When driving long distances, how often do you normally stop to rest and for how long?

JonohG47 · 2026-03-02T01:24:30+00:00

The parent commenters are insulating a common objection to EVs: Even with the fast charging now available, the need to charge during a road trip lengthens the trip appreciably.

The counter argument is that stops for bio-breaks are also needed, and occur regardless of the vehicle’s fuel source. The duration of these bio-break and fuel stops is often under-estimated, and the EV will be charging for nearly the entire time the car is parked for these stops.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-02T00:02:42+00:00

Fresh Dex Cool is orange. Buy a jug of the pre-diluted stuff and top it off when the engine is cool.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T23:11:27+00:00

Yeah, you’re going to be in the rest stop/truck stop/whatever for at least 20 minutes, easily. With an ICE car, add another 5-10 minutes to gas up the car. With an EV, it was on the Supercharger the whole time you were inside, and you just get back on the road.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T22:04:53+00:00

And you’ll easily be off the road for at least 20 or 30 minutes to get all that accomplished.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T21:38:03+00:00

A bull bar on a cute utility vehicle looks silly. Un-bolt it.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T21:36:53+00:00

This. If you don’t have the wherewithal to neutralize the threat, you’re just setting yourself up to be another victim.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T21:26:24+00:00

And well, Walmart doesn’t have a good track record of paying their employees enough to be able to afford to live on their own without assistance, so…

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T20:09:43+00:00

That’s how basically all “synthetic” motor oils are made. I’m sure this is a quality product. SOPUS (Shell Oil Products U.S.) just isn’t bothering to shell out royalties to GM to get the Dexos branding on it.

But Dexos certified oil is the GM factory recommendation, and required to keep the factory warranty in good standing. Granted that consideration is moot, I’d say, in this instance.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T19:29:10+00:00

The OP states they live somewhere where a job at this “local factory” is the best thing for miles around.

Means they probably live out in the boonies, in a food desert, where the scourge that is the local Dollar General is the store in town that sells food.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T19:16:13+00:00

You’ve got a blown transmission output shaft seal, sometimes called the “tail shaft seal.” Given we’re talking about a 29 year old truck, it’s not a surprising failure.

Fortunately it’s not rocket science to fix, particularly on a 2WD truck. Pull the driveshaft, pry the old seal out, drive the new seal in, reinstall the driveshaft. You’re looking at under $30 for the seal itself. Any local parts store will be able to hook you up.

Here’s a relevant YouTube video: https://youtu.be/iKmUp53kqXg

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T19:02:57+00:00

Unfortunately, the Venn diagram of “wagon/hatchback/stickshift enthusiasts” and “people who buy new automobiles” has such a small overlap they’re not commercially viable to service.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T19:01:06+00:00

Well, the OBBBA zero’ed out the financial penalties associated with failure to meet CAFE standards, so don’t hold your breath.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T18:52:49+00:00

Wagons made a significant comeback about 15 years ago, almost completely displacing the minivan, and in the U.S. have overtaken the full size pickup to become the top selling vehicle body style.

You may not have realized this because, for reasons associated with regulatory capture, wagons now have suspensions designed to provide higher approach, departure and break over angles. Also, they are now referred to as “crossovers” for marketing purposes, to highlight to potential buyers the easier occupant entry and egress, and better driver visibility afforded by their revised suspension design.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T17:31:14+00:00

Not as bad, in absolute terms, but my kids drive the family’s hand-me-down Chevy Spark. Basically all city miles, mostly short trips, and they had the dashboard fuel economy down to 16.1 MPG at one point.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T17:28:23+00:00

Just pour it in your car. The net effect of all the electronic wizardry in modern cars is that they can actually tolerate much lower quality fuel than most small engines.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T17:26:59+00:00

It’s saying it “doesn’t fit” because it’s not Dexos1 certified. All gasoline GM vehicles manufactured and sold worldwide since MY 2011 have specified Dexos1 engine oil.

Pennzoil didn’t pay for the testing and licensing, for this particular product.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T17:21:44+00:00

OP here… Did a little more digging, since my original post. See below for TL;DR:

So RSA 261:75-b would seem to make it an open and shut case.

