The Car Talk Thread

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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited September 29, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:

    Noble rocks. A friend of mine was thinking of getting one (but then oddly enough has shifted over to a 5 year old s-class). Also, Factory Five Racing makes some good stuff, and there is one other company that I can't think of the name right now. And of course there are also the cars made by Lotus.
  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited September 30, 2006
    Well, I promised pictures of my Prius, and I KNOW you've all been wondering where the heck they are. Well, I finally waxed the car (I opted for Blackfire, one of the nanotech thingys, and I'm happy with it). After waxing, I drove it around the corner to get these shots. I am NOT a car photographer. I realized how difficult something that seems to be so easy could be. In any case, here you go: :D

    99029457-M.jpg

    99030306-M.jpg

    99029919-M.jpg

    A week ago (before waxing), I took these:

    99029224-M.jpg

    99029294-M.jpg

    99028966-M.jpg


    Bored yet? I thought so.
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  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    nice spaceship, David.
    Erik
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  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:
    nice spaceship, David.

    yerbut when do i tell him my golf has twice the rated HP....3 times the torque & uses just a quarter of a US gallon more in 60 miles ?
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    gus wrote:
    yerbut when do i tell him my golf has twice the rated HP....3 times the torque & uses just a quarter of a US gallon more in 60 miles ?
    Well that, and unless you're gus, with a nice collection of high-voltage gloves, you can't even touch them. I think that scares me the most about hybrids - completely unserviceable except by the dealer. Also, I'm really curious to see how much we love hybrids in another 5 years, when some start showing up in dumps and so on. Them batteries are some seriously nasty stuff. Very curious.

    Hybrids are great, and probably wouldn't have been better 30 years ago when taking the car to the dealer for service was pretty normal, and keeping a car for 10+ years was too. Unless some really good trade-in/recycling program happens, I'm really worried about all the new hybrids when their time is up.
    Erik
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  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:
    Well that, and unless you're gus, with a nice collection of high-voltage gloves, you can't even touch them. I think that scares me the most about hybrids - completely unserviceable except by the dealer. Also, I'm really curious to see how much we love hybrids in another 5 years, when some start showing up in dumps and so on. Them batteries are some seriously nasty stuff. Very curious.

    Hybrids are great, and probably wouldn't have been better 30 years ago when taking the car to the dealer for service was pretty normal, and keeping a car for 10+ years was too. Unless some really good trade-in/recycling program happens, I'm really worried about all the new hybrids when their time is up.

    Mate...when the golf's starter crapped itself the other day there was myself & 2 experienced mechanics standing there looking at it scratching ourselves..we were even almost too scared to put jumper leads on the flamin' thing !

    You cant do crap with any modern car if its breaks down.
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    gus wrote:
    Mate...when the golf's starter crapped itself the other day there was myself & 2 experienced mechanics standing there looking at it scratching ourselves..we were even almost too scared to put jumper leads on the flamin' thing !

    You cant do crap with any modern car if its breaks down.
    Sadly, this is true. I wouldn't dream of even changing the oil in my new GTI. There's a reason there's a plastic cover over the engine. lol3.gif

    And who wants to touch it anyway? Service intervals on all the new cars are so long these days (5k mi min, 10k on all the premium cars). But at least I know that if I did touch it, I would just be unsuccessful at the fix and not get 240V through my body!
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]


  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:
    But at least I know that if I did touch it, I would just be unsuccessful at the fix and not get 240V through my body!
    Your probably looking at 50k volts mate i recon from a modern coil. Now theres another diesel advantage.
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    gus wrote:
    Your probably looking at 50k volts mate i recon from a modern coil. Now theres another diesel advantage.
    uh, I was a little off, eh? lol3.gif

    Wow!
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]


  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    gus wrote:
    yerbut when do i tell him my golf has twice the rated HP....3 times the torque & uses just a quarter of a US gallon more in 60 miles ?


    Diesels aren't available here because they're too dirty. Too much particulate matter in the exhaust. You can point out whatever you want. I like my car even more than I thought I would, I'm really happy with it. :D

    There's a thread on this over at priuschat.com. They say lots of things that I know nothing about. Like you get more gas from a gallon of oil than you do diesel, so that gas is more efficient in that respect. I don't stand by any of the claims, but thought the gear heads here might have a perspective on that.
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  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:
    nice spaceship, David.


