Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

My car does have heated...well everything, but I've never seen the benefit of the heated mirrors. They've never fogged up on me.

In the snow belt the wing mirrors can frost up at night and become covered in snow when driving in a storm. The vortex off the mirror swirls the snow around until it sticks to the glass. Heated mirrors keep the snow melted so you can see.

On most cars the heated mirrors turn on when you turn on the rear defroster.
 
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become a roomie. Many 18-mid 20 somethings go this route for this very reason.

This. Plus spending an additional 100 pounds a month on a car (plus the costs to keep it running) will mean you are that much further from moving out.
 
Maps FTW! I still don't trust sat navs. I know they will always get you there, but not necessarily the way you want. I've had bad experiences in the past :p

I usually just look on Google Maps to get an idea of where I'm going and set off. One thing I do have is a decent sense of direction so I prefer to rely on my internal compass. Besides, getting lost is fun! If I get completely lost I always have a smartphone so I won't have to drink my own piss.

That reminds me, I need to buy a more up-to-date street directory.
Mine tried to make me turn off a bridge once :D
 
I just left my car at the local Volvo shop.

I want them to diagnose a whining noise coming from the belt area on early morning cold starts. The noise only last about 2 minutes, after which it is gone for the entire day. It does sound like a pulley going bad (it's not a belt squeal, it's a whining noise).

Even this seems unlikely since all belts, pulleys and tensioners were replaced by a Volvo dealership just 40k miles ago. Hopefully it's nothing serious/expensive.
 
Speaking of "I must be afflicted", I can't stop looking at Saabs. At this rate I'll end up both broke and blind.

I just sold my '97 9000CS for $550.
 
Signing up for an autox, and shit, guess it's time for me to buy a helmet. Anybody know anything about this one, Zamp FSA-2?
 
Had my last driving lesson today, before my test on Monday. Which again doesn't matter if I pass or not.
Anyway I stalled more times today than all my Previous hours combined. Which was annoying.

In semi-related news, the Saxo open colander has been price dropped by ?120.
 
I missed most of the new posts, so the discussion about maps from yesterday reminded me that I now have map pockets above my head and in the headlining above the second row. I must get every map in the house and fill them!
 
All that storage space, but nowhere to put a pair of glasses.
 
All that storage space, but nowhere to put a pair of glasses.
Isn't that funny? The Audi had nowhere to put them but the Subaru does... I don't get it are sunglasses a new invention or something? Why so few cars have storage for them?
 
You're supposed to keep your sunglasses on at all times, obviously. If you don't, you're not cool enough to drive one.
 
You're supposed to keep your sunglasses on at all times, obviously. If you don't, you're not cool enough to drive one.

Unless you drive a Jag in which case it has a nice glasses holder. :p
 
I'm trying to find any rules from the US DOT about putting HID lights into halogen headlight housings - specifically faceted refractor-style housings that are on most cars today.

I'm in a bit of a discussion over on my XTerra board about this. I maintain that refractor headlights are designed to have a specific focal point and that changing this with an HID bulb causes increased scatter of the beam. I even posted this example from a Mazda 6:



Some of the guys still don't believe me. Even after this image, one said that it didn't matter because it wasn't an XTerra. I'm trying to find some official information from the DOT on this. I'm 90% sure that doing an HID swap is illegal in street vehicles unless you put them in a DOT-approved projector housing.
 
I hate people that just retrofit them and go about their way, blinding 95% of the population on the freeway, barring those tall enough to not be blinded by them. I'm lucky I have autodimming mirrors, it sucks otherwise.
 
That is exactly the point I'm trying to make. I don't have a problem with doing HIDs in the fog lights, since you don't have to turn those on when on the street. I have modified my fogs to fit an H8 bulb instead of the H11, but I never turn them on when there is other traffic around.
 
After doing some research, I've my heart set on a 1.8l Corrado, my Dad has his heart set on a 1.8l Corrado and has asked would I like to be a named driver.

Am I correct in thinking the heated leather seats were an option on this model? If I buy one without them can they be easily found/retrofitted? I He would love them.
 
Wait, you want to get a VW? Like, on purpose?
 
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