It's all for steering feel. The reason electric power steering is becoming popular is in fact that it's "drain on demand" - no parasitic loss unless there is power assist - plus, no inertia of the accessory drive, no hydraulic fluid or lines, etc... The conversion comment was made somewhat in jest - that type of thing…

Electric power steering isn't exactly the same thing as steering by wire (there's still a mechanical linkage in place). The really great thing about it is it's so much easier to do a manual conversion now. No more re-routing the hydraulic lines or swapping out to a manual rack and getting a shorter accessory belt -…

While driving, while walking, while checking out in the store, while in the elevator, while at the movie theater, in restaurants, in school, etc... It's hard to imagine that 10-15 years ago, we somehow got through life without exercising constant dependence or sharing every triviality of our day with loved ones and…

cell phones. i wish they'd go away entirely, though.

Most Miata drivers I've known have been men. The only people who think driving a lightweight, no frills, rwd manual roadster is 'girly' are the guys who think driving a 7000 lb, automatic, leather draped, 6 seat, heated steering wheel crumple zone on wheels (that just happens to have a completely scratch free bed…

Yeah, the only real downside I see to roundabouts is they don't work very well if you're a mouth-breather in a suburban who can't figure it out. Around the south side of Houston, most of our traffic lights are setup so only one direction goes at a time, so you generally only get a green light for maybe 20% of the…

I'd say the Tiburon is worse than the Eclipse, especially considering that the Sonata at the time could blow the doors of the Tiburon, whereas I think everything Mitsu made along with the current gen Eclipse was slow (Evo excepted, of course).

Ah, Harley - just about the only engine manufacturer left that routinely produces engines with under 1 hp per CI.

I'd get the... Boxster S - since I can't afford any of them new, and that's been on the market long enough to where you can get them relatively cheap. Actually, I'd probably just spend the extra money to get an S54 Z3M roadster.

Do you have the maintenance history?

vinyl is standard on BMW 1, 3, 5, x3, x5 and z4. looks like you have to buy at least a 6 to get leather standard.

euro E24s are really very common in the US and run on unleaded gas just fine (the euro cars still have hardened valve seats - plus, it's not like leaded gas is still available in Germany anyway). I have a euro E30 that's clocked over 160k on unleaded gas

how flammable is atomized diesel fuel?

Well fortunately it's a completely voluntary program.

No. They indicated that they'll only send you another one if you make a major change in your policy - my guess is that's adding another person, or possibly even just adding / changing a vehicle.

I would like to point out that the Progressive insurance spy thing only requires ~5 months of data. You request the device as the beginning of a policy period, they send it to you and then request it back about a month before the period ends.

I'd go with Camry for just absolute worst drivers - basically the people who are completely inattentive and probably half comotose. After that, the 350 / 370 z makes a pretty strong case for itself with the batshit craziest boy racer types. Finally, the Houston special - jacked up pickup trucks with no possibility of…

I didn't laugh, dismiss or call you names so I'm not sure where this chip on your shoulder is coming from. I think the issue here may not be the definition of entry level, but rather the definition of 'sports car' which is often actually used to disqualify the Miata. Sorry, I may not have my pricing history quite…

They're an entry-level sports car - not an entry level car that's sporty. The only new car out there that's cheaper and MIGHT qualify as a sports car is a v6 Mustang. 4 cylinder Fusions and Camrys aren't exactly sports cars...

I don't think there are any major urban centers on the Texas side near the New Mexico border. Country roads in Texas tend to be pretty decent - it's the urban roads that are post-apocalyptic.