Alfa Romeo Matta, because how many of you have even heard of it, much less seen one?

I felt sympathy for the California company when I found they had their pipeline cut by an anchor. Then I found they sat on alarms for 3 hours before shutting off the pumps and that sympathy drained away. Sigh.

ABC News added that “it wasn’t clear” how much oil had spilled from the tank.

Working in the chemical industry I’m curious why a seal leak would lead to a spill that lasts long enough to be captured on video by air. There should be an isolation valve between the tank and the pump(s), typically a valve on either side of the pump. 

The Lada Niva. Lada sits just above Yugo on the “respected brands” totem pole, but the Niva is a tough little fucker that was built for people whose idea of a road barely qualifies as most Americans idea of a trail, so when they say “off road” they really mean it. With excellent approach, departure and breakover…

I suspect that’s because at least in Jalop-land they are not underrated. Most everyone around here loves and respects the Lada.

Not a single vote for Ladas? I’ve seen those things in places in Central Asia where no vehicle this side of a heavily modified Kamaz should be.

Those Isuzu Troopers were complete crap seemingly made out of recycled beer cans. I had one in Alaska. It wouldn’t even get the cabin warm enough to take off my gloves in mild (by AK standards) weather. The main bearing went out at 60K miles. Any slight corner made it feel like you were going to tip right over. Great…

I was thinking the bike was a backup plan if he gets stuck.

That guy is a Jalop hero.  He drives the Vic into the trails so he can ride the bike without getting too worn out on the way in.

I’ve got a buddy who rabbit holed a Prev, parts were difficult to find to say the least. He had the all wheel drive one, but not supercharged if I am recalling.
He spent way too much effort and money to get it roadworthy only to sell it off and move out of state for a lady. He put that towards getting his old XJ 4.0 in…

May be biased, but I have to mention the Dodge Ramcharger. It never seems to get the same recognition as its Bronco or Blazer counterparts. There were two designs built from 1972 to 1993 (a Mexican market-only version being built for a few years in the mid to late 90s based on the 93 Dodge Ram chassis, but we don’t…

Yes, I loved mine! Part time 4wd, extra low gear, decent clearance. The thing was wonderful for going in the forest and the snow. Sadly the upkeep and maintenance was too much as my daily driver for a 30 year old car, so I had to get rid of it. I still miss it.

Crown Vic.

$175,000 for a Chevy.

If right to repair passes, then we’ll get third party suppliers springing up who can code and rebuild even the most complicated computer and electronic parts. We just need Right to Repair first.

It’s not just the cost, it’s how utterly awful they can be to work on. I did the cams and pumps on my V10 Phaeton without dropping the engine and it was quite the bastard from sheer lack of room and amount of hoses/connections. Undoing the damper bolts requires unbolting and shifting forward the entire front of the…

Pass.

That requires it to be still running at the end of that year.

HELL YES this is ND!