Automobiles

[caleb]

Celebrating the ten year anniversary of this thread with fall smells.

[Too Tall]

I've been looking forward to your pics.

Dogs look pretty darn happy.

[72gmc]

Hey, look at those dogs!

That looks like a nice over/under. My preference for skeet shooting, when I get to do it.

[j44ke]

We stayed in a small village above Bagni di Lucca called Vitiana, and every two three days a red one of these would climb up the road to the town loaded full of baked goods. It honked at the corners and had a distinctive honk, so you knew it was on its way and could find your shoes and wallet to go meet it at the tiny square along with an assortment of other people. Amazing stuff in that little truck. That was the first year. The second year it was replaced with a Fiat Panda 4x4. Later I saw the old three wheel truck parked at an auto shop on the road to Lucca and was turned down by my wife when I proposed buying it.

[72gmc]

Were you able to finish the proposal before it was rejected? I'm imagining a scene that goes, "Look, honey ..." "No."

[j44ke]

Were you able to finish the proposal before it was rejected? I'm imagining a scene that goes, "Look, honey ..." "No."

Not even able to slow the car down as we drove by. Sad. All my best ideas are under-appreciated.

[rmplum]

They aren't bleeding edge tech anymore, but my son and I did our first somewhat extended (well only 250 miles each way) road trip in our Model 3.

Ours is a "long range" model with supposedly 330-ish mile range, so in theory we could make the Ann Arbor to Traverse City trip in a single charge, but the supercharger system is so easy and convenient that you don't have to sweat that out anymore. I also wanted to drive real speeds and not be the wiener driving 60 mph on the expressway. So we drove speed limit +5 mph the whole trip.

We had it all to ourselves in Claire and after the dog finally found a tree good enough to pee on, and box of donuts were purchased we were back on our way 90% full with no worries.

It's still a space ship to many and this normal model is fast enough to give my nieces and nephews thrill rides all weekend. My buddy just got a Model S Plaid which I'll get in eventually - but I can't even imagine how quick that thing is.

Life is less easy if you don't drive a Tesla (in terms of charging) but I'll no longer hesitate to take this thing out on the road. We have a Ford Mach-e in the fleet too, but lack of charger support makes me hesitant to use it for anything other than local trips at this point.

All the juice to ourselves:


Tesla Charge Claire MI.jpg

[Dave Thompson]

We stayed in a small village above Bagni di Lucca called Vitiana, and every two three days a red one of these would climb up the road to the town loaded full of baked goods. It honked at the corners and had a distinctive honk, so you knew it was on its way and could find your shoes and wallet to go meet it at the tiny square along with an assortment of other people. Amazing stuff in that little truck. That was the first year. The second year it was replaced with a Fiat Panda 4x4. Later I saw the old three wheel truck parked at an auto shop on the road to Lucca and was turned down by my wife when I proposed buying it.

Florence Italy is crawling with APE. Both motorized and electrified.

Your dreams can come true here: https://piaggioapeforsale.com/

[Saab2000]

They aren't bleeding edge tech anymore, but my son and I did our first somewhat extended (well only 250 miles each way) road trip in our Model 3.

Ours is a "long range" model with supposedly 330-ish mile range, so in theory we could make the Ann Arbor to Traverse City trip in a single charge, but the supercharger system is so easy and convenient that you don't have to sweat that out anymore. I also wanted to drive real speeds and not be the wiener driving 60 mph on the expressway. So we drove speed limit +5 mph the whole trip.

We had it all to ourselves in Claire and after the dog finally found a tree good enough to pee on, and box of donuts were purchased we were back on our way 90% full with no worries.

It's still a space ship to many and this normal model is fast enough to give my nieces and nephews thrill rides all weekend. My buddy just got a Model S Plaid which I'll get in eventually - but I can't even imagine how quick that thing is.

Life is less easy if you don't drive a Tesla (in terms of charging) but I'll no longer hesitate to take this thing out on the road. We have a Ford Mach-e in the fleet too, but lack of charger support makes me hesitant to use it for anything other than local trips at this point.

All the juice to ourselves:


Tesla Charge Claire MI.jpg

Excellent. This is likely my next car. Or a Tesla of some flavor. I test drove a standard range 3 and enjoyed the experience. I won’t miss gas stations.

[rwsaunders]

EV station at a B&B that we recently stayed at.

[rmplum]

well, I can't read the fine print but if that's the rate for however long you need to charge (and assuming it's 40-60 amp service which I think is what that Tesla Wall mount supports) it's a pretty good deal. I paid about $18 for each of my two supercharger "fill ups" this past weekend (was about $.34/kWh).

There are sufficiently high kW Chevy Bolts, VW ID.4s, Audi e-Trons and Porsche Taycans now that make that non-Tesla charger a steal (I'm guessing they priced that $3 based on 1st gen Nissan Leafs etc)

30-40 amp service will charge just about anything these days overnight.

[dashDustin]

you guys are my safe people, so i feel comfortable saying this here/ ranting.

i'm 11mos into my 2020 Tacoma TRD Pro. i absolutely LOVE almost all of it. the part i don't like is killing me, though. the sound system (JBL system). i can't handle it. i can't get the equalizer right, despite 8 months of tweaking every single thing. i swear it messes with my tinnitus. it's something i noticed immediately, but chalked up to coincidence. i'm especially bummed, because it's the first time i've ever had the upgraded audio system in a vehicle.

the bigger problem is that the JBL system in Tacomas is kind of like a proprietary setup; the tweeters, door speakers, amp, and sub are all unique to the system such that no single component can be easily replaced. in reality, the easiest solution is to gut and replace everything. it'd be like trying to mate a Campy disc caliper onto a Shimano lever. i'd be fine gutting it, but i don't like messing with audio systems. especially on a truck less than 2 years old. double especially when that money could better go towards the camper shell i want.

so one thing i'm highly considering doing is trading in the truck towards an Outback (Wilderness). I've got a decent chunk of equity built up. so trade it in and sit on the Outback for 3 or 4 years till (hopefully) Toyota fixes the god-awful audio system.

i also considered trading in for a 2021 or 2022 Tacoma, but JBL system remains part of a larger option package that's got all the other creature comforts i insist on.

first world problems, i know.

