Showing posts with label Car. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Car. Show all posts

5.31.2026

Changing of the Guard.

 The Passat is gone... Enter the Accord







Yesterday we said goodbye to our Volkswagen Passat, the noble steed that carried the family for 11 years. We reached the point (136,000 miles) where the money spent in maintaining the old girl was getting too much/would be better off going towards a down payment for a new vehicle.

We were blessed with my Grandpa's 2003 Toyota Tundra (future posts on that) a few months ago, so I started driving that while the Tacoma went to my wife. 

After we saved up a good chunk of change, the search began, and we landed on a 2026 Honda Accord Hybrid EX-L. Price was... ok... (it is not a good time to buy a car... well... is it ever?)

We initially looked at a Toyota Camry SE or XLE, but deeper research between the two pushed us towards the Accord. I can say we are super happy with our purchase. The car suits us perfectly. I'll give a more thorough review post later, but off the bat the interior room is huuuuuuge. Like minivan big. 

So while we fondly remember the "Battle Sedan" and a manual transmission, we look forward to the future with this new car. 

7.27.2025

Post-Summer 2025

 SUMMERTIME - 2025


Anna Ruby Falls, Georgia

Most of the festivities, activities, and other 'ties are just about wrapped up for the summer.
All camps are done, vacations taken, and fun has been had. 

I had the opportunity to join my wife at summer camp in Orlando. We usually are camp deans for our own separate camps, but I was able to join her at her camp. as a "Dorm Dad/Counselor of counselors".

The Passat and the Tacoma are putting in work... still thinking about the next vehicle. 

Put a little over 1600 miles on the Tacoma in 5 days, with shuffling kids around and the trip north all together. It averaged 20.03 MPG over all, which is right in line with the EPA rating. I guess what they say is true, "The Tacoma V6... Power of a 4 cylinder, fuel economy of a V8."


We had a rare opportunity this past week where one child was in a summer camp outside of Tampa, the other in a camp in North Carolina, and the wife and I headed to parts unknown, childless. "Unknown" wound up being Helen, Georgia, and Sparta North Carolina.

Helen was wonderful, weather was great, and the food was better. We used to visit Helen during our JaxDubs/Volkswagen days, as Helen held a yearly VW/Audi/Porsche meet that took over the town, called SoWo (Southern Worthersee). Sadly, losers will be losers, and SoWo overstayed its welcome and was ended after 2015. The wife and I did plenty of sight seeing, hiked to a near by water fall, and ziplined. 

After that we drove "back home" to Sparta, North Carolina. It was bittersweet this year, as we spent less that 24 hours there. We meet my dad, as he was headed there himself, and just enjoyed the mountain air and green grass. Normally we dedicate most, if not all, of our 10 day trip to Sparta. All is good as time was still well spent. I'm going to try and make a few more short trips before the end of the year.

We split the drive home up, and I used some more rewards points to get a "free" night at a Holiday Inn located in Florence, SC. For the record... I cannot stand South Carolina. I have yet to find a redeeming quality about it. The roads are Grade "A" garbage, and I just don't like it, the stay at that Holiday Inn didn't help either.


We've done well over the summer, and looking back this has been a good one. Very busy, but very productive as well.

See you on the next post...

10.15.2022

YouTube Discovery: La Deux (Automotive Channels)

 Times have come and gone again. YouTube tastes have changed (and stayed the same). There is a lot of junk on YouTube, both good and bad. Here is an updated list of my subscriptions on YouTube. Some are still the same, but this time I will at least try and categorize them. I will share all the channels I subscribe to, short of some that will be of no interest to anyone but me, such as the town channel for Sparta, NC.

I follow 94 channels, so for the sake of you, me, and the possibility of me continuing on with my blog, I am only going to post my channel subscription one category at a time. Seeing as how 22 of them are Automotive related, I will post that category first. All links to channels should work, but a quick YouTube search should put you in the right direction.

Format will be as follows:
Channel Name - Sub Category - Information - Family Friendly Rating

Automotive

84hatchi - Toyota/Car/Gadget - This channel is run by a gentlemen who drives an "86" Toyota Corolla. I was originally attracted to the channel because of this. He kept the stock carb'd engine, and built it up and added modern tech to it. He does not post regularly, but I enjoy his posts when he does. 
Rating - G, Nothing that can't be watched by all.

