As an aside, leather "conditioner" like Lexol or Leatherique (the best) only works on uncoated leather, which isn't what is in a Mazda and is typically only found in high-end cars. Otherwise, just clean with cleaner and use something like 303 Aerospace as a UV protectant. The coating prevents anything from penetrating the actual leather.
A couple of friends and I did the ride along at the Richard Petty Driving Experience at the Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend. You basically walk up, give them $100, and strap yourself into a NASCAR with a professional driver and they blast around the track at 165 mph for 3 laps. That seemed like a lot of money for such a short amount of time, but it was worth every penny. I've ridden 135-140 or so in road cars before, but there's nothing quite like riding in an actual NASCAR. I highly recommend giving it a shot if it comes to a track near you. You can also pay around $700 and do the class where they actually let you drive.
I did both, the ride along and the one where I got to drive when they first had the new banking down here at Homestead. Worth Every. Fucking. Penny!
My mom did the same thing on the Las Vegas motor speedway, and love it. Said the same thing as you, seems like a lot of money, but worth every penny.
I got the order confirmation and ship date for my resonated HFC's. Hopefully by next weekend, my car will have a new sound with no drone or rasp. I'll have a total of 24" of resonation between the hfc's and my cat back exhaust. If it's too much I'll swap the cat back resonators with the 12" instead of the 18" I have now to get the perfect sound. I'm super pumped.
Things are starting to come back together on the Bronco. They're hoping to have the tub finished and back on by the end of the month. Spoilered for size...
I had to replace the distributor gear on my '97 350 vortec. I bought an Actron 9580 scanner to adjust the cam retard but I am not seeing that as a viewable parameter in the live data. It's my understanding it should show up as CAM_RETARD but I am not seeing it. I have the engine running, it has a slight miss but without being able to see the retard I do not know which way or how much to spin the distributor.
Should show up as cam retard or cam offset, I don't know that scanner but if those two are not listed then I am not sure how to help. If you do find the data be sure and keep the engine above 1500 rpm when making adjustments, won't read accurate under that RPM.
I'm putting in an order for these bad boys on Monday. They are limited release and I should get them July/August time frame. I don't know how I feel about them yet, but I can sell my current setup to pay for the, and everything should be awesome. I now need to get a set of drilled brake rotors to compliment the wheels and I'll be all set...Large picture spoil
Yeah I think I need to return this scanner as it doesn't have the cam retard/offset data, I was told it did. What I did do though is mark the distributor cap and then put a stationary piece of wire[coat hanger] over the cap, marked the position of the wire in relation to the cap and turned the distributor slightly and I am getting closer with it. Each time I shut the truck off I clear the code and I'll just keep adjusting it until the code doesn't get thrown anymore. If I don't get the P1345 code[the common code when the cam retard is out of spec] I get a random misfire code.
Looking to auto finance and insurance pros for this Alright so I want to trade in my car - it's current KBB is around 21k, and i owe about 18k on it The issue is the doors and running board are dented to shit as i nicked a pole - the doors (and board) will likely need to be replaced Should I claim on insurance, get it fixed, and then trade in, or just take it in and try the trade in up front - knowing that its value could drop below the point where I owe more than the cars value? I ask largely because my insurance rates are fairly high as a young male buying a two door car.
I'm still driving the 2006 Jeep Liberty (Limited V6), and it's a habitual abuser of brakes. I may be partially at fault...but that's beside the point. Every mechanic I've spoken to claims that Chrysler fucked it up on this one, and designed the spec rotors and pads to be smaller than a vehicle of it's weight actually requires. I haven't ever noticed any problems with stopping distance, but I've worn through my pads and rotors at a ridiculous rate. What brand do you recommend for brake consumables? Should I get a particular type (ceramic/semi-metallic) by only certain manufacturers, or is the best course of action to buy the cheapest thing under the sun - and resign myself to the fact that I'll need to go through this circus at the same frequency (far too often) that I have been?
Sadly you are fucked. You want to see bad? Any model of a Chev Uplander van, it uses the same brakes as a Grand Prix, but it is a heavier van. I stock calipers/rotors/pads specifically for one customer for that van, yes he is using it for a taxi, so he goes through them more often, but even the regular person with one goes through them way quicker. And if you switch to a harder material on the pads, all it will do is chew your rotors up quicker.
Car salesmen will rape you on a trade in. Reason being is because: A) They typically have the upper-hand because they have something you want. B) This is a game to them. They're in it for the money, bragging rights, and dont give 2 shit's about giving you a solid deal. C) Most customers are non-confrontational, will not negotiate, dont know how to, or ignorant of the value of their vehicle. D) (unless they're a used car dealership) A lot of larger dealerships simply sell these used cars to auto auctions. They dont want to keep them on their lot. Understand this: KBB means fuck-all to a dealer. They go off the Manheim report, or whatever other auction pricing report they use to determine how much leverage they have in beating you up on price. My Advice: You should sell this car on the private market. DO NOT bring it into a dealership. Do a bit of small research on: Creating the optimal car ad for craigslist. DIY light car detailing. Negotiating in the private auto market.
Today on what does it cost cant remember exactly what it fits, but it is a hood bracket for a 95 LT8000 Ford. Spoiler From ford - $100 - but it is discontinued - reasonable price because it is disc. i have to get it from a Sterling dealer - $780 for a bent piece of metal. Worst one i can remember we were the dealer for Kalmar at one point, was a dip stick, it didn't even have a plastic handle on it, just a small sliver of metal, with a bent loop. Our cost was $800.
Fuck stealerships. I 100% guarantee you will be insulted by what they offer you for a trade-in value. Private party on Autotrader and I also recommend listing it on Ebay if you have an account. I've sold half a dozen cars because of Ebay but not through them. It's a great site for getting lots of views on your car. Get ANY body work done before listing it. A car that needs work or "will be repaired" is a huge red flag.
Alright car peeps, so I can brace myself, what kind of damage am I looking at if I want to get the fuel pump and the clutch replaced on my '06 Mustang? The garage won't quote it without seeing the car itself (which makes sense), but I'm pretty sure both things need to be replaced. I'm figuring about $800 for the clutch, but I have no idea what it costs to swap out a fuel pump. I'm taking it in regardless, I just want to know if I should start buying boxed mac and cheese for the foreseeable future, or if I can still afford steaks.