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Great Escape: 2020 Acura TLX PMC Edition 6-State, 3,000-Mile Road Trip

Posted in Road Trip, TLX, Utah, Vehicle Reviews on June 15, 2020 by tysonhugie

TLX Odometer Start 5/29/2020: 2,233

TLX Odometer End 6/12/2020: 5,369

Trip Mileage: 3,136

Acura gave me the key to a 2020 Acura TLX for two weeks, and I used it to deliver pizza & garlic bread. Before that phrase prevents me from ever getting a demo car from them again, let me explain.

My grandpa’s favorite pizza place, Fredrico’s, is located 400 miles away from his home. He’s nearly 90 years old and doesn’t get to travel as much as he used to, so his opportunities to taste Fredrico’s food are few and far between these days. But I crafted an idea of a way I could make it happen as part of a summer road trip. The strategy involved a to-go order, a cooler, and effective time management to get the meal delivered six hours away. It worked out perfectly, and here’s the video of my arrival right on time at 5:00 p.m. for dinner in St. George, Utah.

The pizza run was just one of many rewarding aspects of my over-3,000-mile, 6-state, 12-day road trip in a new car that was allocated to me by Acura for press use. And the experience was exactly the great escape I’d been needing after being cooped up in quarantine for a couple of months.

The year 2020 has taken each one of us for a pretty unpredictable ride. What started out as an anticipated year of celebrations for me – car meet-ups, a high school reunion, and family festivities – started cascading like a row of dominoes as every event cancelled in sequence. And two months into what became a worldwide health crisis, I learned that the future and stability of my own career was in jeopardy. A mandatory unpaid furlough added to the drama, but I engineered a way to turn that downtime into some serious up-time. Enter the Acura TLX.

I’ve followed the limited-production TLX “PMC Edition” since it was first introduced in a press release on April 11th, 2019. In fact, I knew about it a day prior, because Andrew from Acura Public Relations clued me in privately via email a day in advance. His email stated, “I think you’re going to like this one.” Indeed, I did.

Even before that, I’d followed the evolution and launch of the first-generation TLX for a long time. I was present in January 2014 when it debuted in concept form at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. I met Jarad Hall, its lead designer.

The TLX production model was unveiled 3 months later in New York. I first drove one that August, and in February of the following year I secured one for a thorough road test via some Arizona scenic byways. It’s now been 5 years since I really had much of a chance to spend time with one. Until now.

I flew from Phoenix, Arizona to southern California on Friday morning, May 29th with as many precautions as I could possibly put into place. The entire travel experience was somehow new for me, despite being such a seasoned traveler: Mask regulations, distancing practices, in-flight announcement changes, sanitization measures, new signage, and modified boarding procedures. It was a unique opportunity. Andrew picked me up in the PMC Edition #027/360 with 2,233 miles on the odometer, and the adventure started from there. I had lunch with a fellow Acura enthusiast who brought out his 1988 Integra Special Edition. Aren’t those white wheels so 1980s?

My first order of business was getting back home to Phoenix to load up the car with luggage since I’d flown to California with only a backpack. While there, I tried the TLX on “for size” by introducing it to the heritage Acura vehicles in my garage.

The trip route was intentionally designed to minimize ever having to re-use the same stretch of road. And aside from a few small areas, I succeeded in that. For 3,136 miles, I made my way through California, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada. I reconnected (at a safe distance whenever possible) with family & friends, mapped out some roads I’d never seen before, and saw some of Mother Nature’s finest landscapes in the Rocky Mountains.

No interstate adventure would be complete without saying hi to some of my fellow Acura enthusiast brothers and sisters, so I made a special point to arrange a meet-up in Salt Lake City with friends including Sunny, Trevor, and Shaun who brought out their TSX, TL, and RDX respectively.

The trip’s capstone was a 3-day weekend in a small town nestled at the base of the Grand Teton mountain range called Jackson Hole. As home to about 10,000 people, Jackson acts as a hub of recreation for that region. In the wintertime, skiers swarm the town for the opportunity to hit the 3 ski areas, and in the summertime, there are dozens of hikes and activities to entertain people in the great outdoors.

My dad & stepmom joined for that leg of the trip. We took an 8-mile early-morning hike at Bear Paw Lake in Grand Teton National Park, where we had the place nearly entirely to ourselves aside from a few mosquitoes and other forms of wildlife. Bear sightings, for better or for worse, were zero that day. We had some fun capturing ourselves on the Town Square live webcam stream from multiple angles, as shown in the trip recap video below.

Climbing out of Jackson on Highway 22 to the west, the ascent sharply climbs from about 6,000 feet to about 8,500 feet with 10% grades and avalanche slide paths via the Teton Pass. I chose this route because it provided the most direct access to eastern Idaho where I stayed at my uncle Jeff’s cabin for a night. With temperatures in the low 30s that day, there was a likelihood I’d run into snow and I was optimistic I’d get to put the TLX “Super Handling All-Wheel-Drive” to a test, but aside from wet roads and heavy fog, I had plenty of traction to get where I needed to go.

I added a few hundred extra miles to my trip in Idaho because I wanted to reconnect with a couple of friends there. After passing through small towns like Arco (“first city in the world lighted by atomic power”) and seeing what there was to explore at Craters of the Moon National Monument (basically, an abundance of lava caves), I dropped into the city of Twin Falls along the Snake River.

My friends Josh and Pete met up with me there for the best all-you-can-eat sushi in the state. Josh also presented me with a custom, hand-built Hot Wheels display board that I’ll post photos & videos of in the coming weeks. The Idaho hospitality was definitely very much appreciated!

My return to Phoenix included a few more stops to see people as well as the aforementioned Fredrico’s Pizza delivery run. I made the most of each and every checkpoint along the drive home, even popping in to say hello to my friend Casey who works at the Shell gas station in small Mona, Utah off Interstate 15. My entire handwritten fuel log – or at least the 13 fuel stops since starting out in Phoenix – was left in the glove compartment for posterity.

It’s hard to believe six years have passed since I first laid eyes on a TLX – the design is modern and the car drew compliments everywhere I took it. I hadn’t even made it out of Orange County California without a fellow driver rolling down the window in his Mazda and waving to get my attention to ask, “How much is the A-Spec?” And the coolest part of my drive experience was the fact that this particular TLX wasn’t just any A-Spec, it was one of only 360 total cars hand-assembled and hand-painted at Acura’s Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio.

