is limited. Also, the short doors make getting in and out a time consuming squeeze.
Weekend activities in Miami always had something interesting and when a parent volunteered to drive kids to see car races... there were more kids than room in the car and usually the older kids got first choice to go. On my first trip to see a race, they had the mini-class and a handful of Mini Coopers were on the track. Small, low and fast. If you have seen any British spy movies, a mini was usually the getaway car of choice!
I wanted a Mimi and every weekend I'd scan the Sunday newspaper looking for a used one. Typically, they were already sold before I could get there to make an offer.
One problem with Mini's were emission controls... they didn't have any!
Imported to America prior to regulations, the older cars were exempt from having add-on devices to pass the pollution standards of the newer vehicles. As far as I know, no new Minis were coming to America. If you had the money and connections, you could import a used one under the 'grey market' and get around some of those regulations.
As a touring musician, I was 'star-struck' when I traveled to Canada and saw Minis everywhere. By then, emission control standards were getting difficult so It wasn't practical to bring one to America. Life changed for me and I purchased a Honda. :-(
One of the amazing things about Minis is their engineering. Up until that time, car engines were inline... the cylinders were arranged front-to-back. When you revved the motor, the car often shook sideways from the torque. The Mini engine was transversely mounted (as in sideways) so the torque pulled forward and the side tilting was eliminated.
Mini production halted more than a generation ago and only in the last decade did BMW bring a redesigned Mini to market. While it shares the name and some visuals, we all know it's not the same car.
My car is in the repair shop this week and the rental company offered me a Mini. It's the Countryman, a longer hatchback model. While I've only put 20 miles on the car Wednesday, I've got 3 outside appointments today and expect to have the car for the weekend.
What do I think so far?
Solid, quiet interior, lots of gadgets. All wheel drive so I wasn't able to screech tires on the takeoff!
My immediate dislike are the small rearview mirrors. Fashion over function. I consider them a safety liability as the view is limited. Also, the short doors make getting in and out a time consuming squeeze.
online today!
It's been a week...
It's been a week and I've lots more to do.
The car has more than 1,000 miles on it... not new now. Synthetic oil is standard and rated for 10,000 miles between changes. I'll get my first oil change next week and most likely change every 5,000 miles.
Four more years, four more years...
I caught pieces of both conventions and while I turned down the sound on Trump, I did read some of his captions. I lost count of the partly true or completely untrue statements. What I think doesn't count. It's what happens on election day... or in the case of mail-in, what the tally of the votes are.
Saturday and I'm headed to the showroom. Not my favorite duty but I'm up this weekend.
More reading on the car manual as time permits, I'm part-way through some switches and buttons. There's a switch for sport mode and the speedometer changes color to red. I need to verify if I can change the mode when the car is moving.
The car has more than 1,000 miles on it... not new now. Synthetic oil is standard and rated for 10,000 miles between changes. I'll get my first oil change next week and most likely change every 5,000 miles.
Four more years, four more years...
I caught pieces of both conventions and while I turned down the sound on Trump, I did read some of his captions. I lost count of the partly true or completely untrue statements. What I think doesn't count. It's what happens on election day... or in the case of mail-in, what the tally of the votes are.
Saturday and I'm headed to the showroom. Not my favorite duty but I'm up this weekend.
More reading on the car manual as time permits, I'm part-way through some switches and buttons. There's a switch for sport mode and the speedometer changes color to red. I need to verify if I can change the mode when the car is moving.
online today!
Family...
I bought a car last month and the salesman sent an email to welcome me to their family. The dealer did the same. I'm also 'in the family' of the car manufacturer and getting requests to join the family of the satellite radio service.
Part of 'being family' is some of them want me to install apps to my phone and divulge (more) personal information so that they have instant access to me and my communication devices.
I've been listening to the satellite radio introductory broadcasts knowing they are free only for a few months. They know I'm listening and I received an email from them to confirm it's really me. I'm sure requests for more information will follow and I'm sure to ignore them.
Every time I start my car there's a disclosure statement. I've got stickers on the header explaining my information is being transmitted to a remote source. Under the dash is a wireless phone charger and I'm reminded (on the screen) that my phone is not connected to the car. Thanks, but no thanks. I have no intentions of installing apps and connecting my phone to the car.
Time permitting, I'll have to get back to reading the owner's manual. Maybe there is a chapter on becoming an orphan without any family!
