wyk

Made in America! (By FIAT *cough*) ;) Anyone else notice the rear license plate panel is large enough for a euro plate? ;)

It's gonna be extremely difficult to sell a car in January if you don't start working on it in December. Many vehicles, especially new models, are introduced as the next year model. I had a 1964 1/2 Mustang, and a 1968 240Z if you go by the date of manufacture. Another good question is: How long have you been alive? Coz, I'll tell you right now, ya didn't get shot out of a void. Some cultures consider you a year old at birth.

Many of the vehicles I helped the Irish State Police and Military recover were burned out cars stashed in remote places. Some had weapons in them, some had bodies in them. Report it.

That's a big dare, especially considering Ford made the Aston Martin DBS in Casino Royale and possibly QOS, having owned AM at the time both films were in production ;) I dunno about chase scenes, but my favorite car inspired scene is probably the Daytona(or modified vette...) scene in Miami Vice. Nearly an entire minute on TV with no dialogue - unheard of at the time.

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/cto/1784487701.html Let me edit to add the original text for posterity for when the ad eventually disappears: PLZ READ WHOLE AD BEFORE RESPONDING. THIS MAZDA`B2600 RUNS GREAT HAS NO MECHANICAL ISSUES JUST 96K MILES....don't THINK IT CAME WITH AC SYSTEM IF IT DID DOES NOT WORK ,HEATER WORKS GREAT ENGINE RUNS STRONG 4 WHEEL DRIVE WITH NICE OFFROAD AFTER MARKET RIMS AND TIRES THAT ARE WORTH $200 ON THEIR OWN......TRUCK DOES HAVE SUM HISTORY I FEEL OBLIGATED TO SHARE WITH ANY POTENTIAL BUYER....THIS TRUCK WAS INVOLVED IN A SHOOTING/ HOMICIDE A FAMILY OF THREE LOST THEIR LIVES INCLUDING A MAN,WOMAN AND A SMALL CHILD....AFTER THE SHOOTING ITS SAID THAT THE TRUCK ROLLED OFF THE ROAD INTO A LARGE WATER DRAIN DITCH WERE IT CAME TO REST ON ITS SIDE FOR THREE AND A HALF WEEKS BEFORE BEING DISCOVERED BY A PASSING BICYCLIST . THE TRUCK CLEARLY BARES THE SCARES FROM THIS INCIDENT WITH MINOR BODY DAMAGE TO THE DRIVERS SIDE ,12 NOTABLE BULLET HOLES,SHATTERED DRIVER/PASSENGER SIDE WIDOWS, SEVERELY BLOODSTAINED SEATS AND CARPET AND THE WORST OF IT WITHOUT A DOUBT IS THE ODOR OF ROTTEN FLESH I JUST can't GET RED OF THE ODOR AND I CAN NO LONGER DEAL WITH THIS TRUCK STINKING UP MY BACK YARD. FIRST 200 OWNS IT CLEAN TITLE READY TO BE SIGNED OVER.....TRUCK EVEN COMES WITH REGISTRATION AND INSURANCE THAT IS VALID TILL EARLY 2011....SO IF U GOT 2 BILLS AND CAN DEAL WITH THE ODOR YOUR GOOD TO GO.....ALSO WOULD BE GREAT FOR PARTS SERIOUS BUYERS ONLY!!!!!!!!!!don't WASTE MY TIME

I had the local Korean dry cleaners sew one into my trousers:

I would have to say my 30 cal suppressor/silencer. Makes 'work' that much easier...:

The main issue with replays seems to be the fear of how much time it will add to the game; a game that already can run 3-4 hours easily. You are going to have to convince MLB and the networks to allow the extra time before they will even hear any other points to be made. As for me, I think bad calls are part of the game, our past time. Of course, I still consider it a game. Many don't. But, that is easy enough for someone to say whom makes no money at Baseball...

but I read something the other day about a ranger redesign.... about time. Is the following the new Ranger, or a face job? Europe often gets their compact cars before we do, so I wouldn't be too surprised to see them get light trucks before we do(though they consider light trucks commercial vehicles mainly): http://www.ford.co.uk/Commercialvehicles/NewRanger Here's a photo I took of a Ford "Thunder"/Ranger in Dublin, Ireland in 2008 with a 2007 registration tag:

