Sunset Vette » Sunset Vette

Build your own engine for $5,800…

Dave Rathbun — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 04:35:51 +0000

Here’s a video clip showing the build process for the LS9 Corvette engine. It seems that for an extra $5,800 you can go to Detroit and build your own engine! How cool would that be?

40,000 Miles…

Dave Rathbun — Wed, 26 May 2010 19:31:34 +0000

Just rolled over that milestone (heh, pun) this past weekend. I got my car in the fall of 2000 so it’s over ten years old. I’ve replaced both headlight actuator motors but other than that have not had any major mechanical issues.

And it’s still a blast to drive.

Going To Law School? Probably Not…

Dave Rathbun — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 02:37:05 +0000

A few weeks ago I posted about getting a ticket for an expired inspection sticker. I had my court date this week. Since I had the paperwork from the car dealer that showed they were supposed to replace the registration sticker when they inspected the car, and also showed the paperwork that provided proof that they did inspect the car, I was able to convince the judge to waive the fine.

That’s $165 saved, for taking an hour off of work. I’ll take that return on my investment.

I wasn’t out of date…

Dave Rathbun — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:20:40 +0000

On July 4th I got pulled over for an expired inspection sticker. That surprised me a bit, because I had not realized it was out. Well, it should not have been. I got my car inspected at the Chevy dealer and it turns out the didn’t put the new sticker on! I just got off the phone with the county clerk and she said I have to appeal in court.

At least I won’t have to pay the ticket. Just take a day off.

Got Pulled Over Today…

Dave Rathbun — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 21:30:24 +0000

… for an expired inspection sticker. While I was sitting on the side of the road with a trooper behind me, another red Corvette drove by and gave me a sympathy wave.

35,700 Miles and Counting

Dave Rathbun — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:28:10 +0000

Today on the way to work I rolled over 35,700 miles on the odometer on my car. I purchased it in September of 2000. Either years later, I have clocked in an average of about 4,500 miles a year. It’s not a “garage queen” either. If you saw the car a few weeks ago (with the accumulated dirt) you would know that. So why the low miles?

First, it’s not my only option to drive. We have a van that we take for most family outings. I also have a truck which has been driven about 25,000 miles in the last three years (roughly 8,000 / year). If I add the two averages (4,500 + 8,000) together it shows that I drive about 12,500 miles a year. That’s about half the expected average for the Dallas area. How do I end up driving only 1,000 miles a month?

My work commute is 20 miles a day. Even if I worked at the office every working day of the year (200) that’s only 4,000 miles. That leaves 8,000+ miles for trips and casual driving. Since I get to work from home generally at least one day a week (on average) that cuts the miles I drive down even further. I am also out of town on a regular basis, at which point I end up driving rental cars or use some other form of transportation.

What I am saying is that even though I only have 35,700 miles on my car, I do drive it. And enjoy it.

Cell Phone Faux Pas

Dave Rathbun — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 20:35:00 +0000

AOL-Mobile published an article recently where they talked about their 11 worst cell phone offenses. I had to click, just to see how many of them I do myself.

Wearing two or more phones (or other electronic devices) on your belt
Nope, not here. For one thing most smart phones seem to combine all of the “necessary” functions into one device. My blackberry is a phone, an organizer, a camera, an mp3 player, and so on and so forth. I do carry a second phone, but it’s hidden safely away in my pocket. So far I’m clear.
Wearing a bluetooth headset when not actually taking a call
I don’t own a bluetooth headset yet, so I can’t be guilty of this. But I have noted it for future reference.
Annoying Ringtones
Oh, I soooo can relate to this one. I’ve been around people with ringtones that go on forever. And there’s nothing worst than an unattended phone where the “ring” (a two-minute musical interlude) repeats three or four times. I will never do this, so I think I’m still clear.
Forgetting to turn of the ringer during “silent” times
This is one thing my blackberry does for me by default. When I put it in the holster (on my belt ) it automatically goes silent. No worries about forgetting to make the switch here.
Inappropriate conversations in public
I hope I don’t do this. I don’t like sharing my private conversations in public anyway, so I think I try to keep things short, if they occur at all.
Over-talking
You know these folks… the ones that yell on their cell phone (Can you HEAR ME NOW?) because they’re sure it helps the reception on the other end.
Restroom Cell Phones
Only done it once. Never again.
Talking while shopping, paying a cashier
C’mon, isn’t it hard enough to get good customer service without putting extra obstacles in the way? I don’t do this either.
Texing/talking on the phone when with someone else
Oops. I was doing this just this weekend. Well, sort of. I was using my phone to check some things while at a table with my family and some friends at an amusement park. I wasn’t directly involved in the conversation… yet if I had put my phone down, maybe I would have been. I’ll have to be more careful about this in the future. In my defense, it’s a brand new phone, and I’m still learning how to use it. When I filled up the camera memory with pictures at the park… I just emailed them to myself for later pickup and deleted them from the phone. Smart, huh?
Mobile Menace
This refers to people that are overly angry or even violent while talking on their phone. It’s like a combination of the “Over-talker” and “Public conversation” issues already mentioned. Not guilty here.
Motor Mouth
Talking while driving? I will be happy when it’s illegal in all states. I chewed out a teen that was texting while driving the other day; I just couldn’t stop myself.

So that was there list. I think I did okay. How about you?

Spring Fixed

Dave Rathbun — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:29:11 +0000

A while back I posted about a spring that broke on my car. In that post I suggested that I might consider replacing it myself. As it turned out, I went ahead and took my car to the dealer. They replaced the spring, performed the state inspection, and cleaned (washed) the car. The extra fees for the labor were more than justified by the fact that I got three errands done all at once.

While I was there I was briefly tempted to look at the ‘08 convertibles. I didn’t. When I got home my wife said, “Oh, look… GM is doing zero percent financing on everything, including Corvettes.” Coincidence?

Sproing…

Dave Rathbun — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:30:39 +0000

That’s the sound I heard the other day when pulling out of the driveway to head to work. Not long after I heard something fall on the floor of my car by my feet, over by the clutch. My first thought was that the clutch spring had broken, so I pumped the clutch a few times and it seemed to work.

When I got home from work that evening I took a flashlight and looked under the dash. Sure enough, there is a small spring behind the clutch pedal, and it had broken (snapped off) on one side. I snapped a picture and emailed it to my service guy, and he sent back an estimate.

Part: $20
Labor: $110
Total: $130

I’m not sure why the labor costs are so high. It doesn’t seem like it would be a big job to replace.

I may try to fix it myself this weekend, which is probably a sure-fire way to ensure that I completely screw it up. If I do manage to fix it, I’ll post pictures.

How To Buy a Corvette for $10K

Dave Rathbun — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:33:16 +0000

I tell people that I only paid about $10K for my Corvette, and as you can imagine that gets some interesting looks. The follow-up question is generally along the lines of, “How can I do that too?”

Here’s how.

You find a stock like Oracle. Buy and sell at the points marked. Take your capital gains (after paying appropriate taxes, of course) and go down to your local Chevrolet dealer and enjoy the results.

Unfortunately I did not sell all of my Oracle stock at the point indicated on the graph, but I did sell enough to make my dream car much more affordable than it might have been otherwise.