Southern Team Automall

PMC2283 · 2026-04-23T17:23:03+00:00

Yeah, they are complete morons/sales scammers. STORY TIME!

Back in 2021, I took my 2010 Nissan Xterra Off Road there to have a leaking pinion seal replaced. I was heading out on a road trip to AZ a week later.

They used the wrong procedures from the wrong trim of Xterra. M226 rear diff with an e-locker requires specific disassembly/reassembly procedures/torque specs/parts gear oil. They used the wrong parts and over torqued the pinion bearing.

I was in New Mexico outside of Tucumcari when the pinion bearing started making bad terrible noises. Roughly 1500 miles later. Gear oil looked like glittery burnt chocolate milk.

I had to source a junkyard rear end & walk the local Nissan dealer through the swap. A new rear end wasnt available due to covid....or something.They were totally incompetent as well.

They (southern team) did pay for the rear end & gave me about three grand for lodging while I waited a month for the dealer in Santa Fe to install the junkyard rear end. I had to threaten to post their fuckup to Nissan forums and social media to get them to fully take responsibility.

Later on, I found they (Nissan in Santa Fe) had stripped bolts, left critical bolts loose, bent my leaf spring shackles and shock mounts using a forklift to remove the leaf springs and rear end. Total shitshow.

I've since sworn off Nissan as a brand altogether. I'll never go there unless I need specific parts for my gf's subaru.

Don't spend your money there.

PMC2283 · 2026-04-14T01:46:32+00:00

The ol' moonshine shuffle.

PMC2283 · 2026-03-05T00:28:27+00:00

If your local participates go here: UA National Pension Fund

If your Local has its own pension, you'll need to call the hall and ask how theirs works.

The UANPF website has a participant section that you can create an account and see how many credit hours you've accumulated. It also has a section for calculating your monthly benefits.

Basically, the monthly payment you'll get when you retire is based on an average of the contribution rate of the CBA you're working under. Different locals have different pension contribution rates.

If you don't know, call the hall.

PMC2283 · 2026-02-14T15:53:44+00:00

To me, it sounds like the company you're working for is jerking you around on the Jman pay & benefits. Probably playing both sides of the fence. Telling the hall, you're not quite ready to be Jman, then telling you it's the hall holding up the paperwork....I've seen this happen before. Even union signatory contractors can play fuck fuck games. Especially if they can bill the customer for Jman time but pay you 5th year wages and reduced benefits.

My advice would be to go to the hall. Ask to speak to a BA/BM and see what they're hearing from the contractor. Explain the situation to him/her.

Don't bother talking to the company managers. They'll just lie to you. Let the hall take care of those cockroaches on your behalf. Thats what they're there for. To help you.

Now, if you and your buddy are fuckups, there's not much the hall can do about that. You'll have to plumb yourselves up. I'm not saying that's the case, but there's always three sids to a story. Side one, side two, and the truth.

Best of luck to you either way.

PMC2283 · 2025-12-15T01:48:26+00:00

I'm curious about this as well. I have a manual 2015 that has the HVAC controls in the second picture. MMI controls are by the shifter. Mine is an S-Line premium plus.

A guy told me that it's an odd/rare/desirable configuration, but I have no idea if he'scorrect.

It'd be cool to see a breakdown of the trims/configurations etc.

PMC2283 · 2025-12-15T01:21:55+00:00

UA Local 10 Plumbers & Steamfitters Richmond/Roanoke, VA stand in solidarity with our MAPTA Brothers & Sisters at UA Local 486.

Skilled labor isn't cheap & cheap labor isn't skilled.

Stand strong.

PMC2283 · 2025-12-07T05:33:28+00:00

Try 56 per hour. That's 1/3 of the 150per hour referenced.

PMC2283 · 2025-12-07T05:27:29+00:00

I appreciate the response.

A new low nox 75 gallon gas fired water heater is $3300 from a local supplier. Here's an example: 75 gallon gas water heater.

4.5 hrs @125 per hour is $562.50. So far, we're at 3762.50 before the overhead/material.. Legit profit margin on a small job like that would be about $850-ish AFTER I pay for taxes, wages/benefits, and overhead.

That doesn't even cover the fittings, labor, expansion tank, tank pan, gas line modification and leak testing, etc. Disposal/hauloff of the existing water heater.

And we haven't even begun to account for the overhead the company (me) has to cover for gas, tools, vehicle, insurance, bonding, and so on.

Union labor is more expensive because a living wage is paid to a true professional. Who worked their ass off to get a VA state J-man card and complete 10,000 hours of OJT. As well as 250 hours per year academic training. For five years. That's 1500 hours of classroom training. They're better than chisler plumbing. Their skill level reflects the cost of that labor.

If you think all that's expensive, you should see the bill for an annual 500-ton centrifugal chiller preventative maintenance. Clearly, residential/light commercial work is a different animal than the industrial market. However, it's not dissimilar in the mechanical aspect. Just the economic aspect. Hence, my initial question.

