Showing posts with label Recreation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recreation. Show all posts

Friday, February 26, 2010

Toyota crisis puts spotlight on electronics - Autos- msnbc.com

1978 Toyota Carina sedanImage via Wikipedia

Toyota crisis puts spotlight on electronics - Autos- msnbc.com: "'Those are very hard to reproduce. The problem happens and you go back and check and it's not there. The normal tendency is to blame it on the driver and go on.'

And that's what Toyota did initially."

It's troubling not only for Toyota owners but for drivers of any modern car that's basically a computer on wheels.
Toyota, which until recently had a reputation for being high-quality and cutting-edge, began replacing mechanical accelerators with electrical ones starting with the Camry in 2002. Since the 2007 model year, all its cars have been equipped with the high-tech throttle.


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Friday, February 05, 2010

Missing button

Steering WheelImage by wolfnowl via Flickr
or "Toyota discovers the risks of flying by wire"
A friend of mine once had a Toyota that wouldn't die. ...
I think this is more than a retelling of the story of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun. It also may be a Promethean tale of punishment for having stolen fire from the gods.
...Automobiles used to be mechanical devices. Now they are collections of mechanical parts that are told what to do by computers. In most cars, the gearshift, pedals and steering wheel are nothing more than proxies for electronic controls. When something goes wrong with a car, you don't start by opening the hood and unbolting pieces from the engine one at a time, the way we used to. You plug in a reader device and ask the vehicle what its problem is.
Sometimes you read...change the wire.
What if car is moving when something goes wrong with a car ? Well...any computerized truck have a little button namer "override". What for ? As a driver I have the decision on my hand, so. push that button and computer orders are ignored !
If your car have an acupuncture you ask the computer ?
In air you have a parachute. On land no way. Toyota forget the servo assisted steering lesson, if you lose the steering fluid you are able to change the direction, harder of course. And forget that speed of electronic devices, same for actions and malfunctions.
By by Volt & Co, flight by wire is to expensive.




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Sunday, January 31, 2010

Picasa Web Albums - valy8851 - Main Streets USA

Historic Route 66Image by dbking via Flickr

Picasa Web Albums - valy8851 - Main Streets USA
In 1952 Warner Brothers Studio and The Route 66 Association staged a cross-country caravan to designate U.S. Route 66 as the "Will Rogers Highway". Not only did this effort provide publicity for the Warner Brothers Movie, "The Will Rogers Story", it also create an intense interest in America first super highway. Eventually, this highway and the way of living it stood for was replaced ad bypassed by Interstate Highway System, I-44 . Much of the old road is still in place.

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