The Olden Days

Posted in Throwback on October 25, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,830

Every once in awhile I get an extreme case of “new car itch.”  I had an episode this afternoon when I learned that my coworker Kunbi picked up a brand new BMW 3-series over the weekend. I checked it out after work and couldn’t stop breathing in that new car smell.  The odometer on her car?  Just 102 miles.  Wow!  As I made my way to my 498,000 mile car I wondered if I’ll ever own a car that fresh.

Here are a couple of pictures from tonight’s drive home.  The beauty of Desert Mist Metallic is that you can’t tell the car has gone nearly a month without a wash.

It’s running great but there are a few things I’ll have done on my next trip to the Acura dealership – probably next week.  My tires are due for a rotation and they’re wearing pretty badly on the insides on the front end.  I also plan on finally having the windshield replaced.

Aside from that there are no concerns for now so I’ll just keep rolling on it!  I have to chuckle when I pull into my driveway and see the mess that my roommate’s 1997 Nissan Maxima has been making.  It’s an oil leaker.  Granted, his car’s got 202k on it, but the garage underneath both of my Legends is as dry as can be.  Neither car leaks a drop of oil. Maybe I should ask the roomie to park on the street…

As you’ve noticed, I’m posting daily with some of the stories and adventures that my Acura and I have been through.  The Legend has been with me since I was 21 years old.  It got me through 3 college degrees, 6 or so houses, and lots of road trips.  Here is a picture from when I completed MBA school in Glendale, Arizona in 2006.

And from the day when I met up with my real estate agent to finalize paperwork when I bought my first home in February, 2007.

But I had plenty of car love in my blood before I became so crazy about my Acura.  I thought I’d pause for a minute on the blog and talk about some of my old rides.  My first car was a 1986 Chevy Celebrity Classic.  My parents bought this beauty new off the showroom floor in Logan, Utah.  Here I am with the black bowtie and my brother Bentley in front our new car in Richmond, Utah.

After 11 years of being passed around the family (it went to the east coast for a time under my uncle’s ownership), I was given the keys to the Celebrity at age 16.  A $500 Maaco paint job later and I was rocking this thing to high school proudly – complete with a vanity license plate that said “HUGGIE’S” in honor of my last name.  The 6-seat capacity (bench in the front!) made my ride a popular one among my high school friends who didn’t yet have their licenses.

Yeah, wire wheel hubcaps and vinyl roof.  I was cool!  Here’s my carpool gang — Holly (neighbor) and younger brother Bentley standing to the right of me in the picture.

My second car was a 1989 Honda Prelude 2.0 Si 5-speed which I modified in a way that any high schooler would be expected to — in very poor taste (much like my tuxedo in this picture from Senior Prom in 2000).  I did love that car though.  White skater shoes.  Really?

Years later, after I’d long since sold the Celebrity, I had the chance to buy it back – and I did.  The second round of ownership was short-lived.  As exciting as it is to own your first car again, in this case the logistic difficulties outweighed the sentimental benefits because I had no place to park it.  When I sold the car (the second time), around age 22, it had 194,000 on it but only read 94,000 because of its lack of a 6th digit.  To think, if my Legend had only a 5-digit odometer I would have rolled it over 4 times by now.

For a very short time around 2004, I owned the Legend coupe, the ’86 Celebrity, and a 1991 Prelude Si 4WS and I pulled all 3 out for a photoshoot at our home in St. George, Utah.  I’ve owned several Preludes over the years since that first 1989 Si.  They are amazingly fun cars, especially the versions with Four-Wheel Steering like I had.

I’m now at nearly 9 years of ownership on the Legend and still have a smile with each drive.

International Travels

Posted in Legend, Misc Travel, Road Trip on October 24, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,790

When most people think of visits to theme parks in Florida, they immediately think of Disneyworld, but I found a place that far surpasses Disney in its appeal to me — I’ll call it ‘Legendland’!  About 75 miles west of Orlando in a one-stoplight teeny town called Floral City, my Acura enthusiast friend Alan and his wife Nancy have a beautiful piece of property and four (yes, four!) Acura Legends.  It was a slice of Acura heaven that I got to experience this afternoon before flying back to Phoenix from Tampa.

