Spotted: Mud Truck (For Sale)

I spotted this truck recently while tooling around rural Michigan. $1,000 actually doesn't seem like a terrible deal, except for the blown engine part...

Not much of a bed... then again, that isn't the point of this truck!

Spotted: Amphicar

I took a road trip recently, and spotted this Amphicar on one of our fine Michigan beaches. Shortly after I snapped the first two photos, the owner hopped in with some guests, fired it up, and drove it down the boat ramp.

Equinox Quality Field Sample

I spotted this blue Chevy Equinox on the road recently, and I happened to have a camera with me.


GM can not afford to let these out of the plant, assuming it wasn't damaged later. Even a slight mis-alignment of door trim really ruins the perceived quality of a vehicle.

And how could she even stand to drive the car like that? I would feel nauseous.

Oops... Chrysler Techs Break Edison2 X-Prize Cars

In a blog post about the Progressive Automotive X-Prize, here, the sad tale of the coast-down testing at Chrysler's Chelsea Proving Grounds is told.  The Chrysler test drivers who were to run the coast-down tests accidentally over-revved both of the Edison2 cars, which use sequential manual transmissions, and blew up the engines.

Also on the morning of Day 3, Edison2, TW4XP, and X-Tracer hit the proving grounds for their turn through Coast Down. On the straight-away of the test track, Edison2's Mainstream Class entries, vehicle numbers 97 and 98, were fielded. In both cases, as third party test drivers accelerated the vehicles to speed, a mechanical over-rev condition resulted in engine failures and the tests had to be aborted.

The fact that the Edison2 vehicles employ sequential transmissions may have contributed to the unintended downshift and subsequent mechanical over-rev condition that damaged the engines. In a typical racing configuration, the driver pulls rearword on the shift lever to shift up through the gears. This is opposite the convention used by many US automakers in their semi-automatic transmissions (like Chrysler's AutoStick), where manual upshifting is executed by pushing forward, away from the driver. Further, given that this is a competition vehicle, the automated software that would normally override an unintended downshift at speed or at high RPM is not yet perfected.

All was not lost however.  Since the point of coast-down testing is to coast the vehicle to measure its decelerating forces, an engine isn't needed except to get up to speed.  Chrysler was able to save the day for Edison2 by pushing their cars up to speed with another vehicle.

Video: Moscow Carnage

A distrubing compilation of wrecks from Russian traffic camera footage. Many of these look like they are serious injury or fatal accidents.

GM's European "Lifetime" Warranty

In Europe, GM is going to offer a "lifetime" warranty on its Opel and Vauxhall brands.  Except that lifetime is limited to 100,000 miles (160,000km).

Which begs the question, are EU GM cars only designed for a 100,000mi service life?

If I was GM, I'd stay away from marketing hyperbole.  Either make it unlimited miles, or don't call it lifetime  

Volt Architecture 201, Voltec Fiero Anyone?

Over at AutoBlog Green, Sam Abuelsamid* delves into the Volt's powertrain architecture, and why GM may have chosen not to have a mechanical path from the gasoline engine to the drive wheels.  It's worth a read.

Another reason that a gasoline-electric-battery-motor-road path makes sense is that it is easy in the future to replace the gasoline engine with some other sort of power source, without having to do as much re-engineering of the electric powertrain side of things.  For example, if GM wanted to package a diesel range extender for Europe, or drop the range extender completely, it would not be a radical re-engineering job.  Perhaps in the future, the gasoline I4 will be replaced with a hydrogen fuel cell stack, or a flux capacitor.  

Having no mechanical connection also allows for some packaging flexibility.  Though GM decided to package the 1.4L I4 in the traditional underhood location, in another application it might make sense to package the motor in the rear of the vehicle--Voltec Fiero, anyone?

*Props to Sam, who is an actual engineer, not just a news writer, he tends to understand his topics.

Frigidaire Dryer Bearing Failure

I have a 5 year old Frigidaire clothes drier.  It started making terrible squealing noises recently, and since I don't run piglets in my dryer, I suspected something was wearing out.  After some internet research, I learned it may be the rear main bearing, which is difficult to replace yourself.  

We called an appliance repairman, and sure enough, $140 later, we had a new main bearing and a quiet dryer.  So, if you have a squeaky Frigidaire dryer, it may be the rear main bearing.   It will cost about $150 to fix.  

Chevy Cruze, Damned With Faint Praise?

The WSJ had an in depth review of the new Chevrolet Cruze, and to sum it up in one word, it basically said "meh".  The new Cruze is quiet, and has a nice interior, but a bland exterior and bland handling.

It looks like GM has made a decision to produce a smaller version of the Malibu--a competitive, competent cruizer, but not a sexy vehicle.  In other words, a Korean-American Corolla (the Cruze was developed primarily by GM's Korean division, Daewoo).  This is a different strategy than much of the competition.  Ford, for example, is bringing European handling in the upcoming 2012 Focus, so there will be a definite focus on the fun-to-drive aspect.  Honda is due for a redesign of its Civic, which is a sharp handling car, though noisy.

I think WSJ is too hard on the Cruze's styling, I like it personally.  It is clean and athletic without being over-busy.  But the bland handling worries me.  Is this going to work for GM?  Will they beat Corolla at the no-drama small sedan game?  Or will they, like Cobalt before it, wind up selling a lot of rental cars?

Maker Faire Detroit 2010

I went to visit the Maker Faire Detroit 2010, which was staged outside of the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI. The Henry Ford is a national treasure, BTW, and if you have never gone, you should definitely schedule a trip.

