RichC | August 10, 2007
After skating around on the wet pavement yesterday, I called a local Goodyear tire store where I’ve purchase several sets of tires over the years and worked a deal for 8 tires. My daughter heads back to Med school and the last thing I want is for her to slipping around in NE Ohio this […]
RichC | July 2, 2007
A bit of immaturity to start off the month of July and the lazy couple of days preceding the 4th of July Wednesday holiday. (Its really a week I should have scheduled a vacation, but then again about half of America will probably be doing that?) Remember the television series the A-Team? Here’s a little […]
RichC | June 26, 2007
No big deal … but this weekend’s graduation trip took me to western New York in my little diesel Volkswagen and my TDI turned the odometer over to the sixth digit … 100,000 miles. As far as modern cars go, the 2003 Volkswagen Jetta TDI has treated me very well. It has operated pretty much […]
RichC | June 19, 2007
My wife has admired the Volkswagen EOS ‘retractable hardtop’ convertible ever since it appeared in 2006. She is attracted to it first because it is a convertible, second because its not a soft-top convertible and third because it drives like a sporty VW (we did test drive an EOS with the DSG and turbo 2.0L, […]
RichC | May 8, 2007
The Green Car Congress posted that the new Volkswagen Jetta Sportwagen that has been displayed at autoshows (see previous post) will also be heading to the US with a diesel option … eventually. The wagon model of the New Jetta is anticipated by VW TDI buyers who find the added versatility and cargo carrying capability […]
RichC | March 26, 2007
Volkswagens are often considered a ‘driver’s car,’ a vehicle that most car buyers can afford, unlike many European cars imported to the U.S. The engineering built into these vehicles is exceptional although they are not without their small quirks. Many go unnoticed until well into ownership or only when a problem occurs. One such quirk, […]
RichC | March 7, 2007
Oh-la-la — gimme this in a diesel and I won’t even ask for 4-motion! I spotted these photos on the Cars.com blog from the Geneva Auto show and thought a couple readers would like to navigate over for more. I like it even though the folks at Cars.com commented that “the front and profile seem […]
RichC | March 4, 2007
Hey that’s my car! DieselBlog is featuring rotating headers on their website and has a photo of my Volkswagen Jetta TDI filling up at the Mt. Gilead Ohio biodiesel pumps! 😀 The site is a very informative site which includes updates on news relating to diesel vehicles and the technology which is making them superior […]
RichC | February 10, 2007
Martin Winterkorn, former head of Volkwagen Audi division who is now CEO of Volkswagen AG, proposed the “design and development of a new, very small, model below the Fox.” He described the car as an affordable everyday car that would be attractive and aimed at markets worldwide. Winterkorn commented that unlike DaimlerChrysler’s Smart, the new […]
RichC | December 26, 2006
Christmas has been hectic as usual around our house. We’ve been entertaining and enjoying the festivities including time with our extended families. (which isn’t going to end until after the New Year!) This year was special for my son as you might have noticed above; Santa brought him a ‘car’ … I’m not sure how […]
RichC | December 20, 2006
I finally pulled some 3 month old VW TDI “How-To” footage off the camera and encoded it last night before going to bed. I haven’t had a chance to put fresh eyes on it or even watch it through, so before I post it to the CinciTDI video section, perhaps a couple Volkswagen TDI oriented […]
RichC | October 27, 2006
While watching the end of game 4 of the World Series (9th inning), I noticed that there is a new Volkswagen sales campaign call V-DubsRock. The marketing approach is reminiscent of the “buy a car, get a bike” gimmick, but this time it is an FirstAct electric guitar. Nevertheless since the commercial has high-speed motion […]
RichC | October 5, 2006
It was a sad day for my daughter and her 2001 VW Jetta TDI after an Audi bumped into her door in a parking garage. Needless to say she was not happy and neither was the Audi driver; the door of the Volkswagen was no match for the Audi’s bumper. While stopping to see her […]
RichC | August 1, 2006
Here’s an update on Maurice O’Reilly’s high speed record attempts with a Volkwagen Jetta 1.9 liter TDI diesel. On Saturday and Sunday (July 29 & 30th) he set four records at Goudies Road in Rerewhakaitu New Zealand according to reports. The previous diesel record for this run was topped by 40km/h and is now Mr. […]
RichC | July 21, 2006
Correction: On September July 29th New Zealand’s car owner and driver Maurice O’Reilly is going to attempt to show just what is possible with a diesel tuned for perfomance. He will attempt to break a speed record for a 1.9 liter turbocharged diesel in a 2001 Volkwagen Jetta TDI. The car is coupled to a […]
RichC | May 27, 2006
