Russia does not gain (in any way, except for getting to fly stolen planes for a few months) but the lessors most definitely lose. It is the equivalent of a meth head stealing your catalytic converter and selling it for $45.

Add to that: minuscule upside, but a huge real cost. What was the gas tax funding before? Can those programs really go without?

This is why my next import would likely be a Citroën C15. With a back seat, otherwise purely utilitarian.

They do suck, but so do many other things that we love. They break, they add weight and complexity, and they look very silly (sometimes even when down). But I feel that owning a car with flip-ups is on my bucket list and I will have to get around to it some day.

I would be willing to sign off on most of that, except the CVT part. No way. But since hybrids/EVs are replacing ICE anyhow, it is a moot argument. And I will keep my manual in my fun car, not only to keep it interesting but also to minimize the drain on my 48 metric horsepower.

And it’s essentially created by CAFE and emissions regulations which made oversized cars impossible but allowed trucks to avoid the rules. The only way to regulate gas mileage is to make the gas price permanently higher.

I am a lane discipline nazi, but I support you 100%. You also don’t have to stay in the slow lane if it is closed, for instance.

Ralph was just the person carrying the inevitable message. There was no way to avoid safety and emissions, as much of a downer it has been.

True. Or they should get a Ford Transit Connect rather than a pickup truck.

Yep, there is any number of artists who make music without having to perform 24 hours a day. 

That puddle will barely hold a single oligarch-grade yacht.

I am literally selling a $2,500 car right now, and time is money. I could buy a brand new car today if I wanted to, but I would rather not - the additional money would equal less time spent with my family or wrenching on my project car.

The market, however idiotic, speaks.

The Italian Job. I had read so much gushing admiration for this movie in so many British car magazines, by very good writers, that I was super excited to finally get to see it - one of the worst things ever made. Utterly pointless, super wooden acting, packed with very silly and outdated stereotypes. The “jokes” are…

That is severely misshapen, even for a Super-SUV.

I know there is no chance of my ever owning one, but I still lust after a 348 or a Mondial (I know, I am weird) or most of all a 412. But I agree, anything after about 2000 leaves me entirely uninterested.

The expression that explains it is “cannon fodder.”

I missed them all. I guess I will survive.

“what do we think?” I think you know the answer already.

Well played.