John

I am looking to purchase a reliable AWD vehicle. 2000 or newer with under 100k i'm looking to spend about 10k, would love to spend less then that but also willing to spend a little more. looking for something with AWD and gets decent fuel mileage (upper 20s on the highways and around 18-20 city) would prefer a manual, but i've learned you can't have everything in life!

What i have looked:

2001-2004 Audi A4 - love the styling, love the 6spd, decent mpg but high maintenance costs and prone to significant problems (read many reviews, from many sites & have a friend with an 06 with many problems)

only like the 2005 or newer Legacy's from the Subaru Brand

2001-2004 BMW 3 series with X drive- good consumer reviews, but high maintenance costs and also prone to some significant problems (sad the German's build so great automobiles..when they run.)

Like the Fusion/Milan- cheap to fix, still worth a few bucks though, (personally a die-hard ford man, but i am going for mileage/price since i will be commuting)

So i am really just looking for suggestions, personal experiences with vehicles, maybe even a good experience with a bmw that might make me decide to buy one. I do repair my own vehicles, so maintenance is truly just the cost of parts. I also like to drive something a little different, (current car is a 1993 Alfa Romeo 164L with 156K on it, repairs are costly and there have been quite a few over the years, but its clean, no rust, no rot, do the work myself, so i save money there)

So give me your opinions! I have done soo much car shopping and i am really just running out of ideas, everyone wants just way to much money for there junk. And critics say it is the worst year for used car buyers because no one is buying new cars. So maybe you have an idea that i haven't already looked into! Thank you for your help!

-John

I have a loaded Kicker box totaling 600W, 300W/RMS. I am looking for a good reliable amplifier to power the box. most likely a mono-block. i can't seem to find any good sites with amplifier ratings. i have a cheap Lanzar 1000w amplifier powering it but it is very finicky. sometimes it works great, other times its terrible. seems to be temperature related(yes, i know very strange). it has issues when the amp is exposed to under 50 degree weather. the wiring is good for up to a 1200w amplifier. ground for the motor to the chassis is perfect and amp to the chassis is perfect. the wiring really i have spend a lot of time playing with thinking it was the problem but i feel it is the amplifier now. if anyone has any suggestions i would much appreciate it. thank you for your help!

-John

I have a iPhone 3G and was hoping to just update it to Firmware 4.0 but couldn't find a ware and the buggy 3.1.3 was just getting on my nerves a little to much so i was hoping i could jailbreak 4.1. I tried using redsn0w and firmware 4.0 like one guide suggested and it did indeed jailbreak my firmware 4.1 BUT deleted the phone half. i could only receive calls... so what good is that?! so currently my iphone is back to restored state with 4.1 on it... does anyone have any ideas how to successfully jailbreak it? thanks!

John

I own a 74 CJ5 and i had to mount the stereo below the grab handle in front of the passenger seat. I only have about 5in of depth there and there wasnt really any other choice of placement for a stereo. Does anyone know of a place i could get a stereo that might fit there? One without a CD player i would think would be shorter but i havent had any luck finding anything... they all seem to have a overall depth of 6-1/8 to 7in.

thanks for the help!

John K

I have a 1971 Ford F250 with brand new re-trac west coast mirrors but i am still using the old mirror brackets from the past west coast mirrors. they are completely rusted out and look terrible with my new mirrors and i would love to replace them, but, i cant seem to find any place to buy hinged mirror brackets. because of the shape of the door. the brackets can't be at 90 degree angles and bending the solid brackets results in not being able to get the mounting bolts attached. Does anyone know where i could find hinged upper and lower west coast mirror brackets? thank you for your help!

John K

I have a 2006 Class C Jayco that came with the optional 400 Watt Power Inverter. There is a switch in the control panel for it but i see no difference when it is on. i thought it could be used to power 120 volt electronics by converting 12v dc. am i missing something here? can someone explain to me exactly how to use it? thanks!

The fuel gauge on my 1971 F250 isn't reading anything, i am pretty sure its not the sender in the tank. i was wondering if anyone knows of any common issues with the fuel gauges on older trucks? before i start going through the hassle of guess and check. also does anyone know of any good classic truck clubs/forums where i can find information or parts for my truck? thanks!

