Cruising toward Oblivion
 

A good short piece discussing some history and current trends among teenagers re: cars. Nothing new. But a different take for its social-historical perspective. WaPo this a.m.: Cruising toward Oblivion.

I'm seeing this in my part of the woods also. I live in a small a town and you would think the younger generation would have to own or borrow their folks car to get around, but a lot of them don't even have a drivers license? The good news is from what I have been seeing is the ones that have interest in cars want a car that gets great fuel mileage, so they can save their money for the next app or smart phone.;)

One too many of them left on the road, Mercedes SUV all over my but for about 2 miles through Williamsburg.

I'm +7 over the limit (25).

regards
mech

I just got my driver license after turning 24 (the minimum legal age to get a driver license in my country is 18), still didn't get a car, and I'm actually considering to get a small motorcycle (between 100 to 250cc) instead.

All three of my kids were driving by themselves shortly after turning 14.5 on school permits(permit at 14, 6 after permit, can get school permit. Last one turns 16 next month so almost done driving him around on weekends.

Cars are different for him, I had to work on my hand me downs once every couple weeks at least. Todays cars are some much more reliable than the 74 Grandville and 67 GMC that were my first hand me down cars that he doesn't need to know much other than how to jump it when it occasionally drains the battery.

He called an hour ago saying a front tire on Stratus was smoking but still had air, guessing he's going to get to learn how to change a caliper, but hoping just the rubber hose clamp rust restricting the brake fluid.

PS: They all started on dirt bikes by 6-7, riding lawn mowers by 12 which I think gave them a good edge on learning cars.

I would never have guessed that from your avatar.
________

John Heitmann, a historian at the University of Dayton who studies Americans’ relationship with automobiles: “And the way we live now, especially on the coasts, it’s a bother to own a car."

Says someone from... Ohio? Highway 101 isn't much more than a barrier if you don't have a car.

My first car was a 1974 Grandville too! With a hole in the gas tank.

AKA the carburettor?

Now I see, I should have used "only" instead of "just", but you know, English is not my native language. Well, I'm 25 and have my driving license for almost a year (got it in September 2014, I just don't remember the exact day and am too lazy to open my wallet and check it) and haven't driven more than 4 or 5 times since then, mostly in highway during road trips with my dad.

Anyway, unlike my friends who don't seem to look at fuel-efficiency so seriously and often drive like a raped ape, I have always preferred utility vehicles such as those Jap microvans and the VW Kombi, and my dad says that I drive conservatively.

Yawn. When I was a kid it was only a subset of folks my age who cared about cars. Still is true. Some people loved them and still do, most saw them as appliances. Still do.

What I find cool is how the enthusiast is changing. When I was a teen you needed to which end of the wrench to use. Now that is still important but so is knowing which key to press on the laptop. Next generation will be figuring out how to get more amps through the system, strapping larger gauge wires on there. Should be interesting.

When I was that age I only had gray hair at the temples. I guess that explains the capitalization and hand gesture. I'd never have guessed about the English.

When I took my driver's exam I failed the first time, because in the parallel parking test they had stanchions at the two front corners but in the rear it was outside corner and center. I parked precisely half-way into the space. I guess they were testing powers of observation. (That was in the 50s)

The Type IIs I've had over the years:
1962 walk-through Kombi
1954 barn-door 23-window
1961 Panel Van

It sounds like you would be happy with a diesel motorbike. Or electric?

LOL it's not me in that picture, it's from Uncyclopedia.


A panel van would be a nice base for a camper van conversion. Then I would have another excuse to visit the cousins who live near the Uruguayan border.


I don't really see myself getting any EV so soon, but who knows?

Next your going to tell me Frank Lee doesn't have an Ed Roth hat and missing teeth. :confused:

JAPAN CAMPING CAR SHOW 2015
http://www.japan-rv.jp/exhibition/sy...rucam-stay.jpg

But I'm supposed to look this way in the next 40 years :D
http://images.uncyc.org/pt/thumb/b/b...Rabbimetal.jpg

This is an actual picture of me taken 2 years ago :thumbup:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/-DnUy1EvFiLs/Uk...jpg?imgmax=800


That's awesome. One of these based in a 4WD version of this mini truck would be a great hunting rig.

Fiddler on the Roof 2: The Satanic Chronicles

You appear harmless enough. :)

Back to topic.

Nowadays, cars are seen more as an appliance than as an ego extender. Sure, there are still those folks who do use a fancy ride to show off, while others opt for an "eco" ride as a political statement, and the average Joe who cares more about the next iPhone than about the next generation of a random Jap econobox.

I failed the driving test the first time as well, here they pick 2 random birth dates a month(or at least used to) to make them drive. I went right on red without coming to a complete stop.

I know now the drivers ed teacher can flag them and make them drive.

You could say that ego extension has transferred to the smartphone. It predates the car and will be around long after smartphones have been superseded.

I'm not posting a selfie, because reasons; but I look like that right now, except for the hat and the black goatee.

the other Rooster, Looks like you could be left eye dominate and should be mounting the rifle on ther other side. One of my older brothers is and took him years to figure it out, my 15.9 yo is as well and still haven't figured out best way to shoot.

I could tell English is not your native language; it's much better than the natives.

