nc211

There is no question in my mind that Toyota is starting to slip a bit. It's the price of having the #1 bullseye on your back. When you are the benchmark for all others to be judged against, it's only a matter of time before those being judged will mimick and catch up to you. The trick is to evolve faster than the guy coming up behind you. That's the trick, and the gamble. Move too quickly, and you'll miss something (like floormat anchors). Move too slowly, and you'll get passed before you know it (Carolla vs. new Civic and Mazda 3GT). No doubt in my mind that Ford will reclaim the top spot in the all around American family sedan market with the new Taurus. I think it's just a matter of time, and of course the currency balancing between the yen and the dollar. SWO will attest this; if it's not selling, it's priced too high for what it is. I think the new Taurus offers more pound per dollar than the Accord or Camry. I think it looks better, I think it's probably more comfortable, and I'm hoping Ford has learned the benefits of proper mounts that insulate the cabin from noise. At the end of the day, Toyota is the one to beat, and you can bet everyone in the game is aiming to beat them. But in my opinion, a stripped down tin can that runs forever is probably going to appeal to more folks, than a fully loaded electrical and mechanical nightmare for the same price. The Big Three have their breathing room now to make adjustments. Much like the airline industry has had several times when they too get into touble. And like the American airline business, I'm willing to bet the Detroit boys will not just bounce back, but roar back! I'm really excited to see what comes out of these design studios! Especially Chrystler with the influence of Fiat! Granted, it'll probably be a total piece of crap, but probably one funky and sexy piece of crap! Not quite sure what the author of that article meant by barking about the quality of the last generation of the Supra. Have you checked the prices for a used Supra turbo lately? They're freakin INSANE! Now, that says something..

Hmmm.... one wonders if Steve isn't really Mr. Top Gear? :D This trip sounds a bit like the episode where the boys of Top Gear flew to Miami, bought cheap cars, and drove them to New Orleans. One of the funniest episodes I've ever seen!

Considering all of the other elements that go into an automobile, of which Toyota in general seems to be the best at building, a floormat would not be the one element that would steer me clear of Toyota. It's a floormat. Either get the fix, or put some velcro under it to make it stay in place. I'm not trying to belittle the problem, as it clearly is a potential fatal flaw. But, I just can't get my head completely around the idea that this is the "nail" for Toyota.

I FOUND IT!! Whew, thought I was losing my mind there for a second. Good timing on our conversation... http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/01/25...rs-second-year/ In the first presidential postmortem on the Massachusetts race last week, Obama invoked Bush right away in an interview with ABC News. "The same thing that swept Scott Brown into office swept me into office," Obama said. "People are angry, and they're frustrated. Not just because of what's happened in the last year or two years, but what's happened over the last eight years."

I swear I heard it though! I heard him say Brown was swept into office for the same reason he was swept into office, because people were frustrated with the previous 8 years. Honestly man, that is exactly what I heard him say. It was probably one of those "things" that when it came time to piece the final product of the interview together, someone said "that doesn't sound very good". But I promise Steve, I wasn't drunk, and I heard him say that. Guess I picked the wrong day to quit sniffin' glue!! Check out this one, it's pretty funny too! Some the responses are hillarious! http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5d87e54e-0925-11...144feabdc0.html You know me pretty well. And even though I've got W' as my avatar, you know I'm not a stuck-in-the-mud kind of guy with my thinking. I'm pretty open to just about everything. I'm not saying Obama is a bad President. I'm just saying there are some (to me) interesting moves and steps going on with him and his side of the ring. Not all bad, just quite interesting!

Did you check your gas cap for proper fit and tightness? Just one of those freebie things to check before spending the money.

Honestly, that's not what I heard him say on the radio. He clearly said Brown was swept into office for the same reason he was swept into office, because people were frustrated with the previous 8 years. Not sure if it's in print, but it was an excerpt from his interview with Stephonopholis (sp? like I'm gonna know how to spell his name!) Eitherway, no big deal really. I just thought it was funny, as he (and several others) do tend to play that card when the "todays" get a little tought. I think some folks are getting a little tired of hearing it actually, regardless of their own personal opinions about the Bush years. I agree about the manner in which the campaign was run in Mass. That lady really dropped the ball. I can say this too, because my state produced the baby-daddy former "cheat on your cancer wife" candidate. I'm so embarrassed by John Edwards. What a loser.

