DRIVE

Atlima got picked up by the scrapyard today, they’re gonna crush it. Learned to drive in that car, but it’s time to move on.

Spent most of Sunday running around town getting parts tested & trying to figure out why the truck won’t start. Turns out the starter is fine- the battery had a hole ripped in it a little smaller than a dime. Tray is covered in acid deposits. No idea how it could have happened. Amazing to think it was working at all like that, and lucky I didn’t blow anything up the last time I tried to jumpstart it.

So, I’m using the whopping $100 made on the Atlima sale towards an Optima Red Top battery for the truck. It costs about twice the standard battery, but by all accounts is worth every penny. Also it looks cool, and everybody knows car parts that look cool make you go faster.*

I’m also getting 10% off on the battery at Autozone, which brings the price down to what it costs at Sam’s Club. Not really sure why I get this “courtesy discount,” guy just volunteered it after I asked him a little about the Optimas. Now that I know such a thing exists, I should probably ask for it every time.

*I actually saw an old Civic yesterday that took this to such an extreme it was a work of art. Nine stick-on fender vents (most of them crooked), stick-on fake side-exit muffler tips, an unbelievably huge muffler tip, and badges proclaiming it to be a V12 turbo RSX something something… it was like someone had just bought one of everything with an adhesive backing and slapped them on arbitrarily… and the effect definitely made me smile.

yesterday NAPA tried to sell me a starter motor “negative cable.” they said it should be 18″ long.

starter motor actually grounds through the mounting bolts.

i did get a free hat, though. so all in all a pretty good birthday.