- With a high mileage car, you can run through a long list of tests, but you can't really tell what's going on inside an engine. You have to be suspicious and look for weaker signs of proper care or abuse. You want maintenance records, you don't want a dirty engine bay or sooty exhaust pipe. Even a compression test and leak-down test wouldn't reveal the mis-mounted and scratched cam caps on this car. If you could know the oil and filter had been run for 3000 miles (and not just 30 since last Saturday), you might crack open the filter and check for bits of metal. In the end, it is a bit of luck. You have read tea leaves, be suspicious, and choose a false negative over a false positive. Better to let a dirty good one go, than take a bad engine that left a sign of it's state.
- A suspension can make a big difference, not just power. I hadn't written about it much, but I enjoyed driving the car this summer much more after I put the new suspension on it. I didn't drop it to get the "slammed" look, I wanted bette cornering and I got it. The stock suspension is pretty soft on that car.
- I also learned about the 90-10 rule for cars. I've long thought that all you really need from a car is reliable transportation to work, so buy whatever is fun. That worked when I bought the Integra. It wasn't tested too hard because the Integra was front-wheel drive and decent in snow. It also had a decent sized hatch for hauling things. The Miata doesn't have either and flips the rule around: Anything, even a motorcycle will get you to work, it's the 10% that matters. With rear wheel drive and no hatch, it's useless for anything else. The soft-top means it needs to be babied or kept inside to be protected from thieves and vandals, so it's high-maintenance on top of the other issues. I saw this over the years and would have predicted a Fall or Winter sale. I loved the car in Spring and Summer, but once the snow was flying, it was just a nuisance.
- Finally, you can't always trust a mechanic not to take your good money to throw at/after a bad engine. After I was already in for most of replacing the timing belt, and only because I asked him to look at the shims, did he discover the scratches and mis-mounted cam caps. I was curious that he didn't reveal the results of a compression or leak-down test until I did my own: there was nothing unusual. The only thing beyond the tea-leaves of a dirty engine bay, sooty exhaust would have been to try changing the oil filter and cutting it open. A leaky rear main seal is obvious enough and not indicative of a bad problem, but it might have lead to a low-oil situation. He managed to bill some 4-figure jobs from me, but I won't be back.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Miata Lessons
I learned basically two things from having owned the Miata over the years:
Cam Caps and Journals Redoux
When my mechanic, as part of a job to replace the timing belt a few years back, found that the exhaust side cam caps where on the intake side and vice versa, I knew the engine wasn't long for this world. I also knew it might not die immediately. Much more recently, curious about what doom awaits us, the opportunity for looking more closely presented itself with a needed oil change. After pulling the oil filter (see earlier post) I got curious and removed the valve cover to have a look at the cam caps and the cams themselves.
Sadly, in the process of reassembling that cam cap, I managed to shear the bolts. Had I not, I might have been able to run the car for a few thousand more miles before engine replacement. My thoughts were, it's probably better to replace the head now, than the whole thing later. The plans were to pull the head and find a replacement. Replacment BP4W heads were about $900.
I found used BP4W engines for $1200 or so. 1.6l JDM's were a bit cheaper. A full-on rebuild was $4k. Any of those would require either $500 (?) in tools to do it myself or $1000+ to have it done.
Its also worth noting that many of the replacement heads and engines for this car are BP5As not the BP4Ws that the 1999 and 2000 miatas came with. The later are better heads. The former are engines from MX3s.
What's hard to see in the picture above is a ridge on the cam about 1/4 way up. I think that was the source of the sparkles in the oil filter.
Sadly, in the process of reassembling that cam cap, I managed to shear the bolts. Had I not, I might have been able to run the car for a few thousand more miles before engine replacement. My thoughts were, it's probably better to replace the head now, than the whole thing later. The plans were to pull the head and find a replacement. Replacment BP4W heads were about $900.
I found used BP4W engines for $1200 or so. 1.6l JDM's were a bit cheaper. A full-on rebuild was $4k. Any of those would require either $500 (?) in tools to do it myself or $1000+ to have it done.
Its also worth noting that many of the replacement heads and engines for this car are BP5As not the BP4Ws that the 1999 and 2000 miatas came with. The later are better heads. The former are engines from MX3s.
Sold
After mothballing the car and starting to consider somewhere between $1k and $5k for a used engine and paying someone (or not) to install it, I saw someone asking for a "shell" on the miata facebook group. Somebody had an engine, or figured they could find one easily enough. Opportunity knocks sometimes. It was easy enough to sell it to someone who had the space and motivation to continue with it. Jack and Devon came to rescue the car, and its journey will continue with them.
I'm aware I could have done some minor repairs and sold the car for 3x what I did sell it for, but I did the right thing.
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Mothballed
I don't want to leave the Miata out in the winter, and I don't want to drive a frozen Outback either. Need get them both, as well as the Leaf, into a 2.5 car garage. (October 29)
Sunday, October 16, 2016
More suspicious engine signs...
I cut the filter open after changing it. This has about 5000 miles on it. I picked up the metal flakes with a rare earth magnet: steel.
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Three Test Drives
The coming winter has me whining about where to keep the daily driver, especially on snow or even just frosty days. I like having a garage for my car so I don't have to deal with the weather and scrape windows. The Outback lives outside now, as the Leaf and Miata have the garage.
The Miata's advancing age is another thing that is available to worry about. My recent mistake of putting too much oil in it made the usual worry worse. The thing was smoking more than usual, so I went to ever present solution for car woes: the cart lot!
I had been reading about the BRZ, and in fact, the girl who cut my hair yesterday drives one and recommends it. The magazine reviewers are very fond of the car and apologetic for its mere 200 hp. They love the chasis and argue that its lack of power should be forgiven because, like the Miata, it is a special car. One issue that comes up is a flat spot in the torque curve between 3500 and 4500 rpm. I went in with an open mind.
The local dealer had a beautiful 2016 model (the 2017's are already here and have some nicer dashboard gizmos) with leather seats and a sunroof. They also had a 3 year old with 80k on it. I asked to drive it from a salesman I'd met last year and said "hi" to on maintenance runs for our Outback. He was busy, so instead of denying me a ride, apologized he couldn't join me and let me take it around the block.
My first impression was "cool" as I sat in the deep seats and deep cockpit. "This must be what the super cars are like". I fiddled with things for a second and started the engine. It came with a bit of a rumble that suggested power. I'd already forgotten this was just a naturally aspirated 2.0 liter four cylinder! Off I went. Gingerly at first since it wasn't my car, nor was it warmed up. Then I got into it a bit.
