The Elephant's Child

Oil Change.

Usually, Mad Musician takes care of our cars' oil changes.  Yes, he's musically talented, theologically clever, and very, very smart.  You wouldn't expect a guy like that to also be incredibly mechanically inclined, would you? But he is.  He's also often very low on free time, between his day job, his choir directing job, and the time he spends keeping Sparkle Kitty from destroying the few brain cells I have left.

Since I'll be taking my brother's Mazda 3 hatchback on a trip this week, and it's due for an oil change, we decided I'd just get it done today, here in town, and actually pay money to have someone change the oil, despite past experiences at many oil change places which suggest it isn't wise to do so.

The tech "couldn't get the old filter off" and he left it in place. Oddly enough, he still charged me for the full oil change, even though I didn't get a new filter.

Now, before you accuse me of being too harsh on the tech, it is, according to my clever and handy husband, quite common to nearly destroy or actually crack the old filter in the process of getting it off.  It's also possible that Iffy Lube (that's not a typo) messed up the last time the oil was changed and cranked the filter on too tightly.

Aaaannnd, Mad Musician wonders if the tech remembered to adjust the amount of oil to account for the fact that the filter wasn't changed.  When a new filter is put on, it's empty of oil.  I wonder if the car is now overfilled.  We'll check this evening.

Mad Musician's comment:

"Basic competence: To get ahead in this life, you don't even need to be good at anything.  All you have to do is not be bad." 

You'd think that an oil change place would be adept at dealing with tight filters, especially as it's a fairly common problem. 

So, as it ended up, I paid $32 for a little over a gallon of motor oil.  Stupid me.

(But my brother's car does have fresh oil, which it needed.)

Review: 2008 Dodge Charger

First, the pros: Undeniably cool styling.  I had fun watching a four-year-old little boy's eyes bug out as he walked in front of the massive front end in the Target parking lot.  The swelling back quarter panels are designed to make scrawny, underweight drivers of rice burners downshift and step on the gas before they know what's hit them.  We absolutely did not come up fast behind a Smart Car before sliding into the left lane to pass.  Nope.  No pictures exisist, so you can't prove anything.

Several of the other things we liked were simple conveniences, unknown to us since we normally drive two 1992 cars. The LATCH system, standard on cars since 2000, sure makes installing a car seat easy.  Nifty lane changer option on the blinker controls. Good spray on the wipers.  Doors have a solid, heavy feel, mostly due to the slab-sided styling - there is simply more metal in them than in a car of less massive styling.  Seats were comfortable, once I found the lumbar support, and there was good legroom. 

The automatic transmission shifts quietly and smoothly.  Shifting was logical, with no odd hunting around for the right gear like some automatics are prone to doing.  Instrument display was nicely arranged, and deep-set so your wife can't see how fast you're going.  This is a car for boys, no doubt about it.  Heat and A/C controls were very good, as was the radio. 

In parking lot and other low-speed turns, the steering was alright, and the car is suprisingly maneuverable, but there's no getting around the high back styling and the large amount of car that's out in front of you when you're sitting at the wheel. If you're the kind of girl (or your wife is) that tends to scrape bumpers, take off side mirrors and back into lawn furniture, this probably isn't the car for you.  I found though, that despite the little windows and slab-side styling, I was able to drive and park the car comfortably, even though I'm only 5'-3" tall.

Now the cons, and they're big enough to keep me from buying the car.  We drove a base model, with a 2.7 liter V6.  It's woefully underpowered, even with just a single driver.  Acceleration was about as bad as our old '94 Chrysler Town and Country.  Quite embarrassing for a car that looks like it could easily take on a tripped-out Ford Mustang.   A 2.7L V6 is not big enough for a full size sedan with alot of extra metal in the body work.

While the Charger is nice and stable at highway speeds, there was an awful lot of road, tire and wind noise above 45 miles an hour.  I suppose that's to be expected in a car that sold for around $20k new.  This ain't a BMV 650i. I found it annoying, though, and something to consider if you'll be taking the car on long trips. 

My biggest complaint, though, was the squirrely steering.  In straight-lane driving, the small adjustments you make while steering were fine.  But the steering seemed to overcompansate in larger turns of the wheel.  Make a larger movement, and the car seemed to slide away from you. I'm quite good with unfamiliar cars - ask Mad Musician - a typical "female driver" I am most definitely NOT, but I didn't really get used to the odd feel of the steering.  (Maybe my Dad will jump in in the comments and explain what's going on with the steering.)

When I was asked by one of my husband's coworkers what I thought of the car, I said it might be redeemable with one of the larger engine options.  He told me he's driven the rear-wheel drive Charger with the V8 Hemi and that it's definitely redeemable.   I'd like to try it. 

I tend to the Germanic in my appreciation of fine cars, but the coolness of gigantic American-made engines and classic Detroit styling should be appreciated by all.  Especially those driving a Smart Car.