You don't 'love dogs' when you say "It's just a dog". Let me try it... "This is just my child", "This is just an MJ", "This is just my wife". Nah, it doesn't make a lot of sense... You simply want a dog as a thing - an 'animal'. After all, that's all it is to you. Once you went to college, you discarded the 'animal', or otherwise never really had responsibility for it in the first place. It's also apparent you lack much empathy(amongst other things) for your fellow humans as well by wishing some of them death for simply caring for dogs; dogs which you purport to love. I guess love means different things to different folks. I have one breed of dog that was 'made to live outside' - a Komondor. The rest were bred to have thin skin and virtually no fur for speed, so idiots could bet on them, lose their money, and make the owners/abusers some cash. Even the racetracks do not keep Greyhounds outside exposed for fear of losing their investments. You might want to do a little research on the various breeds of dogs before you advocate a sweeping care package for all of them next time. I hope you are right - I hope for your sake that was simply a rant. WYK

I feel your pain. Trust me. I have worked in Greyhound rescue for nearly 10 years now. When I was in Ireland I put in about 100 hours of volunteering and several hundreds of Euros at one of the rescues I happened to fancy due to their taking in the worst cases from around Ireland. I spent hours and hours chopping wood to power the stoves that kept the rescue warm(it was in a 180 year old delapidated Irish mill that had stone walls), helping take hounds to the vets, picking them up, moving them all over Ireland and Dublin from pounds(there is no such thing as a non-kill pound in Ireland - the dog gets in and has 2 weeks, then they die, so we had real deadlines and had ot move fast to transfer hounds from pounds to rescues - and there were so so many hounds because there are so many tracks, so many farmers, gypsies, travelers, et al that had unwanted hounds), etc etc. I became very fond of a few of the hounds and asked if I could adopt one of them. The answer? "Why don't you rescue your own hounds?" was it, nearly verbatim. This broke my heart twice. I had helped these people purely out of the kindness of my own heart, and I had grown fond of a couple of the hounds I knew needed a better home than they received even at the rescue, and now these same people were telling me that I basically wasn't trusted enough or good enough to have one of their hounds. Here is the issue. And I am not going to mince words about it. After having spent 10 years in Greyhound rescue, and been exposed to persons in other rescues. I have learned that some of these people are poorly adjusted. I'm no psychiatrist, but some do show neurotic symptoms. Most are fine, but rescue does attract certain persons...and even in the rescue themselves we talk about this issue. Add to this the fact that one usually will become attached to any animal you tend to rescue(especially in light of the fact you and the animal both release the hormone oxytocin, which causes bonding in humans and animals when they interact), and you give so much of yourself and so much effort and time and blood and pain in rescue, and worst of all, you have seen some of them come back in worse condition than when you rescued them, or via animal control etc - which makes you feel like YOU failed. In other words, a potential adopter has a LOT to prove to a rescue if they are going to take one of their animals. Because, when you deal with an adoption agency you are not dealing with a breeder who is in it for the money, you are now dealing with someone that genuinely cares about the health of the animal, feels personally responsible for it's care and success in a new home and life, and it's well being, and will not hesitate to tell you to go elsewhere if they even have a single doubt about your situation. They will take things into consideration like your personal health, appearance, mannerisms, self sufficiency(not just monetarily, but your personal life, family interaction, maturity, independence, etc.), where you live, what you do for a living, how often you travel, work, whether you drink, do drugs, or have health conditions, how confidently you hold yourself, how knowledgeable about animal and canine care you are, whether you have children, other animals, etc. Much of this is not on a form, it is what they take note of as they interact with you (inasmuch as one can by observation). This is a lot to live up to, and many rescues are unapologetic about it. And, truth be told, when I meet people I can tell if they are going to adopt a Greyhound 9 times out of 10 within the first few minutes. No, I personally have very little to nothing to do with whom takes a Grey home or not in the current rescue. In fact, I would give myself a poor chance of adopting a hound from the current rescue if I applied and was honest about how often I go to Europe, travel, drink, and leave my hounds with friends(whom love my hounds and treat them like their own). So what do I do when it comes to my personal pets? I rescue them myself. I personally go to the Greyhound tracks or kennels, farm, wherever and see what hounds I may like and think need better treatment. For my last girl I went to a hunting farm that said they had a couple hounds they were retiring due to chipped teeth(they hunted rabbits with Greyhounds) in County Carlow Ireland. I took the hound in myself, cleaned her, wormed her, gave her shots, and socialized her myself. Sure, I work with the rescues - always will, but I doubt I will ever take a dog off someone else's rescue ever again. I do foster on occasion, though(use my own home to help socialize a rescue's hound). Try not to take it too personally, and try not to make the rescues the bad guys. Neither of you are in the wrong. You are just at different places on the curve. If you truly want to make this happen, you will. Good luck to you and yours. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWOwuW3L1Xw The last wash day at the GPI Greyhound Rescue in Woodinville.

