Daily Podcast: A Pom-Pom Free Zone

by Robert Farago

July 31st, 2008 4:27 PM

I've been exceptionally busy on the flame-suppression front. This week, I've removed dozens of offensive comments, and permanently banned more than a few unruly malcontents. I'm not surprised. It's a painful time for anyone who had faith in the domestic automakers. The bad news coming from Detroit is coming fast and it makes them furious. At us. But a lot of the boneless chickens we've identified here over the last four years– giving credit to anyone with a pulse, bad branding, lousy product decisions, and on and on– are coming home to roost. Truth to tell, it's a good time for TTAC. Our visitor numbers are up. Nothing rad. Just the same organic growth. Which is fine by me. It means we're building a solid base of readers who "get it." And to this group I promise more solid journalistic work like Samir Syed's excellent interview with CAW leader Buzz Hargrove. We're limited by finances, but wherever we can, we will break news. Meanwhile, we, like you, watch the scene with an increasing sense of foreboding. Through it all, we'll be here, telling the truth about cars.

[New podcast inserted. Thanks for your patience.]

Comments

Join the conversation

4 of 23 comments

Sajeev Mehta on Jul 31, 2008
Robstar : I love to read, but I’d hate to be a moderator. You couldn’t pay me enough to do it. I moderate for another forum, and its a thankless job. But I still love it. re: Gullwing. I thought Mercedes canned the idea after race prepped 300SLs (black in the day) flipped upside down, caught on fire, and the safety crew couldn't get the driver out in time to save his life. Roof mounted hinges are a bad, bad idea. You can get a little leverage on a lambo-style door, but there's nothing when the entire weight of the car sits on the hinge.

Like Reply
USAFMech on Aug 01, 2008

Sajeev: If you and Ralph Nader hate it, then I love it. If I had the means, I would recommend (to myself) picking one up.

Like Reply
Spider on Aug 01, 2008

One of the more entertaining editions of the Daily Podcast. (except for the volume thing) As for the Benz uber-schlong vs. the the McLaren vapor pod, I agree: who cares? Not only are they irrelevant and ugly (M-B), but the Benz is essentially one giant gimmick. An unraceable, un-streetable 1Tb-horsepower phallic symbol - with gullwings. Umm, no thanks. Give me a 400hp V8 coupe and a Cayenne GT instead.

Like Reply
Ghillie on Aug 01, 2008

RF - good job. Keep up the hard work on the anti-flaming. The thoughtfulness of many posts (even those I don't agree with) is what makes TTAC worth visiting and coming back to. My other favourite is Insightcentral (for Honda Insight owners). For the most part a delightfully unassuming and helpful collection of anoraks, tech-heads, geeks and enthusiasts.

Like Reply