stuckincincy

Frank!

Ugh.

There's more. One time, we were farting around in a CJ I owned. If you know Western PA, you know that you can turn off most any road and up into the hills, and find some active or defunct strip or deep mine property. We did, and slogged through mud and came across a D-9 dozer. A nice one - air conditioned hardtop cab, ripper, etc. He hopped out and started it. He tried to get it moving, but was unsuccessful. Thankfully. There was a trailer park in direct line down the slope a mile or so away - we would still be in prison after conviction for multiple murders. He hopped out of the running D-9, found some old rag to cover up my plate, and away we escaped. Another time, we were boozing after work with one of our vendor reps. He had a rental car - the then-new Pontiac Fiero. He tossed us the keys, and away we reeled off to lonely sites and spun it around and around. When we came back, the alcohol told him to open up the engine hatch access panel, and p*ss on the hot motor. I joined him - this was on a busy stretch of road. I'm still surprised we weren't grabbed and locked up for public lewdness...

I infer nothing. I merely state what happened when I proffered a review. You are the one inferring. My review: "Kumho Solus KH16 OEM tires on a 2008 Elantra SE, 8,200 miles ...wife's vehicle. A light winter last year, but had a few days' significant snow this year. This vehicle has traction control, anti-lock brakes, and stability control. These tires are abysmal in snow and ice. I'm an older person, and have gotten better winter performance from retreads. I have a "down-dip" driveway, and last year (car was purchased in Dec. '08), I had to put down salt/sand to get up the drive. With the heavier snow, the T/C constantly kicked in from a stop. The ALB chattered when stopping. The last straw was making a slow-speed, slightly downhill left turn, and it plowed and the rear end let loose, and the ESC kicked in. I ordered a set of Goodyear TripleTreds from Tirerack (arrived in one day!). They are currently set at 2 psi above normal by the install shop, being new skins as well as concerns about winter pothole damage - yet they show a noticeably better ride and resistance to bump harshness than the Kumhos. I've worked in the auto biz for many years, and I appreciate that OEM tires are a matter of cost - but this mad drive for fuel economy at all costs has brought us these poor-performing things... I'll put these OEM Kumhos up for sale come spring, and sell them as summer-only tires. Ride harshness aside, they are suited for such."

A fellow that worked in the PA plant I worked at, had a rural domicile with a long, graveled drive. He had the credentials prevailing at the time, and when really heavy snows hit, he told me he'd wire up strings of dynamite and blast it away. Can't say if that was true or not, that was over 20 years ago - they'd haul him off nowadays. He was the same person that told me about setting a small fire, and dropping in a small torch propane cylinder, running back and shooting it with a center fire rifle. He claimed that the fireball was impressive - I found out that he was right - I'd seen it done at a later time. He was an interesting soul - the security department at the plant, for a reasonable fee to cover cost, hired him to deliver a whole roasted pig as the Xmas shutdown approached. He had an additional patch - a hunting camp up around Tionesta and Tidioute, next to the Allegheny National Forest. I was there several times (his first place got burnt to the ground because he'd howl at the locals in their own bars. And the locals fixed his wagon...). We were blasted as usual one time, and he got it into his mind to lay down 10 or so bottle rockets (repeatedly) and launch volleys at incoming vehicles motoring up and down Rt. 62. Somebody almost crashed, stopped, and flew out of his truck with vengeance in his mind. I flew towards the river, and this one ducked and balled up into the brush. This guy meant to kill us - justifiable homicide...

Good post.

Good. He's a fine man.

Well, they published my severely critical review of the Kumho Solus KH16...

EEI - probably time to take it out and give it a look-over. They carry a lot of pressure. Yours might need a top-up. Be sure to check the valve core to see if it needs snugging up.

Probably one of the (former) Confederate Air Force fleet. Likely their B-24 Liberator, if it was four-engined, and you didn't recognize it. The elegant B-17 is instantly noticed. My late FIL flew on Liberators out of Port Moresby and other places in WWII. He was a ground mechanic and radioman chiefly, but flew 10 or so missions as a tail gunner, replacing lost souls. Got credit for shooting down a Jap Yokosuka "Judy" dive bomber that for some reason decided to draw it's teeny 8mm guns on his twin .50's - the Jap pilot was oblivious to the fact that the .50 had superior range, hitting power, and most importantly - that the .50s were firing back and his guns were firing forward. He bore forward in level flight. What an idiot. He had superior speed, maneuverability and climb. Scoot up, roll over and down, and splash a B-24. Easy. Today's liberal political intolerance forced them to change their name to the "Commemorative Air Force." You know how that goes... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commemorative..._Force#Aircraft

Stop off in Cincy - it's Lent, and that means Fish Fry! http://www.local12.com/content/special_cov...Tbn_sNUUxA.cspx (ramp up the volume). Click on some of the other of Louis' vids - he's tops! Caldonia!

Here is a pole dance artist...with hope, this talented youngster has explored ballet....or Cirque du Soliel. NSFW!

VA - the auto manuals follow the corporate line. Consistency of voice is vital. I guarantee you, if you came across a Toyota tire engineer, if confidentiality was assured, they would say exactly what I said. The only way your Camry could approach the 149 mph tire V rating, is if I shoved it out of the back of a C-130 cruising along at 25,000 feet. It's marketing hype, my good friend...have I ever lied to you? Do pay attention to the load rating.

Consider that God did this for you, in compensation for your dealings with Dell and your SSD debacle...

It does not need V-rated tires. Speed rating is not the same as load rating. The V rating brings stiffer sidewalls, and a lousier ride. Usually noise. And different tread compounding, biased towards dry-road performance. Auto companies - their marketing departments ( ), use such to imply implication of high performance (as well as the far-to-wide tires fitted on many builds...). The chart: L 75 mph 120 km/h Off-Road & Light Truck Tires M 81 mph 130 km/h N 87 mph 140km/h Temporary Spare Tires P 93 mph 150 km/h Q 99 mph 160 km/h Studless & Studdable Winter Tires R 106 mph 170 km/h H.D. Light Truck Tires S 112 mph 180 km/h Family Sedans & Vans T 118 mph 190 km/h Family Sedans & Vans U 124 mph 200 km/h H 130 mph 210 km/h Sport Sedans & Coupes V 149 mph 240 km/h Sport Sedans, Coupes & Sports Cars Hyundai, with the most recent iteration of their little Accent, fitted them with 195 width V-rated tires in it's 1st model year! People flew off the road, because of the lousy overall wet/snow traction.

Good choice on that Camry. It shares a position - as judged by auto people who appreciate the big picture - with the Honda Accord and the GM H-body series (the FWD Pontiac Bonnevilles, Olds 88s, Buick LeSabres) as larger sedans that have the near-perfect combination of comfort, cabin space, trunk space, outside visibility, good driving performance, and value. $200 more for good tires, averaged over 3 years, is 18 cents per day. That's the loose change residing in your pocket...

If you can't make a living wage as a bartender or a waiter, aspire to improve yourself. This is like the pap that says that minimum wage jobs should be sufficient to live on. I had plenty of 'em when I was younger, and never thought for a moment not to work towards something better. Your turn to buy...I have a hankering for a rock 'n rye, please.

Consulting Tire Rack site, I see that your OEM (Original Equipment Manufacture) tires on your vehicle are either Michelin Energy MXV4-S8, or Bridgestone Turenza EL400-2. The Michelin is quite a good tire, as OEM's go. The manufacturers put on tires with an eye to price - and these days, there is such an emphasis on fuel mileage, that some pretty poor-performing items (regarding wet, snow, ice traction) are more common than not. You have seen things like Grand Touring All-Seasons, Touring All-seasons, and plain ole' All-Seasons. Speed ratings like T, H, V. For your area, and usage, I recommend the Michelin Primacy MXV4. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?ti...um=16HR6MXV4PV2 (hope the link works -Tire Rack is a site that likes you to enable cookies) Tire Rack sells them for $132 each ($528), plus about $45 for shipping. Mounting/balancing - figure about $75 (keep an eye out for the coupons the tire people may send you, or are found in those shopper mailings). So that's $648. Michelin is currently offering a $70 mail-in rebate on the purchase of 4, so the cost drops to $578. There is no sales tax - but maybe not in your case. Tire Rack has a warehouse in MD. I know a lot about tires. Here's a review I posted this week: "Kumho Solus KH16 OEM tires on a 2008 Elantra SE, 8,200 miles ...wife's vehicle. A light winter last year, but had a few days' significant snow this year. This vehicle has traction control, anti-lock brakes, and stability control. These tires are abysmal in snow and ice. I'm an older person, and have gotten better winter performance from retreads. I have a "down-dip" driveway, and last year (car was purchased in Dec. '08), I had to put down salt/sand to get up the drive. With the heavier snow, the T/C constantly kicked in from a stop. The ALB chattered when stopping. The last straw was making a slow-speed, slightly downhill left turn, and it plowed and the rear end let loose, and the ESC kicked in. I ordered a set of Goodyear TripleTreds from Tirerack (arrived in one day!). They are currently set at 2 psi above normal by the install shop, being new skins as well as concerns about winter pothole damage - yet they show a noticeably better ride and resistance to bump harshness than the Kumhos. I've worked in the auto biz for many years, and I appreciate that OEM tires are a matter of cost - but this mad drive for fuel economy at all costs has brought us these poor-performing things... I'll put these OEM Kumhos up for sale come spring, and sell them as summer-only tires. Ride harshness aside, they are suited for such." Please don't take the cheapest route when buying tires. Your Camry is a very nice sedan - it deserves good skins. Hoping not to be dramatic - your life depends on them. Send me a PM - there are multitudes of choices.

A while ago, PC fever hit Miami (OH), and they changed from the Redskins to the RedHawks. They have their football program, but they have a reputation for fielding good hockey, baseball, and golf teams. That's 4 sports, so when the wailing and hand-wringing was going on, someone suggested that they change the name to the... FourSkins.

Ice dancing is tough - they still require that the participants do the school compulsories, and have that short program where the a accuracy of the arcs carved on the ice enter into qualification and advancement.

Feel free to continue to shell out your money, while they make jokes about you in the kitchen... Travel to Germany. Read the term..."price inclusive". One of the prevailing, persistent myths is that serving tables is poor-paying occupation. Not only can you pocket a bundle of cash money that you may or may not report, you get to plead poverty and get saps to pet you about your poor lot in life. Like you have to train, go and pay for higher education to get into the biz...please...

Yes - there is much to be figured out. My concern is that it's become a bit of a cause celebre...

You sound like a beggar who wants to demand money out of other people's hide for the performance of the simplest of tasks, trying to embarrass them and shake down their wallet. And insult them if they don't go along with the extortion attempt.