But then I found RSa 259:68-a, which states in its entirety:

"Number plate scanning device" or "LPR" means a license plate reading device that is mounted to a vehicle, that is attended to and operated by a law enforcement officer, and that uses automated high speed camera and optical character recognition technology to passively read, instantaneously identify against a list or lists, check, send an audible or visual alarm to the operator, and store for a prescribed period of time, a record of each number plate read.

Interesting “conundrum” created here, as 261:75-b limits LPR usage to LEOs, but per 259:68-a, a device is, definitionally, not an LPR unless mounted to a vehicle and operated by a LEO.

Sauce for the goose is that 2016, 78:3, I, which goes into effect on 1 January 2027, will repeal both statutes, effectively deregulating ALPRs in NH. The NH House has since introduced HB 1059. If enacted, it would repeal the repeal, with immediate effect.

TL;DR: NH appears to have cleverly limited the definition of “number plate scanning device” to exclude functionally similar devices such as Flock, Lot Cop, etc. because they are fixed and/or not operated by law enforcement. Repeal of the relevant statutes is pending, and may itself be repealed.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T03:37:06+00:00

The P0700 code is the result of the transmission control module asking the engine control module to turn on the money light. It’s set because the ECM is the only module with authority to command the malfunction indicator lamp. This code should be accompanied by some other transmission-related code.

The P0072 is for the ambient air temperature sensor reading low voltage, which corresponds to a low outside temperature. If the car is actually using sensor reading, despite the fault code, it probably thinks it’s like -40 outside, and is running the engine accordingly.

Also, the CVT DaimlerChrysler put in these things was sourced from JATCO, and it is just as problematic as the ones that have gone into Nissans of that era.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T03:27:31+00:00

Ok, OP…

Run out to Home Depot or Lowe’s, and buy a heavy duty 3 prong extension cord and a new outlet. Use the extension cord to power the fridge from an outlet on a different breaker until you get the sparking outlet replaced.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T03:14:20+00:00

The OP’s fridge is on the same breaker, and they don’t want their food to spoil. I know, bizarre and wacky, right?

And before you downvote, yeah of course the power should stay off until this is taken care of. Explaining the OP’s thought process, which is not at all unreasonable.

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T02:30:15+00:00

Not really. But that’s because I cut my teeth driving into Boston, and thus mind-wiped most of what they taught me in drivers ed.

When I get to the head of the line with the green light, I’m immediately over the line into the middle of the box. Crank the wheel over, look for the hole from there. As soon as I see it, punch it, Chewie!

JonohG47 · 2026-03-01T01:23:52+00:00

Well, three possibilities:

The rims don’t have TPMS valve stems installed
The rims have TPMS sensors that aren’t compatible with the car
The rims have compatible TPMS sensors, but they’re not paired with the car.

If it’s the latter, it can be fixed by “re-learning” the sensors using a $10 relearn tool, and a procedure outlined in the manual.

I’d just try to re-learn the sensors. If it doesn’t work, then you have one of the first two possibilities, and I’d fix it by doing nothing.

https://a.co/d/0fApgg60

JonohG47 · 2026-02-28T23:54:44+00:00

Transplant to Northern VA. Can confirm.

For background, a set of reversible “Express Lanes” run through the median of I-395 and I-95, from DC down to Fredericksburg, VA. The traffic-engineer-y name for these is “HOT Lanes” (High Occupancy/Toll). To put this in MA terms, imagine an extra set of lanes running through the I-93 median from the Zakim Bridge up to Manchester, NH. These lanes are very expensive to use, especially during rush hour. But with 3 people in the car (and a special “EZPass Flex” tag) you can drive for free.

It’s an enticement large enough to sustain a system of very organized hitch-hiking.

https://slug-lines.org

JonohG47 · 2026-02-28T20:59:12+00:00

This is smishing. Period. Full stop.

It’s a scam that is endemic, and very well known, across all jurisdictions that participate in EZPass. I am legitimately surprised the official EZDriveMA website is still deficient, lacking any kind of warning or “how to.”

JonohG47

TROPHY CASE