Towhomit may concern or care I currently own and for the most part enjoy my used Chrysler Town and Country for a variety of reasons, however recently I have been able to treat it to its 4th automatic transmission in 116,000 miles (4th at least anyway that I know about) which makes me question whether Dr. Z's accolades of German and Chrysler engineering were all they were cracked up to be. ( this one was the 3rd transmission in 10,000 miles. http://www.prnewstoday.com/release.htm?cat=auto <http://www.prnewstoday.com/release.htm?cat=auto&dat=20060630&rl=NYF0273 0062006-1> &dat=20060630&rl=NYF02730062006-1 SNIP it is with morbid amusement that i see japanese companies successfully import their suvs as -cars- but get them past the epa and dot etc as -trucks-. SNIP Of course this same T&C, a replacement for a station wagon which if memory serves was an automobile, at least my Hornet wagon in the driveway sure looks like one is classified for the purposes of smog certification as a light truck! It just seems to me that if it is one, it sure should act more like one when needed. http://www.cfact.org/site/print.asp?idarticle=233 But to be fair, I had to use a 1980 Eagle for a wiring harness donation and found it was certified in California as a light truck. This allowed it to have minimal smog components installed and as a light truck, it did not show up in my files of Eagle smog configurations as I have collected the AUTOMOBILE OR CAR data. I don't know where you go to find Eagle Truck data. SNIP "Permit expanded use of the automobile for cargo-carrying purposes or other nonpassenger-carrying purposes through the removal of seats by means installed for that purpose by the automobile's manufacturer or with simple tools such as screwdrivers and wrenches, so as to create a flat, floor level, surface extending from the forward-most point of installation of those seats to the rear of the automobile's interior." SNIP http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeSoto_Suburban http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/bv/kaiser_traveler.htm These probably would have been more successful if smog rules were implemented sooner. But due to apathy and other related emotions they are gone and we now have the Kia http://www.topspeed.com/cars/kia/index50.html that comes from a country that at the same time the Traveler was being manufactured our Ambassadors were using their combined mentality of possible double digits and were trying to divide the country in two. With time passing and objectives becoming more clarified we probably stand a chance now to combine the benefits of a mushroom shaped cloud with said station wagon and be able to find it at night because it glows in the dark! The whole thing is beginning to suggest that I re-evaluate the practical aspect of restoring my Hornet Station wagon and placing it in daily service again. After all, it has only lasted 30 years so far despite an adequate amount of neglect and abuse. The transmission will still move the thing forward and backwards despite barfing out a pint or so of fluid just when you don't expect it. The total cost of doing so based on components collected and on the shelf including a replacement transmission and engine will probably cost about the same as 2 more transmissions for my T&C which if precedence and history are any indicators I may have to use before I get the Hornet restored no matter what Dr. Z wrote on his prescription pad. And the Chrysler has had the best of care and is only 10 years old! With more than a bit of frustration for the evening. John. _______________________________________________ AMC-List mailing list AMC-List@xxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.amc-list.com/mailman/listinfo/amc-list or go to http://www.amc-list.com