I have yet to take any pics, but last weekend I did quite a bit of stereo upgrading! It already had an after market Pioneer deck in it, but I saw an Alpine iDA-x305 on kijiji for $200 so I picked it up to work with my ipod.

I also picked up a small rockford fosgate punch 160w 4 channel amp for $40 to run my rear speakers to their potential, and I found 2 4" rockford speakers to replace to two in the front dash.

So, the deck is wired up well and works, I ran the power cord for the amp down the middle of the car beside the shifter, under the carpet, then under the back seat where it cuts to the driver (right for me) side, runs along the rear panel, up the very rear panel beside the rear door, and up into the rear storage panel. Unfortunately it was Sunday, and there was only one place I could find power wire, so its 1000w wire, overkill but whatever.

The deck came with a set of monster RCA's which I ran down the passenger (left) side of the vehicle along the carpet, up the panel by the rear door, above the rear window and again into the storage compartment.

SO, its all wired up so that my amp will sit in the rear storage compartment in the roof of the car. =D

Now, I hook up the amp (possibly wrong) and it would only run one speaker, after trial and error circuitry for 2 hours, I made a speaker produce smoke, and I called it quits. hahaha =(

So where I sit now: Nice deck working well, running two 30w rockford fosgate front speakers, and 1 pioneer 50w speaker in the very back, whose friend has been retired to the electronics recycler. My amp is at a local audio shop getting bench tested for $22, which will hopefully have some results for me Tuesday.

So, I got a great deal on the deck, and burned on the amp. BUT, the wires are run, so when I get the money together to finish this project its gonna be pretty neat! I'm not going to put a sub in, I'm just going to pick up a couple of high quality 6" speakers and run them off of a small amp. The rear storage compartment also has room for another set of 4" speakers that obviously came with the car, but were removed. So, if I find another nice set of 4" I will throw them in there too.

The ones I took from my dash were definitely factory speakers, and they said 10w on them. hahah

I'll take some pics soonish!

Good to see someone else getting into their All-Trac's audio system.  I've done very little, but plan on possibly running a sub, which I would make removable for those times I need the room.  I also thought about mounting the amp in that storage bin, but I'd prefer to place it somewhere else.   Was thinking under one of the front seats, though I worry about it being somewhat exposed to the elements.  I also thought about getting a 4" speaker component set, mounting the tweeters in the dash and the woofers in the rear roof.

Right now I have semi-crummy Pioneer 4" speakers in the front, a second set that I pulled from the rear (these 4 were all with the car when I bought it), and wires running out of the rear speaker holes (grilles are in a box right now, lol) and into my "store bought" 6x9 boxes with Kenwood 6x9s on their last leg.  It doesn't sound terrible, but I would like to have the setup replaced by year's end!   Just bought a house, so there are many other priorities for me right now...

These cars are a very tight fit. To pull that cable behind some of the panels without fully removing them was a tricky task, like I said though, its a much larger gauge wire than it needs to be for the system I plan to run.

I'll have some details by Wednesday/Thursday next week about which amp I'll have my hands on, then I think I might go with brand new speakers, dunno if finances will allow it but I'm gonna try!

So I got a little overzealous, and I think I blew one of those little Rockford 4" speakers that I just put in. The driver's side sounds pretty awful already, and it was nice and crisp when I put it in. Weird that it blew so fast, considering its a 30W RMS speaker, and supposedly this deck only puts out 18RMS, at any rate...I've made a new decision; The amp I bought is definitely fried, I had it tested today, So I'm gonna pick up an alpine amp for $80 on Kijiji to run 2 Alpine Type S 5.25" speakers when I can afford them. I'm also going to get 4 x Alpine Type S 4" speakers and a KTP-445 power pack that fits behind the deck and puts out 4x45w RMS.

So, the deck/power pack will run the 4" to their capacity, and the amp which will be mounted in the rear storage compartment will run the 2 speakers that will be mounted also in the storage compartment.

I want this girl to have some nice, loud, CRISP sound for my road trips this summer, and its nice to be able to leave your stereo on while you set up camp or get your kayaks geared up! =)
Also, when I decide to sell it, I'm guessing my target audience is going to be younger student-types, and a loud system even without a subwoofer will definitely make some punks ears perk up! haha

Sounds awesome! I am not that ambitious in stereo upgrading.  I finally upgraded my stereo in my A-T, but not to the same extend as you guys.  I'll post pics, but the flash on  my digital camera went out, so they are not coming out right. I need to get a new camera.

