Tempus Fugit
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Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 8, 2013 10:32:37 GMT -5
What I found funny about Japanese car factories in Britain is not only do the workers on the track do the pre-shift physical jerks but actually enjoy it, even though their union tries to say otherwise (the union being the only one whinging that they have to show up early on their own time to go through the routine). All the office-based management comes down to the shop floor and joins in. In my previous career we did a job in the Honda factory in Swindon and it was quite amusing to watch the late shift come in and line up and do all the exercises whilst the early shift carried on assembling cars in front of them.
Then again, bimbling around these places and taking a look at the union noticeboards, with minutes of meetings pinned up where they refer to "Brother Robert Smith" and "Brother Sandra Jones" tells you more about the union mindset than throwbacks like McCluskey and Crowe ever could!
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Post by beth on May 8, 2013 10:55:05 GMT -5
How difficult a manual clutch is depends on how long you've been driving with one because after a time you don't need to think about it (duh) ... it's automatic reaction. Also, depends on the car. Some are much easier than others. 1 - Get a decent car 2 - Learn to multitask I have a decent car, thank you. Otherwise ... point taken.
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Post by beth on May 8, 2013 10:58:28 GMT -5
We have a toyota factory not far from here. Japanese management style (that came in in the 80s), actually taught us a thing or two. It's considered a good place to work.
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Tempus Fugit
Global Facilitator
Contributing Member
Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
Posts: 7,474
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 8, 2013 11:02:49 GMT -5
Breasts: proof that men can concentrate on two things at once.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 8, 2013 11:34:16 GMT -5
otherwise known as "trunk"? boot is something I wear on my feet while I'm making a phone call from the "telephone booth" instead of a telephone box We don't really have many of those now that everyone has a mobile 'phone. A lot got ripped out to stop drug pushers arranging deals on lines that, whilst monitorable, couldn't be used to trace the pusher, too. same here............cell phones put the telephone booth and pay phones out of business
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Post by fretslider on May 8, 2013 12:30:37 GMT -5
Breasts: proof that men can concentrate on two things at once. If you include a hand on thigh, that's three! I'll get my coat....
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Post by beth on May 8, 2013 14:50:10 GMT -5
Breasts: proof that men can concentrate on two things at once. If you include a hand on thigh, that's three! I'll get my coat.... Smart men understand priorities. ping
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Post by fretslider on May 8, 2013 15:56:01 GMT -5
Phew, I got away with it!
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Post by beth on May 8, 2013 16:25:08 GMT -5
The point being, a little interaction beats voyeurism, every time.
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Post by beth on May 11, 2013 16:49:24 GMT -5
When I was a teen, my Dad decided to trade cars one fine Saturday. He came home with this Dodge Challenger. We kids were less than impressed because he told us he was going to buy a sporty model this time and we were thinking Thunderbird or Corvette ... never mind that all of us wouldn't fit into it ... we could take turns. Well, we reckoned without Dad's practicality. He believed it was good value for his money and never regretted his choice. After 100,000 miles, it became a 2nd car for him and he used it to pull a camper to various parks .. some a good distance away ... for camping trips and that was with the original engine and original transmission. He sold it to someone who needed an older, but still dependable car they could buy outright. As far as I know, it continued to chug along for him another good while. So ... why would anyone think Dodge engines are a bad choice?
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Tempus Fugit
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Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
Posts: 7,474
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 12, 2013 1:17:25 GMT -5
When I was a teen, my Dad decided to trade cars one fine Saturday. He came home with this Dodge Challenger. We kids were less than impressed because he told us he was going to buy a sporty model this time and we were thinking Thunderbird or Corvette ... never mind that all of us wouldn't fit into it ... we could take turns. Well, we reckoned without Dad's practicality. He believed it was good value for his money and never regretted his choice. After 100,000 miles, it became a 2nd car for him and he used it to pull a camper to various parks .. some a good distance away ... for camping trips and that was with the original engine and original transmission. He sold it to someone who needed an older, but still dependable car they could buy outright. As far as I know, it continued to chug along for him another good while. So ... why would anyone think Dodge engines are a bad choice? Because they drink like a fish. You can get better mileage and similar performance from smaller units built elsewhere. I refer back to the previous real-world comparison I gave; the Stanza and Sunny are basically the same car with a different name. The Stanza I drove with the Dodge engine had a 3.2l unit. The equivalent European market Sunny a 1.6l (although they were available in 1.2 and 1.4l as well). Both have similar acceleration/top speed but you get far more mpg from the Euro model.
