Mike Schubert

This past Friday I started to notice a rough shifting experience on my Xterra when I was above 50 mph. At first, it sounded/felt like I was running over a rumble strip on the road, but eventually I realized that it wasn't the road. It seemed to be happening only when going into overdrive.

Monday I took the truck into my Nissan dealer to have it diagnosed. I took it out with a technician so he could experience it first hand. It sounded & felt like it was going to be expensive. I got the call later in the day that not only did I have to replace the transmission, but the radiator as well. It turns out that the transmission cooling system had a hose or gasket that failed and leaked coolant into the transmission. Total bill - around $3000. Yikes. I've never taken it off road, never towed anything, and just had the 90,000 mile service this year where the transmission was serviced.

I Googled the phenomenon and found numerous people who have experienced the same thing with various models of Nissans over a number of model years. This is sad. I was so enamored (and really still am) with my truck. But I'm going to have a difficult time buying another when the time comes since it seems Nissan is not interested in fixing what seems to be a pretty big design flaw.

While the United States is debating the role of the government in providing universal healthcare, Finland has passed legislation requiring universal Internet access for its 5.2 million citizens. I find it crazy the "human rights" that are being deemed by governments around the world. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And I guess faster porn downloads for the poor? 

A few disturbing quotes from the article:

"We think it's something you cannot live without in modern society. Like banking services or water or electricity, you need Internet connection." - Really? What if you don't have a computer? Maybe I missed the article requiring computer manufacturers to distribute computers to all the citizens of Finland?

"In June, France's highest court declared such access a human right. But Finland goes a step further by legally mandating speed." I think Ford Mustangs should be a human right, so I guess I should start petitioning for that. I'll call it the "Universal Horsepower Act".

Read More -> Fast Internet access becomes a legal right in Finland