Maker Faire was a strange place, it reminded me of Burning Man (without drugs), or maybe a sci-fi convention (without Star Trek uniforms). The crowd was a mix of all kinds of people. I saw lots of punk rock and tattooed kids. I also saw religious Muslims and Jews, together in one space, in Dearborn. It was like, peace, love, and robots, man.

Here are a few things that I thought were neat.

Miniature V-4 engine, made by a guy from the Metro Detroit Metal Machining Club.

It runs!

Electric scooters by Current Motors. They claim a range of about 45 miles from a 4.6kWh battery pack, with a top speed of 55mph. Cost: $6500.

This cute hearse and "mad scientist" are promoting a product which is claimed to preserve jack-o-lanterns so they won't rot so quickly on your porch. I had no idea I needed such a product. Dr. Frybrain's Pumpkin Embalmer.

A really neat 4-rotor remote controlled helicopter (quadrocopter). It uses an on-board micro-controller (Arduino) to trim the motors to maintain attitude, using inputs from a 6-axis inertial sensor board.

Over at the TARDEC display, the Army shows off a concept for a light armored ground vehicle.

This Gladiator robotic vehicle was doing peace-time duty writing people's names on a dry erase board. In battle, it can be used to remotely manipulate road-side bombs and suspicious packages. They can also be mounted with weapons.

One of two Jackson Pollock tribute cars, by Matt Donohue.

This hilarious car, the "Sashimi Tabernacle Choir", is a 1984 Volvo 240 sedan which has been decorated by a bunch of those cheesy dancing lobsters and singing bass that you can order on late night TV infomercials. The effect is hypnotic--when the sound system plays, all of the lobsters and fish sing and dance in sync. If you go to the linked web site, you see that this was a huge engineering project--they actually wired each fish and lobster into a central relay system, and wrote software to control all the motion.

The centerpiece, the main attraction I would say, of Maker Faire Detroit was the Life Size Mousetrap installation. A strange, wacky, and slightly disturbing mix of childhood memories, tattooed punk rock burlesque girls, welded steel, clowns, and a very crushed Chevy Astro minivan. This thing travels around the country like a mini-circus, smashing things.

Esmerelda Strange, the one-woman punk/polka band who warmed up the crowd for the Life Size Mousetrap piece. She seemed bored with the whole thing. She sang in a monotone and had way too many tattoos.


The Life Size Mousetrap in action.

Rose "The Mouse", the ringleader's wife and head merchandiser.

Another highlight was Big Dog, a gigantic pedal powered quadracycle with propane flame belcher. I'm not sure why fire was involved, but the design and construction of this beast is amazing.

A Big Dog drive-by, slightly out of focus (sorry).

Two examples of Amick wind assisted electric vehicles, without their large vertical airfoils. The concept is to use energy from cross-wind to help propel the car, similar to how a sailboat can pull energy from the wind with its airfoil, the sail.

Yet another NEV (Neighborhood Electric Vehicle, limited to 25mph) offered by EcoV. This is a prototype vehicle, commercial production is supposed to start later this year.

Moving inside, near the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile I found a guy showing of amazing miniature mechanisms, including air-powered steam engine models. He had a hightly detailed, running miniature model of a steam-age machine shop, much like the full size one you can tour in Greenfield Village.

My Solution To WikiLeaks

If I was POTUS, the guy who runs WikiLeaks would be snatched, tried before a military tribunal as a material supporter of terrorists, and then sent to prison.

And if I couldn't snatch him, I would cause him to have a tragic accident.

Espionage is an act of war, and leaking military documents could actually cost the lives of our soldiers or our allies.  

More Volt Math

The comments to my previous post, Some Volt Math, had some very astute observations.  Obviously my little calculation was based on lots of assumptions, and there are many ways to make the economics worse for the Volt.

For example, if you add the cost of a 240V home charger, professionally installed, it could add thousands to the cost.  On the other hand, it may be partly offset with tax credits.

Sales tax on the difference can be significant, 7% of $8,500 is $600, or 9 months of cost advantage gone.

12c/kWh electricity may be a rosy assumption for some, such as Californians.  What if you had to pay 15c/kWh, or in Hawaii, 27c/kWh?

On the plus side, the alternative to the Volt might not be a 30mpg vehicle, it could be a 25mpg vehicle.  But then again, it could cost $20,000 instead of $25,000, adding another $5,000 to the payoff barrier!

I have also read stories on forums that some Chevrolet dealers are planning on charging thousands over MSRP.  This won't last long, they are just going to make extra money on the early adopters, and will have to make deals when demand collapses at those prices.

I think I need to make a spreadsheet.

"Sponsored Post" WTF?

Over at LeftLane News, I read a glowing review of Toyota safety features.  I wondered why they were basically repeating Toyota's new marketing campaign, until I saw the tag "Sponsored Post".

Guys, write your own stuff.  It is bad enough that readers have to wade through banner ads, side panels, and on some sites, popup ads.  If they have to learn to ignore parts of your main feed, they'll get annoyed and start to tune out.

I don't have massive readership, but for the few readers I do have, I can promise this: any posts you read on here were written by me, with some thought.  There will be no sponsored posts.  No ghostwriting.  

Some Volt Math

Today's big news is that GM will charge $41,000 MSRP for the Volt. (Question for GM: how will you keep dealers from adding a "market adjustment"?)

Assume you can get the $7,500 tax rebate, so your actual price is $35,000, plus applicable local taxes. And suppose that a comparably equipped vehicle of similar size, in a non-hybrid flavor, can be had for $25,000 (a premium compact like a VW Jetta, Volvo C30, or a Subaru Impreza).

