Recent content by TacoFergie

A couple years ago I was looking at some Purolator's on the shelf and noticed the louvers in the center tube weren't even opened, not even a little gap using my Streamlight pen light. There were multiple like that on the shelf and even found some at a different store the next I was doing an oil...

I would try OAI for UOA's. Your viscosity at 100C being at 6.95cST is quite low. Valvoline Extended Protection 0w20 new is 8.4cST. When I was using Blackstone for our Ascent I was getting similar viscosity results and fuel dilution results over 4k-4500 mile intervals. After posting results with...

Depending on your mileage, you may be better off just going every 6 months if that won't exceed 5k. Fresh oil is happy oil, especially if you're short tripping.

I wonder how they test that? My Tacoma fuel economy improved by 1-2mpg consistently across the board after the tune. Our Ascent tune had no effect on fuel mileage, though throttle response is way smoother and it's a good bit peppier deeper into the throttle.

I don't understand what's so difficult about programming a transmission or proper throttle linearity to just work from OEM's? It's almost as if they're devolpment test drivers are numb or the manufactures just say that's good enough. My previous 15 Tacoma tried to get to the highest gear...

Yeha, I was surprised when I found out that the house had geothermal. The fact that it was fitted to an old house in town and has a well drilled in the front yard couldn't have been cheap, even in 1995. I'm thankful it's there. That's really cool! I wonder how the system works for a whole...

It'd be nice if geothermal was used more and was cost effective to install. The geothermal setup in my house was installed 32yrs ago by a previous owner and knock on wood the only issue I've had is a circulation pump failure. Keeping my 1950's mediocrely insulated house at 68F plus other...

In every car or SUV offered in a hybrid, I would buy a hybrid 100% of the time even with a hill/mountain like you're talking about. Hybrid variant's of many vehicles are very similar in cost compared to the non-hybrid model and have proven to be as reliable or sometimes more reliable (like...

In CA I think it's a different type of living. In my area of NW IA, our homes are older, charging network is spread out and we see temperature exteme's both ways. I'm not saying EV's are bad or impossible, just maybe not ideal. For instance my house built in the 50's and only has 100A sevice, so...

I suppose if Honda reduced the 6 cylinder to a 4 cylinder, that would reduce weight that would of course be offset by the hybrid system. The Ninja hybrid is only about 60-70lbs more than Kawasaki's other sport bikes. While I agree that city operation is where hybrids shine, it could help...

Typically the percentage changes are due to seasonal temps. In NW IA we typically see 78-85% (station dependant) from late Feb/early Mar to around mid-late Sept. During the colder months the percentage decreases due to it being harder to start at low temps. Though in my area the prices don't...

Still plenty of E85 in my area on NW IA, though we are the primary source for corn as well. But I hardly know anyone that uses E85 besides people using it as race gas. 15% ethanol I'm not a fan of. I tried it in my 3.5 ecoboost F150 and saw a loss of 2-3mpg and at idle it was a little shaky...

While CAFE doen't apply (yet, hopefully never), it could be a great design for some motorcycle categories. Imagine a big old Goldwing getting 50mpg or better, the range could be extended possibly up to 300 miles on a tank plus having more torque, that'd be nearly every long haul rider's dream.

It's an interesting concept. I wonder if something like this will ever catch on with other manufactures? Honda seems like they could implement a system very well as they have been doing DCT bikes for a long time and seem to have it figured out. Plus their hybrid experiecne on the automotive...

Mobil 10w40 is hard to beat for the price, Amsoil is fantastic if you're already a member and order stuff from there for your other vehicles. But with your riding style and mileage, I think any decent MC oil would work great. As for chain lube, tons of options out there and a lot of personal...