Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: CAP1 on December 11, 2010, 08:26:54 AM
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yep......i can't wait till every single car i work on has these frackin stupid assd things.
get a fast moving high or low pressure system come through? it triggers them. go from 40 degrees one day to the teens the next day? it triggers them,. i get people all day long stopping in to ask me to check their tires for air, although they look fine....and when i check them they are. why did they want them checked? because the light on their dash told em they were low. too frackin stupid to use their common sense.
most of these systems function by a valve stem with a transponder built into them, thus making the valve stem expensive(as in $50-150). plus now you need to be careful when you change the tires, so as to not break that transponder.
some of them need to be programed to the car. some cars have a simple reset procedure, and others you need to go through the computer.
the most fun thing, is that the govt. has mandated that all new cars must be equipped with some form of tire pressure monitor now. WHY? are we all REALLY too friggin stupid to look at our car, and say "hey, that tire is flat!"?
<<rant off>>
oh yea.....try the ava....free jets all week. :devil
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Would be nice to have them installed, but there should be a light next to it reading "Use common sense dummy, check the tire visually". I could have used one last month when I left a parking lot noticing something odd (old car, seemed mostly normal), after about 1/4 mile I found it was a flat (second flat from that blasted lot). Would have been nice to know before I drove it was flat but I never remember to check each tire before driving. Stupid flat cost me $90 to fix due to having ripped the entire thing up driving on it. :o
I do feel bad for so many Auto-mechanics, I've seen some stupid people come into the local place here while I've waited.
You're becoming a walking billboard! :devil
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Ummm
Perhaps I'm spoiled but when my car starts pulling un naturally one direction or another my first thought is 'I've got a tire problem' and I stop as soon as I can, pull out a tire gauge, and check them if there is nothing definitive from a visual inspection.
98 cent tire gauge vs 150 dollar tire for the win.
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My tire pressure light has beeen on for years. Been replaced at the dealer 3 times.I just gave up. I tell my daughter, she hates putting on her seat belt, that its the seat belt sensor light.
Semp
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Yea Cap1 i see the same thing everyday at work as well. It really gets annoying when your balls deep in some "real" work and these clowns pull up like "can you check my air pressure my light is on" that really wears me out. And the kicker is they want it checked NOW because they've got other things to do rather than wait for you to check it. It doesnt matter to them if your juggling 4 things in 1 hand trying to: oh lets say put a steering knuckle back in they want you to stop what your doing now and check it. It normally doesnt bother me that bad when the elderly come and ask me to do it because i can tell something that is easy for me to do (im 25yrs old) is really difficult for them to do. And even women i dont mind doing it for hell half of them barely know how to put gas in their cars, but what really wears me out is when men my age come by and demand we check. There's been a time or too when i a men come and are like "Hey!....... Hey!..... HEY!!!! Can you tell me why my tire pressure light is on?" Im like sure you probably need some air in your tire, there is a gas station right down the street that has free air! :rofl
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wait
you can get free air? Where?
I tried blowing my tires up manually once and it floated away ;)
All comedy aside, low grade as it may be, I've got a ton of respect for mechanics. I could probably do 50% of the 'easy' work you guys do after screwing it up 10 times. Another reason I dig this board. You can get really solid straightforward advice you can count on from people who know what they're doing and explained in a language I can understand.
I contribute.. hmmm... well... I can make funny pictures and stuff :) But if you need a light pole designed I'm all over it!!!
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Great, more expensive crap that will break down. Like Dichotomy said, I keep a little tire gauge in my truck and check the tires if it seems like one side is pulling to much.
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ASIDE from my rant, when i see advice asked for here, i try to offer the best advice i can, because when it comes right down to it, there are a LOT of shops out there that will try to rake ya over the coals every time. i don't do that...which is why i'll probably always be poor....but at least i can sleep at night.
i worked for a shop(midas) that was top of the line on selling things that cars didn't need. i stayed there only long enough to get another job, then i was outta there.
yea mcboi.......old people, i never hesitate on doing little things like that for them. i'm too close to being one of em(48). :rofl women i do it for too, but i make it a point to educate them as i do it. i explain how much air should be there, and show them how to read the gauge. and of course, show them how to put the air in.
and yes, it is somewhat annoying when i see a healthy young to middle aged male come up, and want/need help with air, when my overweight diabetic mother doesn't need as much help as some of these guys.
and yea shirly....some places still have free air, although those places are becoming fewer and farther between.
