Owners are noticing rust on their tailpipes and lug nuts.

For some years now the automakers have had trouble finding an anti-corrosion finish to replace hexavalent chromium. Hexavalent is super-tough and makes a bright blue-white chrome, but it is a major carcinogen that is extremely hazardous to workers and the environment.

The automakers fear lawsuits and also want to be viewed as Green, so we get poor quality chrome.

For lug nuts try Gorilla Automotive.



(No rust on my '68 Mazda Bongo though.)

 

Couldn't they use polished stainless with a clear coating or something?

 

Hexavalent chromium? Sounds like Erin Brockovich could get into this!

 

I'm not a tree-hugger, but I can't say I blame carmakers for not using that.

I'd rather put up with a bit of rust or maybe find a different product rather than give someone cancer just so I can have a sparkling tailpipe.

 

XLR8R wet-kisses his Bongo. Just saying.

 

They could, and they would pass the extra cost on to us, the consumers.

Joe

 

I work for a Japanese car company and they go crazy if anything goes over the price limit. If the cost would not outway the gain then no way. $.01/ car is huge for a car company.

 

Out on our remote compound (1968 forever!) we Bongo-philes consider that normal behav.....uh-oh, the government helicopters are back.

"Windsong, Feather, Lennon, get the little Bongo-ites inside, and roll out the Bofors!"

 

+1

 

Those townie runs for ammo must be interesting. "Oh yes, and 3,000 rounds of 40mm HE shells please."

 

Ladies and gentlemen, please consider that this accusation emmanates from an individual who has admitted to bizarre behavior in his own right.

To wit:

The running hither and yon on a powerless watercraft in the effort to induce forward motion into it. He may offer that this sillyness is rooted in rapid CG shifting and fluid displacement, but I counter that he ignores more modern methods of propulsion, such as....the extrication of a black mineral, which when heated sufficiently converts water into propellant steam. Welcome to the 18th century Sir!

Furthermore, he has admitted to a past association with the raising of alpacas. Can there be a more subversive, un-American animal? How can we be certain he is not still sympathetic to alpaca causes? What sir, is wrong with raising good old patriotic cows? **



**now referred to as "Bovine-Americans"

 

Sirrah, it pains me to point out the scurrilous and transparent nature of your attempts to perform a lateral arabesque upon Your Humble Correspondent, to wit, deflecting attention from your cult. Bongo. Your hide has been tacked to the barn side.

To set the record straight, never have I remarked upon running hither and yon. To do so would negate the effects of 'ooching,' the phenom of sprinting from stem to stern on a temporarily powerless watercraft. One would only contemplate that in the absence of wind, which would normally provide the motive power. Hither to the stern - no yon.

The clever insertion of a black mineral further illustrates subterfuge. The worst possible activity would be to conflagrate this substance on board a sailing vessel. The outcome could be worse than, say, striking an iceberg whilst being propelled by these implausible means.

Indeed, the true and time-proven usage of this substance is one in which I shall continue this weekend - the traditional application of a dry rub to essence of ungulate, then a slow process involving the sufficient heating to which you refer, combined with chunks of seasoned hickory wood and application of a compound I call Elephant Sauce - one taste and you'll never forget.

I could go on, much further on, but I'll stop before the ridiculous topic of alpaca. Mmmmoooving as it may be, my sympathies lie far from the cause of alpaca. Just because I have no B-A pin on my lapel doesn't make me any less patriotic than Feather or Windsong. Hmmm.

 

(Sigh) More devisive, anti-Bongo rhetoric from a partisan, RDX loyalist.

Whilst my good forum opponent would seek return us to the past -- as revealed in such veiled language: "Hither to the stern - no yon." -- allow me to be the first to appeal to our better natures.

I propose a higher level of discourse. I propose an A-zine free from the unreasonable fear of Bongo drivers. An A-zine where RDX owners and Bongo-Nation can discuss fuel economy, hexavalent chromium and brake upgrades in the spirit of beneficence and cooperation.

