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#71
Car Guys Discussion / Well....I finally caved-in and...
Last post by lloyd3 - February 17, 2026, 01:46:23 PMWe've had pretty good luck with several other Japanese makers (Mazda & Honda) over the years but I could never warm up to the styling on the Toyotas. Fast forward to last weekend, sitting in a car dealership (for the 1st time in many, many years).
I've needed a full-sized SUV (well, that's what my wife told me we needed anyway) and when I considered the maintenance and repair costs associated with the more modern 4x4 stuff (& some of my now lengthy cross-country trips) I finally settled on the Sequoia. After several months of internet searches for perfection (I would have travelled for the right deal) I actually found one right here in the Denver Metroplex.
One owner, low miles, no accidents 2017 model out of New Mexico (Carfax?) and seemingly well maintained (garaged, and the non-smoking previous owner averaged only 6k miles per year in it). It was the right color (Silver) and it had the preferred interior (Light Grey) so...I bit. Paid a small premium over what the Bluebook says it's worth but...that's the price of "choice" here. A trip to Florida or California would have cost all of that, easily.
FWIW...car dealers still suck, as they snuck-in a non-negotiable "dealer service charge" of almost $850, after all of the price negotiations and just before the final paperwork. That would normally have killed the deal for me but we were so-far down the road of their silly processes that my wife & I let it slide. This car is also "Toyota certified pre-owned" (meaning a free 1-year drivetrain warranty for this 9-year old vehicle) which is not commonly encountered and that is of significant value in my mind.
It barely fits in our garage but it seems to be pretty nice. Our first really "fancy" car in a very long time. I just hope that these Toyotas hold up for as long as they are reputed to?
I've needed a full-sized SUV (well, that's what my wife told me we needed anyway) and when I considered the maintenance and repair costs associated with the more modern 4x4 stuff (& some of my now lengthy cross-country trips) I finally settled on the Sequoia. After several months of internet searches for perfection (I would have travelled for the right deal) I actually found one right here in the Denver Metroplex.
One owner, low miles, no accidents 2017 model out of New Mexico (Carfax?) and seemingly well maintained (garaged, and the non-smoking previous owner averaged only 6k miles per year in it). It was the right color (Silver) and it had the preferred interior (Light Grey) so...I bit. Paid a small premium over what the Bluebook says it's worth but...that's the price of "choice" here. A trip to Florida or California would have cost all of that, easily.
FWIW...car dealers still suck, as they snuck-in a non-negotiable "dealer service charge" of almost $850, after all of the price negotiations and just before the final paperwork. That would normally have killed the deal for me but we were so-far down the road of their silly processes that my wife & I let it slide. This car is also "Toyota certified pre-owned" (meaning a free 1-year drivetrain warranty for this 9-year old vehicle) which is not commonly encountered and that is of significant value in my mind.
It barely fits in our garage but it seems to be pretty nice. Our first really "fancy" car in a very long time. I just hope that these Toyotas hold up for as long as they are reputed to?
#72
General Q&A / Re: Taillight Clean-Up:
Last post by Nacho-RT74 - February 17, 2026, 11:16:22 AMI can't believe nobody here have tried a simple, cheap, non risky and home solution like the toothpaste LOL.
Sure needs a bit more of effort if you want a stunning result, but, better that than a more abrasive wax what can damage the lense
On my parents' Mercedes W116, cluster lenses came out polished like new!
Sure needs a bit more of effort if you want a stunning result, but, better that than a more abrasive wax what can damage the lense
On my parents' Mercedes W116, cluster lenses came out polished like new!
#73
Charger Discussion / Re: Post a picture of your 196...
Last post by Charger-Bodie - February 17, 2026, 09:39:15 AMQuote from: triple_green on February 16, 2026, 03:43:53 PM66-1 spring dark met green, F8 for 69
So frikken awesome!
#74
Paint, Body & Trim / Re: Window sweeps/cat whiskers...
Last post by timmycharger - February 17, 2026, 08:09:54 AMHello, check out page 13 of my build thread, may be a couple of useful pics/angles. 
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,119572.300.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,119572.300.html
#75
Engine, Transmission, Rearend, & Exhaust / Re: Who has had success with a...
Last post by 70 sublime - February 17, 2026, 07:54:54 AMI do not get it
Why ?
