Carbusters » Car Cult Review

Drink or Drive

carbusters — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:59:57 +0000

The number of cup holders used to be one of the most important aspects for Americans when buying a new car. This particularity is probably connected to the fast-food culture and the culture of consuming as much as possible. According to a consumer survey by Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the consumption of fuel has become a more determinant element in the choice of a new car. What wonderful news, people have more consideration for climate issues and peak oil, than for drinking soda while driving. In fact not, they mostly have more consideration for their expenditures in a context of economical troubles. The price of oil is climbing again and we can realistically think that it will keep on rising. Carbusters is waiting for the moment when our societies will finally decide to have more consideration for the environment than economical considerations.

www.treehugger.com

All Engines Go

carbusters — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 12:01:08 +0000

We do not all share the same dreams, and Chris Lentz’s dream definitely differs from that of Carbusters. This native of Michigan, US wanted to give more power to his 2005 Ford F-150, and found a way to accomplish it: he bought an old Czechoslovakian Motorlet M-701 turbojet on eBay for US$12,000 and attached it to his truck. To install the jet in the truck, Lentz fabricated a sturdy mounting stand, a 76-litre kerosene tank, and a control console from aluminium and stainless steel. He is now the happy owner of a jet-powered truck. This brilliant machine allows him to reach a speed of 100km/h in 6 seconds and 225 km/h in 45 seconds. Don’t ask us the point of all this, but according to Jalopnik – a website “obsessed with the cult of cars” – it is definitely the “coolest truck ever”.
www.jalopnik.com

Dangerous Cyclists

carbusters — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 10:18:14 +0000

A collective of motorists from Colorado, US, in summer 2008 launched a call for civil disobedience against the extension of bicyclist’s rights and the state’s new law – about a minimum distance to keep between cars and cyclists while passing them. They distributed an amazing flyer explaining that “cyclist flout common sense, endanger those in cars on mountain roads in the name of selfishness; cars will be forced to cross double yellow lines on dangerous limited visibility roads due to the expanded rights of cyclists. ”The text is asking for civil disobedience, in order to fight these dead machines that threaten peaceful drivers – bicycles. It calls all people “who have been endangered by cyclist behaviour” to protest against this new law.

www.urbanvelo.org

Hate People Love Cars

carbusters — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 10:11:44 +0000

Here is the statement about a very fancy T-shirt for all car lovers. “Since the first collection, this shirt has attained cult status. You like your car better than your friends? Then this basic black tee with crew neck exactly right for you!” explains one German website selling the T-shirt. Another is speaking about “the unequivocal statement to be worn by all muscles drivers”. Convinced that many of you will feel tempted by buying it, the T-shirt is available in black in all sizes for the small price of 30 Euros. Make car, not love.

www.loco-style-shop.com

At Opposite Ends

carbusters — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 11:04:15 +0000

Paris and its suburbs are well known for its saturated roads and its non-stop traffic jams. And everybody agrees that there should be fewer cars, but of course nobody wants to stop using their own car. Following the same logic, two Parisian mayors created a small chaos in their localities.

When the conservative mayor of Levallois-Perret, initially made the D909 one-way to reduce the amount of commuter traffic through his district, the Socialist mayor of neighbouring Clichy-la-Garenne made his section of the road one-way in the opposite direction. Both of them were arguing that the road was increasing congestion in their own area. This is right, as more than thousands of motorists pass between the two suburbs each day on their way into and out of the French capital.

With the contradictory road-signs in place, the unsurprising result was gridlock, prompting the deployment of municipal and national police to direct traffic away from the area. The opening of a new shopping mall stimulated the decision of the mayor of Levallois-Perret. The one-way road of Clichy-la-Garenne was declared illegal, but the legal fight keeps on going for the pleasure of car drivers.

www.leparisien.fr

Steel Stars on TV

carbusters — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 09:47:37 +0000

If you missed your dream to be an actor, your car can nowadays fulfil it. Indeed, a growing number of vehicle owners are leasing their cars to television and film producers. “It was very exciting” said Brett Kenyon, owner of a Jaguar XJC Coupe to an Australian online newspaper. He gathered his wife and a group of friends and they all sat around the box waiting for her to appear on screen. When she finally did, there were cries of joy and recognition. “We were all waiting and when the car was first seen there was a little bit of a cheer “ said Kenyon.

According to Shan Railton from Vantage Management, (an American agency specialising in “star cars” for TV, film, promotions and events), “Economic times may be down but more people are staying home and watching the telly so we’re seeing as much work as ever.” Many car lovers bring their wheels to Railton’s agency but he also scouts car clubs, websites, car parks, events and particular suburbs for unusual and unique cars to add to his catalogue.