John K

Does anyone know where i can find a break down of a Subaru SVX online perhaps? I need to remove the inner door panel on the left door to gain access to the lock and i need to remove a steering rack... i have never worked on a SVX and i was wondering how hard they would be and it would be nice to be able to see some of this broken down before i tackle this project! Thanks!

John K

Do dehumidifiers consume roughly the same amount of energy as an air conditioner on average? yes i realize that they both come in different sizes/BTU's etc. And if air conditioners consume more energy.. about how much more? I am asking this because i currently run a dehumidifier in my garage during the summer and if i read the label correctly, it uses 1.8kw per hr and i was wondering how much more it would cost to run an air conditioner instead.. such as when i am working. thanks for your help!!

I have an iPhone 3G and I got it about 6 months ago. I do alot of traveling and sometimes it's really nice to be able to use a full size keyboard. So I found this download that unlocks the tethering feature on my 3.0 software and it works great. But I have heard AT&T can tell if you are tethering? Also I have heard the unlimited data plan is actually capped at 5gb. Is that true? Wouldn't that be false advertisement? So what are your thoughts on all of this? Yes I jail broke my phone but this download you don't need it to be jail broken so I restored my phone back to it's original un- jail broken form. I found jail breaking to be quite un-neccisary actually. Seemed pretty pointless to me. Anyways what are all of your thoughts on this? Thanks alot!! John K

My aquarium kit came with a Bio-Wheel 200 (by Marineland), but i was wondering what is the best filtration system for a 37 gallon fresh water aquarium? thanks!

I am setting up a 37 gallon aquarium and i was wondering what are some key ways to prevent algae build up? thanks!

I am looking into purchasing a decent set of torches. I was wondering what people might recommend since my knowledge when it comes to Torches is very limited. What do you recommend and what do you think of the Victor Torches from Sears?

I am looking into purchasing a 1999 F350 with a 6.8L V10. I have heard that the 1999 V10 had some problems and i was wondering what problems they were exactly known to have? thanks!

I have a Linksys WRT300N router which connects into a DSL Modem box via ethernet cord. But i am having a problem connecting to the internet, whether it is by cable or wireless. The router apparently cant access the internet. But i can access the router from either a cable or Wirelessly connected PC. are there any sort of settings that i must change to get it to connect? I was a 2WIRE DSL Modem if that helps thanks (sorry if its a bit confusing, if you need for info just ask)

I have a Manual for my 1993 Alfa Romeo on a CD. The CD only works on a Windows 98 computer so with all my my computer being Windows 98 or Vista i cant use it anymore. I don't want to replace it since buying a new manual on CD is around $150. Are there any programs i can use to convert it to windows XP or Vista? Or are there any programs i can use to read/play it? Thanks!!!

I have a 2004 Jeep Liberty. I just replaced the rotors and pads on both the front and rear brakes. When replacing the pads I had to compress the caliper in to fit it back over the rotor with the pads in place. None of the brake lines were ever removed on this process. But, for some reason, I barely have any peddle now. And before, my pads and rotors were worn, but I still had some peddle. But now I have none. I tried bleeding the front and rear brakes. I bled them both about 5 times. But there was no air in the lines. One funny thing I noticed though was when I compressed the caliper so I could fit it all over the rotor again, the fluid didn’t return to the reservoir (which I had the cap open on). Is there something I missed? Is there a separate place the fluid could have returned to? I am completely puzzled and my Jeep has barely any peddle at all. And I have done brakes some many times on other vehicles. This was just the first time I have ever done them on a Jeep Liberty.

i am looking into buying a boat trailer that was converted to a landscape trailer that is roughly 6.5x20ft duel axles. and a trailer that big really need electric brakes. i heard you can add them and i was wondering about how much it would cost me per axle and who sells aftermarket trailer brake add ons?

Thanks

John K

I need to find a parts breakdown or list for a 2000 Subaru Forester. i need to find out what the part number is for the clips that hold on a plastic protective shield under the front of the car behind the front bumper.

Thanks

JK

i ripped off the front fender on my 2004 Jeep Liberty, i was pulling down the drive way in our van and hit a patch of icing sliding the van into our liberty. it took off the right front fender along with the inside black wheel well cover or what ever you want to call it. nothing is bent, luckily, but i was wondering if there is a place where i can find replacement parts because i know if i go to the dealer it will cost me an arm and a leg.