About DaveA

DaveA

The problem with part 1 is that you’d have people who drive around at night with their headlights off, and sitting at long red lights wasting gas. That’s probably why those features are on by default: too many people who can’t be bothered to actually pay attention to their surroundings. Do you have any idea how much gas is wasted by idling vehicles? It’s obscene.

DaveA

First, you are always responsible for your car, regardless of “who” is operating it. It’s the same with airplanes. Second, as a former driving instructor I’m sure you are aware that the vast majority of accidents are caused by humans. So, any help humans can get will improve the odds. In fact, I did some research a few years ago and was amazed at just how much automatic emergency braking had reduced the likely hood of being rear ended, and how the odds will further decrease as vehicles with such technology become more prevalent on the road.

DaveA

It’s not just that some cars have poor rearward visibility. The call for backup cams came because small children were getting hit. Children that are smaller than the height of the rear window and thus invisible to a driver no matter how well you could see. The systems with cross traffic alert are also very good at seeing crossing traffic even with cars parked on either side of you. It’s amazing how well they work.

DaveA

Upgrading the shift knob is an easy and great way to increase the satisfaction of shifting, and it can improve the interior as well. I recently replaced the shift knob and boot for my Esprit. Both had worn out terribly, the factory rubber shift knob feeling like a squishy dog toy. I swapped that out for a nice MOMO knob and stuck a tiny Lotus emblem on top. It looks great, and feels so much better in my hand.

DaveA

Good article. I like how you point out the odds of various scenarios. I think it’s easy to get so focused on one particular type of problem that you fail to take into account how ridiculously improbable it is to occur in the first place.

DaveA · ‎20-05-2022

I would add a rivet gun. I was surprised to find out how many items were riveted on my old car, and how many more could be fixed using rivets.

DaveA · ‎20-05-2022

John DeLorean was a fan of the 300SL. He (or more likely, his company) owned one for a few years. I remember reading somewhere that the DeLorean had gullwing doors because of John’s love for the Mercedes.

DaveA · ‎20-05-2022

Yeah, but he never drives it anymore. I heard he lost his license.

DaveA · ‎20-05-2022

Gold colored cars may not be a good investment, but cars actually covered in gold are. The two factory built gold-plated DeLoreans come to mind (only two were made at the factory, any others were built or plated elsewhere).

DaveA · ‎20-05-2022

I had an Ecoboost Mustang as a daily driver. The addition of AWD would have been great, as I do occasionally get snow where I live. Sadly, as great as it was on long commutes (usually mid 30’s MPG), I had to trade it in for something that could handle the weather year round.

DaveA · ‎06-05-2022

I loved my XT! I bought a used one many years ago and put many miles on it. The only time it let me down was when one of the timing belts broke (yes it had two timing belts!). Fortunately it’s a non-interference engine so the inconvenience was minor. I finally had to get rid of it when the rust got so bad that it would no longer pass state inspection without major repairs. If I found once in decent shape I’d be tempted to get it just to have fun at the local Cars and Coffee.

DaveA · ‎28-04-2022

I’m looking for a transmission for my 90 Lotus Esprit Turbo SE. It’s a Renault UN1-16, however the UN1-26 will also work. Any help is appreciated.

DaveA · ‎22-04-2022

Great video! I loved the movie Ford v Ferrari, and it was interesting to learn more about the history of the GT.

DaveA · ‎22-04-2022

“They” and “their” can both be used when referring to a single person. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/grammar/singular-they

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

Oh, please. You people with your “the Bronco Sport isn’t a REAL Bronco” are ridiculous. It’s a name. Ford can slap it on whatever they want. Who put you in charge of deciding what’s “real”?

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

Yep! You gotta love it when people shout “If I was in charge!” and then ramble off all sorts of stuff they’d “fix”. People vote with their wallets. If you’re not buying a new car every few years, you aren’t driving the market and setting the tone.

