I paid to have the TDC crank sensor replaced on the Jeep recently. I guess I should pay more attention to these things- I had no freakin’ idea this sensor existed. Just clueless. Evidently this is a weak link in the design of the Cherokee. I’m glad it didn’t fail when I was 4 wheelin’ recently. Crikey! Extracting that thing from near timberline would’ve been a minor ordeal.
Today’s automotive adventure is to go to the Nissan dealer so I can have a bloody key made. Turns out that there is more to the modern ignition key than just bumps on a metal tab. These keys contain a transponder chip that is somehow interrogated for the proper code by RF. It immobilizes the car if the proper key is not present.
It is a nothing more than a way to increase the cash flow to dealers over the life of the car. No doubt it is just a bone Nissan threw to its dealer corps. I’d like to throw something at all of them …
Lamentations on Chemistry 
I’d tell you not to buy a Nissan, but it appears to be too late. They suffer from non-stop recalls and the transmissions always seem to have problems. Why this is so, is a great mystery to me.
Still, the Altima is fun to drive and a killer in bad weather.
“It is a nothing more than a way to increase the cash flow to dealers over the life of the car.”
I’ve always thought that was the purpose of the “Check Engine Light”, with the service reminders lights a close second.
It is. I have paid to have that light shut off as well.
Volkswagen: Crappy dealer tires, battery dies 10 minutes after the warranty, the muffler will burn through. VW is entirely clueless about a working gas tank gauge, perhaps presaged by the original Bug that did not have one. Refit with Michelins, a Die Hard, and a decent muffler as necessary and desirable. The odometer is your gas gauge. Prestone and distilled water for the radiator (no propylene glycol goes near your coolant), Mobil 1 for the crankcase. NEVER a VW brand oil filter. With modest preventative maintenance you are good for 250K miles.