wiresquire

Yeah, seen lots of this 'sealed for life' crap around. Now someone has said that the gearbox life *for stock* is meant to be 150K. No bloody wonder it's life is 150K when there's no maintenance on it. It's self fulfilling. ws

I'm with you, Elfinke - isn't 150K for an expected trans life very low? Cripes the warranty is 3yrs/100K. I wonder if there are any taxis getting around with a ZF.... qs

:angel:

Stage 2+ is RRP $3.4K and requires the Stage 2 which is RRP of 8K. Did I miss something or did you mean Stage 1+? ws

Following on from the Roadster, Tesla are now working on the all electric Model S. The specs are rather surprising: * - 300 mile range * - 45 minute QuickCharge * - 0-60 mph in 5.6 seconds * - Seats 7 people * - More cargo space than sedans * - 2X as efficient as hybrids * - 17 inch infotainment touchscreen The range might be a bit suspect; Top Gear had troubles getting anywhere near the claimed range of the Roadster. Price is US$49K (which includes a $7.5K US tax credit). Video about it: . Looks a lot better than a Prius, almost like an Aston Martin. Interesting times. ws

Yeah, scam. I couldn't see a roll cage showing in the pics? And someone will let him run a 5 second car down the quarter?

Step 2 is your problem. There's 2 different approaches to scratches and swirls. One is to polish to remove them which evens the paint/topcoat out, and the other is to 'fill them'. I'm not going to debate the pros and cons of each. The only thing I'll say is that most detailers tend to go for the polish rather than the fill. The Zaino kit mentioned above will probably include a polish... From the description you give, the Sealer and Glaze is mainly a 'filler' type product rather than an abrasive polish. So, if the scratches/swirls are still showing, then the 'filling' isn't happening properly, and it doesn't have enough abrasive power to remove the swirls. Can't really say what the issue is as each product is very different. Too much product, not enough, too much pressure on the OR, or not enough. It can be a pain. You are doing it in the shade with all the panels cool, right? BTW, there's a very informative thread here about the differences between polish, wax and the different types of stuff available. hth qs

What exactly is in the Mothers 3 step kit? With a compound or polish, if it's heavy, it may actually create them. If the polish isn't heavy enough, it may not remove them. It's only as you get to lighter cuts or on to a swirl remover that you will see them disappear. Think the same as sand/wet-dry paper. Rough, lighter, lightest. My understanding is that a clay bar is used more to remove contaminants bonded to the paint rather than removing swirls and scratches. ws

Dang, xr6ot, that blue pic above is low. It looks like you'd be hitting the guards at half lock. Are the guards rolled? How's the turning circle? Out of interest, who do you guys with compressed springs recommend for insurance? The way the insurance companies try to weasel out of everything, seems like this would be an easy one for them to get out of... Cheers ws

Double your remote range? No problem!

Nice wheels. lol - I can see where you took the mud flaps off on the pic on the right....Was just looking at the crap under mine today

Some of this is related to the regular/E10 switch. I initially noticed an increase in price between 98 and the 'low' advertised price out the front when they switched over to ethanol 91 (E10). The ethanol 91/E10 was cheaper than the non-ethanol 91. Happened locally around Dec 08. Before Regular E10 came in around here, BP Ultimate had always been +16c over the 'regular' price. Caltex was always +10c. Some data: 31/12/07 BP regular 1.379, 95 1.479 (+10c), 98 1.539 (+16c) 9/12/08: BP regular (E10) 98.9, 95 113.9 (+15c), 98 119.9 (+21c). This was the first time I bought at BP when E10 came in. 27/5/09: BP regular (E10) 114.9, 95 129.9 (+15c), 98 135.9 (+21c) So, if the E10 is really 5c cheaper than the old regular, this is consistent. 17/6/08: Caltex Regular 1.549, 95 1.609 (+6c), 98 1.649(+10c) 10/6/09: Caltex Regular(E10) 1.145, 95 1.285 (+14c), 98 1.325 (+19c) Now if E10 is 5c cheaper than the old regular, as per the BP above, this last one should only be +15c. Now, whether the the real difference between the ethanol 91 and non-ethanol was truly 5c, that is another story. I never use the stuff, but I always had in my mind it was only a couple of cents a litre difference. I could be wrong. Either way, the switchover to E10 was definitely used at least by Caltex as an opportunity to jack up prices on their 95 & 98 blends. As far as I'm concerned, it's just less of a reason to use Caltex 98 over BP Ultimate, because there's only 2c/L difference where it used to be 6c/L. Dunno about Mobil/Shell or others - never use the stuff. ws

Recently come across a show called Oz from HBO. Repeats are on SBS Thursdays about 11:30pm. Hadn't heard about it before, though apparently there's 6 seasons worth of dvds that can be bought. Dunno if it's finished or what. Anyways, it's about a max security prison in the US. Only watched a couple of episodes, but it is freaking me out. Not one for the kiddies. ws

Sounds electrical if the lights dim? Either it's something electrical sucking power causing the car to go into limp, or whatever causes the limp mode makes the cars electrics mess up. Are the electricals all stock, ie no after market stereo etc? I have seen a couple of posts around where people had issues with speedos and xmas lights and replacing the battery solved it. Maybe alternator? Anyways, might be worth checking... hth ws

You can also get touch up paint - a little tin, or a spray can - from any autobarn/supercheap etc. You just need to give them the colour code and they mix it on the spot. About $30 from memory. hth ws

lol Happy to help you out any time you need. I'll even do mates rates of $400/hour, minimum of 8 hours ws

