zeitgeist57

https://www.statesman.com/news/follow-live-austin-city-council-expected-make-decision-mls-stadium/P3cKkpzQReUTepPnY5xHgJ/ As of 12:42pm EST, watching the live Twitter feed, I'm impressed by the concessions Austin's City Council is trying to avoid with Precourt.

BiL has been getting his last 3 or so cars through http://www.swapalease.com. His last car was a 550i M Performance and he just picked up a 2018 M550i X-Drive for $750 a month...PO only had it for 4 months! I ride around in his cars, they are amazing. As a driving enthusiast what he gives up not turning his own wrenches, he's making up for in finding some really solid cars for around $700/month. I can't fault his logic considering he's not driving a ton of long-distance trips...

1) 96-month financing 2) I had heard a couple of years back that 78% of all new Mercedes vehicle sales volume is done via leasing.

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2018-mercedes-benz-s-class-turbocharged-all-wheel-drive Pro: 5000lb sedan that does 0-60 around 4 seconds, sub-13sec 1/4 mile, 26MPG highway. What a glorious time we live in. Con: This article was well-written in a way that made me feel REALLY OLD. Considering not a ton of youngsters post regularly on CR these days, I don't feel bad admitting that. I will still lament the need for our society to churn out good-for-right-now product that doesn't have to stand the test of time (i.e. China owning Jaguar, Volvo, Land Rover). It's just got to last the lease period. Of course, manufacturing processes and products have advanced considerably, and time will tell if a 2018 Benz still looks the business 20-30 years from now...but does that matter? I'm sure this sort of rant makes the youngsters that read this article think of us as "old"....maybe that definition, beyond age, changes with the speed of society as well. TL;DR - Damn fine car, comparison to older models makes you realize how old we're becoming.

"Mr. Marky, would you be able to solve other social issues our city is dealing with now that you're a part of our local business community?" Precourt bought the Crew for $68MM in 2013...I think I'd be asking someone other than the two men leaning against a Chevy Equinox if I needed more money to buy a major league sports franchise...

That Thing Looks Sweet. Will try to make it to CC&C. Congratulations on the progress so far!

Agreed. They just built the 10 millionth Mustang...plus that thing is not Concours... F the haters. Money spent where it mattered. I do love it.

Forgot to update...our ‘12 Odyssey went in for its 60k mi transmission flush. I mentioned the “surging” and weird shifting. They did a software update and the van has never driven smoother or accelerated more cleanly!

Thanks, Tom. Did'em last night.

Kerry, will take you up on that offer. I’ll reach out. Thank you!

https://www.suspensionsuperstore.com 2/4 drop was less than $300 shipped. Spring front, axle-flip rear. I would’ve liked to use 2” dropped shackles but they require 17” or larger wheels and I’m using my 16”s for winter. Just replaced u-joints...little smoother ride!

Dude...that pearl/metalflake in the gray? Looks sweet! I would definitely avoid using the Parallax wheels. Take the upcoming fall to look for good GM-friendly wheel designs used on CL from guys that want the cash instead of storing them. Like Nickey's S10, those trucks look great with 17"s (18"s MAX) and some rubber to fill the wheel wells :thumbup:

Good point. You're right though, Scott. I won't swap the pump without checking pressure first. what I should've said is I'm going to table the fuel pump until I've done some other projects I already have the parts for. https://troubleshootmyvehicle.com/gm/4.3L-5.0L-5.7L/how-to-test-the-fuel-pump-1

So, the other thing is my driveshaft u-joints are toast; super-squeaky at low speed until the RPMs get up and then it goes away. Wouldn't be surprised if it's out-of-balance spinning away at highway speeds. I've got new Dana Spicers so we'll see what that may do. It's not so much bucking, as it is fading in and out of thrust at steady engine speeds on the highway, if that makes sense. Acceleration is steady when the pedal is pressed, though now my butt-dyno is convinced that the fuel flow is affecting performace.

So, I've been driving the truck a LOT this summer...pretty much whenever I need to haul something before/after work, or even when the weather wasn't looking too good for top-down driving in the BMW. Aside from the long-cranking starting/highway hesitation issue that seems to be fuel-related, she's been a great runner. Just over 79k miles... I had the truck up to do a front spring swap for the 2/4 drop, and realized this was going to be far more involved than anticipated. Decided to replace the headlights instead! The factory headlights polished fine, but stayed yellow and clouded back over quickly. Also, I broke a tab on the $22 eBay chrome parking lights trying to replace a bulb...plus I didn't like the chrome as much...so time for some EBAY HEADLIGHTS! Not bad for $64 shipped! Spoooooky flooooating truuuck...... Black housings, clear lenses and reflectors...ties in the front end much better, methinks. Next up after a few small fixes (u-joints, rattling flexplate) is the MaxTrac 2/4 drop, followed by rocker rust repair and maybe some light bodywork/paint polishing.

Replaced the fuel filter aaaaaand..............*drum roll*.................. No change. I need to check on the rattling flexplate: replace it if it's cracked or tighten the TQ conv bolts...then I need to replace the 2 driveshaft u-joints...then I need to install my new MaxTrac 2/4 drop kit:D...THEN I'll replace the fuel pump. #priorities A couple of Youtubers said to pull the bed to access the tank for fuel pump replacement. Is that others' experience?

I have the fuel filter, located on drivers' frame rail - will replace. You KNOW I bought a cheap cap/rotor Will get an ACDelco replacement if the fuel filter doesn't affect the driveability.

Thanks, guys. Should've mentioned I drilled out the two rivets - bracket holds Ignition Control Module, aluminum heat sink, and Coil together - and screwed in a new ignition coil. That helped with running, which is why I am thinking it may be fuel delivery. I've also heard that the fuel pressure regulator can go bad on these... The only thing that makes me question fuel is if I turn the key to let it crank over 3-4 times (maybe a second), then I click the key down to ACC, wait a second, then crank it again it fires right off. Seems almost like that is electrical, not fuel.

My 2001 Silverado 1500 - 4.3L V6/4L60E/2WD - has 79k miles on it and two annoying items: 1) Cold start can crank upwards of 5 seconds before it catches. 2) Noticable bucking/hesitation at highway cruising speeds. I just replaced cap/rotor/wires/plugs, and one of the spark-plug wires was contacting a bracket, rubbed the insulation off and was clearly arcing. Acceleration cleaned up dramatically, but cold start and highway cruising still remained. Spark Plugs looked tannish-brown...very clean in all but one cylinder; figured the arcing may have contributed to that. I haven't done the fuel filter yet...next on my list. I can't find the fuel pressure regulator. Would love to gauge start-up fuel pressure. I'm confused because most of my googling says that: 1) If it's electrical, it would cause a misfire enough that I may smell fuel, or hear it. The truck idles like a sewing machine. 2) if it was fuel, it would likely hesitate more at idle, acceleration. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance, CR!

That, and not sure why you go dog-ear fencing on the sides and a different style on the front. It kinda looks like someone put wood pallets up.

...but with less operational responsibility. Why deal with the hassle?

Noticed, wasn't going to say anything... Scrolled down and saw this post. Aside from the fence I do like the way the front looks, the kitchen looks baller too.

GET ON IT BROTHER!

Sounds like someone's already made his decision...y'all wasting your time.

+1. You can't keep one of your fleet here to shuttle around for a few months?