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I wouls say you could simply disable text messages (entirely!) at the provider level.
But then you get this shit in the mail:

http://www.supercars.net/gallery/132464/1542/873030.jpg



That's right dick-heads. I disabled text messages. All of them. Even the ones from you. It took me three months of calling, but I finally did it. You think I want your spam mail in my mail box?!

What happens if you've blocked all incoming text messages (even from the provider)?

(Which subsequently produces meat-space spam to arrive I've found.)
http://www.supercars.net/gallery/132464/1542/873030.jpg

No?
It look me about 3 seconds to find an example.

http://www.supercars.net/gallery/132464/1542/886505.jpg

Not that I'm in favor of ribbonizing Firefox. I'm not. I just like to prove people wrong, and you were such a juicy target.

The Dymaxion Car was *very* space efficient, and it had a teardrop shape. (Seated 11)

The Dymaxion Car plan would be great for a skateboard chassis like GM was planning.

If you applied carbon fiber construction to such a "skateboard," combined with wheel hub motors, you could probably get beyond 100 miles range with just Lead Acid batteries. (Simply because the shape could be optimized for strength without compromises for doors, and you could use the entire bed for batteries, as in the Red Beastie)

supposedly only fifty of the people who signed on the waiting list actually purchased a vehicle when offered.

From what I read nobody bought any, GM only leased them, they didn't sell any.

On the other hand, GM is expecting to start a full production run of the Volt on their newer E-flex drivetrain starting in 2010.

Will it use the Skateboard design?

If you sell your gas guzzler to someone else in favor of a more efficient model you aren't really reducing pollution at all. Would it be better to just send it directly to the scrapyard?

If you sell and the buyer uses the vehicle for transportation it's being reused not recycled. As for whether it's more efficient to reuse it or send it to the scrapyard, recycling it if the material is salvaged and melted down to be made into something else, it depends on the energy used in both processes. I once read of a lifecycle study that showed it took more energy and other resources to mine fresh metals and use it to make something than does recycling used metal. However today I don't know if this still applies as vehicles are using more resources than just metals such as the composites used. To an existent this is being worked on by companies like GM. GM has worked on a Hy-Wire Concept car with a skateboard design. The skateboard provides locomotion, the engine and drivetrain, which allows the body to be interchanged. A person would be able to get a car with one body type but then a few years later they could then change the body style from say a muscle car to a SUV when they have a family.

Not Porche, Porsche..and not even them. There's a spinoff called FA Porsche Design Group GmbH. They've designed everything from the LaCie hard drive to hair dryers to the only-in-Japan Subaru Legend B4 (link here: http://www.supercars.net/cars/1770.html, and that's the production model, the prototype looked better).

  Yes, a *very* different company than the legend that brought us the 911.

There's a popular myth that speed cameras won't get you if you're going fast enough, because the electronics won't react in time to measure the speed and snap the picture. This is, in fact, true.

But you need a car with some cojones. A driver for BBC's Top Gear got by a camera undetected with a TVR Tuscan S doing 171 mph. Any slower than that and you probably won't make it.

There's a page with some stats and some great pictures of it here: http://www.supercars.net/cars/2004@$Audi@$RS6%20Av ant%20Plusx.html

Oh, sure, as if an average consumer will be able to afford concept looking cars. The reason why all cars look mostly the same is that the current technological state allows to mass produce cars that look like that. All these cool looking concept cars were made by hand and to be able to mass produce cars like that the technology will cost so much that the cars will end up being too expensive. You can already buy cars that look that cool but most people just look at them and not buying.

Little or no technical details, controlled environments that make their technology appear better than it is, and exaggeration. If you read the last article linked, it's not even a fair comparison. For instance, there's this quote:

Docked atop an indoor road simulator, the test car's suspension system was switched on and off to highlight the difference between it and typical hydraulic systems.

The idea of active suspension is not new, and Bose is not the only one doing it. GM has had "Magnetic Ride Control" for a few years now, and other manufacturers have similar active technologies. While the Bose articles are light on details, it seems that the Bose technology is not far different from other electronically controlled systems (something about electric motors at all four wheels, yet it apparently still uses standard pneumatic suspension components as well).

Bose's flair for hyperbole and marketing is their only real asset. My ass it took 24 years to develop this technology. Perhaps it's been 24 years since there has been any significant innovation in suspension technology (I'm not buying it, though ...), but there's no way Bose has been working on this one piece of technology for 24 years.

Bose can sell a $20 clock radio for $300, and a $1000 home theater system for $3500, and you can bet they'll sell this technology for quite a bit more than average as well, where similar systems are currently optioned around $1000-$3000 depending on the make (ie, Porsche's system is more expensive than Chevy's, and I would expect Bose to be even more expensive than Porsche)

Besides, do you really trust a second-rate "hi-fi" (haha!) company to build the suspension for your car? I certainly wouldn't! Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Chevy, et al have been doing it for far longer, and have a much deeper wealth of automotive knowledge. I'll trust the experts on this one, rather than Bose.

My Camaro will out accelerate you, out corner you, and has a higher top speed than your hybrid.

not fucking likely... though to be fair, they never actually turned this into a production vehicle.... pity... I'd sell my soul

The strange-looking 2001 Toyota POD Concept seems to have been a first cut at the emotional car (e.g. light panels turn red to indicate frustration, blue to indicate "sadness" at being out of gas, etc.) The concept car doesn't have the "eybrows", but does have an antenna it can wag to indicate happiness.

