Random Thoughts Thread

[G. David Felt]

GM Defense has started production of armored HD SUVs for the U.S. Government under contract. 

GM Defense completes first production vehicle for the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service

[G. David Felt]

Excited for SEMA in a week as Kia seems to have some new EVs to show off and one could be an X-Pro off-road edition of the EV9. Teaser photo they released today.

[G. David Felt]

OK, this is one Bad Ass Cool EV Converted old car!!!

Mopar’s Plymouth GTX Electromod Saves The Planet By Killing The V8 | Carscoops

Mopar e-crate motors will debut at SEMA.

This is one bad ass car!!! Future never looked so good!!!
 

Nothing like plugging in where you once poured gas into!!!

[G. David Felt]

Interesting read on an ICE that has become an EV user for 90% of their life. Their old 231,000 miles Tahoe is for the other 10%.

I'm A Gas Car Fan. Here's Why I Love My First EV

@surreal1272 Months like this add up to take over a market big time.

EVs And Hybrids Catapult Hyundai, Kia October U.S. Sales To New Record

 

[G. David Felt]

Seems Ford and Lectron have joined up to build and ship out the CCS to NACS adapter as the Tesla one is still having the bugs worked out that caused Ford to tell their customers to stop using it. Ford will ship out the Lectron to replace the Tesla units.

Ford Begins Shipping New Tesla NACS Adapters To EV Customers

[G. David Felt]

Some very cool technology reading for those interested.

US firm’s 5-min EV battery charge tackles range anxiety in all weather - Aimed to be on the market in OEMs in 2 to 3 years.

This EV battery can go 1,000 miles on a single charge - Fast Company - MIT startup 24M has developed this battery, test units will be in OEMs for mule testing in 2025 with wide spread availability expected by 2030 globally. 

As I have stated before, we are in interesting times and only fascist dictators will destroy humanity moving forward.

Solid State batteries are nearly here and we will see some amazing changes in EVs over the next 5 to 10 years.

[trinacriabob]

Today's big divide in America here instead of on the joke thread ...

Q:  What do you call a person who speaks 2 languages?

A:  Bilingual

Q:  What do you call a person who speaks 1 language?

A:  American 

- - - - -

Carry on ...

[G. David Felt]

Have to say that now with Kia releasing the full econo lineup of the Kia EV3 with the top end being the GT-Line, this is a sweet EV. Should be very successful here in the US when it goes on sale Spring 2025. Chevrolet Bolt better deliver otherwise it will be a knockout by Kia.

Kia EV3 Base Model - They have an EV9 go by and you can see the style and size. 

Better than anything Tesla has offered in the Model 3 for an interior (IMHO) and Chevrolet better bring their A game as Kia is going for the throat.

Removed the videos as they auto play and I could not stop it, so here is the site you have to choose which EV3 video you want to watch.

Kia EV3 videos - Dailymotion

[trinacriabob]

 

Good morning ...

[G. David Felt]

7 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

 

Good morning ...

Seen this from Dubai. Crazy that the arabs want their woman covered head to toe even the face in many cases and yet they will pay to have a non-arab woman dressed in next to nothing.

[trinacriabob]

11 minutes ago, G. David Felt said:

Seen this from Dubai. Crazy that the arabs want their woman covered head to toe even the face in many cases and yet they will pay to have a non-arab woman dressed in next to nothing.

They want them as side dishes but not for anything serious.  When in the U.S. or Canada, they might bend that rule to some extent.  In SoCal, they bent that rule a lot ... if the wallet was thick.

[G. David Felt]

I feel that the bulk of quality engineers have left Tesla as stuff like this should not be happening, but it does. Pathetic

Cybertruck Owner Fixes Problem Tesla Dealer Couldn’t Solve With A $13 Amazon Part | Carscoops

[G. David Felt]

This pretty much sums up the battle, both trucks have highlights, but the winner from fit n finish to quality of features and software features is Rivian.

New Rivian R1T vs Cybertruck: Battle Of The Electric Pickups

[oldshurst442]

Before the start of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys be like:

We are going to do what they say cant be done.  We've got a long way to go, and a short time to get there.  Awaiting for a certain someone to sign.