The pay varies depending on how long the vehicle is needed for, how heavily it will feature and the budget of the production. For a two-hour magazine fashion shoot or a static shot in a television or film production it might be US$200 to US$300; for a commercial filmed over a few days, the owner could receive US$2000.

Illustration by Marta Mancusi

www.watoday.com.au

CO2 is Green

carbusters — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 10:10:21 +0000

“CO2 is not a pollutant. CO2 makes Earth green because it supports all plant life. It is Earth’s greatest airborne fertilizer. Even man-made CO2 contributes to plant growth that in turn sustains humanity and ecosystems. The website CO2 Is Green works to insure that all federal laws or regulations are founded upon science and not politics or scientific myths. No one wants the plant and animal kingdoms, including humanity, to be harmed if atmospheric CO2 is reduced. The current dialogue in Washington, US, needs to reflect these inalterable facts of nature. We cannot afford to make mistakes that would actually harm both the plant and animal kingdoms.”

Didn’t you know that? Then you should absolutely go and visit the CO2 Is Green website. Authors of the website describe themselves as philanthropists facing the difficult task to provide the truth to people “misinformed by people that benefit financially from propagating the myth” (e.g. the myth of climate change). Nowhere on the website can you find the great environmentalists behind this beautiful initiative. Maybe they are too shy, but after some research, you can discover that these new friends of the earth are H. Leighton Steward, a veteran oil industry executive and Corbin J. Robertson Jr., chief executive of and leading shareholder in Natural Resource Partners, a Houston-based owner of coal resources. In a way, it is right that we shouldn’t focus all our attention on CO2, and better look at all aspects of the environmental crisis.

www.co2isgreen.org

Car in a Plastic Bag

carbusters — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 23:39:13 +0000

Facing the threat of floods and other climate disasters, solutions are urgently needed. We don’t all share the same approach to the problem and therefore don’t find the same solutions.

Have you ever hear about the “Flood Bag”? Nobody could present it better than its creators: “We’ve all seen the television footage of cars up to their headlights in muddy flood waters. Vehicles are often abandoned because waters rise quickly and become too deep to drive safely. What we don’t see is the ravage a flood causes to a car once the waters recede. The engine and interior are full of gritty, gooey mud that clings to everything. Usually the motor is ruined and the vehicle is declared a complete loss.

This giant plastic bag is the ultimate in vehicle flood protection and it’s so simple to use. The interior of the bag has markings to guide you as you drive your car into it. Exit the vehicle and pull the sides of the bag up over your car. Next, pull the draw-string tightly, closing the orifice. The key here is to make sure you leave an opening large enough to allow air to escape as the flood waters ensue. Otherwise trapped air will fill the bag and your car will float off into the sunset.” Now, who said we should do something to tackle climate change?

Illustration by Marta Mancusi

www.totallyabsurd.com

Green-Washing

carbusters — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 10:09:28 +0000

The Wildlife Animal Park in southern Oregon, US, has come up with an unusual way to raise money. They taught their three elephants called Alice, Tiki and George, how to wash cars. For US$20 the African elephants will blast your car with water from their trunks and then scrub the vehicle clean with a sponge. According to elephant trainer Katie Alayan, “It’s so much fun for [the elephants], they love playing in water anyway, and they love interacting with people.” The elephant car wash is sold as a form of entertainment for visitors. Some words from the executive director of the Wildlife Animal Park, “It’s guaranteed to not get your car clean!” As with all other green washing, this doesn’t guarantee to make human activities cleaner.

Illustration by Marta Mancusi

www.bbc.co.uk

Carhenge Oddity

carbusters — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:34:28 +0000

In the future, people may regard the age of the car as a primitive era when humans were working increasingly hard to destroy their environment. They will probably have the opportunity to see many of the car cemeteries spread over the five continents, and may even have the chance to visit Carhenge, in Western Nebraska, US. This is a duplicate of Stonehenge made with cars by Jim Reinders – a farmer from the town of Alliance who accomplished this work in 1987, as a memorial to his dad.

Since its creation, the place has attracted around 80,000 tourists per year from all over the world and the association “Friends of Carhenge” has been created to support and preserve the “site”. Additional sculptures have been erected in its surroundings, known as the Car Art Reserve. This odd reproduction of Stonehenge is a very powerful image combining the fascination for the original stone circle and for the car.

Maybe in the far future, people will look at it with astonishment and silent respect – trying to understand what kind of belief made us sacrifice so many resources for this destructive steel divinity.