Feh. Did I say it was an NA 4-banger? Indeed it is. Worse, the drive-by-wire system has to evaluate your request for power before delivering. The throttle isn't as intimately connected to the engine as you would expect. The flat spot is there, horribly disappointing. So disappointing, I thought I had an inkling what it was like for a woman with a man she just met who turns out to be all talk. Seriously. The chassis is beautiful. It turns as well as the Miata, but is much more planted and solid. It's so solid, you expect some engine behind it. Which it doesn't have.
With my mind clear of that car, I had to relate the story to the salesman. When it ended with a comment about the practicality of the car in Colorado winters, we both knew he had an answer.
I had driven a WRX the year before when the household needed another car. We did not expect the torque or low price of the Leaf and bought one then. It was made easier by the fact that our WRX drive didn't got terribly well. I stalled it, and Mandy had a panic stop in bad traffic on the freeway. WE both noticed how much power it had and how anxious it seemed to be to deliver it. We wondered weather it could be a daily driver. We didn't like it.
This time, I knew what to expect and was able to drive it more mellow. I got a chance to see its nicer sides. To me, the chassis seemed well tuned and eager to turn. Almost as much as the BRZ. The turbo could be managed and the car driven civilly. I particularly liked an on-ramp I took at 45mph. The WRX had been redeemed from its test-ride a year earlier.
I went home and talked to Mandy. While we have snow tires for the leaf, she still wants the security of an AWD car for the bad days. It came out that if the new car were AWD, she would accept trading the Outback in. I was excited. I could have all our cars in the garage, one would be a trusty AWD and one (the same one) would be a blast to drive. AND the payments wouldn't be $500/month.
Once I'd realized that, another load of options opened up. What if we keep the Outback and buy something for $20k instead of $30k? NOt a BRZ mind you but something used. Something, maybe with AWD and a turbo...doesn't have to be a beemer. It could be a responsible hyrid, or a Volvo S60 AWD. These cars aren't kids cars and are likely to have been driven with more care, and might not attract the police as much.
Oh lord, the box has been cracked open again. The S60 would be a used car and might not drive as well. The WRX, while new, isn't perfect and may attract the wrong attention. They also have a rumor of liking to blow up, and it would come with payments. This isn't about improving things, but minimizing hassle.
There is no perfect optimization. The all come with hassle.
Another post describes a leak-down test I was doing with the Miata. At one point something looked seriously wrong. That a engine would need rebuilt. Its something I'm curious about and sort of want to do, but it's also a lot of work. I tested the engine for a second time while my neighbor was watching and everything seemed OK. I wanted to test again and did. It was fine. The engine is fine. Other, smaller problems are an option now.
I took the Miata for a drive around the same part of town where I drove the others. It felt unusually strong. I had the top down as I rarely do. It wasn't smoking as much. Once it heated up either the parts fit more tightly or the catalytic converter as able to do its job better. The car is fine.
Just keep the miata in the garage. Put up with icy windows on the Outback and don't let driving an older used car hold your self esteem back! Save the money and go on vacation. It won't be long before the car you really want is up for sale (in 2019): the Tesla 3.
The Miata's advancing age is another thing that is available to worry about. My recent mistake of putting too much oil in it made the usual worry worse. The thing was smoking more than usual, so I went to ever present solution for car woes: the cart lot!
I had been reading about the BRZ, and in fact, the girl who cut my hair yesterday drives one and recommends it. The magazine reviewers are very fond of the car and apologetic for its mere 200 hp. They love the chasis and argue that its lack of power should be forgiven because, like the Miata, it is a special car. One issue that comes up is a flat spot in the torque curve between 3500 and 4500 rpm. I went in with an open mind.
The local dealer had a beautiful 2016 model (the 2017's are already here and have some nicer dashboard gizmos) with leather seats and a sunroof. They also had a 3 year old with 80k on it. I asked to drive it from a salesman I'd met last year and said "hi" to on maintenance runs for our Outback. He was busy, so instead of denying me a ride, apologized he couldn't join me and let me take it around the block.
My first impression was "cool" as I sat in the deep seats and deep cockpit. "This must be what the super cars are like". I fiddled with things for a second and started the engine. It came with a bit of a rumble that suggested power. I'd already forgotten this was just a naturally aspirated 2.0 liter four cylinder! Off I went. Gingerly at first since it wasn't my car, nor was it warmed up. Then I got into it a bit.
Feh. Did I say it was an NA 4-banger? Indeed it is. Worse, the drive-by-wire system has to evaluate your request for power before delivering. The throttle isn't as intimately connected to the engine as you would expect. The flat spot is there, horribly disappointing. So disappointing, I thought I had an inkling what it was like for a woman with a man she just met who turns out to be all talk. Seriously. The chassis is beautiful. It turns as well as the Miata, but is much more planted and solid. It's so solid, you expect some engine behind it. Which it doesn't have.
With my mind clear of that car, I had to relate the story to the salesman. When it ended with a comment about the practicality of the car in Colorado winters, we both knew he had an answer.
I had driven a WRX the year before when the household needed another car. We did not expect the torque or low price of the Leaf and bought one then. It was made easier by the fact that our WRX drive didn't got terribly well. I stalled it, and Mandy had a panic stop in bad traffic on the freeway. WE both noticed how much power it had and how anxious it seemed to be to deliver it. We wondered weather it could be a daily driver. We didn't like it.
This time, I knew what to expect and was able to drive it more mellow. I got a chance to see its nicer sides. To me, the chassis seemed well tuned and eager to turn. Almost as much as the BRZ. The turbo could be managed and the car driven civilly. I particularly liked an on-ramp I took at 45mph. The WRX had been redeemed from its test-ride a year earlier.
I went home and talked to Mandy. While we have snow tires for the leaf, she still wants the security of an AWD car for the bad days. It came out that if the new car were AWD, she would accept trading the Outback in. I was excited. I could have all our cars in the garage, one would be a trusty AWD and one (the same one) would be a blast to drive. AND the payments wouldn't be $500/month.
Once I'd realized that, another load of options opened up. What if we keep the Outback and buy something for $20k instead of $30k? NOt a BRZ mind you but something used. Something, maybe with AWD and a turbo...doesn't have to be a beemer. It could be a responsible hyrid, or a Volvo S60 AWD. These cars aren't kids cars and are likely to have been driven with more care, and might not attract the police as much.
Oh lord, the box has been cracked open again. The S60 would be a used car and might not drive as well. The WRX, while new, isn't perfect and may attract the wrong attention. They also have a rumor of liking to blow up, and it would come with payments. This isn't about improving things, but minimizing hassle.
There is no perfect optimization. The all come with hassle.
