Random Thoughts Thread

[trinacriabob]

I see quite a few Teslas around these parts.  I am not at all taken by them.  The more I see ostentatious and expensive cars (yesterday, I saw an enormous new Lincoln SUV monstrosity - their biggest, very squarish), the more I yearn for cars like my old 1984 Cutlass Supreme Brougham with its 3.8 liter V6 with a 2 barrel carburetor!  While I don't miss the carburetor set up, that was the most comfortable car I have EVER owned, by a long shot.

Incidentally, when I was recently out of town, I was talking to a salesman who was not pushing me in the least and looking at the new Regal sportback sedan, where I got to sit in it and the sample the visibility.  Not.  At any rate, he sort of mumbled that the new LaCrosse isn't moving as was sort of expected because the price point can get real high and, at that point, buyers will cross over to Cadillac, also sold by that dealership.  Sure, there are LaCrosses that sticker at 37K, but there are also many that sticker at around 47K.  I like the third and current gen much more than then chunky second gen, save the high console, but I wouldn't buy one ... even if I had the coin and was in the market.

Edited May 4, 2018 by trinacriabob

[balthazar]

'70 Continental Mark III 4-dr sedan, 1 of 2 built ~
 

[ocnblu]

WAIT A SEC, IS THAT A PONTIAC?

[balthazar]

^ Pontiac built 68 '62 GP 'street' 421 V8 cars (and 16 race 421SDs). Reputedly, a Daytona Pontiac dealer built about 30 'Fireball Roberts Special Edition' cars, but IDK if they were all 421s OR if the number of them is that high. The gold grille, body insert, 8-lugs, etc were part of that package. This car is the only one I can recall ever seeing pics of with this paint scheme, which is why I doubt "30".

[Robert Hall]

2 hours ago, ocnblu said:

WAIT A SEC, IS THAT A PONTIAC?

Hmm...I saw the Lincoln, didn't see the Pontiac in the background at first.  Googling turned up this pic, neat never heard of that variation of the '62. 

[balthazar]

[balthazar]

Picked up a new (to me) drill press. Made between 1904 & 1907, Champion Blower & Forge Co out of ocnblu's backyard- Lancaster.

Probably not obvious by the pic, but it's 4.5 feet tall & weighs 180 lbs.

Edited May 6, 2018 by balthazar

[ocnblu]

Is change for the sake of change progress?  If it works, and this clearly does...

[balthazar]

[trinacriabob]

If you Google Cheers and Gears, the site and the forum may not be the first thing that comes up.

In the past, I've gotten this!

Cheers and Gears restaurant and bar!

Looks very "klassy" and the reviews don't bust past the 4 star mark.

[Robert Hall]

That place is about 10 miles from me, it got some 5 star reviews and some 1 star reviews on Yelp.  Supposedly they have good wings.  Though for wings, I usually go to Quaker Steak & Lube which about 10 min from my house.

[ocnblu]

Looks like the '19 Colorado is going to a more upright front end, with CHEVROLET spelled out in the grille.  This could be wicked.

[ccap41]

12 hours ago, ocnblu said:

Looks like the '19 Colorado is going to a more upright front end, with CHEVROLET spelled out in the grille.  This could be wicked.

That's intriguing. That's the only thing I'm not a fan of on that truck. The Colorado looks too soft for me while the Canyon looks great with its more squared off front end.

Where'd you read this at? 

[G. David Felt]

1973 Ann Arbor Michigan, EPA Exhibit of future EV Auto's. "Sundancer"

Louisville Ohio 1972 before the EPA Clean Air Act, Smog so thick you can cut it with a knife and the EPA is rolling back these beneficial programs all for the sake of money.

[Robert Hall]

4 hours ago, dfelt said:

 

Louisville Ohio 1972 before the EPA Clean Air Act, Smog so thick you can cut it with a knife and the EPA is rolling back these beneficial programs all for the sake of money.

