Google's Street View

I was playing with Google's Street View function in Google Maps, and I am amazed at how good it is. There isn't coverage in my immediate neighborhood, but much of my local area is.

Here for example is a side-view of the Maple and Old Woodward intersection in Birmingham, a place I like to go now and then.


What Google does is have cars drive around with roof mounted cameras, snapping photos that then get stitched together to form 360 degree views, and linked to their street location.

Google has also photographed a large number of neighborhoods, and I was able to find up-close photographs of my parent's house, and my in-laws house. I'm guessing those obsessed with their privacy are alarmed by this.

Laphroaig

A friend poured me a taste of Laphroaig 10 year old scotch.

Wow.

You know the "liquid smoke" you can get to add to dishes to make them smoky?
Laphroaig is like "liquid peat". It smells and tastes like pure peat smoke infused into distilled malt.

Now, at first, I thought it was disgusting. But then, after the third sip, I began to like it.
Later, I tried some Chivas, and realized, the peat was there all along, but more like an undertone. Laphroaig is like mixing the guitar out and letting the bass carry the tune. (Sandman, Morphine).

I need to buy a bottle of my own!

Video: Driver Hits Gas Station

Wow. Could have been a lot worse.


Chick Plows Into Gas Station - Watch more free videos

Returning to Blogging

Hi everybody!

We've been pretty lousy at blogging over the last half a year. Some of our readers may think that our product is dead or forgotten, and this cannot be further from truth.

In fact, we've been very busy over the last several months. We developed a new version of our product, iAuto v.4.x, that had most of its internal structure revamped and improved, templates changed and a number of new features and functions added to make our iAuto even more attractive to our customers.

We then improved it even further by adding SEO features such as SEO-friendly URLs, listing data in description and keywords meta tags, and a great Browse By... feature. You can select up to 7 database fields that you can browse by, narrowing down your results to just a few listings that match your needs closest.

For example, you can have the following Browse by search configuration: Vehicles->Cars->Honda->Acura->Between $0 and $10,000->Zip.

And, of course, we developed two new templates. A single picture is worth a 1,000 words, therefore, the best way to see how well we did is to go to our iAuto Demo page at http://www.iautosoftware.com/demo.html.

To go further, we decided to offer a boat classifieds version of iAuto, iAuto Boats. We've done some research and came up with the iAuto Boats demo for your attention.

Hosted version is a new addition to our versions. It offers iAuto pre-installed, hosting space with your domain and all the functions of the Cpanel at your disposal. And all that for an introductory price of $29.95 per month only.

We will try to be more consistent with posting our news and ideas to this blog, and we'll try to not limit the posts to marketing-related stuff only. Instead, we're hoping to get our product developers and programmers involved as well.

Kenneth Cole: Don't Bother

Some time ago, say 6 months or so, my wife got me a nice looking Kenneth Cole "Reaction" belt. It was soft brown Italian leather, and appeared to be well made.

After a few months of use, the leather split near the buckle. Since I didn't keep the receipt and tag, I couldn't return it to Kohl's or wherever my wife bought it, so I called Kenneth Cole Productions Inc. on the phone and asked if I could have the belt exchanged. The customer service lady took my information, and told me to send it in.

I sent the belt in. And waited. A long time. Then, after about a month, I get a box from Kenneth Cole. And what did they send me? A wide, black, "bluejeans" type belt. Nothing like the soft, brown "business casual" dress belt that I sent in.

You'd think Kenneth Cole's people could tell the difference between a brown dress belt and a black casual belt.

I also discovered that Kenneth Cole supports a slew of liberal causes, including being aggressively anti-gun.

So, I have learned my lesson. No more Kenneth Cole junk for me.

Avoid Chinese Engines

Did you know that 3.4L V6 engine that GM puts in its Chevrolet Equinox and Pontiac Torrent compact SUVs is build in China?

A much better choice would be the Saturn Vue or Ford Escape. Less of your hard earned dollars will wind up paying for AK47's for the Janjaweed in Darfur.

China's Thanksgiving Present

The government of China, organizer of the 2008 "Genocide" Olympics, coddler of Sudan, and friend to oppressive regimes everywhere, today administered a childish slap to the U.S. Navy.

The USS Kitty Hawk, an aircraft carrier, and her strike group were scheduled to dock in Hong Kong for Thanksgiving. In preparation, Americans living in Hong Kong were busy setting up Thanksgiving dinners for some sailers, and relatives of some sailers had flown to Hong Kong to spend the holiday with them.

Because the British (stupidly) gave Hong Kong back to China, China must give permission for the U.S. Navy to dock. China denied the Kitty Hawk strike group entry this Thanksgiving, ruining the plans of numerous sailers and their families.

Thank you, China, for your Thanksgiving present. I will give you a small gift in return: I will boycott your goods every chance I get. I will not visit your country. If my employer asks me to go to your country for business, I will refuse. And I will remind everyone I meet about your bad manners, and your support for genocide in Darfur.

More Jeep Darwinism

Another Jeep, done in by Darwin.


When Off-Roading Goes Wrong - Watch more free videos

Konichiwa, Chevy!

Check out this gem (Jalopnik via Dublin Saab). It's a photo of a Toyota racing trailer being pulled by... a Chevrolet.

Ethanol Vs. Beer

One of the market distortions that is being caused by the government mandate for ethanol in transportation fuel is the rising cost of all kinds of food, including one of my favorites: beer.

According to the WSJ in a fascinating article from October 5th, 2007, small beer brewers are getting squeezed by dramatically higher prices of barley and hops.

Consumers could pay 50 cents to $1 per six pack more in the coming months for many small-batch "craft beers," as brewers pass on rising hops and barley costs from an unpalatable brew of poor harvests, the weak dollar and farmers' shift to more profitable crops. Other makers of craft beers, the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. brewing industry, say they may eat the higher ingredient costs, which will pare their profits.

...

