There’s an old joke, later made into an internet meme, that goes something like this: “Have you seen my dog? He has brown fur, he’s missing his right ear, blind in one eye and has three legs. He ...

About 15 years ago, I had a regular feature in The New York Times called “Rust in Peace.” It was a simple concept. I talked about some bad cars and explained what made them so, well, bad. You can ...