JBender

Do you own a multimeter? It'd just take a minute to test all the wires in question to find your constant 12v wire. A cheap multimeter can be had for less than $20 and will be invaluable for basic electric troubleshooting. You can also get a 12v test light for a few dollars if you don't want to take the time to learn the multimeter (but it's really simple, honest).

I have a friend with an Audi A6 allroad quattro, and it's a nice car, but parts are ridiculously expensive. One of the adjustable shocks went bad, and I think it was $800 from the dealer, just for the part. Considering that there isn't an Audi dealership near you, I'd steer clear. Between those two cars, I'd definitely go with the Subaru.

Does he have a clean and clear title? Mileage? How long has the truck been sitting since it last ran? Are the tires flatspotted? Assuming you can tow it back yourself, you could at least have a good parts truck for $300. The only way I'd pass on it is if the body is completely rotted with rust and the drivetrain is trashed, in which case it may be more trouble than it's worth to go that far.

I'd guess the RV people are saying it "won't work" in the sense that they think you won't have enough energy in one battery to run the devices you want without having to start the engine to recharge constantly. Several factors will affect your runtime; the power draw of your devices (for example, a LCD TV uses much less power than an old-fashioned CRT), the efficiency of your inverter, the amount of energy (amp-hours) your battery is rated for at full charge, etc. If you can gather all those numbers together, you should be able to calculate your expected runtime, to see if you need to add more batteries, and if so, how many and how big.

If you don't have Photoshop, you can use IrfanView, which is small, free, and simple. Once you've installed IrfanView, just open your picture, resize it so the biggest side is 150px or less, and save. :thumbsup:

Thanks guys, and I didn't realize there were so many people here from the Midwest (when I'm not at college, I live near Bolingbrook, IL, outside Chicago). With the Geo paint job, I was just happy that it was all one color, but you are correct about the quarter panels, they were under-covered, and it was a hot summer day in a 1-car garage. The painter was nice enough not to charge me anything, but I may be respraying it myself with a better setup this summer. What's the ballpark price a place would charge to straighten the frame? It drives straight, so hopefully it's not too bad, but I figured there'd be some carnage once I removed the bed and evaluated what's underneath. I definitely have a lot of reading to do, as I wasn't aware of gauge cluster differences, but glad to hear I have one of the better ones! I overhauled the PCV system and valve cover gasket yesterday, so hopefully it won't leak so much oil now. I'm helping a buddy move some furniture with it today, so once that's done, I'll fix the upside-down grill and start a project thread. :cheers:

Hey there, I bought an '86 Comanche X here in Lubbock, Texas a few days ago, and have already fallen in love with it. It's my first truck, and is a bit of a project, but I'm up for it. It was $550, 190k on the clock, with a laundry list of things to fix. It was rear-ended six years ago (I bought it from the original owner), and so the bed is smashed to about a 6-footer. I've been reading quite a bit on these forums the past few days, and there's a lot I need to learn, but I believe my grill is on upside-down, for starters. The interior is actually in good shape, minus the steering wheel and a couple trim pieces. For some reason, the previous owner replaced the headliner instead of fixing the numerous mechanical problems. The engine was leaking oil badly, mostly from the valve cover gasket and PCV connections (the rear PCV/breather canister was just sitting on top of the engine). I'll save the details for a project thread, since this is just my introduction. Aside from the Comanche, I own a Geo Metro (Suzuki Swift) with a turbo Chevy Sprint swap, and a Nissan 300ZX. For those who might be interested, here's the write-up on my Geo build (don't laugh too hard, I get 44mpg with boost!): Geo project thread I bought the Comanche so I could move myself to a place in the country, where I'm at now, and loving it. I made four trips with a (squished) bed full of my belongings, and the Comanche didn't miss a beat, even with the countless broken pieces. Anyways, I'm glad the Comanche has a dedicated forum, and I'm glad to be here .