For $8,500 premium, you get a 40mile all electric range. That represents 80% of the 16KWh battery, or about 13kWh. At 12c/kWh, if you can drive all electric, 15,000mi/year will cost you about $585. Very nice.

If your premium compact gas car gets an average of just 30mpg, 15,000mi at $3.00/gal will cost you $1,500.

Under these assumptions, best case (all electric Volt miles), you save $915/year driving the Volt. To gain back your $10,000 price premium, you will have to drive the Volt for 9.3 years, 1.3 year longer than the battery warranty.

Now suppose you can't run your Volt 100% electric, but you need to rely on the gas generator engine for just 33% of your mileage. 10,000 miles electric will cost you $390, and 5,000 miles at 40mpg (assume) will cost you $375. Running a Volt 66/33 electric/gas will cost you $765. The payback time for your $10,000 premium is now over 11.1 years, 3 years longer than the battery warranty.

My point here is that at $41,000 MSRP, the Volt is not a great deal, except for people who are passionate about not using much gasoline. In order to even come close to making sense for the average consumer, the Volt needs to be priced for a payback of about 5 years, or about $29,000 out-the-door, or $36,500 MSRP, with the $7,500 tax credit.

Update: fixed my math error.

2011 Explorer Reveal

So yesterday was National Explorer Reveal Day.  I won't re-write what you have no doubt already read from many other source.

Here is a nice slide show of the reveal in Dearborn, from the Examiner.  Apparently, worried that people would get the idea that the new Explorer is an on-road machine only, Ford constructed a 30 foot high dirt hill (very well groomed) which they used to unveil the new Explorer.  

I think the vehicle looks great, inside and out, but it is a definite departure for Ford.  It is no longer PC to sell a truck which over-capable, primarily targeted at suburban families, who won't really ever drive it on off-road trails or tow anything heavier than a jet-ski trailer or pop up camper.   Ford looked at who was buying the old Explorer, and made a vehicle that appeals to a majority of those customers.  This will however alienate the few people who actually used the old Explorer as a heavy tow vehicle, or benefited from a real locking 4x4 system.   

2011 Ford Explorer Aside

Old Henry was not known as being particularly friendly to the Jews.

Today, Ford is showing off a major redesign of one it its signature products, the Explorer.

In this video, project manager Julie Levine shows Mark Fields some of the new features of the 2011 Explorer.

They're both Jewish.  

Ford's Explorer Tease Campaign

Ford is running a teaser campaign on Facebook for its new unibody Explorer.  You can see spy shots here.  I have been following it to see the teasers.  The official reveal will be Monday.  Since they met their goal of 30,000 friends, they will be giving away a new Explorer.

I am amazed at all the people who say basically "if it isn't a truck, I don't want it!"  The days of the body on frame, rear wheel drive, V8 powered SUV are long over.  All the big players have basically left the market except for Toyota, which sells the 4Runner, and of course Jeep.   Oh, and you can't get a V8 4runner.  And Xterra doesn't have 3 rows. GM's Trailblazer and Hummer H3?  Dead.  Even the Jeep Commander, which was unibody, is rumored to be going out of production.

From Edmund's, here is the list of top 5 selling mid-sized SUVs:

2010 Ford Edge

2010 Toyota RAV4

2010 Chevrolet Traverse

2010 Jeep Wrangler

2011 Honda Pilot

Only the Wrangler is a body on frame rear driver.

Aside from niche vehicles like the Wrangler, Xterra, and FJ Cruiser, the mass market is moving towards lighter, more fuel efficient "crossover" type SUVs.  People want a little bit of offroad capability, but they also want good fuel economy and handling.  The sweet spot here is clearly mid-sized unibody designs like the Chevrolet Traverse.  

Hurray! BP stops leak!

Finally, BP has been able to stop the oil leak.

One. Bad. Truck. Border Patrol Raptor FTW!

I'm in lust with this, even though I have like no use for it whatsoever in my current suburban lifestyle.  Like the fanboys on the forums say, "FTMFW!!!"

Spotted: 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Out and about today, I spotted a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee pre-production car (manufacturer plate) parked out in public. I didn't have a camera with me so I can't post pics, but I can share some overall impressions.

The design is handsome up close, with generally taut body work. This is a much better styled vehicle than most of what Chrysler has released lately--it looks like the excesses of the Sebring/Caliber/Compass are behind us. The interior looked nice also, with tasteful use of chrome highlights, faux wood, and grained surfaces.

This example did have some problems, though. The hood alignment was off, creating sloppy looking panel gaps and poor seam alignment. The a-pillar seams were not well aligned, bad enough to be noticeable. In other words, it was put together more like the "old" Chrysler. I wouldn't take this too seriously yet, since this was a pre-production vehicle, but Chrysler needs to have world class fit and finish if they hope to compete.

Black Box Video Recorders? No.

Intel is showing off a concept for an Event Data Recorder (EDR) which records in-cabin video as well as vehicle network data and GPS coordinates. (Story here)

This is not going to happen any time soon, unless of course Congress passes a law to require it, which they won't.  

The privacy advocates won't agree to video recording, and the expense of adding the hardware to the EDR module will be a strong deterrent to automakers, who will also lobby hard against it.  The trial lawyers will also try to kill it, because a video recorder would be typically be a witness against their plaintiff customers.

To encode video into a reasonably compact form, a standalone video processor chip would be required, such as are packaged into DVRs.  A ballpark price for one of these is probably in the $20 range.  In addition, enough flash memory would have to be added to store the video streams in addition to the vehicle data.  90s of video at reasonable resolution and quality would require several megabytes of flash, easily several more dollars per vehicle.