I know I haven't posted in a while, been really busy with school and my medical projects.  I had my "girl" garaged for nearly a month while I did other things. Just brought her out yesterday; she needs sunshine.

Wow a month with no driving, I wish! Its not possible for my lifestyle, and location unfortunately.

Stereo upgrade successful! I put in the KTP-445 and 4 x Alpine Type S 4" speakers that I got a great deal on. I can't believe how much better it sounds, its loud and crisp already, and I haven't mounted the amp or 5.25" speakers. Although I do *HAVE* an amp, so its inevitable now...even though seriously the 4" speakers are the best upgrade I've personally ever done to a sound system! If I didn't already invest time and money in wiring and running the wires for an amp, and buying an amp(s) I wouldn't even bother putting in the 2 5.25" speakers that I'm going to....anyway...because these are very loud and quite crisp highs and mids and theres even a little bass to them, enough to please my old ears.

The 10w paper speakers that came in this All Trac were AWFUL, although they weren't blown after 21yrs so I'll give it a high five for a factory speaker.

I found out that I didn't blow the new Rockford speaker, it just fell out of its mount....the screws were stripped. Replaced with 2 new screws with a wider thread pan and a much more coarse thread count, and I hope that holds! If not, it will be time to JB-weld some custom speaker mount pieces of plastic to screw to! hahah =P

All told I'm in a little deeper financially than I thought, especially because I bought 1 used amp that didn't work, and 1 used amp that is too big for my storage compartment, before finally finding a great amp at the right price, a used Alpine PDX-5. --- If anyone wants to buy a Rockford P4004 let me know, its heavy, but its a gorgeous amp chrome and everything! =D

http://s943.photobucket.com/albums/ad276/dylanbrig/RollaMar29-2010/May15-2010/

Duplicate link post, but, most of the new pics in that directory are for the stereo so there it is! - It doesn't show the iPod connection cable that sits in the glovebox, or can sit out of the glovebox with the glovebox closed! Worked great, if any of you add a deck with an iPod cable and don't know where to put it, glovebox is awesome! I had it coming out below the cupholders before, but it was always in the way and getting messy, so I moved it. Pics also don't show the 12v computer cooling fans that I mounted on the back of that deck, due to the fact it was over heating.

***Another TIP, when installing inspect how your stereo harness is held together. I bought myself many precious inches of space by taking off one of the vinyl cable bunchers that came from the factory. It was bunching 3 groups of wires together than ran in 3 different directions. For my needs, cutting it off and tucking the wires in various places was necessary, but not possible with the vinyl still on...So if you need the space, don't be scared to cut it GENTLY and make sure not to take the coating off any wires, obviously, just the vinyl! ***

Its been a really fun project, its nearing the end. I have the amp, waiting to afford the $200 for the back speakers, and contemplating a custom mount to point them forward a few degrees, but...we'll see how ambitious I get! My friend has an Alpine sub for $60, I MIGHT pick up, but ... thats deeper in this project than I want to get, and I have a feeling it would rattle everything in this car. I've never had a sub in a car though, only at home. =P

Looks like you're getting there!  Interesting to see the speakers you're mounting in the roof storage compartment area.  I guess that solves the problem of them only accepting 5" speakers!

I'm not sure yet what I want to do with upgrading my audio... I just know I want to!

Update I blew the KTP-445 Amp, I believe. Suddenly my deck would be on but no tunes would come out, or it would play for 30 seconds and then no music, but the deck stays on. I went like this for about 10 days because I was tired of taking my dash apart! However, last night I finally did, both front speakers were wired backwards (my friend and I are idiots). So I re-soldered those two speakers, unhooked the amp and everything played fine.

