CARBIZ

You have to read The Earth Abides. If you don't have a lump in your throat at the ending (the Last Man on Earth who is 'educated' is piggy-backed on the back of one of his grandsons while what is left of SanFrancisco burns to the ground), then you are not human. This book more than others influenced my own writing (yes, I once fancied myself to be the 'new' Stephen King) and the type of books/movies I enjoy.

One of the best books is Gulliver's Travels - no kidding. When read against the background of Swift's contemporary Europe, it is a biting political satire, not the kid's story many believe. In his day, you could not openly criticize the Courts of Europe, so he invented fantastic worlds where gigantic people or tiny people existed and then skewered the Kings and Queens of Europe. I am a big, big reader of SF. Sadly, I threw out my collection of paperbacks (3 bookcases full) when I moved 18 months ago. I've ready virtually everything by Niven, Asimov and Heinlein, of course. An old, old book called The Earth Abides (written in '47, I think) was one of the earlier masterpieces, IMO. A great post-apocalyptic book about a man trying to resurrect Modern civilization after a plague wipes out 99% of the world's population. I blame everything on John Wyndham's The Crysalids: the first book I ever read without a teacher holding a gun to my head. After that, I read the Kraken Awakes, then in the summer of '74 started devouring the SF section in my localy library. In fact, I enjoyed tackling my grade 12 teacher a couple years later, who argued that SF was not serious writing at all. Unfortunately, I don't have time to read like I used to. I spend too much time on the internet or working.

I can't believe that this post is still being debated! The frames on a friggin' truck are rotting in HALF. Ford, at its worst in the late '70s never had FRAME ROT. This is a total joke, with the galvanization and rust-proof technology that is out there. This is no way to spin this away, Toyota. This isn't the '70s any more. Honda, Ford and others should be embarassed for what happened in the '70s, but Toyota should be sued for this $h! in the TWENTY FIRST CENTURY.

I read the same crap in the National Post today. Gee, aren't stats fun? Which is greater: if I have 3 hemorroids and have a 40% increase, that gives me 4.2 hemmoroids, or a 6% increase in the 350 zits I have? (Yeah, I know that isn't how you spell hemmoroids - this article isn't worth looking it up.) I hate f$%king analysts. If I stand in the middle of a busy intersection and yell, "Somebody's going to die," long enough I would eventually be proven right.

I agree with the steering column tilt: I hate the current trend toward the unlock, move and relock. Cumbersome and stupid. Headlight switches, who cares? With the photocell, I never used mine in years. I've had so many combinations of cruise controls over the years that I prefer them on the steering wheel, but the turn signal stalk works, too. I'm not overly enamored with the explosion of round gages and 'deep dish' bezels. Call me Old School, but can't someone come back with dashboard layouts like Chrysler used to use in the late '60s? They were clean and uncluttered. The '67 full-sized Chryslers had the best dashes on any vehicle, period. The dash in the '69-'71 'fuselage' Chryslers were also very cool. Everyone today has to look the same. Don't get me wrong, the new Malibu looks realy cool, as does the Civic, but can't someone start bucking the trend?

Working as a car jockey in a major hotel when I was (much) younger was the best training I ever had: I feel absolutely naked when I get out of a car if I don't feel keys in my hand. The last time I locked keys in a car, it was my '82 Rampage and I was in the middle of nowhere, literally - I was canoeing and we were on an abandoned gold mine road about 15 miles from the nearest house. When you work around cars you have an ingrained habit of keeping track of keys. Now, losing my keys in the back seat of a taxi because I was too drunk to sit up - well, that's another matter entirely.

I'm staying out of this political debate, but sufficeth to say that you guys got it pretty easy. Try $4.80 a gallon, which is what we are paying in Toronto right now. Try living in a city where they hate cars so much that they are literally waiting for the only highway connecting downtown to anywhere to fall down on its own so that they don't have to bother going through the political pain of actually tearing it down. Gas taxes? Almost half our fuel costs are gas taxes and almost NONE of it goes to roads or transit. Just another pork barrel. Oh, and our mayor is in China right now. Isn't that nice? I wish he would just stay there. Like, WTF is he doing there? Seeing if we can offshore more jobs? 16% of Toronto voted for him in the last election, yet he struts around mewling about more bicycle lanes, and (get this) our downtown streets are about to be choked by these wierd looking plastic bicycles that students will be pedalling the tourists around in. Great. Like the gridlock I drive through every day isn't quite enough! There is nobody to vote for, liberal or conservative, democrat or republican. The agenda gets hijacked during every election and none of the topics that matter to real people get discussed. It is always the usual suspects that come out of the wood work and control the conversation. There are so many taboo subjects these days, it is amazing we can speak of anything any more. I am 47 and I am literally witnessing my city - nay, my country, fall down around me. I should be mellowing with age, but I find myself wanting to reach for a rocket launcher. Either that, or move to an igloo somewhere.