Good writeup Dens! Interesting comment about the power of the new 4runner, as they've given it 270hp, but in a v6 format (no more v8's). I've kicked the tires of the new 4runner once, and not quite sure how I feel about them. Out of all the changes they've made, the one change I'm curious to see how well it holds up is the window switches. They put them on top of the interior door trip next to the glass. Easy to use, but how long until they short out due to a direct shot of water that has no place to go but directly into the circuitry of the switch. When it comes to SUV's, I'm either a v8, or I'm not an SUV owner. That said, we're keeping our 05 until either the wheels fall off (which given the 80k miles on it and the fact that it still drives/rides like new, might be awhile), or something else comes along that we like better. But if it's an SUV, it's gotta have a v8 for it to be in my garage. The torque of that 4.7 is just stunning. I've never had a vehicle that felt like the frame wanted to jump off of the skin of the vehicle.

Hahaha!! That's pretty good Steve! I'm surprised there wasn't a "recount" called! I don't think this event is as detrimental to Obama as the reversal of the campaign finance rules yesterday from the Supreme Court. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, in short, the Supreme court said corporations can donate as much money as they want directly to any political candidate they so choose (aka special interests and attack ads). Given Obama's no-so friendly business stance, this opens the flood gates for those business sectors he is trying to control to back a competitor in a couple of years. And as we all know, he/she with the biggest war chest, usually wins the White House. I'd be willing to bet there will be a kinder and gentler approach to the financial sector now from Obama, if he wants their financial backing for re-election. I've heard time and time again from bankers in my little slice of the economy that they are either A: Glad they didn't take TARP money, or B: Wish they hadn't. All seem to agree the government is going way too far into the private sectors of the economy, which is hampering it's ability to function in a recovery fashion. Many are starting to think this is exactly what this administration wants to achieve, to make the private sector so dependant upon the government that there will be a "fear factor" to shift gears in 3 years. Like I said in my opening comments of this thread: Things tend to get a little slippery when the Oval Office tries to become the Corner Office. Interesting times are coming (not that we need anymore interesting times!) PS: I heard the "Bush did it" excuse yesterday from Obama during his interview with ABC News. He said "Scott Brown was swept into office for the same reason I was swept into office. People were frustrated with the mess from the previous 8 years". Not arguing the basis for that statement, as many folks were very frustrated with Bush for several of his years in office (me included). However, I would like to just point out one thing.... Um, Mr. President, W' was a Republican, as is Scott Brown.

$20 says Obama will somehow play the "Bush" card in regards to the fact that Massachusetts just elected a Republican to replace the late Ted Kennedy (one of the hardest nosed Democrats on the planet). Not knocking the dems here, or the late Lion of the Senate. Just making a prediction.... If he does, then my mind is made up. I gave him a year. Honestly though, I think Pelosi and all the snakeoil garbage going on in Congress is making Obama look bad. But, when you're the President, you own it, you don't keep tossing the last warm butt in the seat under the bus. B)

I'll paint it for $100, if you provide the supplies. I'll need: 1) A paint ball gun 2) Paint balls (color of your choice) 3) Legal waiver signed by you releasing me of any liability associated with any potential damage done to not just the car, but surrounding assets as well - I'm not a very good shot!) It'll take me about 30 mintues, depending on psi settings of the gun.