 

Then he signs. Tremendous signage I might add and then the Cowboys be like

 

And then for a while, a very SHORT while, they be like

 

But for the last couple of weeks and today's loss...in more ways than one

 

[G. David Felt]

39 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

Before the start of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys be like:

We are going to do what they say cant be done.  We've got a long way to go, and a short time to get there.  Awaiting for a certain someone to sign.

 

Then he signs. Tremendous signage I might add and then the Cowboys be like

 

And then for a while, a very SHORT while, they be like

 

But for the last couple of weeks and today's loss...in more ways than one

 

Seems like the Seattle Seahawks too, everyone at work was talking about how strong they were and were going all the way to the Super Bowl this year. and then after the first 4 games of solid wins, now 5 straight losses.

Totally this, which is an awesome modern version of the original if you have never heard it.

 

[Robert Hall]

And the Browns, predictably suck as usual.  Off to a 2-7 start.

[G. David Felt]

3 hours ago, Robert Hall said:

And the Browns, predictably suck as usual.  Off to a 2-7 start.

Welcome to the Suck Club of American Football!  

[ccap41]

13 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

Before the start of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys be like:

We are going to do what they say cant be done.  We've got a long way to go, and a short time to get there.  Awaiting for a certain someone to sign.

Any fan with half a brain knew they were a worse team than last year. I think they should be better than they are, but they're worse than last year before the season started. Now they're riddled with injuries, too. 

[Drew Dowdell]

effing hell......

 

and nearly completely losing the C&G database wasn't even the worst thing to happen this week.

[trinacriabob]

33 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

effing hell......

 

and nearly completely losing the C&G database wasn't even the worst thing to happen this week.

I agree, can imagine, and sympathize.

The Dow may be up, but I wonder if that's because it foretells that the rich may get richer and the poor may get poorer.  I may benefit some when the market is up, but it's not all about me.

At any rate, I'm glad we're back up and trust that some redundancy is there or will be bolstered to shore things up.

[G. David Felt]

We'll this sucks, C&G went down causing headaches for Drew and we now have a Fascist in power. How folks can vote for a convicted rapist, convicted business fraud and not once but 6-time bankrupt businessperson all for his own personal gain is beyond me. I did read an interesting AP story that said in 2016 the bulk of Latino voted for Trump, then 2020 for Biden and now back to Trump. College education is low among Latino's and the bulk of these conservative folks have stated that they do not believe woman belong in politics or business and as such went with the guy to vote. Seeing so many immigrants supporting Corrupt 47 blows my mind.

A coworker said a number of folks from Africa that he knows where he came from all voted for Trump as Economy was their number 1 concern. Yet we have a strong economy and low unemployment. He said they all were frustrated with how expensive things had become to buy and they said Trump will lower costs.

I pointed out that Inflation is always here, and the first two years of a new president is dealing with what was left to them from the outgoing president. As such, the first two years of high inflation under Biden was due to the poor policies that Trump did while in office.

Unfortunately, It is what it is and truly mind boggling that so many bought into the Trump Lie Machine.

Hopefully the House will go Democrat to balance out a republican senate so crazy cannot go too crazy with stuff.

Here is an interesting video to watch.

Video: Listen to The 2024 Xiaomi SU7 Max Belting It Around The Track | Watch

This is interesting, price parity has been achieved on the fleet side.

The 2025 Ford E-Transit Costs The Same As The Gas Version

[Drew Dowdell]

29 minutes ago, trinacriabob said:

I agree, can imagine, and sympathize.

The Dow may be up, but I wonder if that's because it foretells that the rich may get richer and the poor may get poorer.  I may benefit some when the market is up, but it's not all about me.

At any rate, I'm glad we're back up and trust that some redundancy is there or will be bolstered to shore things up.

The redundancy isn't there yet. I have a bunch of other websites to restore. But it will be the first thing done when I'm done with those.

[oldshurst442]

On 11/4/2024 at 10:17 AM, ccap41 said:

Any fan with half a brain knew they were a worse team than last year. I think they should be better than they are, but they're worse than last year before the season started. Now they're riddled with injuries, too. 

