Wednesday, July 16, 2025

ever hear about the brake lights, IN the trunk, of a Buick Cascada, only visible when the trunk is open? Weird


helicopter nose art in Nam



 















https://cherrieswriter.com/2015/06/23/helicopter-nose-art-during-the-vietnam-war/

cool photo of the New York City Marathon

 https://presscorner.tagheuer.com/

Sung Kang has just confirmed he’s making a live-action drift movie called Drifter with a handful of other well-known car-world personalities.


filming a huge part of it live, in front of a crowd, at Legends Of Drift, a real drift competition and car show Aug 23–24 at Raceway Park in Englishtown, NJ.

the steps of finding to removing an abandoned but desireable truck

 



https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=693455676889813&set=pcb.693461313555916

the Old Truck Guy on in Norman Oklahoma is often out buying up vehicles and parts, and posting photos of cool stuff, like this quonset hut barnfind

 https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=705820405653340&set=pcb.705820695653311

40th Assault Helicopter Company (AHC) “Greyhounds*214th AVN BN, 12th AVN Group, 1st Aviation Brigade



The motto of the 240th AHC was “Go Greyhound and leave the flying to us,” a play on the bus company’s famous motto. 

The Greyhound Bus Company became aware of the 240th AHC’s use of their logo via the Commander of the Company, Major Glen Hoffman, who wrote to the company to gain their permission for the logo use in 1967. The Bus Company was honored and became an official sponsor of the 240th AHC, sending care packages to the troops fighting in Vietnam.

When Greyhound received the letter it marked the beginning of a decades-long friendship between the transportation provider and members of the 240th Assault Helicopter Company.

In response to the letter, Greyhound delivered running dog logo decals to the 240th AHC which they displayed prominently on their helicopters, vehicles, and company signs.

In September of 2021, Greyhound was able to create a special charter bus for surviving members as they took to the skies once again in a refurbished Greyhound Huey Helicopter at the Yankee Air Museum in Ypsilanti, Michigan.



The 240th Assault Helicopter Company (AHC) operated with three specialized divisions:
 “Mad Dogs” (gunships), 
“Greyhounds” (transport) 
and “Kennel Keepers” (maintenance). 


The unit, which received official support from the Greyhound Bus Company, became known for its camaraderie, courage and creative spirit.

In 1968, the 240th were located at Bearcat, Binh Hoa Province, Vietnam. 

Bearcat was located near Saigon on Highway One. 

 Known as the “Greyhounds, Mad Dogs, and Kennel Keepers,” the 240th operated UH1C gunships, armed with mini-guns and rockets in the gun platoon, call sign “Mad Dog” and a transport or slick platoon flying UH1H slicks, call sign “Greyhound.” 

https://miflightmuseum.org/aircraft-collection/




if you want a ride on a Huey, and can get to Michigan...





The Air Zoo partnered with the Michigan Flight Museum to offer residents the rare opportunity to ride in a Vietnam-era UH-1H Huey helicopter on Saturday, July 12.

Public rides, which cost $125, will also occur from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 13. Visit the museum’s website for more information. https://miflightmuseum.org/huey-helicopter/

ever hear of those rare stories, of someone who didn't go to work for years and got paid? Well, this one is still ongoing, after 5 years, because a Honolulu prosecutor’s office investigator is still on paid leave while his mileage reimbursements are investigated for possible fraud

And every year that goes by is a step closer to eligibility for a lifetime of retirement benefits.

Whether Kaaa-Swain, is guilty of falsifying his expenses or not, a Civil Beat review found the county has now paid him at least $300,000 and counting while he’s been out — about 25 times the amount he is suspected of stealing.

few hundred Hawaiʻi employees on extended periods of paid leave during misconduct investigations. Employees in agencies ranging from the Hawaiʻi Department of Education to the Department of Health have taken protracted absences from work pending investigations.

Union employees are protected from at-will firings, so investigations must validate misconduct allegations before disciplinary action is taken. However, government officials say there is a lack of qualified staff to investigate claims of wrongdoing, and some cases pose difficulties due to complexity or witness availability.


https://www.civilbeat.org/2025/07/honolulu-worker-paid-not-to-work-for-nearly-five-years/

unresolved mileage reimbursements... 5 years, 60k a year. To not go to work. 

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

a 63 Studebaker Zip Van. On facebook marketplace... here's a rare opportunity to restore a van (little more than a good paint job) to a well remembered iconic professional postal delivery van! It's a Zip Code van! (Thank you Blind Dog Fabrications!)

 
Called the zip van because ZIP Codes were just being introduced by the postal service at time.

So these vans were named zip vans to help spread the work and were only made one year by Studebaker because AMC was a low bidder the next go around for the contract.

There were 4,238 made and probably less than a handful still in existence

They have 2 sets of gas pedals, so they could be driven while standing and while sitting.





As I just posted last weekhttps://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2025/07/1951-studebaker-2r6-stepvan-restored-by.html  professional vehicles are a rare sight at car shows, museums, etc

This painted one, was sold in 2021 on Bring a Trailer, https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1963-studebaker-zip-van-2/



this... is something else. 36" Starrett calipers

 

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1487192856054676

seen on the road today... someone installed vents on their Civic to relieve the trapped air underneath? Or to vent the rear brakes?

