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Minor Kamot : Aluminum Tierra Strut BarI've recently bought a strut bar for my Lynx. My officemate offered it to me, naka-sale raw kasi yung isa sa mga supplier na kakilala nya. I got it for a very cheap price *wink*. I didn't expect a good item at first because of the price, I just wanted to test the improvement kapag mayroong strut bar. But when I saw it I was very impressed, shiny aluminum strut bar with the "Tierra" logo (I think Tierra is the Lynx's counterpart in Taiwan, not sure though). . I thought of DIYing it during the holy week break.Holy Week Penitensya:
The Tierra Strut Bar:
Strut Bar and its function:Based from my research, A strut bar is designed to reduce strut tower flex by tying two parallel strut towers together. This transmits the load of each strut tower during cornering via tension and compression of the strut bar which shares the load between both towers and reduces chassis flex. Thus stabilizing the car and improves cornering. (Salamat kay Wikipedia, hehehehe)You could also refer to Ultra Racing's website for visual explanation.Having researched this, I immediately thought "Kailangan ko ito, especially kapag aakyat ako ng Subic kasi zigzag."Installing the Strut Bar:As curious and willing to learn as I am, I decided na i-DIY ko na lang yung pagkabit sa strut bar para ma-experience ko naman mangalikot ng kotse. Ayun after 3 grueling hours, naikabit ko siya.. Sobrang tagal no? Hindi ko kasi alam yung tamang orientation kaya I tried both ways.Strutbar installation mission - Success!
Happened a couple of days ago
This time it's not with my car, it's with my health. Lately, I have been noticing blood on the tissue after taking a dump. Worst, a couple of blood droplets dropped when I was trying to take a dump after eating too much marjolaine cake.Out of fear that something inside me is bleeding, I told my girlfriend the problem (she's a student nurse by the way) and advised me to go to a Gastroenterologist (geez, how do you spell this?) . That's what I did, I went to Dr. Pineda of Capitol Medical at Quezon Avenue. After some interview, he told me that blood is not good especially if it comes from your @ss, it may be caused by hemorrhoids, or maybe an internal bleeding caused by polyps, or even cancer (Based from his experience, he had a 24 year old patient with colon cancer - Oh crap! This is scary). He also told me that the blood may come and go for sometime, but we need to be sure of the cause. So he did a rectal examination he found no blood. He told me that I need to undergo sigmoidoscopy, a procedure similar to endoscopy, which will confirm what caused the bleeding. He scheduled me the next day and gave me some laxative to clean up my colon in preparation for the procedure.So I did some research on the procedure (which you can find upon clicking the previous link), and I told myself, "WTF, do I really need to undergo this procedure? Maybe the blood drop is just a fluke..". But then his word flashed back "My youngest patient who was diagnosed with colon cancer is only 24 years old" I got scared and told myself, "I don't want to die young. If this is serious, I need to know it immediately so I can treat it early"The next day, I had the procedure.. I asked not to be sedated because I will be driving afterwards... Which is a big mistake because the procedure was painful and very uncomfortable (not to mention that a lady gastroenterologist was doing the procedure, she is under Dr. Pineda - forgot her name). But I was very happy with the results, No polyps were found, no cancerous tumors too. :-) I only have an inflammed portion near the rectum. Dr. Pineda told me that this will become hemorrhoids when not treated early. He prescribed a suppository to cure the inflammation and a laxative to soften up my feces, advised me to avoid sitting for long periods of time, avoid eating spicy foods and avoid tight briefs LOL.
Happened 1-3 weeks ago
Finally, me and my girlfriend now have a common sport of interest...
BADMINTON!
At first, I thought - Huh? Badminton? kinda gay sport, I think that's very easy.. I won't even get a good sweat. So my girlfriend dared me to have a badminton game with her 1-3 weeks ago. I told her, "Sige, bili rin ako racket natin. Lalaro tayo basta ba gagalingan mo :p". (Yup! I like to trash talk a lot LOL.)