This is going to be a very quick Saturday morning update as the ‘honey-do list’ takes priority today. I’ve had a chance to run the battery down in the Palm Treo 700p yesterday after coming home with my new ‘toy.’ (yes I suffer from “gadget addiction”) The photo above is from the new and improved […]
RichC | April 24, 2006
I spotted a Volkswagen Jetta advertisement that reminds me of the Volvo ads … stressing safety.An accident can happen at anytime and that selecting a car that is light and fuel efficient might not always be the wisest choice. Realizing just how much I spend on insurance “just in case” … perhaps a few dollars […]
RichC | April 23, 2006
Mark Groves had another great VW TDI GTG on Saturday. The central location just 30 minutes from Columbus, the great weather and the many helping hands of experienced owners helped to make this “Spring Dust Off” an enjoyable event. Mark and his wife’s hospitality was appreciated by all; what a great host. (too many things […]
RichC | April 8, 2006
John Neff and Chris Paukert talked at length today on their podcast about a 2003 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (diesel) vegetable oil conversion. (See Autoblog Podcast) John met with the owners in Lorain Ohio and spent some time checking out their vehicle. The two brothers, Chuck and Tom Norton, had their car converted to run on […]
RichC | March 21, 2006
Volkswagen is one of those companies that seems to get a tad ‘edgy’ in it advertising campaigns. From the “Vee-Dub” and “German Engineering, ya-man” ads mentioned a couple weeks ago, to the latest Hispanic targeting ads featuring the cartoon mouse ‘Speedy Gonzalez.’ I posted a comment a week or so ago on the CinciTDI group […]
RichC | March 17, 2006
I took advantage of warm oil after a long drive tonight to do an oil extraction (change) in my Volkswagen Jetta TDI tonight. I thought I would included a photo of a couple of appropriate filters with the plastic oil dam inside since I happened to have both the OEM VW brand (from the dealership) […]
RichC | March 16, 2006
A fellow Volkwagen TDI driver emailed me a question about my fuel mileage, and in particular if I “noticed a change in MPG when I switched to the Sprint 520s? What about smoke?” He’s talking about the fuel injectors that I originally put in my Volkswagen Jetta TDI to increase performance. I answered basically “No” […]
RichC | March 1, 2006
For those of us interested in diesel powered small cars, we enjoy the exposure the RallyVW team gives to not only to our Volkswagen TDIs, but biodiesel as well. The 2006 Rally-America season is preparing for the third race of the season as the end of February marks a finish to the 100 Acre Wood […]
RichC | February 23, 2006
No, the new diesel SUVs are not here yet … even if you can cost justify them. I’ve been monitoring the diesel options soon to be available from the likes of Mercedes (Alabama build SUV GL-class above), BMW and Audi as they have all commented that more diesels will be available in the United States […]
RichC | January 17, 2006
Don’t you just love that new car smell??? Well from the looks of it, Dick Gilpin’s best friend loves it too … let’s just hope the keys aren’t in it! I know Dick’s been waiting a long time for his new car to arrive and from the looks of it … its a beauty. He […]
RichC | October 15, 2005
October 14, 2005 was the day the US Department of Energy’s Clean Cities Program and the 80+ community-based coalitions celebrated the displacing of one billion gallons of petroleum across the nation. Kim Lahman (photo right), Tri-State Clean Fuel Network’s Coordinator, organized the local Cincinnati area event with many key participates at Cincinnati’s Ault Park. (what […]
RichC | October 7, 2005
The excitement in SW Ohio is already starting for the Cincinnati Bengal faithful. After a stellar 4-0 start the fans are anticipating great things from this confident group of players. A huge credit has to go to the outstanding performance of the defense; they have never had an offensive killing defense capable of generating turnovers […]
RichC | May 1, 2005
I spent Saturday, April 30 at with a bunch of TDI owners at Jon Hamilton’s tuning session, driver for team rallyvw.com. The event was scheduled as a fundraiser for the race team around chip tunning by Jeff (Rocketchip) and injector nozzles from Charlie (KermaTDI). It was a busy day as there were 9 sets of […]
RichC | April 29, 2005
Since my digital Canon S50 comes with a limited ‘video’ mode I thought I would try it out and include a short video clip without audio below. What is noticable is that the trunk opens slowly when one triggers the trunk release and that the capacity is huge. Over 16 cu. ft. which is larger […]
RichC | April 28, 2005
I had a chance to test drive a new 2005 Volkswagen Black on Black Jetta V TDI today. This was the first opportunity to see the new reskinned TDI Jetta and I was very impressed. This new Jetta is not just sporting a new skin; its most definitely a totally new car with a bunch […]