Sorry, Dodgefan, but you Americans don't have the monopoly on lying, cheating scumbag politicians. Canada probably wrote the book. And our local mayor is an IDIOT. I would rather have Chuckles the Clown running Toronto - certainly couldn't do any worse.

Having had a 48" Hitachi rear projection TV that I bought new in 1994, when it came time to replace it (although it still worked fine, the years had taken their toll on the brightness of the colors), I looked at Pioneer and Panasonic but ended up with a 42" Hitachi plasma. Sony has always been too expensive, IMO. I liked the deeper blacks of the plasma, and in the end, decided to rely on my good luck with my previous Hitachi (BTW, my BF's boss still has it in her rec-room.) 18 months later, and the TV is great. I opted for the power swivel. Occasionally there is glare from one of the lights in the kitchen, but I can swivel it away. The TV is against a window, which isn't the best place, but the layout of my L-shaped living area makes the current location convenient for watching either at the table (rarely) or from the sofa. Of course, I paid $2,400 and now the same damned thing is about $1,200 ( Canadian dollar!)

Vote? Why bother? All we end up with is a 4 year dictatorship. Until politicians are held accountable for what they promise during elections, they will just lie and obfuscate during the eleciton, and then do whatever the f$@k they want for 4 years. Sometimes I wish that we had a real monarchy or dictatorship - then, at least we would know what we were in for.

Having just dodged a major transit strike in Toronto (the mayor and his cronies gave the union EVERYTHING that they wanted, including AUTOMATIC wage increases if any of the surrounding cities should - gasp! - get paid more than them!), I am not in a particularly pro-union mood these days. I mean, wouldn't it be nice to get sick days, paid birthdays off, full medical benefits, including unlimited glasses and dental? I just don't care what the unions want any more. Everyone else is tightening their belts and trying to live within their means, except them. Asia is about to eat all of our lunches, and these guys just don't get it.

I see doom and gloom sells over there, too.

Polygamy and pedophilia are two separate issues. Keep in mind that the true definition of pedophilia is sex with a prepubsecent child. As what Ven said, I've known polygamous gay relationships that were interesting and seemed to work for those involved. It takes a great degree of self confidence and maturity to make a group work well. As a general rule I don't think most people are capable of handling one other significant other, let alone more. Several years ago, I was involved in such a relationship. I thought I was handling it; unfortunately, it handled me. As I've said before, as a Society we are going to have to come to terms with the fact that the so-call 'nuclear family' is defunct and new models have to be examined if we are going to move forward.

I am sure union support is about to sink to an all time low around here: the local transit authority is poised to strike on Monday, throwing over a million commuters off the rails. $22 to sit on your ass and sell tickets? C'mon! The trouble is, these guys keep blocking any sort of progress, like hiring newer workers at a lower wage. Why is that so 'unfair?' I am so sick of unions.

How many detents do you need? Every GM and Chrysler that I owned that had the old tilt wheel worked just fine. Like was said above, the newer system is too cumbersome. I leave mine fixed in place and never change it because it is a nuisance. I wish they would ditch the import version and bring back the spring loaded tilt. Much better, IMO. Pretty soon we're going to expect the wheel to expand, mould and give us therapy while we drive...............

I am not going to comment on remarks made by a person who represents an institutution that has impeded human progress for 2 thousand years. Copernicus, condoms in Africa are just two examples. The ancients were far more advanced than what the papacy allowed during the Dark Ages.

I am sure Cadillac would argue that they have FOUR SUVs to satisfy most everyone's taste. It's the BOF design of these that makes the 3rd row seating a little inflexible.

