Thunderbird Club

[Gaolee]

...Tom Cruise wins.....he owns a P-51..

Nah. He still loses.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

I did have to stand on my head to get the two T-15 screws out of the bottom of the glove box to get to the cabin filter...

what motor do you have?

 

[Gaolee]

Any suggestions on which T-bird to use to smash the GMC engineer that designed the engine air filter box? Put a cross member over the top of the box, buried the last screw under two hard pipes, then had to remove the accordion inlet and the MAS electrical...

I suggest a Fender Precision. Mine is the weapon of choice for gang warfare and causing headstock welts on singers.

 

[Stealth57]

what motor do you have?

5.3L gasoline

 

[MCF]

Any suggestions on which T-bird to use to smash the GMC engineer that designed the engine air filter box? Put a cross member over the top of the box, buried the last screw under two hard pipes, then had to remove the accordion inlet and the MAS electrical...

It’s all about making you use the dealer. “Warning! Do not open the hood. There are no user serviceable parts. Refer all maintenance and repair issues to your local Mr. Goodwrench.”

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Workin on my groove
Tryin hard to improve
I got something to prove
Get the people to move

 

[Gaolee]

But it worked just fine on paper.
Years ago we had a Pontiac Transport. Battery got really weak. No big deal, though it was covered a little. Or so I thought. After no telling how long trying to figure out how to get the thing out I gave up. Dropped it off with the guy that did things beyond me. I waked in and said I'm ashamed to say it, but I can't change the battery. He laughed and said no problem and they would take care of it. Came back that evening and when I walked in he started laughing and said, "I know why you had trouble. Don't feel bad, we had to almost take the front in off to get it out."

The Buick '19 Enclave we recently got is not that bad but a lot of stuff needs to come off and out of the way to get that one out. The F-150 and Expedition, about 5 minutes including grabbing the tools...

The easiest recent vehicle to work on is my Daytona 675. Yeah, it is a Triumph, which should mean a total bodge. Nope. Everything is accessible, comes apart logically, everything is accessible when it is apart, there isn't much fiddley nonsense that takes five hands and three eyes to deal with. It is far easier than any other sport sportbike I have worked on, and bikes are usually easier than anything with four wheels. I makes my DRZ seem like a complicated pain, even though the DRZ is about as basic as they get.

 

[MCF]

What year? I think the more they use computers to do the designs and the more they design for automated assembly, the more crap like this gets introduced.
I still think *every* product designer / engineer should have to live with their product, replace parts, etc. for a period of time before it can be released. Then again, sometimes I wonder if some of these designs aren't driven by mandates to make sure people have to spend money at the shop rather than do it themselves.

This. It has been common practice since the nineties. Gone are the days of the Ford Maverick, “so simple, you can tune it with only a screw driver.”

 

[MCF]

View attachment 7292759

I watch the keyboardist.

 

[MCF]

I did have to stand on my head to get the two T-15 screws out of the bottom of the glove box to get to the cabin filter...

Reminds me of changing the cabin filter in my old ‘01 Volvo S80. My brother designed the thing. I called and cussed him out. All he said was the production engineers are idiots. They don’t know how to work on cars.

 

[MCF]

Workin on my groove
Tryin hard to improve
I got something to prove
Get the people to move

I actually got some shed time today too.

 

[Border]

Good evening Thunderbird loving sisters and brothers. Just wanted to drop in and wish everyone well. Just got home from the Joe Bonamassa concert. No Thunderbird sightings, but an evening of great music. Third time I have seen him, and am always amazed. He is a fabulous player and tore it up. He has a hot band behind him that grooved all evening. I especially enjoyed a long, bluesy jam version of How Many More Times by Led Zeppelin. All in all, a great show.
Tomorrow is only Wednesday but already thinking about the weekend. Take care everyone.

 

[PhR75]

Good evening Thunderbird loving sisters and brothers. Just wanted to drop in and wish everyone well. Just got home from the Joe Bonamassa concert. No Thunderbird sightings, but an evening of great music. Third time I have seen him, and am always amazed. He is a fabulous player and tore it up. He has a hot band behind him that grooved all evening. I especially enjoyed a long, bluesy jam version of How Many More Times by Led Zeppelin. All in all, a great show.
Tomorrow is only Wednesday but already thinking about the weekend. Take care everyone.

It was Joe's post on Instsgram where I saw that Terry Reid had passed. Joe owns Terry's old Telecaster. I wonder if he played it on that gig? Blonde with a neck humbucker.

 

[PhR75]

This is for @Chucky Stiletti
I took a bike ride last night and rode past the Stora Enso paper mill. Not much or any pics of the mill but the surroundings might seem familiar.

 

[GonePlaid]

Mike finally got a decent camera?

No, I purloined (borrowed, swiped, stole) that pic from another thread.

 

[dagrev]

I don’t recall if it was this thread or elsewhere but someone noted that the new VW ID Buzz (dumb name) requires much of the front end be disassembled to change the cabin filter.

Changing the headlight bulbs on the GMC Acadia: Suggestion was to remove from wheels, undo wheel well liner reach up to feel your way to the box containing the bulb. Disconnect and reverse procedure. I did it by just turning the wheels one way. Either way, you can either see what you are working on with the bulb area or feel with your hands. Not both.
But it was no problem at the factory because it all came as a unit. "So what's the problem?" they said in the design office.

 

[dagrev]

I did have to stand on my head to get the two T-15 screws out of the bottom of the glove box to get to the cabin filter...

Pics or it didn't happen.

Ford Explorers were similar, but the oil filter and battery were easy. The Buick cabin filter was pretty easy.

 

[dagrev]

Nah. He still loses.

Yep!

 

[dagrev]

Reminds me of changing the cabin filter in my old ‘01 Volvo S80. My brother designed the thing. I called and cussed him out. All he said was the production engineers are idiots. They don’t know how to work on cars.

As with what Miles said (and no offense to Will), I always said after working for commercial general contractor that architects should have to work at least a year in the field doing the things they design. Most of the time it's never a problem (which is astonishing when you think of it), but occasionally you get some real head-scratchers. That being said, I find looking at what architects do and all they have to know to be absolutely fascinating. It's incredible what all they have to know (electrical, plumbing, materials, structural engineering, codes, etc.), to put things on paper and in such detail. I'm weird, but said before I find reading prints facilitating.

 

[dagrev]

Good evening Thunderbird loving sisters and brothers. Just wanted to drop in and wish everyone well. Just got home from the Joe Bonamassa concert. No Thunderbird sightings, but an evening of great music. Third time I have seen him, and am always amazed. He is a fabulous player and tore it up. He has a hot band behind him that grooved all evening. I especially enjoyed a long, bluesy jam version of How Many More Times by Led Zeppelin. All in all, a great show.
Tomorrow is only Wednesday but already thinking about the weekend. Take care everyone.

He is amazing. Glad it was a good show. As lamented before, when I saw him it literally was the worst sounding concert I ever attended. Way too loud for the venue and we were next to the sound guy and he must that thought it was great. Almost said something but figured it was useless.