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

Why do you suppose station wagons became poplar? Americans wanted bigger vehicles with more space. That hasn’t changed. You profess your love of a bigger vehicle while also dissing other bigger vehicles.

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

The Mustang Mach E is doing surprisingly well. Your report of it’s imminent demise are a bit premature: https://insideevs.com/news/558927/us-ford-mache-sales-2021/

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

True car people can tell them apart. My 10 year old son is pretty good at it. The designs are similar, but not identical.

DaveA · ‎17-04-2022

I’ve owned both late model V6 and Ecoboost Mustangs and I agree with Sajeev. If all you’re worried about is reliability and costs, the V6 is the better choice. That being said, the turbo 4 is no slouch of the line and can return very impressive fuel economy numbers if one is careful with ones right foot.

DaveA · ‎13-04-2022

Yep, I get it. I sold my first DeLorean (which I loved) only to later regret it and buy another. I’ve since decided that no matter what happens there will always be a DeLorean in my garage. I can’t help it, the car is just so legen.....wait for it....

DaveA · ‎09-04-2022

My wife’s Forester and my Bronco Sport both have similar features.

DaveA · ‎26-03-2022

The cars were picked by two auctioneers. The goal was to find cars whose options made a huge difference in value. Perhaps there are no American cars that fit that category.

DaveA · ‎26-03-2022

If you don’t have to suffer through heat, why would you?

DaveA · ‎26-03-2022

Cell phones are already being used to replace car keys, credit/debit cards, hotel keys, airline tickets, insurance cards, etc. etc. Is it really that ridiculous that drivers license makes that list too?

DaveA · ‎26-03-2022

You can’t understand why some people choose to drive carefully and responsibly? I spend a lot of time on the highway and I think we need more people driving like retired dental assistants, not less. Trust me, nobody’s impressed by how easily you pass them.

DaveA · ‎25-03-2022

I love Denzel Washington but that’s a little steep for my bank account! Nicely done on those movie titles. 😂

DaveA · ‎19-03-2022

Terrible engines? I worked for Subaru for quite some time (and owned many of them) and I never thought any of the engines were terrible. Quirky? Sure. Problematic? One or two of them. But not terrible. Heck most of them had no problem getting to 150k or more with little more than standard maintenance.

DaveA · ‎18-03-2022

I think Giorgetto Giugiaro of ItalDesign should get an honorable mention. That man is responsible for a wide range of automobile designs.

DaveA · ‎18-03-2022

Wasn’t Henry’s production line technique influenced by watching how a local slaughter house operated?

DaveA · ‎06-03-2022

Exactly. That says a lot about Hellcat drivers, doesn’t it?

DaveA · ‎06-03-2022

Exactly. Their original plan was to use the remaining NOS stainless panels on top a modern platform, thus preserving the original look. Whether this will ever happen remains unclear. It appears that their focus is now on a completely new car (possibly an ItalDesign DaVinci) with a DMC badge slapped on it.

DaveA · ‎04-03-2022

I believe the estimate you saw was from a few years ago. Considering that the DMC facility in Texas has a few refurbished DeLoreans that they are asking 6 figures for, whatever they build under this law will be way north of $100,000.

DaveA · ‎04-03-2022

Although the original DMC closed it’s doors for good in early 1983, the new DMC based in Texas (no relation to the original company, they just purchased the rights) has been waiting for this law for some time. Now, whether or not they will actually build anything “new” to take advantage of this law is unknown. They’ve been teasing it for years, biding their time by offering refurbished DeLoreans. The original plan was to use the remaining NOS body panels on top of a modern chassis with a modern drivetrain. That still might happen, although they are now teasing a completely modern EV (which looks like a ItalDesign DaVinci with a DMC badge slapped on it).

DaveA · ‎03-03-2022

“ While the ubiquitous eight-speed ZF automatic is surely the more popular option for the Hellcat..” That line says it all. For all the moaning the “3rd pedal” guys do about the decline of “manly” transmissions, they aren’t putting their money where their mouths are. If more people bought manual transmission cars, manufacturers would make more of them. For the record, I prefer a 3rd pedal. But I don’t blame manufacturers for their decline.

