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Author Topic: Bickering about bicycles, now with occasional tips about motorised vehicles  (Read 242423 times)

GarandMarine

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I normally prefer smaller vehicles in general, but I live in areas with significantly adverse road conditions, which can make larger 4x4 vehicles extremely valuable. I'm also a hunter, shooter and do a variety of outdoorsmanship stuff that requires a fair amount of room. I get by on catching rides with friends and doing what I can with my small cars, but since I have to buy a car I may as well get one I like that carries more of my stuff.
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bhtooefr

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Compact hatchbacks and wagons FTMFW for most real-world load carrying, for what it's worth. SUVs don't really get you much in cargo room (although, yes, they do get you the ground clearance and AWD benefits, but a set of good snow tires can go a LONG way, and if the roads are such that you're high-centering a compact car, you probably shouldn't be on them anyway).

A few things to look for:

Ford Focus wagon - just make sure you get the Zetec or Duratec engine, not the SPI engine
Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe - oil consumption can be a problem with these, and parts that are specific to the Vibe are harder to get nowadays though
Ford Escort wagon - quite cheap to buy, although they're known for breaking springs, and be careful of the 1997+ ones (they get the 2.0 SPI engine that's known for dropping valves, although as I understand not as badly as the Focus version of it)
VW Jetta wagon - with the 2.0 and a manual (don't buy an automatic), and with regular timing belt changes, pretty bulletproof
Subaru Impreza wagon and Outback Sport - not the greatest efficiency, but AWD, acceptable cargo space, and the Outback Sport even has decent ground clearance
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GarandMarine

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I won't buy a Ford. You couldn't PAY me to take one honestly. Subaru wagons cost a fortune out here for some reason. Checking out the Acura this weekend, my mechanic buddy is convincing me to check out the Cadillac actually.
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Grognard

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I'll agree about not buying more vehicle than you need. 
I bought a Dodge 1500 because I fell in love with it.
I don't use it hardly enough.
Cause 15MPG really, really sucks.

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GarandMarine

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bhtooefr

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Heh, you put a Ford in that list. One thing to note is that the Focus is a Euro Ford, not a US Ford, and that the 91+ Escort is actually a 90-94 Mazda 323/Protege.

Which, actually, Mazda Protege5 could do, too.

The TDIs... be careful. When they're good, they're excellent. When they're bad, they're horrible, and a lot of these are starting to need the really expensive bits. (I own a 99.5 Golf TDI. I've replaced most of the suspension, the clutch and flywheel, the injection pump, and the turbo.) DO NOT buy one with an automatic, Volkswagen automatics back then were horrible as far as reliability goes (and you lose quite a bit of efficiency, too). And, worse, dealer service often isn't a good thing, due to systemic problems with the VW dealer network. The expensive bits that these often need, in rough order of cost: automatic transmission (lasts 100-180k mi typically, and you're looking at a $5k bill if it fails (and the only rebuilds that actually last are the VW ones, third-party rebuilds often only make it 20k mi)), suspension (shocks and bushings are shot by 100k mi typically on these, and replacing everything is $2k), manual transmission flywheel (the dual mass flywheels like to fail around 150-200k or so, but at least a single-mass flywheel is cheaper, you're looking at around $1k), injection pump (at 200k mi, a lot of these are getting worn out, and there's another $1k or so, more if it's an automatic (the automatic pump is a performance upgrade for the manuals, too, so they're highly desirable)), turbocharger (some of these are fine, but 150-200k is when these start to fail, and that's another $1k), and the timing belt (this is a maintenance item, not a failure) is due every 40-100k mi interval depending on year and transmission (but the competent independent mechanics install the 100k mi kit on everything), the dealers often do these wrong leading to one of several kinds of catastrophic failure down the road (if you see paint pen on the timing belt, it needs the job redone ASAP), and it's another $800-1k typically.

And I've gotta get mine in for a heater core replacement... damn pain in the ass job...

Oh, and by the time they're this old, the interiors rattle like crazy.