I talk English good, 'Merica!!! Lol

I think it's funny that the article in question talks about people not having cars becuase of high student loan debt; as if a new car is the only option. And that people aren't connected to their cars, mechanically, as they used to be but no mention of vehicles being more complicated just to keep people coming back to dealers for service work. There are plenty of young people around here that are still into cars but I know there are still many more people in the world with no clue how to go about popping the hood.

I look exactly like my avatar pic lol

Some people see used cars as unreliable and are not willing to deal with the preventive and eventually corrective maintenance required by one, but would feel ashamed to be seen driving a no-frills subcompact if that's the only thing they could buy brand-new. Scooters and low-displacement motorcycles could be a reasonable option for many folks with a low budget to spend in a private vehicle, such as students, but motorcycles seem to be culturally regarded as "inferior" in America (unless it's a fancy Harley-Davidson).


Another reason that could drive more mechanically-inclined people toward motorcycles, as they usually are technically simpler. Sure it wouldn't be so much of an one-size-fits-all approach, but shouldn't be so overlooked

Couple of questionable assumptions there. First, I haven't found new* cars to be more complicated than old ones. I'm sure glad I'll never have to try to tune a carb again (let alone multiple carb setups), adjust distributor points, &c. And 10K mile oil changes beat the 2500 mile ones.

Second point, which follows from the first, is that a lot of the supposed complexity of newer cars actually goes to reduce service work. If newer cars go back to the dealer more often than those of past years, it's because of laws which require the dealers to do certain things. Who'd ever heard of a manufacturer recalling vehicles, 50 years ago?




*Though understand that my definition of "new" means anything with electronic fuel injection and engine management.

I haven't ridden my motorcycle at all this summer because I am 10,000 miles past the valve adjustment schedule. I told myself not to ride it until the maintenance has been completed, and that winter was the perfect time to do it... here I am 10 months later and it's still yet to be done.

I'm just intimidated because I know it won't go smoothly. Fixing the cam chain tensioner required only the removal/reinstall of 2 bolts, but it took 3 hours. Engineers should be required to work on every component they design before it goes into production.

The number of specialty tools required to work on cars and/or proprietary software interface to diagnose problems is part of the added complexity I'm referring to in my previous post. Add to that that carbs aren't that difficult to tune, but I'll concede that doing on a monthly basis is far more work than never needing to tune an EFI engine. Pop the hood on a car built in the last 10 years and if it's anything above an entry-level vehicle, underhood is a plastic cover trying to convince the owner not to remove it and see the complicated mess of wires and hoses running every which way and seemingly designed to keep normal people from doing their own work. My Saturn was EFI and quite simple and I loved that everything was within reach and very much serviceable, fast forward to my Focus and just to change the PCV valve or thermostat, the intake manifold needs to be removed, however, in order to access 1 manifold bolt I have to drop the fan shroud/radiator...which vehicle is more complicated now? Bear in mind that my Focus is rated at only 10 more HP than the Saturn 12 years it's senior and gets worse MPG than the Saturn. My feeling is that if major complication is going to be added to a vehicle it should come with reward of tons of power or incredible fuel efficiency.

You know, the emission regulations is often used as an excuse for the mediocrity of newer cars in spite of their increased complexity.

But that's all it is: an excuse. Lotus puts Toyota engines in their non-mediocre cars.

I do not feel that cars have become significantly more efficient over the years, what do we say? They become bigger and heavier, while more or less maintaining their fuel economy?

They do seem to have become more powerful.

Eric the Car Guy bought a 1979 Ford Fairmont with a 3.3L six-cylinder with 85 BHP. My 1987 Honda Prelude Si had a 2L engine with 110 HP, my HX has 115 HP out of 1.6L, and the current Civic gets 143 HP from 1.8L.

While Civic engines keep growing, aren't manufacturers making smaller engines that are as powerful as their older ones?

Isn't that some kind of progress?

My experience bears that out. In the 1970s I drove cars with 36HP. Today I drive a car built in the 70s that has 55hp, and gets about the same mileage even with the advantage of an electronic ignition. 33% more displacement.

I've got a 'modern' stroker 1776 (10% more) mileage motor on the bench that should do better. :thumbup:

Modern because it was built ten years ago. :(

My girlfriend's 1998 Pontiac Grand Prix had a 3.8L V6 with 195 horsepower and it got 18 MPG. Not only is the fuel economy unimpressive, but the acceleration was not exciting either.

My 2006 Acura TSX has a 2.4L I4 with 205 horsepower and gets 31 MPG. The weight of both cars is comparable at 3,3xx pounds, but the Acura accelerates better, corners way better, and has gobs of luxury and safety features.

I married my GF and my first order of business was making her sell the Pontiac. She's still working on my faults...

In most cases..
That's not the case with 2005-2010 V6 Mustangs. Under the hood is an ENGINE with no covers. And the engine is not "sideways".:D You can see the ground in front of; and on both sides of the engine. If you drop a tool while working on it, it may roll underneath to exact center, but it WILL hit the ground.:) And there's plenty of room to get to the spark plugs when I need to change them... in about 31,000 miles.:)

There's probably not as much room to get at the spark plugs in the Insight, but then I only need to change them every 100K miles :-)

As for the engine being "sideways", remind me again which way the wheels turn :-)