Mustang & Shelby

Perhaps hoping to underscore why he gets along so well with Max Mosley, F1 Boss Bernie Ecclestone told The Times he doesn’t like democracy and believes Hitler, Saddam Hussein and the Taliban were doing a good job.

We know Formula One has had some trouble lately, but we’re not sure if these unconventional views are recent or part of the reason Ecclestone gets such a weird rap. Among things he told The Times:

“If you have a look at a democracy it hasn’t done a lot of good for many countries - including this one. I like people who make up their minds.

Some examples?

We did a terrible thing when we supported the idea of getting rid of Saddam Hussein, he was the only one who could control that country. It was the same [with the Taleban]. We move into countries and we have no idea of the culture. The Americans probably thought Bosnia was a town in Miami. There are people starving in Africa and we sit back and do nothing, but we get involved in things we should leave alone.”

This isn’t so bad and, all things considered, we sort of see where he’s going with it. And then this happens:

“In a lot of ways, terrible to say this I suppose, but apart from the fact that Hitler got taken away and persuaded to do things that I have no idea whether he wanted to do or not, he was in the way that he could command a lot of people able to get things done.

And what about the Holocaust?

“In the end he got lost so he wasn’t a very good dictator. Either he knew what was going on and insisted, or he just went along with it - either way he wasn’t a dictator.”

You can see the rest of the profile and see nothing was taken out of context. Clearly, the interviewer knew what questions to ask. There is a lot more in there beyond the headline generating stuff about Hitler. Almost more offensive to us, when asked to choose between Lamborghini or Lexus he answered “Lexus.”

[The Times]

SHAUN CURRY/AFP/Getty Images

Perhaps hoping to underscore why he gets along so well with Max Mosley, F1 Boss Bernie Ecclestone told The Times he doesn’t like democracy and believes Hitler, Saddam Hussein and the Taliban were doing a good job.

We know Formula One has had some trouble lately, but we’re not sure if these unconventional views are recent or part of the reason Ecclestone gets such a weird rap. Among things he told The Times:

“If you have a look at a democracy it hasn’t done a lot of good for many countries - including this one. I like people who make up their minds.

Some examples?

We did a terrible thing when we supported the idea of getting rid of Saddam Hussein, he was the only one who could control that country. It was the same [with the Taleban]. We move into countries and we have no idea of the culture. The Americans probably thought Bosnia was a town in Miami. There are people starving in Africa and we sit back and do nothing, but we get involved in things we should leave alone.”

This isn’t so bad and, all things considered, we sort of see where he’s going with it. And then this happens:

“In a lot of ways, terrible to say this I suppose, but apart from the fact that Hitler got taken away and persuaded to do things that I have no idea whether he wanted to do or not, he was in the way that he could command a lot of people able to get things done.

And what about the Holocaust?

“In the end he got lost so he wasn’t a very good dictator. Either he knew what was going on and insisted, or he just went along with it - either way he wasn’t a dictator.”

You can see the rest of the profile and see nothing was taken out of context. Clearly, the interviewer knew what questions to ask. There is a lot more in there beyond the headline generating stuff about Hitler. Almost more offensive to us, when asked to choose between Lamborghini or Lexus he answered “Lexus.”

[The Times]

SHAUN CURRY/AFP/Getty Images

Perhaps hoping to underscore why he gets along so well with Max Mosley, F1 Boss Bernie Ecclestone told The Times he doesn’t like democracy and believes Hitler, Saddam Hussein and the Taliban were doing a good job.

We know Formula One has had some trouble lately, but we’re not sure if these unconventional views are recent or part of the reason Ecclestone gets such a weird rap. Among things he told The Times:

“If you have a look at a democracy it hasn’t done a lot of good for many countries - including this one. I like people who make up their minds.

Some examples?

We did a terrible thing when we supported the idea of getting rid of Saddam Hussein, he was the only one who could control that country. It was the same [with the Taleban]. We move into countries and we have no idea of the culture. The Americans probably thought Bosnia was a town in Miami. There are people starving in Africa and we sit back and do nothing, but we get involved in things we should leave alone.”

This isn’t so bad and, all things considered, we sort of see where he’s going with it. And then this happens:

“In a lot of ways, terrible to say this I suppose, but apart from the fact that Hitler got taken away and persuaded to do things that I have no idea whether he wanted to do or not, he was in the way that he could command a lot of people able to get things done.

And what about the Holocaust?

“In the end he got lost so he wasn’t a very good dictator. Either he knew what was going on and insisted, or he just went along with it - either way he wasn’t a dictator.”

You can see the rest of the profile and see nothing was taken out of context. Clearly, the interviewer knew what questions to ask. There is a lot more in there beyond the headline generating stuff about Hitler. Almost more offensive to us, when asked to choose between Lamborghini or Lexus he answered “Lexus.”

[The Times]

SHAUN CURRY/AFP/Getty Images

The Datsun ads were fun, as were the Toyota ads, but it was Volkswagen that first made an art form out of the automotive television advertisement.

We’ve picked out 20 of our favorite VW ads from the Classic Ad Watch series for your enjoyment. From the 1950s through the current decade, from the USA, Germany, South Africa, China, Mexico, and Brazil, these ads cover the highlights of the Volkswagen product line in entertaining fashion

1984 Rabbit	1987 GTI	2005 Caddy	Beetle
1984 GTI	1998 Transporter Syncro	1984 Vanagon	1979 Scirocco
1968 Beetle	1979 Rabbit	1972 Beetle	1981 Vanagon
1970 Karmann Ghia	1958 Beetle	1976 Transporter	1958 Transporter
1955 Beetle	1971 Karmann Ghia	1983 Beetle	1966 Fastback

The Datsun ads were fun, as were the Toyota ads, but it was Volkswagen that first made an art form out of the automotive television advertisement.

