Cars

[random axe]

There was a small plane crash in Palo Alto earlier, and three people were reported dead.  Now they're saying that all three were Tesla Motors executives.

[Lindsey Buckinghmof]

http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_14416855?nclick_check=1

Nothing here except the plane owner

[flipper]

My boss's home in Palo Alto was without power most of the day today due to the crash.  I guess the plane took out a transmission line.

[random axe]

I still think Toyota handled this badly AND that they made a mistake using two suppliers for a throttle component without adequately regulating how interchangeable the components had to be regardless of which factory made them.  But I'm also still unconvinced that there's anything wrong with Toyota throttle systems.  To date, no one has been able to prove that anything's wrong with them.  It's all speculation as to what could be wrong, assuming that something is wrong in the first place.

Now a number of sources (sample article) are saying ABC more or less faked the report where an expert was able to modify a Toyota so that it would experience runaway acceleration. 

Meanwhile, the Washington Post had a pretty good article on the problem.

The media's terrifying drivers and not doing Toyota any favors.  I guess the upside is that it might all be helping Ford out, and I think Ford deserves a boost . . . if not necessarily in this fashion.

[mybabysmomma]

Really? Ford has had way more recalls in comparison.  GM too for that matter.

[random axe]

Like I said, Toyota handled this one really badly.  Their PR department dropped the ball big-time.

Still nothing as bad as the infamous Pinto Memo, the leaked memo in which Ford said, well, it would cost us so much per Pinto to fix the problem, compared so much in projected total lawsuits if we don't fix it, and since it'll be cheaper to settle the lawsuits, let's not have a recall.  THAT was bad PR . . . although perversely it was the kind of cost analysis that corporations are supposed to perform.  Which is why corporations need regulation; they're not designed to be self-regulating.

But the Pinto was a long time ago, and the current crop of Fords really isn't bad at all, despite their terrible marketing.  Ford appears to have benefited the most from Toyota's pain of late.

[flipper]

I'm still loyal to Subaru.

[random axe]

I love love a good Subaru, and I'm quite fond of my current old Legacy wagon despite its seriously poor mileage.  I think about half of the current Subaru styling is good and half is bad, but I dislike most of the current Japanese styling, so Subaru is ahead a bit.

Fortunately for me, I can only afford old cars anyway.  It works out.

[PVC Barbie]

Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

[Lindsey Buckinghmof]

http://vimeo.com/6859938

Cannot be viewed enough

[mybabysmomma]

I think I just fell in love with you a little.  That was awesome!   

[PVC Barbie]

http://vimeo.com/6859938

Cannot be viewed enough

Righteous.

[random axe]

In accordance with prophecy . . . .

[random axe]

Now the NHTSA and independent investigators are saying a 2005 crash in which a Prius accelerated into a stone wall was driver error.  Gas pedal all the way down, brake pedal untouched. 

Again, I am hugely sympathetic to any driver who has this happen.  If you think your foot's on the brake and the car's speeding up, your brain is going to panic, probably even if you're Mario Andretti or Al Unser, Jr, and you're going to jam that pedal down through the floorboards.  Most accidents like this happen very quickly, so there's not a lot of time to figure out what's going wrong.

Audi's problems stopped not when they changed the pedals (although they eventually moved them slightly further apart) or altered the engine or accelerator but when they developed the transmission interlock.  That's the system that won't let you shift out of Park unless your foot's on the brake.  Once they did that, bingo, no more runaway Audi complaints, and they made the system available for free to other manufacturers (who could have copied it anyway).

I'm not saying Toyotas are perfect, but this was mostly a PR problem -- even to the extent that it's possible that some accidents were caused by PR.  The media did not help.  The best way to stop a runaway-acceleration car is probably to take your right foot off all the pedals and then step on the brake.  If you've been led to assume that your car is out of control, you're probably screwed.

[random axe]

Man . . . last night I read a NYT review of the new EcoBoost Ford Flex.  The technology is interesting and pretty encouraging -- this is a Detroit 7-person 4WD SUV that outruns the Porsche Cayenne but gets 25 MPG on the highway.  It costs too much, but so do its competitors.

However, it's still either a glorified truck or a glorified minivan.  You can take your pick, but pretensions are pretensions.

More stupidly, OK, the reviewer says he likes it because if you take the regular Flex and add seven people and their luggage, the damn thing is sluggish.  The thing is, he says nothing about handling, safety, or the vehicle's carrying capacity.  This is the kind of ignorance that's typical of car reviews (in the big car magazines, too) and both stupid and a dangerous disservice to readers.

I looked with the googles, and the Flex apparently has a carrying capacity of about 1500 lb -- maybe less for the 4WD model because it has a higher curb weight.  That means that the manufacturer says you can only safely put 1500 lb worth of stuff in there and still drive the thing.  More weight, and they say the brakes, transmission, and suspension aren't up to it.  If you think the engine's not up to it, consider the other important components of the car.  The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and, for vehicles that can tow, Combined Rating are usually printed on the edge of the driver's door and certainly are in the manual.  You can't safely operate a vehicle, or god knows actually tow anything, if you have it overloaded.

Well, if the Flex is carrying 7 adults (average weight . . . 170 lb?) and their luggage (average 30 lb per person), it's already at 1400 lb of added weight.  If any of your passengers are particularly heavy or you've got more luggage than that . . . .

The Flex actually has pretty good carrying capacity, too.  A lot of SUVs five or ten years ago were actually typically overloaded before you filled the seats.  It's a little miraculous (and a testament to conservative limit estimates) that there weren't any huge lawsuits, but those accidents where a packed vehicle went off the highway?  It's entirely possible they would have been able to stop if they'd had less weight on board.

And a damned car reviewer ought to know that.  It's kind of important for people to know.