Hahaha!! No, those are reserved for the home office, in Newport Beach, CA, and I've got a long way to go before they'll hand me the keys to those toys! This is my dad's MB. He bought it in 1999 from an older gentleman who was going through a midlife thing and bought a red vette' instead. He was italian, and had brought the car over with him back in 1989. It's pretty sweet, but I can say that the italian market place in 1985 got hosed on options! This benz only has one power seat "driver's", no rear window defoger, only one power outside mirror, no lumbar, and some ubber-springy seats. It's set up to "drive" at high speeds with no distractions. Granted, most german cars are, but this thing is pretty bare bones in MB SEL standards, even for 85'. One cool thing I found though when I was filling it up "feeding it, as I like to call it", is a little sticker inside the gas cap that tells you what the speeds do to your tire pressure. "When traveling at 150mph, tire pressure will increase by 9psi". I have no doubt in my mind that this thing could easily hit 150mph. I took it up to 110mph briefly across Allegator Alley last Friday morning on my way back from Boca to Naples. Flat, open, empty road. Pretty amazing to see the speeds increase so quickly, yet the rpms don't really move that much in comparison. Not sure how they did that, but it's pretty cool. A few seconds at that speed, even though ultra smooth, but the inner voice reminded me that it is 25 years old, and I'm too damn old to deal with a ticket like that! So, back down to 79mph..... Smooth: I like this "road" to recovery idea. However, I'll need a appropriate vehicle for the trip! One day, I'm going to pick up an older German toy to tinker with. Either a late 80's BMW M3, or a 911 ragtop.....someday!! You wanna hear something so bad, it's funny? A guy in my office cheated on his wife, got caught, and is getting divorced. That's the bad part. The funny part is the fact that this guy has an older 911 in his garage "his wife kicked him out". The judge told him last week that he had an hour to go pick up his stuff at "her" house. That's not the funny part. When he asked about his Porsche, the judge said "you can start it for 20 minutes to protect and lubricate the seals in the engine, but you are not allowed to drive it!" Apparently, the judge suffers from MCPS too! I didn't see him until the following Wednesday in Boca for the conference. He comes walking into the hotel with a black eye. Instantly I knew the move didn't go well with the angry soon-to-be ex. I said "well, Friday looks like it went well". His response was classic...."I took the ebrake off"!!

The people sure are a lot friendlier, that's for sure! I like the accent better too! Here's the picture of the "stash"!

I love WI, especially Beloit and Janesville, and I'll tell you why "excuse typos - on train unto chitcago - can hardly see this tiny screen". First, search the word "Sundrop", and you'll find a post of mine that will show you how much we love the stuff. December 31, 2009 - the last day of a very tough year for NC211. I refused to end a crap year, and start a fresh year without our Sundrop. I spent hours calling all corners of the country trying to find somewhere in Chitcago that sold the stuff. A very sweet lady by the name of Trish with the Dr. Peper/Snapple group here in Chitcago spent the better half of an hour checking store inventories around the midwest for me. Long story short, the nearest place that had it was the Walmart in Beloit, and a random Woodman's grocery store in Janesville. I called ahead to confirm, told both stores "I'm coming to buy every drop you've got". The guy at Woodman's laughed at me. I though "this yankee doesnb't know who he's messin' with". Walmart....7 cases! Thought we had struck gold. Woodman's....A WHOLE FREAKIN' ISLE!! I could only handle one cart full. Now I know why he was laughing at me! It was like God's choir started singing to us as we rounded the corner in the store. Damn near brought a tear to our eyes! Conclusion: WI gave us 21, or 500+ cans of the sweet nectar of the Carolinas!! And we watched the ball drop with a couple "Sun-Beams", and fixed our heads the next morning with some fresh Sundrop!!! I'll post a picture later of our "stash" God Bless Wisconsin!

I actually read this last week on my blackberry while I was in Florida for business, and a little vacation time. I have nothing to add, you've pretty much hit the nail right square on the head!! MCPS = NC211! I was driving around Boca Raton, sitting at a stop light looking at the cars, and started thinking about your post. I started laughing to myself, as I was checking out the differences between the Benz 550 to my left, and the Benz 600 to my right. Both black, both nearly identical. I need help! The funny thing is though, both of those Benz drivers were checking out my ride sitting between them..... a cherry 1985 Benz 500 SEL, imported from Italy, with only 40k miles. I call it the Diplomatic Cruiser. I drove it over from Naples for my conference I was attending.

