Robert Hall

Every state I've lived in has required insurance...Ohio, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona. (Florida also IIRC, but that was over 20 years ago). My Jeep is basically the same in AZ that it was in Colorado, about $900/yr full coverage. Rob

In the office parking lot there was a really striking '97-03 Grand Prix GTP in silver w/ tinted windows and large but tasteful aluminum alloys w/ black spokes. That era GP may have been the best looking of the Ws. Parked next to it---a dark gray G8 GT. Sweet. Rob

I'd love to have a Camaro w/ a sloping hatchback roofline w/ a diesel w/ 6spd manual, awd, 10 inches of ground clearance, etc. A modern Eagle SX4 with muscle. Am I insane? Rob

That's a perception more than reality..VW is doing well w/ diesels here, MB and BMW have them also. The automakers are denying us diesels based on outdated perceptions. I'd love to have a modern RWD V6 diesel sedan (a CTS or G8 diesel would have been fantastic). Rob

Don't most states require proof of insurance in order to register a car? Rob

I've been paying/etc my insurance online for probably 5 years now (major insurance company). A couple years ago, I log on to their site, see my car policy, my homeowners policy, and a car policy for a Geo Tracker. I don't have a Geo Tracker, not to mention that policy was linked to another person (with the same last name, similar first name and an address in a town I used to live in). Obviously, a clerical or db error that linked this guy's policy w/ mine. It took 4 phone calls to my agent's office to straighten out.

Really? I always thought it was because they use a lot of salt on the roads and thus rusty cars used to be common there (having grown up there, that's what I understood it to mean), plus all the rusty, decaying closed factories, steel mills, etc. Rob

Yeah, someone long ago was an excited new owner, and probably waxed it and took care of it for a while before trading it on the next new shiny after a few years.... the second owner wasn't so caring, etc..

Gas is really cheap here also currently. Nothing like last summer.

A couple freeway sightings tonight....a late '70s Ford E-series Club Wagon that looked like it had been painted red and black w/ house paint, had peace signs and stars spray painted on the sides, and 'Sexy Mama' spray painted across the rear doors. Was on a flatbed. Also on a flatbed wrecker was a '90s Eldorado ETC in dark red, looked like it had been in an extreme collision--the front end was crushed back to the B-pillars. Rob

I wonder if they will continue Furlough Fridays w/ the state agencies. My sister is a consultant at one in Sacramento and had 3 Fridays off in July. Rob

I have sheepskin seat covers, so the condition of the leather isn't as important right now to me than an unbroken, unbent frame and working power motor. Rob

I'm not watching the housing market too closely, but I am seeing an uptick in the tech job market lately, and August is normally not a great time of the year. My contract is thru March, but I may be looking before then, esp. if I leave AZ sooner than later. With my sister considering moving to the east coast (job market for her thing is better there than in the West), I may be moving out and away from the desert horror in the next few months. Rob

So far, I haven't found anything around here...called a few places, they have passenger seats, but not driver's side. Interestingly, the two most promising leads so far I have are on ebay in salvage yards in Ohio. Suppose I can buy one there and have it shipped. I saw one on ebay that had the front and rear seats in good condition in tan leather...wonder how that would look---dark blue outside, and dark gray and tan inside. Rob

The heat puts a strain on so many systems in a car---A/C, cooling, tires, batteries, etc. My inside rear view mirror even fell off last summer in the heat. Though I can't blame my seat on the heat. Rob

NFL: Broncos, Steelers NHL: Avalanche, Penguins MLB: Rockies MLS: Rapids College football: Michigan Motorsport: F1, ALMS, GT, Le Mans Series

Got this link through an Autoblog tweet... looks GREAT in white!!! Camaro 5 forums pics

Cool Gladiator...haven't seen one of those in ages..that's the pre-73 (or 71, not sure what year they changed it) front end. I haven't seen one of the early '60s Wagoneers with that style front in ages either...they even had a 2dr version (not the same as the Cherokee 2dr that came in the mid '70s) and a panel/sedan delivery style body as well.. Rob

Ya, such it is in this era of stubby tails...the CTS only has 13.6 cf trunk volume. The G8 is decent, 17.5. Rob

Ha ha....haven't vacuumed in there in a while. I'm not that fat... 6'0", 230. I need to take off 30-40 lbs though. I've read about people who's 110lb wife drove them every day for 6 years and the seat broke...I think it's a defect. Rob

And of course, the other car I've been driving since I've been in AZ is...an '84 Mercedes Benz with an indeterminate # of miles (the odo quit at 176k). Rob

I'm assuming the NG Astra will have a CC (TwinTop) again...maybe Buick can get that also, would be a cool addition to their line. Rob

Here's a pic I took the day after I bought it, right down the street from where I was living at the time (Colorado Springs), Aug 3, '00.. Here's a couple more Colorado pics from a few years ago.. It's been a very reliable wagon for the last nine years..over 100k miles...the current seat issue being the worst thing that's happened. I have a few other minor issues I need to take care of, besides routine maintenance... Rob

I would assume GM will play it safe and only sell a 4dr sedan w/ automatic version in NA.. Rob

And in Europe, Cherokees (XJ and Liberty) and GCs (all 3 generations) have been available for years with diesels...here's a couple pics I took in London, Nov. '00... About a '98.. And a '99-00, in the same Patriot Blue as my '00.. Besides being RHD and diesels, the other major diff from US spec I noticed is the lack of tinted windows. I've seen a lot of Jeeps in Europe, and the GCs always seem to be dark blue, silver, or black. Rob