Do we hate cars?
- Thread starter BimmsAndBices
- Start date
What will happen when the planet earth - and the human race - is totally wrecked by the effects from greenhouse gases? At that point whether people drive anything at all with a combustion engine will be moot.
wheelist said:What will happen when the oil/petrol runs out? Will that be the end of cars? (This appears to be the thinking I've discovered in discussions with a few people)
I rather assume we'll all switch to some other form of (slightly less damaging) energy to enable us to continue with our addiction to the lazy personal transport device we call the car. We're just too godamned lazy to get off our fat asses and pedal anywhere, and the thought that a smaller vehicle would decrease congestion on the roads never even crosses our minds.
We're as likely to stop using cars as we are to stop breeding.
Long live the pushbike, eh?
Cars are useful.
I think the motor industry shouldn't sell cars on their performance. I think this is very irresponsible.
If you make the reason you should buy a car because it is fast then it says to the consumer (who we know has no brain of his/her own) that it is acceptable to drive it fast. I dislike motorists driving fast and I have increasingly felt this way since I started racing cars because I now know that they have little control when it all goes wrong and a lack of understanding of how a car handles.
I have come to the conclusion that blaming the motorist is unfair because their is an attitude that speeding is acceptable. There will always be this attitude whilst there are cars being sold with over 50hp and there are magazines both on the shelves and on the tele that show thrashing cars is fun.
You could say that I am two faced because my sport is dependent on motor manufacturers supporting it (i.e. Renault and BMW spend lots on Formula Renault/BMW marketting and producing engines for the teams). However if they left it alone then it would still exist.
The final thing I will say is that it is obvious that big and fast cars will appeal to the simple side of our behaviour. Unfortunately our society doesn't look at that aspect of our behaviour and think how unrefined and uncultired and generally stupid it is but rather looks upon it as something wholly more positive. How ironic.
I think the motor industry shouldn't sell cars on their performance. I think this is very irresponsible.
If you make the reason you should buy a car because it is fast then it says to the consumer (who we know has no brain of his/her own) that it is acceptable to drive it fast. I dislike motorists driving fast and I have increasingly felt this way since I started racing cars because I now know that they have little control when it all goes wrong and a lack of understanding of how a car handles.
I have come to the conclusion that blaming the motorist is unfair because their is an attitude that speeding is acceptable. There will always be this attitude whilst there are cars being sold with over 50hp and there are magazines both on the shelves and on the tele that show thrashing cars is fun.
You could say that I am two faced because my sport is dependent on motor manufacturers supporting it (i.e. Renault and BMW spend lots on Formula Renault/BMW marketting and producing engines for the teams). However if they left it alone then it would still exist.
The final thing I will say is that it is obvious that big and fast cars will appeal to the simple side of our behaviour. Unfortunately our society doesn't look at that aspect of our behaviour and think how unrefined and uncultired and generally stupid it is but rather looks upon it as something wholly more positive. How ironic.
MichaelB said:
I agree with some of what you say. I keep seeing people in brand new performance cars, SUVs driving like lunatics. From what I see on the roads I think you have a point. People buy fast cars and start driving fast, they have a point to make, 'the car is fast'. Some people drive fast even if they do not drive a fast car. I also see some people driving a very high performance cars very responsibly. I do not think car makers will stop marketing the performance side of their cars. What we need to do is educate the drivers. First of all, they need to discover the little lever on their steering column, when used it tells others what the driver's intentions are.
Doesn't sugar do this? The answer to your question is NO from me. Destruction of property is not going to solve the US affinity (addition) to cars. I firmly believe that drivers need to be challenged like they were in Portland. I heard about Critical Mass demonstrations there that bottlenecked traffic. Now, over 12% of Portland commutes are by bicycle.
I'm not saying that the Critical Mass demonstrations are the reason for this, or that it is the correct method.
I'm not saying that the Critical Mass demonstrations are the reason for this, or that it is the correct method.
rohloff_chips said:
I think mythbusters did this one with an innocent looking V8, and it ran fine.poweredbysweat said:
Interesting hypocrisy- driving a car yet hating them too. Yet in many ways an understandable position, for instance where public transport does not work.
I love both cars and bikes. Love it or leave it. Almost every hater is a jealous person. They go for this. He said there is a small percentage of good drivers in America. This is funny. They all passed the road test. I guess people get lazy or careless.
I'm seriously jealous of you both haha! Couple of years back I had a Celica. Beautiful car but I think it had had a serious front end smash at some point in it's life because it veered to the left ever so slightly.ZXD22 said:
No way do I hate cars. I'm a cyclist but I'm also a petrol head. I've got great appreciation for both bikes and cars.
Ah, the old necrothread.
I think it's unfair to refer to the entire cycling community as a collective we. Everyone has different opinions. I like cars. People who drive cars are pretty cool sometimes. I think that drivers can sometimes be inconsiderate to cyclists, but then again, cyclists can also be inconsiderate to drivers. It's a give-and-take relationship.
I think it's unfair to refer to the entire cycling community as a collective we. Everyone has different opinions. I like cars. People who drive cars are pretty cool sometimes. I think that drivers can sometimes be inconsiderate to cyclists, but then again, cyclists can also be inconsiderate to drivers. It's a give-and-take relationship.
I personally have a car and sometimes i need it to go to far places. We don't hate cars, we just don't like the negligent drivers.
They have a function and advantage over bikes. Everyone knows when to use one right so I guess there is nothing to hate for me. Maybe the person behind the wheels is the one to be hated for. well, I have matured enough and even if I am faced with that person I will still find that calm inside and would not want to hate anyone still.
I don't hate cars, I still have one in the driveway, a 1970 Ford F-100 pickup, which I am hoping to sell to an aspiring hot rodder once I actually get around to listing it. Hasn't moved in 2 years or so, would make a pretty cool restoration project or work truck.
I used to read things like Hot Rod magazine, tinker on my cars, and, for a while, living without one would have been difficult to say the least. How do you transport a 75 lb.Siberian Husky 20 miles or more on a bicycle or skateboard?
However, when I think of the expense, pollution, paperwork, obligations, legalities, road rage, traffic jams and a myriad of other problems and ties that are part and parcel of car ownership, I am pretty glad I quit.
The only real problem is dating.
North American women over the age of 16 D E S P I S E car-less or even car-lite men.
I used to read things like Hot Rod magazine, tinker on my cars, and, for a while, living without one would have been difficult to say the least. How do you transport a 75 lb.Siberian Husky 20 miles or more on a bicycle or skateboard?
However, when I think of the expense, pollution, paperwork, obligations, legalities, road rage, traffic jams and a myriad of other problems and ties that are part and parcel of car ownership, I am pretty glad I quit.
The only real problem is dating.
North American women over the age of 16 D E S P I S E car-less or even car-lite men.
The dating situation is very much the same in areas of the UK, but then the sort of woman who considers not owning a car a deal-breaker tells me everything I need to know about her, and that is not someone I would like to be involved with. To her she will see you as nothing more than "free ride to places".
I like cars but don't enjoy maintaining them. Parts and service costs are so high these days that it's another expense that one must budget for. The other downside is that all vehicle owners are potential targets for car thieves. I've already had one of my vehicles stolen and that's not a pleasant experience at all. The insurance company didn't even come close to paying the book value amount of the stolen vehicle. I just got nothing but ridiculous excuses from them when I challenged the payout amount.
Bicycles have always been more enjoyable and lower-maintenance in my opinion.
Bicycles have always been more enjoyable and lower-maintenance in my opinion.
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