oldshurst442

Well, Suave...

Like I said...easily distracted drivers should not be able to be legally driving....Lyft and Uber and Taxi service and public transportation is as autonomous driving as it gets...

And...I agree with you...this kind of accident was inevitable and many more to come.

As for the fine print....some of us read it, some of us dont, but all of us NEVER listen to the message anyway...

Fine print is only good for the lawyers of those that produce the fine print to absolve any fault...

Its best that this 'helpful' technology go away...

Its time to re-evaluate how we teach people how to drive...

If it takes one person to die to prevent other idiots from abusing a system that clearly states driver interaction is required, them's the brakes. 

So....if it takes driver awareness to be able to have driver interaction to help autonomous driving prevent an accident....then what is the point?

1. Just be aware while you drive in the first place and cut this shyte with LCD screens and GPS maps and connectivity and JUST DRIVE the PHOKING CAR!!!

Do away with all these sensors and aids that are supposedly there to help us...they dont help us...they make us rely on them and make us lazier and dumber in the process...

2. DONT GIVE DRIVERS LICENSES TO EVERY TOM, DICK and HARRY...

Let these distracted and/or poor reflexes and poor judgement human beings use Lyft and Uber services  if those people dont want or cant use public transportation...

Ive got many questions that seems that NOBODY wants to ask or answer...

1. Uber drivers...do they actually own their cars?

Because the way I read into things is that most Uber drivers dont even own the cars they drive....

So who is stuck doing the maintenance on them?

The rental agencies?

And when a whole bloody fleet of rental cars get too old, who gets stuck with the bill of replacing these cars?

Because if more and more Lyft and Uber drivers are more and more enticed to rent rather than use their own cars, without any government body being able to enforce usage of good working order vehicles to taxi people around because as we all know....Lyft and Uber is NOT a taxi service....

Yeah yeah...I know....we dont want Big Brother telling us when and how to maintain our vehicles...but I as a passenger in a Uber car, because renting will be expensive  as it seems nobody wants to repair and the renter renting the traditional way will fit the bill.....have a right NOT having the wheels fall off or the brakes failing while I use their service and as a USER of the road in MY OWN car ALSO has that right NOT TO BE KILLED by a Uber car failing due to NO SERVICE being made to the Uber car by slamming into me....

2. I wonder if all these idiot Uber drivers, the ones that actually use their own cars, ever calculate the REAL costs of wear and tear maintenance, because if they did, I dont think they would be Uber drivers...

3. Which begs the question?

Why is Uber allowed to circumvent the laws in place in which they are allowed to say they are NOT a taxi service...

All what this does is just pass the buck around for faulty maintenance done on vehicles meant to carry passengers as a business...that is why a Taxi license exists in the first place....it may be a tax grab to some eyes....but there are laws protecting the buying customer with the other drivers sharing the road....

Its funny....

People that have old cars are submitted to all kinds of examinations to ensure that their old beater is road worthy, authentic taxi cars too, yet Uber and Lyft cars....NADA....

And when a 2-3 year old Lyft/Uber car becomes too dilapidated and  Lyft/Uber change for another car and the process continues....who fits that bill?

Because there will be an over saturation  of cars at this point in time...over time....

So Lyft/Uber wont change cars?

So....a 6 year old Lyft/Uber car aint old by time, so the government wont be able to track the car to take it off the road, but by mileage....the thing will be a shytebox...so who will take care of that?

Long rant..I dont know if anybody understood it....I dont care really...

Alls I know is I HATE Uber and Lyft because they have fooled many with their circumventing....

NO! NO THEY DID NOT REINVENT HOW TO TAXI PEOPLE AROUND....THEY ARE CIRCUMVENTING THE LAWS!!!

WHAT...THE FANCY APPS IS WHAT THEY DID?

A MERE TELEPHONE CALL DOES THE SAME PHOKING THING!!!

ON THE SAME PHOKING DEVICE ONE USES THE APP, ONE COULD USE THE PHOKING PHONE!!!

AND TECHNICALLY,  IN PHONE MODE, ONE COULD SAY THEY ARE USING THE PHONE APP!!!

AND IF ONE OWNS A IPOD, ONE COULD ACTUALLY DOWNLOAD AN ACTUAL PHONE APP TOO!!!

