Fifty150

This is why people "lawyer up".

Almost like the argument that you can't simply go after someone for drinking and driving, or having a beer behind the wheel. He's not going too slow, going too fast, or weaving. He is in full control, and he is not driving drunk - because he isn't drunk....yet. I have to admit that I've gotten behind the wheel after a few. Probably more times than I should have. And luckily, nobody got hurt. But in that respect, with a lot of states setting the blood alcohol level at .08, a lot of people could probably have a beer on a hot day, or glass of wine with dinner, and be perfectly fine to drive. In some societies outside of The USA, there is zero tolerance for driving with any amount of alcohol. Don't even drive after a slice of fruit cake at the Christmas Party. I get it. Some states have drive through liquor stores. Other states have helmet laws for motorcycles. Adult entertainment venues are operated to within the prurient standards of the community. In California, it is against the law for people to mount their GPS or cell phone on the windshield, with the exception of the the lower and upper corners of the windshield. In Las Vegas, liquor is 24 hours, you can gamble, and prostitution is legal. In other states, there are "dry counties" and even "dry Sunday". The law here is for distracted driving. The officer is required to specify how you were distracted. The distracted driving law allows the officer to cite you for any distraction: singing, dancing, eating, using hair spray with a cigarette dangling from your lips,......not limited to just talking and texting. You can protest the ticket by going to traffic court, to explain to the judge how you were in fact not distracted and in full control of your vehicle. Most people just pay the ticket, because they can't win the argument, then proceed to do it again without learning a lesson from paying the fine. Distracted driving has a high rate of recidivism. The real issue is how much are we willing to be governed as a society? Some think that there ought to be a law for everything in the interest of a safer society. Others feel that there are too many laws already, and that we don't need more laws. What next? Ban entertainment systems in motor vehicles? Perhaps require an enclosed cockpit, like in a limo, taxi, or police car, so that the driver is not distracted by conversations or interactions with the passengers. Maybe a special compartment built into the dashboard, which requires you to lock away your cell phone, before the car will start. Or raise the fine to $1,000, and people will have more to lose.

There you go. Most of the time, it is a problem at the dealership level. Not corporate. Just one or two employees who think they know what they are doing, but are actually doing it wrong. Reminds me of how Sears employees come up with their own creative interpretation of the Craftsman Warranty. Often denying the warranty and refusing to replace a tool, even though they should have simply replaced the tool. I just had a Wal*Mart clerk tell me that installation of a tire was $13, PLUS mounting, balancing, valve stems, TPMS service, and rotation.....which made it $40 per tire. Obviously, that was not correct. I had to get a store manager from inside to come out to the tire shop. But things like that happen. Not the clerk's fault. Mistakes like that are always from top to bottom. Somebody is derelict when it comes to training, managing, and supervision of employees, whom with the correct instructions, would be doing the job right. Wars are won with soldiers, but lost by generals.

I like those youtube videos of the guys fishing from the Florida sewer system.

Most of us who have 2 cents to throw in, have already done it........now someone will see this months, or years from now, and resurrect the topic. You're right Mike. EVERYBODY thus far has been cordial and civil. That is to be admired. This may be the first civil conversation about a current event topic, involving individuals from different walks of life. Now let's all throw rocks at the people fixing their make-up while driving. I've seen people behind the wheel reading newspapers, brushing teeth, having sex, dancing, singing, eating, drinking,........One guy had a small screen affixed to his headliner which was playing a movie, in his left hand he had a bowl, chopsticks in his right hand, a dish of food on the dashboard, and he was wearing headphones.......race doesn't matter, but he was not Asian! Just someone who was co-opting Asian culture with the chopsticks. And what is up with people who claim that someone else is co-opting their culture? Why is "cultural appropriation" now an issue? If you are proud of whatever your culture is, you should be happy that others have such admiration to share in it. You never hear about Chinese people getting upset when other people are eating Chinese food. Irish people don't flip out when someone else orders a beer. What if the JDM community got upset that Paul Walker took the lead in Fast & Furious? I should be mad every time I see a teenager wearing a Ramones t-shirt. After all, that kid wasn't even born yet, when I had long hair on my head, and partying at underground punk rock shows.

