dallison

I got my tires in today, man they are beefy. I'll go to wally world tomorrow am when they open up.

dallison

$42 for mount and balancing all 4 tires. I pulled out at a light and burned out real easy.

These things are real nice.

dallison

I think i am going to get another set of 16" rims to put the all season tires on. After three years it will pay for itself if i keep switching tires twice a year.

OLD_HATCH

sounds like a good plan.

onebadna1nsx

dallison I have a sets of stock 01 RL wheels in my garage if you want to buy them
I don't know how to ship them though LOL!

ellover009

Anyone has the inside door handles peeling? easy way to get a cut since it's cracking and you can see the real plastic base. I wondering if I should replace them or just do a guetto fix a wrap something around it.

dallison

That would be awesome, i think buying them and paying for the shipping would be a bit high though.

I appreciate the offer. I check CL but since there aren't many rl's out there, it's slim pickin's.

OLD_HATCH

un fortunately it is pretty common. I have my 2 rear ones that feel crunchy on the backside.

when the front breaks I'll probably replace them.

vas25tl

I am putting some Blizzaks on the box tonight.

Found a used set - used one season like new. Guy wanted $300 for them, took $250 so I got them. I'm going to swap the tires on the wheels tonight but I think I may get another set of wheels for it for next year so I don't have to swap every time....we'll see.

On a brighter note, the wife got a new job offer yesterday She'll be working at Kohl's corporate (I'm sure there's a Kohl's everywhere) so my chances of getting the GS just increased greatly.

dallison

suite, you and me are in the same boat.


The pirellis worked pretty well this morning. There only was a dusting on the road but it was covered. I didn't have any trouble at all.


Everyone i work with has 4wd and i don't and i still make it to work before they do.

ellover009

Unfortunately on mine it's my door and it's chipped in a way that the metal has clipped me since part is flush and part of that fake metal or metal mold sticks out. Have to be careful how I open it. You would have thought they would have made it out a solid block of metal.

dallison

I def have to slow down on corners with these snow tires. A couple times it wanted to get away from me

vas25tl

HA. Don't get over cocky.....

vas25tl

I'm starting to get some kind of a clunking noise from the rear...time to check out the shocks I guess. Or turn up the music

On another note, saw a gray with black 04 RL for sale with 160k on it. Guess how much?

tmnhs81

$6k?

OLD_HATCH

5k?

R_R4

$5995

Here it is, right?

http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/ctd/2132610127.html

vas25tl

Your internet searching skills are good.

Yeah, I didn't think it was a bad price at all! If all is up to date/maintained properly. I'm a big fan of the color combination.

OLD_HATCH

must be something wrong with that, or they don't know what they have.

silver3.5

i checked that car out 3 nights ago while driving past it. it was late so the dealer was closed but the driver's door was unlocked so i peaked in. everything looks clean on the inside, even the outside. no visible rust, accident, or ripped leather. just a few minor door dings. if everything checks out good, for that price is a steal! but i'm afraid it may have something behind it.

dallison

That's a great price and nice color. I do like my champagne mist though.

vas25tl

Average MMR (manheim auction price) with those price is $5100 so I guess it's reasonable...

silver3.5

during the start of this new year, my radiator decided to make me spend more money....like i haven't really spend enough for christmas already! it developed a crack on top by the cap and was squirting coolant like crazy. thus, i had to replace it quick because it was my daily driver. i called acura of brookfield; those stealers wanted $900+ to replace it so i say F them! i called midas, firestone, meineke, and several other small shops to get an estimate. average cost (parts + labor) was around $575. so i said F all of them too! i called autozone and luckily they have a radiator in stock for $148, as well as the upper and lower radiator pipes. so i quickly went over to autozone and picked those items up plus some coolant. total cost was $195.

so in the end, after 5+ hours in 20 degrees weather in the garage, my car is running like it was before. it would've taken less time if i didn't spend so much time warming up my feet and hands inside the house.

dallison

Nice job on replacing the radiator. Fixing cars really isn't hard. You just can't be afraid of breaking things when repairing something else.
You save a ton of money and that allows you to afford other things.

vas25tl

Great job. Now I know who to call if I need to put in a radiator :P

OLD_HATCH

yeah man great job doing it yourself.

silver3.5

thanks guys...sure did save me a ton of money....so i can spend it on those konis.


sure thing. 1st timers are always a bit more difficult and time consuming. 2nd time should be a cinch!

dallison

This car is a tank in the snow. It's solid and very sturdy with the snow tires. I really like the traction control compared to my old es300. It's less intrusive. I was climbing a few hills in the snow last night and really didn't have any problems. Now, i didn't stop on the hill and then start but i was going pretty slow and accelerated ok.

Ken1997TL

Yeah, VSA is only noticeable if you've REALLY done something stupid, by then it would have been too late without it.

vas25tl

The RL is definitely a tank in the snow. I've got a set of Continentals with about 15K miles on them and they do fine. Not snow tires fine but they're fine.

I have Blizzaks on the Scion and that thing's become a complete tank, I love driving that thing when it snows.



I came very close to giving up the RL this week to get a GS430...must resist and keep the RL but this car bug is killing me.

dallison

I had a squeek in the steering today. As i turned left and right it was creaking. I took off the front wheels and checked for broken tie rods and ball joints and all was fine. When i crawled under i noticed that the noise was coming from the steering pin/knuckle that was coming out of the rack. I grabbed the can of crc and sprayed it down and the squeek was gone.

I thought there may have been something was wrong with the rack for a minute.......

OLD_HATCH

check the boots around ur upper n lower ball joints along with the tie rod end. If it's creking is usually cause they broke and the ball joint dried out. Keep it greased and plan to change in the near future.

dallison

thanks, but the boots, tie rods, and ball joints were fine. I sprayed a little bit of wd-40 on the steering knuckle and it stopped.

dallison

Every time i start the cold rl, it makes a real loud screeching noise. I don't think it's the belts. It's right when it turns over and stops immediately after it's on. I know what the belt noise is. This one has me wondering.

rlspen

How do I change the engine air filter in my 06 RL?

dallison

Actually, it could be a loose belt. There is a little play in the belt. There is no screeching when the ac is on but i'll tighten it a little to see if this cures it.


I also have some oil in the coolant reserviour. There was also some gunk at the top of the radiator. I may do a flush next weekend and see if that clears things up.

If the oil comes back, i'll see what my options are.

vas25tl

Uh oh. Good luck. Hopefully it doesn't come back.

dallison

If it does, it may get traded.

vas25tl

That's the decision I'd make....




I'm 2 miles away from 145K miles.

OLD_HATCH

rlspen this is the wrong section, but the filter is in the airbox right behind the driver side headlight. Should have 4 or so easy to remove clips on the sides to gain access.


I feel for you dallison. Hope it doent come back.