Greek porc or  chicken souvlaki/brochette marinade:

In a bowl, add olive oil and mix in garlic, oregano, lemon juice, salt_{(or chicken base, but stay off of the chicken base as it has MSG and this is about healthy stuff)} and pepper.

Dip the meat in the mixture, cover, and  refrigerate overnight. BBQ the next day. Marinade good for 10-14 days. Disregard marinade after use. You could baste the marinade on the meat while BBQing once or twice, just keep in mind that its oil you are splattering around so you must be aware of fire flare-ups.  All ingredients are measured to taste...

Greek chicken in the oven? Same ingredients as the marinade. A tad of olive oil on top of chicken to help brown, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic cloves and lemon slices on the side...squeeze some juice on top of chicken before setting the slices in the pot...

Simple as that. No secret to greek cuisine. Same ingredients....lemon, garlic and oregano.

Of course we use other spices too, but those are the 3 main ones...

 Tzatziki as a side dish dip is always a good idea. For the meat and for veggies..

Tomatoes, cucumbers, celery etc...eat it with pita bread.  

Lightly coat both sides of the pita bread with a mixture of olive oil and lemon juice and oregano and place it on the BBQ slightly browning both sides.

Ingredients for tzatziki: Greek yogurt, grated cucumber....lemon juice and garlic...lots of garlic...

Indian food is more rich and colourful in taste in my opinion. But I do prefer Greek cuisine over Indian cuisine...only because my taste buds have been pre-programmed to be in a Greek state of mind. Im just sorry that I did not get into Indian cuisine earlier in my life.

But this is about health and not taste preference.

Greek cuisine uses a lot of olive oil, lemon and garlic to which all three contribute in fighting bad cholesterol and help burn bad fat...but being active helps activate these features...

Like I said CCAP, I aint judging you for liking it..

I am judging the decisions that M-B is partaking to fill every niche...

It might have been part of the roof rack because it looked less "I just have money" and more "I use this for the utility" as well.

 

This is a thought that M-B should NOT be striving for in the North American market.

Fine for Europe. Fine for Africa and some parts of Asia...but NOT for North America.

As North Americans, we have a disposable way of thinking.

If its cheap, we dont value it and throw it away and we consume another one...

Over time, when M-B saturates our market with these types of "affordable" and less than royalty vehicles on our roads, we will make a connection that M-B is mainstream and cheap when all these affordable M-Bs will be rusting on our streets like POS Chevys and Fords....

In Europe, Europeans KNOW the history of M-B and M-B is kinda the home town favorite...

In North America, we were ALWAYS led to believe that M-B was ALWAYS an UBER  luxury brand because of the 1920s and 1930s era M-Bs and when M-B got back on its feet in the 1950s after WW2, North America ONLY GOT the luxury cars and NOT the mainstream cars and work trucks....

50...80....100 years of luxury perception will go up in smoke the way M-B is handling this in North America...

Dont believe me?

Cadillac was ALWAYS a luxury brand...ALWAYS....never mainstream....Cadillac NEVER had to go this way....Cadillac Cimarron aside...

Ghostbusters in 1984 and in 2016 makes us believe that Cadillacs are shyte boxes because of that sole mistake Cadillac made in the 1980s....

And selling large barges to old folk did not help...

So....what do YOU think will happen to M-B perception when all these CLAs, GLAs, C Class cars are rotting on our streets along side Camrys, Civics and Fusions....especially when teenaged kids are driving around in them thinking they are hot shyte....

I saw a 19 year old two days ago pull up at my drive-thru window in one of these...

Beat up to shyte...

Looked good then when brand new...pillar less roof line and all...

Now...it looked like that Ghostbusters Cadillac...

Saw a GLA45 AMG today.. Honestly.. looked pretty dang good in person. The guy had a roof rack on top(for whatever) and it looked really sporty and like "I do adventurous things in my spare time" kind of way. I really liked it. 

Yikes..._{(on the vehicle...not on you liking it...different strokes for different folks. Im all for live and let live type philosophies)}

Did Mazda sell the rights to their MazdaSpeed 3 to M-B and AMG?

Unexpected from the Expedition...bad pun/joke...lol

 

After all these years, I finally have a slight influence on you concerning bad puns and jokes!   

They say that one day, artificial intelligence will  rival and exceed human intelligence...and they say that that day will be coming sooner rather than later.  Faster than we think...

After this fatal accident, alls I could say is that we arent there yet.