    Thanks! (I think?) :D
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  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DavidTO wrote:
    Diesels aren't available here because they're too dirty. Too much particulate matter in the exhaust. You can point out whatever you want. I like my car even more than I thought I would, I'm really happy with it. :D

    There's a thread on this over at priuschat.com. They say lots of things that I know nothing about. Like you get more gas from a gallon of oil than you do diesel, so that gas is more efficient in that respect. I don't stand by any of the claims, but thought the gear heads here might have a perspective on that.
    Im not into them either...im teasing you. In 50k of my last car i never ever opened the bonnet (thats hood in your lingo) ..that tells you something 'eh ? I opened the bonnet on this new one to take a photo of the donk & i will bet you i wont do it again for the next 50k, if i keep it that long.
  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Heck, at this point, I'm easy, anyway. My last car was 10 years old. I'm just a horny teenager happy to get laid.
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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DavidTO wrote:
    I'm just a horny teenager happy to get laid.

    Ummmmmm................

    Anyways, Gus, is bonnet whatever is in front or is it whatever covers the engine. I.E. is the cargo area lid on a rear engine car still a bonnet, or does bonnet then become the engine lid (which happens to be at the rear of the car)?
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    DavidTO wrote:
    I'm just a horny teenager happy to get laid.
    You got the wrong car for that.



    :hide
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]


  • ian408ian408 Administrators Posts: 21,938 moderator
    edited October 1, 2006
    I thought, for the most part, that an auto battery can be successfully
    recycled. But then I got to wondering about why batteries work how
    they do and realized it's still a lot of nasty stuff going to a landfill.

    All that talk about diesel may not take the more modern diesel, like
    what's in Gus's car, into effect. These produce more power than their
    predecessors and are more fuel efficient to boot. I believe that's why
    you see so many of them in Europe. I'm not sure about the emissions
    of the newer diesels compared to current EPA standards thoguh.
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  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DoctorIt wrote:
    You got the wrong car for that.



    :hide


    Heheh.

    I've never been a performance freak.

    Things I love about my car:
    • It's new!
    • Keyless entry, keyless start. It's that smart. :D
    • The NAV system.
    • More than 2x the mpg of my Camry.
    • Bluetooth built in.
    • I'm liking the Sirius radio they put in. Channel 24, Disorder. thumb.gif
    • Watching the consumption, and making a game of how high I can get the mpg.
    • The storage compartments, even.
    • I know it's not a screamer, and there's better handling cars out there, but I'm really happy with it. It does what it needs to, and it does it well.
    • How quiet it is.
    • Backup camera.
    • CVT.
    • The mileage is supposed to only get better as the car breaks in.
    • I get to post the banner, below. :D

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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Anybody here ever heard a Flowmaster Super 40 attached to a V8 in person? Granted the sound will vary from engine to engine because of firing order (among a whole slew of other things), but how is the volume? Is it obnoxious loud (i.e. not daily driver volume level). Anybody heard Flowmaster 70's in person? Same question about volume on those too.
  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Ummmmmm................

    Anyways, Gus, is bonnet whatever is in front or is it whatever covers the engine. I.E. is the cargo area lid on a rear engine car still a bonnet, or does bonnet then become the engine lid (which happens to be at the rear of the car)?
    The donk sits under a bonnet & you put your dead bodies in the boot. When we talk about old rear engined v-dubbs we say the 'boot is in the front' so the bonnet has to be at the rear.
  • dragon300zxdragon300zx Registered Users Posts: 2,575 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Hey Zack, hows the head gasket going?

    Don't feel to bad it seems whenever you buy a new used car you will always find a gremlin waiting for you. Normally for me it's always cooling system problems.

    Luckily my new used malibu didn't have a head gasket or even cooling problem (so far) when I bought it. But it did have a problem I didn't know about. Fairly serious and dangerous problem. Seems the previous owner has a bad fuel injector, when he had it serviced and fixed the morons (you have to be a moron to do what they did) not only used the wrong o-rings, and they didn't install them properly so they ended up nicking one of them and not even installing another one.

    Wasn't I surprised to enjoy the smell of gas when parking the car half way through the week. So I had to stop driving it for a few days. Finally got to work on it yesterday and there was at least a cup of gas sitting on top of the lower air intake. Can you say bon-fire. I'm lucky the damn thing didn't go up in flames on me. Going back to the dealer with the part, and photos tomorrow. Will have to see what he is willing to give me back once I explain to him what happened and how his screw up (safety inspection my :moon ) could have cost me my car and considerably more. Grrrr, at least with a dealer I have some recourse (my big mouth can make many people aovoid him).
    Everyone Has A Photographic Memory. Some Just Do Not Have Film.
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  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Hey Zack, hows the head gasket going?


