Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

CraigB said:
It's the most fucked up place I've ever driven. The worst had to have been a Ranger on its roof, up against the center guardwall with traffic whizzing by it at 80+. I often ponder why it was upside down there without slowing traffic down.
Click to expand...

Have you been to Florida?
 
CraigB said:
It's the most fucked up place I've ever driven. The worst had to have been a Ranger on its roof, up against the center guardwall with traffic whizzing by it at 80+. I often ponder why it was upside down there without slowing traffic down.
Click to expand...

40 minute journey into Houston? Nope 1.5 hours minimum. Some rain? 3 plus hours.

I traded people traffic for construction traffic here in Dallas, but it feels a lot better and I have actual back roads to get around nasty snarls at least.
 
ScarFace88 said:
Have you been to Florida?
Click to expand...

It's been about 17 years, but yes. However I was working in a small town, Immokalee, so traffic wasn't a problem.


Der Stig said:
40 minute journey into Houston? Nope 1.5 hours minimum. Some rain? 3 plus hours.

I traded people traffic for construction traffic here in Dallas, but it feels a lot better and I have actual back roads to get around nasty snarls at least.
Click to expand...

I avoid both of those towns at all costs. In Dallas I remember going 90 mph down I-45 and getting passed. All the while thinking, "This is fucking stupid."
 
CraigB said:
In Dallas I remember going 90 mph down I-45 and getting passed. All the while thinking, "This is fucking stupid."
Click to expand...

There's nothing wrong with that. Move to the right lane and nobody will care if you do 30 in a 75.

- - - Updated - - -

Der Stig said:
I traded people traffic for construction traffic here in Dallas, but it feels a lot better and I have actual back roads to get around nasty snarls at least.
Click to expand...

At least Dallas' construction traffic is truly temporary instead of Houston's perma-struction. And it doesn't flood out every time it rains. :p
 
CraigB said:
I avoid both of those towns at all costs. In Dallas I remember going 90 mph down I-45 and getting passed. All the while thinking, "This is fucking stupid."
Click to expand...

Hey that's me :p /s

Source: speeding trophy on I45 in a little town outside DFW (Ferris) back when I had the BMW :lol:
 
I see "I45", I wonder "what manner of idiot swaps a V8 into a FWD Infiniti?".
 
^every male office monkey owns one of those in the Chicago area and are asshole drivers. Hyundai Sonata, the official car of "yeah son, I'll be at your game but, I'll be on the phone and not pay any attention to you."


Anyways!



Clever use of tail light placement.
 
93Flareside said:
^every male office monkey owns one of those in the Chicago area and are asshole drivers. Hyundai Sonata, the official car of "yeah son, I'll be at your game but, I'll be on the phone and not pay any attention to you."


Anyways!



Clever use of tail light placement.
Click to expand...
Around here that's the Nissan Altima. About 80% of the time they are driven by assholes.
 
I might be looking at a 2014 Mustang this weekend (prices really frigging fell with the '15 model) anything specific to look out for? Car in question has under 6K on the clock so I don't expect anything to be wrong with it. Haven't really decided yet if I really want it, but am kind of tired of the Z already.
 
See if you can live with the stick axle on the crap NYC pothole-arrays-with-occasional-road-surface before you buy.
 
Sent you a PM.
 
rickhamilton620 said:
Around here that's the Nissan Altima. About 80% of the time they are driven by assholes.
Click to expand...

It's strange how different cars attract different kind of drivers depends on where in the world you are.

Over here, if a vehicle has Nissan written on it, chances are it's going to be driven at anywhere between 50% and 75% of the posted speed limit. They aren't assholes, they just don't seem to have any clue they're operating a motor vehicle. You know when you're trundling along the freeway with the cruise control set to the legal limit (120) and someone merges out in front of you doing 90 expecting you to make way? Usually it's a Nissan Almera.

Clarkson likes to call these people Peugeot drivers. But here, Peugeot drivers are fine.
 
Perc said:
It's strange how different cars attract different kind of drivers depends on where in the world you are.

