Automotive Blogs (377)

I have an issue with aggressive drivers using a merge lane. Yesterday, must have been aggressive driver Tuesday. In the morning on the way to an appointment, driving in a construction zone I was approaching a merge lane where two lanes merge into one.
There were lots of warning signs, traffic cones and plastic guard rails in a 30mph zone. Having passed this road several times before, I was already in the main lane and not the merge lane. Traffic was slow, but 2 drivers in Tesla's had to force their way into the merge pushing out other cars that 'gave-way' or be involved in an accident.
Usually, it's someone in a BMW doing a stunt like that.
I worked for a guy who had a truck with oversized bumpers and jacked-up tires. He always pushed into a traffic situation that forced the other drivers to stop, letting him in, especially when he tooted a horn as loud a train.
Last night was a close call. I'm on the interstate highway in the left lane that opens to the express lane. It's after 9pm and traffic is moving smoothy. There is a merge lane for people exiting the express lane that feeds back into my lane. Unexpectedly, someone shot out of the express lane and attempting to eclipse me. It happened quickly as I didn't see him accelerating. The warning light came on my mirror but there wasn't enough room for 2 cars. I shifted to the right as a white BMW passed me within inches of side swiping my car!
I like my car and though I'm shopping for a new one, I'd like the purchase to be by choice and not because my car was trashed by an aggressive driver in the merge lane.

I had dinner at a sports bar tonight with TV screens wrapping around the building. Several satellite stations were in the lineup and when they went to commercial break, the viewer was pounded mostly with Pizza, battery operated ear washer and electric SUV's.
Lexus has a whole fleet as well as Cadillac.

Back home and I Googled electric SUV's and found a few companies I've never heard of before (like Fisker) and all the major manufacturers offering at least one electric model.

Complain all you want about purchase price, finding a place to charge, exploding batteries, limited range and a few other negatives

Domino's Pizza is advertising electric delivery vehicles that are good for the planet. Who cares? That doesn't fix the taste of crappy pizza... having it delivered in an electric car doesn't make it better!

Like it or not, with all the negative aspects, electric cars are here to stay.

This involves Tesla's operating in FSD (Full Self-Driving) mode and unexpectedly abruptly braking. This week, it caused an 8-car pileup on the San Francisco Bay Bridge.
Video shows the car entering the tube and stopping. I'm thinking it has to with loss of GPS signal, but some comments from Tesla test drivers have experienced the same problems on the open road.
This safety glitch could be serious.



Link to the pileup videos:


Link to the Yahoo story:

N.B. A fellow blogger prompted to create this blog.
I commented there...
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Good blog and so I liked it.
There has been an absurd tendency to equate the love that exist in the relations with the love that exists between the opposite genders.
The former is given, while the later is a development.
The two, in no way, comparable. They are two different entities. And that is the biggest sin bestowed upon the mankind by THE RELIGION.
So I talk about the seed that is to be sowed long long after the birth when relationship thing has completed its cycle.
In my view its twofold:
Basic: the blueprint of the image stored in one's subconscious.
Contextual: the image that appeals someone consciously.
I can't say if the two images are different. May be or may not be.
My take is, the blueprint of the subconscious haunts us and we contexually choose whoever comes in front similar with the embedded image.

I am dying to find each and every person whom I offended.
My tragedy is, I remember them but they have forgotten me
.

Guys in Virginia, North and South Carolina who modify their trucks with oversized tires and modified suspensions are headed down the road of legal troubles.
The trend called Squat Trucks has the entire vehicle raised with the front suspension much higher than the rear. Often they have lighting in each tire and wheel well to show off their shiny rims.
What's the problem of having your truck jacked-up?
Raising the front affects the driver's visibility and aims the high intensity headlights to blind oncoming traffic. Depending on the state they are in, more than 4 inches is past the limit. There's a ban with fines as high as $300. In the interest of public safety, repeated offenders could have their licenses suspended. A Myrtle Beach pedestrian was struck and killed in 2021.

How NOT to make a good impression on your bosses boss.
One day years ago, 1973 to be exact, my company "Koni America" went to Watkins Glen as was our annual tradition, to service the Formula One race. We had our usual spot in the main garage where we entertained race drivers and crew members that came by to chat on various technical matters referring to suspension setups especially shock absorber settings and adjustments, and also test and set their shocks on our shock dyno as well. On this particular day a driver came by to chat and we formed a rough circle in the bay. There was my boss Ted M. to my right, between us was the driver, opposite to me was my bosses boss John Z., to my left was my co-worker, Bob K., another technician. I don't remember who the driver was, it could have been anybody. Normally an event like that would be engraved on your memory, however what follows is all that I remember of that moment in time.

So there we were chatting and my bosses boss John had a banana in his hand and was mindlessly trying to peel it while deeply engrossed in the conversation. I was trying to follow the flow of the conversation but the distraction of John and the banana made that nearly impossible. My focus kept shifting from his face to his hands and I was getting increasingly agitated. Ted was watching me watching John and he later told me that he could see my eyes going up & down as my attention shifted. He said he could also see my nostrils flare. My frustration grew to an unbearable level. I wanted to rip the banana out of his hand and peel the goddamn thing for him. Finally I couldn't take it anymore and I blurted out "YOU'RE PEELING IT FROM THE WRONG END". Well, Ted nearly had a seizure from laughing so hard. My first thought was OMG . what did I just do? Did I just make my bosses boss look like a fool in front of some big Formula 1 driver? Do I still have a job? Lucky for me John took it as a learning experience and flipped the banana over and successfully peeled it.

