Random thoughts thread
- Thread starter Ronkh
- Start date
yamabob
New member
My last 4 went like this
Van- 349,000 and 1 tranny original 318
Van- 169,000 original all wife gave to friend
03 quad cab hemi truck 170,000 something. Nothing other than normal Maint.
07 300 C supercharged with about 150 or so 1/4 mile passes. 112,000 Nothing nilch. sold for corvette
I`ve had great luck with them.
And that last one was a looker
PA DETAILER
DETAILED TODAY?
Accumulator
Well-known member
yamabob- Oh boy, yeah...you do rack up the miles. Eh, guess retirement/etc. has kept ours low recently. But, noting your "only normal maintenance", my wife still finds it odd when a vehicle needs significant work with only double-digit miles; her experiences had been that decent cars just need the "normal" to last forever. But I guess they just don`t build `em that way any more, or else we just like the wrong cars 
yamabob
New member
Accum- yes I do a lot of driving. I believe it`s all luck. I know more than enough people that have had clunkers with all brands foreign and domestic.
Accumulator
Well-known member
yamabob- Yeah, luck does play in. A *lot* of my vehicles have been in the "Don`t buy this under any circumstances!" category but those were no worse than the ones that`re supposedly reliable as sunrise. I mean...Subarus, Porsches, and even a Mazda being sold (some while still under warranty) because they`re always having issues that left us sitting by the roadside?!?
(And no, I didn`t forget about the Lemon Laws, just wouldn`t have been worth it to me.)
(And no, I didn`t forget about the Lemon Laws, just wouldn`t have been worth it to me.)
Nizmo
New member
Ooops...
Apparently cleaning the aluminum trim was not a good idea today...
Apparently cleaning the aluminum trim was not a good idea today...
Oneheadlite
New member
Yeeee... Thanks for the warning - I’ve got some house trim cleaning on my to-do list - looks like I’ll need to tread very lightly. What were you using?
Nizmo
New member
I started out with the usual Jomax and bleach, but it didn`t work. So I grabbed the Zep purple industrial degreaser mixed way too stong apparently... It did work great on the garage doors though.
Accumulator
Well-known member
"Test Spot" man, test spot.... 
Desertnate
Active member
While washing my wife`s SUV weekend, I realized how much I hate SUVs. I don`t like maintaining them, detailing them, driving them, riding in them, and not a single one is attractive to me. There is nothing we do in our lives which could not be handled by a mid/large sedan at best, or worst a wagon like the Outback or Volvo V60/V90...which still wouldn`t be that bad compared to an SUV. Yet, there will probably always be one in our household.
Phew! Much better now. Carry on...
Phew! Much better now. Carry on...
Accumulator
Well-known member
Desertnate- If it weren`t for the dogs and all the landscaping stuff I`m hauling all the time...I`d be in 100% agreement.
I *LOVED* my wagons!!! I (still) *LOVE* our big sedans!
But the truth of our situation is that the Tahoe (2000 Z71, last of the Old Body Style/GMT400/"Square" ones) is simply the best vehicle for it`s exact application. Drives like a worn-out school bus, takes *FOREVER* to wash/etc., but the dogs absolutely love it (I`ll give them the choice of vehicles and they always run to the Tahoe) and luckily enough I do think it looks great and I find it very comfortable.
IMO it`ll look better once I get the brush bar/trailer hitch/roof rack off so it looks less like a wannabe safari vehicle.
Had "better" SUVs that I thought I`d love (TBSS anyone? HATED it) and a minivan, and I still lust after hot wagons, but this [freakin`] thing is simply the [stuff] for what I do with it.
But oh how I wish I still had a few of those wagons....or even just one of `em, any one!
I *LOVED* my wagons!!! I (still) *LOVE* our big sedans!
But the truth of our situation is that the Tahoe (2000 Z71, last of the Old Body Style/GMT400/"Square" ones) is simply the best vehicle for it`s exact application. Drives like a worn-out school bus, takes *FOREVER* to wash/etc., but the dogs absolutely love it (I`ll give them the choice of vehicles and they always run to the Tahoe) and luckily enough I do think it looks great and I find it very comfortable.
IMO it`ll look better once I get the brush bar/trailer hitch/roof rack off so it looks less like a wannabe safari vehicle.
Had "better" SUVs that I thought I`d love (TBSS anyone? HATED it) and a minivan, and I still lust after hot wagons, but this [freakin`] thing is simply the [stuff] for what I do with it.
But oh how I wish I still had a few of those wagons....or even just one of `em, any one!
Desertnate
Active member
I have shocked people with what I`ve loaded into my GTI. They simply don`t figure a hatchback is so useful.
Big screen TV? No problem.
Dozen bags of mulch for the flower beds. Easy.
Webber Grill still in the box? Yep!
Set of summer wheels/tires? Piece of cake.
And one just for you Acumulator: 160lb Great Dane. She loves it. Sits on the back seat like a person and comfortably rests her head on the driver`s shoulder while you drive down the road.
I`m really hoping I can talk the wife into a used V90 now that we`re down to only one adult-sized child still at home, but I have a feeling my chances are slim. I volunteered to trade the GTI in on a V60 Polestar and my wife thought I was nuts. She doesn`t get it.
Big screen TV? No problem.
Dozen bags of mulch for the flower beds. Easy.
Webber Grill still in the box? Yep!
Set of summer wheels/tires? Piece of cake.
And one just for you Acumulator: 160lb Great Dane. She loves it. Sits on the back seat like a person and comfortably rests her head on the driver`s shoulder while you drive down the road.