First off we got a VIP tour of the property including Alan’s spare car parts inventory which would rival any Acura dealership for its completeness and organization.

Alan has a sirius white pearl 1994 Legend GS 6-speed, cashmere silver metallic 1993 LS coupe 6-speed, granada black pearl 1994 GS sedan automatic, and milano red 1994 Legend LS coupe automatic.  This guy is a true collector!  He hosted us for a lake-side BBQ this afternoon after my friend Matt and I took his pedal-powered boat out for a quick spin on the lake.  Alan also let me drive his 1979 MG convertible:  a peppy little 4-speed manual that turned more heads in the 3 miles it than my Legend coupe has in the 400k miles I’ve driven it.

Here’s the group shot.  In addition to Alan’s four Legends, two others showed up to make this into a full blown enthusiast meet:  Moses in his 1994 granada black pearl GS sedan 6-speed (gorgeous!) and Alex in his 5-speed manual converted sherwood green 1994 LS coupe.  Alex allowed me to test drive his car, “Annie.”  She’s a mean beast with plenty of aftermarket goodies including a K-Sport suspension, full exhaust, and a short-throw shifter that makes rowing the gears effortless and fun.

All six Legends made it into this picture if you look closely.  Left to right:  Tyson, Alex, Alan, Moses.

I made Alan dig out the straw hat for this one.  That hat has become a staple at Legend meets across the country.  Anyone who’s seen Alan at one of the National Acura Legend Meets knows what I’m talking about!

Florida’s one of the few states I haven’t driven my Legend coupe in yet.  Over the years I’ve taken this old Legend to vast and varied places in the United States, but some of my most memorable travels have taken place outside the border.  The 2006 drive to Fairbanks, Alaska, and back was especially adventurous because it was the first chance I had to really exercise my kilometers-per-hour reading ability on my speedometer.  My dad and I traversed several Canadian provinces on our way to the far north.  It also was interesting to buy fuel by the liter instead of the gallon.

Then there was the time in October, 2006 when I road-tripped south of the border to “Puerto Peñasco” (Rocky Point), Mexico in order to visit my friend Pam and her family who were RV’ing there for the weekend at the beach.  Rocky Point was about 70 miles south of the US/Mexico border.  I purchased Mexican auto insurance (print-at-home) for the 48 hour trip and set out for Mexico.

This was actually the second time I had driven the Legend into Mexico.  The first was in February, 2005, when I went into Algodones, Sonora, Mexico just west of Yuma, Arizona. Border crossing!

Doing a little shopping.

Crazy drivers, every which way, backing up in a thru-lane.  And I didn’t have Mexican insurance at the time.  Things could have been bad!

The line to get back into the U.S. was about 1/2 hour wait.

How about a place that’s pretty much not only international but intergalactic:  The teeny town of Rachel, Nevada just outside Area 51 in the rural desert of southern Nevada.  I took this picture in 2005 while cruising along the “Extraterrestrial Highway” (State Route 375) just before also snagging a picture at the “Little A’Le Inn.”  Unfortunately, no sightings of life from outer space during my day trip adventure.

Population:  Humans, 98.  Aliens, ?

Self parking for UFO’s!

And yes, I parked the Legend there!

Not a bad looking spaceship if I do say so.

Or finally how about the time I drove right to Santa Claus’ house in North Pole, Alaska, in 2006?  My dad and I even took the opportunity to buy a plot of land (one square inch, to be exact) to give to my mom for Mother’s Day.  Yes, we got a deed to it!

No trip to the North Pole would be complete without a quick pit-stop at Santa’s house, right?

My dad and I are sitting in the sleigh while the Legend looks on.

This post has turned into a novel but I also need to mention that I’m not the only one in the high mileage game – in fact, lots of people have met or exceeded the 500k mark.  One in particular is Joe LoCicero from Maine – also known as “Million Mile Joe.”  His 1990 Honda Accord today hit 1,000,000 miles.  Honda has recognized him on the company’s Facebook page.  Check it out!  Huge congrats, Joe!

So, I’m back at home after a fun weekend away and happy to be back behind the wheel to finish out the drive to five.  Let’s get a move on.

