Episode 45 – War and Peace on the Oklahoma Tollway

Welcome to the Automotive podcast that is getting national attention… and it’s not just from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol!

While coming home from a recent camping trip out West, Eric made his way through the Oklahoma Territory. This wild, unsettled land is home to a treacherous tollway with savage characters and unwritten rules. Pressing East with a trusty Toyota FJ Cruiser as his horse, Eric faced challenges and obstacles at every turnpike except one.

Did hero make it home unscathed with a renewed faith in Oklahoma Tollway employees?

Listen to the entire episode to find out…

Sponsor

Carly Connected Car

Our friends at Carly Connected Car reached out to us recently to see if we would be interested in trying out their newest automotive diagnostic tool that uses a Bluetooth OBD2 adapter and their related smartphone app. Of course, we said “yes!”

As well all know, in-depth diagnostic information on any car or truck built after 1996 can help you catch expensive hidden problems. That’s where Carly comes in. Performing regular health checks on your car enables you to identify problems before they become a major headache on the road or cost you a ton of money.

Any gearhead has likely messed with an OBD2 scan tool before, or at least had their car’s computer scanned by a tool at their local auto parts store to see what that pesky “check engine” light on the dash really means. The new reality is that most auto parts stores have stopped offering that service for free, and even when it was a free service in some areas, you likely had to wait a while to get it done. The alternative? Take your car to a dealer or a mechanic’s shop and pay the $50-100 diagnostic fee. Nothing wrong with that, but Carly makes it much more simple for the everyday enthusiast.

How Carly Works

To start checking your car’s mechanical health, all you have to do are three easy steps:

1. Download the Carly OBD2 Scanner app from the Apple or Google Play store.
2. Plug the Carly OBD2 adapter into your vehicle’s diagnostic port (usually under the dash or in the footwell on 1996-up cars)
3. Turn your ignition on and start your vehicle.

Once those steps are completed, follow the on-screen prompts from the Carly app on your phone and you’ll be able to run a full diagnostic scan of your vehicle’s engine, electrical and other systems in just a few seconds.

Want more? With Carly you can access real-time data of valuable data such as transmission fluid temp, engine hours, variable valve timing info, O2 sensor data and so much more. This isn’t just for your car’s computer anymore

You can even do custom tuning of some settings such as locks, seat belt chimes, windows and other systems. There’s a lot of horsepower at your fingertips with Carly.

The Test

With most enthusiasts holding onto their cars longer these days, we wanted to put Carly through its paces and see if it could identify a few issues on one of our vehicles for a real-world test. We decided to try out the Carly on Daryl’s wife Sarah’s 2007 Toyota Solara Convertible since it was time to get the car out of storage and see if it needed any mechanical attention than was obvious to the naked eye. As it turns out, it was a great vehicle to test since there were no warning lights on the dash and every other indicator showed the car was in good condition.

The Results

After a brief scan of the Solara’s computer, we were surprised to learn there were a pair of faults that appeared:

What this told us was that the spongy brake pedal at the end of last season may be something a little more involved than just some pads and rotors. Carly also notified us that there was a low battery condition, which made sense since Solara sits in storage over the winter months here in Illinois.

With these codes, it’s now possible to search out possible causes and repairs for the car. This wouldn’t have been possible without the Carly device and app, which puts knowledge and power back into the consumer’s hands. It also saves us some coin and keeps a running total of how much money (based on AAA repair cost data figures) that you’ve saved using the device. Pretty nifty!

So it seems Daryl may have to pay some attention to the little ragtop before he and the Mrs. take a summer road trip. All of this information was gleaned by Carly in less than 5 minutes. Not bad!

Final Thoughts

• Carly is easy to use, even for those who aren’t mechanically inclined
• Carly lets users customize a lot of little things like using your remote to open power windows or change seat belt chimes and light settings.
• Carly Gives you a lot of real-time data on things like timing, misfires, oil temp and O2 sensor data without a pricey scan tool.

Overall, we really liked Carly, and we know you will, too. That’s why we’re partnering to offer listeners a 15% discount on the Carly system when you purchase one and use the discount code TWA 15.

Learn More

Visit Carly Online at https://www.mycarly.com/

Use the Throwin’ Wrenches Discount Code to Save 15%: TWA15

Projects

Eric

Eric took another cross-country trip from Arizona to Illinois… he tent camped in the snow and got cold…  and he somehow recovered. There’s a lot more to it than that, but let’s just say he likely won’t be breaking Steve Brown’s Transcontinental Record anytime soon.  

He also can tell you where the only ATM in Tulsa, Oklahoma is. Trust us, you’ll want to listen to his latest adventure in this episode. 

Daryl

Somehow,  Daryl lit a fire under himself and ordered up some stainless pre-bent brake and fuel lines for the ‘58 Plymouth project car he’s kinda-but-not-really working on. He’ll literally have no excuse for not starting in on it when the weather gets nice.

Race Daily Kill

After a brief hiatus, Race/Daily/Kill is back! Since it’s nearly convertible season, we’re going across the pond for a little British (Roadster) Invasion. We have three spring yellow drop-top choices for this installment of the contest where the winners may still be losers.

Yeah, baby. 

The Choices

1962-1980 Triumph Spitfire	1962-1980  MG MGB	1958-1971 Austin-Healey Sprite
Specifications 1962-66: 1147cc 4 cyl – 63hp  1967-70: 1296cc 4 cyl – 67hp 1971-80: 1493cc 4 cyl – 75hp 4 speed manual	Specifications 1962-1980: 1798cc 4 cyl – 95 hp 4 speed manual	Specifications 1958-1966: 948cc 4 cyl – 46 hp 1966-71: 1,098cc 4 cyl – 96 hp 4 speed manual
Original MSRP  $2,155	Original MSRP  $2,607	Original MSRP $1,795

The Verdicts

Eric: Race the MGB, Daily the Sprite and Kill the Triumph. 

Daryl: I actually do fit (barely) in a Sprite, but I’d have to kill it since it’s comically cute. Therefore, I’d daily the Triumph with it’s smaller motor since gas prices are on the rise. I’d Race the MGB since it’s the performer of the bunch.

Moment of Musk

Trouble in Paradise!

The Chinese military has banned Tesla cars from entering its complexes, citing security concerns over cameras installed on the vehicles, two people who have seen notices of the directive told Reuters. The move is the latest sign of China’s growing scrutiny of the U.S. electric carmaker amid tensions with Washington.18 hours ago

Elon Responds…

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