I'm currently running without the KTP-445, I returned it to Best Buy and got a couple 5.25" Alpine Type R's to run in those existing cutouts.
I'll take pics after I install those two speakers and the amp to run them. I will likely replace the KTP-445 but I'm gonna wait until its a more reasonable price, they are $175 here after tax, and my IDA-X305 runs the 4 x Type S 4" speakers fine for now. I'm considering a small sub if I find one in a box, used, for a decent price. =P

I'm running 4" polk speakers front and pioneer 4" rear with a rockford 12" sub and pyle 2200 amp. Its a cheap setup but it thumps pretty damn hard though the sub is no good for mid levels.. Only bumpin

all together with wiring and everything it was right around 200$ usd which isnt too bad imo

Where are you guys getting your speakers? I was looking around and could only find a handful of 4" speakers. Also, am I correct in reading that there are actually 6 speakers? two in the front, two in the rear, and two in the far back/cargo area?

My plan was just to pick up a 100W head unit (so 25Wx4) and use one of those slim mount speaker boxes designed for single cab trucks and such to put in some Pioneer 6x9's from walmart.

No theres only 4 in my wagon... 2 in the front dash, and 2 in the rear cargo compartment. Mine is modded so I actually have 4 in the cargo compartment.

You will not fit 6x9's in this car, if you do take pics because its a miracle. Unless your configuration is different from mine, or you're going to do some serious modifications. Putting a 6x9 speaker in a 4" spot is an enormous feat.

I got a couple speakers used, a couple new from Bestbuy and a couple new from Visions. I plan on trying some speaker spacers to fit a 5.25" Type R into the 4" factory spot in the cargo compartments.... I don't think its going to work, but I'll take pics if I do.

Quoted from dylangumby

No theres only 4 in my wagon... 2 in the front dash, and 2 in the rear cargo compartment. Mine is modded so I actually have 4 in the cargo compartment.

You will not fit 6x9's in this car, if you do take pics because its a miracle. Unless your configuration is different from mine, or you're going to do some serious modifications. Putting a 6x9 speaker in a 4" spot is an enormous feat.

I got a couple speakers used, a couple new from Bestbuy and a couple new from Visions. I plan on trying some speaker spacers to fit a 5.25" Type R into the 4" factory spot in the cargo compartments.... I don't think its going to work, but I'll take pics if I do.

Not sure you read what I said right. I may just skip the factory speaker locations and go with something similar to this: speaker enclosure or maybe something more like these

Or something a little lower profile. I don't need all the cargo space in the rear, and you can get better sound out of 6x9's, and the prices seem to work out pretty well.

Actually, I think I might pick up two pair of these: speakers. Under $30, shipped to my door for two pair. Can't really go wrong.

Ohhhhhh ok! Sorry, I was gonna say... some people mod factory speaker locations to fit bigger speakers (I'm thinking of doing it myself from 4 -> 5.25) but 4 -> 6x9 would be huge for this particular car based on the room they give you!

Now I understand though. I have a couple of 6x9 boxes and two Type R 6x9's I've been waiting to hook up to the amp, I just haven't had time to mount the boxes. They are going to mount on the "cargo divider" that sits behind the seat. Its got a great metal rib in it for fastening stuff to, so I'm going to mount the boxes to the rib, and make the speaker connections easy to disconnect, so if I need the room, I just take the cargo divider out with the speakers, unplug, go!

I'm like you though, usually I don't use the back, especially not in winter. I'm a raft/kayak/camping kinda guy.... Efffff the snow.

I've heard good things about Pyle actually, especially for the price. *ANYTHING* will sound better than the paper factory speakers that are in these things. Also, if you upgrade your head unit, you could easily blow the paper speakers. I think they are 15w RMS at best, and awful at producing low mids.

So do your cars come with speakers in the back doors?? Mine did not. Just the 4 mentioned.

Quoted from dylangumby

Ohhhhhh ok! Sorry, I was gonna say... some people mod factory speaker locations to fit bigger speakers (I'm thinking of doing it myself from 4 -> 5.25) but 4 -> 6x9 would be huge for this particular car based on the room they give you!

Now I understand though. I have a couple of 6x9 boxes and two Type R 6x9's I've been waiting to hook up to the amp, I just haven't had time to mount the boxes. They are going to mount on the "cargo divider" that sits behind the seat. Its got a great metal rib in it for fastening stuff to, so I'm going to mount the boxes to the rib, and make the speaker connections easy to disconnect, so if I need the room, I just take the cargo divider out with the speakers, unplug, go!