Four Seasons

Posted in Legend, Road Trip on October 23, 2011 by tysonhugie

The Legend was driven ZERO miles today!

This is the first time that’s happened in a very long time (and this rental 2012 Mustang V6 I’m cruising around it just can’t compare).  As I enjoyed the fine scenery along Florida’s gulf coast today, I reflected on the fact that my Acura hasn’t always been pampered by weather as sublime as what I’m experiencing this weekend.  I live in what’s been called the hottest city in the United States.  The Phoenix area enjoys over 300 days of sunshine per year and in turn also endures well over 100 days of 100+ degrees per year.

Any vehicle’s cooling system in Arizona is durability tested day in and day out.  For this reason, I’ve had my radiator changed for no reason at all and I’ve always used Honda/Acura fluids exclusively, including Honda brand “Type 2” coolant, which is unique in its blue color.

  • I had a Koyo aftermarket radiator installed in 2005 at 169,155 miles.  The old one wasn’t leaking at the time.
  • In 2006 at 237,592 miles, I had all 22 (yes, 22!) hoses in the cooling system changed out with new ones – “just because.”  At 12 years old, rubber can start to crack and wear, and the risk of a hose failure was enough reason for me to have Acura of Tempe install new ones.
  • Then in 2008 at 328,092 miles, I had that Koyo radiator changed out for a Honda OEM part.  Again, “just because.”  A well maintained cooling system is the biggest key to success in operating an old Legend, as so many of these cars have fallen victim to head gasket failure due to overheating.
  • Add to that a number of cooling system fluid flushes over the years.  I’ve always been a firm believer in preventative maintenance.

This Legend has seen the highs and lows of Mother Nature.  For two years, I attended undergraduate school at Utah State University in Logan, Utah.  The Legend endured temps into the well-below-negative range frequently.  I remember a day in particular at (-8) degrees Fahrenheit when the old car (then in 2004/2005 at around 180,000 miles) started up without fail.

Here are a few pictures I found of some of the various weather environments I’ve traveled in my trusty old Acura.

This was taken one winter up Blacksmith Fork Canyon.  Surefooted with the Traction Control System!

A little fun in the church parking lot, post-snowstorm.  E-braking has never been so much fun!

And then this – the ultimate winter beater.  I had to spend about 30 minutes digging the car out of a snow bank behind my house.  It was far from roadworthy when this picture was taken.  Logan, Utah had been hit with a huge blizzard the night before.  Even so, the Legend didn’t hesitate when I turned the key and cranked the motor the following morning.

Here’s a rainstorm on Interstate 8 in southern California in February 2005 with only 159,000 miles on the odometer.

Nothing finer than the fall colors in Logan Canyon in northern Utah.

And of course the seasons wouldn’t be rounded out without some extreme highs – such as what I experienced in this 2005 drive to Monument Valley in northeastern Arizona.

Or perhaps this picture taken at the Imperial Sand Dunes off Interstate 8 west of Yuma, Arizona just inside the California state line.

Oil Analysis

Posted in Legend, Maintenance on October 22, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,782

The Legend is tucked into offsite airport parking at Phoenix Sky Harbor while I play around on the Florida beaches 2,156 miles away for a weekend in Tampa.  Here’s a shot as I headed to the airport this afternoon.

US Airways flight 574 wasn’t nearly as comfortable of a ride as my Acura, but the view was decent.  For any destination that’s fewer than 10 hours or so drive time, I’d rather drive.  Florida just wouldn’t have been possible to tackle in a weekend trip by car though.

I thought I’d share some information on oil analyses I’ve done to the Legend over the years.  It’s like a urinalysis for your vehicle!

Blackstone Labs is a Fort Wayne, Indiana based company that specializes in extracting data from used motor oil.  Based on just a tiny jar of collected sample, they’re able to determine a myriad of things about the health of a motor.  I’ve sent 3 samples to Blackstone over the course of my Legend’s life.  My standard technique of 5W30 oil every 3,000 miles has never let me down.  Following are the reports I’ve received after having submitted some of these samples over the years.

Sample #1 was taken 12/29/06 at mileage 264,658.

Sample #2 was taken 12/20/08 at mileage 358,050.

Sample #3 was taken 6/20/11 at mileage 479,233.