I agree with SWO. If you don't have an SUV (or wagon) type vehicle in your garage, now would be a good time to get one, and the RX is a great pick. When it comes to trips, our 4runner is the only vehicle for us, even though it's not nearly as smooth or as quiet as the sedan sitting next to it. Like SWO said, the driving position, cargo ability, and all-weather confidence, makes up for any "bumpy" ride characteristics by a mile! However, don't forget about Subaru Outbacks too. They offer both! Get through anything, haul anything, and ride like a car! Infact, they're one of the only car makers to have not lost any market share during this recession!

Google's power is something that I've never really understood. Not knocking it's massive contribution to the overall system of life, but what I don't get is how it's "pioneering" in the cyberworld? It's a search engine, just like all the others who've come before it. I really don't understand how it beat Yahoo too, which I think had the golden goose by the collar but let it go.

I've noticed my dash lights, specifically the center piece with the speedo in it, seem to brighten and dim at night. For instance, I'll be driving down a side road with no street lights, and the dash lights seem dimmer than when I pull up to a well lit innersection. Is this normal? I can't find anything in my manual that says this is a feature of the car, but obviously know the dash dims automatically in extreme changes - like using the headlights during the day won't dim the dash lights like at night. But, I didn't know it was so sensitive to subtle changes at night like that. Is this normal, or a pending problem looms on the horrizon? thanks!

Mine's the same way for both of them (I have to remotes for the car). DC's right about the chin trick! I know the previous owner of my car took it back to the dealership a few times complaining about the range of the keyfob remote. They replaced it twice. Oddly enough, the dedicated keyfob remote for our 4runner (stand alone fob not part of the key itself) has an insane range of about a football field! One thing that did help mine was to take it apart and clean everything up. All the gunk that gets stuck along the side of the buttons for some reason seemed to hinder it's performance.

Actually, changing the pads is one of the easiest things you can do, and one of the most wasteful expenses to have a shop do for you. First: Obviously read your instruction manual in the glove box to find the proper jacking points on your car. There are very specific areas of the outter frame rail where the jack goes. Second: Since you're just doing the pads, MAKE SURE your e-brake is engaged for added security. Third: Before lifting the tire off the ground, break the bolts loose on the wheel hub. Fourth: Lift the car, take the wheel off. Fifth: You'll see the backing clips on the back of the caliper. You'll see a metal "t" type of a bracket. STUDY how "or better yet, take a digital photo" of what this looks like before taking it apart. Note where the spreader spring "a W looking piece of wire" connects to and how. Sixth: pull the slider pins "two of them" out of the caliper. They hold the "t" bracket in place. Becareful on the end clips, you'll want to reuse them if possible. I HIGHLY recommend you clean those pins before reinstalling. I put mine to my wire buffer on my work bench. Gets all the rust and grime off of them, so things slide better. Seventh: Once you've got the pins out and the "t" bracket out, now you can slide the old pads out. You'll probably need a pair of needle-nose pliers to pull them out. Wiggle them out, and notice the backing plates clipped onto the back of each pad. You pop those plates off, and you'll discover another plate sandwiched in between the pad and the first plate you just took off. Clean these up "don't use wire brushes on the inner plate, it's rubber coated for a reason". You will want to reuse these parts on your new pads. These are the parts that prevent squeling and give you that ultra quiet and smooth braking feel. Eight: Now that you have the old pads out, the backing plates off and cleaned, the pins off and cleaned, you're ready to install the new pads. To do this though, requires you to push the brake piston back in a bit. Look inside your caliper housing, you'll see the piston (o) sticking out. OPEN the cap to your brake fluid canister in the engine bay first, as when you push that piston back in, it will force fluid and air back up through the system. Taking the cap off, eases this process. Use whatever you can find that will give you enough clearence between the piston and brake rotor to get that piston pushed back in. If you use something like a big screw driver, MAKE SURE you wrap it in a cloth first, so you don't damage the rotor. I like the big ratchet wrenches myself. Push the piston back into the caliper so it's flush. Nineth: Now that you've pushed the piston back, you should have enough room to slide the new pads in. When you reinstall the backing plates to the new pads, put just a tad of brake grease on both sides of the INSIDE plate. This helps to prevent noise. Then clip on the outter backing plate over the inner one, and slide the pad into the caliper. Don't worry if you have to wiggle it in there, or even gently tap it with a hammer. It's a tight fit. Tenth: Once you've got both pads in, then look at your digital photos from earlier and put the "W" spreader spring in, the "t" bracket, and slide the pins in. I myself put a little of that brake grease on the pins too, to make sure they're as slick as possible so the pads can move back and forth. Now, simply put the wheel back on, and you're done. Don't forget to put the cap back on the brake fluid cannister. You're done. Once you take the wheel off and give yourself a few minutes to study what you're looking at, you'll realize how easy this is, and these instructions will make more sense to you. I order my parts from www.parts.com. They're always genuine Toyota parts, and work the best, in my opinion! Good luck!

