Here at RedlineNorth, we’re always on the look out for quality videos about cars and car people. Recently, we came across an interesting video which is a bit of a combo on the series Cribs. It’s a behind the scenes look at Craig Jackson’s house and his out of this world garage. Yes, Craig is the CEO/Chairman of Barrett-Jackson and has some sweet rides to say the least.
Rolls Royce is the epitome of a luxury vehicle. From its wood interior, rear coach doors, hand stitched leather seats and even a hidden umbrella, the vehicle exudes class. It will take you to your corporate meeting or Learjet in style and elegance.
Now check out this video from Europe of a Rolls Royce Phantom driver taking his vehicle off road for a little impromptu rally car action. Not exactly what this $400k+ vehicle is intended for, but you got to admire the drifting in this beast of a car!
We’d hate to see the repair bill after this little jaunt in the country!
A few specs on the Phantom:
Weight: 5,809 lb
Engine: V12
Horsepower: 453 hp
0-60 mph: 5.7
In a follow up to our recent post on the benefits of winter tires, RedlineNorth now looks at some other tips to get you and your vehicle ready for winter.
First up is the road side safety kit. In general it’s always beneficial to have a roadside safety kit, but it’s even more essential during the winter months. Kits such as these include jumper cables, flashlight, snowbrush/scraper, telescopic shovel and a first-aid kit. If you don’t want to spend a lot you can get a basic kit and add to it with items such as; candles, power bars/granola bars and a blanket. Although you may not touch your kit for months it’s like a good insurance policy and you’ll be glad you have it the day you need it.
A second consideration for winter driving is to ensure you have a healthy battery. Winter is grueling on cars as the cold weather causes engine fluids to thicken making the engine harder to start, and the cold drains the power out of the batteries. According to the Canadian Automobile Association at 0° Celsius a fully charged battery loses 35% of its power. As well, if your battery is more than four years old you may want to consider getting a new one, or have a diagnostic test done in order to ensure it’s still healthy. Also be sure to check your terminal connections to make sure they are snug.
Proper winter wiper blades are a third consideration for winter driving. Summer wiper blades are not designed to accommodate the extra weight from snow build up. In addition, ice can form around the blade, clogging the wiper action.
Winter blades are designed to be heavier and operate at temperatures of up to -40 degrees Celsius. At the end of the day if you can’t see out of your car or truck because of ice and snow build up you’re more likely to have an accident.
Finally, for those drivers with extra enthusiasm for preparing their car for winter one can always consider restoring your car’s headlight assembly. This kit from Meguiar’s and others like it, can be used to repair oxidized, yellowed and scratched headlights.
Over time as your vehicle ages, headlights become cloudy and dull, reducing overall light output. With shorter daylight hours during the winter, it’s even more important to ensure you get maximum light output. Here is an example of a headlight that has been restored. The left hand side shows the original condition and the right side shows the results of the restoration.
For those of us who live in areas that experience a true winter season the responsibility is on individual drivers to make the necessary preparations with their vehicle. Hopefully, these tips have been useful and we wish everyone a safe and fun driving experience this winter.
For additional winter driving tips visit the Transport Canada website.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported on a new study that looked at the differences between men and women finding their parked car in a parking lot. The study focused on a 115 shoppers (age 19-85) at a mall in the Netherlands.
According to the WSJ and the research article Losing Your Car in the Parking Lot: Spatial Memory in the Real World, men more often took the most direct route back to their vehicle and outperformed women in estimating the distance to the parked car. Women, on the other hand, used more landmarks. Overall, the study participants were fairly good in finding their car with only 14% making a substantial detour, most of them women.
Perhaps those that are spatially challenged should download this iOS app or purchase this device, especially if you have parked at the West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta which holds the Guinness World Record for having the largest parking lot in the world with 20,000 spaces (with an additional 10,000 spaces in an adjoining overflow lot).
From a historical perspective you’ve got to love the old 1950s American cars that are still being driven all over Cuba. The Cadillacs, Packards and De Sotos running around are like a moving museum.
The following are a few links to various collections of pictures and videos of the cars that Cuba is famous for.