Japan's Toyota -- is currently the world's largest automaker. Toyota and Volkswagen vie for that title each year -- each taking the crown from the other -- as the market moves.GM -- America's largest automaker -- is about half Toyota's size --thanks to its 2009 bankruptcy and restructuring.

Actually -- Toyota is a major car manufacturer in the U.S. In 2016 about 81% of the cars it sold in the U.S. came off American assembly lines.

Toyota was among the first to introduce gas/electric hybrid cars with the Prius twenty years ago. The company hasn't been afraid to change the car game.

All of this is to point out that Toyota understands both the car market and the infrastructure that supports the car market. Probably understands better than any other manufacturer on the planet.

Toyota hasn't grown through acquisitions as Volkswagen has, and it hasn't undergone bankruptcy and bailout as GM has. Toyota has grown by building reliable cars and trucks for decades.

When Toyota offers an opinion on the car market it's probably worth listening to.

This week Toyota reiterated -- The world is not yet ready to support a fully electric auto fleet.

Toyota's Robert Wimmer (head of energy & environmental research) said this week in testimony before the U.S. Senate, "If we are to make dramatic progress in electrification it will require overcoming tremendous challenges - challenges including : refuelling infrastructure/battery availability /consumer acceptance / and affordability.

Wimmer’s remarks come on the heels of GM's announcement that it will phase out all gas internal combustion engines (ICE) by 2035.

Tellingly, both Toyota and Honda have so far declined to make any such promises. Honda is the world's largest engine manufacturer (when you include : boats / motorcycles / lawnmowers / etc) Honda competes with Briggs & Stratton in those markets amid increased electrification of [traditionally gas powered] lawnmowers / weed trimmers /etc.

While manufacturers have announced ambitious goals just 2% of the world's cars are electric at this point.

Buyers continue to choose ICE over electric because of: price /range / infrastructure /affordability / etc. Only a small percentage of people would choose an electric car unless forced to buy.

There are 289.5 million cars just on U.S. roads as of 2021. About 98 percent of them are gas-powered.

Toyota's RAV4 took the top spot for purchases in the 2019 U.S market -- Honda's CR-V is second and GM's top seller (Equinox) comes in at #4 behind the Nissan Rogue. GM only has one entry in the U.S.top 15. Toyota and Honda dominate - each with a handful in the top 15.

Toyota warns: the US electrical grid and infrastructure simply aren't there to support the electrification of the private car fleet.

A 2017 U.S. government study found we would need about 8,500 strategically-placed charging stations to support a fleet of just 7 million electric cars. That's about six times the current number of electric cars.

But no one should be talking about supporting just 7 million cars. We should be talking about powering about 300 million within the next 20 years if all manufacturers follow GM and stop making ICE cars.

We are going to need a bigger energy boat to deal with connecting all those cars to the power grids - a WHOLE LOT bigger boat But instead of building a bigger boat we may be shrinking our boat. Power outages in California and Texas have exposed issues with power supplies even at current usage levels.

Increasing usage of wind and solar, -- both of which prove unreliable -- has driven some coal and natural gas generators offline.

Continued in first comment.

Wrong or right?
Many, having inherent slave mentality, may question me that I should better ask or raise the issue in forums etc.
First and Foremost, it relates to blogs and the bloggers. I can't agree to your( or if it's site owners') idiocy that all questions must be raised in the forums.
I think issue must be jurisdiction based.
I don't nagate that platform, i.e. forums, but I don't belong to them. Not that I didn't try, but I find people there behaving timidly.
One liners' scholars is a stupidity though, but why should I question it, if I do, then I must be a stupid.
Should I repeat wrong or right?

Hurricane Ian passed through Tampa, Florida last month and flooded the entire west coast. Photos of waist high waters in several counties were on the news. Many of the cars had to be totaled due to salt water intrusion. Once water enters a vehicle and soaks into the wiring harnesses and electronics, the reliability lost and the vehicle can become hazardous with all sorts of irregularities both mechanical and electrical.

What happens to these vehicles? That depends on the decision of the insurance company. They could write checks to the owners of cars and pay out current value. They take the cars and dispose of them. If the damage is minor, they could offer a lower settlement for the owner to keep the car but have to re-register the title. That puts the vehicle in a different classification similar to rebuilding a junker! Your old car isn't what it used to be.

Reclaimed cars in the hands of insurance companies often get sold at auction, many of them are bought by wholesale companies who special in the used car market. They get cleaned and appear aesthetically 'in good condition' only to be moved around the state and sometimes other states to be resold. Some get shipped out to foreign countries.

This isn't a new problem and happens after hurricanes, floods and other disasters.
If you are planning to buy used after a hurricane, make sure you have a reliable technician/mechanic go over the vehicle and do a careful inspection specifically looking for signs of water damage. What to look for? cars with a mildew odor, late model cars where the interior and seats were replaced is a good starting point.

All cars have a history and it's recommended to pull the 'car fax' report to see the history and location of every time it was bought and sold. Also if there are any damage reports.

Taking that further, be wary of buying a used car in (or from) Florida...