Another post describes a leak-down test I was doing with the Miata. At one point something looked seriously wrong. That a engine would need rebuilt. Its something I'm curious about and sort of want to do, but it's also a lot of work. I tested the engine for a second time while my neighbor was watching and everything seemed OK. I wanted to test again and did. It was fine. The engine is fine. Other, smaller problems are an option now.
I took the Miata for a drive around the same part of town where I drove the others. It felt unusually strong. I had the top down as I rarely do. It wasn't smoking as much. Once it heated up either the parts fit more tightly or the catalytic converter as able to do its job better. The car is fine.
Just keep the miata in the garage. Put up with icy windows on the Outback and don't let driving an older used car hold your self esteem back! Save the money and go on vacation. It won't be long before the car you really want is up for sale (in 2019): the Tesla 3.
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
BTW, Outback Timing Belt
For the record, the Outback got a timing belt a few weeks ago. Was like $850. No water pump needed. Apparently Subaru builds them well enough that they don't need replaced. Automatic transmission, so no clutch needed. Still needs a windshield and snow tires.
Engine Developments
I got a letter back from Flyin' Miata. They'll pull the engine, rebuild it, re-install it for just over $8100. Not sure if that includes $2000 in deluxe pistons and connecting rods or not. Turbo is extra. Wah, waaaaah.
I re-did the leak test on the "bad" cylinder and got results similar to the others. I also go to see the pressure turn the engine a hair, opening a valve and releasing the pressure. Very cool. My neighbor was chatting, so I wasn't paying as close attention as I should have. I'm fairly certain I saw 185, and wondered if it was 184. That would jibe with the consistency I saw from the compression test: 165 +/- 3 across the board.
So what to do? A turn-key turbo from FM would run over $10000 and require a new clutch (maybe the $6800 + 15 hours at $130) includes that. New brakes, wheels, tires? And the car would still have a rough body and interior? Restrictive stock exhaust? It would make for an interesting sleeper.
I really like the car as a daily driver, and what I've read about getting into racing suggests staying normally aspirated for the time being is the way to go. I could get a fairly well built (but not "built") engine installed for about half of what FM wants. Then I could do thinks like better brake pads (not sure about 4-pots), steel brake lines, a butterfly brace, maybe a lighter flywheel, the anti-sway bar upgrade I didn't do with the springs. Stuff like that.
I could also build and install it myself, have the experience and save as much as $2000. I'd spend up to $1000 at the machine shop and up to another $1000 on tools (engine stand, hoist, impact wrench?).
....or say "screw it" and go buy a WRX.
I re-did the leak test on the "bad" cylinder and got results similar to the others. I also go to see the pressure turn the engine a hair, opening a valve and releasing the pressure. Very cool. My neighbor was chatting, so I wasn't paying as close attention as I should have. I'm fairly certain I saw 185, and wondered if it was 184. That would jibe with the consistency I saw from the compression test: 165 +/- 3 across the board.
So what to do? A turn-key turbo from FM would run over $10000 and require a new clutch (maybe the $6800 + 15 hours at $130) includes that. New brakes, wheels, tires? And the car would still have a rough body and interior? Restrictive stock exhaust? It would make for an interesting sleeper.
I really like the car as a daily driver, and what I've read about getting into racing suggests staying normally aspirated for the time being is the way to go. I could get a fairly well built (but not "built") engine installed for about half of what FM wants. Then I could do thinks like better brake pads (not sure about 4-pots), steel brake lines, a butterfly brace, maybe a lighter flywheel, the anti-sway bar upgrade I didn't do with the springs. Stuff like that.
I could also build and install it myself, have the experience and save as much as $2000. I'd spend up to $1000 at the machine shop and up to another $1000 on tools (engine stand, hoist, impact wrench?).
....or say "screw it" and go buy a WRX.
Monday, September 26, 2016
Tired Engine
I recently put 15-40 oil in the car and it seems to be pretty happy with it. But is burning oil and showing some signs of age. When the times comes, I'll have a few different options that I'm starting to explore.
- Sell the car and get a new BRZ: $28k
- O'Reilly sells PowerStroke rebuilt engines for $2350 with a 3 year warranty. Additional labor to do the engine swap could be $1000?
- It's rumored that used engines could be had for $1000, engine swap additional
- JDM engines (partly used Japanese engines) are supposedly also $1000, plus engine swap.
- Treasure Coast Miata sells rebuilt heads for $550 and rebuilt short-blocks for $1250, no core charge. Additional labor to pull the old engine and install these parts once assembled.
- Get a machine shop to rebuild a head: $500 and to clean the short block $300 (?). This obviously involves the adventure of doing some work myself, but also means there is a chance to upgrade some of the internals:
- forged pistons that are worth having if there are any plans to turbo the engine beyond 250 hp. Seriously, 250 hp in a Miata is a lot. The pistons are something like $1000.
- forged connecting rods are useful in the same situation, also $1000.
- Flyin' Miata does have a stroker kit that includes pistons and rods as well as a larger crank that raises the engine's displacement to 2.0l $5000!!!
- Special pistons that raise the compression ratio to 11.0 instead of 9.0 are available: $1000. No turbo with these.
- Special valve springs can be had that are good for 9000rpm instead of 7000. I think these are for a naturally aspirated (NA) engine, not Forced Induction (FI).
- Flyin' Miata has a lightweight flywheel and stronger clutch combination available for about $500. The clutch would ultimately be necessary if a turbo is installed. The lightweight flywheel is more of a race, track day, or High Performance Drivers Education (HPDE) thing.
I'm leaning towards a stock build with the flywheel and clutch.
Leak Down
Driving it regularly, I've become aware of the Miata's drinking problem. It goes through over a quart in 1000 miles. I broke the handle off of the dipstick which was always awkward to read, so I bought a new one. It sucks to read too. After 500 I went to add 1/2 quart and added the second 1/2 too. It was too much and the car was smoking more than usual. That got me thinking, so I bought a leak down tester.
I have done a compression test in the past. If I recall correctly, I was getting 165psi for each cylinder with no more than 5, maybe 10psi difference. A compression tester is a device that takes the place of a spark plug. It won't light the fuel mixture (it's best to disconnect the fuel pump and ignition before testing), but it will measure how much pressure the engine can create when cranking. 165 isn't bad. I've read that when the compression is as low as 130 it's time to rebuild. Its the oil burning that bothers me.
It shouldn't. The car still passes emissions, and I drive a long enough drive that the catalytic converter heats up and must be able to keep itself clean. Catastrophic failure isn't at the top of my list of fears. The "cat" failing from getting gunked up from oil is.
