Questions tagged [road-vehicles]
Use this tag for question about cars, trucks and other road transport.
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Is cycling worse for the environment than driving to work if you need to take a shower?
I had an argument with a work colleague. He claims that me cycling to and from work is less environmentally friendly than driving because
I will eat more as a result of expending more energy.
I have ...
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Are Hummers more environmentally friendly than Prius?
I've heard this rumor a few times (example). The argument is that it takes energy to make the car, and when you take into account how long each car will last on the road, driving Prius's over a large ...
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Is formaldehyde the source of the "new car smell"?
We bought a new car and the smell reminded me of something I was curious about: I remember reading somewhere that the smell of new car is actually the "smell of death" - that is, the smell of ...
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Can riding a motorcycle without earplugs cause hearing damage?
I've heard claims before that when riding a motorcycle, wind noise (especially on the highway) is loud enough that it will cause eventual hearing loss.
Personally, I ride a motorcycle, and I usually ...
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Is using the A/C in a car less fuel efficient than having the windows down?
This is an age old debate that i have with a coterie of friends; without backing up with much scientific fact. It's all recently been based on arguments of experience.
Is it possible that utilizing ...
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Are electric cars beneficial to the environment compared to low consumption modern cars?
Imagine an electric car in a country where most energy come from coal (which i believe is the dirtiest). Add this to the pollution that disposing the batteries will create, or the carbon footprint ...
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Is it possible to detect a laptop inside of a car boot?
Recently someone at a party told me thieves could detect a laptop in the car boot, even when turned off. At first I thought this was ridiculous, but I found some google queries provided a theory, the ...
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Will putting a car remote under your chin increase its range?
Image source: Miniseed blog
I've heard this before and anecdotally have thought I've experienced it working, but I thought I'd ask here. Many years ago, someone told me that putting a car remote (...
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Does the gasoline of different gasoline brands have any real acknowledgable difference?
A friend of mine said that he could apparently get better mileage using Chevron oil instead of Shell's (and other brands). Is there any substance to this claim?
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Eggs + Water = Total windscreen blindness!
I was just sent this hoax email, but wanted to check one of the claims in it:
IF YOU ARE DRIVING AT NIGHT AND EGGS
ARE THROWN AT YOUR WINDSCREEN, DO NOT
STOP TO CHECK THE CAR, DO NOT OPERATE
...
- 18.1k
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Did older car odometers rewind when driving backwards?
I've always heard that way-back-when, the simplest way to rewind a car's odometer was to drive backwards (at least in some models). Is this true? Did those manufacturers miss such an obvious gaming ...
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Are electric cars better for the environment than internal-combustion cars? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Does a car with a hybrid engine and Lithium batteries pollute more than a car with conventional technology?
We hear a lot about electric cars being the future. But we also ...
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Do cars primarily built on a Monday or Friday have lower quality?
In his 1971 book Wheels, Arthur Hailey claims that cars that were primarily assembled on a Monday or Friday would suffer from quality problems due to worker performance/absenteeism issues associated ...
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Does flooring the gas pedal reduce mileage?
Many websites that give tips on increasing mileage mention (typically in passing) that you should not accelerate hard.
Examples include (from the first two google hits on "increase gas mileage")
...
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Do elderly drivers cause the most accidents?
Has it been statistically or empirically proven that elderly drivers (65 and over) are responsible for more accidents than any other age group?
Some offer figures such as:
In 2001 drivers over 70 ...
- 24.5k
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Did the Renault Espace sell only 9 cars when it was launched?
According to Richard Hammond of Top Gear, Renault's entry into the people carrier market sold just nine cars in its first month (1:18 - 1:27).
However, I cannot find a single source to back up ...
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Is it better to cross rough railroad tracks very slowly or at normal/higher speeds?
When encountering the average bumpy railroad crosssing such as the one pictured above, does slowing down almost to the point of stopping (as you would for a speed bump) produce less stress on the ...
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Do carpool lanes help reduce traffic congestion more than adding an extra lane would?
Many cities have added carpool lanes to their roads, in hopes of encouraging people to carpool and reduce traffic. The idea is that, not only does the road now have an extra lane, there will also be ...
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Is there a difference in driving ability between men and women? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Does gender affect driving skill?
Time and time again I hear that "women shouldn't be allowed on the road because they are bad drivers" or similar stories.
I'm personally of ...
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Does the type of oil you use in your car make a difference?
I have a car that has over 140k on it. Are there any valid reasons to use high milage oil instead of conventional oil? Or is it just a marketing gimmick?