http://rts.texasonline.state.tx.us/NASApp/txdotrts/common/jsp/txdot_vtr_main_menu.jsp?language=eng http://www.registeredtexan.com/ http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/ The inspection requires your brakes work, parking brake work, lights all work, and both windshield wipers work, and that you possess insurance(any printed form claiming such is fine). In Tarrant county they will also do a tail pipe test. My 1986 Blazer did not pass this until I replaced the carb. In the mean time, I went and registered it in another county that had no smog requirements at a friends address there(I think the cost was $17 for the inspection there). You must have it inspected in the county that the vehicle is registered in(although, I have heard of a few that have gotten away with inspecting in Bexar when it was registered in Austin - a smog county at the time). If I recall, ya have a certain amount of time to restest it after you fail for no extra cost(I think it was $28 at the time). If you can, have it inspected in a county that does not do the smog test. The sticker they place on the windshield is valid state wide. At the inspection place I used in North Austin once, they didn't care whether the check engine light was on, only what came out the tail pipe. YMMV. If it is a truck it will cost you something like $64 to register it the first year, plus another $64 or so in administrative fees since it is a new to Texas truck and must have a new license plate issued. After that it drops to sumfin like $41-$48 per year depending on the county. WYK

It seems to me the corporations have confused "Win on Sunday, sell on Monday" by trying to apply it to concept cars. What they do not understand is "Taunt on Sunday, frustrate on Monday" sells nothing but contempt.

No, the "wagon wheels" were the steel 6 or 8-spoke factory rims. The turbine rims in the photos are the 10-spoke alloys that were the optional rim on the 84-89 (or 90?) XJ and 86-89 (90?) MJ. They are 15x7 ... so are the wagon wheels. No, the steel 6 or 8 spoke factory wheels were the Rally's. You are correct in that the factory called the 6- or 8-spoke steelies "Rally" wheels. But nobody actually calls them that. I haven't heard them referred to as anything other than wagon wheels for at least 15 years. I haven't heard people ever call the steelies wagon wheels in the past 16 years. While we are on the top, it's a "shell" not a cap, and not a topper. See, we could go on all day like this. Guys, why the bickering??? Even think there might be different names for the same things based on your location??? Think of soda, soda pop or just pop. How about Jimmies, shots or sprinkles on your ice cream. Then there is grinder, hoagie or hero sandwich, they are ALL THE SAME!!! COme on now, relax a bit and show some courtesy to your fellow club brothers... Just sayin'... CW Prefer sammiches BBQ'd pulled pork(VA/NC style) or beef(Texas style). Hoagie is the guy from that cartoon. ;) Soda? It's not 2pm and I am enjoying a Mojito with my lunch. That's my idea of a soda.

I have a Kershaw JYD That has served me well for 2 years now: http://www.kershaw-knives.net/Kershaw-Junkyard-Dog-II-Composite-1725CB.htm It has a D2 blade sandwiched between two stainless layers. Holds it's edge very well and is very easy to sharpen. Fits my hand very well, too. I also like Emerson Commander, but since my D2 JYD performs so much better than their S30V at nearly half the price, I likely won't buy another Emerson for anything other than mebbe self-defense, or just the fact I love em for some odd reason. They just feel right. For hiking, or hunting, I use a custom forged Bowie knife in the 9" range. http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_store.html?ttl=Emerson%20Commander%20Series&srch=eqCATE%20CODEdatarq%3Dem%26eqKEYWORDdatarq%3Dcommander I hate to say it, but much less than $75-80 in a folding knife and you are likely going to end up with something not worth buying...for light use you can get away with some AUS 8 or 440C stuff from Cold Steel. But that stuff isn't really built to last except mebbe some of their camping stuff( I like their shovels and Kopis). As with everything in life, buy quality and buy it once, or rarely, and ya won't cry. But when it comes to tools, there is never a reason to cut corners. There is nothing worse than a tool that fails you when you need it. Here's a 12" Bowie I made not too long ago - the raw steel in it alone cost me $75, then I had to turn it into a knife...