I propose an A-zine where even the most unfortunate among us -- those bitterly clinging to their GMs and Reliants -- can be lifted from their automotive suffering and provided the hope of someday owning an Accord.

 

uh....you guys are weird!

 

Why can't we all just get along?

Yes, I proudly admit to an RDX fanboy jones. But. I have never slammed Bongo or the resultant cult. In fact, Windsong and I have a soiree at the frozen yogurt stand. Besides, you folks have way too much firepower. I know of only 1 guy in my hood who has a 50-caliber bore on his 6-shooter and he won't let me hold it and the ammo at the same time, even so, a pea shooter compared to your pom-poms. However, if fig leaf is profferd, it is accepted with humble repsect.


The kumbaya stops short of Reliant or even its Aries clone. Lrpba300: obviously a mortified previous owner. I cannot cross the aisle and display largess due to violent gag reflex. I'd rather wet-kiss a Trabant.

To paraphrase in a not-too-butchering manner a scion of Mensa proportion, in regards to the proof of certain tradition: "Our duty is to stand astride History and shout STOP!" Such proof being found in small arenas as salt and pepper now being available in grinders rather than cardboard boxes - a flavorful return to the past.

Let us move, um, onward.

 

Ahoy Sir,

Once again you display a remarkable propensity to perceive autos from my past.

While there are those who may question the actual existence of Bongo-Nation -- I do assure you -- I lived in Berlin from '87 to '90, witnessed the fall of The Wall, and drove a Trabant. I can state with certainty; never was a finer East German car made, as the statement is technically true.

Upon my return to the US I attempted to import the Trabbie -- an endeavor which ran afoul of pesky emissions and safety regulations -- and I was obliged to abandon the effort. As the only surviving photos, feature Feather splayed rather provocatively across the motorhaube, I can offer as evidence this; my Trabbie Service Manual:



This manual details a complete Trabant rebuild -- and begins somewhat inauspiciously with towing procedures -- behind a Wartburg no less!



The noose directions are provided for stoBstange (bumper) attachment, but can be conveniently cross-applied, if a frustrated Trabbie owner reaches the end of his um...rope.

 

For those of us who may find themselves recipient of an invite to your weekend sacrifice of an herbivorous quadruped; I am somewhat alarmed by the reference to "Elephant sauce".

Pray tell; which of the blind men discovered "elephant sauce"? I fear it was the one who said "I find the elephant rather like a rope."

 

uh...I rest my case on those last few posted!!!

 

Tsk. Another poster child for putting the government in charge of child rearing. Lrpba300's parental units obviously and recklessly had the jocularity gland removed at a young age.

I'm quivering in shock and concern regarding your Trabby. You know of course they have been banned from the West due to large amounts of toxic content - but little if any hexavalent chromium, if I recall correctly. Riding in one with windows up was like chain-smoking 1000 cigs. But yes, the pinnacle of East German auto manufacture. I'm bent double with the rope instructions.

The Elephant Sauce is many things to many people, but so-named due to numerous comments: "HEY, you going to make that crazy BBQ sauce again? Will you make a gallon for me?" They never forget. Gotta put something in it to cause involuntary peristalsis so they'll leave me alone. To answer your question, it was the blind guy in the middle.

 

Can anyone say..."off the deep end!"? ...and by the way, please do everyone a favor and stay in the shollow end of the gene pool? Thanks!

PS. Careful about the aspersions about parents! You'd have to look into the mirror to see the 'semblence to your own kin first, if that's possible!

 

Ha. Thanks for the pool advice - a little late tho, since I'm about your age. Got those genes ALLL over the pool! In fact, since I lived by you, you've probably run into 'em.

PS - yep. I was right.

 

I may be slow, but no one ever called me the sharpest crayon in the box. I am awash with elephantine admiration for your wit - invitation extended! Caveat: don't know what said herbivores consume in your whereabouts, but the snouters over here can get carnivorous if presented the opportunity. Adds a little extra cachet to the flavor, not to mention elevating one a notch up the food chain.