Part of 'being family' is some of them want me to install apps to my phone and divulge (more) personal information so that they have instant access to me and my communication devices.
I've been listening to the satellite radio introductory broadcasts knowing they are free only for a few months. They know I'm listening and I received an email from them to confirm it's really me. I'm sure requests for more information will follow and I'm sure to ignore them.
Every time I start my car there's a disclosure statement. I've got stickers on the header explaining my information is being transmitted to a remote source. Under the dash is a wireless phone charger and I'm reminded (on the screen) that my phone is not connected to the car. Thanks, but no thanks. I have no intentions of installing apps and connecting my phone to the car.
Time permitting, I'll have to get back to reading the owner's manual. Maybe there is a chapter on becoming an orphan without any family!
online today!
That new car smell...
Unfortunately, that new car smell comes with payments.
My previous car died and I had to make a quick decision or pay for extended rental.
While everyone said buy something 2-3 years old, I know I'd have have repairs right around the corner. Tires, brakes, battery come up at that interval.
Should there be unseen issues, shocks, struts, transmission, a/c would be on the list.
My previous car died and I had to make a quick decision or pay for extended rental.
While everyone said buy something 2-3 years old, I know I'd have have repairs right around the corner. Tires, brakes, battery come up at that interval.
Should there be unseen issues, shocks, struts, transmission, a/c would be on the list.
online today!
The single most BOSS thing - EVER!
On this 4th of July, what better way to celebrate the US independence with something that just screams "AMERICA!"
Meet the Hennessey Goliath 6X6. A badass truck from Texan tuner Hennessey Performance. Based on a 2019 / 2020 Chevrolet Silverado truck, the GOLIATH 6X6 takes the already very capable Chevy 4X4 truck and elevates its off-road capabilities to another level. (Hennessey's words, not mine). But what makes this truck so boss? Here are the upgrade list:
6X6 Conversion with additional axle, wheels, tires and brakes
All new rear suspension system
Eight-inch lift kit
Custom 6X6 truck bed
Hennessey 20-inch wheels
BFG 37-inch off-road tires
GOLIATH 6X6 & HENNESSEY graphics
Rollbar upgrade
LED lights
Hennessey front and rear bumpers
450 bhp engine upgrade (cold air intake and stainless steel exhaust upgrade)
3 year / 36,000 mile warranty
Upgrades are available, if you didn't think this was mad enough. The upgrades are: stroker motor upgrade, Brembo brake system upgrade and custom interior upgrade. Sadly, the production is/was limited to just 24 trucks, so there is a good chance all of them would have been sold already.
In total, this badass boss of a truck packs 800 horsepower, and it's just the single most awesome and BOSS thing ever! The price? Oh, well.. It's $375K, but that includes the truck. I guess you could buy the upgrade kit and make it the biggest DIY job ever, but.. You need access to highly trained specialists, since you need to fit an entire axle on the truck, so it is best to leave it to the pros on this one.
But come on - you cannot deny that this truck is seriously BOSS!
Meet the Hennessey Goliath 6X6. A badass truck from Texan tuner Hennessey Performance. Based on a 2019 / 2020 Chevrolet Silverado truck, the GOLIATH 6X6 takes the already very capable Chevy 4X4 truck and elevates its off-road capabilities to another level. (Hennessey's words, not mine). But what makes this truck so boss? Here are the upgrade list:
6X6 Conversion with additional axle, wheels, tires and brakes
All new rear suspension system
Eight-inch lift kit
Custom 6X6 truck bed
Hennessey 20-inch wheels
BFG 37-inch off-road tires
GOLIATH 6X6 & HENNESSEY graphics
Rollbar upgrade
LED lights
Hennessey front and rear bumpers
450 bhp engine upgrade (cold air intake and stainless steel exhaust upgrade)
3 year / 36,000 mile warranty
Upgrades are available, if you didn't think this was mad enough. The upgrades are: stroker motor upgrade, Brembo brake system upgrade and custom interior upgrade. Sadly, the production is/was limited to just 24 trucks, so there is a good chance all of them would have been sold already.
In total, this badass boss of a truck packs 800 horsepower, and it's just the single most awesome and BOSS thing ever! The price? Oh, well.. It's $375K, but that includes the truck. I guess you could buy the upgrade kit and make it the biggest DIY job ever, but.. You need access to highly trained specialists, since you need to fit an entire axle on the truck, so it is best to leave it to the pros on this one.
But come on - you cannot deny that this truck is seriously BOSS!
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