So, this is not a Jalop-bashing post.

Just a simple mention that after 2 months of avoiding Jalopnik I realized I'm not missing it. I find that I come to Oppo a bit more and then do something else with the found time.

And, that's all I have to say about that.

So, the Hemi in the Joop decided to start weeping from the driver side valve cover about a year ago. At first I had no idea since I rarely drive it (this is Mrs. Pyro's ride) but I'd occasionally smell burnt oil after a drive. I'd never see drips in the garage and I couldn't see anything under the hood. You can see the buildup at the back (bottom) of the head in the first image below, where the oil would then fall to the exhaust manifold. I did some quick research and it's common on these engines but sadly not enough for YT to have a walkthrough for the 2014 GC. Most folks must take it to their indie shop or the dealer for the work. I decided to take the plunge this weekend and it took about 3 hours to do both sides along with 16 new plugs.

Plastic valve covers and other engine components still amaze me.

While I was at it, I decided to change out the serpentine belt as well (thanks @Taylor-Martin) since it's factory with 113k miles.

I will say both the factory plugs (NKG) and belt looked excellent, the plugs were maintaining their spec gap (gotta love iridium) and the belt had zero cracking/checking.

I always toss a used belt (that still looks good) into the vehicle as a backup, never know when you'll need a spare if it fails. I don't ever seem to just buy a new belt to keep as a backup, guess I'm too cheap.

The last time this happened we ended up with another kid.

@nickhasanexocet said in It's nice to solve a car problem in 1 night:

... the Megasquirt was losing sync.

@chariotoflove I'm glad to see continued effort to make this the best place it can be, thanks to everyone involved! I'm also stoked that the operating costs are below the donations!

@mazda616 Marci is our 8yo rescue.

Wow, pretty impressive detail here.

https://hiconsumption.com/1971-bmw-2002tii-1-24-scale-model-by-scale-a-ton/

@taylor-martin based on how big most BMWs seem these days, I'm pretty sure that's just how big 2002s are IRL.

I've been meaning to write this post for a week or so. Earlier this month I parted ways with a friend, the F30 335 that's been with me since 2017.

It was a very solid car for the 4 years and 67k I put on it. I purchased it with 38k on the odometer and it was a single owner car before I took ownership. I had only a few minor maintenance items over those years and if it wasn't too small for our family, I would have kept it.

So, I ended up with a 2018 x3 m40i. This is also a single owner vehicle and was immaculately maintained over the 29k miles, feel free to ask any questions.

@cb

This guy Bob, over at Road&Track, understands me more than I care to admit. We both share an affliction for trying to let the knuckleheads around us, who don't know how to make their headlights work, know that they're dumb....although his condition sounds a little more acute than mine. What say you Oppo, should we give up our fight and just let these morons keep going without intervention?

Idiotic car design is leading drivers to cruise around at night with no headlights on. Fighting this has become my crusade.

https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a38189447/no-headlights-drivers-are-ruining-my-life/

I always thought your handle was related to the French missile family, I'm a dumb.

@nickhasanexocet said in Which circle of hell does this go in?:

@pip-bip Don't look in the wiring tray of my exocet if you think that's bad.

@ranwhenparked said in Dumb grammar question:

@ttyymmnn See also everything the Army names

@demon-xanth for a second I forgot how small this wiring is, we need a banana for scale.

• Partially correct, U.S. is an abbreviation but more specially it's an initialism, just like FBI and ABS. These are abbreviations that cannot (should not) be pronounced.
• An acronym would be YOLO or NASA, abbreviations that are pronounced.
• Now an anacronym is like an acronym but is so old (or common), few remember what is stands for like; BASIC, BUDS, SCUBA or LASER. In many cases they are used like words as opposed to abbreviations.

@dr-zoidberg said in Dumb grammar question:

@essextee U.S. is not technically an acronym because it's not a series of initials that is pronounced as a single word! Examples: NATO, DARE, MAGA...

@pip-bip

@baconsandwich without a banana for scale I'm unable to help. Good luck mate!

@pip-bip Plymouth

This is genius!

@ramblinrover said in Nicholas Cage Can't hurt you:

@highlander One of my brothers has an ongoing Nicolas Cage joke thing.
He has Nicolas Cage face pajama pants, coffee mug, and a couple of other things.
A while back I gave him the Nicolas Cage sequin pillow.

...this is the same brother I made a ventriloquist's dummy for.

@benjrblant this sort of looks like delrin except where there's surface rust. Also, water jet cutting is badass!

Zero F's were given.

@benjrblant said in Titanium exhaust - C8:

@davesaddiction and corrosion-free nearly indefinitely, as long as you keep it under 800 f's!