That is Louisville (Luh-a-vul), KY, and the Ohio River.  (have lots of relatives there).   Louisville (Lewis-ville) Oh is a small town in NE Ohio... 

Edited May 8, 2018 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[G. David Felt]

4 hours ago, Cubical-aka-Moltar said:

That looks like Louisville (Luh-a-vul), KY, and the Ohio River.  (have lots of relatives there).   Louisville (Lewis-ville) Oh is a small town in NE Ohio... 

Thanks, it could be, it was on an old photo web site about the differences of the 70's and now and I thought it was very interesting.

[Robert Hall]

Just now, dfelt said:

Thanks, it could be, it was on an old photo web site about the differences of the 70's and now and I thought it was very interesting.

Yeah, largish city vs small town..I recognize those bridges over the Ohio River..driven over them before...

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, Cubical-aka-Moltar said:

Yeah, largish city vs small town..I recognize those bridges over the Ohio River..driven over them before...

The smog back then from Leaded gas auto's just amazes me that we did not kill ourselves off sooner. Crazy! ?

[Robert Hall]

I vaguely remember as a kid in the 70s seeing the smog and pollution along the northern Ohio River---back when the coal plants and steel industry were busy from Pittsburgh to Steubenville, Oh to Wheeling, WV and further south...

Edited May 8, 2018 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[Robert Hall]

On 5/7/2018 at 1:02 AM, balthazar said:

At a quick glance I thought this was a pic of WWI soldiers in a trench or something until I looked closer...

[ocnblu]

9 hours ago, ccap41 said:

That's intriguing. That's the only thing I'm not a fan of on that truck. The Colorado looks too soft for me while the Canyon looks great with its more squared off front end.

Where'd you read this at? 

It can be discerned by the spy photos of the Bison over onto another automotive website thingy.  If you look through the bra covering it, you can see the grille bar showing and it appears vertical.  Same for the lights.  Also, in the profile shots, you can see from the angle of the bra.

Edited May 8, 2018 by ocnblu

[Robert Hall]

Like these pics...something going on w/ the front clip, front does look pretty vertical. I did see another pic of a Colorado ZR2 AEV concept that had the lettering on the grille bar...

 

Edited May 8, 2018 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[ocnblu]

Yup, those        

[G. David Felt]

Like this story this morning: 

BEST and MOST Scenic Summer Road Trips for 2018

Trip #9 covers the Pacific Northwest!  

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/best-and-most-scenic-summer-road-trips-for-2018/ss-AAwie7o?li=BBnb7Kz#image=3

Cannot go wrong when you start a story with a picture like this!  

[G. David Felt]

Sad Day for Chocolate!

 

[G. David Felt]

Read a review on the Honda Clarity and when I saw this side profile:

It made me think of the 1990 Total Recall chase auto on earth.

Just a modern day take on the auto. LOL

[G. David Felt]

@balthazar Yoda of all things old, I thought of you and felt you would enjoy this story:

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1116596_1912-electric-truck-take-that-tesla-semi

Gotta love that 1912 Curtis Publishing was using their electric truck fleet till 1962 and now #4 and restored #8 are up for sale.

Cool EV facts on these trucks, the batteries were rebuildable every 10 years. Some very cool other facts on these work horse trucks in the story.

Enjoy

EV Trucks  Shows how good Americans can build trucks!

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, dfelt said:

Read a review on the Honda Clarity and when I saw this side profile:

Not a pretty car but it seems to do its intended job quite well. 

[balthazar]

I posted a link/pics of that Curtis I think late last year. Even back at the dawn, trucks were generally far more robustly engineered than cars, it seems.

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, balthazar said:

I posted a link/pics of that Curtis I think late last year. Even back at the dawn, trucks were generally far more robustly engineered than cars, it seems.

Yes you did post that pic, that is why I posted the story as because you posted the pic I related to what the story was about. I agree, trucks truly have been far more robustly built than cars.

You Rock!  

