November 29, 2006

The joy of Pandora

One of the very happy discoveries since installing the new Squeezebox 3 in the living room has been the three-month Pandora subscription that is included. Although I'd played with Pandora via the web before, it really comes into its own when you can listen to streams directly in your living room.

After years of being stuck listening to the same closed set of artists (that Amazon's suggestions or Music Plasma never seemed to be able to break out of), I'm finding new artists to listen to and different songs that I actually like. It's been a long time... My CD purchase budget at Amazon is feeling the strain.

In a related note, Wired.com has an article on Pandora and some of its competitors -- I think that it understates the usefulness of these services when they work. That's assuming that you can make them work for you -- and where the Squeezebox made Pandora a practical consideration for me.

Posted by cwirving at 4:11 PM

August 20, 2006

Houston roads strike again

Paula's MINI has suffered at the hands of Houston roads once again: after under 10,000 miles since replacing the broken strut mounts with urethane-clad K-Mac adjutable ones, we noticed handling oddities and serious front tire wear. Well,sure enough, the new strut mounts got trashed, too! Instead of the bushing giving way, this time it is the actual metal plate that seems to have suffered a stress fracture (on both sides of the car). So, we're going back to the softer stock parts and replacing the insanely hard factory struts with Koni FSD ones. The ride is a lot better, now we just need longevity...

Posted by cwirving at 2:02 PM

June 27, 2005

2005 MINI update

With all the talk about the red (2002) MINI Cooper S, I haven't had an opportunity to give an update on the '05 car. Now that it is out of the break-in period, I have been able to open it up a bit and drive more spiritedly. Overall, I have to admit that the new gearing and engine tweaks are quite a step forward (although fuel economy has been a bit worse than the '02 car). The overall character of the car is more of a street-figher, it gets up to speed faster and demands quite a bit more shifting for any particular usage pattern, but it is a lot of fun. The limited slip differential is a gem. I'd never driven a front wheel drive car with one, so I had no real expectations, but it definitely is a must-have option. It pulls the car's nose around corners very impressively and -- with a little left foot braking -- you can really toss the car around. You also don't bog down under traction control anywhere near as often as with the open diff... Yum!

Posted by cwirving at 4:09 PM

June 22, 2005

More on the MINI upgrades

After a bunch of head-scratching, it appears that we've found one reason why the handling still isn't right on the red MINI: the front lower control arm bushings are also pretty worn, so there is some play under cornering loads. We're still looking for beefier alternatives, so I can't say what it'll be like once that's taken care of -- but I can say that pushing the car to the limit with the worn bushings ain't pretty... I have to say that the stability control system in full swing is quite interesting, though : it kicks in (pretty late -- the car was well out of shape by the time it kicked in) with a flurry of loud ABS pump action that should be a signal to even the most ham-handed that they are doing something really wrong. I'm not sure that it had a whole lot of effect, but it was impressive-sounding nonetheless. :-)

Posted by cwirving at 3:48 PM

June 13, 2005

MINI upgrades

Paula's MINI sustained some damage to the front strut top bushings (the rubber doughnuts around the strut bearing) and some minor strut tower deformation after bottoming out over especially deep Houston road damage last month. So, we took the opportunity to take it to BMS and get some K-Mac camber plates and swap the rear anti-roll bar for a stiffer one. I picked the car up this evening and -- with the limited driving time to try it out, it is quite interesting in that the ride is better than stock and the turn-in character of the car is actually quite familiar (despite the rear bar being set on the hardest setting). It seems quite effortless -- which, without back-to-back comparison with the stock 2005 car, either means it is better and without quirks or it is still tamer than it needs to be... I didn't get to push it really hard, so I can't say how it does when the limits are explored but I'll have to test that soon enough. The camber plates with fairly conservative street settings (1.5 degrees negative camber) are definitely a good choice for daily driving -- it is immediately clear that you can lean on it quite a bit more on turn-in before the front tires are overcome. The rear anti-roll bar is what I need to figure out more carefully. I wasn't able to get the car rotated under trail-braking as I was hoping for but I don't have enough data to tell what's going on. Mind you, tame may be a good thing: it is a daily-driver, after all. We'll see...

