All about auto

Well, if any of you watched the Homestead race weekend then you will already know that there is a lot for me to talk about. The weekend started of very promising and eventually ended on a positive note, but there was very much turmoil in between. 

We had very successful testing leading into this event, so A.J. and I were both very confident heading into the weekend. I was extremely excited to get the weekend started and to unveil our new paint scheme featuring Menards, Johns Manville, DIRECTV and CardioChek to name a few. 

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As we got into the practice sessions we had very good cars and were very confident heading into qualifying. I was the last person to post a qualifying time and as it turned out I think this was an advantage. This was the first race of our new qualifying format, which consists of a four-lap average. There were two accidents during qualifying (Jay Howard and Dan Wheldon). It is never a comforting thing to go out and qualify after watching another car have an accident, but I was able to stay focused. 

A.J. went out to qualify just a few cars before I went out, and he posted the second fastest qualifying run, so I knew that I had a shot at the pole heading into my run. I had expected to be able to run in the 212 mph range, and after my first lap I had posted a lap at well over 213. I think the conditions of being the last qualifier really helped with this. The air temp had dropped and the track temp had dropped, which all makes for optimum conditions. 

Throughout my four lap run I was on pace to take the pole until the last lap and I dropped to second behind Scott Dixon. This was the best qualifying effort of my career, and I was very excited about it. I will admit that I was a little disappointed though because I was so close to claiming my first pole position and just missed it. 

When I went to bed Friday night after qualifying I was so excited for the next day. My car had passed post qualifying technical inspection and I was looking forward to starting the race on the front row. I liked my chances for a podium finish the next day with a shot at my first win. As it turned out, on race day around 3pm I found out that the IndyCar Series had found an issue with the rear wings of both team cars and that we would be starting the race from the back of the field (24th and 25th positions). 

My first reaction and emotions were anger filled, and I felt that I was robbed of something that I earned. As I calmed down, and looked at what had happened, it was clear that our team was in clear violation of the rules. Needless to say, my frustrations became directed at my own team.

Failing technical inspection in the manner that we did was very embarrassing to me personally, and to our team as well as the team ownership. It was probably the most embarrassment and shame that I have ever felt. I do not want to go into what exactly took place, but I want to apologize to all of my fans, sponsors and competitors for these events. I can assure you that I in no way, shape or form knew that my car was in violation of the rules when I was behind the wheel. Furthermore, the team ownership and I are investigating the situation to find out why it happened and to ensure that it never happens again. Violating the rules is not something that I stand for, and is clearly not acceptable. 

This was the most turmoil that I have ever faced heading into a race. After qualifying on the front row, I was feeling a lot of pressure to go out the next day and perform well in the race to back-up what we did in qualifying. After getting failing technical inspection, I was embarrassed and felt 100 times more pressure to go out and perform at a high level.

I knew that I still had a fast car. However, that was one of the things that pissed me off the most about what occurred during qualifying and resulted in moving us to the back. In other words, our infractions did not even play a huge factor in the speed of the car. In spite of that, I still felt that everyone else thought that the only reason I qualified well was because of the same reason that cause us to fail inspection. While I can understand why people would come to that conclusion, that simply was not the case. But perceptions are everything, and I felt so much pressure heading into the race. I wanted to change those perceptions and show everyone that our cars, my skills and this team are all legit.

Starting at the back of the field was a very daunting task, but again, I knew that I had a fast car and that I could work my way to the front of the pack. I am not going to talk through the whole race, because I feel that I have rambled on enough. But we left the weekend with a top five finish, which I think was a solid result, especially coming from the back of the pack. 

I think if you would have told me coming into the race weekend that I would have finished fifth, I would have been happy with it, but after the race and the events of the weekend I still felt a little sour after the race. I still felt ashamed for all of the people that I disappointed in the weekend, and I hope that you will all give me a chance to show that I stand for the right things, and I did not get to where I am by breaking the rules. I have got here by hard work, and hard work is the only thing that can restore my name, and the team name.

All I can do is apologize, and go out and do my job at the highest level I can, and make sure that the team never puts us in that situation again.
– Ed Carpenter

HP will be dropping the new Elite Auto Focus Webcam which is compatible with most PC-based video chat programs such as (Yahoo, Skype, MS Messenger, AIM), and comes with USB 2.0, a 3 megapixel CMOS camera capable of shooting video ranging from 640 x 480 pixels at 30fps with a quality of 1,600 x 1,200 at 5fps, a built-in stereo microphone, face tracking and Magic-i video effects software, 3 programmable buttons, and a sliding “privacy cover”. No word on the pricing, but I’d imagine it wont be cheap with all the fancy features it has. [DigitalHome]

Hundreds of union members and community activists marched to three Hollywood car washes Saturday to let car wash owners know they will not quit until car wash employees are treated fairly. More than 200 union members, day laborers, students and union and immigrant rights leaders rallied at the Vermont Hand Wash, the flagship location of the Pirian family, which owns up to eight car washes in Los Angeles County.

Launched on Thursday, the Community-Labor-Environmental-Action Network (CLEAN) Carwash Campaign already is showing results. On Saturday, the owner of the Vermont Hand Wash invited representatives into the car wash for an inspection of the facilities. Since the announcement of the CLEAN Carwash Campaign, he has purchased some safety equipment, time clocks and a water cooler. One Vermont Car Wash worker, Pedro Guzman, told the Los Angeles Times many workers were paid $40 a day for more than 10 hours of work. Others got tips only.

