Questions tagged [road-vehicles]

Use this tag for question about cars, trucks and other road transport.

Road vehicle with four wheels and an engine intended to be a means of transport.

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Do "big-battery" electric vehicles release more CO2 than diesel equivalents over their lifetime?

Autocar report that Mazda have made a surprising claim about electric vehicles with larger batteries (i.e. 95kWh): Mazda says it will never build a ‘big-battery’ electric car, because it believes such vehicles are less environmentally friendly than…
Dorminum
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Is filling multiple vehicles in one transaction at a gas station a safety hazard?

According to this gas station, pumping gasoline into more than one vehicle is a serious safety hazard: The gas station making this claim charges different customers different prices per gallon depending on their level of activity as reflected in…
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How effective are reflectors at preventing pedestrian deaths?

http://www.safetyreflectors.com/education.html has some claims about reflectors: Studies have proven that the risk of being hit by a motorist in the dark is eight times lower when wearing a safety reflector. The use of reflectors has been shown to…
ike
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Would lowering the speed limit in NYC by 5mph lower the number of pedestrian deaths by a factor of 2?

According to the Mayor of New York City, De Blasio: (my emphasis) Excessive speed contributes to 25 percent of roadway fatalities on New York City Streets and is the leading cause of motor vehicle crashes. Reducing vehicle speed from 30 to 25 mph…
ike
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Did the Paul Walker crash happen at ~45 mph speed?

Heavy.com report that the car crash that killed actor Paul Walker was at about 40-45 miles per hour (64-72 km/h). They cite an NBCNews tweet: Update: Paul Walker was not drag racing at time of crash, sources say; car was going 40 – 45 m.p.h. around…
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Do you need to break in new engine on a car/bike for first 1,000 km by driving slowly and otherwise following manual's advice?

Normally car manuals say to let the car break in gently, not accelerating or breaking fast for first 1,000 km or driving below 80km/h. Is that really necessary in today's world? Is there any proof anywhere that this makes the engine run better in…
Dmitri
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Do defensive driving courses reduce car accidents in teenage drivers?

A fairly common claim is that young learner drivers should take defensive driving courses so that they know what to do if they lose control of their car. This comes with the implications it will reduce accidents. Is there any evidence to back up…
user1605665
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Is the self-driving car technology of 2017 less lethal than human drivers?

Youtube channel veritasium, on a video called "The real moral dilemma of self-driving cars" (ref) claims that if all cars in 2017 were self-driving, hundreds of lives could be saved. So he is claming that the self-driving technology of 2017 would be…
Mindwin Remember Monica
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What is the real history behind of the Ford GAA engine?

I have been searching for quite some time trying to find out if what I have heard is true with the history of how the Ford GAA engine came to be. (Note: this site has some errors, such as its reference to the GAA replacing the Chrysler A57 Multibank…
Cc Dd
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Can aspirin revive a flat car battery?

I just read this article on The Reader's Digest which writes to say If you get behind the wheel only to discover that your car’s battery has given up the ghost — and there’s no one around to give you a jump — you may be able to get your…
Everyone
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Was there a time when the RSL banned Japanese cars from their carparks?

From Prime Minister - Address at CEDA's 2014 State of the Nation Conference, Parliament House, Canberra Prime Minister Menzies for instance opened up trade with Japan at a time when Japanese cars were still banned from RSL club car parks. and in…
Andrew Grimm
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Can all new gasoline vehicles run on E85 ethanol-based fuel?

From the the documentary Pump at 1:07: NARRATOR: But what if we don't need a flex fuel car or even a kit? What if the car you drive today already contained the technology that could enable it to run on gasoline, ethanol, or methanol? What if the…
user29977
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Do directional tread patterns on tires reduce hydroplaning?

Treaded car tires are said to be better at avoiding hydroplaning than smooth tires (slicks) in the rain. In particular, directional treads are thought to be the best. The following is an example of that claim: Hydroplaning: the Role Tires…
Eklimek
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Are manual transmission cars stolen less?

There is a decent amount of anecdotal evidence about manual transmissions being a good anti-theft device - but are there any statistics? Here's a statistic-less article from MSN.com It's folk wisdom: If no one really drives a manual transmission…
Ehryk
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Is a repaired car tire as good as a new one?

I recently had one of my car tires punctured by a screw. It lost pressure only very slowly, it probably took a couple of days before I noticed the tire was below pressure. The guys from the tire company removed the screw, and then somehow "fixed"…
BaGi
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