I reluctantly gave the key back to my Valencia Red ride, but will forever enjoy the memories that were created on this trip. The TLX PMC Edition was the perfect travel companion, delivering 28 miles per gallon thanks to an eco-minded 9-speed transmission that revs low at freeway speed.

I found the TLX’s 290 horsepower 3.5-liter V6 more than ample to crest the mountain passes (and overtake slower traffic) with ease, and I was spoiled by the car’s awesome stereo system and driver-assist technology. Even the most vigilant driver can benefit from the occasional nudge of the steering wheel when beginning to veer from a travel lane, and even though I disliked that feature initially, I found it helpful as time went on.

And maybe I’m getting old (would you believe 40 is coming up next year? Yikes!), but I fully enjoyed having an automatic transmission as a change of pace so I could more freely focus on other enjoyable attributes of the driving experience.

Now, who needs a pizza delivered and what toppings can I get you?

12 days in 12 minutes:

Flanked by 1994 Legends

Marble Canyon along Highway 89A, Northern Arizona

Entering Hildale, Utah

Mom representing with her Acura hat

…. And with her Crystal Black pearl 2016 RLX

Salt Lake City meet-up with my friend Eric and his 1989 L coupe

Another enthusiast meet up with Daniel of @redlabelspec (check out his awesome cars on Instagram)

Another state crossed off the list!

Bridge on Highway 89 in Logan Canyon, Northern Utah

Wyoming State Line

Teton Village, near Jackson Wyoming, with dad & stepmom

Throwback photo series – our family has a tradition of taking photos by this elk statue in Jackson. Here we are in about 1992.

And in 1997.

In 2000.

In 2014, from my prior Jackson trip.

And finally in 2020. The trees have changed, haven’t they?

Entering Grand Teton National Park

The highest peaks there are over 13,000 feet in elevation.

Visiting Uncle Jeff in Driggs, Idaho (check out that Chevy II Nova)

Arco, Idaho

Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho

K1 Speed Go-Karting Event & Holiday Travels, & Automotive Updates

Posted in Arizona, ILX, Legend, Milestones, PAPA, SLX, Utah on December 22, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 222,222

It seems I’m getting quite a few chances to put the pedal to the metal lately, including a visit to Apex Motor Club earlier this year, and two events at Bondurant a few weeks ago. This time, I joined some fellow members of the Phoenix Automotive Press Association and we scaled back the size of our racecars to engage a little bit of friendly go-karting on a Friday morning.

K1 Speed opened its doors for an early morning race session specifically for our group. I was proud to finish in the first half of the pack, but I was clearly outclassed by more skilled drivers in our group. K1’s cars are all-electric, and they’re a lot faster than you’d think! I put some of the driver training to work and honestly thought I’d rank better in the final standings. Journalists John Priddy (left) and Wally Cahill (right) still let me at least pretend I was a first-place winner on the podium post-race.

Coming in at first place was newly-appointed Managing Editor for ClassicCars.com, Tom Stahler.

I spent the remainder of last weekend in northern Utah where temperatures dipped to a frigid 15 degrees during my visit. I was poorly prepared from a wardrobe perspective. But, I enjoyed the cozy and warm homes of friends & family members. This was the scene on the campus of Utah State University where I graduated with my undergraduate degree 14 years ago this month. Go USU Aggies!

Sunny, Jason, and Brady met up for some Mexican grub in Salt Lake City.

And it was of course awesome to see my grandma, who’ll be 90 next month.

Below are some photos of other recent visitors and events, as we near the end of this year (and this decade). My stepdad and mom were passing through Phoenix on a long layover flight this week, so I met up with them at the airport terminal for a bite to eat.

The cars have kept me busy these last few weeks. The NSX got an emissions check & new registration tags, the Integra GS-R got a battery, the Legend GS got new Michelin tires, the ILX got an oil change, the RL got a trip to Tucson, and the SLX got a much-needed bath after RADwood.

Here were some visitors from around the state who stopped by to say hello.

I also welcomed an out-of-towner from Austin, TX who’s been a friend of mine for many years. In fact, he’s the one who sent his 1993 Legend L sedan over to Arizona when it needed to find a new home in 2015.

My friend Karna sent me some sweet promo materials including a leaflet that had an NSX postcard that looks just like the real thing.

My friend Eric sent me some awesome-smelling cologne called Chrome Legend. I’ll be saving that bottle!

Andrew from Acura PR sent me two signed posters celebrating this year’s “IMSA” race series wins. I’ll be giving one away to a lucky blog reader. If you’re interested, let me know!

He also sent me the 11×17 display poster that was used at RADwood.

I like how they adjusted the original MSRP on there to nearly $60k in 2019 dollars.

I scored a few swag items from Ebay on the 1996 Isuzu Trooper because I was curious to see what kind of literature they put out back then, and how it compared to SLX stuff. As it turns out, some Troopers were better-equipped than SLXs! Example: The “Limited” model had headlight wipers.

I had an idea for a Christmas photo with red & green when my roommate James was road-testing a 2020 Toyota 4Runner recently. He had it nice and caked with mud for this early-morning glamour shot.

Twins! I’m looking after my friend Jason’s 1992 Integra GS-R right now. His car is 0718 and mine is 0343 so they’re separated by only 375 vehicles on the production line. Jason will be picking up his car in a few weeks, but in the meantime it’s enjoying being reunited with a close sibling.

Aztec Green overload.

“Drive your Legend to work” day, as requested by my friend Alex recently.

Yesterday, the ILX celebrated 222,222 miles on the odometer. I made sure I was driving 2,000 RPM at 22 miles per hour. And, I was driving with 2 friends on the 202 “South Mountain” freeway which is a brand new 22-mile stretch of interstate, literally opened just minutes prior. Amazing how the stars can align when you want them to! (Or when you want them “two.”).

Apple Maps still doesn’t even show the freeway as existing yet.

Before you go, I thought this was pretty cool and wanted to share. My friend Owen in Washington spent a couple years of his life gutting and restoring an old Bluebird bus into a liveable RV. Look at the level of detail in the finished product!

Two new episodes on my YouTube as well.

Have a great Christmas!

12 Comments »

Re-Purchased 14 Years Later! Mom’s Old 2000 3.5 RL Comes Back for Round Two

Posted in RL, RLX, Road Trip, Utah on June 30, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (RL) – 2005: 23,077

Odometer (RL) – 2019: 210,000

Trip Distance: 722 Miles

This isn’t the first time I’ve done it.