I also question the utility of recording GPS data.  A vehicle typically has a fairly accurate on board velocity estimate, which comes from the ABS wheel speed sensors.  Unless a driver is involved in a hit-and-run, it will be pretty obvious to accident investigators what the path of the vehicle was, based on external evidence and the on-board inertial signals which would normally be recorded in an EDR.

Review: Sony KDL-32EX308 LCD TV

I have been using a CRT TV with a DTV decoder box since the digital transition, but finally, I decided to join the world of true HDTV, and decided to shop for a modestly price LCD HDTV. My main requirement: it had to work well with OTA viewing, since I refuse to pay money for TV service.After some digging around, a clear winner came out: the Sony KDL-32EX308. This is a 32" 720p unit which has a price around $430 from SonyStyle.com. I am convinced this is the best modestly price TV for OTA use out there.

Pros:

• Ethernet port and free wi-fi adapter. Automatically updates firmware.
• 2 HDMI ports, plus USB for music and photo playback.
  
• Internet video functions like Qriocity, Amazon, Netflix, and Youtube built in
• Internet radio from Pandora, Slacker, NPR, others
• TV Guide populated from internet download
• DLNA client built in -- you can stream video from your PC, even Windows Media Center
• Decent OTA reception (about as good as my Zenith DTV box)
• Nice integrated Favorites menu lets you assign inputs, internet functions, and channels to the favorites bar
• Nice XBM menu system
• Massive deal at only $430
• Good remote with redundant power button underneath (where your fingers go)
  
• Nice basic understated design
• HDMI link lets you control Sony branded stuff from the TV menu, without changing remotes.
  

Cons:

• Advanced features take longer to "boot up" than basic TV function on a cold start (can be remedied by setting up quick start mode, but this uses more power)
• DLNA client needs MPEG2 video to play, so you need a DLNA server which can transcode to MPEG2 on the fly. Windows Media 7 seems to work fine for most formats this way, with some loss in quality.
  
• TV Guide startup delay of about 5s after you press the guide button.
• Sluggish response to some menu navigation commands, slow response to direct channel input.
  
• Can't add channels manually, must scan then delete
• Lots of "fluff" (craplets) in internet sources like Ford Models channel, which apparently can't be manually removed.
• Narrow viewing angle--colors begin to noticeably wash out if you move just 45 degrees off center.
• No support yet for Hulu, ABC video on demand, and some other sites.
  

Even if it didn't have a built in DLNA client, and didn't do Youtube, the TV Guide function alone would be worth considering.

Screen Shots:

Excellent picture when viewed close to head on.


The favorites menu overlays on top of your current activity, this is the best way to get to things you frequently use.


XBM Menu is quick and attractive.


My main reason to buy: the TV Guide which is fed from internet data or OTA data. Cons: delay before it comes up, slow response to inputs, advertising.

Useful channel strength and information display.


Pandora Radio interface.


YouTube frontend.


YouTube fullscreen with navigation controls. They go away after a second if you don't need them.


Remote details. Nice quick access buttons for major functions, redundant power button on the back of the remote.


Close-up of display for display geeks.

Ford Teases 2011 Explorer

Ford is dribbling out little bits about the new Exporer, which will be a major redesign (new platform, unibody, FWD/AWD) for the product. This is a neat video which shows some aerodynamic testing in a wind tunnel using a clay styling model. Even though Ford hasn't officially shown the Explorer, the clay model gives a lot away, assuming it is accurate.

Fix: Missing DVD Drive Letter On Windows 7 64Bit

I am running Windows 7 64bit on a Dell desktop machine. Mysteriously, my DVD drive disappeared from Windows 7, and going through the hardware manager to re-install it did not work.

It turns out that iTunes (effing Apple! "it just works", hah!) puts in an ASPI driver from Gear Software.

To get my DVD drive back, I followed the instructions in this Microsoft KB article. It involves going into the registry using Regedit (don't forget to do it "run as Administrator") and deleting the UpperFilters key, which to the GearASPI file.

Problem is, if you update iTunes, you will have to do this again (I did).

Happy Birthday USA!

There are few countries in the world I can think of that I would rather be a citizen of than the US of A. There are other countries which are great, and powerful, and free. But none of them are such good combination of the three.

I get a rush every time I read our founding words. Pure poetry:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,...

TxtStopper: Probably Illegal

I saw a press release about a device called the TxtStopper, which is a cell phone jammer you wire into your car's 12v power line to jam cell phones when your engine is running.  The idea is to keep your teenager from texting while driving.

This device is probably not legal in the U.S., since it interferes with legal and regulated cell phone signals.

Also, I don't see how they keep it just to your vehicle.  If it is so low powered that it doesn't extend much beyond about a 5 foot radius, it may not be powerful enough to reliably jam your phone.

Also, cell phones in vehicles have legitimate safety uses, such as 911. 

Bad idea.

Boycott BP?

Should you boycott BP?

Yes, maybe, no.

Yes because reduced wholesales of their products will hurt them in their pocket books and teach them a harsh lesson.

Maybe not, because chances are if you have a 401(k) or pension plan, you are infact a shareholder of BP, one of the largest (by capitalization) companies in the world.  You will help to damage your own retirement funds.

No, because you will hurt your local small-business owners who own BP stations, which are almost all franchises.  And BP is one of the largest employers in oil producing regions.  Many more people will lose jobs, than already are.

Myself, I am ambivalent.  I don't actively avoid BP stations these days, but I don't really seek them out either.  Besides, near me, Speedway and Valero brands are usually cheaper!

Want Less Oil Use? Raise Gas Taxes!

The laws of economics are nearly as immutable as the laws of physics.

