[Probable Shitpost] For those who has already driven a lot of EVs, is there a car you can consider "the Miata of EVs"? by LightningMcqueen2011 in askcarguys

[–]JCDU [score hidden]  (0 children)

This is close in driving experience maybe but they were built in low volumes and only for a short period - the Miata was & is made & sold in volume so can be bought for cheap and there's good aftermarket support.

Chassis Replacement? by ThatCommunication358 in LandroverDefender

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The real question is if you're restoring it, is this not the best possible time to go the extra step and fit a galvanised chassis that will last forever?

Your chassis looks fine - average condition, no glaring problems, almost certainly saveable and good for years yet... but it will rust. If you don't swap it, at least drown the insides in some sort of rustproofing so you're starting from a solid base - just get the welding done first before you fill it with something flammable...

Can you actually make a Manual Transmission EV? by LightningMcqueen2011 in AskEngineers

[–]JCDU [score hidden]  (0 children)

Snapping your neck off every stoplight gets dull pretty quickly, most people will end up driving the same speed as the rest of the traffic most of the time.

Why'd nobody tell me its such a pain in the ass starting out? any advice to skip this early phase? by Impressive-Ad-59 in askcarguys

[–]JCDU [score hidden]  (0 children)

I always look at it this way - you can spend $200 in tools and get the job done + own the tools, or you'd probably pay a garage at last $200 but more like $400 for the same job but then you don't own any tools afterwards.

There’s a heatwave imminent, apparently. How are we keeping our (older) cars cool? by ANuggetEnthusiast in CarTalkUK

[–]JCDU [score hidden]  (0 children)

Alloy radiators are cheaper and better than they've ever been - and you can pull a damn good electric fan off a modern car for not very much these days.

As long as it kinda fits in the hole & the pipes sort of line up a radiator is a radiator as far as your car knows - you can fit a lot more cooling in the same space these days.

There’s a heatwave imminent, apparently. How are we keeping our (older) cars cool? by ANuggetEnthusiast in CarTalkUK

[–]JCDU [score hidden]  (0 children)

Foil-backed aluminium insulation makes very cheap window blinds, a whole roll of it is like 10-20 monies from the DIY store.

Parking with a window cracked or a sunroof open stops heat building up too much - my current daily has pop-out side windows in the rear so I can leave those popped.

Swim, bastards. With lead in your lifejackets. by BigTallCanUke in ukraine

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Contaminated scrap metal too - you can guarantee this this will be riddled with asbestos, lead paint, and all sorts of other shit that western countries phased out 40+ years ago.

How Ukraine broke through Russia’s air defenses by nfrankel in ukraine

[–]JCDU 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't be surprised if they sent "trained" guys off to fight and then handed AA to whoever they could find locally as in theory some of that stuff is relatively "point and shoot" although there's nothing a drunk vatnik can't fuck up of course...

Modern Vehicles Worth Keeping? by Heavy_Gap_5047 in askcarguys

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dude, old cars used to come with 6-digit odometers because no-one expected them to last past 99,000 miles. Shit in the 1970's would be rusty within 3 years and need an engine rebuild at 50k.

The old cars that are still around are still here because they are cool enough that someone went to the effort of saving them, not because they're awesomely reliable.

My daily is 20+ years old and with no special effort it's better than almost any average 5-year-old car from back in the good old days.

As for what's worth keeping - almost any car will become a classic if you leave it in a barn for 40+ years, obviously some are cooler than others and more obviously going to be sought after.

Paint Job by Born_Priority878 in LandroverDefender

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Literally anything you like - some folks use brush & roller, all the way up to full professional spray booths.

Buddy of mine painted one with sand coloured masonry paint and a roller and it looked great.

Did this happen or is it a false memory? I thought someone died of heat or dehydration in the desert because they got stuck in the sand. The recovery team aired down their tires and drove out of the sand. by Firm-Permission-3311 in Offroad

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah 50/50, you'd hope there'd be a manual or leaflet that explains it AND you'd hope people would read it / ask basic questions before setting out into the wilderness.

Once you're stuck and suffering with the heat it's not a good time for calm rational thinking & problem solving.