I wanna make another point....I want to say that although artificial intelligence may be just around the corner, artificial stupidity has a very very very long way to go before it surpasses human stupidity...

A 40 year old put all his faith on a machine...on a technology that will probably NEVER be perfected as long as humans are in control...whether other humans are still driving on the very same roads as these machines or are in control of any input programming...

Darwinism in effect is alls Im saying...self destruction seems to be a human thing....

“I’m more focused on the overall package. Maybe not in the past, but we’ve moved to that, to a certain extent. Power should be in line with the overall capabilities of the chassis. It’s more important to have a precise throttle response than all that power. You need a certain level and in that segment, it’s around 600bhp.”

 

 

Take note anybody working at Cadillac...

THIS is a CLEAR message of where Mercedes is thinking and headed towards...

AWD, throttle response and minimum of 600 horsepower...

M-B definitely wants to leave the sledgehammer approach behind.

With the Viper dead and the Vette maybe going to the traditional mid-engine way, and Mercedes announcing this...Cadillac better be listening and adjusting their approach!

Controlled power that still hits you like a ton of bricks.

Not like the way it used to be...all that power being flung in any direction and with both hands on the wheel and still very hard to control....

Real drivers though, could master the sledgehammer approach. Tricky but doable.

On Sunday, I yelled at one of my employees for fooling around. And I really mean yelled at him.

I tolerate some horseplayin' but when too much is toooooo much, I gotta draw the line somewheres...

Well, the next day he bought me a 12 pack of these suckers...to....let me think and say it how he put it...

"to help me calm down and let my inner Bob Marley take control of shyte" 

Chill and relax he told me...

All in good fun. I love this kid and I know he loves me.

So I laughed...and I gave the staff to drink...what else was I supposed to do?

He said to let my inner Bob Marley take control....so I did!!!

What does this have to do with fitness you say?

Well, Im glad you asked...because I did not have any to drink that day...so I had a couple left over....drinking on the job aint allowed you see....(yeah yeah....Im the boss and I let my staff drink....that is the joke right there....SHEESH)

As I was saying, I had more than a couple left over so I decided to drink one just now....

Man....my stomach as we speak is bloated up like I am 40 weeks pregnant and the baby wants to come out now!

Never again will I drink beer or any other alcohol that causes my stomach to do that.

For a year now, Ive managed to keep the waist line as slim as I could get it without counting calories and minimizing fatty junk food that just gets stored in the waist line...Im doing quite well and no thanks to this dastardly yet delicious drink, I  dont feel good about it now...

PS: I dont drink any alcohol as is...even less now!

PSS: the box in the pic I posted says 8% while the one I drank was 6%...strange....

Nice purchase, Reg!

The only thing I dont like about the 2017 Malibu is the front end styling. But it is growing on me every time I see one in the wild.

And I see plenty...but then again, a GM store is a mere 5 minutes away from where I live....but then again, so is a Honda, Nissan, Mazda, Toyota and Ford store. The VW and Chrysler/Dodge is 5-8 short miles further.  So...the excuse that there is only a GM dealership in my town is a non-point.

NICE COLOUR YOU CHOSE!!!!

VERY NICE COLOUR YOU CHOSE INDEED!

Nice power ratings indeed.

Too bad it still looks like the Rosie O'Donnell of the automotive world.

It will sell, because of the badge in front, not because its a stunner.

Mind you, Porsche engineering is top notch!

I dont think Chevy needs to do anything other than just to stay on their present course toeing the line.

Why?

1. 1st generation Ford Fusion was a good first step in the right direction. 2nd generation Fusion and Ford just about got everything they needed to do right, got it right and now the Fusion is a force to be reckoned with. The refresh is just icing on the cake.

2. When GM did the Pontiac G6 and the Saturn Aura in 2005 and 2006, they did many things right so when the Malibu came in 2008, they created a 'Ford Fusion' situation in 2008 in where GM created a force to be reckoned with...

However, for the next generation and refresh, they dropped the ball big time...

Well, this 2017 Malibu rights the ship back unto the course where the 2008 model left off. However, CUVs  are what sell in 2017, so maybe huge sales numbers should not  be expected of this 2017 Malibu. But, be excited what Chevy will offer as the next Equinox knowing how  Chevy means business  with how they are producing their current line-ups...