I bought back my 1986 Chevy Celebrity 5 years after I’d sold it.

I bought back my 1991 Prelude Si 4WS 4 years after I’d sold it.

And now I’ve bought back an Acura RL 12 years after my mom sold it.

Let me introduce you to my library of car maintenance binders.

Automotive archaeology – sometimes people call it “Car-chaeology” – is pretty much my favorite thing ever. Each of my vehicles has a painstakingly-created 3-ring binder about its history and the road that it’s driven.

Here are a few examples of things you’ll find in my history books:

Receipts or other paperwork / artifacts discovered inside the vehicle
Prior owners’ information – even articles written about those individuals if available
Printouts from Zillow of the home(s) where the vehicle has lived
Google street view of the dealership where it was sold originally
Carfax report, AutoCheck report
Maintenance records
Copies of the former owner’s title
An original or a replica window sticker
Printouts of email correspondence with the seller
Screen shots of any ads or listings it was included in, individual ad as well as search results
Color printouts of photographs – most importantly, a key handoff (usually on the cover page)

Each time I buy a car, I think of the original owner in this context: “How cool must XX individual have felt to be buying this brand new in such-and-such year? Why did they option the car this way? Was it his or her dream car?” And whenever possible, if I can get ahold of that person’s name, I’ll actually seek them out and ask those questions. It’s worked almost every time.

In fact, I was even able to reach the original owner of my Acura NSX from three prior owners ago. Call it stalking, call it insane, call it whatever you want. That one was worth the investigative effort. After snail-mailing an envelope in 2012 with current pictures of the car to the name and address of the individual on a receipt from 20 years earlier, several weeks went by, and I got an email which read:

That is indeed my NSX. I was really interested in owning one from the time they came out…. I drove it on weekends and sometimes on Friday to work. I was racing formula cars at Laguna Seca at the time, so I drove it to Monterey once a month and parked it with the Ferraris, Porsches, and the occasional Lambo that the other racers would bring.

William went on to talk about how he missed the car.

The point is, there is so much cool history to be uncovered about each and every vehicle in our driveways. I remember that my mom’s original 1993 Legend L sedan had spent a fair amount of time in Maui, Hawaii before coming back to the lower 48. I always thought to myself, “Man, if this car could talk.”

Which brings me to my latest chapter of had-to-have-it vehicles purchases (in recent weeks, followers will acknowledge, there have been several – see del Sol and SLX). I have to start at the beginning of the story for it to make any sense at all.

It was April 2005 when I was helping my mom find a daily driver to replace her 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited. I was 23 years old and eager to facilitate, so I was all over the classifieds. I’d found a super clean 2000 black on black 3.5 RL in the Bay Area, but mom wasn’t keen on the black leather interior. I ended up flying to Santa Ana airport in Los Angeles on April 30th to buy one with a tan interior. Except, I showed up at the dealership and the exterior color was not black; it was dark gray. And the car smelled like smoke. I was deflated and angrily left the dealership in a taxi cab with a Korean driver without any plan in motion.

Then I remembered the black car a few hours north in SF, so I reached out to the owner to see if he still wanted to work anything out. He did, we settled on an $18,500 sales price, and I booked another flight out of Santa Ana. Given the last-minute nature of the decision, there were no financial arrangements in place. The seller, Terry, picked me up at the airport and we went to his home.

The timing challenges (this was a Saturday afternoon just after closing time) meant I was not able to pay for the car right away. I ended up spending the night at Terry’s house. It was among the most awkward car-buying experiences I’ve ever had. This was well before the days of Uber, and I was too young to rent a car, so I was effectively ‘stranded’ at Terry’s until we could get him paid. I hand-wrote in my journal:

This has been the longest day of my life. Made it to SFO and Terry picked me up. He lived in England 30 years and I love the accent. He was in his 209k mile Mazda 929. The Bay Bridge was way backed up, so it took a while to get to his house in El Sobrante. Nice neighborhood! The RL was cozy in the garage. It is MINT. Holy cow is it ever. 23,043 miles and it looks like new… Terry said I could stay at his place. He and his daughter are out to dinner and I’m home alone!

Mom and dad rushed to a banking branch that was open the following morning, a Sunday, in Las Vegas 90 minutes away from them and wired the funds. Then I was finally set free by late morning to drive the 11 hours home in mom’s new black RL. I had written these driving directions in my journal. Remember, this is way before Siri could tell you where to go.

Mom drove that RL for two years and rolled the odometer to right around 50,000 miles.

Then she passed it along to my uncle Brett in 2007 who used it as his daily commuter in northern Utah. I saw the car in passing a few times at family functions, and he kept it up nicely. He later passed it along to his son (my cousin) Chad who took it over as a newlywed in the Provo area and continued to put on some miles. The car was faithfully maintained but required a transmission overhaul at around 125,000 miles. Time marched on.

Chad sent me a text on June 13, 2019: “You ready to add another car to your fleet?” I was on my way at the time to Los Angeles for the Honda 60th Anniversary event and I had a lot on my mind, so I didn’t say yes right away. In fact, my first thought was, “This is the worst timing ever.” As you’ll recall, my current garage is already beyond full with recent del Sol and SLX acquisitions. But Chad sent some picture of the RL, now with about 209,000 miles on it, and I took the chance to sleep on it and think it over.

In the end, I decided it was too cool of a chance to pass up. The car and I have both aged, but with a little elbow grease and a little luck, it’ll still be reliable for a few years to come. What I’ll do with it I’m entirely unsure. As a car collector, does it even matter? For me it’s an artifact of my early 20’s and a reminder of my younger years. Its model year is the same year that I graduated from high school. Buying it is almost like some sort of long term automotive dream finally happening almost 20 years later, even though I’ve already gone on to own or drive plenty of far superior / more desirable cars over the years.

Chad picked me up at the Salt Lake International Airport on the morning of Tuesday, June 25th. I had premeditated the sequence of events a few times in my head: Dropping him off at his office, and proceeding to southern Utah to have lunch with mom and re-introduce her to the car that she hadn’t seen for well over a decade. And that’s pretty much exactly as it played out!

I caught a 6:45 a.m. flight out of Phoenix that put me in Salt Lake at 9:15 local time. Chad scooped me up in my “new” car, and took care of business. The drive home – all 700+ miles of it – was uneventful, and that’s just the way I like them! I had forgotten what a smooth ride the first generation 3.5 RL is – the car took everything sporty about its Legend predecessor and numbed it down. That means it makes for a great long-haul highway cruiser. Even the armrest on driver door panel is soft and cushy.

