Random Thoughts Thread

[Robert Hall]

Nice weather—-sunny and 46 and the snow melted....drove a couple hundred miles around NE/north central Ohio...shopping for wine, cheese and sausage.   From Grandpa’s Cheesehouse in Ashland to the Amish country/Swiss Ohio area around Berlin and Sugarcreek.   Went and visited my parents’ graves in Port Washington. ( the 19th made 20 years since my Dad passed).   Beautiful day to be driving winding, hilly Ohio backroads, and the Jeep drove great....great day to be Alive and Kicking as the song goes ( had a New Wave soundtrack for today). 

[trinacriabob]

9 hours ago, daves87rs said:

Ah, finally free from drama for a while. MIL had to move in with is for a few months....and nothing but issues. But she finally gets her own place at the end of the month. And the family and I gave her money for a nice hotel until then....

Dave, you have always struck me as a person who does not create and does not enjoy drama.  Believe me.  I get it.

Anyway, I was surfing for a specific photo I once saw and came across this.  This is what the climate control panel looks like on a mid-70s Olds Cutlass if you DON'T have A/C.

And, if that's the situation, under the hood, it becomes a Saturday mechanic's dream.

[ocnblu]

Uncle Dave has always been a steady voice in the storm.  We love Uncle Dave!

[Robert Hall]

15 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

   This is what the climate control panel looks like on a mid-70s Olds Cutlass if you DON'T have A/C.

And, if that's the situation, under the hood, it becomes a Saturday mechanic's dream.

Interesting..no A/C, but it does have the dash vents..  I remember a lot of older cars didn't have dash vents without A/C...

Edited December 22, 2019 by Robert Hall

[trinacriabob]

53 minutes ago, Robert Hall said:

Interesting..no A/C, but it does have the dash vents..  I remember a lot of older cars didn't have dash vents without A/C...

Right, some just had plastic panels over them.  In the Cutlass, and some of the quadruplets, there were 4 vents.  They had these round tabs you pulled from under the dash to open and close ventilation.  Must have worked wonders in Phoenix! 

On the Cutlass, the ones on the driver's side were just like the ones if the car had A/C.  The spheres on the passenger side were vaned, similar to the ones by the driver, if you didn't have A/C. 

However, if you had A/C, they had the adjusting knob in the center to open and close the spheres.

I recall the loss leaders.  It was a hoot to raise the hood on a mid-70s Cutlass Supreme to see a 250 c.i. L6 ... and NO air.  That car could probably run forever.

Edited December 22, 2019 by trinacriabob

[balthazar]

College roommate had a ‘76 Cutlass coupe with the 6. It was really clean, red w/ a white half top. Don’t recall if it had A/C. We drove it from Detroit to NJ for winter break in an awful storm that had 80% of the interstate traffic being semi’s.

[ocnblu]

 

[ocnblu]

My problems with the Kia Seltos involve the transmissions (CVT or DCT) and the favorable approach angle, but low underbelly.  If it had the lower front bumper as seen in other parts of the world (who are they kidding with that duckbill Trailhawk-like chin?) and a conventional transmission I would like it a lot more.

Found a 2020 Escape unlocked on the local Ford lot today, sat in it.  It's fine at first blush, but I agree with Drew, it seems a tad cheap inside once you start looking close.  Good cargo room, and once the back seat is moved rearward, good rear legroom (although I don't haul a bunch of ppl).

Edited December 23, 2019 by ocnblu

[balthazar]

Cameron WV. Must've been built right next to a RR track- the front of the building is maybe 6 feet wide.

 

 

Edited December 23, 2019 by balthazar

[daves87rs]

18 hours ago, ocnblu said:

Uncle Dave has always been a steady voice in the storm.  We love Uncle Dave!

*blushes*

And it’s why I love you guys too......

It’s hard to find folks that can have so many different views and still be friends over the years...