Turbines. I even have a turbine spare.

I spend most of my free time with the Greyhound Rescues. Occasionally I get asked the question "Why don't you spend your time helping PEOPLE". Well, let me tell you my idea of how this animal thing goes. People, more or less, can take care of themselves. But, more importantly, since dogs can not fill out a form as most are illiterate, they can not apply for aid themselves. But it doesn't stop there. Unlike humans, who were either created by their maker, aliens, or evolution(or insert your viewpoint here) - dogs have scientifically been proven to have been created by man. We spent thousands of years turning what is basically a Gray Wolf in to a domesticated animal(some mitochondrial DNA suggests tens of thousands of years - which means we have evolved with dogs - unlike any other animal or pet). An animal that is a companion, one that can easily read your state of mind and learn how to interact with you, one that is loyal - oftentimes protect you unto death, and incredibly rarely will bite the hand that feeds it, and oftentimes is very dependent upon being near or with humans. I only know 2 humans on the planet that I can elevate to the level of loyalty my canines give me, and neither of them protect me when I sleep or alert me if anything is amiss, let alone let me rub their bellies whenever I damn well please. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_domestic_dog#DNA_evidence

And, of course, never...ever buy a used retread. Make sure it all looks kosher.

Here's a quote from Goodyear themselves regarding their RV tires. I couldn't find one specific to passenger cars - http://www.goodyear.com/rv/tirecare/tire_storage.html * Stack tires flat so that the bottom tire will maintain its shape * Wrap each tire with an opaque polyethylene covering to minimize the effects of oxygen and ozone. Most Goodyear retailers have storage bags made specifically for this purpose * If tires are being stored outdoors, they should be raised off the storage surface * If tires are stored while mounted on rims, they should be inflated to 10 psi * If they are put in storage during warm weather, the initial inflation pressure should be about 15 psi to offset the pressure drop during cold weather months "Each Goodyear RV tire contains additives, and as the tire rolls, they rise to the surface of the rubber to help protect the tires from cracking. Goodyear RV tires do not need any other dressings, appearance products or covers to help protect them. In fact, using products that contain alcohol, petroleum or silicone products may cause your Goodyear RV tires to deteriorate, crack and age more quickly." I have gone through a lot of tires in my lifetime. I used to be a field engineer and recovery tech. I have asked about everyone and anyone that SHOULD be in the know how to care for tires from storage to OTR - engineers to dealers to manufacturers. No one has ever endorsed an aftermarket application(such as armour all), and all have said the same things you will find on that web page and many others like it. Rotate em, keep em properly inflated, don't run over stupid stuff, don't let the sidewalls touch anything if you can help it, if you plug a tire immediately rotate it out to a spare, mind your alignment, don't put on a smaller tire than the manufacturer had in mind(it may lead to all sorts of wear, alignment, and handling issues), and generally don't be stupid. Also, if you can help it, don't use too old a tire. Check the last numerical digits after the "DOT" marking for manufacture before you ever buy a tire. I never buy a new tire that is older than 4 years old according to it's DOT date. In the example above: DOT U2LL LMLR 5107 Manufactured during the 51st week of the year - Manufactured during 2007

OK, for future reference: UP toes it in, Down toes it out. At least, it does on my 1986 XLS 4X4. It only took 1/5 crank down to fix the alignment issues I had. So I wouldn't go cranking hard on it at first. This fixed maybe a 1/8th inch offset WYK

Hey guys, I forget. I need to adjust my alignment tomorrow - so - When I twist the tie rod, which way causes the front of the tires to toe-in? Up or down? Obliged, WYK

I would miss that house far more than that truck, assuming yours is as nice as your neighbors.

