Joe Mondello, an Oldsmobile expert and friend of the gear-head community, passed away Wednesday, April 8th at the age of 74. This comes as a massive blow to both the automotive enthusiast community, and to his fans here at PETACAR.

Hemmings Blog: 

Mondello was born in Southern California and got his first automotive job before he could legally drive, at age 14. This position provided lots of automotive engine education, and led to doing valve jobs for his boss, who was impressed enough by the young apprentice’s drive and enthusiasm to allow Mondello to work on the shop’s flathead-powered circle track racer.

This in turn led to his next job, porting and relieving Ford flathead engine blocks for increased performance; it was this work that would form the foundation of Mondello’s vast contributions to automotive performance and racing.

Building a hot rod Ford was a natural, and Mondello’s 1940 coupe saw action at airports and dragstrips across Southern California. His ability to make power was recognized early on, and he soon became known for his prowess at reworking cylinder heads to optimize airflow and combustion efficiency. In fact, Mondello had gone so far as to design his own combustion chamber, dubbed the Posi-Flow, which was first applied to Chevrolet racing engines in the early ’60s with great success; it’s a design that would later be used by multiple auto manufacturers and makers of performance aftermarket cylinder heads alike.

In recent years, Joe Mondello was best known for his extensive expertise in Oldsmobile Performance. Because of this vast knowledge, he was rightly known as "Dr. Oldsmobile." Watch Dr. Oldsmobile in this clip explaining the Oldsmobile 442 / Cutlass:

As fans of all cars, not just the orphans, we are particularly saddened by the loss of Joe Mondello. Joe Mondello's expertise and performance heritage will live on in the 1969 Oldsmobile 455 Big Block that is owned by one of the very members of the PETACAR staff:

In what can only be described as sheer lunacy, an angry mob today destroyed a Lamborghini Gallardo L140 in protest to commemorate the Consumer Rights Day in the eastern part of Shandong, China.

There are no words to describe this horrific event. At PetaCar, we strive to promote the ethical treatment of automobiles of all kinds. We do not discriminate based on model or manufacturer. We share these gruesome and wanton images, not for the shock value, but to enlighten our readers as to the horrors that take place around the world. Readers beware, the images become progressively graphic as you move down the page. We are at half-mast here at the PetaCar headquarters. Our thoughts and prayers are with Lamborghini, as well as the innocent bystanders who witnessed the horrific act.

As if the stories you often hear about California aren't bad enough, we're treated (punished?) to this new report by the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. A man living in Diamond Bar, California was cited for having a flat tire on his 1979 Mercedes SL-450 Coupe.

According to the SGV Tribune: 

The car had a flat tire, making it inoperable and in violation of city ordinances, authorities said.

The Barcons have spent $8,000 on a bail bonds and legal fees. Jail time is not out of the question, Barcon's attorney said. Barcon did not know the flat tire was a major issue until deputies showed up at his home, he said.

He surrendered at the Sheriff's sub-station in Walnut after deputies told his wife they had a warrant for him.
"It was basically, 'Surprise, you're under arrest,"' Barcon said. "I didn't even know what was going on."

Barcon was released on $30,000 bail, according to booking records. Barcon's attorney said the city's tactics were too aggressive considering the nature of the violation.

 

Be warned automotive enthusiasts, the more you support these liberal legislative policies, the more these kinds of practices will continue in the land of Pelosi.

Obama Rally: Earlier Sunday, Obama stated at a Coakley political rally that "anybody can buy a truck..." 

While that may be true Mr. President, it's also true that Brown's truck has aquired over 199,467 miles to be exact. At PETACar, we strive to emphesize the rights of automobiles as much as we do the rights of our citizens. It's clear to us at PETACar that as an avid supporter of automobile maintenance, we happily support Scott Brown's campaign for Senator. We hope that Scott Brown will use the same conservative values in the senate as he has used in maintaining his truck!!!

PETACAR Supports Scott Brown for Senator!

As if the utter destruction from the Cash 4 Clunker's program wasn't enough, it's been determined that several rare cars have also met their end with this program. According to this news report, a low mileage Maserati BiTurbo was destroyed and subsequently crushed as a trade-in on the C4C program.