Police in N. Texas Stopping Random Drivers for DNA and Blood Samples

Police in North Texas are stopping random drivers in Fort Worth on the behalf of Federal contractors for random blood and DNA samples.  It's supposed to be to check for impaired driving, and supposed to be voluntary, but how many people say "no" to police and federal employees when being forcibly pulled over?

From KXAS Ch. 5 News in Fort Worth, Texas. 

Peter Griffin on Top Gear?

This spyshot from the December issue of Top Gear Magazine confirms that Family Guy's Peter Griffin and the trio of twats from the UK version of Top Gear are buds.  I wonder if they are all in the reasonably priced car?

WAIT!! That's Diesel!!

This kind of thing used to happen to an ex-girlfriend who used to drive my 2001 Golf TDI quite a bit back in the early to mid 2000's.  Back then, diesel cars were pretty rare in Texas and even rarer up in rural Oklahoma where she drove.  A few times, a well-meaning person would even run over to her and shut the pump off.  

This is a new commercial from Audi for their new TDI cars and it's great!

Eagle Eye Point of View

This isn't car related.  Just a couple of cool videos from a guy who can strap a GoPro camera to his pet eagle for some fantastic flight videos.

Ever wonder what it's like to fly like an eagle?  Now you can find out.

FLASH! Tesla Has a Flat Tire!!

Exclusive story from Autoblopnik, the premier automotive news and comment blog.  

Bad news for Tesla.  First, one of the 20,000+ Model S's that have been sold so far ran over a piece of metal in the road causing a fire, now another one has suffered a flat tire causing a drastic drop in the price of TSLA stock, ironically during the same week as the totally unrelated Government shutdown.  

The Tesla Model S, CEO Elon Musk's vision of what we should all be driving, seems fundamentally flawed.  It goes only 260 miles on a charge, takes a very long 40 minutes to completely charge up at one of the Superchargers that Tesla is installing across the nation (although it should be noted that there is no charge for the charge), puts auto repair and Jiffy Lubes out of business because it uses no oil of any kind, and takes only 4.2 seconds to go 0-60mph.  Clearly too fast for the average driver of a Ford Focus or Toyota Corolla. 

I guess electric cars aren't all they are cracked up to be. 

Click to enlarge

Read all about this breaking story here, then be sure to check out the rest of Autoblopnik (Auto news to obsess over or die) for more great stories.

Monkeemobile vs. Shelby Daytona Coupe

Now here's something you don't see every day.  A very rare Shelby Daytona Couple racing the equally rare Monkeemobile (a modified Pontiac GTO).  Enjoy!

Getting Buzzed

This would fall under the category of being caught *above* the curb, but pretty cool anyway.  This past June, I happened to see something go past my front window that seemed a little unusual....and airplane!  

I grabbed my video camera and went outside to video my own personal airshow.  It seems that something appears to have broken on a combine that was working the field across the road from my house.  It had been sitting for a couple of days when it seems that the parts needed to repair it arrived by air-mail.  

The Piper J-3 Cub first made a low pass (the one I originally saw), then landed, delivered the part, and took off again.  Then, the pilot thought he would have a little fun so he buzzed the combine (and my house in the process) a few times before taking off for home.  

This is how we do things out here in the country! 

Olympic Ski Jump -- For Tires

Have you ever wondered what kind of tire performs the best?  You can go to Tire Rack or Consumer Reports to find that information. 

But what if you want your tires to win a gold medal at the next winter Olympics in the ski jump competition?  What kind of tire would you choose?  As luck would have it, we have your information right here.  

Another public service from Caught at the Curb! 

Rockets and Cows - Nowhere But Texas!

Check out the latest test of the "Grasshopper" reusable rocket in McGregor, Texas.  This rocket, from Elon Musk's SpaceX, takes off, flies to the side a bit, hovers for a little while, then returns to the exact spot it took off from.  Pretty impressive. 

They threw in a small cattle stampede and a flock of birds just for good measure too. 
No word on how the bar-b-que was after the test. 

Spectacular Truck Accident

Unfortunately, the driver was killed in this spectacular truck accident  on SH 161 and I-30 in Grand Prairie, Texas (a Dallas suburb).  It's unknown at this time why the truck left the highway.

You tell'em Elon!

Oh yeah, well Tesla will study a plan to study the GM team that's studying Tesla, so there! http://t.co/Gn41zsaRv8
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 23, 2013

This is NOT "The Beast"

 I love to watch movies about political intrigue, especially ones that include presidential intrigue.  This usually involves shots of the President going somewhere in his limo.  Except for movies about JFK, this usually involves using a standard stretch limo, complete with opera lights on the side, pulling up.  They may put some flags on the front fenders and a little presidential seal on the door, but it's obvious that it's not a presidential limo.

Volkswagen builds 30-millionth Golf - Autoblog

Volkswagen builds 30-millionth Golf - Autoblog

Interesting Nurburgring Webcam Shot

Click to enlarge

I just happened to check out the Nurburgring webcam this morning, and take a gander at what I just happened to catch.  

It seems to be a lousy day to be blasting around the Ring, but the owners of these 4 classic cars didn't seem to mind.  Anyone know what they are?  I think they are older BMWs.  Here's a second shot that I just grabbed.

Click to enlarge

Shocking Tesla Video

I'm a huge fan of the Tesla Model S sedan.  I only wish my income would allow me to buy one.  There's nothing not to like.  0-60 in 4.0 seconds, a realistic 260 miles of range.  All the features, luxury and driving performance/handling of a Mercedes S class, Audi A8, BMW 7 series, Porsche Panamera, etc., and a driver interface and features that are right out of The Jetsons.  All for as little as $73K if you can do without the power sunroof and a couple of other things, and as little as $53K if you can make due with the smallest battery pack giving only 160 miles of range. 

Photo from Tesla Motors

Photo from Tesla Motors

There are tons of videos on YouTube of great Tesla Model S reviews and owners singing the praises of their cars, but this one that I ran across this morning really caught my eye.  It's a training video from Tesla showing first responders how to treat Teslas in an accident situation.  My jaw dropped right down to the floor, however, when I hit the 27:30 mark.  Watch the video, it's pretty interesting.   If you're impatient, however, fast forward to the above mentioned point and watch from there to see something pretty shocking.  At least it was for me.  I'm not going to ruin the surprise by telling you what it was...you'll just have to watch it for yourself. 

Ouch!!

Packards - With A Little Help From Our Friends

What if Lincoln, Chrysler, Cadillac, and AMC Had Designed the 1957 Packard?

From "The Daily Drive - Consumer Guide®

1957 Packard Imperious

The year 1956 marked the last hurrah for the “real” Packard. After that, Studebaker tried (somewhat successfully) to turn a Studebaker President into a Packard, but it was too little (literally!) too late.

There are stories of S-P trying to purchase 1956 Lincoln bodies from Ford to turn into Packards, but that idea died on the vine. What if S-P had purchased bodies from Lincoln, Chrysler, Cadillac, or even AMC and then found enough cash to make some sheetmetal and detail changes? Here’s what I think could have been the result.

Be sure to click the "Daily Drive's" link at the top of the page to see more Packards based on Cadillacs, Lincolns, Chryslers and even AMC cars.