SAmadei

Yeah, it works by shutting off the brain activity... but not making one actually tired. I've had no problem continuing to function after taking Melatonin then having altered plans that kept me up all night. Before Melatonin, I had to work myself to physical exhaustion, otherwise I laid in bed thinking intensely about nothing at all, it seemed. I never had dream issues with Melatonin... and I usually use it pretty heavily... 10mg/night. It builds up in your system, so I have to skip every once in a while, otherwise it keeps me from sleeping... I hadn't had more than 2-3 dreams in 20 years... until I got a CPAP... now I do dream, and they aren't all that horrific, like they used to be. But they still are in dusky black and white and the darn electrical lights NEVER seem to work. Edit: For the record, I don't share my dreams with others because I don't like them getting clues about what is going on in my subconscious, that I have missed...

Future business plans will continue to discuss the limitations GM has placed on themselves by abandoning certain markets to attempt to beat Toyota in a game in which Toyota seems to write the rules. There will always be 'what could've been'. This leads back into that list of "undesirable" subjects. Plus future business cases are going to be subject to more nanny tech... also on the "undesirable" list. (-1) Many like to mix in the improbable with the unlikely and dismiss it all as impossible. BOF pillarless hardtop convertibles are improbable... and only make a slim bit of discussion here... but multiple bodystyles is not, and is what DOES take up a lot of bandwidth... as people rooted in reality see GM only offering 3 coupes (all fairly expensive offerings, at that) to be almost surrealistic. Grouping this all together and dismissing it as undesirable is sticking one's head in the sand. (-1) Well, adding value to a conversation is very subjective around here. Several people have repeatedly posted the X, Y and Z... and it gets the "TL;DR" treatment... then someone chips in with "Cars given away at a loss", "Just another Chevy" or "Fleeted to death" snippets and everyone just goes along. No one really provides a rebuttal to X, Y and Z... but we're supposed to accept the snippets, even though GM has never submitted any proof that a certain badge on the car was causing them to bleed money... and yet, major fleeting continues... along with its profit loss. (-4) Lets address "I haven't been interested in a GM vehicle since 19xx and/or I'll never buy one again". Well, the problem here is that 80% of buyers are NOT buying GM. That makes it a valid item for discussion. (-2) Ah, yes, more hyperbole. I've read the "Bring back LaSalle" argument at least 4 times on C&G. Nobody is realistically arguing to bring back LaSalle... or AMC... or Plymouth or Oldsmobile. Few are arguing to bring back Hummer or Saturn. We mourn these, but these all died long enough ago or had clear business cases to be closed... Pontiac was NOT a clear case, and its hole affects future product development. (-1) To ignore that is to rename C&G's tagline to "GM's Biggest Shills". There are enough sites on the web that simply regurgitate GM propaganda. (-13) Discussion of future Zetas and having the Impala and Caprice too close together in the same brand will result in the "undesirable" RWD vs. FWD subject. The solution to this generally was the dreaded "Pontiac" subject. (-2) Personally, I think we already know how the whole Caprice thing is going to play out. And by the time it does, you'll be bored with the discussions, as I think every that will be said about the Caprice already has been said by someone. (-1)

Agreed... If GM and Ford kill the RWD Aussiecars, and GM and Ford might as well close up shop and give the market to the Asians... just like they did in the US.

So... eliminate these, and what subjects are left? Cooing over what new material has made a minivan's interior so cool? Comparing the Cruze to Corolla, option by option... like consumer reports? Those topics above are what weigh heavily on the GM fans' mind... second guessing the General is easy, as they've made 30 years of bad decisions. Without those topics above, C&G drys up in three weeks, as discussions devolve into: Olds: Got a Lamborghini to test. BV: Does it seat 4? Croc: Cruze seats 4. HyperV6: 4 is better than 2. (+1) Camino6: Yeah. Balthy: I agree. OcnBlu: Exactly Paulino: Well, Then is sounds like the Cruze is better than the Lambo. (+4) Satty: Yay! (-1) Olds: OK that settles it. Lamborghini is no good. *Topic Locked*

It is? How is the Smart ForTwo inefficient? Not counting the awful tranny used in NA.

I want to like this car with its RWD-goodness, but when I see where supposed "full size" luxury cars has gone proportion-wise, I actually start to desire a 1988 Fifth Avenue.

Am I the only one who reads "Edge SEL" occasionally as "EdSEL"?

You mean like every EGR equipped engine built in the last 30 years?

You mean slightly more than 3 and a half tons of truck. This thing really has a curb weight of 7393 pounds?!? Jeez.

Sounds like they are doing the opposite of a Peltier CPU cooler. Its my understanding that Peltiers work both ways, though... so just mounting these to the pipe aft of the cat with some big heat sinks should get you some current... but this is cooling the exhaust, not eating it.

That sounds like a side effect of slipping on the water pump pulley. As Olds mentioned, I would look hard at the tensioner and the belt size... perhaps it was the wrong belt in the sleeve? Too large is going to give you slippage and will generate heat. Too small is going to cause the belt to shred... at least in my experience. I have the shredding problem with "Dad's" fullsize van. I've been using larger belts, but they are still tight... but there are a few other problems with the accessory drive and water pump, so I'm not going too slack until I fix that. I just wish I could find a guide to the pulley diameters on a '89 Van... it appears stock, but something is definitely not right. Dad had swapped in the engine, and likely used a longer belt, but it also was unreadable when the van threw it. Dad took that secret with him. Good to see you are zeroing in... I'll have to drag you over to help sort out the mystery cooling issue on the van when I pull it apart next time. ;-)

LOL, no, but I've driven a similar van owned by a friend. OcnBlu nailed it... Bonneville up the street. I was waiting for the power to come back on, so I could check on some systems, and the "rat rod" pulled up. As soon as the guy was out of sight, people were checking it out left and right for about a half hour.