I`m really hoping I can talk the wife into a used V90 now that we`re down to only one adult-sized child still at home, but I have a feeling my chances are slim. I volunteered to trade the GTI in on a V60 Polestar and my wife thought I was nuts. She doesn`t get it.
Accumulator
Well-known member
Desertnate- Yeah, back in the day I hauled two GSDs around in my CRXs 
And the Crown Vic is all set up for dog-hauling with A/C piped to the back and the rear seat area redone for them. They still prefer the Tahoe though 
Silly Beaucerons, don`t know from vehicles!
Yeah, a V90 was on my radar for a while, some of `em are pretty sport-wagony. The old (and built..yeah, the little 4 banger, killer suspension, etc.) 245 wagon that I inherited was great! I gave it my niece-in-law down in TN so it`d be out of the salt...or at least that was how I justified giving it away. She just sold it to a Volvo nut who went gaga over it once he realized what`d been done to it (and, I suspect, noticed its condition).
And the Crown Vic is all set up for dog-hauling with A/C piped to the back and the rear seat area redone for them. They still prefer the Tahoe though Silly Beaucerons, don`t know from vehicles!Yeah, a V90 was on my radar for a while, some of `em are pretty sport-wagony. The old (and built..yeah, the little 4 banger, killer suspension, etc.) 245 wagon that I inherited was great! I gave it my niece-in-law down in TN so it`d be out of the salt...or at least that was how I justified giving it away. She just sold it to a Volvo nut who went gaga over it once he realized what`d been done to it (and, I suspect, noticed its condition).
Nizmo
New member
"Test Spot" man, test spot....
Heh, I didn`t expect the coating to be that crappy!
In other news I posted a little bit ago about coming off the road and going to 2nd shift maintenance in a manufacturing plant. I can say I love it! Working on different machines than what I`m used to (was working on belt conveyors, but most of what I do now is CNC machines, mills, laser cutters, etc.) but nothing I can`t learn. Still getting used to shift work, as my previous job we were all shifts and had to get done. Now if it doesn`t get done, than oh well, 3rd shifts got it.
There seems to be alot of downtime as well that I`m not used to. Found out my previous co-worker and friend is coming to the same plant, on a different shift, but I`ll probably see him every day. Glad for him to be off the road!
Oneheadlite
New member
Awesome.
I’ve got a 100lb Great Dane/English Mastiff mix that fits in the cargo area of my avant along with my 60lb German shorthair/lab, even with the seat still up. She’s got just enough room to stand if she wants (she’s 31” at the shoulders/back), but she usually just chills back there. The avant also swallows up wheels/tires/etc, lumber, 15+ rolls of sod (even with lowering springs), and the required arsenal for a family vacation with a baby (now toddler - so much easier to pack for now!). Also appreciated is real live legroom for the front seat passenger even with a rear facing child seat behind them. Sorry - I’ll quit gushing about my car!
My wife has a Q5, and while I’m largely anti-suv, I really like that thing. Doesn’t drive like a tippy SUV, nor ride unnecessarily trucky like some other SUVs I’ve driven. It’s arguably more fun to rip around than it oughta be. She’s absolutely loved it since she got it (3 years ago or so). Only grumble it gets out of me is when I have to grab a little step stool to get the roof cleaned up.
Accumulator
Well-known member
OneHeadlite- I gotta admit that Q3s are my favorite Service Loaner, but oh man I could never keep a Q5 detailed, it`d drive me nuts.
All this talk about wagons does make me pine for those I coulda/woulda/shoulda kept
ALTHOUGH, in really nasty winter weather, the Tahoe`s 4WD is *much* better than any of the AWD systems I`ve had, even the older Torsen-based on in the `93. MUCH better than the Yukon XLD`s AWD with the exact same wheels/tires too. Eh, no getting around how perfect that POS is for what I ask of it
Doesn`t haul as much per load as that Yukon XL did though, so more trips.
All this talk about wagons does make me pine for those I coulda/woulda/shoulda kept
ALTHOUGH, in really nasty winter weather, the Tahoe`s 4WD is *much* better than any of the AWD systems I`ve had, even the older Torsen-based on in the `93. MUCH better than the Yukon XLD`s AWD with the exact same wheels/tires too. Eh, no getting around how perfect that POS is for what I ask of it
Doesn`t haul as much per load as that Yukon XL did though, so more trips.
Since I`m a swede and a little Volvo talk is always nice. I have had an Amazon -69 which I restored to the original paint that was dark green. And with the unusual combo of a white interior. Loved that car and sold it way to cheap. Did not have the time to get the rest of the restoration on it with the engine and drivetrain. I did drove it alot but it was a car that had been going alot of miles and even had been sitting to long before I bought it. The guy who bought it from me did the engine and drivetrain a little more than I thought he would. He started to compete on 1/4 mile and was the fastest 4 cylinder non turbo back wheel drive car in Sweden for some years. High 10s if I remember correctly.
Then I had a Volvo 740gl over a winter as a beater car.
When the new modell of V90 came I did not like it at first. But I think they got back to the flat fronts that where what they had under the 70s and 80s. And it stands out a little more than before and more Volvo like.
I don`t know if Volvo has their XC90 in the US. Which I driven some and is a nice SUV like car.
Then I had a Volvo 740gl over a winter as a beater car.
When the new modell of V90 came I did not like it at first. But I think they got back to the flat fronts that where what they had under the 70s and 80s. And it stands out a little more than before and more Volvo like.
I don`t know if Volvo has their XC90 in the US. Which I driven some and is a nice SUV like car.