PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

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...^^^... FWIW ... I had a front view and rear view dash cam in last vehicle and loved it.

Now I use only a front GoPro and miss the rear cam.

They are great in liability situations, especially on a road trip.

Over the road trucks document all the views, including the side views for liability.

Many new upscale cars will have 4 to 6 cameras now.

If you try one ... you might get hooked on it.

 

One in the front, one in the back. In case somebody hits me and flees. That way I make sure I get their license plate number.

 

I agree with you fully. I do need to be more aware behind the wheel.

I've also had my driver's license almost 6 years and I've had a couple fender-benders (some of which were not my fault) but never gotten a ticket or even been pulled over. This incident happened in Doylestown Borough on the biggest drinking night of the year. I drive everywhere and have been to a lot of places. I primarily drive long distances to go to car shows. I drive on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I've driven on Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia. I live in a neighborhood with more little kids than adults, which is why I invested in a backup camera for my Taco.

I never have problems on major highways, in or near the city, or in my neighborhood. It's only in Doylestown Borough. Doylestown is very overpopulated and is almost like a small city. On a night like Thanksgiving Eve, the population quadruples. Most of these people are DRUNK, and it's pretty much every man for himself.

 

You could move out of Mom's basement and then post the video. 2016 - 1989 = 27

 

My best friend didn't think I should post it either...

 

Prob not worth the bother anyway.

 

Much damage to the truck. A bag of ice thrown two handed probably made a dent

 

Nope, no damage at all...

 

Lucky. Good to hear.

 

My name is Charlie, and I was born in Northern California on March 14, 1989. I've been living in Bucks County, Pennsylvania since July 2005. I am the proud owner of a 2010 Toyota Tacoma regular cab 2WD (5-lug) that my dad bought brand new for me as a present of sorts when I finally got my learner's permit in 2009. The truck has been paid off for more than five years at this point, the title is in my name, and I pay for the insurance and most of the maintenance, so yes, this is MY truck.

I also have Asperger's Syndrome, which is a high-functioning form of autism. Some people who know a lot about autism spectrum disorders can tell that I'm on the spectrum, but the vast majority are shocked when I tell them I have it. I was diagnosed in 1998 at the age of 9.

People are surprised because many of them lump all people with autism into one perceived stereotype, and are shocked that someone who is on the spectrum can do all the stuff that I've done. I have a driver's license, a college degree, a good job, and a ton of friends. When I hang out with my guy friends (some AS, some not), we do the same things a bunch of bros without AS would do. We get drunk, go to strip clubs, talk about cars and women, and happily engage in locker room talk about sex and bodily functions when there are no adults or women present. Some AS people I know are very socially awkward when it comes to romantic relationships and life in general. I won't go into explicit detail (literally or figuratively) on a public forum, but I can proudly say I've had quite a bit of fun with various women over the years.

Obviously, since I own a Tacoma, I know how to drive and thus have a driver's license. I also know how to drive a stick shift! This is something that none of my friends with AS who have driver's licenses, and only a few of my friends who don't have AS, can do!

I have four close friends with Aspergers, and three of them have driver's licenses and their own vehicles. Sadly, none of them have trucks of any kind. One drives a 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe, one drives a 2017 Kia Forte, and one drives 2011 Nissan Altima. The 4th one FINALLY got his license in October 2019 at the age of 30; He drives a 2017 Chevy Trax. When my one friend still had his learner's permit, I took him to the DMV course after hours and taught him how to parallel park in my truck.

I got my learner's permit when I was 20, in August 2009. My dad bought the Tacoma in September 2009. In 2011, at the age of 22, I finally took the driving test in my Tacoma. I failed the first time because I couldn't parallel park correctly, and finally passed it on the third try in May 2011.

Anyway, I have wheels and a license. I also graduated from Bucks County Community College with an associate's degree in journalism. I actually plan on becoming an HVAC technician, but even now, I am still not 100% what I want to do for a career.

From December to 2014 to January 2019, I worked as a barback at a bar/restaurant/music venue, owned by a friend of mine. I started out as a regular customer back in 2010, then made friends with the owner. A new general manager was hired in 2011, right around the time I got my driver's license. My Tacoma played an indirect role in my first meeting with my future boss (a story for another day, available upon request). If you'd told me ten years ago I'd be working at a bar and actually kind of enjoying it, I'd laugh at you. I started out as the general manager's personal assistant and errand runner, and then after about a year of working at Puck, I was put on the books as a barback. For those who don't know, a bar back is bartender's assistant who also performs duties like bussing tables, cleaning bathrooms, and picking up various bar supplies. It's not glamorous, but it beats the shit out of retail! I was effectively furloughed in January 2019, when the bar closed indefinitely for renovations (work hasn't even begun)!

