That reminded me of the time last year when I saw someone using a very tidy-looking Beta Spider to launch a boat from a trailer. How it survived that long being used for that, I have no idea!

I'm fairly sure it was actually the importers (especially Mercedes-Benz, who were trying to stop gray imports of the 500SEL) who got the Motor Vehicle Safety Compliance Act passed- the US dealers didn't want competition from people importing cars themselves.

Why are a company from a country infamous for eating dogs making a car called the K-9?

One problem with the 1007 is that when open, the doors extend past the rear bumper. They also IIRC open electrically, so it's tricky to stop them opening before they ding the car behind you (plus the motors add weight). I don't know if the B-Max has this problem or not.

And then, of course, there's the Speed Twelve- the car that TVR wouldn't sell because they thought it was too dangerous.

Deleted- damn you nibbles!

@audifan7: I'm surprised that micro-overtaking happens in the US. In Europe it's common because trucks are fitted with speed governors, which have a small margin of error. If one truck has its governor set at 56.5 mph comes up behind another with it set at at 55.5 mph, the driver will want to overtake- he prefers to…

@LandofMinos: Miyata?

So Clarkson now wants to rule Albania? I didn't know he liked it there that much...

@underwear-ninja: The base 116i in the UK only just squeaks over that (it's £18580, which is about $30200). On the other hand, that's OTR (so after taxes etc.)

Alpina never went away...

Could that be something to do with BMW Motorrad competing with Triumph Motorcycles? I think the cycle and car divisions of Triumph separated in the 1940s, but I don't know if the names are considered separate or not.

First-generation?

I spend quite a bit of time in rural bits of the US (Vermont)- the police up there don't see too much action (knock on wood), and the one police chase I remember in my area ended with the perp crashing his Camaro and running into the woods, leaving his friend unconscious in the passenger seat. He successfully evaded…

You still can't outrun Officier SAGEM.

I think the reason why American police buy Panthers is that because of the size of the country, one car has to do everything. So your US cop in a Crown Vic will see a reckless driver, and head after him in a high-speed pursuit. The pursuit will eventually end (possibly with a PIT), and the cop will throw the perp in…

@tonyola: This is an interesting mix of tree and floor shifter- it's a floor shifter with no linkage (the lever goes straight into the top of the transmission) but you move it in a vertical plane (though one that's across the car rather than front-to-back) and the shift knob is high enough off the floor that on a…

@Tommy Five: +1 to the "have to sit in traffic every day". In the UK, where over 80% of cars sold are manual and a bigger percentage than that of drivers learn in a manual*, most London taxis seem to be automatic.

@wkiernan: On the other hand, if it has a dogleg or reverse down and to the right, then he's in trouble...

There was recently a tanker-truck accident on a major road near where I live, resulting in an ethanol spill. Newspaper report: