Potential automotive recall

Do you own a 2008 Buick Enclave? Or a GMC Acadia? Well, have I got news for you. There's a small (?) problem with your engine.

Two of my sons work at a car dealership in the repair shop and reported when I saw them at lunch today that these vehicles have camshaft problems. In the 3.6L, V6, DOHC (dual overhead cam) engine, the cams will "walk" in the cam guides as much as a quarter inch.

First symptom is the Check Engine light will come on. The computer error code thrown will be P0391 - camshaft sensor error. It could happen on cars with as little as 1,000 miles on the odometer.

There is a national backorder on replacement heads and there's no telling how soon this situation will be formally addressed and rectified. GM will inevitably issue a recall on these vehicles to correct the problem. The question is when, though.

The Ford guys are snickering up their torn and greasy sleeves, I'm sure.

Ten terrible URLs

Some companies and/or marketing departments just don't put a lot of thought into their URLs when they design a website.

Click the link below and read some of the destinations and then read them again. Pretty sure they all work, too.

You'll be shaking your head as well.

Bad URLs are here.

Picture blast - in "Engrish"

The worst hard drive crash. Ever.

Many of us have heard about hard drive crashes before. The drive becomes useless and all the data is lost. Forever.

This occurs when the read-write head physically touches the rapidly spinning data platter and scrapes the coating off. Every hard drive is susceptible to this. It's not a matter of "if", but rather "when" it will happen to you. A good backup strategy is very important.

Below is a link to a photo pictorial of a crashed hard drive. Some guys actually took one apart and took pictures of the aftermath. Oh, horrors!

Crashed HD pictorial is here. Scroll, baby, scroll.

Vista compared to hospital leeches

Cracked.com has a pretty interesting article about "Seven things we should pretend never happened."

The one paragraph that nailed it for me big time was their take on Windows Vista. Here's pretty much what they have:






No producer of goods in the history of man has sold so much while caring so little. The combined love and craftsmanship in the every copy of Windows Vista sold in 2007 would roughly equal that put into one toddler's Play-Doh snake. Here was a program with several features, such as a warning box that pops up every five minutes or so to ask you if you're sure you want to do what you're doing, so shamelessly broken that they seemed to have been added on a drunken dare.

Nearly everyone hated Vista, in the way that nearly everyone hates being stabbed. It didn't matter. About 100 million copies of Windows Vista were sold in 2007, because 90 percent of the PCs for sale were already infected with it. Want a new computer? Want to be able to buy software for it? Well, then you don't have a choice.

Vista is one of those things the future will laugh at us for, in the same way we laugh about old hospitals using leeches.

How twoo, how twoo. It's a sad state of affairs when you hear about Windows users who are "upgrading" their Vista machines to XP.

Pfft!

The entire Cracked.com article is here.

Also, and in addition, read how Windows screwed up New York's New Year's fireworks display here.

iCrap - the worst iPod accessories you can buy

Use your iPod to whiten your teeth. Strap it to your dog for the next walkies. Wear it as a belt buckle.

Manufacturers actually made this stuff because people actually buy the stuff.

Have fun.

Check out some pics in this article.

(TUAW)

Cheesy Christmas yard decorations

Here's what happens when some people's creativity gets tangled up like last years string of Christmas lights.

What it turns out to be is an influx of usage fees to the electric company and a bizarre mish-mash of Jesus, Santa, Rudolph and the wise men.

Get a load of the very tacky Christmas decorated yards here.

The ugliest colleges in America

With the age of Millenium Park in Chicago and the Art Deco goodness of the skyscrapers in New York, some of America's colleges just don't get the hint.

These buildings are dull, drab and boring.

Check out a pictorial of 20 of the ugliest colleges here.

9 telltale signs that you're probably an asshole

We know who they are. They're all around us.

We probably see anywhere from 1 to 5 of these people every day.

It makes me think that there's an asshole gene common to to each of these.

God's sense of humor? In-breeding? Bad parenting? Who knows.

But they're seemingly everywhere.

9 telltale signs with pictures and foul language here.

(SeeHere)

Why the music industry just doesn't get it

Hijinks Ensue has a hilarious webcomic which could explain why the music industry has fallen flat on its face when it comes to digital music.