    Speaking of which, on Car Talk this morning they were talking about using oatmeal to seal problems with the gasket or a cracked head. Granted, they only were talking about it on a car you'd just as soon throw away, not one you care about, but I thought it was funny.
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  • dragon300zxdragon300zx Registered Users Posts: 2,575 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    DavidTO wrote:
    Speaking of which, on Car Talk this morning they were talking about using oatmeal to seal problems with the gasket or a cracked head. Granted, they only were talking about it on a car you'd just as soon throw away, not one you care about, but I thought it was funny.

    Reminds me of the DR. PEPPER Myth. Apprantley from what I have been told (by several tow truck drivers) if you have a coolant leak you can simply toss in a can or two of DR. PEPPER and there is so much sugar and crap in the dr. pepper that it will seal up your radiator.
    Everyone Has A Photographic Memory. Some Just Do Not Have Film.
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  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Oh dear. Is this what I've become?
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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Reminds me of the DR. PEPPER Myth. Apprantley from what I have been told (by several tow truck drivers) if you have a coolant leak you can simply toss in a can or two of DR. PEPPER and there is so much sugar and crap in the dr. pepper that it will seal up your radiator.

    You can use a bit of egg white assuming the coolant is already hot and the leak is small. You'll have to replace your radiator, but it will get you to where you need to go in a pinch.
  • antriebantrieb Registered Users Posts: 285 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    My stepdad and I picked up the car yesterday from my dads house and trailered it home.
    <o:p> </o:p>
    My friend Tom and I started right in at taking it apart yesterday and today. Got as far as one of the heads off. Aparently the shop that did the work had taken the heads off at one point and screwed it up real bad. They broke a head bolt on one side and didn’t use washers on the other. That is the cause of the low compression and coolant leaking into the oil. I’m so happy it isn’t a cracked block or anything like that.
    <o:p> </o:p>
    Full days documentation can be found here
    http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=608580
    <o:p> </o:p>
    And all the pictures can be found here
    http://zwilliams.smugmug.com/gallery/1938295
    Photography runs in my blood :andy

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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    antrieb wrote:
    Full days documentation can be found here
    http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=608580
    <o:p> </o:p>
    Is BMW no longer giving free engines to people with Nikasil ones? [edit: no they aren't, it was 6 years or 100k miles, I thought it was just 100k. However, the modern fuels don't have all that sulfur so I guess if the problem is all you think it is, then you're good to go]

    Looking at those pics...my goodness that engine bay is a plumber's nightmare.
  • antriebantrieb Registered Users Posts: 285 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    Is BMW no longer giving free engines to people with Nikasil ones? [edit: no they aren't, it was 6 years or 100k miles, I thought it was just 100k. However, the modern fuels don't have all that sulfur so I guess if the problem is all you think it is, then you're good to go]

    Looking at those pics...my goodness that engine bay is a plumber's nightmare.
    Yeah BMW doesn’t give out new engines now, although I’ve heard of a few people that have gotten lucky and BMW gave them a new one after the 100k and 6 years.
    <o:p> </o:p>
    The engine bay does look like a mess now, but we know where everything goes. It helps to have a mechanic helping you out!
    <o:p> </o:p>
    <o:p> </o:p>
    I’m so psyched to get this fixed because the car is otherwise perfect in every way.
    Photography runs in my blood :andy

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  • marlinspikemarlinspike Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins
    edited October 1, 2006
    antrieb wrote:
    Yeah BMW doesn’t give out new engines now, although I’ve heard of a few people that have gotten lucky and BMW gave them a new one after the 100k and 6 years.
    <o:p> </o:p>
    The engine bay does look like a mess now, but we know where everything goes. It helps to have a mechanic helping you out!
    <o:p> </o:p>
    <o:p> </o:p>
    I’m so psyched to get this fixed because the car is otherwise perfect in every way.

    BTW, you guys ever heard of gloves? They make them for a reason you know (you want Nitrile ones, not Latex).
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 2, 2006
    BTW, you guys ever heard of gloves? They make them for a reason you know (you want Nitrile ones, not Latex).
    Carcinogens have no effect on 19 year olds...
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]


  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited October 2, 2006
    DavidTO wrote:
    Oh dear. Is this what I've become?
    Yes.
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]


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