Similarly what's the difference between ...
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Is it necessary to change motor oil every 5,000km/3,000 miles?
I've always heard that you should change your oil every 3,000 miles (5,000 km). That little sticker you get on your windshield after an oil change agrees. Growing up, my parents told me the same thing....
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Is driving the speed limit on a highway safer?
I'd have thought this would have been asked already but I didn't see it. Is driving the speed limit safer on a highway? By "highway" I mean high-traffic areas, such as 4-lane divided thoroughfares.
...
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Does Ferrari cheat at track tests?
The article How Ferrari spins by Chris "Monkey" Harris contains claims that Ferrari has dishonest practices with the press.
How bad has it been? I honestly don't know where to start. Perhaps the ...
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Do cars pass with less space for bicyclists who wear helmets?
This question is an off-shoot of from the discussion about helmet safety. There is an assertion that when a car passes a bicycle, it allows less space to those who wear a helmet than those without. ...
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Does left-foot braking result in faster driving?
Does braking using your left foot (like Formula 1 drivers would) make you a better/faster driver?
And why?
Is it only better/faster if you don't have a clutch? So then it would not be impressive at ...
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Do car alarms provide a significant reduction in automobile theft?
Noise
That movie got me thinking, because it makes a number of claims about car alarms that jive with my personal feelings about them. They're noisy, obnoxious, tend to go off at night, and are ...
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Are passengers inside cars protected from lightning because of the tires?
It's a common statement that passengers of a car are protected from lightening while inside because the car has rubber tires (which are insulators). An alternative theory often put forward is that ...
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Does 'Rubber Necking' happen after an accident?
When two cars get into an accident the cars around them need to slow down to avoid hitting the cars involved in the collision. This causes a backup in traffic. People have often told me that traffic ...
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Is premium fuel "better"?
Is there any evidence that premium and/or high-octane fuel (petrol/gas for cars):
improves performance; and/or
improves engine longevity; and/or
improves mileage so that money is saved on fuel, even ...
- 11.9k
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Do lower speed limits reduce gasoline usage?
There are three parts to this question:
Does speed have an effect on miles-per-gallon? Is there a more accurate causal effect than speed that would also cause a connection at varying speeds? (perhaps ...
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Do the majority of people go 80 mph on the motorway?
I live in the UK, and my dad has told me "It is not possible to drive at 70 mph on the motorway. Everyone goes at 80 mph and [the police] don't care."
When he says nobody he means the majority of ...
- 11.9k
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Did car and oil companies actively try to suppress electric cars' development?
According to some (e.g. the documentary film Who Killed the Electric Car?), car and oil companies have actively tried to suppress electric cars' development.
Electric cars seem to have technological ...
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"We have the right tires for your driving style." [closed]
I saw an ad for a tire company today stating that they have the right tires for your driving style. When I buy tires I look for silent tires with long lifespan, good grip and most importantly a decent ...
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Does lowering the legal BAC make driving safer?
Lower legal blood alcohol concentration limit laws are passed under the assumption that a lower legal limit will reduce the number of accidents.
For example, the U.S government lowered the legal BAC ...
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Can you unlock a car using a cell phone?
I have heard that it is possible to unlock a car using the remote key-fob over a cell phone network.
Scenario: Adam locks his keys in his car. He uses his cell phone to call his wife, Betty, who is ...
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Does gender affect driving skill?
Are there any differences in either sex which are provably beneficial and/or detrimental to their driving abilities?
Also, is it possible that stereotypical gender roles make any difference in ...
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Do automobile manufacturers make parts wear out and break easily, just so they can make more money?
It is sometimes heard that automobile manufacturers design low-quality parts that wear out or break easily, so that they can make money on the repair or replacement of these parts.
I believe this to ...
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Why do we not have vehicles that meet or exceed the MPG ratings of vehicles that were available in the 1990s
I'm seeing some conspiracy theories making the rounds which claim that car-manufacturers are intentionally making cars that aren't as fuel efficient as they used to be. They often point to the Geo ...
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Platinum fuel saver
I've heard on the radio advertisements for a product called the Platinum Fuel Saver, that they claim that if you use it, you will increase fuel efficiency by 25%. What kind of data is there to support ...
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Does a car with a hybrid engine and Lithium batteries pollute more than a car with conventional technology?
You hear a lot of claims that, once you include manufacturing and battery replacement, hybrids pollute more than an efficient, more conventional engine. Are there any end-to-end studies measuring any ...
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