Official Off Topic Discussion Thread #1
- Thread starter Chrisplosion
- Start date
Ain't that the truth! No matter how far technology goes with these self driving cars there isn't a cat in hells chance of me ever getting in one.
It would be like riding the scariest rollercoaster you'd ever been on, especially driving at speed when the traffic is heavy, such as on a busy motorway.
- Dec 2, 2018
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I know, lol.
When I came to America a few years ago now we went to the garage to fill our rental vehicle up with petrol. I was watching the gauges and thought they were broke! We filled the whole tank up for probably less than $40.
I could not believe how expensive our fuel was compared to the US. That was the moment when I fully understood why they were able to drive those huge fuel guzzling beasts.
So, even though your fuel is creeping up to the $5 per gallon mark, it's still way cheaper than ours, given the exchange rate.
Wow...to quote Bob Seger, "Seems like yesterday...but it was long ago..."
...that me and my fellow newly-minted drivers were complaining about gasoline prices, swearing that if it ever got up to $1 per gallon, we would give up driving. Bear in mind: that was a Canadian dollar, so worth less than a Yankee buck, and those were Imperial gallons, so quite a bit bigger than their U.S. counterparts.
Thank goodness for the mandated switch to metric; now it's much more difficult to compare prices, so we Canucks don't have to have the price disparity rubbed in our faces quite so dramatically...although, of course, we are still much better off price-wise than the poor benighted Europeans.
...that me and my fellow newly-minted drivers were complaining about gasoline prices, swearing that if it ever got up to $1 per gallon, we would give up driving. Bear in mind: that was a Canadian dollar, so worth less than a Yankee buck, and those were Imperial gallons, so quite a bit bigger than their U.S. counterparts.
Thank goodness for the mandated switch to metric; now it's much more difficult to compare prices, so we Canucks don't have to have the price disparity rubbed in our faces quite so dramatically...although, of course, we are still much better off price-wise than the poor benighted Europeans.
Hello; When I first started out on my own I could find gasoline for 25 cents/ us gallon. Around 1966. The first oil crisis in the 1970's hit hard. My first teaching job in 1970 paid just over $4,500 per school year. Did not get paid during the summer weeks so had to do without or scramble.
Bought my first new car in 1970. A Opel Rallye Cadet. It got just a little over 20 MPG but seemed good compared to the old 1957 Pontiac I had been driving. The Opel was not a very good car however. Too many problems. Helped me hone my mechanic skills. Traded it for a 1972 Porsche 914 in 1974. A guy wanted to get a De Tommaso Pantera with the Ford Cleveland V8 so he was eager to sell the 914
The 914 had a VW engine and lots of VW parts would fit. It was the least reliable car I ever owned in the sense of needing work all the time. But it was fun to drive and got over 40 MPG if you took it easy. Maybe 75 or so HP with the 1.7 liter. Super light weight with no power anything. Most fun I have ever had on four wheels.
I eventually discovered Japanese cars and have had one ever since. I still keep a Detroit pickup around.
A 914 was my dream car for a long time, although I never actually owned one. I made do with a Fiat X1/9...anybody remember those? Low-powered, impractical, no cargo space, no headroom, no legroom...and an absolute blast to drive. One of the great unsung sports cars of that era, IMHO. My brother christened it "the horniest car ever made!"
Of course, at 6'2", cramming myself into the Fiat was sort of like squishing a giraffe into a phone booth (anybody remember those? lol). But, once I actually got inside, the thing cornered and handled like a slot car. I'm smiling just thinking about it.
I particularly recall that wonderful removeable targa top. I could really drive the car properly only with the top removed; it latched in place somewhat haphazardly and on more than one occasion, while driving with the top installed my head would smash into it and eject it from the moving car. This was an ever-present danger whenever I ran over some huge obstruction on the pavement, like a junebug or maybe a peanut, causing the almost-solid suspension to throw me against the targa top.
I never actually calculated my gas mileage, mainly because I ran that car at red-faced screaming maximum RPM almost continuously and I didn't want to lie to my father about how relatively poor the fuel economy probably was.
Lest you get the wrong idea about that car...let me clarify that I loved it and used it as my daily driver for several years!
Of course, at 6'2", cramming myself into the Fiat was sort of like squishing a giraffe into a phone booth (anybody remember those? lol). But, once I actually got inside, the thing cornered and handled like a slot car. I'm smiling just thinking about it.
I particularly recall that wonderful removeable targa top. I could really drive the car properly only with the top removed; it latched in place somewhat haphazardly and on more than one occasion, while driving with the top installed my head would smash into it and eject it from the moving car. This was an ever-present danger whenever I ran over some huge obstruction on the pavement, like a junebug or maybe a peanut, causing the almost-solid suspension to throw me against the targa top.
I never actually calculated my gas mileage, mainly because I ran that car at red-faced screaming maximum RPM almost continuously and I didn't want to lie to my father about how relatively poor the fuel economy probably was.
Lest you get the wrong idea about that car...let me clarify that I loved it and used it as my daily driver for several years!
You are right. It certainly is a thing of beauty, better looking than that bin on wheels, lol.
That looks like one of the later models, with actual bumpers, giving it a slightly porky look. Mine was older, with "bumpers" that probably weighed about a pound and were more useful as "feelers". It was far more attractive...sleek and svelte.
And, of course...it was red!
