"crotch-tingling"? *blushes*

Well, maybe not..

What are "you" talking about? "I" don't write realtime code or design my app.... WAIT A MINUTE. Are you ceiling cat?

Bullshit! A timing light and feeler guage costs what? 20$ maybe? What's a laptop, cables, and software cost....? Forgot to mention keeping the OS up to date, keeping the dirt/rust/dust out of it, running an extension cord when the batt dies...

Open the hood on a any 68 model year with a v8 in it (ok, except for the Boss 427's ;-)... I could almost climb in and close the hood while working on it (I could on my old full size pickup, and I'm 6' tall...) Change a water pump? 20 minutes. Remove the valve covers and clean the gunk out of the returns? 20 min. Pull the whole damn engine? 90 min or less with a good hoist and hard floor.

Take a wild guess how many vehicles out there right now have a broken sensor(s) and are running with the default value tables in ROM because the owner is ignoring the idiot light... More than likely 70+ percent.

Which type of vehicle would you want to have to fix in the middle of nowhere if your life absolutely depended on it? "Shit, my laptop battery is dead...", "I can't reach the hose to get some duct tape around it", "WTF are all of these wires melted into a ball?"

Efficiency, higher mileage, reduced emissions, etc are to be applauded, but I think that the auto industry absolutely sucks when it comes to building vehicles. "Lets cover up the oil filter by bolting this onto that, then cover it with this, then route 20 wiring harnesses over/under it. Oh yeah, don't forget to design in a bunch of nooks and crannies for the salt and mud to hide in." "Lets design a $500 part with 10 stepper motors and 3 micro controllers to control the environmental controls too...."

After all, they want you back in the showroom before the current one is paid off, and would rather have you come into the dealership for pricey profitable service.