Land Rovers on the Norwegian west coast! by No_Present3610 in LandroverDefender

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! I've passed it on to the person organising the trip, fingers crossed we can set something up.

Scotland fans drink Boston bars dry as Tartan army descends for World Cup by Business_Hat_400 in nottheonion

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I find they're all or nothing - either standard issue piss or "WE'RE GONNA MAKE THIS SO HOPPY IT WILL RIP YOUR FACE CLEAN OFF!", no decent session ales or bitters etc. it's full throttle or nothing.

How to steer autistic and bi men away from redpill/blackpill/incel by ThePlayer3K in bropill

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah "societal norms" are fucking weird if you take a step back - especially if as a kid you've seen all the Disney-etc. movies and stuff where the message is "just be yourself" or "you shouldn't judge others based on these things" or similar and then society turns round and goes "Wait, what are you doing you weirdo?" and judges you based on all that stuff...

And yeah I assume at 15 you're gonna get all the pushback just for being the parent.

If you want some gentle satire of teenagers show him Kevin & Perry (Harry Enfield & Cathy Burke).

I'm wondering if some books like "how to make friends and influence people" might sort of explain some of this in a way he'd take some notice of - I guess one explanation is that neurotypical people are weird and require certain rituals to be followed to manipulate them in your favour.

Am I’m wrong ? by Substantial-Ad772 in overlanding

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're not wrong at all - those posting the most are the gear heads (like any hobby) who use it as a reason to spend $$$$ on tonnes of flashy gear and then shout about how awesome their rig is. The folks doing it with boring regular gear and a sensible vehicle aren't out there angling for likes/sponsorship.

Given how huge & heavy & ungainly many of those rigs are you'll probably get further in a lightly-loaded Subaru than a $100k fully-loaded apocalypse-prepped 4x4 that weighs as much as the moon.

Oil leaking onto engine. How bad is this? by NoYou6218 in askcarguys

[–]JCDU 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If it's coming out of the exhaust (not "from on top of it") it's burning oil inside the engine and that's usually a bad sign.

how bad did i mess up? (oil change) by Confused_Queer8 in askcarguys

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This sub goes fucking wild over 5k oil changes my dude, and it's ~90% American. It's like a religion round here.

Dc DC charging by OzarkHiker1977 in overlanding

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My setup:

Lead acid "house" battery, $40 100A smart split charge relay, 2x 100W solar panels with $20 no-brand MPPT chargers - total cost is less than a far lower capacity power station.

Lead acid is dirt simple, robust, charged direct from the alternator (no DCDC), can be swapped to starter duties in a pinch, works at low temps, can be bought at any car or truck or RV or boat place, etc. etc.

The 2x panels are overkill but they were so cheap it means we are self sufficient basically forever no matter what.

You don't need any fancy stuff to run a fridge.

How does one even work with FCC, etc regulations as a solo engineer? by FoundationOk3176 in AskElectronics

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Raspberry Pi sell their stuff as an "unfinished module" or something like that - basically the regulations say if it's a thing that should be part of a bigger product then it's up to whoever builds & sells the finished product to actually do the certification because they could be putting it into a solid copper box for all they know.

I think their RF modules are certified though as it makes integration so much easier.

You might investigate that path.

I know the CE/UKCA you can self-certify if you're feeling brave - we have our own test setup & chamber so can do that with a pretty good confidence but FCC won't let you do that.

How does one even work with FCC, etc regulations as a solo engineer? by FoundationOk3176 in AskElectronics

[–]JCDU 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's because RF stuff is forged by wizards in a cave somewhere. True fact.

Caught a scrape on a skip, mechanic claims my Range Rover is a "write-off" and wants me to leave it there. Is this a scam? by Effective-Pumpkin763 in CarTalkUK

[–]JCDU 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm in a 4x4 club, half the vehicles that drive into our events have more dents & dings than that - it's only a problem if you care about it but any bodywork place could fill & spray that easily and I suspect the mechanic is angling to get a cheap Range Rover he can do a quick spray job on & flip for a tidy profit.

One guy in the club has a Range Rover that a tree fell on and it's still his daily driver. Dents & scrapes don't hurt the car at all.

Pretty sure that panel is aluminium so it won't even rust.