>Public garages have frustrated me since I arrived in Los Angeles with my 83
>Westy a few months ago. The moral is, in my opinion, don't necessarily trust
>the PVC pipe or plastic chains hanging at the entrance if the numbers show
>the clearance is a close call--I would say close is anything under 7 feet--I
>mean it is California. And also watch for public garages that say 8 feet of
>clearance at the entrance and then turn to 6 feet of clearance once you're
>down the ramp. (In my humble opinion this town could benefit from just one
>engineer carrying a ruler, a stop watch, and with a touch of common
>sense

What's the bet that the fellow with the tape measure holds it vertically to
"measure" ramp ceiling clearance. But it's a ramp... he will get a higher
reading than actually exists, because he should be measuring perpendicular
to the ramp surface! So the reading will be correct for someone walking,
but not for a tilted vehicle crunching its fiberglass roof against the
ceiling...

Draw a diagram if you don't follow this.

Andrew Grebneff
Dunedin, New Zealand
VW & mollusc nut
1984 VW Type 25 Caravelle (currently SVX engine; waiting for a Porsche trans)
1986 CE80 Toyota Corolla 1.8DX diesel (extaxi)
1989 CE96 Toyota Corolla 1.8DX diesel wagon
1989 CT170 Toyota Corona Select 2.0 diesel (taxi)