Trucks

Aggies rethinking truck freight with electric train

A group of Texas researchers would like to resurrect the train as chief freight mover in the U.S.

The Universal Freight Shuttle is the brainchild of Stephen Roop, assistant director Texas Transportation Institute (TTI), a branch of Texas A&M University's system chain.

The automated train, which is designed to accommodate standard shipping containers and trailers, would move forward along a track by linear induction motors powered with electricity.

Roop and others at TTI have been working on the concept and design for eight years, keeping in mind not just the technology, but how such an infrastructure … Read more

Hybrid trucks strut on Capitol Hill

We often fret over our own gas mileage and that of our neighbors' cars, but how often do we stop to think about the commercial trucking industry's impact on the environment?

FedEx Express announced in November 2008 a plan to purchase vehicles that combine Azure Dynamics' hybrid system with a Ford gasoline engine and chassis. The company now claims to be one of the first to use gasoline hybrid-electric delivery trucks for commercial use.

Peterbilt began offering four hybrid models of commercial trucks in 2008.

UPS has begun using hybrid trucks containing Eaton's energy-saving Series Hybrid Hydraulic System … Read more

When Twitter met food trucks

NEW YORK--Goat cheese is the new black. Introducing goat cheese cheesecake, asserted the Twitter account for a Manhattan food outlet called the Dessert Truck one morning in April, a few hours before it opened up shop at its semi-regular haunt on the corner of St. Mark's Place and Third Avenue.

The Dessert Truck is usually in good company. Walk out of the Astor Place subway station into Cooper Square, the gateway to the St. Mark's and Bowery nightlife strips, and depending on the time of day you can buy a cup of coffee, an order of Thai chicken, … Read more

The Great American Redneck Truck Jump

This week, my blog has been dedicated to redneck vehicles, drivers and racing. For my final installment in this series, I found this hilarious web video featuring a group of hilljacks racing their pickup truck over railroad tracks at increasingly accelerated speeds. After realizing the truck was thrashed after numerous jumps (and probably after several beers), the redneck buddies gang up on the truck and tip it over into a ditch. Check it out at 3:00 mark. Totally ridiculous.

116: Get 80+ mpg from your hybrid!

The big week comes for Chrysler: bankruptcy and a shotgun marriage to Fiat, how you might get 80 mpg out of your current hybrid, and are four-cylinder engines on the way back for Mercedes and BMW?

Listen now: Download today's podcast SHOW NOTES

• BMW 650i convertible review and video

• 81 mpg Ford Fusion Hybrid--You can, too!

• Scosche SolChat solar Bluetooth speakerphone

• Cobtra BT-200: Bluetooth for the wet and muddy

• Some heavy duty hybrid trucks

The 404 304: Where this is the show that's caused global warming

MTI (also known as Mark Licea) joins the show today to replace Justin Yu, who's on vacation to Boston. We cover everything under the typical 404-sun: strippers, Playboy, Mexican-Korean truck food, Twitter, and Sweet Lou Bakalar.

Every one knows that the economy is in the tank. For a lot of people out there, that means spending hours every day listening to past episodes of the 404. For some it means that instead of using that Harvard degree, they are using the assets their momma gave them. In related news, Playboy has posted its entire back catalog online. Warning: This is totally NSFW. You can check out all the previous back issues of Playboy magazine online with a Silverlight-enabled browser.

Also, last Friday was the final broadcast of the landmark series Battlestar Galactica. Wilson, being the only fan of the show on The 404, has plenty to say--most of which seems to bore the hell out of Jeff and MTI. The show will be missed, and while the finale hit most of the right marks, there were a few things that gave plenty of pause--like the second ending. Check it out on iTunes or Hulu. Promise you're going to love Number Six in a red dress.

There's a food truck in Los Angeles driving around, Twittering, and making Korean-Mexican tacos? Finally, Sweet Lou Bakalar, Jeff's father, gives us his insight on the current state of texting and television buying. Stay tuned tomorrow for Eric Franklin!

Episode 304 Download today's podcast |  Subscribe in iTunes |  Subscribe in RSS… Read more

Tank blast-o-rama

HeavyMach Lite is a free preview of the first four stages in HeavyMach, a side-scrolling tank game in which you blast through enemy gun emplacements and trucks, helicopters, and other vehicles on your way to battle big bosses. This is a fun, pick-up-and-play game with solid graphics and sound effects, tons of different weapons, straightforward gameplay, and very intuitive controls: you tilt your device to roll left or right, and you tap to shoot--and where you tap controls the angle of your gun. You can also tap a "booster" lever to jump, to overcome obstacles and avoid enemy … Read more

Tank blast-o-rama

HeavyMach Lite is a free preview of the first four stages in HeavyMach, a side-scrolling tank game in which you blast through enemy gun emplacements and trucks, helicopters, and other vehicles on your way to battle big bosses. This is a fun, pick-up-and-play game with solid graphics and sound effects, tons of different weapons, straightforward gameplay, and very intuitive controls: you tilt your device to roll left or right, and you tap to shoot--and where you tap controls the angle of your gun. You can also tap a "booster" lever to jump, to overcome obstacles and avoid enemy … Read more

Very cool monster truck tilt-shift video

Two very cool photography techniques come together here to create something amazing. The first is tilt-shift, a technique often used by architectural photographers to make large objects look like miniatures by taking photos through a lens that's not parallel to the film or digital sensor, which creates a shallow depth of field. The second is time-lapse, which is essentially stringing together a series of photos to create an animation.

What artist Keith Loutit has done in this video, entitled "Metal Heart," is make a monster truck rally/demolition derby look like children's toys come to life, … Read more