What’s Wrong With Cars These Days?

ANOTHER GREAT STAFF BLOG

R.B. to Staff
WHAT’S WRONG WITH CARS THESE DAYS?

besides lousy mileage and high prices, that is. ever notice that all the interiors are black or gray? can’t even buy a light interior like tan or white wowser. they are too dark for my tastes.

same thing with the outside color, which is silver or shades of dark red or green, or dark gray or black. there are no other color choices.

what has happened to them? it is the same whether american or foreign cars.

odd, that.

J to Staff
Well…

>can’t even buy a light interior like tan or white
Would cause reflections, perhaps? I know what you mean, though. Hard to find anything that isn’t dark.

>same thing with the outside color, which is silver or shades of dark red or green, or dark gray or black. there are no other color choices.
Our Pontiac Vibe is bright white.

>besides lousy mileage and high prices,
39 mpg, less than 20 grand. Still costs a lot, obviously. I could never pay those SUV prices.

C to Staff
Depends what car you buy obviously. The Honda range is superb when it comes to color (or maybe we get different colors here). I’m in love with a certain dusky purple. Haven’t noticed the interiors but I don’t think they have black. I wouldn’t want a light interior … gets too dirty. Wouldn’t want black either. Prices are excellent … some 10 years ago we paid AU$15,000 for a 7-yr-old Civic. The new ones start at $22,000. Mileage is wonderful across the whole range of Hondas. Similarly with Peugeots.

Of course, if you want a BIG car, it may be different. I’ve never been interested in big cars.

L to Staff
What? You don’t want a big honkin’ Holden?

C to Staff
Nope.

B to Staff
Sorry R, but by tastes for auto interior colors are always black, or dark charcoal grey. I had a toyota truck once that had a light grey interior, and my first car, my 1964 T-bird, had a mostly red/partially black interior, with lots of chrome. But, that car was from another time.

Your comment is timely, seeing has now we could be soon seeing the end of General Motors. Think about it: In the 60’s GM made at least half of the cars on American roads. And today?

You might consider starting a blog on this. Ask two questions: 1. What is wrong with American cars today? 2. What can be done to rectify the problem?

My answers to these, in case you decide to blog it:

1. American cars today do not appeal to young buyers at all. The most coveted market for cars is the 20-something market. When I hear people in this age group talking about buying cars, the names I hear are Honda /Acura, Nissan, Toyota, VW, Subaru, and of course, BMW. BMW’s are in fact, pretty much at the top of the list. GM and Ford are not going to survive if their only customers are people over 65. Look around, you know it to be true. Just check out the people driving Buicks. Ford is even goin go stop selling the Crown Victoria, since the only group buying them are police departments. I’m told they’ll still be available for sale to police departments and Taxi companies.

2. They have simply got to come up with something that young people will buy in volume. That’s it. Something that is considered “sexy”, and “Cool”. Something that a cool 20-something guy or gal won’t be embarrassed to be seen in. If they can make it both “sexy” and “green”, that might win some more over. They had something with the EV-1, but let’s not go there. Young car buyers are a coveted market, and GM and Ford have pretty much lost them.

C to Staff
If I were young, I’d want one of the new range of Fiat 500s … they top the Australian Government’s green list too. Not a great color range in Australia though. Or a Citroen Pluriel. Now THAT’S sexy. And talk about color! Come to think of it, I’d like one even though I’m not young.

http://www.citroen.com.au/default.asp?action=article&ID=234

Or maybe an Audi. The A4 would do.

R.L. to Staff
I stopped buying American cars a long time ago.

I’ve worked in American Manufacturing all my life, but I won’t spend my hard earned money on crap. And that is, unfortunately, where many American cars fall in my humble opinion.

B to Staff
So R.L., tell us how you really feel.
Kidding aside, what do you drive?

R.L. to Staff
About a year ago I bought a Nissan Murano.
I need the four wheel drive here in the mountains, and the room to cart stuff back and forth from Home Depot. I get about 25 MPG. I really like the car.

B to Staff
That’s another problem: GM and Ford both have some seriously entrenched problems, and these are problems just don’t die easily. Remember Johnny Carson talking about how he got his car serviced by “Mister Goodshaft”? How about all the endless jokes about the “GM shrug”, when owners of GM cars across the board talked about their problems. As in “we really can’t do anything about this”.

