Porsche Returns to Le Mans in 2014!

If you haven't heard, Porsche is on a mission to return to Le Mans in 2014 with a LMP1 prototype.  With an amazing history in the endurance race I simply can't wait. Porsche has put up a Mission 2014 micro site with tons of awesome videos and news.....see you all next year!

90 Years of Le Mans

Am I the only guy this happens to? When I walk by a magnum of champagne in a liquor store I immediately have visions of shaking it and spraying it all over the place? I can't be just me! This silly tradition started (or at least was popularized) at Le Mans!  The 24 Hours of Le Mans was the venue for the first known instance at a major race of a winning driver celebrating by spraying champagne instead of drinking it. When Dan Gurney won the 1967 race with co-driver A.J. Foyt, the two drivers mounted the victory stand and Gurney was handed a magnum of champagne. Looking down, he saw Ford CEO Henry Ford II, team owner Carroll Shelby and their wives, as well as several journalists who had predicted disaster for the high-profile duo. Gurney shook the bottle and sprayed everyone nearby, establishing a tradition re-enacted in victory celebrations the world over for the next 40+ years. Gurney autographed and gave the bottle of champagne to a Life photographer, Flip Schulke, who used it as a lamp for many years. He later returned the bottle to Gurney, who keeps it at his home in California.

Another silly thing Le Mans gave us. The races traditionally began with what became known as the Le Mans start, in which cars were lined up alongside the pit wall. The starting drivers would stand on the opposite side of the front stretch. When the French flag dropped to signify the start, the drivers would run across the track to their cars, which they would have to enter and start without assistance, before driving away. This became a safety issue in the late 1960s when drivers would ignore their safety harnesses, a recent invention. This starting method inspired Porsche to locate the ignition key switch to the left of the steering wheel. This allowed the driver to use his left hand to start the engine, and his right hand to put the transmission into gear.

June 22 will mark the 90th year of the 24 Hours of Le Mans (24 Heures du Mans in French). With the the current cable providers, streaming over the internet, and social media it shouldn't be difficult to follow the race.  Just like with the Monaco Grand Prix, Le Mans is more than just a race.  The machines, location, history and pageantry make it an event.

Drifting in Jersey

The whole drifting thing is somewhat of an enigma to me.  Don't get me wrong, nothing puts a smile on my face like getting a car stupid sideways. But I still  haven't warmed up to the progression of good ol' fashioned hooning to Formula DRIFT (Formula D) in which competitions are subjectively judged based on 'style'......are we racing or figure skating?

But this video literally made me start scouring the internet for a used 240SX to flog. What's better than sponsor laden Formula D cars in high production events? Beater missile cars in New Jersey! Leafless trees, brown grass and crappy lighting due to the position of the non-summer sun.....perfect!   

Monaco 2013!

The Monaco Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, May 26th. The Monaco Grand Prix is generally considered to be one of the most prestigious automobile races in the world. Monaco, the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans are often considered the Triple Crown of auto racing.  Formula One races are already a spectacle unto themselves. But when you bring the show to one of the most glamorous places on earth in conjunction with a massive dose of history and tradition the experience is just off the charts. That is why simply attending a Monaco Grand Prix  as a spectator is on my bucket list.

Below in the pre-race intro aired by the BBC last year.....from birth to Monaco:

 

This is just sick!!!

This is old, but awesome!!! If you've ever driven around San Fran you will doubly appreciate this....

Gearheads make the best friends

I last wrote about my business trip to Las Vegas and my experience renting  a convertible Camaro SS from   Fantasy Car Rentals. An amazing thing happened while tooling around Vegas in the SS....
I was driving around soaking in the scenery and weather. Periodically, whenever I stopped somewhere to look around, I would check my email via my smart phone.  And that's when I saw an email from my buddy Frank. Frank and I used to work together over six years ago.  When our company relocated he moved to Pittsburgh while I remained in Connecticut. It had been about a year since Frank and I have exchanged an e-mail, but historically, every now and then, Frank and I will shoot each other an email to check in on each other and see how things are going. The second question is typically 'what are you driving?'

So why did Frank e-mail me after all this time?....to show me his new car of course. Frank is a car nut, and even more dangerous, he's an extremely impulsive car nut.  So in the few years I worked with him he owned cars like a 98 Camaro SS, a Supra, a SVT Lightning, an Impala SS, etc. We used to go test drive cars every other day during our lunch breaks (I'll write about this later) which was a riot.  So whenever our stables change we fire off an email to share the news.  Here's Frank's new 2013 SS/RS with 1LE package...

So I immediately fired back that it was pretty ironic that I was literally in a Camaro SS when I received the email. I also sent him this photo...

And these two next emails were priceless. Within minutes I received this:

Shortly followed by this email (diagram and all)

I couldn't help but smile when I read these (especially the second one). Also, makes you appreciate the availability of information and how quickly it can be shared.  He obviously found the information and diagram on a website/forum somewhere and was able to share it with me a few thousand miles away literally sitting in my car via a smart phone.

Vegas for Car Guys

I haven't been posting for a while.  I've basically been waiting for some descent weather to visit New England so I can start getting out and reporting on the local scene.  However, I just spent the last week in Las Vegas on a business trip.  During my trip I managed to spend a little bit of time enjoying myself.....turns out Vegas is a fairly car guy friendly place.....

I had some time to kill to so I checked out http://www.fantasycarrentals.com right by the airport.  Other companies offer exotic car rentals in Vegas (such as Hertz) but Fantasy Car Rentals has a great selection ranging from vintage American cars to modern European exotics.  They will also pick you up at the airport or hotel and drop you off afterwards.  Since I was on a budget and the weather was fantastic I ended up with a convertible Camaro SS.