ChrisFix - General Auto Repair - Chris shows you how to repair car things, pretty much in your driveway. Great general automotive knowledge, that sometimes steers to race/performance. 
Rating - G, No worries here.

DODGEVANRACING - Japan Culture/Racing - In Japan, US Military bases left/leave/surplus Dodge B Series/Ram Vans. Motorcycle racers use them to haul around their bikes and parts. One day they decided to race them. Now they build them and once a year they race them. Not updated in awhile. They call them "Daijibans" which is broken English for "Dodge Van". 
Rating - G, its racing, and a Japanese channel. 

Donut Media - Automotive News/Builds/Etc. - I came by this channel because they did/do an "Up To Speed" on cars. Basically giving you the history of certain vehicles. They also do "High/Low" builds, where they build two of the same vehicles, but buy expensive part for one, and are trendy/cheap for the other. A lot of other content as well. 
Rating - PG/Soft PG-13. They are a group of late 20-40 year olds, with that type of humor expected for that age group. Language is low, but if they say anything harsh it is bleeped.

Goodwood Road & Racing - I watch for the Festival of Speed, but they have many other clips of races. Generally races involving historical/antique race cars. The "FoS" is a yearly hill climb at Goodwood, where they race one at a time to try and get the fastest times. All vehicles are raced: Trucks, Nascar, Rally, F1, Experimental, Antique, Pre-War, etc. 
Rating - G, Just car stuff.

Hagerty - Car/Engine builds. Various car content - A channel that host many different car shows and builds. I mainly watch the "Redline Rebuilds", hosted by Davin Reckow. If you have ever seen the time lapse videos of engines being broken down and rebuilt, this is where it came from. He rebuilds mainly odd engines and shares the steps involved. These engines have included old inline 8s, odd Buick V8s, and things like flathead Fords. The have other hosts that review and compare cars (think Top Gear), as well as share in car news and culture.
Rating - G - Of what I've watched, there is nothing to be concerned with. A corporate ran channel that appeals to all ages.

Jafromobile - Car/Engine builds - Specific to DSM cars, this channel is ran by one man, and all he does is build on 4G63s. He does this in his shed in his backyard, and is a true "Old School" builder (at least by 90's standards.) He post irregular, but they are long and detailed posts. His care and attention to detail is something to learn from. 
Rating - G/ Cautionary PG - I don't really remember him every having any real content issues/foul language, but this is his own channel, and there may be some "over the top" humor.

Matt's Off Road Recovery - Offroading/Car Builds - Matt and his crew run a towing/recovery service in Utah, and specialize in off road/trail recovery. Some of the recoveries are wild. He also educates on proper winch and recovery techniques. Additionally, he does all his own fabrication and truck builds. He runs XJ's for standard recovery, and has built track crawlers, a giant CorVair truck called the "MoreVair", and is currently building an even bigger extreme off road tow vehicle.
Rating - Cautionary Hard G. He is mindful of his content, but it is real life. There may be an occasional joke or word said by others. Nothing close to terrible.

Mighty Car Mods - Car builds/Auto Adventures - A channel made by two Australian friends, that I have been with since the beginning (2008/09?). They focus mainly on JDM/Import cars with the occasional dabble into the VW world. They have recently branched out into small JDM Trucks, and have done some light off roading. Their content is mostly builds and upgrades, ranging from DIY to "Advanced DIY". They also make a special or two every year, with their traditional Christmas movie/episode. A favorite channel of mine.
Rating - PG/PG-13. Some crude, tongue in cheek jokes at times. Language has become more "open" as they have gotten older. Noting super crude. Sometimes it's bleeped, sometimes it's not.

MCM TV2 - Car News and Culture - Mighty Car Mods second channel. More of a behind the scenes channel with B content. They host "Unicorn Circuit" here, where they provide commentary on automotive news and upcoming content.
Rating - See Above.

Noriyaro - Japanese Car Culture - Alex lives in Japan, and shares his automotive adventures. He races/drifts various cars, and shares the street auto culture and shops/garages in and around Japan.
Rating - PG. Nothing horrible. Just the content and subject matter that comes with automotive/street life.