Mom enjoyed the reunion as well! I made sure to catch her reaction on camera. Check out the 5-minute video below!

And by the way, those headlights cleaned up nicely with some polishing from a 2-step kit from Meguiar’s. Crystal clear now. Thanks for hearing me out on my latest Acura-quisition. Now let’s see how much fun I can have with it.

Window sticker that has somehow gotten lost over the last 14 years

The first odo when I got the car was 23,043, but I didn’t take a picture until 23,058

Back at home in St. George (with Legend in the background) in 2005.

Initial odometer reading on June 25, 2019

Interior still looks good!

A friend’s entertaining reaction to my continued automotive purchasing madness

Fuel up in Nephi, Utah

2000 RL + 2016 RLX

Home safe and sound!

Before / After of headlight restoration!

Visit from friends Davis & Baron this weekend! They just departed on a cross-country trip in a modified Honda Passport.

29 Comments »

Pocket Rocket: Introducing the “Samba Green” 1993 Honda Civic del Sol Si

Posted in Del Sol, Road Trip, Utah on June 6, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (del Sol): 88,292

Trip Distance: 800 Miles

So this ought to be a fun summer cruiser, right? I put together a spreadsheet the other day of all the cars I’ve owned. If we exclude temporary “project” cars and the like, the grand total comes out to 27 vehicles.

There are a few that stand out as unique: My Infiniti I30 and Chevy Celebrity were my only non-Honda/Acura cars. The SLX is my only 4×4. And even though 22 of the 27 have had moonroofs, none have been a true “removable top” or convertible. Enter the del Sol, which in fitting translation to English means, “Of the Sun.” Because this one will actually let me feel some of that Arizona sun like no moonroof ever could.

Honda’s fun, yet economical two-seater CRX model lasted through 2 generations and 8 model years until it was discontinued after 1991. Two years later, a successor was named and the “Civic del Sol” was launched in the United States in 1993. Its top trim was the Si model, with a 1.6-liter, 125 horsepower 4-cylinder motor and 5-speed manual transmission. It was Honda’s attempt at giving a roadster-like driving experience, many years before its legendary S2000 roadster came out.

The Civic del Sol model evolved over a 5-year lifespan, including cosmetic changes, powertrain changes, and even a name change (by dropping the “Civic” prefix). At its peak, the del Sol sold over 25,000 units in the United states its initial model year, dropping each year for 5 years until only 5,000 were sold in 1997. That kind of trend is sometimes typical for new model launches – as I recall, the Acura Legend had a similar linear sales decline over the 5 years its second-generation model was sold.

This is a fun commercial from when the del Sol first came out.

Samba Green is certainly one of the most polarizing colors that a conservative company such as Honda has ever offered on a production vehicle. While my Aztec Green Integra is pretty wild itself, it can’t quite compare to the lime green hue of the del Sol.

This Samba came from the original (77-year-old, if you can believe it) owner named Fred who lived in northern Utah. He kept it for 26 years and drove it during summertime in western Wyoming and northern Utah. His maintenance records were painstakingly detailed, including a 14-page handwritten ledger kept in the glove compartment which documented every single fuel up and its associated MPG.

That’s some attention to detail I can appreciate! When Fred decided to part ways with his del Sol in late April, my friend Jason in Salt Lake was the first to respond to a classified ad listing. It wasn’t for about a month that I was able to make a trip to that area and pick up the car, so Jason and his wife were gracious enough to store it at their home for me.

The pick-up agenda coincided with an already-planned visit to northern Utah to visit friends and family members the last weekend of May. I arrived at the Salt Lake airport and was picked up by the little green machine and Jason. Our first stop was for some fine dining at a place called Lucky 13. Shaun and Sunny decided to join us, in their Legend & TSX respectively.

I had a nice weekend traversing northern Utah topless and visiting family. On Saturday I met up with some other local Honda/Acura fans at Legends Sports Bar. In addition to Shaun coming out again, we had Talin in her MDX, Daniel in his Integra GS-R, and Nate in his Tacoma.

The del Sol’s buzzy 1.6-liter made the 800-mile trek from Logan, Utah, to Phoenix, Arizona with ease. I made good use of my cassette tape audio adapter, and I took the top off after sundown near Wickenburg for the final hour or so of the trip. I can definitely see why there is such a devout enthusiast following for these little cars! Looking forward to seeing what kind of fun I can have with it!

Here is a short video and below are some additional photos of my new little green machine.

Original ad (redacted)

Photo from the ad

FaceTiming with Jason to see the car for the first time, from 700 miles away.

The car at Jason’s (with his Legend in the background)

Check out those green stripes on the seats!

Jason’s son has a future in automotive modeling.

Initial mileage at 87,170.

Getting new tires at Discount – gotta love how cheap tires are for 14″ wheels!

Already got ahold of some literature including a Car & Driver magazine from when the car debuted.

Incidentally, a friend of mine is pictured in the 1993 brochure!

New floor mats, soon to be installed.

Key handoff from Jason, even though he wasn’t technically the person I bought it from – he just held the car for me for a few weeks.

Visiting a park in northern Utah named after a relative.

Canyon cruise with Ryan and his 2001 Honda S2000. Vastly different car, and superior in a lot of ways.

Visiting my friend Paige at the Parts Department at Jody Wilkinson Acura in Salt Lake. I’ve known her since I was 16.

Rolling back home with a visit to mom, who wore the right color for the occasion.

Visiting my brother and his kiddos.

Home sweet home, tucked in!

43 Comments »

Barn Finds & Egg Hunts: Easter Holiday Weekend in Utah

Posted in Car Show, Misc Travel, RLX, Utah on April 24, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (RLX): 23,456

Trip Distance: $80 Round-Trip Flight (Gasp)

With all the fancy paint jobs and gleaming chrome at the 34th annual Easter Car Show in Hurricane, Utah last Saturday, the car that most stood out to me was in fact the dirtiest. It was a 1963 Chevrolet Impala that had literally been pulled from a 20-year-slumber in a barn in Milford, Utah the day prior. The only things touched prior to its entry in the car show were the tires, which needed replacement in order to facilitate transport.

A registration renewal sticker on the back license plate confirmed – this car was last on the road around September 1999. I was a senior in high school at that time. It seems like eons ago.

