The Autopian’s Writers Would Love To Chat With You. Right Now.

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David and I realized it’s been a big, wet minute since we all just took a moment to check in and, you know, chat, see how you’re feeling, what you’re liking, what you’re frustrated by, all that. So let’s take care of that right now, why not, with a little Autopian Reader Chat! We have a little window of time here before we have to record our podcast – did I mention we’re starting one of those? Well, we are. But we’ll announce it more formally soon, but you know I can’t keep secrets from you, baby.

Just to let you know we are listening to some stuff, I can say that we are working with our tech team to try and improve the experience here; we’re looking into speeding up loading times, getting a way to edit comments, add pictures, and more. I don’t have a clear timeline just yet for those, but things are happening, and I want to thank everyone for being patient with our tech issues as we try to win an auction for that 16K RAM expansion module that should really speed everything up, finally.

More importantly, we just want to know how you’re feeling about the stories, the pace of content, what you’d like to see more of, future dreams and aspirations, keto-friendly microwave recipes, hot stock tips, erotic dreams, your current project car achievements, tools you can’t find, and whatever else you want to tell us.

So, have at it! We’ll all try and chime in!

About the Author

Mercedes Streeter

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279 thoughts on “The Autopian’s Writers Would Love To Chat With You. Right Now.”

  1. My only really big complaint is i dont have time to read everything!

    Lesser stuff-
    -Some kind of reply notification is needed.

    -In the comments section it’s hard knowing who’s responding to who. Obviously you don’t want to clog up your nice clean page design with thread lines.Perhaps the best answer is a youtube-like system where replies are hidden until clicked on?
    e.g “click to see replies” “click to hide replies”

    Also can you start running ads? Seriously, i feel like i’m stealing from you or something ROTFL

  2. I love the site.

    Sure, the login thing is goofy… but Im not complaining.
    Sure, I dont get to pick n choose which shitbox is the worst… cause its a script I cant figure out which to turn on n or off. I just appreciate that it works.. and move on.

    Sure HAHA, some days I dont even get pictures for the stories on the main site even after allowing a bunch of the “JS” scripts to run. But I still check the site out anyway. Im not complaining.

    I just take it as it is.. and keep on movin.

    Im happy you guys got a nice site. Sure, I flub a word or 7. Thats like admitting GM in the 90s was fucking great. — Please.. just shoot me in the face.

    In the end… I probably have to allow 15trillion scripts to run when I usually only allow 3-5. Its far better than that OTHER damn site. (Jewish complaining voice… ooooh OY ITS A FUCKING NIGHT MARE!!!!)

    BTW…
    I only follow heavy Class 8 or 9 Trucks on Twitter.. and ONLY things and or shows related to it. Recently, one of the people.. whom I followed went ROGUE. (NO, NOT THAT DAMN FUCKING NISSAN!) He started following political bulllshit. Now Im getting nudes and Britney Spears shit.. and all this other crap. — When THE ONLY REASON WHY I I AM EVEN ON TWITTER, is to follow Trucks, Mack, Peterbilt / Kenworth = PACCAR, various other tow companies, tow MFRs and or Industry Circulars. — NOT FUCKING BRITNEY SPEARS!

    As long as its not another in my line of Porn sites.. I will check you guys out.. OFTEN. Then again, well, if you started doing stories about 60T Wreckers with a Dual Steer, side pull, 4 30T Winch units and a underlift SEPERATE FROM A KNEE BOOM… Id follow you like the PLAGUE!

  3. Hey!

    Just want to say I’m a long time fan of you guys (David and Jason). So glad to see the two of you working together and giving us fans a site where we get to see the wackiest sides of you both.

    I’ll second what someone else said, in that we should definitely get more Merch for the page. I’m not big on buying shirts since they can fit drastically different based on the brand. I do, however, love buying a good hat or hoodie (especially to support the page) or even keychain accessories.

    Love you guys!!!

    1. Also, while I have this rare opportunity, perhaps I can pick your brain regarding an issue I’m currently digging into with my truck.