Olds, the top trim is "Premier." Besides that, preach!

Premier....Premium...

Close enough. 

Old age is slowly creeping up on me and little mistakes like these will only increase with time.

I noticed I made another snafu....my buddy's wife went from a Chevy HHR to a Honda HR-V.....

I wrote that she had a SSR...

No. Not a SSR.

A HHR.

Yeah, CP....Ill continue to preach!

It doesnt seem fair to me that FINALLY GM gets it right with their interiors since the 1980s with their mid-sized family car offerings, that we have to bitch complain about nothing....especially since not only did GM get it right, they are actually LEADERS (with Ford) in this segment concerning their interior refinement and quality.

The Nissan Altima is chintzy, clunky and outdated.

So is the Toyota Camry's. Maybe not clunky, but definitely chintzy and especially outdated.

The Hyundai/KIA Sonata/Optima...are nicer than the Altima's and Camry's...more modern and sportier, but compared to the Chevy Malibu Premier, definitely not better quality....

And Im basing my opinions on all vehicle cabins being the top level trims as the base level trims on most cars are the same across the board...same amounts of hard plastics and same quality.

The top level trims of Chevy and Ford rival entry level premium luxury cars...such as Buick and Acura and Lincoln.

Honda Accord comes close, but not everybody else.

When was the last time Chevy and Ford being on top like that?

And if you dont think so...maybe you should pay a second visit to the Accord, Altima, Sonata and leave the rose coloured glasses at home...

I sat in a Premium 2.0T at the auto show.

My high school buddy who lives close to me and is  the only dude I have contact with from my high school years  recently just bought a Premium 2.0T.

_{(his wife went from a Chevy SSR to a Honda HR-V and he went from a Genesis Coupe 2.0T to the Malibu this year)}

And each time I have sat in the Malibu Premium, I come to the same conclusion...that the PREMIUM Malibu has an interior at the VERY LEAST that is ON PAR with anything else in that price range.

I personally think that a Malibu Premium has a nicer  interior than a 2013-2016 Fusion Titanium...and I already think that a 2013-2016 Fusion Titanium interior is pretty impressive at that price point.

OK...Ive also been in a 2013 Honda Accord....and in 2013, it was lacking in refinement....

Oh yes....a 2013 Accord Touring V6 was not exactly all that...cheap hard plastics galore...and if some of us at ChearsandGears even diss a 2013 Acura TL for cheapness...then I dont see how some of us are enamored with an Accord as the TL might have hard plastics...the tolerances are very tight and screwed together quite well.

The only thing that a 2013 Accord Touring has over a base 2013 Acura TL is that the price differential for the price of admittance for an "Acura" is not worth it. Step into a SH-AWD though...and the mechanicals tell a much different story. 

So to bring this back to the Malibu's interior, and the Fusion's to some extent,

Both dashs of an Accord, TL AND TLX are also CLUNKY...huge and outdated...

The Fusion is elegantly done and the Malibu just a tad less elegant, but certainly flows better than the Honda Motor Company's efforts...

Keep in mind that I actually own a 2012 Acura TL SH-AWD and a 2013 Ford Fusion 1.6 ecoboost SE.

Keep in mind that I LOVE my TL, but it doesnt mean that I dont feel claustrophobic at times when I look to my right and see that overwhelming huge and clunky center screen with a plethora of buttons...

The new generation still has that dated, clunky feel to it...

The Accord looks like its a generation older from the TLX....because it is....like the TL....huge, clunky....plethora of buttons....

Do the LCD screens fool us? Not me...

So....I think Chevrolet did a fantastic job with their 2017 Malibu....especially in Premium trim....

Not as clunky, and definitely flows better...with a more premium FEEL to it than even the TLX...keep in mind though that Acura has tighter tolerances and is screwed together better...

And the 2017  Fusion for reference for what I believe is the most simplest and most elegant...

Well, I dunno about all THAT. But I can report that even without a test drive it is a wonderfully strange car, in roughly equal measure. The bodywork is cute but a bit stubby in profile, the door openings are small, the side sills are huge, the carbon fibre tub is pure artwork, as are the pedals. The seats are snug to the point of being painful, and the dashboard would look chintzy in a Nissan Sentra, never mind a car that lists for 76 large, Canadian.

If I had Jay Leno money, you would be correct to think that Id have me one of these parked in the Eye-Talian section of my enormous Costco sized garage.