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Great, more expensive crap that will break down. Like Dichotomy said, I keep a little tire gauge in my truck and check the tires if it seems like one side is pulling to much.
well here;s the funny part about that.
ford was one of the first to use those half assed transponders. meanwhile, gm was piggybacking this system on the abs system. it worked very well. lower tire pressure will create a different speed of rotation on one of the tires, and trigger the light. less false alarms on these too.
for whatever reason(i'm sure an engineer showed how these transponders were necessary and that the other way sucked) gm went to the same type of system. meanwhile, for a little while, ford went to an earlier gm system that used to be used on the 80's corvettes......use a gigantic clamp around the wheel, and clamp the transponder to the middle of the wheel. very easy to frack that one up too when changing the tires.
should i go into the half dozen people a day that want me to drop what i'm doing and walk out in the pouring rain to give them directions, or shoudl i start another whining thread about that one? :devil
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Yessir i always try to educate the ones that have no idea like when some woman pulls up in a Honda civic and is like can you put 50psi in my tires. I try to explain to them not to go off of what the tire says but rather to go off of what the label inside the door is
over half the drivers ive dealt with never even knew that there was such a thing as that label indicating the proper psi for their vehicle.
and i totally agree with you on being honest and sometimes costing you. i almost got fired for explaining to a guy that his ball joints on his 98 Dodge Ram were in need of replacing and advising him to take it easy on the truck until he got the $ to get them replaced, but the manager inside was wearing this guy out about how they would fall out the next day if he didnt do the $900 job now. If it is dire that it needs to be done then i let them know, but if it is something that they can hold out a little on, im going to let them know that as well.
My pops hates mechanics has never taking his car to a mechanic because he doesn't trust them, so he learned to do all of his own basic repair work himself. I guess because of my pops i try to be as honest as i can with the customers as i can so that they will trust me and when i say something is in need of replacing they understand and do it.
To me it all comes down to loyal customers, you have 2 kinds of cattle in our industry daily cattle that you can milk over and over ( meaning you treat them right and they continue coming back) and there are slaughter cattle that you try to "rape" and get as much as you can at 1 time. me personally i prefer the dairy cattle lol job security
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Ummm
Perhaps I'm spoiled but when my car starts pulling un naturally one direction or another my first thought is 'I've got a tire problem' and I stop as soon as I can, pull out a tire gauge, and check them if there is nothing definitive from a visual inspection.
98 cent tire gauge vs 150 dollar tire for the win.
You must have a nice car. :P
Every flat I've had drove like normal it just made a strange noise. Considering this old Honda makes weird noises anyways it's hard to take them seriously.
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and yet neither of you guys are local :cry
I've got a 2000 stang v6 that could use some of the standard maint for having 100k on it. Caps already given me the tutorial and I'm sure I can do it but how nice it would be to be able to take it to a guy I trust that will be reasonable on his rates. I want to give it to the Squid soon then I'm going to be looking for a 2001 to 2003 GT. It'd be dang nice to take it to a shop I trust to give me the low down.
By the way Cap.. the work you told me how to do? Ya that 'trustworthy shop' down the street estimated $1500 bucks. *eyeroll*
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You must have a nice car. :P
Every flat I've had drove like normal it just made a strange noise. Considering this old Honda makes weird noises anyways it's hard to take them seriously.
perhaps because I've been driving it almost 11 years? no that's not it. I'm just very sensitive to how my car drives and 'feels' . Always have been from a 77 Cutlass to an F350 to my beloved stang. *shrug*
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Anyway to go around or disable the tire things? How about putting in a cheap valve stem?
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Anyway to go around or disable the tire things? How about putting in a cheap valve stem?
you can put the regular stems in their place.....but then you've got to live with that light lit on the dash.
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you can put the regular stems in their place.....but then you've got to live with that light lit on the dash.
Works for me, eventually it will burn out
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Or just remove the plastic panel on the dashboard, and paint over it.
-Penguin
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those bulbs don't burn out that fast.......most modern cars, they;re led's.
painting over it isn't as easy as it sounds.
what i see a lot of, is someon's picture over the offending light.
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Air?? what's that, i use nitrogen to inflate my Tires :aok
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WHY? are we all REALLY too friggin stupid to look at our car, and say "hey, that tire is flat!"?
Say thanks to Ford/Firestone
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Guess the nex ttruck will have one even though I wont want it. A light on in the dash wont bother me at all if it saves me $$$ on another expensive useless sensor
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Say thanks to Ford/Firestone
well first off, that was ford, and not firestone.....and i like fords too.
the early explorers rode like crap......people in them wanted a cadillac ride, and ford couldn't make a ranger in disguise ride that way...so they specified a lower tire pressure than firestone recomended.......
that being said, tpm system still wouldn't have helped....if all tires are equal, and you reset it, most systems still won't trigger till you have one tire lower than the others.