Even the interior remained filled with dust and had a crusty paperback book sitting on the backseat. There is something so fascinating about a “barn find” vehicle – a certain mystique, like the feeling of encountering buried treasure. I’m sure it took a lot of restraint for the owner, Brent Pearce, to resist wiping off the dashboard or at least running a vacuum through the carpet.

I neglected to take a look at the odometer (I know, of all things) but given this car’s condition, it looked to be a low-miler. I’m sure it will take some time, effort, and money to get its V8 engine to awaken from a deep 20-year-slumber.

My second favorite thing about the car show was this $6 sloppy joe.

I had an enjoyable weekend in southern Utah with family and friends, especially since mom (pictured below) let me borrow her “new” Crystal Black 2016 RLX as my rental car for a few days.

I enjoyed tooling around my old digs and doing it in style. The seat belts make a satisfying “tug” at you when you buckle them, and when you take a corner at a moderately high speed. Fit & finish are top notch, and the audio system rocks.

The other noteworthy vehicle at the show was my brother’s 1954 Ford F-100 pickup. It’s powered by an engine from General Motors, which is a little odd. The supercharged “LT4” V8 was tuned to 650 horsepower by Blake Foster from Speed Tech Performance.

Body work is perfect, and that “Snapper Rocks” paint color is one of BMW’s offerings.

Here’s a short walkaround along with Q&A with Blake who was there representing his business.

We got the family together on Sunday morning for a 500-egg (!) Easter hunt.

Luckily some of the eggs were bigger than my 4-month-old niece Ava, so they were easy to spot.

Thanks to my friends David and Matt for their recent visit!

Have a great one!

17 Comments »

Flicks for Days: Visit to the Sundance Film Festival 2019 in Park City, Utah

Posted in Misc Travel, Utah on January 30, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (SLX): 178,483

It’s rare for me to get on a plane, but somehow I still find a way to get my dose of high-mileage even when I do. My friend Matt picked me up from the Salt Lake City airport last Friday in a 333,000 mile Honda Pilot. Now that’s my kind of shuttle.

Once a year, each January, a piece of the cinematic world descends upon and revolves around a small ski town about 30 miles east of Salt Lake City, Utah in the Wasatch Mountains. The main street of Park City Utah bustles with celebrities, media, and film-goers as over 100 independent films are shown over the course of a 10-day festival.

The Sundance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the United States. It draws nearly 50,000 attendees per year and has been around for over 40 years now. Acura came into the picture in 2010 as a major sponsor along with Chase Sapphire, YouTube, Stella Artois, and other companies. This year, I scored myself a media credential to attend the festivities as a journalist.

In all, I spent 2 full days in northern Utah being a part of some of the events – and action-packed they were! My seatmate on Friday afternoon’s 90-minute flight from Phoenix to Salt Lake was working on a film script via laptop computer. I made it to SLC that evening in time for a reunion with AcuraConnected‘s Chris Tobias as well as a local friend named Shaun. Another friend, Chandler, flew in later that night.

Our day on Saturday morning started out with an ascent up Parley’s Canyon on Interstate 80 in Shaun’s RDX. The traffic approaching Park City – a place accustomed to a mere 9,000 resident population – was heavy, and we knew it would be. The hub for press credentialing was the Marriott hotel on Sidewinder, so we checked in there briefly before making our way to Main Street.

Park City’s beginnings started as a silver mining boomtown in the 1800s, but today the community thrives thanks to its ski industry and year-round recreation. Most of the infrastructure along Main – and other adjacent streets – is completely overtaken for Sundance. Entire art galleries are cleared out and every inch of square footage is replaced with hospitality venues for the thousands of people who will come pouring in.

The Acura Festival Village – a large but temporary set-up – was comprised of a few tent-like structures, a public bathroom, and a trailer where interviews & panels were being held. On display out front were 5 Acura models including the NSX, MDX, RDX, TLX, and ILX (the latter 4 in A-Spec trim). Chris, Chandler, and I had omelets at The Bridge Cafe to fuel ourselves up for a busy day before making the rounds.

Luckily for me, I had my heaviest winter coat and some well-insulated shoes, because despite the fact that the sun was shining, our max temperature for the day didn’t go beyond freezing. A helpful reprieve was the “hot beverage” bar at the Acura village, where I picked up a cocoa and we participated in a photo booth & interacted with a few friends from the Acura leadership team.

The Egyptian Theater nearby, completed in 1926, had a crowd & line out its doors for the entire day. A variety of other theaters throughout the Park City area were also bustling with similar activities. Our press credentials gave us access to a balcony-level view of Main Street at one of the venues where we hung out and enjoyed the scenery.

We took a break from the epicenter of activity to catch an Uber over to the Utah Olympic Park. It was built between 1991 and 1997 and later hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. It features a ski jump, bobsled track, and other infrastructure that supported the Olympic activities of 17 years ago. Salt Lake City, by the way, is in the running for the 2030 Olympics too, so all that equipment may get used again.

Another destination on our list for the day was a high-end resort nestled high up a mountain road called the St. Regis at Deer Valley. Standard room rates there start at around $700 per night. On the plus side, the hotel does have a free cocoa & s’more bar in the main lobby. I fixed a tasty hot chocolate complete with chocolate bits, marshmallows, and whipped cream to sip on while we enjoyed the sunset from the lounge. I don’t know if the pool was heated, but it sure looked inviting.

Here’s where our logistics took a little snag: An incoming Uber from Park City that was supposed to arrive in 6 minutes was seemingly stuck, and 20 minutes later, we decided to abandon wheeled transportation altogether and walk the mile and a half downhill on a snowy sidewalk. It was actually not all that bad.

Our arrival back on Main was just in time for a somewhat comical attempt to find dinner. We approached six different restaurants about our wishes to get a bite to eat. One told us there was a 3-hour wait, and a few told us we were simply out of luck unless we had a reservation. Finally, we happened across “Flying Sumo” which seated us in about 45 minutes and served up a tasty plate of teriyaki salmon.

We spent the evening back at the Acura Festival Village for a party hosted in conjunction with IMDb and 3 cast members from the Showtime series “Shameless.” It was a rockin’ event, complete with energetic DJ’d music on the patio, beverages from Stella Artois, and a swag bag for every attendee. Chandler got a little star-struck when he saw Shanola Hampton, who plays Veronica Fisher (“V”) in Shameless. He was able to get a selfie with her.

The night grew late and we’d spent a full day on our feet, so we summoned a Lyft and made the descent back to Salt Lake for the evening. It was a memorable way to spend the day. On Sunday, I connected with family and friends in the Salt Lake area, and on Sunday I spent about 12 hours driving my dad’s MDX about 720 miles home to Phoenix.