Quite rewarding cars to own when they're in good shape and you keep up with the maintenance, and they last a long time, but a lot of them are in their expensive phase now. Good news is, they can be brought out of their expensive phase, too.
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GarandMarine

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Yes there's a Ford in the list, for the same reason those TDIs are in there. My neighbor is a mechanic and is assisting me with my shopping. "At least look at them" "...fine"
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Grognard

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I'd personally duck the VWs...
the Focus is a possibility.
but I'd also avoid a vehicle which is due for 'Antique' status in less than a year.
unless it has underwent a full rebuild, 20+ years of driving is hella hard on a vehicle.
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GarandMarine

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....none of those are antiques really. I mean I drove a 95 Toyota up till last year and I didn't have to do anything for it besides regular/annual maintenance
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

GarandMarine

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Round three! Desperation cause I basically have this weekend to sort this edition!

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=362190169&listingIndex=15&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=355562718&listingIndex=24&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=226&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=362656303&listingIndex=4&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=201&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=361116633&listingIndex=16&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=101&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=316475971&listingIndex=25&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=76&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=351486870&listingIndex=10&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=76&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=363034008&listingIndex=1&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=51&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=363977060&listingIndex=5&Log=0

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=26&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=359304834&listingIndex=6&Log=0


This is kinda the stand out to my eyes:
http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=19173&endYear=2015&showcaseOwnerId=626199&startYear=1995&firstRecord=151&searchRadius=25&maxPrice=3500&listingId=358148371&listingIndex=6&Log=0

Sure 200k, but it's a HONDA.

It easily has another 200k in it with proper care and feeding.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Grognard

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Based on mileage and maintenance cost, I like the following:
1998 Honda Accord EX  and the 2001 Subaru Forester.
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GarandMarine

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Yeah I liked the Subaru and the 98 Accord too.

Fuck. I'll have to move some money around, but if those check out I should be able to pick up either of them Saturday paying cash. Like a boss.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Grognard

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Good for you.
I'm at that point where a 5 year payment plan isnt a barrier to my peace of mind when it comes to repairs and reliability.  I miss the days when I could pay cash for a car.
...somedays...
and then I remember all those busted knuckles and sweaty/frozen days spent underneath said 'Cash Only' cars....
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GarandMarine

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I got the 98' Accord, it didn't have a photo up on the website yet because they literally got it this week. It was in great condition, fresh tires, good breaks. Needs a little work, but nothing serious or pressing. 130k miles on it, which means the engine is just about broken in on a Honda. Roughly $250 (in parts) to get it all the way up to 100%, as I said, nothing serious. No body damage of any kind, the engine is legitimately CLEAN and doesn't purr like a kitten, no my friends it just murmurs quietly and takes care of business.

Some thoughts: Fuck the stock stereo in this car. No tape deck or aux cable port = complete bullshit.

Getting handed the title for the vehicle with the keys? Goddamn that's sexy.

So any way I need to pick up $50 or so in parts (not factored in to the $250 above) to swap the stock stereo with the stereo from my last car, and put fresh windshield wipers on, then I'll drop it off for a complete fluid flush and replacement, swap in fresh spark plugs myself next weekend and I should be in business.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Grognard

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TRY not to have the stereo be more valuable than the car...

:D
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GarandMarine

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My stereo didn't cost that much! I may want to upgrade the speakers though... hmmm... an amp and some subs wouldn't go amiss either....
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Carl-E

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Welp, there goes the trunk space!   :roll:
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Grognard

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and thus... GM's new ride:



ignore the breeze, enjoy the tunes....  :D LOL :D





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GarandMarine

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Yeah baby! Purple!
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Grognard

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that AINT purple.

that is DEEP BRUISE.

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Akima

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Aubergine!
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GarandMarine

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Now y'all are just making colors up.
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pwhodges

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I'd call it aubergine as well, from what the photo shows.

(An Aubergine being an Egg-plant, in case the term is not universal.)
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Grognard

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for someone who paints W40K figures, I figured you'd be very familiar with Deep Bruise.  ;D
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GarandMarine

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Fuck, and the check engine light is on! Dammnit all. Looks like I need to the spark plugs and wire harness. At least.

Shit.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Carl-E

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Fuck, and the check engine light is on! Dammnit all. Looks like I need to the spark plugs and wire harness. At least.

Shit.

Did you get it scanned?  Autozone will scan the engine computer for free, even printout the codes for you.  Then yoiu can do some diagnosis before throwing your cash at the wrong problem. 

