eulogious

There you go! Thanks for the info, learned something new

i believe the XT is 5 lug, meaning that the calipers won't fit. Look up the "five lug swap", and I believe the xt calipers are an option for that, and that should answer some of your questions. Maybe someone who has done the five lug swap will chime in. Good luck!

Thanks to a buddy of mine that just received his d710 I was able to see how it would fit into my car: It fits perfect! And with the GPS in place of the pocket, it will be all nice and tidy, out of the way, and I won't have to worry about clutter, all wins in my book Now I just have to wait for the money

So after all the quakes that have been happening, I finally got started on something that I have been thinking about for a long time, and that is Ham (amateur) radio. Because of where I work, I have a co-worker who is the communications guy for the EOC (Emergency Operations Center), and we have been talking alot about all the cool stuff you can do with ham radios, and how valuable they are during an emergency, not just for emergency workers, but for us citizens as well. So I am going to be getting a mobile ham radio for my car, and then tying GPS in with it to provide real time tracking, all without using the internet. Well, you can use the internet, but it is not required, it just adds some neat functionality to it The radio I am getting is the Kenwood TM-D710a and linking it up with this GPS unit from garmin, the Nuvi 350 How this all works is by using APRS The Nuvi 350 as the ability to propogate the APRS info via waypoints (with the help of a special cable) in real time right on the GPS, without the net. So I can see other APRS users in my area, and other APRS waypoints that others have setup. So that is all cool and what not, but it's neat when you tie websites like http://www.aprs.fi into the aprs network, and then anyone that has your call sign can track your progress in real time! This of course is just one thing APRS can do, but it's the most "popular". I am getting it so that emergency workers can find me via their radios when there is no other means of communication. And that is where it really becomes cool. For search and rescue, it's sweet, and for survival, it's sweet as well, and that was the main reason for getting into this, but it's also a sweet toy, and I like sweet toys, so I am installing all that into my car too So after I get back from vegas, I should have some money to buy all this gear and then install it into my car. I plan on semi permantly mounting the GPS right about the HU, and putting the ham radio directly below it. I think it will work out perfectly once I get done fiddling with it!

Alrighty, it's been a LONG time since I updated this thread, but I have been really busy working on the car lately, and got some stuff done. What I have been busy working on is the stereo, and what a job from hell it has been, but I got it done. I installed my Head Unit, my MB Quartz speakers and tweeters, the xovers for the speakers, my basscube, 2 amps, and my 12. Pictures speak a 1000 words so... This is my head unit, my Kenwood x869. Great head unit, just make sure you don't drop it while it's on and totally muck up the motorized face :-\ That took over 4 hours to fix. That's the inside of the HU. The belt slipped some teeth causing the face too close to tightly and the HU to freak out, making it useless. So I had to fiddle fart around with tiny arse screws for hours to get it to "work". What a PITA. It doesn't close quite right, it's still a tooth off, but I really don't care, it freaking works. As you can see I mounted the HU below the 1.5 din pocket I bought so that I would have access to my cupholders AND HU controls at the same time, imagine that! So I can change the volume while actually using the cup holders, something subaru didn't think of! Next up was the speakers and the tweeters. I thought this would be easy, and it was, it just took longer than I thought because I just used what was there instead of buying speaker spacers and the like. So it took a little bit to figure out how to use the existing spacers. But I got it done. Worked out just the way I wanted Then came actually installing all the amps and gear into the spare tire well... All of that down one side, and 0 gauge power wire down the other Then I was left with this ugly mess: A few days later I worked on making it look good... First got to make the template... Then cut it out... Then arrange it all pretty like... Wire it up Better... Ahh, that's much better It took me a little while, but I did finally get it all installed. But I did decide to add some more electronics to my car, but I have to start another reply since I can't post anymore pics in this one...

No problem I work graveyard, so this is really about 2 hours into my day You can get a lot of info from the ODBII port, and if there is a spot on the board of the new TCU's for another chip, then there is a chance that you might be able to do some hacking with it. Where there's a will, there's a way! Good luck man, and if I can help, feel free to ask!

