Monday, September 27, 2010

Is It Still the Next Honda?

Just as many would argue that Hyundai is the next Honda- long considered the maverick leader in Japanese car engineering- known for its hands-down quality- Hyundai has spurred a recall of its popular Sonata sedan, er, four-door coupe.

About 140,000 of the sleek Sonatas are suspect of having steering problems. Nothing, compared to the all-time Recall King of 2010- Toyota.

Hyundai is proof that recalls, again, happen to best of them. Just make sure an industry benchmark gets recalled first.

How does that saying go? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?

I've also heard- Hyundai is the Korean Toyota...

Thursday, September 23, 2010

2010 Will Certainly Be The Recall Year of the Rich & Famous Too!


I'm convinced the media is stroking the egos of the working middle class? Why? Because the media has reported, blogged and done everything possible to exploit the fact that expensive cars, not just say Toyotas, get recalled too.

Case-in-point- the Ferrari Italia- which has developed a cache of being the Ferrari that likes to melt heat shields.... But just now, Bentley Motor Cars is recalling several hundred cars (under 1,000) because... The lauded "Winged-B" hood (or bonnet if you insist) ornament does not retract good enough in the event of an accident.

Now, this is not a big deal at all, its probably just a spring-load issue- but I certainly wouldn't want to be a pedestrian when the stainless-steel ornament comes at me... Oh no... But come to think of it- if you get hit by a Bentley- don't you think the least of your worries is the hood ornament?

Think about it for a second... if you must. It doesn't take a physics or an actuary accounting degree to realize the trouble you're in if this hood emblem is going to risk serious injury to a person.

Maybe they just don't want to be sued?

But anyway- as a Car Guy Who Gets It- I can attest- expensive cars get recalled all-the-time; they get recalled a lot- but now the cache of a recall is not exclusive to lesser cars alone, no... The recall is for the well-to-do... Too.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Mad About... The Wrong Watch


I'm a huge Mad Men fan- have been since the beginning... Multiple Emmy Award wins, countless raves- millions of fans around the world. It's a great show.

But what's unique about the show is its accurate depiction of life 45 years ago. Every week we're reminded of a historical event, a fad- a trend. The way life was.

The show is good, it's very good.

A few weeks back I commented on Don Draper's choice of watch- or rather, Jon Hamm's Rolex Explorer. Explorer I (One) for those who collect...
I've said it before, and I'll say it again- it's the wrong watch for the character- and specifically the time.

Here's why- like I've said in prior posts- no ad man in the 60's would have worn a steel-bracelet Rolex, let alone, an Explorer.

An Oyster Perpetual, an Air King or Datejust- maybe... But not the Explorer- what is actually a stripped-down, easy-to-read mountain climbers watch- a watch actually worn on Mount Everest and as described in the original Ian Flemming novels of 007 James Bond.

If Don Draper was a Vietnam War, and not a Korean War vet- maybe a Rolex GMT Master or Submariner would have been proper- after all, they were tools bought in the PX during the time- but what irks me the most about the whole Mad Men, Don Draper Explorer I thing is- it's the wrong watch- and specifically, the wrong reference.

In my prior post- after just the first episode of Season Four- I thought it a Rolex Explorer Ref. 1016- this would have been the correct version for 1965... And you would think the costume department was doing their homework... But seven episodes into the season- you're seeing this Rolex more and more. And more.

Pouring a drink, lighting a cigarette, picking up the phone, thumbing through a portfolio- even serving a can of Dinty Moore Stew- the watch is clearly a sapphire crystal, Ref. 114270 or similar- something out of the 1990's or later, made up until just last year.

The giveaway is the sapphire, flat crystal- something Rolex had not invented/brought-out until the late 1970's with their Beta Quartz and Presidential Day-Date models.

Eventually Submariners and all-gold GMT Masters got the scratch-resistant sapphire glass crystals in the early 80's- the pedestrian Oyster models didn't get them till around 1990.

The sapphire crystal is commonplace on most any modern watch- rumored to be scratch-proof, that's not entirely true- they scratch. They also chip and can shatter, which is something their acrylic predecessors wouldn't do- no matter what.

But the sapphire crystal was the answer to replacing your watch glass every year because of scratching- they run around $150 to replace and are not considered wear items anymore during a routine Rolex service- so, if you want another- you have to pay extra during a service.

Rolex has since started curving their sapphire glass crystals- giving them more depth, coating them with anti-reflection films- there's even a model that has a green-tinted sapphire crystal, the Milgauss.
What does this have to do with cars? Nothing- but the actor and Rolex "Don-ning" Jon Hamm was contracted by Mercedes-Benz to be the new voice of the brand.

Clearly the people at Mercedes-Benz were moved by this- from Season One.

"It's not called a car... It's called a Mercedes-Benz." That's coming next... watch.

But it's not a big deal, its still the best drama on television- but for all the Mad Mennies who have narrowed their lapels and ties, invested in pocket squares or have re-discovered and accepted Brylcreem- don't wear the modern-era, Rolex Explorer I with the light-refracting sapphire crystal- you would be making a mistake.

