Posted By RichC on March 11, 2006
I’m sure by now everyone has heard the story about the Ferrari Enzo that crashed along the Pacific Coast Highway in late February, but thought I would include a rather amusing video clip of a European Ferrari crash at the end of this post.
The story that was told by the ‘alleged’ passenger and car owner, Stefan Erikson, is intriging. According to Mr. Erikson, ‘Dietrich’ [no last name] was the driver who ran from the scene and excaped into the Malibu California hills. (yeah right) Who is this crazy ‘Dietrich’ and was he really racing a 626 HP Mercedes SLR at an estimated 160+ mph?
It seems that investigators doubt both the race and Dietrich. Sgt. Philip Brooks of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was quote that they believe that Dietrich “no longer exists and that the Ferrari was racing by itself and there were no Mercedes.” Another clue is that only the driver’s side air bag had blood on it and Stefan Eriksson suffered a cut lip in the crash so DNA matching should assist in determining if Stefan Erikson was behind the wheel or not. This could twist this story one more time since Eriksson’s blood-alcohol level after the crash was .09, slightly more than the legal .08 limit. If you ask me, Mr. Eriksson should just be thankful to be alive.
Crackin’ up a Ferrari
Category: Misc |
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Posted By RichC on March 10, 2006
Thursday afternoon Dubai Ports World pledged that it would transfer operation of six U.S. port terminals to a U.S. entity settling at least some of the “exuberant” behavior of many Americans and our representatives. President Bush and his administration said this should settle a political firestorm surrounding the deal. Perhaps as my previous post commented, we need to deal with foreign ownership of areas we consider security issues.
Most thinking Americans after this will need re-evaluate how we deal with countries that we consider our allies in partnering with us in the war on terror and allow our military to operate on their soils. Interestingly, the UAE was first to partner, serves more of our Navy ships in the Middle East than any other country and allows the US to fly it unmanned aircraft out of there country. The are far more active in combatting terror than let’s say China? Yet Dubai Ports is not permitted to operate port companies (I’m not saying they should … but they should be treated fairly) but Chinese firms are? Let’s get some consistency with our security concerns if that is really the reason. (see Rep. Duncan Hunter’s suggestion)
I understand the concerns we all have about security, and I think Dubai Ports deserves review, but this issue was way over blown by both parties in congress and the predjudicial attack by many Americans. Congress should be embarrassed in how they reacted; way too strong and way to quick. It smacks of ‘Islamophobia’ or at least anti-Arab predjudice if you ask me. The last I heard is that we would working to ‘win the hearts and minds in the Middle East?’ If we are concerned about security, fine, then lets look at all port companies and related security risks. If we want to be protectionist, then let’s deal with that not disguised as a security issue. Jack Kemp makes my point.
Jack Kemp “On the Record” with Greta Van Susteren 3/9/2006
Category: Misc |
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Posted By RichC on March 9, 2006
The 2006 TDIClub and CinciTDI DVD is nearly ready to ship. The ‘teaser’ video clip is being posted here before being sent to the groups video pages. This is primarily to test the H.264 recorded ‘teaser’ clip in hopes to get a little feedback. Most Quicktime 7.0 users with relatively fast computers shouldn’t have problems with the higher quality/smaller size mp4 encoding codec. The”How To” teaser clip will soon be posted at the video section of the TDIClub and CinciTDI)
My concern is that a more heavily encoded, but higher quality H.264 version, of the ‘teaser’ will cause problems on some older computers? I’ll post the 3 minute 45 second clip below (Warning: audio comes on strong) and request that readers having trouble comment as to their browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Netscape), computer processor and speed.)