Like extended family.... 🙂 

On 12/21/2019 at 6:30 PM, Robert Hall said:

Nice weather—-sunny and 46 and the snow melted....drove a couple hundred miles around NE/north central Ohio...shopping for wine, cheese and sausage.   From Grandpa’s Cheesehouse in Ashland to the Amish country/Swiss Ohio area around Berlin and Sugarcreek.   Went and visited my parents’ graves in Port Washington. ( the 19th made 20 years since my Dad passed).   Beautiful day to be driving winding, hilly Ohio backroads, and the Jeep drove great....great day to be Alive and Kicking as the song goes ( had a New Wave soundtrack for today). 

Loving the warmth myself..nice to be able to get a few things done outside and around the house...and cars.. 🙂

Looks Like once weather for Frankenmuth, MI on Thursday.....

[balthazar]

Firebird ~

[ocnblu]

Missed surreal's b-day yesterday I think.  Hope you had a good one.  If you don't mind, I'm going to combine your b-day and Xmas gifts this year.

[surreal1272]

1 hour ago, ocnblu said:

Missed surreal's b-day yesterday I think.  Hope you had a good one.  If you don't mind, I'm going to combine your b-day and Xmas gifts this year.

Same as everyone else my entire life lol.

 

And regardless of past comments, thank you for the birthday sentiment. 

8 hours ago, balthazar said:

Firebird ~

“ThunderCougarFirebird” (ode to Futurama).

[ccap41]

Happy belated birthday, @surreal1272! 

[trinacriabob]

I just went to the pharmacy.  And, as usual, I am pissed off.

When you have lived in tree hugger land and you ask the pharmacy to recycle the lengthy instructions, with all your personal info, because you've taken these meds before, they just do it.

This pharmacy looks at me with the deer in the headlights look when I ask them to recycle this paperwork.  And it's every cashier.  And it's every time.  

End of rant.

[dwightlooi]

On 12/20/2019 at 10:48 PM, balthazar said:

It was during the downturn; around '09. I really should have picked some up- I actively thought about it.

$5K would've got one 2500 shares. At -say- $10/share, that would've been a $20K profit. But I put money on Visa instead.

I haven't looked into it, but it is very strange Ford hasn't risen with the tide. If GM is at $35, Ford, one would think, could/should be at at least $20.

LOL... you could have bought AMD @ $2 in 2016 and it's $40 today. Put a million down on that instead of a home and it'll be worth 20 million today. Moral of the story? NEVER look back and moan over the investment you should have made. That's a sure way to be very unhappy.

[trinacriabob]

1 hour ago, dwightlooi said:

LOL... you could have bought AMD @ $2 in 2016 and it's $40 today. Put a million down on that instead of a home and it'll be worth 20 million today. Moral of the story? NEVER look back and moan over the investment you should have made. That's a sure way to be very unhappy.

Yes, lots of crying over spilled milk with all that looking in hindsight.

I can name 5 Seattle area based companies whose stock would have lined someone's pockets in a big way if they rode the wave upward

- Boeing

- Costco

- Starbucks

- Microsoft

- Amazon

Edited December 23, 2019 by trinacriabob

[balthazar]

I’m happy as a bug; I bought Visa at $27. It’s not up $38/share, its up $160/share.

[dwightlooi]

1 hour ago, balthazar said:

I’m happy as a bug; I bought Visa at $27. It’s not up $38/share, its up $160/share.

Good for you! Just don't look back and say I could have gotten this or that a year ago and make out like a bandit. You don;t need to go that far back,  Just go back a week and you could have bought the winning Powerball ticket!

 

[David]

@surreal1272 Happy belated B-day

[Robert Hall]

Another sunny, mild day in the 50s, another little road trip...250+ miles round trip down to Steubenville along the Ohio River to Ft Stueben to see the memorial brick we bought for my Dad (he was the school superintendent there in the 70s).   Had some delicious local comfort food from my childhood (DiCarlos Pizza and meatball sandwiches from Capris).   Drove by my childhood home, steep streets w/ brick houses, looks so much like Pittsburgh neighborhoods.   Saw a beautiful sunset on US 250 driving along Tappan Lake...love rural Ohio even in the winter.. another day w/ a New Wave soundtrack..