This is a compression tester hanging off the top of the engine.
The compression tester just gives you a general picture of the engine's health. It doesn't distinguish between bad rings and leaky values. That's what a leakdown tester is for. In combination with a compressor, you pump air into the cylinder and find out where it leaks out. You expect a bit to come out the crankcase as it blows past the rings, but just a bit. In older engines you might get some to come out of the air filter or exhaust pipe if the respective valves aren't doing so well. If the head gasket is going, you might get some bubbles from the radiator cap. I could hear some air coming out of the oil cap.
Here's pictures of what I got from three of the cylinders. You can see the tester here. One hose goes to the compressor (the left one). The hose on the right goes to a cylinder. I set the input pressure to 90 on the left gauge and then measure what the cylinder holds. The first one has me concerned. 90 pounds in and only 75 out. The other two look more like 90 in and 85 out.
Setting this up is a bit more involved. The engine isn't turning on a leak-down, like it is for a compression test. You have to turn the engine to Top Dead Center (TDC) for the measured cylinder so that the valves are closed. In the back of the bottom picture you can see a wooden dowell in one of the cylinders. It makes it easier to see the position of the engine. A common mistake is to get the wrong TDC, since there are two. The wrong one has the valves open and will show awful numbers.
For now, I wonder if the values weren't perfectly closed on the bad cylinder above, so I intend to retest. If it's as good as the others, I might just go for a roll bar and sway bars this winter. If I measured correctly, I will probably go for an engine rebuild.
The good news from the three that tested well (I didn't upload the reading of 83 I got), included silence from the air filter and exhaust pipe: good valves.
I have done a compression test in the past. If I recall correctly, I was getting 165psi for each cylinder with no more than 5, maybe 10psi difference. A compression tester is a device that takes the place of a spark plug. It won't light the fuel mixture (it's best to disconnect the fuel pump and ignition before testing), but it will measure how much pressure the engine can create when cranking. 165 isn't bad. I've read that when the compression is as low as 130 it's time to rebuild. Its the oil burning that bothers me.
It shouldn't. The car still passes emissions, and I drive a long enough drive that the catalytic converter heats up and must be able to keep itself clean. Catastrophic failure isn't at the top of my list of fears. The "cat" failing from getting gunked up from oil is.
This is a compression tester hanging off the top of the engine.
Here's pictures of what I got from three of the cylinders. You can see the tester here. One hose goes to the compressor (the left one). The hose on the right goes to a cylinder. I set the input pressure to 90 on the left gauge and then measure what the cylinder holds. The first one has me concerned. 90 pounds in and only 75 out. The other two look more like 90 in and 85 out.
For now, I wonder if the values weren't perfectly closed on the bad cylinder above, so I intend to retest. If it's as good as the others, I might just go for a roll bar and sway bars this winter. If I measured correctly, I will probably go for an engine rebuild.
The good news from the three that tested well (I didn't upload the reading of 83 I got), included silence from the air filter and exhaust pipe: good valves.
Saturday, August 6, 2016
Crap?
I changed the oil after installing a magnetic drain plug earlier in the year. I don't like what I see:
It might be explained by what I saw when I paid attention to the state of the dipstick after adding exaclty a gallon to an empty engine that takes a gallon.
I see the top most mark on the right with the 'F' to the left, or above it. I see the end of the oil covering the 'F'. You want to put a lot of oil in according to this stick.
I see the top most mark on the right with the 'F' to the left, or above it. I see the end of the oil covering the 'F'. You want to put a lot of oil in according to this stick.
Friday, August 5, 2016
Alignment
To pay $100 for a stock alignment, more for corner weighting? I know it would be an argument to go with FM numbers instead of factory spec when it comes to my old Honda mechanic....
hub stands would allow me to do it myself. Sometimes that's about saving money. Hub stands aren't as cheap as jack stands. This would be about control and geekery, not money.
hub stands would allow me to do it myself. Sometimes that's about saving money. Hub stands aren't as cheap as jack stands. This would be about control and geekery, not money.
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Want 2
I also want to park my everyday car in the garage, but the convertible is more vulnerable, so it gets the spot. It's OK in the summer, because that's what I drive. It will get old in the winter when "well the miata" feelings start welling up again.
The subject of new cars comes up entirely too often here. I would love something as everyday as a GTI that drives as nice as the Miata, but more comfortably, that has AWD, but doesn't cost as much as a BMW or come with the attitude. I've driven a few of them, and need to drive more.
The subject of new cars comes up entirely too often here. I would love something as everyday as a GTI that drives as nice as the Miata, but more comfortably, that has AWD, but doesn't cost as much as a BMW or come with the attitude. I've driven a few of them, and need to drive more.
- MINI I've driven at least four of these including the new turbo 3 cylinder. I have not driven the new BMW-based 4 cylinder turbo Mini-S. I really want to want one, but just don't like the way they drive enough to get motivated to send the money.
- Miata: with that new suspension, it is a real blast to drive within the speed limit. No AWD. Ours is a bit beat, old, rattley and brings reliability fears.
- Tesla S 70: WOW!
- Tesla 3: N/D
- WRX: fast, and a bit bad boy, I got stared down by a waitng cop at the beginning of my test drive. As they say, the turbo is either on or off.
- GTI: I drove it later the same day. Beautiful car. The turbo is smooth and the DSG is great. No AWD, a bit dorky.
- CX3, besides being a cute-ute, it drove very nicely, if a bit underpowered. Mandy loved the toys, but not the weak SUVness of it.
- BMW 2-series: N/D
- BMW 3-series: ....can I submit to the car that turns people into assholes?
- Miata ND is supposed to bring the excitement back to the "chick car" that the NC lost.
- Mazda3 iSport 2.0
- Mazda3 s Touring 2.5. Get real. This is the car. Not quite as much power as the GTI, and no turbo to make up for Denver's altitude, but given what I've seen in the CX-3, it should be awesome.
- Subaru BRZ?
- BMW K1200RS
- BMW F800RS
Want
My nephew dared ask what was next after the new springs:
- sway bar
- bushings
- cold air intake
- muffler
- header
- roll bar
- real oil pressure sender
- set covers, Wet Okole
- new front bumper cover
- butterfly brace
- steel brake lines
- new disks, pads and bad-ass
24 piston calipers - ...and some paint on the underside for what I have scraped off coming into and out of the garage.
Smelly
Miatas are known for having gasoline smells in the cabin, and this one is no stranger to that issue. As Usual, I've consulted the oracle and come up with a few things to look at:
- The various hoses accessible from the shelf behind the seats include a backflow valve that gets stuck and causes problems.