Although plugs and wires are usually a good idea, they're rarely changed often enough, but if there's a vacuum leak or something else, the light's not going to go out. 
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GarandMarine

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I pulled the codes at lunch (at auto zone as it happens, you East Coast types are weird again, out West you give them your driver's license, they give you the scanner and go get your own codes, here they do it for you! Madness!) Any way misfires on all six cylinders plus the random misfire code. Apparently that's commonly an issue with the plugs and wires, and can also be a sensor screen getting gunked up from shitty oil. The other primary possibilities are the coil going bad, the timing belt being off, which at my mileage needs to be changed if it hasn't been already or and this would REALLY suck, the computer being on the fritz.

Steps I have taken as of right this second:
1. Put a fresh bottle of oil in and an oil additive to help do some gunk fighting in case there's any build up.

Other then that I'm just taking it slow and gentle commuting. The issue's definently intermittent. Also getting a slight kick on shifting, which is usually a sign some tranny fluid, (tranny in this case being accepted, normal slang for a transmission, as opposed to a transsexual person) or this lovely bottle of fluid I got from those fine people at Lucas needs to be added.

Honestly this is about what I expected. When I buy a used car my rule of thumb tends to be to expect 1/3 the cost of the vehicle in maintenance in the first six months. People always look at me funny when I say that, but on average for a used car at the very LEAST you are going to need to get the brakes done (my brakes are in shockingly good condition), an oil change and most likely fresh tires (again, shockingly good condition on the Accord). So stuff like this arising from a lack of advanced maintenance on what was most likely a grandma car prior to it finding it's way to me (excellent interior condition, brakes are in good shape, fresh tires, no body damage, driven under 10,000 miles a year = someone's grandma was driving it) such as not getting the 100,000k tune up done, or missing a timing belt change, or not accelerating hard enough/fast enough to notice the transmission's starting to give a bit of a kick, is really not surprising to me at all.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Grognard

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the salesperson didn't...
oh yeah.
private seller.  youch.


crossing of fingers. hope it aint too expensive.
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GarandMarine

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Nope not a private seller. Just the reality of buying from used dealerships. It'd been on their lot three days and was as far as they could tell mechanically sound.

Honestly it's probably the coil if it's something past "Motherfucker! The spark plugs. Change them." which runs $100 and some change in parts. So yeah no I ain't worried about this. It's more annoying then it is anything else.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

Carl-E

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The transmission kick may well just be the engine being underpowered from the misfiring - get that cleared up and I'm betting you'll have no problem. 

I mean, you should probably change the transmission fluid anyway, but I don't think you have a real problem in there. 
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bhtooefr

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It's worth noting that this engine is an interference engine.

If you don't know that the timing belt has been changed on time, or changed properly per manufacturer recommendations, get it replaced. It's cheaper than replacing the heads.
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GarandMarine

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Yep. Easy way to slag an engine.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

The Seldom Killer

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The British Advertising Standards Agency have seen fit to ignore decades of experience, study, provable facts and analysis and banned an advert encouraging cycling because it doesn't fit with an outmoded and ill advised point of view.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-25926572
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bhtooefr

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Sounds like it's time to send some ASA people through a free safe cycling course?

(FWIW, I'm of the opinion that vehicular cycling is an excellent coping strategy with inadequate infrastructure (although a lot of VC advocates believe that their strategy is the be-all end-all of cycling for transportation, and therefore they oppose all attempts at infrastructure due to the fear of mandatory usage of poor infrastructure). Requiring a car to go into the oncoming lane to pass, when it's unsafe to pass in the lane, is a good thing, too.)
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Lupercal

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Jesus Christ.

All these people have to do is look at the deaths on roads and see how many people would've been saved by a helmet. I mean, the majority of cyclists don't use one - I don't, but I'm only cycling 2 miles at any one time in a rural area. I'm not saying they're not necessary, but it's not going to save you if you're crushed under a vehicle.

And doesn't this encourage people to give you a hair's width on the road? The driver may think "whew, passed the cyclist whilst not swerving into oncoming traffic" but the cyclist is thinking "holy shit you almost killed me!".
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pwhodges

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Cycling training that I'm aware of encourages the cyclist to take a whole lane, precisely to avoid cars trying to squeeze past, and also recommends not pulling in to odd small spaces between parked cars to let cars get by.
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I agree that cycling in the middle of the lane will encourage drivers to drive dangerously. Which is a problem with the drivers, not the cyclists.
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There's this really handy "other thing" I'm going to write as a footnote to my abstract that I can probably explore these issues in. I think I'll call it my "dissertation."

