By Csaba Daradics
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By Csaba Daradics
Source: Youtube via Sunamuna
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There's a right way and a wrong way to drive a vehicle down a steep hill. The folks in this previous generation Kia Sportage chose the wrong way, but fortunately for them, the incident ended without any bloodshed. Watch the video after the break.
Via: Motofilm
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Source: Youtube , Via: Autoblog
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So, what have we learned today? Well, first of all, avoid overdoing the burnout if your car is tied to a block of concrete. Also, always keep a fire extinguisher at hand, because it turns out that putting out flames with some refreshments isn’t very effective. Who would of thought it? Watch the video after the jump.
By Csaba Daradics
Kudos to Ivan for the tip!
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So here's how this 'fail' story goes: A female driver gets stuck on a patch of ice / snow in her automatic BMW 1-Series. After a few unsuccessful attempts of trying to free the Bavarian hatch from behind the steering wheel, she decides to leave it in gear and give it a push herself. While the BMW driver eventually managed to clear out of the slippery part of the road, she ended up in another mess [...]. See what happens next in the video after the break.
By Csaba Daradics
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Check out the video after the jump to see dumb and dumber at work.
By Csaba Daradics
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Seeing these amateurs almost bite the dust might be temporarily amusing, but on second thought, imagine being involved in an accident caused by this kind of reckless driving. Yeah, it’s not funny anymore. Video after the jump.
By Csaba Daradics
Source: Youtube via Ridelust
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Thanks for the tip, Alex V.!
Source: LifeNews
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According to the posters over at the SaabsUnited fan site, there has been some talk on forums about an aftermarket engine heater that may have been wrongly installed by the same dealer on both cars, but this has not been confirmed. If indeed there is a problem -and we're not saying there is - Saab should definitely send some people to look into the matter and sort things out because you know what they say about rumors spreading like wildfires...
Source: Corren , Via: SaabsUnited
Source: Autojunk , Thanks for the tip Alex!
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So here’s the scoop (according to the posters): some students at Mech-Tech College in Ponce, Puerto Rico were putting a Lancer Evolution VII through its paces on the school’s dyno, when disaster struck. Everything seems normal until 16 seconds in, when the Lancer careens to the left and slides off. Of course, it was all captured on video for our edification.
According to the EvolutionM forum, the vehicle was improperly strapped down. It has something to do with the fitting of a Blow Off Valve (BOV) dump tube which changes the way the vehicle behaves both on the track...and on the dyno. Of course, nobody seems to have taken this into account when tying the Evo down.
Check out the vid and let us know what you think in the comments section below.
By Tristan Hankins
Source: Evolutionm , Via: WFC
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We don’t know if this is a factory 800-horsepower Super Snake or a privately tuned GT500, but something went very wrong during this dyno test... It might have happened due to insufficient cooling or a faulty component - we just don't know. Whatever the cause, the owner is one unhappy guy. Follow the break and watch the engine going up in flames and a cloud of smoke.
By Csaba Daradics
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Thanks for the tip Glen!
Source: Slowdown , Link: Apple App
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On MSNBC’s Morning Joe breakfast show, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood stated: "There's a lot of technology out there now that can disable phones and we're looking at that. That's one way. But you have to have good laws, you have to have good enforcement, and you have to have people take personal responsibility. That's the bottom line."
The semi-official announcement comes as the DoT launches a new online video campaign called, “Faces of Distracted Driving”, where victims speak about how it has changed their lives. Mr. LaHood went on to state that the deadly phenomenon has claimed 5,500 lives in the last year, with 500,000 more injured.
Paul Atchley, a scientist as the University of Kansas, thinks the true numbers could be much higher, and that things will only get worse:
"When we ask young drivers about drunk driving, they say that judges should throw the book at drunk drivers, but not the person texting while driving. The bottom line is that people want to use these devices. And things are going to get worse before they get better."
There are no federal laws in the U.S. that limit the use of a cell phone while driving, though many states do prohibit texting. Others have made it illegal to use a cell phone without a headset / voice dialing.
It is unlikely that cell phone jammers will be built into cars, as the Federal Communications Commission has made these illegal (for obvious reasons). The DoT is therefore seeking a software solution that could use cell phone towers to estimate a car’s speed.
Mr. Atchley, however, is convinced this won’t work, as these methods are voluntary and the software is not difficult for tech savvy users to work around. Instead, Atchley believes we must change people’s attitudes.
Though given the failings of similar campaigns against speeding and drunk driving, this may not be as easy as it first seems.
*Update: The U.S. Department of Transport is not considering mandating cell phone blocking technology in cars. The U.S. DoT is simply evaluating these technologies so that individuals and companies may voluntarily use them in the near future. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has clarified this in a blog post.
By Tristan Hankins
Via: MSNBC
While no one was hurt as a result of the accident, unfortunately, the laws of physics that state an object that is in motion will not change its velocity, were not suspended and the family of four received a well deserved lesson in safety procedures.
