Recent content by minimo3

I keep a set of my old SUV rubber mats in the trunk - the ones with the spiky side on the bottom (to dig into the carpet). They work great for digging into the snow and providing traction when placed underneath the driving wheels. The mats + a small folding shovel have seen me through 30+"...

Its been this way since I bought it (new) in 2008 though. I remember when I hit a small pothole a month after buying it and heard this huge bang. I was sure the tire had blown out and the rim was completely bent out of shape. Nope, it was just the suspension. During routine servicing at 15k and...

I've known this for a while now but I was reminded again last night. It was dark and they had repaired the road leaving about a 1/2" indentation below the surface. I was going about 35mph and when the front wheels emerged from the dip it let out a huge bang and I felt the suspension bottom out...

I've been pretty pleased with the gas mileage. I get 25mpg suburban stop & go driving and 31mpg highway. I have the Touring without bluetooth. Any idea if I can retrofit it with say your head unit to gain BT? Or is it more involving than that?

I have an 08 Touring. Like others I've had to replace rear shocks and bushings. I expect I'll have to replace them every 30k or so. The other issues I've had have to do with the sliding doors. They get stuck in cold weather and creak/squeak like crazy in warm weather. The front dash squeaks in...

Thanks, I'll bring it in and ask them to check out the sway bar bushings. Currently running 205/55R16 Dunlops for better ride comfort. The squeaks seem like they're plastic related, I'll get them to check the interior paneling to see if a clip has fallen out or something.

I have the noise in the rear suspension too. I can even hear it when I'm stopped, if I move my weight around in the car and sway it from side to side. Its a creaky sound. They've already replaced both the rear struts and they said the swaybar TSB didn't apply to a 2008. Frankly this car has been...

I only have 30k miles and both rear shocks were replaced because they were leaking. Thankfully it was still under warranty. I've never had shocks go out so early in a car. Maybe its because they reused the same rear suspension as a Mazda3 and it just wasn't meant to take all this extra rear weight?

Do you have a later model? This was more of a problem with the earlier models that do not come with traction control. I think they added TCS in 2009 or 2010 which would minimize wheel spin. Yes I have to adapt my driving specially for the car, I either stop a little way back from the line so I...

You're absolutely correct, its definitely the weight transfer. I run winter tires but they can only help so much. For folks who want to experiment try this: In the early morning when the road is a little moist from the dew (or even if the road is dry), stop your car. Then give it moderate to...