Why does it need them all the exact same ?
Why are they not the same to start with ?
Did you measure all the valves to see if they are the same length to start with ?
What real difference does this make all this fooling around in the end ?
Are the valves not all the way shut when at rest ?
Is valve #4 going to wear a tiny bit more than valve #2 if you do not do this ?
Are you going to notice in 10 000 miles from now cylinder #7 has 10 pounds less compression than cylinder #5 ??
Yes some people like to tinker and I get it
I like to tinker too
I just do not know what the upside of all this is from the original factory slap it together set up is ?
Why ?
Why does it need them all the exact same ?
Why are they not the same to start with ?
Did you measure all the valves to see if they are the same length to start with ?
What real difference does this make all this fooling around in the end ?
Are the valves not all the way shut when at rest ?
Is valve #4 going to wear a tiny bit more than valve #2 if you do not do this ?
Are you going to notice in 10 000 miles from now cylinder #7 has 10 pounds less compression than cylinder #5 ??
Yes some people like to tinker and I get it
I like to tinker too
I just do not know what the upside of all this is from the original factory slap it together set up is ?
#76
Engine, Transmission, Rearend, & Exhaust / Re: Who has had success with a...
Last post by Kern Dog - February 17, 2026, 02:53:36 AMIt is a bit unnerving that the bag of locks has exactly 32 of them. Those things are easy to lose. The retainers are big enough, you can't really lose them.
These are Isky 8005A springs...
The specs below are listed at a 1.875 height. My height is tighter which raises the rate, right?
One thing that I find interesting is that if the heads didn't have cracking paint on them, I would have left them on the engine. I didn't want to risk getting paint flakes in the lifter valley or down an intake port. Removing them for cleaning allowed me to pull the valves and clean up everything else. This also gave me a better valve seal and a more accurate reading for the installed height. Having the heads on the bench will make it easier to set up the spacers and shims for the new rocker arm setup.
These are Isky 8005A springs...
The specs below are listed at a 1.875 height. My height is tighter which raises the rate, right?
One thing that I find interesting is that if the heads didn't have cracking paint on them, I would have left them on the engine. I didn't want to risk getting paint flakes in the lifter valley or down an intake port. Removing them for cleaning allowed me to pull the valves and clean up everything else. This also gave me a better valve seal and a more accurate reading for the installed height. Having the heads on the bench will make it easier to set up the spacers and shims for the new rocker arm setup.
#77
Engine, Transmission, Rearend, & Exhaust / Re: Who has had success with a...
Last post by Kern Dog - February 17, 2026, 02:51:21 AMThis morning I called Summit Racing. The rocker arm and shaft kit I got came with 9 of one side, 7 of the other...
They are sending out a single rocker arm and they told me to keep the oddball since it wasn't worth it to send it back.
The process of measuring for installed height may be familiar to some of you but for a lot of us, it is not something we do often, if ever.
Today I got one head finished. The valves were removed and cleaned...
The seats in the heads were cleaned too.
The head was secured to the table again and the measuring began. I decided to measure, shim if needed, measure again and move to the next valve. I put the valve springs in after all the measuring was done, being careful to keep all the retainers and locks set aside for each cylinder that they were measured on.
Head A, cylinder 1, Exhaust....
This one worked without shims. Cyl 1 Intake got the same shim I used yesterday to get this number:
That is how it went. All of the heights came in within the .010 spec. The springs, retainers and locks were not easy to install for a few reasons.
1) The springs are STIFF. There are dual springs with a damper.
2) The locks and retainers are new, no wear on them to loosen them a bit.
3) My hillbilly spring tool worked but needs some refinement.
4) The valves dropped down during installation which made me have to compress the spring further to get the locks in place.
I do have a few ideas on how to make it easier for the second head I still need to do.
Nothing that I can do about the #1 issue, same with #2. The spring tool has a U shaped flat spot that needed to be dressed with a deburring bit to make the rearmost edge further back.
This helps with access to the far side of the valve stem. The underside of the flat spot has a weld bead right at the tube it is on.
I had to grind the weld down because the edges of the spring retainer were hitting it and not allowing the retainer to sit squarely on the spring. I made the mistake of putting all the oil seals on, then measuring for installed height.
Doing so meant that at every spring that needed a shim required me to remove the oil seal, then put it back on. Not a big deal but a wasted step.
