Farewell Bloggers

As the semester comes to a close, so does my blog. It went alot better than I thought it would, and sadly I began to enjoy doing it. 

Informing the unenthused drivers of my class has been rather eye-opening, and has allowed me to reflect on how I consider my audience when writing. 

I do regret not posting more about different fuel sources and their effects on modern transportation, such as my recent posts on the benefits of diesel. It would have allowed me to broaden my audience to more of an eco-aware group of readers and their opinions, possibly teaching me a thing or two.

Then again, I feel like I've opened many eyes to a very diverse scene of racing. From Formula 1 to vintage racing on a weekend, hopefully someone can look farther than just NASCAR, when they talk about racing. Hopefully a couple of people have taken my advice, and dropped the phone, while driving, causing less danger on the road. 

It is from here I must come to a close, end the season.

Did I finish on the podium,... or did I crash into the wall in a fiery flame? You decide.

Speaking of Diesels

Autoblog just reviewed the BMW 335d, a 3.0L twin turbo diesel that is slated for the states. Their words were very enthusiastic towards the powerplant, stating that it was a great car for racking up the miles on the highway. Passing speed is fast and effortless, and even driving at 80, they were seeing over 30m.p.g. 

While the power delivery may be different from what our gasoline motors have gotten us used to, the diesel is actually much more suited to American driving. Low-revving at high speed, and torquey for putting in traffic.

The testers at Autoblog did have a few negative comments about the car, but most of those had to do with the interior and how quick the options added to the cost of the car. 

So, how about it? Would you consider a diesel, now?

You can read the review for yourself at: http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/10/review-2009-bmw-335d-proves-efficient-dynamics-is-more-entert/ 

Malaysian Grand Prix

Well, the Malaysian Grand Prix aired today, but was cut short due to torrential rain. The very new Brawn team is proving to be quite an epic team, winning it's second first place finish in a row. 

For the first time, since 1984, the F1 top eight finisher will only recieve half points for their finishing positions, becuase of the rain cutting the race short by over half the race. 

Eventhough it was short, the race proved to be exciting while it lasted, with very competetive side-by-side racing. This season's proving to become one of the best in recent years.

Check out the gallery of photos at autoblog to see the flood that occured: http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2009-malaysian-grand-prix/

Diesel

Diesel. It's been widely used throughout Europe for some time, but it has never really caught on here in the states.

In Europe gas prices can be as much as five times what we pay for a gallon of gas. When the price spikes in fuel occured earlier this year, and we were complaining about $4/gallon gas, they suffered worse. So, while we were scrambling to pick up Civics and little eco-cars, the Europeans weren't quite as frantic. "Why?", you may ask.

In Europe, countries are not as distant as they are in the United States, allowing for very easy and economical means of transport by train. If you've been to New York City, you know many people rarely ever need a car, because the subway system is so much more practical. That is what the European train system is to Europe. And, when the need to have a car is inevitable, Europeans have a more reasonable approach to buying cars. Instead of large, heavy cars and SUVs, they purchase very small, light cars with small motors that return great fuel mileage.

Here is where diesel comes in. Even though they are sometimes chattery, noisy at idle, and sometimes lacking in power bandwidth, diesels can return incredible feul mileage. This is a big deal when gas costs easily $5-7 USD.

You would think that diesel would've been huge in the States when gas prices soared, but it didn't really come into stride. Even after people realized they could run on home-made vege-fuel. Too messy, I guess, when you have to store it in your home somewhere. I mean, the diesel truck driver may have gotten good use out of the new technology, but the diesel CAR never really took off. 

I believe this is because of two things. First, for many years it has been hard for diesels to pass certain emmisions tests, especially in California, and if it can't go to California, chances are it won't make it to the states. This has given diesels a bad reputation of being dirty, and in the past decade's sudden global environmental crisis, we can't use dirty anymore. Secondly, the recent implementation of hybrids and electric battery powered vehicles has deterred the idea of making cleaner and more efficient motors. Except for a select few auto manufactures: VW and Audi.

VW use to be the only diesel car option for the states. It can be modified to return 50+ m.p.g. Audi has made huge strides in diesel technology with their LeMans race car. They have even had campaigns to raise awareness and interest in diesel cars, and I think people are warming up to the idea. Mercedes and BMW offers their clean diesel, which utilizes urea pellets to clean greenhouse gases. They don't drive too bad, either. They're torquey, which is great for around town, return great mileage, and manufacturers have quieted them down quite a bit. 

"Well, if they're so great, why do I barely see them growing?"

With stringent emissions rulings becoming ever more stringent, and the push for less dependancy on oil, many feel diesel is just not the answer to the larger problem.

Not to worry though! Audi is still planning to bring a few diesels to the states, and I've read news about Mazda readying a diesel that is clean sans the urea injection.

Ahh, just the way I like it, MEAN, and green.