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The newly mandated tire pressure monitors are going to malfuncton with plain compresed air - mostly due to the inherent moisture and corrosion caused by the trapped moisture (humidity) Air is 78 percent nitrogen, just under 21 percent oxygen, and the rest is water vapor, CO2 and small concentrations of noble gases such as neon and argon, Mechanic friends of mine have told me of problems with corrosion (and malfunctioning) tire pressure sensors, Much of the moisture problem with compressed air could be solved with adequate air filters, moisture traps, and driers,
Nitrogen is just plain superior to plain compressed air, which is why race cars and airplanes have been using it for years, If you switch to nitrogen, be sure to put the green valve caps on your tire valves and remind your auto sevice personnel to not monkey with the tire presure unless thay have nitrogen
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The newly mandated tire pressure monitors are going to malfuncton with plain compresed air - mostly due to the inherent moisture and corrosion caused by the trapped moisture (humidity) Air is 78 percent nitrogen, just under 21 percent oxygen, and the rest is water vapor, CO2 and small concentrations of noble gases such as neon and argon, Mechanic friends of mine have told me of problems with corrosion (and malfunctioning) tire pressure sensors, Much of the moisture problem with compressed air could be solved with adequate air filters, moisture traps, and driers,
Nitrogen is just plain superior to plain compressed air, which is why race cars and airplanes have been using it for years, If you switch to nitrogen, be sure to put the green valve caps on your tire valves and remind your auto sevice personnel to not monkey with the tire presure unless thay have nitrogen
the ones noe malfunction, just as the new ones will....simply from extreme weather changes....
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also from the moisture your putting into your tire from the compressed air thru your valve stem , face it most shops (not all) don't have moisture free systems,and i wouldn't doubt that a majority of them don't drain there tanks nightly of condensation due to the lack of being trained to, those coin operated compressors, ugh never use those unless its an emergency
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also from the moisture your putting into your tire from the compressed air thru your valve stem , face it most shops (not all) don't have moisture free systems,and i wouldn't doubt that a majority of them don't drain there tanks nightly of condensation due to the lack of being trained to, those coin operated compressors, ugh never use those unless its an emergency
i've not yet had a failure due to moisture in the air inside of the tire. i do understand where you're going though.
most times that i've had to replace em has been due to some moron leaving the cap off....then since they're made of alum. and steel inserts...whelp...the resulting corrosion will cause them to break if anyone tries to loosen the core.
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i know a lot of import vehicles such as bmw, mercedes, .... use the metal caps. I personally hate them they corrode to the valve stems all the time then it breaks the sensor and your stuck buying a $100 sensor. If you have the metal caps i recommend replacing them with the good ol' plastic ones. may not look as cool but who cares? If you need chrome valve caps to make your ride look cool consider getting a new whip lol
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i know a lot of import vehicles such as bmw, mercedes, .... use the metal caps. I personally hate them they corrode to the valve stems all the time then it breaks the sensor and your stuck buying a $100 sensor. If you have the metal caps i recommend replacing them with the good ol' plastic ones. may not look as cool but who cares? If you need chrome valve caps to make your ride look cool consider getting a new whip lol
THERE are placstc caps made just for these typse of stems. they have sealnig o-rings in them. and yes, that is an excellent point.
i'll be whining about losty people, and friggin fuel pumps tonight..... :bolt: :noid :rofl
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I must say, I rather like my pressure monitor system. I've got through some crazy temperature and pressure swings, and I've yet to have the light go off with a false-positive. I still check my tires visually, but when make REALLY long drives, it's nice to know I'll at least get a warning before I lose a tire.
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I must say, I rather like my pressure monitor system. I've got through some crazy temperature and pressure swings, and I've yet to have the light go off with a false-positive. I still check my tires visually, but when make REALLY long drives, it's nice to know I'll at least get a warning before I lose a tire.
not necessarily. the system cannot possibly warn you of a catastrophic failure. it will only warn you of low pressure....which the cars handling will tell you on its own.
i've had 3 in the last week with false positives.....
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not necessarily. the system cannot possibly warn you of a catastrophic failure. it will only warn you of low pressure....which the cars handling will tell you on its own.
i've had 3 in the last week with false positives.....
True, and I've only ever had catastrophic failure, lol. But nonetheless, right now I know I have a screw going through one of my tires, and I won't have the money to replace it until January. I always take a look at the tire before driving to make sure it's still fine, and I keep an eye on the dash to make sure it doesn't get low while driving.
