Todays Tip - Flooding

Here is a hard fact - on days like today, both the Clearview and the Cross Island are prone to flooding. But the flooding on the Cross Island is enough to sweep anything away with a ground clearance of under 18 inches, and its just annoying on the Clearview. Stick to the Clearview, your engine and electrical system will thank you.

Fun fact - mid 90's to early 2000's Hyundais all had really low air intakes. Great for cold air and fuel efficiency, bad for big puddles and engine seizures.

Suby+Sawzall=Bad Idea

At least they kept the roof bar for structural rigidity.  But I’m questioning the remaining stock wing. Still, I would rather drive this than anything with a Landau top. But good luck to this dealer for trying something new.

But the worst part? It's the first of 5...

http://www.manchestersubaru.com/test.htm#



 

Viva LAS Vegas

I came to yet another realization today. I have probably literally lost days of my life waiting in terminal D of McCarren international airport in Las Vegas. For the last 8 years, it has been at least 3 trade shows a year. Very rarely are any of these flights on time, and typically i have to fly out late so i am stuck leaving the hotel early and sitting.

But there have been some major improvement in TD. The addition of a Baja Fresh was great, but nothing made my day like the free wifi, which I am on right now.  It' a great signal thats consistent -  dare I say one of the best public wifi networks I have ever seen. So kudos to you, LAS.

Sure, i had to go through the full body scanner to get here, and photos of my junk will no doubt be leaked to the internet soon, but I could really care less.

So I am on my way home now, and I coudn't be happier about it. But heres my travel tip for the day: JFK parking garage, always park on the third level. No one is there.

Toyota's Huge PR Fail

I have a few loves, and I have things I am not crazy about. I love PR and I love cars. I'm not crazy about the type of mommyblogger who has zero ethics, and really bad publicity ideas.

So this is a really good story, and this is from Jalopnik. (Link below)

Apparently, Toyota allegedly worked with a mommyblogger network to solicit positive stories about the brand with a $10 Amazon gift card.  Toyota says it was an ambitious mommyblogger network president, but something still stinks about it -why would she personally pay her network of bloggers to write positive stories about Toyota?  Apparently that FTC ruling on mommybloggers is having a lot of people questioning their ethics.

And what’s worse? That only one mommyblogger (dearcrissy.com) blew the whistle? I get no less than three emails a day from these sites with the 143 readers trying to get thousands of dollars of gear from me for a “giveaway" on their website.  I am floored that ten bucks would sway them.

But anyway, here’s the bottom line - Toyota, if its not obvious to you by now, you need some PR help, pretty badly. Call me.

http://jalopnik.com/#!5762479

 

Get off the Damn Phone, Part 15

Another win for NY state lawmakers -  apparently the 19 year old girl in the 325i who is slowly drifting into my lane this morning didn't get the message, but NY has upped the stakes for talking on a cell phone while driving.

Now chatting will get you a hefty 2 points on your license in addition to fines. I think this is great. Of course, it wont curb anything. The real issue also remains texting while driving, and i think they need to start impounding cars of offenders.

The Deegan and why I think Google Maps is lying to me.

So the news this morning reported a meatgrinder on the CBX west with 2 lanes closed. Thats an adjective I'll typically avoid if i can, so i decided to take the grand central to the RFK bridge today. Holy crap this took a long time.

First, a few things to note. One, is that Google maps says there is a 6 minute difference in this route. Secondly, the signage is very confusing. there is one sign that says RFK bridge, and all of the other ones say Triborough. ...And its about $6.50 with EZ Pass.

But heres the bottom line. Dont go near the Deegan to GWB ramp, (7S). they are doing major construction, and half the ramp is closed. its a cluster.

Dodge Gets it Right

Look, I didn't want to comment on Superbowl commercials, and then i saw this masterpiece from Dodge. For the rest of you in the country, this is exactly what Long Island looks like during a flurry. what they dont show you hear is the mad rush to go buy milk and bottled water before the end of the world comes.

The only issue I have with this is the presence of the Challenger SRT-8.  That thing would slip and slide in 80 percent humidity.



 

 

This Mornings Commute Sucked...

This morning, I sat on the CBX for no less than 4 hours. NewsRadio 88 and 1010 Wins were no help, those asshats. They just said  "truck blocking the upper level right lane, expect delays." they say that same phrase  if there is an errant paper cup in the road, it memans nothing. Had I known what I was walking into, I would have taken the Major Deegan, and at least got some scenery out of the deal.

But as I sat in my car for hours, I managed to get a lot accomplished. So here is my list of things to do while sitting in traffic:

• Update your Bluetooth address book


• Clean your entire car


• Refresh yourself on your owner’s manual


• Count the number of Spanish vs. English radio stations


• Try not to piss yourself


• Speaking of pissing yourself, count the number of trucker bombs on the side of the CBX.


• Catch up on emails on your Blackberry


• Affix a big’ole “tuned by Stillen” emblem to my dashboard, because I had nothing else to do. It looks better than I thought it would


• Use Google maps to see what line comes after red for traffic condition

 

 

Ice! Tires! Stay Home!

The ride this morning was great. well, the raods were a solid sheet of ice. like really, really bad. especially the backroads- they were so bad you couldn't even stop. But the perk of everything is that no one was on the roads. even the CBX barely had any traffic on it this morning. i only saw a few spin outs, and they typically took place on off ramps with over confident drivers.

Today was a day that i truly appreciated my Bridgestone Potenza RE960's - awesome tires that grip well enough in snow, yet, I can break traction in them when needed for hoonage.

But a big thanks for everyone for staying home today, and leaving the ice driving to those of us that have the confidence to do it.