- The main hoses from the filler into the tank get old and leaky.
- A partially empty tank with a hot exhaust pipe underneath it can cause problems. There are articles about how to add a shield around the pipe to protect the tank.
- Some folks worry about the charcoal canister and the fuel filter, but the above two seem to be the problem more often.
Sticky, Clunky, Jammed electric window
My windows were always a bit slow. A shot of silicone from my mechanic helped a bit a few years ago. More recently it would clunk part way up. Then the one on the driver's side wouldn't go down all the way. I did some googling to read about common window problems on Miatas and found this:Ebay Guide Kit. It's for replacing a guide that often breaks.
The guide wasn't broken, however the kit included a zip tie for fixing a piece of plastic that often breaks as well. I had to take a few different things apart to figure out what was broken first.
Turns out there are cable guides like the plastic tubes that are part of a bike's brake cable in there. A piece of plastic holds on in place, and it broke. Broken, it let the cable get caught by the lowering window, keeping it from going down all the way. There are various methods for holding this in place with either a doohickey that punches through a single hole, or drilling a second hole for a zip tie. I found a nearby hole and used that. We'll see how it does.
The guide wasn't broken, however the kit included a zip tie for fixing a piece of plastic that often breaks as well. I had to take a few different things apart to figure out what was broken first.
Turns out there are cable guides like the plastic tubes that are part of a bike's brake cable in there. A piece of plastic holds on in place, and it broke. Broken, it let the cable get caught by the lowering window, keeping it from going down all the way. There are various methods for holding this in place with either a doohickey that punches through a single hole, or drilling a second hole for a zip tie. I found a nearby hole and used that. We'll see how it does.
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Coil Overs 2
So I had to wait for new strut mounts or "top hats" to arrive before I could finish the front side. The top hats arrived on Wednesday and I finished the front two on Saturday. It was a really hot, salty sweat dripping on your glasses, day. I think I lasted 5 or 6 hours to get those put together. I took the car for a ride after measuring the distance from the middle of the hub to the fender opening: 12 inches. FM suggests 12.5. It was a bit scrapy low, and it made the back look a bit odd. The car sat higher back there since I hadn't done those yet. Driving it was a little weird. The front wanted to turn like nobody's business, but the back was hanging on for dear life. I finished the day with the intent to let it go for another week and enjoy a "proper" Sunday.
I failed. I at least wanted to order another set of top hats if I'd need them, and loosening the bolts would require soaking them in some penetrating oil. I'd read enough that venerable WD-40 isn't that well respected, especially for the job of loosening rusted bolts. PB Blaster is the winner of such esteem. I bought some and sprayed it on the bolts. Later Saturday night, Mandy and I went to Home Depot (hey, we know how to have fun) to look at paint colors, and I couldn't resist looking at the new battery powered impact drivers available. It's amazing $150 gets you a 500 ft-lb device that might be small enough to fit in the trunk of the Miata to pull these bolts out. I left them at the store.
Sunday morning, we ran out to the farmer's market and avoided all the wheat-laced goodies and picked up some Palisade peaches. Palisade, home of Flyin' Miata. I couldn't stop thinking about the bolts and whether or not I should order some top hats. I googled some more about how to loosen such bolts and decided to run to the hardware store for 6-sided sockets and a breaker bar. My standard sockets are 6 sided, but my new set of deep-dish from the previous week are 12 sided. Apparently, the 6-sided sockets grip better. Ace keeps their Craftsman tools locked away and someone didn't show up for long enough for me to wonder if the brand at the car parts store aren't a bit cheaper. I'd bought a single Craftsman 21mm box-end wrench from Ace Hardware (they only had one) and another from the car parts store to pull the upper A-arm "long bolt" last week. I liked what I found at the car parts store because it was a little narrower and fit into some tight places better. Down the street I went. I found a 6 sided deep-dish sockets in both 14 and 17mm. I picked up a 1/2 inch drive, 15 inch breaker bar. Since many of my sockets are 3/8 inch drive I also grabbed an adapter.
The trunk was open. The PB blaster had been sprayed. Hopes were high.
Miracles happened. The breaker bar is almost 3 times longer than the socket wrenches and the torque you can get from that length is amazing. Combine that with the grip you get from a 6 sided socket and the results are just magical! I'd used a hammer last week and it seemed dangerous, hap-hazard and desperate. The breaker bar works so well, I felt a huge relief and sense of accomplishment. This is the tool!
The trunk is a bit tight. Recommendations to move the gasoline filler out of the way are great!
The bulk of the job looks a lot like the fronts. Instructions were more simple, but didn't work as well until I removed the upper control arm bolt here as well.
All went reasonably smoothly from here. I had to remember to stick an allen wrench in the end of the sway-bar end links to get them out, but the memory came soon enough. I put it back together with anti-sieze for the threads and grease for the flat parts of the bolts. It took a little over 4 hours on Sunday, not counting an earlier trip for the sockets and breaker bar.
Test Drive. The test drive was amazing. This car is serious about turning, but still quite drivable as a daily driver. If I had fillings they would stay in my teeth. There is no body roll on sharp turns and the car definitely seems 2 inches lower, though I'm not exactly sure how much lower it is.
I failed. I at least wanted to order another set of top hats if I'd need them, and loosening the bolts would require soaking them in some penetrating oil. I'd read enough that venerable WD-40 isn't that well respected, especially for the job of loosening rusted bolts. PB Blaster is the winner of such esteem. I bought some and sprayed it on the bolts. Later Saturday night, Mandy and I went to Home Depot (hey, we know how to have fun) to look at paint colors, and I couldn't resist looking at the new battery powered impact drivers available. It's amazing $150 gets you a 500 ft-lb device that might be small enough to fit in the trunk of the Miata to pull these bolts out. I left them at the store.
Sunday morning, we ran out to the farmer's market and avoided all the wheat-laced goodies and picked up some Palisade peaches. Palisade, home of Flyin' Miata. I couldn't stop thinking about the bolts and whether or not I should order some top hats. I googled some more about how to loosen such bolts and decided to run to the hardware store for 6-sided sockets and a breaker bar. My standard sockets are 6 sided, but my new set of deep-dish from the previous week are 12 sided. Apparently, the 6-sided sockets grip better. Ace keeps their Craftsman tools locked away and someone didn't show up for long enough for me to wonder if the brand at the car parts store aren't a bit cheaper. I'd bought a single Craftsman 21mm box-end wrench from Ace Hardware (they only had one) and another from the car parts store to pull the upper A-arm "long bolt" last week. I liked what I found at the car parts store because it was a little narrower and fit into some tight places better. Down the street I went. I found a 6 sided deep-dish sockets in both 14 and 17mm. I picked up a 1/2 inch drive, 15 inch breaker bar. Since many of my sockets are 3/8 inch drive I also grabbed an adapter.