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Tempus Fugit
Global Facilitator
Contributing Member
Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
Posts: 7,474
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 12, 2013 1:27:44 GMT -5
I can think of another example. I've seen several Dodge Ram pick-ups in this country, all LHD (so clearly imported privately rather than being built for the UK market) and all re-engined with Perkins diesels instead of the original engines (indicated by the after-market Perkins badges on the wings and tailgate). Mind you, with our lunatic fuel prices it's hardly surprising!!
Then again, there's cause for a minor celebration as, around here, the price per litre has dipped below £1.30 to 129.9p (!!) for the first time in a few years. It is less than a decade since we nearly rioted because it went over 80p a litre so it probably tells you all you need to know about "rip-off Britain" that the price falling below £1.30 would be grounds for ones jaw to hit the floorpan on driving past the petrol station sign board!
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Tempus Fugit
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Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
Posts: 7,474
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 12, 2013 1:33:51 GMT -5
Of course, the ultimate "miler" is probably the Smart but I'd be scared witless taking one on the motorway* here. I'd be absolutely terrified on a US highway, surrounded by all those SUVs!
* People do drive them on the motorway. They're quite nippy, too - I've been overtaken by them before, and I'm not given to shy away from driving to the speed limit. And sometimes over it. Ahem...
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Post by markindurham on May 12, 2013 3:19:04 GMT -5
Of course, the ultimate "miler" is probably the Smart but I'd be scared witless taking one on the motorway* here. I'd be absolutely terrified on a US highway, surrounded by all those SUVs! * People do drive them on the motorway. They're quite nippy, too - I've been overtaken by them before, and I'm not given to shy away from driving to the speed limit. And sometimes over it. Ahem... Indeed. I had one; the 72bhp one with the cabrio roof, paddle shift gearbox & cruise control. Bloody quick off the mark - it would surprise BMW & Audi drivers on occasion - and on a motorway run I could get over 75mpg out of it. Stuck to the road like poo to a blanket as well. You didn't realise how small it was going forward, but when turning your head to park you sometimes thought it was as though someone had taken a chainsaw to the back! They're ideal city cars, & I had mine all over the country too, covering thousands of miles. You did have to drive defensively though, particularly on motorways. Bit like being on a motorcycle in that respect...
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Tempus Fugit
Global Facilitator
Contributing Member
Science - making religion look stupid since the 17th century.
Posts: 7,474
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Post by Tempus Fugit on May 12, 2013 4:29:56 GMT -5
Of course, the ultimate "miler" is probably the Smart but I'd be scared witless taking one on the motorway* here. I'd be absolutely terrified on a US highway, surrounded by all those SUVs! * People do drive them on the motorway. They're quite nippy, too - I've been overtaken by them before, and I'm not given to shy away from driving to the speed limit. And sometimes over it. Ahem... Indeed. I had one; the 72bhp one with the cabrio roof, paddle shift gearbox & cruise control. Bloody quick off the mark - it would surprise BMW & Audi drivers on occasion - and on a motorway run I could get over 75mpg out of it. Stuck to the road like poo to a blanket as well. You didn't realise how small it was going forward, but when turning your head to park you sometimes thought it was as though someone had taken a chainsaw to the back! They're ideal city cars, & I had mine all over the country too, covering thousands of miles. You did have to drive defensively though, particularly on motorways. Bit like being on a motorcycle in that respect... My other half, being American, thought they were incredibly cute on seeing her first one on her first visit to the UK. So amazed that someone might drive something so small and so blunt (not to mention plastic) I had to take a photo of her stood next to a couple in London. This highlighted another advantage in the city as they both occupied the same standard sized streetside parking bay.
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