Random Thoughts Thread

[G. David Felt]

Interesting read.

https://gmauthority.com/blog/2023/06/heres-how-to-reboot-your-gm-vehicles-infotainment-system/

[G. David Felt]

2 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

Bison is a relevant thing and word these days.  People like to take selfies with them in very close proximity.

I hope they prosecute that You Tuber for her stupidity. She deserves to have to pay big time for that stunt.

[G. David Felt]

Very cool to see the Bolt/Bolt EUV doing so well.

Chevy Bolt Family Gains Massive Market Share During Q1 2023 (gmauthority.com) 

Almost 20,000 Bolts sold in the US compared to January-March 2023: Tesla Model Y - 93,294 (up 79%) Tesla Model 3 - 52,885 (up 11%) 

Yes small but growing which is good.

[G. David Felt]

Very cool that GM is still investing in ICE while heavily investing in the future of EVs.

GM Furthers Flint Commitment with $1B+ Manufacturing Investment

Details of today's announcements include:

• Flint Assembly – GM will invest $788 million to prepare the plant to assemble GM’s next-generation ICE HD trucks. Plant updates will include a body shop building expansion, general assembly conveyor expansion, and new tooling and equipment.
• Flint Metal Center – GM will invest $233 million for new stamping dies to support production of GM’s next-generation ICE HD trucks, as well as press refurbishments and new equipment.

 

[G. David Felt]

LOL, I find it funny that the Hemi V8 in the Ram truck makes the same MPG as the all new Turbocharged V6 that Toyota is pushing into all their autos saying it is more efficient. 

https://www.motorbiscuit.com/small-engine-scam-ram-1500s-final-v8-and-tundras-first-turbocharged-v6-get-identical-mpg/

This video I find interesting as it proves that going smaller is not always better.

 

[G. David Felt]

Pretty much since the start of the Pandemic, I have always believed that the Commercial Property market was headed for a major crash with adjustments needed.

In some cases, businesses such as Amazon have realized this and converted their 88 Story HQ building in Seattle to all Apartments keeping their HQ where it is as they reduce commercial property needs due to WFH ability for employees to perform the same as in an Office.

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/06/05/mortage-interest-rates-property-values-00094969

This is a good read as it focuses on the $1.5 Trillion in debt due over the coming 24 months and with commercial property only at 56% occupancy the ability to raise rents and especially for those in REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) to gain consistent income is dropping like a rock.

Time for a mind change for these folks. Real estate will always be a good investment long term but how one uses that property will and always does change.

[ccap41]

3 hours ago, David said:

LOL, I find it funny that the Hemi V8 in the Ram truck makes the same MPG as the all new Turbocharged V6 that Toyota is pushing into all their autos saying it is more efficient. 

https://www.motorbiscuit.com/small-engine-scam-ram-1500s-final-v8-and-tundras-first-turbocharged-v6-get-identical-mpg/

This video I find interesting as it proves that going smaller is not always better.

 

The Tundra is rated slightly higher.

He was comparing the non=hybrid tundra to the hybrid Ram, which the Tundra still edges the Ram by 1mpg highway, both 19mpg combined. 

And their hybrids:

[G. David Felt]

7 hours ago, ccap41 said:

The Tundra is rated slightly higher.

He was comparing the non=hybrid tundra to the hybrid Ram, which the Tundra still edges the Ram by 1mpg highway, both 19mpg combined. 

And their hybrids:

Missed that in my quick look while catching up on work from PTO.

[G. David Felt]

BBQ season has begun!!!

I decided to on Saturday make baby back ribs. I decided I wanted to do two types of ribs, a traditional honey BBQ sauced ribs and one based on a Korean Spicy Pork dish which uses Gochujang which is the base of the sauce. A Gochujang BBQ sauce.

To make sure the ribs were tender and juicy, I had been doing research on Brines.

Wet Brine:

• 6 cups water, divided
• 1 (12 oz) light beer or imperial
• 1 cup apple juice or cider
• 1 cup dark brown sugar (sub light brown sugar if that’s what you have)
• 1/2 cup Kosher salt1 tablespoon granulated garlic1 tablespoon granulated onion
• 1/2 tablespoon Chinese 5 Spice
• 2 cups ice cubes

I bought 10lbs of baby back Prime ribs from business Costco, so I doubled the Brine batch to ensure that they were well covered.

I used two 19oz IPA Indian Pale Ale from DESCHUTES brewery.

