what is better to own, a ford f-150 or a toyota tacoma?

Question 1
what is better to own, a ford f-150 or a toyota tacoma?...  

Answers
1)   ford - ken k

2)   ford if you sell it in the next 3 years after that you on the bill - notsodotcalm

3)   Toyota. Toyota reliability surpasses any other truck on the road. Smaller, but the toyota quality engineering is there. The most common problem on american trucks is the tranny breaks down after 7 years. Seen in it every ford truck suv owner I know.
My dads 87 toyota 4runner has over 220000 miles, never rebuilt engine or tranny, never replaced engine or tranny, never changed tranny fluid. Regular maintenance they will push over 300000 miles, if taken care of don't be surprised to see 400000 coming up in odometer. - Rabbit

4)   Ford is not in the same league as Toyota. The Japanese autos are all better products than any American one and that is the sad truth. I will never buy an American brand again not even to help the economy like we all have been led to do. Time to spend your money wisely. - roblotjr31

5)   two different class of trucks,

but i prefer toyota. - Jeff

6)   Ford: their trucks don't get recalled for rusting out. - Ryan M

7)   Toyota, their trucks don't get recalled for their engines catching on fire. - Jake the Mariner


___________________________________________________

Question 2
What kind oil should I use in my 2009 Toyota Corolla?...  10w30? 10w40? 10w50?

I live in Southern California, and drive about 10,000 miles a year. It has 12,000 miles on it. Also, would it be good to use 100% synthetic in my car?

Answers
1)   I'm a synthetic fan so I'd say yes! I use it in 2 of 3 vehicles and always have/always will.
Trouble free engines. Once you switch it over, its not a good idea to switch back later so make sure!

Go with what Toyota specifies in the owners manual for viscosity. - Dv8oR

2)   5W30.Most of those small Japanese engines either take 5W30 or 5W20.10W30 is too heavy.10W30 isn't even used much in new American cars.
and yes you can switch back from synthetic because most oils of today are a synthetic blend.It's actually cheaper for the oil companies and better for the environment. - Kylie

3)   hi i am guessing you have a zre152 corolla if so toyota use15w40 VVTI oil this is the correct grade to operate the vvti without having any problems later in the cars life like the vvti system sezing up and not working this in turn will have a increase in fuel usage and loss of power you could use 10w40 synthetic but i would stiil change the oil at 10 thousand miles max if you bo mostly long trips - mal c

4)   5W30 or 10W30 is fine. Besides, the manufacturer recommends 5W30 but the deler will tell you that 10W30 is okay too. Do you change your oil every 3,000 miles? If so, spending the extra money on synthetic won't make any difference on your car unless you drive it hard. IMO, the only reasons to use synthetic are if you drive your car hard or you go a long time between oil changes. 100% synthetic is good but it's not necessary. - Terrence B

5)   10W 30 - Snafu Bohica

6)   Mobil One synthetic. - yahoo


___________________________________________________

Question 3
Front Mount Intercooler Query?...  HI,

I'm quite new to this forum, I've noticed that there's plenty of expertise on the shelf from other members which is great to find!

However, I'm just looking for some good advice at the minute, I recently ordered a FMIC and upon receiving it, the instructions of installation were vague to say the least. They were just pictures of an already installed FMIC completely different to the one I had ordered. v annoying

I'm also sort of a newbie when it comes to DIY, but I have the tools, the time and space to attemt this job myself, I just wanted to check if my theory of installation is correct. It is a Celica GT4 ST205, the front bumper is off and the FMIC is 2-sided (both pipes enter/exit from either side of the unit.)


1. Remove a/c radiator
2. Remove charge cooler
3. Measure up the FMIC to see if any angle grinding is needed. (Doesn't look like it will at the minute)
4. Connect relevant pipe-work between relevant ports. (re-circ valve has been replaced with dump valve, so shouldn't be many dramas there)
5. Test and replace front bumper

Surely it can't be as easy as that. I've noticed I may need a breather filter for the oil catch tank and also the windscreen washer bottle might cause some upset with spacing for the pipework.

If anyone has done this job before, please please supply some helpful hints and as much detail as poss.
I would be hugely grateful.

Thank You
Pete

Answers
1)   You should not be installing an intercooler unless you have installed a turbocharger or a supercharger. They do absolutely no good on a normally aspirated engine.

An intercooler will NOT cool the air any cooler than the ambient outside air temperature. Your stock air intake draws its air from an opening in the radiator core support. This air is already at ambient outside air temperature.

