ocnblu

As time goes by, the influence of our fathers molds us into the people we are destined to be, yet, some things just never "take". I share some aspects of my father's personality, but some things about him remain mystifiers that I'll never adopt. For example, my father has a rather militant dislike for cats, wild rabbits, squirrels and groundhogs. He'd feel no remorse shooting them if they give him enough of a chance. I don't own a gun and don't want anything to do with them, and I have a "live and let live" attitude toward wildlife. I love my father and wouldn't change him. What things about your father seem out of step with the way you live your life? What things do you share with your father, like peas in a pod?

The Aristocats

clerk

clock

Bleh. Mega Bleh.

As for your kitchen floor, I think a neutral color that goes with both the counter and cabinets might relieve the need to paint the cabinets. I would go to my local home improvement superstore and check out some samples.

That thing looks crazy!

Smith & Wesson

That reminds me, where in the heck is Enzora, handcuffed in the basement of a Pennsylvania home?

We never let a totalled car go to a yard without allowing the customer to retrieve their personal effects. That's just rude. Most customers come in to get their stuff within a day of hearing from their insurance company about the disposition of their car. Insurance companies up here don't try to pretentiously direct a total loss customer to a dealership or to a buying service that I know of, of course that would most likely happen after my interaction with the customer is over. The insurance company usually allows the customer to drive the rental for a reasonable number of days until they can find another car on their own, and I've never heard a customer complain about that aspect of the total loss experience. It is rare that a customer has such a desire to hold onto a total loss vehicle. That's certainly your choice, and I cannot blame you for feeling the way you do over the handling of this loss by Progressive. Here in PA, there are many hurdles (paperwork, verification photos, etc.) in the way of people who want to obtain a Reconstructed Title, it takes weeks, even months, to get an answer from the state, and in the meantime, the car is not legal to drive. For that reason, we always discourage a customer from attempting it. I don't pretend to know the process in Florida. I hope you can get your Aurora repaired soon and back on the road. She's a honey.

Horrible. These wonderful, technically advanced cars need to be preserved, not hacked up.

It's ironic and sad that the SRX, a vehicle that has won just about universal praise from the automotive press, has not really been a huge sales success. It deserves more. I'd like to see an Escalade V, maybe with a supercharger on the smallblock, and an SRX-V, with the STS' supercharged Northstar.

How about the monolithic black dash and console from an '82 Camaro?

Razor, you ornery son of a bitch, what did you do to that man? Answer: nothing. Suicidal people are too self-absorbed to let others influence them. It's not your fault. The loss of the little local boy is a tragedy, and it will forever change that family, especially the brother who accidentally shot him. That has to be unspeakably horrible for everyone involved. My heart goes out to them.

gecko

It's been documented here many times that I am a lover of second-gen Corvairs. Can you tell us more about it? Which horsepower is it? Which transmission? Is it a 2 door? Monza? Corsa?

We do not give estimates to customers with totalled vehicles. Customers most times don't realize that the total loss threshold varies among insurance companies, and the type of car. A misconception is that "total loss" means the estimate is at or above 100% of the value of the car. Some companies put the threshold as low as 65%, most are at 80%. Too many times when a car is totalled and I (rarely, it's officially out of my hands at that point) verbally tell the customer what the estimate amounts to, they think that is the value of their car. Putting a value on a totalled car is not the shop's job, it is the insurance company's job. All I do is report the damage to the insurance company, and they make the decision, after running some numbers, on whether the car is economically repairable. They tell me what they want to do, and all I am able to do at that point is tell the customer "you will hear from your insurance company". One of our insurance companies asks us to make 3 calls for salvage parts and 2 calls for aftermarket parts, even on a car that has 5 miles on it. Other companies aren't so anal about it, but I do call for any other company's customers if the car is a few years old. And we don't put junk on aything, it has to be in good shape. I choose our 3 biggest salvage yards that we do business with. They have locators to find parts at other yards all over the country. But it is not a perfect system. There are a lot of junkyards out there. We have fixed cars that should have been totalled for elderly folks who have an older car in good condition, because the customer doesn't want the expense or unfamiliarity of a new car, and because the car wouldn't bring much in salvage for the insurance company. But the vast majority of the time, the insurance company acts as a business based on numbers, with not much room for emotionality. As for your bumper cover, Brian, most times I try to engage the customer and ask them about prior damage. That bumper cover was cut only because of the scuff in the textured area, which made it unrepairable. The estimator was trying to write a complete estimate when he saw that, but... he should have had you there while he wrote it so you could point out things like the fact that was a prior spot of damage.

This is actually an excellent idear, imo. I'm looking forward to seeing this come through to reality.

twins

"On the subject of pepperoni (I like to consider myself somewhat of an expert on this wonderful meat), Pizza Hut beats Papa John's on thickness of the slice, greasyness, and ease of swallowing..." <====8 an excerpt from Satty's first published article. Hot!

http://www.cheersandgears.com/forums/index...ndpost&p=167038 I was bored this rainy morning. Here it is, a Buick Terraza flapping in the breeze.

Good Gawd, what a sexy four door hardtop. Except for the quad foglights, that's a bit much. I just wrote an $8000 estimate to repair the front end of a beautiful black metallic 2006 300C SRT-8. I'd be sick as a dog if I had a car like that and I rear-ended somebody.

Cool, Mr. Fly. I'll look for it. I think I answered my own question about damage in the gray, lower, textured portion of the bumper cover around the foglights. Now that I look closer, I see a white scuff in the texture in one of your "before the butchering" photos above. That texture cannot be repaired, so the bumper cover was, indeed, in need of replacement, hence the unkind cut to check for hidden structural damage.

Booyah, the funniest part of your Simpson's clip is when Homer is nekkid, holding himself, and looks down to see a banana on the floor, like "something" fell off his body. Vipes, yes, I've had dreams to customize my vehicles through the years but never really followed up on it until now. The Colorado looks better than ever with the chrome handle covers, polished American Racing wheels and Leer cap in place. Maybe I need to break down and buy a digital camera so I can post some pics. A job is the best way to get money (Captain Obvious!) to do anything you want, but I have to agree with those that say save your money for your next vehicle instead of spending a lot to customize this one. I like the blue in the photos, but your green is also a good looking color. Your factory exhaust has bright tips, right? A set of polished rims in factory size and offset (so you don't have to buy tires), tinted windows and a nice, wet-look cleanup would go a long way toward your goal without spending a bundle. (Why did I just respond to this thread, I vowed never to give Viper any advice after his rude comeback in the antidepressant thread.) :AH-HA_wink:

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