Origin of Pirelli tires was in telegraph cables!

Giovanni Battista Pirelli founded his company in Milan in 1872.

For almost two decades, the company specialized in fabrication of telegraph cables.

 Its first tires, for bicycles, appeared in 1890; its first automobile tires, in 1901.

https://simanaitissays.com/2016/12/12/aviation-sells/

the Mercedes W25 race car entered in the 1934 changed colors to become race eligible for weight

in 1934, this Silver Arrow was the winner without paint.

The race organizers were working to reduce the vehicles’ power and with it their racing speed, as tires and brakes weren't evolving as fast as the top speed and aerodynamics, so they limited engine size at first... this car was a 205 cu in, and weighed 750 Kg, at 354 Hp then it was upgraded in steps that went:
M25A 3360cc 354HP,
M25AB 3710cc 398HP,
M25B 3990cc 430HP,
M25C 4300cc 462HP
ME25 4740cc 494HP

the 750-kg formula had been created to curb the ever-escalating speed of the powerful racing cars – built for example by Alfa Romeo, Bugatti and Maserati.

The very opposite was achieved since design engineers at once resorted to bigger displacements.

The actual output of the eight-cylinder engine at the beginning amounted to a massive 354 hp (260 kW). Several engine versions with boosted power output followed. The M 25 AB (3710 cc) variant generated 398 hp (293 kW), followed by the M 25 B (3980 cc and 430 hp/316 kW) and C (4300 cc and 462 hp/340 kW) variants, and eventually, in 1936, the ME 25 version (4740 cc) producing 494 hp (363 kW) – always at 5800 rpm.

With the W 25, the Mercedes-Benz engineers ended up removing the previously customary white paint to make weight, because the car was 1 kilogram too heavy.

Until the paint was sanded off. Paint was leaded back then... and heavy.

https://www.mercedes-benz.com/en/mercedes-benz/classic/history/mercedes-benz-silver-arrows/
https://www.supercars.net/blog/1934-mercedes-benz-w25/

Neubauer told how these white-painted W25s then proved overweight during scrutineering for the next race, the EifelRennen at the Nürburgring in June.

 Another non-start was unacceptable; in Berlin, a former house painter was expecting a return on his government's investment.  (Hitler who was bankrolling the Mercedes team for winning results to support his German superior race propaganda)

What to do? Neubauer had a brainwave: "Scrape off the paint!" Next morning, in bare metal, the new cars met the 750kg limit and works driver Manfred von Brauchitsch won the race. "And so silver replaced white as the German national racing colour - the Silver Arrows had been born."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/motorsport/2749203/The-history-of-the-Silver-Arrows.html

Initial power ratings for the car was 314 bhp at 5,800 rpm. Using a new fuel mixture provided by Standard Oil that replaced the gasoline/benzol with methyl alcohol horsepower was bumped to 354 bhp. A new era of exotic racing fuels was evolving

http://www.grandprixhistory.org/merc25.htm

Adopting a national official racing color goes back about 117 years, to the Gordon Bennett races

Motor racing's first prescribed list of national colours had emerged for the 1900 Gordon Bennett Cup race. They've changed a bit since then.

 In 1900 just four national colours were allocated: blue for France, yellow for Belgium, black for Germany, red for the United States.

How did the British get the color green?
There are two stories, equally plausible:

A)  In 1901 the great capital-to-capital Paris-Berlin race saw wealthy British sportsman Charles Jarrott order a Panhard. The car was painted green... M. Clément gave me a reason for this. My number in the race was 13, because no one else would have it. But they had been struck with the happy idea of painting the car green (the French lucky colour) to nullify the unlucky number..."

B)  Road and Track magazine reader Hayden R. Shepley's comment, concerning an article in the Cyril Posthumus in April 1969... The origin of the color British Racing Green is from 1903 when the British wouldn't allow the Gordon Bennett race to be held in Britain. Ireland was asked to hold the race on their roads after Parliament had a special act passed to allow this. This act allowed certain public roads to be closed, thereby making this the first ever closed circuit race in automobile history. As a compliment to the Irish, all the English cars were painted a dark green.

I haven't read yet how Germany went from Black to White, but they went from White to Silver right there with the 1934 W25.

The long years of national racing colours, with no overt advertising, crumbled in 1968 after motorsport's previous big-money backers - the international oil companies - slashed support. Non-motoring sponsors had to be found and the rule makers dropped opposition to on-car advertising. Colin Chapman immediately sold space on his Lotus cars to John Player for its Gold Leaf cigarette brand. Almost overnight, modern Grand Prix cars became mobile advertising hoardings.

http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2011/07/trivia-why-red-is-italys-racing-color.html
http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2006/11/british-racing-green.html

as for why there are now Grand Prix races, and no Gordon Bennett Cup races?

The Gordon Bennett was contested between teams of no more than three cars, representing each nation's motor industry. The French felt this to be enormously unfair, as their motor industry was by far the world's largest and most diverse,  and yet they were restricted to the same number of race cars as little Belgium... or emergent America.

French discomfort led eventually to their replacing the Gordon Bennett Cup from 1906 with their own new race - the Grand Prix.

More info on Sirius XM and their willingness to come down on the rates

Here's the latest.

They wanted $209 for a 12 month renewal.

Well, I don't have that money (maybe you already read the post about me not getting back my rental deposit, if not, it's a couple posts down)

So, I called them up and it takes 8 minutes to get the 1st guy to understand I will not be renewing my subscription.

8 minutes... he probably doesn't speak English very well. I don't know why, I do believe it's an American company, catering to USA drivers.

Anyway, he can't do anything with an account anyway, we all probably know that. The 1st person is just to get your call to the right person who handles accounts

So then I talk to a woman that has NOTHING in the notes from the 8 minutes I just spent talking to James, and I waste 2 minutes telling her I am not renewing.