A prime example: A few years back my sister had a Pontiac Grand Am. (My first new car was a 1980 Firebird, equipped with the last of the real Pontiac V8s) She was so proud of the thing when she first bought it, Circa 1993. Well,,,, It had a bad habit of simply dying, while being driven. No, I’m not joking. Rather unnerving when you are in traffic, yes? This was eventually traced to a “bad computer”. This was repaired under warranty. Then,,,, The check engine light comes on. Stays on. Goes out. Comes on again. Stays on. She visits dealer. They check it out. No, no problem was found. She’s driving around, and the check engine light comes on. Stays on this time. Back to dealer. They give her a loaner car, which “smelled like someone peed in it”. Anyway, this time, the dealer’s service manager assures her that “we’re bringing in a GM specialist, and he WILL find the problem”. They kept the car for three days. No, could not find the problem. Proposed solution: They offered to disable the check engine light, so it would not come on anymore. My sister has not owned a GM anything since. She has owned several Ford products. Better, but still some issues with each one. Personally, I really liked the 2-seater Thunderbirds they made a few years ago, but I understand even those had some quality problems. (Bright Blue interiors! There you go, R!)

I’m afraid I must agree with your statement R.L.

R.L. to Staff
Many years ago I did all of my own repair work. The Chryslers I bought used to rot out. Both the engine and the body. I remember a Pontiac I had where a wheel bearing keep seizing up. Dodge Polara, engine freeze out plugs rotted away. Pontiac Sunbird, gas tank leaked. Ford mustang, many problems with that car—looked great though, while sitting on the side of the road. I think US car manufacturing has improved, but when I can buy a Nissan and own it for more than 7 years without having a major problem, why go back?

C to Staff
Our Honda Accord is 14yrs old. We bought it a year ago … it had a full service history. No major repairs have been needed. Before that the Honda Civic, which we bought when it was 7yrs old, lasted another 7 years with only minor repairs (would probably be still going except our son wrote it off). Except that I always want something ‘different’ I’d probably keep buying Honda. Probably will actually, even though I’d really like something European. Had a 93 Audi a couple of years ago (our son wrote that off too! No, we don’t let him drive our cars any more). You could really FEEL that precision German engineering.

R.B. to Staff
J. i will blog this, but i need a few more car stories and histories from the rest of you guys and gals here. i remember that you had a pickup truck, J., with a lot of places you went.
how about anyone else? got some favorite vehicle, full of memories? i got one of my own too. as before, just first initials on this blog. you guys are great! good reads here.

R.B. to Staff
here is mine: most memorable was my 1995 hyundai accent. plain white with (the only offered) dark gray cloth interior, and the obligatory mouse hair carpet. however, this was a pocket rocket. i drove the weekly 210 mile commute between ridgecrest in the high desert above los angeles down the I-15 to san diego. average speed was above 80 mph, and above 95 below orange county. the run started at 4 am on monday with arrival a bit after 6. friday return home took a few more hours, since i went through three rush-hours on the way.

i was in the slow lane the whole time, allowing speeders the rest of the excellent five lane freeway. the accent ran 95 without a hitch, week end and week out. i was a bit slower around town, but not much. for a commuter car it was awesome, with straight-line tracking, precise steering and excellent braking.

i kept the car 10 years until my son totaled it on some freeway while looking for a job down in l.a. in all that time, it never needed any work. i kept it in fresh oil (3000 miles) and tires and brakes, but that was all. it never left an oil leak on the driveway and was as
tight and drivable as the day i bought it, right to the end.

before that, through a line of forgettable junk (and man, i pushed a lot of junk down the road all those years), but the best was a 1973 toyota corolla. what a runner (bright yellow, with a dark olive vinyl interior). an a short, sweet ride with a restored 1968 camaro, deep red, blackwalls and white top (and black cloth and vinyl interior)

today, we drive a 2003 ford focus wagon, with light gray cloth interior and dark gray dash and panels. another rocket. the engine is the real joy of this car. i can tear across the desert highways well over a hundred, all day long. not so good on gas at that speed. anything above a hundred-forty, and the gas goes to 10 mpg. otherwise, at civil speeds, it gets an honest 28 mpg. the wagon has a much larger interior than the sedans or hatches, and the whole seating area lays down for large cargo. again, the car is rock solid and never seems to break. and no oil on the driveway, with only tires and brakes replaced, along with the required 3000 mile oil and filters changed. it is a great car which i plan to keep for ten years too.

my first cars were all american, but they were uninspiring to say the least. they always gave me some expensive breakdown, and an oil patch everywhere they were parked. what is it about them that makes us want to leave them on the sales lots, even today? this is not hard to understand, right?

i do wish general motors could make something as good as my ford focus.

