Okay, so my problem got fixed at zero cost.

I called up HCPI a couple of weeks ago to report the smell of the aircon. They told me they’ll coordinate with Honda Manila, my chosen dealer, for a fix.

A week or two ago, someone from HCPI called me up and said they’ll be providing a new type of cabin filter for free. They’ll be sending it to Honda Manila and that they’ll inform me as soon as it arrives for installation.

Last Saturday, someone from Honda Manila texted me to say that the filter has arrived and when I wanted to have it installed. I told them I’ll bring the car in today for its 6-month PMS as well.

The smell was instantly gone the moment the new filter was installed. It certainly looks different from my stock filter in that it doesn’t have the two thick reinforcing adhesive ribs but rather multiple thin ones.

The part number on the box is 80291-SEP-H01 and is apparently made in Thailand.

So moral of the story is, if you can’t have the casa fix it for you. Take it to corporate.

Don’t be an ass when dealing with them. Be polite and do not dictate the terms of the fix. This is something that could easily be denied should the person you are talking to get pissed at you.

There is no person in specific that you need to talk to. I just called up their hotline to report it and waited patiently until they responded.

The only thing they asked from me in return is if they could call from time to time to check on the filter’s performance. Of course, this is no problem at all.

I did the external plastic trims last weekend. Great product. No more watermarks on the wiper cowls.

Disregard the shots of the hood and front fender. I was trying to get some shots for TeamFD.

This was a shot of the hood that even catches a bit of my reflection while taking it. The sun wasn’t out when I got to the parking lot. I’ll try to catch a direct full sunlight one on the hood tomorrow.

This was one of the roof angled to show the maximum reflection possible. The typical angles you see on forums.

Not able to post lately but am getting better mileage with the car after the long drive to SCTEX. City mileage is now up to 7.5 to 8.0 km/li on city driving.

The weekly application of Mothers Pure Carnauba Wax plays a big part in keeping the shine of the paint in good condition but I have to clay this soon as I’m starting to feel the grit.

FUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!

That was the first thought that went through my head as soon as I heard that sickening crunch of a plastic bumper crumpling to save us from the force of a rear impact.

As I got out of the car to survey the damage, a kid who I thought was much too young to drive, stepped out. I asked him if there was anything wrong with his brain and if he had insurance.

Well, as expected, he didn’t so I took a closer look at the damage. It didn’t look too bad but you can never tell while his license plate is wedged on my bumper.

After snapping some quick photos to document the event, I asked him to pull over to the side of the road so we don’t obstruct traffic further.

The damage wasn’t too bad but it will require a complete repainting of the bumper. It was gouged on the point where the screw for the Lancer’s license plate hit it. The paint also had some stress marks on where the bumper deformed to absorb the energy of the impact.

Unlike my previous accident this one was soft enough not to cause any misalignment that I can see. It also didn’t push the bumper back in enough to tear it at the tow hook.

As for the driver of the Lancer, his only reasoning was that he was a new driver and his feet confused the brake pedal with the gas. He said he still had the handbrake on when he hit me. So much for our country’s license procurement process eh?

Since this happened in the middle of the night and there were no cops around, we called our uncle who is a lawyer to ask for advice on what to do. He said to just get the details of the other party and make him sign the equivalent of an incident report of what happened.

The kid assured me that they’ll shoulder the cost of repairing the bumper so that was that.

This morning, I took a closer look at the damage as well as some photos. It’s not that big of a deal and I can live with it during the holidays when we need the car the most.

This is the worst part of the damage. There are 3 other gouges on the bumper from his other plate screw and the corner of his license plate as well as the numerous stress marks from when the bumper bended.

I’m hearing some rattling under the arm rests. I think it’s the wiring harness for the switches. It’s a known issue for this car so I’m taking it in to have the extra padding installed on the 10k PMS.

It’s just a minor issue that doesn’t warrant taking the car back to the dealer. What I can’t wait for is next week when I can finally wax the rear bumper. I’m already seeing some fine scratches because of the bare exposed clear coat but nothing that a little bit of polish won’t be able to take out.

My consumption is probably going to take another nosedive as the Civic was idling for almost an hour and a half last Sunday in the sun with the AC on while I went inside VMall to buy a Wii.

I’m not sure what all the fuss is about online. I liked the movie. The ending was pretty good too. Klaatu basically traded our life for technology. We weren’t exterminated but all electronic devices died after that massive EMP blast.

I’m sure that would take care of global warming and all that bullshit. However, it would also wreak havoc with financial markets and basically sends us back to the Dark Ages. Well played aliens.

How’s a geek like me going to survive without my toys? Am I supposed to hunt for food now?

Never ever try and get a Metrobank Credit Card. They don’t know anything about Customer Service.

Last September 2008, I accidentally breached my card’s measly limit of 15,000.00 by a hundred pesos. Metrobank automatically filed an overlimit fee of 500.00 for that.

Seeing as I’ve given Metrobank quite a lot of business, I called up the Customer Service hotline and requested for that fee to be waived. After 2 months of follow-up calls since every time my statement comes, the charge hasn’t been reversed, I got the chance to talk to Jonathan.

He said there’s no official word yet, but he’ll approve the request.

A week or two after, I had the stupid mistake of paying more than 25,000 to my Metrobank card. It was intended for my other card but due to a mistake on my part when picking the Biller while paying online, it happened.

So I called up their horrible Customer Service Hotline again to ask for a raise on my limit so that I can spend the extra money I’ve put on the card. I inquired about the reversal of the over limit fee again and found out that Jonathan lied and it wasn’t approved yet.

And then, they had the audacity to deny my request to raise the credit limit because I still have 3 more days before I reach my 1-year usage of the card. I think they prioritize the people they can screw. And since they haven’t earned any Finance Charge or Late Payment Charge from me, they see me as more of a liability than an asset.

Needless to say, I’m fed up with this card. I’ll be canceling this if they don’t waive my Annual Fee and Over Limit Fee.

The sloping windshield of the Civic looks great but there’s one drawback. On the very edge of the bottom side, there appears to be a visual distortion due to the shape of the glass.