Recent content by frankm

I'm old enough to remember the following conversation at the office coffee machine: "We went to the Honda dealer looking for a Civic for the wife last night. They want almost FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS for one...

Find a trust-worthy independant mechanic,tell him your story, and pay him $100-$200 for a thorough inspection, watching for failure-prone items. That would be the most cost-effective way of addressing your concerns. Auto club membership (I guess it would be "AAA" down in the United States?) and...

So buy a Ford F-150 or an oversized SUV and don't worry. The Miata wasn't for you.

Pretty much all mechanical components of a car sound like they are being tortured when cold-soaked in real winter weather. Keep 'em garaged or plugged in if you can. They will live longer as a result! When I was a snowmobiler up in Cottage Country years ago, the general rule of thumb was, once...

Glad I own only a couple of old, out-of-warranty vehicles. (1997 Maxima; 2002 Protege). New cars nowadays sound like too much grief and hassle! Yikes.

LOL I don't expect them to catch on down in the States at all. Americans will never want to drive anything other than F-150's and Suburbans. The Fiat 500 is already quite popular everywhere else in the world, as an urban runabout.

Dragging rear brakes due to sticking calipers has been a Honda trademark for a few years now. I can't believe they're still not owning up to it. (Well, I can, but I can't...you know what I mean.)

Originally Posted By: Patman Us Canadians are a little more patient, I wait about 5 seconds And even then, I just give the horn a tiny little toot, not a full out blast Well, Canada's a diverse country with a lot of regional variation on this matter. The range would be 5 or 6 minutes in...

This heat/freeze technique is very hit-or-miss. Seems to work best for large, shallow dents, eg. where a soccer ball hit a flat body panel. Not very reliable for door dings, which almost always stretch and crease the sheet metal. Better to just pay a bit of money for a proper Paintless Dent...

It's a shame that these vans went extinct. I guess people figure that you can pay for a lot of motel rooms with the money you would invest in a decent conversion van. The Roadtrek Class B motorhomes are nice, but they cost around $100 grand. Yikes! My wife has a chronic pain condition that...

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR Originally Posted By: crazyoildude Ever hear if it ain't broke don't fix it?? I agree. Alternator, starter and fuel pump are not maintenance items. If it works leave it alone. I agree, and would add that the items in question will add up cost-wise to pretty...

Something interesting that I read in the Krown literature a few years ago was that most rust damage on vehicles is caused by condensation (ie. cars not garaged at night; heavy dew getting inside body panels) rather than from salt, as most people think. FWIW.

PIAA silicon blades. Smooth & chatter-free. Nothing else comes close. Order over the Internet; discount parts stores don't carry them. They last 2 to 3 years, unless you leave your car outdoors. Their cost is ridiculous. Just do it and get it over with.

Originally Posted By: Bluestream Hummm, is seems there is always someone who is against something. I bet there are groups against breastfeeding as well Or breastfeeding with their high beams on. Sorry, I tried to stop myself, to no avail.

True enough; oil filters will only cause engine damage if they leak at the gasket (usually due to careless installation)and allow sudden oil loss. Oil filters are not nearly as critical as the oil itself. Remember the old VW Bugs that didn't even have a filter, unless the owner had installed an...