Quiz: when did the t-bird turn into a t-turd?
Ans. 1958 and yet again in 1969:
https://zicmoto.com/history-of-the-ford-thunderbird/?gad_sou...
In contrast, here's a true sports car: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MG_T-type#/media/File:MG_TA_si...
US Fuel Prices Will Stay Painfully High for a While - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2026-08-13/us-fue... - August 13th, 2026
Americans Have Never Paid This Much for Fuel So Late in The Year - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-12/americans... - August 12th, 2026
US Sees Iran War Oil Supply Disruptions Lasting Through 2027 - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-11/us-sees-i... - August 11th, 2026
US refineries are already at maximum utilization (~96% as of this comment).
https://web.archive.org/web/20260813174516/https://thevaultr...
https://web.archive.org/web/20260813174447/https://www.eia.g...
I'm not. My first car was a used late-70s Ford V6, which got 15mpg on a good day. The car was made 5 years after the first Middle East oil shock, and clearly Detroit was still making boats for millions of people who wanted them.
You can see this today in the recent increase in used EV sales prices and gas guzzler repo rates over the last 90-120 days.
Car prices continue to rise. Auto lenders compensate with long-term loans - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49236530 - August 2026
US credit card debt climbs to $1.26tn, nearing last year’s record high - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/aug/12/credit-card... - August 12th, 2026
Used EV prices climb as demand grows - https://www.axios.com/2026/07/22/used-ev-prices-gas-demand - July 22nd, 2026
Half of Americans struggle to afford groceries and gas, exclusive poll finds - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/07/cost-of-liv... - July 7th, 2026
How High Are Car Repossession Rates in 2026? - https://americandefault.org/guides/car-repossession-rates/ - June 25th, 2026 ("Car repossessions are climbing fast, back near the levels the U.S. last saw coming out of the financial crisis. There is no official national repossession rate, so the clearest live gauge is the share of auto-loan balances that are seriously delinquent, and it is near record highs. Repossession is the step that comes after.")
Soaring car insurance premiums force many low-to-middle income Texans to do without - https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/economy/affordab... - April 1st, 2026 ("Approximately 12% percent of Texas car owners are uninsured.")
$1,000 car loan payments are on the rise, stressing household budgets - https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/27/business/1k-car-loan-payments... - January 27th, 2026
> The high monthly car payments — coupled with other changes in her household budget, including higher rent — caused Dickerson to fall deep into debt. “Now I’m relying on the credit cards to live, to pay for things that I can’t pay now,” she said. “Food and stuff you need — the electric bill, phone bill. You think you’ll be able to pay them off next month and then you can’t.” Record-high car prices coupled with high interest rates are leading to huge monthly car payments for many Americans. A record share of Americans — more than 20% — agreed to pay more than $1,000 per month for a new car loan at the end of the year, according to car sales site Edmunds. High monthly car payments are putting tremendous stress on household budgets already struggling to deal with a higher cost of living. But many Americans need a car for everyday use, like commuting to work and grocery shopping.
I mean, every car manufacturer engineers the sound of the freaking doors closing. How can they not appreciate the importance of engine sound?
This solution also misses that for many folks in the U.S., imposing the emissions of a V-8 engine upon their environment is not just about how it sounds in-cabin, it’s about marking territory, and V-8 engines are quite good at that. You would need a subwoofer to broadcast it properly and you would likely run into amplified sound laws in many regions that are not applicable to engine noise.
