Well, unlike Duesenberg or Maybach, Bentley and Rolls-Royce have existed continuously. As times changed, so did the cars; subtly, to be sure, but they did change, and they were always present and visible. People knew, and still know, what they are. That's simply not the case with Duesenberg or Maybach. You could make…

Yeah, as you point out, ask them to spell it. Then ask them what it means. They may know the phrase at a pass, but they have no idea what it actually means or how it came to be. We know what it is, because we are a small subset of enthusiasts. Enthusiasts like us are a tiny subset of the population. Go ask the rest of…

I love Duesenberg. I also wouldn't ever want to see Duesenberg brought back. There simply isn't any way that it ever can be. Outside of a small subset of enthusiasts, it has no brand image or cachet. It's hard to go from a car that was the most luxurious and beautiful in the world in the 1930s to a car that is the…

Why can't their flagship car be an SUV? Why shouldn't their flagship car be an SUV?

I can't say as I understand the hate on the Paceman. No one hates this much on the two-door Evoque for being to Land Rover what the Paceman is to Mini. I understand why it doesn't make sense from a business perspective if it's too small of a niche to be profitable, but that's not quite the same as the general hate on…

Everyone has their own experience, I suppose. It sounds as if the past twenty-something years have been particularly tragic for you; in which case, have you looked into living in China? Or perhaps, if you're especially nostalgic, North Korea?

With two countries as closely tied to each other that Ukraine and Russia, it becomes very difficult to make simple distinctions between them. There are very distinct and very vocal factions within both Ukraine proper and Crimea itself that support both sides of this conflict, and sometimes, telling them apart can be…

Just remember your Charlemagne: Let your armies be the rocks, the trees, and the birds in the sky.

Hypothetically, Ukraine itself would be the puppet state, torn between East and West, just as Korea and Vietnam respectively were.

I doubt that very much. It's more likely that it would become a "traditional" pseudo-war akin to the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. It's even more likely that nothing will happen except sanctions and a great deal of behind-the-scenes political maneuvering.

Oh, I agree. I don't think it would be worth it all. I'm just saying it could be done, and the odds aren't nearly as stacked in the favor of the Russian military as the article might lead some to believe.

Strangely, if the US decided it wanted to, I don't see it being an insurmountable problem. The only catch is that US Navy would have to get through the Russian Mediterranean fleet first - something I believe it is capable of doing. With Mediterranean sanitized, it essentially becomes a playground for US and allied…

What are these fantastic creations and why have I never heard of them!?

The winner for brass balls in a self-built, weird, crazy-ass submarine goes to David Bushnell and the Turtle all the way back in 1776. Used in an attempt to drill holes in the bottom of British warships and attach explosives to them, it was the definition of all-American ingenuity. The Turtle failed miserably, but…

The difference, however, is that the Japanese manufacturers didn't simply copy a look - they also made it a point to improve on the market and offer cars that not only looked similar, but were more efficient and reliable. So far, not enough of that has been seen from the Chinese auto industry.

It's doubtful that the B-2 would be in significant use for any protracted period of time. As you know, the focus of stealth has shifted over the decades from being an all-in-one, all-the-time solution to being first-day, first-strike solution. Stealthier aircraft, with a far lower probability of being usefully…

Parts must be developed in order to be produced. One-off parts for a small-volume car like the 4C, particularly such complex pieces must be developed. Like it or not, that's part of the development budget for the car as a whole. With a second headlight design, particularly moving to one that is so complex, they've…

I somehow doubt that. LEDs are cheap, and if anything, developing an entirely new headlight housing (particularly one that complex) and the body panels to go with it would only cost more money than was already spent. This, I think, I think was primarily a stylistic decision, and a very poor one at that.

Oh, thank God they are re-doing those headlights. I have no idea what they were on when they decided that the bug-eye headlights were a good idea, but it must have been some good shit.