Altima

No more sure-footed driving. Indeed, the FWD Altima makes hill climbing challenging indeed. I figure we'll keep the car for two years if it doesn't self-destruct before then. After that I'll see if we can get a Legacy or maybe a 4x4 small vehicle (Rav4, crv).  The car is big heavy, and although it has 175 bhp and 180 foot-pounds of torque, it'll never be a race winner. The quietness of the ride is incredible. I kept waiting to hear the drive train whine, then remembered this was a front-wheel drive vehicle. While both cars ride on 16 inch tires, the Altima has wider tires (235's I believe). Lateral body roll is significant but not excessive. The rear passenger room is awesome. The stereo is top notch.

I'm thinking about doing some lighting mods in the car this summer. Change the amber dashboard to blue, put in some cup holder LED lights, etc. That kind of stuff. I could design any kind of circuit and this would be fun for me to do. Where to stuff my GPS? There's a tray in the front behind a cover. I could try and fit the GPS there. Ah, the wonders of having your own car and hardware hacking!

The factory stereo has got to go. It's just horrible. But first things first: Clean the engine, the car, and check the connections, etc. I might put some extra monitoring equipment in there just for curiosity sake. (eg. Brake temp, transmission temp, noise/db, etc).

Good times!!