For sure. 

I was more in tune with how Jerry views things.  And he just gave away 2 drafts (late drafts, but still...) for a so so WR maybe screwing the Cowboy's future even further on TOP of having to deal with the salary cap hit next year upon Dak's new (very high but not merited) salary.   Is he the highest paid QB in the league?  Like how does that happen?   I know there is room to move within the cap, but like you said, the Cowboys are SEVERAL pieces away from the playoffs let alone winning it all.  

All the while, the Chiefs got a BETTER player  as opposed to what the Cowboys got  trading away LESS to acquire. And...they are the current champs with a QB making LESS money...  Back to back champs I shall add.  So...

Id like to add that I listen to sports talk radio, and sometimes I get feeds from other parts of both of our countries and there are some radio hosts (not from Montreal, but maybe from  Dallas/Fort Worth or some clowns from ESPN radio or Canada's own TSN, anyway, they try to dissect the Cowboy's problems for this year and they often call McCarty a lame duck...   In the past they laid blame on Jerry, but not this year.  Yet I feels very strongly more than ANY other year that it is in FACT Jerry's fault yet again this year for not fielding a contender.  And therefore the post above with the 18 wheelers. 

[oldshurst442]

On 11/3/2024 at 9:25 PM, G. David Felt said:

Seems like the Seattle Seahawks too, everyone at work was talking about how strong they were and were going all the way to the Super Bowl this year. and then after the first 4 games of solid wins, now 5 straight losses.

Totally this, which is an awesome modern version of the original if you have never heard it.

 

 

I never liked the Seahawks. But...I have taken a like to your NHL club the Kraken.  Also, I am super elated of the new Utah hockey club. Did you know that they have a woman as their head coach. First female in NHL history.  Pretty awesome is what I say.   And yeah, I know that song.  Its a 4 or 5 year old cover and um...very appropriate 4-5 years ago, to today this 6th of November 2024, just as it was when Simon and Garfunkle first sang it in the mid 1960s.    The internet has made us all phoqued up I think. 

[ccap41]

4 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

I never liked the Seahawks. But...I have taken a like to your NHL club the Kraken.  Also, I am super elated of the new Utah hockey club. Did you know that they have a woman as their head coach. First female in NHL history.  Pretty awesome is what I say.   And yeah, I know that song.  Its a 4 or 5 year old cover and um...very appropriate 4-5 years ago, to today this 6th of November 2024, just as it was when Simon and Garfunkle first sang it in the mid 1960s.    The internet has made us all phoqued up I think. 

She's an assistant, not their head coach. She is still the first to have that position as a woman, but it's not their head coaching position. Dan Bylsma is their head coach. 

[oldshurst442]

On 11/4/2024 at 6:37 AM, Robert Hall said:

And the Browns, predictably suck as usual.  Off to a 2-7 start.

I like the Browns.

There arent many NFL clubs that I despise.  I like watching NFL football in general no matter who plays.  I mentioned I didnt like the Seahawks. Nothing attracts me to watching them play. Ditto for some other NFL clubs such as maybe the Houston texans or the Carolina Panthers.  Jacksonville Jaguars and the Colts and possible the Titans.  But I dont despise them but if Im not in the mood in watching those teams play, I simply dont watch. Ill watch some other game instead. Its baseball teams baseball clubs that I HATE.    I HATE the Yankees and the Red Sox and the Braves and those shytty phoquing Blue Jays and every single  club that is NOT the Montreal Expos.  I kinda like the Cubs and dont dislike the Cardinals as much as I hate the other baseball clubs.    With that being said, the historical baseball clubs like the Yankees and the Red Sox (Braves) and the White Sox and the Dodgers and Giants when they where in NY, well I respect those team's history.  I love baseball. I respect those teams. I just HATE them. 

[oldshurst442]

6 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

She's an assistant, not their head coach. She is still the first to have that position as a woman, but it's not their head coaching position. Dan Bylsma is their head coach. 

Why did I think she was the head coach???