Craft beer makers have faced escalating costs over the past year. Prices for malting barley, which accounts for a beer's color and sweetness, have jumped as farmers increasingly shifted to planting corn, which has been bringing higher prices because of high demand from makers of biofuels, like ethanol. The weak dollar also has made it more expensive for U.S. brewers to buy commodities from Europe.

The price of malting barley has increased by a whopping 75% in the last several months, from around $4/bushel to about $7/bushel. As a result, the price of small-batch beer is expected to increase, and some small beer makers are actually in danger of folding.

Wouldn't it be better to allow importation of Brazilian sugar beet based ethanol, tariff free, and leave more of our agricultural capacity for the tasty stuff?

Addicted.

I'm addicted to this free "tower defense" type game. It's really good.

http://onslaught.playr.co.uk/

Automotive Groups & WebRing Member Drive

I guess you can call this a member drive, we run a few automotive communities which require membership to become a part of. The only reason that we require membership approval is to avoid spam & spammers. It seems to work well, but it also limits how fast we can grow.

Automotive Related Communities...
(all are looking for new membership):

Autos & Automotive - A Google Group
An automotive and motorsports group for discussing all things automotive related. Topics may include autos, automotive mechanics, auto shows, automobile racing, automotive parts, salvage, classic cars, collector cars & more. Pickup trucks, tractor trailer trucks and motorcycling are also allowed.

AutomotiveParts - A Google Group
Hunt for or offer automotive parts. Offer parts (new/used). Salvage yard auto parts search pools and automotive industry opportunites for new aftermarket automotive and high performance auto parts sellers from drop shippers and wholesalers.

Automotive - A WebRing
We are looking for people interested in joining our Automotive WebRing community at WebRing.com. WebRings a re great way to promote your website and help create new leads and business associations. If you have an automotive or motorsports related webpage, website, directory or blog, please join as a member of the Automotive WebRing.


Join Up!
All of the above groups and rings are great ways to increase your visibility, establish a comradery with other automotive enthusiasts and professionals, establish your expertise, help someone out, give something back and perhaps even create a new friend or even drum up business in the long run. The best part about such communities is that they can be fun. We try to keep them that way by eliminating the spam.

Of course, if you have cool parts to help others restore or upgrade their vehicles, like the front grille of the 1948 to 1952 Chevy pickup in good condition, or the Deluxe instrument panel for 1980 Chevy/GMC pickup trucks, we do want to see these types of posts in the AutomotiveParts group. That's actually why we created it. I have a 1980 Chevrolet C109 I am working on. The boss has a restored 1950 Chevrolet pickup. A friend and coworker of mine is working on a 1973 GMC pickup he is restoring. The shop is thinking about making the Chevy Gravel Dump Truck shown on this page a shop restoration project vehicle.

We would love to hear about any old Autocars, Maxwell automobiles, Graham Brothers Trucks, or Henderson (Excelsior-Henderson) motorcycles out there that might be hidden in your barn looking to be restored. Heck, I am looking for an old car, pickup or motorcycle for my new restoration project, myself. Post any such finds in either the Autos & Automotive or AutomotiveParts Google Groups, or in the Automotive WebRing's forum.

If nothing else, it will be fun discussing our dream rides and hot rods. Heck, what do you have hidden away in your garage or barn? What are you working on? Join us just to brag about it a little. ;) Join in just to discuss automotive mechanics or tell us what your car/truck can do. We'd be glad to have anyone who won't spam us with unrelated advertising.

By the way, please be patient when you do apply for membership. I approve membership requests every business day I am here, Monday through Friday, but not on weekends or holidays, and I usually take at least one or two days off each week (but, not always) to devote to running my own businesses. But I will get to it! ;)

iAuto Vehicle Classifieds Software Version 4.0 Released

We've finally released our new version of iAuto. I'll simply post an ad that we're promoting it with, and if you are looking for additional details and specifics of the new version, you're always welcome to visit our website:

iAuto is a cutting edge PHP vehicle classifieds script. It is a perfect solution for websites that sell any vehicles for land, air, or water. It comes bundled with a fresh car make/model database.

Key features of iAuto include an innovative search engine that allows visitors to search and sort by any field. A ZIP/postal code and radius search capability is provided based on the US ZIP code database. Import of postal codes for other countries is also possible with the existing import utility.

Our new version features a fully editable template-based look and feel. The ability to present listing data is limited only by your HTML coding skills.

One important addition of iAuto is the ability to list multiple listing types (advertise cars, boats, and airplanes on one site) and to create common or custom fields for each type.

iAuto also features user groups that can segregate users between individuals or corporate clients, with custom menus and profiles for each group.

New version offers a multitude of ways to make money with iAuto. You can choose between a pay-per-ad or subscription plans and further add pay-per-feature packages to charge for extra features such as pictures or videos.

Three payment gateways are built into iAuto: 2Checkout, Paypal (with card payment processing capabilities) and Authorize.NET merchant account gateway.

Two iAuto packages are currently offered starting from as low as $219, with FREE TRIAL and online DEMO.

Free lifetime upgrades and frequent functionality improvements make it a worthwhile purchase, giving you the ability to upgrade your website to respond to emerging market trends!

We'll be discussing other details related to the new software functionality and the ways you can use it for your business needs.

New Automotive & Motorsports Directory

The webmaster at Syd's Eastside Auto Parts has been working pretty hard to establish a new automotive & motorsports related dedicated directory for the past few weeks. Its finally ready! The Automotive SEARCH Directory not only functions as a means of submitting your automotive and/or motorsports related websites, blogs and directories as a static directory listing advertising your business, but also functions as a means for the public to submit any auto/motorsport related URL as a resource candidate for the Automotive SEARCH Network volunteer editors to consider as an authorized link resource for our URL pool of automotive/motorsports from which our search engine draws its results.