I can't remember if this was posted before from some NJer... Eagle-eyed folks might see my car hiding in there, somewhere... ;-)

I see the spammers just moved the links to the body of the message now. I guess links in posts will be needed to be disabled for the first 50, 100 or something posts. I really hate those SOBs...

Student strips down to Speedo at airport. "I looked on the TSA website and it didn't say anything about going through in a bathing suit." Read more/watch here...

Nah... good photos. Being that I know how most cars between 1960-2004 are put together, I just find the way the 'Vettes were built to be pretty interesting, as I've never had one up close and personal... and apart. ;-) Actually, I find it interesting whats steel on the plastic fantastic. I expect the frame to be, but I didn't realize how much firewall and interior supports are steel. I guess I've been under the incorrect impression that as long as the fiberglass gelcoat is not degraded (leading to the fiberglass breaking down), any Vette was restorable... but I imagine that is not really the case, if the steel parts are too hard to replace. Interesting...

I just noticed something odd... what is that broken line that follows the passenger side of the hump and around the rear of were the passenger seat would be? I imagine that is a vacuum line... but for what?

I agree... and I'd never advocate getting directly involved with Mexico, but as CSpec noted, a LOT of Mexico's lawlessness is created by the huge amounts of money the drug cartels are getting because of our ineffective drug war. This all creates a perfect storm between the two countries and the overall effect would certainly be considered hostile if not for our official "friendly" status. Thinking about the two problems together... I suppose the eventual solution will be that our drug war will continue to fund Mexico's warlords... and eventually they will amass a military big enough to simply annex Arizona. Then the AZ immigration problem is moot.

Sounds more like a 242, than a 442. ;-)

Thats odd. Is it on from the time the key is turned to 'on' or beyond? Does it ever blink? My Caprice had the Security light come on and off from time to time... it was looseness in the PASSKey system... which would have normally disabled starting the car... but once the car is running, it would only illuminate the Security light. Hitting a pothole usually fixed it. Edit: Looks like this might indicate a bad PASSKey module... and that PASSKey is inoperative. Considering that PASSKey is not a very serious security deterrent, I'd say ignore it. The blower access is on the center of the firewall, from the engine compartment. These blower motors are very unreliable... part of the reason is a vent tube that falls off and causes hot engine compartment air to "cool" the motor. I've replaced my blower motor countless times now... junkyard blowers, refurbs, brand new, OEM. They all acted up again... some made noise... some just died unexpectedly... so wouldn't hit high speed. It not REAL hard to replace the blower, but be careful, the plastic cap, tube and plastic firewall covering are all irreplaceable and get VERY brittle. I only jack there if I'm changing a tire by the side of the road. I normally use my floor jack right on the middle of the subframe and have never had an issue. I never use ramps... too much of a hassle. I've heard you can... I have yet to see one offered. I fear it requires special tools... and knowing where the AC compressor is on the 3800, I'd think that would be a tough job... and if the clutch is dying, the compressor is likely not far behind. I had a similar problem with my AC compressor on my Caprice... and the fillings seemed to be from the front seal/bearing eating itself. IIRC, I used the recommended AC Delco double platinums my my '99 Bonneville 3800 NA, and they have performed fine. There is a guide to checking the coil packs... of course, I'm not near my personal automotive library, so I'll leave it to someone else to elaborate. As far as wires, I get the OEM or OEM-style expensive wires with the lube for the contacts. The 3800s can be picky about wires and I wanted to get 200K out of my second set like I got from my first set. ;-)

Not sure why you can't. I can see it in your reply, oddly enough. Lets try this...

When you first see this, its not immediately obvious that this is this is the trailing edge of the rear doors when open completely... and would be the primary taillights.

I don't usually nickname cars, but my sister has... and my friends have. For example, for me, the '81 Bonneville was simply "The Bonneville". Then I bought a second Bonneville... Both black... so one is now the "Old Bonneville" or "Bonneville Coupe" and the '99 is "The Bonneville". Sometimes I'll just call them "Bonne". Now with 3 Grand Prixes in the family, thats gotten confusing. Same with Firebirds... which I call the "Blue Bird" (1969), "Red Bird" (1991) or "Snow Bird" (1992). My sister calls the '69 Firebird "Relentless", as its had a history of being hard to stop... its her car, so that's its official name, I suppose. Her '98 white Sunfire Convertible is "Snowflake". The '89 GMC Van will alway's be "Dad's Van" in my eyes. The '88 Safari wagon was the "Speed Wagon". My Yellow/Black '68 Catalina Convertible... "Banana Boat". Camino needs a good name for the new 'Vette. I think its kind of a "Gator Vette"... but that's my opinion.

In theory, they will last forever... in reality, they should outlast the car... but there are always exceptions. They are very low wear and tear... and when they do, it tends to be simply dimming, rather than outright failure. Your more likely to have a physical contact issue, like corrosion or damage than damage to the LED itself. I've ground the epoxy lens down to force LEDs into custom spots and never had a failure... but then I'd wipe my (relatively) greasy fingers across a small LED element and would have them all die... or I'd momentarily short the resister out with a screwdriver by accident and immediately damage them permanently. They are pretty robust... I'd have no fear.

Well, it can always happen. I see traffic lights from time to time with a missing LED here or there... but they are on 12-18 hours a day for years on end. Also, I've seen quite a few third brake lights that look like LEDs... but are actually very small incandescent bulbs. They might be as hard to replace as LEDs, though.