Style & Culture
Mad Max
Fri Nov 22 2013 00:07:43 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
JFK on that fateful parade route in Dallas November 22, 1963. The 1961 Lincoln’s incredible history continued long after the tragic events that unfolded in Dallas. Only five months after Kennedy’s assassination, the car was fully rebuilt, upgraded with bulletproof armor, and returned to the Presidential motorcade. It would remain in service for another 13 years.
Mad Max
Wed Oct 30 2013 15:26:32 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
"The Big Wheel" (1979) is a smallish, 250cc motorcycle with its rear wheel lifted off the floor and making contact with an adjacent 8-foot, 6,000-pound cast-iron flywheel. When the bike is revved for a few minutes, the big wheel can get going at 200 rpm and subsequently spin for an hour and a half on its own momentum—a steroidal rendering of clothespinning a playing card to a bicycle sprocket to produce the sound of a motorcycle engine. Artist Chris Burden
Mad Max
Wed Oct 23 2013 15:53:53 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Celebrity Cars are just like any other car except a Celebrity is driving! You night think this sounds crazy but attaching a celebrity's name to a car can do wonders. At auctions such as Barrett Jackson, Celebrity Cars can fetch premiums of $10,000 - $50,000 above and beyond the market price of the car just because of celebrity ownership.
Mad Max
Wed Oct 23 2013 16:14:43 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Five reasons why Priuses suck... hilarious!!
1. Ostentatious
Alright, full disclosure: I drive an entry level BMW sedan that cost me little more than a fully loaded Honda Accord. Nothing too showy. And yet, I have had more than one Prius driver admonish me for driving something so "ostentatious". Prius driver's love that word, "ostentatious". They fling it like a monkey flings its poo at any car they deem too "white collar".
Well-- as someone who's awesome once said, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." Something that is "ostentatious" is intended to attract attention and impress people. And if you looked up the word "hypocrite", you'd find a photo of a Prius driver. There are plenty of great looking hybrid cars out there, but only one that screams, "Look! Look at me! I'm in a hybrid, and therefore morally superior to you!" The Prius is easily the most smug car on the planet, let alone one of the most ostentatious.
In 2007, when a large survey asked, "Why did you purchase a Prius?" The majority of Prius owners answered, "It makes a statement about me." NOT, "Because it's good for the environment." NOT, "Because it saves money on gas." No-- they bought it for the image. "Ostentatious" indeed.
2. Environmentally & Economically Stupid
I'm not going to try to claim that a Hummer H3 is more economical than a Prius. Sure there was a study done, but the method of achieving those results was asinine. No. Priuses are green, I agree. That said, I've heard far too many Prius owners claim they bought their car because it's the *greenest* car on the road. There’s only one problem with that. Priuses aren’t the greenest car on the road.
Generally speaking, the greenest car on the road a well-maintained *used* car. Why? Because most of the pollution a car generates over its lifetime is created during the process of actually making the car. By purchasing a used car, the pollution generated by the car’s construction is on the shoulders of the individual who bought it new. The last time I checked, there was a waiting list for new Priuses. Environmentally conscious indeed.
But fine, let’s say that’s a technicality. You want a new car. Alright... Priuses still aren’t the greenest car. In 2011, the ACEEE ranked the Prius as the fourth greenest car available. The Smart Car, with it’s non-hybrid, internal combustion engine ranked third. The Nissan Leaf came in second. The greenest car currently on the road is the Honda Civic GX, which is powered by natural gas. The Prius is green. Heck it's very green. But it's not *the greenest* car. It's only the greenest hybrid... and hybrids have a problem, their battery.
It’s going to be fun in a few years when I get to edit this list and discuss the millions of used hybrid and electric car batteries we'll be trying to dispose of. If you want to think long term when buying a green car, go get yourself a used Smart Car or a Honda Civic GX.
As far as economics go, the Honda Civic GX is the same price as a Prius, and it’s greener. Even better-- Smart Car’s sell for less than $15,000 and they’re also greener. Even if you just buy a normal used Honda Civic, it'll take Prius drivers years before they recoup the added expense of purchasing a hybrid.
3. Prii
"Prii" (pronounced pree-eye). That is the correct plural form of the word, "Prius".
Why do I refuse to use it? Because along with everything else involving this asinine car, it’s smothered with a big, heaping pile of self-satisfied smugness. You never hear anyone just say, "Prii". What they actually say is, "Prii", then follow it up after the awkward silence with, "Yes, that’s the correct word."
Good for you, dingus. How nice of you to make everyone else in the room feel dumb. Good to know your sense of superiority doesn't diminish when you get out of your car. I use "Priuses", even though it's wrong, because unlike you I’m not desperate to prove I’m the smartest person in the room.
4. Ugly
Could there be a car on the road designed to be more unattractive?
It's not that the car is horrible to look at; there of plenty of cars that could beat the Prius in that department. It's the sense you get that the Prius was *intentionally* designed to look that way (hideous) in order to distance itself from all of those "ostentatious" beautiful cars Prius drivers hate so much. At least with most ugly cars you can tell the designers at least tried to make it pretty... they just failed. Prius owners will try to tell you that it's just a nice unassuming car. No-- sorry. This isn't a case of wearing your favorite pair of jeans. This is the automotive equivalent of intentionally wearing rags to a black-tie ball so you can feel morally superior to all of those phonies who showed up in tuxedos and gowns. It's just more of that Prius Driver brand of unwarranted self-superiority.