We’ve picked out 20 of our favorite VW ads from the Classic Ad Watch series for your enjoyment. From the 1950s through the current decade, from the USA, Germany, South Africa, China, Mexico, and Brazil, these ads cover the highlights of the Volkswagen product line in entertaining fashion

1984 Rabbit	1987 GTI	2005 Caddy	Beetle
1984 GTI	1998 Transporter Syncro	1984 Vanagon	1979 Scirocco
1968 Beetle	1979 Rabbit	1972 Beetle	1981 Vanagon
1970 Karmann Ghia	1958 Beetle	1976 Transporter	1958 Transporter
1955 Beetle	1971 Karmann Ghia	1983 Beetle	1966 Fastback

The Datsun ads were fun, as were the Toyota ads, but it was Volkswagen that first made an art form out of the automotive television advertisement.

We’ve picked out 20 of our favorite VW ads from the Classic Ad Watch series for your enjoyment. From the 1950s through the current decade, from the USA, Germany, South Africa, China, Mexico, and Brazil, these ads cover the highlights of the Volkswagen product line in entertaining fashion

1984 Rabbit	1987 GTI	2005 Caddy	Beetle
1984 GTI	1998 Transporter Syncro	1984 Vanagon	1979 Scirocco
1968 Beetle	1979 Rabbit	1972 Beetle	1981 Vanagon
1970 Karmann Ghia	1958 Beetle	1976 Transporter	1958 Transporter
1955 Beetle	1971 Karmann Ghia	1983 Beetle	1966 Fastback

I’m back in California after my 2,600 mile drive from Alameda to Denver and back, and I’ve finally gotten around to editing- sort of- the video from the dash-mounted video camera.

This is the same cheapo bullet camera used to catch in-car LeMons action from the Cajun Jihad Mitsubishi and the Mustard Yellow V8olvo. I didn’t bother to hook up the microphone (do you really want to listen to a D15 engine buzzing endlessly?); instead, I’ve dubbed in some soothing tunes from my old band, Murilee Arraiac.

The video below shows bits and pieces from the I-80 to I-50 to I-70 route from Alameda to Denver, passing through Sacramento, Reno, and Grand Junction, with an overnight stop in Ely, Nevada. The ‘92 Civic DX averaged 40.7 MPG for the trip, at 80-85 MPH with the air conditioning on- not bad real-world mileage, I think. I had an idea that I would drive 60 or so for long stretches, with the AC off, in an attempt to crack 50 MPG… but that proved impossible in practice.

I’m back in California after my 2,600 mile drive from Alameda to Denver and back, and I’ve finally gotten around to editing- sort of- the video from the dash-mounted video camera.

This is the same cheapo bullet camera used to catch in-car LeMons action from the Cajun Jihad Mitsubishi and the Mustard Yellow V8olvo. I didn’t bother to hook up the microphone (do you really want to listen to a D15 engine buzzing endlessly?); instead, I’ve dubbed in some soothing tunes from my old band, Murilee Arraiac.

The video below shows bits and pieces from the I-80 to I-50 to I-70 route from Alameda to Denver, passing through Sacramento, Reno, and Grand Junction, with an overnight stop in Ely, Nevada. The ‘92 Civic DX averaged 40.7 MPG for the trip, at 80-85 MPH with the air conditioning on- not bad real-world mileage, I think. I had an idea that I would drive 60 or so for long stretches, with the AC off, in an attempt to crack 50 MPG… but that proved impossible in practice.

I’m back in California after my 2,600 mile drive from Alameda to Denver and back, and I’ve finally gotten around to editing- sort of- the video from the dash-mounted video camera.

This is the same cheapo bullet camera used to catch in-car LeMons action from the Cajun Jihad Mitsubishi and the Mustard Yellow V8olvo. I didn’t bother to hook up the microphone (do you really want to listen to a D15 engine buzzing endlessly?); instead, I’ve dubbed in some soothing tunes from my old band, Murilee Arraiac.

The video below shows bits and pieces from the I-80 to I-50 to I-70 route from Alameda to Denver, passing through Sacramento, Reno, and Grand Junction, with an overnight stop in Ely, Nevada. The ‘92 Civic DX averaged 40.7 MPG for the trip, at 80-85 MPH with the air conditioning on- not bad real-world mileage, I think. I had an idea that I would drive 60 or so for long stretches, with the AC off, in an attempt to crack 50 MPG… but that proved impossible in practice.

When I stopped by my local self-service yard to photograph the Crusher-bound ‘49 Ford on Friday, I discovered that I’d walked into Half Price Weekend. Might as well do some shopping!

The usual crowds of grimly determined men were plucking engines from minivans, of course, but I wasn’t interested in minivans.

Now that I’m applying the lessons learned during Race Car Wiring Hell to my Personal Hell Project, I figured I could just rig up any old 4-cylinder junkyard tachometer in the scrap-aluminum dash I’m fabricating. I had this perfectly serviceable late-70s Volvo 240 unit that came with one of the free parts cars we obtained for the Black Metal V8olvo, but it’s only about 3″ in diameter and- well, let’s face it, that Volvo emblem wasn’t quite sporty enough for my sports car.

As you can see from my under-construction wiring harness and fusebox, this project is all about image, because I am truly an image consultant at heart. So when I spotted a Fiat 124 Spider with a nice Veglia tach still in place, I grabbed it.

On Half Price Day, you can score any tach in the yard for $3.01 out the door, including all the Rip-U-Off™ fees and taxes that magically appear during the transaction. When I saw the long line, I hesitated, but an Italian tachometer in a Japanese-engine-powered British car would be just so right that I decided to wait it out.

I haven’t tested my new find yet, but there’s no way such a passionate, soulful gauge could refuse to function!