Ever since I can remember there was a rule concerning gasoline and sources of sparks. I mean this was a serious rule. No matches, no electricity and even no wearing of glasses while working around gasoline because the sun might get magnified too much and light off the stuff. Being kids we had to test the rule but by and large, after a small fire or two we decided it was a good rule. Now we fast forward to the technology of today.
Almost every automobile, van or truck that you drive that is powered by an internal combustion engine requiring gasoline as fuel has an "electric" fuel pump to get that gasoline into the firing chamber to make that vehicle go. Guess what? Those fancy electric gas pumps are most often installed inside the fuel tank.??????????? The rule is changed. I don't know how to figure it out any more. Once again I am behind the eight ball when it comes to new technology. I missed the part where it says electricity and gasoline aren't dangerous any more.
Just when this all came about I am not quite sure. Being of sound mind and body, as I became an adult I preferred not to put that rule to any sort of test. I was secure in the fact that if I put a spark to gasoline it'd go poof and I just may lose life or limb. I sort of like and enjoy having life and limbs. As far as I was concerned why mess with the status quo. Now I find I am doing it every day when I drive my trusty truck with an electric motor whirring away deep inside my gas tank. One loose connection, one bare wire, one simple electrical overload or short and I can see the back end of my truck heading to the moon.
One more chance to get out my trusty research hat and assure myself that I am safe from such a cataclysm of fireball devastation. The people that designed this ingenious method of gasoline dispensing also designed the Isetta's, Yugo's, Vega's and Many other short lived vehicles we bought at one time or another. Now that makes us all sleep better doesn't it?
Showing posts with label cars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cars. Show all posts
Monday, April 16, 2012
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Chevy Volt/Writing stories
I had a real treat yesterday, I drove a Chevy Volt. You know, the new electric car from the New General Motors. I hadn't yet seen one up close and personal yet but have been very interested and hoped to inspect one at a dealership sometime this spring. Geez! What a neat car. Nice styling similar to the Chevy Cruze, interior roomy enough to be comfortable, really cool instrumentation resembling the inside of a small airplane cockpit, quiet of course what with an electric motor and all, but the most pleasant surprise was the snappy acceleration. I've driven dozens of electric cars since back in the 1960's and my experience was they were all rather sluggish when it came to getting up to traffic speed. Not this time! In a matter of seconds I was cruising at 65MPH with power to spare. Actually faster than some of the so called economy cars I've driven and owned in the past. If a person goes electric they don't have to give up much in the way of performance with the Volt. Now that I have first hand experience I can see a future for the Volt or similar vehicles. I believe the price has to come down about 30% or 40% though and I'd really like to see the distance you can travel on a charge go way beyond the 40 mile limit it has now. Sure, it has a backup gasoline motor and well it should but the whole purpose is to use the electric motor right? Perhaps those two little ideas of mine are the reason they have stopped production for a month or so because buyers aren't rushing through the door to purchase a Volt. I'm not an engineer but to me, price and distance mean a lot. If you want a real driving experience stop by a dealership and take a Volt for a spin. You'll be glad you did. No, I am not selling cars now. Just reaching out to the future. I'm sure you saw the price of gas at the pump today: $4.19 a gallon and it's looking to go up. We have two viable options at the moment. Electric or natural gas. You might as well give them a try.
When it comes to my writing there never quite seems to be enough time to my stories published. If the truth be known it's not really the time. It's my basic fear that if a real editor gets their hands on my stories they will ruin the essence of them. Talk about arrogance huh? I am not a writer. I do spin some pretty good stories though. In the right hands those stories would become perhaps epic. Maybe not. But I'll never ever know if I don't start doing something soon. One of them dates back to 1969. I guess I don't like to rush things do I? Or, do I sense a bit of procrastination here?.............Spring is in the air. Let's see what happens this year.
When it comes to my writing there never quite seems to be enough time to my stories published. If the truth be known it's not really the time. It's my basic fear that if a real editor gets their hands on my stories they will ruin the essence of them. Talk about arrogance huh? I am not a writer. I do spin some pretty good stories though. In the right hands those stories would become perhaps epic. Maybe not. But I'll never ever know if I don't start doing something soon. One of them dates back to 1969. I guess I don't like to rush things do I? Or, do I sense a bit of procrastination here?.............Spring is in the air. Let's see what happens this year.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Drag racing, history, Joe's Story and Teenagers
From the very first page it is clear in "Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime" that in the not too distant past, the word freedom had a slightly different meaning. As one exuberant reader put it: "Those of us over 50 will know those things happened all the time. Those who are under 5o will wish they had enjoyed the same adventures." Joe's Story is often a really enjoyable bit of U.S. history.
