WingBender
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Posts posted by WingBender
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The 5-speed Fiesta takes a 3 mpg hit on the EPA highway cycle (37 vs. 40) compared to the 6-speed auto. I assume this is due to a lower top gear ratio. Is Ford planning on eventually offering a 6-speed stick to alleviate this gap?
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Back when the first Escape came out, C&D loved the handling. Either the bar has been raised since then, or Ford has once again dumbed-down the suspension on one of their products to appease the Grosse Point matrons who have to drive over a few potholes on the way to the mall.
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The New York Times is a liberal rag. They have to make statements like that to maintain their leftie credentials and not alienate their readership.
NYT headline: "World Ends Tomorrow. Women and Minorities Hurt Most".
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My ex-girlfriend's car did exactly that when I knew her. We eventually got the rear brakes unstuck.
It always happened on the right side for some reason. The sticking caliper was due to a design flaw, but they never fixed the design, so the replacement calipers had the same problem. I had to drive it like that a couple of times, stopping every mile or so to let the one brake cool. The disc would glow red hot!
The Mazda V6 on the GT was a great engine. Its only issues: it was prone to leaky valve cover gaskets, so you'd get a whiff of burnt oil smell, and the valve guides would leak oil into the combustion chambers when it was parked, so you'd get some blue smoke out the tail pipe for a mile or so on a cold start.
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1996 Contour SE (2.5 Duratec, 5 speed): 131k miles. On its 4th water pump. Have also replaced alternator, starter, catalyst and a front wheel bearing. Engine seems basically sound, running Mobil 1. Original clutch.
1993 Probe GT, sold at 167k miles, right after replacing the original clutch. It went through a number of rear brake calipers, which would tend to lock when setting the parking brake. Replaced the distributor and thermostat along the way.
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The Boeing Company recently decided to build a new assembly line in South Carolina, a right-to-work state. The company tried to negotiate a no-strike clause with its union in the Seattle area, the IAM (aka, "UAW Lite"), to no avail. So instead of creating new jobs for IAM workers by putting the new line outside Seattle, the new jobs will now go to a non-union workforce.
Going on strike is so 20th century. We're not talking about 9 year-olds working in coal mines anymore, people. Lost your Christmas bonus, dude? In 23 years working as a degreed professional, I have never gotten a Christmas bonus. Suck it up.
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Jeremy Clarkson is no more an auto reviewer than Michael Moore is a documentarian or Rush Limbaugh is a political analyst. Like the other two, he is an entertainer. Hope this helps.
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Almost all Ford car V8s (except manual transmission Mustangs 4bbl Holley carb) had the throttle body fuel injection from 1983 through 1985. 3 model years of hell.
My parents had an '83 T-bird V8. The TBI on it was psychotic. You'd start the thing and the engine would rev way up, then it would drop down till it would almost stall and the car was shakin' and shimmyin'. It kept revving the engine up and down with no throttle input until it was warmed up when it would finally smooth out.
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1989 Honda Civic hatchback. It was the base model, so no trim letters in the name. It had a 70 bhp motor and a four speed. When started cold it sounded just like a diesel. The suspension felt like it was sprung with rubber bands, which was probably a good thing -- the lack of power kept me from getting into trouble with it. No tach with the wide ratio transmission, but the engine noise prevented me from over-revving it. It looked okay, though.
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The true idiot is the one who handed them the keys.
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OPEC wants oil to settle in around $80/bbl, which should give a good indication of where gas prices are going to be.
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A comment from a TTAC poster:
Verbal :June 2nd, 2009 at 9:04 pm
Why the hate for Farago here? He is remaining faithful to the TTAC brand by refusing to dilute it with optimistic content, cost-engineered prose, or stunted hyperbole. I can see that many of you do not agree with his approach to analyzing Ford’s sales results. Fair enough. But at least give him due respect for adhering to his core principles of sarcasm-posing-as-irony, nit-picking criticism, and clever wordplay at the expense of content. Thanks in advance.
P.S.
@P71_CrownVic: It is time for you to take your meds now. Please go quietly.
Edit: Just saw they yanked this comment.
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I then turn around and see some High School educated guy, my neighbor 7 years ago in Chicago, who gets caught smoking a joint behind the propane fueling tanks at the Chicago Ford Assembly Plant , while still riding his forklift. Now I do not care if you smoke pot, but at work around flammables?. So the UAW fights for this jackass, and he gets to keep his job making $25 an hour?. You think not supporting the economy of American is unpatriotic, I don't think losers like Paul, his name, deserve the money to cut his mullet let alone the money he continues to make because of the UAW. Manufacturing needs unions,, I agree with that, but the UAW is a god damned joke.
