Replacing engine air filter

 Hello! 

Covid-19 made a lot of adjustments in my lifestyle,  but no matter how bad the lockdown is the car still requires a maintenance.

Today I was changing an engine air filter.

Simple procedure for 2018 Elantra , definitely not worth to evolve mechanics in it.

DYI: Changing a battery in an electronic car key

 You need a car key and a new battery. For 2018 Elantra it is 2032.

Another silly video how to do it without paying money to someone else.

Also, this year I decided to swap tires on my own. But I needed all hands and a helper to do it, so didn't have an operator to record a video ;)

DIY: Changing a Cabin Air Filter

Letting professionals do your car maintenance is the best choice. However, sometimes professionals are charging too much for a simple service like a cabin air filter replacement.
In my case, a DYI filter change was 4 times cheaper than the suggested price by both my garage and dealership.
To buy a proper filter you need to know your car's manufacturer, model, trim and year. Many online stores provide a suitable selection of accessories for your car after submitting this information.
It is recommended to change the filter every 30000 km or once a year (unless stated differently by car's or filter's manufacturer). Quite often the smell in the car, specifically from the  A/C, can be eliminated by replacement of the cabin air filter.
Let's do it!

Special operation “Honeymoon”

Last summer I was so busy with work, volunteering, car events and other unexpected things in my life that I missed the entire camping season. Our camping gear hasn’t moved from the shelf in the closet even once. Compensation in the form of some adventure was needed badly.

How to survive without a one year worth supply of the toilet paper

Should I say that I am lucky? Only 2 weeks ago I came back from a short vacation to the seaside without any concerns about coronavirus. Today some countries closed their borders and airports for international flights, traveling and attending public events considered to be a risk, schools closed, people are buying hand sanitizers, face masks and toilet paper like those items are going to save their lives.
So let's leave panic aside and look at some facts and tips.

My first driving lesson

This post was waiting in my saved files for a long time, but today is the special day. Today is my late grandfather's birthday. He was not only a great scientist, director of a research institute, but also a person with the biggest heart ever. He was my mentor, my friend and the ideal model of how a real man should be. This post is for you, grandpa Volodya! I miss you a lot.

See how it was built

Do you know that many car manufacturing facilities offer tours?
For example, if you live in Southern Ontario, you may visit Honda and Toyota plants. If you are willing to drive a bit longer, you may visit Ford Rouge Plant west of Detroit, MI.
Here are some links:
1. Honda in Alliston, ON
http://www.hondacanadamfg.ca/our-tours/
2. Toyota in Cambridge, ON
https://www.tmmc.ca/en/plants/plant-tours
3. Ford Rouge in Dearborn, MI
https://www.thehenryford.org/visit/ford-rouge-factory-tour/
4. Canadian Automotive Museum in Oshawa, ON
http://www.canadianautomotivemuseum.com/tours


Please feel free to comment and add more interesting tours.

Car review: 2019 Toyota C-HR XLE

We reserved a compact sedan for our one week journey through the mountains. Originally the trip was planned for 4 people, with 2 drivers and 2 suitcases. By the time of the actual trip, however, our group shrunk to two drivers and one passenger, though still with two suitcases. When we got our car, I was glad that we had just three people. 

Our car for a week was the Toyota C-HR XLE. Actually, it was a lucky coincidence, because my partner was considering it for purchase. I was trying to say gently that it is not the car for her. During our trip she came to the same conclusion without my help.

Let's start!

Jeep Cherokee

I didn't take it on the road, just checked at the show. Have to admit, that I like the design of the dashboard and panels. Intuitive,  logical,  nothing is blocked.
Would be interesting to test drive 2020 Jeep Cherokee

Subjective opinion: cars' colour

When I was young and naive my dream car was a black Ford Mustang. I wanted to have my own black horse with a lot of power, something around 460 hp. However, with aging my attraction to black cars got ruined by a rather practical view.

The Grand V-mount Hotel. Part III, the final.

We found a spot in the corner of the parking lot, got our suitcases, and went back to the room. Our food supply was left in the car - we didn't mind attracting bears to our car, but absolutely declined the idea of collecting smaller forms of life in our food. Inside, we were debating if our suitcases may stay on the floor or if we should lift them on the table. I finally risked to check the bed and removed the covers.

