Brian Early's gift suggestions

BRIAN EARLY FOR THE TORONTO STAR

On many cars, replacing a damaged door isn't as difficult as it sounds.

Brian Early

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Gifts for me,

under $50

Maps

Portable GPS-based navigation systems are all the rage – and I wouldn't mind having one – but I'm not prepared to give up on honest-to-God paper maps just yet. Maps are still the best way to quickly spot and evaluate alternate routes, they still have more complete secondary road coverage than even the most comprehensive nav system database, and are readily (and inexpensively) available in high-definition, 3-foot-by-4-foot chart or book format. Take that, grainy 4.3-inch LCD display!

Better yet, their batteries never die, they don't break when dropped, and I'll bet few thieves have ever broken into a car to get a map.

Oshawa-based MapArt makes what I consider the best, easiest to read maps in the world, widely available at retailers. Prices run from a few dollars to about $40. I find the $29.95 Golden Horseshoe edition quite handy.

mapart.com

Battery-less flashlight

Who'd have thunk it – a flashlight with no batteries? Charging this type of flashlight is as easy as shaking it back and forth for a minute or two (moving a magnetic core through a coil of wire in the handle to generate the current), and the efficiency and durability of its LED bulbs means that a charge lasts a while, and it should never burn out.

Why is this car related? These flashlights normally use capacitors to store their power, and capacitors aren't affected by the cold like conventional batteries, nor do they leak; great for an item that will spend its life being alternately frozen and fried in your car's trunk or glovebox.

I had a little cheapie one given to me as a promotional item that broke when dropped. I'd like a quality one to replace it, please. Canadian Tire carries a larger three LED Noma model that looks decent and has a lifetime warranty, $15.99.

canadiantire.ca

Cabin air filter

I'll admit it: none of my family's cars is new enough to have a cabin air filter, but I promise that I'll pass this gift along to friends and family whose vehicles do. Most car owners don't realize that their cars have these, and when they get dirty enough, they can substantially restrict airflow through the heater system.

Simply replacing these filters has even resolved "insufficient A/C cooling" complaints from a few of my customers (General Motors minivans seem to be particularly prone to this, for whatever reason). I have several people on my gift list who own those vans, so I'll happily "regift" the set I receive.

Available at most auto parts sources; Carquest item number 90027C, approximately $32 each (two required).

Gifts to give, under $100

A gently used door for her car

After suffering years of being married to a car guy, my wife threatened me with a fate worse than death if she receives anything automotive-related as a gift.

Fortunately, the used door I've bought to replace the rusty one on her car (how exactly does that happen?) is probably too heavy for her to pick up and beat me with, so I'm tempted to take the chance.

On many cars, replacing a damaged door isn't as difficult as it sounds, and if you win the salvage yard lottery and find one the same colour, it doesn't require any bodywork or painting skills. Her new door is white, her car is black; my $100 budget didn't allow me to buy the other three to turn her Altima into a pseudo-cop car, so I guess it's Tremclad time.

(Used rear door, $75, Dom's Auto Parts, Courtice; Tremclad automotive spray paint, $8.49 per can, Canadian Tire)

Heated wiper blades

Don't you just hate it when the temperature is right around freezing and your wiper blades get crusted with ice? It doesn't seem to matter whether they're the winter style, the older segmented kind, or the new aerodynamic monoblades. It's aggravating when they're frozen to the windshield in the morning, too.

Well, I appreciate a well-devised gimmick, and Calgary's Canadian Beaver Holdings Inc. claims to have the solution: heated wiper blades. Unlike the heated washer fluid systems found in some cars, CBH's Heatflexx units heat the actual rubber element and they look just like the single-piece blades used on many new cars. Sounds like they should work.

At an ouch-inducing $100 for the blades and the wiring/thermostat kit, I'm just one dollar over budget, not including shipping or tax.

heatflexx.ca or 403-273-7753

Gifts for me, no limit

DIY rally fantasy kit

Every time I attend a rally, I think to myself just how much fun – and how big of a challenge – it would be to drive those kinds of roads and loose surfaces at the ludicrous speeds the competitors do.

After witnessing the spectator stage at this year's Rally of the Tall Pines in Bancroft, I realized I can take the threat of trees and ditches out of the equation by making my own practice course. All that's needed is a large, empty plot of land – say a couple of kilometres square, some form of earthmoving equipment, and a bit of creativity. Oh, and I'll need a properly prepped car. Or two. Or three. I'm not fussy, they don't even have to match.

Monticello Motor Club membership and condo

Monticello Motor Club is a purpose-built, members-only racetrack and country club in lower New York State, about 90 minutes from New York City.

Officially opened since July, this 6.6-km, 22-turn road course includes homages to several famous racetrack features, including a Daytona-style banked corner.

Subject to a screening process (but of course), and limited to 500 total, memberships start at $125,000 (U.S.), with $7,500 yearly fees. I'd appreciate if my budget-less Secret Santa would set me up with one of Monticello's planned "Autominiums," some of which will be up to 3,000 square feet and include parking for 12 cars.

I won't need 12 spaces since I don't actually own anything truly track-worthy.

Fortunately, Monticello Motor Club also offers access to a variety of rental vehicles, including F1 and vintage race cars.

monticellomotorclub.com

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