No... The only reason why this worked was because the older transmissions, phase 1, used a CPU that was easier to use and program for, AND subaru was nice enough to leave the diagnostic chip holes still there, so all you had to do was tap into what was there. I believe they took that out with the new stuff. But I could be wrong, as I have not looked into it, but the newer stuff is a phase 2 4EAT, and it talks with the ECU alot more that the phase 1 stuff because the newer stuff is ODBII, and the older is ODBI. So the modified ROM code wouldn't supply the signals needed by the ECU anyways, so nothing would work. You would not only have to figure out a way to get another chip onto the newer TCU, but then also come up with some new ROM code to make it all work. So it is possible, but not using the methods that I used here, and it's totally out of my ability to do Hope that helps!

Just grab one from the junk yard, year really doesn't matter, to a point. I have a 1990 LS, and I replaced my attenna with one from a 1995. Had to splice the plug from the new unit onto the old wires, took like 5 min, and it worked like a champ. So I can imagine you should be able to do the same thing, or something similar with your car. Ended up costing me $8 at the yard. There are only 3 wires to work with I believe, and I just guessed and got them right on the second try Good luck man!

Thanks for that I do remember you saying that they were different, but I did NOT change the TPS on my loyale when I swapped the TCU, and the TPS value was not changed in the ROM either, and it worked just fine. I think that the code has enough tolerance to be able to over come the differences. But from experience I rocked it for 6 months without an issue using the stock TPS and the legacy TCU for my turbo loyale. But it could be different with the SPFI, since I don't have one it's hard to tell. The person behind the genius of the paddle shifters (presslab) didn't have any problems either, I did ask him about it in all my research, but he also has a turbo wagon, so our TPS' are the same. So with the SPFI it might be different and cause issues, it's hard to say. Only one true way to find out, put it in!

Lucky for you I had this EXACT same problem, and I fixed it. The TCU is bad. I would swap out the TCU. I traced all the wiring back, and even dropped the trans pan and replaced the solenoid, and I was having the same problem. So I replaced the TCU, and the problem went away. Now if you want to just override it, that's easy as well. Find the wire (Connector B33, Pin 5 in the diagrams below) and apply 12+ going to the solenoid. I would of course wire up a relay and a switch, but that should be all you have to do. The solenoid will lockup when it gets 12v+. I don't recommend doing it as it will probably fry the solenoid at some point and make sure you fuse everything properly, but if you don't care about any of that, then have at'er batter! There's my disclaimer. These pics are of a older legacy TCU, but the wires haven't changed, and these pics were handy. I actually have the complete FSM for a 1995 legacy on my computer, but I really don't want to look for it, so there pics will do. The wires are the same either way. Personally what I would do is test the resistance of the circuit itself and see if there is a short in the circuit, or if the solenoid actually still works before I would go cutting wires. If you need help with diagnosing your Duty B solenoid, then just ask!

+1 Hood and fenders are different. Don't be like me and find out the hard way Like GD said, they are about an inch longer. If you don't pay attention, it's hard to notice...

I don't see why you couldn't make it work... The only things that the TCU and the ECU talk to each other about is the RPM signal, TPS signal, and VSS1 and VSS2, I believe. So if you find all those signals and tap into them, the TCU will be happy and will just work. The TCU and the ECU are really 2 seperate circuits in the Loyale. I put a legacy TCU into my loyale with a 4eat, and I only needed those signals to make it work. So in theory as long as you have the TCU, you can make it work in just about any car. Especially the older TCU's. They are REALLY dumb, and only need a few wires to make them work properly. Make it fit shouldn't be a problem either. Hell, I got my wrecked loyale hanging out in my garage with no motor, and the 4eat just sitting there. You could come pilfer what every you wanted out of it. I got the TCU and all that jazz. I would even sell you the trans for cheap, and I mean cheap and you can take whatever you need, including all the trim pieces to make it look stock. I just want it out of my garage at this point. It worked just fine until I rolled it. But whatever. I really don't want to part it myself, but if you want to come and take anything you want, you are more than welcome too. I hope that helps a little bit. Look up my thread on putting a legacy tcu into a loyale, and I believe I broke down all the wires needed to make it all work in that thread...

Too bad you gave up on the subaru, but you did try freakin' hard to keep it! But I understand wanting a reliable car, and having a stalling car that you can't figure out isn't reliable at all. But good on you for trying What type of car did you end up getting? One thing that I have noticed is that alot of the information found here can apply to any application, you just need to be creative sometimes, but the bulk of the info is useful for any car. I have used some of the skills I have learned here to work on fords and kias, so feel free to search around here if you need some answers. Lots of smart people on this board. Hopefully you will own a subaru again one day!

