Daily Archives2017 March 18

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Australia is car-crazy. Always has been. For decades, the Holden-Ford debate has been a major topic of conversation, and if you scratch an Australian motorist on anything to do with their car, you’ll get your ears talked off. Anything to do with car service is likely to create a debate, or at least set off a few stories about the issues.

The real car culture got started in the 1950s. The Baby Boom was in full swing, and the postwar population was surging. The building industry doubled the size of Melbourne and Sydney, and the newly affluent middle class went out and bought cars like never before.

That was where the real Holden-Ford rivalry took off. Holden, a GMH subsidiary, was touted as the Aussie car, although Fords were built in Australia as well. The 1950s Holdens and Fords were tough cars, big steel cars with a range of tail fins and designs which even to this day look like strange, cartoon cars, but it’s since been generally agreed that they were great cars under the bonnet, whatever the designs.

A whole series of generations of amateur car mechanics was also born. The great Australia weekend involved a Saturday or Sunday out fixing the car (whether it needed fixing or not, if it didn’t it was called “tuning”) as often as a run to the pub or the beach. Australian suburbia became a sea of cars, with attached car fanatics.

The next generation of cars included some true classics. The Holden Kingswood and the Torana were respectively grunt cars and a famous teen hoon-mobile, although arguably the hoons cared more about the car than themselves. The Kingswood became the police car; the Torana became the car being chased. These cars became truly loved, despite their social roles.

Ford stuck with its basic Falcon design from 1959. This American design was intended to be a competitor with Holden, which was at that time dominating the Australian market, and the Falcons were the first cars to really challenge that domination. The original Falcons were quite big cars, and looked good. They were never quite the cultural icons that the contemporary Holdens were, until the GT series, real “muscle cars”, and they were also racing cars.

From the arrival of a real competitor onwards, the Holden- Ford contest was on, and it’s never stopped. A thousand new brands have come on the road since, but unless they’ve had some power under the bonnet, they’ve barely been noticed by the Australian car culture. Some European cars, notably the E type Jaguar, the RX 7 and the XJS, have made people sit up and take notice, but they’re not quite in the traditional image of the suburban car culture.

Since those times, the Commodores and Fairlanes, Hyundais, Mitsubishis and other cars have “diluted” the pure Australian car culture, but never really changed it as a social phenomenon. It’s a pretty safe bet that as long as people in Australia are talking about car repair and anything related to cars, the “car culture” will always be with us.

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Source by Charlie Andrews

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There are three main types of bike carriers; hitch mounted, strap on and roof mounted. Each comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.

Hitch-mounted racks

These attach to a hitch at the back of the vehicle. There are two types.

• Class I carriers are compatible with a large number of cars and small Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs). Depending on the design, they can hold up to three bikes.

• Class III carriers are designed for use with pickups and large SUVs. They can hold a larger number of bikes than Class I racks. Unfortunately, they cannot be used on smaller vehicles without expensive modifications.

These carriers are extremely easy to install, and there is generally less chance of accidentally scratching the paint off a vehicle while mounting bikes.

However, without proper installation, they can block rear windows, increasing the possibility of causing accidents while reversing, or cover license plates, which is considered illegal in many jurisdictions.

Strap-on trunk-mounted racks

These carriers are attached with straps to the trunk, rear bumper or hatchback, and carry up to three bicycles. They come with padded or plastic-coated frame supports to protect the bicycles from scratches and other damage.

Strap on racks are cheap and easy to store when not in use. They are also versatile, and can be used on virtually any model, which makes them particularly suitable for leased vehicles.

Unfortunately, like hitch-mounted racks, they can block the rear window if installed poorly. They are also less secure, as it is possible for thieves to untie or cut straps attaching bike racks to the vehicle.

Roof-mounted racks

These are attached to the vehicle’s upper door frames or rain gutters, or where available, cross bars or roof racks, which is generally cheaper. Depending on the size of the vehicle, up to seven bicycles can be carried. A special case can be added if extra storage space for tools and other equipment is needed. When it is not being used for holding bikes, the rack can be also used for carrying canoes and skis.

While roof-mounted racks guarantee unobstructed view from the rear window, they are more difficult to install. Other disadvantages include increased air resistance, which can lead to increased fuel consumption and wind noise, and the increased likelihood of scratching paint as bikes are lifted onto the vehicle roof.

Knowing the advantages and disadvantages of the main types of bike racks on the market can make it easier to figure out which one to pick.

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Source by Samuel Maina Kang’aru

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Have you ever looked at a car and thought maybe that could be a sports car because it only has two seats? It’s elegant like a sports car and as agile as a sports car, but there is a difference between the two. Here is the difference between the roadster and the sports car.

The first car that was made is considered a roadster as it only has two seats installed and no roof. They also call convertible cars roadsters because of the convertible roof. Examples would include the Porsche Boxster and the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster.

A roadster is often considered a sports car as it was made to emphasise the comfort and the handling of the vehicle. However, this was considered a sports car when the fastest car only had two to four cylinders and not a lot of horsepower. A roadster, now, can be just as fast as the BMW M3 but it’s not as warm in the winter months though.

Sports cars are defined by the type of engine they have. The engine usually has to consist of eight cylinders or more to be considered a sports car or super car. Obviously the suspension and turbochargers are part of it but it’s mainly how many cylinders it contains. The car should be able to go from a stationary position to one hundred kilometres per hour in just a couple of seconds; nothing a roadster can’t handle.

Sports cars nowadays are front-engine and front wheel drive vehicles. There are few manufacturers who have rear-engines and rear wheel drive ability such as Porsche and the Audi R8. The layout has been changed because the performance of giving the car torque from the front is better and faster without requiring as much force to push the car.

Unlike the roadster, engineers and manufacturers have tried to make the sports car more practical in case a child or luggage was to be involved with the traveling. They call the four seating layout “2+2”, which means that there the two occasional seats with the general driver and shotgun seats.

Both cars require specific types of wheels and tyres to ensure their optimum driving force. So the wheel suppliers take this into account when designing the vehicles. The wheels must be able to handle high speeds and tight corners.

These types of cars are so similar yet so different especially to the hard-core vehicle enthusiasts. Yet to a normal person, both could serve the same purposes just as well. One could be your holiday car for those hot days and the other could be your super elegant and fast family car.

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Source by Morne Lourens