Although the directory only represents a smaller part of the Automotive SEARCH Network, it is a significant one because it will allow any user to suggest an automotive or motorsport related web resource. Previously, the only way to submit such a web resource to use in the search results was to become an authorized editor for the Automotive SEARCH Network. Now, automotive enthusiasts and businesses from all over can submit their website and if accepted, can enjoy the targeted traffic that the Automotive SEARCH Network was designed to provide.

Although we are still accepting requests for becoming a volunteer editor, the Automotive SEARCH Network Directory allows us to expand our resource pool of automotive & motorsports URLs without requiring site owners and webmasters to take on any significant obligations as a volunteer editor.

In fact, the Automotive SEARCH Directory now provides a high profile directory platform from which to provide targeted advertising to the automotive industry, auto entusiasts, car clubs and motorsports professionals. Listings are very reasonably priced although a free reciprocal link exchange is also available.

However, the directory does allow visitors to submit listings into multiple categories, as long as the submitted resource is relevant to that category. The directory software and its administration also takes significant steps to avoid spam submissions.

We expect great things for and from the Automotive SEARCH Network in the future. Keep your eyes open on this domain by bookmarking the website once you get there! Be sure to submit your automotive/motorsport/motorcycle/truck web resource(s) while you are there, too.

The Automotive SEARCH Directory is brought to you as a joint sponsorship cooperative between Syd's Eastside Auto Parts and Diesel Rebuild Parts.com.

Video: Ouch

Horrific drag racing crash. Driver survived with broken bones.

Unusual Car Sighting: Figaro

Went to Costco to grab some stuff, came out and saw this car parked nearby. It is a Nissan Figaro, a very small retro convertible with an interesting retractable roof. There is a nice Wikipedia article on the Figaro here.

Changes In The (Autoblogging) Landscape

When I started doing this, there were a few intrepid auto bloggers, pounding away in obscurity.

Then AOL bought Autoblog, and made it into a press release firehose. Jalopnik tries hard to keep up, but does it with more flair, OfficeSpace style. Eric of AngryEngineer was seduced by the dark side ("Jedi mind tricks don't work on me, only money") and joined Autoblog, wrote some kickass how-to articles, then disappeared.

Joe over at MyFordDreams, apparently worn down by his beloved Ford's inability to gain traction, slowed down to a trickle and then stopped. Now Carpundit has thrown in the keyboard, with the mysterious sign off "I am done with this blog. Blogging is over for me; three years was enough. Bye.". Automuse, perhaps the only female autoblogger, is very slow, but might still be going.

On the bright side, we now have Mark Tapscott, who took over the Carnival of Cars duties, and who actually gets on TV every now and then. Keep it up, Mark! And Pete De Lorenzo of AutoExtremist still throws it down weekly, pulling no punches.

Blogging is actually a lot of work, if you want to say something you think is your own, and don't want to sound stupid--although I can't claim to avoid that consistently. It's easy to repackage a news story from the Detroit News or a press release from Isuzu, harder to come up with a coherent commentary on what it means.

Do you have an opinion? Why don't you try your hand? We need more real bloggers, guys who sit in their basements in furry slippers at 2:00am trying to shout some common sense at the people in the private jets.

Cheap Insurance: Gerber Seat Belt Cutter

After the Minneapolis bridge collapse, my wife asked me if we could get some seat belt cutters "just in case". She wanted some extra confidence, in case she was ever trapped in her car, or needed to help someone else out.

I did a Google search, and found a very nice tool made by Gerber, which also makes the excellent Multi Plier multi-tool (second only to the high end Leatherman tools). Amazon sells it (here) for a very reasonable $5 plus shipping.


The knife has a simple and easy to use design, with a cutting hook on one end, made from two opposed straight blades, a body made of tough black plastic, and a nylon lanyard at the other end. To use it, you hook the cutting end over a seatbelt and pull, drawing the two blades through the fabric.

Once you get one of these, another important consideration is where to keep it. If it is in your trunk, or the back of your glovebox, it won't do you much good. A better way to keep it is to use duct tape or velcro tape to affix the cutter to the underside of the driver's seat, or a similar out of the way surface, where you can grab it quickly and easily.

Will you ever need a seat belt cutter? Probably and hopefully not. But for $5, it is a cheap bit of extra insurance.

P.S. I also keep a center punch, to easily break safety glass with. $10 at any hardware store.

A Few Dream Cruise Photos

I went to the Woodward Dream Cruise late, when it was starting to rain, and didn't really see much that was all that new or exciting. There were lots and lots of 60's and 70's muscle cars, which get old after a few minutes. Here are a few photos I grabbed.

A carefully restored 1965 Volvo. With Arabic script on the rear window.

A not yet carefully restored Volvo.

This dog was posing in front of his owner's hot-rod.

The street preachers took up shop outside the Hall Of
The Mountain King, near some Avantis.

Near the Ford area, some Edsels (still ugly after all these years).
In the upper right is an experimental hydrogen fuel cell powered Edge.

This horned monster truck was cruising through the
Birmingham shopping district. Too much, dude, too much.

A segway nerd scoots past a non-plussed Oakland County sheriff.

The Dream Cruise experience was under-whelming. Too many muscle cars, not enough really old cars. I did see a restored deuce-and-a-half WWII vintage truck cruising around, which was neat. There was also a cube van plastered with huge photos of dismembered fetuses, to protest abortion, which was not. I am pro-life, but man, don't rub it in my face like that. There were a lot of for sale signs on cars--if you were in the market for an expensive toy, you could have done very well at the Dream Cruise this year.

Video Idiots, Vol 7: How Not To Remove A Pole

No, his bumper does not come off. It's about as bad, though.


How Not To Remove A Basketball Hoop - Watch more free videos

Syd's Eastside Awarded Interstate-McBee Distributorship

Syd's Eastside has been awarded dealer and distributor rights to carry, sell and promote the Interstate-McBee line of quality aftermarket parts for industrial heavy equipment and machinery engines.

Syd's Eastside has spent the past week or so updating its aftermarket heavy equipment and machinery engine parts website at Diesel Rebuild Parts to reflect the addition of this new parts line and manufacturer.