Hahahaha. So someone stupid didn't know that some cars had a 5 year warranty when new? Or that you could up your warranty from Ford for another 3 years after the original 3 years expired, giving a total of 6 years? Stupid people wouldn't have known that, or checked their car warranty info with Ford when they bought the car. Some may call you stupid. I would never say that. ws

Just (yet another) stupid question, but while many places can perform regular services that are good to maintain warranty requirements, is it correct that you can only take it back to a Ford Dealer for actual warranty work? TIA ws

What I noticed after looking for quite some while: - there were relatively few available - the colour seemed to make quite a difference in the price, or at least the willingness of the dealer to negotiate on price - you had to get in very early or it was gone. Like the same day it was originally posted. If you're looking once a week, you won't see them because they've been advertised and sold. Everyone who's looking knows the bf2 has the same internals as the phoon, and that the turbo is better for mods than the FG. Not to say an FG is not a better car, but that's why people are looking at the BF1s or BF2s after 06/06. There was also 1 (or 2?) BF2 upgrade models available with better 'standard' trim that makes it more $$$. These had leather, premium sound and 18s. Check out redbook. They give you a fair idea of private prices, and if you're going dealer, then be prepared to pay over that. If you're not prepared to pay, then your only alternative is to wait. ws

Driveline lash, unless you are kangaroo hopping it ws

For NSW, RTA/MAA used to have an online calculator that compared prices from all the major guys. Think this might be it here. hth ws

I don't get it. You're basing your tyre decision on the UTQG ratings. Then you've explained what that means. So, you chose the Nexens based on you driving everywhere on roads with the same construction as the test track, and only ever stopping on the same wet pavement tested. Go check out places like tirerack.com surveys and tests. They at least have some consistency in testing behind their tests/shootouts, and even the subjective customer surveys will give you some sort of idea about turning corners, wet, dry, aquaplaning, tyre life in the real world etc. Nexens may be a very good tyre for all I know, but basing that on a comparison of the UTQGs is just wrong. ws

I had several cars on my list. I was coming from an E series falcon I6, so most comments are relative to that. Basically I wanted RWD/AWD with more go and better handling than that, and didn't really want to spend a bunch of money. - 944 turbo. Handling was good, but rode very harshly and could feel every blemish in the road. Very spartan interior and didn't seem to have any sound deadening at all. Was not impressed at the grunt from low revs. 20 years old, parts availability and pricing were a concern that I didn't get to checking on. Insurance costs seemed highly variable, but at least the same as a wrx. - wrx/sti. Had driven a stock subaru 2.2 (non-wrx) for a while and always liked the scooby's. This is the days of the 2L turbo, not the current 2.5s. Insurance on wrx for me was about double a year more expensive than the xr6t at that time. Some insurers wouldn't insure it. The test drives I did in wrx's, similar to the 944 turbo, was not impressed with the revs from down low. Below 3K it had nothing and seemed to take forever to get there. Handling good, like the AWD and a little more comfortable ride wise. Interior, well, little different to the older Subaru I had. - evo. I admire it for it's suppposed handling superiority, but ruled it out based on the comments about ride harshness. If I thought the WRX was OK for me, an sti or evo would be too harsh. - 335i. I don't think the 135i was around when I was initially looking. Given there were very few used 335i's, the >90K was more than I wanted to spend. If I win the lottery, I'd take a serious look at a 135i. - xr6t/f6. Since the announcement of the xr6t, I had been very interested in it. Had been lurking on this forum since I first found it, and joined some time later. Took my first test drive and bought one. Later upgraded to a BF2 with a ZF, had always driven manuals before that. Overall, I had been most concerned about the handling given the weight gains since the e series. I was pleasantly surprised as it felt like a lighter car than what it really is and quite direct on turn in. Ultimately, the xr6t had the right balance of power, handling, comfort and size that I wanted. The bonus is that if you wanted to, you can upgrade power, handling etc at a pretty reasonable price. I considered F6s, but decided that for my purposes the xr6t was sufficient, as if I end up modding once warranty is gone, the differences would become irrelevant. I was most surprised about the wrx & 944's lack of go from low revs. I shouldn't have been, but I realised I had become very used to the usable torque of the old E series I6. It's just there and on tap, and the xr6t is just the same but better. Holding value/depreciation wasn't something I considered. I wanted a car I could keep for a few years and be happy with. So far, so good. Also as I don't drive that many K's a year, I don't really care that much about fuel economy. If I were you, I'd test drive anything you think you might like starting now. Just make sure you have the discipline to not buy it until you can afford it! ws

Actually, the size of the polls is irrelevant. What is actually important is whether they are a random sample. I would say in both cases they are not. Let me put it this way; the people who could be bothered to push a button at the SMH site, as compared to those that could be bothered to push a button at this site have very different opinions. ws

One clarification. He has NOT been sacked. He has stood down with no pay. There are 2 things that bother me: - The poll here shows about 25% saying sack him, and 65% saying he's done nothing wrong. At the SMH poll, 56% say sack him, 28% say leave him alone and 15% are somewhere in between. The contrast in the site's constituents are staggering. - I've been watching the Footy Show. The 'discussion' was very obviously aimied at deflecting everything away from Matty Johns. I admire Gus Gould a lot; he's a very smart guy. But he, Voss and the journalist (didn't catch her name) were pathetic. The entire show has only resulted in adding more questions. Just one example. The journalist mentioned that she was sure that the amount of drug use and group sex had decreased a lot. OK, so that means she was aware of many of these types of incidents. Why didn't she report them? How bad was/is it ? The fact that this is being discussed to this level should tell people something. It smells like there are a LOT of people that are very scared of the things they may have done. ws