My grandkids will carry my folded, doughy rolls and if they don't, Grampy Fappy will eat them.

Good luck wit dat!

Those nasty-good-for-nothing-selfish brats are gonna be waiting for you to die...maybe even facilitate the event by pushing you off a ledge or something just so they can inherit your 1972 Gran Torino...

You might as well just kick the bucket now!

Why prolong the agony?

PS....you could leave your 1972 Gran Torino to me...Ill take good care of her as I respect you....unlike your nasty-good-for-nothing-selfish grand-kids.

Just like the movie....EXACTLY like the movie.

 

IAnd now that electrics are fast becoming a force to be reckoned with...

Define "fast"...

 

Yeah...I know your stance on the sales percentage/market share meter for electrics...

But I think these links answer the question at hand as best as information can for predicting the outcome of the future direction of the automobile...

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1099596_electric-cars-will-evolve-rapidly-by-2018-split-into-segments-by-price

https://www.nrdc.org/experts/roland-hwang/future-electric-vehicles-bright

http://careers2030.cst.org/articles/future-electric-cars/

http://jalopnik.com/how-evs-could-kill-gasoline-cars-starting-in-the-2020s-1761822759

Yes...I know....these 4 links are roses are red,  sky is blue with sunshine and lollipops in for good measure goodness for EVs...

(the first and last link seem to be less about opinion and more about logic)

But...one cannot deny the massive technological changes we are experiencing in the automotive industry involving the different types of propulsion and the immediate reception consumers are having with the latest trends and the global pressures of polluting less  that affect these changes in the GLOBAL automotive market place.

So...yeah....fast.

Especially when all major automotive manufactures want to offer to the people Tesla fighters....and even enter niches that Tesla is not competing in....please dont make me have to post proof on all the EV models that are slated to come to fruition by the various OEMs in the next 5-10 years....because it is tiring to do so...but its true what Im saying...and a decade in the automobile industry is a long time....but not concerning trends...the muscle car era came and went in a decade...the ricer era came and went in a little over a decade...the fullsized customized vans of the 1970s came and went in less than a decade...we are just now, entering the Twilight Zone concerning EVs and the market is only gonna get bigger...and especially when WORLD WIDE governments are pushing for EVs and pushing OUT FFBVs... (Fossil Fuel Burning Vehicles)

so...yeah....fast...

Relatively speaking.

I forgot about GM's Hy-Wire concept...

And now that electrics are fast becoming a force to be reckoned with...along with autonomous driving also becoming a thing...

I honestly believe that the HY-WIRE concept will be adapted and the steering wheel will either be like the Hy-WIRE or a Joystick with NO acceleration or brake pedals...

I dont think FCA makes it past 2021...maybe my year of choice is dramatized with The Terminator's Judgement Day for comedic effect, but I honestly dont think FCA has enough substance to make it alive past the next decade....

I think FCA will split up with a few casualties that wont make it, period.

Im fearing for Dodge. Viper is gone. Hemi V8s in mainstream cars is a question mark. Hellcat versions in Dodges are prolly going away but arent really bread and butter sellers anyway. No real mainstream vehicles anywhere for Dodge. No CUV. No worthy compact car. No up to date family sedan or bread and butter midsized SUV worth mentioning.

Fiat and Alfa Romeo...

One of them is dying....for sure! Depends who the Europeans decide they want to keep. Because in North America, I think both are gonna be non factors. Now that Genesis is a force soon to be reckoned with and Hyundai/KIA are more or less established.

Chrysler has a 50/50 chance of survival.

RAM also has a 50/50 chance of survival....if paired up with JEEP and sold to the highest bidder. I dont think Chrsyler is gonna be a part of that duo...so I fear greatly that Chrsyler may be lost.

So....basically I think this Giulia car and its variants are just prolonging the agony for the inevitable.

Who else thinks that FCA's days are numbered?

Knight Industries Two Thousand

 

David, did you like being Diamond Horse?

 

(Cause I know you're all about alternative transportation and them natural gases!!)

 I do not get the reference? What is a Diamond Horse?

 

A Diamond Horse is what A Diamond Dave rides on

After a real long night of Rockin' and a Rollin'

and boozin' and a cruisin'

Dont believe me?

Ask Diamond Dallas Page....he'll set you straight.

Oooooo......BAM!!!!