ZR-1s, Dino, and a Skeleton TR4

"Corvette Night"

Many car enthusiasts I know sigh when they hear it's Corvette night at the local show. That means a bunch of old corvettes from the 60s/70s and guys just sitting in their chairs watching you look at their car. Fortunately for me, there were some really cool additions to this specific show...

Like these two guys; two ZR-1s in the flesh! I really don't see many of these out and about and knowing they have 640hp stock makes it that much sweeter. When these came out, I was just getting into cars and journalists were ranting and raving about them endlessly. This was the fastest production car around the Nordschleife for a time...

I mean, sometimes I convince myself after doing a couple laps in Forza that I could actually hang with the other Nurburgring Cats on a lap--then I see something like this^. It's reinforced for sure, these guys are on another LEVEL of crazy speed and I'll leave it to them to flog these crazy cars on the death course...

They raved for good reason too--it was a raucous beast that demanded a lot from the driver and did one thing very well: go FAST! The seats weren't that well, and that was complained about endlessly it seemed as you wouldn't be able to stay put if you really wanted to step on it.

Then comes this Dino 246 GTS; mid-engined, rear-wheel drive, light-weight--this seems like the absolute PERFECT vehicle to flog through the twisties. Interestingly enought, the 2.4 liter V6 found in this ferkin vehicle eventually made its way into the Lancia Stratos rally car. I haven't heard this engine at full chat in a while so I can't remember exactly the way it made my soul heart feel in my face ya know? lemme see what we can find...down here

actually Sandra West's car, which she requested be buried...

and here is the 2.4 liter v6 engine that powers both the 246gt & gts. Essentially, it's a transversely-mounted v6 that produced around 280hp that was first rumored to have been created--in part--by Alfredo "Dino" Ferrari, yet history has since proved he had no part in the creation...(more)

See, now that I know the backstory of Alfredo Ferrari and the Dino, it makes me sad. Sad to see this car as a pure expression--not only of Enzo's terminally-ill son--but of what it means to love car culture, to just DRIVE. Just looking at it you can tell the team at Pininfarina S.P.A. spent hours pouring their love for Dino, Ferrari, and automobiles into this project.

I'll leave you with this Frankenstein Triumph TR4. The owner says it is essentially a stock TR4 with a lot of the body panels cut off, a roll bar added, sticky wheels, and some trick suspension bits to top it all off. SWAA we LOVE this shit...now, let's see if I can get behind the wheel soon and bring you some nicer feature content :)

That's it for tonight guys, I love doing this honestly and writing about cars forces me to learn more about this crazy "hobby" (seems an understatement) I love so much. Let me know in the comments if you like the level of detail/need more, anything helps.

Cheers

Outsider Garage; EVO X

The EVO X demands your attention...

Driving by the train station I spotted something different, a car I hadn't seen in my home town before. Sure, i'd seen EVOs before but I hadn't seen such a tastefully modified car. The stark white in the gloomy day got me for sure, and the dark wheels offered a much needed contrast.

I actually saw it driving by the other day, it seemed to be straight-piped and sounded awesome. Not much grunt to the sound though, like just the high frequencies came out to play heeeeeee--still, it held my attention of course driving by and I respect it so much.

I forgot EVOs come with brembo brakes, even if the owner added these later, they work for me. Especially behind these Volk ZE40s the dark blue makes the red calipers stick out. Add in these grippy Michelin Pilot Super Sports for good measure and you're looking at a track weapon. HEEEEEECK TO the yasss...

aaaaaand we are on to my favorite part of this build: the Varis-style front bumper. I love it when owners bight the bullet and buy an aggressive bit of aero...whether it's a crazy front splitter, wing, or sideskirts; a well-researched item can really bring the whole build together. If you look closely, you'll see an aftermarket intercooler peaking through the grill ;)

What is Outsider Garage? No idea yet, but maybe we'll get a feature going soon--Check out his youtube channel here

Looks sick, that's all for now big bois

Swee

The Perfect S15

Lifesteezemedia/Solid Productions brings you an amazing video of the perfect S15...

The s15 is--to me--the best--looking of the S-chassis Nissans. Coupled with what i assume is a high-output SR20DET under the hood, this vehicle reaaaaaaally moves. love it, enjoy:)

What do you think? I'm getting some Gymkhana video-style vibes from this one :)

Thanks StanceNation for the thumb photo:)

Lifesteez/Solidprod YOUTUBE CHANNEL

Jdm warriors FB

Beginning; Late

I sold the 8.

To car enthusiasts, this is usually accompanied by "And I bought a better one..." or "had to buy a house". For me, it was more about ending the current chapter and starting the next -- one not necessarily beginning with a new car purchase. This genesis is more about re-defining what car culture means to me and how I can go forward as a more conscious participator.

Nowadays, it seems you aren't respected or valued in the car community unless you have strictly "authentic" parts.

God forbid you have RS Watanabe replicas on your non-RHD Toyota AE86. "An Ebay intake? Please..." This exact obsession with what parts you have on your car and how much you paid for them is what I believe leads to a divide in our hobby. If you enjoy what you drive, who cares? 