[balthazar]

It's commonly stated that pre-net engine ratings (1971), that manufacturer's often overstated HP ratings.
It's important to know that OEMs also UNDERstated many engines, notably their top-tier engines, since they were regularly competing against each other in sanctioned events.

The NHRA invoked 'factoring' that re-calculated HP ratings after verified stock cars performed 'too well' for their ratings. The Chrysler 426 Hemi, rated at 425 HP, was immediately refactored to 480, and the FoMoCo 427 'Hi-Riser' was refactored from 425 to 465.
Noted racer & car tester, one Roger Huntington, did his own calculations on the Pontiac 421 SD. Rated at 405 HP, he deduced via it's performance times it was putting out at least 450 HP.

Something to keep in mind before 'poo-pooing' vintage ratings.

[David]

Sad all that contamination and now the disposal of thousands of gallons of fuel due to flooding.

[ccap41]

@dfelt, I could probably google the answer but I feel like you have the knowledge as well.

Theoretically, if an EV Semi(or car/truck/SUV) were to wreck into a lake/river, I assume there is less cleanup as there's no diesel fuel to cleanup? The question though, other than for the battery cooling/heating system(which passenger vehicles also have cooling systems), is there any other contaminants to pollute the waters similarly like a diesel? 

This came up because(the above pic) and we locally had a semi crash into our lake(not sure how or why as I saw no trailer attached either, but that's besides the point) and it made me think if EV vehicles will also help in that regard. 

[Drew Dowdell]

Merry Christmas everyone

[David]

17 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Merry Christmas everyone

Merry Xmas and Happy New Years Drew and to all the amazing members here at Cheers and Gears!  

[trinacriabob]

Merry Christmas OR Happy Holidays ... and a Happy New Year ... to all of C&G.

May Santa have succeeded in getting down your chimney and being able to fit the car of your dreams into your gift stocking.

[daves87rs]

Merry Christmas!

 

Hope everyone has a great day!!!

[balthazar]

Whew; survived another one!
 

[Robert Hall]

Had a good Christmas, low key..great weather here, 60 and sunny now...unseasonably mild for Cleveland.   Unfortunately, fighting a cold and sinus infection.   Not fun on a week off... but getting a lot of rest...

[balthazar]

Reading The Last Days of Henry Ford. HF is easily the most well-documented auto industrialist, and much of it is quite interesting. 

[surreal1272]

More on this later. 
 

 

[surreal1272]

2015 with 88K miles on it. It’s the SEL FWD (AWD models are tough to find unless its a EcoBoost) and is loaded. Did get an extra 3 year 50K Mile warranty on it for a little piece of mind. The only issue is the rear lift gate Actuator (the large single arm beneath the rear lift struts. I noticed it was bad (liftgate would open a few inches and then back down indicating the problem) so I got an extra $300 off while the actual part is $120 and easy as pie to replace. Other than that, everything seems to work well. Have to say that I never thought I would love heated seats but my back was thanking me for it earlier. Will post some more pics when the weather isn’t so crappy. My only real concern is my chewing through those twenty inch tires lol.

Edited December 26, 2019 by surreal1272

[David]

@surreal1272 Very nice ride, congratulations. If your willing to invest, there are great 20" rim tires you can get that give long life. Bridgestone, Michelin, I have used them on all my auto's and they have always lasted longer than the mileage warranty.

[surreal1272]

1 hour ago, dfelt said:

@surreal1272 Very nice ride, congratulations. If your willing to invest, there are great 20" rim tires you can get that give long life. Bridgestone, Michelin, I have used them on all my auto's and they have always lasted longer than the mileage warranty.

These tires seem pretty decent (will have to look at the brand again when I have daylight because I don’t recall them right now) but at that seize, they are pricy as hell and mine are about to see a lot fo miles. I’ll look those up though just to compare them out. Thanks.

 

Edit: They are Nitto Brand tires.