POWERNATION - Builds/Tech/Etc. - Reminds me of the Power Block that used to be on TV on Saturdays. The do dyno engine builds, total car builds, and other car related things. Multiple hosts. Has a much more corporate feel, as in they still break for commercials (it might be that they also air on TV as well, I don't know.)
Rating - G. I feel that this channel also airs their content on TV, so language and humor is acceptable to all.

Puddin's Fab Shop - Fabrication, truck builds - Once a week, hour long videos centered around old, rusty, patina'd vehicles. He loves the old mini trucks, especially those old U-Haul trucks. He also works on other vehicles, like old cars and International Trucks (not the Semis). He takes vehicles that have been sitting for decades and gets them running. He also does a lot of suspension fab work.
Rating - Hard PG - Content wise, it's all safe. He is hilarious and I enjoy listening to him with his heavy hillbilly draw (My wife does not). Language wise, he bleeps nothing and occasionally says sh**, but you'll for sure hear a "damn" every once in awhile. About what you'd expect to hear/see from you grandpa while he was working on a car.

Puddin's Fab Shop 2 - Behind the Scenes - Just about the same content as his first channel, but the videos are shorter. I view it more of a "come along with me" channel. The videos are less edited, and a little more personal. Shows you some more in depth work of his projects, and shares info about upcoming projects.
Rating - See Above

Rich Rebuilds - Electric Car Builds/Random Car Stuff - Rich mostly focuses on repairing Teslas that Tesla itself either wont repair, or charge waaaaay to much for. He and his team also made the first V8(LS) Swapped Tesla, and is currently putting a diesel in a Tesla. He also has other car projects and automotive oddities and weird adventures. He and his crew do some pretty amazing general fab work as well.
Rating - Hard PG-13/TV-14. He bleeps any strong language, which I dont think is frequent, but there is frequent "suggestive" comments and crude jokes. He has an "assistant" who models outside of the channel, and her "features" are often commented on and shown when she is present. Not in a blatant, disrespectful, humiliating way, she is in on the humor, but it's still there.

Robot Cantina - Car Projects/Tinkering - This channel does a lot of homebrew/oddball car projects. The original project car was a Honda Insight with a Harbor Freight engine running it. He currently has a few Saturns that he is working on. One is getting a two cylinder diesel engine, the other is being modded for max fuel economy. Heavy on techy data. If you like tinkering and electronic tomfoolery, he is all about it.
Rating - G/Soft PG - Quirky, generally harmless humor. It's just him running the channel. 

Sarah -n- Tuned - Car Projects/Culture/Reviews - Sarah takes on various car projects, and completes them with amazing detail. Some new, some old. Her attention to detail is second to none, and I am constantly amazed at the clean builds she finishes. She also reviews new vehicles, but that has become less frequent, as she has made a new channel for that. For the most part, she does all the work by herself, but has recurring guests at times. She also works in a shared shop space. Some episode are personal/blog style.
Rating - PG/Soft PG-13 - Mild language, that is mostly bleeped. Frequently uses the, "That's what she/he said." jokes. She is (proudly) awkward, and that can lead to awkward jokes/comments. Some might think she occasionally dresses... for lack of a better word... "inappropriately", but nothing you wouldn't see at the mall. On second thought, in today's day and age, it would be more appropriate.

Sloppy Mechanics - Car Builds - If you are into LS SWAP THE WORLD, this channel is for you. Matt takes junkyard LS engines, throws simple parts/tech at them and makes 600 to 1000 WHP cars and trucks. If you have ever seen the 600+HP White Chevy Colorado on the internet, this is the guy. He graciously shares his knowledge and experience for free. He also builds other LS swapped vehicles, and shares other projects that come into his dyno. If you are into LS Swapping, this is the man. Find his website as well.
Rating - PG-13 - Generally just him in his videos. Content is nothing to be concerned about. Language can be strong at times. Think general "shop talk" language. 

