[aporigine]

Mazda wanting out of the truck business ... while i don't know, it does make sense. With their "zoom zoom" slogan and such sporty but not super thrifty vehicle line (RX8, Mazdaspeed3) it would seem that the trucks go to business partner Ford. The current rangers all have the V6, so my "F-nothing-50" is a classic in the making ... (big grin)

News!! The Michelin LTXs came in the mail! I had them mounted yesterday for (touches pinky to lip) EIGHTY dollars. Skilled labor is a premium commodity here in Rednekistan, methinks. The new tires are amazingly unbelievably grippier than my old Firestones, and on a small hill near here where I always had to brake before the tight uurn at the bottom, I sailed right through at speed without any distress from the tires. Previously I'd go sideways, and not in the fun way.
The tires feel somewhat gooey though, and their max pressure per sidewall is only 35 psi. I am anticipating a drop in mileage.
It's coming time to change my oil and tranny lube. I am thinking Amsoil. i am a big fan of Redline oils ... like the chemistry, and that brand always served well in my motorcycles. From some online poking around I gather that Amsoil is about as good, and they both share a good base formula, poly-alpha-olefin (PAO) plus some ester. Redline prides itself on the ester base stock, but I have had no success in determining how much ester they use, and whether it's a diester e.g. dialkyl sebacate, or a polyol ester, e.g. the compound of a short fatty acid with dipentaerythritol. (I care because I'm a retired chemist. I don't pretend to know the tribology of these molecules...) On a Ford Ranger forum i found recommendations for using a 0W-20 oil in place of the specified 5W-20. I'd reach for Amsoil's premium formula ... they have three tiers of base quality and price, but their best still would cost me less than Redline. Also the std. fluid for the transmission - I have the manual M5OD unit - is, get this, Mercon ATF. Huh? The Amsoil page lists two kinds of ATF ... "regular" and "fuel efficient". Will the "fuel efficient" work for me without accelerating the already noticable wear of my synchros? Inquiring minds want to know ... amd so does mine! cheers apo