 


8 Faroe islands are connected by 23 tunnels, 4 underwater, and includes the world's only undersea roundabout, nicknamed the jellyfish... are an inspiration to those in the Shetland Islands who realize the ferries aren't sustainable (thank you Stephen! )



Shetland wants to ditch ageing ferries and replace them with undersea tunnels connecting five islands including Unst, the most northerly of the British Isles.

the prime minister of the tiny Faroe Islands, which are 200 miles further out into the Atlantic, points out what a success tunnels have been for them.

At its deepest point the Faroe tunnel is 614ft below the waves and has halved the driving time between the capital and the second biggest town.




"I think we have learned in the Faroe Islands that investment in infrastructure is a good investment," Johannesen told the BBC.




The Shetland island council runs ferry services to nine islands, carrying around 750,000 passengers each year on 12 vessels at a cost of £23m per year.

The average age of the fleet is 31.5 years, costs have risen sharply in the past decade, and some routes are struggling to meet demand for vehicle places.


https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg7jw27w1do

the cast at Shoresy got to film scenes all over, about celebrating the team winning the Senior A hockey championship Season 4

 Shoresy is the spinoff from the tv show LetterKenny

SEMA Fest has a hell of a concert line up this year,

 Queens of the Stone Age, Hits include: “No One Knows,” “Go With the Flow,” “Little Sister,” “The Way You Used to Do”

The Black Crowes, Hits include: “She Talks to Angels,” “Hard to Handle,” “Remedy,” “Twice As Hard”

 and Neon Trees, Hits include: “Everybody Talks,” “Animal,” “Sleeping With a Friend,” “1983”

At 300 years old, Tanfield in Gateshead is the world’s oldest railway. To celebrate, volunteers are working against the clock to restore engines and create their biggest event yet. Thank you Stephen!

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002fxtt/our-lives-series-9-the-worlds-oldest-railway

Looks like it requires a subscription to the BBC streaming service, because the BBC iPlayer only works in the UK, unless you have a VPN and/or know how to tech your way around it. I don't.

Jim emailed me with this, it's got to be shared!

 So I pull into CVS pickup lane when I notice the plate.  When it's my turn at the window, I ask the lady tech if the driver was hot.  She replied "not really".

Thanks Jim! 

a 4x4 914 Safari, at the first American FAT Ice Race in Aspen, Colorado, last February, for an exhibition of their abilities on groomed ice

 

https://loveofdriving.mobil.com/voices/20

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-inaugural-north-american-fat-ice-race-driven-by-mobil-1-takes-over-aspen-co-with-50-specialty-rare-cars-and-expert-racers-302061183.html

You can get a really good look at one at https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHEEO82xttf/

thank you Mark M for ringing my tip jar!



well, this is cool!

Hertz is installing AI inspection portals at its biggest U.S. airports this year, and is already charging 5x what it used to for nicks and dings. Atlanta was the first, but they expect to hit 100 airports before 2025 is over.

 https://viewfromthewing.com/hertz-turns-ai-loose-on-renters-billing-5x-more-customers-for-minor-nicks-and-scrapes-and-its-spreading-fast/

Monday, July 14, 2025

lawbooks around the world are full of all manner of peabrained rules and regulations when it comes to anything and everything automobiles.




* Only numerically labeling a speedometer to 85, but having the graticules to 140, because a law was passed that forbid the numbers to be larger than 85. 

Seriously? Just because the numbers are there, or not, doesn't influence a driver to go faster, but the NHTSA in 1979 was certain, we were under the spell of the numbers... not just reacting to the idiotic national 55 mph speed limit

* In North Carolina, repeat DUI offenders, who have their licenses taken away permanently, would simply buy a moped to get around with. 

And keep on driving drunk. 

In North Carolina, a two-or-three wheeled vehicle “with a step-through architecture” (meaning, not full doors, and not fully enclosed), that also has bicycle-style pedals and could at least sort of be propelled by them, with an engine that is 50cc or smaller in displacement, and is speed-limited to a maximum of 30mph on the straightaway with “no external shifting device” (i.e., no shift lever/pedal/etc, so GY6-style-CVT-only) is classified as a moped, and mopeds are not considered “motor vehicles” for the purposes of state law, so, ....  they were legally available to use on anything up to and including a highway with no on-ramps or off-ramps (public roadways/etc and highways that are not “access-controlled highways”) with no license, no title, no registration, and no insurance.

* Smog inspections are not all about the tailpipe emissions, they are checking the computer. So, if you've recently had to change your car battery, like I once did, and then went to get a smog inspection, you are failed because the computer memory isn't full enough. 

* the President can no longer drive a car, even after leaving elected office!

* Radar detectors, even if obsolete, will always be illegal in Virginia, where the govt was upset about speeders, and more upset that they could evade police speed traps. Now? They simply use WAZE or some other app to find where the cops are sitting using laser speed detectors

* trucks/suvs are rumored to be excluded from passenger car window tint regulations. That law was made in the 80s, before the majority of vehicles sold and driven, turned out to be trucks and SUVs

* Probably the stupidest, to me, is the requirement that car doors have interior locks... when Vipers didn't have roofs or windows when it was first introduced

Car and Driver pointed out that it was required by federal law to have door locks despite not having outside door handles, roll up windows, or even anything that could reasonably be called a roof.

* Modern cars have crash standards, and if they can't pass that, they aren't allowed to be sold in the USA, right, hence the cars from Mexico that I've posted that aren't sold in the USA... BUT motorcycles have no crash standards, and the logic of them being legal, but not a cheap, inexpensive, 10,000 dollar Asian or Mexican market vehicle? Boggles my mind