Over here, if a vehicle has Nissan written on it, chances are it's going to be driven at anywhere between 50% and 75% of the posted speed limit. They aren't assholes, they just don't seem to have any clue they're operating a motor vehicle. You know when you're trundling along the freeway with the cruise control set to the legal limit (120) and someone merges out in front of you doing 90 expecting you to make way? Usually it's a Nissan Almera.

Clarkson likes to call these people Peugeot drivers. But here, Peugeot drivers are fine.
Click to expand...

Over here that's Nissan as well, and Honda, Toyota, Peugeot....basicly anything French, most cheaper Germans, still some Rovers around to, euh, yeah pretty much everybody.
 
Spectre said:
See if you can live with the stick axle on the crap NYC pothole-arrays-with-occasional-road-surface before you buy.
Click to expand...

Quite a few S195s running around here, well they were till the '15 came out so I think that's not too bad but the car got sold. I think I'll hold out for another year and go for some nice 2016s with all the year end incentives. Even now I can get brand new 15s with performance pack and all for like 31ish.

- - - Updated - - -

CrzRsn said:
Sent you a PM.
Click to expand...

Thanks, replied :)
 
Saw that. A shame that is. Good cars Mustangs are.
 
Did California just get it right? Even if for the wrong reasons?

Car and Driver said:
A Little Less Autonomous: California?s New Rules Prohibit Driverless Cars
The California Department of Motor Vehicles just enacted a whole spate of new laws aimed at regulating the testing of self-driving cars?and major players like Google are not happy.As Automotive News reports, the rules put strict limitations on automakers planning to test autonomous cars on the state?s public roads. There are four key aspects to the new law:

1.Manufacturers must submit autonomous vehicles to third-party testing to verify the car?s ?ability to perform key driving maneuvers that are typically encountered in real-world driving conditions.?

2.A licensed driver with an autonomous vehicle operator certificate, issued by the California DMV, must be present in the vehicle at all times, ?and must be capable of taking over immediate control in the event of an autonomous technology failure or other emergency.? In addition, the operator will be responsible for all traffic violations that occur while operating the autonomous vehicle.

3.Manufacturers must apply for a permit, and submit monthly reports on performance, safety, and usage of autonomous vehicles, in order to test them on California roads. As a condition of the permit, ?autonomous vehicles can only be operated by the manufacturer or made available to the public on no more than a leased basis.? In other words, no privately owned autonomous cars.

4.Manufacturers must also disclose to autonomous vehicle operators what information will be collected by the vehicle, and they must get written approval by the operators.

The law also prohibits testing of autonomous commercial vehicles in California. ?Due to the size of these vehicles, DMV believes that public safety is best served by initially limiting deployment to passenger vehicles,? the law reads.

The most surprising aspect of this law is the requirement of a licensed, autonomous-certified driver in the vehicle at all times. ?The draft regulations exclude autonomous vehicles that are capable of operating without the presence of a driver,? according to the new law (read the full document here). ?Given the potential risks associated with the deployment of such a new technology, DMV believes that manufacturers need to obtain more experience in testing driverless vehicles on public roads prior to making this technology available to the general public.?

Google, for one, is chafing at that bit, and understandably: The tech giant?s koala-like autonomous pods famously do not include a steering wheel or pedals for human operation. ?In developing vehicles that can take anyone from A to B at the push of a button, we?re hoping to transform mobility for millions of people,? a Google spokesperson said in a statement. ?We?re gravely disappointed that California is already writing a ceiling on the potential for fully self-driving cars to help all of us who live here.?

As Automotive News reports, as of December 3rd, the following companies were licensed to conduct autonomous testing on California roads: BMW, Ford, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Tesla and Volkswagen Group; suppliers Bosch and Delphi; and Silicon Valley technology companies Google and Cruise Automation.
Click to expand...
 
Wow...I don't oppose the existence of these cars, and wouldn't mind using on from time to time, as long as "real" cars are still allowed (like, Ruth's Chris Steaks doesn't inhibit me from ordering their bone-in ribeye, just because salads exist)...and most of these requirements are fair, I think...but not being allowed to *test* seems like a step backwards.

Edit: ahh...I see that it's just prohibiting *commercial* vehicle testing...hmm...still feel like there should be allowances if you meet requirements.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top