I then salt and peppered two racks of ribs and used my pork rub on the other two racks of ribs. I then wrapped them in parchment paper, covered with foil and back into the fridge for another 24hr nap before grilling them slowly.

I have to say they came out very tender, juicy beyond compare, best ribs I have made yet, 250, slow go for almost 4hrs using only the outside two burners on my grill.

The traditional ribs were awesome with a nice sweet sauce. The Gochujang BBQ sauce is a spice lovers dream. Darker than the traditional sauce in the pictures, this sauce was put on the salt n pepper ribs. Rich deep flavor, spicy, tender and the bones were left clean.

For those wanting to try this sauce on their ribs, here is a very similar recipe that my wife has made as everything is in her head.

https://www.koreanbapsang.com/dweji-bulgogi-korean-spicy-pork-bbq/

We add red pepper flakes to kick up the heat, make it as thin or thick as you like, adjust to personal taste.

 

[G. David Felt]

Very Cool to see that the Equinox EV has gone into production test runs.

GM Started Building 2024 Chevy Equinox EV Units (gmauthority.com)

[G. David Felt]

Such a dick move by supercar owners blocking ev chargers.

https://www.carscoops.com/2023/06/lamborghini-and-mclaren-snapped-ice-ing-tesla-supercharger-in-australia/

[ccap41]

27 minutes ago, David said:

Such a dick move by supercar owners blocking ev chargers.

https://www.carscoops.com/2023/06/lamborghini-and-mclaren-snapped-ice-ing-tesla-supercharger-in-australia/

It's annoying and a dick move but at least there were still empty chargers available. 

[Drew Dowdell]

On 6/5/2023 at 5:07 PM, ccap41 said:

The Tundra is rated slightly higher.

He was comparing the non=hybrid tundra to the hybrid Ram, which the Tundra still edges the Ram by 1mpg highway, both 19mpg combined. 

And their hybrids:

Unless I've missed a press release, there is no true hybrid ram. The hemi eTorque is the mildest of mild hybrids.  It can add 140 lb.ft of torque measured at the crank, but engine management is tuned in such a way that total output is the same regardless if you have eTorque on your hemi or not.  What eTorque mostly does is take those micro changes in throttle that you make during a highway cruise and deliver the power via electric rather than gas.  This means the Hemi can stay in 4-cylinder mode much longer and much more often.  They've also used it to do some magic with the transmission to make shifting butter smooth.  It's CVT smooth aside from seeing the tach needle swing.

I had a Wagoneer rental with the 6.4 eTorque for a trip to Florida two Decembers ago. Even with the motorcycle on the back, it managed 20 mpg in "enthusiastic" highway driving.

The regular turbo-v6 from Toyota suffers the same issue that the Ford Ecoboost does.  You can have Eco or you can have Boost... but not both at the same time.  That said, the Toyota iForce-Max massively outpowers the Ram 5.7 so much that it isn't even close to a fair fight. It has 437 horsepower and 583 lb-ft of torque verse 395 horsepower and 410 lb-ft of torque for the eTorque Hemi and still gets 2-mpg better.  The Tundra has an entire Camry 4-cylinder of extra torque under the hood compared to the Ram.

[G. David Felt]

This makes me not want to own Ford or Lincoln products as the recalls stack up over the last 5 years.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/recalls/2023/06/06/ford-recall-escape-maverick-corsair-fire-risk/70293951007/

Ford needs to get their quality act together. 

This is Not Quality Job 1 as they market.

Having to park your auto and not use it till a fix is developed is not a proper response. Will Ford pay for auto rentals for these folks?

[ccap41]

5 minutes ago, David said:

Having to park your auto and not use it till a fix is developed is not a proper response. Will Ford pay for auto rentals for these folks?

Probably the same thing GM is doing with the Hummer EV, they give rentals for those? 

[G. David Felt]

This is cool, something to compete with the Chevrolet Equinox EV.

https://insideevs.com/news/670927/2024-volvo-ex30-small-suv-debuts-brand-cheapest-ev-34950-usd/

Ouch, this is not good for Ford.

https://thedriven.io/2023/06/05/electric-ford-mustangs-have-a-demand-problem-as-mach-e-sales-slump-44-pct/

[ccap41]

23 minutes ago, David said:

This is cool, something to compete with the Chevrolet Equinox EV.

https://insideevs.com/news/670927/2024-volvo-ex30-small-suv-debuts-brand-cheapest-ev-34950-usd/

I don't think that Renegade-sized EV for 36k will compete with the Equinox EV...like at all. 

