Car Enthusiast Club [Now Motorcycle friendly!] - First thread to 150k! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[bcredeur97]

28 minutes ago, vetali said:

e39, the sky is the limit. e60 has a v10 so thats gonna go up as well.

 

With anything used, buy asap. New car prices are gonna keep climbing to dumb levels and used cars will follow.

Ppl aren’t gonna be able to afford cars anymore lol

[GDRRiley]

On 1/20/2021 at 11:21 AM, TVwazhere said:

That's 10 oil changes a year!

10. why that often?  4-5 would be what I'd expect every 4-5000m

[atxcyclist]

I am really getting back into the mood for a 4x4 or AWD vehicle, when the world is safe to venture into again I want to do some traveling. Are Subaru engines really as problematic with head gaskets as people make them out to be, and can aftermarket headgaskets fix the issues they have? An older Forester would do the trick I imagine, big enough to toss a sleeping mat out with the rear seat down. A '91-'96 4.0L XJ is also on the list for consideration, I had a 1990 a long time ago and I miss it. I'm also considering a full-size Bronco of the EFI era, but I have no experience with the twin-beam suspension on older Fords and I've heard the kingpins are a bit of a PITA to deal with. There's also the CR-V and Toyota Rav4, they're a bit lighter duty than the XJ and I imagine about on the same footing as the Forester.

 

 

[handymanshandle]

anyone here own a newer Mazda3? (2019+) How do you like it?

After I get a house, I'd like to sort out everything with my 2003 Saab 9-3  and sell it either locally or maybe Cars and Bids (if Doug and his team would accept a well optioned base trim 9-3 thats in fantastic cosmetic condition just needs some age and wear related work [Im the second owner and I've put a little over 5,000 miles in my year and 4 months of ownership])

and the top two cars I'd like would probably be a newer Mazda3 (again 2019+) or a Chevy Volt (2017+)

[TVwazhere]

10 hours ago, GDRRiley said:

10. why that often?  4-5 would be what I'd expect every 4-5000m

Ask @Real_PhillBert. He know's its recommended 3-5k miles, but does it at 2k anyways. 

[Real_PhillBert]

1 hour ago, TVwazhere said:

Ask @Real_PhillBert. He know's its recommended 3-5k miles, but does it at 2k anyways. 

Even I know that 2k is overkill, the manual says 7500m interval.

 

Part of it is that I'm paranoid about oil contaminants, especially reaching the turbocharger. Part of it is that it gives me a nice steady interval to simply inspect the car regularly, look over belts, hoses, suspension etc, just to stay ahead of issues. And probably the biggest deal, I find it slightly therapeutic to just spend some time with the cars; it's a small break from other bullshit. 

 

Yes it's way overkill, but I kinda like it and it's certainly not hurting anything. 

[vetali]

7 hours ago, atxcyclist said:

I am really getting back into the mood for a 4x4 or AWD vehicle, when the world is safe to venture into again I want to do some traveling. Are Subaru engines really as problematic with head gaskets as people make them out to be, and can aftermarket headgaskets fix the issues they have? An older Forester would do the trick I imagine, big enough to toss a sleeping mat out with the rear seat down. A '91-'96 4.0L XJ is also on the list for consideration, I had a 1990 a long time ago and I miss it. I'm also considering a full-size Bronco of the EFI era, but I have no experience with the twin-beam suspension on older Fords and I've heard the kingpins are a bit of a PITA to deal with. There's also the CR-V and Toyota Rav4, they're a bit lighter duty than the XJ and I imagine about on the same footing as the Forester.

 

 

Yeah they are problematic. Usually start seeping at 80k and progress to dumping on the exhaust by 130k. Not a fan of 4.0 jeeps but thats me. I would rather have a 5.2/5.9. I don't think EFI era broncos have kingpins. Twin beam suspension is a nightmare to deal with regardless. Nobody now days aligns them right and even if you do, its good until you go over a pot hole then its out again. Those old EFI setups are a pain to get running right too. Older CRVs and ravs aren't gonna be as good as a subarus AWD system. You can get older pilots/mdx cheap and those have a much better AWD system. With some decent tires it'll do fine unless you are in some crazy terrains.

[Trevorq243]

6 hours ago, pinksnowbirdie said:

top two cars I'd like would probably be a newer Mazda3 (again 2019+) or a Chevy Volt (2017+)

I recently made the jump from a fun car to a hybrid myself and am regretting it a lot less that I thought I would! 