I'm like you though, usually I don't use the back, especially not in winter. I'm a raft/kayak/camping kinda guy.... Efffff the snow.

I've heard good things about Pyle actually, especially for the price. *ANYTHING* will sound better than the paper factory speakers that are in these things. Also, if you upgrade your head unit, you could easily blow the paper speakers. I think they are 15w RMS at best, and awful at producing low mids.

So do your cars come with speakers in the back doors?? Mine did not. Just the 4 mentioned.

There's already an aftermarket head unit in it. I'm not sure what the story with the speakers is, I haven't really looked to see what there is in it. I basically just want to pick up some speakers, and a head unit with aux in so I can use my phone as Satellite radio (Slacker+aux in = win).

EDIT: Just ordered the speakers, they'll be here before christmas. Which means they'll go in a few days after, probably.

The back ones are easy to get at and have a look whats in there, the front ones are definitely not. I have a right hand drive, the panel underneath the steering wheel has to come out for the right speaker, and the glove box has to come off for the left.

To access the stereo, you have to take apart the panel above the steering wheel, and the front trim around the heater etc. =\ Its a pain in the a** compared to most cars where the stereo just slides out! BUT, your stereo is also BOLTED into your car, so no one is taking it easily! haha

This stereo project seems to never end, and I should have heeded my friends warning "Once you start tinkering with your stereo, it will never, ever end." I thought he was crazy because I had a definite goal in mind of what parts I wanted in my car.... I was wrong! =P I'm going to try and move those 5.25" to the rear 4" spot using some spacers, that way they point forward. I also came across some 6x9 speaker boxes and Type R's to put in them, which I'm going to mount to the cargo cover in the back.

SO, lately I've been feeling that Tool, Metallica, and the Tragically Hip are missing a little bit of bass. One sub isn't cutting it, and my friend just made me an offer I can't refuse. Hes having a kid, so he is selling about $2000 worth of setup for $500, and of course I bit. I'm gonna pick the gear up on the 27th, it comes with a sub box for a 98 chev (hopefully resale that for $40-60) 2 10" Alpine Type R subs, a 1 farad capacitor, a deck (dunno the model number, hopefully also resale for $40-$60 to bring my costs back down) and an alpine PDX.1000 amp still under warranty (thats about $700 new on its own).

These subs are OVERKILL for this car and for what I want, but I'm just gonna keep them on low. The nice thing about subs is they're easy enough to take out of the car if I sell it, and will probably last me my next car as well.

This setup is gonna get interesting. I'm thinking rather than running a new power line to the back for that amp, I'm going to get a battery isolator, mount my current Optima Yellow Top somewhere in the back of the car, and get a new battery for the front. Possibly another yellow top.

This will likely keep me busy for the next couple months saving for parts, buying, installing, etc. Obviously there will be a whole bunch more pictures!

You could always go with a "death box" sub enclosure... those things are sick.  I'm planning on putting the 10" sub version in my wagon someday.  In fact I'm hoping to get the interior pulled apart next week so I can get the wiring set up ahead of time.  That is, if I can get my wagon running again...

I just googled that, seems interesting! Sealed enclosures definitely beat out the ported for my ears, and for most people who play rock music predominantly.

You'll get it running again! While you have things apart on that side of the car, if you're planning on running a large wire through the cabin of the car, depending on the gauge you might want to add another hole in the firewall. Something to keep in mind, I barely fit all the wires through that tiny pre-existing one that I used, and I wish I would have made a larger one and kept it flexible for future installs.

Hopefully I'll see a nice enclosure for these things on sale soon too!

http://www.decware.com/newsite/dbk10.htm

This is the one I was referencing.  A friend of mine has built a few, so I'm hoping to make one sometime... just need to buy the wood, woofer, amp, wiring, etc.  Will have to keep that in mind about the amp wiring, as I have thought about running a new hole somewhere.

Yeah and if you've got the cash, depending on the shape your ground wire is in, it wouldn't hurt to replace that if you're going to put in some big noise! =P

Found an Optima Yellowtop for $50 on Kijiji, supposedly pick it up the 29th! Sounds too good to be true! =D

It looks like its a bigger model than mine, so it might go in the back. I'll get it tested and see what they say!

http://s943.photobucket.com/albums/ad276/dylanbrig/Rolla/Jan01_2011/

I am officially done tinkering with the speakers! I got the 5.25" to fit in the 4" spot without having to modify anything permanent. I can put the black 4" holders back in if I want to. Its not PRETTY right now, but its actually not as bad as I thought it would be, and not as bad as the pictures make it out to be.