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True, and I've only ever had catastrophic failure, lol. But nonetheless, right now I know I have a screw going through one of my tires, and I won't have the money to replace it until January. I always take a look at the tire before driving to make sure it's still fine, and I keep an eye on the dash to make sure it doesn't get low while driving.
find a local shop....should only cost $20 TOPS to hacve that tire plugged/.
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Another fun thought for us poor bastards that work on these things. Battery life :O, these things don't run forever. I have 4 dead ones on my 2000 vette, am I spending 160 bucks plus my time and effort to replace them, nope. That's what the "reset" button is for :lol. Plus the vettes get checked out before every drive anyway.
The problem with modern cars is in their complexity and the amount of electronics needed to support systems that in the past were simply "hard wired". Remember when your power windows simply were a manual switch, a motor and a regulator. Now you have a manual switch, a door control module, a body control module, possibly a security controller, and then a motor and regulator. Almost all cars of today will be impossible to restore to perfect working order 20 years from now (if they have been used all those 20 years). Why you may ask, simple after about 10 years, the auto manufacturers stop stocking inventory for a car, what's sold after that is not replaced. After a car is 10 years old, most salvage yards scrap them out. The aftermarket isn't going to have a high demand for a right rear door contol module for a 2002 grand am in 2022, but without it your right rear window won't work. There are exceptions to this rule for cars that are normally collected, corvettes, mustangs, etc. But for most they are doomed. My 69 big block convertible however will be able to be rebuilt as many times as I want. Why, becouse everything is hard wired and mechanical in nature. Oh well 2012 is almost here anyway :noid :lol
:salute
BigRat
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Another fun thought for us poor bastards that work on these things. Battery life :O, these things don't run forever. I have 4 dead ones on my 2000 vette, am I spending 160 bucks plus my time and effort to replace them, nope. That's what the "reset" button is for :lol. Plus the vettes get checked out before every drive anyway.
The problem with modern cars is in their complexity and the amount of electronics needed to support systems that in the past were simply "hard wired". Remember when your power windows simply were a manual switch, a motor and a regulator. Now you have a manual switch, a door control module, a body control module, possibly a security controller, and then a motor and regulator. Almost all cars of today will be impossible to restore to perfect working order 20 years from now (if they have been used all those 20 years). Why you may ask, simple after about 10 years, the auto manufacturers stop stocking inventory for a car, what's sold after that is not replaced. After a car is 10 years old, most salvage yards scrap them out. The aftermarket isn't going to have a high demand for a right rear door contol module for a 2002 grand am in 2022, but without it your right rear window won't work. There are exceptions to this rule for cars that are normally collected, corvettes, mustangs, etc. But for most they are doomed. My 69 big block convertible however will be able to be rebuilt as many times as I want. Why, becouse everything is hard wired and mechanical in nature. Oh well 2012 is almost here anyway :noid :lol
:salute
BigRat
dood......don't even get me started on stuff like this. it makes skuzzy's having to babysit us here look like a walk in the park.......and i would easily get myself skuzzified should i go on a real rant about this crap. :noid
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You can't tell if tires are at a safe pressure by "looking at them" yea you can tell if it looks a bit low but...
When you drive 75 MPH down the highway 1 tire being 10 lbs. low can cause a fatality.
It's not likely but can happen, check your tire pressures with a gauge don't trust the scensor :old:
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You can't tell if tires are at a safe pressure by "looking at them" yea you can tell if it looks a bit low but...
When you drive 75 MPH down the highway 1 tire being 10 lbs. low can cause a fatality.
It's not likely but can happen, check your tire pressures with a gauge don't trust the scensor :old:
10 lbs low is actually very easy to see.
that being said, your last line is what everyone should do.
i truly think that new drivers should be taught a basic "preflight" to go through before they get in their car.
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Okay all of you teenage pilets go back, read every page of this thread, and follow the advice of the gents who know what they're talking about. It beats the heck out of standing by the side of the road waiting for mom or dad to get there.
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find a local shop....should only cost $20 TOPS to hacve that tire plugged/.
I've got $6 in the bank after getting my oil changed today (Fortunately, I think I get paid in 4 days... though honestly I'm not sure if we get paid while on holiday...). Interestingly, when I was at the shop getting the oil changed, one of the techs came in and said "Hey, the screw in your tire was loose, so we tightened it for ya!" I laughed my rear off.
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10 lbs low is actually very easy to see.
that being said, your last line is what everyone should do.
i truly think that new drivers should be taught a basic "preflight" to go through before they get in their car.