Good stuff :cool: I always feel better having soldering stuff, lets hope the car feels the same way

Oh, and for the record, no I am not broke from fixing my subaru. I am broke because I support a family, and my wife lost her job due to injuries because of a car accident, you rump roast. In the last year I spent about $100 on normal maintanence items, that was it (if you don't count rolling your car over on the freeway and totaling it and buying a new subaru). Everything else I fixed by using good ol' elbow grease, common sense, and this forum. I would NEVER spend $750 to "fix" a car that wasn't fixed. Let alone have a prospect of spending $1800 to $2500 to fix a car. That's just silly. I have resources and I don't mind getting dirty myself and helping out, and that saves TONS of money. Not to mention I am not an rump roast, so people tend to actually help me out. I just had to comment on this because it really pissed me off. I was going to let it go, but after the latest comments, I had to say something. Man some people! Really, I am done here now.

Wow, really? Now you are going to attack me? Whateva man. I was just trying to have a "spirited" debate with you, but obviously you have no idea how to do that. Notice how I never called you a fool for buying a hyundai? That would be mean, and not the point of this forum or any of my posts for that matter, even though its a very true statement, and one I would say to your face as well. I have given examples of what I know and what I have worked with and seen the difference in quality when these cars are torn apart. I probably have pictures to prove this, but you are not worth the time it would take to find the pictures to prove it. You have mention NO experience what so ever to back up your claims but to say you have "owned one" and are "older and wiser" so you must be right. I really hate it when people confuse experience and age. They are NOT the same thing. Yes you are older, but wiser, not so much, or we would still be having a "spirited" debate instead of personally insulting the other side. Anyone who walks into a Hyundai dealship isn't going there to buy the best car on the market. They want a cheap, reliable car to go from point a to point b, nothing else. And when that car breaks, they go get a new one, they don't fix it! Ok, so you are apparently the exception, but that doesn't change the rules! They are cheap, throw away cars, nothing more, nothing less, and there is nothing wrong with that. It's just not a subaru, or any other quality vehicle for that matter. I think the price tag is pretty much all I need to prove that point. Remember that the only guaranteed things to come with age are blindness, bad health and a failing memory, not necessarily wisdom and virtue, let alone respect. You have to earn those last three. And with that, I am now unsubscribed from this thread and done talking to you about this, I have much better things to do with my time.

Once you drive and own non throw away car, you will understand. Obviously you have yet to do so, or you would be agreeing with me Been there, done that, and you haven't, so really you can't say whether or not the hyundai is better. I can. Its not. I have owned both types cars for several years and can say that with confidence. You on the other hand have not, so you can not say otherwise, well at least you can't with authority. You can say all you want, but it doesn't mean much Have fun man, or not... I am done here

Cool, sounds good! Let us know the results!

I wasn't quite sure either, that's why I just said to put it back to "stock" after soldering the connections, then we can at least rule out the connection, and start working on the real problem, if there is one... Hopefully it's something simple like the connection, and nothing serious. Edit: Honestly butt connectors are ok for most things, I just don't trust them for every situation. And in this case, there were no code before, used butt connectors and now there's codes. So I would guess that the butt connectors have something to do with it. I do use butt connectors myself for certain things, like installing my keyless entry, and even on parts of my remote start (not on the ignition wires). But if you think about it, a butt connector is like a little antenna when adding it to wire, so it will pick up more noise and amplify it just because it is adding more metal to the circuit. Solder and heat shrink add very little metal to the circuit and keep the wires more "in spec" if you would. Butt connectors are very useful tools, but when it comes to sensitive electronics I would stay away from using them if possible.

The first thing I would do is remove the stupid butt connectors!! I would NEVER use them in the engine compartment, especially on something like the TPS that is super sensitive to begin with. Solder and heat shrink are going to be the only way to go for any type of sensor. So with that being said, remove the butt connectors, and then trace all the wires in the harness back at least 12" and check for corrosion replacing any wire with new using solder and heat shrink. If there is no corrosion, then put the original TPS back on with solder and heat shrink. Then clear your codes and start over once you have a clean, solid connection, and tell us what happens. Butt connectors are a great way to add resistance to any circuit, they just aren't designed for that sort of thing. When you are dealing with sensors, they are usually very sensitive to any sort of added noise, and a butt connector is a great way to add noise. Butt connectors are great for things that aren't sensitive to resistance, like lights, and other accessories, but they suck for sensors...

