Everyone has a weak point, an area of Blind Faith.

We have two similar instances of Blind Faith among auto writers this morning.

Wolf Richter is a hardass realist about nearly everything, but has Blind Faith in EVs. He wrote a piece about the Utopian Success of EVs and banned comments, citing backlash from “EV Deniers” to his previous piece on the subject.

Niedermeyer showed a Volvo ad from the 80s, allegedly demonstrating that a Volvo could stand up under a heavy truck. Niedermeyer is the classic High-Status Hippie, holding onto specific fashionable beliefs while carefully correcting all factual points that don’t impinge on fashion. He writes: “Because it’s Volvo, I’m likely to believe that they really did put this truck on its roof.”

The commenters (Volvo Deniers) immediately came back with several proofs, and later admissions by Volvo, that the ad was rigged.

Seems like a poor marketing move by Volvo. Their brand at that time was rigorously practical and safe. Exaggerated claims broke the brand. It would have been better to show the actual maximum drivable load on a factory-equipment roof rack, even if the max was only a few hundred pounds.