Posted by cwirving at 11:48 PM

May 26, 2005

The answer is... Peugeot?

I have a base model Peugeot 206 as the rental car I got in Amsterdam. I had the choice of a VW Polo or the pug... I think I made the wrong choice, I'm afraid. It isn't anywhere near as much fun as I remember Peugeots to be -- but then I don't think that it is fair to compare a base model 206 with the 205GTI of old... This is just cheap and tacky. Also on the subject of tacky, it is pretty clear that protectionism is still hard at work in Europe: I probably saw a dozen Japanese cars in my whole three hour drive through Holland and Belgium. I don't know that people would put up with quite the tackiness of this rental car if the Japanese were allowed to compete head on. Certainly, the base trim level on US Hondas and Toyotas is better than this.

Posted by cwirving at 9:26 AM

May 19, 2005

Bigger, bigger, bigger

Reading James Healey's review of the new BMW 3-series (linked from Autoblog), I feel a great deal of frustration with the way everybody seems to criticize cars -- and many other products -- along the lines of "yeah, this is great, but I really want you to make it like the next model up." The opening paragraph of the review tells us of his satisfaction that the 3-series is finally bigger. Well, "bigger" already existed -- it was called the 5-series! Over the course of a decade, BMW have basically shifted their product line up one size increment -- to the extent that they now need to introduce a new 1-series to fill the gap vacated by the increasinglly tubby 3-series. Obviously, BMW didn't do this just for fun -- they listened to customers who have been clamoring for more room, more features, more everything. Granted, I will admit that the new 3 isn't an old 5 in every way (it is cheaper than the old 5, for one -- but more expensive than the outgoing 3), but the question remains whether this new car, called the "3-series", fits within the original concept (at least how it evolved recently)? I'm reminded of The Innovator's Dilemma where existing technologies ride an ever-upward curve of sophistication until they either get undercut by new disruptive technologies or "outgrow" their market (become too powerful/sophisticated/expensive to remain relevant in the marketplace). Is this is what is happening here?

Posted by cwirving at 10:51 AM

May 6, 2005

There is no escape...

Paula dropped of her MINI at the dealership this morning for some warranty work and... got a Nissan Murano rental. We just can't get away from the things.

Posted by cwirving at 10:57 PM

May 3, 2005

Back in a MINI again...

After a week in the rental Murano, I'm back in my MINI. I have to say that I'm thrilled. Hopping from a midsize SUV back to the MINI did emphasize how vastly different the experiences are. I didn't like the SUV, but I really can't say that it was bad -- is is more that the whole vehicle category is the antithesis of what I want in a car. As Rick succinctly put it, SUVs are vehicles you travel in, while the MINI is one you drive. That said, there were some interesting aspects to the Murano. For instance, the CVT transmission was quite effective once I figured out how to exploit it: in short, it will more or less keep engine revs proportional to the load -- it'll wail during WOT (Wide Open throttle) and fall back to cruising revs at small throttle openings. I had to unlearn some bad habits learned driving cars with conventional automatic transmissions first, but it did certainly do well for an automatic. It even seems to have a tiny amount of engine braking (although not an useful amount), so it is quite a departure from the slushbox of old. Assuming that the average consumers can wrap their brain around the differences, it definitely shows promise even mated to a 3.5l engine (torque handling used to be a problem for early CVTs -- yeah, in the famous Dutch DAF cars). Anyway, that was interesting, but not my thing...

Posted by cwirving at 10:04 PM

April 27, 2005

This SUV thing is really overrated

Now that I've driven the rental Nissan Murano a little bit, I'm convinced that Malcom Gladwell had it right: the key design concept in SUVs is to make you feel detached from the driving experience. Nissan aren't stupid -- they did their research -- and the Murano has to represent the logical conclusion of somebody's ideal vehicle... Somebody who doesn't like to know what's going on when they drive! I suppose that the thing that troubles me most with the vehicle is the way it numbs everything down. I feel like I'm driving a 1990s vintage Cadillac on stilts. The tires are awfully uncommunicative, the handling tuned for maximum understeer, the internal amenities are plentiful... But it isn't really all that practical, either: I took it down to Lowe's to buy some lumber (hey, I might as well take advantage of it while it is here) and you have to stick 8' lumber on the passenger seat or between them. It feels just like sticking lumber in your car. At least a pickup feels like cargo goes somewhere intended for stuff, not your passenger's lap. So, I feel like I'm having to put up with the dynamic disadvantages of a truck while still having the cargo capacity of a car (OK, a wagon). That's a rather poor compromise, I'm afraid.