I am not being hypocritical at all. I own one. The title will be in my name in the next couple months. So I am WELL aware of what it is like to own one, so everything I said is true and coming from a current kia/hyundai owner. Oh, and don't kid yourself about that warranty, it's really a joke. In my kia, the hvac vents just shut them selves on their own, randomly, for no reason. Heat and AC. So during the winter, the heat just stops working, and during the summer the AC just stops. And when I say stop, I mean NO FLOW. The fan runs, but no air comes out anywhere. This happened at 12k. After taking it to 3 different dealers and wasting about 300 miles on gas, and going several days without a car or using a loaner, we still had the problem. And it was supposed to be covered under the "bumper to bumper 36K" warranty. The dealers never believed my wife and I, and all they did was replace some relays, and this was after me yelling at them do to something about it. What a joke. Still deal with that today. At least the heat works in my Subaru! So if something does go wrong, have fun dealing with the dealers and trying to actual prove there is something wrong. They really don't like to deal with warranty work, and it shows. Oh, and not to mention the shimmy it's had for the last 50K as well. Didn't even try to take it to the dealer for that. What was the point? They would just blame it on the tires and send me on my way And as for it being a throw away car, ya it is. No one cares about them. There are no forums, well good ones that actually have useful information in them and I have looked long and hard trying to solve that damn shimmy. But no one cares. If it breaks, well, just trade it in for a new one. Why bother to fix it? If I wasn't so broke, I would be trading it in for a subaru instead of keeping it, that's for sure. I will just throw it away. It's not special, even my wife says that now, and she used to like it. But after 6 years, she just wants the heat to work, and not to have a shimmy. Luckily we have the subaru so long drives are actually comfortable. And that whistling that you mention is an easy fix, squeeze that part of the window with a pair of pliers and it fixes it. If you searched here you would have found that out because people actually care about fixing their subaru's and share that knowledge, unlike kia owners Oh, and I think that issue was also covered under warranty as well. I am just saying But I will say that we have had no mechanical issues at all with the kia, so I can't fault it for that. It has gotten my wife around safely for 6 years, so what more could I ask from it? I even drove it for a while before I got my subaru because my other car had some major issues, and it's not a bad car at all. It goes from point a to point b just fine while getting 30mpg and just changing the oil. Am I impressed by it, no. Would I buy one again, probably not. Would I recommend them to people, depends on the persons wants/needs. Am I going to install $1K worth of stereo stuff in it and keep it past 100K and do the proper maintenance on it to keep it running good, yes. But will I toss it like yesterdays garbage as soon as I get the chance? Hell yes, because that's all it was made for! My subaru will see many, many, many more miles than that kia will, why? Because it's a better car, and not designed as a throw away car. I can tell just by taking the car apart. The kia feels "cheap" compared to my subaru when it's tore down, and my subaru 20 years old! The subaru just has better quality parts in it. More metal, less plastic, easier to take apart, more sound proofing, seats are more comfortable, and I could go on and on. Again, nothing wrong with the kia, it's just not made to last, it's designed as a throw away car, and it shows when the car is tore down. But it still goes from point a to point b just fine Like I said early, the hyundai will give you years of trouble free service, so enjoy it! The most important part is that you enjoy the car you buy, and it sounds like you do, so that's all that really matters Good luck with the car, and hopefully it will treat you well!

Too bad you gave up on the subaru. I will say this much about the Hyundai, have fun with your throw away car! I have a 2005 kia spectra (re-badge hyundai) with 89,000 on it, and it rattles more than my 1990 Legacy w/151,000 on it, and my wife can't wait to get rid of it for a subaru, and a used one at that because she likes mine so much better than her newer kia! They are good cars to get from point a, to point b, if you want anything more than that, you will probably be sad with it. Either way, good luck, and enjoy the maintenance free hyundai! Hopefully you will be back soon!