Tom's Turbo Garage - Car Builds - Tom is another person that performs amazing, super clean, detailed car builds. He hasn't posted in a year, but he has plenty of content. He is a DSM guy as well, but has made some other amazing vehicles. A heavily modded LS3 Swapped 2nd gen Miata, a turbo LS swapped 1st gen Tacoma, and more. All his builds are meticulous and detailed, no corners cut. 
Rating - G - Tom's content is as squeaky clean as his shop is. No language concern. Family man.

Toyota Maintenance - Toyota Specific Maintenance - Peter runs an independent Toyota repair shop and shares his work on the vehicles that come in. A "by the book" mechanic, that believes in proper maintenance and shop procedures. A helpful channel if you own a Toyota, specifically a Prius or Tacoma.
Rating - G - Just an above average mechanic working on cars. His cheerful personality and accent are great.

Uncle Tony's Garage - Car builds/Tech tips - A true old school mechanic. Works mainly on Mopars, but dables in other things as well. This is a man that has years of old school tuning and hot rod building experience. Contains knowledge that has since been forgotten. Knowledge that comes from years of turning wrenches and trial and error. Tony is the kind of guy that can just make it happen with a few tools and some time. Low buck tech and power mods.
Rating - G/Soft PG - Content is always clean and car related. I cannot recall any red flags on language, but I would think of him as you would any shade tree mechanic. He generally has a cigarette in one hand at all times.

Vice Grip Garage -  Car builds and Automotive tomfoolery - Derek is a joy to watch. Through his heavy midwest accent, and hilarious name of auto parts (sparkalators = spark plugs), he builds and restores various older vehicles. He is known for finding a car or truck hundreds of miles away, flying there, getting it road worthy (or close) then driving it all the way home, sharing all the mishaps along the way. Many tips and tricks are shared as well.
Rating - G/Soft PG - Content is clean, may be some tongue in cheek comments/humor.



Ok. I think that's it. Well...
Let's see if I continue with this.

KBye.





8.06.2020

It was another year indeed!!!!!!!!!!

Well how about that. 


Last post said it might be another year, and looks like it was.

Whats new? A few things...
What's old? 2020.

No need to go into detail, we all know 2020 has gone to hell in a hand basket. I feel like its been 2020 for 6 years.

A few things to update:

Mazda is gone. Here's a Tacoma
Mazda3 is gone, Here's a Tacoma.

While I loved the Mazda, the hatchback like just wasnt cutting it. Needed a bit more room. Enter the 2020 Tacoma TRD Offroad, 4x4, Manual Transmission, yadda yadda yadda.

I like it.


What else...
Went to North Carolina. I think just once since the last post? Maybe twice? We try to go every summer.
I am going back for a weekend or two throughout the year.


I mean, I think that's really it, or at least all I want to talk about right now. I might make a post or two coming up about the truck. maybe something else. I dont know.


Whatever. :)

7.18.2018

THE NEW CAR (2017 Mazda3)

The actual model name is:

2017 Mazda Mazda3 S Touring 5-door Hatchback


Yes, The Model name is actually Mazda 3, so its a Mazda Mazda3
Well, here it is ladies and gentlemen. The 2017 Mazda 3. Bought Certified Pre-Owned with 8,423 miles. 2.5 inline 4 with a 6 speed manual. The story goes like this...

I hate buying cars. I never feel like I truly get what I want (I also have what I call Automotive ADD, so that doesn't help). This time I around I decided I would make myself a check list of the bare minimum things I HAD to have. They consisted of the following.

  • 2010+
  • Manual Transmission
  • 4 passenger doors
  • Hatchback
  • No turbo
  • FWD
  • Not a Ford
  • Under $20,000
  • Simple to work on
  • If all else fails, look for a Dodge Ram Quad Cab
Secondary check list, but not a necessity  
  • Volkswagen
  • Multilink/Independant Rear Suspension
  • Sporty to Sportyish aka "at least it looks sporty"
  • As new as possible
  • Decent gas mileage/4 cylinder
  • Some sort of pre-established fan base
  • Under $15,000
So many a night I set off on an internet journey looking for a vehicle. Many were found, but none felt quite right. I had been wanting a pickup for awhile, but every truck I found was either too expensive, or too worn out. So I crossed trucks off the list quick.