If you want to reduce consumption of an item, increase its price, or reduce its supply (same effect, different mechanism).

David Frum points this out in a very lucid piece on CNN.com, here.

We want to get the country off oil? Tax it. (Politicians may not wish to say it, but their advisers can at least think it.) Then liberate people to find their own best alternative -- and incentivize industry to develop alternatives that make sense at the new higher price. And be prepared to argue candidly and straightforwardly in the marketplace of ideas why this new tax is right and justified.

If not, then kindly please spare us the grand speeches about how the status quo is the thing you will not accept. It is precisely the thing you are accepting.

However, as Frum correctly points out, a politician who raises gas taxes by $1+ per gallon will soon be an ex-politician.  That's because there is not really a strong consensus on reducing our use of fossil fuels in this country.  As I write here so often, people want cheap gas and high fuel efficiency, but they aren't willing to pay much for it.

One sensible solution to the sting of higher taxes is to do a "feebate" scheme, where the taxes which are collected are distributed back to the taxpayers as tax rebates.  This way, you would nudge the consumer to consume less fuel, but on average wouldn't hurt the economy much.  Congress can even play with the rebate rules, to penalize higher income consumers less than low income consumers, exclude business and agriculture uses, etc.

Instead, we have the perverse system of CAFE, which tells automakers what cars to build and in what mix they can sell them, but is largely invisible to the consumer except on the window stickers at the dealership.  

Well, CAFE isn't free either.  Getting to 36mpg is going to have some nasty side effects on the vehicles available on the marketplace, foremost of which is that cars are going to get more expensive.   So instead of slightly less expensive cars and pricier gas, we are going to have cheaper gas and more expensive cars.  You still pay in the end, though--efficiency costs money.  The advantage of the market approach is that the consumer has choice--if someone wants to drive a thirsty vehicle, and they can afford the gas tax,they can choose to pay.  With CAFE, the very choice of the thirsty vehicle may be taken away, depending on how the fleet average works out.

Gordon Murray's (Controversial) T.25

There are new photos out of designer Gordon Murray's proposed T.25 city car (see photos here).

It looks like a very tidy design, with a 1+2 seating arrangement where the passengers sit behind the driver, who is front and center.  But the ergonomics look very tricky--to get those 2nd row passengers in their seats, they have to climb over (I assume) a folded forward drivers seat, after negotiation the forward tilting cab.  

Unless the rear of the cab opens as well?  It is hard to tell from the press photos.

Even if the rear cabin opens, I don't think a forward opening door will be well received.  If it is raining, you (and our seat) are getting wet while you work on getting in or out.  If you are in a front end accident, it seems like it would be harder to open the door, if the hinge was crushed.  

The half-windows are also not going to go over well, although perhaps in the U.K fast food drive-through is not as common as in the U.S.  

Mandatory Breathalyzer Interlock?

Did you know that the NHTSA, together with 13 automakers, is working on a device which will test your breath alcohol concentration, to be installed (they hope) in all vehicles?  Did you know that they are spending $2,000,000 per year (some of which is taxpayer money) on this project?  Now Senator Udall from New Mexico is proposing to increase funding to $12,000,000/year.   

To its credit, the DADSS project acknowledges that in order to be accepted by the public, the system they come up with must be practical and non-intrusive.  They are pursuing several methods of doing a passive test, to avoid having to have the driver blow into a tube and wait several minutes before allowing the car to start.

They are looking at both contacting and non-contacting methods.  One method is to have an IR spectrograph system which reads the blood alcohol level by analyzing the reflected light from a persons skin, which would have to be touching a sensor hidden somewhere such as the steering wheel or shift knob.  Another method would be to analyze the vapor in the cabin using several "sniffers".

However, even a passive system has some significant issues that will need to be overcome before the average person will agree to have one in their vehicle.  The chance of a false positive must be vanishingly small.  But at the same time, the system must be difficult to defeat, or it loses its protective effect.

And any system that degrades over time, to the point where it starts calling false positives, would not be acceptable.   

Consider a contacting spectrograph sensor.  What if it is winter, and our driver wants to wear gloves?  Do you make him remove his gloves to start the car?  Would people submit to that? (No).   

Can the system tell the difference between a bag of saline solution and a persons finger?  Could it be fooled with a hot dog? 

Or what if you are using cabin air sensors, and you are sober but your friend in the passenger seat is drunk?  The system must be able to tell the difference reliably to be acceptable.

Would an air analyzer system work with the windows down, or with the ventilation fans blowing?  Any solution which requires people to start with closed windows or without ventilation won't be accepted.

Could a cabin air analyzer be fooled by taping over the sensor inlet ports?

To be effective and safe, the system would have to make an up or down call quickly while the car is parked.  Which means it will almost certainly have to be a default-to-guilty (restrictive) system as opposed to a non-restrictive  default-to-innocent system.   If the system allows you to drive away, but then makes a "intoxicated" call later, and stops your car, it may leave you in an unsafe situation.  

I am skeptical about the idea that every car should have an alcohol detector on board.  I think many lives could be saved if, instead, the system were required as an after-market installation for anyone who is caught DUI.  I am not ready to accept, and I don't think most people would accept a system which presumes that you are drunk unless you can prove otherwise.  

You can read more about the DADSS project at http://www.dadss.org/.

An interesting source of counter-advocacy is here: http://interlockfacts.com/, which is run by the American Beverage Institute.

Camry Most "American" Car?

According to the Detroit News (here), Cars.com finds that the Camry is the "most American car", based on domestic parts content and popularity.

I suppose it is fair, and congratulations to Toyota for supporting the U.S. economy as much as the Camry does.