This is just the patent for the Toyota Pod concept, featured in one of the Gran Turismo concept games. Here's a little bit more information: http://www.supercars.net/cars/2001@$Toyota@$POD%20 Conceptb.html

The Lotec Sirius isn't far behind, although it's not in production yet. You can read about it here. And it looks great, too. :-)

tee hee

WOW. I actually like the WRX's a lot. It's one of very few "almost perfect cars from the factory". I had no idea people were getting them to go that fast. Here it's mostly pissed off mustang and camero and chevelle guys that have their panties in a bunch because they got smoked by a highly tuned honda (done right) or DSM. Given the proper budget to do it right, I'd get one and start ripping it apart. I'd be MORE interested in going nuts on an evo though. I love the lancer look. Of course, my wild wet dream is for Nissan to get a friggin american skyline gtr over here. Even though they are a teeny tiny bit too heavy, they make excellent drag cars. You can go the motorex route for 90 friggin grand. If they sold here as a regular import, they'd probably sell new for about 40-45 grand. The new model Galant VR4's are VERY intriguing though. They look AWESOME. I REALLY wish they imported those. Check out the specs.

The Bugatti Veyron 16/4 has got both of those beat for acceleration, and it's a steal at 750,000 Euros. (It's estimated to hit 0-60 in 3.0 seconds or less.)

Ummmm.....maybe it is just me, but this is also from the very website you quoted:

Power: 302.0 kw / 405.0 bhp @ 6000 rpm Torque: 542.33 nm / 400.0 ft lbs @ 4800 rpm (And that's without a turbo and intercooler.)

And I am guessing that, if you compared power and torque curves, the torque and power start to build a lot earlier with the Z06, making it much easier to drive day to day and potentially faster off the line.

And assuming that your figure of 0 to 60 in 4.3 for the WRX is correct, then the Z06 bests it at 3.9 seconds. (in a heavier car, with only two wheels pulling, thereby negating some of the difference between gravel and pavement)

So, here again, assuming all else equal (including All-wheel drive), the bigger displacement car would embarrass it.

I agree that you wouldn't want an 1100hp 4cyl car as a reliable daily driver.

The Elise is $35k. Have you ever seen Elise's (or Miata's, or S2000's) at SCCA events? They clean house.

I can't argue price/performance, but its your definition of performance that I disagree with. You say performance is displacement, I say performance is power-to-weight and handling.

The original argument that I tried to make, and failed miserably (no I wasn't on the debate team), was that there are many factors that can make for a fast vehicle, and the number of cylinders (8 vs. 6 vs. 4 vs. etc...) doesn't always have a direct relationship with "performance".

And how much do you drive your car on "loose gravel" anyways?
well i've been driving through inches of snow and ice for the past few weeks. i only drive on "loose gravel" about once a month.

The Sub produces pretty good HP, but at what RPM? Lets not even start talking about torque
no really, lets talk about it...
Power 223.7 kw / 300.0 bhp @ 5500 rpm
Torque 490 nm / 361.4 ft lbs

You're not going to see any Cobras or Z06's passing this one any time soon.

> I can't be sure about Studebakers but in the case of classic Ferraris and Porsche's I'm fairly certain the idea is still to get laid.

I'm rather sure it is easier to get laid in a vintage Studebaker than a Ferrari.

More leg room and all.

While I was going to make some insightful comments about continual growth of electric cars lately, this 'product' is just plain laughable.

In my opinion, something that is more important to the future of electric cars (and a testament to their potential) is the Toyota Prius Rally Car. It recently just finished a 5,000 mile 3 week rally. Didn't finish first, but finished (which, as any rally fan will tell you is a challenge in-and-of itself). At least Toyota's accomplishments are tangible.

And seriously, whats with the 8 wheel design?

I didn't mean online, many of the people I work with collect computers, allot of times you see deals like that because people just want to get rid of them to make space. Usually if I need a random computer part I can just ask and someone usually has one lying around that they will just give me. I've given away brand new $140 mother boards before to people just because I don't feel like selling them on eBay and they were just collecting dust. I gave away a 500Mhz/128M/5G Compaq w/ USB CDRW (first computer) to someone a few months ago to make room for a new system. I realize not everyone trades off computers and parts like pirated copies of windows and AutoCAD, but I just can't picture using a 386 for anything. I think it would be worth the extra money just to avoid having to look at it. A 386 on my network would be likes pray painting my car with cans of Wal-Mart spray paint or putting $15 plastic hub caps on a Mercedes CLK

Go really fast

Or about the fact that Peugeot owns every single x0y number? Yes, every 3-digit number with 0 in the middle is their property.

You may want to tell that to Ferrari or BMW or Porsche, for that matter.

Or about the fact that Peugeot owns every single x0y number? Yes, every 3-digit number with 0 in the middle is their property.

You may want to tell that to Ferrari or BMW or Porsche, for that matter.

Or about the fact that Peugeot owns every single x0y number? Yes, every 3-digit number with 0 in the middle is their property.

You may want to tell that to Ferrari or BMW or Porsche, for that matter.