It is a hatchback with lines reminicent of the Aston Martin DB7 and/or Vanquish.
In the five minutes of 15mph driving I had I noticed a distinct lack of body roll when encountering known dips and bumps in the garage, without the harsh ride of an overly tight suspension.
Parking the car and looking under the hood, I discovered why: at the top of each shock/strut tower was an electrical wire, leading from the shock absorber to some control box somewhere unseen. I theorize these wires continually adjust the shock’s damping rate and/or internal pressure as part of some electronic active suspension.
Under a black and silver plastic engine cover (so prevalent in today’s engine compartments to pretty-up modern motors) lay a DOHC V8 of untested maximum power ( you think I’m gonna risk my job grag-racing in a close-quartered garage?)
Funny - I saw one of these just today parked in the front row of the garage across the street. Thought is was a sharp car but didn’t know the model - until now.
The shock absorbers use a substance called magnetorheological fluid. What happens is when the sensors observe a change they send a charge through the wires to the shock absorbers, whereupon the fluid greatly increases viscosity, in some cases almost to the point of behaving like a solid. The first use of this that I am aware of was in the 50th anniversary Corvettes, although it has become more common since.
Not that I really care one way or another, but what do you think your employer would say about your popping hoods out of curiosity?
Or the car owners?
Personally, it would never cross my mind that a valet would pop the hood on my car. Not a huge deal, but just not at all a part of the service I expect from valet parking. And I imagine I would be more upset the more expensive my car.
Wait, we’re still talking about cars, right? It’s just that I have this weird feeling that half the thread is thinking about automobiles and the other is thinking about… I don’t know, their wives or something.
As a Lead Driver I often pop the hood to inspect oil leaks, dead batteries, “burnt” smells, steaming radiator cap, etc. as they can lead to harm of the car or other cars parked around them if not intervened…and report that to the supervisor and vehicle owner, if need be,
If everything’s all right, there’s nothing to report.
Like I said, it isn’t a big deal, just exceeds what I would expect a valet to do. if I ask a guy to park my car, that is the entirety of what I expect him to do. If I learn he did something more just to satisfy his curiosity, I guess a small part of me might wonder what else he might do - pop the trunk, rifle through the glove box?
Again, not a big deal, but in most situations where I contract with someone to perform a specific service, I would be a little surprised - and I guess bothered - to learn that while they had access to my property they did something that was not strictly necessary to perform that specific service. Let’s say you have a tradesman in your home. Maybe a painter painting your bedroom. Would it bother in the least you to learn that he looked in your closet, dresser drawers, and medicine cabinet? Didn’t take or even touch anything - just looked. Just strikes me as “unprofessional” (to the extent that term can be applied to a job such as valet.)
And I would suspect most employers would discourage their employees from doing things that are not required to perform their essential job duties - especially if there is any chance that those actions might bother the paying customers.
Finally, you never know whether a jerky customer will later claim something went wrong with his engine, or the finish of his car, and try to attribute it to the curious car jockey. I think most employers would prefer to have the strongest possible defense against any such accusations.
An exceptional review and for the moment the XK is at the top of my “if I never drive over 15 mph again” wish list. Looking forward to some Italian reviews - Ferrari, Maserati.
As some one who drives a car that valets seem to go ga-ga over for whatever reason, feel free to pop the hood and take a look around. I’d much rather you did that than engage in wild four-wheel drifts around the parking lot or ignore my instructions about turning off the fans.
To all:
I didn’t mean to come off so snarky, and being a car/truck/thing_with_wheels lover, I can understand wanting to see what’s under the hood.
Politeness dictates that I would much prefer you ask, but that just my personal boundary showing about such things.
That said, I’m glad Enola Straight got to drive such a cool car, even if it was only 15 MPH.
And a great explanation on the active suspension from Airman Doors.
(I really do look forward to hearing more about your exotic-car experiences.)
Heh, some years ago I friend of mine who drove a Ferrari got stopped by a state trooper (obviously, for speeding). The guy came up, walked all around the car admiring it, then stopped by the window and asked my friend if he could take a look at the engine.
“Not if you’re going to give me a ticket,” my friend told him.
The cop replied, “Forget the ticket, let me see that engine!”
Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t put things of a personal nature under the hood of my car. Like ya know my undies, drugs or a personal diary. Maybe a dead possum that I’m radiator cooking while on the road, but not much more than that. You do understand that when you give the keys to somebody, you’re kind of relenquishing control of your personal space for better or for worse. Just a suggestion, don’t valet park if you’ve got the proverbial body in the trunk. Oh and yeah it would be nice if hired folks kept to their business while in your house, but I wouldn’t bet on it if I was trying to hide something. A word to the wise; the help know everything about you. Watch a bit of upstairs/downstairs on the beeb.