Flickr group dedicated to pictures of Cuban cars (about 6,500 photos)
Cuba’s Classic Cars Photo Gallery
Youtube video of the Classic Cars of Cuba
The following article points to a reason why some of these classic vehicles may start disappearing in Cuba. As of last year Cubans are now able to buy and sell vehicles of all ages (not just pre-1959 models). While the car buying process in Cuban won’t be the same as Europe or North America, it’s a step that’s probably very welcomed in the country. Let’s hope, however, those American classics keep on rolling for many years to come.
Coyote is a subscription based speed camera alert service used by over 1.7 million people in Europe. It uses crowd sourced information from other Coyote users to warn drivers against fixed and mobile speed traps. Coyote goes beyond other traffic focused apps by giving subscribers additional services, such as indicating when your vehicle enters an average speed zone allowing you to make real time speed adjustments by calculating your average speed in the area.
Dashboard Mounted Coyote
Screen Shot
As with all crowd sourced based applications the larger the user base, the more likely the information will be accurate, timely and beneficial to the end user. This is where Coyote’s user based of 1.7 million customers certainly provides a leg up to other systems and is a product worth considering for customers in the 28 European countries the service is offered. The cost of the Mini Coyote V2 device in the UK for example, including a 12 month subscription is £185.00 (including VAT).
The proliferation of these types of smart phone applications, or purpose built devices, does beg the question as to whether they ultimately provide safer roads, or simply allow people break the law?
On the one hand by knowing the specific location of a speed trap the majority of drivers will slow down, which is the intended purpose of the trap in the first place. On the other hand, drivers may simply take another route and continue to drive above the speed limit, or in an aggressive manner.
Whichever side of the debate you fall on, technology will continue to be used to notify drivers of speed trap locations and police forces and governments will continue adjust their tactics as a result.
Whether you’ve had too much to drink at the bar and need to sleep it off in your car, or you’re not quite comfortable yet sleeping in a tent on those family camping trips you’re in luck. Now you can get an inflatable air mattress for the back seat of your car. It lays out over the back seat filling in the leg space providing one with a fairly level sleeping surface.
Air Mattress Dimensions
Fills in the rear legroom space
Source: http://shbluesun.en.alibaba.com
The wholesale cost is approximately $20 USD for a 500 unit order. The retail cost has yet to be determined.
We’ll file this under ‘things you never know you needed until you saw it’.
If any RedlineNorth reader get their hands on one send us a review!
A YouTube video was uploaded last week of a guy who received a $137 traffic ticket which he felt was a money grab. In order to vent his frustration (and presumably to bring some levity to the situation) he decided to pay his ticket in cash. It was paid in 137 $1 bills to be exact and these bills were painstakingly folded into origami pigs and placed into two donut boxes before being presented at the local municipal office.
As is shown in the video the clerk at the desk clearly wasn’t impressed with the prospect of having to unfold all the bills and in the end he had to undo all of his work, which look liked it took hours to create. To each his own….
The following is a close of up of the bills.
(Source: http://smoog.imgur.com/ticketpig)
(Source: http://smoog.imgur.com/ticketpig)
Consumer Reports have recently published an analysis on the total cost of ownership of a new vehicle over a one, three, five and eight year period. They have used a number of factors in their analysis including depreciation, fuel, interest on financing, insurance, sales tax, as well as average maintenance and repair costs.
Their analysis has produced some interesting results. First and foremost the median cost of ownership for a new vehicle is more than $9,100 a year, over a five year ownership period. Furthermore, the largest single cost in a new vehicle is depreciation, making up 48% of costs in the first five years. This of course assumes that you will be eventually selling the new vehicle down the road and not driving it into the ground.
Consumer Reports Analysis
Courtesy: Consumer Reports.org
The second largest cost is fuel accounting for 24%, while interest on vehicle financing is third with 11%, again over a five year period.
As indicated at the beginning of this post the Consumer Reports analysis is based on a number of assumptions, such as the cost of fuel ($4.20/gallon or $1.11/litre), insurance, interest (6%, 15% down, 5 years – also assumes the vehicle isn’t bought outright at the beginning) and sales tax (5%) to name a few.
All of their assumptions are reasonable and necessary for a broad based analysis, but can vary widely across different jurisdictions. One should keep this in mind when reading the results.
Nonetheless, based on their analysis, the least expensive car to own is Toyota Prius which costs just $5,000 a year to own for five years. While the most expensive vehicle in the list is the BMW 750Li at a whopping $21,500 a year, for a five year period.