Update time, it's been awhile! I got my paddle shifters setup installed, and I also wired in my manual button like I wanted to, but not before the xmas tree run. Could have used it there, oh well. But I got it all installed and working, and I like it alot, I forgot what it was like to have paddles. I finally got tired of using my key to unlock the door and I installed my power door lock motor I had laying around in my drivers door, and wired it up to my remote start to give me keyless entry finally. What an improvement! The nice thing is that subaru actually makes it pretty easy to install a door lock motor in the drivers door, there is TONS of room It took me about two hours to install the motor, run the wires, and hook up all the relays and everything to the remote start. Not to bad. Now when I lock or unlock my car, all my doors unlock Here's some pics on what I did: I went to lowes and picked up a small aluminum piece to mount the motor to, and the rest was pretty simple and self explanatory. Works great! I then took the liberty to hook my domelight and my map lights up to the keyless entry as well, so when I unlock my car, my domelight and maplights both come on to light up the car. It's super nice, especially working nights, since most of my time is spent with very little light outside. It's nice to have the maplights come on as well, lights up the whole front area of the car. I like it alot. Wiring in the dome light was a piece of cake after doing it in my loyale, the same principals applied to this. Find the ground wire going to the domelight in the passenger side "A" pillar, splice into it, and then use a relay to send a ground signal down that wire causing the domelight to come on. And it was that easy. Here's some pics for ya... Note: Just a PSA... You can use butt connectors are still have a good connections, you just need to do it right, and make the crimp with the right tool. I use vise grips, and only vise grips to make any crimp connections I need and I also make sure I strip enough wire for the connection to be good, and so far NONE of them have come loose over the last 2 years. So if you crimp them good, they work well. BUT this is only for inside the cabin of the vehicle AND doesn't require/flow alot of current. Anything in the engine bay, exposed to the elements, or that requires a lot of currect/flow should only be soldered and then heat shrinked. The only stuff I soldered was stuff that was easily removable so that I could sit down and use a bench to solder. There was one connection with the diode I did not do this to, I soldered it in the car, but I don't like to do that. It's a pain. So most of this was done using butt connectors, and by applying some heat shrink where needed, and I have no problem trusting my work, for now anyways Wiring up the maplights was a little more difficult than I thought it would be, but nothing major. I ended up using 3 diodes to get the result I wanted. In order to get the map lights to work, I need to apply 12v+ to the map lights, but in order to get the dome light to work, I needed ground, so I need to wire up 2 relays. 1 to send out a ground signal, the other to send out 12v+. Once I wired up the relays, I took out the maplights and I solder a new wire to each light, and then wired in a diode on that wire to prevent 1) when turning on one maplight you turn on the other one as well, and 2) to prevent any "back feed" that might come up when using the keyless entry and the maplights at the same time. Diodes were perfect for this as they only allow voltage to flow in one direction, so it was super easy to just solder in some diodes and secure them. I ran into another problem that was fixed by using the 3rd diode. The way I wired up the relay, which was the simplest and only required using 2 relays instead of 3 or more, made it so that when ever the dome light came on, it ground the relay for the maplights, causing the maplights to come on as well. This seemed good until I realized that WHENEVER the dome light was on, so was the maplights. That was annoying and no good, so I just wired in another diode to prevent that from happening, and all was well. Luckily I had a few diodes laying around I must say that I am getting better at this 12v stuff, as diodes were the first thing that came to mind when I encountered these problems. A year ago I don't think I could say the same thing. Go experience! Here's some pics of the maplight and what I did to make it work for me: The diodes I just covered with heat shrink and then zip tied them so they are secure. Since they are so small, I wanted to make sure they didn't get bent and break when re-installing stuff The one for the dome light I secured to a butt connector so that it had something stiff to be held to. Worked out good. So I am finally done with installing my remote start, I finally got every option I wanted wired in. Took me a while, but it's done! Now onto the stereo... I haven't started on the stereo install quite yet, I am still waiting on some breakers to come in, and they should be here next week. But I did get some new front speakers, and my zx500 sub amp came to me as well. So that will be a nice 700 RMS going to my 12 Nice little upgrade from my 500 RMS I had in my loyale. Here's a shot of all my gear, including all the RCA's, power cable, speaker wire, and phone cable needed for my install Here's all that's listed: MB Quartz RVF-216 6.5 with JL XR crossovers, Kenwood exceleon x869, SLD44 line driver, BassCUBE w/remote, PG ti Fused Distro, PG RCA's, PG RSdC124 in a 1 cubic foot box, PG zx500, PG zx450, 16' 0AWG power wire, 130' of Memphis 16AWG speaker wire, 40' of 4 wire black phone cable, and some monster RCA's that I am cutting down to 3 foot lengths to connect my line driver to my system. Matching sub (zx500 2 channel) and mids/tweet (zx450 4 channel) amps: New (to me) MB Quartz RVF-216 6.5 with JL XR crossovers: This should be fun getting it all into my car I think that does it for now, more to come once I find some time to start on the stereo install. Since it's warming up now, I need to get out to my garage and take some crap of my loyale No more using my folk's warm garage for the next little bit, back to my cold, cramped, small garage!