But...

If you follow the flow of engineering and the flow of money, the picture is a little different.  The Camry has quite a bit of its engineering done in Japan, which means that Japanese engineers are doing the work, not U.S. engineers.  Also, the profits from the sale of the Camry flow back through Japan, though the shareholders of Toyota are global.

Consider instead a car designed in the U.S. and built over the border, such as the Ford Fusion, or the Chrysler 300.  Yes, it is being bolted together by Mexicans (or Canadians, or even Mexican-Canadians), from parts that flow from all over.  However, U.S. engineers and technicians worked on the product, and and the profits flow mostly to U.S. shareholders (and the .gov in the case of Chrysler and GM).

It isn't black and white, and if you buy a Camry, to my thinking it is much better than buying a car designed and built overseas.  But if you want to support American engineering and American shareholders, you can do better than Camry.

The Truth About The Vuvuzela

The vuvuzela was originally invented by the Jews! Made of a rams horn, the shofar was blown during battle, and I am sure during ancient soccer games. Today, it is blown during the high holidays.

Why Not Small Cars?

Mark Tapscott at the Examiner (link) does a good job discussing why it is that small and fuel efficient cars are not taking off in the marketplace yet. He mentions several major reasons, such as safety issues (perceived and real), and cargo capacity.

I can add a few more.

Perceived Value: Americans still associate size/mass with value. Many of them are not yet ready to agree to pay mid-sized car prices for a small car.

Ride and Handling: Americans seem to be divided on how they want their cars to handle. Some of the best selling cars (Toyota Camry, Corolla) are comparatively squishy, while others (Honda Accord, Civic) have sharper handling and firmer rides. While it is not impossible to produce a small car with a softer ride, light weight and short suspension travel limits do make it more difficult. Also, when efficiency is the overriding design factor, one of the easiest places to lose weight is in sound isolation materials. Do the "silent majority" want little cars with go-kart manners (Mini, Smart) or do they want scaled down couches? Currently, most small cars are tuned more towards go-kart.

Styling: Looks still matter. Americans want a sharp looking car, although what "sharp looking" is is not always consistent. Designers have to work hard to avoid designing short little jelly beans with high roofs, which is really the most space efficient design with some aerodynamic efficiency. On a larger car, there is more surface to play with, and more ways to draw the eye. Americans don't really want something that looks like a rollerskate, with a tall roof and little wheels pushed out to the corners.

Comfort: Americans are not getting thinner. I recently witnessed about 500lbs of female Target shopper (a mother and daughter?) flow out of both sides of an old Dodge minivan, you could almost hear the springs sigh in relief as the ride height jumped by 2" in front. Show those women a Fiesta and they will probably laugh at you. They might then go ahead and eat it.

Toy Story 3

I went to see Toy Story 3 today, it is a real work of art, absolutely wonderful. The opening scene features a wild get-away by train robbing Potato Heads in a purple Barbie corvette driven by Martians.

Even if you have not seen the earlier installments, go see this one.

Cheap Gas, Low Demand For Hybrids, B-Cars

According to Ward's Auto, sales of fuel efficient vehicles (cars with 30mpg+) are falling, as customers move back to their mid-size cars and crossovers.  Toyota's Prius is selling well, but the hybrid Camry and Honda Civic Hybrid are declining.  Small gasoline cars such as the Yaris (down 38%), Honda Fit (down 20%), and Smart ForTwo (down 63%) are not doing well.

Unless Obama can find a way to ramp up the price of gasoline soon, the near term sales of the many new B-cars are not going to be pretty, and fleet fuel economy improvements are going to be small.

Let's face it, Americans don't want little cars.  They want cheap gas and large cars.  I can't wait for the public reaction when the 36mpg CAFE regulations force people to look at B-cars, or pay a premium for larger vehicles.  

 

HP2G Vaporware?

I keep tabs on HP2G, Doug Pelmear's startup which is working on a hybrid electric V8 engine design, because he is somewhat local (Toledo OH) and makes some astonishing claims (110 MPGe and 400HP).  As you may have heard already, HP2G was a Progressive Automotive X-prize contender but dropped out in the early stages of the competition.  HP2G also had a deal with Revenge Design to supply the HP2G engine for a hybrid supercar, the Revenge Blade.  Revenge has broken off its relationship with HP2G, and posted this nasty item on its web site:

Revenge Designs Inc is announcing the withdrawal of all support and funding to Hp2g llc, due to numerous requests for third party validations to the claims of their 110mpge Hp2g engine. Revenge Designs was informed the patents were in place late 2009, since then Revenge Designs has requested documentation for the third party testing to no avail. Revenge Designs finds this to be unacceptable. 

A quick search of the U.S. patent database shows that the only patent that Doug Pelmear has to his name at this time is one for an engine block brace--nothing about his magnetic cylinder assist system.  There are no applications by Pelmear in the U.S. patent application database.  A quick search of the EU patent database also shows only the engine block brace patent.  So it appears that HP2G has failed to apply for a patent for its magnetic hybrid engine technology until very recently.  And it is odd that HP2G refuses to allow 3rd party testing of its prototype, an old Mustang.

Does Pelmear have a 110MPGe V8 engine that also makes 400HP, or is he selling snake oil?  I wonder if we will ever be able to find out.

New J.D. Power Initial Quality Rankings

Some interesting results in the new J.D. Power IQS. (Full press release here)

For 2010, "domestic" brands are beating "import brands" as a group, 108 PP100 vs 109 (Problems Per 100).

Toyota has fallen to significantly below average, at 117 PP100. That crashing sound you hear is the sound of Toyota execs jumping out of high-rise windows.

