Art in LA,
Thanks for the compliments! However, I'm not an engineer, although I aspired to be one early in life and still have some "engineering" tendencies that are much closer to a "technician" level than engineer. Actually, I'm a teacher who likes to share his experiences with other like-minded frugal shade tree mechanics.
I agree with you: We need better manuals....and Toyota should use better grease (or a better design for grounding the steering wheel). This van has been GREAT for us, ther eare just two headaches I have found: getting to the spark plugs and this silly horn design, both of which still make me wonder, "Who are these people that design automobiles."
Enjoy sunny CA!
-WM