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I went for the first time recently. We parked in the lot down next to Katz's lot...no towing, short walk. As for the food...it was rather good, but the portions can't be considered generous.

A more aggressive sander such as a belt sander or an angle grinder would probably make things go faster, espescially when it comes to getting things more or less even. You can follow up with the hand sander for the final pass.

Finally got to drive the Volkswagen CC (VR6), and I have to say it's a fantastic car. It's big, at least for me, but the ride is great--softer than the BMW, and about the same as the Lexus. Controls feel good, and the interior is top quality.

The dealer let me take one home for the night, a pleasant surprise, and the extended test drive is having its intended effect! If the price is right, it might be a contender.

Be sure to test drive a Sebring 'cause that's what you're going to be spending a lot of quality time in while the VW is broke down.

My trusty 'Downtowner' map from 1940 shows 'Inside Parking' at that corner.

Inside parking? Like a parking garage? How odd.

Speaking of near-luxury Japanese cars, I drove a 2008 Lexus IS350 today. Loaded up with navigation, backup camera, bluetooth, and a luscious 306 HP engine. I wasn't sure what to expect, as Lexus isn't my cup of tea. But in my short test drive, I came away very impressed. For me, it has a nice combination of luxury and sport. Unlike the BMW 335, which is sport, then luxury, the IS350 is more the opposite. The interior materials felt terrific, and the acceleration was strong. Not too firm. The only thing I didn't care for was the back seat. It was very comfortable, but the gun slit rear windows combined with a black interior, makes for some claustrophobia. A tan interior would help.

This car has moved up to the top of my list, with the 335i second, and the C350 a distant third.

Just get the Lexus. You won't regret it. I positively ADORED my SC 400...it was such an endearing car.

They've unearthed what appears to be the basement of a building at the corner of Caroline and Franklin. Anybody know what building used to be at that corner?

Just saw this... I'm with you. I drive a Mazda Protege and love it. If I were buying a new car I'd get the Mazda 5 (microvan), since it would have room for a friend or two of the two rugrats already occupying the backseat. We were just talking last night about what car we would get if we won a million bucks. We agreed we'd still get the Mazda. Or maybe go wild and get a little Volvo 5-door. We are wild, wild, wild people.

Mazda builds great cars that have PERSONALITY. Best of all they're a better deal when used than a Honda/Toyota since they're just as reliable but don't quite retain their resale value as well.

While it is true that the propulsion system and the battery recharge system are pretty advanced, the accelerator and brake linkage are fairly standard stuff.

Linkage? There is no linkage. The brake and throttle pedals are just inputs for the computer's software. That's the only way you can control a gasoline engine and two motor/generators. That's the only way you can have regenerative braking. Yes, there is a throttle flap, and yes there are hydraulic brakes, but the computer controls both. The computer also simulates brake pedal feedback to the driver since it isn't attached to anything.

Sorry, but I'm calling bogus on this. There was an "unintended acceleration" scandal about Audis back in the 1980s or so. There were breathless news reports just like this one, but eventually it just turned out to be uncoordinated drivers. History repeating itself..

I wouldn't rule it out completely. The Prius relies on a HUGE amount of computing power and software to control hardware that is an order of magnitude more complex than what's on the road in most cars. All of that complexity dictates that failures and unintended system behaviors are more likely to occur.

How often should I do a coolant flush? I know after a while there is scaling and potential for corrosion, but on newer vehicles (2004 and 2005 is what we have) what's the good standard for flushing and replacing? Also, I've never done it before but it seems like it would be damn easy. Or is this one of those things that's just easier to bring over to Jiffy Lube and have it done?

In this day and age, with 5+ different coolant formulations out there you have to RTFM to find out the proper interval. On some cars it is easy, on other cars it is difficult. If you have a vertical or near vertical radiator with a radiator cap on top, then chances are it will be pretty straightforward...all you need to do is drain the block and radiator, refill with water, drain again, refill with water, drain again, then refill with coolant and distilled water (or whatever TFM specifies). I always do the final refill as follows:

Fill system as full as possible, leaving radiator cap off

Pinch upper and lower radiator hoses to "burp" system, adding more coolant as air pockets come out

Start engine

Turn on heater

Wait for engine to come up to temperature, the thermostat to open, and all the air pockets to be forced out of the block

Add more coolant until full

Put radiator cap back on

Allow engine to cool

Check coolant level

It is mostly middle class 3rd/4th generation Hispanic some white collar. Most homes are well kept up. Its up there with Idylwood.