You should have asked them "sure, what's your address?!" Welcome to the world of information overload, amigo! A world where every single little thing is at the tip of your fingers, with a click click here, a click click there, here a click, there a click, everywhere a click click! If there is one lesson the year 2000 should have taught us, is that too much information in the uneducated/unexperienced hands always leads to a meltdown.....aka....the introduction of the day-traders! I watched Dirty Dancing yesterday on TV, and found myself wishing for a simplier day when a phone was a phone, not a multi-media communication device. I kid you not, half the toys my son got for Christmas come with USB 2.0 connector ports to download information into! These are stuffed animals for cryin' out loud, for a 19 month old boy!!! The further we go down the road of "reinvention", the further I want to go the other way! The way when you paid cash for the item at hand, the way where you watched ABC, NBC, CBS, or played monopoly instead. A day when you left the office, the office left you too. A day when the news was about impactful stories, instead of the daily body count and how many childred died in a horrible fashion. I'll tell you one thing that really makes me angry, is the amount of graphically violent TV shows are on the air now. What happened to that FCC guy who tried to sue Howard Stern a few years ago, and vowed to clean up the airwaves? Now, it's nothing but bones and guts. I use to like Greys Anatomy (yeah, i said it), but I turned it off a few weeks ago forever due to the fact that they were writing in children into their over-the-top drama. My suggestion DC, just turn it off and go make a snowman with the neighbor kids. I've been slowly "disconnecting" for the past few weeks, and starting to feel much better. You know as well as I do, that all of this mumbo-jumbo will all get reversed again in 4 to 8 years anyway. I find it funny how everyone gets all up in arms about what Obama is trying to do, when we all know the cycle will just continue when the next idiot takes the big seat and says "we're not doing that anymore, we're doing this instead".

Whoever told you that a photo-ticket doesn't go onto your record, doesn't know what they're talking about. There are certain types of violations that do go onto your record, and certain types that don't. The ones that DO, are called "moving violations", like speeding, wreckless driving, drunk driving, running stop signs, etc. The ones that don't, are called "non-moving violations", like parking tickets, busted tail lights, etc... You're facing a moving violation, a pretty hefty one at that. 29mph over the limit, in many states, is a "straight to jail, do not pass go" offense. The cops arrest you on the spot, tow your car, and put your butt in the can until you pay bail. No way on earth, just because it's a "photo", that the penalty will be less severe. Infact, the fact that they have photographic proof of your speeding, makes it worse. You can't argue against the cop. Will the ticket be less then a lawyer? Quite possibly, at first, but probably not by much. But, when your new insurance bill comes in the mail, and you realize your 6 month REQUIRED coverage just went up $600 ($1,200 a year), AND you know this new adjustment will be in place for a while....well, you tell me what's gonna hurt more? $500 now, or a few THOUSAND over the course of the next 3 years+. Plus, you're 17, and I don't care how safe you say your are behind the wheel, 17 year old guys are 17 year old guys. Ever heard the phrase "it isn't your enemies that will get you into trouble, it's your friends?" You've got a Lexus, you've got other teenage (I'll live forever) friends.....chances of you getting another ticket before you're done being a "high risk" driver, is 99.999%. Don't speculate on costs anymore, just make a phone call to a lawyer and get some answers. Back in my day, it cost about $175 to get out of tickets. Granted, laws have changed a little, but the basis is still there. Cities are going bankrupt amigo. There's noway in hell you alone can do anything to defend yourself on this one. You either pay the fine and take the point hit for the next few years (and hope you never get another ticket), or you pay the lawyer, avoid the point hit, and hope you don't get another ticket - but better positioned if you do.

