Automotive on Kereso Barat

Ohiyo!

Hello again from the Far East on the West Coast, and greetings from the DOJO. This week, before I get in to the nuts and bolts of the treadmills and the ellipticals I work on, I’m going to start with a quick guide to how to choose a treadmill — well, how to choose a residential / home grade treadmill. Choosing a commercial treadmill tends to be a bit easier — go Star Trac, Matrix, Landice or Life Fitness and, in spite of their great ellipticals, avoid Precor treadmills. Precor is a great company, they just don’t quite have treadmills down as well as the other companies. With the commercial treadmills it’s kind of like choosing between a BMW, a Mercedes and a Lexus. It’s all about bells and whistles more than performance…they’re all great machines and we’ll talk about them another time.

Home treadmills are a tough sea to navigate for most buyers — there are so many different brands and they all look alike to outsiders. Luckily, over the past 20 or so years, I’ve had to repair just about every treadmill ever made. In other words, my pain will be your salvation!

My first piece of advice is: avoid anything and everything from Icon Health and Fitness. They’re the manufacturer of the units you’ll find at places like Sears — nothing against Sears, but the treadmills they sell tend to be on the lower end of the quality scale. Their treadmills seem to have specs that are too good to be true for their cost and, truth be told, they are. The old proverb, “you get what you pay for” comes in to play with them. Small motors with high RPMs to give them a perceived higher horsepower (most of their motors should really be rated at under 1.5 HP regardless of what they tell you — a motor the size of a soda can should not be powering a full sized treadmill!), lots of plastic pieces, tiny rollers, and generally unstable machines are par for the course for the Icon brands like Proform, Weslo, Healthrider and Image. Just stay away from them! There are better treadmills even at the more affordable prices that Icon tempts the unlearned consumer with.

On with translating the arcane lore that is treadmill purchasing for the lay person.

Let’s start with the motor. The first thing you want to do is make sure the motor is rated with “Continuous Duty.” Any sales person or manufacturer who gives you a “Peak” rating is trying to sell you a bag of magic beans. Peak is best described as the maximum a motor will perform at before it breaks down. What’s more imporant is: how the heck is that motor going to perform when you’re actually using it? Another thing a shady salesperson might mention is that a common home circuit (120v/15amps) will only let you run about 2.5 HP and any motor larger than that is a waste of money. Technically that is true (about the amps vs. HP, not the waste of money), but the larger motors will tend to last longer as they are not running at the higher RPMs of a smaller motor. And, if nothing else, the larger the motor, the smoother the “ride.” A bigger motor will allow you to run or walk on it without slipping.

The next thing to look at is the size of a treadmill’s rollers. The bigger the rollers, the longer your belt will last and the better the running experience.

Next, and this is my favorite thing — especially when recommending cardio equipment to my in-laws — the warranty. Like anything else, the better the warranty the more piece of mind you will have. The 5 year parts warranty on Spirit treadmills, for example, is one of the best in the business. For me, the more faith a manufacturer has in its own product (i.e. the warranty), the more faith I have in that product. Of course, doing repairs I absolutely love the lower end warranties as it means more paying work for me!

What’s next? The weight and stability of the machine. There is nothing worse than getting on a treadmill and having it move back and forth, or shake, or, even worse, creak as you run on it. The heavier the unit the longer it will last. If you’re used to running on a treadmill at your local gym and then get on most home units, you’ll immediately notice the difference. You don’t want to be running around on something that feels like it is going to fall apart now do you? Don’t answer, that was a rhetorical treadmill question.

The tread and the deck are where most problems for treadmills happen. When the friction from your running builds up between the deck and the tread, the badness begins. Stick with the 4-ply belts/treads that help to reduce the amount of friction, and look at units with reversable, phenolic wax coated decks. Reversable decks let you flip over your running surface to use the opposite side when the original wears down. It’s like having a free second deck if you wear out the first one.

Programs. Don’t be fooled by this. Most people only wind up using 3-4 programs. If the treadmill has 20, that’s cool, but you’ll rarely use them. If you do heart rate training, then heart rate control is great. If not, it’s just an extra you’ll never use…like the clock you’ve never set on your VCR.

Speed and Incline are worth talking about. Most treadmills can go up to about 10 miles per hour and a 10 degree incline. Don’t let speed or incline become a deciding factor unless you’re doing a lot of high speed or high incline training. Obviously, electronically controlled speed and incline are the way to go. If those feature are manual just move on.

Finally, test out the shock absorbtion. You want to make sure you aren’t running on a hard surface. This is a “feel” thing more than a “scientific” one. If the deck is bouncy, move on. If the deck feels like running on concrete, move on. If the deck moves from side to side, move on. You want to find a deck that feels good, with just enough give and little to no lateral motion.

Beyond that fans, speakers, cup holders, magazine racks and even television sets on the treadmill’s console are all just icing on the cake. It’s better to get a good treadmill without a fan or TV and spend $50 to buy your own than to get a crappy, fully loaded treadmill which will eventually just become an expensive coat rack for dirty clothes.

Now, I know I alread typed “finally” but there is one last piece to consider: PRICE. You can only get what you can get but don’t be fooled into buying a lemon. There are decent (and some downright Great) treadmills at just about every price point. I’ll go over some of the best, at least in my experience, treadmills in the under $1000 range in the next week.

