I consult for local utility operators (the companies that people actually pay their gas bill to). Odorant mixture is a big deal to manage. It also really sucks if anything leaks when installing/refilling/maintaining those tanks & injection systems. It was pretty funny seeing the reaction in the hotel lobby when a tech…

Since this post has a lot of scientific goodies, I’ll bring up that methane does not have a smell. The smell of natural gas is actually mercaptan being mixed with the gas on purpose for the smell. So, it would just be bursting into a slightly lesser flame than hydrogen. 

I didn’t know hitch towing was even a thing. That just sounds dumb with all the possible weak links versus using the frame. 

I was back and forth between them and Mitsubishi. Practically speaking, Chrysler is a dead horse that just keeps rolling downhill, but a ton of people know they exist and think it’s a real brand. When I owned a Mitsubishi, many people were shocked that I was able to buy a new one because they thought they stopped…

They got burned really bad with the last generation of Evos and the Chicken Tax has kept some of their potentially good products from ever even making it here. They really needed to make the CUV pivot a lot faster, so the car making arm has just been trying to survive in America. Because they have so many other…

This is probably correct. I owned an Outlander Sport before selling it about 5 years ago. I had multiple ask me about it and how old it was because they didn’t think Mitsubishi sold cars in America anymore.

Counterpoints by way of people: The “very fine people” of Charlottesville, Ajit Pai, Betsy Devos, Stephen Miller, Roger Stone, Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn, and Steven Bannon. Firing of Chris Krebs for saying the election was secure. The hundreds of federal judges pushed through that have established a nice pipeline…

Not only do people regularly hit deer, I know multiple people who have had a deer hit the sides of their cars on the highway. 

Absolutely blew the minds of a few MAGAs when I explained the basic economics of crude extraction, oil refining, and end user sales and how POTUS has virtually zero influence on it. Didn’t change their political leanings at all, but they did shut up about gas prices the rest of the day. 

Maybe your son is just a shitty candidate. But sure, blame minorities instead. I’m sure that bias doesn’t affect you hiring the most qualified candidate at all. You’re clearly perfect and have absolutely no ingrained bias that could affect your decision-making abilities.

An odd thing that I think has hurt VW is that people still ask me if my VW is a diesel. I feel like it’s been decades since that big campaign about the benefits of VW diesels and non-car people still associate them with having diesel engines. I doubt most Americans even know about their cheating, beyond seeing headline…

Michigan or New England falls are some of the best in the country. They also get cold, so a convertible/Wrangler is a risky play. I’ve also had very few good experiences in a convertible and just think I’m not a person who enjoys that kind of ride. So I’ll go with an Infiniti QX80 with a panoramic roof. A giant, slow,…

Toyota and Honda have made the biggest strides for that. Toyota was the worst early on for huge distances/touchy brakes and Honda was awful with the lane keep assist. My Toyota’s this year have been wayyy ahead of things just a few years ago.

For my work rentals, ACC is generally the most important thing for me. I’ll take a bad car with ACC over a nicer one without it, since highway cruising is the majority of my time. Across the spectrum, I think everyone has generally gotten better the last 5 years with improved following distances, softer braking for slo…

I do love Ford’s commitment to words for model names in the luxury space. The alphabet soup names are just annoying most of the time, but I’m sure having all the letters & numbers is something that the core luxury market either demands or doesn’t even notice beyond the main badge.

When calling something the best/worst, I think it is good to compare to both history and established standards when new. So, I’ll nominate the generation of Ford Focus that was built a self-destructive DCT.

That was a good video. I should have known “people in groups” is the real issue.

I’m going to jump in and say none. Getting a sporty version of regular cars has been a mess on our roadways with all the stupid X6M liftback SUV things, a 9000 pound Hummer with 1000 hp, and dozens of trucks/SUVs that are sub 7 seconds getting 0-60 while also getting bigger and heavier. Everything has been sportified.…

I almost always fly Southwest, so I’m not used to pre-picking my seat. I had to fly United/AA recently for a trip where I did have designated seats and that got me wondering - why not let the back of the plan on first? Then everyone fills out the plan from back to front and we’re not continuously stopping and waiting…

The religious block is who keeps them in power, that power is where the money comes from. This same Texas AG kept the FBI from prosecuting him by getting friendly judges to keep pushing his case out for 9 years while he kept getting re-elected. There is a lot of power in being a religious fanatic.