Intercoolers help only with turbocharged or supercharged engines. This is because the process of compressing the intake air causes it to heat. An intercooler brings the compressed intake air back down to a reasonable temperature.

On a normally aspirated engine the intake air is not compressed an any way, therefore it would not heat up. - Mad Jack

2)   Mad Jack, the GT4 Celica was a limited edition AWD Turbocharged model, an amazing car.

For the question, this is some pretty specific stuff you're looking for, I'd head over to a GT4 specific forum if I were you. - Richard R

3)   the only thing that scares me on your description of installation would be the removal of the A/C radiator as you put it. you would need to evacuate the A/C system to remove the evaporator coil,/ radiator, and somehow I get the feeling you don't have the tools to do so. might want to just move it out of the way without disconnecting it, as far as everything else goes it's pretty cut and dry, just make sure it fits and is secure. - 1 Finger Willy

4)   Hi,
Two points I would like to raise...

Remove a/c radiator... Well, the a/c radiator is there to LOSE heat from the air-con system - clear? You want COLD air, so you run a fridge-motor (consuming power, and creating waste HEAT) and then you have to dump the heat out of the radiator... For reasons of space, and to try to get airflow to it, this is mounted up-front, behind the bumper. Right by the DAMMIT, already HOT engine radiator, AND right by your intercooler!
Doesn't it stand to reason that if you try to lose heat from that a/c rad, it has every chance of warming-up your intercooler (essentially an air-to-air radiator) and thereby costing you power!

Point two - remove charge-cooler. Dude, charge-cooler is another word for "inter-cooler". If your car already HAS an intercooler, you want to carefully consider that Toyota might have a clue what they are doing. If you want to fit a bigger one, make sure you do a good job with mounting, hoses, and location. If it was MY car, and I was looking for more power, with reliability, I know what my two actions would be...

1 Remove the air-con system. These are Hella-heavy, and consume engine power when in use if they have a clutch-system to them, or they consume it all the time if they don't! Who needs it? Le-Mans24 hr cars manage without it. So do many purist cars from very serious makers, such as Ferrari, Porsche and Maclaren. For track-day cars, it's just dead-weight. Weight costs power, time, braking and fuel.

2 To get more power from a forced-induction engine, and to allow more boost to be used SAFELY, you want to fit a WMI-system. Water-Methanol Injection, (a 1:1 mixture) is sprayed into the feed-pipe from the intercooler to the inlet plenum. It delays the instant at which the atomised petrol from the injector ignites, preventing "pinking" which will seriously damage your engine in short time. Expect lower running-temperatures, more power, more torque, less wear from heat damage, and better economy, as you use less power more often. It really is the best thing to give your engine.
There is much about it online, go find. Try the American site, ebay.com for the kits sold on there. The pound is strong against the dollar now, a good time to buy.

Good luck! - Please punctuate properly folks.

5)   Just to clear a few things up ive had a 5th and 6th gen GT-four both of which had front mounted intercoolers and had the A/C taken out. Also had an MR2 turbo, with the A/C literally ripped out.
The 5th Gen GT-four had an uprated intercooler and sat under then main vent (kinda over the engine)

I hope this helps, and if its anything like my 5th gen goodluck fitting your dump valve lol

But dont worry about A/C i never had no problems with it being taken out, was just a pain when it was hot! - Kelly


___________________________________________________

Question 4
will a 1994 toyota corolla with 290,000 miles make it from oakland to los angeles?...  
i changed the starter 3 weeks ago and the terminal on da batteries 1 week ago

Answers
1)   why not?? - ken k

2)   depends on how hard its been driven - William

3)   Mileage alone is not enough to be based on if a car can make it to long distance driving. - AL M

4)   Yes...on a flat bed tow truck. - Theneelster

5)   Yes. If it runs well and been cared for, you will be able to do it easily. - Terrence B


___________________________________________________

Question 5
What is the best mid size sedan under $20,000.?...  

Answers
1)   A used one. Make sure you have it checked out to make sure its in good shape. - emiller1998

2)   Toyota Corollas are excellent cars, and so are the Camrys, ect. But Subaru Legacys are really good and known for reliability as well as the Toyota Corollas. They last forever as long as you keep up maintenance & remember, always change the oil!!! Good luck! - TeXaS2CaMpEcHe

3)   A slightly used Camry is your best bet. - jvclassic

4)   toyota r for girls
u need to get a HONDA accord SE is under 20Gs
or Hyndai sonata - kool2shade

5)   Toyota Camry. - yahoo


___________________________________________________