2009 Puzzlers

11-02	PUZZLER: Seven Perfect Words What do these seven words have in common?
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10-26	PUZZLER: A Very Speedy Dougie Dougie rides his bike to and from work. When there is moderate traffic on the road, he can make his trip a few minutes faster than when there is little or no traffic. Why?
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10-19	PUZZLER: Puzzling Pigskin What is one thing a football team without a place kicker cannot do during a game?
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10-12	PUZZLER: What's in a Name? Take a car model name that's currently under production, and remove the last letter to create a new word. Do this four times. What's the model name?
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10-05	PUZZLER: How the Dispatcher saved the Day A police dispatcher asked a heart attack victim to do one more thing so she could locate him. Minutes later, an ambulance was on its way to save his life. What did she ask?
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09-28	PUZZLER: A Lost and Hungry Vagabond Two travelers share their loaves of bread with a hungry vagabond. As thanks, the vagabond gives three coins to one man and five to the other. How should the coins have been split up?
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09-21	PUZZLER: A WWI Biplane and a Jackass (The Four-Legged Kind!) Tom travels from One Horse, NV, to the next neighboring town, completing half the trip on a vintage biplane and the rest on a jackass. If he had walked the whole way, how long would the trip have taken?
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09-14	PUZZLER: Cars with Something in Common What is it that's unique to the names of these cars?
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09-07	PUZZLER: Day at the Ballpark A photo of Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio standing side-by-side was taken at an All-Star Game. How can you tell?
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08-31	PUZZLER: An Automotive Poison Dart While Ray was removing a poison dart from his finger (don't you hate when that happens), he noticed an automotive logo. What was it?
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08-24	PUZZLER: Burning Insights of the Second Degree What did Wade adjust on the dashboard after suffering a second-degree burn?
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08-17	PUZZLER: The Kitchen Carpentry Cure What did Jerry's friend find in the kitchen that allowed him to lower the slate into its very tight-fitting hole in front of the hearth, without risk of breaking it?
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08-10	PUZZLER: Cop Stop Conundrum How did the police officer know that the car had been driven during the past six months?
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08-03	PUZZLER: Familiar Phrase It's a question about a phrase you've heard a million times on Car Talk... an historical, etymological, arboreal puzzler!
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07-27	PUZZLER: Who's Getting More? Last year, Tommy got a raise of 10 percent. Ray got a pay cut of 10 percent. This year, Ray got a 10 percent raise, and Tommy got a 10 percent cut. Who's making more money now, and why?
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07-20	PUZZLER: A Brake Job by Any Other Name Just Ain't the Same A guy orders parts for an old four-wheel-drive pickup truck. He buys brake pads, new rotors and a caliper hardware kit. But the new parts don't match the old ones. One syllable caused the mistake. What is the trucks make and last digit of the model year?
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07-13	PUZZLER: Records for Sale What happened to the missing $1 on the second day of the record sale?
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07-06	PUZZLER: Tom Hoofs it Home Tom arrives at the train station an hour early so he decides to walk home. His wife leaves in her car to pick him up at the usual time. They meet along the way and arrive home 20 minutes early. How long was Tom walking?
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06-29	PUZZLER: What Comes Next? Given a list of five words, what would the sixth word in the series be?
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06-20	PUZZLER: Paging Inspector Clouseau What makes a particular sentence interesting?
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06-15	PUZZLER: Stuck between a Ditch and a Divorce! Marty's Carolla goes off the road and he has no traction. He has a can of Bumble Bee tuna, a screwdriver, a pair of vice grips, a roll of electrical tape, a flashlight and a tube of hemorrhoid cream. What does he use and how?
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06-08	PUZZLER: Number One How many times does the mileage appear on an odometer that does not contain the number 1 at all?
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06-01	PUZZLER: Rattlesnake Canyon Just prior to the start of rainy season, a stream with low water sees its level rise. Why?
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05-26	PUZZLER: Equate This! Take the numbers, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Using each number only once, and in any kind of mathematical operation also only once, you must end up with the number 26. How?