It's like driving a dark-blue '86 Cimarron- and thinking you're Don Draper in his powder blue metallic with the white-top '62 Coupe de Ville- it's just not the same. But they're both Cadillacs- if you could believe that...

But they did get the Cadillac showroom scene dead-on-correct- if you ask me... Back in Season Two.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Play With S&%! Your Hands Still Get Dirty...


Even if you're Jay Leno- arguably one of the most high-profile car enthusiasts out there- with literally hundreds of millions of dollars, acres of cars and a full-time staff devoted to the restoration and upkeep of one of the more eclectic, diverse collections ever amassed- you still break down in traffic.

Clearly- this isn't the first time the late-night joke-man has broken-down.

I'll attest that you're not a true car guy unless you've truly, honestly broken-down in an automobile.

It's humbling, sure. But, like anything else truly remarkable in life- classic car ownership does not go without its pitfalls.

But not many but Jay have the bragging rights to say- they've broken-down in a steam-powered car in the 21st Century.

That makes Jay Leno- one of the truest, and bluest Car Guys That Gets It.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Those Cruel Canadians Twist a Wicked on the Speed Bump

Just when you thought there was nothing not to like about Canadians- look what they did to the speed bump... Their idea of keeping speeders inline is applying decals/optical treatments that resemble a little girl playing with a ball or little children playing in the middle of the road so you slow-it-down.

The little girl is affectionately known as "Pavement Patty." Nice. Sounds like a limited-edition Garbage Pail Kid- remember those? Or the pet-name name for that slutty, easy, streetwalker local, around-the-way-girl named Patricia.

That's a potentially alarming, nasty bit of trickery that I believe could make old people to swerve and crash into actual people or surrounding things; or cause people to get rear-ended, or maybe both? This is how I see it playing out in America anyway...

Reminds me of growing-up in Northern New Jersey- when the affectionately dubbed Super Mario, (actually an Italian-American teenager named Peter about 1o years my senior) would speed-down the street in his Super White first-gen Toyota MR2.

Fat Nancy S. a neighbor (also known as "Flesh Mouth" to those who got to know her up-close and personal...) would yell "slow-down" and give you or Super Mario a dirty look.

Dirty looks from fat ugly people have been known to start bar-fights, ignite World Wars... Rouse neighbors at the bat-of-an-eye. But it never stopped Super Mario in his tracks...

And if it were Fat Nancy's spoiled-rotten kids in the street playing- you'd really want to run-them-over, but that's another memoir for another post...

But Super Mario, er, Peter didn't slow his MR2 till my father called his- threatening to throw a brick at the windshield to his son's minty, white Toyota.

It's no Pavement Patty- but a brick to the windshield would make anyone, yes, even Super Mario slow in his tracks at least a bit South of Canada, in Bergen County, New Jersey

An Embarrasing Day... Potentially For Cars.


Five years ago, I kicked myself in the ass for not inventing the magnetic yellow ribbon- you know, the kind you see plastered all-over rears and tailgates on cars- and have come to symbolize everything from Autism Awareness to the local Zoo.

But now, a new accessory is threatening, no challenging, even the likes and tastes of the good-old JC Whitney catalog, eyelashes for cars?

I don't give this clear and present fad any credibility. A few years ago, exhaust whistlers were all the rage in some parts of the country.

Funny thing about bad taste- it never goes away... It just evolves, over time. Like a virus.

Remember this gem? It's a great clip- an all-time classic!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Because Recalls...


Shouldn't be exclusive to Toyota drivers alone, Ferrari is recalling its 458 Italia supercar amid concerns of fire...

Last week I read of the suspicious, worldwide problems the owners were having of the limited-production, some $230,000 Ferrari super sports car. One burst into flames in Switzerland, another in China... France too...

Well, I'll say this- it takes more than two Ferrari owners worldwide to stir a concern- five fires have been reported, up to ten accidents have been rumored since the cars Summer 2010 introduction.

What's the world coming to?

Purportedly, a heat shield could come lose near the wheel housing, causing it to deform, heat and catch fire by the exhaust components. Or something like that.

Sounds like a reasonable, if not minor fix if you ask me...

Shit, the heat shielding on my '95 VW Jetta came lose all the time- and all I ever got to show for it was a resonating rattle at around 3,100 RPM, no fires... No crashes. And no glue!

I'm generally cool with complicated, exotic cars breaking- their supposed to- if you want reliable, buy a Toyota (right) but I do have a problem when I read-

Ferrari said the company is asking owners of the cars produced before July 2010 to bring them in to have the glue replaced with mechanical fasteners.

Glue? Are you kidding me?

For the record- when the heat shields on the old VW fell-off, it was because the fasteners were for shit...

But for $230,000- you get glued-on heat shields. They thought they out-smarted the old metal/mechanical, for shit clips trick...

Also for the record- when I thought I had a similar heat shield problem on my '85 Mercedes-Benz- much to my amazement (and chagrin) the axles had failed...

The car ran anyway.

Come to think of it- I'd hate to see a Ferrari run with failed axles.