AUTOS CARS CUSTOM

If Jay Leno had this problem, he'd build a new lawn mower, smelting his own ore for the block and crafting the handle from the skids of a surplus military helicopter. The final product would put down 83 horsepower and be called the Blind Monk, after the sightless holy man who achieved trancendence whole jetting the carburetor. If you think that you're mechanically inclined, rest assured that Leno would make you feel like a medieval dung collector who time-warped onto the Shanghai maglev. 

Women drivers—specifically really young ones and really old ones—are more likely than other drivers to cause collisions by putting a foot wrong. ( http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/04/women_more_likely_to_mistake_g.html )

 Or so says a recent report from The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. ( DOT HS 811 597 )

The study found that women—more specifically 20- and 76-year olds—were disproportionately likely to tromp on the accelerator when they aimed for the brake. Thus crashing, most often in parking lots. The report seemed almost apologetic, like they expected to get yelled out for politically incorrectness. But I nod in easy belief for many reasons. First the young women: my evidence is anecdotal but I give good anecdote so trust me. Girls are better students than boys. They also tend to have confidence in what they learn. They’ve been attentive in driver’s-ed and, bless their naïve little hearts, are positive they now know How to Drive.

A single anecdote: a friend riding with such a daughter offered a suggestion (really a plea) which was rejected with: “Da-aad, I know what I’m doing!” My friend told me that all has daughter knew was foot hard on the brake or hard on the gas. Such conviction cannot imagine error. Car doesn’t slow when the “brake” is pushed? Push harder. Another thing, what is this 20-year-old wearing on her driving feet? I’d like to see accident reports include that information. Flip-flops? Quite possible. And quite hazardous. Or maybe stiletto heels or platform sandals. Not ideal for sensing what one’s feet are doing in pedal land.

 Now for the older segment. When “unintended acceleration” first came into our ken years ago drivers most often involved were found to be short of stature. (Stretching to depress the pedals?) Also many had recently changed from one model car to another. (Unfamiliarity with pedal location?)

 Now consider this. Even if the older women are driving a car they’ve had for years their relationship to the pedals could well be new to them. Experience speaking here. One day I got into my ’93 Sidekick and became aware that my steering wheel was fuzzily – annoyingly—encroaching into my field of vision. The wheel is not adjustable. Little is in an old Suzuki.

 What had happened? My condensing spine, yielding to mounting years of gravity, had reached a Notice Point. Like the wicked witch I was “shrinking, shrinking!” So I bought a wedge-shaped cushion for the car seat and, sigh, was elevated back to normality. No bothersome steering wheel intrusion and my chin boldly level again. And thus my eyes looking, not peering. (Level, dear driver, is of critical importance for proper placement of the horizon. A proper horizon helps you nail your turns. Doubt me not.) My Suzuki seating, being kitchen-chair upright, created no problems for me with the pedals, but in most cars old-age shrinkage can change a driver’s positioning vis a vis brake and accelerator. If you have a shrinking old lady in your family check out her relationship to the pedals as she drives. Particularly as she backs up, a maneuver frequent in parking lots. Is there tippy-toeing? An uncertainty as to which pedal her feet are contacting? She could be at risk for wrong-footing and hitting something.

For your daughter, insist on appropriate footwear (she can keep driving shoes in the car) and give her some pedal-awareness exercises. For your Mom or Auntie Doodah, get her into a car that fits. (Recognize that adjustments on many seats are inadequate.) And for everyone, use this remedy for unintended acceleration: “If what you’re doing doesn’t work—stop doing it.”

http://denisemccluggage.com/index.php/mcblog/comments/wrong_pedal_i_wonder_why

Excepted from http://www.dep-o.co.uk/features/do-you-remember-the-first-time/

"Our fondly remembered first cars were notable for a couple of things – even at the time, they were old, decrepit and most importantly, cheap.

Ten year old cars then were not like ten year old cars now. I would quite happily jump behind the wheel of a 1996 Mondeo tomorrow and drive the length and breadth of the country. In the mid Eighties, you wouldn’t jump into any decade old motor for fear of falling through the rust compromised floor, and any trip was only to be tackled when fully equipped with a tool kit, gallon cans of oil and water, and plenty of second-hand spares chucked in the boot. And on the back seat.

Back in the days of dodgy mullets, snow wash denim and George Michael being straight, we both found ourselves driving cars that are now regarded as proper ‘classics’, but then, they were old bangers that no-one wanted. Both of us had a budget of about £300, and we both ended up getting the cars (I paid about £120 for my 1973 FIAT 850D at auction, his auntie gave him a MkI Escort Estate of similar vintage) and insuring them for the money we’d saved. Sounds incredibly cheap, but we were both broke and canny. But to put it in context, my brother had paid £300 the year before for a very tidy, MoT’d MkI Escort two-door. Read it and weep.

Fast forward to the future. The modern equivalents of our first cars are in a different league – they handle and brake better, rust tends to be cosmetic, and even the most basic will be loaded with driver comforts, security devices and safety aids. Alright, plastic bumpers tend not to wear the years too well and they will no doubt go a lot faster. But Gaffer tape and a little restraint are wonderful things. It’s also interesting to note, that because of the way society has changed and our expectations have altered, the cars now are almost as cheap – pick up the local rag or spend ten minutes on eBay, and I reckon £500 will get you a very usable car.

