Props To Fritz

You have to give credit to GM... they have the fortitude to post difficult, pointed questions on their Fastlane Blog. Sample:

“Mr. Henderson, I have been a loyal GM owner until June 1, 2009. I will no longer purchase a GM car because owners of the 566 million shares of GM stock and the holders of 27B of bonds have been completely written off by you, the CEO and the US Government - e.g. President Obama.

Why would ANYONE invest in the new company? You just zeroed out the existing investors.

Because of this, I will not buy a new Cadillac CTS this year, but I will buy either a Lincoln or luxury transplant car but here in the USA. -JE”

We recognize our actions have a significant impact on many constituents, including stockholders, bondholders, employees, dealers, retirees and others. Bondholders will receive ownership in the new GM. We are committed to turning around the company to the benefit of all stakeholders in General Motors, and we plan to do that as quickly as possible.

Taking it on the chin, in public, is not something big corporations usually do. But GM is showing that they are serious about patching things up with the customers, and the new majority owners, the U.S. taxpayer.

Vista Problem: Filling My Hard Drive

I ran into my first major headache with Windows Vista. After I added a second internal hard drive to my system, it quickly began to fill up, to the point where it is now 99% full. But I am only storing about 40% worth of stuff on it!

At first, i was worried I had a virus or something, but then I remembered about Vista's Shadow Copy feature, which copies old versions of files so that if you make a change and you want to undo it, you can restore a previous version.

I found this article which explains how to dig into the settings for Volume Shadow Copy. It turns out that somehow, Vista decided that the shadow copy settings for my D: should be UNBOUNDED, which means, copy until the drive is full!

I was able to use VSSADMIN to fix it, following the directions of the posting. I simplay ran this command as an administrator:

vssadmin Resize ShadowStorage /On=D: /For=D: /MaxSize=50GB

Note to Microsoft: Volume Shadow Copy should default to a safe value, and not to UNBOUNDED!

Video: Amazing Rally Race Crash

Somehow I missed this when it first came out. Ford rally racers Jan-Matti Latvala and Mikka Antilla went over a railing and rolled down a hill, over and over again. It is a testament to the engineering that goes into these cars that they were not seriously injured. The hard roll cage structure in the cabin of the car remained intact, while outer body panels deformed to absorbe energy.

The Ford Capri

Not too many cars enjoy a forty-year run, but the Ford Capri is turning forty this year, and that's something to be celebrated. Sure, it's not manufactured anymore but that doesn't mean that it's not still very popular. People still have them, and they drive them a lot. There are clubs for the Capri, too, and several dealers are having parties and other events to celebrate the car. It was a muscle car, and it had an iconic place in car history, mostly in the seventies.

The sixties and the eighties enjoyed it, too, but it wasn't as big in those particular decades as it was during the seventies. That's really the place that it has in the history of the motor car - as a seventies muscle car that big, tough guys liked to drive really fast. It made them cool, apparently, and a lot of them have kept these cars, re-purchased one for a dash of nostalgia, and passed them down to their children. It's helped to keep the Capri popular, like some other cars that have also enjoyed long-term manufacturing runs and didn't die out even when the company stopped making them.

The idea that dealers are so interested in these cars is a great one, because it means that the people who enjoy them and who still appreciate them can see these cars officially celebrated at a dealership instead of only seeing them honoured in backyard and block parties where Capri owners get together to swap stories and talk about how they feel about their cars.

These are fun, too, and will no doubt take place, but they aren't the same as gathering at a dealership to formally recognize the Capri and the place that the car has created for itself in motoring history. The types of events that will be taking place will depend on the dealers, of course, because everyone has a different idea of what constitutes a party. Ford might also have specific criteria for its dealerships, but whatever is done it promises to be a good time for the dealerships and the people who love their Ford Capris.

This article was written by Tom Sangers on behalf of Foray Vans who offer the Ford Ranger.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Sangers

What is Better Bentley o Rolls Royce?

If you're in the market for a new car - a really nice new car - you might be facing the tough choice between a Bentley and a Rolls Royce. As for which one is better, though, that's hard to say. They're both exquisite cars and they both have a lot to offer. They're also both very expensive, so it's not like you'll save a lot of money buying one over the other.

For people who buy these kinds of cars, money generally isn't an object. If you want to buy one and can't afford to get it new, though, you can also consider buying one of them used. They still won't qualify for the term 'inexpensive' but they might come a little bit closer to it than they would have if they were still brand new.

Features are important, of course, but it's very difficult to get one of these kinds of cars that's not fully loaded. They come with the same kinds of options that lower-priced cars have, and then some. That's true of both of the models, too, so choosing one of them over the other based on price or features isn't really realistic. The same is true of the prestige of driving them, too. Mostly, which one you like best will be the main reason for choosing one over the other.

