Car Crush: Audi RS6 Avant

I have mentioned before that wagons can be pretty badass. Besides hauling groceries, kids and pets, the wagon provides utility with a lower center of gravity and more even weight distribution. The result is the usefullness of an SUV, with the performance of a sport sedan.

There are some great wagons out there -The Outback XT, Magnum HEMI, The BMW 5 Series wagons, Stagea, etc. But there is an undisputed king of the wagon segment, and that is the Audi RS6 Avant. The specs alone are amazing - twin turbo V10, nearly 600 BHP, and of course AWD. Just too bad you will never be able to get one. The current iteration of the car was released in January 2007 at the Frankfurt autoshow, but we can expect that it will never see American shores. (but theres a good chance the sedan will one day show up).  So for now this uberwagon based on VDub's C6 platform will have to stay over in Europe on the Autobahn it rightfully deserves. But for what its worth, I could have totally used a car that could get me and all my groceries home from Stop and Shop in under 2 minutes.



Image from Jalopnik.com

Broken Down: 94 Explorer, 98 mountaineer, 94 maxima, 95 camry, ~95 grand marquis, a couple of vans, that tractor trailer in the middle of the CBX, 2K Focus, copule of mid 90's corollas, 93 Jetta

Counting the days

When I was younger, I eagerly anticipated summer. Summer meant the end of school, and the beginning of summer vacation. My freinds and I would live by the lake for three months, and then start with a clean slate for the next school year. Now that arrival of summer is equally exciting to me, as it signals the end of horrific traffic.

Seriously, I love the summer. its like there is about 30% fewer cars on the road, and getting to work in the morning is a breeze. The only problems are of course Thursday and Friday nights, when everyone is going on vacation.

Off to LA, but ran into some lunch meat

So off we go again, and taking to the skies instead of the road. I’m going on another shooting assignment, and this one should be a lot of fun. But getting there is half the fun and I swear the following story is true.

So I am in the security line at JFK’s Delta Terminal. I like to consider myself a pro at this after logging close to half a million miles professionally. I take off my shoes, watch, sunglasses, and any other metal. Take out my laptop, my Ziploc bag full of minis and wait to pass through the metal detector, boarding pass and ID in hand. I am waved through, and then I await the arrival of my personal effects through the X-ray machine. Suddenly, a TSA agent whisked away my main carry on bag. I wasn’t surprised, random checks happen all the time. I would have figured they would have gone after my tech laden camera bag, but that’s neither here nor there. I bend down to put my shoes back on quickly, and walk over to where the young agent is opening my bag.

At first, I am shocked to see what she is doing. She has my bag opened, and forcefully stuffing in large containers of spices and what appears to be the dirty looking laundry of the traveler next to her. And then comes the SPAM.

I kid you not. She stuffed probably five full cans of SPAM into my bag. To which prompted me to ask “Excuse me, why are you putting SPAM in my bag?” my first question goes ignored, most likely not heard. I approach again, and try to intervene in this situation before it gets out of hand, and things get meaty. This is when she tells me it isn’t my bag… And the guy next to her nods in agreement. At this point, he thinks he is getting a nice free bag to hold all of his SPAM. Not if I can help it.

So eventually, I talk them down and show them that it is indeed my bag, and the agent apologizes, and assures me, we have the exact same bag.  Then another agent comes over, and I will admit the bags have similarities –they both have zippers, compartments for holding things and straps. Other than that, totally different.

So here I am now, on my flight to LA. I have the following questions.

1. Who carries that much SPAM through an International terminal?


2. Why SPAM? I still don’t get it.


3. Why would you not let the agent know she is filling another passengers bag with delicious lunch meat and spices?


4. Will I get bed bugs / lice from this guys clothes being on top of mine? Seriously, he looked like he arrived to JFK directly from underneath the GWB lower level. You all know what I’m talking about.

In retrospect, it’s more funny than annoying, and I had to share it with everyone.