It's amaizing that everyone with half a brain knows and understands what the music moguls just can't seem to grasp.

You can view the rest of the comic here.

(BoingBoing)

Terrible Tech Products

Crave has put together a list of ten of the lousiest crappiest tech products ever to be foisted on the consumer.

The Apple puck mouse makes it in at #6 and I agree. It wasn't Insanely Great; it was just Insane.

And of course, Windows Vista gets in there at #10.

Check the list here.

Barry Bonds gets his day

Well, well, well. How the mighty are dethroned. Bonds is finally indicted for lying about his steroid use.

His 15 minutes of fame may soon be over. Cross your skinny little fingers. I think he's doomed.

Read the full story here


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"Mother may I?" - Vista

Taking security into the twilight zone, Vista helps protect all from everything.

Click=larger.

(MyMac.cc)

Nose dive

Seems impossible.


Click = larger.

Crazy signs

Some you've seen... many you haven't.


Click this link.


(Funtasticus)

World's worst plastic surgery

Maxim has an unusual pictorial on bad plastic surgery. Some are not so bad, some are just grotesque. Check it out here.

Here are some more botched cosmetic alterations.

Brrr! Everlasting Halloween costumes.

(Thanks to SeeHere)

Racer loses his ass-end

All those hours of preparation and perspiration, and you forget a few critical tackwelds that should have been filled in.

Back to the garage.




http://view.break.com/381452 - Watch more free videos

Buyer Beware

I crashed my car not too long ago. I ran the gamut of emotion: embarrassment, fear, and sympathy (for the car). I chose a body shop and contacted my insurance agency. The only problem was the aftermarket equipment I had previously installed. The car would require a new K&N short ram intake, aftermarket black racing wheels, and I decided to purchase my own front bumper since the car would be repainted anyway.

I'd like to share my experiences with VividRacing, MotorWeb, WheelsNext, and PerformanceCenter.

I ordered my replacement intake through VividRacing.com, as I had purchased my original through them as well. Over a month has passed since I ordered the intake, and it still has not shipped. I have contacted customer service repeatedly, and get updates on my order status only when I contact them via email. Nobody returns voicemail messages (why doesn't customer service answer the phone?), and nobody gives me an updated status unless I ask for it. Needless to say, I have cancelled my order and will never use them again.

I ordered my bumper through MotorWeb (sportcompactonly.com), and found a sweet Extreme Dimensions competition front bumper. The price was good, but I was charged $125 for shipping of a 30 lb. fiberglass bumper. It arrived intact and in a timely fashion, but the bumper didn't fit. It left gaps at the headlights, rose up over the left fender, and had no slots for the OEM side marker lights. There was no installation manual, and no fastening parts, and my auto shop guy said the bumper would be held onto the car by the small eyelets of the marker lights. I contacted MotorWeb and advised them of the ill-fitting bumper. I was told that a return authorization form had been sent to the boss to await approval so I can send the bad bumper back and get a new (hopefully proper) one. After a week, no confirmation email, no word whatsoever on the status.

I ordered my replacement wheels through Wheelsnext.com, as I had ordered my originals from them. I spoke to a guy on the phone who advised my original wheel style would not be available until mid-November, but he would offer a similar style (and superior quality) at the same lower price of my originals. They also would have replaced the old wheels for free, as they were covered by a 2 year warranty, but I just couldn't wait that long. They offered free shipping and the wheels were here in under 5 days, complete with balanced tires.

Finally, after almost flying into a rage over my intake situation, I found Performancecenter.com. Not only did they have my intake IN STOCK and available to ship (free shipping, no tax) immediately, their price beat VividRacing's by $40. Vivid had previously offered the lowest price I found on the web.

Needless to say, I will no longer do business with VividRacing or MotorWeb, and will both patronize and recommend WheelsNext and PerformanceCenter again. Be wary of other online distributors, I don't want anyone else to endure the same headaches I have.

Extreme ape-hangers

This is nuts. Imagine picking the bugs out of your armpits when you get home.

How long would it take for all the blood to drain out of your arms?

Your hands would go numb, wouldn't they?

I wonder if this guy's still alive.

(Via Eatliver)

Password strength

Click for larger.



(Via userfriendly)