Why we hate change

[zuben el genub]

My Spitfire had twin SU carbs. PITA to balance, but the fuel system wasn't the usual main culprit. It was the electrical. Points would close by themselves, the Vulcan gave his brother MY feeler gauge, and I'd have to gap the damn things with a matchbook.
Got no chance with today's engines.

One thing about the SUs, you could balance for altitude. The Chevy 283 standard carb just changed air intake plugs. Go from sea level to 7,000 feet and you could feel the difference.

The only real pain about the change is not being able to do your own troubleshooting. If you have some idea of what's wrong, you can make sure that an electronic readout or a test isn't phony.

Another case in point. I have what was a top of the line embroidery machine from a couple of years ago. I can digitize my own designs and make the machine do them. I can edit its stitches, or I can design my own stitches. Compared to the old Singers, it's a marvel. However, being electronic and depending on a board --- if the board goes, I can't sew.

I have a mechanical high speed quilter. It is totally manual, and the only thing that would be a pain is actually breaking a part. Otherwise, you can fix a lot of the problems yourself.

So there are two sides to change, and it depends on what trade-offs there are.

 

[Gmash]

^
Those old British cars were notorious for their electrical problems.

 

[nickdalzell]

MikeDT, if you like dealing with the rebuild every few months or every year, having a car that just refuses to start in any temp below 20*F, getting horrid gas mileage, then that's fine. i myself prefer the reliability and ease of use that my 1992 Pontiac gets. no problems starting in cold weather, reliable even with 270,560 miles. but then that's OBD I. OBD II i tend to agree far too many things to go wrong.

My last car was a 1984 Chrysler Fifth Avenue. it was a nice car overall, never turned over 100,000 miles even. it had a carbed 318 V8 engine under the hood. but it truly sucked. it only got 18MPG highway, it would not start in extremely cold weather, and need i go into the whole lean-burn-to-points conversion? it was a dated technology who's time had come. traded it dead even on a 1992 Bonneville SSE in a junkyard that only needed a battery and a few other things. never been happier. now that is one change i go for. trading a dinosaur Buick-wannabe sedan with a fading landau top and tons of 'fake leather stitching' inside for a more modern, high-tech (well, for 1992, and it ages quite well) and more comfortable car with much better gas mileage and a far more trusty 3.8L V6 engine.

 

[mikedt]

I mentioned steam locomotives previously. But we're actually still using them in Inner Mongolia, not for passenger service though. Think because coal is extremely plentiful here and labour costs are low.

Also I believe China was one of the last countries to stop using steam for mainline express passenger trains, 2005. I think the UK stopped using them in 1965.

 

[mikedt]

^
Those old British cars were notorious for their electrical problems.

I borrowed my sister's 1969 Mini once. But she always complained it never ran very well when she bought it used. I checked it and found the DIY previous owner had changed the condenser, but had apparently used a condenser from a fluorescent lamp ballast in instead, wrong value. It was the "250VAC" on the condenser looked suspicious. Got the correct condenser from local garage, it ran much better, my sis was quite surprised.

 

[nickdalzell]

there was this late '70s Mercedes that a friend wanted me to work on for her. boy what a mess under the hood that was. i figured 'oh it's a 1970-something? easy as pie' but no. just...no. never seen a more complicated engine in my life. so many vac hoses and wires. tons of idiot lights on the dash (sure it's from the '70s? yea? ok then!). i managed to get it half running but it never was right. it drove the rest of its life smelling of gasoline inside and misfiring. i would hate to see a modern Benz.

EFI is easier to work on. you can pull codes with a paperclip, and often the only two things that can go wrong are a EGR valve or o2 sensor, each quite easy to replace.

I later had an '80 AMC Spirit/AMX that was another lesson in carb nightmares. it needed rebuilds every month, the fuel tank needed to be dropped and recoated, and the fuel pump and lines were in dire need of repair. that car was never fully reliable but was fun during my retro phase. i am so glad i gave that phase of my life up. older is NOT always better. oh, i still have the velvety wood veneer interior, solid wooden roll-up blinds with patterns, but i no longer have the multiplex TV/stereo/8-track console, i no longer have the classic Remington Lectronic shaver, i no longer have the radio with tubes inside. i no longer have the Betamax recorder or Magnavox Odyssey. it was cool while it lasted, which wasn't for very long.

 

[SpecialE]

I prefer using a debit card to pay faster (as long as I'm the one swiping) so that I don't have to count any change.

 

[nickdalzell]

This. I might be a child of the 1980s but damn

 

[big_z]

We fear change.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XU3qfDtWFmk