The trunk was open. The PB blaster had been sprayed. Hopes were high.
Miracles happened. The breaker bar is almost 3 times longer than the socket wrenches and the torque you can get from that length is amazing. Combine that with the grip you get from a 6 sided socket and the results are just magical! I'd used a hammer last week and it seemed dangerous, hap-hazard and desperate. The breaker bar works so well, I felt a huge relief and sense of accomplishment. This is the tool!
The trunk is a bit tight. Recommendations to move the gasoline filler out of the way are great!
The bulk of the job looks a lot like the fronts. Instructions were more simple, but didn't work as well until I removed the upper control arm bolt here as well.
Test Drive. The test drive was amazing. This car is serious about turning, but still quite drivable as a daily driver. If I had fillings they would stay in my teeth. There is no body roll on sharp turns and the car definitely seems 2 inches lower, though I'm not exactly sure how much lower it is.
It was scraping on the driveway into the garage. I raised it about 1/2".
Here's picture of the new strut:
Saturday, July 16, 2016
Coil Overs
My brother's struct spring compressor has been following me from house to house, garage to garage for over 20 years. He first bought it to spruce up the suspension in a pair of '79 Lancia Betas he owned in the late 80s...OK, 30 years. I owned a 1996 Acura Integra and never did work on the suspension in the 10 years I owned it. Now its been sold for 10 years, and I own a 1999 Miata. It was time.
I've surfed the web a bit and knew of a performance shop in Grand Junction, Colorado, that specializes in Miatas. Flyin Miata is located among the vineyards in Palisade, a town just to the East. I agonized for a few weeks about wether to get the more street oriented Konis, or the more track oriented V-Maxx coilovers. I went all-in and got the coilovers. There are much more aggressive springs available, but I liked the idea of adjustable height, and being better prepare for a day among the cones at an auto-cross event.
Besides tightening the suspension and making the car fly around corners better, it will sit lower to the ground, so here's a "before" picture.
Keith Tanner at Flyin' Miata has a book full of instructions, so I bought it:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0760316201/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The first step to installing these involves removing bolts that hold the top end of the assembly to the car. You can see these from inside the engine compartment. They are on either side of that shiny thing in the bottom center of the photo below.
Things got interesting as the nuts were taking more turns than it seems they should to come off.
Look closely. That nut, obviously, came off, but it barely has any threads! Two others came off as they should. The fourth (2 on the left, and two on the right) is still on the car and partially dremeled off (more to come) because the threads were so stripped away they weren't there to do their job.
Above is a picture of the shock mount stud that might have come from. Look at the threads closest to the (red) body. Lovely eh?
Nothing a bit of dremeling wouldn't fix.
With that stuff loose, it's time to loosen the bottom and remove the assembly of the side I can progress on. This picture is from the driver's side. It has the stripped bolt. Other pictures are of the passenger side where I could make progress.
The assembly I'm talking about is the strut that connects the wheel hub behind the brake disk to the top of the fender. It's the thing with a spring around it. Below the spring you can see a big steel letter A pointed at you. That's the upper control arm and plays a role in the story. The challenge here is that even with the car up on jack stands, the spring is still pushing the wheel/hub downwards. In any case, the whole affair is a little to long to just lift out once a bolt at the bottom is removed. More parts need disassembled.
Up top from inside the fender you can see some looseness.
Looking at the hub from the side, you an see where a bolt holding stuff together at the bottom has been removed.
Looking more closely at the 'A', the upper control arm, mostly black here, there is a bolt that holds the legs of the 'A' to the car. If we remove it, the whole affair comes apart as desired, "simply" in the words of Tanner. The bolt can be seen at the top of the picture, nut on the left, bolt head on the right. There's a tube behind the spring that is part of the frame of the car.
I went out and bought the two 21mm wrenches that were required, yet missing from my tool box. The nut was on tight enough that I made use of my new rubber hammer and got it loose. I kept turning to get this long bolt out of position. I eventually ran into an issue:
There's a bracket that holds parts that hold the sway bar in place. A bolt doing that job was in the way of getting this beast out.
Ignore the smaller, bolt above the middle with threads showing. Follow the bigger one from a black bushing on the left to a grimy, red-edged bracket on the right. There's a bolt head on the bottom. What you don't see is the length of that smaller bolt preventing progress on the big one. I loosened it, bringing the bolt's length down out of the way and got the big out out.
Here's a better picture:
And then when it's all in pieces:
The strut has some parts that will be used to put the new coilovers on, so we need to dissassemble that. This is the "assembly" I referred to above. Here's it's showed with the strut-spring compressor, the tool that's been following me for decades. The compressor has been tightened to compress the spring so it all can be taken apart.
Then in pieces...
Next up, putting this side back together, dremeling the remaining bolt on the other side and getting it done. Then the rear.
I've surfed the web a bit and knew of a performance shop in Grand Junction, Colorado, that specializes in Miatas. Flyin Miata is located among the vineyards in Palisade, a town just to the East. I agonized for a few weeks about wether to get the more street oriented Konis, or the more track oriented V-Maxx coilovers. I went all-in and got the coilovers. There are much more aggressive springs available, but I liked the idea of adjustable height, and being better prepare for a day among the cones at an auto-cross event.
Besides tightening the suspension and making the car fly around corners better, it will sit lower to the ground, so here's a "before" picture.
Keith Tanner at Flyin' Miata has a book full of instructions, so I bought it:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0760316201/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The first step to installing these involves removing bolts that hold the top end of the assembly to the car. You can see these from inside the engine compartment. They are on either side of that shiny thing in the bottom center of the photo below.
With that stuff loose, it's time to loosen the bottom and remove the assembly of the side I can progress on. This picture is from the driver's side. It has the stripped bolt. Other pictures are of the passenger side where I could make progress.
The assembly I'm talking about is the strut that connects the wheel hub behind the brake disk to the top of the fender. It's the thing with a spring around it. Below the spring you can see a big steel letter A pointed at you. That's the upper control arm and plays a role in the story. The challenge here is that even with the car up on jack stands, the spring is still pushing the wheel/hub downwards. In any case, the whole affair is a little to long to just lift out once a bolt at the bottom is removed. More parts need disassembled.
Up top from inside the fender you can see some looseness.
Looking at the hub from the side, you an see where a bolt holding stuff together at the bottom has been removed.