Interstate-McBee represents a significant expansion into our offerings of aftermarket parts for industrial engines both in the addition of more parts offered for CAT products, as well as in the additional brands supported by Interstate-McBee parts. The scope of heavy equipment engine and/or fuel injection parts is broad and includes such names as:

• Caterpillar
• Cummins
• Detroit Diesel
• Navistar
• Komatsu
  
• American Bosch
• Robert Bosch
• Delphi (Lucas, CAV, & Simms)
• Stanadyne
• John Deere
• Ford

This diversity in supported brand lines allows Syd's Eastside, and its Diesel Rebuild Parts website, to extend and expand its support and market reach in offering quality aftermarket engine parts and overhaul kits for industrial engines.

Furthermore, Interstate-McBee quality aftermarket products covers more rebuild parts than available through our IPD parts offers, including fuel injector parts, fuel pump rebuild kits and diesel cylinder heads for CAT, Cummins, Detroit Diesel and Navistar. This means that even our current line of performance engineered CAT aftermarket parts from IPD is further enhanced by Interstate-McBee since we can now offer more parts availability, more parts supported and more complete options for our customers.

Therefore, it is with great pride and excitement that we announce the availability of the complete line of Interstate-McBee quality replacement parts for industrial application engines.

Interstate-McBee started business 60 years ago rebuilding fuel injection systems and soon became an OEM fuel injector manufacturer for Detroit Diesel and others by innovating and introducing new technology into the industry.

Interstate-McBee continued to grow and now manufactures a wide array of replacement parts for many brands of industrial engines which it can stand behind by maintaining high quality control in its manufacturing process.

We hope that you will enjoy this new addition into our aftermarket components catalog. This expansion of the Diesel Rebuild Parts website represents the continued and active development of our aftermarket automotive parts and product line. Look for more developments and announcements to come in our aftermarket parts offerings in the future.

-Syd's Eastside Auto Parts


Please Note the Following Marks & Intellectual Properties:

• Cummins is a registered trademark of Cummins Engine Company.
• Detroit Diesel is a registered trademark of Detroit Diesel Corporation.
• CAT and Caterpillar are registered trademarks of Caterpillar, Inc.
• International & Navistar are registered trademarks of International Truck and Engine Corporation.
• Komatsu is a registered trademark of Komatsu, Ltd.
• SIMMS/CAV are Delphi properties.
• Bosch is a registered trademark of Robert Bosch Corporation.
• AMBAC is American Bosch & United Technologies.
• Stanadyne is a registered trademark of the Stanadyne Company.
• Ford is a registered trademark of Ford Motor Company.
• John Deere is a registered trademark of John Deere, Inc.
  
• Syd's Eastside, Syd's Eastside Auto Parts and Diesel Rebuild Parts are trademarks or other intellectual properties of Syd's Eastside Auto Salvage, Inc.
  

DieselRebuildParts.com Replaces AftermarketCat.com

AftermarketCat.com is No Longer a Syd's Eastside Property
Caterpillar, Inc. has won the rights to the domain name AftermarketCat.com in arbitration. Although we tried to rectify our situation when Caterpillar, Inc. took issue with our using the domain name AftermarketCat.com to sell aftermarket CAT parts by moving the website to another domain, DieselRebuildParts.com, and placing a generic web page there in the old website's place which directed visitors to both of our websites, the assigned arbitrator felt that our first mistake of offering CAT replacement marks was enough to show "bad faith" in the use of the CAT trademark.

While we would have rectified this situation easily and even more quickly if CAT simply would have called us to explain their situation, we do hope that by notifying visitors to the AftermarketCat.com site that operations have moved to DieselRebuildParts.com, that we may well have allowed potential customers the ability to stay with us as a new solution for CAT aftermarket parts. To this end, we remain committed to the aftermarket parts market for the heavy equipment industry, and we have in fact just been awarded the dealership and distributorship rights for Interstate-McBee parts. An official announcement that we are now carrying and distributing the Interstate-McBee line of industrial equipment engine and fuel injection replacement parts will soon follow. The addition of the Interstate-McBee line of aftermarket parts is a perfect compliment to our current line of IPD aftermarket parts for Caterpillar engines.

While we would have been happy to keep AftermarketCat.com and use it as an aftermarket catalog for our automotive parts line, we will find another brand to build and present an automotive aftermarket parts sales brand, and Diesel Rebuild Parts seems to be doing well and generating lots of interest considering that we have not yet had the opportunity to promote well while we awaited the decision of the arbitration procedure.

Soon, the original registrar for AftermarketCat.com, Domain Hostmaster, will transfer this name to Caterpillar, Inc., for them to do what they see fit.

Caterpillar and CAT are registered trademarks of Caterpillar, Inc.
IPD is a trademark of IPD, LLC.
Interstate-McBee is an intellectual property mark of Interstate-McBee, LLC.
Syd's Eastside is an intellectual property mark of Syd's Eastside Auto Salvage, Inc.

Scoring SCORE

In an article in their vehicles section, Forbes online published a list of the least safe 20 vehicles, ranked according to the Statisical Combination Of Risk Elements (SCORE) metric. The SCORE metric is published by an organization called Informed For Life (which I have not heard of before), and is an attempt to rate how safe a vehicle is by combining various statistics into one number.

I have some reservations about the usefulness of the SCORE metric, however, because it doesn't really correlate that well with actual driver death rates, as published by the IIHS.

Here is a plot published by IFL which claims to show the correlation between the SCORE an driver death rates per million registered years:


What you might notice right away is the large spread of SCORE values for any given driver death rate bin. For example, for the 50-60 bin, which is well below average, the SCORE varies from 80 to 180--from 20% better than average to 80% worse than average. I also notice the R^2 value of 0.48, which is not a stellar mean squared error. SCORE clearly has some correlation with driver death rates, but it is rough.