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05-18	PUZZLER: Low Pressure Zone The low tire pressure light came on in Chuck's car. Without a tire pressure gauge, or any obvious sign that a tire was low, how did he figure out which tire needed air?
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05-11	PUZZLER: Words to the Rescue! A frustrated woman misplaced her keys. Her husband came to her rescue, calming her with a four-word sentence consisting all of homonyms. What was the sentence?
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05-04	PUZZLER: Do-It-Yourself Battery Jump How did Ray use the items at hand to get the energy from the generator to jump his car's battery?
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04-27	PUZZLER: Standing By in Chicago A man is on the standby list for a flight. He's number 15 on the list and there are only 4 seats left. How does he get on the flight?
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04-20	PUZZLER: The Case of the MPG Gone MIA A customer complains that his Camry is getting lousy gas mileage. He and his teenage son drive the car. After a battery of tests, the shop suggests the owner buy a $20 item to fix the problem. What did he buy?
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04-13	PUZZLER: Got Change? A customer bought some music supplies and the bill came to $13.59. He paid with a fifty-dollar bill. When the clerk gave him his change, both men smiled upon noticing something cool. What did they notice?
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04-06	PUZZLER: Telling Time All three of Charlie's clocks are showing different times. The digital clock says 7:25, the wristwatch says 6:50, and the plug-in electric clock says 6:30. What time did the power go off and for how long?
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03-30	PUZZLER: The Magliozzis' Employee of the Month Tom and Ray institute a no-cell-phone policy at the garage. One day Crusty pulls apart the dashboard of a Jag in seach of a customer's lost earring. When he then goes to use his cell phone, instead of being fired, he's named Employee of the Month. Why?
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03-23	PUZZLER: Deep in the Woods A couple relocates to a remote area of Vermont when their power goes out. They escape to family in Maine until the power is back on. But how will they know that the power is back on?
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03-16	PUZZLER: Deep in Center Field In the '50s, three monuments stood in deep center field of Yankee Stadium honoring some of the greats. Others were honored outside the field, including three former Cardinals. Why? And name them!
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03-09	PUZZLER: Digital Watch Dilemma Why was the lunch counter not open for business when Melvin's watch said noon?
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03-02	PUZZLER: A Slippery Move Ray's neighbor is trying to drive up his driveway during a winter storm but it's too slippery. So he opens the engine compartment door of his VW Microbus, does something, and soon is able to climb the hill. What did he do?
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02-23	PUZZLER: Too-Good-To-Be-True Used Car A husband and wife go to buy a used car. The salesman shows them a late model Japanese car that he says the owner only drove to work and back, and to church on Sunday. She never left town nor drove on Saturday. How did they know he was lying?
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02-16	PUZZLER: Quonset Hut Quandary World War II airmen are debriefed about bombing runs over Germany. When asked from what direction they were attacked, one man said, "From above and behind." What was the mistake?
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02-09	PUZZLER: The Curious Case of a Gonzo GPS?! After returning from a trip and resting for a week John went to reset his GPS and discovered a possible problem. The GPS showed he had driven 28 hours on the last trip, the maximum speed was 72 mph, but the average speed was 159 mph. What was going on?
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02-02	PUZZLER: Batter Up! There are five ways a player can reach first base without hitting the ball. Name them.
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01-26	PUZZLER: A Flat Tire Saves the Day! Tony was about to be fired for being late for work yet again. This time he told his boss he had a flat tire which a local shop repaired. After looking at the car, how does the boss know if Tony is telling the truth?
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01-20	PUZZLER: A President Once Again! Grover Cleveland was inaugurated as our 22nd and 24th president, succeeding Benjamin Harrison, who was our 23rd president. Who was the other president who succeeded his successor?
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01-12	PUZZLER: Two Ways Home on a Dark and Stormy Night! Two brothers have to get their cars 3 blocks home but only one guy can drive. Plan A is to drive each car 1 or 2 blocks at a time, walk back to get the other car etc. Plan B: drive the cars directly home one at a time. Which involves less walking and why?
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