New club, and they dont not get much exposure or talk up here in Montreal.  The poor bastards (media and fans) here are crying for the season the Habs are having and dont really know how to deal with it.  LOL

 

[trinacriabob]

Join me in wishing @Drew Dowdell a happy birthday.

Have a great day!

[G. David Felt]

For Apple Users, if you have been thinking of a new iPhone, laptop, etc. you might want to consider buying before President 47 takes office. Tim Cook is going to have a headache if the 60% Tariff is put in place on Chinese goods.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/apple-s-tim-cook-is-going-to-have-a-headache-on-his-hands-if-donald-trump-follows-through-on-tariffs-this-time-around/ar-AA1tHffz?ocid=BingHp01&cvid=3b1a78ed0bd4445b8ca292e4aeb8cc1a&ei=53

[oldshurst442]

37 minutes ago, G. David Felt said:

For Apple Users, if you have been thinking of a new iPhone, laptop, etc. you might want to consider buying before President 47 takes office. Tim Cook is going to have a headache if the 60% Tariff is put in place on Chinese goods.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/apple-s-tim-cook-is-going-to-have-a-headache-on-his-hands-if-donald-trump-follows-through-on-tariffs-this-time-around/ar-AA1tHffz?ocid=BingHp01&cvid=3b1a78ed0bd4445b8ca292e4aeb8cc1a&ei=53

Not just iPhones...

He tariffed Canadian wood the first time around as Pres and the prices of wood skyrocketed so American home builders bought American wood which was and is more expensive than Canadian wood.  I guess that is good for American wood producers. But for the fact that house prices also skyrocketed.  And considering that Canada and US have a more or less good trading thing going on...so not that good.  Not for the US and not good for Canada.  But Donald thinks otherwise. And all the folk that voted for him this time around think that the economy will get better?  I hope so for their sake. But Elon and Jeff B's billions rose quite a bit upon the announcement of his re-election.  I wonder if those  people that voted for him, I wonder if their wealth also rose instantly?    You poor bastards... You have no idea what is coming to you... (those that voted for him.  With the excemption of the rich of course)  

 

Donnie Rides Again

Edited November 8 by oldshurst442

[G. David Felt]

@oldshurst442 This pretty much sums up just how bad it is going to get.

Trump's economic plans would worsen inflation, experts say | AP News

[oldshurst442]

2 minutes ago, G. David Felt said:

@oldshurst442 This pretty much sums up just how bad it is going to get.

Trump's economic plans would worsen inflation, experts say | AP News

I say, let it get worse.  The people have spoken and this is what the MAJORITY voted for.  He even got the popular vote.  Therefore the people of America have spoken.   This is what they want.  This is what they feel comfortable with.   But I dont want to hear ANY whining from ANYBODY about what possibly may happen with him Him in power.  Fool me once,  shame on you!  Fool me twice, shame on me?   Technically this is how that saying goes.  But you never know. Maybe it really IS the lefty libtards that are the problem.   Hopefully it IS the lefty libtards that are the problem and the Messiah Trump will BE the solution to ALL of our problems.  

I will be the first one to apologize if He actually does fix America's and Canada's problems.  And unite ALL of the world and the world gets to sing Kumbaya ALL in unison. Hopefully He is the next coming of Christ.   Keeping my fingers crossed but I aint holding my breath if you know what I mean.   

[G. David Felt]

34 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

I say, let it get worse.  The people have spoken and this is what the MAJORITY voted for.  He even got the popular vote.  Therefore the people of America have spoken.   This is what they want.  This is what they feel comfortable with.   But I dont want to hear ANY whining from ANYBODY about what possibly may happen with him Him in power.  Fool me once,  shame on you!  Fool me twice, shame on me?   Technically this is how that saying goes.  But you never know. Maybe it really IS the lefty libtards that are the problem.   Hopefully it IS the lefty libtards that are the problem and the Messiah Trump will BE the solution to ALL of our problems.  

I will be the first one to apologize if He actually does fix America's and Canada's problems.  And unite ALL of the world and the world gets to sing Kumbaya ALL in unison. Hopefully He is the next coming of Christ.   Keeping my fingers crossed but I aint holding my breath if you know what I mean.   