So we get to the heart of my dilemma. I’m 17. I have £1000. I buy my £500 car (Ka, 106, Cinquecento, Nova/Corsa, Micra…). What are my chances of getting it insured with the remainder of my budget…? Ridiculous? OK, double the budget and try again. We’re not even getting close. And my question – why and when did the world change so much that first time or younger drivers have to find these frankly ridiculous sums to insure their cars?"

I want to put emphasis on the fact that the insurance for these better quality and safer cars is quadruple the cost for dodgy old rust buckets with no airbags, no power steering, no power anti lock brakes, no crumple zones, no safety bumpers... why is that? Just my thought, not part of the article I found.

Read the rest, and check out the comments too http://www.dep-o.co.uk/features/do-you-remember-the-first-time/

Things you don't want to miss on your driving test
The best car events in the world, or the worst
 The most incredible car museums in the world
the most incredible cars you've never heard of
 the top 10 coolest cars ever
the top 10 highest maintenance cars ever
 The most impressive car collections / collectors you've never heard of
 What is in Ron Prattes car collection
 the best auto writers, and where to read their work
 the best auto photographers, and where to see their work
 the best car customizers (not Barris) and which was the best car they ever made
 10 best websites for what ever... especially how you rank your top 10 favorite blogs
10 worst mechanics,
10 worst ripoffs in the auto world (besides Bernie Madoff),
10 hardest repairs due to engineering shortsightedness,
10 most difficult to diagnose problems with your car,
10 easiest things you can troubleshoot your self (battery dead? Voltage regulator? or Starter? is the most common problem) ,
10 cheapest insurance companies (did that myself a couple years ago),
10 insurance companies to avoid,
10 women that broke a mechanics heart,
10 women that will destroy your mechanics ego by knowing his job better than he does,
10 best jobs in the mechanics world,
10 best auto related companies to work for (pep boys, sears, discount tire, AAA, or what?)
10 coolest bosses you've worked for,
10 best fringe benefits from working at your shop,
10 nicest people you've met while getting a quote on your repair
10 coolest conversations while waiting for your car to get fixed (mine was a WW2 Battleship gunner telling me about the USS Iowa)
10 best trades for work (spare engine for a repair on your truck?)
10 ways insurance companies screwed you out of your claim, even if it was because you weren't fluent in insurance lingo and missed the thing you could have done to save your self a headache
10 cheapest places to get new tires

In the May 2010 Hot Rod, the Editor, Doug Glad, wrote this awesome tribute... enjoy!

The first time I spotted a nomadic mechanic was during my brief tenure at Loper Service Center, a fast food-style carb and intake installation center in Pheonix. He appeared one day dressed in linen-truck work blues with battered hands showing the burns and cuts of a guy who could spin a wrench. For most of the morning, he stood in the corner and smoked, and observed, and smoked. He was like a gunslinger, his movements slow and easy, waiting for your move.

His box appeared in the afternoon on the back of a chromed and flamed flatbed truck that looked like it could handle a car show or 50-car pileup with aplomb. The box was the big Snap-on roll cab, spotless, with a bulk section and 54-inch workstation riser in classic red. Its mass dwarfed all other boxes in the shop, including that of the boss, as a group of tatted mercenaries eased off the bedwith chains like a captured animal. It carried enough tools to work the heavy line, the tune-up bays, and maybe even the machine shop. He took every job and made twice as much cash as we did. A month later, he was gone.

These are my people. And if you've spent enough time under hoods and in the engine room and really know what you are doing, you become recognizeable as a clan member in any environment. I'm not talking about tattooed and faux-speed-shop Dickies -wearing guys; I'm talking about night-shift heavy liners with maybe some diesel truck experience and a serious handbuildt monster in the garage back home. They're easy to spot at the racetrack- it's tougher at the car show or cruise night. They show up later, and their cars make the horsepower sound that isn't all cam and Flowmasters. They can weld the top side of a muffler upside down with a smoke dangling out of their mouths, eat a sandwich with a black hand without tasting grease, and know that nut is 9/16 with a glance.

Along with engineering and manufacturing, this thing we do is supported by the professional, bread-and-butter mechanic; the serious veteran from aircraft, freight train, or shipyard work; the guy in the pit working the wrenches. The pit snipes with air-powered grease guns waiting to get a swat at your brand new boots, the heavyweight fromt he transmission bay shambling out of the back like the recently exhumed when the roach coach arrives, and the perfectionist front-line tune-up guy have all earned their places. If they choose to, they can help the clean-hands guy on the side of the road with his flat-tired import, or not, and they'll run across four lanes of traffic to help a girl in trouble.

These guys are the warriors behind the lines who do the jobs to keep the trucks, heavy gear, and maybe even your commuter running so you don't have to. Even if you aren't from the clan of the wrench, appreciate what they do every day to keep this industry going. They are the backbone, and they deserve your respect.

Give that man a hand, bravo! Email him at CarCraft@CarCraft.com and let him know how much you enjoy that tribute!