There is no real 'better' when it comes to cars of this calibre. There is only exceptional - and for many of the same reasons between the two brands. There are not that many different models of these cars, so it's not a matter of choosing an SUV over a sports car. It's a matter of preference for one particular name, a tiny bit of different styling, or some other issue that people who aren't fans of these kinds of cars might find insignificant. It's a matter of what you like and don't like, and it's a matter of how much you read and pay attention to reviews. You can find some that say one car is better than the other. If you look around, you'll find reviews saying the opposite when it comes to which car is the best choice. Some rank them equally. Only you can decide which one is really right for you.

This article was written by Tom Sangers on behalf of Romans International who are Bentley Dealership based in Surrey.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Sangers

Top 10 Best of the best Japanese Cars

Japanese cars come with a long list of reasons why to purchase them with the top reasons being reliability, fuel economy, and longevity. Face it; there are Japanese vehicles on the road today that are twenty years old or older. Every year Warranty Direct, an independent mechanical breakdown insurer, compiles a list of the top 20 cars in the world. And the majority of the vehicles that show up in the top 20 - usually around 16 of them - are Japanese vehicles. More often than not, the Honda Accord is sitting at number one.

How does Warranty Direct rank these vehicles? They take a look over the database of vehicles sold in the previous year and then rank them on how they performed and the frequency of failure over the year. The list includes both new and used vehicles, with used vehicles being purchased more than new ones.

So what were the top ten most reliable Japanese cars of last year?
1. Honda Accord
2. Subaru Forester
3. Mazda MX-5
4. Mitsubishi Carisma
5. Toyota Yaris
6. Honda Civic
7. Nissan Almera
8. Honda CR-V
9. Toyota RAV4
10. Nissan Micra

The British built Jaguar X-Type placed at number 13, the highest non Japanese vehicle to make the list. The Mercedes Benz SLK showed up at number 25, the first place the German cars showed up.

Used car experts agree that people looking to buy cars that are reliable and will not break down should purchase any vehicle that is made by a Japanese automaker. Warranty Direct's statistics back up this assessment, and many auto experts will agree and even advise that people purchase a used Japanese car.

Volvo came in 15th with the S/V40, the highest spot the Swedish manufacturer managed on the list. Ford's Ka came in 22nd, with the Hyundai's Lantra and the Citroen Xsara coming in behind it.

With today's consumers being more cautious about the vehicles they buy, reliability seems to be the top reason for picking a Japanese car. However, it is not the top consideration people look at when choosing a specific model over another one. Japanese used cars require less maintenance than most other brands, and consumers would prefer to drive their cars than spend money on expensive garage bills. With care and basic maintenance, a Japanese car can run over 200,000 miles, just enough to knock the dust from production out of its system.

If you are looking for used Honda and Cube for sale, please visit. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ray_Jackson

Cars and Pedestrians

In this day and age, you can never be too careful. As time has progressed, over the years there are more people living in more densely populated areas around the United States (not to mention the world). Due, alone, to this fact- it should therefore come as no surprise to find out that there are an increased number of vehicle accidents that have taken place as a result. Is the world a more dangerous place now because there are more people? Some would debate this question and answer that "yes," it is in fact a more dangerous place.

The other week, I was driving back from working out when I saw that there was a huge accident. Later, I found out that a person walking along the sidewalk had been struck by a motorcyclist who had somehow lost control of his vehicle and had skidded onto the sidwalk. How scary is that? To think that we aren't even safe walking along the sidewalks! Is it because the speed limits are too high or too low? The fact of the matter is that people who get behind the wheel of a car, truck, bus or even a motorcycle don't always obey the posted traffic speed limits- let alone the laws of the roadways.

What is the point of having laws and rules that govern how we should behave as responsible citizens if no one follows them? Can we really be left to our own devices to trust one another's judgment? Think about it. If there were no rules for how we should drive, do you think that people would do the right thing? Would it be total chaos? It is a scary thought. There are, however, some precautions that we can each take when it comes to sharing the road. As a runner, I would always get annoyed when cars would cut me off as I tried to cross the street.

To put it another way, when you are behind the wheel of a vehicle, put yourself in the shoes of a pedestrian. As many of us are already aware, pedestrians always have the right of way (even when they're wrong). This is, in part, because vehicles can be used as deadly weapons and are much bigger and heavier than a person. When you approach a corner and there is a pedestrian, always pause to see what their body language indicates. You may have the green arrow to turn, but if a pedestrian's body language indicates that they are already moving forward, then you must yield.

It is also a great idea to try to make eye contact with pedestrians when you are approaching a stopped position or even an intersection. Usually, pedestrians will look for this same eye contact from you and will give some sort of a verbal or physical signal indicating that they understand your intentions for them to move ahead or stay where they are. If we all practiced a little more safety both in our driving habits as well as how we treat pedestrians, then it would be a much safer place to live and work in. Remember, when you're not behind the wheel of a car, you become a pedestrian. That being said, make sure that you treat pedestrians the way that you would want to be treated: with respect and courtesy!

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