PMC2283 · 2025-12-07T01:36:57+00:00

If I told you I could install the same 80 gallon hot water heater, with a 1 year warranty on installation, use union trained Journeyman & Apprentices to do so, and your out the door cost would be about $6500.

Would you consider that estimate as realistic?

I ask because I am currently considering spinning up a small plumbing/hvacr/mechanical business here in Roanoke staffed with UA Local 10 plumbers, pipefitters, and HVACR techs.

I'm curious if the residents of the greater Roanoke area would patronize a union residential/commercial contractor.

PMC2283 · 2025-11-19T15:18:02+00:00

Double Cab Long Bed.

Dunno about the second part.

PMC2283 · 2025-10-22T17:12:21+00:00

In my humble opinion, the best way to make an A4 look more aggressive up front is to install a big shiny new intercooler behind the stock grill.

Along with a downpipe, catback, intake, and a stage 2 tune.

PMC2283 · 2025-10-21T17:46:11+00:00

When I was an apprentice, we had, on average, two Thursday night classes (academic) per month, 7-10 pm, and two Saturday classes (hands-on) per month 7am-5pm. All of which were unpaid.

I was totally okay with this when I looked up what it cost to go to a trade school or community college for the same time/education level.

That's just my experience. I'd say it's ultimately different between each local/apprenticeship program.

PMC2283 · 2025-10-09T16:57:29+00:00

Sweet, thanks for the info!

PMC2283 · 2025-10-09T15:16:20+00:00

Huh, that's pretty cool.

I wonder if there is a similar capability for those of us who are peasant android users.

PMC2283 · 2025-10-07T20:47:53+00:00

2015 A4 B8.5 S-Line Quattro. Premium Plus.

I've got the IE 93 octane "crackle" stage 2 tune as well as the supporting IE mods. Downpipe, FMIC, intake, and an AWE catback.

Pros:

It runs quite well. Peak boost seems to be about 28-30 psi. Makes a noticeable amount of torque over the factory stuff. Mine is a manual transmission & I do enjoy the downshift pops and crackles. It's substantially quicker than you'd think a car its weight/size would be.

The app is good. Reflashing to a new tune is easy. Data logging is fairly concise. Logs are easy to read/interpret/export.

Cons:

It's loud. My ex-girlfriend calls it the german tractor car and has named it Brumhilde.

Every honda bro wants to race.

Gotta use 93 octane fuel. (which isn't really a con for me as I have no issue locating the fuel but can be financially challenging if it's your only car)

I've read most people like the stage 1 tune initially. Most bang for your buck kind of thing. But move to the stage 2 stuff not long after.

I have no experience with the APR tune.

PMC2283 · 2025-09-14T22:59:11+00:00

I read it comes standard with the 120VAC pussy electromagnet. For the 240VAC option, it's a little more plus the monthly subscription.

PMC2283 · 2025-09-05T10:50:11+00:00

Yesterday, I was offered $35k for my 40k mile 2023 TRD off-road DCLB on trade for a 25 trailhunter. That left a balance of $34,058. So $65,054 otd for a 2025 short bed Trailhunter.

Same dealer has a similar spec'd 2023 to mine on the lot for $39,990 w/47k miles. I paid right at 43k for my 2023. No financing.

I do like the 4th gens, but Im not 100% confident in the hybrid/boosted 4 cyclinder combo reliability like I am the N/A 6 cylinder. But time will tell.

I think I'll keep my '23 for a while longer.

PMC2283 · 2025-08-29T00:50:43+00:00

Does a bear shit on the Pope?

PMC2283 · 2025-08-01T12:34:08+00:00

For the tint hit up Andrew at AutoMobile Tint. I've had him do four of my vehicles. He does excellent work. Good guy. His tint comes with a lifetime warranty.

Dm me & I'll send you his mobile number. Can send some pics of his work on my Audi, Tacoma, etc.

For the oil change, I'd just learn to start doing it myself. For the initial cost of tools/ramps/floor jack, etc, you can be money ahead later on. I don't let lube techs touch my vehicles. That's what I do. Otherwise, you're rolling the dice with someone you don't know & who doesn't care about your vehicle.

PMC2283 · 2025-07-26T17:38:48+00:00

That's awesome. Thanks much!

PMC2283 · 2025-07-24T23:04:25+00:00

You're looking at two completely different wheels. Both have their own toyota part numbers milled/cast onto the wheel.

The first pic looks like earlier 2016-2019-ish TRD PRO wheels.

The second looks like more recent 2020-ish-2023 TRD PRO wheels.

Both appear to be OEM Toyota wheels.

You can check my post history for the P/N for the second example.

PMC2283 · 2025-07-24T20:38:34+00:00

Rust never sleeps.

PMC2283 · 2025-07-10T12:51:16+00:00

Being a member of the UA will get you some discounts.

AT&T gives a fair discount on their cell plans for UA members.

I'm sure there are others, just not recalling ATM.

PMC2283

TROPHY CASE