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Flappy Paddle is the one true shifter. [Car] Thread.
Thomamelas
Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
The Car. For some it's a method of transportation. For others it's the fusion of art and engineering. This is a thread for all of those people. Things we'll discuss in this thread:
The History of the car:
Classic cars/Car Porn: (May cause scroll rape)
The Model T. Not so much a pretty car but a revolution.
The Bugatti Type 37.
The Cadillac V-16 Roadster.
The Duesenberg SJ Mormon Meteor Speedster
The Rolls Royce Phantom Coupe of 1925.
Ferrari 250 GTE.
First generation 1953 Corvette.
1965 Mustang.
1971 Dodge Charger. And my dream car.
1962 Ferrari GTO.
Lamborghini Diablo.
Car based sports:
How to build, repair and maintain your car or truck:
Cars in Media:
Things we will not be discussing:
Manual vs Automatics. It's a silly argument. No, really it's stupid. No, I promise, everyone involved in the argument looks silly.
Ralph Nader is Satan. He's not. Cars are safer because of him and the companies in Detroit made tons of terrible decisions on their own.
Modern Safety equipment makes people bad drivers. It doesn't, bad driver training does.
Demonic possession of cars. Goes in the D&D Reading thread. Or the Movies that are old thread.
The History of the car:
It's said a Jesuit Priest made the first one for the Emperor of China. But we don't care, it didn't survive and it had low horse power. Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot generally gets credit for the first modern one. But being a Frenchman he promptly crashed it into a wall while attempting to corner at 3 mph. Apparently brakes were just too plebeian. Hobbyists experimented with electric cars but along with steam just couldn't scale well. Karl Benz gave us the first car that was designed with parts meant solely for a car. Later on he would merge his company with Gottlieb Daimler car company.
And while everyone was making electric cars, Rudolf Diesel invented the Diesel engine. But only truckers care. Ford is often credited with the creation of the production line, but Olds did it first. Ford did manage to improve it, dropping assembly time from 12 and a half hours to 1 and a half. which is why Model Ts only came in black, other colors took too long to dry. On the other side of Detroit GM was busy working out the modern dealer network, the idea of product lines and struggling not to go bankrupt. Europe was busy as well in the 1920's as well. Companies like Citroen, Peugeot and Morris sprang up. The last one is mostly regretted.
After WWII it went even further. Porsche stopped committing war crimes and started making amazing sports cars, starting with the 356. Ferrari gave us the 250. Cadillac gave us the V-8 engine. During the 60's the Pony car and the Muscle car came onto the scene and Americans suddenly forgot about turning. The 70's came and Japan burst onto the scene with well made cars that were fuel efficient but as exciting as watching paint dry. The 80's are best forgotten except for the Diablo which is apparently terrible to drive but so pretty to look at.
And while everyone was making electric cars, Rudolf Diesel invented the Diesel engine. But only truckers care. Ford is often credited with the creation of the production line, but Olds did it first. Ford did manage to improve it, dropping assembly time from 12 and a half hours to 1 and a half. which is why Model Ts only came in black, other colors took too long to dry. On the other side of Detroit GM was busy working out the modern dealer network, the idea of product lines and struggling not to go bankrupt. Europe was busy as well in the 1920's as well. Companies like Citroen, Peugeot and Morris sprang up. The last one is mostly regretted.
After WWII it went even further. Porsche stopped committing war crimes and started making amazing sports cars, starting with the 356. Ferrari gave us the 250. Cadillac gave us the V-8 engine. During the 60's the Pony car and the Muscle car came onto the scene and Americans suddenly forgot about turning. The 70's came and Japan burst onto the scene with well made cars that were fuel efficient but as exciting as watching paint dry. The 80's are best forgotten except for the Diablo which is apparently terrible to drive but so pretty to look at.
Classic cars/Car Porn: (May cause scroll rape)
The Model T. Not so much a pretty car but a revolution.
The Bugatti Type 37.
The Cadillac V-16 Roadster.
The Duesenberg SJ Mormon Meteor Speedster
The Rolls Royce Phantom Coupe of 1925.
Ferrari 250 GTE.
First generation 1953 Corvette.
1965 Mustang.
1971 Dodge Charger. And my dream car.
1962 Ferrari GTO.
Lamborghini Diablo.
Car based sports:
NASCAR: Cars always turning left. Except sometimes they always turn right.
F1: Cars turning left and right but no passing.
Indy: Like F1 but no one cares.
Rally: Racing for people who like mud.
Drag Racing: For people who find the turns of NASCAR too difficult.
F1: Cars turning left and right but no passing.
Indy: Like F1 but no one cares.
Rally: Racing for people who like mud.
Drag Racing: For people who find the turns of NASCAR too difficult.
How to build, repair and maintain your car or truck:
Step 1 is always buy a Hanyes manual.
Cars in Media:
Top Gear. If you're reading this then most likely you already know it. If you don't, your missing the finest car show on television. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking it will be like that lame ass Car and Driver show where they review cars like the Civic. It's nothing like that. It's three guys trying to cross the English channel in hybrid car/boats. Or trying to launch a Reliant Robin into space. And it has some of the finest car porn you will ever see.
Car and Driver Magazine. It still exists. Damned if I know why.
Jalopnik. It's a Gawker Blog. Interesting car stories, but a community that doesn't like any car tech made after 1969.
The Speed Network. It exists. Don't know anything else about it.
Car and Driver Magazine. It still exists. Damned if I know why.