First: Is this one of those photo radar tickets? Or were you actually pulled over by an officer and given the ticket from his radar gun? If it was an officer, then there is probably a reason why he kept you under the 30mph window (reasonable and prudent). Second: You're 17. You're facing a hefty speeding ticket. I presume this is your first ticket? It's lawyer time. Trust me on this one man, the $500 for a Quick-Draw-McGraw traffic lawyer is well worth it, considering you'll probably pay that amount year after year in increased insurance premiums if the ticket hits your insurance company in it's current status. You have several more years to go before your driving status of "higher risk" is lowered by any insurance company. I DO NOT recommend having your mom lie about who was driving the car, that's called perjury, and is not well received by the courts if proven to be true. CALL A LAWYER before you do anything, and get some REAL advice! If anything, that 29mph ticket turns into a 9 mph ticket, a fine, and a few hours of bubble gum scraping of the local park benches. And maybe a rerun of "Blood Runs Red on the Highway" video at your local DMV. Call a lawyer, period. When I was your age (now 36), I had a whole slew of tickets from when I was 16 to 20. It wasn't until I tossed my radar detector into the garbage can that I stopped getting tickets. I lawyered-up every single time, and GLAD I did! Never had one hit my insurance record, not a single one. Had lots of very expensive "parking tickets", but those were one-off expenses, not like an adjustment to your insurance premium that takes a few years to burn off. It wasn't until just a couple of years ago that I got my next ticket, driving my wife's new Mazda 3GT. Just like a reflex reaction, I grabbed the yellow pages and called the lawyer with the biggest ad. $300 later, my record remains spotless* - *= in the eyes of my insurance company. Today, the cost to insurance both of my cars, both V8's, one 4x4, little deductible, full coverage? $98/month - TOTAL.

I am taking your word on this one Nc ;) I will take the plunge I think you'll be very happy with it DC! Granted, it's not a Mac, and after spending a few minutes toying with the $799 iMac - 20 inch, computer this weekend at Frys Electronics, it's pretty clear Microsoft still has a ways to go before they hit "Mac Status". That iMac was amazingly fast, smooth, and beautiful. But, $200 to get your rocks off, or $1000 to update/upgrade from a PC platform (plus the learning curve to gain the same comfort level you have with a PC already), just stands in my way of making that kind of investment. At the end of the day - I'm quite satisfied with my decision and purchase of Windows 7 Home. Now, granted, I'm coming from a platform that was non-upgradable due to the nature of the system (bootlegged), so I gain some extra comfort with Windows 7 in that respect. But, the home networking set up is very easy, the graphics are very nice, and the overall operations of the system is noticably smoother and faster! Plus, I haven't had to load up a bunch of 3rd party software to use my attachments, like my digital cam-corder or printer. Windows 7 already had all the drivers needed. However, be warned, you'll need to buy Office 2007 if you want to use Word, Excel, Powerpoint, etc... The old platforms don't work on Windows 7, or at least my old platform of Office Pro 2000 wouldn't. You can pick up a Business/Student version for about $100 bucks at the stores. I also ditched my 3rd party antivirus software for Microsofts Security Essentials instead. This has made a huge improvement in speed, and it's free! http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/?mkt=en-us lexfourcam: Thanks for the offer! I believe my system can run the 64 bit version, as the Windows 7 Advisor program did suggest it could. The problem at the time was my hard drive, which was an older PATA system with adaptors to run in the faster SATA environment. Those little adaptors kill the transfer speeds that 64 requires. Since installing the OS, I have added a new 1TB hard drive, that is true SATA, but have already installed the OS on the older HD (have both hooked up). Maybe one day I'll get around to the 64 bit setup, but just don't have the time right now to redo everything. 32 bit is plenty fast for this limited computer goober!!

Update: I love it, it rocks, very happy with the $200 investment!