 
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
|
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
208.86.125.205
No idea why this is.
Follow Ups:
The fewer control modules, the better.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
...endless cranking on the cold wet morning.
Nothing beats jumper cables under heavy rain. Three guys pushing, one riding and starting...
I hate this boring, boring life of starting my car each morning with one light touch of the button.
Ever.
My brother and I had to occasionally bump start our dad's VW Bug, but it had a 6-volt electrical system.
All of my vehicles, no matter how shitty, always started and ran and got me where I needed to go.
Push button start? No thanks.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Boy, my neighbor never had a heart attack... what's the problem? :)
But no one out-luddites me! My music comes from reel to reel tapes!
Old engines can easily make your heart race.
Go back 100 years to these guys (all over 100 yrs old) and one appreciates the "start button".
The grey one was the power generator at a hospital in Minot ND, +6000lb. 15HP at 350 RPM, this takes 20min of a gasoline blow torch to attempt to start (a very early diesel). No crank, you hang on the flywheel spokes to turn and bump on compression and if lucky, it fires and runs the opposite direction.
Both Yamaha street singles, SR500 and SRX600.
Both had compression releases but you had to be careful with the 500. Little too much gas and you'd be kicking like mad for the next 10 minutes.
I liked the 500 better than the 600, even though the 600 was faster and handled better.
The 500 was more comfortable and made more torque at low RPM.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
I only had one big single, a BSA goldstar that was bored to 600+.
I got it from a guy who got a chrome moly frame, bored it out and raised the compression and proceeded to break his leg starting it when it backfired.
I started and rode it a couple times and thought boy this is a real handful and not what i needed and never road it again.
Still have a 850 Norton commando and an old Honda 450 and a someday project bike, but these days i like working on them more than riding.
Highly underrated bike.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Yep, started like as the "scrambler" CL but eventually all that was left of that were the folding foot pegs. Here it is around 1976 bored to 500, half race cams when i was done haha. Still have it although it's looking sad.
Had friend in the 70's that worked at a BSA / Triumph "Chopper shop" that had a large bone pile and I ended up making the honda part BSA / Triumph for the cloverleaf peg grinding.
I lived on a gentle sloping road in the early 80's, and would coast my Kawasaki down the hill, pop the clutch, instead of kick starting it.
We never needed it though.
You won't get any arguments from me about EFI, especially with what happened to carburetors during the Malaise Era.
It's the rest of it. Brake by wire. Cylinder deactivation. Auto stop/start. Et cetera.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Corny perhaps, but modern car pedals don't always "feel" very good to me. At least not the ones I'v tried. There's a subtle difference.
My '91 Honda Civic does have a simple EFI. But that's about it. Everything else is direct/manual and you can feel it/love it.
Even the ones that worked, like Honda's CVCC system, you ever look at the diagram for the vacuum lines? There's about a thousand of them and they all have to be routed to the right port.
EFI was much simpler than that, and it ran good unlike the carbs on American cars.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
I mean, the logical answer to me would seem to be "yes". But I dunno...
Maybe they all use "extra heavy-duty" starters now ?
You also get a heavier duty AGM type battery in most cases.
but they are heavier duty and likely more expensive than need be.
I always disable the Auto Idle Stop feature on our Passport as I find it distracting and sometimes dangerous for the engine to stop just when I need acceleration!
...and the systems work pretty well. We put about 1000 miles on a rented Chevy Traverse last year and I didn't even realize it had auto stop/start until I was sitting in the front passenger seat while my brother was driving. Didn't notice it at all while I was driving the car.
It's the complexity I don't like. It's one more thing to go wrong, costs $$$ to fix, and it's only there so the car maker can achieve its CAFE goal. Any fuel savings for the consumer is negligible.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Brakes by wire are more reliable than cables or hydraulic lines, so it is an easy choice. Master cylinder failures was big problem.Cylinder deactivation - does anyone still do that? I thought it died with the Caddies. I would not give a shit if it had to be consciously engaged.
Auto stop/start is something some people like, it is easily permanently disable on my BMW, I think this is how it should be: you want it you use it, if not then not. On my wife's Audi you have to do it every time you start the engine, that is more annoying, but she automatically does it.
Edits: 11/21/24 11/21/24
In a Ford Pinto. The front brakes still worked, but the rears didn't.
Regardless, brake by wire brakes are still hydraulic. There just isn't any mechanical connection between the brake pedal but there's still a hydraulic system. According to Wikipedia, fully electronic service brakes aren't in any production cars.
Brake by wire fails, somebody has to connect a scan tool, look at live data, run a diagnosis, hope for the best. And prepare to pay. Those systems might save money for the car maker but they cost the owner a lot more to repair.
Cylinder deactivation is widespread and has been for about a decade. All of GM's V8 and V6 engines use it, Honda uses it in its V6 engines, VW uses it in the 1.5-liter turbo 4-cylinder, based on what I read Ford uses it in a 1.5-liter three-cylinder. Cylinder deactivation in a three-cylinder engine!
My neighbor's GMC truck has cylinder deactivation--GM called it "Active Fuel Management"--and it's been a problem. He has a device that plugs into the OBD2 port and overrides the ECM when it commands cylinder shut down, but all the mechanical bits are still there and they're prone to failure.
