RBB

-RBB

Take a box fan and swing it through the air. Now, cover the face up with cardboard and do the same thing. I don't see how a solid surface pushing through the air (such as a bumper) would be more aerodynamic than one that allows air to pass through it. Admittedly, I'm no expert. It could be the turbulence caused by the fan would disrupt airflow enough to more than compensate for the little bit longer a vehicle would run on (or be assisted by) the electric engine. That's why I'm throwing this out there. Thanks for the input - appreciate it. -RBB

I'd say you're decidedly in the minority, then. They're not helping, I admit. But there were plenty of idiots on the road before these things, too. And I'd rather not have them trying to read a map while driving. And what if you don't have a plan on where you're going before you leave? Or what if you're out and you get a call asking you to go someplace unfamiliar? That's absolutely your right. Thats why most of the time these items are 'options'. But there is a segment of the buying public that wants these things, and when you're a company that's trying to attract customers that in the recent past wouldn't consider a domestic product if you gave it to them, alienating a section of that group that wants Navigation because you don't want to pay for it is a poor business decision. -RBB

Note to Mods: Not sure if this is the appropriate forum, since this isn't news of any sort. If you deem it necessary, please feel free to move it to a more appropriate location. Wind is the enemy of vehicle propulsion. Vehicle manufacturers have spent millions, if not billions of dollars trying to minimize the coefficient of drag in their automobiles. It is said that as much as 60% of the power required to cruise at highway speeds is simply to overcome wind resistance. An automobile's coefficient of drag drastically affects fuel economy. One way auto manufacturers have used to reduce the amount of fuel required to overcome wind resistance is assistance from one or more electric motors powered by batteries. But batteries have to get their power from somewhere, too. Usually the gasoline engine itself provides some charge to a hybrid vehicle's batteries. Regenerative batteries can also use the energy expended to slow a vehicles to increase battery charge. Plug-in hybrids connect to the power grid to recharge the vehicles batteries. In the non-automotive energy generation realm, however, air is an asset. Using Wind Turbines, or windmills to generate energy from wind is seen as a clean way to extract electricity literally out of thin air. And since air is not consumed in the process, the energy is theoretically limitless. The problem with wind energy is that windmills are only useful as a consistent source of energy in areas where there is a constant wind. So, what I posit is this: Use miniaturized wind turbines placed strategically on hybrid vehicles to generate electricity that can assist in recharging batteries. Obviously, these wouldn't provide much of a charge in stop-and-go traffic, but at any kind of speed, I would think you could use a car's greatest enemy of forward motion to provide some extra juice used to overcome it's cD. Something like this (on a smaller scale, obviously) could be hidden under the lip of a front bumper or behind a grille, parhaps even replacing the fake "grill" inserts used to visually break up a large front bumper with functional air intakes, like this: Or maybe a traditional fan-style turbine could be placed either in front of a radiator or behind its own intake shroud, like the air intake seen here: On Autobloggreen, it was mentioned that GM's designers and engineers are "pulling out all the stops to reduce parasitic losses". As long as it's not cost-prohibitive, why not use some of the wind they're trying to cheat to give a little extra juice to the propulsion system? Thoughts? -RBB

From a highway construction cam (the I-64/Hwy 170 interchange, for those who are familiar) during a snowstorm last week, someone decides to make his own highway onramp: -RBB

Originally printed in the Detroit Free Press, this story made its way to our local paper, too: http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/...FE?OpenDocument -RBB

That's what significant others are for. Why else would you put up with them? Well, significant others do take up space and can be ruined easily, but with some skill can be used while driving, and some enjoy using them with another person. But other peoples' lifestyle choices are no business of mine... -RBB

I completely agree! And while we're at it, why do people think that they need air conditioning? Just roll down the windows (hand-cranked of course, you lazy bastard)! And cruise control is for people too sedentary to keep their foot on the pedal - out it goes, too. And radios are for spoiled brats who can't possible last a 20-30 minute commute without being aurally assaulted by obnoxious deejays and devil music. I don't know why any manufacturer puts all this junk in their cars. Chevrolet should strip all this stuff out and sell on price! That'll work.... -RBB

Wow - that's giving off a strong Mazda3 vibe to me: -RBB

So, is this better? -RBB

To compare, his review of the Camry: http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/review...-24-camry_x.htm His Camry minuses: -RBB

FTFY :AH-HA_wink: -RBB

If it makes you feel any better, their photographers still suck. -RBB

2004 Cadillac CTS Test Drive 2006 SUV of the Year Contenders: 2006 Pontiac Torrent By Design: 2008 Chevrolet Malibu 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid With Cobalt SS, is GM Getting Serious About Small-Car Performance? -RBB

You know, when the Aveo hatch first came out, I thought it was a smartly styled little car. Its only weak point, IMO was the puppydogs-and-lollipops-cute smiling front end - I thought it could be a bit more aggressive, and didn't think it fit the rest of the car. With this restyle, the front end has gone to I-will-devour-your-soul-for-the-sake-of-fuel-economy agressiveness. It's gone way over the top on the aggressive side, and is less integrated with the rest of the car than the last nose was. No sir, I don't like it. -RBB

Lets compare, shall we: http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drive...rticleId=108789 Tundra: Tahoe: -RBB

Funny, I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen a red Typhoon since it was new. However, I saw one too this past weekend. Saw my first '08 Malibu yesterday - just caught a brief glance as it passed me going the other way, but it looked very good. And I saw one of these on my way to work at 5:30 this morning. Same color scheme, and in excellent condition: -RBB

Saw my first Taurus X. Not as bad as in the photos. Still not great. Saw a nice-looking Solstice GXP. That's (I think) only the second one I've seen on the streets. -RBB

I saw this lovely creation out on the highway today: -RBB

Well, the most successful is: But there's also: http://media.gm.com/us/onstar/en/product_s...es/xmradio.html http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9764888-1.html To name a few. -RBB

So how much of this would make it to production? They wouldn't offer things like a cold-air intake from the factory, would they? -RBB

Smashing Pumpkins -RBB

True that, my friend... Actually, as it regards performance vehicles, the US is one of the only market that still prefers automatics. The rest of the world prefers paddle shifters. There are a couple of models (though which ones are escaping me at the moment) where a manual is only available in the States - Europe gets F1 or DSG shifters. Now, for economy cars, you're absolutely correct. -RBB

I do find this ad slightly ironic, given the car uses a resurrected name from an American icon in the 60's and 70's. But overall, I like the campaign. This sounds quite encouraging. -RBB

Speak for yourself. And I look fine in them, too. -RBB