The comments along with the most recent sample were as follows: 

Judging by the low wear, there’s nothing in our test to show a developing a mechanical problem. At this rate, 500,000 should be easily obtainable. If someone wants proof that Hondas last forever, they can look no further than your oil reports. We did find a little extra silicon, which can show dirt getting past the air filter. If course, it could also be a harmless additive of some sort, but check the air filter and the intake for any cracks or leaks. The TBN was very strong at 6.7 showing plenty of active additive. Still looking good at 479,233 miles.

Even Blackstone Laboratories knows that a Honda will last forever.

Ghost Towns

Posted in Ghost Town, Legend, Road Trip on October 21, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,752

As crazy as it may sounds, driving an Acura isn’t my day job.  You’d think so, given the fact that I’ve put about 45,000 miles per year on my Legend since I bought it in 2003.  Some curious friends did the math once, in fact, and determined that I’ve spent the better part of a year *living* in my driver’s seat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  And that’s if I was consistently driving moderate highway speed the entire time!

Since I do get asked quite a bit:  My career is in the pharmaceutical biz.  I work as an analyst for a pharmacy benefit management company called CVS Caremark based in Scottsdale, Arizona.  The most important tool at my disposal in my cubicle at the office is a U.S. map because  I zone out frequently while daydreaming of road trip opportunities.  My colleague Michelle snagged this picture today.  I happened to be proudly wearing an Acura Polo shirt, too.

Over the next couple of weeks, I want to share some of the many adventures I’ve had in my Legend in its half million miles of travel.

If you had $299k to burn, you could have purchased a ghost town in June, 2005.  I was thumbing through the classifieds of the local newspaper at the time, The Spectrum, in St. George Utah and came across a unique classified ad:

GHOST TOWN. Owner financing. Motivated seller. Four homes, C-store, gas station, miscellaneous buildings. 32 city building lots, 2.5 acres highway commercial, five acres well and water, fixer-upper. 80 acres. All for $299,000. Modena, Utah. Call (719) 684-9044.

My curiosity got the best of me and I set out on an adventure to find out just what exactly this ghost town was all about.  It’s a tiny little town on the railroad tracks about 9 miles from the Nevada state line in southern Utah.  Modena was a center for commerce when the steam railroads would roll through town. When the diesel locomotive came around, the trains wouldn’t need to stop and Modena became obsolete. Slowly people moved out.

Here are some of the pictures I captured that day back in 2005.  The Legend had around 175,000 miles on it and was wearing 17″ Acura RSX Type-S wheels at the time.

The eery feeling of being in a desolate town was thrilling.  A boarded up gas station, old pickups for sale, not a soul around.  A couple of the run-down homes were visibly still occupied but most had “For Sale” signs in the windows.

Despite the “No Trespassing” warnings, I climbed into the largest of the abandoned buildings — the Lund Hotel.  Inside was quite creepy (especially considering that I was alone).  I went upstairs and there were still box spring sets for the hotel mattresses.  Shelves were still there in what used to be the general store on the main level.  Surprisingly, there was very little or no graffiti and all the fixtures were still intact.  I went up the staircase to the upper level – a bit unnerving since the hand railing was wobbly and I could see that the upper level floor had sunk in places and could potentially collapse at any time.  My cell phone wasn’t getting service at the time so I was also completely unreachable if something had happened.  All part of the experience!

This gas pump had long since dried up, but it still made for a nice photo-op.

Bummer – looked like the saloon had sealed its doors too.

On another occasion, in May 2005, I ventured to a different small southern Utah ghost town called Paria, off Highway 89A near Kanab.  This particular site was known for having been the backdrop for a number of “old west” movies from the 1940’s through 1960’s.  The area was first settled around 1865.  I had to do a little off-roading to get to my destination – probably 10 or so miles each way on a pretty decent condition dirt road.  There is just no landscape that can compare to the beauty of the southern Utah sandstone.

Lastly, I’ll share a picture of one more (now completely demolished) ghost town – appropriately named, “Nothing,” Arizona.  In February, 2007, I stopped for these pictures in northern Arizona off Hwy 93 between Wickenburg and Wikieup.  Population: 4.  Milepost 148 1/2.