Edited December 27, 2019 by surreal1272

[Robert Hall]

My ‘14 Grand Cherokee has 20s, and I’ve been happy with the Michelin Defenders I put on it a couple years ago.  Been very good the last 3 winters.  
 

Beautiful weather today, 65 degrees.  Took a drive up the coast this afternoon to a beach and stopped at several parks along the coast on the way home.  
 

[daves87rs]

Never thought I say it- but the Flex has grown on me....love the thing now!  Congrats! Looks good in Silver!

Took one to Chicago with my boss to Chicago.....handled that trip with comfort and class! 🙂

Keep us updated on her!

 

 

 

[surreal1272]

10 hours ago, daves87rs said:

Never thought I say it- but the Flex has grown on me....love the thing now!  Congrats! Looks good in Silver!

Took one to Chicago with my boss to Chicago.....handled that trip with comfort and class! 🙂

Keep us updated on her!

 

 

 

It’s getting ready to go on a cross country drive back to NC so I’ll update it’s “performance” once I get situated there. So far, I love how it drives. It really is the hidden gem in a sea of mundane CUVs. 

[Robert Hall]

Sharp Flex @surreal1272.   Always liked them because they are so distinctive looking...kind of a modern traditional station wagon form in a world of CUVs.

Edited December 27, 2019 by Robert Hall

[surreal1272]

13 minutes ago, Robert Hall said:

Sharp Flex @surreal1272.   Always liked them because they are so distinctive looking...kind of a modern traditional station wagon form in a world of CUVs.

That’s my line of thinking on it. I have been ashamed to admit that I have a thing for wagons. 8 years in a Magnum and now this pretty much confirm it lol. Really, the main draw is the 82 cubic feet of space with all the seats down. Now sure there is another CUV or SUV that can touch that without going up to a Tahoe or Expedition. The box shape absolutely helps here and confirms why I think bean shape CUVs and CUV coupes are a waste of space. Hell, I just like the old school beach cruiser look of it more than anything else. I get that Ford wanted the Explorer back in the fold and that’s one of the reasons why the Flex was left to die but they should have pushed both, in an ideal world of course. 

[surreal1272]

1 hour ago, surreal1272 said:

That’s my line of thinking on it. I have been ashamed to admit that I have a thing for wagons. 8 years in a Magnum and now this pretty much confirm it lol. Really, the main draw is the 82 cubic feet of space with all the seats down. Now sure there is another CUV or SUV that can touch that without going up to a Tahoe or Expedition. The box shape absolutely helps here and confirms why I think bean shape CUVs and CUV coupes are a waste of space. Hell, I just like the old school beach cruiser look of it more than anything else. I get that Ford wanted the Explorer back in the fold and that’s one of the reasons why the Flex was left to die but they should have pushed both, in an ideal world of course. 

I should clarify that second sentence. I have NEVER been ashamed to admit that I have a thing for wagons. 

[ccap41]

Congrats on the new ride! 

I've grown more and more fond of the Flex. When it first came out I absolutely hated it's styling. It always felt awkward but, maybe with my change in lifestyle with age and home ownership, it grew on me to the point where I would have bought one had I been able to find one packaged the way I liked it.. refreshed and AWD but as @surreal1272 mentioned, it was ecoboost only(which I also would have wanted) and then the prices jump pretty quick. Oh and also after having Sync3, it would have had to have been a 2016+.. Not cheap ones. 

I almost never like dark blue vehicles with black wheels/accents but I think this looks great. Maybe I just love the blue that much or maybe it actually works but I'd love this one:

 

[surreal1272]

Thanks @ccap41

 

While waiting on my lift gate actuator, I spot this at Bell Ford...

[ccap41]

I'm still yet to see a GT in person... 

[surreal1272]

3 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Congrats on the new ride! 

I've grown more and more fond of the Flex. When it first came out I absolutely hated it's styling. It always felt awkward but, maybe with my change in lifestyle with age and home ownership, it grew on me to the point where I would have bought one had I been able to find one packaged the way I liked it.. refreshed and AWD but as @surreal1272 mentioned, it was ecoboost only(which I also would have wanted) and then the prices jump pretty quick. Oh and also after having Sync3, it would have had to have been a 2016+.. Not cheap ones. 