THEN she has to try and get me to stay on the billing. I don't know why they are desperate to keep an upset customer, or a broke one. She asked why I would not renew, and I told her, because your company can't take a note, and put it in the account with my name on it, and I have to waste my time explaining everything over and over again every time there is a problem.

So, she offers to renew my Sirius XM for a year, or whatever, for 1/2 price.

Then she tried to tell me what a long time I've blah blah and that Sirius will offer blah blah blah

and I say no. I said, you aren't listening to me. I am not renewing.

Then the magic last ditch, low dollar, bottom line offer gets mentioned. $25 dollars for 5 months.

Friends, that's 3.5 times less a month than they want to bill me for at the normal rate. $209 for 12 months, is 17.4 a month.... but when you're telling them you are going away, and turn off the subscription, they suddenly will give you the same amount of Sirius XM radio for about 1/3rd the price (for 5 months)

I've mentioned this before. http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/search/label/Sirius%20XM 

what all those types of definers mean, that follow the name of the road.

A road has no special qualifiers. It connects point a to point b.
A street connects buildings together, usually in a city, usually east to west, opposite of avenue.
An avenue runs north south. Avenues and streets may be used interchangeably for directions, usually has median
A boulevard is a street with trees down the middle or on both sides
A lane is a narrow street usually lacking a median.
A drive is a private, winding road
a court usually ends in a cul de sac or similar little loop
place is similar to a court, or close, usually a short skinny dead end road, with or without cul de sac, sometimes p shaped
bay is a small road where both ends link to the same connecting road
a trail is usually in or near a wooded area
a highway is a major public road, usually connecting multiple cities
a motorway is similar to a highway, no pedestrian or animal traffic allowed
an interstate is a highway system connecting usually connecting multiple states, except Hawaii
a turnpike is part of a highway, and usually has a toll, often located close to a city or commercial are
a freeway is part of a highway with 2 or more lanes on each side, no tolls, sometimes termed expressway, no intersections or cross streets.
a parkway is a major public road, usually decorated, sometimes part of a highway, has traffic lights.
a causeway combines roads and bridges, usually to cross a body of water
circuit and speedway are used interchangeably, usually refers to a racing course,

http://swarfs.tumblr.com/

Just one little problem with thinking Nascar is an American racing sport. Well, how can it be American when the engine blocks are all cast in England? Why don't they use engines made in the USA? Seriously, where is the MADE IN USA sticker?

Don't you think the cars and tires and engines should be American? Isn't that what Nascar was?

 Grainger and Worrall is an engineering and machining company in Telford Shropshire, England. It's near the center of England, jut west of Birmingham

They made all the engine blocks used by "Chevys and Fords" in the 2015 Daytona 500

They also make the engines for the Acura NSX, and the Aston Martin DB11, and they did the F1 engines in 2014, and the 2015 NHRA Pro-stock engines. They also make parts for the Veyron and the Mulsanne, and they make brand new heads for the Rolls Royce Merlin V12 airplane engine used in Spitfires, Mustangs, Hurricanes and the Lancaster bomber.

http://www.sbnation.com/nascar/2011/9/9/2415041/kyle-busch-nascar-american-flag-car-richmond-9-11-2011
http://www.gwcast.com/en/

Sept 2015 issue of Car and Driver, page 26

FWIW, Nascar doesn't claim to be American, or Made in the USA http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/about-nascar.html I looked, and it doesn't. 

Steve just told me about a website all about the Powell truck

http://clubs.hemmings.com/powellregistry/factory.html

hand made downhill mountain bikes, how they are made, skip the 1st two minutes

whoa, British people had some TOUGH tests to make sure their car was safe! Check out this brake test gauge!

http://www.bowmonk.com/products/view/tapley-brake-test-meter

the MOT of Great Britain, Ministry of Transportation, tests vehicles over three years old used on anything defined as a road in the Road Traffic Act 1988

The test was originally just the basic test of brakes, lights and steering after the vehicle was ten years old and every year thereafter. When they checked the brakes back in the early 70s, they put one of these Tapley G Meters on the floor. Steve was telling about it this morning. The testing guy would slam on the brakes and sometimes caused crashes and wrecks and the govt had to change that up and test the brakes on a set of rollers

This became known as the "ten year test", or alternatively the "Ministry of Transport Test". The high failure rate resulted in the age that vehicles became due for testing being reduced to seven years in 1962

Now the windshield wipers are tested, the exhaust NOISE is measured against the standard for that make, model, and year, and the lights are checked. They don't want owners to feel like they can OWN the car and change it to improve it's looks or performance. 

the "Buddy" Stewart truck

The Stewart Motor Company was founded in 1912 in Buffalo NY by Thomas Lippard and R. G. Stewart. and for the next thirty years they manufactured some of the finest medium duty trucks in the USA. Their marketing plan was to be a moderately priced model between the two giants International Harvester and REO. Every manufacturer had a name for their light duty trucks. Stewart called their's the "Buddy" to compete with the International "Special Delivery" and the REO "Speed Wagon".

The Stewart Motor Corporation of Buffalo, New York, began building commercial vehicles in 1912. For 1915 and 1916 only, hey offered a passenger car, before returning to what they did best. In 1926 they introduced the “Buddy”– a medium truck with road-going performance During the 1921 model year, he Stewart Company announced that it was going to manufacture its first civilian pickup truck. This new addition was market towards the everyday tradesman or farmer, here the previous models were almost exclusively marketed commercial. The Stewart pickup was then offered as an express, stake, panel and a special farmer’s model.

https://www.mecum.com/lots/HA0415-208802/1924-buddy-stewart-speed-truck-canopy-express/