All GM brands are below average, though all but GMC are better than Toyota.

Ford has charged up to just above Honda, well above average, and Lincoln is better than industry average, but oddly Mercury is below average.

Land Rover continues its dominance as the worst in the industry.

Audi (VW) has improved dramatically over the last few years, from 136 PP100 in 2007 to 111 in 2010. VW has also improved, 135 PP100 in 2010 vs 160 in 2007, but relative to average, is still near the bottom.

Volvo improved from below average to above average since 2007.

Mahindra Trucks, In Trouble?

This may be a sign that Mahindra's attempt to import diesel pickup trucks into the U.S. is in big trouble.

According to Global Atlanta (here), Mahindra's U.S. distributor Global Vehicles has filed a federal lawsuit against the company.  Mahindra, despite rumors to the contrary, has not yet filed for EPA certification of its pickup trucks.  Which likely means, they aren't making emissions.

Meanwhile, the many U.S. dealers (some of them closed Chrysler or GM dealers) who put down money on a franchise to sell Mahindra trucks have nothing to show for their investments.

"Chevy"

I heard on the morning news that GM is instructing its employees to always refer to Chevrolet as Chevrolet, not as Chevy.  They apparently want to portray a grown-up, mature brand.

Good luck with that.

Chevy is ingrained in the culture.  They'll have to retrain thousands of NASCAR fans.  

They'll have to get songs re-written: "Drove my Chevrolet to the levr-o-let but the levr-o-let was dry"

It's good for Dodge (Ram) and Ford, through--they only have one syllable.  Easier to say.

Fiat Cinquecento (500) Spotting

You see some neat cars sometimes, living near Woodward Ave.

It's a lovely little car. But it is little. Will it save Chrysler? What do you think?

Onstar Vs. Sync

A friend of mine was looking for a luxury car, and was wondering about the differences between Onstar (Cadillac) and Sync (Lincoln).  

There is a major difference in how these two systems work.

Onstar is a concierge service--when you press the little blue button, you initiate a voice call to a data center where someone will offer to help you.  Likewise, when something goes wrong, they can call you and ask if you are OK.  Onstar has a subscription fee.

Sync is a speech recognition system.  You don't talk to a human, you talk to a Microsoft box which integrates some functions of the car with some functions of your cell phone.   Sync does not have a fee.

Onstar advantages: the phone is built into the car, so it is always on, you can talk to a real person, Onstar can do things like unlock your doors or stop your car remotely if it is stolen.  

Onstar disadvantages: it has a subscription fee.  

Sync advantages: it is free.  It has a nice interface for iPod control, will read text messages to you, get news and weather updates, etc.  Sync will have apps that users can download and run, and there will be more of them over time.  

Sync disadvantages: If you don't have your phone with you or your phone is damaged, Sync can't help you as much.  Sync can't do things like immobilize your car or unlock your doors.  Some phones or devices aren't fully supported, depending on how they implement bluetooth and other details.

Both systems offer 911 functionality, Onstar through a concierge and Sync through an automated dial-out using your phone.

The Gaza "Peace" Flotilla

If the "peace activists" of the Mavi Marmari just wanted to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, why did they bring slingshots, metal poles, gas masks, and knives with them?

Video here.

If the "peace activists" wanted to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, why did they prepare to attack the Israeli commandos before they boarded the ship?

Video here.

if the "peace activists" wanted to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, why didn't they just follow the Israeli navy to Ashdod, and have the cargo inspected, as they were offered?

If the Israeli commandos came with the intent to injure "peace activists", why did they rappel down from a helicopter armed with paintball guns?

If the Israelis wanted to injure "peace activists", why didn't the helicopter's machine gun fire into the crowd?  

If the Israelis wanted to injure "peace activists", why did the men hold off on using their lethal weapons (handguns) until they were being hurt themselves?

The blockade of Gaza is a legal military action, according to international law, as Israel is in a state of war with Hamas, who runs Gaza.  Under a legal blockade, Israel has the right to board any vessel which shows that its intent is to run the blockade.  

Israel has a right to prevent non-humanitarian materials from reaching Gaza, which could be used to make missiles or tooling for missiles.  For example, concrete can be used to make metal molds, for casting rocket parts.  Electric wheelchairs can be dis-assembled for wires, motors, switches, microprocessors, batteries, etc.  

The "peace activists" where in fact running the blockade with the intent to provoke Israel into doing something embarrassing, and with the intent to use the other passengers as human shields.  The "peace activists" were in fact engaged in an act of war.  The "activists" who were killed were not murdered, they were shot in self defense.

$5000 Event Data Recorders? Not Likely

Automotive News has an interesting article where they speculate on the possible cost impact of the EDR requirement in H.R. 5381.  Somehow, they manage to throw out numbers like $5000 per car, but if you read the article, you see that they are extrapolating from airplane flight data recorders, which are required to survive deep submersion, very hot fires, and huge g forces.  

Many cars already have EDRs, such as the much maligned Toyota unit, which is a closed system, and can only be read with Toyota tools.

The way the EDRs work is that they write data to flash memory in the few milliseconds before, during, and after a safety event, such as an airbag deployment.  They typically have a large capacitor onboard, which provides a little bit of power so the unit can finish writing the data if it loses power during a crash.

I think it is unlikely that NHTSA will mandate that car EDRs be made to the same deep submersion and high temperature survival specs that airplane black boxes are made, as these are much less likely to occur in even a very severe car accident.

