What have you done to your car today?

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Pretty much every Japanese (Asian?) car has the headlight controls on the indicator stalk. It's like... standard.

It's also impossible to accidentally adjust while using the indicator. Well, I thought so prior to two mintues ago...
 
How didn't you notice the headlights were off if it was dark? Also, what kind of car were you driving? Never seen one with the headlight switch on the stalk.

Hyundai Accent. I didn't notice because the road I turned onto is really well lit. When I turned off onto a darker street, I noticed immediately.

I knew something wasn't right, though. I thought I had accidentally flashed the brights while hitting the stalk, but it turns out I actually turned off the headlights. At least the parking lights were still on.

At least I can safely say that I won't let that happen again, now that I know it can do that. I'm thinking that car companies ought to make that knob really hard to switch back once you turn on the headlights, though.
 
I'm very thankful for Ohio's abolishment of emissions checks for our cars. Last night I and a few buddies removed the innards of my cousin's catalytic converter on the Cobalt SS. Gotta let that supercharger exhale! Now it emits the most awesomely race car-like sound ever with all the crackles and gargles and pops and the occasional backfire, and it'll only be improved when he buys a proper header. It also saved him a ton of money on dumb looking exhaust systems that sound like poop and aren't very beneficial, seeing as the factory piping is already full of beautifully smooth mandrel bends and fat tubing. That's gotta be the most awesome free modification ever. Sweet.

Oh, but it stinks something horrible. Ah, sacrifices.
 
I'm very thankful for Ohio's abolishment of emissions checks for our cars. Last night I and a few buddies removed the innards of my cousin's catalytic converter on the Cobalt SS. Gotta let that supercharger exhale! Now it emits the most awesomely race car-like sound ever with all the crackles and gargles and pops and the occasional backfire, and it'll only be improved when he buys a proper header. It also saved him a ton of money on dumb looking exhaust systems that sound like poop and aren't very beneficial, seeing as the factory piping is already full of beautifully smooth mandrel bends and fat tubing. That's gotta be the most awesome free modification ever. Sweet.

Oh, but it stinks something horrible. Ah, sacrifices.


Not that I really care, but regardless of your town/city/state emissions regulations, having a catalytic converter is a federal requirement.

Hope you wore some serious protection when you guys ripped out the innards, those things are seriously dangerous to your health when tampered with.
 
Yeah, we wore masks and gloves and whatnot. We've done it before and we're plenty aware that the dust is not something to be breathing.
 
Well looks like the 180 is sold. The buyer is coming up from Wellington on Friday to collect it. Hopefully the sale will go through without any hitches.
 
drove the rover 240 miles to bedford and back without a hitch as per usual, a neighbours selling his 99 astra and my parents are trying to get me to buy it because apparently my car is "getting on a bit". its a tough decision, a reliable trusty car iv had for ages or get one just because its newer :confused:
 
I bought a Bosch ICON wiper blade.

wiperblade.jpg


http://www.boschautoparts.com/Products/WiperBlades/Icon.htm

but i got a problem in that the very center of the driver's side window doesn't get wiped so there is a swipe across the very middle of my field of vision. I got them at night so I didn't want to mess with it, any ideas?
 
Well looks like the 180 is sold. The buyer is coming up from Wellington on Friday to collect it. Hopefully the sale will go through without any hitches.

Curse you mechanical gremlins! :shakes fist: :ouch:

3 days from selling my car, after 18 months of trouble free motoring and the water pump springs a leak.

I wouldn't be so bothered if I was keeping it....
 
It also saved him a ton of money on dumb looking exhaust systems
No, it didn't.


He did save a very tiny amount of money, if you consider the money saved on not getting a text pipe. But then a test pipe would provide better performance, so the "money saved" might have better been spent buying a test pipe and getting more out of it.
 
Grassroots Motorsports recently ran some tests between various cats, in this case on a Miata -
Dyno results showed between one and three horsepower gains, depending on brand, between the stock cat and a new replacement. A Test pipe was fitted, and gave no improvement over the top-performing cat.

Do it for the sound? Sure. Do it for the performance? Well, you might consider it to be worth it. I'd spend my time elsewhere.


Today I destroyed a couple drill bits punching out a couple ceased fasteners on one of my foglights - It had started leaking water into it, and the bulb exploded as a result.
I'll be resealing it, replacing the bulb, buffing the lens, and reinstalling it with stainless hardware.
I may put some brighter bulbs in, as well - Depends on the cost over the stockers.
 
I bought a Bosch ICON wiper blade.

wiperblade.jpg


http://www.boschautoparts.com/Products/WiperBlades/Icon.htm

but i got a problem in that the very center of the driver's side window doesn't get wiped so there is a swipe across the very middle of my field of vision. I got them at night so I didn't want to mess with it, any ideas?

Is it stretched nice and tight in the wiper blade holder? Maybe it's too loose and the middle part is curved inwards or something.
 
No, it didn't.


