Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Thats a good idea. I'll see if i can find one locally and get an estimate. Aside from cost, it'll probably turn out better than if i did it just due to experiance with fiberglass
 
Foam core? You could probably do a pretty decent job laying it up like CF.

I'll second the boat builder/repair. One of my friends picked up a bumper roll of glass ~6'x10' for $20. Too short to make a boat, but plenty for the skateboards he was making at the time. Leveraging their experience would probably be reasonably cheap compared to making it yourself too.

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Yeah but you have a wheel problem :lol: Now that I think about it, I might just keep one of my snows in the frunk.

Can confirm on the Mz2. Have a look at the Rio, Versa, and Yaris too. The Fiesta unfortunately, won't work. I think they shifted to a 4x4.25" somewhere around the foxbody...
 
Can confirm on the Mz2. Have a look at the Rio, Versa, and Yaris too. The Fiesta unfortunately, won't work. I think they shifted to a 4x4.25" somewhere around the foxbody...
Versa is 4x4.5, but good call on the Rio. Spectra too. Also, Prius C.
 
I need a spacesaver spare for the Mazda too, have been looking for a suitable one for a while now.
 
Meanwhile, the Saab's blower motor (and the Stockholm syndrome that makes owners feel relieved when the replacement process "only" takes 3.5 hours) is leading me to look at lightly used Prius Cs as my daily driver.
 
Meanwhile, the Saab's blower motor (and the Stockholm syndrome that makes owners feel relieved when the replacement process "only" takes 3.5 hours) is leading me to look at lightly used Prius Cs as my daily driver.

you say that, until you have to replace the battery in the Prius, while it is a hybrid, it's still same sorta batteries as in fullly electrical cars... as in expenive as f*** to replace.
 
you say that, until you have to replace the battery in the Prius, while it is a hybrid, it's still same sorta batteries as in fullly electrical cars... as in expenive as f*** to replace.

That's only if your mechanic is a derp, what 95% of people don't seem to realize is that those batteries are modular and you can absolutely replace individual cells. You could get "bad" batteries from junks and find a couple of working cells.
 
Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Meanwhile, the Saab's blower motor (and the Stockholm syndrome that makes owners feel relieved when the replacement process "only" takes 3.5 hours) is leading me to look at lightly used Prius Cs as my daily driver.

Buy a wagon. :D
 
Well, thanks to a ton of gift cards I've gone ahead and ordered the replacement blower motor. How hard can it be?
 
Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Well, thanks to a ton of gift cards I've gone ahead and ordered the replacement blower motor. How hard can it be?

Annnnd you've just ensured there will be a picture of the Saab with fire coming out of every body opening. :p
 
So... The wife's starting a new job and the boss man drives an Aston Martin apparently. Must befriend this gentleman ASAP. I've seen maybe 2 on the road on Belgian plates ever...
 
Driver's power window on my car stopped working. At least it's stuck in the full up position... :glare:

The problem first appeared on Monday on my way back from work. However, it started working again as I arrived home, which was strange. Thought maybe the window just got stuck on the seals. Tried the window again yesterday morning and it was still working fine. However, on my way back from work in the afternoon it stopped working again. This time, though, it didn't magically fix itself when I got home. Still wasn't working this morning, so I took the door apart this afternoon to see if it was a simple fix (bad contact?).

When I push/pull on the window switch, I can hear the regulator click, but the motor itself doesn't make a sound. Cables look good and the window seals don't seem to be stuck to the glass. I'm thinking the motor itself is seized/broken.

Is there anything with these window units I'm missing that can get the motor turning again or is it a lost cause and will have to be replaced?
 
I don't usually like funky greens, but this has my attention...

http://m.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=406949436

As you and Spectre have said, the Off Road/Pro-4X is definitely the one to get (with the manual if you can). The upgraded suspension significantly improves handling over the lower models to the point where I can keep up with just about anything but dedicated sports cars on the twisty mountain roads and still cruise quite comfortably all day on the expressway at speeds we really shouldn't talk about. Between the suspension and the tall tires it eats up bumps, potholes and crappy roads quite well. And the 9.5" ground clearance means you can get through heavy amounts of snow or rough trails easily. Can you tell I love mine? It puts a smile on my face every time I drive it (which is a lot). My job requires that I cover the entire southern half of British Columbia year-round and pretty much the only excuse I can use for not getting to a job is if the government closes the roads. As far as I'm concerned it's one of the best automotive values on the market today.
 
And the sad thing was that this is one of the more popular cars...though the orphaned traction control/vacuum and electronic throttle body/ABS computer combination doesn't help my case.

EDIT: I'm looking for a junkyard donut spare for my MR2. Apart from the Fit, the Insight, and the Yaris, are there any other recent cars on the US market that still use the 4x100 bolt pattern? Most cars that used to (Corolla, Civic, Miata) have grown big and moved on to 5 bolts/lugs.

maybe a late respond.

BMW E30, VW Golf/Rabbit MK1 to MK3, Jetta MK1. those the ones i can think of sold in the US.

otherwise, there's this site:

http://www.darklight.no/boltesirkel/

lists bolt patterns... though in Norwegian

But pick "Velg boltsirkel" pick 4x100, and ya get a list of cars models years and offset.
 
As you and Spectre have said, the Off Road/Pro-4X is definitely the one to get (with the manual if you can). The upgraded suspension significantly improves handling over the lower models to the point where I can keep up with just about anything but dedicated sports cars on the twisty mountain roads and still cruise quite comfortably all day on the expressway at speeds we really shouldn't talk about. Between the suspension and the tall tires it eats up bumps, potholes and crappy roads quite well. And the 9.5" ground clearance means you can get through heavy amounts of snow or rough trails easily. Can you tell I love mine? It puts a smile on my face every time I drive it (which is a lot). My job requires that I cover the entire southern half of British Columbia year-round and pretty much the only excuse I can use for not getting to a job is if the government closes the roads. As far as I'm concerned it's one of the best automotive values on the market today.
I'd love to find a manual, even a first generation Xterra. Seems that people don't let go of them once they have them. I'm still a month or two away from a purchase anyway. Hope to have one for Christmas break to visit the desert southwest.
 
I'd love to find a manual, even a first generation Xterra. Seems that people don't let go of them once they have them. I'm still a month or two away from a purchase anyway. Hope to have one for Christmas break to visit the desert southwest.

Thing is you'd have to find a manual XTerra that someone hasn't gomered up by putting the wrong gear oil into. Nissan truck and Z manuals that use gear oil do NOT use GL-5 but GL4. GL-5 except for certain specialty oils will destroy the synchros - as Blind_Io found out the hard way.
 
Thing is you'd have to find a manual XTerra that someone hasn't gomered up by putting the wrong gear oil into. Nissan truck and Z manuals that use gear oil do NOT use GL-5 but GL4. GL-5 except for certain specialty oils will destroy the synchros - as Blind_Io found out the hard way.
I never found out the hard way, but it's tough to find GL-4. I used to buy Royal Purple for my 1995 Hardbody.
 
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