The Equinox will wipe the floor with the EX30. 

[G. David Felt]

8 hours ago, ccap41 said:

I don't think that Renegade-sized EV for 36k will compete with the Equinox EV...like at all. 

The Equinox will wipe the floor with the EX30. 

I realize many will see Luxury Volvo versus average Chevrolet, but I was thinking price wise, more options that are not $70K plus like some complain about.

[G. David Felt]

Chevrolet Commemorates Panther Code Name with Sixth-Generation Camaro Final Collector’s Edition

The 650 horsepower LT4-powered ZL1 Collector’s Edition, limited to 350 units, will feature a Panther Black Matte exterior color – the first matte paint offered on Camaro from the factory. The ZL1 will also feature the front splitter from the ZL1 1LE, and the rear wing from ZL1 1LE on coupes. The Black Metallic ZL1 stripe, red brake calipers and black lug nuts complete the exterior look. On the inside, all 350 Collector’s Edition ZL1 vehicles receive a serialized steering wheel badge representing where that vehicle was built in sequence.

[ccap41]

10 hours ago, David said:

I realize many will see Luxury Volvo versus average Chevrolet, but I was thinking price wise, more options that are not $70K plus like some complain about.

Yeah, that's nice and all but it's still just so damn small. 

My brain still just cannot comprehend the entire market prices as a whole the last few years. I mean the average transaction price is up to 48k?!? I can't afford a 50k vehicle and my wife and I aren't poor. I just need to make more money like most people must be doing these days. 

[ccap41]

10 hours ago, David said:

Chevrolet Commemorates Panther Code Name with Sixth-Generation Camaro Final Collector’s Edition

The 650 horsepower LT4-powered ZL1 Collector’s Edition, limited to 350 units, will feature a Panther Black Matte exterior color – the first matte paint offered on Camaro from the factory. The ZL1 will also feature the front splitter from the ZL1 1LE, and the rear wing from ZL1 1LE on coupes. The Black Metallic ZL1 stripe, red brake calipers and black lug nuts complete the exterior look. On the inside, all 350 Collector’s Edition ZL1 vehicles receive a serialized steering wheel badge representing where that vehicle was built in sequence.

GM went very Dodge with a package of almost nothing but slightly different looks.

It's a good looking car but doesn't seem worthy of its own package or whatnot. It's also available on every trim. You can get a Panther 2.0T and 3.6...just seems to make it less special. 

[G. David Felt]

13 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

GM went very Dodge with a package of almost nothing but slightly different looks.

It's a good looking car but doesn't seem worthy of its own package or whatnot. It's also available on every trim. You can get a Panther 2.0T and 3.6...just seems to make it less special. 

Rereading it, I think they are just stating that there is other models available, it does not seem to imply that you can get that package on anything other than the special V8. They also just released this today and it also will use the same special V8 motor.

Camaro Motorsports Heritage Grows with ZL1 Garage 56 Edition (chevrolet.com)

[ccap41]

13 minutes ago, David said:

Rereading it, I think they are just stating that there is other models available, it does not seem to imply that you can get that package on anything other than the special V8. They also just released this today and it also will use the same special V8 motor.

Camaro Motorsports Heritage Grows with ZL1 Garage 56 Edition (chevrolet.com)

Your first link specifically said it can be had in any trim. 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, ccap41 said:

Your first link specifically said it can be had in any trim. 

Yes, they get the Tintcoat paint on all the lower level trims below the ZL1 and SS, the top level has a Panther Black Matte paint, the first ever offered on a Camaro and only on the ZL1 trim plus other options. The SS gets a Panther Black Metallic paint which I do wonder how much different is it from the Black Metallic Tintcoat paint. 

At least the ZL1 edition will truly have a few things to make it stand out from the others.

[G. David Felt]

China EV market is heating up and the latest home bred company to compete against Tesla has started to take pre-orders for their Tesla Y killer EV. They expect to sell 6 to 8 thousand a month.

XPeng to start pre-sales of G6 SUV on Jun 9 - CnEVPost

[ccap41]

16 minutes ago, David said:

China EV market is heating up and the latest home bred company to compete against Tesla has started to take pre-orders for their Tesla Y killer EV. They expect to sell 6 to 8 thousand a month.