One future thing I may do: Hide the 6x9's and bolt them to the BOTTOM of those rear cargo dividers. However, that would involve cutting holes in them, and LOTS more custom wood/fibreglass/metal working than I care to do right now. The way it is now they point at me and really fill the car with music.

The front stage is a little under-represented, but with some forward lean in the stereo settings it balances OK. Theres ~45w x2 channels in the front, pointed at the ground unfortunately. Then theres ~100w per speaker in the back x 2 @ 5.25" and 2 @ 6x9" so 4. Then theres also the sub which is 300w right now, and will be boosted to about 500w (only going to run 1 of those Type R's I bought and sell the other if this works the way I think). The two 6x9's are easy to flip around and point out the back hatch if I'm camping. =D

So really, the only other thing I would change is more power to the front one day in the form of some components which would again require some custom fabrication that I'm not capable of and  can't afford right now. Ideally though 5.25-6" components made to fit in the front door kick panels, and tweet's in the front pillar or maybe dash.

Right now, I'm pretty happy with this stereo, and once I run one of those more powerful, cleaner subs on its own amp, it will be better.

I'm going to put the extra battery in the car, and put a "power station" in the back with a couple of DC outlets, and 2 AC outlets as well. The extra sub/amp will be removeable, but the battery will be a mostly permanent fixture if my plans go the way I plan.

I'm about to have some serious upgrades to share in a few days... putting in a death box hopefully this weekend!  My friend and I are wiring everything, which will be finished Saturday, then we're on to work on the audio for his Nissan truck and later his girlfriend's Civic coupe.

Nice, you won't be disappointed!

I like being able to drown out the road noise finally and only have my stereo at about half, it leaves room to turn it up for the good songs. Before I had to crank it to drown out the road noise, and the quality was awful!

I still haven't changed anything, too cold. I sold the Alpine PDX1.1000 and two Alpine Type R's, they would be way too much for me and take up too much space. I got my hands on a JL 500/1 and I'm going to get a nice, high quality audiophile grade subwoofer for that amp, and be done with it! Possibly a JL10w7 if I can afford it.

Let me tell you though, with those 4 speakers I have in the back now, and the 1 little Type S 300w subwoofer --- Tool sounds amaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing. =D

*************EDIT**************

I was T-boned today at a red light, I was in the hospital for about 9hrs, and even as I type this I'm pretty drugged up and very sore.

My car is kaput, all this work has officially been negated, a mere few days after it was completed. How nice 'eh? =\

Wow, that sucks big time.  Sorry for your wagon, and I hope you're feeling better.  Make the other driver buy you a new Carib Sprinter...

Yeah I think thats the plan, whatever money I get will be put towards a 92 with Anti-Lock Brakes and a sunroof! =D

I'm in rouuuuuuuuuuuuuugh shape for now though, couldn't drive if I tried, my right side is way too weak. The police said the guy went around a car stopped at a red light, ran the light, and nailed me. SO at least its not my fault. I don't remember any of it, or even leaving my house. =\

That sucks big time.   Good thing you made it through.  Sorry about the A-T getting hit.  It was one nice All-Trac.  Will they prosecute the offender who hit you? He should pay for your bills and totaled car.  

I think I remember the police saying that he was charged, but this was when I was in the hospital still pretty medicated. I've been sleeping all day, woke up about an hour ago (1am) and finally ate something. They said he went around a stopped car and ran the light, so I'm guessing he will be charged with "Failure to obey a traffic device" and "Dangerous driving causing bodily harm" is the wording here... I'll know more tomorrow when I take my copy of the police statement in; which is literally "I woke up to firemen cutting me out of my car, and the smell of vomit. I remember most of the events after that in detail, but I didn't fully come to realize what happened until I was in the hospital". hahah pretty weird how the brain reacts to trauma. I literally don't remember anything from the time I left my house, to waking up with firemen cutting my door off. There was at least 20-30min of driving, and I stopped for a coffee before the accident. Kinda creepy that I can't place any details!

