What did you do with your Thunderbird Today?

Hey this counts, SCT just got back to me:

Our sales team is sending you some documents to fill out and send back to us.
We will then be able to level up your adjustability for the tuning software.

I might be able do do all sorts of crap to my car now :zdevil:
 
Will it cost you anything Matt? :unsure:

Joe
 
I don't think so, I asked the guy I've been talking to early on when this solution was first posited where he said "possibly", but based on his more extensive voicemail message it sounds like I just will be signing documents.
 
Did nothing today. First decent day in a while, pre-gamed on the deck with my wife for the hurricane Saturday. :zbeer:

Joe
 
I aced the test, it looked awfully like the one I took with all the diesel questions we all had to take a few years ago but this one had some gas engine stuff sprinkled in as well. Looks like by Monday I'll find out if I have the parameters I'm hoping for! I'll give SCT this, its hard getting through to them(email is completely useless) but once you're in their portal the customer service is great!
 
I got a new Bluetooth speakerphone for navigation readouts and calls.

20230922_170409 (Large).jpg20230922_170623 (Large).jpg

I recently looked at my options for Bluetooth because the Motorola T505 Bluetooth speakerphone I've had for years was made with that damned soft touch rubber coating that disintegrates and gets sticky over time. Also, it's the only remaining device I have that charges via Mini-USB, but most of all, I was not happy with the thing basically being covered in Spider Tack and it isn't worth my time to strip off the old coating.

I seriously considered upgrading my head unit from the Pioneer Premier DEH-P800PRS. However, the more videos and forum threads I saw about its successor, the Pioneer DEH-80PRS, the more I felt the build quality of the 80PRS would have been a major downgrade, all just so I could get built-in Bluetooth and Unicode support for USB file playback. Not really worth it. I'd rather get a DEX-P99RS for the Unicode support over USB and keep the Avantree Roadtrip.

So far, the Roadtrip has been pretty good. First of all, it's not made of that soft touch crap. It has a replaceable Li-Ion battery cell which is a total surprise in small electronics these days. The audio through the speakerphone for Google Maps voice navigation is louder and clearer than the T505. Supposedly, pressing that call button on the right also invokes Siri/Google Assistant when not on a call, but I haven't tried it yet. I also haven't tried using its FM transmitter function yet because...well, who still makes phone calls?

It cost $60, so about double or triple the cheaper Bluetooth options, but I prefer getting something with English instructions and an original product design. Jabra and Motorola have left this dead segment of the Bluetooth accessory market and I don't want white-labeled junk with cat-on-keyboard brand names from China via Amazon if I can help it.

This feels like such a Luddite solution, but since I'm not going to downgrade my head unit, nor carve up my center stack trim panel to fit a double DIN Android Auto head unit, nor get a motorized flip-up unit (which are both head unit downgrades anyway), this is one of the few options left out there that fits my criteria.
 
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Moved it to the top driveway so I could move Dad's Jeep into the garage. Then I moved it back down to the bottom. 😂
 
Irv said:
I got a new Bluetooth speakerphone for navigation readouts and calls.

View attachment 311View attachment 312

I recently looked at my options for Bluetooth because the Motorola T505 Bluetooth speakerphone I've had for years was made with that damned soft touch rubber coating that disintegrates and gets sticky over time. Also, it's the only remaining device I have that charges via Mini-USB, but most of all, I was not happy with the thing basically being covered in Spider Tack and it isn't worth my time to strip off the old coating.

I seriously considered upgrading my head unit from the Pioneer Premier DEH-P800PRS. However, the more videos and forum threads I saw about its successor, the Pioneer DEH-80PRS, the more I felt the build quality of the 80PRS would have been a major downgrade, all just so I could get built-in Bluetooth and Unicode support for USB file playback. Not really worth it. I'd rather get a DEX-P99PRS for the Unicode support over USB and keep the Avantree Roadtrip.

So far, the Roadtrip has been pretty good. First of all, it's not made of that soft touch crap. It has a replaceable Li-Ion battery cell which is a total surprise in small electronics these days. The audio through the speakerphone for Google Maps voice navigation is louder and clearer than the T505. Supposedly, pressing that call button on the right also invokes Siri/Google Assistant when not on a call, but I haven't tried it yet. I also haven't tried using its FM transmitter function yet because...well, who still makes phone calls?

It cost $60, so about double or triple the cheaper Bluetooth options, but I prefer getting something with English instructions and an original product design. Jabra and Motorola have left this dead segment of the Bluetooth accessory market and I don't want white-labeled junk with cat-on-keyboard brand names from China via Amazon if I can help it.