DaveA · ‎02-03-2022

You do realize that your response was more than likely made on an electronic device that was built in China, right?

DaveA · ‎26-02-2022

1990 was most definitely not the last year of the 80’s. Most dictionary’s define decade as: “A decade is a period of ten years, especially one that begins with a year ending in 0, for example 1980 to 1989.” I’ve never seen anything supporting your definition of a decade.

DaveA · ‎26-02-2022

Good article! The Nissan Z vs Porsche 944 is interesting.

DaveA · ‎26-02-2022

Gasoline detergents and their cleaning abilities can be proven though. And you can prove a cheap filter is not as good as some of the pricier ones. As for your wife’s car, sometimes the octane recommendation is simply for performance. The ECU on modern vehicles will advance the timing as much as it can get away with to increase performance. Higher octane allows that. Lower octane will result in dialing back the timing, thus lowering the performance.

DaveA · ‎25-02-2022

The sentence: “ The makers of the iconic stainless steel-bodied DMC-12 have split into two companies” has a few errors. 1) The body isn’t stainless, it’s Glass Reinforced Plastic. The stainless panels are just thin decorative panels bolted onto the GRP (with the exception of the doors). 2) The car was never sold as the DMC-12. That was the pre-production name and it just kind of stuck. No official DMC documentation ever referred to the car as the DMC-12 once production began. That’s why you don’t see “DMC-12” on the car, in the owners manual, in advertisements, on the certificate of origin or the Monroney label. DeLorean wanted his name on the car, not a bunch of letters and numbers. 3) The makers of the DeLorean went out of business in late 1982, closing the doors to the factory for good in early 1983. Many years later the company in Texas purchased the rights to the name. They have no affiliation with the original company in Northern Ireland.

DaveA · ‎24-02-2022

I’ve got plenty of Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars. My wife thinks it’s weird but whatever. To me, it makes more sense than a closet full of expensive shoes that she never wears.

DaveA · ‎24-02-2022

Though the DeLorean chassis was developed by Lotus it looks nothing like the Esprit chassis. Completely different animals.

DaveA · ‎23-02-2022

There’s nothing wrong with paying someone to fix something. Some people don’t have the time. Some people aren’t mechanically inclined. I like wrenching but sometimes it’s cheaper for me to pay someone than to do it myself, as I can make more money at work than the repair is worth.

DaveA · ‎23-02-2022

Lotus did a lot of engineering work for the DeLorean Motor Company. The VARI method of body construction that Lotus used on the Elite and later Esprit’s was also employed by DMC.

DaveA · ‎09-02-2022

A thread checker was one of the best tools I ever purchased.

DaveA · ‎27-01-2022

The Subaru Baja was a modern BRAT.

DaveA · ‎27-01-2022

A few lines of code, plus three buttons adds up when you build hundred of thousands of vehicles per year. Besides, you hint at one of the reasons why it’s not on the base model: it’s not required by the government.

DaveA · ‎27-01-2022

You have to cut corners somewhere if you’re going to keep the price down. Besides, I see this as more of a “city” truck, where cruise control won’t be very handy.

DaveA · ‎19-01-2022

Great article. I lived in New England for way too long, and the number of jackasses I saw that couldn’t be bothered to clear ALL of their windows or their roof was outrageous. Don’t be lazy! Clear your dang vehicle! Snow/ice on your roof does blow off occasionally and hit the car behind you! Also, I’ll lever forget the time that a small sedan braked hard to avoid hitting someone and the giant sheet of snow and ice that they couldn’t be bothered to clear off their roof promptly slid right onto their windshield. It was too heavy for the wipers to move. So they there were, in the middle of a busy, slick road standing beside their vehicle trying to clear their windshield so they could see again.

DaveA · ‎19-01-2022

True! And the glaciers are melting, which means more water for everyone, right? 🙂