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The British Advertising Standards Agency have seen fit to ignore decades of experience, study, provable facts and analysis and banned an advert encouraging cycling because it doesn't fit with an outmoded and ill advised point of view.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-25926572

That's a very strong opinion.  I assume you're referring specifically to helmets?

I had the priviledge of watching a bright, likably guy repeat grade 12 after a very slow speed bike accident.  It was pretty heartbreaking.

I'm open to stats trumping anecdotes, but my personal anecdote of watching someone try to relearn what they KNEW they'd learned last year but couldn't quite remember will always influence me to wear a helmet.
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GarandMarine

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Personally cyclists should fuck off back to the sidewalk.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

ev4n

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They were never there, and should never be there.
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LTK

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Personally cyclists should fuck off back to the sidewalk.
How can you cycle on the sidewalk? It's full of pedestrians!

Here in Sweden the division between bike path and sidewalk is not very clear, especially outside the city center. Lots of snow means pedestrians tend to walk on the bike paths, which are plowed, when the sidewalks aren't, so I had to get a working bell on my bike as soon as possible. The other day I was riding through a park with asphalt roads and there were three middle-aged ladies walking their dogs in front of me, completely blocking the path. I rang my bell behind them, and first they stopped, then they turned around, and then they looked, and when I was a meter away from them they finally decided to step out of the way. It's like they've never seen a cyclist before!
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Quote from: snalin
I just got the image of a midwife and a woman giving birth swinging towards each other on a trapeze - when they meet, the midwife pulls the baby out. The knife juggler is standing on the floor and cuts the umbilical cord with a a knifethrow.

GarandMarine

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How can you cycle on the road? It's full of cars!

If you can't keep up with the speed and flow of automotive traffic, get out of the way.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

ev4n

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How can you cycle on the road? It's full of cars!

If you can't keep up with the speed and flow of automotive traffic, get out of the way.

So in a city during rush hour, if the cars cant' keep up with the speed and flow of bikes, they should pull over, too, right?
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LTK

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How can you cycle on the road? It's full of cars!

If you can't keep up with the speed and flow of automotive traffic, get out of the way.

Exactly, cars which generally form two orderly lines, and the space between the front of one car and the back of another should already be enough to accomodate a cyclist. You can't say that for pedestrians.
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Quote from: snalin
I just got the image of a midwife and a woman giving birth swinging towards each other on a trapeze - when they meet, the midwife pulls the baby out. The knife juggler is standing on the floor and cuts the umbilical cord with a a knifethrow.

Barmymoo

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It would be safer and better for the environment if cars would fuck off completely and leave the road to the cyclists.
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There's this really handy "other thing" I'm going to write as a footnote to my abstract that I can probably explore these issues in. I think I'll call it my "dissertation."

Redball

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Bikes in Michigan share the road with cars, and motorists are expected to avoid the bikes. But it's still a hairy, risky experience. I like the idea of dedicated bike lanes, and I think in the U.S., some federal highway funds are allocated for development of non-motorized vehicles.
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ev4n

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Every time you see a bike in front of you, remember that it could have been an SUV instead.
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bhtooefr

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Bikes in Michigan share the road with cars, and motorists are expected to avoid the bikes. But it's still a hairy, risky experience. I like the idea of dedicated bike lanes, and I think in the U.S., some federal highway funds are allocated for development of non-motorized vehicles.

However, it does need to be done properly, which also means that funds need to be allocated to the MAINTENANCE of cycling infrastructure. And, the state of the art for cycling infrastructure needs to be followed, not things that the Dutch figured out were bad ideas 40 years ago.
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Carl-E

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Every time you see a bike in front of you, remember that it could have been an SUV instead.

Every time you see a bike in front of you, BACK OFF.  We stop a lot faster than you can. 
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When people try to speak a gut reaction, they end up talking out their ass.

ev4n

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Every time you see a bike in front of you, remember that it could have been an SUV instead.

Every time you see a bike in front of you, BACK OFF.  We stop a lot faster than you can.

Same for motorcycles.
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