At 08:10 AM 2/26/98 -0500, david zavetsky wrote:
>Well, that's one possibility. But I really think that in most cases,
>thestock vehicle is the best balance of performance, EPA crap, reliability
>and cost.
>
>And alot of mods we do either are copyrighted (i.e. the K&N filter mod) or
>are mods that really cause the vehicle to have characteristics that an
>"average" buyer may not want (i.e. a slightly louder/rumblier exhaust).
>
>I ride ATVs and have a Honda 250x as does several of my freinds. We each
>have customized the bikefor our own riding prefs. I have a bigger front
>sprocket, K&N filter, and a certain brand of tire that I prefer. My buddy
>has the gear, a different brand air filter, a cam, exhaust, and some other
>internal mods. Of course, he is always tinkering with his to get it to run
>optimally. I prefer to have more reliability in the woods.
>
>I agree...sometimes the $$$$ end of it affects the product. But I think
>overall, the best balance is struck. Performance upgrades DO cost money
>and DO affect vehicle character.....Just like the old cafeteria lady had to
>cook a meal that would appeal to the greater portion of the scholl (i.e no
>special spices that some students may hate), the manufactrurers build
>vehciles that will please the bulk of the market.
>
>The rest of us are destined to tweak and fiddle until we get the perfect
>match for OUR needs.....
>
>Just my 2 cents.....
>
>
Well said. I agree with all of the above, and I think there is also
an additional point; that being, auto manufacturers have to build their
vehicles to take some abuse. People who don't let the engine warm up,
people who forget to change their oil, people who don't use synthetic
oil, etc. (heh heh... Just kidding on that last one, guys!) :-)
My brother is a good example of this... (or he used to be; hopefully
he has changed his ways). I sold him my Dodge Colt, which I had always
taken good care of. At one point, he went wayyy too long without changing
the oil. Driving home one day, the engine chewed up a rod and shot pieces
of it right through the bottom of the engine. No oil leaked on the ground;
there wasn't any *to* leak out. :-( An expensive lesson that he will
probably not soon forget.
They build 'em to take some abuse, so they can't build them to
extremely close tolerances. When we modify them, we might be cutting
into that margin, but any of us who are modifying our trucks for performance
(actually anyone who is subscribed to this list, for that matter) is most
likely going to take much better care of their truck than the average person.
There are some mods which will decrease reliability, but I think those are
few and far between. And even those can be safe if you keep on top of
them. Nitrous is a good example. If you do something stupid with it,
you can blow your engine apart. Done right, and used right, its perfectly
safe...
-Jon-
.--- stei0302@cs.fredonia.edu -- http://www.cs.fredonia.edu/~stei0302/ ---.
| DoD# 1038, EAA# 518210, NMA# 117376, USUA# A46209, KotWitDoDFAQ, RP-SEL |
| '96 Dodge Dakota v8 SLT Club Cab, '96 Kolb FireFly 447 (#FF019) |
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I do not speak for the SUNY College at Fredonia; any opinions are my own.
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