Getting a new truck. F250 super duty, quad cab 4x4, king ranch. Comes loaded. I went in scared of diesel and the holy hell noise it makes, as I didn't want to have to turn off my car every time I pulled up to a drive through. Turns out, Ford's new Power Stroke diesel is about as quiet as my tahoe's V8, even with the hood up, and especially on the road. The 440 hp and 860 ft lbs of torque didn't make the decision too difficult either. What I love though (and something I'd been hoping manufacturers would do for years) is that in addition to the usb plugs seemingly everywhere, there's a bunch of 120v outlets around the cab. That'll make life a lot easier. It's essentially a very expensive generator.
I worked at an oil change/minor repair shop when I was 20. The owner's son had some major screw ups while I was there. He nearly cut my fingers off with the lift, to name one. He left an old oil filter gasket on an engine and screwed the new filter on. Guy drove away, came back a half hour later, engine knocking like crazy. It was they guy's company truck, he was not the owner. He didn't make a big deal out of it, just told us to put on a new filter and fill it back up. He drove away again, engine knocking. Guess he wanted a new work truck.
I finally got the time to look at my old truck again. The problem is a plug wire arching to the exhaust manifold. I didn't buy OE wires the first time. They were supposed to be "premium" wires, but not OE. I tried a few things yesterday to get it to stop, didn't work. I got a set of OE wires and checking the gap on that plug today.
I just did a "J-Mod/ Jerry Mod" shift improvement on a Ford 4R70 transmission over the weekend. It was on a 2004 Ford F150 4X4 that needed the transmission replaced, and I told the owner that we should do this mod before installing the new (used, low mileage) transmission. However, you can do it in the vehicle easily. It noticeably sharpens the shifts (both upshifting and downshifting), but it doesn't increase the line-pressure of the transmission. Best of all, it's free! (not counting labor, fluids, drill bits, and a couple of cheap gaskets) I've done several of these over the years, including on my own vehicle (when I drove an F150, 10 years ago), and my customers and I have always been pleased. Spoiler Spoiler Here's the valvebody, removed. This is where the magic happens. You will disassemble it, and remove accumulator springs from the 1-2 and 2-3 pistons (visible in the upper right and lower left corners of the transmission case, respectively.) Spoiler Once the valvebody is partially disassembled, you need to enlarge some holes in the spacer plate. See the links below for details. Also, clean out the valvebody passages with brake cleaner. Spoiler This is the 1st-2nd accumulator piston, and its springs. Some people say to remove both of them and reinstall the piston, but some people don't like how hard the 1-2 shift can be. These days, I leave the yellow spring and throw out the blue one. I've never had any complaints with that strategy. Another thing to consider is that Ford didn't have a two spring setup on this piston until the early '00s, so leaving one spring in might not always be an option. The first time I did this mod, it was on my 2000 F150, and it only had one spring, and I removed it. It shifted hard enough to burn rubber on the 1-2 shift at 1/2 throttle or more. I never took a picture, but you need to remove the lower spring for the 2-3 accumulator piston as well. Spoiler Here's the whole thing put back together with a new filter, minus the pan, of course. That's the bolt tightening sequence written on that paper, by the way. Follow it to the letter, and tighten it to 90 in/lbs. For more detailed information, watch this video. (Warning: It is much longer than it needs to be; you can fast-forward over the parts of the host tightening down all of the numerous bolts) If you want REALLY detailed information about this mod, go to tccoa.com. Every aspect of this mod is explained in painstaking detail by the guy who designed it (he was a Ford engineer).
My car got totaled in a recent snowstorm so I need to get a new car quick. I live in New england and am trying to balance cost, fuel efficiency, and handling. I drive a *lot* for work so the car needs to be a pleasant experience. 1) Anyone have any insight in general as to good cars to get? I am not an aficionado so the vast arrays of options are daunting to me. Also, looking to buy used as opposed to actually new. 2) I was looking at a used 2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid XLE Premium with ~34,000 miles for ~$22,500. Anyone have any insight into it?
I don't have any insight as far as new models, but I would suggest buying used. I've never been able to justify the cost of a new car over the cost of a pampered used car. The moment you drive it off the lot it loses X in value, when the calendar flips you lose another Y in value. Let someone else eat those losses. I almost bought a new car once. It was 2001 or so and my ex talked me into buying a new car. I wanted to buy something I wanted, so I settled on a WS6 Trans Am with specific options. Thankfully they didn't have one. The price was right about $40K out the door. I figured out if I made payments for 6 years it would've cost me with interest $90K and 6 years later I would have an $8K car if I pampered it. I decided that was a horrible idea. Totally not worth it.
That works out to be about a 31% interest rate. I think the mob will loan money cheaper than that. I used to think like that, til last October. I bought a brand new truck. My Nissan xterra cracked a head, developed a huge oil leak and was beginning to have electrical issues. Who was going to buy it? So I went to the dealer, told them if they gave me 7000 for my x I would buy a truck. They did, sight unseen, as it was still in the shop where I drove it to get diagnosed. The mark up on new cars is huge, you have a lot of bargaining power when you shop new. Who pays sticker price?
Ok, maybe not quite that much...but probably close when you figure in the cost of full coverage insurance because of the loan (I never carry full coverage) especially in this town ( I'm 53, no accidents, no tickets, listed as married, carry state minimums and I'm still paying $84 a month.)
They probably read the stuff you've posted here and bumped you up a risk category. Shegirl's in the insurance industry; maybe she ratted you out?
Jesus, Toytoy, that's what I pay for insurance (33, divorced, suspended license, tickets out the wazoo, four DWIs, and a couple of "at fault" accidents)! Who is your insurance company? I've been with Progressive ever since my first conviction in '07, when Allstate dumped me. Fun fact: Unless shit happens, I get my Driver's License back this coming Wednesday, which should drop my premiums even further!
It's this shit hole of a city and the equally shitty drivers that live here. When I get back to a rural place, it'll easily be half of that.
What did AFHokie learn today? Chrysler builds the current generation Ram truck in a way that there's insufficient clearance and tire chains will not fit with stock wheels/tires. Per the owners manual they are expressly verboten. I guess I'm a rarity wanting to use them on a 4WD truck.
I've got a set of 1" claw chains for my Jeep... offroad use only. Go into 4-low and floor it and that thing becomes a roto-tiller from hell and will dig it's way through anything.
... And I say that y'all are crazy for needing any of that sort of equipment for driving around. Move South. I will never live in a place where it freezes on any sort of regular basis; it sounds like hell. It seems like there are plenty of smart Northerners and Canadians on this board; we could use y'all down here.
A set of chains take up a lot less storage space than a set of studded snow tires. Honestly, for where I'm at outside of DC, I don't need them, however at my parents home in a remote area of PA, there are times & places chains are needed. My parents age and this weekend's storm had me thinking I should look at getting a set.