(there is a whole other issue with gm cars too – the logic, or lack of it, concerning how their cars operate. keys out, horn blows. great when parking at a motel room at 2 am, right? light switches and cup holders in the wrong place. odd functions and unnecessary operations that make no sense, and which no other auto maker employs. just odd cars to operate. but they are what you are given when you need a rental, so you don’t have one long enough to get used to their odd ways.)

yeah, i know there are BMWs out there, and AUDIs too, as well as a whole raft of european beasts that are far more excellent than what i have been driving. but when i can go as fast as i want in something that is cheap and reliable as the sunrise, why would i want anything else? the highway patrol does not give tickets to accents and ford focuses. they do give tickets to anything european, driving at the speeds i drive.**

if i could have the car i want, it would be a thin tandem, with four wheels and all the amenities you would expect (power windows, doors, locks, automatic and air, stereo and cruise). the tandem would allow me to drive in the express lane by myself and i could weave in and out through traffic like a bike. someone knows how to make these (volvo,
clever) but they haven’t bit the bullet yet, not understanding that there is a huge untapped market here in america for such a vehicle.**

**these are my opinions only. your mileage may vary, void where prohibited. sorry, no refunds.

J to Staff
I absolutely refuse to believe that a 2003 Ford Focus goes 140 mph, even dropped from an airplane.

Okay, I stand partially corrected: The RS model will supposedly go 144 mph. Is that what you have?

That’s still absolutely loony. I once drove my brother’s very well outfitted Toyota Supra at 110 mph for 30 minutes on the Autobahn (even passing a police car), and that was so nerve-wracking, I decided never to go that fast again unless the devil himself was after my gonads. I couldn’t even take my hand off the wheel to adjust the radio: one twitch, and we’d have been hamburger.

I live in the West, too, R. But where the hell can you drive “well over a hundred” ALL DAY LONG, even out here? Sooner or later, you’ll run out of continent.

But I’ll do some more reading on the Focus. I bought a Vibe for my wife, and it’s no speed demon, but it is fun to drive and our best mileage so far was 39.95 mpg. To me that equals mobility. Earlier this year with gas prices so high, before we bought the Vibe, we literally couldn’t afford to GO anywhere, period. Just going to Santa Fe for a movie, for example. Who pays $50 to see a film???

I promise to faithfully learn from your obvious automotive expertise in the future, although I may eschew grabbing a ride with you unless The End is nigh…

R.B. to Staff
J., it IS downhill. =) from randsburg, 8 miles down to the railroad line at the bottom, then up hill into the back of ridgecrest on the 395. i love that spot. no cars at all, usually at 5 am when i am going for chemo in ridgecrest once a week. i love hitting the end of my speedometer there on the downhill.

is my speedometer calibrated? nope. just as flat out fast as it will go. the focus wagon is a different beast from most of them. no plenum on the air intake, to slow it down. bigger wheels and brakes too. the 4 cylinder engine is a bit bigger too. so i stand by my statement, J. (grin). i have been passed by a mercedes once on that downhill. he must have hit 200 there. the only things faster over that run are the f-18a super hornets that fly over head through the grove, from the naval weapons station at china lake next to ridgecrest. what an experience that must be!

R.B. to Staff
J., THAT’S what the RS stands for on the back hatch. =) i didn’t pay attention to it when it bought the wagon. it was just fast, and i loved driving it.
Rally Sport. wowser.
http://forums.focaljet.com/

J to Staff
Oh, I believe you. But details, please: which model exactly (SVT, ZX3, etc.), and which engine? Turbo? The 170 hp SVT engine?? This might be my next used car, except I keep forgetting I need another truck, 4WD this time.

R.B. to Staff
J, when my wife gets home with the wagon, i will go look in the owners manual. it is her car, after all. i just drive it to ridgecrest on the days i go there. otherwise, i got my trusty but dull 1998 nissan altima (in black with a dark gray interior). another rock solid
reliable automobile, if a bit of a wallflower. never buy a black car if you live in the desert. (but we bought it before we knew we were coming here.)

this is why i am so against all the new cars with only black interiors. them folks who designed these things never lived out here where it gets hot. an all black car inside and out can hit 200 degrees in the sun with the windows up.

