HAPPY SPRING!

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING! (?)



UPDATE: 135,387

Vic is home and feeling a little better.  Taxi Guy replaced the rear brake pads and fuel filter, but didn't repair the emergency brake, as it would be a $400 job (rear axles have to come out to do the shoes).  So he didn't do the e-brakes, but did fix the exhaust leak. 

Thing is, it wasn't the gasket.  The flanges on the pipes were rotted away!

So he did a little welding so that there was something to put bolts through.  Otherwise, we'd be looking at actual pipes, or at least replaced flange parts.  So what he did was weld on some thick washers, and... well, just take a look at the photo. 

Now that Vic is 15 years old, I wonder if soon I should replace it.  The fenders are rotting, rear wheelwells are rotting... but it runs great.  Interior is almost mint.  A hard decision to make, but once things start rotting away, well... that isn't a good sign...

UPDATE: Crown Vic Monster Truck

Yesterday I decided to run a quick errand, and half way to my destination, I started hearing a rumble.  At first, I thought it was the Subaru in front of me.  Then when I pushed the gas pedal, I came to the realisation that the sound was coming from MY car. 

Exhaust gasket #2 has failed.  And Vic sounds like a Dodge truck with an 8 foot lift kit, chrome everything, and lots of decals.

If you look back through the WUWV archives, you will see that Todd and I replaced one back in 2006.  So it took 6 years for the other one to rot away!  I think I still have a replacement gasket in the trunk, as I bought two, figuring I'd need the second one done soon.  Six years isn't exactly "soon". 

Taxi Guy is on vacation, so Vic will have to wait until later this week to get fixed.  I guess this will be a good time to get rear brake pads, and see if the e-brake can be sorted out... again... I have had that emergency brake setup fixed a billion times, and it always stops working. 

As for Todd's '06, it had been acting strange.  Todd kept having to turn back during his morning commute because the car would barely run.  But when we took it out on weekends, on longer drives,  it was fine.  Finally, it got so bad one day the engine light went on, so now there was a code to read.  The problem?  The throttle position sensor. 

2/7/13 - Another 1,000 Miles...

Sun Sets Over the California Highway Patrol's Fleet of Ford Crown Victorias

An article about the CHP's fleet of Crown Vics, once again supplied by "2-Car Joe H." down in Florida...

Sun Sets Over the California Highway Patrol's Fleet of Ford Crown Victorias

(1/30/12) As you may have heard, Ford has ended production of the venerable Crown Victoria, the mainstay vehicle of American police and taxi fleets for decades.

The Crown Vic assembly line shut down last September, so we found ourselves wondering: What will replace the Crown Victoria in the California Highway Patrol's fleet? Hoping to find an answer, we dropped by the CHP's Fleet Operations facility in West Sacramento, California last weekend, hoping to see what the CHP has purchased now that the Crown Vic is no more.

On one level, our visit was a failure: Instead of finding the CHP's replacement vehicle -- the Interwebs say the Dodge Charger is a likely candidate -- we instead discovered that the CHP is hoarding hundreds of Crown Victorias for future use.

But as metaphor, the trip was a stunning success. We happened to arrive in West Sacramento at dusk, just as a firey sunset was exploding in the sky behind the CHP's motor pool parking lot. It was oddly beautiful.

UPDATE: Plop, Plop, Ping, Ping...

This morning while getting onto Rt3 N, Vic made some odd noises.  They were sort of like when it is cold out, you have some ice under the windshield wipers, and it breaks loose.  Only it was sort of under the hood, or even under the dash.  Then I smelled exhaust.  Thing is, at the same time, there was an older Jeep Grand Cherokee with its hazard lights on, slowly going down the breakdown lane, and also a horse trailer was in front of me.

Now, I am pretty sure I couldn't hear a horse stomping around in that trailer.  And the Jeep didn't appear to have a flat tire.  The sounds didn't last long, but I was starting to worry.  Add in the fact it was very windy, and hard to keep the car from wandering in the lane.  The thought of a ball joint giving way crossed my mind...

A little later, I accidently tapped the emergency brake pedal, and found that it sank right to the floor.  AHA!  Maybe the cable snapped??  Was it wrapped around something under the hood?  Uhoh... When I got a chance to pull over and check, the cable was still intact.  Granted, it was sagging as usual.  It seems that sometimes when I step on the e-brake, it does nothing (like normal), or it REALLY does nothing, and just sinks to the floor.  When I got home, I soaked (what I think is) the cable tensioner with WD-40, in an effort fo loosen things up a bit.  I am not hopeful... I need rear pads anyway, so perhaps it is almost time to make an appointment with Taxi Guy...

Brand New Littleton MA Ford Police Interceptor SUV



While heading home today, I found myself looking right at a brand new Ford PI SUV, belonging to the Littleton MA police.  Since it was parked in good light, I decided to ask the sergeant inside if I could take a photo of it.  Littleton always used to have Crown Vics, but then they started buying Dodge Chargers.  The Sgt. told me they are trying the new Fords now, but that he wasn't fond of the SUV.  He said it is slow, and doesn't like the seats.  So that makes one officer I've asked so far who doesn't like the new Fords.  Seeing as he is the first one I have asked, that isn't a very good track record!  Time will tell...



Littleton MA, 1/10/13 - © Jonelle DeFelice