Automobiles were a sign of passage for most all young people but most specificaly for men. Squealing tires, burning rubber, loud "Cherry Bomb" mufflers, straight pipes and "Lakers." Rag tops, Lead Sleds, Reverb radios, Spinners, slicks, Continental kits, fender skirts, Frenched headlights, cams, carbs and solid lifters all added to the cruising experience. Of course, those hopped up cars were hopped up for a reason, and it was usually drag racing. I did my share of drag racing right along with most other guys I knew. I spoke with one of those guys the other day and we reminisced about a race we had that never really got off the ground. He had a "64" Chevy with a 409 engine, I had a "64" Pontiac GTO with a 389 engine. He had Dual Quads and I had Trips for carburation, We both had 4 on the floor transmissions. Those muscle cars were made to drag race. We went way out on a country road around midnight and squared off side by side. A friend stood in the middle of the road and dropped a handkerchief flag us to start. He took off like a shot, so did I. The problem was he went forward but I went backward. I had mistakenly left my car in reverse. He went to the end and came back demanding his $20, for that was what we were racing for. I asked if we could do it over, it was simply a mistake on my part. He said fine and we squared off again, the handkerchief dropped and tires burned and squealed. He went racing to the end, one of my tires blew out and went flat almost ruining the rim before I could stop. He went to the end and returned, again demanding his $20. I asked if we could do it once again, double or nothing, no excuses. He like the idea of possibly going home $40 richer. I changed my tire, we squared off, engines revving, hearts pounding, the hankerchief dropped, clutches popped and we both took off like bullets from guns, side by side, banging into second gear at literally the same time, engines screaming and tires squawking announcing the added power neck and neck, his transmission almost exploded and he lost three gears while I continued to the finish line. I returned, oblivious to the fact that his transmission was junk and asked very nicely for my $40. He gave me a barage of verbal abuse worthy of a boot camp sargeant. After he explained about his transmission I apologized and told him I had no idea and he cooled off. Then he set off to go home driving in 3rd gear, the ony one that worked, at 25 niles an hour with me right behind him in case it broke again. Luckily he made it home and I helped him fix it over the weekend. So much for that race that never really happened.
Yeah, stuff like that happened all the time. That's the way it was during that time. Not everything turned out perfect then either. But, it sure seemed like a lot of fun while it was going on. I'm sure you'll enjoy reading all about them in Joe's Story and sometimes it will take your breath away.........................Joe
Automobiles were a sign of passage for most all young people but most specificaly for men. Squealing tires, burning rubber, loud "Cherry Bomb" mufflers, straight pipes and "Lakers." Rag tops, Lead Sleds, Reverb radios, Spinners, slicks, Continental kits, fender skirts, Frenched headlights, cams, carbs and solid lifters all added to the cruising experience. Of course, those hopped up cars were hopped up for a reason, and it was usually drag racing. I did my share of drag racing right along with most other guys I knew. I spoke with one of those guys the other day and we reminisced about a race we had that never really got off the ground. He had a "64" Chevy with a 409 engine, I had a "64" Pontiac GTO with a 389 engine. He had Dual Quads and I had Trips for carburation, We both had 4 on the floor transmissions. Those muscle cars were made to drag race. We went way out on a country road around midnight and squared off side by side. A friend stood in the middle of the road and dropped a handkerchief flag us to start. He took off like a shot, so did I. The problem was he went forward but I went backward. I had mistakenly left my car in reverse. He went to the end and came back demanding his $20, for that was what we were racing for. I asked if we could do it over, it was simply a mistake on my part. He said fine and we squared off again, the handkerchief dropped and tires burned and squealed. He went racing to the end, one of my tires blew out and went flat almost ruining the rim before I could stop. He went to the end and returned, again demanding his $20. I asked if we could do it once again, double or nothing, no excuses. He like the idea of possibly going home $40 richer. I changed my tire, we squared off, engines revving, hearts pounding, the hankerchief dropped, clutches popped and we both took off like bullets from guns, side by side, banging into second gear at literally the same time, engines screaming and tires squawking announcing the added power neck and neck, his transmission almost exploded and he lost three gears while I continued to the finish line. I returned, oblivious to the fact that his transmission was junk and asked very nicely for my $40. He gave me a barage of verbal abuse worthy of a boot camp sargeant. After he explained about his transmission I apologized and told him I had no idea and he cooled off. Then he set off to go home driving in 3rd gear, the ony one that worked, at 25 niles an hour with me right behind him in case it broke again. Luckily he made it home and I helped him fix it over the weekend. So much for that race that never really happened.