Jalopnik. It's a Gawker Blog. Interesting car stories, but a community that doesn't like any car tech made after 1969.
The Speed Network. It exists. Don't know anything else about it.
Things we will not be discussing:
Manual vs Automatics. It's a silly argument. No, really it's stupid. No, I promise, everyone involved in the argument looks silly.
Ralph Nader is Satan. He's not. Cars are safer because of him and the companies in Detroit made tons of terrible decisions on their own.
Modern Safety equipment makes people bad drivers. It doesn't, bad driver training does.
Demonic possession of cars. Goes in the D&D Reading thread. Or the Movies that are old thread.
Thomamelas on
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I need to get my oil changed. Also coming up on 45K. Should probably have it serviced.
It's really about three guys fucking around with cars. And making a celebrity race around their track. And doing silly challenges.
Why do I love Ford all of a sudden?
Because Ford didn't take bailout money?
Granted, neither did VW...
I think it's because of the new design style (the old 500/Taurus, Focus, and Fusion were so ugly), combined with the techniness of the cars. Being able to talk to my car is pretty sweet, and I don't think it would get old. Plus I hear the fit-and-finish have come a long way since the last Ford I drove (a late 90s Mustang Cobra, it was not a good car).
If they'd just ship us the Focus RS...
Le mans - cars racing on a track with actual corners AND passing.
Speaking of thread title, I love the DSG tranny in my '07 GTI. Pull paddle -> receive gear. I wonder if I love it because I subconsciously associate it with playing Forza with the little Microsoft wheel.
sleek center consoles, futuristic radio controls
whirring and lighting up speedometers and tachymeters and fuel gauges
i am all about the car of the future
I thought about it but I figured the joke would put people to sleep kinda like the race.
If you don't mind a suggestion and have some time, perhaps a driving wheel controller with shifter and clutch paired a racing game? It might be a little less stressful for everyone involved.
In that case, I'll bring your Lexus around to the front:
(h-scroll!)
How does that work for you Chu?
well i don't want to spend twice my annual income on a car
but yes
i basically want an audi
i like the civic's interior for its price
oh my god
all of those
god
why do nice things have to be expensive
it's a terribly difficult conundrum
Logitech has one for the PS3 that runs around $100 to $150 I think. I don't know the PS3 library but I'm sure there is a good racing game for it. It doesn't need to be too exacting, you just want her to get in the habit of working the clutch. Once she's cool with that then with the real car and dealing with stop lights and normal driving.
Technically the car I posted would be well over twice your annual income. I mean it's just a $400,000 Maybach.
Also, I'd highly recommend checking out Test Drive Unlimited, as I think it's one of the only racing games I've seen where you can turn off Auto-Clutch, so you can't shift gears without pressing the clutch, and it'll stall out if you're in gear and not really going anywhere.
@Zilo: It'd be pretty nice if the U.S. got some of the hot hatch love that everyone else gets with the new Fiesta. I was going to the movie theater the other night and their happened to be this weird Ford Fiesta tour thing going on in the parking lot. Didn't get to check much of it out, the headlights scare me a little and I was gonna be late for my movie
EDIT: Gran Turismo 5 is finally coming out in a month, and I wouldn't be surprised if it had something like this too.
twitch.tv/tehsloth
TDU2 supposedly coming Jan 2011. I better not be driving around Ibiza alone, people.
because Ford's making lots of good decisions lately? and making cars that actually stop on command?
Holy mother of God. I'm not normally into cars, but this is beautiful. It's like something Bruce Wayne would drive.
It is incredibly beautiful. It some how manages to convey a sense of power and speed at the same time.
I never like wood finish on car interiors.
Also, are they driving through the Matrix?
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
It looks like this:
Or if you're in a different mood, this:
Yeah, the rest of the cockpit isn't as fancypants, but it's not bad:
But hey, It looks amazing from the outside:
... Gimme.
I don't think I've ever heard anyone argue this in reference to cars. Is this a common problem on car forums or something?
In other news one of my friends/coworkers is getting a Brammo Empulse (electric motorcycle) when they come out next year.
100 miles range with top speed of 100+mph, ~60 lb/ft of torque, 420lbs. I am excited to see / ride it.
Rubicons look sexy though.
But here's the thing, it's a custom made car. It lacks much of the safety features demanded by the DOT. To add those features in and make it production worthy, it would add about 400-500lbs and utterly kill that 120mpg. It would also add size and ruin the aerodynamic properties.
There's a lot of people that are bitter about that. They believe they should be able to drive in a car regardless of mandated safety features.
Yeah actually it does pop up on car forums a lot. Mention him on Jalopnik sometime and see the reaction. There are a lot of people who seem to hold him solely responsible for the decline of American automobile manufacturers in the 70's. And he did highlight a lot of safety problems in Detroit. I love the styling of the cars of the 50's but putting pointy bits on the steering wheel wasn't a good idea.
Eh, the safety features do increase the weight but that can be compensated for. An Elise weighs almost nothing for a car but has all of the modern safety features. As does the Smart car. But what has happened is that we don't really see car manufacturers playing in the Pony/Muscle car space anymore. You get a few cars here and there like the Miata that are cheap, fast, somewhat pretty but you don't see a lot of other cars in that space.
Wound up purchasing an air ratchet (I already had a compressor that can run simple air tools) and oh my god, why is this not something every driveway mechanic has? It makes everything so much easier.
Mostly it's the lack of a decent compressor. But air ratchets are awesome for working on a car. The speed difference on something like a tire change is amazing.
Same here. It always looks like a silly anachronism to me.