Anyway, I'm feeling remarkably better in the head area than 12hrs ago, besides getting progressively stiffer and more sore in my right leg and shoulder. I'm probably going to end up suing the guy for at least some physio so that I can recover properly. I'm right-side dominant so I'd like to make sure my arm and leg get back to 100%.

I'm going to go have a look at my car tomorrow and probably get it towed to my alley so I can at least remove anything of value, stereo, wires, etc and then if I'll keep it here for a couple weeks if any of you want parts I'll grab them off of it and ship them. Like I said, it will basically be a fire sale where you pay shipping and a few extra dollars for my gas to take it to where I have to ship it. =P

I'm gonna get a 92 Sprinter Carib next, so many of the parts will no longer fit. Not sure what shape my dash is in, I vaguely remember looking at it and thinking everything seemed a lot closer to me than usual, but this was when the 'cuckoo birds' were still orbiting my head like in the cartoons.

Make sure you get checked out, your neck, back, etc. as well!  If you feel a soreness in your neck, go to a chiropractor (or whoever you want to see) and have it x-rayed.  I was in an accident almost exactly 7 years ago, because some 17 year old kid (with his mother riding in the passenger seat) blew through a stop sign and totaled my LeBaron convertible.  I ended up with some neck and back pains, and had to go to the chiro for a few months for treatments.  I wasn't even traveling that fast, like 30 mph, and the kid couldn't have been going much faster (if I recall correctly).

The important thing is that you're alive, not mangled, though the poor Carib is   As for the wagon, I'm sure you'll be able to send off lots of parts to some of us here (I've got my eye on that bush bar ).  If it would help, I'm sure some of us could do more than just cover the cost of gas/shipping for parts.  We can call it the Dylan's New Carib Sprinter Fund

Yeah I'm definitely gonna need some physio, chiro, and massage for a month or two! I got see my doctor next week to get that ball rolling.

I found out today the guy who hit me, had his insurance CANCELLED on him 2 days before because he had so many tickets that they no longer wanted to insure him. So, this is starting to sound really teriffic, now instead of the payout being quick and somewhat easy, I'm going to have to sue him in the hopes of getting anything, and that will take months! =\

I can't believe someone would A) Drive without insurance. B) Drive *LIKE THAT* without insurance. You would think he would be going under the speed limit and hoping and praying nothing goes wrong, obviously this guy is a real winner of a human being. =(

The car should be arriving in my alley in the next couple hours, if its light enough I'll take some pics of the mangled beast!

Good grief... he has a bad record and he's allowed to be on the roads?  I hope they throw his a** in jail!  I would definitely sue his a**... I'm someone who doesn't like to see people so sue-happy in the world, but this is entirely justified.  Here's hoping his license is revoked so he doesn't harm anyone else... geez.  There are so many bad drivers out there, in fact today I had to avoid at least 2-3 crazy drivers so I wouldn't get hit.

Most important thing is your health... I hope you have a speedy recovery!  Sounds like you got hit pretty damn hard to have forgotten some things about the moments leading up to getting pulled out of your wagon.

I'm not looking forward to seeing the poor mangled wagon, but there's this morbid curiosity

The symptoms (pain, numbness, disorientation, forgetfulness, lack of focus, vomiting) you describe are typical of shock trauma due to both the impact (causes the brain to wobble in the skull cavity, stresses joints and vertebrae, and strains muscles), and the aftermath as the body adjusts to surging hormonal levels (adrenaline, cortisone, etc.), delayed pain as endorphin levels drop and orientation returns.

I am surprised that the guy was still driving and without insurance.  I wish there was some way to prevent people from driving who are dangers to others.  Like those breath-alyzers that prevent drivers from driving while drunk; only this would prevent drivers from driving while uninsured or while a danger in general -- perhaps by reading their mind.  Living in Southern California -- with its emphasis on car culture -- only makes the crazy drivers stand out more, such as this tragedy that happened day before yesterday near where I live: http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-anaheim-couple,0,7229817.story

BTW, I'm not a doctor (yet, but I have a medical background (worked in an ER/Urgent care for the state for 9 years, and I run free clinics for a non-profit in Mexico.)

