Welcome to the IHoP v.2

[///M5 2,833]

There is a bar I do love in Schaumburg though.  Cougar heaven.

[///M5 2,833]

Chicago as a city in itself though is fucking sweet.

[Florida_Audio 55]

[///M5 2,833]

I only moved away since I couldn't live in the city.

[///M5 2,833]

Afford to, that is.

[dem beats 1,223]

I love Minneapolis.  Downtown, uptown, whatever works.

 

When I was in Chicago it was just shit traffic and I didn't have a good meal either time I was there.  I was maybe 20 When I was there last, so maybe I just didn't know myself or how to find a fun place.

[///M5 2,833]

You do realize that for metropolis's with over 1mil residents our average commute time is WAY faster than any other.  Chicago does get slowed down in rush hour, but outside of that you can fly.  Judging any city based on experiences before you were of drinking age is funny....

[///M5 2,833]

You are also comparing a world city to Minneapolis which is barely bigger than a town.  We are so sprawled it is painful.  For urban sprawl we have what is as good as it gets anywhere though.

[dem beats 1,223]

Lol

I'm not disagreeing with you, and I should clarify I have been to Chicago several times since I was 21 but only for a moment.

 

I'm not nearly as traveled and don't know what to expect from places.  Every time I went to Chicago I ended up in a bad part of town.  The trains we're fucked up both times I used them.  I turned down the wrong street once and saw a garbage can on fire.  Maybe all large metro cities have places like that and I just somehow keeps repeating the same mistake.

 

I love the twin cities but I know it really well.  I think my personality gravitated towards big cities or extreme rural towns and I get both here in MN.  It's been more than 8 years for sure since I have been. So maybe that was also not a good time to be there.  No clue what went wrong but I usually travel and have a great time.  When I traveled to Chicago it was all stress and annoyed life.  Even with all the NY chaos I loved the Manhattan area and I imediately got off the train and felt really at home. Perhaps if I had skipped the car completely in Chicago it would be the same but I drove each time and when I did take the train I thought it was a bad time.   I didn't have any people that made me enjoy it either they were ok, but not great either.

[Adrian_D 520]

18 hours ago, j-roadtatts said:

Maybe they needed the plug to build a grommet for ze stereo!!

 Did you have to buy new?

Nope, I got a loaner ECU, SKIM and key. I'm drying mine off before the trip and bringing it as a spare. 

13 hours ago, Aaron Clinton said:

That plug wouldn't be the same size plug for the back of an old SoundStream amp?

 

 

Haha, I'll check Vlad's amps today

 

6 hours ago, sandt38 said:

You sure about that? ECUs take on water a lot. Sounds more like a typical Jeep crank sensor issue.

Just poking around with the DMM I measured 3.5v between the ground wire of the starter relay signal (which comes off the ECU, just like the positive signal) and the battery negative and there was no continuity between that and the body or battery negative. ECU was reporting correct battery voltage on the dash and I could read codes. Only possible plug where that ground signal wire goes is in an area coated in oily residue (power steering fluid I guess). 

Unless the crank sensor failed internally and connected the 5v line to the ECU ground. Typically on these commonrail engines the cam sensor fails first because of the heat but the engine will still crank.

Inside the ECU I saw corrosion on the corner which sits the lowest. Three people in Australia replaced their ECU, one after a heavy rain after he found water inside it. A guy here which does remaps told me he had two cases of wet Bosch ECUs, one worked after being dried off, the other never worked again. 

At one point I saw continuity between the starter relay signal ground and the battery negative with the original ECU and the car started. Drove it 10 miles and nothing happened. After that I switched out the ECU and, knock on wood, I drove 120 miles since. 

[sandt38 448]

8 hours ago, ///M5 said:

Food, people, access to everything, nightlife, history, big ass lake, cool buildings, local sports...

What other city can even come close?  NY has a bunch but lacks seriously on the people, Boston is an interesting visit but get outside the city proper and fuck that.  LA is a turd. Houston, ROFL.  I can see the San Francisco argument, but it is still full of Californians.

 

Sounds like almost every city in the US.

 

Chicago is a shithole, dude. It is the most liberal city in the US, it has the strictest gun laws, unemployment is rampant, gangs are out of control, gun murders in Chicago (which is #1 in the country) are equal to the next top 3 cities in the US combined. Shall I continue?

[///M5 2,833]

11 hours ago, ///M5 said:

Food, people, access to everything, nightlife, history, big ass lake, cool buildings, local sports...

What other city can even come close?  NY has a bunch but lacks seriously on the people, Boston is an interesting visit but get outside the city proper and fuck that.  LA is a turd. Houston, ROFL.  I can see the San Francisco argument, but it is still full of Californians.

