My Field Trip In Seatch of the McBarge & VM Autohaus!
It's been two days now since filling my TDI with B20 Biodiesel. Everything including my normal fuel mileage seems to be in order. I've noticed no hesitations or power loss as many have claimed when running higher percentages of biodiesel.
I decided to take the opportunity of a bright sunny lunch break from the hospital to scoot out to VM Autohaus in Burnaby. I remembered sighting the MacDonalds McBarge 3-4 years ago anchored along the shorelines of the Barnet Inlet. I decided to take a few minutes and veered off course to look for some sort of road that would allow me to get up and personal it. I ended up spending 30-45 minutes weaving in and out of different streets near Holdom and Hastings Street and found a trail that appeared to lead towards the shoreline.
After parking the car, I grabbed my digital camera with high glee and ventured down the path. Unforuntately the path did not take me down to the shoreline, but I managed to get some semi-clear spyshots! It was a great feeling to see the McBarge again despite it's lack of regular maintenance while in storage.
Here is a brief history lesson for those who are too young to remember. During the World Exposition of 1986 in Vancouver, McDonalds built a restaurant on a barge and had it moored to a dock. It was a very popular attraction because of the floating restaurant concept.
I was forutnate that my family had an unlimited pass to the World's Fair and would make weekly visits.We visited the McBarge during each visit as a result of my annoying begging and arm bending towards my parents. Following the closing of Expo 86, the McBarge was towed away by tugboats to an unknown destination.
After spending a few minutes admiring the old restaurant, I returned to my car to continue my trek to VM Autohaus for some auto parts.
When I arrived, I was greeted by the regular sales-counter guy (Chris) who was cheerful as usual. I've recently become a regular to VM Autohaus for parts due to their honest pricing, great customer service, and their helpful sharing of knowledge regarding maintenance tips. We chatted briefly about VW gossip and I left very contently with a small box containing some OEM VW Automatic Transmission Fluid, a OEM Pollen/Dust Filter, and a new Bosche Fuel Filter.
The total damage: $100 CAN for all the items compared to the quoted $360+ CAN from the local dealership for the same parts plus labour.
After coming home from work, I'm now waiting the arrival of some fellow VW enthusiasts as we are doing yet another suspension installation in my garage. As many of you may have thought, my home has turned into the communal garage. It's just a little payback for the times people have lent me the use of their garage when I didn't have one.
My new weekend plan: Do my 60,000 km maintenance tune up!
I decided to take the opportunity of a bright sunny lunch break from the hospital to scoot out to VM Autohaus in Burnaby. I remembered sighting the MacDonalds McBarge 3-4 years ago anchored along the shorelines of the Barnet Inlet. I decided to take a few minutes and veered off course to look for some sort of road that would allow me to get up and personal it. I ended up spending 30-45 minutes weaving in and out of different streets near Holdom and Hastings Street and found a trail that appeared to lead towards the shoreline.
After parking the car, I grabbed my digital camera with high glee and ventured down the path. Unforuntately the path did not take me down to the shoreline, but I managed to get some semi-clear spyshots! It was a great feeling to see the McBarge again despite it's lack of regular maintenance while in storage.
Here is a brief history lesson for those who are too young to remember. During the World Exposition of 1986 in Vancouver, McDonalds built a restaurant on a barge and had it moored to a dock. It was a very popular attraction because of the floating restaurant concept.
I was forutnate that my family had an unlimited pass to the World's Fair and would make weekly visits.We visited the McBarge during each visit as a result of my annoying begging and arm bending towards my parents. Following the closing of Expo 86, the McBarge was towed away by tugboats to an unknown destination.
After spending a few minutes admiring the old restaurant, I returned to my car to continue my trek to VM Autohaus for some auto parts.
When I arrived, I was greeted by the regular sales-counter guy (Chris) who was cheerful as usual. I've recently become a regular to VM Autohaus for parts due to their honest pricing, great customer service, and their helpful sharing of knowledge regarding maintenance tips. We chatted briefly about VW gossip and I left very contently with a small box containing some OEM VW Automatic Transmission Fluid, a OEM Pollen/Dust Filter, and a new Bosche Fuel Filter.
The total damage: $100 CAN for all the items compared to the quoted $360+ CAN from the local dealership for the same parts plus labour.
After coming home from work, I'm now waiting the arrival of some fellow VW enthusiasts as we are doing yet another suspension installation in my garage. As many of you may have thought, my home has turned into the communal garage. It's just a little payback for the times people have lent me the use of their garage when I didn't have one.
My new weekend plan: Do my 60,000 km maintenance tune up!
posted by Golf CL at 4:46 PM
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