Even if the auto is good, the manual would be more entertaining. Also, BMWs joystick control for the 8-speed auto is unattractive, awkward, and needlessly complex.

That's actually not a "trend" as such. DOT regulations don't require amber lenses/bulbs, or even separate segments of the lens for the brake light and turn signal. The regulations are different in the EU and elsewhere. This is why most European cars sold stateside have had separate amber turn signals (or amber bulbs…

I completely agree. Every time I fly on an RJ (excepting the E170/190), I'm uncomfortable and unhappy. Two-abreast seating be damned. Only the free drinks when I get upgraded to first can dull the misery that is riding in one of those things.

I completely agree with this. The problem is actually not that the CRJ-200 or 700/900 are bad, as much as they are big enough that a lot of operators choose to fly them on routes that are really too long for such a tiny plane. See e.g. UA AUS-SFO (4 hours). The microscopic lav doesn't help its case either.

I lived in Seattle when the Kingdome was demolished. In addition to being awesome to watch (mostly on account of the huge delay between the pyrotechnics and the actual collapse), the demolition was notable for being the largest structure ever imploded at the time.

Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, Seat, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati, Porsche, Bentley, um...

I'm a little embarrassed that I forgot about the Galant. I'm sure I'm not alone, since they're apparently still working through their 2012 stock. To think that we still have the Galant and yet we've lost the Kizashi is a little sad.

Dear VW,

I was about to make a remark about how speed is irrelevant because the law states that the left lane is only for passing. Then I found out that the rules are different in every state, and someone has bothered to collate the "keep right" laws in all 50 states. Why driving laws are left to states is a little baffling to…

Agreed. It hurts my heart that resources were used to build this car. I'm hard pressed to think of a car (except for the Avenger... and come to think of it, almost every Chrysler product from that decade) designed with more willful contempt for the owner.

How could a man walk past the Mazda dealer, where he could get himself a MS3 or a CPO MS6, then walk past the VW, Subaru, Honda,... and end up at the Chrysler dealership and then still end up spending $32k (probably less a bucketload of incentives) on a Sebring? I have no idea. Did a single Sebring (any body style)…

I can't decide whether the end credits music or short shorts are more hilarious.

Don't forget that Top Gear series 1 starred Clarkson, Hammond and Jason Dawe. I'm sure Jason is a nice guy, but series 1 was a real dog. Even with James May, series 2 plodded along awkwardly. It wasn't until around Series 3 or 4 that the chemistry between Clarkson, Hammond, and May started to take off. I think the…

In part, I completely agree. It's not a real-world application at a mass-market price in the same way that the LaFerrari or the McLaren P1 aren't either. It's not trying to be the next-generation Golf. It's a halo car in the same style as a super/hypercar, but focused on efficiency instead of speed. In that sense, if…

The Euro V diesel fuel standards mandate a maximum of 10ppm sulfur in on-road vehicle diesel. The US standard (from the EPA, in case you were wondering) is 15ppm. The standard in the US prior to 2007 was 500ppm, which was phased out in the EU in 2000 (for 350ppm, and 50ppm in 2005). I'm not a petroleum engineer, but I…

I actually think the bigger barrier (no pun intended) is federal safety standards. It's why even cars designed for global markets look different when they come to the US. The change is often most visible in the front clip (see e.g. the US and Euro Ford Fiesta). There are some federal standards that make a lot of sense…

Maybe it's because I'm an engineer, but I find this car beautiful and exciting, in a fizzy James May sort of way. It's like the Bugatti Veyron but completely focused on efficiency instead of speed, which to my mind, is just as much of a technical achievement when it's done well. If I lived in Europe (and had the…

It's a 2012 Focus.

This. Beautiful not because it has 1000 cylinders or was in the fastest/biggest/most insane car ever, but because it wasn't any of those things, because it is what a high-volume V6 should be.

While it's true the Z06 is pretty low, Mansfield bars don't work well for regular cars because of completely insufficient strength, particularly at their corners. http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr030…