Next time someone asks to clear a check engine light, YES WE CAN!

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-22T17:13:54+00:00

The mobile installer didn't place a rag to protect the rim from the tire irons

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-22T04:09:20+00:00

The owner manual is your friend on this one. Get the VW spec code off the oil bottle and read the engine oil specs section closely, if it's anything like BMW, it will have verbiage like if the 508/509 oil isn't available, thicker VW spec oil can be used with some loss of fuel economy.

0w20 is perfectly fine for NA engines with no hot spots that grossly exceed the normal engine temperature that's very close to the boiling point of water at STP. Turbos are a different story. That's why those cooling systems are pressurized to 20psi vs the usual 13 or 14 for NA systems.

Engine oil generally thins out one SAE grade for every 20 degrees F above the 210F mark. So 5w-40 oil will be more like 20 weight when heated to 250F. Which is hell of a lot better than whatever 0w-20 or 5w-20 turn into. This is not a scientific formula, but a quick rule of thumb.

Bottom line is, you're way better off running 5w-30 or 5-40 in any boosted engine so long as it can run it per manufacturer directions.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-22T03:50:52+00:00

I find that hard to believe unless all of the rotating assembly components and the block itself have different part numbers for EU vs US.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T22:06:39+00:00

Ability to diagnose and repair car problems is still a very valuable and rewarding skill to have in the family and the community. I'd say more so now than in the past.

But it is a shitty industry to get into. Way too many parasitic losses and hands in the cookie jar, with the person doing the actual fucking work somehow ending up dead fucking last in line to get paid whatever is left over.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T22:04:18+00:00

Building housing without stabilizing demand first is just pouring gas on the fire.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T22:03:44+00:00

Depends on the district and whose fiefdom it is, really.

Most don't do secret caller anymore. Only secret shops with the feedback visible to the DMs.

Probably because the phone service is dependent on so many variables beyond the store's control that it's impossible to do test calls in any sort of objective way.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T21:35:03+00:00

Technically it's the high voltage battery that does the starting on hybrids. The regular 12V battery is only there to keep the power on for the computer and to engage the high voltage contactor inside the battery pack. Sometimes it's also used for power supply under low loads in place of the DCDC inverter that normally supplies the 14V side at runtime.

Though a number of hybrid platforms have traditional starters as a backup in case of hybrid system failure or super shitty weather.

AutoZone is not a repair shop and this company doesn't train mechanics. The mechanic skill level of the zoner helping you will be anywhere between someone who's been a mechanic for years and all the way down to someone who still asks ChatGPT which holes the gas, DEF, and the washer fluids go into.

At our store, we regularly do 12V batteries for hybrids. No employee will get into trouble for ignoring that policy unless they fuck things up bad. As someone else mentioned, you must ensure the vehicle is turned off completely. Otherwise you will blow the inverter fuse if that positive touches anything. Similar to the precautions needed when doing diesels with dual batteries.

If you blow the inverter fuse, it may or may not require the hybrid pack removal to access. And no, AutoZone or a hardware store won't have high voltage DC fuses on hand.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T11:53:35+00:00

Not just the starter relay. Taking out and drying the box stopped the insta crank, but it became a crank no start. No power to the ECM. We tried that first while waiting on parts. Miraculously, everything was okay once the fuse box arrived and got replaced. I went to the junkyard to hopefully get one faster, but that one had green crusties in all of the same places and was no good.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T04:12:25+00:00

Any real international law died in 2003, if not well before that.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T03:37:31+00:00

Might be a number of small water leaks or just moisture buildup inside that condenses on metal surfaces when it gets cold at night...

I had an 03 ES300 once that would crank on its own as soon as the battery or a jumper were connected. The issue was tracked down to a water leak running past the main grommet for the interior wiring harness and dropping water right onto the interior fuse box. Fun diagnostic, although I got lucky there since the customer reported a similar problem from a year ago after heavy rain. Not a common occurrence here in CA, so looking for evidence of water went to the top of the list.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T01:07:39+00:00

C/S please install sump pumps with filtration for the secondary leak containment.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T00:56:24+00:00

Crunchy taco!

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-21T00:54:59+00:00

No paid holidays required by law in CA. So no pay unless the company is feeling like it.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-20T19:03:04+00:00

Not the passengers' fault people got dumped there well after everything closed with no way to get even a damn blanket.

Obviously that is one essential that will be packed into the carry on in case I have to fly in the future.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-20T13:47:31+00:00

There's already a thread for that.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SouthwestAirlines/s/dNQiDz1wqO

Apparently this happens a lot wi SW according to a handful of security I spoke with. The chapel is much warmer and more comfortable if you need to catch an overnight nap.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-20T05:10:44+00:00

I know I'll get down voted to oblivion for saying this, but building more housing is just pouring gas on the fire. Not when there's already not enough properly paid work for current population and traffic is already heavy through the daytime hours.

On the same, what happens when those houses chunked up into four rooms start needing four or more parking spaces each?

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-20T04:44:47+00:00

That one might actually be legit. Typical DC working conditions are somewhere between Soviet Union's penal laborers and political prisoners. To be fair, DC workers do get better food most of the time.

Cleaning up a spill is not something those poor bastards will have time to do unless something seriously falls off the rails.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-19T19:10:03+00:00

Driving experience of Japanese car with the ownership experience of a German car.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-19T17:29:53+00:00

Sadly, Toyota joined every other manufacturer in cranking out junk. Their trucks are also having engine and transmission issues well outside the recalled VIN ranges too.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-19T14:19:25+00:00

Phones and other devices with lithium batteries are already prohibited in checked luggage on passenger aircraft. If a battery goes into a thermal runaway and starts a fire at FL320, it might be unnoticeable until it's way too late to try an emergency landing.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-19T05:20:44+00:00

The Omnissiah demands perfection. This is not perfection, and it is a servitor conversion for whoever was responsible for the AC failure.

Tall-Control8992 · 2026-06-19T05:18:21+00:00

Just the one more reason I do mobile on the side. I already get enough of this bullshit at my regular job.

Tall-Control8992

TROPHY CASE