There’s only one problem with all of this: I went to a film festival and didn’t see a single film. All the more reason to go back next year and experience it for a little more time! Thanks for reading, and enjoy the short video & additional pics below!

“Little America” hotel in Salt Lake City

Acura Festival Village lineup with a stunning Still Night Pearl MDX A-Spec on the end

Photo from the “Winter Wonderland” photo booth

I scored tickets to a film! Sadly, we didn’t have time to get there before it started.

New ILX A-Spec with sport underbody kit in the distance, and of course a Thermal Orange NSX

Group shot at the “Shameless” party later in the evening

The only skiing I did was on this fake billboard!

Sunday morning meet-up with Sunny and his 2014 TSX Special Edition

And then Ryan in his 128i

And Jason in his Civic Si

And Nate in his Tacoma

Ryan and I met up with friends and family members at “Legends” Pub & Grill

Dad & stepmom came to join the party, too

8 Comments »

December Updates: Cabin Weekend, Christmas, & Coming Attractions

Posted in Blog, Brochures, Car Show, ILX, Legend, NSX, Road Trip, Utah on December 27, 2018 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 212,097

Odometer (Something New): 178,351

Trip Distance: 210 Miles

Time once again to play catch-up on current events. I’m turning 37 years old in 3.5 hours, so if I don’t wake up tomorrow morning due to old age, I at least want the Drive to Five community to know how I spent my final weeks, right? Oh and the odometer teaser above – more to come on that. I might have bought myself a 4,615-pound birthday gift.

First of all, I ended up being featured on Hello Road‘s YouTube channel with a quick feature from the Radwood show a couple of weeks ago in Los Angeles. Check out this video at about 6:42 on the clock. Huge thanks to Ethan Tufts for the feature!

A couple weekends ago, I joined 6 friends and headed for the hills northeast of Phoenix.

Our destination was a cabin in Pine, Arizona. Pine is only a little over 100 miles from the hustle and bustle of the city, but it has a woodsy culture, far cooler temperatures, and lots of wildlife. I took the ILX for this trip which made light work of the grades rising out of town on Highway 87. The climb goes from about 1,000 feet above elevation to a little over 5,000, making it a popular way to climb out of the boiling hot valley in summertime.

2012 road tripping:

2018 road tripping:

Among our destinations were the Early Bird Cafe above – which I’d visited six years prior – for a hearty and delicious breakfast. Unfortunately, employee Katie (pictured in the 2012 pic in orange) no longer works there. After that, we checked out Tonto Natural Bridge, the “world’s largest natural travertine arch.” Most of the trails within the park were closed for construction this time, but we were able to hike down toward the riverbed and see some of the mossy waterfalls.

Sam, Adam C, Kenny, Adam S (back), and Tyson, Riley, Chandler (front)

I was delighted to have my friend Brandon from Las Vegas visiting for several days, and then today had another visitor – this time it was my buddy Alaeldeen from all the way in Edmonton, Alberta. Fun fact: He owned the Clarion Legend coupe for about two years.

Here’s Brandon:

The gang at brunch:

Here’s Alaeldeen:

I’m also playing caretaker for my friend Branson’s Legend coupe which will spend a few months at my house whilst his home in the Salt Lake City area is getting some garage upgrades. It’s a sweet ride. My backyard looks like a bit of a parking lot (or junkyard?) as I’m awaiting the cure of an epoxy sealant on the garage floor. That story will get its own blog post in the coming weeks.

This past weekend, the ILX ‘front-wheel-drive sleigh’ took me to Christmas festivities in southern Utah, where I got to meet my youngest niece who is named Ava Mae. She’s a real cutie. I also reconnected with a few friends including my friend Shaun who recently picked up a 1997 Acura 3.0 CL that drives like a real peach for having 206,000 miles on it.

Cute baby up above, cute babies right here too:

Following I’ll share a hodge-podge of the rest of the pictures from these recent adventures.

NSX roller shot by my friend Michael

And the coupe at the same time

Checking out my buddy Travis’ new-to-him 1995 LS automatic – it needs work, but it’s a start!

Michael’s new 1993 Integra LS at right.

Out at the Pavilions car show and an RSX-S joined me.

Couple more shots of Branson’s coupe:

Literature swag update: Special thanks to my buddy “on the inside” at American Honda (you know who you are!) who hooked me up with these amazing items. This first one is an actual binder dated 2001 which shows approved paint & interior finishes for dealerships. Like actual dealership showroom carpet samples!

Couple pics of the ever-evolving showcase:

New 2008 TL spiral booklet added, too.

Finally – My brother has just as many toys as I have, and here’s his latest. This 1954 Ford truck is powered by a supercharged GM “LT4” V8 engine with around 650 horsepower. I know, a Chevy engine in a Ford. He’s going to tune it for another 75-100 ponies. Watch out.

Have a great weekend and New Year celebration if I don’t post here before!

17 Comments »

Back in the Saddle: ILX Return from Utah & My Showroom Display Case

Posted in Brochures, ILX, Utah on September 3, 2018 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 206,792

Happy Labor Day.

After a 15-month hiatus, my 2013 ILX is back from Utah. My brother was using the car for daily duty – though his driving only added up to about 6,000 miles in that length of time. It had been since last November when I sold my TL Type-S that I’ve been driving around without a ‘modern’ (post-1990s vehicle) so I was glad to get back into something with iPod connectivity and other conveniences.

It felt a bit odd to slide back into that driver seat again after so long, but the car smelled, drove, and handled exactly as I remembered it. Before leaving St. George last Saturday, I paid a quick visit to grandma and grandpa as well as to my friend Blair who has a couple of 1989 Legend coupes that are up for grabs. Check out the video at the bottom of this post – free to a good home. Any takers?

The St. George -> Phoenix trip felt much like every other I’ve taken, except for one new stretch: The Nevada Department of Transportation has recently (within the last month, even) dedicated a new stretch of road as part of Interstate 11.

Formerly, the drive between Las Vegas and Phoenix required driving through the town of Boulder City which would become overrun with traffic headed to Hoover Dam, especially on holiday weekends. Now, the new freeway bypasses Boulder City to the south and reconnects with Highway 93 just prior to the bridge over the Colorado River. It’s a pretty slick piece of road that will easily slice 5 or 10 minutes off my drive.