I totally want to get a bigger setup, but that can't be in the cards right now. There is a 26 gallon Craftsman compressor that does like 5.5cfm @90 psi for sale for $100, it's a little used you can tell, but still a good deal. I would have totally gone for it had it not been total lack of space AND portability. I live in an apartment complex, so my options are limited as to what I can get away with. They don't mind be pulling a motor out of my car in plain sight, but having a big, loud, compressor hanging out in the garage might not be so discreet. That and something that big is going to require some juice, especially on startup, so anything that pulls more than 15amps is probably going to blow the garage circuit, which I don't have access to, so I would have to tell the apartment people to go flip the breaker. Talk about a DEAD give away, so I can't be having that happen. This little guy doesn't pull enough to trip the circuit, and it trips itself, not the circuit. I found that out yesterday So I want a bigger setup, I just can't have one yet I don't plan on moving for at least another year as I just resigned my lease this month, and it's not looking like I can afford a house anytime soon, so apartment life is in my foreseeable future, so I just can't get the bigger setup. That's what made this little guy so attractive. Small enough to throw into the back of my subaru without having to move the seats or ask for help and take it over to my mom or a friends, but yet powerful enough to run my air tools for the little bit I need them. And cheap enough to really not think about it too hard, hence why I just did it Cool, good to know that if you take care of HF tools they will last. Go figure Treat most things right and they will last. I just know that some of HF stuff is so cheap that I don't even try to use it and I can tell by just looking at it, but he air/power tools look like they are not junk for the most part. Thanks for the input Cool, then it looks like I will just get the cheap 3/8 and then save up for the 1/2 bad boy. That does sound like a good plan. Thanks for the idea. Really hadn't thought about getting 2 Also good to know that the cheapy guy is "fun" to use as well. I know that some things are not fun to use at all, but you use them because they make the job "easier", so its good to know that you kinda enjoy using it, thanks for that I just went out and started it today to see how well it would start compared to yesterday, and the break in made a big difference. When I started it yesterday in the "cold" (45 outside), it would barely move the piston twice before tripping it's breaker, then I started turning it off to prevent it from tripping it's breaker, and it finally got going. I had to turn it on, then turn it off 7 times before it finally kicked in and ran normal. Today it was 35 outside and when I started it the compressor was slow pumping, about 6 or 7 times, before I turned it off, but it never stopped like it did yesterday, and it only took 3 times of turning it on and off before it started working like normal. That's a big improvement. So breaking it in makes a difference. I am glad I did that I did have to throw it in the back of my wrecked subaru and shut the doors to prevent it from being super loud So atleast I got one final use out of the old car So it looks like on pay day I will be buying an impact gun and an impact socket set at HF Wow, so I meant to post this yesterday 12-29-10, but I got busy and my reply literally sat open in my browser just waiting for me to hut submit Sorry about that, I now submitted it! Anyways back on topic Thanks for the insight so far guys! Anyone else out there got any to say about HF tools? How about some recommendations of tools that you used and liked? I am slowly building up my tool arsenal, so knowing what to buy and to not buy really helps a broke guy like me Thanks again all!

