rube goldberg recall

Wow, Chrysler is recalling 100,000 1995 Jeep Cherokees due to a problem that occurs due to a rather impressive array of problems:

The domino effect on this one is lengthy, but basically condensed water from the air conditioner could drip down into the case that holds the transmission fluid. If the transmission fluid becomes contaminated it could lead to shaking in the transmission. If not corrected, the transmission will begin running at hotter temperatures and possibly boil the water in the transmission fluid, thus ejecting some of the fluid. If that fluid hit a hot part of the exhaust system it could ignite a fire.

The engineer responsible for the problem, Rube Goldberg, III claimed full responsibility for the problem which “wasn’t supposed to happen this way – the ejected transmission fluid was supposed to hit a mouse trap, which would flip over, launching a little toy soldier into a tin cup, the weight of which would depress a lever, releasing a small aluminum ball into the basket target, which would shift gears.”