As reported in the National Post yesterday, http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=445465 : "The online science magazine Tomorrow's Discoveries, which specializes in breaking major science news before it actually happens, reports the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science. The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 29 assisstant neutrons, some 100 deputy neutrons, and 222 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 352. These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes in contact. A minute amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second to take from four days to four years to complete. Governmentium has a normal half-life of four or five years. It does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the various 'flavors' of neutrons exchange places amongst themselves. In fact, Governmentiums mass will actually increase in size over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration. This hypothetical quality is referred to as critical morass. When catalysed with money, Governmentium becomes Superscale Civilservicium, an elusive element that radiates just as much negative energy as Governmentium, having fewer peons but twice as many morons." There, now you have it, boys and girls. Big government explained.

Glad to see you'll be staying in the GM fold! :AH-HA_wink:

It's said in marketing circles that a happy customer may tell 3 friends, but an unhappy customer will tell 10.

Undoubtedly, the Astro/Safari overstayed their welcome; however, I don't think I've ever encountered a more loyal band of fools that bought them. There were a lot of things not to like about those trucks, but durability was not one of them. I have customers who have owned 2 or 3 over the past 20 years and they swear by them. This is the same engine that Mercury Marine has used for many years as their V-6 maintstay. If someone wanted to slay those vans because of cupholders or bitch about the heavy bench seats in the back (because they were to f'ing cheap to buy a LT with the split buckets in the back), well that is their problem - not the vans.' We all know that the U-vans had spotty build quality in the first few years, but later years were better workhorses. If someone were to pay, say $5k more for a Odyssey or Sienna, surely they would not abuse them like the much 'cheaper' U-vans. I have seen a Venture only a month old with barf, chips and pop staining the carpets already! Y'think some prissy Scarsdale mom is going to let young Veronica and Thornton eat or drink in their Sienna? I've said this before and I will say this again: station wagons (which minivans basically are) get abused by families. That is what they are for. GM minivans probably get abused more, because of the mindset of the import humpers that buy the competition. There were 5Xs more '67 Chevy wagons sold as Cadillac DeVilles, but you'd be lucky to find a '67 wagon on the road these days - that doesn't mean the sheet metal or build was that much worse, just how they were treated when new.

...are they going to use Swiss Cheese for the box frames, like the Tacoma? Or have the Koreans moved on to polymer injected balsa wood?

Okay, you're trying to make the Toyota concepts look good, aren't you? BTW, the heading should read: BEST FORGOTTEN Concepts. Now look what you've done: my eyes hurt!

<-- Me being jealous. Gorgeous cars from an era when cars were cars, men were men and sheep were nervous................... I'd be curious to know how you felt actually driving the beast, not because of its size or anything, but the differences in suspension/steering technology from 40 years ago. Those boats were 'state of the art' for '67, but that was NINETEEN SIXTY SEVEN. (I remember that year, it was the year my family moved to Vancouver.) If that car has anywhere near the mileage on it that I do, it would be well-worn, indeed. Pardon my French, but are any of the parts from the similar age Toronado interchangeable with the Eldo? <-- I bow down in your vast experience of refurbishing cars (I barely know which end of the screwdriver to hold: you do know how many gay guys it takes to put in a lightbulb, don't you? Answer: two. One to stir the martinis and the other to call the electrician!)

I tend to disagree about the city numbers. Highway numbers are all to do with the lock up torque converter, gear ratios, aerodynamics, etc. City driving has a lot to do with the driver. Small engines pushed hard will get lousy real world numbers. Sure, if you drive like my great aunt in her ancient Cutlass International, then you will probably get amazing mileage with a 1.6 engine, but not if you drive like me. Americans are used to 6 cylinders and larger. Going from 200 lb ft of torque down to the anemic kind of torque a lot of <2.0 litre engines put out will result in disappointing (to say te least) mileage ratings. I am glad that the Cobalt is starting to get a little respect. While the media has been getting all rabid about plastics and cupholders, the Cobalt has been winning over legions of fans for over all reliablity, power, handling and versatility. Unlike Honda (the Take it Or Leave it Company), the Cobalt has a lot of interesting packaging available. Frankly, I am getting excited about the Cobalt replacement, since GM has proven (at least) with this car that it can run with the pack. Now, let's see it leave them in the dust.