“Also, where the fuck does my right leg go? Is that black cover of the exhaust made of something that won’t get hot?”

The exhaust is tucked in enough that you leg shouldn’t be directly touching it. But yeah, it’s gonna get hot.

I’d like to see a QOTD on what was the most unexpectedly fun car you’ve driven. For me it was the AMC Pacer X. Didn’t expect to enjoy driving it as much as I did. Of course I’ve driven a bunch of cars that were horrible to drive as well.  In fact the number of shitwagons I’ve driven surely outnumbers the good ones.

For purposes of this racing series, it’s an American V-Twin powered heavyweight touring motorcycle with a fairing and hard saddlebags.

Some people consider any touring motorcycle with a fairing and bags to be a bagger, but I think that description is overly broad.

“throw down the gauntlet by squaring off the Falcon, American, Impala, and Charger”

If you’re using the Ford Falcon and Rambler American, the competing models from GM and Chrysler would be the Chevy II (or possibly Chevelle), and the Dart/Valiant/Barracuda

“ find it interesting that so many American luxury cars in the ’70s were named after cities or provinces in Spain, a cross-brand coincidence that is oddly specific.”

Don’t forget the AMC Matador Barcelona Edition

This is a pretty good assessment. I was a teen during the malaise era. I grew up in the midwest, and foreign car dealers were not common. And getting parts was a order it and wait affair, which also made them less desirable.

Other than Volkswagen, most of the import cars where I lived were rebadged Mitsubishis sold at…

Or even better, the rare Can Am

Yes, old cars had odometers that only went up to 99,999 miles for a reason.

Sorry to be a wet blanket, but they had to pick a number that rhymes with “juke box money”. Twenty.

I suppose they could have sang “...got me a Chrysler, it seats about eight, so hurry up!  It’ll be so great!”

Seats two if you have the shelter carrier version, but the center console is about two-feet wide

Rental car companies have many ways to stick it to customers. One time I had a reservation to rent a car for 8 or 9 days from Budget. My connecting flight was cancellled due to foul weather, and I had to wait until next day for a flight. So I called the car rental and told them I will be late picking up the car. They…

Wiper blade length is constrained by the boundries of the windshield, and the blade length will depend on where the pivot point is and how much room is available in the swept area.  Whichever blade has its pivot point closer to the center of the windshield normally has less clearance available, because the apex of its…

Take this, you dirty old high prices!

My wife (who is about 5' 2" and 100 lbs) learned to ride on a Grom, and it was perfect. Very forgiving and easy to save with a foot dab if you are off balance. It has a proper clutch and requires shifting. The low power means you can be clutzy with the clutch and not hurt yourself.

I agree, though, that a pre-dropped…

“I was caning the shit out of the bike, perpetually asking it for more.”

This is how I ride the several Harley-Davidson motorcycles I have owned, including my current Electra-glide. Some people who don’t get it like to bitch about Harleys being slow and not being able to lean enough. But part of the fun, and what makes…

“Gearbox is fine. What more do you want to know?”

How does the extra gear affect performance and riding experience compared with the 4-speed? Does the addition of an extra cog in the gearbox give it a higher top speed?  Lower RPM at highway speeds?

He hinted at it at the end ( “...I loved the old four-speed model”), but yeah, I think this is kind of a big deal.  This change, combined with the easier-to-service oil filter, would have be going for the new model over a previous-year used one.

—Just say “small” and be done with it!

They only options he was offered were medium or large. Presumably at additional cost.

1989 Mercury Cougar with digital instruments was the same.  85mph limit, but km/h would keep going until you reached maximum velocity.

I can’t answer your question about CJs, but military jeeps of this era (and up into the 80s) were not painted “camo”, they were painted in a solid color called “Olive Drab”, perhaps more commonly known as “OD Green”.