Hail and Farewell Part 3 (The Hail)

For years I have considered myself a non-conformist. So again I will say to those of you that don’t know me, purchasing a Honda Anything (Outside of an NSX) is really not my style.

Having dealt with a German Car in an area like Augusta GA is akin to having the USS Enterprise. No one wants to touch it and everyone wonders what it is (or so it seems). So when I got to the Cleo Bay lot in TX I was immediately drawn to the 2007 VW Jetta GLI. Sleek, turbo and fast as all hell, however that wouldn’t stop my German car maintenance blues. As a matter of fact with it being a turbo it would most certainly add to my “who can fix it” problem. So after the flogging of the test drive to Copperas Cove I pulled on the lot to look for something more “responsible”.

Well Dillon (the salesman at Cleo Bay good looking out!) asked what it was that I was looking for. I told him that I would really like a V6 and leather. Everything else that usually falls within those lines has what I look for in comfort. Even if it doesn’t I know that I will more than likely do enough work to the car to make it what I want it to be. So he pointed me to a 2006 fully loaded Accord EX. V6, creamy leather interior, Satellite radio……………….hummmmmmmmmm this thing shows promise.

Well they maxed me out on my trade in of the Passat (of course) and this is a certified pre-owned Honda which means that it comes with a 100,000 mile power train warranty along with other perks and bonuses. Truth be told, unless you just like throwing money down the drain or you are one of those “I have to have it first in my neighborhood” types. I really don’t see the benefit of buying brand new anymore with all the certified pre-owned programs out there.

While not as smooth as the VW Passat that I had it had more than enough punch and with the upcoming modifications I am sure that I will be well within the 275-300 hp range in no time. I will start with the visual modifications first and go on to the sound system which will be tricky as the climate controls are integrated with the head unit. Stay tuned as this will no doubt be just as interesting as the last 2 babies that I had.

Hail and Farewell Part 1

For as many years as I have been in the Military we have always had what’s called a “Hail and Farewell.” This is an event where we greet newcomers to the unit and bid adieu to those that are leaving the unit and hopefully going on to bigger and better things.

Well it’s time for me to say Farewell to a few good friends of mine who over the years have served me very well and with honor. First I will start with the relative new comer. My 2000 VW Passat. When I got back from Korea in November 2007 there was limited time for me to make my arrangements in TX and report to Fort Gordon GA. Therefore I didn’t have time to get the Grand Am repaired to make the 1100 mile trip from Killeen to Augusta. So I did what most red blooded American Soldiers would do………..I bought a new (new to me that is) car. For me it was love at first drive. I have always been a fan of the VW Passat and the test drive didn’t disappoint. It was smooth and responsive. The suspension was firm and it handled well. Making my usual test run to Copperas Cove and back the car hit 130 mph (don’t judge me!) with no problems and felt like it really wanted to be in its home country on the Autobahn.

Back at the dealership all of my terms were met on Friday and they wanted to do a once over again and really detail it and I would pick it up on Monday. When I picked it up on Monday it was like we had known each other for years. One thing about me with cars is I have to “feel” as if I am a part of the car. Ergonomics are a big part of a car purchase for me. So my first stop was to Best Buy to take out the horrible factory (it was probably pretty good in 2000) head unit and replace it with something that was Satellite and iPod ready. At that point that was all that I needed.

On the drive to Augusta everything just felt so right. I was even running with a new charger thru ATL at about 120 mph at 3 am with no one else on the road and it never at any point felt like the car was struggling to keep up. The only problem that I had with my Passat was that it was so easy to speed in because it never felt like it was actually going fast. It was so comfortable at 80 and above. Good thing that I have a good radar detector!

Over the course of the next year or so I began to make small but meaningful (to me) upgrades. One was to switch out the American factory light switch with a European one. The difference is that the American version only has 2 settings; either lights on or lights off. The European switch gives the option to turn on just the parking lights if you wanted to. Then we had to get rid of those cloudy 2000 stock lights and replace them with something more clear and vibrant. Next was to replace the factory tail lights and then change the bulbs from regular to LED’s. Took off the tall center mount antenna and replaced it out with a stubby. I changed the stock side markers from cloudy clear to black. I installed an AlienTech window controller which allowed me to control the power windows AND Sunroof with the factory key fob. I installed a brand new coolant reservoir along with a brand new bank 1 catalytic convertor. Then was the mother of all upgrades. The silver carbon dash kit. The reason that this was the mother of all of the upgrades is because I originally had a wood grain interior. Well I couldn’t just overlay the carbon fiber on top of the wood so I needed to get all of the wood grain pieces in plain black first THEN overlay that with the silver carbon fiber. Well that task took me about close to a year. I had to order various pieces for the car from GERMANY!!! Since they didn’t offer the GLX in any trim other than the wood grain in the US.

After effectively putting about 39,000 miles on the car from November 2007 until the great trade-in on May 29^th 2009 (got max value on the trade-in thank you!!!) it was time for me to say goodbye. Many of you know about the follies that I had here in Augusta with the dealership and the money that they would charge for certain services. One reason was because they were the only VW dealership within at least 100 miles and they were the only ones in town with the tools to work on a VW. You know that you can only hear someone tell you that such and such service will cost you $800-$1200 so much before it starts to get on your nerves. So that’s why the car had to go. It was to the point that I would hemorrhage money for simple things like a damn coolant flush because for a VW you need special tools.

Well now it’s in the hands of someone in TX and I can tell them that they are getting a hell of a car and I know for a fact (I called around) that they have no less than 7 VW dealerships in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area and a few more VW tuner shops. Getting work done for the next owner would be a snap. So to my friend I say goodbye and thank you for your service.

Project Passat Pt. 2

Easy Install My A$$!!!




For those of you that know me well, you know that I love my cars. One of the reasons that I dig cars as much as I do is because you can make them extensions of you. Plain and simple. From the interior to the exterior no matter what. Seats, steering wheels, dash kits, rims, paint etc. The list goes on and on.

Well I found that some modifications are easier than others. If you go back to some of my blogs last year you will see that I switched out my head lights and taillights. Well about that same time I wasn't really feeling the wood grain (cause I really am not the wood grain type). So I scoured the internet looking for carbon fiber dash kits that were REAL carbon fiber. Real carbon fiber has a deep almost 3D when its flat look to it. Also it isn't cheap.

Well after finding and purchasing my Silver Carbon Fiber interior trim kit and receiving it in the mail I tried a few test fits in the car. Well during the test fitting process I came to realize that the wood was not at all for show. No decals here. These were actual pieces. So I couldn't try and cover the wood with the carbon fiber cause that would look tacky as all get out. So I set out on a quest to find all of the wood grain pieces in my car in all black. Surely they make them right?????

Well here it is a full year and $200 later and I have finally finished. What you are about to see loses EVERYTHING in translation. What it took me to get from Wood to carbon is a story in itself however I will spare you all of that and just post a few pics of the old vs the new look.

I personally love the new look. That's my thing though. Some of you might dig the wood grain (prudes, lol) It was just too common and boring all at the same time. I felt like I was inside of a casket half of the time sitting in rush hour traffic.



Enjoy!