Category: Automotive, Diesel, How-To, Video, Volkswagen |
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Tags: cincitdi, intake, manifold, soot, tdi, tdiclub, teaser, vw
Posted By RichC on March 8, 2006
A few weeks ago, I made the comment that we need to be careful as to the signals we are sending to allies around the world in restricting what allies are permitted to operate companies in the US. My concern was that when we restrict business ownership based on prejudice, jumping to the conclusion that the Dubai port business is connected to terror, that we risk gaining ground in developing better relationships in the middle east. In the port operations case, the United Arab Emirates is one of the few middle eastern countries that allows the US to stage attacks on terror from as well as base our warships around. I recognize that there are many people in UAE who may be sympathetic to the terrorist and as a government still will not recognize Israel … so there is a concern. Unfortunately, banning ‘only’ middle eastern companies from business dealing and port ownership will do little in winning hearts and minds of more Arabs. Neil Cavuto had an interview with Representative Duncan Hunter (R-CA) who presented a solution that might bridge the gap without the predjudicial taste. We’ll see if it gains traction although President Bush doesn’t seem to be paying attention (Reuter’s article). See Cavuto interview video below.
I’m still not sure as to the security risk that the Dubai port ownership creates; on one hand I believe the President’s strength is looking out for the security of our county and that he is working to build allies in the middle east. On the other hand, I’m not fond of anything that remotely adds risk to our nation’s security. Representative Hunter offered some compelling remarks in try to re-evaluating what ‘any’ foreign government should be allowed to own in the US. Upon some reconsideration, this might be a logical approach and I’m someone in support of Rep. Hunter’s proposal. If we do an over-the-board evaluation of security issues as they relates to foreign corporations owning at risk segments of our infrastructure. The ports might just be one of them but if we go down Rep. Hunters path, prejudice should not be factored into who can and can’t own certain companies.
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) on Neil Cavuto 3/7/2006
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Posted By RichC on March 8, 2006
A friend of mine spotted this switch on one of the forums he visits, and I thought was worth a post. Actually it segues into a pet peeve of mine, that of people confusing the ‘no conversion biodiesel’ alternative with just ‘straight’ (SVO) or ‘waste’ (WVO) conversions.
A quick comparison between what I call biodiesel and SVO/WVO is that biodiesel is vegetable oil that has undergone a transesterification process where glycerin is removed. Using this alternative fuel requires no modification on most modern diesel vehicles. It can be used at 100% (‘neat’ or B100) or blended with petroleum diesel at any percentage. A common 20% blend is called B20. It is included as an alternative in the recent energy legislation and is eligible for tax credits. There is a growing commercial industry around Biodiesel (see Biodiesel.org) as well as many grassroots organizations.
SVO or WVO ‘conversions (the switch photo) is an alternative to petroleum that requires additional hardware be installed into cars and trucks. Most options install a separate heated tank where the vehicle starts on regular diesel or biodiesel and then switches to the SVO or filtered WVO after it has been thinned by heating. Additional heating of fuel lines and filters are generally installed too. Shutdown requires purging of the fuel line and running a fuel that doesn’t thicken when cooled for a few minutes. Two installation kits that I’ve tinkered with are Greasecar or Greasel.
I hope this helps … yet many in the media continue blend the terms. Correct them!
Category: Biodiesel, Diesel, Energy |
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Posted By RichC on March 7, 2006
The Loremo isn’t due out until 2009 according to Gerhard Heilmaier, but this radical new sports car is making many in the automotive engineering world turn their heads. The Loremo is designed to be a low resistance vehicle and offers efficiency beating most anything on the road while remaining stylish and sporty. Most economy models sacrifice performance for high miles per gallon, but the Loremo GT version with a 50HP 3 cylinder turbo diesel can zip to 100km/h (approx 60mph) in 9 seconds and still get an estimated 85mpg. For the super thrifty, get your order in for the LS version which comes with a smaller 2 cylinder 20HP turbo diesel and will go nearly 150 mpg.
The company founders believe that all cars of the future will have to be more efficient, and therefore that was the prime reason for reducing the weight of their vehicles. The 450kg automobile will be in a 2+2 airdynamic shape that has a drag coefficient of .20 or ‘cw x a of .22.’ The composite vehicle is also engineered for safely and does away with the traditional doors; you climb in like a ‘bathtub’ according to the company.
Check out the company’s website and click below for a 3-D ‘quicktime’ around the Loreno.