Skape
The UAW, and any labor union for that matter, seriously undermines its own credibility when it steps up to defend low performers, trouble makers, and those who brazenly flaunt the rules. There would be a lot less anti-union sentiment going around if the UAW had a get-tough policy with these types. Sadly they don't, and they have paid the price in public opinion. Good post, Skape.
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I was going to mention the Audi too. That's just weird. No luxury cars are even close to the top 10 in the U.S.
Audi, like the other German makers, sell heavily decontented versions of their models in Europe that we never see in the U.S.
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Gotcha. In the future, try not to post any complete articles.In Era of Blog Sniping, Companies Shoot First
New York Times 11/05/2008
Author: Claire Cain Miller
c. 2008 New York Times Company
...and BlueOvalNews.com for Ford Motor.
Fixed.
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WingBender, can you provide us with a link so we can shorten up the quote and get us in DMCA compliance?
Sorry, no linky. I got it from my employer's intranet news clip service. I think the NYT site is subscription only, but I haven't checked lately.
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In Era of Blog Sniping, Companies Shoot First
New York Times 11/05/2008
Author: Claire Cain Miller
c. 2008 New York Times Company
SAN FRANCISCO — During past downturns, layoffs were mostly a private affair. Big companies tended to issue vague press releases filled with jargon about “downsizing,” and start-ups often gave people the pink slip without telling the world anything at all.
Not anymore. In the age of transparency, the layoff will be blogged.
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Every industry has Web sites that cover its companies and eagerly publish rumors, from the Starbucks Gossip blog to DealBreaker for the financial industry and BlueOvalNews.com for Ford Motor. Web sites like Glassdoor.com and JobSchmob.com also encourage workers to vent about their bosses.
“Today, whatever you say inside of a company will end up on a blog,” said Rusty Rueff, a former human resources executive at Electronic Arts and PepsiCo. “So you have a choice as a company — you can either be proactive and take the offensive and say, ‘Here’s what’s going on,’ or you can let someone else write the story for you.”
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So for about the price of a gallon of gas, you can get one share of Ford stock.
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Labor bureau: Japanese man, 45, died of overwork
By JAY ALABASTER, Associated Press Writer
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
(07-09) 09:33 PDT TOKYO, Japan (AP) --
A Japanese labor bureau has ruled that one of Toyota's top car engineers died from working too many hours, the latest in a string of such findings in a nation where extraordinarily long hours for some employees has long been the norm.
The man who died was aged 45 and had been under severe pressure as the lead engineer in developing a hybrid version of Toyota's blockbuster Camry line, said Mikio Mizuno, the lawyer representing his wife. The man's identity is being withheld at the request of his family, who continue to live in Toyota City where the company is based.
In the two months up to his death, the man averaged more than 80 hours of overtime per month, according to Mizuno.
He regularly worked nights and weekends, was frequently sent abroad and was grappling with shipping a model for the pivotal North American International Auto Show in Detroit when he died of ischemic heart disease in January 2006. The man's daughter found his body at their home the day before he was to leave for the United States.
The ruling was handed down June 30 and will allow his family to collect benefits from his work insurance, Mizuno said.
An officer at the Aichi Labor Bureau on Wednesday confirmed the ruling, but declined to comment on the record.
In a statement, Toyota Motor Corp. offered its condolences and said it would work to improve monitoring of the health of its workers.
There is an effort in Japan to cut down on deaths from overwork, known as "karoshi." Such deaths have steadily increased since the Health Ministry first recognized the phenomenon in 1987.
Last year, a court in central Japan ordered the government to pay compensation to Hiroko Uchino, the wife of a Toyota employee who collapsed at work and died at age 30 in 2002. She took the case to court after her application to the local labor bureau for compensation was rejected.
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BRAND NEW 09 Ford Flex, first one is
Reply to: sale-741665581@craigslist.org
Date: 2008-07-03, 11:30AM PDT
Today we are putting it in the showroom. It is an 09 Ford Flex, the first one to come in so this WILL NOT last. Call me today if you want it. Every option under the sun is on the vehicle. It is considered a crossover with 3rd row seating. Black with black interior, beautiful car, Drives amazing. Price is 57,740 firm, like I said its the first one so it wont last. Call me,
2062182871
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A better idea would be to set up a separate brand to sell small cars in Lincoln dealers. Kind of like BMW selling small cars under the MINI name.
What would be the best name for this new division?
How about "Merkur"?
Ford's Alan Mulally wants Lincoln on par with BMW, Lexus..
in Ford Motor Company Discussion Forum
Posted · Edited by WingBender
Oh dear.