Turning auto stop/start off keeps the engine from wearing itself out prematurely but the system still needs electronic control and a second battery in order to work.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Used to be, you wrote your message on a piece of paper, put it into an envelope, postage attached... and by the time you received the response you forgot the question.
These days you must have a computer... what a drag... :)
But I will give you this honor - you are well on your way to out-luddite me. :)
In fact, I have my own scan tool.
But taking the car to a guy who's going to diagnose the problem correctly, that all has to be paid for on top of any mechanical repairs.
The more controllers on the network, the more expensive it is to diagnose and repair issues when they arise. And they will.
The dual-circuit brake system is simple. There's no reason for brake by wire, it's just reinventing the wheel.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Over the years cars have become more reliable and need less maintenance and repairs. When was the last time a car needed a "tune-up" with all the associated parts - spark plugs, points, condenser, rotor, rotor cap, spark plug wires, etc. None of our vehicles in the past 20 years! Hence, no need to buy those parts.Similarly cars have been more reliable over the years.
Sure, some people still do their own repairs but as the article stated who goes to a brick and mortar parts store anymore? Hell, who goes to a brick and mortar audio store these days? Hell, who reads paper audio rags anymore?!! To be fair, I have a couple paper audio rags that I still subscribe to, mostly for the pictures and a quick glance at what's new. I'll skim the pages in 20 minutes then throw the magazine in the recycle. I will then search YouTube for better pictures! ;-)
Edits: 11/20/24
who goes to a brick and mortar parts store anymore?
me!
There's an O'Reilly's about two miles away where I've sourced wiper blades, cleaning supplies, coolant, oil, Sta-Bil, batteries, etc. And I like taking used oil from motorcycle and tractor changes to AutoZone.
I learned what a Clock Spring is. I have to do a touch screen replacement.
Modern vehicles are full of unnecessary computer crap, and even something as simple as replacing a headlight requires special tools available only to factory-licensed mechanics.
Far cry from when I was a kid, growing up in in a neighborhood full of young hot-rodders. These guys were ALWAYS modding older cars (mid-1950s Chevys were among their favorites), souping up the engines, installing after-market carbs, exhausts, whatever, and painting them in gorgeous deep-gloss finishes. They took real pride in their skills and in the finished products.
I owned a big International pickup for a while (no automatic or power ANYTHING), and that thing was a rolling class in auto mechanics. Sometimes had to send to the warehouse in Indiana for replacement parts, though, when local parts stores didn't have them.
...and other minor repairs, but I'm not a diagnostician and the IMO the worst thing you can do is open fire with the parts cannon when the "check engine" light comes on. Money light rears it's ugly, I take the car to somebody who knows what they're doing.
I don't buy parts from the big chains, usually I order them from Rockauto. Sometimes I'll head to the nearest U-Pull-It yard.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Edits: 11/20/24
But I want OE parts when I can get them--my car's pretty old and a lot of the OE parts are no longer available--and none of the big parts chains sells OE, including O'Reilly's.
Which means ordering the stuff from RockAuto.
Walmart seriously undercuts Advanced on stuff like oil. A 5-quart bottle of Mobil 1 is ten dollars less at Walmart than at Advanced. Car car products like waxes and car wash, same thing.
In fact, I only go to Advanced to drop off used motor oil. I don't actually buy anything there at all. I used to get all of my oil and filters there.
And there are just too damned many parts stores. There are two Advanced, two Autozones, and two O'Reilly's stores within a couple of mile of my house. They never needed that many stores.
New cars are so damned complex, too. The "check engine" light comes on, what the hell does the average owner do?
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Edits: 11/20/24
Over the years, I've lost the desire to get oily and greasy. Something's telling me to avoid much contact with toxic stuff like used motor oil, now that I'm older.
I'll now pay $40 for an oil change every couple years or every few thousand miles.
avoiding toxic fluids is always wise, but motor oil should be changed at least once a year, because the additive packages become oxidized over time.
I always have a good roll of paper towels just in case, and to wipe everything down as needed, but my oil changes are clean and controlled, as the task becomes more repetitious.
Replacing the drain bolt with a stay in place valve cleaned things up quite a bit , it's as predictable as turning on any valve, and a dedicated filter wrench lessons any surprises when the filter is loosened , plus I work in protective gloves.
My old Honda Civic rarely gets used any more, maybe 1X a week ? Maybe I'm a bit too uptight about this, but I hate wasting oil.
But the consequences of running oxidized oil mostly have to do with slightly decreased oil flow, I thought. I mean, it's not gonna totally kill the engine, right ?
...which in my case is just about 3,000 miles.
I do my wife's car twice per year, too, which is nowhere near 3K miles but it's a Hyundai and those engines don't tolerate dirty or contaminated oil.
My car has 129,000 miles on it. I don't think I'll live long enough to get it to 200K.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
And I've always enjoyed doing oil changes. My car, it's so easy, I barely get my hands dirty.
The key is good tools. For example, I picked up a cordless impact gun over the last year, makes tire rotations a breeze.
And one torque wrench to rule them all. I can properly torque oil drain plugs and oil filter covers on both cars with just one wrench.
The blissful counterstroke-a considerable new message.
Edits: 11/20/24 11/20/24
| FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
Top of Page ]
[ Contact Us ]
[ Support/Wish List ]
[ Copyright © 2024, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