Looking more closely at the 'A', the upper control arm, mostly black here, there is a bolt that holds the legs of the 'A' to the car. If we remove it, the whole affair comes apart as desired, "simply" in the words of Tanner. The bolt can be seen at the top of the picture, nut on the left, bolt head on the right. There's a tube behind the spring that is part of the frame of the car.
I went out and bought the two 21mm wrenches that were required, yet missing from my tool box. The nut was on tight enough that I made use of my new rubber hammer and got it loose. I kept turning to get this long bolt out of position. I eventually ran into an issue:
Here's a better picture:
The strut has some parts that will be used to put the new coilovers on, so we need to dissassemble that. This is the "assembly" I referred to above. Here's it's showed with the strut-spring compressor, the tool that's been following me for decades. The compressor has been tightened to compress the spring so it all can be taken apart.
Then in pieces...
Next up, putting this side back together, dremeling the remaining bolt on the other side and getting it done. Then the rear.
Outback Airbag
We took the Outback in to get its airbag replaced due to the Takata recall. $0.
The only sign anything was done to the car was the bill that showed they were going to hit Subaru up for $300, missing channels on the radio, and a very clean car (which it needed after a New Mexico road trip.
The only sign anything was done to the car was the bill that showed they were going to hit Subaru up for $300, missing channels on the radio, and a very clean car (which it needed after a New Mexico road trip.
Break-in Fallout
Stupid tweaker took my lug nut key!
One of each of the four lug nuts on each wheel is built specially so you have to use a special socket, a key, to get it off. The logic behind this is to prevent wheel theft. Practically, it means you need to keep track of the key. It's always lived in the glove compartment that got broken in to. I went out to work on the suspension this morning and noticed it missing.
It not an uncommon problem. Big O Tire, across the street from both my favorite parts store and one of our favorite bar/restaurants, was able to jam a special tool onto to the keyed nuts, remove them, and replace them with new nuts: $33.
I chose not to replace the keys with new keys both because they can be an annoyance and because I doubt anyone is interested in wheels as small or as worn as these. Not a problem.
One of each of the four lug nuts on each wheel is built specially so you have to use a special socket, a key, to get it off. The logic behind this is to prevent wheel theft. Practically, it means you need to keep track of the key. It's always lived in the glove compartment that got broken in to. I went out to work on the suspension this morning and noticed it missing.
It not an uncommon problem. Big O Tire, across the street from both my favorite parts store and one of our favorite bar/restaurants, was able to jam a special tool onto to the keyed nuts, remove them, and replace them with new nuts: $33.
I chose not to replace the keys with new keys both because they can be an annoyance and because I doubt anyone is interested in wheels as small or as worn as these. Not a problem.
Friday, July 8, 2016
A Few Small Things
I've dealt with a few small things in recent weeks.
It was a bit of adventure getting the right size for the battery post, but it was fixed within a few days. Stopping the sliding was a little more interesting, as the bolt that tightens the bar across the battey would only tighten so much before spinning. I haven't mustered the patience to get a socket extension through a structural member on the other side to try and hold a nut steady. I put a 2x4 scrap in the battery tray next to the battery. That keeps it from moving for now.
OBD Code: System Lean
I was getting a P0171 code and fearing a bad rear O2 sensor. Other things on the check list included a fuel filter and checking for intake leaks. After I'd bought the fuel filter, I noticed a loose vacuum hose and put a hose clamp on it.Battery Cable:
Driving home the other day I noticed the radio cutting out and then coming back on in a second or two. The check engine light (see P0171 above) was blinking in a ghostly way. I kept driving. On the freeway. At 70mph. For some reason, rain clouds darkening the sky perhaps. I turned the lights on. Immediately, both the tachometer and the speedometer dropped to zero. No lights. No throttle. Still moving. I pullled over, knowing I could get home and be safe easily. Almost instinctively, I pulled the trunk release and jumped out (I was a lane's width from the side of an exit ramp) to check the battery. The ground strap had sheared cleanly off. Thinking for a moment, I noticed the jumper cables in the truck, I put one clamp on the ground post of the batter and then gingerly used the other to clamp what was left coming out of the insulated ground strap. Started the car, drove home. Turns out the battery slides fore and aft, stretching the cable, straining the cable where the battery connector is.It was a bit of adventure getting the right size for the battery post, but it was fixed within a few days. Stopping the sliding was a little more interesting, as the bolt that tightens the bar across the battey would only tighten so much before spinning. I haven't mustered the patience to get a socket extension through a structural member on the other side to try and hold a nut steady. I put a 2x4 scrap in the battery tray next to the battery. That keeps it from moving for now.
Break In:
I left the Miata out front for a single night while the Subie was in the garage with a load of IKEA. I'd learned long ago not to lock the car. I learned you shouldn't lock the storage compartment when it's lid was trashed about three years ago while we lived in an apartment waiting for our house to be built. I just learned not to lock the glove compartment. At least it's a cheaper fix. The handle is only $15, however I bought tan not beige... I still need a replacement compartment door and hinge.
Window Clunk:
Long story short:
The shelf behind the seats has a cover under which lie the fuel hoses and electrical connections to the fuel pump. My car didn't have a cover over that area after obvious work (replacing the fuel pump was one of the first jobs done on this car). So I replaced it after buying a new shelf that included this cover: $100. There seems to be less gasoline smell on hot days.
Saturday, March 19, 2016
Leaf Update after 3 months
4,000 miles. Still fun. If we keep it up, we'll drive twice as many miles on the Leaf in a year as we ever have in the Subie. We'll almost double all the miles we've ever put on the Miata.
Outback Maintenance 2015-03-19 @63k
Oil and Filter Change
Air Filter Change
New Rear Brake Pads
I bought the gear oil. I have brake fluid. Next Weekend.
$125 in Parts (synthetic motor oil, gear oil and ceramic brake pads)
Air Filter Change
New Rear Brake Pads
I bought the gear oil. I have brake fluid. Next Weekend.
$125 in Parts (synthetic motor oil, gear oil and ceramic brake pads)
Thursday, March 17, 2016
Oscar, the Obsidian Outback at 63K and 8 years
I saw (and smelled) a ripped CV boot was allowing the joint to fling grease on the exhaust.
It hadn't been in for it's 60k yet:
$500 in labor, $400 in parts, give or take.
Still needs:
It hadn't been in for it's 60k yet:
- Both inner CV boots replaced. Right side was cooked by the exhaust.
- A/C and Alternator, PS belts replaced. They were looking old, suggesting the timing belt, though more protected is a bit scary too.
- Radiator cap, a lower hose, coolant flush.
- 4 wheel alignment.
$500 in labor, $400 in parts, give or take.
