Consumer Reports now has a partial answer to the lingering question of how well hybrids will age. They tested a 2002 Prius with 206,000 miles on it (and the original powertrain) and found it performed pretty much the same as the new one they tested in 2001 ( Read more... )

Political hypocrisy no longer really surprises me, but it's always nice to see it so clearly illustrated. It turns out that the Washington counties that have the most strongly conservative voting habits also get more in government spending than they pay in taxes. In other words, the areas where people argue the most strongly against paying taxes ( Read more... )

From today's Seattle Times:The legislation would encourage the state's six four-year schools to set different prices on different programs, to more accurately reflect their cost. For example, an engineering degree at the University of Washington might cost more than an English degree. (link)
It strikes me that this could have unintended consequences ( Read more... )

This one cracked me up...it's funniest when you have to scroll down the description to see it, so I'm not going to hotlink the photo:
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/2190766157.html

One more today: Dana complained the door handles were stiff on the '88 Cabriolet. Those of you who have had VWs know that this isn't a complaint to take lightly - the handles are fragile and break easily with rough treatment. I took off both handles, cleaned, and greased them, then cleaned and greased the latch assemblies. This seems to have ( Read more... )

Pulled the Malibu's battery and put it on the charger; it was dead flat and the car won't run long enough without overheating to jump it and charge it up on the alternator. Then I went through and cleaned a decade's worth of old paperwork out of it. Filled my little carpet cleaner with diluted Simple Green and went after the carpet, which came ( Read more... )

Considering a Subaru wagon as one option for our next car purchase, because they're everywhere out here and seem pretty practical. I'm curious if anyone who reads this journal knows them well and can tell me what trouble areas to look out for on a used one. I know Volkswagens and Volvos well, but Subarus are kinda UFOs to me.

Installing a modern radio in an older VW presents a unique problem - there's no switched power. The stock radios are active all the time, whether the ignition is on or not. This doesn't work so well with modern stereos, which are never really off unless the power is removed from their "switched power" wire ( Read more... )

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Today was unseasonably warm, so I did some work on the '88 Cabriolet. I tightened the alternator belt (which had been squealing occasionally). After that, I did some electrical checks on the cold start system. It all checked out OK. I still need to check that the cold start valve itself is working; I couldn't do that today because it's held on ( Read more... )