Those that cannot accept a multi-cultural world and immigration deserve to lose everything. I will stay professional, but believe that our North American Economy is about to get far worse over the long term than it is now.

It is amazing how people do not seem to realize that the first two years of a new president is dealing with the ramifications of the last president. The high inflation was due to the failed policies of those before. We now have low unemployment and a strong economy.

Will be interesting to see how it ends.

[Drew Dowdell]

On 11/7/2024 at 3:08 AM, trinacriabob said:

Join me in wishing @Drew Dowdell a happy birthday.

Have a great day!

Thank you very much.   For my birthday last year I got a gift card for a spa day package which I booked for my birthday this year. So I spent the day yesterday getting a facial and a massage and it was fantastic. Little did I know when I booked it how needed it would be.

[G. David Felt]

2 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Thank you very much.   For my birthday last year I got a gift card for a spa day package which I booked for my birthday this year. So I spent the day yesterday getting a facial and a massage and it was fantastic. Little did I know when I booked it how needed it would be.

AWESOME Drew

Congratulations on your Birthday, it is wonderful knowing you and how special you are to us.

This is exciting for Rivian, good information on the R2 too.
2026 Rivian R2 Will Get New LG Cells With 'Six Times' The Capacity

[G. David Felt]

Hyundai Ioniq 5 U.S. made pricing, EPA range and charge times press release.

Hyundai Announces Pricing, EPA-Estimated Ranges and Charge Times for Updated U.S.-Made 2025 IONIQ 5 Lineup - Hyundai Newsroom

[G. David Felt]

Interesting read

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/policymakers-don-t-want-to-tank-the-stock-market/ar-AA1tPLf3?ocid=BingHp01&cvid=a648b7823203456ba5e74851fbd0c8ca&ei=79

[G. David Felt]

Very Enlightening read

'Really jarring moment': Historian lays out 'alarming' parallels to turbulent time period

[oldshurst442]

 

Ive seen these pictures somewhere.    Ive seen it being played out before and I am not talking about his re-election either.   

Something familiar with all of it. 

 

Oh yeah!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So this is how liberty does...with THUNDEROUS applause

 

 

Edited Sunday at 07:59 PM by oldshurst442

[surreal1272]

On 11/7/2024 at 6:35 PM, G. David Felt said:

For Apple Users, if you have been thinking of a new iPhone, laptop, etc. you might want to consider buying before President 47 takes office. Tim Cook is going to have a headache if the 60% Tariff is put in place on Chinese goods.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/apple-s-tim-cook-is-going-to-have-a-headache-on-his-hands-if-donald-trump-follows-through-on-tariffs-this-time-around/ar-AA1tHffz?ocid=BingHp01&cvid=3b1a78ed0bd4445b8ca292e4aeb8cc1a&ei=53

Funny how you point this out like it ONLY affects Apple users. Come on. This affects ALL smartphone users.

[G. David Felt]

10 minutes ago, surreal1272 said:

Funny how you point this out like it ONLY affects Apple users. Come on. This affects ALL smartphone users.

Yes, it does, but we seem to have many Apple users here and they tend to be at the high end of tech prices.

I agree if anyone is thinking of upgrading TV, Computer, Tablet, Cell Phones, etc. It is better now than to be hit with crazy tariffs due to an idiot that does not understand how tariffs work and how it will exasperate inflation.

[Drew Dowdell]

Anyone have a weird longing for a car they sold or traded a while ago? I don't mean something that got wrecked or stolen, that was out of your control.  Just a car that you traded/sold but now regret doing that?

That hit me hard today for my 2004 CTS. 

[oldshurst442]

2 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Anyone have a weird longing for a car they sold or traded a while ago? I don't mean something that got wrecked or stolen, that was out of your control.  Just a car that you traded/sold but now regret doing that?

That hit me hard today for my 2004 CTS. 

 I would have to agree with you on your longing for the CTS.  It was a fantastic sports sedan.  Although I personally didnt like the interior of it, I certainly loved the exterior styling. 

 What triggered your regret?