As a safety feature, those reflectors are useful. Reminds me of how some kids put reflectors on their bikes, while kids like me took all the reflectors off the bike. I installed an LED light onto my plastic trim piece. It is wired to turn on with my off-road lights, and strobe as an emergency beacon. But not everyone will want to have a flashing red light on their car.

The 60/40 split 3 seater pulls out of the floor, anchors, then the seat backs flip up to vertical. The anchor positions will be different on a model with 2 seats in the middle row.

Varying circumstances will allow for shooting a fleeing suspect in the back. It happens. Just a few weeks ago, a cop shot a guy in the back, as the suspect was running away. At a community meeting after the shooting, where citizens are allowed an audience with the police chief, there were just as many supporters as there were protestors. All had an opinion based on emotions and biased by what they learned from watching TV. But the important thing is that no officer involved shootings are swept under the rug. There's transparency.

Saw that in Japan. Warehouse workers, ambulance drivers, nurses..... It is amazing technology.

https://www.edmunds.com/car-reviews/features/honda-odyssey-touring-elite-vs-tartan-prancer-le.html

Somehow, the engineers got it right. With the Transit Connect parked curbside, someone standing on the sidewalk just has to step in and sit down. No climbing up. No falling into the car. Which makes it easier to exit. The middle seat passenger just steps out and stands. No climbing up or down. No side steps needed. Works just right for seniors. My 93 year old grandmother does just fine getting in & out of it. Is that $30K for the entire van with the ramp installed? Or do you have first buy the van from the dealership, then pay an additional $30K to modify it? I can't see spending $30,000 on a $22,000 van.That will bring you up to $52,000.

Look for the $79 futon @ IKEA. It's the best deal in the whole store. They can't keep them in stock. At my local IKEA, these are always selling out, and they won't take orders or hold them. Clerk will tell you when the next shipment is, and how many are coming.......25 are arriving next Tuesday.....then it's first come, first served. https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00376932/

Back then, the "shift on the fly" technology wasn't quite what it should have been yet. The transmission went out a few times, and was replaced under warranty. Then it went out again after the warranty. That left a sour taste. Between the S-10 Tahoe, Mustang II, & Dodge K Car........I felt like an idiot because I bought 3 of the worst cars that Detroit ever sold. I felt like the dummy who brought a pair of swim goggles on that TV show Naked & Afraid, when everyone else brings a knife or firestarter.

Is this one that we can blame on the PETA environmentalist?

This is how they look from the inside: Notice how the window is cracked about 2" along the top?

AM/FM radio. Base model, XL trim level. AM radio has News/Talk Radio stations that give me traffic updates every few minutes if I learn to flip the stations properly. I don't know why I bother. I don't know why the radio stations bother. All that I have to do is play music, and still know that traffic is bad. All that the radio station has to say is, "play music, traffic is bad, and no matter how much you listen to News/Talk Radio, the traffic will be bad without change."

I meant "reasonable doubt".

Or as with every law, tried in a court to more clearly define the spirit of the law, and a legal precedent is set forth. Think Miranda v Arizona. Up to 1966, the police would question you without your attorney, deprive you of access to legal counsel, coerce testimony, beat a confession out of you, or flat out lie and say that you confessed. Yet, your constitutional rights were framed into The Constitution hundreds of years ago. We have all watched enough TV to know that you have the right to remain silent, and to have an attorney present during questioning. If anybody really thinks that your Miranda Rights means anything: think again. It really only clears the police department to legally break the rules, as defined by case law. Only under the anonymity of being a 5150, dare I post the following memorandum. Bear in mind that this memo is posted on the world wide web, and not confidential. Meaning that they don't care who knows the law, and how well you know the law, because the bad guys are stupid. A District Attorney's office clearly counseling law enforcement on how to justify further conversation without your attorney present, despite the fact that you invoked your Miranda Rights. http://le.alcoda.org/publications/files/MIRANDAPOSTINVOCATION.pdf

