The "Questions for Spectre" thread

The Mazda 3 I buy next month will be my first new car. Should the first oil change come early, or just stick with the normal interval?

In general follow your manual's recommendations on that. Some makers want a short initial interval because they know quite a lot of swarf is going to end up in the oil, some just have a normal interval because they know they won't. Don't, however, do an extended interval first oil change. At worst, whatever your manual suggests for a 'severe' interval or ~3000-5000 miles if they don't suggest anything.
 
Makes sense. Thanks! "You must spread..."
 
This might sound stupid but it came to me as I was driving home from work - if my radiator was leaking, wouldn't that reflect in the coolant level i see when i twist off the radiator cap?

I checked it today after work and it was full. No leaks on the ground either, both when i was getting gas (a 2 minute drive from work) and when i walked out to the car at the end of the day.
 
How strong is the stock LSD on the X300 XJR? I'm thinking of getting an extra set of rear wheels with cheap crappy tires for (legal, off-road) shenanigans but don't want to break the diff.
 
How strong is the stock LSD on the X300 XJR? I'm thinking of getting an extra set of rear wheels with cheap crappy tires for (legal, off-road) shenanigans but don't want to break the diff.

Fairly stout. The Salisbury 15HU is in principle a license built copy of the later Dana 44 but most of the parts don't interchange (unlike the 4HU/4HA under the classic Jags which is basically a Dana 44 adapted to IRS and is part compatible to the point where you can swap gearsets and LSD/lockers with slight adaotation.) Figure it's on par with the Ford 8.8 and you won't be far wrong.
 
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This might sound stupid but it came to me as I was driving home from work - if my radiator was leaking, wouldn't that reflect in the coolant level i see when i twist off the radiator cap?

I checked it today after work and it was full. No leaks on the ground either, both when i was getting gas (a 2 minute drive from work) and when i walked out to the car at the end of the day.

No, it will 'reload' from the reservoir when it cools off.

but if the radiator is leaking from the top it won't reload itself
 
Actually, it will try. It's only when you have a larger, easily visible leak that the vacuum caused by contracting coolant won't suck coolant in from the overflow tank.
 
How do you haggle on a new car? There's nothing wrong with therefore in my mind, there's nothing to haggle about.
 
Shop around and find the best deals, then take the knowledge back to the other places and see if you can get better. Don't pay the sticker price, and never pay more than that.
 
And be wary of what seems like a good buy on the basis "that we put a deal together today". It's the sales droid's way of trying to get your signature on the paperwork before you have a chance to do research and look elsewhere. Ask for their best deal in writing that you can take away and mull over and make sure they agree a timeframe in writing.

And always go car shopping in the last week of the month when they have their targets and bonuses in mind - often they will do a really good deal on one vehicle because it tips them over into the next bonus bracket.
 
How do you haggle on a new car? There's nothing wrong with therefore in my mind, there's nothing to haggle about.

Simple. Find two dealers offering similar vehicles for different prices. Tell dealer A about dealer B.

Basic example, but it should give you the logic of the situation.
 
Spectre, have you heard anything about late model Ford Fusions producing puffs of smoke? I regularly see 2013-2015 Fusions while commuting back and forth on I-75. Once in awhile, I see one of these Fusions moving at a speed somewhat, but not greatly, above the 70mph limit, and producing puffs of smoke that look like they could be coming from either under the hood or, possibly, the driver side wheel. I have searched the internet, but found nothing about what this could be.
 
Just during cruising or when someone is hitting the gas to build speed for a lane change? I regularly see newer cars puff a dirty cloud of tan smoke out the exhaust when the gas is pressed, only once though.
 
The speed of the cars that I see is mostly steady. The cloud of smoke is white or gray, and comes out from the front driver side area. Again, this is not a car that I own or know the owner of. These are multiple cars that I have noticed doing the same thing.
 
Spectre, have you heard anything about late model Ford Fusions producing puffs of smoke? I regularly see 2013-2015 Fusions while commuting back and forth on I-75. Once in awhile, I see one of these Fusions moving at a speed somewhat, but not greatly, above the 70mph limit, and producing puffs of smoke that look like they could be coming from either under the hood or, possibly, the driver side wheel. I have searched the internet, but found nothing about what this could be.

They may be the Fusion 1.6 models: http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.co...Ford_Escape_Fusion_Recalled_for_Engine_Fires/

The 1.6 has had a series of problems involving escaping coolant, overheating, smoke and even fire. That 2012 recall was not the end of its problems and I don't believe they've actually gotten a real handle on their problems yet. To Ford's credit, it's not like they're not trying to resolve it, they just don't seem to have a final authoritative set of fixes for it that I've heard.
 
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Have you of heard of any problems with the two engines the Ford Flex comes with?
 
How do you haggle on a new car? There's nothing wrong with therefore in my mind, there's nothing to haggle about.

In addition to what others have said:

Go online and find out what the actual invoice (i.e., what the dealer actually paid for it) is for the specific car ; that's your base number. Look around to see what dealer incentives the marque is providing (say, $1000 back to a dealer that sells a car) and adjust the number accordingly. Add $500 to it (because the salesman has to eat too and if he doesn't get enough money the dealer will walk) and run that up the flagpole to see who salutes.

Further, you are better off shopping for a car after a new model has been announced and better still after the new model year cars have begun arriving. Somewhere between September and December is best to get the optimum balance of price vs. selection. If you do not care about selection, you generally have until about March or April to get a prior year model car at a large discount.
 
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