He did save a very tiny amount of money, if you consider the money saved on not getting a text pipe. But then a test pipe would provide better performance, so the "money saved" might have better been spent buying a test pipe and getting more out of it.
Seeing as the Cobalt's "test pipe" is a $900 header that combines the exhaust manifold and the downpipe and includes a converter (SLP), then yes, his cost to benefit ratio is satisfying to him. But, since we did get rid of the cat, he just get an exhaust manifold for about $280. The cat is just the first step towards saving around $650.
 
but i got a problem in that the very center of the driver's side window doesn't get wiped so there is a swipe across the very middle of my field of vision. I got them at night so I didn't want to mess with it, any ideas?

I got Bocshe flat wiper blades a little while ago, the exact same thing happens to mine, right in the middle of the screen! and it makes that juddering noise when in use:mad:

I tried bending them and it worked...just for a while :-( Sometimes I want to change back but they look a lot better than the standard ones.
 
Grassroots Motorsports recently ran some tests between various cats, in this case on a Miata -
Dyno results showed between one and three horsepower gains, depending on brand, between the stock cat and a new replacement. A Test pipe was fitted, and gave no improvement over the top-performing cat.

Do it for the sound? Sure. Do it for the performance? Well, you might consider it to be worth it. I'd spend my time elsewhere.
I was talking about gutted cats, not high flow cats vs test pipes.

Seeing as the Cobalt's "test pipe" is a $900 header that combines the exhaust manifold and the downpipe and includes a converter (SLP), then yes, his cost to benefit ratio is satisfying to him. But, since we did get rid of the cat, he just get an exhaust manifold for about $280. The cat is just the first step towards saving around $650.
Oh.

I didn't know the Cobalt exhaust was such a crappy idea, so in that case, yes, money was saved. I thought your were trying to say that gutting the cat somehow made the catback a better design, thus eliminating the need to ever get an improved one.
 
I have a feeling bosch products were intended for my windshield. :p I've never had a problem with them.
 
Finally installed my grey front seatbelts. Also installed a Trans-Am shifter knob.

 
I had a shop look for my exhuast leak, which turned out to be a loose plug. $30 to be sure it was fixed. Worth it to me. Expecially since I had no time to fiddle with all of the plugs and what not.

JCE
Finally installed my grey front seatbelts. Also installed a Trans-Am shifter knob.


Awsome, the interior looks like it's getting closer to done. 👍
 
Just changed the power steering fluid in the Integra and got a spiffy new Honda keychain.
 
I was talking about gutted cats, not high flow cats vs test pipes.



You seem to be missing the point.
If a test pipe is only making two or three horsepower over the fifteen-year old OEM cat, than what do you stand to gain by gutting a new cat?

Neither the butt-dyno nor the stopwatch will know the difference between stock and your newly gained half horsepower.
 
Finally got the old wheels replaced with...wheels that weren't as old. I always had a hankering for the 2004 ES 300 "SportDesign" wheels, which in look much nicer, and they fit perfectly. Too bad they're still 16" wheels, but you can't beat free wheels that have only a little interior paint bubbling (compared to my old ones which were peeling badly all around).

gs300-canalpoint.jpg
 
Looks good Pupik 👍

I rolled over 9,000 miles on the way to work this morning. It should be going to the body shop on Thursday barring the insurance agent adjusts it tomorrow and ok's the repairs.
 
Finally got the old wheels replaced with...wheels that weren't as old. I always had a hankering for the 2004 ES 300 "SportDesign" wheels, which in look much nicer, and they fit perfectly. Too bad they're still 16" wheels, but you can't beat free wheels that have only a little interior paint bubbling (compared to my old ones which were peeling badly all around).

gs300-canalpoint.jpg

Nice car too. I didn't know rims were ever painted, I don't think mine are.
 
Pitting wheels are really common in coastal Florida, so Lexus would have lots of them as warranty claims. The paint bubbling on the wheels is barely noticeable, unless you look towards the inside edge of the spokes. Toyota/Lexus Chrome-finished wheels are nightmares here, though. In 2 years, they would become pitted quite noticably; they'd eat a lot of wheels and give the parts department headaches.

Many Lexus wheels are painted, this set of special edition wheels have a "Thundercloud" color; they only made 4000 SportDesign ES 300s. My old GS 300 wheels were 12 years old before the finish even started to peel (and then they got rapidly worse), so if taken care of, the finish lasts.
 
Cleaned it, replaced the washer fluid, oil and water.

Things I should have done weeks ago.
 
Pitting wheels are really common in coastal Florida, so Lexus would have lots of them as warranty claims. The paint bubbling on the wheels is barely noticeable, unless you look towards the inside edge of the spokes. Toyota/Lexus Chrome-finished wheels are nightmares here, though. In 2 years, they would become pitted quite noticably; they'd eat a lot of wheels and give the parts department headaches.

Many Lexus wheels are painted, this set of special edition wheels have a "Thundercloud" color; they only made 4000 SportDesign ES 300s. My old GS 300 wheels were 12 years old before the finish even started to peel (and then they got rapidly worse), so if taken care of, the finish lasts.

That's why I'd just have them sandblasted and powdercoated, since powdercoating seems to last for a long time. My dad uses his stock rims on his SC2 for winter wheels and since they were peeling and pitted, he powdercoated them black and they've been good so far (for about 2 winters).
 
Just replaced my stock air box with a straight pipe (attached to a filter, of course). Gives my RSX some balls past 3,000.
 
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