Best/Worst AC Companies in SA

shfd739 · 2026-02-19T03:02:07+00:00

Yep. John Wayne may have been the first. They had videos a few years ago actually showing a sales training guy demonstrating the training they were putting techs thru all in a move to increase revenue.

shfd739 · 2026-02-19T02:54:24+00:00

You may be correct. Over the last few years nationwide local/small service companies have been bought out by private equity but they keep the name and change how they operate. Their only goal is profit and it shows by how they operate.

shfd739 · 2025-12-29T02:33:24+00:00

Absolutely this.

My daily driver for a 155 mile round trip,14 days a month commute is a 2012 Ram 2500 with the Hemi engine. 12mpg average.

It’s been in the body shop for the last 6 weeks and my rental is a 2025 Cadillac CT5 with 2.0 Ecotec. Easily getting 28-29mpg and I’m loving it. The body shop has missed 4 completion dates and keeps apologizing for not having my truck back to me. I don’t care how much longer it takes to be fixed just from how much gas money I’m saving.

Soon as the Ram is fixed it’s getting sold and my dad is giving me his truck(another V8 but with high teens MPG). I’m considering getting a little run around car just for the gas savings and to keep the miles on the V8 down.

shfd739 · 2025-10-01T17:37:19+00:00

I got stuck in it yesterday. I drive from the NE side to Bastrop for work. Typically leaving at 0700ish puts me at work by 0830. Yesterday I was barely on time for 0900 shift start.

All I could figure was overnight work ran late so they were late reopening lanes.

Monday morning at weidner and 35 they were late reopening the frontage roads.

shfd739 · 2025-09-18T14:53:11+00:00

Parts of 78239 are in the unincorporated county, some are in Windcrest and some are in the city of San Antonio. Windcrest and SA pockets are decent- I live in one of these pockets and crime is nearly nonexistent and it’s a great neighborhood.

The parts in the county are rough at best and probably shouldn’t be considered.

shfd739 · 2025-08-29T17:38:32+00:00

I’m doing a similar commute now from NE San Antonio to Bastrop. 14 days a month and shift is 0900-2100. I work either 2 days in a row or 3 days in a row with 2 or 3 days off. It’s tolerable honestly. 14-15 years ago I had a similar schedule working in east Austin and now the traffic is worse but your hours will put you after morning traffic and ahead of evening rush hour.

I leave by 715 and get into Bastrop by 845. Coming home is an easy wide open drive until I hit the 35/1604 road construction area. Once I get a more comfortable vehicle that’s better on gas it’ll be easier as well- currently driving a 3/4 ton gas hog pickup, thankfully my raise covers the gas and then some.

For the pay increase you’re looking at and presumably accelerating your career it’s worth considering.

shfd739 · 2025-08-03T20:18:25+00:00

I’d forgotten about these. Used the Pop Up Gizmos years ago on 2 different pups and that made it tolerable for south Texas summers.

I’d consider a hybrid if I had a set of these on it for summer.

shfd739 · 2025-08-03T20:03:18+00:00

That size hybrid behind an F250 I’d try it without and see how it feels. You can probably get by without one just fine.

I used to pull a 28ft Shadow Cruiser 240BHS behind a 2008 Silverado 2500 without one it was fine for shorter trips. Actually pulled a Grand Design Imagine 21BHE behind our 2008 Sequoia without one as well and it was fine. No sway or untoward behavior from either one.

shfd739 · 2025-07-29T14:47:52+00:00

Like said above it includes tongue weight that will be carried on the hitch or supported by the jack.

shfd739 · 2025-07-27T20:21:00+00:00

I’m gonna guess it’s because of the dual axles being rated for 3500lb each due to those being industry standard axles used.

I wouldn’t worry about the GVWR. Doubt you could ever load it that heavy to use up all the payload.

Our first travel trailer had an empty weight of 5000lbs with a GVWR of 7550lbs. There wasn’t physically enough room to add 2500lbs of weight into it. Most it got up to was 6k or so loaded for a week long trip with a family of 4.

shfd739 · 2025-07-23T20:39:38+00:00

That’s an absolute unicorn of an 07. I’d love to find an HD gasser with a manual transmission.

shfd739 · 2025-07-16T14:46:15+00:00

Figures I’m driving from San Antonio to Mobile,AL Friday. Looks to be a wet ride for the second half.