L to Staff
Oh, have I got some bags of hurt in my automotive history!

First, there was my first car–a 1952 Willys Aero Ace. Not a Jeep, but a passenger car. It was Willys’ (final) effort to come up with a low-priced (economy) sedan. Unfortunately, the production volumes were so low compared to the “Big 3”, that when they tried to sell a car marketed below the level of a Ford or Chevy, Willys’ internal costs required the selling price approach that of a Pontiac or high-end Ford. The other strike against it was that no one wanted an economy car. In 1952, regular was 15-20 cents a gallon! Besides, purchasers of economy cars were labeled either as “poor, because they couldn’t afford a Chevy or Pontiac or Dodge or whatever”, or were just looked upon as weird.

What finally killed Willys (and Packard, Hudson, Nash, Kaiser, and eventually Studebaker) was the great sales war of 1953. Henry Ford II decided he wanted to beat Chevrolet in total cars sold. Many practices, now illegal and some that were certainly unethical, were used to achieve this goal. First, the factories dumped many thousands of vehicles onto dealers that weren’t ordered. If they wanted to keep their valuable franchise, they were forced to try to sell them. In some cases, they were wholesaled to used car dealers, and in other cases, were pushed onto customers who really didn’t want a new car or couldn’t afford it, using a series of behaviors that eventually became known as “the system”. “Appraise your car?” said the salesman. The customer said “sure!”. A little time passes and now the dealer can’t find the customer’s keys (which were tossed up on the roof of the dealership). The customer is offered a car to “take home for the night and things would be straightened up in the morning”. Uh huh… Next morning, the poor sheep…er, customer would bring the car back and the salesman would find some almost undetectable flaw in the car (that probably came from the factory that way) and tell the customer, “gee, I can’t sell this car as new with this much damage–you’ll have to buy it or we’ll sue you for damaging our property”. It was from techniques like this that Ford beat Chevy by about 10,000 cars for the first time since the Model “A” days. But I digress… Oh, yeah, the Willys!

I bought this car for $250 from someone I knew at the local antique car club, with which I was a member. My parents cosigned a note at the bank for me, and had it paid off in about a year (thanks to my career in radio–a previous blog on this site). I had the car a little over a week when, driving home from my new job, the engine began making some pretty horrible noises. It kept running, though, so I drove it to my mechanic, a few miles from home. When they tore down the engine, they found the wrist pin (a pin that connects the piston to the connecting rod) had let go, causing the piston to freeze in place while the rod, flying around in the cylinder, broke off huge chunks of the piston and gouged the cylinder walls quite well. The good news here was that Willys used cylinder liners–a sleeve that fit inside the cylinder, and into which the piston moved up and down. They found a new sleeve (I was told it wasn’t easy), installed it with a fresh piston, connecting rod, and wrist pin, and I was back on the road for $75.00. This car also had overdrive–a device in the transmission that lowered the engine speed to enhance economy (today, automakers just add another gear or two). Unfortunately, there was something wrong with the overdrive unit, and while it engaged easily, it sometimes resisted disengaging. This can be very bad because it locks the transmission so that the car can’t even be pushed in reverse–only forward. I had to get towed out of more than one parking space when I had that car. Disengaging the overdrive also offered some unexpected entertainment. Normally, to disengage the overdrive unit, the accelerator pedal is pressed to the floor, which activates a switch that cuts off the ignition and disengages the unit. Well, the device that did the disengaging didn’t always work. When that happened, I would floor the gas pedal, the ignition would cut out, while at the same time raw gas poured through the intake system, through the pistons and out the exhaust manifold. Now remember your physics here–raw gas plus heat or spark equals explosion! The first time it happened, I thought the world had come to an end, and that I might need to change my underwear. It was a real loud explosion. I learned other ways to disengage the overdrive after that and other similar incidents. Finally, I got tired of this and as luck (?) would have it, my grandfather stopped driving, and I was able to get his car, a 1960 goat puke green Chevy Biscayne with the 6 cylinder engine, Powerglide automatic, power brakes, but manual steering, and terminal body cancer from spending its formative years in Ohio. I had to put a fuel pump into it immediately, but other that, it ran OK, with the small exception of slightly excessive oil consumption. Something like a gallon of oil per tank of gas! The car smoked so bad that when stopped at a traffic light, cars on either side of me would close their windows. I liked to joke that at least I was never bothered by mosquitoes with this car! I kept it for a few months, got tired of putting 2-3 quarts of oil into it when the tank went to half-full and empty (otherwise the engine began making very expensive noises), and parked it in my parents’ driveway–something that I’m sure pleased them no end. One day, someone came to the door and asked if that car was for sale–he’d been working in the area and noticed it never moved from its spot. I said “sure!”, and told him I’d take what I paid for it–fifty bucks.