Loreno 3D Walkaround
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Posted By RichC on March 6, 2006
Do we need to petition our community for a “hitching post” at the local Caribou Coffee Shop in West Chester, Ohio?
How does that saying go … “the more things change (and they certainly have in our community!), the more they stay the same.” Seeing people on horseback trotting around Liberty Township was probably commonplace a little over a century ago, but it looks a little out of place in the hustle and bustle around here nowadays. At any rate, having a conspicuous police presence as a deterrent to crime is wise and the visablity of police on horseback even better (really noticeable IMHO) … besides with the amount of traffic in this high grow area it might actually be easier to get around?
I’ve noticed that the sunshine and warming temperatures seems to be drawing out locals and mounted police alike; might it be a sign that spring is on its way?
The horseback patrols that the West Chester Ohio Police Department uses are ideal for overseeing the many retail stores, parking lots and restaurants that surround the 330 acre park that use to be a Voice of America relay station.
If you haven’t had the opportunity to visit the developing park, the sunshine and warmer temperature would make for a great opportunity to stretch you legs as there is an excellent walking path as well as a variety of fields for sports, pets and even competitive remote controlled sailing fleets! The Voice of America Park and Museum is just off I-75 north of Cincinnati and was establish after the decommissioning of the VOA Bethany Station in September of 1995. This unique broadcasting facility looked like a giant pin cushion in its prime as the acreage bristled with huge towers an miles of wire. The facility served to broadcast shortwave radio to all corners of the world for more than 50 years. In its day, it was the means to communicate the message of freedom and democracy people around the world. It provided an important like for people oppressed by communism during the cold war and is credited with playing an important role in the colapse of the Soviet Union during the 1980s. With that reasoning, the new Butler County park was aptly named, “Ronald Reagan Voice of Freedom Park.”
My Frappr Map
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Tags: caribou, coffee, horse, ohio, police, west chester
Posted By RichC on March 5, 2006
Volkswagen purchased the Bugatti name in 1998 and in September of 2005 announced that it would begin producing a limited number of extrodinary sports cars costing well over a million dollars each. (and there’s a waiting list to buy them!) After announcing the chosen name ‘Veyron’ at the Tokyo auto show in 1999, the engineering team has suffered several setbacks from performance related accidents to high speed overheating problems.
Currently there is one vehicle in North American, of which a lucky few gets test rides. (see video below) According to VW, limited production models will begin arriving to customers later this year. The Veyron has a multi turbo charger equipped 16-cylinder engine developing 1001-horsepower and it powers an all wheel drive system that is styled around a carbon-fiber body. The car is said to be capable of 250 miles per hour and will most likely be admired by anyone who like cars.
If you appreciate the revival of historic names, this model will do the 1910 thru 1956 Bugatti models justice. The original European classics were high-performance cars at the time and they are admired by many car lovers around the world; the new Veyron most likely will do the same.
FoxNews Bugatti Test ‘Ride’
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Posted By RichC on March 4, 2006
I received an email from a regular reader suggesting that my last couple of posts were “too serious” and left him a little “glum.” He mentioned that he liked the funny video clips (they can be found elsewhere on the web, btw) and that I should sporadically add a few more.
“Glum?” Hmm … maybe??? Well then … today I’ll just post a video clip sure to make James (and a few others) smile. A good friend of mine emailed this clip and its just a couple silly out-takes from a ‘good ol’ boy’ fishing show. I think it is Bill Dance? I chuckled and suspect you’ll do the same.
🙂
Bill Dance and some fishing out-takes
Category: Hobby, Humor, Video |
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Posted By RichC on March 3, 2006
I’m taking a moment to make a quick entry tonight to close out an earlier post about potential shutdown of the RIM Blackberry device. Both business and government have been concerned as millions rely on their wireless ‘push’ email device. Research In Motion (Rim) settled their ongoing legal battle today with a $612.5 million dollar deal with NTP (a patent holding firm). RIM claims that this long running battle is hurting profits and sales. From the looks of things, this four-year court battle is now over and ‘crack’berry addicts can breathe easy.
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