The Grand V-mount Hotel. Part II

We took the key and went upstairs. The smell was pretty heavy, even in the stairwell. We got to our room, which was right next to the stairs and the only one on that side of the building.

Even though the reservation was stating that it was a non-smoking room, smokers were visiting the place before more than once. A 20 year old TV was standing on the shelf under the ceiling in the corner of the room. The carpet looked pretty old, so we remained in street shoes. Beds looked smaller than the requested queen size, and they were as aged as a bottle of good whiskey. 

I decided to inspect the bathroom, to which Natty reacted with the question: "Is it safe, or would it be better to use a washroom in the restaurant?"

The place was very suspicious. We had to decide what is safer - to leave the luggage in the car and get it stolen by morning or to bring it upstairs and get a company of bedbugs or other parasites with our clothes.

The Grand V-mount Hotel. Part I

This part of our journey created a good set of memes. I will try to describe the environment in as much details as possible so you could feel the absurd of the situation.

Probably, linking to Tarantino's "Four Rooms" would be the best reference to this story. As I was  saying earlier, our goal was to see as much as possible and spend as little as possible. Therefore we were saving on our stays in hotel by driving from the parks of Alberta to small towns in British Columbia, where prices where much friendlier than in the resorts area.

Still Life

Have you noticed that if you look at the picture for some time,  you see details that were not obvious at the first glance? The longer you stare, the more pieces of the puzzle are getting processed by the brain.

On Friday morning the traffic was heavier than usual. Cars were piling up at the intersections, jumping from one lane to another,  annoyingly tailgating cars in front. A dynamic world with sounds of engines, the smell of cigarette smoke and impatience of drivers was digesting the morning commuters for breakfast.

Suddenly: Are you ready for your job interview?

This is not related to the topic of my blog, however I am trying to make my work life easier by giving the following hints to people whom I and other interviewers see in the office. 

If you are looking for a new job, check this post before you schedule the next interview with a potential employer.

Our team is looking for a QA specialist. To be honest, we are struggling to find a good candidate. In the past couple of months I interviewed about 5 people, and in the majority of cases my post-interview thought was:"How can we trust a team member if they lie even at this step?"

So I decided to put all my concerns in one post to help candidates and to stop wasting our time on those interviews.

AB-BC Canada gateway. Or 3 seasons in one week.

We got back from our road trip in Canadian Rockies mountains. Finally, I had a proper test drive of the car on various terrain - tarmac, gravel, wet gravel, mountain road, heavy rain in the mountain and heavy snow in the mountains and on the highway.
2250 km on Toyota C-HR. This car would never get into my short list for car shopping, but overall it is a good compact SUV. God bless the creator of the adaptive cruise control!
Stay tuned!

Love, Peace and Happiness. Part Four.

This is the last part of Tim's collection. To be honest, after posting all 80 photos, I feel like arranging these posts in a different way. I will try to add description to each car and almost every photo for this event. Though it should wait until I get back from the pickup trucks land.

Mr. and Mrs. Hapi Hipi 

Love, Peace and Happiness. Part Three

Here I will include only photos. Though, it is not the last post about this great facility.
By the way, is there a need for naming all those cars?

Love, Peace and Happiness. Part Two

This part was written by my daughter Alison (yes, I have a daughter and she is a car addict as her mom). I highly recommend reading this part, because it describes our experience in a much better way. And, obviously, tons of photos included. At least two more parts are coming up. Stay tuned and enjoy the Horse Power Heaven!

Love, Peace and Happiness

When you have a real hobby, you start to recognize people who have a similar interest: see familiar faces on the skiing slopes, make friends at the dog shows, get familiar with suppliers of gear for your hobby, etc. Even though we have dozens of clubs, events and types of car related stuff , after a few car shows you will recognize, first of all, cars, but second, people with those cars.
I heard of The Hapy Hipi from the Grand Touring dealership. The rainbow coloured Lamborghini Aventador left me speechless for a good minute! Though, the owner wasn't there, as well as myself having absolutely different business at the dealership that time, I really wanted to take photos of that car and share with you, but I prefer to be respectful to the owner. (you will see the Aventador in the next post, I promise ;)) After that I did a bit of research about Tim and found an advertisement of the charity event at his property. For a few years Tim and his beautiful wife are organizing an open house to collect support for the local Humane Society. Last year 30 000 CAD were collected for a non-killing dog shelter in Alliston, ON. Did I wish to attend the event this year? Definitely, yes!