WTF? Most of the homes in Forest Hill are dilapidated roach infested dumps stuffed in WAY too close to the street and WAY too close together. There are some nice, well maintained houses in there, and a few blocks on a few streets are bordering on decent, but overall it can't touch Idylwood with a 10 foot pole. Iylwood is SUPER nice. 95% of the homes in there are VERY well kept. My money would be on Idylwood....WAY WAY better 'hood for not too much more money.

Someone needs to read Shogun.

Sho nuff.

So basically it was a link with the Promo Code "SAVERPLUS" built in.

Not only did it have the "SAVERPLUS" code in it, but it had an ID field tying it back to a specific (marketing) affiliate.

Get it while you can...

Champion Energy

If anyone knows of any better rates right now in Houston, post'em!

SHAME ON YOU for trying to get referral kickbacks! The original link he posted had an Affiliate ID in it.

Does anyone know what the bldg. exterior looks like? 1950's refacing, or newer remodel? And who was the architect on this one? year built? Just thought I'd ask... .

The only thing remarkable about the exterior is the SEARS sign/bus shelter combination out front. The rest of the building is big, boring, white and boxy.

It appears that the listing has been removed from the HAR site. The link above is broke, and I can't findi ti by searching for the address of "5626 Portal"

I think I know why it hasn't sold yet. I have it on good authority from an expert house-flipper that nobody buys houses that have shaker-style kitchen cabinet doors/drawers.

Isn't this Bill Baldwin's home (the realtor selling it)?

HCAD shows that it is owned by Bill Baldwin and Jose Gonzalez.

Why didn't Honda just re-badge Priuses instead of copying it line for line? Surely they could have thought of something original.

Of course they could've come up with something original. But you can't have original and aerodynamic optimality.

When I first saw the title of this thread I thought it was going to be all about bars on windows in Eastwood.

To a large degree the Government has already standardized health care through the use of DRG and CPT coding. Initially designed to reign in Medicare and Medicad's soaring costs the system is now used by the entire industry to determine reimbursement for any diagnostic and or treatment. The problem is with the bewildering number of insurance companies and plans. Think HMO/PPO, in network out of network, as examples.

A few years ago there was an effort to pass "any willing provider" laws. If for instance Humana had a negotiated deal to pay all of the doctors in their network $500.00 for a heart transplant or wart removal and a doctor not in the network was willing to do it for that price they would pay the claim. The insurance companies were dead set against it and used their lobby to quash it. It's that carving up of the providers by the insurance companies that create the headaches in physicians offices but simplify the paperwork for the insurance company. It's is really pretty much the same at the hospital level.

Standardized coding is a step in the right direction, but doesn't even come close to simplifying things. As you've said there are a gazillion different plans from any one insurer, and myriad different requirements for determining if something is covered or not, what the copay is, etc. Moreover, most insurers don't even have online systems for providers to query to determine what is or is not covered, and what the copay might be. They have to pick up the phone and call the insurance company and ask a human, and a lot of times they'll get different answers depending on who they talk to. If the insurers do happen to have an online system for this then the interface requirements are different for every company, and usually the information isn't 100% up to date. In this day and age that is inexcusable.

Any kind of government program would also have immense overhead--larger still on account of government unions. And if it were any kind of program resembling Medicare, it'd be rife with fraud and poor quality of care. Shareholder profits don't bother me much; profit is a motive to have an efficient organization with strict cost control proceedures.

The insurance companies may be wonderfully efficient but the hospitals and doctor's offices who deal with these companies are forced to waste huge amounts of time and money conforming to differing requirements of HUNDREDS of different insurance carriers.

It wouldn't be a bad idea for the government to step in and make all the insurance carriers and all the providers adopt a single standard. That would eliminate a lot of waste right there.

Anyone see the "coming soon" electric car dealership? We were driving down Dowling the other day and spotted it:

Aside from the poor grammar and sentence structure, this is quite interesting. There's quite a bit on YouTube on this car as well. mY commute is about 6 miles each way, and given how much gas our Cross Country chugs, this might be a great second car.

It is limited to a whopping 25 mph and they claim the battery pack lasts 3 to 5 years. That kind of performance for $20k....I think I'll pass.

The Supra will return, however not as a GT-R competitor. Simply as a 350Z class vehicle.

Makes sense. It always was in that class in the past.

Lexus will not bring the LF-A to production, even though the car is almost entirely through the development cycle.

Lexus will instead focus on "green" initiatives. In fact, a new hybrid sedan will be coming out in 2009.

You work for Toyota/Lexus corporate?

The GT-R may not be the best looking vehicle out there, but thats not what its strengths are. Have any of you seen the Top Gear review of the car on the track? (Not the bullet train race).

The car is insane.

That review was HILARIOUS. The car wore out his neck!!

Most likely give something to the Lexus line insted of Toyota so they can justify the price.

Yeah...hence the ongoing development of the LF-A.