2009 Jetta TDI Sportswagen

Two words: I want.

Of course, I won't buy the first year of production. I'll also probably wait at least 3 years for the first wave of depreciation to pass. Guess I'll start shopping for one sometime around 2013.

Here's a first drive. And another and another and another

Side Glances -> Egan Still a Great Wtier

Peter Egan created my obsession.    It was over 20 years ago that I stumbled on his articles in Road & Track and Cycle World.   There was just something about his storytelling that captured my imagination.   I ended up subscribing largely because of him and as a boy,  remember eagerly awaiting each new issue.   

First stop:  Side Glances, his monthly column. 

Over the years I've read about his adventures fixing old race cars, flying planes, and buying or selling various vehicles.   I'm glad to report that Egan is still belting them out.    After reading this month's piece on hitchhiking, I almost feel like sticking out my thumb and taking a ride.    Well, ok.. maybe not but I will definitely give the next hitchhiker I come upon a serious glance.   

Peter Egan's latest piece: The Lost Art of Hitchhiking: Another near-forgotten use for our amazing opposable thumb.

Bright and Shiny

I never really understood why parts are chromed. Turns out that chroming makes steel more durable because it resists corrosion. The shine is a side effect. Unfortunately there are heavy environmental costs.

Looks like an alternative is in the works...

Initial tests showed that when materials were coated in the nickel-tungsten alloy, using a modified electroplating technique that keeps its crystals particularly small, the plating remained stable indefinitely at room temperature. Nor did it easily degrade when exposed to great heat. The nickel-tungsten alloy can be extremely bright and shiny, and even made to become harder than chrome. All in all, its characteristics and absence of environmental hazards make it the most appealing replacement yet found for chrome. The researchers intend to report as much to a forthcoming conference of the National Association for Surface Finishing in Louisville, Kentucky.

Tire Repair FAIL

Update: 7 of the 8 tires were OK.   1 had a hole.  

First trip back - they couldn't find the hole so they dismounted the tire, cleaned the rim, and remounted.   The tire still leaked. 

Second trip back, they found the hole.   A nearly new Eagle LS was rolled out and mounted.   24 hours later and it's still holding fine. 

I still bought 4 tires with 70% or better tread for about 75% less than new.  The added hassle of two trips to the tire store sucked, but I had some free time.    If they last 12 months, they'll be worth it.  

Saving Money on Tires

Flat tires suck.

Luckily it rarely happens.   Most last until they wear out and then I just go to Costco for a new set. 

But what happens if you run into this kind of situation? 

Both of our cars were parked on the street and now each had two flats, all on the street side. Turns out some clown with nothing better to do slashed our tires overnight.   He also slashed the tires of more than 20 other cars parked on the street.   Thousands of dollars of damage, liklihood of the guy getting caught - low. 

Now what?   Replacement tires were needed immediately.  

The tires on the Lexus were nearly worn out but the Michelin LTXs on the 4Runner were practically new.   Meanwhile Costco doesn't have 'em in stock and we didn't have time to wait for an order. 

Costco has brands other than Michelin available, but it would have meant buying 4 new ones for the 4Runner at a cost of over $800 installed (again).  And we'd still need tires for the Lexus.  If we went with Costco for that as well,   the damage would be over $1,600.  Ouch! 

Craigslist to the rescue.  

Searching by tire size, I found a couple of options - in an industrial part of Denver about 30 minutes from my house.   One seller even had Michelin LTX's in precisely the size I needed and claimed the tread was 80%.   

Since I had a little extra time, I decided to give it a whirl.   I felt a little uneasy about buying used tires but the way I looked at it, both cars already had used tires.  What did I have to lose (or save?).    Money, of course.   So  I exercised my negotiation skills and over the phone, we agreed on a price. 

I pulled all wheels on the Lexus and just the two slashed tires on the 4Runner.  With a borrowed pickup, I hauled 'em in.   

I saved some cash but it didn't turn out exactly how I expected.  

Here are the results:

4 Eagle GL's size 225/55/17 with about 70% tread:  $150 (mounted and balanced)

4 Michelin LTXs in 275/70/16 with about 70% tread: $210 (mounted and balanced)

Total:  About $360 + 2 hours of driving and some more time spent waiting at the shop

The catch:  There was an unexpected $10 upcharge for cleaning one wheel's mounting bead with a wire brush.   I wasn't expecting that but worse, it turns out they should have cleaned more than this one wheel.  I  ended up having to drive back the next day when one of the tires on the Lexus developed a slow leak.   Meanwhile, the Michelin LTX's turned out to be A/T versions, a little meatier and gnarlier looking than the regular M/S versions.   So I ended up visiting yet another shop to have the other two tires installed so that the set matched (price included in above).   

The tires are in pretty good shape and will probably last another 2 or 3 years.  And when they wear out on the 4Runner, I will only need to buy 2 since I still have 2 practically new tires. 

Caveat:  I found one guy selling nice wheels and tires, for about the same price of just tires.   Unfortunately, he didn't respond to my email fast enough.  I would have preferred to simply buy his full set of wheels and decent tires (from a 2007 4Runner) for a negotiated price of $275.  

Mark Levinson Amp Replacement

IMG_0323, originally uploaded by oparvez.

This is what a Mark Levinson amp looks like as installed in my 2001 Lexus LS430. Apparently these amps are prone to failure, which kills the stereo system entirely. The dealer wanted $2,000 to do the repair but offered to sell me the amp alone for about $800 (with exchange of my existing bad amp). After doing my research on part numbers, I bought an upgraded used amp (p/n ends with 01) from eBay for about $325. Described as remanufactured, I was hopeful it had already been through the dealer process but the amp that arrived was missing the remanufactured sticker. Bummer. But I decided to go ahead and install it. It took me a little over an hour to do the work. It now seems to work fine. Here's a link to the full photo set.

You can also find more information on how to diagnose and replace your ML amp here and here.

KLR Brake Lines

KLR Banjo Fitting Broken, originally uploaded by oparvez.

On a windy night, my wife's nighthawk fell over onto my KLR, damaging the brake line. Riding a motorcycle without a front brake is probably not the best idea, so time to order and install a new one.

what brake line?

The OEM line was $70 plus shipping from a dealer. A quick check of the aftermarket showed stainless steel lines were surprisingly less expensive.

Years ago, I installed stainless steel lines on an Audi and it provided a noticeable improvement in braking performance. Given the KLR's notoriously weak front brake, going to stainless steel lines is a no brainer.