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Mountain goats provide full service car wash at national park

A group of plucky mountain goats in a Canadian national park apparently found the hardscrabble life of a common animal too tedious and tried their hands, rather tongues, at car detailing. YouTube user Darkrider1287 uploaded this video of the goats in action last week. His companion were driving along Maligne Valley Road in Alberta's Jasper National Park when a handful of young mountain goats descended on their Mazda. As the bewildered couple stopped their car, the goats surrounded them and proceeded to lick the vehicle clean. Knowing a good video opportunity when he saw one, Darkrider pulled out his phone to film the endearing and hilarious scene. For thirty minutes, the mountain goats licked the car clean from stem to stern. Paying little to no mind to the humans within, the goats cleared the Mazda of its accumulation of dust, bugs, pollen, and other tasty road grime. "So thorough!" said Darkrider as he narrated his video. "That's some tasty dust!" As the goats cleaned the car, other tourists stopped to laugh and take pictures of the strange scene. Eventually, a handful of cars and as many as ten goats had the Mazda surrounded. "Within a few minutes, we were crowded by both sheep and also tourists taking pictures of our funny plight," Darkrider stated in a comment on the video. "We stayed for about 30 minutes before moving on due to a rainstorm." So what exactly is going on here? A similar event happened to a National Geographic reporter in the same park in 2012. A park ranger told the report that the mountain goats were addicted to the salt used in Alberta to keep the roads from freezing. Even in August, salt can still make its way on to a car in the form of road dust. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: The Daily Mail, YouTube, National Geographic Auto News Humor Weird Car News Mazda Driving goat

Import pickup truck-killing Chicken Tax to be repealed?

After over 50 years, the so-called Chicken Tax may finally be going the way of the dodo. Two pending trade deals with countries in the Pacific Rim and Europe potentially could open the US auto market up to imported trucks, if the measures pass. Although, it still might be a while before you can own that Volkswagen Amarok or Toyota Hilux, if ever. The 25-percent import tariff that the Chicken Tax imposes on foreign trucks essentially makes the things all but impossible to sell one profitably in the US, which lends a distinct advantage to domestic pickups. Both the Trans-Pacific Partnership with 12 counties and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union would finally end the charge. According to Automotive News though, don't expect new pickups to flood the market, at least not immediately. These deals might roll back the tariff gradually over time, and in the case of Japan, it could be as long as 25 years before fully free trade. Furthermore, Thailand, a major truck builder in Asia, isn't currently part of the deal, and any new models here would still need to meet safety and emissions rules, as well. Automotive News gauged the very early intentions of several automakers with foreign-built trucks, and they weren't necessarily champing at the bit to start imports. Toyota thinks the Hilux sits between the Tundra and Tacoma, and Mazda doesn't think the BT-50 fits its image here. Also, VW doesn't necessarily want to bring the Amarok over from Hannover. There is previous precedent for companies at least considering bringing in pickup trucks after the Chicken Tax's demise, though. The Pacific free trade deal could be done as soon as this fall, while the EU one is likely further out, according to Automotive News. Given enough time, the more accessible ports could allow some new trucks to enter the market.

Mazda5 may not be long for this world

The concept behind building a smaller but still useful minivan like the Mazda5 always seemed like such a good idea. However, since the little people hauler's introduction, there has been the rise of the compact crossover in the US, which fulfills a similar niche for many buyers. The future is not looking good for the utilitarian Mazda. Autocar from the UK reports that company officials confirm the Mazda5 is being discontinued there, with no replacement planned. Autoblog reached out to Mazda North America, but the company would not verify future product changes in this region. Though, the model's cancellation would hardly be a surprise to follow in North America, as well. The minivan market is a tough place these days, and dealers tend to prefer more expensive models for their high margins. Even FCA US is abandoning the inexpensive portion of the segment for the next-gen Chrysler Town & Country. The Mazda5 isn't exactly a sales standout, either. Mazda sold 11,613 of them in all of 2014, which was a 16.4 percent drop from 13,884 in 2013. To compare to larger, more expensive minivans, Honda moved 122,738 units of the Odyssey last year, and Toyota did 124,502 examples of the Sienna. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2012 Mazda5 View 31 Photos News Source: AutocarImage Credit: Mazda Mazda Minivan/Van mazda5