From there I went through a string of really uninteresting cars including a ’68 Plymouth Valiant Signet with factory bucket seats, a ’72 VW Superbeetle, a ’76 AMC Pacer (my first new car!), a ’73 BMW 2002 and a ’72 Opel Rekord station wagon (both while in Germany), a Plymouth (Mitsubishi) Champ with the 8-speed transmission, a couple of Hondas, and the car from Heck, a 1996 Ford Taurus.

I bought the Taurus from one of those “off-lease” lots. It only had 3000 miles on it, and I can only surmise those were really, really hard miles. In the three years I owned it, the heater core blew out, an engine freeze plug corroded out, the cable that connected the gearshift to the transmission failed in a big way (I had to pick up my 80+ year old blind mother from the airport in about two hours when this happened–thank goodness my Amoco Motor Club card came through–I got to the dealership, turned the car in, and got a rental with minutes to spare). There were other unexpected and expensive repairs, and I was never as happy to see a car go than I was with that one.

My last three car purchases were a lot more pleasant… There was the 2000 VW Passat V6 station wagon–a car I just loved, but unfortunately leased–just before my job changed, making my 8 mile commute into a 45 mile one. I turned it in at a great loss and got a 2003 VW Jetta TDI (turbo diesel) wagon, which was a lovely car. I put 100,000 miles on it in less than 4 years, at which point I got my present steed, a 2006 Toyota RAV4. In the 18 months I’ve owned it, I’ve already put over 40,000 miles on it.

Probably told you all more about my cars than anyone really cares to read about.

J to Staff
Actually, “RS” is all I need to know, R. You apparently have the turbo engine, and yes, that’s one fast compact. Does the quarter mile in less time than the fastest Fords & Chevies of my youth.

C to Staff
On my last visit to Germany in 2004, my friend Hartmut drove us from Hamburg to the North Sea in his Mercedes. I was privileged to sit in front with him. I thought we must be going fast because we were passing everything (German drivers, incidentally, politely move into the ‘slow’ lane if anything faster is coming up behind them). I casually glanced at the speedo … 250kph (=155mph). I decided not to look at it again so as not to feel scared. The thing is it didn’t FEEL fast (you probably wouldn’t like that Roger). At one point the traffic had slowed almost to a halt in front of us. I thought we couldn’t possibly slow down in time, but the Merc eased to a halt smooth as a whisper. No jolting.

My very first car was a VW Beetle … amazing little creature. Sometimes it was left in the weather for weeks at a time without being driven but then started instantly when required. But my favourite car to date has been the VW Golf I had in ’72. I think it might have been the very first of the hatchbacks. It made nice sporty noises, climbed hills like they weren’t there and nurtured you around tight mountain bends. Amazing amount of space too, for a small car, with heaps of head-room.

B to Staff
I have owned two pickup trucks in my life. I owned a ’89 Toyota 4X4, purchased new in ’89. I kept it for ten years. Problems: Clutch started slipping at at about 55,000. miles. Nominal wear, I guess. I had to have the muffler pipe replaced three times, but only paid for one. Toyota has a policy on certain parts; If you have a muffler pipe replaced at a Toyota dealer, with a “Genuine Toyota replacement part”, they will cover it for all parts and labor, for as long as you own it. So, on the two occasions when it wore out again, I simply called the dealer, and they just said, “Bring it in”. Done in about 20 minutes, each time.

My other truck: an ’86 Dodge Ram D100. In retrospect, I don’t know if it was just poor quality assembly work, a poorly managed dealership, or a combination of these two things. I had issues with the electrical system, requiring some parts be replaced under warranty. On one occasion, they couldn’t find it when I went to get it. No really, they could not find my truck. It seems they had a storage lot down the highway a few miles, and for some reason, that’s where they put my truck. The service manager resembled a walking, talking ball of grease, and had a horrible attitude. He thought it was a really funny joke. This, I feel, is another problem with American car dealers. People will not put up with this kind of crap anymore, and in this economy, dealers cannot afford a dissatisfied customer.

