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Go ahead...ask those car questions you were always afraid to ask...

1M views 8K replies 1K participants last post by  GreenandChrome 
#1 ·
go ahead...ask those car questions you were always afraid to ask...

b/c you'd think people would make fun of you.
driving on a small 2 lane hwy the other day when i approached a small town. there was a big sign that said Brake Retardation Prohibited
brake retardation? what does that mean???
bill
 
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#152 ·
Re: (mister_g60)

Well, since Golf starts with a G, that is probably the front end of it. So if you stick a Golf front end on a Jetta, you get a Getta. and vice versa.
 
#153 ·
Re: (shftat6)

Quote, originally posted by shftat6 »
The instructors would always tell us to 'wiggle our toes' if the ABS kicked in. This seemingly goofy action would cause you to release just enough on the brakes to put you at threshold braking and keep you out of the ABS.

...files valuable info......
Women like flashy cars because they mean money to burn.
 
#155 ·
Re: (atomicalex)

Quote, originally posted by atomicalex »
Well, since Golf starts with a G, that is probably the front end of it. So if you stick a Golf front end on a Jetta, you get a Getta. and vice versa.

Right, that's pretty much where I am, but is this right? Or if we're all guessing, then is this what most people think when they mean Getta?
 
#158 ·
Re: (jebglx)

Quote, originally posted by jebglx »
so, when a car is behind an RV...does it rack the mileage up?
bill

oh that's a good one! my guess is that older (or I guess at this point, really old) cars w/ digital clusters and stuff don't? whereas those w/ more mechanical clusters and everything might?
 
#160 ·
Re: (mister_g60)

Quote, originally posted by enriquejcu »
and to piggyback on your question: Why is it that 90% of the cars towed behind RV's are Saturns?

YES
!!! i asked b/c i saw a saturn being towed by an RV today

Quote, originally posted by mister_g60 »

oh that's a good one! my guess is that older (or I guess at this point, really old) cars w/ digital clusters and stuff don't? whereas those w/ more mechanical clusters and everything might?

that's what i think...
bill
 
#161 ·
Re: (mister_g60)

Quote, originally posted by mister_g60 »

Right, that's pretty much where I am, but is this right? Or if we're all guessing, then is this what most people think when they mean Getta?

Yes - Getta is a Jetta with a Golf front end. Jolf is a Golf with a Jetta front end.
 
#162 ·
Re: (cjb)

Saturns with auto trans can be towed safely with all the wheels on the ground safely due to transmission design. Something about the use of bearings and not thrust washers. In 2002 the tranny design was changed and current models shouldn't be towed. Many other models have to have the drivelines disconnected so the transmission internals don't move.
Saturns do not accumulate milage when being flat towed, i guess digital instruments?


Modified by Oni at 7:57 PM 10-10-2005
 
#165 ·
Re: (ArmenB)

Quote, originally posted by ArmenB »
Seriously, where did the word 'car' come from? I get 'Auto' from "Automotive", which seems pretty obvious, but where did we get 'car'?

I've been wondering that as well... so I asked google:
"That said, Word and Phrase Origins states that "the word car comes from a Celtic word that sounded like karra to Julius Caesar, who gave the name to his chariots. Karra later was Latinized to carra. Surprisingly, the word car appears first around 1300; carriage evolved from it, then horseless carriage, and, finally, back to car again as a shortened form."
http://www.horseless.com/firstcar.html
My stupid question:
The e-brake is to be used for emergency situations, no? This is fine with a car that has a lever/handle, but what about the foot operated kind that stay on unless pushed again? How does one modulate? Or, are they just not needed for emergency use anymore and relegated to parking duty?


Modified by Samson at 2:15 PM 10-10-2005
 
#167 ·
Re: (Cubster)

Quote, originally posted by Cubster »
Ok I got a question.
N/A diesels use diesel fuel, why don't Turbo Diesels use a "super diesel" fuel (referring to how a gas turbo needs a higher octane fuel).

A turbocharged gas powered car doesn't necessarily need high octane fuel, just most are designed to use it. Turbo Diesels are designed to work with existing fuels (there is no super diesel to my knowledge)
 
#169 ·
Re: (arcem)

Quote, originally posted by arcem »
can all cars with a stick be bump started like my friends cj 7?

Yes, any car with a clutch should be able to be started by rolling it forward and then popping the clutch. I know I had to do it once with my TDI, and my friend did it with his Golf 2.0.
There was another time when it was so cold out that the battery wouldn't turn the engine over, so I rolled it down hill (good speed too, ~15 mph) and let out the clutch. The front wheels locked up and I slid down the hill. I think the oil and fuel were so thick from the cold (-18 F) that they needed a good charge from a heavy duty battery to get everything to move. Probably would have helped had I been going forwards instead of backwards too (weight transfer).
 
#170 ·
Re: (4x4s)

Quote, originally posted by 4x4s »

But clearly if you travel 45 miles in that hour, you are getting better mileage than if you had only travelled 35 miles.

no you are just going faster in that hour. miles per gallon is a measure of how many miles you travel per gallon of fuel spent. time plays no factor at all in that.
 
#171 ·
Re: (theblur)

Quote, originally posted by theblur »
no you are just going faster in that hour. miles per gallon is a measure of how many miles you travel per gallon of fuel spent. time plays no factor at all in that.

As a related question, doesn't speed affect fuel consumption? Regardless of engine RPMS, you have to fight a lot more wind resistance at 200km/h than you would at 20km/h.
 
#172 ·
Re: (theblur)

Quote, originally posted by theblur »

no you are just going faster in that hour. miles per gallon is a measure of how many miles you travel per gallon of fuel spent. time plays no factor at all in that.

But if you burn the same amount of gas at the two different speeds then it does. Read my post again, carefully.
 
#174 ·
Re: (Chmeeee)

Quote, originally posted by Chmeeee »
Yes, any car with a clutch should be able to be started by rolling it forward and then popping the clutch. I know I had to do it once with my TDI, and my friend did it with his Golf 2.0.

I used to think this was true, but now I doubt it. When the battery died on my 5spd 1990 Olds 4-4-2, we couldn't start it using the roll-pop technique. The Olds' rear bumper lined up perfectly with my mom's Jetta's front bumper, so I had her pushing me around the neighborhood. Popping the clutch at many speeds up to about 20mph, the Olds wouldn't start. I don't know why.
We were a sight to see, though. A Jetta pushing an Olds around the block, for about a half hour. She could've pushed me all the way to Autozone, no doubt. Kinda like reverse towing.
 
#175 ·
Re: (Boston Chuck)

Quote, originally posted by Boston Chuck »
When the battery died on my 5spd 1990 Olds 4-4-2, we couldn't start it using the roll-pop technique . . . the Olds wouldn't start. I don't know why.

The battery was dead. Push-starting only works if there's enough in the battery to run the fuel pump, ECU, injectors, coil, and everything else that a fuel-injected engine needs to run. Nowdays, that technique is only useful if the starter is bad.
 
#176 ·
Re: (Parklife)

Quote, originally posted by Parklife »
The battery was dead. Push-starting only works if there's enough in the battery to run the fuel pump, ECU, injectors, coil, and everything else that a fuel-injected engine needs to run. Nowdays, that technique is only useful if the starter is bad.

Wouldn't the alternator be able to run all the electrical stuff and immediately start charging the battery? We used to push start a buddies car all the time when he left his lights on and had no problems once it got started.
 
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