OnStar “Live” Navigation-

This summer will mark the beginning of GM’s promise to provide its consumers an easier way to use OnStar and its Navigation function. Most navigator systems work by having the driver (or passenger) type in their destination, make any subsequent corrections, confirm the system is sending them to the right place, and then off they go.

The problem with this format is that sometimes you need to use this while you are on the go, which means if you are by yourself the only choice you have is either finding a place to pull over (easier said than done on the highway), or doing the “look up and down” driving while typing.

GM is providing live direction to its prescribed customers (around $300 a year) for 22 of its new vehicles due out this summer. You just call your (hopefully) friendly operator and tell them where you are headed and they do all the work for you, then send the directions to your screen.

Calling James Bond…

Studded Tires for the Summer-

One of the greatest inconveniences of studded tires is taking them off and putting them back on throughout the year. If you consider winters much like the one we have had this year, (it snowed in May), you may find yourself pumping that jack a few extra times just to keep you and your loved ones safe (but, by all means worth it!)

Taking in consideration that in many states studded tires are illegal to drive year round (illegal for spring, summer, and fall), a company called Q Tires in South Carolina has developed a tire that is capable of dispatching studs at the push of a remote control button when the situation calls for it.

It basically works off of a separate chamber of air that is allowed into the front wall of the tire, thereby pushing the studs forward into ready mode. When you are finished using them you simply let the air out of the second chamber and the studs return back to the far wall between the tread.

The new tire has a projected cost of just over 30% of a regular snow tire, which will be well worth it in the eyes of many. These would be the ultimate “all-weather” tires and we could be seeing these as soon as late summer/fall… just in time for the next batch of snowfall.

While perhaps not the first time it has been unveiled, but it was an interesting idea back in 1986 when the BMW Z1 introduced it, and it still is today.

The Disappearing Door by Jatech is basically a new way to enter and exit a vehicle. Instead of the traditional hinge doors that most of us have become accustomed to, it is a lot more like sliding mini-van doors, except instead of sliding to the side, they slide underneath the vehicle. You may be wondering how the typical vehicle could have enough height clearance.

The Disappearing door rolls down an enclosed system that is placed within the body frame. The door in effect is not actually rolling underneath the vehicle as it appears, but rather inside the lower frame. The whole purpose of this system is to make it both easier and safer for passengers to enter and exit their vehicle.

While similar to the infamous “lambo” doors that opened upwards as seen on the Lamborghini and the DMC DeLorean,

these doors prove even less cumbersome because they fall completely out of the way from all angles.

The doors are also safer, as they allow a driver to pull up tightly against a curb away from traffic without having to worry about getting the doors open. Since there is no door that swing outwards, there is no way for an oncoming car to hit the door, and you can also keep an eye of the traffic through the side mirror which will not move with the door as in most hinged designs.

Using similar technology as the minivan, these doors would not prove to raise the cost of the typical vehicle all that much, so why don’t we see more cars like this? Well, as mentioned earlier, the BMW Z1 tried this design back in 1986, and while these cars have become collector items now, the idea never really took off.

As the famous grandpa saying goes, “they would just be another thing to break”. And if they would break, all the safety of the design would be thrown out the window, because you would be out in the street manually cranking the doors down similarly to a convertible top that has stopped working.

Jatech is hoping that this idea will catch on some 20 years later now that technology has improved substantially. But are consumers ready for such an odd innovative car door that may prove to be more trouble than its worth?

Probably not, but the idea is still cool to talk about anyway!

As one stares upon the many pipes, clamps, mufflers, instructions, and tool requirements for one of these supposed easy installations, at some point, one has to really ask themselves if this is really something the can and want to do.

Performance exhaust systems are really popular right now. They offer more horsepower, torque, better gas mileage, and they sound and look pretty darn cool too.

The problem with some of them, is that even though they claim they are easy to install and anyone can do it with basic hand tools… you really must decide if you are in fact part of this definition of “anyone”, and if you actually own some of these “basic tools”.

Let’s face it, if you buy a $300 to $800 exhaust kit and then have to turn around and buy $400 worth of tools… you could have practically had an exhaust formed out of molten steel for less than that!

Let’s first take a look at the short list of tools you may need to do this job right.

1. 1. (2) Floor Jacks ($30 and up), or one floor jack and your OEM jack (There are two on this list because both floor jacks and jack stands fail, so to protect yourself we recommend having two lift system at each lift-point of the car)
   2. (2) Jack Stands ($25 and up)
   3. Torque Socket Wrench ($25 and up)
   4. Full set of Metric and Standard Sockets ($50 and up)
   5. Pipe cutter ($30 and up), reciprocating saw ($60 and up), etc. (You could use a hacksaw, but at no less than an hour per pipe to cut all the way through, I’d highly not recommend it)
   6. Penetrating Oil, WD-40, etc. (to loosen those stubborn OEM pipes)
   7. Dremel ($60 and up) Sideways Cutter (to get off those tight OEM brackets)
   8. Mechanics Gloves (unless you like to bleed!)
   9. Mechanic’s Book (Chilton, etc.) about your model and year car. (Your OEM manual will not be sufficient for this- There are countless of folks each year who are seriously injured by placing a jack or jack stand under a “weak point” of their car. You can also seriously damage your car… such as shooting the jack up through your floorboard. Cars today, while built well, definitely have a lot of thin metals and aluminum that are not suited to hold the weight of your car. It is better to be safe than sorry!)
   10. A Creeper (unless you like dragging your carcass all over your cold garage floor… and if you do this, count on ruining your outfit)

While the directions say it will take you 2 to 4 hours, this is from the viewpoint of a professional mechanic who has at their side a full line of professional equipment (hydraulic lift, pneumatic tools, etc). For the garage do-it-yourselfer, double this amount of time, if not triple.

Now, for the “anyone” can do it. This job is not for the faint of heart. It takes guts to jack up 3,000-plus pounds automobile and toil around underneath for several hours while it is teetering on a couple of $30 and up lift equipment.

So before you jump on that “do-it-yourself” catback exhaust deal, decide if you are really saving yourself all that much from just going to a muffler shop and having them custom fabricate you something for a couple hundred dollars, because you just might not be!