A complete breakdown on the ownership cost per model can be found below.
For a more in depth analysis, including further details on the assumptions used and how that may relate to your situation read the complete article here.
Ownership Costs by Vehicle
(Source: Consumer Reports)
| Lowest cost | Highest cost | ||
| Make & Model | Cost/year over 5 years | Make & model | Cost/year over 5 years |
| Small cars | |||
| Toyota Prius C | $5,000 | Mitsubishi Lancer ES | $7,000 |
| Toyota Corolla Base | 5,250 | Mazda3 Hatchback | 7,000 |
| Honda Fit (base) | 5,250 | Nissan Sentra 2.0 SL | 7,000 |
| Smart ForTwo | 5,500 | Ford Focus Hatchback | 7,000 |
| Honda Fit Sport | 5,500 | Kia Soul | 7,000 |
| Mazda2 (MT) | 5,500 | Kia Forte Hatchback | 7,000 |
| Scion xD (MT) | 5,500 | Kia Forte Koup | 7,250 |
| Toyota Yaris Hatchback | 5,500 | Chevrolet Cruze 1.4T | 7,250 |
| Scion xD (AT) | 5,750 | Suzuki SX4 Hatchback | 7,500 |
| Toyota Corolla LE | 5,750 | Chevrolet Cruze ECO | 7,500 |
| Family sedans | |||
| Toyota Camry Hybrid | 6,500 | Toyota Camry (V6) | 8,250 |
| Volkswagen Passat TDI | 6,500 | Ford Fusion (V6, FWD) | 8,250 |
| Toyota Camry (4-cyl.) | 6,750 | Chevrolet Impala (3.6) | 8,250 |
| Hyundai Sonata Hybrid | 6,750 | Nissan Altima (V6) | 8,500 |
| Hyundai Sonata (2.4) | 6,750 | Subaru Legacy 3.6R | 8,500 |
| Honda Accord (4-cyl.) | 6,750 | Chrysler 200 (V6) | 8,500 |
| Ford Fusion (4-cyl.) | 7,000 | Kia Optima 2.0T | 8,750 |
| Mazda6 (4-cyl.) | 7,000 | Ford Fusion (V6, AWD) | 8,750 |
| Nissan Altima (4-cyl.) | 7,250 | Mazda6 (V6) | 9,000 |
| Subaru Legacy 2.5i | 7,250 | Volkswagen Passat (V6) | 9,250 |
| Upscale & luxury cars | |||
| Lexus CT 200h | 7,750 | Lincoln MKS AWD | 13,000 |
| Buick Verano (2.4) | 7,750 | BMW 535i | 13,250 |
| Audi A3 2.0T | 8,000 | Mercedes-Benz E350 | 13,500 |
| Buick Regal (2.4) | 8,000 | Jaguar XF | 13,500 |
| Acura TSX (4-cyl.) | 8,250 | Hyundai Equus | 14,000 |
| Buick Regal (turbo) | 8,500 | Lexus LS 460L | 16,000 |
| Buick LaCrosse eAssist | 8,750 | Jaguar XJL | 19,000 |
| Infiniti G25 Sedan | 9,000 | Audi A8 L | 20,000 |
| Toyota Avalon | 9,000 | Mercedes-Benz S550 | 20,500 |
| Volkswagen CC 2.0T | 9,000 | BMW 750Li | 21,500 |
| Lowest cost | Highest cost | ||
| Make & Model | Cost/year over 5 years | Make & model | Cost/year over 5 years |
| Small SUVs | |||
| Toyota RAV4 (4-cyl.) | $7,000 | Subaru Forester 2.5XT (turbo) | $8,250 |
| Honda CR-V | 7,250 | Nissan Xterra | 8,750 |
| Nissan Juke | 7,250 | Mitsubishi Outlander (V6) | 9,000 |
| Mitsubishi Outlander (4-cyl.) | 7,500 | Kia Sportage (2.0T) | 9,250 |
| Hyundai Tucson (2.4) | 7,500 | Volkswagen Tiguan | 9,750 |
| Midsized SUVs | |||
| Hyundai Santa Fe (4-cyl.) | 8,000 | Dodge Journey V6) | 10,750 |
| Chevrolet Equinox (4-cyl.) | 8,000 | Nissan Pathfinder (V6) | 10,750 |
| GMC Terrain (4-cyl.) | 8,000 | Ford Explorer (V6) | 11,250 |
| Kia Sorento (4-cyl.) | 8,250 | Jeep Grand Cherokee (V6) | 11,250 |
