Penny the 2003 SLE

[nos4blood70]

Nice! It's a great company to work for so far.

If you don't mind me asking, what role were you applying for?

[CMNTMXR57]

Something in corporate finance. It may have been something actually out of the corporate offices in Irvine but obviously a WFH role.

[CMNTMXR57]

So, just went back out there, they had a couple of "Sr. Manager Corporate FP&A" at various locations (Palo Alto, Irvine, Remote). I applied to the remote one just now.

[nos4blood70]

Happy Memorial Day all!

Added another 2,000 miles to Penny. Figured out her pinched wire in the passenger front door with the help of Andrew. Got a new subwoofer. Replaced her cracked center armrest. Added more pins to the headliner... Lol

Went on another camping trip. The dog loves hammocks. Figured out you can hard boil an egg on a campfire in about 30 minutes!

The ignition coils have definitely improved the fuel economy slightly as well. I was able to get 29mpg going 75mph. The stuttering and downshifting out of 4th definitely was affecting the mileage. Now it can hold 4th gear locked up on most grades around here in the midwest at least.

Really enjoying spring! Found my first Morel mushrooms. Threw on the S2000s new Falken RT660s as a joke. Can't even turn the wheel as the tire hits the strut. Despite being the same size as my old RE71Rs these tires are noticeably wider... Weird!

[Sirius]

Looks like a good time!

BTW, the trees are all leafed-out here.

[nos4blood70]

A little new year update. Up past 238k miles now. Replaced a rear toe link that was clunking for literal months. Lol
Discovered a power steering leak at the pump's shaft seal. Don't feel like replacing the pump as the leak is so slow it can take a month to notice it. Just gonna keep an eye on it.
Car faithfully starts no matter the temperature. Gave her a piece of cardboard to cover the trans cooler, sometimes it can take over 15 mins of highway driving in real cold to get 4th gear lock up. Other than that, just keeps on going! Headlights looking good as ever after a quick polish.


Got my master tech dog assistant/fluid sniffer lol

[Sirius]

Nice to have an inside place to wash the car. I washed mine outside yesterday when it was about 9*F, then pulled it into the heated garage to thaw out.

[luke_dubs]

Awesome!! Keep her going!!

You're trying to get her to 1 million miles, right?

[95naSTA]

Closing in on that quarter mil. Keep it goingx2.

[nos4blood70]

Awesome!! Keep her going!!

You're trying to get her to 1 million miles, right?

A million miles would be incredible, but despite running and shifting pretty well considering the age and mileage, it is far too rusty. Rear rockers are completely gone. I have holes behind the front subframe mountings, etc. Sad to see. However I was poking around and hammering spots to check, and for the most part it still seems roadworthy. Believe it or not rear spring perches and shock mounts look really good. A lot of the thinner sheet metal is just crumbling.

Took her out for some coffee and bacon with a sunrise view the other morning at the local forest preserve.

[luke_dubs]

Ahh, bummer. It's a shame to see, but as we all know, rust kills these cars.

Just keep going, I want to see how many miles you can put on her before the end.

[95naSTA]

Somewhat of a thread jack but this thread sent me down a rabbit hole to see what mileage my 95 was when I bought it in 2007. Sadly I couldn't find it.

I want to say it was like 198k but I'm not sure. The earliest record I have is 222k in '09. I remember putting on 10k+ annually which would make that sub 200k make sense.

[nos4blood70]

Finally a more serious failure, and so close to 240k miles! Had an emergency brake situation on the highway. It braked hard and then kinda popped. Pedal went to the floor. Soon after lost all brake fluid and braking. Thankfully nothing happened and I limped it home at 5mph. Guessing a rusty line finally gave way! This was last night, I'll be checking it out tonight after work. Phew. My legs were trembling so hard lol

[dougtoth]

I can not understand why brake lines are not made of stainless steel.
All these safety items (ABS Air Bags Seat Belts) required by the government but nothing about the brake lines.
To me Brakes are more the most important thing on your car.
Glad you were not hurt or totaled out the Bonny.

[dougtoth]

I can not understand why brake lines are not made of stainless steel.
All these safety items (ABS Air Bags Seat Belts) required by the government but nothing about the brake lines.
To me Brakes are more the most important thing on your car.
Glad you were not hurt or totaled out the Bonny.

[95naSTA]

That sucks on the line but at least it wasn't a wreck..

I popped a rusty line in my 95 in 08 I think. I eventually repiped the whole thing with copper nickle.

[nos4blood70]

Thanks guys, really lucky on this one. In some ways, I'd say I am glad it happened in the way it did, and that it happened to me rather than when my mom or dad occasionally borrow this thing.

Figured out it's leaking in 3 different places, 2 different lines. It's the rear ones. Where it kinks up underneath the rear passenger seating area, and then where it crosses over to the driver rear wheel.

Got a stainless kit from InLine tube. Going to arrive on Wednesday. I'll probably check all the lines a little bit more in depth. Worst part is I can't even get it into my parents' garage where they typically allow me to do car stuff due to how inclined the entrance is, and with the e-brake being longgggg seized, there is literally zero braking power. Kind of a pain doing it on the street or in the crooked and cracked up driveway, but such is life.

Still going for that 250k mile mark! But I really need to go get another vehicle at this point which I think I will be worrying about in April/May. As dumb as it is, Lexus CT200Hs have been getting me interested. Perfect for my awful city commute.

Hate to run the S2000 through salt, but I figure a little bit won't hurt it if isn't a lifetime trend. The main issue is the S either has 200tw super aggressive summer track tires, or less aggressive but still trashed/heat cycled/frozen to death/on the wear bars generic summer tires on the stock wheels. Neither is great for freezing/wet conditions. Lol

[95naSTA]

I actually think those Lexus CTs are a pretty good looking modern hatch. But, aren't they known for head gasket issues? Maybe not all models?

[Sirius]

Glad nobody was hurt! I can relate the the post-traumatic jimmy-legs. Had something similar happen on my Ranger pickup years ago. Right front flex line rubbed on the tire and blew as I was coming off the interstate...instant no brakes. Lucky for me the parking brake (emergency brake) worked and I was able to shut it down before flying through a busy intersection at mach 3. A situation where pants-wetting is considered acceptable.

Not gonna lie, I wouldn't mind an EV for the commute to work. Just don't want to pay the ungodly price for one.

[nos4blood70]

I actually think those Lexus CTs are a pretty good looking modern hatch. But, aren't they known for head gasket issues? Maybe not all models?

They have a knack for clogging up their EGR systems which then leads to the head gasket failure. All Priuses can do this sadly, but it's remedied with maintenance. Having watched the cleaning process, and also a DIY HG replacement video, it's all rather simple and I might be tempted to take a risk to achieve a 45 mpg lifestyle. I truly don't know where to go yet.

The GF has a 2nd gen fit and I'd love to get one of those, but just due to the nature of how things are with the fam, we share a lot of cars. They refuse to drive a manual vehicle despite immigrating here from Europe and being perfectly capable. I can't stomach buying an automatic Honda, at least for my own use.

Cheap and cheerful cars that are reliable are few and far between. I'd love to spend under $10k for something. A hatch would be preferred to allow the flexibility needed for my dad's work on the random occasion I bring it to them for their use, or if I borrow their Lexus for camping and off road adventures.

Pants wetting was almost there, good thing I had used the bathroom before leaving lol