 

I miss my Alero and I miss my 2005 Impala SS.  But I do not regret replacing them.  I also miss not being in a GM car of some sorts.  But since GM not offering a sedan, I dont regret not owning a GM. Although I do wish Buick had the last generation Regal available because I definitely would have bought that last year instead of the Accord.  Or the Impala for that matter. 

 

[G. David Felt]

4 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Anyone have a weird longing for a car they sold or traded a while ago? I don't mean something that got wrecked or stolen, that was out of your control.  Just a car that you traded/sold but now regret doing that?

That hit me hard today for my 2004 CTS. 

I regreted selling my 1994 GMC Suburban till I bought the EV9 and now have no regrets as the interior space is everything my GMC Suburban had.

[Robert Hall]

I do miss the seats of my old '00 WJ Grand Cherokee. It was more comfortable on long trips than my '14 WK2 Grand Cherokee that replaced it.  The newer GC is larger outside, but feels smaller in the front cabin than the old one (smaller windows definitely are part of that).  The seats seem to not be as well padded as the old one.   

[Drew Dowdell]

9 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

I would have to agree with you on your longing for the CTS.  It was a fantastic sports sedan.  Although I personally didnt like the interior of it, I certainly loved the exterior styling. 

 What triggered your regret?

The Costco parking lot. 

I like the 300C and I like the Avalanche, but sometimes navigating them around in traffic and parking lots is a bear.  The 300C isn't even drastically larger than the CTS, but the CTS was much more nimble and had a very tight turning radius. It was also ~3,400 lbs, 200 lbs lighter than a base 2025 3-series.  It was just light and nimble, but every bit as comfortable on the highway as the 300C is. 

It's a shame that most of that generation have been trashed.  Put a nice CarPlay unit in one and I'd be happy. 

[Drew Dowdell]

Of course there's this CTS 3.6 with a manual and low milage on Auto Trader right now..... taunting me. 

[Drew Dowdell]

On 11/6/2024 at 3:55 PM, trinacriabob said:

At any rate, I'm glad we're back up and trust that some redundancy is there or will be bolstered to shore things up.

 

On 11/6/2024 at 4:25 PM, Drew Dowdell said:

The redundancy isn't there yet. I have a bunch of other websites to restore. But it will be the first thing done when I'm done with those.

We now have working backups again, and they run daily, and are transferred to Wasabi off-site storage automatigically

[oldshurst442]

3 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

The Costco parking lot. 

I like the 300C and I like the Avalanche, but sometimes navigating them around in traffic and parking lots is a bear.  The 300C isn't even drastically larger than the CTS, but the CTS was much more nimble and had a very tight turning radius. It was also ~3,400 lbs, 200 lbs lighter than a base 2025 3-series.  It was just light and nimble, but every bit as comfortable on the highway as the 300C is. 

It's a shame that most of that generation have been trashed.  Put a nice CarPlay unit in one and I'd be happy. 

Yeah...  The Costco parking lot of all places!!!  LOL

The 300C is/was  more luxury oriented rather than sports sedan-ny not only in general but especially compared to the CTS.  I get your feelings.  I feels you.  In hindsight, it was THE perfect size and especially when one sees what BMW has done to their 3 Series.  It has been enlargened to the original CTS' dimension 10 years ago.  Cadillac got it right with the 1st and 2nd gen CTS and Cadillac didnt even realize it. They beat BMW at their own game and made BMW copy THEM and not many realize that fact either.  To this day, Whether it be car guys and gals or even the automotive journalists, we are ignorant of the fact that BMW 3 Series grew in size and dimensions to BE a 1st and 2nd gen CTS competitor.  But Cadillac abandoned that trajectory thinking they lost the battle but indeed, they actually won the war. 

 

 

 

[oldshurst442]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

 

We now have working backups again, and they run daily, and are transferred to Wasabi off-site storage automatigically

 

If I was on wasabi, and I like spicy foods, I dont think Id be able to handle any back-up work.  Id be running AWAY daily from wasabi I think.

 

I guess software programming happens automatically with a touch of wizbang sorcery magic to make those thing happen at all hence the new word of the day: automatigically...for software programmers all OVER the world.  👍 Thumbs up to all of you for keeping our world functionning. 

 

Edited 18 hours ago by oldshurst442