I only kept that one for three years, and traded it for the Toyota. Guess which truck I’d buy again, if I wanted another truck?

One more thing about GM: Perhaps the greatest mistake they ever made, possibly the point when they (and I do hate to use this expression) “jumped the shark”, was when they stopped having each of their brands have their own engines. I’m old enough to remember when an Oldmobile would have an Oldsmobile engine. A Pontiac would have a Pontiac engine, and a Buick would have a Buick engine. It’s hard to imagine an Olds 442 with a chevy engine in it. I remember there was some public outcry when they started doing this. Loyal Buick and Olds customers would take delivery of their new pride and joy, get it home, pop the hood and find,,,, a Chevy small block? Of course, this has long passed, but I just felt I had to point it out.

J to Staff
Whoa!

>I casually glanced at the speedo … 250kph (=155mph). I decided not to look at it again so as not to feel scared. The thing is it didn’t FEEL fast

I guess it depends on the vehicle. My brother’s Supra on the Autobahn at 110 mph felt plenty fast, and there was nothing the least bit relaxing about it. Maybe the fact that my wife, sister-in-law, and young nephew were also in the car with my brother and me had something to do with how I felt.

German drivers, incidentally, politely move into the ‘slow’ lane if anything faster is coming up behind them

It may not be politeness. I was once reprimanded by a local citizen in Trier for starting to cross a completely deserted street downtown (it was also a religious holiday). I mean, no traffic whatsoever. But the pedestrian crossing light was still red!

Fear is probably a factor, too. Accidents at those speeds tend to be BIG ones involving multiple vehicles.

J to Staff
Meant to add that this will never, ever happen in New Mexico. UFOs, cattle mutilations, sure. But this? Never!

There’s a place in the main road near here where two lanes expand into four (two in each direction). About half the drivers stay in the left (fast) lane going under the speed limit, while the other drivers swerve wildly into the RIGHT (slow) lane to pass. The slow drivers are actually acting sensibly, because anyone politely moving into the slow lane is liable to get rammed from the rear.

C to Staff
This sounds just like driving on Australian roads.

I haven’t done any actual research on this, but I’ve heard that the rate of accidents on the autobahn is far less than on Australian roads.

Germans are more ordered (as your pedestrian story illustrates). And maybe more law-abiding. I noticed that when we came into small towns, where a speed-limit was posted, everyone slowed down (even my friend in the Mercedes). He never drove dangerously. He never had to hustle anyone as they moved over into the slow lane well before he got there.

I’m not advocating speed. I’d prefer to travel more slowly and see some detail in the landscape. A ‘no speed limit’ scenario in Australia would be disastrous.

It’s interesting to compare the attitudes in different countries (and different parts of the same country). Italians, as we all know, are … er … flamboyant drivers. I was a bit apprehensive when we stayed in the small town of Bergamo. Our B&B was right beside the road and we had to walk along that road to get to the town. I expected this to be hair-raising, but it wasn’t. Drivers were amazingly considerate. They DIDN’T travel fast (like their Roman counterparts), and, aware that the road had so many blind bends, they thoughtfully beeped their horns as they approached one, so you always knew if a car was coming.

J to Staff
Oh, they’re crafty, all right!

> I’ve heard that the rate of accidents on the autobahn is far less than on Australian roads.

Yes, but when they have ’em…

>I’m not advocating speed. I’d prefer to travel more slowly and see some detail in the landscape.

Me too. I used to be hell on wheels, now I feel more like a watermelon duct-taped to the nose cone of an ICBM.

Instead of flying down a deserted California highway at 140 mph on my way to a chemo treatment — which does have a powerful sort of divine symmetry, Roger — I do things like set the cruise control at 65 mph before running the 17 miles through the Rio Grande canyon and see how far I can get before having to stomp on the brakes. If nobody’s coming from the other direction, I can use both sides of the road and make it to Velarde before shutting down the cruise!