Via: Wreckedexotics
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According to DIA, drivers give too much emphasis on the actual skidding, instead of taking precautionary measures, which can help them to avoid the problem in the first place.
For starters, make sure you leave on time from home and prepare your vehicle for the journey. There's nothing worse than a stressed out driver in a rush, constantly tempted to floor the gas pedal on slippery roads.
It's also very important to prepare your car. In winter, windows will gather frost (minus these) and there's a good chance that the entire car will be covered in snow. If you don't clear the windows and the car, which by the way, is an offence in many countries, you'll be endangering yourself due to the lack of visibility as well as those around you by blinding them with the snow falling off your car.
We consider that letting the engine idle for a few minutes in freezing temperatures is a good idea as well, because it's going to extend its lifecycle. Madly revving a cold powertrain just to clear the driveway can cause damages.
Don't forget to check the fuel, antifreeze and windscreen washer levels, and consider pulling the wipers away from the windshield if the car remains stationary for longer periods of time to prevent the rubber from freezing onto the glass.
If you have done all this, you're ready to go, unless of course you don't have winter tires,. Most people tend to neglect this aspect, but it's a big mistake. Tire companies say that normal rubber will lose grip even at 7 degrees Celsius (44.6 F), not to mention below zero (33 F) temperatures. If that's the case, you won't be better off with four-wheel drive either. You might get a bit further than two-wheel drive vehicles, but that's about it without a good set of tires.
But let's say you have winter tires and you're on the road. You should keep a safe distance from other vehicles that have not been cleared, to avoid flying snow and ice that can blind you or even shatter your windscreen.
If there's a steep street ahead, wait for the other cars to reach the top before continuing your drive. Should they slip back, you will be a sitting duck if there's not enough distance between vehicles.
Use a higher (third instead of second, for instance) and if your car has an automatic transmission, check if it has a winter mode. Always accelerate progressively and plan ahead when braking. Use engine braking if possible and avoid locking the brakes. As long as the wheels are turning you can still change the direction of the car, while with locked wheels you'll spin around uncontrollably.
Pay attention to road surfaces. On bridges and flyovers the cold wind can cause the surface to freeze. Sheltered areas can also be hazardous: if the sun doesn't reach them for a few hours you might end up driving on "black ice". Road markings might not be visible, so think twice about stopping in certain spots.
If you live in areas with severe snowfalls, it's a good idea to keep some supplies in your car (drinks, food, blankets, waterproof clothing etc.) and consider buying a shovel and chains in case you get stuck. In extreme conditions, your survival can depend on them, so every penny will be well spent.
Foremost, use common sense. If something feels wrong, don't do it. Once, I saw a sticker on a Land Rover Defender that said, "Caution! This machine has no brain. Use your own". How true is that?
By Csaba Daradics
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So what gives me the right to chide American drivers for resisting such a basic piece of road design as the humble roundabout? Well, that's simple: in Australia we've been using roundabouts for years.
The New York Times reports that, for some oddball reason (probably because the French are so fond of them), Americans are actively resisting the introduction of the roundabout across their great, proud nation. This comes despite the fact that roundabouts have long proven to be safer, more efficient and better for the environment than that other piece of road design: the intersection.
Eugene R. Russell Sr, a civil engineering professor at Kansas State and the chairman of a national task force on roundabouts, elaborates:
"There's a lot of what I call irrational opposition. People don't understand. They just don't understand roundabouts."
What's to understand? It's a big concrete circle that you drive around counter-clockwise, turning off on the exit that you want. If you're turning left or making a U-turn, you keep to the inside lane, if you're turning right, you keep to the outside lane. You give way to the left like you would at an intersection, and to any vehicles already transversing the roundabout. That's it.
So why don't Americans like roundabouts?
Well, there are a few potential reasons. First, there's the resistance to change: intersections have been a staple of American towns for at least sixty years. There's also some confusion between what a roundabout actually is: traffic circles, like Dupont Circle in Washington D.C., are not roundabouts. Roundabouts are typically smaller, traffic moves more slowly and do not feature traffic lights.
There are, however, signs that attitudes are changing. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety interviewed 1,802 drivers across six communities and found that just 34% support roundabouts before construction, but that this generally increases to 57% shortly after construction was finished and 69% after more than a year had passed.
There are roughly 2,000 roundabouts across the United States, most of which were built in the last ten years according to Edward Myers, the senior principal at transport engineering firm Kittelson and Associates. Hundreds more are planned for the immediate future, so it seems American drivers will have no choice but to go accustomed to, and learn how to use, these rotary roadways.
By Tristan Hankins
Source: NYT , Photo/Video: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
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You might have to watch it again to get the full effect. With the steering wheel still hard over, the driver realizes he or she has gone too far. Rather than hitting the brake, he or she hits the accelerator instead and the car surges forward, demolishing a door and slamming into the side of another parked car.
It's one of those things that has to be watched over and over again (I know I did). Feel free to leave your jibes, chides and other remarks in the comments below
By Tristan Hankins
Via: Gawker
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