We’ll call it: Battery Valet. At some point the battery pack in your EV will be quick changeable. Instead of enduring an overnight charge there will be a drive thru where you can swap out in just a few minutes. Good to go with a fresh battery. If you are local then just plug-in at home while you sleep. But if you are on a road trip you don’t want to rely on hit or miss parking with hook up umbilical. Arrive at your out of town destination layover and my service will retrieve your EV, renew its energy and return it to you topped off.
Category Archives: cars
NISSAN LEAF
I test drove the future, a zero emissions car, my first experience. Startup hints at uniqueness. There is a keyless button labeled Start which energizes the instrument display screens and radio and environmental systems come to life. I wanted to focus on the drive so I turned all that other stuff off. A diminutive little knob (switch) selects PNDR. Relaxing foot pressure on the brake and the vehicle starts to creep just as a car with an automatic transmission would. Of course this is a software function (concession) in the EV which makes you feel more at home. Acceleration can be brisk if you like and it is erie that there is no vibration, no noise or commotion, just a soft whir as motor torque pushes you back in your seat. Quite satisfying. As speed reached 35+ mph tire noise masks sounds from the electrics. The only ECO skill to learn is early deceleration and planning using regenerative braking which will recover energy that would ordinarily waste as heat.
The Leaf Is not a soul inspiring machine. It is very appliance like and the body, while ergonomic, has the look of a grocery getter. Perhaps a Tesla Model S would add sex appeal to the equation.
soft top resto
Not exactly an easy DIY, in fact there was a skull & crossbones kind of warning to amateurs enclosed with the packing! There were no installation instructions included with the new top but fortunately there have been some ‘gone before me‘ who’ve posted walk throughs. I was grateful for the hints and spoilers. The most challenging, apart from remembering in which order to re-assemble the interior, was self learning the fundamentals of the Rivet fastener. Another bewildering moment was a ‘fish out of water‘ visit to a (women’s) fabric shop to procure new elastic material for the frame bows.Three days into the project and the new canvas is in place and may actually keep seats dry.
put it in clutch
Too late. I splurged for an all new replacement Clutch Master Cylinder and installed. Out of curiosity the original unit was disassembled for inspection. Its machined cylinder bore ( 5/8″ ) had no corrosion and was therefore in fair condition. The residual fluid however was filthy black with contamination. The annular lip seals on the piston plunger were likely perished and my thinking is that I could have replaced these and saved the core unit. It may present a small challenge to find these small tapered sealing lip rubber bits. The pictured piston assembly resembles (copies?) that of a type of piston and valve frequently seen for early British Cars made by Dunlop and Girling. One closer look of this piston notes some scuffing. A proper rebuild would require honing the bore. Previously skeptical of dealer recommendations for annual brake fluid changes, cooling system flushes and similar ilk; I now have first hand evidence for the justification. Brake fluid is hygroscopic and thus the degradation. Why not silicon based DOT 5 instead, which is hydrophobic? That is another debate. Perhaps the *new* complete assembly was the path of least resistance after all.
Lincoln LS Brake Job
No need to pay an automotive service center specialist the big bucks. This is maintenance that can be done in the garage. The local auto parts store has the replacement pads and special tools. Safety stands are necessary since the vehicle will be raised and the wheels removed. Supporting the vehicle with a floor jack is not recommended. Before lifting use your tire iron to loosen slightly the wheel lug nuts. The torque required to break them free will cause wheel rotation unless the weight of the vehicle rests upon it. Continue reading…
Changing Lincoln LS Brake Pads
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There are two bolts to remove which will free the caliper and provide access to the brake pads themselves. A 12mm socket will fit the lower bolt but for the upper the alloy suspension arm interferes. Use a 12mm box wrench instead. These two bolts may be overly snug so a few hammer taps on the arm of the tool simulates that of an impact gun. Using arm strength in constant pulling or pushing force may round off the bolt head just before you scrape your knuckles. Set the removed bolts aside. |
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The caliper slides outward now free of its retaining bracket. Some seesaw wriggling is usually necessary to slide away the caliber because of interference fit. This brake caliper assembly includes the hydraulic piston(s) and still attached is a hydraulic hose and a wire link to the ABS speed sensor at the hub. These umbilicals can be damaged by rough handling, twisting or dangling. The old pads will be loose but left behind still hugging the rotor disc. |
| Fashion a wire clothes hangar or length of string to support the weight of the caliber. This will free your hands and prevent damage to the brake hose. The upper suspension support arm provides a handy support anchor. |  |
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Some thought pertaining to the condition of the brake rotors should be taken. If the rotors are warped they must be removed and trued on a lathe machine. Note also that a disc rotor does lose thickness over time. A width measurement check will determine if it is within minimum wear tolerance. To avoid any concern the rotor can be replaced with new. |
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Your brake pad kit box may contain new spring clips which slide into place. If not, the old ones are generally reusable on condition. Copy the clip orientation from that of the removed pads. |