Mercury's Dropping

The latest rumors on the auto industry front is from Jalopnik, and it says there are rumors that Ford is considering terminating the Mercury brand. This would make sense, as the brand is targeted toward women, a gap which Fords new prego-and-estrogen heavy advertising and media blitz fills nicely. With no market segment, no distinct styling and no excitement, the graveyard would seem like an appropriate place for the brand that fills space in dealers that could be room for more profitable Lincolns.

But on the flip side, this could be wrong, who knows, maybe the Grand Marquis is a sleeping giant for sales that solidifies the brand for consumers while on the underpinnings of the super profitable Crown Vic platform.  it would be like making money without even trying.

What will you miss? Will it be the Sable? the Tracer? the Villager, which was touted to hanlde not like a minivan? I think most people will agree that the two things we will miss the most from Mercury will be the 2003 Marauder, and Jill Wagner.



photo courtesy of Edmunds.com

via Jalopnik

http://jalopnik.com/5549458/report-ford-to-kill-mercury

Top 10 List for Metro NY Commuters

I am so freakin’ excited because summer is almost here. I actually hate the heat, and could care less about the beach, but summer means that all little rug rats are out of school and traffic decreases significantly. However, there is one more hurdle to pass, and that is today. The Memorial Day Holiday.

This Thursday is by far one of the most unpredictable traffic days of the year. We just don’t know if everyone is going to be taking Friday off to get a jump on their weekend plans. We don’t know how much extra construction there will be, because crews earn time and a half for working on the holiday. We don’t know how many non-commuters will get into accidents and cause major delays for the rest of us. But I can tell you the tolls will likely be hellish.

Nevertheless, I thought of something the other day. Everyone likes top 10 lists, so I put together a list of the top ways you know you are a hardcore commuter for the NY Metro Area.

1. You can straddle a pothole at 60 mph without breaking a sweat


2. You follow the person with their convertible top down on the CBX, and squeal with delight on the inside when they get the mystery water substance dumped on them that falls from the underpasses


3. 1010Wins and NewsRadio88 are your first two presets


4. Most other places in the world would consider our safe following distance to be tailgating


5. Don’t worry about that NYPD cop, I’m only doing 65 MPH in a 50 zone


6. You know that the word “express” usually means slower. For example, “express” lanes for NJ turnpike, Long Island “Express”way, etc


7. You have a deep appreciation for Jewish holidays, no matter what your faith is


8. You have a favorite toll lane


9. You know the Clearview is where it’s at


10. And finally, you get really annoyed on Fridays when all the slow, non commuters invade your way home.

Broken down:

99 Corolla, 96 BMW 3 series, 2000 Maxima, 96 Grand Marquis, 94 Grand Marquis

Little tiny cars don't belong on the road

In mans quest for improved MPG and cheap transportation, we find ourselves sharing the road with ever smaller automobiles. We usually discover these automobiles accidently during a close call while engaging in a lane change manuever, because they are nigh invisible on the road.

According to Autoblog and the IIHS, some of these cars, most notably of the golf-cart-on-steroids variety are a huge safety hazard even at low speeds. The IIHS did some crash testing against these cars and mini trucks, and discovered catastrophic consequences, which would most likely lead to fatalities in T-bone or sideswipe type collisions. But this makes perfect sense, given the weight differences and small visibility footprint of these cars.

Right now, this doesn't include SMART cars or Mini Coopers, but I can tell you I wouldn't drive one for the benefits of gas savings. They are just too small and you aren't seen. It's like riding a motorcycle without all the benefits. A good example is a friend of mine who drives a mini cooper. One day a pickup truck backed into him and kept going, because the pickup driver never even saw the car.

So one day, when we all are driving these little mini cars on our rides to work, and the LIE looks like downtown New Delhi, then I'll consider buying one.

Broken down: 92 Corolla, 94ish Sable, 90's Grand Marquis, 95 Explorer

LOL

Todays post is more anecdotal - Today some guy in a Prius tried to race me out of the gates on the CBX. I had already beat him by about 4 car lengths before i even realized he was trying to race me. Thats all.

Broken down - 98 Nissan Altima, 93 Nissan Sentra, 93 Ford Explorer, ~2001 Mazda 6, 92 Camry, 94 Taurus