Here are some specific examples of vehicles that have high (bad) SCORE scores but have pretty good real-world safety records:

• Mid-sized SUV: 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee
• SCORE = 181 (ave = 100)
  
• IIHS DDR = 57 (ave = 79)
  
• Small SUV: 2004 Ford Escape
• SCORE = 172
• IIHS DDR = 65
• Mid-sized car: 2004 Buick Regal
• SCORE = 123
• IIHS DDR = 57
  
• Compact car: 2004 Saturn Ion
• SCORE = 114
• IIHS DDR = 67
• Compact car: 2004 Pontiac Vibe
• SCORE = 115
• IIHS DDR = 62

All of these have higher-than average risk according to the SCORE metric, but in real life have lower than average fatality rates! It seems that SCORE puts too much emphasis on crash survivability, and not enough other factors like the ability of a vehicle to avoid an accident. It also seems to over-state the danger of rollovers. Something that is not widely publicized is that 70% of rollover fatalities occur when occupants are not wearing seatbelts (source: NHTSA). However, most people (~80%) are wearing their seatbelts nowadays, which partly accounts for why SUVs have a good safety record overall. The SCORE is really an estimate of how safe a car is in an assumed buy unspecified crash.

Aside; The IIHS driver death rate statistic also has some problems. IIHS does not account for driver behavior, which causes some vehicles such as sports cars to have much higher driver death rates than their crash test results would suggest. An interesting example of this is the DDR number for the Ford Mustang convertible (DDR 97) vs Ford Mustang hard-top (DDR 150). The two cars have nearly designs, from a crash point of view, but the Mustang hard-top has a much higher single vehicle death rate. It would appear that hard-top owners drive stupid more frequently than convertible owners.

The SCORE metric is an inconsistent predictor of vehicle safety in the real world. That doesn't mean it is worthless, but like anything, even the IIHS driver death rate statistic, it should be considered as part of a larger picture.

Autoblog Advice

Some advice to the guys over at Autoblog: slow it down, 'kay? You aren't Engadget. I know you feel like you have to stay on top of the automotive news world, but most of us can't check your site every two hours. Miss a day and you miss like two front pages worth of stuff. Raise your standards for what is worth posting and what isn't (hint: do it yourself articles by Eric are awesome, warmed over press releases are not). Otherwise, you risk burning out your readers.

LemonFree

I got an email from an outfit called LemonFree, which is an upstart auto classified service. Lemonfree's method is to offer free auto ads, and to make money from advertising. They have a nice, uncluttered web site. A very nice feature is that they offer free hosting of up to 10 photos with your ad. They don't have many ads yet, though, so if you try to actually search for a car, you will probably get a list of eBay motors auctions. Hopefully they will do better than that in the future. I'm also concerned about their name--it implies that they check the quality of the vehicles that are listed, but in fact, they do not. So it is possible to get a lemon. I wish them luck--the 800lb gorilla in this business is Craig's list.

Video: F1 Crash At Nurburgring

Video I saw on YouTube of a recent Forumula 1 crash at the Nurburgring. Left front tire blew out, and car slid off track and into the safety barrier. Driver survived.

Flipping the BMW

Much money, few brains.


Rich Kid Bad Burnout - Watch more free videos

Tweel Video

I saw a prototype of Michelin's Tweel (tire wheel) at an SAE congress not long ago. This short, neat video about it is making the rounds on the web.


Reinventing The Wheel - Watch more free videos

Happy Birthday USA

Have you taken the time recently to read the words of The Star Spangled Banner?

O say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight
O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;

O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

(the rest, not commonly heard)

On the shore, dimly seen thro’ the mist of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream

’Tis the star-spangled banner. Oh! long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation,
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our Trust"

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

A good, solid performance of the national anthem usually leaves me choked up, it is really a powerful poem.

I am fortunate beyond words to live in the USA. There are many great nations, and I could probably be happy in one of them, but on the other hand, I could have been fated to live in Cuba or Zimbabwe. My country is not perfect, but compared to the alternatives, She practically is.

Happy Birthday USA!

Side View Mirror Setting

Most people set their side view mirrors to partially show the rear quarter of their car. A few years back, I heard Tom and Ray Magliozzi of Car Talk counsel someone to try a different method. I have been using this technique ever since, and I am very happy with it. The wide setting method virtually eliminates rear quarter blind spots by moving the side mirrors out somewhat to reduce overlap with the rear view mirror. Here is a diagram (click for full size):


It is important to note that you don't move the mirrors out so far that you have no overlap at all. By having a little overlap, you continuity between your rear view and side views.

The downside to this method is that you can't automatically see what is immediately beside and to the rear of your car, which is even more of a problem for vehicles with poor rearward visibility such as trucks and SUVs. To see what is beside you, you need to lean forward and left or right a little, depending on which side you want to see. Overall, though, I find I am much more frequently interested in lane changing safely than in backing into a parking spot.

Cartalk has a detailed explanation here.

Introducing Diesel Rebuild Parts

Announcing Diesel Rebuild Parts™

Because of branding problems, we have renamed our AftermarketCat.com website and rebranded it as Diesel Rebuild Parts™.

Never would I have imagined that Caterpillar, Inc. would take issue with our use of the domain name, AftermarketCat.com. It isn't that "Cat" is a common word that is used constantly and is even considered short for the word "catalog", although I suppose this may have enhanced my confusion. But where I had erred has to do with the simple fact that we never considered our business as in competition with CAT®. After all, if people want original equipment parts they would obviously know to go to the original manufacturer, CAT® (or Caterpillar®). It is ludicrous, to me, to think that they would go anywhere else unless they are looking for aftermarket parts. Aftermarket means "not original equipment". But according to them, we are in competition with their engine parts line, and now that I have the opportunity to see the situation from their side, I certainly can see how they could think that.

It is people looking for aftermarket rebuild parts for these industrial engines that will cost less, perform better and/or last longer who will come looking for our products. So, we are not really in any sort of competition with CAT®, and the argument that we are is actually quite a stretch, for me.

