His new seat is a hit!

It is a great relief that Espen no longer has a raging fit every time he is placed in the car seat, these days he is quite content and is more likely to fall asleep than scream his lungs out. After getting his new seat things seem even better, and I think it has something to do with being up higher and able to see more?

The Prius

Remember how the car got dinged back in '08? The picture above shows how it got hit on the rear three quarter panel and bumper, however the door was not damaged and this is where reality diverge from logic. Ever since we got the car repaired (back in '08) there has been this annoying hissing wind sound when we drive above 100kph (60mph). Really annoying when you learn to notice it. 

The body shop has been amazing to deal with. Really stellar service apart from the fact that it took three visits to figure out. They stood by their work and was super helpful each time we went back to try figure out the problem regardless of how long it was since the initial repair. Finally last week, riding in the back seat with the body shop tech driving/speeding I nailed down the problem area: rear end of the rear window where theres a small black triangular plastic cover. You can see it the picture below:. Covering it with my hand the noise went away.

The body shop removed it and found a gasket missing which brings me back to where the logic ends. As the photo shows the door was not dinged, so why was the gasket missing after being repaired? We will never know but we are happy to once again ride in a quieter car.

Towed

Okey, some of you may know my car was vandalized some time last week while parked outside our apt building. Basically they made a mess and tried to steal my car - and failed, but managed to break the ignition on the steering column. No longer able to insert the key or start the car I had to have it fixed. It is now at PR Motorsport in Hayward getting a new ignition lock.
I have always left my car unlocked and empty for days like this; no need to cut through the top.

Special morning

Saw this one Monday morning at the local gas station. According to the owner the car was the winning prize in a lottery by a British noodle company and was given "special treatment". The original motor died a few years back and the owner replaced it with an american V8.

Heathers car window - smashed!

Last day before deadline

I have been working long hours on this design project with my friend Ty, and we are looking forward to take a break and resume our fatherly duties.
I cant really discuss the project or show any pictures of the car but I think this teaser can give you an impression of the top surface of the current 3D model rendered on the computer.

Sunday drive with Mattias

Not easy taking a good picture when driving on a twisty road..
We took a drive up in the hills near Saratoga today, it was really hot, so we kept the convertible top up. Next time I think we need to do this later in the day or when it is not so hot.
I hope Mattias's Porsche is ready then too.

Suspension update 2

I picked up my car Friday afternoon and was very eager to feel the difference. Unfortunately it was raining, so I had to be extremely careful since my tires are so old and crusty. I kept off the highways but I still got a good sense of the change from before I turned the car in.
Previous handling was soft, it absorbed most bumps as a good boat or Buick would do, now things are a bit more firm, maybe a little bumpy, but not harsh. Steering is a lot more direct and the car doesn't roll or feel spongy when I turn in. I also had to get it aligned because all the bushings were changed, which probably improved things a bit also.
Too bad my tires are so slick in the rain, I spun every time I started from a stand still, in second gear!

Suspension update

The Miata has been riding on the springs for a while, which some may say makes for a very comfortable ride (like a Cadillac), but it has also been making weird noises, clunks and rattles. Actually I think the ride has been terrible, and it is not particularly safe either since the tires don't have as good traction when the shocks don't work.
I bit the bullet this week and dropped it off at a mechanic to have him replace the 135.000 mile old bushings, shocks and things like that. Changing the bushings is a pain in the ass and it is kind of a major operation because all the suspension arms, brakes and all has to come off the car. I therefore decided to put in parts that will perform better and last longer while costing about the same as stock (OEM) parts.

The interesting part
Now, the funny thing is that the Miata has somewhat of a cult following. There are hundreds of clubs around the country and a couple good websites that has a wealth of information, I think the best one is Miata.net.
It also has a forum where I met a guy called Bob. I went to see Bob in Cupertino to talk about the suspension and test drive his car to compare with mine, and since he's a retired aircraft mechanic I trust his judgement more than a Regular Joe off the street.

The really intesting part
I mentioned for him in an email yesterday that I had dropped the car off at the mechanic, and the next thing I hear is that he took a trip to the mechanic himself to take a look at it! He even talked to the mechanic and discussed the progress and seemingly made sure things went down well. I am amazed! He even made suggestions to install a special brace to keep a certain bracket from tearing. Wow. Can't wait to see the car on Tuesday.

Puncture - again!

This is the second puncture on the Prius. The first one happened because we drove over a screw (phillps head) but this one is more of a mystery.

Low key brag fest

Mattias suggested we go to this car meet in the parking lot behind Santana Row in San Jose to check out the nice cars that show up there Saturday in the AM hours.
It was well worth it. Although there was not a lot of cars there, the few that showed up photographed well.

Lucky for me Mattias offered me to drive his Porsche 996 Carrera (isn't that the model number Mattias?) which was a dream to drive. The car just felt amazing, I would drive it everyday.

Smogged

I had to have my car's emissions tested, (a so called smog test) and it passed with great grades. Curiously it passed with better results than two years ago!

Miata update: Meter hood 2

As you may already have read on this blog I have been working on repairing the meter hood on my car, picture above proves I am all finished. I also used some of my leftover leather to fix the big holes that used to be where control arms for the wipers and blinkers are.
Next thing I am going to fix is the windows, they are a bit hard to roll up and down. Im afraid if I leave them as is that the cables my fray and break.