As a mechanic, what do you suggest as "preflight" checks before driving?
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I've got $6 in the bank after getting my oil changed today (Fortunately, I think I get paid in 4 days... though honestly I'm not sure if we get paid while on holiday...). Interestingly, when I was at the shop getting the oil changed, one of the techs came in and said "Hey, the screw in your tire was loose, so we tightened it for ya!" I laughed my rear off.
funny you should say that.
a long time friend of mine had an old ford e350 van. had a nail in the passengers side rear tire. every 2 or 3 weeks, he'd go out to his van with a small tach hammer, and hammer it back in, then bring the tire back up to pressure. :rofl
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As a mechanic, what do you suggest as "preflight" checks before driving?
within cap, we have a form that is used every time one of our vans is used for the first time on a day....complete walk around. all lights, back up alarm, tire pressures, engine oil, brake fluid, coolant, belts, etc.
for the average driver though.......
once a week, check engine oil level, transmission fluid level, brake fluid level, power steering fluid level, and use a gauge to check your tire pressures. check your lights too.
every morning, a quick visual.....tires look ok. it's ok to kick them, as you really can tell if one is low. it'll feel different than the others.
i tend to look at my brake lights reflect off of the garage door window as i pull outta my driveway, and cycle the turnsignals as i head up the road.
also, since it's cold in a large part of the country now, you should keep some bottled water in the car, a blanket, and possibly an extra sweater. spare battery for your cell phone, some flares, and check your spare tire.
i'm sure i've missed a few things.........
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funny you should say that.
a long time friend of mine had an old ford e350 van. had a nail in the passengers side rear tire. every 2 or 3 weeks, he'd go out to his van with a small tach hammer, and hammer it back in, then bring the tire back up to pressure. :rofl
lol. I've made it a week and a half without losing any pressure so far, so I'm honestly not too worried about it.
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get it fixed as soon as you can..
you crack me up too much on the boards so I don't want you in the hospital. <S>
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get it fixed as soon as you can..
you crack me up too much on the boards so I don't want you in the hospital. <S>
As I said, I think I get paid in 4 days so it's on the top of my list. Fortunately, I'm on leave and hunkered down with my girlfriend, so i'm not really driving anywhere.
<S> sir! And thank you!
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i'm sure i've missed a few things.........
A rifle to shoot the deer that cross the highway...
A bag of medical supplies (bandages, epi-pens, inhalers)
And if you get really desperate for food:
(http://www.nazarian.no/images/wep/408_rpg-7.jpg)
-Penguin
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A rifle to shoot the deer that cross the highway...
A bag of medical supplies (bandages, epi-pens, inhalers)
And if you get really desperate for food:
(http://www.nazarian.no/images/wep/408_rpg-7.jpg)
-Penguin
number 2 is an excellent idea too that i missed
number one is a joke. in nj, we hunt deer with our cars. :noid it gets a little expensive, but you don't have to carry your kill to your car....it's already there. :rofl
number 3 is friggin hilarious!! :rofl :rofl
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number 2 is an excellent idea too that i missed
number one is a joke. in nj, we hunt deer with our cars. :noid it gets a little expensive, but you don't have to carry your kill to your car....it's already there. :rofl
number 3 is friggin hilarious!! :rofl :rofl
My uncle totaled his Jaguar on a deer about a year back in New Jersey... Kept the meat though!
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road kill
in Texas we call that a snack :D
12 minutes Laverne
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Think a gallon of water would freeze sitting in your car? It's not deathly cold here, we might see a string of days below 0 though. I suppose if I make sure to take it out at night it will be fine, but I'm sure I'll forget.
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Think a gallon of water would freeze sitting in your car? It's not deathly cold here, we might see a string of days below 0 though. I suppose if I make sure to take it out at night it will be fine, but I'm sure I'll forget.
taking it out is a good idea. i only say to keep water, because you lose water from your body constantly,.....and on the outside chance that you got stranded, water to drink is much more important than food.
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taking it out is a good idea. i only say to keep water, because you lose water from your body constantly,.....and on the outside chance that you got stranded, water to drink is much more important than food.
Absolutely, I couldn't agree more. I was wanting another perspective, I keep quite a bit of safety stuff in my car, but never knew how I could haul some water without it freezing during the winter.
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Absolutely, I couldn't agree more. I was wanting another perspective, I keep quite a bit of safety stuff in my car, but never knew how I could haul some water without it freezing during the winter.
posibly a backpack with your water, and some warm clothes in it? something you'd take in with you at night?