This feels like such a Luddite solution, but since I'm not going to downgrade my head unit, nor carve up my center stack trim panel to fit a double DIN Android Auto head unit, nor get a motorized flip-up unit (which are both head unit downgrades anyway), this is one of the few options left out there that fits my criteria.
Click to expand...

I didn't get a chance to tell you that mirror is really cool! I've got a Gentex with a compass but I think I might be treating myself with that one
 
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Pulled out the John Deere next to it to mow the grass and then put it back in when I was done.
 
Does anyone else's car have such bad tolerances on the door frames? The perimeter of the door frame is 1.5" longer on the passenger side of my car. Between five different door weatherstripping surrounds pulled from junkyard cars, all of them fit perfectly on the driver side when tightly pressed in and were 1.5" short on the passenger side. It was always just loosely pressed in on the passenger side with it being pulled tight around the upper rear and lower rear corners to hide the 1.5" deficit. I only noticed this for the first time a couple of years ago.

I replaced the entire driver side surround with a good one because mine had a tear in it over a foot long. I cut off the torn section, then cut another 1.5" piece from the remainder that was in good condition, and plopped it in on the passenger side.

20230913_205124_HDR (Large).jpg20230913_205052_HDR (Large).jpg20230913_205221_HDR (Large).jpg

This also went along with replacing the door threshold trim panel with one that had all of its clips intact.

20230917_190334 (Large).jpg

There's a notable amount of minor crap like this that I hadn't thought about addressing for years until recently.
 
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Derphound01 said:
Which mirror is that? I have not seen one with the compass in it.
Click to expand...

www.mastertailgaters.com

Rear View Mirror- Auto Bright/Dim, Compass, Temperature, Universal Fit

Master Tailgaters Ultra Bright 4.3" Auto Adjusting Brightness and Dimming LCD Rear View Mirror with Compass And Temperature. MIRROR: 4mm Thick Glass with Compass and Temperature + Remote. LCD Display Automatically Turns On When Vehicle Put In Reverse
www.mastertailgaters.com www.mastertailgaters.com

I call this their kitchen sink model because it has temperature, compass, auto dimming, auto LCD brightness, adjustable parking lines, dual RCA inputs, and a remote control, but it doesn't quite have everything. I opted not to get one of their even higher end models with an integrated dashcam because dashcam technology evolves a lot faster than a mirror.
 
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That's really cool, I think there's a cheaper version with just the reverse camera but I sure do like having a compass. I'll gift one for myself for christmas, I've been thinking of getting a new one anyway since the gentex vibrates at speed

Oh yeah my weatherstripping has gaps too, not that wide but wide enough where that nub doesn't lock into the other end.
 
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Irv said:
Does anyone else's car have such bad tolerances on the door frames? The perimeter of the door frame is 1.5" longer on the passenger side of my car. Between five different door weatherstripping surrounds pulled from junkyard cars, all of them fit perfectly on the driver side when tightly pressed in and were 1.5" short on the passenger side. It was always just loosely pressed in on the passenger side with it being pulled tight around the upper rear and lower rear corners to hide the 1.5" deficit. I only noticed this for the first time a couple of years ago.

I replaced the entire driver side surround with a good one because mine had a tear in it over a foot long. I cut off the torn section, then cut another 1.5" piece from the remainder that was in good condition, and plopped it in on the passenger side.

View attachment 336View attachment 337View attachment 338

This also went along with replacing the door threshold trim panel with one that had all of its clips intact.

View attachment 340

There's a notable amount of minor crap like this that I hadn't thought about addressing for years until recently.
Click to expand...
Both sides of mine were short about the same amount. I did the same as you.
 
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No Tbird work today. However i rebuilt the steering column in my 1997 E350 van. Turned out nice. I surprised myself too. I had bought a NOS clock spring because mine was really in rough shape. I bought one on ebay a year ago. However I mistakenly bought one that wasn't wired for cruise control. That bummed me out. So i was looking the new one and old one over and realized they were almost the same wxcept the cruise version had 3 more wires. All the connectors were the same. The pins where the air bag plugs in and the cruise buttons had all the same pins already there. So long story short I unsoldered the three wires from the old one and soldered them to the new one. And it all worked out well. About to test drive the cruise control.
 
Yep, I wont forget getting grief for parking at a classic car event, next to a baby-faced corvette. It was probably just some local though

1695522789002.png

To be fair though, the roadrunner and the chevelle did raise a bar or two 😅

1695522917488.png
 
Vicinity said:
Yep, I wont forget getting grief for parking at a classic car event, next to a baby-faced corvette. It was probably just some local though

View attachment 436

To be fair though, the roadrunner and the chevelle did raise a bar or two 😅

View attachment 437
Click to expand...
I'd return the grief to the Malibu sport coupe with a fake SS badge :tongue:
 
I don't see any coffee but thats a sexy bird in a good lineup
 
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