The building in this picture has since been bulldozed.  The Legend was at 275,000 miles and sitting on TL Type-S wheels.  Looking pretty snazzy in the Arizona sunset.

Those are some of my Acura-assisted travels to the run-down buildings of yesteryear.

Sadly, as I’ve learned, time can take its toll on an automobile too.  Did anyone else notice the “mechanic special” 1994 Acura Legend coupe on Ebay right now?  It’s a near twin to mine in Desert Mist Metallic paint except in L model trim and with an automatic transmission.  This particular Legend, with VIN ending in production number 239, rolled off the assembly line in Japan just 593 vehicles before mine did, back in the end of 1993.  Now 18 years later, it has only 134,000 miles (26% of what mine has) but it looks like it’s been driven through a war zone.  Those were rough miles.

What a life this car has endured.  It’s classic reinforcement of my belief that high miles don’t necessarily mean much in the used car realm.  I’d rather have my 500,000 mile Legend any day of the week than this relic with 134,000.  People — take care of your cars and they’ll take care of you!

I’m off to Tampa, Florida tomorrow for the weekend (flying, though!).  The high-miler will sit in covered parking at Sky Harbor airport so don’t expect any huge trip report on Sunday.  I will, however, continue to post more frequent stories from my past Acura travels as I creep closer to the big milestone ahead.

Thanks for watching!  Drive on.

Shoes

Posted in Legend on October 20, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,724

“How in the world do you not get bored with driving the same car for that many miles?” People often ask me.  Well, I change up the look often!

I’ve gone through more than my fair share of different wheel & tire combinations over the years.  Here’s a quick glance at a few (13 styles to be exact).  Let’s hear it in the comment box — which ones were your favorite?

19 x 7.5 Racing Hart C2 3-piece Diamond Cut

Factory 16×7 Legend GS, Chrome Plated

2001-2002 Acura CL Type S 17″

2001-2002 Acura CL Type S 17″, Chrome Plated

Factory 16×7 Legend GS

2001 Lexus IS300 17″

18″ Kaotik Z5

18″ Katana Inspire

18 x 8 Mille Miglia Evo5

2005 Acura RSX Type S 17″, Chrome Plated

2004 Acura TL 17″

2001-2003 Acura TL Type S 17″

2004 Acura TSX 17″

Also thought this would be a fun time to share an article from the Arizona Republic that the Legend was featured in, back in the Sunday paper of June 15, 2008.  At only 324,000 miles, the Legend had already become legendary.  Dug this pic out of the archives to share:

State Lines

Posted in Legend, Road Trip on October 18, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer: 498,662

So close I can taste it!  The old Legend didn’t even leave town this weekend, yet I still managed to rack up several hundred miles while attending different events around the Phoenix valley — from a Coyotes hockey game in the west valley to a “white trash” party in Queen Creek — some 60 miles away on the opposite side of town.

Speaking of white trash, here’s a picture of my sorry Legend after trekking down a dirt driveway on Saturday night to my friend’s place for the big event.  I had an Acura emblem “tattooed” on my right arm courtesy of a black dry erase marker.  Here’s a picture with my friend Jeff (who flew in from Canada for the weekend) and our new friend Brenda. Classy?  You bet.

With company in town, I took the Legend sedan GS out of hibernation for a night of hauling people around. Just my luck – the driver’s door was side swiped in a parking lot while we were out hiking (with no note left, of course).  The 500k Legend sat unscathed in the garage while my never-sees-rain pride & joy Legend sedan got beat up.  Go figure!

Check out a couple of the latest links where Drive to Five has made headlines:

  • Acura owner and enthusiast Chris Tobias operates Acura Connected, an independent site dedicated to providing people like me all the latest “word on the street” regarding Acuras in the news and current events.  Chris put together a nice article not long ago.  Thanks, Chris, for the shout out!
  • Rachel Hartman is a freelance writer who put together an article on how to get the most mileage out of a car for the site CarInsuranceQuotes.com.  My car, along with a ~ 3 million mile Volvo, 415,000 mile Subaru, and 324,000 mile Saab were mentioned as references.  Gotta love it!

Thought I’d share a few of the state border signs I’ve parked next to over the last 8 years.  I came up with a handful of them.  Enjoy a quick alphabetical tour of the country with me!