I see it at car meets. Everybody crowds around the car with the shiniest wheels or the most expensive paint. Maybe that is only because, if someone has evidently put a lot of money into their car, they must love it. The crowd loves cars too so it shouldn't be surprising they gravitate toward great expense. My point is that we should value cars more for being cars than what mods the owners have done/how much money they have spent.

This is meant more as a dialogue rather than me telling you what you should believe about cars. 

Through my car journey, I learned everything through trial and error. Everything from an oil change to coilover installs to MIG and TIG welding custom frame notches. I learned through those processes what i'm good at and it's definitely not auto mechanics. 

Prior to my selling it, I owned a Mazda RX-8 for the better part of 5 years. In that time I had my fair share of learning experiences and problem moments: smacking wheels into curbs, endlessly scraping the front bumper on the smallest of bumps, overheating my thirsty rotary engine, feeding the seals with oil every tank of gas, failing emissions tests left and right, burning out siezed bushings, scraping salt out of the wheel wells, pretty much everything.

Through all the bad, there was always good around the corner, like late night drives down route 14 or ANY time there's a little bit of rain coming down i.e. DRIFT CENTRAL. Or when it snowed, my buddy and I went to this abandoned parking lot and drifted around for hours. So much so that the back of our cars were covered in snow...

I know people might ask why haven't started doing this until now. Fear. Everybody is afraid of something...I was afraid of failure even though I know I love doing this: ima write about cars for whoever will listen.

Cheers,

Al

Daytrip: Hunting Speed in Wilmette, IL

My first spot of the day: a nice Fiesta ST. This car has interested me for a bit and I would love to get behind the wheel  sometime soon. I sat in the driver seat at the Chicago auto show last year and it just felt right. I also like the idea of a 200hp lightweight hot hatch that you can park comfortably in the city and take down supercars in the canyons if you want...

I know air-cooled Porsches are bandwagon AF right now, but this looked MEEAAAN. Those black wheels under this turboed beast hit me right in the feels for sure. What do you think? Has the skyrocketing price of early 911s changed how you feel about them?

Having driven a couple air-cooled Porsches I can say I love the "raw" feeling to them, but I'm just more comfortable in an FR layout. I've just spent more time behind the wheel--both in rl and FORZA--exploring the limits, spinning out, DORRRRRRRRRIFTO.

aaaaand the lil baeby bro of Das Porschen peeking out from behind this support. Excuse the garbage picture, but looking closely at this car it is mint. I hate the color but man, would I love to take this car on a weekend getaway :) of course vintage roof rack would be in order.

Another prime candidate for RUFrack town. This 2002 looked awesome in the light of the parking garage. Anybody driven one of these? Impressions? It took a while for me to get used to this car's styling but now I get it, it's grown on me. Love the center-exit aftermarket exhaust, reminds me of a new Porsche GT3rs :))))))

The final car I captured during this quest is this old surf wagon. I've driven by it before but never had the chance to actually see it up close. I love the patina, and that the car isn't just a rust bucket. Look! It even has an old old old surfboard with a huge stabilizer fin on it. it's mahogany Perhaps a full feature is in order?

Well, that's it for today... I think next time I'll bring a real camera and take more pictures of individual features. Hope all is well with you fellas/ladyssssss ;)

Cheers, Al

Sick: Nissan GT-R on 53

My first impulse is *grunt* when I see a Gtr in the wild. SUCh a beast, and its omnipresent command of the road is plain to see. Starting with those exhaust tips, so fat and big and nice and loud and you could defs fit a fist in there.

On a slightly unrelated note I love getting the dude in the shot. It looked like he was taking his younger brother somewhere, maybe to a dowp house party but probably drifting if we're being honest. I can't tell what year this is but it's probably around 500 horsepower, 0-60 in veryquick...those four tires clawing for grip aided by fancy electronics making sure power goes exactly where it needs to be. 

Not often I get to capture one of these.

Spotted: Aston Martin V8 Vantage

People ask me: "So, what is your favorite car?"

Huffing and hawing ensues..."I have no idea, that is SUCh an unfair question to ask!" That's like asking a mother who her favorite child is..."Billy, or Jill?" 

Jill.

Jill is my favorite. That's the Aston V8 vantage to me, the most beautiful car in the world. The most awe-inspiring, the best sounding, the most transmission-in-the-backy, the best. "How do you know it's your favorite if you haven't driven it?" I just do, I've driven it a lot in Forza and I just KNOW it is the best car, the noise orgasmic, perfect balance (yet not 50/50), slightly recessed engine, oooooooooNOM NOM NOM NO M YESSSS

This is the car, and while you might be "ew, this dude would choose the most beautiful child over any other", the Aston Vantage is my favorite child. Yep.

Cheers,

Al

Sick: Rx7 FC Vert

I recently went on a trip to Tucson to visit my sister. This Rx7 FC was just across the street! Sporting WORK wheels and straight pipes, this thing really garnered attention. These things look so amazing when they are slammed to the ground. I didn't get the chance to stick around to meet this vert's owner, but I'm sure he/she drives it hard--possibly dorifto??

Cheers,

Al