Cars & Bikes, Driving & Riding

[mac5155]

I bought my dad a fluid film undercoating service for his ram. I'm debating on getting one for my own truck too. $225 for the service.

[NTP66]

What exactly is it?

[Shyster]

I decided I'm too stubborn to let a drain plug defeat me. A trip to Home Depot for a six-point 17mm socket (rather than the 12-point socket I was using) gave me the grip necessary to remove the plug, and a new drain plug from Advance Auto is now in place. So that's good for another 5,000 miles.

[mac5155]

What exactly is it?

An animal fat based (I think it's called lanolin?) spray that's supposed to help prevent rust.

[NTP66]

Interesting. I was just thinking about it, and I wonder how much is actually exposed on my car. I swear I’ve read that it has more underbody paneling than older models.

[faftorial]

I decided I'm too stubborn to let a drain plug defeat me. A trip to Home Depot for a six-point 17mm socket (rather than the 12-point socket I was using) gave me the grip necessary to remove the plug, and a new drain plug from Advance Auto is now in place. So that's good for another 5,000 miles.

Do you elevate the car when doing that?

When I was a kid I would help my dad with oil changes and scoot on my back under the car to loosen the plug and pull out the filter.

I'd be afraid of the claustrophobia if doing that now.

[Shyster]

Do you elevate the car when doing that?

I have a pair of maintenance ramps that I use to elevate the front of the car. I've probably had those things 20+ years.

[mac5155]

Interesting. I was just thinking about it, and I wonder how much is actually exposed on my car. I swear I’ve read that it has more underbody paneling than older models.

Yeah, you'd have to remove the plastic underbody. On our rams there isn't any plastic underneath and they are prone to rusting also.

[mac5155]

my wife's car was involved in a hit and run in a parking lot sometime the week of thanksgiving. Passenger side damage so we didnt really see it until later. I finally got around to submitting a claim to insurance. Erie is great - within an hour I had the appointment scheduled with the adjuster. He just left and gave me the quote. $4,736. WOW. thank goodness they lower the deductible to $100 for parked-vehicle accidents. a new door, repair to the rear door, rear quarter, paint and blend. sheeeeeesh. I thought it was just a dent on the one door and a scratch on the other, but he found far more damage that I didn't even see.

[NTP66]

Damage or "damage"?

[RonnieFranchise]

Just had the Flex in last week for inspection, Y-Pipe replacement and squeaky steering. Today heat is not working, and the steering is still squeaky. Another appointment….

[mac5155]

Damage or "damage"?

There's a significant creased dent right on and around the door handle. He told me if you fix it, being by the handle, it'll crack again.

The scratches are pretty bad, I thought they'd buff but he said the metal needs repaired with bondo.

And then paint the entire side of the car.

[NTP66]

“Today might be a good day to go to the DMV to renew your license.”

[dodint]

It says right on your renewal "Customer demand for photo services is greatest the first and last two days of the month."

[NTP66]

And what is today’s date

[dodint]

The 1st was a holiday. This is the second day of operations for the month. C'mon, man.

[NTP66]

This is the only photo center within like 9 miles of me. It’s going to be bad no matter what.

[mac5155]

So why are we complaining then

[NTP66]

I’m not complaining, just thought it was funny how wrong I was. The lady behind me in line… she was complaining. Still is.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

I have 4 payments left on my car. Feels good.

[CBear3]

I have 4 payments left on my car. Feels good.

I was down to 6, when I thought I heard the tell tale click of cam phasers on my Expedition @ 200k miles. That along with new control arm bushings, ball joints, and struts had me staring at $2k in parts and and God only knows how many more hours of work. So I took the chicken exit and decided on a short term lease of a Honda Prologue this weekend. We'll still have the three rows of my wife's CX-9 for road trips and family gatherings, but there's plenty of room in the back seat for the 3 kids if we're just running around town real quick.
My father has done the EV thing for the last six months and has loved it. We'll see if I have the same experience. Commute to work is only 15 miles 1 way, so it should be a big deal. Nice feature they're starting to build into UI's, you can schedule your charging time. So I can come home and hook it up to the charger at 6, but I can program the car to not start charging until 10 or whenever off peak hours start.

[dodint]

Tyler's truck us down because of cam phasers, he is doing the work himself.

[mac5155]

My wife's expedition needs them too.

He any good at doing them? Lol

[dodint]

He lives in KC, unfortunately. He could've done C's, tho.

[mac5155]

Dang. Certainly not a job I'm ready to tackle myself. But I think I'm going to have a local mechanic do it. It's cheaper to keep er.