Sold my Tahoe Saturday.

[olliebear]

Just took it to Carmax and got rid of it for $2,700. 272,000 miles, two engines, original tranny, rebuilt A/C, and too many trips to the dealer to count.

Now, thanks to The Josh and Chunderboy, I've ordered a Westin Safari bar, no skid plate, and a pair of PIAA 580. All my cars excetp for my very first car, a VW Rabbit, and a Volvo, had driving lights. Wife-zilla and I go off to explore the Great Southwest, mining towns, old ghost towns, Indian trails like the Mojave Trail, etc., and it gets really really dark. Really really dark so a pair of veyr bright driving lights is a must.

Waiting for the bar and lights to come in this week for installation.

Then I am going to buy a new computer for home. Something that won't go obsolete in two years......saw this HP 7170 with some whiz bang Pentium 830 or something double core hyper threading supercharged, shift on the fly, whoopdeedoo technology with 250 gigs memory and 1 gig SSDRAM or some supercalafragilisticexpealadocious crap like that.

Sorry. I am missing that Asian computer gene.

 

[Solice]

I'm also getting ready to order the Westin Safari Bar for the Runner. Let me know how bright and how much you like the PIAA 580's. I want a set of lights that are REALLY bright. I don't plan on using them for road use at all. Most of the trails I ride get completely pitch black at night so I want some big time bright lights.

 

[olliebear]

The 580s are supposed to be the brightest.

their 85 watt bulbs are supposed to produce the equivalent of 135 watt output. The 520s are rated for 55 watt for 85 watt output(?).

High beams are designed to throw light around the vehicle so it has a pretty wide arc spread. Driving lights focuses the beam forward to about a 25 degree spread so it reaches much farhter down. Pencil lights are narrower still at about 5 degree spread.

As in all my other cars, I will have it wired to the high beam relay so while I'm not supposed to use them on road as it exceeds 55 watts, it will not be used except when I need high beams anyway.

I had Hella 500 on the Tahoe and it came with the H3 55 watt bulbs. After going through parts of Arizona highways so far out there were no road lights, no reflectors, no paint stripes to delineate the edge of the road, no city lights to reflect back onto the road, and no moon to even see where the raod was going, I found that the 55 watt lights + high beasm were not enough so I replaced the bulbs with PIAA H3 110 watt bulbs. Big difference.

You can't beat the Hellas for the rpice. ABout $80 for a pair of 500 or 550s. I've had two cars with them and they work jsut fine. PIAAs are the premium line and they cost..the 580s are $299 a pair. But I figure, Mr. Tahoe would have wanted me to have some bling bling lights and since I got some money from the sale, I'll treat myself even though I think PIAAs are just overpriced yuppie lights for snotty Asian drivers in Southern Cal.--in fact PIAAs are so popular in Southern Cal people steal the light covers and rock grills to use on their Pep Boys specials--just to say "PIAA" on them. PIAA also sells their security locking nuts to prevent theft of their lights......

I'll post a report once I get the bar and lights installed. I'll also check to see if the front rock grills interfere with the lighting. I had tried to see the difference in the store after work yesterday, turned the lights on with and without the rock grills. DId not see any differnece while in the store. But time will tell.

 

[Bill42]

Now Ollie, "snotty asian drivers". LOL, I have yet to even meet a snotty asian!

I think your comments are part of your overall fascination with the asian culture. Let us see. You drive a Japanese vehicle and you call your wife, "wifezilla" - in honor no doubt of that heroic Japanese movie star...

 

[sharp4runr]

Ollie - Here is the cheapest that I've found the Westin Safari Grill: http://truckaccessorydepot.com/ecomm/product_info.php/products_id/1116

I also have the Hella 500s so now you have me looking for the higher output PIAA bulbs

 

[olliebear]

I am so fascinated with Asian culture...

Now Ollie, "snotty asian drivers". LOL, I have yet to even meet a snotty asian!

I think your comments are part of your overall fascination with the asian culture. Let us see. You drive a Japanese vehicle and you call your wife, "wifezilla" - in honor no doubt of that heroic Japanese movie star...

I decided to be born Chinese! LOL hahaahahahahaha.

I was at Boomtown Casino near Reno and going through the buffet line. They were having Asian Night and this clueless but chipper cashier chirped"Welcome, are you ready for Asian Night?" I told her in my best deadpan, "I'm so ready I even look like one." That went over her little head.

SInce you're in So. Cal....have you notice that Asians are extremely fashion and status conscious folks around? Notice all those BMW and Lexus and Benz's in the strip malls? Chong Hing Jewelers in San Gabriel has the largest selection of watches east of Rodeo Drive? Rolexes? dime a dozen...how about Ulysses Nardin, Patek Philipe? the stinking town of El Monte has Longo Lexus, Penske Jaguar, Penske Mercedes, all with more than half their salesman speaking Chinese in 4 dialects. They ain't selling to the local Hispanic population.

Anyway, I digress.

My bars and PIAAs are in and scheduled for install next Tuesday...