Slo-Mo 240 burnout
Not sure what this Swedish Volvo ad is actually for. Maybe it’s for tires?
In high school I was in the “burnout” clique. But it wasn’t because of the rubber burned in my buddy’s 1974 Olds Cutlass; although that was fun too.
How many Bricks have to die for a mistake?
The government released a listing of all cars traded in for the Cash for Clunkers program. I had admonished the Big Money for claiming the 240 was a Clunker. Turns out they were almost correct. According to Cars.gov, one particular model of one particular year has been deemed to have a fuel economy rating of 18 mpg. Huh? I’ve got to investigate…
Detroit Must Atone for SUVs
Jalopnik’s Commenter of the Day is “FP: Your Volvo is Awesome” for writing a lengthy screed about automakers pushing SUVs instead of designing decent wagons:
All automakers, save for a few European players and our own Cadillac, must be held accountable by the people for stopping production of wagons in favour of less-practical SUV-shaped ‘crossovers’.
The people shall not hold them accountable, flocking instead to these ungainly, less-versatile vehicles with no rear visibility. The Mazda6 and Focus were cut down in their stead by the ignorant masses who flocked to those criminally-named ’sport-utility’ vehicles when times were good, and it is too late for them now.
Incomplete Pass by 242
Note to self: when passing in a race, try to avoid the telephone poles.
Jalopnik Hearts Bricks
In their Question of the Day “What Car Makes you Feel Safe?” Jalopnik shows the love for the 240:
For an almost 25-year-old wagon it’s quite nimble and we feel maneuverability is just as important as anything else because you’re best advantage in a possible crash is avoiding it.
Don’t Block the Box
In honor of Jalopnik.com “Crash Week” I present an image I took last week of an accident I witnessed in Hoboken. This is the second time in the past few months that I’ve watched cars turning left into traffic and getting smashed.
50 years of crash test dummies
The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety celebrated their 50th anniversary by playing chicken with a 1959 and a 2009 Chevrolet. Neither car blinked and now they’re dead. If I had a choice, I’d go with the 2009 Malibu… and my life.
This is the extended footage, which includes scary interior footage from the Bel Air.
Troubles with My Tranny
Last night after grocery shopping with the family I discovered a problem with the brick. It started up fine, but when I went to put it in reverse the shift lever went slack. I tried putting it back in Park, but it was stuck in reverse and the shift lever could just bounce back and forth through the range of gears without any resistance. I pulled the parking brake, shut it off and explored under the car.
A rod hung from underneath the shift lever and after a little exploring I saw that it should have been attached to another lever on the transmission. But there was nothing to hold it in place. I was parked over a sewer grate, so if there had been something that fell of it was gone. Luckily I had just thrown a roll of duct tape into the trunk, so I was able to fasten the levers and drive home.
This morning I removed the duct tape, pulled the mechanism and walked to the local hardware store for a retaining ring and washer. The guy in the nuts and bolts section was clueless when I asked for help. He told me they didn’t have retaining rings, but after a short search on my own I found a drawer with plenty.
Reassembly was easy and now it shifts properly. But the whole shift assembly is loose and sloppy, so someday I may have to go in there and swap out some of the bushings. Right now I’m just glad we were able to get home, and the repair only cost $.75 in parts.
Flip for a Vette
Guy needs to either buy wheelie bars, or something other than a Chevette.