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The new pads lay into place one on each side of the rotor disc. Unfortunately the caliper can not just be put back into place as simply as it was pulled away. The new pads are much thicker than the worn ones. |
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To make the calipers “fit again” the extended pistons must be retracted into the caliper. |
| The most elegant way to re-compress them is with a special caliper tool that the auto parts store will happily loan. There are assorted sizes in the kit depending on your application. This kit really takes the effort out of a necessary task especially for doing the rear brakes which require that the piston be screwed inward on account of the internal parking brake design. |  |
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Turning the handle does the trick. The other piston visible has already been pushed home. Movement of the piston(s) in this direction will displace brake fluid. |
| Remove the cap from the underhood brake fluid reservoir to determine if there is sufficient room for brake fluid rise as you retract the caliper piston(s). Place an old cotton undershirt or the like over the opening to absorb any overfull spills if necessary. Take care not to allow lint or foreign material to enter the reservoir opening. Spilled fluid is harmful to the paint finish. |  |
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With the pistons fully pressed back into the caliper housing the caliper will slide back over the new pads. Pushing down slightly on the caliper assembly will squeeze those brake pad spring clips allowing the caliper retaining bolts to find their female threaded counterparts in the abutment bracket. Snug these bolts but do not over tighten. Don’t neglect to reinstall the fluid reservoir cap. To complete the job you must “pump the brake pedal” to remove the free play between caliper pistons and pads. There will be little or no stopping ability otherwise and could lead to unpleasant surprise. Test drive to check for proper operation including a “panic stop” to assure that the ABS functions. |
pilgrimage
We went to see the cars on display at the show and, as it happened, this 3rd Annual 2009 Historic Occoneechee-Orange Speedway “Celebration of the Automobile” Car Show & Racers Reunion took place at a location that NASCAR devotees revere as holy ground.The old speedway site features an oval dirt track which traces its beginnings back to the inaugural 1949 race season for the franchise and is now, in fact, considered to be a historical preservation. The dirt track by now is only partially visible because the infield (and outfields) are completely overgrown with tall pines and woods. There was a crumbling concession stand that they lingered over. Only a broken foundation and a rusty pop cooler were visible in the remains. A section of cement grandstand remains in decay and it was amusing to see the a fore mentioned race fans taking a moment to sit down on them contemplative, solemn and introspect seeing and hearing in their imagination the cars roaring round and round.
Lost in the Translation
The Google Voice service transcribes voice mail messages ( by machine ) which can be somewhat off:
“This is James a catholic area calling let you know that your car needs 8 number is that it is not opening and closing properly parts and labor to your place with them. That is about 481. Give me a call back. 555-2036. Thank you.”
I get the gist. Thankfully Google has a Play Message Back link with the real deal.
Degas Bottle
Shade tree mechanic(s) wrestle with a faulty radiator coolant expansion tank: The reservoir was split which allowed weepage and seepage which eventually became leakage. None of these symptoms were visible from the engine compartment topside, except for the occasional adding of coolant. The sickening sweet smell from the slippery glycol mixture dripping from the underbelly was also noted. A new unit was ordered. The challenging bit was the removal of the original hoses and clamps. They were hard to access due to obscure placement and confined space. Luckily we prevailed with the uttering of only a few choice curse words and NO skinned knuckles. We took step by step photos detailing the procedure. Once the new piece was in place we followed the procedure to refill and bleed the system.
UK misc, rambling observations
The Driving: A serious challenge and will whip any lazy (brain dead) USA motorist into a focused attentive driver pretty darn quick. The country roads are ultra narrow. Add bicyclists, motorcyclists, farm tractors, pedestrians, equestrians to the mix and there is no chance for bad habits like fumbling with the CD changer or blabbing on the cellular.
The Laws: Roadway Signage is excellent — until you get to a traffic circle round-a-bout that is; then all bets are off. Stop Light Signals, when RED, change next to YELLOW and then GREEN drag race staging style. Lane discipline on the motorways is something to see. No left lane, er uh, right-lane bandits ever.
The Cars: 80% are subcompact Vauxhall, Peugeot, Fords, Citroen all silly looking and fugly. Some of these towing caravans(!). Surprised at how many MINIs there are. They blend in (fit) really well. If I change my residence, then I would have one of those. Trucks have safety side bumpers to prevent small cars from wedging underneath. “Well Driven? +44 0555-1212”. A scarcity of American cars. Only saw a half dozen or so and most of them were the Chrysler minivan. Spotted 1 Corvette and 1 Ford Lightning PU. The medium|high priced car in the UK is, in order of popularity, Audi (by far), BMW, Mercedes. Our “hire car” was a Land Rover Freelander 2 which was either a curse or a blessing. Thankful for the extra room / comfort but we were now the biggest and widest thing (the British relative equivalent to a Ford Excursion) on those aforementioned skinny country lanes.
Navigation: Thank gawd for the in-dash NAV system. Off the beaten path exploration would have been a PITA impossible without it. The Brits use miles and MPH (?!)