In article >, Martin Brown wrote:

> Last time I was stuffed with a Pontiac GrandMA ~3.4L allegedly a popular
> choice according to the rental guy. So named because of the way it
> wheezes when going up hills. A basic manual UK Ford Mondeo 1.6 petrol
> would easily have left it standing. The automatic transmission was
> lousy, kick down wasn't properly adjusted - it had done about 3000 miles
> from new. The gas peddle altered the amount of engine noise with a 2s
> delay before anything useful was transmitted to the road wheels.
> Overtaking was best done after switching off the aircon. It had the
> turning circle of a supertanker, terrible understeer and the wheels
> squealed going round corners. The ride was soft and flaccid more like
> being on a ship. When I returned it 2000 miles later it already needed
> an oil change. It guzzled fuel for a saloon car but that didn't matter
> because gas was so cheap and it had a huge tank.

This not only describes the car, but the bulk of drivers on the road in
the USA. Most of the buyers don't even notice what a lumbering beast cars
like this are because, well, they don't even understand how to drive
beyond it's merger limits. Much of the driving mentality and training in
the USA is firmly stuck in the 1930s.

I guess the best way I can put it is this... I find drivers frustratingly
slow at intersections and when turning. The catch is, I'm often not
driving, I am riding my cannondale R600. (A bicycle)

> The bigger US cars and SUVs are even worse. "Quality" is apparently
> measured by the number of cup holders fitted to the vehicle.

Driving is secondary task at best for much of the population in the USA.