OK, now for my road rage incident. Well, I have had several since I have driven all manner of things for a living at one point or another. Nearly every time, simply ignoring the other person is enough to make them go away. However, one night I was driving along in my 1964 Thunderbird. Few things get me visibly upset in real life, or on the road. Most of the time I am quite satisfied with simply muttering a few words under my breath and just driving onwards. Sometimes I see drivers that are so bad or doing something so stupid(how many of us have seen some idiot nearly stopped in the fast lane so he can make an exit?) it just makes me laugh and then cry... So, anyways, I'm in my T-Bird in maybe 1997 or 96, it's just after midnight on a weekend and I am trying to make it home before the bars close and the true idiots get in their cars. I am not halfway home when some idiot in a truck drives up next to me, is swerving and varying their speed dangerously, and nearly hits me. I looked over to see if he was drunk and was greeted with a truck full of smiling young idiots that seemed to be enjoying their time harassing me. So, I slow down and try to let them pass. They respond by slowing down, as well. This is when they make me angry. Either the passenger or the guy riding b*@$£ threw a beer bottle onto the hood of my immaculate 1964 Ford Thunderbird. I hit the brakes, committed their tag to memory, and pulled over to check the damage. After I was at a stop on the side of the road, I got out and about the time I leaned over the hood to check out the damage, I could hear that their truck was coming my way, and so I turned to look. They also had pulled over and were now backing up to me. When they got to about 30 yards away, the truck stopped and the doors opened. As the dust was clearing I noticed they had baseball bats. At the time, there was a 'gang' in that particular town that was known for beating up people, cars, etc with bats - usually minorities - especially Mexicans and illegals. I'm half German, the rest Cherokee and Japanese. With my tan, I can maybe see how they thought I was Mexican(ignoring the fact I am 6' tall). I had heard a lot about them, but I was still very surprised to see them. Now, I ALWAYS have a firearm when I travel - usually my first gen Glock 19 in the center console or even on my person. However, I reached in to the back seat instead of the console this time because I spent the day varmint hunting with a friend up in the hills(we took his truck) with my AR15. There weren't a lot of street lights where we were, so I made sure to step close to the front of my vehicle's headlights(I hadn't even bothered to turn the motor off) and racked the rifle and leveled it at them. I said one sentence loud and clear enough for them to hear, "I don't know when I am gonna start shooting, but it's gonna be soon here." They looked at me intensely for a good bit, then decided to go pick on someone else. I never did remember that license plate. So, I just let it go. Fortunately, there was virtually no damage to my T-Bird. It is the one car I ever regretted selling :(. Here's a photo of her - she is now in Germany: That is the original paint you're looking at, btw. Everything was original, and it nearly all worked - including the power windows, seat, and locks with tilt away steering. I shoulda turned that AR on myself for selling it! http://www.pbase.com/wyk/image/7455/original

If you put some AC in my XLS, I'll tell you yer MJ is worth as much as you want for it. ;) Er..until the compressor kills my 2.8...

:hijack: With good reason. It could have been easily possible from the viewpoint the teens had that all they saw was the one cruiser with the video. That cruiser could have been blocking the view of the other officer in the cruiser traveling at 94MPH until it was too late due to both the angle and the high rate of speed. Even so, at night it is more difficult to gauge the speed of other vehicles, and no one is expecting someone coming at them at nearly 95MPH on a city road, let alone the fwy. I was thoroughly appalled at some of the remarks in defense of the officers on that web page. This act is indefensible. Even if the officer had his overheads on and roman candles on every inch of his cruiser, you do not fly through an intersection at 94 mph on a city street, especially when there is traffic at the intersection. There is currently an officer in jail in England for hitting a pedestrian at 100 mph: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/26/police-patrol-car-crash-jail He received 6.5 years. I wonder would I receive a similar sentence to a police officer if I committed such an act...especially if I hit a police officer even if he didn't have his lights on... The problem we have is all it takes is virtually no effort of a search on the internet and one can find atrocities committed by the police by the scores. Civilians have a feeling that the police are out of control, and worse - act with a large amount of impunity. The 'thin blue line' is meaningless when the 'thick blue shield' is employed, as well. Power corrupts. Privilege corrupts. Officers have both of those. The only way to mediate it is to police the police. Until we have unbiased video and audio of everything they do, atrocities will continue to occur and go unreported. Even if they are watched 24-7, we will still see atrocities. They are human, and they make mistakes. But - that is never an excuse when it comes to law enforcement. In fact, when those that are required to enforce the laws abridge them, they must be punished more severely than those they watch over, as they have committed the crime two fold; they acted criminally, and they have betrayed the public trust. Otherwise you set a precedent of irresponsibility on their part - which is basically what we have - the thick blue shield. In a free country, EVERYONE is wary of the police, and everyone will question their authority - and the police should expect that. Are we a free society? Being a police officer is not a job or a career - it is a service. Once they consider it anything other than that - they have compromised their morals. How many police officers do you know would read this post and say, "He has a point."?