What exactly is it about the Volt that you like? I ask because I was cross-shopping the mainstream hybrids and settled on something totally different. Word is that the seats in the Volt are not great for longer trips and my wife and I regularly drive 6+ hours to see friends, family etc. The test drive was fine, but it was just that. Fine. Nothing to write home about, though that is more or less what one would expect. Especially because I came from a FoST haha

[atxcyclist]

30 minutes ago, vetali said:

Yeah they are problematic. Usually start seeping at 80k and progress to dumping on the exhaust by 130k. Not a fan of 4.0 jeeps but thats me. I would rather have a 5.2/5.9. I don't think EFI era broncos have kingpins. Twin beam suspension is a nightmare to deal with regardless. Nobody now days aligns them right and even if you do, its good until you go over a pot hole then its out again. Those old EFI setups are a pain to get running right too. Older CRVs and ravs aren't gonna be as good as a subarus AWD system. You can get older pilots/mdx cheap and those have a much better AWD system. With some decent tires it'll do fine unless you are in some crazy terrains.

Lot's of good info, thanks.

 

I would like a ZJ with a 5.2/5.9 and Quadra Trac, my father had one and I learned to drive on it. It's a common problem but I'm comfortable pulling a t-case apart and replacing the viscous coupling in one, so might be a good bargaining chip for one of those.

 

The J-series Honda engines seem pretty good, but Honda's automatics are a bit worrisome to me. If I found one with low-ish miles and the fluid looked OK, I could service it myself and probably get some life out of it.

[GDRRiley]

3 hours ago, Real_PhillBert said:

Part of it is that it gives me a nice steady interval to simply inspect the car regularly, look over belts, hoses, suspension etc, just to stay ahead of issues. And probably the biggest deal, I find it slightly therapeutic to just spend some time with the cars; it's a small break from other bullshit. 

 

Yes it's way overkill, but I kinda like it and it's certainly not hurting anything. 

you could always just make that the last Sunday of the month or something, and not change the oil if you haven't hit the millage.

I tend to check over mine and my GF time once a month

[Snadzies]

14 hours ago, atxcyclist said:

I am really getting back into the mood for a 4x4 or AWD vehicle, when the world is safe to venture into again I want to do some traveling. Are Subaru engines really as problematic with head gaskets as people make them out to be, and can aftermarket headgaskets fix the issues they have? An older Forester would do the trick I imagine, big enough to toss a sleeping mat out with the rear seat down. A '91-'96 4.0L XJ is also on the list for consideration, I had a 1990 a long time ago and I miss it. I'm also considering a full-size Bronco of the EFI era, but I have no experience with the twin-beam suspension on older Fords and I've heard the kingpins are a bit of a PITA to deal with. There's also the CR-V and Toyota Rav4, they're a bit lighter duty than the XJ and I imagine about on the same footing as the Forester.

 

 

The issue with Subarus and head gaskets were pretty much all from the 2.5 naturally aspirated engines up until about 2008 or so.

They used a single layer gasket where as the turbo versions used a multi layer steel gasket.

 

There are many multi layer steel gasket replacements from the aftermarket available for NA 2.5s and I think that some OE turbo gaskets fit the NA as well.

 

 

[AlwaysFSX]

8 hours ago, Real_PhillBert said:

Yes it's way overkill, but I kinda like it and it's certainly not hurting anything. 

You're destroying the environment, gosh.

[atxcyclist]

1 hour ago, Snadzies said:

The issue with Subarus and head gaskets were pretty much all from the 2.5 naturally aspirated engines up until about 2008 or so.

They used a single layer gasket where as the turbo versions used a multi layer steel gasket.

 

There are many multi layer steel gasket replacements from the aftermarket available for NA 2.5s and I think that some OE turbo gaskets fit the NA as well.

 

 

 

I'd be looking around the 1998-2003 area if I get a Forester, so I'd be right in there. I don't have an issue doing that kind of work, I can even borrow a mechanics straightedge and check the block for flatness, just a little mess and some labor. That's assuming that I wouldn't need to pull the motor out of the engine bay to do this job, I guess if the heads are on studs I'd be somewhat boned.

[vetali]

10 hours ago, atxcyclist said:

Lot's of good info, thanks.