Based upon my training and experience, in The State of California, where we have probably some of the strictest gun control laws, "stand your ground" isn't that much different than how we are governed. Any citizen is allowed to use equal or lesser force to defend his life or the life of another. In defense of life, we are allowed to use lethal force. When using lethal force, I must be able to specifically articulate why I felt fear for my life, or that someone else's life was endangered. Every circumstance is unique. If a 80 year old woman were smacking you over the head with a cast iron skillet, and I can see your brains spilling out, I can shoot her in the back to preserve your life. If I were surrounded by a hostile group, and taking a vicious beating, I would fear that they could kill me with their punches and kicks to the head; which would justify why I shot all of them even though I had a gun and none of them were armed. "Stand Your Ground", for all intents and purposes, is probably the law in all 50 states. You are always allowed to defend yourself. I can't think of any state which says that you are legally required to submit to aggression or attack. Every state has clearly written "letter of the law", and "spirit of the law" is defined via case law, in which a jury is allowed to examine facts in evidence. I can't tell you what the shooter's mindset was, or whether he in fact felt fear for his life. This is clearly a case that should have gone before a jury, as it would help define the law in spirit. I think that the local law enforcement body (police or sheriff), should have furthered the investigation, and submitted the case to the court system. Clearly, we have a homicide. Was the taking of life willful, intentional, and with malice aforethought? A lot of legal questions. Without a doubt, there will be a civil trial. Civil law allows for finding financial responsibility, with a preponderance of evidence. A civil jury will determine that the action of the shooter, caused the death of the deceased. This fact will not be disputable, since the shooter shot the deceased. A civil jury will then weigh the claims, and determine if there was a monetary loss suffered, and if recompense is due. Whereas a criminal trial would have required a burden of proof beyond a reasonable cause, indicating guilt in violation of criminal statutes punishable by imprisonment and fine. Think: O.J. Simpson. Not enough evidence to convict criminally. Civil jury found that there was a 51% or greater probability that Simpson could have done it, and awarded a financial judgment to the victims families.

A few other factors. The make & model of the vehicle could influence the mpg. Perhaps the weight, or load. Driving style will also factor in. In the Econoline, I get about 16 with 87 octane, and about 12 with E-85. But that's not really the full picture. California fuel is E-10. The Econoline may get 17 or 18 MPG with the right fuel. So a drop of 18 MPG to 12 MPG is about 33%. It's all subjective. I've never gotten the MPG estimate from any car, unless I do only freeway driving, for hours. As I have mentioned in prior threads, my Transit Connect is getting about 16 MPG, with California E-10, and all stop'n'go driving. With all of the traffic around here, I'm going about 7 miles across town, and it takes an hour. At 7 miles an hour, with lots of idle time, the math is not in my favor.

$16.99 for 5 qt jug.

Can;'t possibly be as bad as the Chevy S-10 Tahoe that I owned. The electronic transfer-case added luxury however there was no neutral position with the electronic transfer case, so the owner's manual stated that the drive shaft had to be removed when the vehicle was being towed.

I really like the in-channel units, in comparison to the stick-on type. Same here. No way was I paying that much more. My primary consideration for Transit Connect was pricing. This was the least expensive option for 7 passengers......and it actually had 7 real seats. Not a seatbelt over the folded up center console. They call the Mustang a 5 passenger car, but who is riding 3 in the backseat? Same way my little Honda really only seats 2.

7 fat guys in a wagon.

That was true for the old style heavy jump starters also. Nobody remembered to charge them. By the time you reached for it, the battery was dead. Useless to have a dead battery jumpstarting a dead battery. Just like a spare tire with no air. Or a jerrycan with no fuel.