Next I wanted a Volkswagen (we've owned four, and I like them). I found a few manual MK6 TDI Golfs, that were actually quite affordable. I even found a manual B7 TDI Passat! (Thank you dieselgate). However, I had decided I did not want a turbo vehicle. While I personally have had no problem with the TDI I owned, or the Passat my wife has, a turbo is extra care and maintenance and an addition thing to eventually wear out down the road. I did not want this for my personal vehicle. With that decision, Volkswagen was out. Depressed, I searched on.

 

One day while driving home from work, a current model (3rd Gen) white Mazda3 Hatch pulled up next to me.

I like this.

The lines were clean. It was a hatchback. It was manual. I decided to look it up when I got home.
 



Patti and I had looked at Mazda 3 hatches before, and after some research, my list of requirements started to be filled. I ended up picking mine out of a narrowed down list of three. This was the one I wanted, and I am glad I got it.



The checklists
  • 2010+ - Indeed!
  • Manual Transmission - 6 forward gears!
  • 4 passenger doors - YES!
  • Hatchback - That's a big 10-4
  • No turbo - Slow!
  • FWD - Sure!
  • Not a Ford - Thank you!
  • Under $20,000 - Barely... but YES!
  • Simple to work on - I've already pulled half the car apart and put it back together!
  • If all else fails, look for a Dodge Ram Quad Cab - No dice this go around.
  • Volkswagen - Nope :( (VW where is your manual VR6 Passat Wagon!)
  • Multilink/Independant Rear Suspension - Check!
  • Sporty to Sportyish aka "at least it looks sporty" - SPORTY SPICE!
  • As new as possible - Made May of 2017!
  • Decent gas mileage/4 cylinder - Not sure, but already better than my Rabbit!
  • Some sort of pre-established fan base - No where near as big as VW, but their is one, and Mazda itself seems to be the biggest fan of itself. Also no Vapping.
  • Under $15,000 - Nope (although you can get close with a 2015ish 2.0)

The 3rd generation Mazda 3 comes with two engines, a 2.0 and a 2.5, both naturally aspirated, and backed by either a 6 speed manual or 6 speed automatic.

I originally was going for a 2.0, but decided to go with the bigger engine as I did not have much plans on adding more power down the road. The two engines are completely different according to Mazda, sharing no parts. The 2.0 is very rev happy (I believe it's the same engine that's in the current Miata), but the larger amount of torque in the 2.5 appealed to me more in the end though. Stock redline is the same for both engines.

What really got me is that the 3rd generation Mazda 3 is brand new, from the ground up. 100% new (not shared) engine, transmission, and chassis. They no longer share a platform with Ford/Volvo. Some early Gen 3 Mazda 3s are actually 100% built in Japan, although later Mazdas (like mine) are assembled in Mexico. To be fair, so was my Rabbit and our Passat was made in Tennessee.

Mazda's "Skyactiv" is more than a blanket term. It is comprised of many unique/interesting things.
You can read about it here: Mazda's Skyactiv

In short, this is part of it

  • Highest Compression Ratio of any massproduction car - 14.0:1 (US gets 13:1)
  • Factory 4-2-1 Exhaust Header/Manifold (it looks bizzare)
  • Increased Factory Caster Angle

If you have made it this far, thanks. Thats a lot of reading.

So here we are, one week in with the Mazda, and so far things are great. It rides very nice, and the suspension is very tight. Power wise, it is on par with the Rabbit, though I think the Rabbits 2.5 put down a little more grunt. I have yet to really put the car through it's paces. The chassis feels very solid, and it is extremely fun to drive. I do have a few plans for the car, but nothing to drastic.

At some point in the future, I'll go over the MY actual car in the future. The ins and outs, my likes and dislikes. For now, Ill leave you with this, and call it a day.





7.17.2018

The 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport

Mitsu-byebye

 
 

After the wreck of the Rabbit, I was given an allowance towards a rental car. I was given the choice between a Toyota Camry or this, a 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. Being as how I do not think I have every driven a Mitsubishi in my life (strike that, an ex-girlfriend did have a sweet 5 speed 2 door Mirage that was lowered and had a super loud exhaust), I decided to take the new one for a ride.

Initial Impressions.