Unfortunately, they are right about the branding issue, though. I do see their point. CAT® is a leader not only in the industrial engines market, but is also a leader in an extremely wide and expansive field that includes heavy equipment, mining equipment and turbines, as well. It actually amazes me that I was stupid enough to think of CAT as a generic term, or nickname, that we could use in describing our own brand.

Part of the problem has probably been the influence of the modern search engine. Search engines require specific keywords for any kind of decent search engine results. Since we are offering aftermarket parts for Caterpillar® engines, it seemed that our domain, AftermarketCat.com, was right on the money. Afterall, we are only supporting CAT® engines. And to top that off, we are supporting both the diesel and the natural gas (methane) engines. Obviously, DieselAndNaturalGasEngineParts.com wouldn't have worked. And we wanted a domain that said something about us and was somewhat short and easy to remember. Aftermarket Cat was, after all, downright catchy.

To be sure, this big snafu has been all my fault. I am the marketing director (and webmaster) for Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™. I understand brands as both a graphic designer and a business owner, myself. I am amazed how I could have overlooked such a well-known brand as CAT®. As I look back on it I wonder if it is Caterpillar's own overwhelming huge success that is at least contributing to the problem.

Similar tragedies in successful branding have occurred. I often ask for a Kleenex® when I want a facial tissue, even though I buy Puffs®. And as I see CAT® more everywhere, including NASCAR®, it becomes a thought at the fore front of my brain that only Caterpillar, Inc. could have accomplished through its own advertising success, thereby diluting its own brand. Nevertheless, I am not looking to provide an excuse, I am merely looking to draw some understanding out of my embarrassment.

However, we have not only acknowledged CAT®'s point, but we as a company, Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™, have taken quick and deliberate actions to demonstrate our concern and regard for the issues at hand...

Syd's Eastside Auto Parts has:
1. Moved the entire website to a different domain, DieselRebuildParts.com.
2. Completely rebranded the previous website (using only generic terms) as Diesel Rebuild Parts™.
3. Created a new Trademark logo and favicon graphics for the new website and brand.
4. Thrown-up a generic (non-branded) web page at the old web address of AftermarketCat.com which provides links to both DieselRebuildParts.com and Cat.com to ensure that we are not confusing our customers.
5. Included Cat.com prominently in our web resources directory to ensure that we are not confusing our customers.
6. Enhanced our website's Disclaimer page with regard to our intellecual properties and our non-affiliation with CAT.
7. Included the link to the Disclaimer web page in the Main Menu (this link was previously at the end of each page, above the Copyright notice).
8. Addressed issues concerning wording and phrases used that CAT felt was misleading.

Eventually, we will be issuing a new press release re-announcing our new website, once we are sure that we have addressed all of Caterpillar's concerns. In the meantime, please note that our new website address and the new official brand for our line of IPD™ engineered and manufactured quality aftermarket engine parts line and overhaul kit products intended for Caterpillar® brand diesel and natural gas engine applications...

Diesel Rebuild Parts™

Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™ is an authorized dealer and distributor of quality IPD™ premium aftermarket parts and overhaul kits for most of the Caterpillar® brand engine line. If you have anything to do with maintaining CAT® diesel or natural gas engines, we certainly do hope that we can be of service to you or your company in the near future.

Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™ operates the Diesel Rebuild Parts™ website to more directly assist individuals and companies requiring quality aftermarket parts that do not introduce risk of reliability in their equipment. Therefore, you may consider that Diesel Rebuild Parts™ markets, sells, distributes and supports IPD™ premium aftermarket parts as an extension (or division) of Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™.

News Article Reference Resource Links:
Syd's Eastside Auto Parts™
Diesel Rebuild Parts™
CAT®

Automotive Darwin Award Nominee

I don't think this guy died, but I do think we need an automotive version of the famous Darwin Awards--people who do the stupidest things, and wind up wrecking their cars.


New Jeep Isnt Trail Rated - Watch more free videos

The Fuel Economy Trade-Off Game

Technology/Technique	Cost	Safety	Convenience	Durability	Fuel Save	Total	Comments
Reduce Mass: downsize	+1	-2	-2	0	+1	-2	Americans like big roomy cars. Safety suffers due to interface with older cars.
Reduce Mass: materials	-1	-1	0	0	+1	-1	Al, Mg, carbon fiber cost more.
Reduce Engine Output	+1	0	-2	0	+1	0	Americans like powerful cars.
Mild Hybrid Powertrain	-1	0	0	-1	+1	-1	More complexity (batteries, generator) hurts durability.
Full Hybrid Powertrain	-2	0	-1	-1	+2	-2	Even more complexity.
Gas Turbo Direct Injection	-1	0	0	-1	+1	-1	More complexity.
Flex Fuel (Ethanol)	0	0	-1	0	+1*	0 (-1)	Fuel availability problems; less gas used, but nearly same carbon output.
Passenger Car Diesel	-1	0	0	-1	+2	0	More complexity due to emissions regs.
Hydrogen Fuel Cells	-1	0	0	+1	+3	+3	Still a research project.

How do you compare the different ways to increase fuel economy? If you are an engineer, you might make a table which assigns weights to different characteristics and then levels for each one. Combine the numbers, and you have a handy way to compare different choices.

Here is a swag at the fuel economy trade off game, according to my near-expert opinion. The method is to equally weight Cost, Safety, Convenience, Durability, and Fuel Economy. -2 means big decline (more cost, less safety, less convenience, less durability), while a +2 means a big improvement (less cost, more safety, more convenience, etc.). Minus bad, plus good.

So, the way I see it, for a modest fuel savings, the best all around technique is to reduce power, followed by gas turbo direct injection. For large fuel savings, the light diesel seems best. The Holy Grail, as always, is the hydrogen fuel cell.