XPeng to start pre-sales of G6 SUV on Jun 9 - CnEVPost

Classic Chinese vehicle. It's almost identical to a Model Y. Look at the dimension comparison in the article. 

[G. David Felt]

57 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

Classic Chinese vehicle. It's almost identical to a Model Y. Look at the dimension comparison in the article. 

Cheap labor, will copy what Tesla built and sell it cheaper, no original idea here. They will probably sell a bunch at first then have sales fall off if the quality suffers worse than Tesla.

No big surprise here into the troubles Tesla has had in building the Cyber truck.

Leaked Tesla documents shed new light on why the Cybertruck is taking so long - The Verge

[ccap41]

6 minutes ago, David said:

No big surprise here into the troubles Tesla has had in building the Cyber truck.

Leaked Tesla documents shed new light on why the Cybertruck is taking so long - The Verge

I do hope the Cybertruck utterly flops. It isn't because I don't like Tesla, I have no issues with them. I just hate what this "truck" is. 

[G. David Felt]

2 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

I do hope the Cybertruck utterly flops. It isn't because I don't like Tesla, I have no issues with them. I just hate what this "truck" is. 

Tesla is trying to get an exception to allow sales of the truck in Europe and yet Europe due to the pedestrian crash safety standards has the Cybertruck fail so is illegal to buy and drive in Europe. I expect Musk to loose this battle.

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, David said:

Tesla is trying to get an exception to allow sales of the truck in Europe and yet Europe due to the pedestrian crash safety standards has the Cybertruck fail so is illegal to buy and drive in Europe. I expect Musk to loose this battle.

Yeah, I just hope the truck fails. It already seems like it's on its way to fail. 

[Drew Dowdell]

Musk just thinks he can do whatever he wants regardless of the regulations.

[NINETY EIGHT REGENCY]

 

[G. David Felt]

GM is investing in the next generation of Full Size Truck/SUV ICE while they work through the transition to EVs.

GM Investing $632 Million in Fort Wayne Assembly for Future Truck Production

GM Investing $500M+ in Arlington Assembly for Future SUVs

[riviera74]

4 hours ago, David said:

GM is investing in the next generation of Full Size Truck/SUV ICE while they work through the transition to EVs.

GM Investing $632 Million in Fort Wayne Assembly for Future Truck Production

GM Investing $500M+ in Arlington Assembly for Future SUVs

Gotta make that cash while investing in EVs.  Or it is a really good fallback position if the EVs do not pan out before 2030.

[G. David Felt]

15 hours ago, riviera74 said:

Gotta make that cash while investing in EVs.  Or it is a really good fallback position if the EVs do not pan out before 2030.

All over the news, but the investments as I posted here by GM will keep making them profits as they transition to pure EV by 2035.

Analysis: GM could reap billions by building combustion trucks and SUVs through 2035 | Reuters

On the positive side, GM and Smasung SDI have moved forward with a new $3 Billion dollar battery plant to be built in New Carlisle, Indiana. 

GM, SDI will build $3 billion battery manufacturing plant in Indiana | Reuters

This will be a 30 GWh battery plant building high-nickel prismatic and cylindrical battery cells for future EV products from GM with room for expansion.

Just in the U.S., GM has under construction more battery capacity than Tesla. It will be interesting to see how the market is for EVs in 2025 as GM could replace Tesla as the leading EV builder and seller.

[G. David Felt]

2024 Buick Envision press release.

2024 Buick Envision First Look: Super Cruise Hands-Free Assistance Coming to Buick

Nothing else really new for 2024 model year other than the Super Cruise feature.

[G. David Felt]

Have to totally agree that many CEOs that are demanding workers back to the Office are out of touch with reality of productivity and it would seem many have a huge vested interest in Commercial properties. With a 47.6% occupancy rate across the U.S. due to the Pandemic, there is much empty office space.

Time to repurpose it into apartments and other uses beside office space.

Elon Musk told workers to get off their ‘moral high horse’ — and get back to the office. Others say he’s sorely misguided. (msn.com)

[NINETY EIGHT REGENCY]

GM Set to Keep Making Gas-Powered Trucks and SUVs to Help Fund its Shift to EV

https://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2023/06/gm-set-to-keep-making-gas-powered-trucks-and-suvs-to-help-fund-its-shift-to-evs/

 

 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, NINETY EIGHT REGENCY said:

GM Set to Keep Making Gas-Powered Trucks and SUVs to Help Fund its Shift to EV

https://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2023/06/gm-set-to-keep-making-gas-powered-trucks-and-suvs-to-help-fund-its-shift-to-evs/

 

 

Thank you for posting this, Toyota had a full release of technology you can read about it all here:

 

[G. David Felt]

I am sadly not surprised by the amount of misinformation in regard to the cost of EV ownership.