I detailed cars at a large dealership from September 2018 to June 2019, while simultaneously working as a barback. I did not like that job very much for reasons too numerous to list here.

I currently work at a defense contractor called Navmar Applied Sciences (where my dad has also worked since 2007); My primary job is taking care of the company vehicles, and I have been there since September 2019. It's a desk job and it can be boring sometimes, but I love the company and who I work with; I also make $16/hour, get paid vacations, and have a 401K, so I'm not complaining!

When Puck reopens, I will barback on weekends to supplement my income; I also deliver food for DoorDash on weekends to make extra money.

I am lifelong fan of Chevy trucks and hope to own one someday in addition to my beloved Tacoma, but my Tacoma is also much better for navigating congested streets and narrow alleyways of Doylestown than a full-size Silverado.

It's worth noting that the "powers that be" recently lumped all autism spectrum disorders together in the DSM5 and did away with Asperger's Syndrome as a diagnosis. I do not agree with this, especially since autism can go hand in hand with other intellectual disabilities and mental problems!

Interests of mine include photography, writing (obviously), Chevy and GMC trucks, Rolls-Royce motorcars, dogs, women, building LEGO models, binge-watching South Park on Hulu, and so much more!

I have recently developed an interest in postwar Rolls-Royce and Bentley motorcars, and dream of owning one someday (preferably a 1979 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith II, a 1986 Rolls-Royce Camargue, or a 1992 Bentley Continental R)!

Anyway, I have Asperger's and I drive a Tacoma. I'm wondering if anyone else out there is like me.

I am also on the following forums:

Tundras.com

4Runners.com

AstroSafari.com

hvac-talk.com

 

This is what my dad traded for the Tacoma, a 1996 Nissan Pathfinder SE with about 113,000 miles. My dad bought the Pathfinder brand new in May 1996 and it was one of the best vehicles we ever had. In the spring of 2003, the factory CD player wasn't working right, so we had an aftermarket radio put in. In the summer of 2003, we had to have the A/C recharged. In 2005, my dad decided he didn't like the Sony CD player he'd had put in back in 2003 and replaced it with an Alpine CD player. There wasn't really anything wrong with it, and everything worked including the A/C. My dad wasn't going to give the Pathfinder to me as a first vehicle and I actually got my learner's permit the first time in 2005, when I was 16. By 2009, when I finally got my learner's permit renewed and committed to getting my license, it was getting old and starting to nickel-and-dime us. We got $2,300 for the Pathfinder on trade...




This is my Tacoma in the driveway of my parents' old house a day or two after we brought it home (October 2009)...




Minty fresh brand new interior! (October 2009)...




Heading to a Halloween party, dressed as Tony Soprano (October 31, 2009)...




After a snowfall; Look towards the lower left corner and you will see my late dog, Molly. She was a Black Labrador Retriever who lived to be 15 years old! This picture was taken just a few days before my parents and I decided to put her to sleep due to failing kidneys and severe arthritis...




The winter of 2009-2010 was absolutely miserable! Just look at all that snow!




Me and one of my best friends posing next to our respective Toyotas in his parents' driveway, not long after I got my license (taken in May or June 2011). My friend's Toyota was a 2003 Highlander Limited with about 170,000 miles on it at the time. Sadly, he totaled it about two years later with about 185,000 miles. Now he has a 2011 Altima...




Another best friend of mine is a certified peer mentor who works with kids who have learning disabilities and mental problems. This picture was taken in July 2011 at a charity car wash hosted by a company he used to work for where his boss paid me to take pictures. The car wash was held in the parking lot of a 7-11 store, and the daughter of one of the organizers stood in the bed of my truck and held up a sign...

 

Your streets are weird. Did that one guy turn down the wrong way on that street or was that a two way street?

 

The guy in the black car? He was turning down a 2-way street. I was coming from a one-way street. My dad used to own a 2003 Honda S2000, and 10 years ago we were at the same intersection. Our light turned green, but this guy in an Impala was turning left and went through the red anyway. My dad stopped to avoid a head-on with the Impala, and a Ford Explorer rear-ended us. No damage to Explorer, $500 in damage to S2000.

 

Looks like it went from a green turn signal to a green yield and he just wasn't paying attention. Good thing you were.

 

The layout of the streets is most to blame. It's forcing a head on situation. We have a turn like that in my town. You got to time it just right, because you are going head on with on coming traffic for a brief moment.

You can tell the town is old. You wouldn't see a modern street layed out like that.

 

I blame the Christmas music.

 

He was asking for it...

 

Actually the driver of the Mazda was a woman...

 

That changes everything.

 

@loosnut @Blackout14 @TinyTech626