5. Forces you to drive like a Jerk
What's the first rule of driving? "Keep your eyes on the road." And what do Prius drivers do? Stare at their MPG. In any car, that's dangerous. And while you could argue that this problem is true for anyone who drives a hybrid, Prius drivers in particular seem to be *obsessed* with it. As the show "Top Gear" proved, when driven normally, Priuses get worse mileage than an M3. To really get that "Prius" level of MPG you have to drive like a putz, accelerating slower than the flow of traffic, and braking more while going downhill. In a nutshell, Prius drivers cruise at a speed based on their MPG instead of the average pace of the cars around them. In other words, Prius drivers typically drive like self-absorbed jerks.
Say what you want about Ferraris and Porsches, but unless you're in a movie, when they're surrounded by traffic they drive at the same speed as everyone else. They're forced to, otherwise they'd be the first to be pulled over. It's the Prius drivers who drive like they own the road, not the wealthy in their sports cars. Yet another issue heaped upon us by the self-importance of the "morally superior" Prius owner. No thanks. I'll talk a Smart Car please.
Mad Max
Sun Oct 20 2013 02:31:08 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Rachael Clegg stars in her own calendar celebrating the TT. www.rachaelclegg.com
Mad Max
Wed Oct 16 2013 17:08:54 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
The New York to LA 60 hour record attempt in a 1930 Ford Model A came to an end just outside of Amarillo, Tex., on Tuesday afternoon. After having covered more than 1,700 miles with little incident, aside from an overheating issue in Zanesville, Ohio, that ate up several hours, the car driven by Australians Rod Wade and Michael Flanders suffered a broken crankshaft. The duo planned to set a new record for a pre-war car by driving in their 1930 Ford Model A nicknamed Tudor Rose across the U.S., with the car being fresh from successfully completing the Peking to Paris rally, coming in 23rd out of more than 90 cars.
Mad Max
Sat Aug 03 2013 18:44:13 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
It's been 30 years since "National Lampoon's Vacation" with Chevy Chase and Beverly d'Angelo first graced American theaters, much to the chagrin of all families named Griswold. But one couple used the anniversary to drive a newly built Wagon Queen Family Truckster on a vacation to Disney World. No word on if they had to bring their own Helper sans hamburger.
Steve and Lisa Griswold of Canton, Ga. own a travel agency — of course — and after years of jokes and questions about whether Steve knew where his sandwiches had been, the couple decided to embrace the fun with a trip to Disney World. Griswold hooked up with a Georgia tuning shop which managed to recreate George Barris' ode to woody wagons using an appropriate Ford LTD Country Squire in a matter of weeks, down to correctly matching the color described by Eugene Levy in the movie as "metallic pea." This being the 21st century, where children shall never be further than 10 feet from a screen at all times, the Truckster 2.0 comes with a DVD player, pre-loaded with the fictional Griswolds' odyssey — viewable from the Family Trucksters' rear side-facing bench seats.
The modern Griswolds did make one other concession to reality by sparing any dogs or elderly aunts the journey.
Mad Max
Fri Jun 14 2013 02:01:08 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
In November of 2009 we purchased the surviving Peterbilt truck and Tank Trailer from the 1971 Film "DUEL" The truck was built for the extension of the film in 1974 and was a stand by truck for Universal to use in the film. We plan on making some more films of this truck and we also have just purchased a Plymouth Valiant to go with the truck! Stay Tuned!!
Mad Max
Thu Dec 20 2012 22:54:21 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
The Volkswagen and Audi tuning scene has had many styles, phases, and trends come and go. As of lately, there has been a movement of people who think it's cool to make their cars pretty much non-functional to drive (suspension-wise) and dump a lot of time and money into ruining a car that has the potential to be so much more.
This video is about a vehicle that has been revived from the dead into a machine of performance, class, and beauty. This car embodies the timeless style of what a proper MK2 GTI (or modified Volkswagen in general) has always been destined to be. This car was built with blood and sweat over a course of five years, not a single bolt unturned by it's owner. This is Jason Rivkin's Supercharged 1987 VW GTI VR6. Repost and share this video around the web!
Mad Max
Mon Dec 03 2012 03:03:57 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Biggest crash in NASCAR history. In 1960 Daytona Superspeedway hosted this sportsman race. 68 cars entered into the race, back then there were a maximum of 68 cars in a superspeedway race. Coming out of turn four 37 cars get into a massive wreck where at least six cars get on their roofs. Amazingly, evryone walked away from this.
Mad Max
Tue Nov 20 2012 15:17:15 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Driving around, watching idiots once again.
The Jaywalker, gets away unharmed, and the guy is left to pay for damages, pay for his hospital treatment - just because a stupid pedi ran across the street.
Jaywalking is a $250 dollar fine where I live. Jaywalking is:
1) If you are crossing or attempting to cross the road and you are outside of the crosswalk.
2) If you are crossing, or attempting to cross the road when the "Do Not Walk" is lit or
flashing, or if you are facing a red light.
Regarding the guy in the rental Charger:
When I say "you're on 17th ave" - I'm referring to our "bar strip" in town, lots of people, cars, etc - and this dink is driving like an absolute idiot down the road, gunning it, swerving, trying to be cool. Notice the douche lean.
"Why haven't you taken it down?", people asked me, due to the police investigation. Unlike other incidents on YouTube, like lane splitting at 300 KM/H in BC, being caught on a BMW forum for speeding 100 KM/H over the limit, I am posting an opinion, an expression, on others bad driving habits. This is a freedom stated in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. (Known more commonly as free speech). I am not speeding, I am not stunting, pulling wheelies, burning out my rear tire, honking unnecessarily. If there becomes a ticket regarding the pedi crossing the road, they will be setting a precedent that jaywalking is in fact LEGAL (which, it is NOT), and selective policing would be evident. It may be a controversial event, a lot of attention has stemmed from it, but I am not removing it because I have NOTHING to hide.