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[scantrontb]

Jay Leno once quipped that 4WD owners should be required to actually take the vehicle offroad at least once a year.

Given the driving skills of many of those owners, we'd like as not never see them again. . .

nah... http://satwcomic.com/lost-in-the-outback

[AmriloJim]

Jay Leno once quipped that 4WD owners should be required to actually take the vehicle offroad at least once a year.

Given the driving skills of many of those owners, we'd like as not never see them again. . .

You speak as if that were not a good thing.

[Typeminer]

I'm with Lake Wrangler on Suburbans. If you need a 4WD truck, a Suburban can make a lot of sense. But if you really are a suburban, probably not so much.

There's a proverb in my family that an idiot who can't drive in the snow who buys a 4WD vehicle is still an idiot who can't drive in the snow.

I learned to drive in the middle of a snowy winter in a 1955 Willys Jeep wagon, the boxy kind, that had a clutch, 3 shift levers, and 12 forward gear combinations. The Jeep had been through the mill by then (1970), and it had so many safety-related mechanical and instrument problems that I've been accused of making shit up when telling stories about it. (Dad had a mechanic friend who would renew the inspection sticker.) It was a miserable sled to ride in as a passenger, but boy howdy, was it exciting to drive if you could drive it.

Later, I had a couple of old reamed-out full-size vans, which were basically 2WD pickups with a different body. I liked them for hauling stuff and camping, and I could leave the canoe on the roof racks all summer so it was ready to hit the river after a long day at the mineshaft. Maintenance costs were low, and the fuel consumption wasn't a problem since I didn't drive much except for travel. And they had working heaters, and their engines did not blow up if you crossed the state line, unlike the VWs I had owned.

I still miss having an old used truck or van as a second vehicle for hauling boats and grapes and the like. But people who buy a new SUV to commute to an office job? Idiots.

[Hansontoons]

I had an Isuzu (Gesundheit!) Trooper in the 90's that I adored. Great visibility, sat up high, plenty of room in back for gear, somewhat narrow track (never had an issue with stability), but just felt right. And yes, there are a lot of people out there with massive 4x4 beasties that are all hat and no cattle when it comes to using them as they were designed to be used. I always smile when I see a jacked-up truck or SUV with a healthy coating of mud that comes from having some fun.

I took Hans (yeah I know, weird; kraut name for ride from Japan) into the San Juans in Southwestern Colorado a few times, mind you not extreme rock-hopping like you see with highly modified Jeeps and such, but trails that you really needed four-wheel drive to feel comfortable on. We took the trail out of Telluride over Imogene Pass (El. 13,114 ft) into Ouray on one run. THAT was fun! While in the area we would stay in a campground next to Lake Vallecito near Durango and take day trips from there. There was a nice trail that led into the boonies near the campground, supposedly there was a gold mine somewhere at the end of the trail. Never found it, trail always turned muddy once you were really deep in the woods and like someone remarked earlier, four-wheel drive just means you get stuck further away from help or something like that. All my pics from those trips are printed from film and buried somewhere in the everything-goes-in-here room during the restoration/remodeling effort so unable to share a scan at this time.

Now I drive a VW Touareg. It has AWD, but not the clearance you need for good trails. It is comfortable, just enough "zip" for me, and my parents can get in it easily when I take them places. So it'll do for the time being. Next time I make it to to Colorado, I'm renting a Jeep!

[TazManiac]

That's funny- I currently have a 90's Trooper & I'm VW all day long from a first car +K. Ghia to water-cooled VW Sciroccos, a Fox I bought brand new and a couple of four door Jettas (flying bricks...).

[Typeminer]

Are they still importing Isuzus? Haven't seen Joe on TV in a long time now.

[AnotherFairportfan]

What i love are the extreme jacked-up 4WD rigs ... with the leasing company sticker on 'em.

Given what those folks charge for each scratch at lease end ... pretty sure those babies never even see dirt roads.