I happened to pull off at a scenic viewpoint and end up right next to a 2018 ILX. Its owners were very nice!

The road is so new that traffic is light, and I was able to stop in the middle of the onramp for a photo without blocking anyone.

The other exciting thing is some progress with my literature collection. After 20 years of acquiring merchandise and brochures related to Acura vehicles, I finally have a way to start showcasing some of it. Several weeks ago, I purchased a 70″ long (38″ tall, 18″ deep) display case from a company called Achieve Display. It arrived in Phoenix a few days later but I had to rent a full size pickup truck to retrieve the 300-pound pallet that it came on at the freight depot.

Assembly was a bit of a chore, as the 8-page instruction manual was lacking detail, but we figured it out. I took some time to do an inventory of some of my collectibles and filled up the case right away. I also ordered a plexiglass 6-up magazine display to hang on the wall (and another one is on the way) so my laundry room which leads into the garage is finally transforming into a bit of a showroom. In going through my boxes of literature, I discovered duplicates in some of the items.

Light reading!

I have over 80 brochures ranging in model year from 1986 through 2015, as well as probably that many magazine articles as well. Time to get my library in order! One day I’d like to scan a bunch of the items and digitize them to share with the community but most of the pieces are larger than a typical sheet of paper.

My friend Jerry gave me a few awesome items including these vintage hats.

Finished product – for now:

Short video on ILX retrieval:

Blair’s 1989 coupes:

Display case & garage walk-through:

Interstate 11 informational placard

Headed back to PHX

My friend German stopping by to take the NSX for a spin

Photo a friend sent me of a 1992-era dealership

Saw this in one of the vintage mags: Ads for different car clubs, including 2 Acura clubs. I want to join!

My friend Eric gave me a sweet Polo shirt for being his first commenter on RentalReview.blog. Go check out his site!

He also gave me some magnets I can use for a little advertising.

Service manuals galore.

Magazines on display – and a framed jigsaw puzzle of my 1994 Legend GS.

25 Comments »

Southern Utah Weekend: Bryce Canyon National Park & Glen Canyon Dam

Posted in Arizona, Legend, National Parks, Road Trip, Running, Utah on June 5, 2018 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 561,413

Trip Distance: 1,070 Miles

Do you know what a hoodoo is? The name to me sounds a lot like “voodoo,” and according to the Internet, can be used interchangeably with it. But there’s an alternate definition you may not have heard of. A hoodoo can also mean a column of weathered rock. Check out this view of a vast number of hoodoos that I saw on Friday at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. Now you know!

This past weekend’s 4-day, 1,000-mile road trip took me through Bryce as well as some of Utah’s other scenic wonders. It was the perfect escape from the day-to-day grind. I’ve visited Bryce a few times in the past, including when my friend Peter’s TSX rolled 200,000 miles three years ago and a trip to “Hell’s Backbone” in the ILX five years ago. Still, I can never get tired of seeing that amazing landscape. I took for granted that I grew up with so many beautiful national parks virtually in my own backyard in southern Utah.

My tried and trusty Legend coupe was the chariot of choice for this backroads adventure, and it delivered perfect reliability as I knew it would. The idea for this trip came about because two friends were competing in the Bryce Canyon Ultra Marathon – a “50K” (32-mile) trail run that would subject them to some of the region’s most challenging terrain but also some of the most rewarding views. I think they’re nuts, but then again my own sanity is a little questionable too.

Bryce is one of five national parks in Utah and perhaps one of the least traveled – just the way I like them. The way we got there was pretty straightforward, with a night in my hometown of St. George on Thursday, and then northbound to Cedar City. From Cedar, that’s where things got interesting. We climbed nearly 5,000 feet in elevation on Highway 14 eastbound over the course of 18 miles – windows down, sunroof open, and soaking in the glorious temperatures.

From there, we hooked north on Highway 148 past Cedar Breaks National Monument. By that time, we were at 10,000 feet in elevation – high enough that even on June 1, we saw snow on the roadside. Cedar Breaks was awe-inspiring. We were also delighted that there was next to no traffic. The road is closed from November through May so it had just recently opened back up for the season – literally, the visitor center opened the very day we were rolling through.

Our destination for the next two nights was Panguitch, Utah – a tiny (2,000-resident) town on Highway 89 and home to the Blue Pine Motel, which has been there since 1901. While the accommodations weren’t first class, they were definitely warm and inviting. It’s a family owned atmosphere and a step back in time. We loved our stay. My friend and I visited Bryce Canyon later that first afternoon, some 20 minutes away, and soaked in some of the views from Rainbow Point and Sunset Point. Cars are $35 but we picked up an $80 annual parks pass for admission into any of the National Park units for an entire year. Seems like a decent value!

Bryce Canyon National Park was established 90 years ago and covers about 55 square miles. Navigating it is easy since there’s just one main 18-mile-long, north-south road with a loop at the end. We hiked 1.3 miles round trip on the Navajo Trail loop at Sunset Point before hitting up the restaurant inside the lodge for a delicious bite to eat.

The runners rocked their event, which started and ended in the foothills east of the small town of Hatch on Saturday. The level of difficulty was pretty extreme, with a 7,000-foot elevation change over the course of the 32 miles, along with high temperatures, rocky or sandy footing, and windblown dust. Our friends came in at 9 and 10 hours – exhausted but feeling accomplished. We treated them to Diet Cokes on ice, just as they’d requested.

The small town vibe continued when we made friends with the owner of Cowboy Smokehouse back in Panguitch, who gave us a free order of bacon-wrapped sweet potatoes for our appetizer. It tasted better than it sounds.

By Sunday morning, it was time to make the trek back home, so my friend and I headed out southbound on Highway 89 under a bright blue sky. We stopped just once in Utah – for fuel in Kanab – but decided to lollygag a little at the Arizona/Utah state line in Page. We happened to arrive at the Glen Canyon Dam at Lake Powell just in time for a 10:30 a.m. tour (and it would only cost us $5 each). Score! I’ve always wanted to take a dam tour. It was a dam good time.

For 45 minutes, we were part of a group of 15 people listening to a tour guide teach us about the dam and its history. We got to ride in two elevators, down a total of over 700 feet to the base of the canyon where the Colorado River runs below. The dam was completed in 1966 but the lake behind it, Lake Powell, took 16 years to fill up! Today there are 8 turbines capable of generating 1.32 gigawatts of power. When I read that on one of the signs, it made me think of Doc Brown’s quote in Back to the Future about needing “1.21 gigawatts.” Great Scott!