[Robert Hall]

1 hour ago, balthazar said:

 Even back at the dawn, trucks were generally far more robustly engineered than cars, it seems.

It would stand to reason given their purpose...hauling much heavier loads than cars, longer use cycles, and also roads were much more primitive 100 years ago than today.  (though the old brick streets in old neighborhoods around here seem to have held up better than potholed modern streets). 

Edited May 10, 2018 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[daves87rs]

On 5/7/2018 at 8:41 PM, ocnblu said:

Looks like the '19 Colorado is going to a more upright front end, with CHEVROLET spelled out in the grille.  This could be wicked.

Now that would be cool...

[balthazar]

[G. David Felt]

OUCH have to say this is one of the ugliest Buicks yet I have seen. Good thing it is in China only.

http://www.thedrive.com/news/20740/2018-buick-excelle-sedan-unveiled-for-china

[G. David Felt]

Interesting battle Brewing at Energy companies ask Perry to Ignore First Energy's Request to use a 1950 wartime law to force keeping coal and nuclear plants online, open and running as a National Security issue.

Course gas companies and renewable energy companies say that Perry and the DOE does not have the authority to use the war time act to keep companies open.

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/perry-doe-looking-very-closely-at-defense-production-act-to-save-coal-n/523187/

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/gas-and-renewables-groups-urge-perry-to-reject-firstenergy-emergency-reques/523145/

[balthazar]

Worked on sanding/  re-polyurethaning this house's double front door today, plus did some mortar repointing.

Sprucing up for the market : $2.5M, about 8000 SF.  

[daves87rs]

15 hours ago, dfelt said:

OUCH have to say this is one of the ugliest Buicks yet I have seen. Good thing it is in China only.

http://www.thedrive.com/news/20740/2018-buick-excelle-sedan-unveiled-for-china

Look! The Cruze got a nose job!

[ocnblu]

3 hours ago, daves87rs said:

Look! The Cruze got a nose job!

Is that a Suzuki?

[G. David Felt]

4 hours ago, ocnblu said:

Is that a Suzuki?

That is a very good question as you could almost see it as one. But I think a Cruze with a nose job is right.

[Robert Hall]

It's a sedan version of the current Astra. 

[G. David Felt]

19 minutes ago, Cubical-aka-Moltar said:

It's a sedan version of the current Astra. 

So probably the last use of an Opel product then. Still ugly and not a mid level luxury version of what I would expect for Buick. Sad

[Drew Dowdell]

Tiny little wheels. 

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Tiny little wheels. 

That's actually the only thing that looks wrong about it, to me. I think the rest looks satisfactory for a smaller car. 

For better or worse, it puts off a little CLA vibe in its overall shape. 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, ccap41 said:

That's actually the only thing that looks wrong about it, to me. I think the rest looks satisfactory for a smaller car. 

For better or worse, it puts off a little CLA vibe in its overall shape. 

Your right, I was wondering what is just so off about this and it does have the same to me ugly look as the CLA. Just not a fan of this body style of auto. Does make one wonder if Buick would put on a performance body package, wheels and exhaust.  Call it the Excelle GS?

[ccap41]

2 minutes ago, dfelt said:

Your right, I was wondering what is just so off about this and it does have the same to me ugly look as the CLA. Just not a fan of this body style of auto. Does make one wonder if Buick would put on a performance body package, wheels and exhaust.  Call it the Excelle GS?

Yeah the whole coupe style sedan that's also FWD gives off some odd proportions and angles. 

Sadly, I don't think they have the balls to make a performance variant. I think almost every enthusiast with GM would have put out a Cruze SS YEARS AGO. They've had fantastic 2.0T's for a decade+ just hanging around waiting for it. 

[G. David Felt]

Interesting story in the news today, Top 20 States that Consume the Most Alcohol in America. Binge Drinking seems to be a big past time at these states.