      I’ve grown up helping my dad on cars but have rarely dealt with major issues myself (living cross country from the parents now).

      My truck, a 1993 Dodge Power Ram (W) 150 with the 5.9 360 Magnum V8 and the automatic 46RH trans (w/ O/D) and 250,000 miles had started mildly slipping on me. It was hard to be sure since it’s got aftermarket exhaust and larger than stock tires.

      One day my wife and I were running late and I was really pushing her when all of a sudden it felt like I was in neutral. Pulled off the road thinking maybe I had bumped it into Neutral somehow. Moved it to Park and back to Drive and it seemed fine. Got back on the road and gradually sped up to 35mph when it suddenly just slipped away and felt like neutral again. Kept feeling it out and tried limping it home. Eventually got to the point where it was just permanently feeling like neutral with the occasional grab and being able to gently accelerate up to 3-4mph before it would disappear again. Decided it was best to flat tow it the last 2 miles.

      Played with it some and it was making a weird slicing/grinding noise when in Reverse/Drive/2/1. If you put it in Neutral or Park the noise stopped. Dropped the trans pan and the fluid was clean and red and the filter appeared unclogged. Bought the truck maybe a year back and the previous owner claimed he changed fluids (appeared so) and adjusted the bands.

      Based on my limited knowledge and research my best guess is the Torque Converter has gone out. So I’m currently looking to purchase a torque converter and rear main seal.

      Basically I’m just wondering if my assessment seems accurate or if there’s anything I’ve stated that makes you feel certain it’s something else. I’d just hate to drop the trans, replaces the torque converter, button it back up and it still not drive.

      Also I’m a broke college kid who is moving from Idaho back to Utah in a month before my classes start back up. So I gotta get this fixed quick!

      1. I’m in Germany and traveling today, so I probably won’t be able to follow up until Monday. Anyhow, you came to the right place for genuine expertise. Chrysler said so when I worked on these.

        You’re almost certainly right that the 46RH is slipping; at 250k, this is frankly, extremely expected. You have two problems, and to be 100% honest, the only correct fix here is a remanufactured transmission. Both problems you have (lockup servo and high pressure circuit) require pulling apart the valve body, something that even on the 46RH, you are not qualified to do. And just replacing the valve body won’t necessarily fix either. Almost certainly the bands are just plain worn out as well as the clutches. The seller didn’t lie; if they had, no way it would have made it 250k. But it’s just worn out and it’s a complete rebuild job – many hours of work.

        A reman 46RH is also cheaper than repairs. You’re easily talking over $1000 in parts to do the rebuild, plus all your labor, plus all the mistakes you will make. (Where does the check ball go? No, seriously. I don’t remember either.) SP Precision sells their Sonnax upgraded 46RH for $1500 with a $600 core charge. (You have a good core.) Do NOT buy the purple transmissions, they are scam artist trash not safe to be on public roads, full stop. Just make sure whatever reman you buy installs the full Sonnax kit. If they don’t give you an actual list of Sonnax parts, they’re probably lying. The BIG one that must be in there is the 3/4 accumulator piston and the pump ring seal upgrade. If the transmission does not have those, it’s virtually guaranteed to develop leaks and require they be installed later anyway.

  4. I see a lot of car crime news, almost weekly. It always goes something like this.

    1. Someone does something awful in their vehicle (drive by shooting, hit and run, robbery etc).
    2. Witnesses can only vaguely describe the color and style of the vehicle “late model beige four door sedan”.
    3. Some grainy footage shows up from CCTV or a doorbell cam of certain parts of the offenders vehicle.
    4. Law enforcement is tasked with solving the crime of the “dark colored SUV.”

    I’m pretty sure the combined wisdom of the Autopian community could easily narrow the evidence down to a make, model, color and get pretty close on the year of any vehicle no matter how blurry the footage.

    That’s not a red, late model, four door sedan. It’s a Ruby Flare Pearl, 2020-21 Toyota Camry.

    Then we call crime stoppers and help a few detectives narrow the search by a large margin.