Howdy all! So I have been wanting to get into this whole air tool thing for a while, but never really had the true itch to spend the money on buying stuff because it all seemed so expensive. Well, then my dad decided that he wanted to upgrade his harbor freight pancake compressor with the bigger harbor freight 10gal 2.5hp guy, so he gave me the old pancake compressor. But I had to go out and buy the hose, fittings, etc., if I wanted to use it. So it sat in my garage until xmas time! I asked for some simple stuff to get me going on my new to me compressor, hose (25ft goodyear pliovic hose, none of that chinese crap ) , an air ratchet, fittings, just the basics. So I got all of that, put it all together out in my apartment garage , fired her up (and she worked after sitting for a year, not to mention it's 5+ years old), waited for it fill with air, and then let loose with the air ratchet to see how Mr. Pancake would handle it. Well, as you all could have guessed, it fell FLAT on it's pancake face. Dropped down to unusable RMP's within seconds. I was kinda figuring this would happen, but I was hoping it wouldn't... So what to do? Well, after seeing this 5+ year old HF compressor still work and pump up, I decided to look into HF some more and man they got some killer deals! So after looking around their website I found their "deal of the day". It was a 8gal 2HP 125 PSI Max, 4.5 CFM@90 PSI compressor for $89.99 (Linky)! I then googled this bad boy up and checked out the HF reviews and saw basically nothing but good things about this compressor, so I printed off the coupon and went down first thing in the morning and picked it up. Took it home, filled him up with oil, and fired him up! This is a nice compressor for $89.99! I also got the extended warranty for $20, so in case it fails, it's covered. The big test was going to be can this thing actually do 4.5cfm? So I hooked up my new air ratchet and tired it out, and it totally works fine with this compressor! If you just hold down on the trigger, it slows down to probably 100-110 RPM compared to the 130 RPM or so you get when you burst it, but it held 100 RPM for a good 15-20 seconds, which is plenty of umph for what I need to do. And ya, I have to wait for it to air up after using the ratchet for that long, but for what I need, that's perfect! I don't mind waiting a min for the compressor to pump back up, no biggie to me! From what I have read, this compressor will also work with impacts as well. You just have to burst them, but they work just fine, even the big 1/2" to 3/4" ones. Again, that is really all I need it for. I also picked up some other do dads while I was there as well. I picked up the $15 regulator/drier (Linky) because it seemed better quality than the regulator that came with it, and it included the drier. The reviews said that it leaked, so I took it apart and resealed all the threads with new teflon tape, and it hasn't started to leak so far, so my fingers are crossed. Also got a nice tire chuck (Linky), and the air accessory kit (Linky). The air accessory kit has some crap in it for sure, like the quick release which I did not use, but the other things look nice and work well. The tire inflator is really nice, glad I got that guy as well. Makes airing up tires super easy and convenient. Here's some pics: My first setup with Mr. Pancake: The new setup: Here's my new air ratchet: One of the first things that I did once I got it together and working was to break it in. I left the compressor running for about an hour, then went out and changed the oil. Boy I am glad I did that. That oil was NASTY from the break in. So bad that I changed the oil, let it run for 10 more min, and then changed it yet again to make sure I got all the sparklies out of the oil. A little overkill, but I want this thing to last as long as possible On that note... Has anybody ever used the HF air stuff? I know some of it's junk, but some of it seems like it's great stuff for super cheap. So if anyone has any insight into some of the HF air tool lines, LMK as I am looking to get some more stuff coming up here. I am really interested to know what their impact stuff is like and how it holds up, like their sockets and the impact gun it's self. The earthquake stuff holds up in the reviews but still makes me a little nervous. I am just courious if I should go for the cheapy HF stuff (Linky), or just save up the "expensive" HF $85 3/8 impact gun (Linky)? My gut says I should just pass on the cheap one and save up and use a 20% off coupon for the earthquake one and just be done with it. Or is all of this stuff just junk? If it is, then what is a good, cheap, suitable replacement? I am talking about a retail chain that I can walk into and purchase stuff. I am really new to this stuff, so any insight would be great. I am also cheap, so paying for cheap things, I realize what I might get. But I have also found some really good cheap things before, so one never knows. I basically just want some good, decent tools that will do light duty once a month when I decide to work on my cars. I do not want to go out and spend more that $70-$80 on a single tool. So snapon, matco, that sort of thing I am not interested in at all. I am not going to be doing anything that is actually going to tax any of the tools I buy that much, hence why I am looking at cheap tools And so far HF seems to have some decent stuff for cheap, which is why I am looking at HF, not elsewhere. I wouldn't even mind craftsman stuff, but they are kinda expensive when compared with HF I found this link which is great. It gives links to products from HF that people have used and liked before, so you can kinda weed out the junk that way. http://www.toolcrib.com/blog/2008/08/buyer-beware-a-harbor-freight-buying-guide-the-good-enough-the-bad-and-the-abysmal It's a little outdated by now, but most of the stuff is still available. It's a great article for sure!