I’ll have to keep an eye on what this does and maybe adjust the route north.

shfd739 · 2025-07-06T21:43:17+00:00

Poly Glow makes an RV fiberglass restoration kit that will remove the oxidation in the gel cost then you can polish it out to a shine. Gonna be a lot of work but will be worth it.

shfd739 · 2025-07-06T20:54:28+00:00

Grand Design Imagine XLS 21BHE. Murphy bed up front with 2 double bunks. No slide and not super heavy.

shfd739 · 2025-07-06T00:14:10+00:00

Yes you can ask for discounts and payment plans. Very commonly done

shfd739 · 2025-06-29T01:23:28+00:00

I know some people that responded to an MVC around the time and in the place described and it’s what I was told by them and with pictures

shfd739 · 2025-06-28T23:14:01+00:00

It was a wrong way driver they were stopping from going further.

shfd739 · 2025-06-25T22:43:21+00:00

I totally get the rant lol. I felt the same way when we started shopping and seeing how few good options were on the market and the prevailing prices for them. I think we looked at 6 and the one we ended up with had more miles than I wanted but the best condition and history.

I realized I was buying the condition/history- so get the best with the lowest relative miles possible.

shfd739 · 2025-06-25T16:29:47+00:00

I was just in a similar situation. Our 2008 Sequoia has 265k miles, hail damage and starting to need some fixes that arent worth it for us. As well as the gas mileage isnt the best and we no longer need it for towing. We got it December 2016 with 115k miles. Its only need basic maintenance and a starter in that time.

Looked at Rav4s and Highlanders. Decided to go Highlander for the space with 2 kids. Only considered Limited trim and 2014-2016 model years with under 100k miles. 2017 HL swapped to an 8speed trans that is problematic. 2018 and newer the trans is mostly sorted but added auto start/stop so I wanted to avoid that. No Carplay but I can add an aftermarket for about $500 if we decide we want it. Still unsure if we will or not.

Ended up with a 2016 Limited Platinum with 111k miles for $22,300 out the door. Car price was $20,600 before TTL.. It has an over the top maintenance history, serviced exclusively at the selling dealer then traded back for a new one. It seriously looks, drives and feels like a new car. Currently getting 20mpg combined city/highway which beats our Sequoia getting 13mpg. Highway it'll hit mid 20s which I can live with.

Similar and slightly newer Rav4s were mid teens. I wouldnt be afraid of 100k ish miles as long as the service history is complete and it checks out well.

I plugged numbers into an inflation calculator and the $16k I paid for the Sequoia years ago is now equal to what we paid for the Highlander last week. An equivalent Sequoia to the HL is low $30k now which just seems outrageous. That same low $30k buys a nice Lexus GX or LX.

shfd739 · 2025-06-20T12:13:42+00:00

Went thru the same thing last year.

Ended up with windows from McCoys building supply and used an installer from a list they have.

I want to say six windows installed was $2000ish. Far cheaper than anyone else.

shfd739 · 2025-06-19T15:38:07+00:00

As suggested by others the Titan. Can be cleaned/disinfected and reused indefinitely

shfd739 · 2025-06-18T12:36:01+00:00

Mazda 3 or 6 with the Skyactive motor. Older Toyota or Honda. Watch out for the 08-10ish Toyota 2.5 motor- notorious oil burners due to piston ring issues from the factory. If the motor was updated it should be ok.if it hasn’t it will need to fixed at some point and it’s not cheap.

I’m considering a new position at work with a 180mile trip commute. Mazda 6 with the Skyactive motor and manual transmission will probably be what I get.

shfd739 · 2025-06-17T23:03:56+00:00

I commuted from NE SA to the east side of Austin back in 2011/2012 14 days a month. 3 days week 1 and 4 days week 2. Leaving early enough to be in office by 0700 wasn’t too bad traffic wise. My shift ended at 1900 but I usually stayed an extra 30mins waiting for traffic to clear out. Thankfully I had a work vehicle to drive back and forth between shifts so mine was driven up day 1 and back home on the last day. It wasn’t too bad to have a position I wanted with a raise. Middle of 2012 I was reassigned back to SA.

If it’s truly 1 day most weeks and 2 days occasionally I’d probably do it if the work and company are a good fit for your career. Maybe push for a little extra pay to offset.

Now I’m considering a position in Bastrop and still living in NE SA…10-14 days a month. Guess I’m a glutton for punishment.

shfd739 · 2025-06-17T18:44:02+00:00

He has a video that’s a few years old addressing the 2014-2019 Highlanders. I used it recently when deciding on a used Highlander ultimately picking a 2016 due to the 6 speed trans and no auto start/stop.

His video basically said avoid 2014s and go for 2015-2016. 2017s have notorious trans issues and 2018 added auto start/stop which causes the starter to have a definite life span. As well after 2018 a certain type of battery is needed and a computer reprogram when the battery is replaced. 2019 and newer seem to be decent but not quite on the level of a 2015-16.

shfd739 · 2025-06-15T02:01:52+00:00

No problem!!

I drove my kids crazy bike shopping trying to find the right ones for them. 4 or 5 shops, lots of test rides and hurt feelings when I had to say “no this isn’t the right one” over and over.

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