Yeah... I couldn’t recall the exact number. But the way I explain it to folks is that its no different than how a gas engine is treated. You wouldn’t redline it all the time because that would shorten the life of the engine. Likewise with batteries in these cars you don’t “redline” those either.

Because I’ve been through 4-5 recessions so far and they all tend to happen at just... about... now, meaning the DOW and Nasdaq are at all-time highs, real estate is booming and unaffordable on the coasts, and just like the last few recessions before Americans were buying lotsa’ full sized trucks. Recessions tend to…

Probably nothing terribly exciting. Unless the recession many have mentioned will possibly happens this year Americans will keep buying giganto-sized trucks at a record pace. More bland and uninspiring crossovers will get introduced. The German automakers will probably release further barely distinguishable updates to…

We owned a 2002 Prius ( the weird one that looked like a Corolla ) and after 265,000 miles the battery was still fine. We now own a 2011 Volt with 100k on the clock and still- so far so good. The batteries in these cars are treated very differently than those in say- a power tool or laptop. They are only charged and…

I cannot believe this is real...

Replacing the clutch won’t be exactly easy or cheap if you have it done somewhere. As far as the synchrons? As someone who owned an 80's Celica and now a 90's manual Tacoma there is a common problem with these where the shifter seals ( under the actual shifter handle) rot with age which will then cause the shifter to…

I lived in Boston for 3 years and distinctly recall one year where the windchill got to -45. As I was renting a ancient house with indoor plumbing having been added later with little insulation the toilets actually formed a layer of ice on top.
 
A month later I moved to California. I still think about how much I…

Words no longer express how disgusting I find this “president”. Its amazing to think that just one year ago we actually had an intelligent, thoughtful person there instead. Now we just have whatever this is... a long running, painful and embarrassing joke.

I dunno.... This really feels like the exact same kind of mania as for tulips and beanie babies. When everyone jumps in then that is usually a sign that things will probably take a dive and probably soon...

I just love that some of my tax dollars are going towards paying for this joke of a president’s vacations at his own resorts...

Perhaps those vans held up better in accidents in the EU. I say that because here in the US the bigger issue is the physical sizes of the vehicles. A small VW van getting into an accident with a Chevy Suburban or some other gigantic full-sized vehicle will of course cause much greater damage.

It is pretty ugly. That and the design looks like a Toyota had sex with an alfa romeo.

stupid fucker...

Actually... one of my friends knows a guy who works as a paramedic. He has more than a few stories of Vanagons having frontal impacts and having to extract the body sans-legs. They certainly were not that safe, even by the then period standards.

Yes... Add that as well...

Sorry but if you’re in your early 20's, have debt, and if you especially don’t know how to work on cars... save the weird and wacky cars for when you are on your feet and have disposable income. Just get the Rav-4, get your job, and focus on that for a few years first...

It already burst: AKA- PT Cruiser...

Disclaimer: Personally I feel that VW makes some of the biggest pieces of crap on wheels. But that’s not why I really dislike this latest of “retro” vans from them. The reason? They’ve been shopping this retro van idea around for well over 20 years. Every few years they would drag out that same worn-out retro minibus…

My Father used to work at a large resort and for getting back and forth to the various buildings the maintenance staff used old Previas. They would have them serviced at a local Toyota dealer and the guy who ran the shop there said that of all the Toyotas he’d worked on over the years this vintage of Previa was…

Literally tears in my eyes reading that!