Grand Theft Auto IV

 Ok, the price is pretty standard, though its the no taxes and free shipping where the savings are at. This is a new hot title, so there really wont be any discounts for a while. So I found the free shipping no tax instance of it for a savings.

Grand Theft Auto IV

The smash hit that made free-roaming, open world games popular is back for a ninth installment in the form of Grand Theft Auto IV. For the first time ever, experience the series in stunning High Definition on your Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3!

The Story So Far

GTA IV takes you to a vastly upgraded Liberty City where you will follow European immigrant Nikolai “Niko” Bellic in his pursuit of the American Dream. Lured to the States by his shady cousin Roman, he quickly finds that things are not as he expected. As it turns out, Roman is heavily in debt to the wrong people, and Niko is now left to bail him out of trouble by any means necessary.

Truly Next-Generation

Traditionally, the GTA series has required the completion of fixed missions before advancing in the game. However, GTA IV adopts a format where the line between main and side missions is blurred. Niko is now armed with a cell phone and his phone could ring at any time. Who knows who or what will be on the other end?

Details, Details, Details

A fully customizable Niko means you will be able to pull up to a boutique, enter the shop, choose out your clothes, and purchase them just like in real life. Also, remember when carjacking was made easy? Well not anymore. In Grand Theft Auto IV, you will be asked to hotwire cars, meaning time is of the essence. One slip up could land you a night in the slammer. These are just some of the detailed improvements in gameplay for the latest installment of the game.

What Else Ya Got

Similar to Gears of War, a cover system has been added. The targeting system has been vastly improved over previous versions. Individual relationships are now dynamic, meaning your actions will greatly affected you relationships throughout the game. These are just a few of the ways this series will forever change how you feel about Grand Theft Auto.

What do hybrid cars and getting a cash loan on your auto title with 800LoanMart have to with each other? Well, they’re both a new solution to age-old problems.

The American public is a long way off from giving up their automobiles to transportation like trains, buses, etc. Sure, you probably know someone who regularly rides a train or bus, but if you’ve ever looked at the majority of vehicles whizzing down the highway, most of them are occupied by ONE person. Why do you think the HOV lanes are all a single lane wide?

Because there’s just not (yet) a demand. Truth is, we like our alone time in our cars! Unless you’re living in Tokyo or Hong Kong. We like to sing to our stereo, yell at the talk show host, or listen to books on CD…or tape! Alone time in our vehicles, for most of us is almost sacred—except, maybe, if you’re stuck in traffic daily, then you might welcome the needed reprieve a train ride home could provide; maybe spend time relaxing with a book, or taking a nap…. Might save you from worry of falling asleep at the wheel!

I’ve really been reading up on the pros of electric hybrids, and the more I read, the more sense they make. If you are of the same thinking, but lack the cash to make a down payment, perhaps you should consider 800LoanMart’s auto title loans program. Could make a lot of sense…and a lot of cash. Apply online or walk in. At least give us a click to explore further.

Get a bunch of car journalists together and a few conversations are inevitable. Stuff like, "What’s the best car ever, period?" or "What’s the dumbest car you’ve ever purchased?" The answers are full of variation (Porsche 959/McLaren F1, Citroen DS/BMW 750iL) and typically end with me asking, "Aren’t you guys interested in anything besides cars?" Deaf ears and all that. My point? If the question of world’s ugliest car were to come up, there can be no debate. Mitsuoka Orochi is the answer. All other suggestions are utterly wrong. And Motor Authority tells us that, like some latter-day Godzilla, left-hand drive examples of the Orochi are leaving Japan to fry eyeballs in Qatar, UAE, Thailand and Jordon. No, really — look at this monstrosity. What could be more awful? How an NSX-based sports car can make the Pontiac Aztek look like Jessica Biel is inconceivable, incomprehensible and totally unfathomable, but there you go. As for me, I’m stocking up on Raid.

If you are making the move to convert your gasoline powered car into an electric car, you will need to have a secure electric car battery box to store your batteries in. Depending on the number of batteries you will have in your new electric car, most of them will be located in the rear section of the passenger compartment.

The purpose of an electric car battery box is to prevent fumes from entering the passenger compartment when the batteries are charging and to protect occupants of the car in an accident. The box also keeps the batteries warm in cold weather. There is usually limited space in the front of the car which is why an electric car battery box is stored in the rear of the vehicle.

If you are constructing your own electric car battery box, you need to make it large enough to hold most of your batteries comfortably. Mounted on the side should be an explosion proof brushless fan that ventilates the box when the batteries are charging. The fan is wired in series with the fan in the battery charger so when the charger is on the battery box fan is on. A marine grade ventilation bilge hose is attached to the fan and routed to the vent on the underside of the car.

The battery box for your electric car should be constructed of marine grade plywood and painted with water repellant paint. Metal banding needs to be secured around the box so the weight of the batteries will not break the box apart in an accident.
The electric car battery box will then be securely mounted with bolts to the frame of the car. For ease of installation the box should fit into the trunk. However, with careful planning, some cutting, and a little welding, the electric car battery box can be sunk into the floor of the trunk to regain storage space. Before the batteries are installed, a layer of baking soda should be spread on the floor of the box and the air bags in the coil springs need to be filled with air.
If you are undertaking your own conversion from a gasoline car to an electric car, building the battery box for your electric car needs to have special attention paid to it. This is where your power will be coming from, and you need to be sure that nothing happens to it.