The BMW i3 wasn’t quite up to standard for motoring enthusiast and mechanical engineer David. So, he waited to close to the end of production and purchased the BMW i3S. What was the difference, I asked. The “S” has more power, larger wheels, and flared wheel arches. David keeps the treasured car in immaculate condition,…

In a previous article, I shared some information about a special project I’m working on: building a mobile newsroom. You can find full details at that link, but in short, the idea is to make travel super cheap to be able to do more “boots on the ground” journalism. Plus, I’m working to do it…

This article is about camping, van life, traveling through the Baja peninsula, and living with technology off the grid, with a BLUETTI generator that doesn’t use a drop of gas. Now, I grew up car camping and backpacking with my dad and brother, roughing it out in nature. And I loved it. But, as…

The average winter snowfall at Alta, Brighton, Snowbird, and Solitude ski resorts in Utah is 500”. As of this writing, Brighton and Alta Ski Resorts are at 672” and 660” snowfall respectively for the season, and the others are not far behind. With 5 weeks of the ski season left to go, we are well…

Seven years ago, I put down my AU$1500 deposit and sat tight and anxious waiting for my Tesla Standard Range Plus (SR+) to arrive. Which she did, three and half years later. We watched videos, we participated in events. Tesla even brought out a left-hand drive version and we queued for one and a half…

I am a huge EV and Tesla fanboy. I know that in principal EVs are much less complex than cars with internal combustion engines. An internal combustion engine (ICE) replacement cost is ~$7000. It is much more complex than an electric motor. In addition, ICE cars have very complex transmissions (replacement cost ~$5000). You also…

The BYD Atto 3 was launched in Australia last quarter of last year. At that time, I spoke with Caleb Gittins, who told me that ordering his car was like placing a takeaway order online — it was that easy. He recently informed me that the car is due for its complimentary 5000 km service,…

The great Aussie road trip continues. Read part 1 here and part 2 here. Our Bairnsdale accommodation was not only luxurious but had Tesla destination chargers. We had a stress-free few days visiting spots around Lakes Entrance in Victoria. We walked out to the entrance itself — a 5 km round trip — and saw…

A couple months ago, I found out that a seemingly pointless On* (the vehicle service formerly known as OnStar) feature can actually be extremely useful. On a trip to the Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona (near Portal, AZ), I found myself looking for food. The local café had closed earlier than I thought, and we were…

In Europe, vans are essentially what pickup trucks are in the USA. We even had a period with double-cabin trucks with smallish cargo space that were used as private cars, before the SUV/CUV craze made them a better alternative. Not having vans from Audi, BMW, or Porsche, the vans from Mercedes-Benz are the top of…