Still needs:
- timing belt: $1000, I'll leave this one for Craig in August.
- new valve cover and spark plug galley gaskets
- PS pump
- plugs, wires
- air filter, cabin filter
- gear oil changed in front and rear diffs
- rear brake pads
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Leaf: 1 month in
Impressions of a Leaf after nearly a month of driving and 800 miles:
- It's nice and quick in traffic.
- It's quiet, comfortable with lots of headroom.
- With a predictable drive like a commute, it's not hard to overcome Range Anxiety.
- They're hard on tires. Apparently running with higher pressure (44psi) helps. We put on Michelin X-Ice for the winter, but ended up throwing out the Ecopias because they had no more than 3k to be had on the rear pair and the fronts were badly worn on the edges. This is common with Leafs.
- No spare tire or jack, but a 12v inflator and a bottle of goo. I've bought a jack and will order a "doughnut" soon.
- Getting a 220v/30amp charger for 4-hour charges is not cheap. The outlet will run $500 and a box that I'm tempted to call a charger, but reminded it is not, but yet is required is another $500. We do well with the 110v/15amp charger that came with the car.
- Bluetooth smart-phone integration is awesome.
- Good community and plenty of room for gadget hacking.
Leaf!
RTD's been making it hard to count on them for a long-term commuting plan. The bigger picture is that the bus-route my neighbors and I ride is being eliminated in three months. The shorter term irritation comes from changes implemented this month (January) that weren't obvious enough for me in proposed route changes. I got poor response from RTD's customer service, public relations and our board representative (another story), so I considered breaking down and buying a car.
We test drove a Mazda CX-3, Subaru WRX, VW GTI and a Mini hardtop. The normally aspirated, fuel efficient cars were too weak, the Turbos too bursty or kiddie-oriented, and the mini was no fun to drive. (Minis are another story: I've test driven them about every 4 years in the last 15 and never bought one.) The issue is a little more complicated as it was important to me that this be another car in our stable and not one that one person liked and the other person didn't. If it were a care solely for me, the WRX would have had a better chance (yet another story about how the GTI is a nicer car, but the the WRX has AWD).
We'd talked a lot about more fuel-efficient cars, hybrids and electrics, and at one time we even dreamt of converting a Miata with lead-acid batteries, but they struck us as expensive and too nerdy. At one point I clearly stated I did not want a Nissan Leaf.
With frustration over new cars increasing and frustration over RTD mounting, I lowered expectation and considered buying used. In some respects used was more palatable because of the lower commitment. It would be easier to buy a car I wasn't in love with if I spent $15000 instead of $30+k. The problem with buying used at $15k is that it often meant a five year old car with 80,000 miles on it. I would start looking at used, hit those facts and bounce back to buying new, only to discover what I really wanted was a budget-busting $33k.
Somehow, I started looking at used Leaf's. They MSRP for $35k new, and have something about a $7500 government subsidy. The used ones were about $13k and only three years old, so we went to a dealer to have a look. I can't remember who drove first. I'd like to remember that Mandy drove it first and then I had a turn. We both liked it much more than we expected. My expectations were that it have all the eco-pep of a 1.4 liter Fiat. The reality is that it has 190 ft-lb of torque at 0 rpm for 3200 lb car. The Subaru weighs 100 lb more and is good for 150 or so ft-lbs at 3000+ rpm. The Leaf has punch right off the line! Making the purchase more easy was that this particular one was a 2013 and had the 6.6 kw charger, not the older 3.3. As an SV model, not just S, it had a heat-pump that could heat the car more efficiently in winter.
So the Leaf is somewhat fun to drive. It's economics are also pretty cool. With 24 Kw-hours on board, we will have spent about $2.40 charging it and can go about 80 miles. That's enough for either of us to commute 25 miles to work and back and have quite a bit of buffer left over. We can even run the car with a battery-saving 80% charge and still have 10 miles left when running a bit of heater. The same trip, at today's ridiculously cheap $2/gallon gasoline would cost $4. The commute is made cheaper in the Leaf, since Mandy has free charging at work. The car is also more quiet and less petro-smelly than the ICE (internal combustion engine).
We test drove a Mazda CX-3, Subaru WRX, VW GTI and a Mini hardtop. The normally aspirated, fuel efficient cars were too weak, the Turbos too bursty or kiddie-oriented, and the mini was no fun to drive. (Minis are another story: I've test driven them about every 4 years in the last 15 and never bought one.) The issue is a little more complicated as it was important to me that this be another car in our stable and not one that one person liked and the other person didn't. If it were a care solely for me, the WRX would have had a better chance (yet another story about how the GTI is a nicer car, but the the WRX has AWD).
We'd talked a lot about more fuel-efficient cars, hybrids and electrics, and at one time we even dreamt of converting a Miata with lead-acid batteries, but they struck us as expensive and too nerdy. At one point I clearly stated I did not want a Nissan Leaf.
With frustration over new cars increasing and frustration over RTD mounting, I lowered expectation and considered buying used. In some respects used was more palatable because of the lower commitment. It would be easier to buy a car I wasn't in love with if I spent $15000 instead of $30+k. The problem with buying used at $15k is that it often meant a five year old car with 80,000 miles on it. I would start looking at used, hit those facts and bounce back to buying new, only to discover what I really wanted was a budget-busting $33k.
Somehow, I started looking at used Leaf's. They MSRP for $35k new, and have something about a $7500 government subsidy. The used ones were about $13k and only three years old, so we went to a dealer to have a look. I can't remember who drove first. I'd like to remember that Mandy drove it first and then I had a turn. We both liked it much more than we expected. My expectations were that it have all the eco-pep of a 1.4 liter Fiat. The reality is that it has 190 ft-lb of torque at 0 rpm for 3200 lb car. The Subaru weighs 100 lb more and is good for 150 or so ft-lbs at 3000+ rpm. The Leaf has punch right off the line! Making the purchase more easy was that this particular one was a 2013 and had the 6.6 kw charger, not the older 3.3. As an SV model, not just S, it had a heat-pump that could heat the car more efficiently in winter.
So the Leaf is somewhat fun to drive. It's economics are also pretty cool. With 24 Kw-hours on board, we will have spent about $2.40 charging it and can go about 80 miles. That's enough for either of us to commute 25 miles to work and back and have quite a bit of buffer left over. We can even run the car with a battery-saving 80% charge and still have 10 miles left when running a bit of heater. The same trip, at today's ridiculously cheap $2/gallon gasoline would cost $4. The commute is made cheaper in the Leaf, since Mandy has free charging at work. The car is also more quiet and less petro-smelly than the ICE (internal combustion engine).
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