For #4, I'm going to put rags in each combustion chamber when I secure the head to the table. This should help keep the valves on their seats as I am compressing the spring to put the retainers and locks in place. Not having to compress the spring so far will help a LOT.
Also, I've found that when installing the locks, the spring tool seems to try to push the spring away from the shaft. I found that a stiff standard screwdriver or small prybar can be used to push the retainer and spring back into position so the locks will go in. I put one lock on the far side first, then the near side last.
They are sending out a single rocker arm and they told me to keep the oddball since it wasn't worth it to send it back.
The process of measuring for installed height may be familiar to some of you but for a lot of us, it is not something we do often, if ever.
Today I got one head finished. The valves were removed and cleaned...
The seats in the heads were cleaned too.
The head was secured to the table again and the measuring began. I decided to measure, shim if needed, measure again and move to the next valve. I put the valve springs in after all the measuring was done, being careful to keep all the retainers and locks set aside for each cylinder that they were measured on.
Head A, cylinder 1, Exhaust....
This one worked without shims. Cyl 1 Intake got the same shim I used yesterday to get this number:
That is how it went. All of the heights came in within the .010 spec. The springs, retainers and locks were not easy to install for a few reasons.
1) The springs are STIFF. There are dual springs with a damper.
2) The locks and retainers are new, no wear on them to loosen them a bit.
3) My hillbilly spring tool worked but needs some refinement.
4) The valves dropped down during installation which made me have to compress the spring further to get the locks in place.
I do have a few ideas on how to make it easier for the second head I still need to do.
Nothing that I can do about the #1 issue, same with #2. The spring tool has a U shaped flat spot that needed to be dressed with a deburring bit to make the rearmost edge further back.
This helps with access to the far side of the valve stem. The underside of the flat spot has a weld bead right at the tube it is on.
I had to grind the weld down because the edges of the spring retainer were hitting it and not allowing the retainer to sit squarely on the spring. I made the mistake of putting all the oil seals on, then measuring for installed height.
Doing so meant that at every spring that needed a shim required me to remove the oil seal, then put it back on. Not a big deal but a wasted step.
For #4, I'm going to put rags in each combustion chamber when I secure the head to the table. This should help keep the valves on their seats as I am compressing the spring to put the retainers and locks in place. Not having to compress the spring so far will help a LOT.
Also, I've found that when installing the locks, the spring tool seems to try to push the spring away from the shaft. I found that a stiff standard screwdriver or small prybar can be used to push the retainer and spring back into position so the locks will go in. I put one lock on the far side first, then the near side last.
#78
Paint, Body & Trim / Window sweeps/cat whiskers???
Last post by rikubot - February 16, 2026, 11:50:06 PMHi all.
I'm at the point where I need to buy window sweeps for the car. I was hoping you all could share pictures of yours installed or not. If there's a style that's better than stock I'd prefer it. I'd love to hear what you all think. Pictures with the window down from this angle but closer would be helpful. Pics of the quarter windows would be helpful too. Thanks all.
- Mike
I'm at the point where I need to buy window sweeps for the car. I was hoping you all could share pictures of yours installed or not. If there's a style that's better than stock I'd prefer it. I'd love to hear what you all think. Pictures with the window down from this angle but closer would be helpful. Pics of the quarter windows would be helpful too. Thanks all.
- Mike
#79
Charger Discussion / Re: Post a picture of your 196...
Last post by triple_green - February 16, 2026, 03:43:53 PM66-1 spring dark met green, F8 for 69
#80
Car Guys Discussion / Re: Need Die cast model fixed....
Last post by timmycharger - February 16, 2026, 02:55:39 PMmy opinion is that JB weld would be the last thing I use on it. You don't need something bulky and hard to work with for that repair. I would look for something like super glue, like a high end CA superglue type that is just thick enough to hold the part and not show. I think just about any box store carries it.
That or a light epoxy as to not leave blobs everywhere. Use toothpicks and the glue sparingly. For the wheel, I would drill the broken part and insert a pin or small nail, glue that back onto what broke off.
Good luck
That or a light epoxy as to not leave blobs everywhere. Use toothpicks and the glue sparingly. For the wheel, I would drill the broken part and insert a pin or small nail, glue that back onto what broke off.
Good luck