Author: Eric Peters

Why is it that alternative technologies that clearly do not work –  which are so gimped by functional and economic problems as to be not-viable on the market absent huge subsidies and even then, it’s hard to give them away – continue to receive seemingly endless financial and political support … while technologies that actually might work better than current internal combustion engine technology can’t seem to get any traction at all? Electric cars are hopeless. For more than a century now, generations of engineers have tried – and, so far, failed – to develop a battery that will endow an electric car with … Continue reading →

Looks may be in the eye of the beholder – we can argue about the aesthetic appeal of the Pontiac Aztek all day long without anyone proving they’re right – or wrong. But functional flaws are objective. Here are some picks of the litter: * Steamroller wheels (and tires) – I recently reviewed the 2015 VW Passat TDI (see here). It’s a middle-of-the-road, family-minded large sedan. Emphasis on economy of operation, quiet and comfort. Yet it comes shod with large diameter 17 and 18 inch wheels – which in turn mount what are known within the car biz as “low aspect ratio” – … Continue reading →

Looking back on the American Revolution, John Adams (in 1813) wrote: “But what do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American war? The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments of their duties and obligations.” Those frustrated by the seemingly relentless advance of authoritarianism – especially those who’ve given up and are ready to “go down fighting” – might consider Adams’ words. I grant that it defensive force may become necessary at some point. Some of us, as individuals, may find … Continue reading →

When you have to resort to paying people to buy something, it ought to tell you something about the value of the thing you’re trying to “sell.” Such thoughts apparently haven’t occurred to GM, which continues to describe the Volt-based (and twice-as pricey) Cadillac ELR electric car as a “combination of leading technology with stunningly attractive design” that is “is unlike any other coupe in the luxury segment.” So says Cadillac jefe Johan de Nysschen. Poor dude. He has to put on a brave face. It’s his job, after all. Like the captain of a sinking liner, he must calm the … Continue reading →

Modern car engines are hard to fault… objectively. They start immediately – even when it’s 15 degrees out. They rarely stall out – leaving you dead in the water in the middle of a busy intersection. Most require not much more from you than gas and oil for the first 100,000-plus miles from new. But when was the last time you turned off the stereo and rolled the window down just to listen to their music? Or proudly popped the hood for your friends? Not much to see, is there? You don’t need to be a gearhead to understand. Ever been … Continue reading →

How many appealing vehicles can you name that were only sold for one year? Even the Edsel lasted three. Here’s one that came – and went – as fast as it went: the 1991 GMC Syclone. Zero to 60 in 4.3 seconds . And that was back in ’91 – when a new L98 (Tuned Port Injection) Corvette needed a languid-seeming 5.3 seconds to make the same run. Even the exotic ZR1 Corvette, with its DOHC V8, needed 4.4. seconds to do what the Syclone did in fewer. Nothing American could touch the Syclone in a straight-up drag race – … Continue reading →

It’s being touted as “parental control” technology – a way for worried parents to keep tabs on their teenaged drivers. But what’s good for the proverbial goose (the 17-year-old) is just as good for the gander (his parents).  And if recent precedents – and trends – are any guide, will be exactly that. People never seem to see this coming. Well, here it comes… again. Both Ford and GM are in the process of  fitting their latest models with technology that enables Mom or and Dad to track son and daughter’s movements, as well as how they move – and how … Continue reading →

All of us know – or have heard about – the apparently healthy, successful person who one day just drops dead unexpectedly. In a way, this is the story of the Thunderbird. For decades, it was one of Ford’s most successful models and the name remains an automotive icon. But the car’s as dead as Rudolph Valentino. The last one rolled off the line a decade ago (2005) after a brief, not-quite-three-year resurrection following a prior ten-year absence from Ford’s model lineup. Unlike most four-wheeled flops, however, the last T-Bird was neither ugly nor  horribly built. Most people who saw it … Continue reading →

You have probably seen crowds of people with their hands up – a protest meme over police trigger-happiness. Apparently, it has been taken literally … by the other side. As hallucinatory as this may sound, if you’re pulled over in the city of Topeka, Kansas for any reason – including non-criminal trivialities such as having an out of date inspection sticker, a dead brake light, or because you’re spotted unbuckled – the cops there will henceforth expect – scratch that, order – everyone in the vehicle to assume the Perp Pose. This includes old people, kids. God help you if you have … Continue reading →

Someday – and that day might be closer than you want to know – we’ll look back fondly on speed traps. Because at least you could speed. Give the finger – via the accelerator pedal – to ridiculous, dumbed-down/one-size-fits-all velocity maximums laid down by bureaucrats whose prime directive always seems to be to suck the joy out of everything, especially driving. Sometimes, of course, you’d get caught – and fined. But most of the time you could “get away” with it. (Kind of like the way people used to be able to “get away” with not buying health insurance, if … Continue reading →

There is no such thing as a free market. Not in the United States, at any rate. You are free to buy what they (the people who comprise the apparat of government) allow you to buy. Nothing more – and nothing less. But what might we be able to buy if we did have a free market? Or even a more free market than the one we’ve got right now? Almost certainly, we’d have access to new cars that are much more fuel efficient – and much less expensive – than the current crop of government-mandated cars. These cars – the … Continue reading →

Owning an old muscle car can be a lot of fun. But it’s not all fun – and you ought to know what you’re getting yourself into before you get yourself into it. First, some definitions. Muscle cars are old. Nothing new – nothing modern – qualifies as a muscle car. The defining attribute of a muscle car is not horsepower or performance. Nor that it has a V8 engine feeding power to the rear wheels. There are many new (and modern) cars that do that. And they are not muscle cars, even if some of them look like they might … Continue reading →

Things necessarily begin somewhere. Usually, that somewhere is a backwater of some kind; only a few people are involved and the majority either are unaware it’s happening at all or they don’t care because hey, it’s not happening to them. Until, one day, it does. Over the road truckers were the first to be on the receiving end of speed limiters – and speed monitors – in their big rigs. And then came microphones – and cameras, too. For – of course – safety. It is always for safety. Because you can never be too safe, right? Well, no one really … Continue reading →

The car business has become like the computer business – things change fast. Models change – radically – every four years (and sometimes everythree) rather than once every eight (or ten) as they used to back in the ’90s and before. Features undreamed of or found heretofore only in very expensive/exotic cars are now as common as floor mats. What else has changed? And what else should you “hip” yourself to? Here are a few to chew on: * For the first time ever, it may make more sense to lease – that is, to rent – rather than to buy. Part … Continue reading →

Oregon – home of things uber trendy – has become the first state to begin dunning motorists by the mile rather than by the gallon. The “pilot” program begins July 1 — and will be implemented by the Oregon DOT in partnership with something called Sanef ITS Technologies America and Intelligent Mechatronic Systems. Sounds a lot like Cyberdyne Systems from the Terminator movies, doesn’t it? And the similarities run a lot deeper than that. To make this work (for Uncle) your car must be fitted with some type of real-time monitoring device that keeps track of your mileage and reports it … Continue reading →