 

I would like a ZJ with a 5.2/5.9 and Quadra Trac, my father had one and I learned to drive on it. It's a common problem but I'm comfortable pulling a t-case apart and replacing the viscous coupling in one, so might be a good bargaining chip for one of those.

 

The J-series Honda engines seem pretty good, but Honda's automatics are a bit worrisome to me. If I found one with low-ish miles and the fluid looked OK, I could service it myself and probably get some life out of it.

5 speeds past the recall (so like 06ish?) are really good transmissions if the fluid has been kept up on.

[Letgomyleghoe]

On 1/20/2021 at 11:21 AM, TVwazhere said:

That's 10 oil changes a year!

I haven't changed my oil in over a year 

[atxcyclist]

6 minutes ago, vetali said:

5 speeds past the recall (so like 06ish?) are really good transmissions if the fluid has been kept up on.

Good to know. I could save myself some trouble by buying a manual, but my current car and motorcycle are both manual shift, and I wouldn't mind having an option for dealing with heavy traffic in big cities if I travel a lot in this vehicle. 

[atxcyclist]

20 minutes ago, Letgomyleghoe said:

I haven't changed my oil in over a year 

Bruh

[Letgomyleghoe]

4 minutes ago, atxcyclist said:

Bruh

I only drive it five minutes down the road to get to and from work.

I think I took one beach trip which is about a two hundred miles, the weather is mild here too, no real need to. 

on my '71 chevy shortbed It gets "changed" about once a week due purely to leaking like a motherfucker. 

[vetali]

8 minutes ago, atxcyclist said:

Good to know. I could save myself some trouble by buying a manual, but my current car and motorcycle are both manual shift, and I wouldn't mind having an option for dealing with heavy traffic in big cities if I travel a lot in this vehicle. 

Manual CRVs sell really quick. We had one on the lot and someone came up from Cali to buy it in a day.

 

2 minutes ago, Letgomyleghoe said:

I only drive it five minutes down the road to get to and from work.

I think I took one beach trip which is about a two hundred miles, the weather is mild here too, no real need to.

Short trips are much harder on oil.

[atxcyclist]

1 minute ago, Letgomyleghoe said:

I only drive it five minutes down the road to get to and from work.

I think I took one beach trip which is about a two hundred miles, the weather is mild here too, no real need to.

I cannot really say anything, with covid and the fact that I am on my motorcycle most days, my car hasn't really gotten much use this last year. I did change the oil once, but it had been a little while.

 

I watch plenty of Roadkill, oil can last a while.

[atxcyclist]

2 minutes ago, vetali said:

Manual CRVs sell really quick. We had one on the lot and someone came up from Cali to buy it in a day.

 

Short trips are much harder on oil.

I can believe it. It took 3 weeks for the Scion dealership to track my car down before I bought it, they couldn't keep manual ones on the lot. 

[Letgomyleghoe]

4 minutes ago, vetali said:

Short trips are much harder on oil.

I know, but not to the point where I need to change my oil more than once a year, I changed it last january almost exactly on the dot and will probably change it within the week. I occasionally check to see how dirty it is, and keep the amount of oil in check, if there's anything alarming I'll change it out. 

[vetali]

14 minutes ago, Letgomyleghoe said:

I know, but not to the point where I need to change my oil more than once a year, I changed it last january almost exactly on the dot and will probably change it within the week. I occasionally check to see how dirty it is, and keep the amount of oil in check, if there's anything alarming I'll change it out. 

Its why I change mine so often in the civic even with a 15 mile commute... Oil dilution is real.

[Bitter]

Ya'll really ain't heard of Blackstone Labs? SEND YOUR OIL IN TO GET ANALYZED! At least once per year, it can catch impending doom and tell you if you're changing it often enough or can go further on the changes.

[bcredeur97]

my Miata gets its oil changed every 5-6k miles, sometimes less.

 

i then take the filter off that car (tall size for it) and put it on the civic (normal size for it, also yes I seriously do this lol)

civic I’ll run an 8-10k mile OCI on. I don’t care about it. $2k car I bought almost 2 years ago. Also I have a 23 mile commute (one way) that takes 40 mins that’s all that car gets used for. Not too hard on it.

 

the Miatas engine is really clean still. Not even any of that brown tarnish under the valve cover you normally see on older cars. The civic on the other hand is a bit gross from the PO.
 

 

both cars get pennzoil ultra platinum 5w-30 and Fram XG filters