So I went to see the new Marvel’s The Avengers 2012 Movie last night in 3D and I was a bit disappointed. I just wanted to say that the featured car should have been a Volvo. I would have played a much more realistic role than the other guy and nothing brings a greater feeling of safely better than me a good ole VOLVO. But even though we didn’t get any credit, I do believe that I did saw one of my Volvo cousins as a stand in for a split second toward the end of the movie.

Other than this obvious error for the starring role, it was a pretty cool movie with great effects but they didn’t have any 3D glasses that fit me.

So whoever is an charge of casting for the sequel to The Avengers, I would like to be the first to say I am definitely available. Have your people call my people and we will do lunch.

I CAN SEE IT NOW . . .

Now, there is a YouTube 10-part video series done by a great Polish mechanic, but is quite hard to follow it while installing the seats. You can watch the videos for a reference if you’d like, but this work sheet may be much easier to follow while working.

A. First off, start with the back area:
(1) Remove the spare tire cover. You may later need to remove the spare tire and its plastic nest, so do it now while you are at it.
(2) Remove the two side covers by popping them off with the help of a big screw driver.
(3) Unscrew the two brackets (two screws each) supporting the rear hard cover.
(4) Slide out toward you the rear hard cover. Don’t try to lift it or pop it up. It is fixed by 2-3 brackets and easily slides out.

B. Now move to the rear seat area:
(1) Remove the rear seat arm rest covers. They easily pop out as you pull them out.
(2) Remove the two vents. They pop and slide out. The are not broken but factory precut so you can put the seat belt in them. Be careful that if you pry on them when cold they could break.
(3) Remove part of the door seal gasket to uncover the plastic side cover where the door closes.
(4) Then remove the plastic rectangle on the top where your seat belt will be attached and then the ceiling side plastic cover.

C. You are ready to install the seat belts:
(1) Start by unfolding some of the seat belt giving it enough slack so you can install it. If it is locked, you have to hold it straight and gently pull. It may take several pulls till you get hang of it.
(2) Fit the belt mechanism correctly on the frame and fix the bolt.
(3) Extend the belt to the ceiling and do the same with the belt hanger.
(4) You can now safely put back in place all plastic covers, the door seals and the rear seat arm rests.

D. Seat belt floor locks
(1) Fit the large T-shape metal frame in the provided hole to your left which is fixed with two bolts to the frame (one on your right side and on the bottom of the mechanism).
(2) You will need to mount the two brackets, which you removed in the beginning, to the back side of the backrest with the provided 3 small screws for each of them.
(3) You are now ready to slide the backrest piece into place.
(4) Once it is in position, raise it and mount the two lower brackets to the car frame. They may need to be pressed firmly and bent a little to fit just right over the two holes.

E. Last but not least:
(1) The small plastic lock may take most of your time, but it is important to tweak it just right so your 3rd row Volvo seat may securely lock when raised.
(2) You will need to cut just right through the vinyl seat cover after finding the small opening on your back right side of the seat just bellow the head rests.
(3) You will need two small ears on the bottom of your cut for the piece to fit just right.
(4) Once finished with the cutting, install the plastic piece starting by pressing first on the top and then on the bottom until it fits just right. Once in, slide it upward to snug and lock. If it does not lock your 3rd row seat will not be secure.
(5) Try if it works by raising your 3rd row seat. If installed properly, the lock sticks should lock securely and then easily release when the latch is pressed. If you run into the problem where the latch will not release properly you may need to cut a bigger hole.

F. You may also want to change the seat carpet covers if they are worn out.
(1) The one with the seat is attached with metal brackets to the hard cover and easily pops out when pulled firmly and then you have but a few screws to deal with while transferring the seats.
(2) The back rest, however, will need some modifications as the two head rests have to be attached to it, but only after you have cut through the wood in order to install the locking mechanism. Without it, your 3rd row seat will have nowhere to lock in order to stay in the sitting position.

Today, April 27, 2012 marks 1 year since the massive tornado super cells which swept across the Tennessee Valley smashing our 1993 Volvo 940 just a few hundred miles from reaching membership into the Volvo 300,000 club. We take this time to remember as it was featured on New Channel 9 in their special edition story of the 1 year anniversary.

She has been missed. RIP. We continue to pray for the loss that others have had which has been much greater than ours and we are thankful to God that our lives were spared.

Nice folks take care of the marina. They even gave me a free night.  It was on Friday the 13th and the place is said to be haunted, but all was quiet that night. THEY ALSO GIVE GHOST TOURS OF DAM if interested and it has been featured on Ghost Adventures

Caught some crappies, perch and bass, but missed on the big catfish which broke 3 of my hooks on 20 pound line while eating breakfast. The owner recently caught a 80 pound catfish (pictures to prove it). They have great places to eat too, if you end up not catching anything at all. I’d recommend the K.A.G.E. with the best biscuits and gravy on this side of the mountain.  BTW just over the bridge is a different time zone .

DETROIT — Volvo has confirmed for Inside Line that its V70 station wagon is going away in the U.S. for the 2011 model year. “We sold only 1,800 V70s last year,” said Volvo Cars of North America spokesman Dan Johnston in response to an e-mailed query on Friday. “Kind of hard to make a living on that few units. “Our XC70, XC60 and XC90s account for about 42 percent of total sales, while V70 is only about 2 percent. Buyers voted with their pocketbooks and chose an XC over [the] V70 in our market.”

Johnston said the V70 will continue to be sold in other Volvo markets such as Europe. The news of the V70′s demise in North America was greeted by the European automotive media with such comments as “Americans Hate Wagons.” Johnston noted that later this year, Volvo will bring out an XC70 front-wheel-drive model. But he said pricing on that is unavailable at this time.