The big day has arrived, our first badminton match.. We rented a court at SBMA (forgot the name of the gymanasium, pfft) . After our first game, I am already soaked with sweat and I LOST BIG TIME to my girlfriend (score: 15-4). My reaction time was very slow and I can't even hit the damn shuttlecock.. pffftt!!! As a trash talker as I am, I made an excuse.. :p "Nakaka-ilang kasi yung salamin ko, dapat nag-contact lens ako eh.. Di ko tuloy mailabas yung hidden potential ko". During that day, we had at least 4 games and I didn't win even a single match, highest point I achieved was 6 points (15-6). After the match, puwede mo nang pigain yung shirt ko, pati yung towel ko sa sobrang pawis. After the game we had a great lunch at BBQ Chicken.. YUMMY! :-D
Couple of days later, my body is aching, my forearm is in pain, and my pinkie finger at my feet are killing me (most likely because of the side-stepping movements).
The next badminton match we had this week.
The Match: Best of 5 games
The Wager: Lunch at Max's
This time, I had my contact lens on, However, nothing's changed she still beat me, 3 games to none (3-0). I think I've improved a little because I broke my 6 point per game barrier LOL.
After the game:
Happened 1-2 weeks ago :-)Recently, I've noticed that my idling is kind of erratic and my belts are squealing during cold starts. The Problem: Erratic IdlingWhen I start my car, the RPM shoots up to 2,000rpm then drops up to the point that my engine chokes and then the RPM will shoots up again to 1000+rpm. Also I am having trouble finding the "timpla" of the clutch and gas when coming from a full stop (in other words, I am choking my engine most of the time when I am moving from a full stop). So I have to press the gas more thus, consuming more fuel.. pfffftttt....The Solution: Clean Sensors and Throttle BodyI consulted Kiper - a Ford Club Philippines' (FCP) member who own a car repair shop near our house, he told me that the MAF (Mass Air Flow) Sensor and the Throttle body are the usual causes of erratic idling. So I went to his shop and had all the sensors and the throttle body cleaned . Voila! My ride is so smooth again, Another Problem: Squealing BeltsI also had this squealing belt problem everytime I move from a cold start, which is kinda weird considering that my belts are newly replaced. However, the squealing would stop after the car gains momentum. This squealing occurs at random. The Solution: Re-tension/Re-tighten the beltsThis one I consulted with Migs - Owner of SpeedyFix, he told me that new belts have a tendency to loosen a little after a week or two after installation because of the engine heat. He told me that I could come to his shop anytime to have the belts tightened for no cost at all. So that's what I did and so far no squeals yet.. :-)
Happened last March 12 :-)
Well it's already summer here in the Philippines and the sun is scorching hot. My A/C is working so hard to give me a comfortable ride. Plus my girlfriend will be visiting me soon, so I thought of having my windshield tinted and the side and back tint replaced since they are very light colored. I thought that by doing this, it can ease a little load from my A/C. I decided that I will have 3M tints installed, the side and back tints will be medium black and the windshield will have a light black tint
Upon arriving at Maspro (an accessories shop at Banawe, near E. Rodriguez), I asked suggestions from the shop owner what tint color would be perfect for the summer, he said "Have the magic tint installed. Unlike the single toned black (super black, medium black, etc.) it doesn't absorb that much heat since the outside color will be silver. Also, you will still have the shade of black tint". The shop is offering 2 brands of tint, 3M and SolarGard.
3M only have 2 colors for the Magic Tint, the Black and the Neutral Black while SolarGard offers more variety of colors for the Magic Tint, the Super Black, Medium Black and Neutral Black. I really wanted super black, however, I haven't heard of the "SolarGard" brand. So I asked if the SolarGard brand is good, he replied that his clients who went from 3M to SolarGard were very satisfied with the tint. Plus, he only gives 2 year warranty for 3M while 5 year warranty for SolarGard (warranty covers discoloration and bubbles). Did I mention that SolarGard is 25% cheaper than 3M? :-)
So I decided to go for the Magic Tint of the SolarGard brand: Windshield - Medium Black, Sides and Back - Super Black.
The result: I am very very impressed with the tint, because when you stand outside, you can barely see what's inside of the car. But when you're inside, it's like you don't have a tint on. :-)
Pictures to follow....