Cost misconceptions may be behind waning EV interest (greencarreports.com)

Clearly more needs to be done by the auto companies that are selling EVs to debunk this FUD.

[G. David Felt]

Some very cool news, those wanting a long life, deep cycle, high cranking amps 12V battery now have a rare earth element free Lithium battery solution.

Liacon Unveils “Game Changing” 12V LFP Battery with Superior Performance - Liacon

For project as well as new EV applications, an awesome lite weight EV motor solution is now available.

EQUIPMAKE SHOWCASES HIGH-POWER-DENSE E-AXLE FOR MAKERS OF PERFORMANCE EVS AT BATTERY SHOW EUROPE - Equipmake

You can do single or dual motor per axel applications.

Each motor is 220 kW of power or 440 kW or power in a dual motor configuration per axel. That is equal to 295 HP / 590 HP per axel. This would be 1,180 HP in AWD configuration for a 4 motor configuration.

[ccap41]

38 minutes ago, David said:

I am sadly not surprised by the amount of misinformation in regard to the cost of EV ownership.

Cost misconceptions may be behind waning EV interest (greencarreports.com)

Clearly more needs to be done by the auto companies that are selling EVs to debunk this FUD.

almost the entire top 12 or so items all make sense, to me. It's no different than any new form of engine that scare people. They just don't know yet and frankly, EV's are incredibly expensive and saving on oil and brakes will not overcome the 10-20k price increase over a similarly prices ICE. 

Just because they're a concern, doesn't mean they will never learn and/or adopt. 

[G. David Felt]

53 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

almost the entire top 12 or so items all make sense, to me. It's no different than any new form of engine that scare people. They just don't know yet and frankly, EV's are incredibly expensive and saving on oil and brakes will not overcome the 10-20k price increase over a similarly prices ICE. 

Just because they're a concern, doesn't mean they will never learn and/or adopt. 

True and many people are Lease now rather than Buy, so that increase in price makes it hard to justify in the short term unlike myself that buys and holds onto an auto for much longer.

• 2008 Trailblazer SS is now 16 years old
• 2006 Escalade ESV is now 18 years old
• 1994 GMC Suburban SLE is now 30 years old

Keep in mind these autos all came out the year before their model year.

[G. David Felt]

I see Brightdrop just started deliveries in Canada.
BrightDrop Expands Deliveries Outside U.S. with FedEx Express Canada (gm.com)

FedEx Express Canada welcomed its first 50 BrightDrop Zevo 600 electric delivery vehicles at an event in Toronto.

[trinacriabob]

I was just wondering if there's a 2023 rendition of "Happy Birthday Mr President" and if someone has been serenaded with it ... or maybe they got their gift yesterday.

[G. David Felt]

13 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

I was just wondering if there's a 2023 rendition of "Happy Birthday Mr President" and if someone has been serenaded with it ... or maybe they got their gift yesterday.

Who's birthday was it?

I am not one that stays on top of stuff like this, including my own birthday. lol

[G. David Felt]

JD Powers shows more people considering EVs.

2023 U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration (EVC) Study | J.D. Power (jdpower.com)

[G. David Felt]

Cool EV conversion project. Using 2 Tesla power units for a 900hp Ford Escape.

 

 

[trinacriabob]

21 hours ago, David said:

Who's birthday was it?

I am not one that stays on top of stuff like this, including my own birthday. lol

June 14, when I posted, is Flag Day.  Ironically, it is also Trump's birthday. That's what the serenade comment referred to.

I tend to remember a lot of useless information, especially if numerical. I don't try. It just sticks.  It made getting educated easier, but may be seen as weird!  Such is life.  It ran on my mom's side, and most of her siblings also remembered dates, addresses, etc. without trying.

[G. David Felt]

4 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

June 14, when I posted, is Flag Day.  Ironically, it is also Trump's birthday. That's what the serenade comment referred to.

I tend to remember a lot of useless information, especially if numerical. I don't try. It just sticks.  It made getting educated easier, but may be seen as weird!  Such is life.  It ran on my mom's side, and most of her siblings also remembered dates, addresses, etc. without trying.

Too funny considering it was one day after he received another indictment again.