What is inevitable is that you can't have everything--this is a law of engineering, where physics and economics meet. Want lots of power? Lose weight (and safety). Want safety and fuel economy? Gain cost.

We Americans need to have a serious discussion about what it is we really want, and we need to tell our legislators. What are we willing to give up?

OK, Edmunds just posted a great article which assigns grades to the various fuel saving technologies. You may not believe me, but in fact I was working on the same type of post. I was trying to figure out how to make the table work right.

Comparing Cars--SpD

Recently, MotorTrend tested a bunch of high performance cars, and presented the results as spiderwebs, with a combined performance number based on things like steering accuracy, brake feel, roadholding, etc. The result was neat, but not practically useful because it didn't factor in cost.

Then Winding Road got in the game, and proposed the Speed/Dollar index, which is HP/weight/price * fudge factor.

A problem with the SpD metric is that it only cares about power/weight ratio, which can favor cheap cars with big engines, such as the Mustang GT, or even a V8 Chevy family hauler. Nice in a straight line, but what if you are interested in autocross or rallying?

I think a better metric would be something like (HP/Weight + Slalom Speed/60)/Price * K, which would add a dynamic handling component--the speed through a slalom course, in this example. Or perhaps a lap time or average speed around a reference track would be better.

Both Winding Road and Motor Trend put the MazdaSpeed 3 near the top of their list, in terms of bang-for-the buck. Now I want one.

Top Sellers MPG

If the price of gas is such a problem, why don't Americans buy smaller cars? (Answer: because they don't want small cars.)

Here is the list of the 2006 top sellers, by volume, for the U.S. (list courtesy of Edmunds). I have added the average fuel economy numbers from the EPA's 2007 fuel economy list.

1. Ford F-Series (includes F-150, F-250 Super Duty and F-350 Super Duty) — 796,039
Fullsize and just plain huge trucks.
Ave. fuel economy: 17mpg (V8 combined City and Highway numbers)

2. Chevrolet Silverado (includes 1500, 1500 Classic, 1500 SS Classic, 1500HD Classic, 2500HD, 2500HD Classic, 3500HD, 3500 Classic — 636,069
Fullsize trucks.
Ave. fuel economy: 17mpg (V8)

3. Toyota Camry and Camry Solara — 448,445
Midsized car.
Ave. fuel economy: 29mpg (I4)

4. Dodge Ram (includes 1500, 2500 and 3500) — 364,177
Fullsized Trucks.
Ave. fuel economy: 17mpg (V8)

5. Honda Accord — 354,441
Midsized Car.
Ave. fuel economy: 29mpg (I4)

6. Honda Civic — 316,638
Compact Car.
Ave. fuel economy: 35mpg

7. Chevrolet Impala — 289,868
Large Car.
Ave. fuel economy: 26mpg

8. Toyota Corolla — 272,327
Compact Car.
Ave. fuel economy: 35mpg

9. Nissan Altima — 232,457
Midsize Car.
Ave fuel economy: 30mpg (I4)

10. Chevrolet Cobalt — 211,449
Compact Car.
Ave fuel economy: 28mpg

What I see in these numbers is that the love affair for large vehicles continues, despite fuel costs. Where is the landslide towards small thrifty cars? It isn't here yet.

Of the top ten best sellers, approximately 2,160,000 units (F150, Silverado, Ram, Impala) get worse than 28mpg (CAFE target is 27.5 for cars). 1,835,100 units (Camry, Accord, Civic, Corolla, Altima, Cobalt) get better than 28mpg.

Announcing Aftermarket CAT

As Syd's Eastside Auto Parts has extended its product offerings and customer base with the addition of a superior line of new IDP engineered aftermarket engine part products for Caterpillar diesel and natural gas engines, we are proud to announce that Aftermarket Cat is now online.

Aftermarket Cat is much more than a new website in the Syd's Eastside portfolio, it represents a brand dedicated to assisting CAT owners and mechanics by allowing them to save money on quality premium aftermarket IDP engineered CAT motor parts.

Aftermarket Cat represents our commitment to the IDP line of superior performance Caterpillar aftermarket engine components which offer no sacrifice to reliability.

Even though the website is young, we encourage you to visit. If you have any comments or critiques of the website, we would love to hear it. Or if you would like to suggest something that we haven't covered, we appreciate all feedback. Please feel free to write a comment on this post, even if it is just to say "Hi".

Thanks for visiting, and for reading our blog. We hope that you have a great day and perhaps we will hear from you in the future!

-Syd's Eastside

Links:
http://www.AftermarketCAT.com
...A Division of: Syd's Eastside Auto Parts
On the Web @ http://www.SydsAutoParts.com

A Response To A Comment

One of my few readers left a comment in my recent post about Bob Lutz' opinion on the cost of raising CAFE standards. His comment was so whacky I thought I'd respond to it point by point. My reply in italics.

Anonymous said...

As an engineer myself, I'm quite dubious of your claims. Working in the auto industry as an engineer doesn't necessarily qualify you as a subject matter expert on mileage or CAFE standards or future locomotive technologies or for that matter, of thermodynamics.

Hey, it's my blog, and my opinion. If you think I'm an idiot, start your own blog! Being close to the problems, I think I do have something to say about fuel economy.

Throttling the Big Three on efficiency will drive innovation. Unfortunately, likely not from the Big Three. Unfortunately, your industry is one of the most lackluster at innovation. That includes your foreign competitors. GM has spent over $100 billion in research over the last quarter decade and for that we get .... what? A Chevy Aveo with lower MPG ratings than a Chevette of 1984. Look it up on the government CAFE web site. $100 billion sent a man to the moon and created entire new industries and technologies with the Apollo program. Yes, inflation makes it apples to oranges but....

Lackluster? What? Check out all the stuff we have that we didn't in 1984. Airbags. ESC. Seatbelt pretensioners. Rollover sensors. Computer simulated crashes. Self diagnostics of all types. Much of this was not driven by regulation, but by market competition. Do you have any idea how many microprocessors are used in your average car? How many thousands of lines of software code?

