unlimitedmetal.com

For the extroverts among you, the hottest costume for 2003 is the Hummer H2. I loved it in photos. Then I saw a real one in the, uh, well, “flesh” is not the right word. I saw it in the plastic.

Those cake-pan bump’s on the hood? Plastics, you can pop ‘em off with your fingers. Those black extender’s on the ends of the front bumpers? Tupperware tuff for those brutal commutes! Inside, the window sills are high. You look at the world through slits. (more…)

When a cars are almost emissions-free, look for the regulations to get really stiff. But rules are for the other guy. In the late 1970s, when states were struggling to comply with the 1977 Clean Air Act Amendments and the Lung Association was pressing for auto emissions testing, I used to leave my Lansing office job and walk to the bus stop. While waiting, I’d regularly be gassed by the heater Ford van used by the Lung Association of Michigan to deliver its press releases and fund- raising appeals to the post office, leaving behind a thick cloud of soot and monoxide. (more…)