car sabotage [was: futomo oil drain valve]

[Ken]

[This post doesn't have much of a point.  Read if you're bored.]

Funny you should mention sabotage.  I washed my Coupe GT the other day, and while I was fingering the spokes of the stock wheels cleaning the crud out, I was thinking about brake rotors.  It's an '86, so I was cleaning the front wheels at the time. :-)

I saw some opinions recently that one should never turn rotors, and if they warp they should be replaced.  I disagree, but I understand the argument (reduced mass, less efficiency).

Anyways, I was thinking about the wavey rings that sometimes rotors get.  Not really scoring per se, but just concentric rings consisting of low and high areas.  I wondered what caused them, since they don't always seem to happen.

I thought maybe it was caused by some contaminants on those high areas(?).  Then I thought about how exposed the brakes are.  If someone wanted to wipe some grease or something on the rotor through the wheel spokes, it might ruin the pads and would surely be bad for braking if it wasn't removed first.

I guess I just was thinking about how totally vulnerable the brakes are to outside contamination.  You could even squirt something in there, and it would be easier than cutting a brake line.  No puddle either.

So, we have gas tank tampering, oil draining, and brake contaminating.

Then there's the "banana in the tailpipe". :-P

My Audi's find their own way to sabotage themselves, without human intervention. (MAC)

Later,

Ken

Brett Dikeman brett at cloud9.net
<snip>
>
> The only concern I've ever had with the valve, since I often had to
> think a lot about computer security and such, was that it made it
> very easy for someone to stroll up to the car and ruin my day.
>
> Regardless of the fact that a)it would probably never happen, b)I
> would probably notice the large puddle and c)the oil pressure
> gauge+idiot light would warn me if I didn't...it would present a
> -major- logistical, and ecological, problem.
>
> I think I might "fix" that problem by drilling a small hole in the
> lever and using metal wire somehow to secure it enough to keep the
> Casual Moron from frobbing with it.