Don’t despair, there is a good treadmill out there you can actually afford

The new 2007 Lexus LS 460, the largest and most expensive sedan by Lexus is by far the best release so far by the luxury division of Toyota Motor Corporation. This fourth generation of the full-size RWD, which has been, for eighteen years, the flagship of Lexus has a more attractive and even more aggressive stance, thanks to Lexus new design style, L-Finesse.

The state-of-the-art exterior lighting features a Dual-swivel Adaptive Front Lighting System, with High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps which are more energy-effective, durable, and brighter than conventional halogen headlamps.

The Intuitive Parking Assist uses sensors to alert drivers when they get too close to other parked cars, and with the help of the Advanced Parking Guidance System, this car will virtually park itself. The electrochromic outside mirrors automatically reduce glare, when the light is too bright. A Smart Access Key activates both the doors and the ignition. The 19-inch wheels ensure an increased accuracy on handling.

The interior offers one of the most luxurious, executive-class seating available on the market: leather-trimmed seats, with a memory system which holds the driver’s and the passenger’s favorite position, the 8 GB hard-disk on the surround sound audio system, the voice-activated navigation system are but a few of the features which add up to making the Lexus LS 460 2007 one of the most comfortable cars available on the market.

A 4.6 liter engine with 380 hp and 367 lb-ft of torque (an amazing 36 percent more powerful than its predecessor) is actually the world’s first V8 engine which combines port and direct fuel injection, powering an acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in a staggering 5.4 seconds.

Another novelty is the eight-speed automatic transmission, which, together with the direct injection system and the dual variable valve timing, significantly reduce fuel consumption and emissions, earning this model a well-deserved certification as an Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (ULEV II). The Dynamic Radar Cruise Control helps maintain a safe distance from car in front, and the Electronic Controlled Braking (ECB) system is set to increase the level of safety both in critical situations and while parking the car.

Its safety features include sophisticated airbag placement, for optimal protection for all passengers, the ECB, as mentioned above, ABS, both prepared by the Pre-Collision System, an advanced Tire Pressure Monitor System, and three-points seatbelts, ensuring a high level of protection in critical situations.

All features considered, the Lexus LS 460 2007 takes this combination of luxury, manageability and safety to new heights, bringing it ever closer to the much more expensive sedans from Rolls-Royce and Maybach.

Vehicles are more than just heavy steel; it means unleashing torque and horsepower to make a whole new difference in driving. And they are in for a treat! This year, automakers roll out the red carpet to flaunt their power lineup with incredible levels of styling, performance and nuance. For that reason, what wheels are hot for the year 2007?

According to auto analysts, this year is going to be a good year for cars. From trend-setting superminis to breathtaking supercars and everything in between, the needs and whims of the aficionados will certainly be answered. The auto industry is showered by lots of choices and that fact alone makes 2007 a very interesting year.

First on the desire list is the Audi R8 supercar which is scheduled to go on sale this summer. The car is priced at $120,000 to $130,000. It is based on the 2003 Audi Le Mans Quattro concept car, not the automaker’s R8 race car. It comes with a striking headlight design that uses LED technology. Audi said the internal reflectors of the new car resemble those found in miniature Sydney Opera Houses. Compared to conventional auto headlamps, LEDs used in the Audi R8 are smaller hence they do not occupy a great amount of space much to the pleasure of Audi designers.

Next on the must-drive list is Volvo S80. Bits of ridiculously sophisticated auto materials are put together by Volvo’s pool of designers to come up with a functional luxury sedan. The all-new sedan from the automaker is equipped with one-of-a-kind features like the in-car heartbeat monitor that alerts the driver through key fob when there is a person approaching the car. Volvo auto parts in the Volvo S80 are aftermaths of meticulous testing to boost performance, styling and safety.

What makes the Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG coupe a standout? Enthusiasts say it is the cruise control integrated in it that delivers an autopilot function for stop-and-go traffic. This is Mercedes’ way of aiding drivers to pay attention on the road ahead. The system is equipped with radars to monitor the distance of the car with other cars. The coupe steers, brakes and accelerates when required to trail another car.

Another irresistible lure to auto aficionados is the inclusion of mind-boggling upgrades to the automakers’ lineup. The upgraded models boast improved technology to make fanatics unable to resist. Come Lexus LS Hybrid, a vehicle that runs on gasoline or electricity. The regular version of the vehicle is powered by a V8 engine that produces 380 horsepower. The electric motor in the hybrid version assists the V8 to generate more than 430 units of horsepower. So far, the hybrid version of the Lexus LS is deemed a status symbol of choice.

Lexus is not the only automaker which has the nerve to show off its innovative prowess. Aston Martin, Maybach and Rolls-Royce also exhibited their pride vehicles. Aston Martin boasts of its V-8 Vantage Convertible. Maybach 62 S was also unveiled to create a hot-rod version of the 62 sedan. The Bentley Azure drop-top version is also made more captivating than before.

2007 is a year of remarkable auto innovations that could etch a worthy milestone for the industry. Aficionados clamoring for hot, high-end cars would be very much benefited.