What may be required is a larger capacitor or a backup battery to keep the thing running longer after losing powere, and more memory to store a longer trace.  For example, if the unit needs to store 64 bytes of data at a very vast 1ms rate, a minutes worth of data would require about 3.8 MB of storage.  So we are talking about a few dollars worth of flash memory, and maybe another few dollars for longer term keep alive capability. 

I could see the cost of EDRs going up by, say, $50-$100 per vehicle.  But not $5000.

The Smoker Slob

I understand, lady in the crossover SUV with the MSU theme license plate and the hardshell roof cargo carrier, that you can't drive to work in the morning without your cigarette.  You pay the taxes, so may as well enjoy your vice.  But do you have to throw your cigarette butt out your window when you are done with it?  Can't you keep your butt to yourself?

Lincoln MKE (.com)?

This is interesting.

http://www.lincolnmke.com points to the Lincoln web site.

So does http://www.lincolnmkl.com

So what is an MKE and MKL?

Should Ford Kill Mercury?

Bloomberg reports via unnamed sources that Ford's leadership is planning on killing Mercury in about four years.

Reasons they should: It's a small brand which probably doesn't make much money; it's a damaged brand which doesn't seem to stand for much.  Many of the major automakers only have a couple of U.S. brands, such as Toyota/Lexus, Nissan/Infiniti, Honda/Acura, VW/Audi, BMW/Mini, Mercedes/Smart.  

Reasons they shouldn't: Mercury sold 92,000+ cars last year.  That's more than Saab, Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Smart, Infiniti, Porsche, Mini, Volvo, Audi, and Lincoln brands.  Many Lincoln dealers need the product to stay afloat, unless Lincoln is going to break out somehow into a larger volume brand. Oh, and Mercury has Jill Wagner.

What's In HR5381, the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010

The House committee on energy and commerce has voted to release HR 5381, the Motor Vehicle Safey Act of 2010, to the full house for a vote.

So what is in it?  Here is a quick synopsis.  You can read it for yourself here.  My comments in italics.

Section 101: The NHTSA will create a Center for Vehicle Electronics and Emerging Technologies to focus attention on electronics.  The Secretary Of Transportation will set up an honors recruitment program which will make an effort to recruit from the top 10% of engineering students, particularly among minority institutions, and to provide a stipend for students who participate.  (What is this doing in an auto safety bill?  No wonder people are angry at congress!)

Section 102: The NHTSA has one year to design a safety standard for a bake-throttle over-ride system.  The system may be user defeatible, and may allow two-pedal driving under some conditions. (I think this is reasonable, as long as NHTSA has flexibility in how they do this)

Section 103: The NHTSA will update FMVSS 124 within two years with a rule that requires at least one redundant control to be present in an accelerator control system.  (This is not necessary.  All electronic throttle control systems that I am aware of have multiple redundant sensors and controls.)

Section 104: The NHTSA will consider a rule, within 18 months, to regulate the design of pedal spacing and clearance.  If NHTSA decides that the rule is appropriate, it will be in force within 4 years.  

Section 105: The NHTSA will consider a rule, within 2 years, to require minimum performance standards for electronic control systems.  If NHTSA decides that the rule is appropriate, it will be in force within 4 years.  (This is a difficult task.  Will NHTSA require certain levels of EMC testing, for example?  Lots of work for engineers going forward...)

Section 106: The NHTSA will, within 2 years, issue a rule to standardize the operation of push-button start systems.  (I have no problem with this, as long as there is flexibility in the rules to allow for future technologies)

Section 107: The NHTSA will, 1 year, issue a revision to FMVSS 102 to make automatic transmission gear selectors easier to use, and to make neutral obvious.  (This will be an intrusive regulation, but I don't really object, if it makes cars easier to use.  It may however force everyone to have similar shifter styling.)

Section 108: Event Data Recorders will be required starting in 2015 model year.  EDRs will store at least 10s of data, and will have a standard interface.  EDR information will be readable with commercial equipment.  EDR data is the property of the vehicle owner or lessee, and cannot be retrieved without his consent other than by a court order.  Government agencies can get the data if personal information has been scrubbed, for study purposes.  EDRs will be tamper resistant.  

Section 201: NHTSA early warning data from defect investigations will be made publicly availible.

Section 202: NHTSA's vehicle safety database will be made more accessible to the public.

Section 203: NHTSA will require automakers to put a sticker in each vehicle which informs the owner how to submit a vehicle safety defect complaint to NHTSA.  (This is lame.  Why put it on each car? Don't we have enough nanny stickers everywhere?  Why not put it in the owner's manual, where the warranty coverages and other related information go?)

Section 204: NHTSA will set up a hotline for dealership personnel to report potential defects.  (Can't mechanics use the existing system?)

Section 205: Automaker executives will be required to sign submissions to NHTSA, certifying that they have reviewed the reported information.  Anyone found to make a false report will be fined up to $5,000 per day. (Ouch)

Section 206: Allows people who have been rejected in claiming a defect to appeal the rejection to their court of appeals.

Section 207: If NHTSA can't make a deadline, they must explain why and also submit a new deadline.

Section 208: Sets up some reports NHTSA must make to congress regarding defect and crash investigations.

Section 301: There will be a $9 per car tax to help fund the NHTSA.  It will be indexed to inflation.  (In a 12 million car market, that will be a nice sum of $108,000,000.  Our cars will all get $9 more expensive)

Section 401: The maximum fine per vehicle that NHTSA will be able to levy for rule violations increases from $5,000 to $25,000.  The total cap increases from $15,000,000 to $200,000,000.

Section 402: If NHTSA determines that a defect is an "imminent hazard", an imminent hazard order will be issued within 10 days.  (This isn't a recall, just a quick notification to the public, if I understand it correctly.)