===============

I caught a "Car Talk" re-run a while back, and they were talking about what they were claiming was a real product - "Spray-On Mud".

Wonder if it comes in different colours and consistencies to match the local geology.

[shadowinthelight]

Please tell everyone to stop buying Suburbans/Tahoes/Escalades/Yukons. Whereas before they said they were trying to get us away from working every Saturday, now there is talk of keeping the Saturdays and adding several Sundays to keep up with demand. Being laid off is preferable to being forced to quit.

[Alkarii]

My mom just called and told me my dad's going to the heart hospital for a sudden visit. From the sound of things at the moment, it isn't serious enough yet that I need to go up there, but just serious enough to not wait until his appointment on November 2nd.

[Dave]

Fingers are crossed that it's nothing dire and that all works out well!

[Alkarii]

So far, all I've heard is that they're keeping him there, at least overnight. So I don't really know how serious it is, but I know how serious it could have been.

[jwhouk]

I hate when that happens. At least your dad didn't call you from the hospital and say, "Hey, just to let you know, I'm in the hospital..."

[Alkarii]

No. Mom called me, telling me that dad called her and said he was going to the hospital. Turns out it was a mild heart attack, and they'll find out tomorrow how much blockage he has.

EDIT: Turns out he's had three heart attacks this month. He has a 50% blockage in the front, 95% in the back. They've put a stent in the back artery, and he's on blood thinners for a year. If he misses one dose, he could and most likely will have a massive heart attack.

Hopefully now he'll finally get the message and stop with all the snack foods. (Not even a joke; most of the time, that's the only thing to eat around the house that doesn't require a can opener.

[chicgeek]

My husband has had a stent in his heart for years. Luckily they discovered the blockage before any heart attacks. It should make a big difference for your dad! It's amazing what they can do. Crossing fingers for a swift recovery, and that this will be a wake up call for him. Healing vibes sent!
Changing a diet is hard, even when you know you should. It helps to have easy no prep food-baby carrots, grapes, precut veg & fruit from the deli,hard boiled eggs, ect. Low fat microwave dinners, even if you have 2 of them. Yes, food from scratch is cheaper and better for you, but sometimes you need stuff like that on hand to avoid the 'it's too much trouble to cook, I can have junk just this once.'
Sending good thoughts for you and your family!

[Sgt. Howard]

My husband has had a stent in his heart for years. Luckily they discovered the blockage before any heart attacks. It should make a big difference for your dad! It's amazing what they can do. Crossing fingers for a swift recovery, and that this will be a wake up call for him. Healing vibes sent!
Changing a diet is hard, even when you know you should. It helps to have easy no prep food-baby carrots, grapes, precut veg & fruit from the deli,hard boiled eggs, ect. Low fat microwave dinners, even if you have 2 of them. Yes, food from scratch is cheaper and better for you, but sometimes you need stuff like that on hand to avoid the 'it's too much trouble to cook, I can have junk just this once.'
Sending good thoughts for you and your family!

Had my attack in '07- they stented the LAV, the one called the 'widowmaker'. The Doc who put it in me said the blockage should have been fatal, said I was one tough SOB to survive that. Heh... more likely the Good Lord still has need of me, I really ain't that tough. The real heartbreaker was when I was told no more braunschweiger!!!

[AnotherFairportfan]

[scantrontb]

Um... ok, it's a pic of a box of copy paper?... why?

[TazManiac]

Cause you can save Ten Bucks! on the used one!

[lake_wrangler]

What? You've never printed on the back side of paper, to save money? Now, they're selling it to you used, so you save money on purchase... Those green types are sure to love that...

[lake_wrangler]

Um... ok, it's a pic of a box of copy paper?... why?

I admit, I kind of felt the same, until the reply... Maybe he should have altered the image, circling what he wanted us to notice...
You know... like this:

usedpaper.jpg (66.02 KiB) Viewed 9300 times