Yeah, stuff like that happened all the time. That's the way it was during that time. Not everything turned out perfect then either. But, it sure seemed like a lot of fun while it was going on. I'm sure you'll enjoy reading all about them in Joe's Story and sometimes it will take your breath away.........................Joe
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Worldwide automobile recall
Look for an upcoming recall of every motorized vehicle ever driven on the American highways. It's coming soon. It appears that every car, truck, van, semi, or motor home is defective. here are some of the findings:
Vehicles consistently fail to stop and hit other vehicles, signs, buildings or other obstacles.
They accelerate beyond the legal speed limit without cause in radar zones.
They wander aimlessly all over the road. (This malady is most apparent on Friday and Saturday nights.)
They wear out over time and cost money to fix immediately following the end of the warranty period.
Just before accidents the steering inexplicably becomes defective.
They fail to fit into parking spots on busy streets without extreme effort.
They run out of gas at unexpected times.
No matter the type, style or color of vehicle, most lose value at an uncontrollably fast rate.
It's pretty obvious from this intense research that motorized vehicles are all defective and should be recalled and replaced at no charge to the owner. I, of course remain neutral on the subject as I am not particularly knowledgeable on the intricacies involved here. My resources are limited to news reports and my own vehicles that provide me with personal transportation. All these recalls befuddle me but I can see that through diligence and research by wise people we learn about such stuff. Incredible!.....................Joe
Vehicles consistently fail to stop and hit other vehicles, signs, buildings or other obstacles.
They accelerate beyond the legal speed limit without cause in radar zones.
They wander aimlessly all over the road. (This malady is most apparent on Friday and Saturday nights.)
They wear out over time and cost money to fix immediately following the end of the warranty period.
Just before accidents the steering inexplicably becomes defective.
They fail to fit into parking spots on busy streets without extreme effort.
They run out of gas at unexpected times.
No matter the type, style or color of vehicle, most lose value at an uncontrollably fast rate.
It's pretty obvious from this intense research that motorized vehicles are all defective and should be recalled and replaced at no charge to the owner. I, of course remain neutral on the subject as I am not particularly knowledgeable on the intricacies involved here. My resources are limited to news reports and my own vehicles that provide me with personal transportation. All these recalls befuddle me but I can see that through diligence and research by wise people we learn about such stuff. Incredible!.....................Joe
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Truth or lie?
What do you say?
"Hey look, I just got back from traveling over a thousand miles to buy this used car down in Louisiana. I spent the high dollar for it because it's in almost perfect shape, the color is perfect, the engine is just what I wanted and the leather interior is really, really rare on this model. It took me over a year and a half to find it and it cost my entire saving and I had to borrow some too. I just love it! What do you think Joe? How do you like it? Come on, be honest now."
????? How would you handle that? The car has been abused. It's not a particularly appealing shade of green to me. The interior smells like a dead mouse. The engine has a reputation for blowing out head gaskets and costing thousands to repair and there are several places that show obvious botched cosmetic repairs. Do I tell the honest truth? This car is trashed. He's already laid out the money for it. He's already spent all the time and inconvenience traveling to retrieve this special car. How's he going to feel if I tell him it's junk?
"Honesty is the best policy!" We're always told. Yeah right! What if it wasn't a car we were talking about? What if it was some sort of elective, irreversible, cosmetic surgery? When it comes to books it is the critic's job to tell the truth as he/she sees it. Critic's are notoriously honest. I wonder if they are always so honest when it comes to other things? I wonder a lot of stuff sometimes. Honestly, I do!............................Joe
"Hey look, I just got back from traveling over a thousand miles to buy this used car down in Louisiana. I spent the high dollar for it because it's in almost perfect shape, the color is perfect, the engine is just what I wanted and the leather interior is really, really rare on this model. It took me over a year and a half to find it and it cost my entire saving and I had to borrow some too. I just love it! What do you think Joe? How do you like it? Come on, be honest now."
????? How would you handle that? The car has been abused. It's not a particularly appealing shade of green to me. The interior smells like a dead mouse. The engine has a reputation for blowing out head gaskets and costing thousands to repair and there are several places that show obvious botched cosmetic repairs. Do I tell the honest truth? This car is trashed. He's already laid out the money for it. He's already spent all the time and inconvenience traveling to retrieve this special car. How's he going to feel if I tell him it's junk?
"Honesty is the best policy!" We're always told. Yeah right! What if it wasn't a car we were talking about? What if it was some sort of elective, irreversible, cosmetic surgery? When it comes to books it is the critic's job to tell the truth as he/she sees it. Critic's are notoriously honest. I wonder if they are always so honest when it comes to other things? I wonder a lot of stuff sometimes. Honestly, I do!............................Joe
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