The 2018 Outlander Sport, at face value is a fairly nice ride. It is a compact crossover powered by Mitsubishis' 4B11 2.0 attached to a CVT transmission. The 4B11 makes 155HP and 146 lb ft of torque. Not that much. This particular model had "4WD", but I never used it.


Exterior



I'm not a huge fan of colors on cars. White, Silver/Grey, and Black are what I prefer (in that order). However, the blue of this Outlander really grew on me. So much so, that I started looking for blue cars in my search for a new vehicle. The exterior looked every bit the part of "Sporty". It was edgy and aggressive so you wouldn't think it was just another dull cross over, at least at first glance. It had LED running lights, as well as fogs lights and rear amber turn signals (a favorite of mine). Over all, the outside of the Outlander impressed me, but it kind of felt like a consolation prize over all, a shiny wrapper on something absolutely average.

Interior






The interior, like the exterior, was decent. One could say adequate. Nothing to write home about, but nothing to complain about as well. Everything was laid out where you would expect it would be, and all you HVAC and Radio controls where in hands reach. Steering wheel controls covered pretty much everything you would need to touch, so you generally did not have to take your eyes off the road.

Room was good. Both car seats fit, without compromising driver or front passenger room. Still not as much room as our 2015 VW Passat, which has an uncomfortably large amount of rear leg room (seriously, 3 years later and it still blows my mind how much there is). The seats were supportive and nicely bolstered, and I liked the red stitching. The cargo area was large enough for a weeks worth of groceries, or a trip to the pool bringing all your floaties and toys.

Drivability



For what I take the Outlander Sport to be, it is perfect. a simple commuter car. The 2.0 is nothing special, but it is adequate. You put your foot on the gas pedal, and it goes. Not overly slow or overly fast, but at a "I'll get you there but I'm not in a hurry." pace. One thing the car has that took some getting use to was the CVT transmission. For those that do not know, a CVT is a type of automatic transmission that does not shift. It is a Continuously Variable Transmission aka single speed transmission. From a "Racecar guy" standpoint it is horrible, but for a simple commuter vehicle I think its great, even more so than the standard automatic transmission. There is no shifting, so there is no jerks or bumps or surging. You put your foot on the gas, and it ramps up to 5-6k RPM and stays there until you level off. It's very strange at first, but I adapted quickly.

Again, there was a "4WD" system offered, but I never used it. It offered two 4WD modes. A full time, and a locked center differential mode. The set up appeared to be a Haldex type set up, so I would imagine it to be more street/light rain and snow oriented. More "AWD" than "4WD"


Summary

That's pretty much it for the review. The Mitsubishi Outlander Sport is a perfect rental car. Take that how you will. Would I personally buy one? Probably not, but I would consider it with the manual 5 speed. While driving the Mitsubishi, I could see why they are failing while simultaneously seeing how they are trying to fix them selves.

I have an affinity for Mitsubishi, as well as most Japanese auto makers, that spawns from their glory years in the early 90's. They have seem to have lost their way for the most part, and have all become dull point A to B cars, no pizazz. There is the saying, "A rose by any other name, is still a rose.", and with that mentality I think you could also say, "A turd by any other name, is still a turd."

What I mean is, you can add all the Bluetooth, Infotainment, and flashy garbage you want, but at the end of the day, if it's all wrapped around a hunk of junk, I don't want it. Maybe that's the problem, maybe I am one of a dying breed. One who views cars as more than an appliance. I don't need to drive around in my cell phone. I need a reliable, peppy, fun to drive car. One that lets me know what the road is saying. So many cars today are built and sold on the premise that they will isolate you from the outside world. I don't want that. I want to hear the engine. The real one, note fake engine noise pumped through a speaker. I want to feel the road and hear the tires. I want to shift my own gears, and be allowed to make mistakes without electronic nannies cutting in.

I think that is the biggest down fall of many auto makers right now, that they are building cookie cutter vehicles, that are no longer viewed as "part of the family". There are some that still have that passion for a fun, connected vehicle, but they are slowly disappearing. On the flip side of that coin, I think the amount of people who want that type of vehicle are disappearing as well.

OK, I went a little off topic.

Sorry.


That's it for now... more latter. :)