Miscellaneous discussions about automobiles

Hello folks:

Recently (in Oct), I bought a new G20. I would like to hear from people who
have had the car longer reg the problems faced (if any). Also, does anyone
recommend any extra maintenance other than regularly changing the oil/filter
every 3k miles and following the prescribed maintenance schedules?

And … I’m thinking of getting some detailing work done (mainly getting the
car waxed + adding a paint sealant) to protect the paint and retain the lustre
(the car is black in color – so the swirl marks tend to show up after a while).
Any comments from fellow netters on this? Any particular precautions to take?
Is the timing right (the car is 6 months old)? While on the topic, does anybody
know of a good/reliable detailing place (in the SFO Bay area) where I could
take my car and *not* have to worry about ruining the original finish in the
process?

And, finally any particular likes/dislikes wrt the G20 that you would like to
share?

Thanks.
—
Srikant Subramaniam.
srik…@cs.usask.ca

I have been shopping around for a set of summer tires for a
1990 Acura Integra.  I’ve narrowed the choice down to two kinds:

        Yokohama A509
        Dunlop D60 M2

Both are approximately the same price.  Both are 195/60R14, with
a speed rating of H.

Can someone explain the difference between these two tires?
Any advice or recommendations would be very helpful.

Thanks!

Lorne Zaitlin

Hi folks,

I’m trying to get in touch with the "RX-7 Club of America".
They seem to have moved (or are out of business).

Their old address was:

4020 Palos Verdes Drive North
Suite 108
Rolling Hills Estates,CA 90274

Does anyone out there have the current address / phone #?

I’m looking for a complete set of their magazine
"Rotary Rocket", as well as their newsletter,
"RX-7 Report". If you have a set you want to part with,
or know where I can get one, EMail me.

Cheers!

Roy Salume
roy_sal…@smtp.esl.com
—
"Too many choices make me weep!"
-Mia Farrow, as told by David Pogue

You think too much, Boss.
-Anthony Quinn in "Zorba the Greek"

I am posting this for the benefit of those who may not
be aware of the following announcement from Honda.

"Several months ago, we announced a Product Update involving
all 1988-1991 Civics. If the igniter, a part in the ignition
system, should fail, your car will not start. Your Honda dealer
will replace the igniter with an improved part.

…….This will be done free of charge. For any further info.
please call 1-800-999-1009."

I was not aware of this until I received a postcard in the
mail with this notice. Anyway, if you own a Civic that is of
1988-1991 model year, bring it to the Honda dealer and have
the part changed.

Hiren H. Masher
email: h…@honet6.att.com

Since I have come to school here at NC State, I have seen a couple of
cars that I had never heard of before.  One was the Nissan Sunny K.  It
looked just like a mid-eighties Nissan Sentra.  The other car was a Ford
Laser 1.6i, which looked remarkedly like the Mazda 626 (#?).  Both cars
were left-hand-drive, so I presume they were North American (and South
American?) models.  Both have North Carolina tags, so I presume that
they were smog-legal.  Were that just badge-engineered cars from Canada
or Mexico, or just a limited number sold in the US?  Thanks for any
information in advance.

–

   ___/|___\_______       Owen Holder    
  ( /-\_____\___/-\)       sohol…@eos.ncsu.edu
    \_/o——–\_/         The Dodge Viper… Speed Racer’s Mach 5 Incarnate

I asked the CSU news operator about it, and he said that it was a waste,
because we were cross posting between REC.AUTOS and REC.AUTOS.MISC
That was the overall reason that they deleted it.

Larry
L…@CSUpomona.edu

I’ve got an ’87 saab 900 turbo, I’m moving across the country, and I’m
trying to decide whether to sell it or not.  

So I was wondering what net.wisdom is about the following question:

which is safer, a car that’s heavy and safe like a saab but doesn’t have
air bags or antilock brakes, or a new lighter, cheaper, car that’s maybe
not as sturdily built, but has air bags and antilocks?

Thanks for any info,
Jane (aron…@arch.stanford.edu)

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -

>>My 87 Dodge Col with 59K miles on it makes noise when I turn
>>the steering. I ignored it for a month until the PA state
>>inspection. The mechanic said it failed because it needs both
>>front axles, each costing $240 plus 1.5 hrs of labor. The
>>estimated total bill is $620. Is there a cheaper solution to
>>this problem? What would be the consequences

>Otehr than bribing the inspector or buying a black market inspection
>sticker (both commonly done and illegal) there is no easy fix for dead
>CV joints. All you can do is shop around for price or consider repairing
>them yourself – but the parts are still expensive.

>The 20/20 hinsight solution is to keep a careful eye on your CV joint
>boots, these nearly always split before the CV joint itself fails. Giving
>you 0-3k miles notice of a big $ reapir.

>Craig

It seens that this may be a weak point of Colt. Many years ago I had a 1980
Dodge Colt (the 1st generation of fwd Colt) that developed into this same
problem. The cheapest solution is to buy/mail order the CV joints from
Washasky (sp ?) in Chicago and install yourself. I remember it was around
$100 per axle.

BTW, I believe the reason why you see CV joint boot breaks before CV joint
goes bad is because after the boot bursted, the sand/dirt could get into the
joint. If you change your boot immediately after it broke, you might save
a big $ repair. Inspect your fwd car CV joint regularly. You can find the
split type CV joint boot in Giant auto or other parts store that is very
easy to install.

Julian

I was just curious.  Where would one go to put ones’
car thru some driving tests.  ie, suppose you wanted
to find out how well it handles at high speed or see
what maximum speed one can obtain (fairly legally if
possible).  Are there tracks or areas that cater to
this for the average Joe?

rock…@bu.edu

I want to buy a used car, and if someone tells me that it has anti-lock brakes,
how can I know that it is true (other than actually slamming on the brakes).
Do manufacturers put any indicator for it, or can I tell by looking under the
hood, wheel well, etc.?

Larry