A view from Fantasy Car Rentals

Another view from Fantasy Car Rentals

First stop was Red Rock Canyon.  Its amazing that a place like Red Rock is within 30 minutes of the strip and yet the completely polar opposite of what the strip is.  Its a great drive out there and the 13 mile scenic loop is breathtaking.  The speed limit in the loop is 35 MPH so it is in fact a scenic loop and not a high speed circuit.  I didn't do the Hoover Dam or Lake Mead on this trip because I did that on a previous trip (in a rented Cobra!).

On my way back from Red Rock I decided to swing by Count's Kustoms. The speedshop owned by Danny 'Count' Koker and made famous by shows like Pawn Stars and Counting Cars. The people were extremely friendly and they have a section of the shop dedicated to displaying some of Danny's collection. Free, laid back, and about a mile from my hotel on the strip.

Next morning I headed north to where Las Vegas Motor Speedway is located.  The area of the speedway is a car guy's paradise.  In addition to the race track, the area hosts a dragstip and a few companies that specialize in exotic car driving experiences such as http://www.exoticsracing.com.  The area also houses an industrial complex loaded with racing teams and automotive related businesses.  My favorite is the headquarters of Shelby American Inc.  The facility includes a museum area. The contents of the display is always changing and includes some of the most famous cars ever produced from the first Cobra CSX2000 to prototypes of the Series 1, Shelby GT-H, Terlingua, GT500KR, and others. Shelby also runs a free tour of the shop at 10:30AM Monday through Saturday.

I arrived at the speedway area early one morning during the week (so I could take the Shelby tour). When I pulled off the highway exit and entered the track complex I was immediately met with the sound of a race car circling the speedway, Shelby moving cars around their lot (including a Shelby 1000) and a herd of exotic sports cars coming up the street on their way to the lot location where they operate their driving experience business.  Just for an extra helping of testosterone, fighter jets from nearby Nellis Air Force Base would make intermittent cameos overhead! Freakin' awesome!

Another thing I did not do on this trip to Sin City was visit the Auto Collections at the Quad Resort & Casino (which used to be the Imperial Palace).  I went there last year and did have to get some work done on this trip. 

But there you have it.....Vegas from a gearhead's perspective.      

Another racing movie for 2013!

 

Just saw this trailer for Rush due out in Spetember of 2013.  It's a biography of Formula 1 champion driver Niki Lauda and the 1976 crash that almost claimed his life. Mere weeks after the accident, he got behind the wheel to challenge his rival, James Hunt (Thor).

Classic doesn't just mean old

Every now and then I taunt myself with the idea of selling my '69 Mustang and '67 Cougar and buying a brand new Detroit muscle car (the new Mustang, Challenger and Camaro are fantastic). The performance, usability and reliability of the new car is really appealing. I would love to have goodies like climate control, heated seats, air conditioning, anti-lock brakes, and even airbags. When I consider the over 30k price tag my little mental exercise abruptly ends....not because its something I can't afford, but because I view it as a waste.....let me explain.

You have 25 grand burning a hole in your pocket today (currently 2013) and there are two cars for sale:

Option one is a 1969 Boss 302 Mustang...

Option two is a 2000 Mustang GT with zero miles on it...

Which do you buy?

Looking at these two options today the choice is a no-brainer. One is a iconic classic and the other is just a used car (even with zero miles).

Yet, when faced with the same choice back in 2000 I chose the other way around! To add insult to injury, now 13 years later, the 2000 GT is worth a whole lot less and well, just not that cool. Meanwhile, the Boss has actually appreciated in value and is still as distinctive and iconic as ever. One factor is that that back in 2000 I actually didn't have $25k in hand so the ability to finance the new Ford played into the equation......but the fact that I still hear this suggestion debated among car guys shows that we don't learn from history. As beautifully executed the new Mustang, Challenger, and Camaro are, in a few years (especially once the big three evolve the body styles) they will be considered used cars....NOT classics!

The phenomenon of an "instant classic" does exist, but its a very rare thing. There is an old notion among collectors that says as soon as something is made to be collectable, it is no longer collectable. For example, have you ever seen how many varieties of baseball cards are available today? They have every sort of special edition, limited edition, foil wrapped, hermetically sealed, holographic gimmick you can think of. They are bought by collectors (not kids) and are immediately stashed into secure collections. Will any of these new cards ever sell for the 2.8 Million that the 1909 Honus Wagner sold for? NO! Because those old cards were bought by kids (even though they were in cigarette packs) who enjoyed them (i.e. ruined them) eventually making the rare item even rarer.

So in summary, love your classic. Not because of its potential monetary value (I'll actually lambaste the notion of cars as investments at a later date) , but because it has already stood the test of time and it takes a special kind of person to own and appreciate it.

Something about old Ford trucks - Part II

My posts have definitely been slowing down. Basically, I've really just been posting about past exploits with hopes to make it through the winter so that I can start a more 'real time' blog in the spring.  The problem is that it won't stop freakin' snowing here in Connecticut. Temperatures are still hovering around freezing and last year at this time spring had sprung and we were in the 70's.

So for now, here's another story about something dumb I did. Just a couple years back I came across a beat up old 64 Ford F-100 locally.  The truck was a mess, but relatively complete.  As I already posted, I have s weak spot for old Ford trucks.  So I made the deal. Rented a trailer and took the family SUV to drag the project home....did I mention I forget to tell my wife? Ultimately, to make a long story short, she went nuts when I brought it home.  I think a part of the reaction what based on the fact that the truck was heinous.   Anyways, I spent some time going down the 'rat rod' theme with the project just using rattle cans and junk already in my garage.  I think it started to shape up but then I received an offer on it and sold it......a very happy day for my wife. So here it is....

Before

After

Engine Before

Engine After

I'm sure there is a Something about old Ford trucks - Part III coming some day.