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas (crossing the Mississippi – couldn’t stop on the bridge!)

Colorado

Delaware

Georgia

Indiana

Kansas

Louisiana

Maryland

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nevada

Ohio – didn’t stop for this one!

Oklahoma

Jew Jersey – couldn’t pull over; the sign was in a median and I was on the far right lane!

New Mexico

North Carolina

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Virginia

West Virginia – didn’t stop for this one!

Fountain Hills

Posted in Arizona, Legend on October 13, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,065

Timing worked out perfectly tonight for a quick sunset pit-stop at what used to be (until 1980) the world’s tallest water fountain.  This 1970 creation in Fountain Hills, Arizona, shoots water 560 feet in the air and runs for 15 minutes every hour on the hour.

It seemed only fitting that I included these pictures on the blog since I’ve also earlier this year captured images of the world’s largest firecracker in Amargosa Valley, Nevada, and the world’s tallest thermometer, in Baker California.  What’ll be next on my crusade of finding world-famous landmarks and parking my car in front of them?  And yes, I’ve already considered making a trek to the world’s largest ball of twine in Cawker City, Kansas.  That’s only about 1,095 miles away from my house.  Might make for a nice little weekend trip…

Arizona Highway 87 makes for a great commute home.  You’ll note, though, that I’m still rolling around with a cracked-up windshield (it’ll get fixed prior to 500k I assure you) and that about half my instrument gauge cluster bulbs have gotten tired and burned out.

But hey, the gas tank’s on “F” and the car runs like a top so let’s keep on rolling.

Two to Go

Posted in Legend on October 12, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  498,023

Quick entry for today’s achievement.  This evening at the offramp of westbound US-60 exiting at Power Road in Mesa, Arizona, the Legend crossed into sub-2,000 mile territory before the big goal.

Here was tonight’s sky on the commute home from work on Shea Blvd in Fountain Hills, Arizona.  Worth noting:  Lately I actually drive about 15 miles longer on my return trip to home after work in order to avoid the bogged-down 101 freeway.  I instead take surface streets to a back highway.

I’d much rather go out of my way and have free flowing traffic (and views like this) than stare at brake lights for 1/2 hour.

Thumbs up to the next 2,000 miles!  Let’s get a move on!

Miami

Posted in Arizona, Legend, Road Trip on October 10, 2011 by tysonhugie

Odometer:  497,871

For years I carried this fortune around with me in my wallet because of just how inspired it was.

The oven-like temperatures have finally released their grip on Phoenix and we’ve dipped below triple-digits.  It’s finally enjoyable to cruise around with the moonroof open and windows down.  Today I decided to take a scenic Sunday afternoon drive about 80 miles east of the Phoenix area to visit one of my favorite copper boomtowns of the old west:  Miami.

Eastbound on US Hwy 60, approaching Superior, AZ.

Beyond Superior, the highway steeply gains elevation and passes through the Queen Creek Tunnel, completed in 1952.

I took a quick side-trip down a road called “Magma Mine Road” because the name intrigued me.  Great twisties, rated at 10 and 15 mph but easily taken at more than that speed.  I imagine this would be a great driver’s road if my suspension was a little more in tune.  Maybe when I pick up my NSX!

Finally, arriving!  But, this Miami is a full 2,251 miles away from the Miami you may have thought I was talking about.  The classic song “Oceanfront Property in Arizona” comes to mind.

Antiques are pretty much all this boarded-up town can offer to a passing-by motorist.  The main street looks like it may have at one time been a bustling center for commerce and entertainment but it’s pretty sad looking today.

And a lonely railroad crossing sign.  The tracks were washed out and covered in thick mud.  I don’t think they’ve seen any locomotives in awhile.

Finally, heading back to the Phoenix area and pit-stopping along Superior’s main street.

The trusty Legend again made an effortless trip with no issues to report.  It’s tired and slow compared to cars like my friend Josh’s Mitsubishi Lancer Evo that I drove this morning (Acceleration nearly gave me whiplash!  Thanks Josh!), but it’s as dependable as the day is long, and I don’t think twice about turning the key and pointing that (A) emblem on the nose in any direction I feel like.