 

Really? How close were you to me? Do I need spray for that?? (j/k!)

 

Lrp, I think you're safe considering the killing, I mean sanitizing, or rather cleansing, rays from the Sun, Global Warming and all, but if you draw a line between Peterson Field and USAFA, gauge your proximity, then age it by, say, 38 years, you may be even safer, but then again.

If you peer about yourself and find taller, blondish, blue-eyed slender but muscular humanoids with faint Southern accents, you could be in serious trouble. Oh, same body frame but with dreads and Caribbean lilt, You Are Toast. I am still such a pushover for southern babes and island beauties. Big pool Dude. If you decide to spray, they may become annoyed. None of that from my Mike Myers DNA.

All that being said, I guess I'm somewhat envious of one who was able to pull it all together into a Bongo Cult. I lack the mentality for The Big Picture. Been having fun anyway.

 

I'll be sure & avoid that line at all costs! No, not really. I live less than 6 miles north of Peterson AFB Only been here 30 years now, had moved from home town Denver then....I'll watch for those bodies tho, they sound worth watching!

It's to bad you don't see the big picture, you just need to get a bigger TV screen!
You tried to see it through the Bongo cult, but true enlightenment takes ZEN!
I know the ZEN teachings & use the force wisely.
Remember...ZEN trumps BONGO always!

Back to the main subject, don't forget we had a Hexavalent chromium spill in the Security area 25 yrs ago! (Can you say Schlage Lock CO?) It is south of the area by 15 miles & down stream for the water sources, but you, you, you, you, never know 'bout that stuff! PS. I don't Bongo, nor never did!

 

Appreciate the invite! I put Colorado Springs into the RDX Nav -- about 1475 miles. Let's see, Amoco's $4/gal......h'mmm, what octane is elephant sauce?

But Windsong is all for loading up the Bongo and heading right out (just yogurt, huh?)

Carnivorous snouters? Perhaps the Security area spill? Here at Bongo-Nation we get our Hex-Chro right from the tap.

 

You'll be pleased to know that having relocated to central Indiana, where snouters will take test-munches of anything that falls into their feed bins, including elderly folks, you and Windsong would have less Bongo time.

Gaging from the response of the dry-rub/elephant sauce mix on guests, I would guess the octane to be about 110. That also being based upon wiping of brows, trips to the adult-beverage center, reloads of ribs, etc.

 

....is that by keg or just ingest??

 

By the barrel, Sir, in honor of OPEC.

 

Well, gasoline is too expensive and I fear the combustive power of elephant sauce may generate a spectacular but short-lived, RDX turbo-charged experience.

Our attempts at mixing hexavalent chromium with the powder from 40mm HE shells is still in secret testing. It provides for abrupt (though unpredictable) acceleration, and guidance becomes an issue when the front wheels never touch the ground -- and once lit, it can't be turned off. Lost one Radio Flyer and a very brave simian this way.

However, as the beneficiaries of your considerable and esteemed advice, Feather and I are opting for "ooching" in the Bongo. Could this be a new um....."hybrid" concept?

I only hope I have the instructions right. "Hither to the stern..." H'mmm, I guess she'll have to steer.

 

I'm not so sure ooching works in other than fluid mediums - never tried it. One plus for a sailing vessel vs. RDX is that steering is located sternward. I regret the loss of your Radio Flyer, but I heard recently of a simian outfitted with mind-controlled robotic arms proving to be a prodigy and possible harbinger for the future of us monkey-folk. Might that be your missing simian, I wonder?

Not being up on the combustive properties of HV chromium, I'm wondering if a substitution with powdered magnesium might not lead to not only more predictable results, but possibly getting all 4 wheels off the ground?

 

Oh sure, NOW he's a hero. I'll bet he's forgotten who got him started in science and rocket wagoneering -- just because we wouldn't buy him a star-spangled jumpsuit -- sheesh.

Gotta run. Feather wants to go ooching-in-the-Bongo....again. I'm not as young as I used to be. Gonna need another Hex-Chro energy shake.