Hi hi, I blog & video about Cars / Security, / and My Life. Meet me in my sidebar, find me fastest on Twitter, see you online

This week’s column.  Read it online here:

Favourite line:

The most important part to remember is – don’t do the math on the weight being towed, instead it’s the GVWR – gross vehicle weight rating.

I tried something new this week,
and made a video
to go along with this week’s column

How to Backup a Trailer in 5 Steps

Thanks to my driving buddy that day, Jeremy Sinek, for helping me film! We also won the fuel economy challenge, helped by that I didn’t drive.

Here we are with a Tyranasaurs Rex.

The Solomon Curve shows the relationship between average speed and collision rates.

(collage credit: Charlotte Appel)

Favourite line:

The fastest way to get in a crash, is to go slow.

Made the cover again.

(Last line reads: because unless the car is stolen out of your driveway, the thief now knows where you live and where you’re not. 

Favourite line:

Securing your car isn’t so much about making it theft-proof (that’s impossible); it’s more about making it invisible and undesirable.

Where this week’s column came from.

24 Hours readers – you’ve met me through cars, but as a hobby around here, I blog about security, mostly online.

It’s car season in Canada now, yesss.

Favourite line:

The race name I gave myself:

Keri Amateur Hour of the Put-put Division

That’s for laughs only. Still undecided on what my real name will be… “Keri Cutting-it-Fine Potipcoe” is the current front-runner.

Here’s the blog post about the day on the track I mention, and here’s the video.

Made the top cover spot again, which still makes me involuntarily squeal when I open the newspaper box in the morning and discover it.

Read it online here.

Favourite lines:

It’s never a “whip” (a ’90s hip hop music term that has long passed its expiration date).

And:

Take the term I use when describing my ‘99 Jetta, “hi, I drive a lunch box”.

See my lunch box here.

I drive a Honda
MB4 D16Y8 SOHC GT28RS Enkei RPF1 15×7.5 with a +35 offset

That is this car.

(Thanks to my brother for help with the tuner language. That’s his line, and car)

And this week was my best ever cover mention.

Because look: they included my name, making this the most it’s ever been printed, nice.

Instead of taking a taxi, you use an app on your phone to summon, then pay, a black car. Classy.

Uber – Everyone’s Private Driver

‘

Favourite line:

And that’s it; 2 clicks and zero human interaction, and a car is on its way to you.

Bottom right are the text messages Uber sent me.

Got another of my collages printed, ha.

Above was one of my drivers – Lincoln Navigator.

The seats are pre-heated, and there’s always a bottle of water waiting. And no small talk.

I’m now up to 5 articles / week - 3 news stories, my column, and a technical review like this.

(my review of the all-new Buick Encore)

I still get the biggest kick out of seeing my words in print, like: that’s all me I wrote all that. Sure I’ve written one million words here on my blog, but to hold it in your hand is a neat feeling.

Unfortunately that’s the only review I have a hard copy of, which is sad news for my fridge collection.

This week’s column (prints Wednesday) is about pedestrians, again.

My column prints with this headshot, which is so funny to me.

I took this photo with my phone, and sunglasses on you can’t tell it’s me, which amuses me endlessly.  Because finally after 5 years I finally publish my last name, and it’s accompanied with that photo ha.

My headshot online though, I feel opposite about; wow is it ever awkward. I didn’t actually look so helmety-and-awkward day of.

It’s just, I’ve never liked having my photo taken, and it really shows in the shot.

My boss Joe best sums up the photo.

I jacknifed when that came in.

But the good news is, so we’re switching again to a new content management system, so I can upload a new photo.

But the problem is, time and effort has been put into building that awkwardness into banners.

This is the best banner of all, check out my 468×60… and it’s animated

My disembodied head zooms around back and forth ahaha I’m laughing too ahard ot type…

Welcome to the Autonet newsletter, I’m Keri.

Click through on my helmet hair or weird neck, and let’s go read some car news awkwardly.

Some of my neater topics of recent news stories. Click through to read the story.

Here’s my Autonet.ca news section, updates with 3 articles/week.

In 1998, LA Magazine predicts what cars will be like today, and they got a lot right.

Volvo’s trying to make a car smell like nothing, because that delicious ”new car smell” is actually, low level emissions from the materials.

Nissan designs robots to behave like schools of fish, then uses them for autonomous car research.

Google chooses Volkswagon as its first-ever automotive parnter / collaborator.