    “Autopian’s Most Wanted”?
    “The Lunch Break Lineup”?
    Call it whatever you want. I’d read it and chime in. And it could actually help solve some otherwise forgotten crimes.

    Damn West coast time zone. Too late. Nobody is even gonna read this comment.

  5. I would like some in depth articles on different turbo designs. Twin scroll, single scroll, electronic vs mechanical wastegates. How some cars have an air pump or controls to keep the turbo spinning. There are so many whacky ideas with turbo design that I find fascinating.

    Also it would be fun to hear about the different laws regarding engine swaps across the US. It is so funky in every state.

  6. The site has been progressing nicely. Would love to see more of the writers in the background shots. It’s great seeing your photos, but often, if I see the people in the image it makes me connect more with the whole Autopian thing and makes for a unique experience. It will probably be and feel awkward at first but it would set you even further apart from your competition.

    Until your media division is up and running you can probably recruit local readers or Oppo’s to assist when you need a hand in return for a hat tip. I’m happy to assist/hold a camera if THE Autopian is headed to Moab for Jeep week 2023 (I plan to be in Moab during April).

  7. I want to vote in the daily crap car contest, but the buttons to vote do not appear with a Chromebook. Does Mercedes have access to a Chromebook to cess this out?

    Of course, more daily content would be excellent but I do understand that some of these deep dives take time to produce. And, I do love the deep dives.

    You’re doing an ‘A’ – number one job here with a Yeoman’s workload.

  8. And one more thing, more Mr. Gossin please.

    B/c sport coupes!

    I’m dying to see him find and restore to working order something truly forgotten but magical, like a first gen Ford EXP.

    1. If you can find me a first gen Ford EXP, I’d do it. Sort of.
      I would not even consider restoring one to stock. It is an absolutely hateful car.

      No, it would get a hopped up Escort RS Turbo motor with the EEC-IV system, pushing at least 150HP, and a Brazil IB5+ gearbox. Anything over 200HP is basically uncontrollable at 2000lbs without going full race. Trust me on this, I know it from experience. And the EXP’s chassis is terrible.

  9. It is a brilliant site and I love the insanity of the place. I think the layout is a bit confused but no big deal.

    Some basic stuff like being able to upload pictures would be great though. I was reading the Wuling article and recalled two cars that a scarily like it in front, but for course cannot upload any pics of them.

    Still, it is a young site and it has a great future.

  10. We really, really need to be able to post photos in the comments, though, if only to share random stuff on a post like this. At this moment, as I speak, there is an incredibly rare, US-market ’50s Ford Prefect parked across the street from my window, and nobody at my day job is a car person, and apparently none of them have ever read The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy either, so none of them understand why I’m geeking out. Buncha philistines. Stuff like this deserves to be shared with My People.

    I did post it on Oppo, though….
    https://opposite-lock.com/topic/52205/dots-prefect

    2. I created a Github repository where I drop photos tat I want to post here. Then I just put the link in a comment and anyone who wants to see can give it a clicky. Safer this way than letting random commenters put images directly into the comments, and better in my mind than the Jalopnik system where I commented like once a month for five years, but never made it out of the grays. https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wes-brooks/random/main/img/torchbelt.png

  11. Overall an excellent site. Really great, especially considering how young it is. Content is excellent. That being said, it would be really great to get notifications on the comments section. I think we’re missing out on a lot of good conversation potential here because a lot of people don’t go back to check for comments. Also, it would be ideal if the polls were web tracker blocker friendly. As it stands I have to disable web tracking, reload, vote, then re-enable it. I’m gonna be honest, sometimes I just don’t feel like dealing with it so I don’t vote. I know you guys can get it to work with it enabled because Jason’s always show while Mark’s never do. Also an edit function.

  12. Just so you know, this site gets to permanently use up my computer’s ram as I leave a tab always open in my browser. It’s hallowed ground and not just any old website gets such an honor.

    Seriously, keep up the good work!

    Have you guys considered user submitted content?