Rogue: Yeah I'm against the sue-happy nature of people these days too, but I definitely have to sue him. Here in Canada there are caps so likely the most I will be eligible for is $10,000. Which is a lot of money for me at this point in my life, especially since I quit working to go back to school! and in my opinion, probably enough to pay for the physio, massage, and value of my car. I'm assuming that I'll heal within a couple months and not require any long term physio.

I've had a bad record before, and rather than running lights, I made sure I drove with caution because I knew if I saw a police officer I might lose my license. This is when I was younger and had a bunch of speeding tickets to the point that they could have suspended my license. I have NEVER, EVER, driven without insurance. Its a scary thought that someone can consciously do that, never mind get behind the wheel and drive so recklessly without any insurance. =(

I think the days of the car reading our mind are probably within our life span, Datsa! I sure hope so, because its truly senseless the amount of people injured and killed on North American roads due to not just human error, but often human carelessness. I've lost an Uncle to drinking and driving, and I think its one of the most shameful and selfish things a human being can do. Heart breaking to read about that poor young couple you posted a link for.

Yeah its amazing what adrenaline does, I woke up and realized I was in a car crash within about 30 seconds of glancing around, the firemen talking to me. I remember feeling the door pushing on my leg as they cut it off, and I was telling them that, but it certainly didn't hurt. I was in no recognizable pain at that point, although I had just woken up from being unconscious for a matter of maybe 4-5 minutes (I'm assuming a fast response time because the firehall is about 20 blocks away thankfully.) I wish I had a video of the events.

NOW, as morbid as that may sound, I can't look at other people's accidents when I drive by them. I often shield my eyes out of respect/fear of seeing something that I/they wouldn't want me to see... and I know when they pulled me out of my car there was probably 20 people standing there watching me, and they would have thought I was dead for the first 4 min. I find THAT a bit creepy, I wouldn't be able to stare at the poor guy in the car, but since it was me, I'd like to have a look.... If that makes any sense. =P

I slept way too late to take pics today, but tomorrow for sure!

Datsa: My friend just graduated from a school in Irvine (I think) for ER medicine, but he took a position way up in the NE for his residency, he is missing California quite a bit. Its nice to see you run free clinics in Mexico, I had been curious in the past why you were driving there, but I wasn't nosy enough to ask. Admirable, good sir. =)

I don't mind people being nosy.  

Our organization has an urban clinic over the border in Baja; I drive the All-Trac to that one which I help run, and I'll be there next week.  But we usually fly private planes to get to our other rural clinics; it takes too long to drive there (1600 km/1000 miles from where I am).  I help run one of those rural clinics as well; I was there last week and I'll be there in two weeks.  Occasionally we drive to those clinics to carry supplies too heavy for small aircraft but it's a 24-hour drive, some of it on bad roads.  In addition, we have less frequent trips to rural clinics further into Baja desert, into the Sierra Madre, and down in the jungles of Yucatan and Guatemala.

We do everything from general medicine to full surgery, and everything we do is free to patients. We are self-funded with some grants and sponsorships.

Wow, thats amazing! My friend's dad is an Anesthetist and he just got back from a trip to Tibet, where he took all his 30yr old text books to donate on his tour. He said they were still more current than what they were using. =)

I like hearing about these stories of human kindness. I'm sure its amazing experience for you too as you go through school! Nothing can beat hands on experience, and your patients are exposed to things in that country that don't exist when you cross the US border, and especially not as far north as Canada.

That is cool that you help with those clinics, Datsa.  We've seen the Russian police Sprinter 4WD, you could have the American ambulance All-Trac   Maybe you could submit a story to that Toyota campaign about how you use your All-Trac for your job.

http://www.awn.com/news/internet-and-interactive/toyota-teams-aniboom-winner-auto-biography-campaign

I've seen a few of the commercials they made for this on Hulu.com when I was watching some videos.

I feel bad updating with my stereo upgrades that I've been working on with my friend the past few weeks, considering what happened to Dylan's All-Trac    I've got the "death box" 10" sub enclosure in, wired up, etc, and I'm right now working on some kill switches so I can listen to music at work in the parking lot using only the factory speaker locations.  I'll have to get some pics later... been super busy lately...

Don't feel bad, update when you've got time! =)