| Jeep Liberty | 8,500 | Jeep Grand Cherokee (V8) | 12,750 |
| Large SUVs | |||
| Ford Flex (V6) | 10,500 | Dodge Durango (V8) | 13,500 |
| GMC Acadia | 10,500 | Ford Expedition | 14,000 |
| Chevrolet Traverse | 10,500 | Chevrolet Suburban | 14,000 |
| Ford Flex (EcoBoost, V6) | 11,750 | GMC Yukon XL | 14,250 |
| Dodge Durango (V6) | 12,250 | GMC Yukon (5.3) | 15,000 |
| Upscale/luxury SUVs | |||
| BMW X3 (3.0) | 10,250 | Mercedes-Benz ML350 | 14,250 |
| Land Rover LR2 | 10,500 | Land Rover LR4 | 14,250 |
| Infiniti EX | 10,500 | Mercedes-Benz GL350 BlueTec | 15,000 |
| Audi Q5 3.2 | 11,250 | Porsche Cayenne (V6) | 15,250 |
| Lexus RX 350 | 11,250 | Infiniti QX56 | 15,500 |
| Buick Enclave | 11,250 | Lincoln Navigator | 15,750 |
| Volvo XC60 | 11,500 | Toyota Land Cruiser | 16,000 |
| Mercedes-Benz GLK350 | 11,500 | Land Rover Range Rover Sport | 16,250 |
| Land Rover Range Rover Evoque | 11,500 | Mercedes-Benz GL450 | 16,500 |
| Acura MDX | 11,750 | Cadillac Escalade (base) | 17,250 |
| Lowest cost | Highest cost | ||
| Make & Model | Cost/year over 5 years | Make & model | Cost/year over 5 years |
| Minivans & wagons | |||
| Toyota Prius V | $6,000 | BMW 328xi Wagon | $10,000 |
| Volkswagen Jetta Wagon TDI | 6,250 | Dodge Grand Caravan SXT | 10,250 |
| Volkswagen Jetta Wagon SE | 7,500 | Kia Sedona | 10,500 |
| Mazda5 | 7,750 | Nissan Quest | 10,500 |
| Subaru Outback 2.5i | 8,000 | Chrysler Town & Country | 10,750 |
| Sporty cars & convertibles | |||
| Mini Cooper Hatchback Base | 5,750 | Lexus IS 250 Convertible | 11,000 |
| Honda CR-Z | 6,000 | Subaru Impreza STi | 11,000 |
| Fiat 500 Sport | 6,000 | Chevrolet Camaro Convertible SS | 11,000 |
| Volkswagen Beetle 2.5 | 6,500 | Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution | 11,250 |
| Fiat 500 C | 6,500 | BMW 328i Convertible | 11,750 |
| Mini Cooper Hatchback S | 6,500 | Audi A5 2.0T | 11,750 |
| Scion tC | 6,500 | Infiniti G37 Convertible | 11,750 |
| Hyundai Veloster | 6,750 | Chevrolet Corvette Base | 12,750 |
| Kia Forte Sedan | 6,750 | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 | 14,500 |
| Honda Civic Si | 7,250 | Jaguar XK | 19,000 |
| Pickup trucks |
|||
| Toyota Tacoma (V6) | 8,500 | Chevrolet Avalanche | 13,000 |
| Chevrolet Colorado | 9,250 | Dodge Ram 2500 Turbodiesel | 13,750 |
| Nissan Frontier | 9,250 | Ford F-250 Turbodiesel | 14,000 |
| GMC Canyon | 9,500 | GMC Sierra 2500HD Turbodiesel | 14,250 |
| Honda Ridgeline | 9,500 | Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD Turbodiesel | 14,25 |
Check out this preview of an upcoming documentary on the iconic Batmobile. From the first appearance of the Batmobile in DC Comics #27 in May 1939 the various incarnations of the vehicle have been a fixture of the Batman comic series.
The documentary will be released late 2012 during the Christmas season and promises to take an interesting and detailed look at the Batmobile.
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