  13. Damn, I missed this. I just want to reiterate that, as a Jeep owner who has worked on a few with a certain ‘patina,’ I want to see more of DT’s “I just bought this not badly rusted (completely rusted) jeep and need to (fix it fast and drive it across the country or ‘save’ it).” I understand the time constraints of running the site, but that was one of my favorite things from that other site. Don’t let it die!

    I do love that Mercedes has a bit of overlap here. As an Aggie, if I can’t get more rusted jeeps, I vote for more about the bus!

  14. Apologies if this was mentioned a million time already, it would be *so rad* if comments displayed chronologically (outside of replies, anyway). As it stands, they seem to load randomly whenever I refresh.

    I think the lead image failing to load issue has been better the last few days, but that was a pain

  16. You’re killing it! I think you’re already working on the stuff I’d want to talk about—improving the comments system, making the site faster and more stable, that kind of thing. You may also be thinking about this one, but I’d love a little more newsy content, and if you could find a way to be a little faster on the breaking news. I really enjoy The Autopian’s take on the automotive news of the day, and this is a great community to discuss it with!

    Other than that, just fuckin’ keep doing what you’re doing because you are absolutely crushing it.

  17. I am loving this new website. So many great articles. I wish there was a notifications tab that would let us know when someone comments, likes, etc. our comments.

  18. I love this site. I was an avid reader of the “other” site, and i think I went into withdraws while you set up this, most excellent, new site.
    Ive learned a lot, I’ve been entertained, and I’ve been emboldened to try fixes that I would have once deemed beyond my skill, all thanks to you fine wrench heads. Thank you

    Having said that, my only wish at this point is for some sort of bumper sticker, so we, your readers, can spot each other in the wild. Something tastefull and rust colored would be nice.
    In my head I’m seeing the the web logo, but with an ferrous oxide background.
    I could also get find a small sticker that goes on or above the tail light.

    Aside from that, this site is perfect; Unique, quirky, and full of love for cars.
    Thank you all for bring it to life.

  19. Are any of you folks going to make it to Monterey car week? I’d love to have the chance to fanboy in person and talk shit and cars (and shit cars).

  21. I guess I’d only wish for a few things. 1) faster loading pages, 2) a comment system that didn’t make vi look feature-rich, and 3) keep the deeeep tech explainers coming, especially the ones that answer the “why don’t they just [deceptively simple thing here]?” questions.

    That Huibert Mees article about the NXS suspension was a masterpiece of dumbed-down-just-enough technical detail that wasn’t too dry, had just enough color to keep me hanging with it and was long enough to be thorough without going on word longer than it needed to and losing my interest. More of that, please.

  22. Love the site! I learned to drive in my Dad’s 1969 AMC Rambler station wagon. It had a small block V-8. I learned how to change the oil, replace shock absorbers, etc. before I was 10. Now when I read about David’s wrenching adventures I think about that old car and smile.

  23. Have been loving the content on bizarre automotive history, the ‘Cold Start’ articles Jason has put together, and anything relating the the Lane Motor Museum (fantastic people). The engineering deep dives have been especially impressive and high quality. Still looking to contribute to the site as an engineer freelancer and looking for some updates for when that will be possible 🙂

    Also have been watching the gr86/brz market and tearing hair out over markups. Just means it’s time to dump more money into my Mini…

  24. Compared to my no-longer-frequented auto enthusiast sites which The Autopian has supplanted, getting all this eclectic, deliciously nerdy content on the regular feels like getting to eat Oreo cookies for every meal. There’s so much guilt and pleasure intertwined, flopping around like two garter snakes mating. And yet I can’t bring myself to stop. I love it.

    What would I like more of? I like all the content offered. Mercedes, Thomas, and Mark are all doing wonderful work. That said, I do enjoy Stephen’s style and would like to see more of his work too. Maybe some meetups, pod-casty, video get together stuff, DT walking around with a phone cam like he does on Twitter sometimes, that’d be neat. I do enjoy the Suffer Bus wrenching stuff too, but even regular maintenance stuff, knowledge for the unshorn lambs on how to auto, that’d be neat too. What’s the likelihood of a forum?

    Anyway, you guys are doing great!

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