The Nissan Cab

You know, I knew that as I was writing that last blog that it definitely wasn't something fantastic. But, they say practice makes perfect right? Well, I've got something to share to help me practice.

The Detroit News posted an article with some very interesting information regarding the taxi situation in New York City. It looks like the new fleet will be strictly Nissans for the next ten years. That's an astonishing contract. I think it's pretty easy to assume that the New York City cabs are some of the most used vehicles on the planet.

What I wonder now is what is going on with Ford? Have you noticed the changes they've been making? No more Crown Victorias. That means no more fleets of cops or taxis. Anyone that has ever been pulled over knows what a Police Interceptor Crown Victoria looks like. Though I'm looking forward to adding a bunch of links here, I'll let you google that one. Anyway, I haven't heard much about the new trucks they've got out, but I have seen a whole lot about the fiesta and the focus. Seems like things are shrinking in blue oval country. Even their new proposed Police Interceptor is based on the smaller Taurus. It's pretty clear, especially when you look at their home page, that they are diving head first into the compact car market. And their design team isn't far behind.

2013 Ford Focus ST (right) 

(Photo courtesy of Car And Driver)

2013 Ford Fusion (left)

(Photo courtesy of Car and Driver)

Whereas the consumer had almost no benefit from Ford's fleet vehicles, I believe the opposite to be true of the new Nissan taxi. According to The Detroit News article, the new taxi is going to have some very interesting features to look forward to. For instance, the non-stick antibacterial surfaces. I have no idea how that works, but if it does, it definitely provides a great deal of peace of mind. But what I'm really interested in is the "backseat cellphone charging and USB ports, a transparent roof panel, and independently controlled rear air conditioning."

With today's technology culture, we can't seem to be able to get away from electronics and the internet. We've gone from not even knowing what we could do with it, to making what we thought were awesome websites, to where finding someone that uses a cell phone that doesn't have internet is like finding a unicorn, in only about ten years. This Nissan cab is taking a page out of the Chinese auto industry and putting a lot more focus into rear seat passenger comfort. With Audi already into making your car a mobile WiFi hotspot, I'm sure it won't be long before that is implemented into the Nissan taxi. Once that's done, it shouldn't be difficult to implement that into mass produced consumer vehicles and before you know it your current car will be a relic.

Power.

That's a good word isn't it? Power. People go crazy over that word when it's applied to cars, but I'm not looking to get into a discussion of "dude, my such and such car makes over 984654 Horsepower!"

What I want to talk about is the basic concept of the word. Power, force, energy. Essentially it's what you need to get you car going. I'm sure y'all have noticed, but car companies have found many different ways to make power, using various different engine designs. There are so many different kinds! Don't believe me? I'll list out all the types of engines that are out on the road right now:

Inline 4
Inline 4 Turbo
Opposed 4
Opposed 4 Turbo
Inline 5
Inline 5 Turbo
Inline 6
Inline 6 Turbo
Twin Rotor
V6
V6 Turbo
V8
V8 Turbo
W8
V10
V10 Turbo
V12
W12
W12 Turbo
W16 Turbo (4 turbos!)


Yeah, I think that drove the point home. Notice anything? One, I bet there are way more engines out there than you thought; and two, pretty much every engine has had a turbo (or two, or a supercharger) slapped on it. Granted, some of those engines you won't see every day. Pretty much everything past the V8 isn't all that common. There are some heavy duty trucks that have V10s in them, but for the most part, you're talking about sports cars and exotics.

So how do you know what engine is right for you? Well that's a pretty tricky question since there are A LOT of factors that come into play. I'm going to try and simplify it as much as I can. Get ready for some bold points.

There's a misconception that engines with a lot of cylinders are inefficient. They're gas guzzlers. Alright, you got me, it's kind of somewhat true. But really, it has a lot more to do with how much car that engine is trying to move and how big the engine is. Some cars will need a bigger engine to be more efficient. When it comes down to it, efficiency comes out of how much the engine has to work to move the car. Less work = less gas used.

BIG CAR + little engine = ass mileage           That engine has to do a lot of work to get things going.

little car  +  little engine = vast mileage            If there's not a lot to move, there's not a lot

BIG CAR + BIG ENGINE = gas mileage      I couldn't think of a better way to keep the rhyme going... these are average gas mileage vehicles. We're talking 20-25 mpg

little car    + BIG ENGINE  = fast mileage       Yeah! kept the clever rhyme scheme going! Anyway, this category is a bit odd. Typically, these are sports cars. Not exactly designed to be all that economical, so the rules don't quite apply the same way as before.

Here's the last bit of information you need to know about choosing an engine: yes, more cylinders means a bit more fuel consumption, but what you really want to look at is THE SIZE of the engine.


The turbo/supercharger thing. There are some incredibly complicated ways to explain how they do what they do. Even Howstuffworks couldn't find a way to do it in under five pages, but I'll put it together nice and neat in one sentence for you:
They make your engine act like a bigger engine without actually having to make your engine bigger. Not bad right?

The number of cylinders and configuration... honestly, I wouldn't put much importance into that. Each type of engine has a different feel to it and that's about it. Go with what you like and what works for your needs. Personally, I'm a big big fan of the straight 6. Go try it. It's awesome.

Start it up

So, I think we'll make this my first post here. I'll take a little bit of time to explain a bit about me and what I'm looking to achieve with this blog. First of all, I need to explain that I have been into cars since as long as I can remember. Cars and driving are a great passion of mine and I have some very strong opinions on the matter; however, I do understand that my views don't reflect those of the everyday consumer and I will most definitely be taking that into consideration.


In the past years, I have been honing my automotive knowledge and skills to start a career in the automotive industry. My hopes are to gain further insight into what is up and coming in automobiles as I progress through my career. As a graduate of Universal Technical Institute, I have great insight into the mechanics of how a car works and why it works the way it does. I'll be using that knowledge to translate all that car jargon into concepts people without car knowledge can understand.


Along with the technical side of things, I'm going to do my best to keep up with the business side of things. The industry is constantly changing. New factories open up, companies change directions, start targeting new audiences, acquire and merge with other companies, and on occasion a new manufacturer will pop up. A lot of these things go almost completely unnoticed by the everyday consumer, but these things could make an impact on both vehicles you may be looking to buy and the service and maintenance of the one you own.


Long story short, I'm putting together all the information I can get along with my views to give you a more informed opinion about everything that is going on in the automotive industry.


Well, now that we've got the formal and boring stuff out of the way, I want you to know that I WILL be making all of this at least somewhat entertaining to read. With pictures too! (so long as I can figure out how to put them on here...) I hope y'all enjoy this as much as I will!