My favorite part of the tour was learning that for 1 year only, traffic did flow over the dam itself. I asked our tour guide about it because I could see the the faded remnants of a double-yellow line on top of the concrete. She told us that for just 1 year (1978) traffic was directed across the dam, because construction was taking place on the adjacent bypass bridge.

For lunch, we hit up Fiesta Mexicana in Page, then worked our way to Flagstaff on Highway 89 and connected with Interstate 17 for the final 2 hours of downhill slide into the Phoenix Valley. If only we could have brought some of the cooler temperatures back home with us! The oven has been preheated and we are ready to bake here until October or so. Gotta love it!

Thanks for coming along!

Glen Canyon Dam Tour

Here’s something new for the blog. I have 3 readers who are selling cars and who contacted me about listing them here. Does anyone have interest in these? Let me know and I’ll put you in touch with the sellers.

Brandon’s 1990 Legend L coupe for sale

Automatic
155,000 Miles
San Diego, CA
$ Make Offer

Matt’s 2003 CL-S for sale

6-Speed Manual
255,000 Miles
Phoenix, AZ
$4,300

Srikanth’s 1991 Legend L sedan for sale

Automatic
151,000 Miles
Providence, RI
$ Make Offer

More trip pics – snow along Highway 148, in June

Cedar Breaks National Monument

Pond near the starting (and finish) line of the 50K race

Hanging with mom at the finish line

Sandy’s Audi Q5 got dirty while my Legend stayed clean back at the motel

Small town talk: I had to ask someone what “chicken lights” are.

Blue Pine Motel parking

Hanging at Glen Canyon Dam. Watch your step!

View looking toward the bridge over the Colorado River

That’s a lot of concrete

The dam’s 8 turbines

Not an elevator button you get to see every day

Have a dam good day!

23 Comments »

Bye Old Integra, Hello New Integra: Am I Insane Yet? (Part 1)

Posted in Integra, Utah on May 30, 2018 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend Coupe): 560,344

Odometer (Legend Sedan): 158,148

Odometer (Integra Hatch): 248,095

Odometer (Integra GS Sedan): 071,778

Odometer (Vigor): 111,181

Odometer (NSX): 111,553

Yes. The answer is yes, I’m insane – I don’t need you to put it in the comments, but please do it anyway.

I’ve fallen so far off my rocker I may never be able to get back up. But that’s okay. I thought I’d spice up this blog with an unexpected twist and buy an Acura Integra nearly identical to the one I already had. Why not, right? I already have twin Desert Mist Metallic 1994 Legends.

So here we go again. This time I have a 1992 Integra GS sedan 5-speed. Now let me help give context with some trim level breakdowns:

RS: Basic as basic comes!
LS: RS trim + color matched mirrors, power mirrors and locks
GS: LS trim + anti-lock brakes, power moonroof, alloy wheels, and map lights. Ooooh!

All 3 are powered by a 140-horsepower, 1.8-liter dual overhead cam 4-cylinder motor. No VTEC here: The sedans did not get the same engine technology that the GS-R 3-door hatchback did.

I was definitely NOT in the market for a replacement Integra when this one came along. To the contrary, I was greatly enjoying restoring my 1992 LS that I went to great lengths to buy, transport. and clean up. But luckily, thanks to my Bring a Trailer auction, I was able to find a new owner for that one who will really enjoy it. Ken flew in on Sunday morning and drove the car home to Denver, Colorado.

Short video of the drive-away:

As much as I enjoyed that LS, when a one-owner car comes along with extensive ownership history and all the goodies of a top trim level, you bust a move. So thanks to my friend Jeff for sending it my way, and to my friend Cody for driving over to check it out – including a FaceTime session with him and with the owners. Here are the photos from that day.

Screen shot of the original craigslist ad.

71,212 on the odometer!

FaceTime sesh! Yes, I did. Chris, this pic’s for you.

This car comes to my collection from a sweet gal named Maxine who lives in southern Utah. She bought the car brand new off the showroom floor in the Seattle area 26 years ago at Bellevue Acura.

I caught a flight to St. George, Utah on Monday evening, May 7, and spent the night at mom’s place before heading over to Max’s on Tuesday morning for the transaction. I was a little apprehensive, as is always the case in the hours leading up to the purchase of a new car. It was about a 30 minute drive to Max’s place in Ivins. The car was already pulled out of the garage and ready to roll when we arrived.

Max was understandably a little emotional about the event – and for good reason. She’d owned the car for maybe half her life? It’s a big deal to part with something so sentimental. After taking a few traditional key handoff photos, we went through a folder of paperwork dating back to when the car was new. You all know how excited that gets me. She had the original window sticker, service receipts, even a slip of paper indicating the commission amount that salesman David Wright made on March 12, 1992. It was $285.00.

Oh, and I also found a Vehicle Service Contract dated March 30, 1993 at 26,741 miles that was good for 84 months or 100,000 miles. By the mileage standard, the car is STILL covered! Haha.

First stop before even getting the revs beyond about 2,500 RPM was the Honda dealership a few miles away. I’d pre-arranged with the Service Department to take care of a timing belt & water pump change for me – not one to risk driving 400 miles on an old belt in 100+ degree temperatures. The oil change was also far overdue – with the last sticker from Jiffy Lube on the windshield dated 2009, nine years ago!

The service technician reported that the timing belt was “yellowed and crispy” (yikes) so I was glad I had it changed.

I set sail on my homeward trip, feeling accomplished at picking up a minty little car. But something still made me uneasy in the driver seat. Was it the ancient Goodyear tires? Flat spotted and cracked? I didn’t exceed 65 miles per hour because of those. But even beyond that, I was unsettled, and for good reason. I soon found out why. Come back next time to read the next chapter…

First Episode:

Departing from Max’s place

Interesting – this car was marked up $2,000 from the MSRP! $19,275 instead of $17,275.

Toasty day to be heading out!

Just for kicks – check out this 6-minute video my friend Hy and put together last weekend of his immaculate Accord SE as I was invited to roll a milestone with him.

And a video of my friend Jim taking delivery of a 2018 Accord 6-speed:

And a video of my friend Kyle arriving home with his ‘new’ 2009 Pontiac G8 6-speed:

And one more, from just this past weekend. I went junkyarding with my friend Michael – check out his really nice 1990 Legend L sedan with only 60,000 miles on it.

That ought to keep you all busy for a few days. Have a great one!

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