#20 - New Hampshire 17.8% Binge Drink, 49.8% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#19 - South Dakota 17.9% Binge Drink, 47% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#18 - Louisiana 18% Binge Drink, 58.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#17 - Colorado 18.1% Binge Drink, 48.6% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#16 - Connecticut 18.3% Binge Drink, 55.2% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#15 - Pennsylvania 18.5% Binge Drink, 48.9% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#14 - Massachusetts 18.7% Binge Drink, 52.7% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#13 - Vermont 19% Binge Drink, 55.2% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#12 - Ohio 19.5% Binge Drink, 51.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#11 - Michigan 19.8% Binge Drink, 60.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#10 - Hawaii 19.8% Binge Drink, 65.1% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#9 - Alaska 20% Binge Drink, 56.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#8 - Maine 20.2% Binge Drink, 57.5% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#7 - Nebraska 20.4% Binge Drink, 50.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#6 - Minnesota 20.5% Binge Drink, 47.8% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#5 - Illinois 20.8% Binge Drink, 50.6% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#4 - Iowa 21.3% Binge Drink, 55.1% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#3 - Montana 21.3% Binge Drink, 55.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#2 - Wisconsin (Tied with D.C.) 24.4% Binge Drink, 51.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#1 - North Dakota 24.9% Binge Drink, 50.5% of them Binge Drink Frequently

LifeStyle Story

[G. David Felt]

Very cool story on a man who owns 400 auto's his collection is amazing and the pictures are worth the time to check it out.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/the-man-who-owns-400-cars/ss-AAx4RyG?li=BBnb7Kz#image=1 

Some auto's I have never seen are in the pics at the link above and good story to read about it all. They do have an actual web site you can visit.

http://www.studio434.co.uk/

[daves87rs]

9 hours ago, ocnblu said:

Is that a Suzuki?

Maybe Daewoo??

[ccap41]

3 hours ago, dfelt said:

Interesting story in the news today, Top 20 States that Consume the Most Alcohol in America. Binge Drinking seems to be a big past time at these states.

#20 - New Hampshire 17.8% Binge Drink, 49.8% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#19 - South Dakota 17.9% Binge Drink, 47% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#18 - Louisiana 18% Binge Drink, 58.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#17 - Colorado 18.1% Binge Drink, 48.6% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#16 - Connecticut 18.3% Binge Drink, 55.2% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#15 - Pennsylvania 18.5% Binge Drink, 48.9% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#14 - Massachusetts 18.7% Binge Drink, 52.7% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#13 - Vermont 19% Binge Drink, 55.2% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#12 - Ohio 19.5% Binge Drink, 51.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#11 - Michigan 19.8% Binge Drink, 60.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#10 - Hawaii 19.8% Binge Drink, 65.1% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#9 - Alaska 20% Binge Drink, 56.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#8 - Maine 20.2% Binge Drink, 57.5% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#7 - Nebraska 20.4% Binge Drink, 50.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#6 - Minnesota 20.5% Binge Drink, 47.8% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#5 - Illinois 20.8% Binge Drink, 50.6% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#4 - Iowa 21.3% Binge Drink, 55.1% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#3 - Montana 21.3% Binge Drink, 55.4% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#2 - Wisconsin (Tied with D.C.) 24.4% Binge Drink, 51.3% of them Binge Drink Frequently

#1 - North Dakota 24.9% Binge Drink, 50.5% of them Binge Drink Frequently

LifeStyle Story

Woot Woot, ILLINOIS! 

We know how to drink. 

[Robert Hall]

Harsh winters and lack of interesting winter activities are no doubt part of the rationale..like what is there to do in N. Dakota any time of year?  

Likewise, there are portions of Canada that are probably high or higher in numbers of binge drinkers...a buddy of mine from Regina, SK once said 'in winter we have hockey, drinking, and fighting'.    Even in their late 30s, I was amazed by the alcohol consumption capacity of software engineers from Saskatchewan...you would think they were from Ireland or Scotland.