20140705

Dec

2012

8 Words That May Mean A Lot More

by: Emily Chung

Liars' Favourite Words

In Cosmopolitan's "8 Words That Give A Liar Away" article, they asked lie detection expert Janine Driver which words are commonly used by liars. In the article, the context is how to tell if your guy is lying to you.

Left: I left the bar at six vs. I went home at six.
Never: Using 'never' when 'no' will do.
That: Especially in front of a noun—that woman, that money, etc.
Would: He skips no and goes straight to beginning his sentence with 'would.'
Yes ma'am: Unless he's a Southern gentleman, these words apparently indicate he's stressed and knows he's in trouble.
By the way: This minimizes what they say next.
But: Strategy to downplay what they say.
Why would I do that?: A favourite stalling line of liars.

So, here goes—allow me some creative freedom—if you ever hear this from your technician, red flags should be going up (according to the word list).

“I left that car running for a bit and saw the pressure drop a lot. I suspect it's a leak in one of the hoses, but I would never do repairs before getting the ok from you—why would I do that? I've got more sense than that, yes ma'am. By the way, the cost of my diagnosis so far is about $400 . . . sign right here.”

RUN!!! Don't walk. Run away from that shop!

Thanks, Cosmo. Of course, you know I write this post in jest. Apologies to any technician who actually honestly uttered those sentences.

Humour aside, read this for tips to tell if your technician's honest.

Printer-friendly version

Category:

Life - Cars

Tags:

technician

how to tell if your technician is lying

how to tell if your technician is honest

words to look out for

Dec

2012

The woes of a Push Button Start era

by: Emily Chung

Ignition Key: When To Let Go

Have you ever been to an event and as soon as someone finds out what occupation you're in, they ask you for your advice on related things? Doctors get asked questions about ailments, IT techs answer questions about computer problems, etc. It's no different for us as technicians. Usually they're questions about a noise or problem with the car.

One time, I was at a networking event and chatted with a girl who worked in IT. She was a new driver and I asked about her driving experience. She mentioned overall it was good, but she didn't know when to let go of the ignition key when she turned her dad's car on. Our chat was something like this:

Me: Pardon?

Her: After the car turns on, how do you know when to let go of the key?

She explained that her driving school instructor had a push button start car so she never used a physical key... until she got in her dad's car. She turned the key forward to start the car but didn't know when to let go.

I learned to drive in the old school days when we had to stick the key in the ignition to start the engine. For those of you who have ever kept the key forward after the engine starts, you'll know the sound I'm talking about... it gets the same reaction out of me as nails on a chalkboard. If you continue to hold the key forward after the engine starts, you'll risk damaging the starter and/or flywheel. You won't have the same problem with a push button start since it's all electronically controlled.

As the 'push button start' feature becomes more commonplace in today's cars, we'll have a whole generation of drivers who may never start a car with the key. *Sigh* I'm getting old...

Printer-friendly version

Category:

Life - Cars

Tags:

Dec

2012

GM Has A Fun Way To Learn About Cars

by: Emily Chung

Cars For Kids 101

I stumbled across GM Education, a website by General Motors that educates kids (and grown-ups) about different aspects of cars. It’s pretty cool and is easily laid out. Why not teach your kids a few things about cars over the holiday break? Here are some of my favourite things from the site:

Grades K–4

This is a wide age range, so use your discretion when searching for age-appropriate activities.

Interactive game, Cruncha, shows which car parts are recycled and what they could be made into.
Build an edible car with graham crackers, dried fruit, marshmallows . . . mmm, marshmallows.
Energy section has Technology In Your House, and is an interactive game to get kids thinking about the different types of energy consumed at home—your car uses and/or emits these types of energy all the time.
Printable colouring pages.

Grades 5–8

Find a Fuel game—cars use different fuel types (gas, electricity, hydrogen, etc.), and you have to find enough fuel symbols to power the car down the street.
Engine Shop—interactive game that explains different parts of the Corvette engine. The information is good, and the end image shows where all the parts are located in the engine. It would be nice, though, if we could see the parts' location as we play along.
Technology section has information about the use of wind tunnels in testing aerodynamics, and using robots to manufacture cars.

Grades 9–12

Cool Jobs has interviews with many GM employees (engineers, designers, etc.).
Explains how hybrids work.
How to calculate displacement of an engine.
Make your own hydrogen experiment.

Lesson Plans for Teachers

This section explores real-world environmental and technological applications.
Browse by grade, topic, and subject. Anticipated duration for each activity is also listed.
Topics include the forces of flight, sustainability of cars, changes in technology.
Provides downloads for activities, and external links for more information.

For five fun ways to include your kids with auto maintenance, click here.

Images via GM Education