I almost never like dark blue vehicles with black wheels/accents but I think this looks great. Maybe I just love the blue that much or maybe it actually works but I'd love this one:

 

Yeah, Sync 3 would have been nice for me by just having CarPlay but it wasn’t a deal breaker so here I am lol. The two tone color schemes do look best on them too. 

[trinacriabob]

I just realized today marks 14 years that I've been on the Cheers and Gears forum.

I found it in 2005 when everyone was hypothesizing about the then new LaCrosse and I was approaching needing a new car.  Three years later, I bought that car.

But I'm still here ...

[David]

23 hours ago, surreal1272 said:

These tires seem pretty decent (will have to look at the brand again when I have daylight because I don’t recall them right now) but at that seize, they are pricy as hell and mine are about to see a lot fo miles. I’ll look those up though just to compare them out. Thanks.

 

Edit: They are Nitto Brand tires.

Cool, Nitto have been good to me in the past, but now the Escalade and SS has Michilin Defenders and they have been great, used to have Bridgestone, but changed as Michilin sips down to the 10% level unlike Bridgestone that goes to 50% and so I have gotten very good life and grip in all kinds of weather. Yes they are more expensive, but if your driving road trip miles which I do they seem to last very well. Like I said well past stated mileage life for me, but Mileage will vary per person.

4 hours ago, surreal1272 said:

Yeah, Sync 3 would have been nice for me by just having CarPlay but it wasn’t a deal breaker so here I am lol. The two tone color schemes do look best on them too. 

Looks like you could buy a newer head unit and put it in as they did not change the dash from what I can tell.

[dwightlooi]

I defected back to the Germans this Christmas... got myself an Audi A8L 4.0T. The car sold new for 109. But at 4 years and 40K miles as a Certified Pre-Owned, it is $31.6K making it an exceptional value. This is in part due to the SUV craze and in part due to the fact that car enthusiasts are generally gravitate to the S-cars, the M-cars, the V-cars and the AMGs. This left the traditional flagship sedan with low demand and fantastically bad residual values (71% depreciation in 4 years). It is no S8 Plus for sure, but it is brisk enough.

Edited December 28, 2019 by dwightlooi

[surreal1272]

2 hours ago, dfelt said:

Cool, Nitto have been good to me in the past, but now the Escalade and SS has Michilin Defenders and they have been great, used to have Bridgestone, but changed as Michilin sips down to the 10% level unlike Bridgestone that goes to 50% and so I have gotten very good life and grip in all kinds of weather. Yes they are more expensive, but if your driving road trip miles which I do they seem to last very well. Like I said well past stated mileage life for me, but Mileage will vary per person.

Looks like you could buy a newer head unit and put it in as they did not change the dash from what I can tell.

 

2 hours ago, dfelt said:

Cool, Nitto have been good to me in the past, but now the Escalade and SS has Michilin Defenders and they have been great, used to have Bridgestone, but changed as Michilin sips down to the 10% level unlike Bridgestone that goes to 50% and so I have gotten very good life and grip in all kinds of weather. Yes they are more expensive, but if your driving road trip miles which I do they seem to last very well. Like I said well past stated mileage life for me, but Mileage will vary per person.

Looks like you could buy a newer head unit and put it in as they did not change the dash from what I can tell.

The wiring plugs for the Sync 2 systems and the Sync 3 are most likely not the same because of altered controls but I do plan on looking into it. Not 100% sure about it but history would suggest that there may be a compatibility issue. 

[surreal1272]

@dfelt-Turns out there are swap out upgrades but they are $1500-$2000 which is a deal killer for me. Sucks because I would swap it out myself. 
 

https://www.infotainment.com/products/2013-2015-ford-flex-myford-touch-sync-2-to-sync-3-with-apple-carplay-and-android-auto-upgrade

Edited December 28, 2019 by surreal1272