[SlowPokePete]

you guys are my safe people, so i feel comfortable saying this here/ ranting.

i'm 11mos into my 2020 Tacoma TRD Pro. i absolutely LOVE almost all of it. the part i don't like is killing me, though. the sound system (JBL system). i can't handle it. i can't get the equalizer right, despite 8 months of tweaking every single thing. i swear it messes with my tinnitus. it's something i noticed immediately, but chalked up to coincidence. i'm especially bummed, because it's the first time i've ever had the upgraded audio system in a vehicle.

the bigger problem is that the JBL system in Tacomas is kind of like a proprietary setup; the tweeters, door speakers, amp, and sub are all unique to the system such that no single component can be easily replaced. in reality, the easiest solution is to gut and replace everything. it'd be like trying to mate a Campy disc caliper onto a Shimano lever. i'd be fine gutting it, but i don't like messing with audio systems. especially on a truck less than 2 years old. double especially when that money could better go towards the camper shell i want.

so one thing i'm highly considering doing is trading in the truck towards an Outback (Wilderness). I've got a decent chunk of equity built up. so trade it in and sit on the Outback for 3 or 4 years till (hopefully) Toyota fixes the god-awful audio system.

i also considered trading in for a 2021 or 2022 Tacoma, but JBL system remains part of a larger option package that's got all the other creature comforts i insist on.

first world problems, i know.

I'm on a Tundra forum.

The JBL sound system is something that seems to be universally hated.

In a BIG f'n way.

SPP

[rmplum]

the bigger problem is that the JBL system in Tacomas is kind of like a proprietary setup; the tweeters, door speakers, amp, and sub are all unique to the system such that no single component can be easily replaced. in reality, the easiest solution is to gut and replace everything. it'd be like trying to mate a Campy disc caliper onto a Shimano lever. i'd be fine gutting it, but i don't like messing with audio systems. especially on a truck less than 2 years old. double especially when that money could better go towards the camper shell i want.

Not that I want to talk you out of a Subaru, but here is something to try first (I spent a few days doing this on my wife's tinny, loud 2013 Crosstrek this past summer and the car is transformed):

Dynamat is the "famous" stuff, but I bought some cheaper damping mat material off Amazon that worked just fine. Start with your doors. Give those stock speakers a little less crappy of a box to work in. You can go as nuts as you want, but my wife's car was previously intolerable for me on the highway, you couldn't hear each other speak or make out any detail in music. It's SO much better.

[72gmc]

That sound matting suggestion is excellent. I wonder if this would help the road noise in our old Element.

Is it surprising that Toyota and JBL didn’t figure out the sound system before releasing it? It’s surprising to me, but I don’t keep track of these things.

[rmplum]

Here some photos from what I did:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/qPuwQFBLMotWQHh8A

[lumpy]

Not that I want to talk you out of a Subaru, but here is something to try first (I spent a few days doing this on my wife's tinny, loud 2013 Crosstrek this past summer and the car is transformed):

Dynamat is the "famous" stuff, but I bought some cheaper damping mat material off Amazon that worked just fine. Start with your doors. Give those stock speakers a little less crappy of a box to work in. You can go as nuts as you want, but my wife's car was previously intolerable for me on the highway, you couldn't hear each other speak or make out any detail in music. It's SO much better.

Interesting. There's something harsh about the system in my 2011 Forester- highs are too high? Can't fix it with the adjustments in the stereo itself. Maybe that's the approach I need to take.

[rmplum]

Interesting. There's something harsh about the system in my 2011 Forester- highs are too high? Can't fix it with the adjustments in the stereo itself. Maybe that's the approach I need to take.

If you google it there are often some hidden EQ settings that you can access in the radios - there's all kind of crazy stuff out there. I removed a bunch of really odd EQ settings in the Crosstrek. Generally the older and cheaper the vehicle the more gains there are with dynamat, etc. You are adding weight though - which the original manufacturer probably sacrificed because the car otherwise met the noise benchmarks that had set.

I wouldn't bother with this in my 2020 Legacy, because it's pretty quiet and the body is well damped stock. But in the older cars it's certainly worth a weekend day or two. Just take lots of pictures so you remember how to put things back together. A trim removal kit will also be useful.

[lumpy]

If you google it there are often some hidden EQ settings that you can access in the radios - there's all kind of crazy stuff out there. I removed a bunch of really odd EQ settings in the Crosstrek. Generally the older and cheaper the vehicle the more gains there are with dynamat, etc. You are adding weight though - which the original manufacturer probably sacrificed because the car otherwise met the noise benchmarks that had set.

I wouldn't bother with this in my 2020 Legacy, because it's pretty quiet and the body is well damped stock. But in the older cars it's certainly worth a weekend day or two. Just take lots of pictures so you remember how to put things back together. A trim removal kit will also be useful.

We'll see. Got to fix the smoked center diff first.

[funcrusher]

i just put down a deposit on a Rivian R1S...wanted the truck but i was vetoed by my better half

been doing a lot more driving lately and i'm sick of having to pump gas