"Ryanator122" (hawkeye122)
01/14/2015 at 18:40 • Filed to: None
1
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"Ryanator122" (hawkeye122)
01/14/2015 at 18:40 • Filed to: None | 1
| 1 |
Thule Boxes, Engine Swaps, Monthly Payments, Subarus, Colleges, and Jordan Taylor are among the car-related things I am dealing with/ have dealt with since I last put up a proper post.
A friend who was in my Young Adults church group returned from school for the winter. For the first time I noticed he had one of these large roof boxes on his car. The thing of it was, he drives a early-2000's Acura (Shit, what do they call the Accord Coupe? ILX? TL? Whatever. You get it.) yet he had the box which probably belongs on a midsize station wagon. No picture because it was dark out, but I thought it looked pretty sick. No idea how sketchy it is to drive in the wind, but he can cart all his stuff to and from Idaho in it. Seems like a sweet deal to me.
Now I want one, which leads me to the other dilemma...
Engine Swaps-
People who have read my stuff before know that I currently drive a 2005 Mazda 6s. In the past month I've had to:
Change the coil pack (And plugs while I was there)
Change the engine mounts (A pain in the ass to find if you have the "Uncommon" 6-speed Automatic)
Tell the man at the shop to hunt down any oil leaks and try to find the cause of the phantom oil light.
Air filter (Naturally)
Brake pads (of course)
and am currently trying to source a new seat and some new wheels.
What? This was a temporary car! I wanted an E46! I'm getting a bit cross with the random noises coming from the engine bay, and my confidence in an Automatic with over 160k miles is low. This, plus the higher insurance and 21-25 MPGs are really starting to wear on my love of the car. But I think it would look cool with the roof box. If I'm not keeping it though, what's the ruddy point?
So I look around, and there is still a perfectly reasonable 2001 Camry CE with new Stage 2 clutch sitting in my yard with a thrown rod. The paint is still in really good shape. The interior is immaculate. It has a 5-speed. My family has owned it since it was new. Maybe I should get the engine changed? A Camry could accommodate a roof box quite nicely.
I figured that if I was going to drop a substantial amount of money on a valueless car, I may as well try to add some value or utility to it. Let's find a 4-banger from a more contemporary model to try and claw back some efficiency and power.
!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!
Mmmmmm, shiny. No timing belt to worry about, and way more power than mine. Probably better fuel economy as well.
But no. The State of California thinks it's bad for the baby sea lions for me to upgrade to a better, more efficient engine. What a bunch of crap. Ah well.
At this point I'm likely going to sell my Mazda, and use the proceeds to give my Camry a new lease on life. Sportier shocks, rear disc brakes(Junkyard from a Lexus), better seats (Junkyard from a Lexus), new wheels, and perhaps a DANK ASS STEREO, YO along with a freshly rebuilt engine.
Oh, and a roof box.
Monthly Payments-
My Mother randomly asked me the other day what a solid, reasonably priced new car would look like.
"What, for me? Probably a Fiesta ST. But before I did that I'd look for a ZX3 Focus with the Zetec and buy some Cosworth bits to build into it. Why?"
"Well my friend really wants to buy a new car, and she doesn't like the sporty stuff as much."
"Oh, I see. Well I still quite like the base Fiesta, and the new Fit looks kinda cool. How much money are we talking?"
"Under $200 a month"
What? You're the one always preaching the values of buying something outright! This is an outrage.
"She wont find a new car for that little. A lease, sure. But not an outright purchase. She'll be lucky to get under $250 a month with like a 60 month term. Would you pay for a Fiesta for 60 months?"
"Well she doesn't want a used car anymore. She's been looking at those Kia's, she really likes them. She also wants a warranty, and something where she gets free maintenance for a few years"
"A RIO? Hell no. Don't let her do that! Those are miserable cars." (Fires up CarMax upon hearing word "Warranty")
She was undeterred by $12,000 Fiat 500's with 40k miles, among other things I found on CarMax. Help me?
Subarus-
I was the custodian of my Grandmother's Boyfriend's 2006-ish Subaru Forester when they went out of town.
Pros
- Fun to drive, especially with the turbo whine, etc.
-Enough space for literally anything you want, but didn't feel big and sloppy
-Reasonably comfortable
-Lots of nifty gadgets (Heated Mirrors, Seats, auxiliary input)
Cons
-I got about 19 MPG. While I wasn't exactly going slow, I wasn't flogging it by any means.
-The automatic gearbox rivals even my Mazda for falling on its face on a normal load between 1st and 2nd. It was quite unnerving. The rest of the time it clonked around, but not nearly as much.
-All of the buttons on the interior felt old and tired. Sure, it had 140k miles, but the buttons in my Camry still feel crisp and new, and don't wiggle about as you press them. Seriously thought I was going to break the lock/unlock button.
-Large "Sacramento Kings" sticker on left-rear window.
-Wind noise from the driver door. Must be the seal?
Ah well, still better than driving a pickup around.
Colleges-
I'm assuming there are people here who go to/ have gone to college. Which college did you go to? Was it fun? Did you bring your car? Did you do Formula Student/SAE/Baja/Electric? Did you drive or fly to and from?
I've currently submitted apps to CSU Chico and Sacramento State, along with Montana State in Bozeman just for kicks. Currently trying to decide if I ought to apply to Oklahoma State as well since it's drastically cheaper than going to school in-state. Thoughts?
Jordan Taylor-
He recently called me out on social media. Sure, he can be mad that I was basically calling him an attention whore. But his picture with children had nothing to do with what I was objecting to. For what it's worth, I do think he's the quickest Daytona Prototype driver at the moment, I just wish he would post a bit more stuff of him hanging out in the paddock with his buddies, and less gimmick-y lawnmowing, etc.
Hey look at that, you made it through my wall of text! Now leave a comment telling me how stupid I am.
HammerheadFistpunch
> Ryanator122
01/14/2015 at 18:56 |
|
POST ALL THE THINGS!
RE: roofboxes
Hold a decent amount of stuff, the wind isn't too bad but it will kill your mileage. Good for wet stuff like skiis, assuming you don't have to/mind to take it on and off, which is a pain. They go on any car you want so long as you meet the minimum bar spread but be adviced that 2 bars only holds 150 lbs and these weigh 42 so you can only REALLY carry 108 lbs of stuff. not to mention it can really change your CG and the way the car handles with some weight so only pack the light stuff up there.
RE: Engine Swap. Go stock long block and don't bother fighting CARB...aint goina happen
RE: mothers friend. HAHAHAHA! sorry, I just feel for you.
RE: forester XT - loved my 2005 5 speed...what are we talking about here?
RE: college - Tough call, its hardly the value it used to be, but the workforce is more educated than ever thanks to the recessions, you almost NEED a 4 year degree now.
RE: who?