Howdy to All Y'All,
(texans say "Y'All" (yuh-Awl), Oklahomans say "All Y-All") . I am an Oklahoman, not an Okie. Okies (like Arkies - Arkansans or Arkansawyers that moved away from hard times in Arkansas) usually left dust-bowl Oklahoma and went to LA-LA Land or some other part of California... Okie and Arkie are derrogatorey to me... enough about the distant past.
Yukon, Oklahoma, USA (Oklahoma ranges from Hills and Woods in the East to nearly desert-like and otherwise flat in parts of the west). Yukon is right in the middle by OKC (Oklahoma City, OK). My great grandad Roebuck was a ranch hand (prior to statehood in 1907, happy Statehood Centennial OKLAHOMA!!) for Will Rogers' family, the great american humorist, newspaper columnist, Roper, and movie star. Our 2 main airports are named after Will Rogers and Wiley Post, both of these famous Oklahomans died in a tragic Aiplane CRASH in Alaska... Wiley Post invented the high-altitude flight suit (pre-cursor to the space suit).
Part American Indian, German, English, Irish, Dutch... but not very much.
Proud owner of a 2004 2500HC MWB, Dodge Sprinter Wagon (passenger), Arctic White paint, white M.B. grill, badges, hub caps on 16" steel wheels. All Dodge badges removed with Un-Do (best adhesive remover found during project). Goof-Off, Prep-All and others not so good. Bought my 2004 Sprinter in OKC in September 2005 (624 dealer Miles, but bought as new) and got a discount of about $6-7K (US $'s). 10 passenger seats, but got the dealer to agree to put a third seat rail in the floor so that the wide 3-seat bench goes in ahead of the 2-seat row... I can now just take the 2-seater out for maximum cargo in the back.
Also can move the 3-seater back to the rear if i want to.
My name is Kenneth Baker, I was born and raised in Oklahoma, have my B.S. in Petroleum engineering Technology from Oklahoma State University ('84) and then moved to Dallas (the Big "D") Texas for 13 years to learn IBM Mainframe computer technology and came back to Oklahoma as soon as I could find a job in mainframe security (my chosen specialty). My two weeks in the oil-fields after college were about as scary as you can imagine (guys smoking funny little pipes, drinking tall-boys (tall cans of beer), and loading HIGH EXPLOSIVES do not constitute a joke-like situation). somehow I survived 2 wks.
I learned of Sprinters by accident on the internet about 2002... I was on a trip after Odyssey of the Mind World Finals (Ames Iowa) and saw a Sprinter that was driven by a UPS driver in the middle of nowhere in the Sand Hills of Western Nebraska. We were stopped at a constuction area and talked to him while waiting for the crew to lead us through to the far side... He loved his Sprinter and was SO happy to be out of the "Big Brown Boring Box Brigade". Obviously his route was LONG and not having frequent stops, perfectly like our future trips and our reason for having a Sprinter (long miles, few stops, long life).
I now drive mine every day.
Only after getting my wife to test drive one would she even consider buying a Sprinter (Too BIG). Now she loves it... even to drive it around town (except at night when/if she has to back it in/out of spots). My kids love being able to take alot of friends places, but the lack of adjustments on the benches for them is annoying. Too many rattles in a brand new vehicle is my main pet peeve.
I have chased alot of rattles, even in the EMPTY brand-spanking new van... We are NOT amused!!!
I also had the "O" ring problem on the transmission, the lumbar supports quit within weeks, the central locking timer was schizo within days, and most of the rattles fixed (almost all by me) have almost all come back. RSN is rearing it ugly head a bit at 24K miles, and it was certainly possible when new (at 1K miles). The DEALER was just about WORTHLESS in the Rattle Fixing Dept. Ignore the problem, it's not a problem, just an problem for you sir... It's an SEP (somebody else's problem, ignore it and it will go away for ME says the dealer)...I like British literature incl. Doug Adams, JRR Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, etc.
We should have a "rattle fixer" section on this site... but I don't know how to open a new category yet!.!.!.! My dad was an oil-field worker and a trained Buick mechanic. I can do most any maintenance on any vehicle, but not engine/transmission exchanges (but i have done one on a 1987 Mitsu (vacuum hose technology "sucks") Montero with my son, it is running well, thanks for asking, but the idle function is FLAKY).
I wish I had an ODB scanner; I am not, however, made of money, nor does my livelihood require me to have one.
I have acquired full (Stainless Steel) running boards for my 140" Sprinter from Truck-'N-Vans on the internet, but the brackets don't fit the 2004 model and I have had no time to make my own... this is a job for a professional, maybe? I have learned alot about steel fabrication lately, but no time to apply the knowledge to this project.
Left handed, right brained, raising teenagers (1 High School Frosh, 1 H.S. Senior). Coaching Odyssey of the Mind for my son's team. My favorite magazine column as a child was "Ask Smokey" (car repair). I've never owned a high-performance vehicle; but, like super models, they are nice to look at.
You don't have to tell my wife I was looking at either super cars or high-performance models or vice-a-versa... she knows I can't handle either one!!!
If you're a political Conservative I am more liberal than you... If you are a
political Liberal, I am more conservative than you as well... just don't call me middle-of-the-road (or wishy-washy), every issue has its merits and I don't have to agree with an overall "agenda".
TMI, TMI..
KenB