Stargazer's Garage

Happy Halloween! 2008 , originally uploaded by istargazer .

Red Eye Skull Denali - closeup , originally uploaded by istargazer . By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes: Open, locks, Whoever knocks! ~ Macbeth, Act IV, Scene I

Denali-HDR1 , originally uploaded by istargazer . Round about the cauldron go: In the poison'd entrails throw. Toad, that under cold stone Days and nights has thirty-one Swelter'd venom sleeping got, Boil thou first i’ the charmed pot. ~ Macbeth, Act IV, Scene I

Denali-HDR2 , originally uploaded by istargazer . Double, double, toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble. Fillet of a fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg and howlet's wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble. ~ Macbeth, Act IV, Scene I

Denali-HDR3 Originally uploaded by istargazer . Yesterday I took the family and the Yukon XL Denali out on some gravel roads to test the way it handled during full-on ABS braking and how the 20" rims felt over potholes. ABS was loud and noisy and the dubs weren't that uncomfortable. You can tell from the picture that the Denali was in great need of splash guards, particularly so in the front because kick-up from the tires hits directly on to the sheet metal of the fender and front doors. Today I took some truck splash guards I purchased from Canadian Tire last year(really they were just large rectangular pieces of black plastic) and installed it. No pictures, yet--I have to get used to the look but hopefully they'll do the job and protect the paint.

Whew. False alarm. There was a time where I religiously checked the Canadian U.S. vehicle admission list , but I stopped in 2005. Luckily. Fortunately. Thank the stars -- my brother checked the list and told me the R32 is now admissible in Canada. When did they make the change regarding importing R32? I don't care! More beneath the fold . It was a close call, too. This weekend I was going to look at a couple cars. I might have actually pulled the trigger. So... good news. But earlier today I also had a funny/odd/irritating experience at Rockville Audi. The salesman wouldn't give me a quote. He would only give me MSRP (which, by the way, I'd already looked up online). Eh? I couldn't quite believe what he was saying. To paraphrase, "I can't give you a quote because quotes are based on individual cars, and unless you actually decide to buy an Audi I'm not going to bother looking to see if a car with your options is available...." Eh!? Same ...

Now that I'm looking for a new car I'm getting a little excited despite the upcoming loss of my R. My absolute requirements are navigation and HIDs. Navigation from manufacturers are often massively over-priced, but with my R I've realized the exorbitant prices might be worth it. More beneath the fold.... There was no nav option with my R, so I've been making do with a portable GPS. Except I don't carry it with me all the time, and I don't leave it in the R. A few occasions I found myself wishing I had brought my GPS with me -- only a few occasions but nonetheless highly aggravating ones. Anywhoo, I liked the navigation system on my dad's G35 so that's what I looked at first. The dealer has an excellent deal ($7-8k I looked at the 1- and 3-series, but they're expensive and not too practical. Pity. When I think of practical I think of space, which means hatchbacks. I kind of like them. Big surprise, eh? I looked at a MazdaSpeed3 -- great pric...