2 hours ago, sandt38 said:

 

Sounds like almost every city in the US.

 

Chicago is a shithole, dude. It is the most liberal city in the US, it has the strictest gun laws, unemployment is rampant, gangs are out of control, gun murders in Chicago (which is #1 in the country) are equal to the next top 3 cities in the US combined. Shall I continue?

Every city, lol?  No way.  

Chicago normally is about 10th on the liberal lists, gun laws are irrelevant in ranking a city in particular to someone who doesn't have one like me, unemployment rate is higher than white collar towns but not out of line with most, the murder rate is lower than Atlanta, Baltimore, Memphis, Miami, Newark, Oakland, Pittsburgh, Detroit, St Louis,Cincinatti 

All of your statistics are rather old.  Sure 25 years ago that may have been the case, but it is far from today.

I would also state your arguments are statistics and not things that change the standard of living.

 

[dem beats 1,223]

I was about to say the same.  Its not that bad for murder.  That's the one I look at the most. 

I will say I'm shocked that it's worse than places like LA.  Oakland looks to be the only California town more violent.  That list really surprised me with how dangerous the North East United States is.

 

A lot of the people I work with out here are also talking about the return of heroin and how it's worse than ever.  One town I drove through looked like people were just strung out on the street actually.  That surprised me for being a small sleepy new England town.  I watched some show with Anthony Bourdain talking about how H is making a come back here and I thought it might be part TV part true but the locals are actually concerned quite a bit.  Weird kidnapping of adults here too.  

 

Chicago violence doesn't really concern me.  Especially when you consider Milwaukee is worse.  Not that I would EVER EVER EVER live there.

 

Wisconsin is the South of the North.

[dem beats 1,223]

I agree with you Sean quality of life is more important and I grew up in the most violent part of our country in 1995.  The camden area in N mpls.  It was intense. So many guns and gangs.

 

[dem beats 1,223]

My complaint with Chicago is that I didn't experience anything that interested me and I did experience some scary shit.  For being there so little but so many times and having a bad experience almost every time it soured me.  

 

Maybe if I had spent more time in the downtown area I would have had more fun.  I felt like the people were the same MN passive aggressive style but moving faster and more rude.

[Tirefryr 1,742]

I've been to Chicago a million times and the South side is the only bad area of the city.  Unfortunately, US Cellular field is on the South Side, but as long as you don't venture far from the stadium, no problem.  

Every other part of the city is great IMO.  There are so many shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, etc, and you can walk to everything, especially on the North side.  I always use cabs when there and I've only driven to/through Chicago 4 times.  All 4 times were miserable.

[MKader17 332]

I've only driven out of Chicago from the airport once. Tried to get my group to stop for dinner there but no dice.

I'll just enjoy being blissfully ignorant, eating cheap mexican food and getting to play outside all year long.

I will miss the snow, but I won't miss it getting colder than 20*

[nem 2,019]

The feeling you get when you get the call that your Black Rain AR's are in!!!!

 

[///M5 2,833]

6 hours ago, dem beats said:

Chicago violence doesn't really concern me.  Especially when you consider Milwaukee is worse.  Not that I would EVER EVER EVER live there.

 

Wisconsin is the South of the North.

Milwaukee is a great city as well.  Kills most of the South, but WI is indeed the S of N.

[///M5 2,833]

 

6 hours ago, Tirefryr said:

I've been to Chicago a million times and the South side is the only bad area of the city.  Unfortunately, US Cellular field is on the South Side, but as long as you don't venture far from the stadium, no problem.  

Every other part of the city is great IMO.  There are so many shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, etc, and you can walk to everything, especially on the North side.  I always use cabs when there and I've only driven to/through Chicago 4 times.  All 4 times were miserable.

I lived there for almost 4 years and averaged driving 70k+ mi per year while I was there.  I actual prefer to drive in Chicago.  Amusingly I've only ridden the El 1x and that was during a visit after I moved away.

You are right about the regionalization of the bad areas.  It is REALLY easy to avoid them in Chicago.  20 years ago that wasn't the case, but now it is very.

[nem 2,019]

I enjoy visiting Chicago, but I get escorted around with Polish friends who get the royal treatment.

[dem beats 1,223]

14 minutes ago, nem said:

I enjoy visiting Chicago, but I get escorted around with Polish friends who get the royal treatment.

My people!!!

[///M5 2,833]

Largest Polish city in the world outside of Warsaw

[///M5 2,833]

It ought to Wyrk

[dem beats 1,223]

Lol

I had no idea!!!!Porogi for days.

 

And blood sausage.  Usually I just give that one to the ladies.