As for your Chevette, that is not a valid comparison. How much did that Chevette weigh in 1984? How much horsepower did it have? What was the 0-60mph time? Did the Chevette have power steering, power brakes, side impact beams, front and side airbags, etc., all of which add weight? The lowly Aveo is much more car than a Chevette, in every way.

Innovation will happen in transportation because its now out of your hands. It's in the hands of the world's scientists and entrepreneurs. You may incorporate the technology or with new advances in manufacturing, you may actually see small volume niche players eating your lunch as the landscape of innovation could easily create.

I'm not sure what you just said. Many of the world's scientists are working for automotive OEM's and suppliers.

By the way, CAFE standards in Japan and Europe are 2x what they are in the US and China is following suit. Better quit whining and start getting ingenious. Seems like they can sell cars in all three markets for substantially less than the average selling price in the US. Your $5000 claim is meritless. He was talking about America's stringent diesel emissions. Innovation will make that a nonstarter as well just as when Honda embarrassed the Big Three in the 1970s when they said they couldn't meet the emission standards and Honda ended up doing it without a catalytic converter.

Where did you get the idea that cars are cheaper in Europe and Japan than in the U.S.? Again, compare apples to apples. The average car in Europe or Japan is a "B" class car--about the size of a Civic or Corolla. That's the family sedan. Very few people can afford a "C" or "D" size car (Accord and larger). Many people drive "A" cars, such as the Smart. Full sized pickup trucks virtually don't exist--here they are the biggest selling vehicles (Silverado, F150).

Why is my $5000 claim meritless? You didn't give any example s of what things cost.

Sorry buddy. You need to go back to engineering school. Hey, if you are going to blog, be factual, be honest and expect negative feedback when you are wrong.

Sorry buddy, you need to learn how to argue. If you are going to comment on a blog, and call the blogger out, you had better bring some facts.

Ford Selling Volvo? Why?

According to a news wire story from Reuters, which picked it up from a Swedish newspaper, which got the news from an un-named Ford source, Ford is considering selling Volvo, and BMW is kicking the tires.

Uh, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

Ford doesn't report the Volvo financials separately, but the industry guess is that Volvo is probably the most profitable of the Euro-luxury brands. Volvo is also a leader in automotive safety technology, with a valuable portfolio of intellectual property. They are also a leader in environmentally friendly carmaking, another priority for Ford.

Would Ford really keep money-pit Jaguar and sell Volvo? And why would BMW want Volvo, after their sour experience with Land Rover? I am not sure I see how Volvo fits into BMW's portfolio--BMW's cars are sportier, and every bit as safe. They overlap considerably in price.

According to the news article, Ford could gain as much as $9 Billion on a sale of Volvo. That's a nice chunk of change, but then what? Ford would be left with a real hole in their product line-up, with no credible competitor to European luxury brands, with Jaguar being weak and too far upscale and Lincoln not yet a credible threat.

Man, those college professors and Vermont commies are gonna be pissed--BMW isn't what most of them would call a progressive company.

Inflation Adjusted Gas Prices

This chart, from www.InflationData.com , shows the inflation adjusted average annual gas price since the 1920's. What is interesting is the general downward trend since 1920 in the inflation adjusted price, with the exception of the oil embargo of the 1970's and the recent run-up. If the current bump smooths out, according to this trend line we should land somewhere between $2.00/gal in a few years. Or so I hope!

Shopping the Competition--At The Dealer?

Mark Tapscott comments on his blog about how GM is suggesting to Chevrolet dealers to rent a Toyota Camry to show next to the new Malibu.

Wow, that's ballsy. Good for GM. It could backfire, though--"Look, honey, the Camry has a much nicer..."

Ford was already doing the "taste test" ads where people supposedly like the Fusion better than the Camry or Accord... but putting the competition's car in the showroom takes it to a new level.

Tapscott wants them to go even further, and allow test drives of the main competition, like that insurance company that offers to let you shop the competition on their web site.

I'd be very surprised if that happened. Not just for cost or liability reasons, but what about credibility? Think of how this could be abused--the Chevy dealer could secretly sabotage the Camry, introducing squeeks and rattles, or knocking out the highest gear on the transmission to increase engine noise. If you had a bad Camry experience at a Chevy dealer, would you trust it?

Celebrating The First Anniversary of Our Online Presence

Syd's Eastside Auto Parts, Used Cars & Rebuilders has now been online at http://www.SydsAutoParts.com for over a year. Our website has grown and expanded with our business.

Syd's Eastside Auto Parts, Used Cars & Rebuilders had previously been online for 8 months or so prior with a packaged website that allowed visitors to search our inventory, but didn't allow e-commerce and wasn't customizable. Interest in our auto parts offerings quickly grew and that's why we created our own custom professional website with full search capabilities cross indexed for interchangeable parts and full, secure e-commerce capabilities.

In the past year we have added website functionality and expanded our business:

1. Added licensed Hollander Interchange cross-indexing to show all available interchangeable parts across makes, models and years in our Online Auto Parts Search Results.
2. Continued to keep and maintain an up-to-date catalog of our available Used Cars and Trucks For Sale offers online through the website.
3. Added E-Commerce functionality with a secure Shopping Cart for online auto parts shopping.
4. Offered New Aftermarket Auto Parts through our toll-free ordering service.
5. Added a Featured Parts & Products Showcase to allow us to highlight some of our available tools and products, as well as showcase our new and used auto parts.
6. Expanded our business to offer Aftermarket Caterpillar Diesel Engine Parts.
7. Added a section for our Heavy Equipment & Machinery offerings.

Remember that we are no longer just a salvage yard and now offer new aftermarket automotive parts and aftermarket Caterpillar diesel parts.

We look to further expand our product and service lines further to better accomodate our customers in the future. We certainly hope that you will be pleased with the results.

Thanks to our customers and suppliers for our past and continued success!
-SydsEastside