R to Staff
J.,
that is uber cool too!

not too many passes here, but i remember the one near globe n.m., which was awesome one night with a full moon and no need for lights, on a very empty road in the dead of winter. that was back before cruise control, however, but i had a stick so it was fine.

btw, the 140 run is only in one place. i don’t really like to run flat out very often. it is just the one spot that it can be done, but i won’t do it if i see any vehicles on the road with me, and you can see ten miles clear on the top of that hill. the rest of the trip, i keep it under a hundred. again, unless there are cars around, then i am as slow as they are.

it is different running in l.a. or in san diego (sandy eggo). traffic flows at around 85 to 90, regardless of highway patrol cruisers, who seem to ignore the speed of the flow. a few do drive the 70 mph indicated, and the do tend to keep to the right, sadly shaking their heads at the rest of us fools.

interesting places we each live in, huh? =)

J to Staff
Does tire balance matter at that speed, or does the rubber on the wheel shift around to even things out?

> btw, the 140 run is only in one place. i don’t really like to run flat out very often. it is just the one spot that it can be done, but i won’t do it if i see any vehicles on the road with me, and you can see ten miles clear on the top of that hill. the rest of the trip, i keep
it under a hundred. again, unless there are cars around.

There are plenty of wide-open stretches around here, too. I was blogging about driving to Alamosa, CO on one such road and a reader commented:

I was stopped by an unmarked Colorado State Trooper there doing 110 mph. I think he just wanted the chase tho’. When I did finally pull over, he was smiling from ear-to-ear and shaking his head. “There’s a town ahead. Just slow down before you get there.” Yessir!

P.S. Now you really have me wanting to find the right used car to get in trouble with. Thank you!!!

L to Staff
I lived in Germany for three years during my Air Force days. I was riding with a friend, coming back from the Canadian Air Force Base at Lahr in his Renault 16 (one of the first hatchbacks) on the autobahn. How he ever coaxed this automotive equivalent of a rusty marshmallow (those French cars do have a soft ride!) to over 100 mph (with an automatic transmission, no less) was beyond my comprehension.

Now, the fact it was doing 100 on the autobahn was no big thing, except my friend chose to do so in the far left lane. In Germany, there are unwritten and written laws about driving on these amazing roads that have no speed limits. One of those rules is that slower traffic must always keep to the right. If you happen to be in the left lane (for passing only, please), and if you see headlights flashing in your mirror waaaaaay in the distance, gettheheckover to the right as fast as you can. It could be a Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, BMW, Ferrari, or whatever closing in at 150+ MPH and because that driver knows the rules, he’s not slowing down, because he knows you know the rules and will move to the right immediately.

Well, my friend (stupid ugly American Air Force staff sergeant) just kept on in the left lane at 100mph in this scary floaty rusty Renault when we almost got creamed by several really fast cars (you could almost see the air turn blue from inside those cars from the cursing drivers). I suggested he move to the right, as that is the law. His reply (I was so embarrassed for being an American…) was that is wasn’t safe to drive more than 100, and that he was doing them a favor!

Well, I have new friends now…

B to Staff
Wow! Here is what is likely to happen in the Boston area, if someone flashes his/her high beams at a slower moving car:

-The slower driver will move over and simply let the faster vehicle pass without incident. The slower driver understands that the faster is an extremely ego-driven, confrontational person, and possibly dangerous.

-The slower driver will stay put, and when the faster vehicle is right on his rear end, give the middle finger to the faster driver in the mirror. A high speed contest of wills will then ensue, with both drivers becoming highly agitated, and playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse. The slower driver doesn’t let anyone push him around, and the faster driver doesn’t let anyone tell him what to do. This will end with either both cars eventually going their separate ways, (but, “you’re dead, if I see you again!!”) or, a horrific crash where innocent people who had nothing to with it get injured or killed.

Yes, this happens. Probably the deadliest stretch of highway around here is interstate 95, between route 128 and the NH border. Very busy, very fast. State police usually have their hands full on weekday mornings.

R.L. to Staff
Hey, that was me!

R.B. to Staff
B., Same here in La La Land, but here they also use guns. This must be more in Los Angeles proper. Orange County and San Diego don’t seem to see much of this. But there is always one guy, right? The one who insists on driving the speed limit in the fast lane, trying to make everyone else slow down? All he does is cause people to pass him on the right, and thus makes it unsafe for everyone. Yeah, he has the right to drive that speed in that lane, but it is neither wise nor safe. And if he were to do it in L.A., he might get shot for his trouble.

Thanks to everyone for an excellent thread. Now I just need to wait for the Highway Patrol to show up at my door momentarily, with a bucket of tickets for my professed speedy and wayward ways on the deserted desert roads hereabouts.

Regards,
R.B.

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