Posted by cwirving at 11:25 PM

Some parallels are not good

Rick jokingly compared his iMate Jam smartphone (a.k.a. O2 Mini) with my new MINI. Unfortunately, my experience is starting to look like his (the phone was initially defective). The "Service Engine Soon" light came on at about the 150 mile mark and, after a quick trip to the dealer to check the OBD codes, it appears that the knock sensor has shorted itself out. The really bad part is that they don't stock the knock sensors for '05 MINIs and it takes a lot of work to get to it -- so I'm in a rental: a Nissan Murano (not my choice, that's all they had left). I'll be very happy if the parallels with Rick's phone experience stop right here (I really don't need the wrong car).

Posted by cwirving at 10:47 PM

April 21, 2005

2005 MINI Cooper S: In the Scroogie Boy garage, day 1

(My apologies to autoblog.com for the title paraphrase) Since we already have a 2002 MINI Cooper S, my impressions of the new car are very much relative to Paula's. Overall, I think it is an improvement on the 2002 model but I have to say that I was shocked by the number of differences! Some of the comparison points are impossible because the 2002 model is nearly three years old and has developed a lot of the rattles that the early MINIs suffer from while the new one is, well, new and hasn't had a chance to prove that it won't. Still, here goes: In terms of exterior changes, it is mostly down to the reworked headlights and tail lights, which I'm ambivalent about. Moving inward to the body mechanicals, the rear hatch latch seems to be slightly redesigned (and doesn't rattle -- yay!), the door handle mechanism feels a little different and the doors seem to close better than on the 2002. Inside, the headliner layout was updated -- which means that the clock has moved to the odometer -- and actually feels flimisier than the older one. The door interior panels are subtly different: the handles/armrests come into the cabin further. There is extra lighting in weird places like behind the door pulls. The upholstery is subtly different, too (the seat padding is softer, I think -- I like it -- but the steering wheel and gearshift knob feel flimsier) and there are a bunch of storage spots for knick-knacks... Which leads us to the abominable new "big gulp" cup holder that they felt compelled to equip the car with. That thing is equal parts ugly and in your way! Now, in terms of how they drive, the cars are also quite different: the clutch is much lighter in the 2005 and the gearbox less notchy -- but the steering feel seems lighter and less direct (but that could be my mind playing tricks on me -- I'll check the ratios in the manuals when I get a chance). The engine response is different: whereas the 2002 pulls well, the 2005 seems to have a more abrupt power delivery curve, which is not what I expected from a new-out-of-box engine... Weird. The huge -- and immediately obvious differences when you drive the 2005 car are the new gear ratios and the Dunlop run-flat tires (as opposed to the Pirellis on the 2002). The new gear ratios are much more conventional and transform the personality of the car -- I'm not sure that I can yet say whether it is better or not: it is faster but I suspect that it may be a little less flexible (and less economic at speed on the highway -- not that we really do much of that in Houston). The tires transform the ride of the car! The Pirellis are like rocks in comparison. I can't say anything about their grip yet: with only a few miles on the clock and all the detailing goo still on them, they aren't close to their normal grip level yet. Still, the ride difference is really night and day. I feel like going out and replacing the Pirellis on Paula's car right away. I haven't put the limited slip differential through its paces yet, so I'm looking forward to evaluating that. I'm pretty hopeful that it will reduce the traction control system's tendency to kick in over rough dry roads (which seems to be that system's Achilles' Heel in the 2002 car). So, anyway, I'm really pleased with the new car. I now have to get more familiar with it and learn its quirks.

Posted by cwirving at 8:35 PM

April 19, 2005

New MINI nearly here

I spoke with the dealer this morning and it appears that my new MINI is due in today! Of course, this only means that I have to engage in a mad panic to finalize the loan and insurance paperwork... Then wait...

Posted by cwirving at 1:44 PM