Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Sun, Jun 07, 2009 at 03:36:19PM +1000, Rob Studdert wrote: On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. I this is the hardest thing to convey to anyone who just thinks a car has four wheels and gets you from point a to point b. Porsche make drivers cars straight off the factory floor, I wish I still was able to afford one (or two as used to be the case). I'd like to drive one some time, to see how much difference there is in handling between the Porsche and a BMW. Of course what I'd really like is to persuade somebody I know, albeit only casually, to let me loose on his stable. He's got a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, and a Bugatti Veyron. I suspect they're pretty nice, too. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Jun 6, 2009, at 22:36 , Rob Studdert wrote: On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. This is the hardest thing to convey to anyone who just thinks a car has four wheels and gets you from point a to point b. Porsche makes driver's cars straight off the factory floor, I wish I still was able to afford one (or two as used to be the case). Amen. I'll never be able to afford an old 914, because to be in good enough shape it would have to have been so carefully cared for, and have low mileage to boot. That would be very expensive. There was a time when you could buy a body in white and build your own. It's the body that ultimately gives up. You can tell it's getting old by taking off the roof and driving it hard. If the car seems to oversteer with only a little steering input, the car frame is twisting and is no good. Because they are tight cars, if you run them hard, over time the spot welds begin to work, and body strength and stiffness goes away. Water can get in the seams, and rust follows, usually starting at the rear of the front fender wells where the front trunk wall and the fender come together. Hose out behind the rocker panels from the front wheel well and engine compartment until water squirts out around the jack sockets. If water doesn't come out around the jack holes, you have to drill out the rivets that hold the rockers and kick panels in place, then clean up and apply wax or repaint any bad spots. Same goes for the front turn signals. Remove them and clean the area inside the fenders thoroughly. Most attention should be payed to the right hand side trunk lid torsion bar retaining bolt and mount near the battery, and the battery support structure, both of which tend to be surrounded by battery fumes (even maintenance free batteries breathe all the time). After modifying the factory bolt mounts so they would drain, some aftermarket versions appeared and could be welded on to replace the corroded ones. If you see a 914 with the right front of the trunk lid raised up from half an inch to two inches, this has not been done. The headlight bucket drain tubes should be kept clear, as should the two drain tubes in the front trunk, and the four drain tubes in the rear trunk. They tended to get clogged with sand from the trunk or mud from the road. The front and rear bumpers, the rubber seals around both trunk lids need to be removed periodically, and everything cleaned up. The rubber seal channels will hold water under the seal, and corrode away. Behind the bumpers need to be cleaned and waxed every couple of years. The drivers side floor carpet should be removed (it just sits there, no glue) every time you wash the car and vacuum under it. Keep that area clean and dry. Wet shoes, snow on boots, etc, all do damage to that area. The clutch cable needs to be cleaned and lubricated fairly often, as it gets greasy, then sand sticks to it, and it eats away at the clutch cable pulley (which I used to replace every couple of years) and itself, then breaks. The rear calipers also act as the emergency brake through a mechanical linkage. The brake is adjusted at the caliper by an allen head screw that you screw out to allow new pads to be put in, then screw in until the pads are just touching the rotor. What happened to me on several occasions is that the steel allen head screw would corrode in the aluminum caliper, and the head would get stripped out. So I always advised to back the screw out and screw it back in every couple of months in the winter. Just count the turns. If any of you pick up a 914 for fun driving anytime, keep a copy of this email, and you'll be able to care for it properly, or at least find out where it's screwed up. Can you tell I was the Potomac (Washington D.C.) Region Technical Chairperson for the Porsche Club of America from 1979 to 1982? Anyway, I've test driven several late 80's 928 S cars over the past few years. If I stop being a photographer and sell ALL my camera equipment, I can probably buy one in OK condition. But that won't happen. No. Never happen. Thanks for reading. Joseph McAllister pentax...@mac.com http://gallery.me.com/jomac http://web.me.com/jomac/show.me/Blog/Blog.html -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
I'd like to drive one some time, to see how much difference there is in handling between the Porsche and a BMW. Funny you should mention that Back in the spring of 05 I got a post card from Porsche, inviting me to any Porsche dealer to drive any Porsche I desired. I chose the Boxster cause I had heard some great things and it was relatively within my reach - financially. Well after an hour test drive I was thoroughly impressed, so much so that I instantly went from curious to intent. Took the wife for a ride and she NUDGED me on to get one ! I talked a little more seriously with the sales guy (a really great car guy who never tried to sell me a thing - he let the car sell itself). Reading me correctly, he actually told me of some things not to put on the car. I then ordered a new 05 'S' to be built in Finland presto about 3 months later my Seal Grey Boxster S ( built to my specs, (including 19 wheels/tires, wind blocker floor mats) magically appeared in the driveway. I bet if you went to your local dealer, you could easily get a demo drive ! Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f - Original Message - From: John Francis jo...@panix.com Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) On Sun, Jun 07, 2009 at 03:36:19PM +1000, Rob Studdert wrote: On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. I this is the hardest thing to convey to anyone who just thinks a car has four wheels and gets you from point a to point b. Porsche make drivers cars straight off the factory floor, I wish I still was able to afford one (or two as used to be the case). I'd like to drive one some time, to see how much difference there is in handling between the Porsche and a BMW. Of course what I'd really like is to persuade somebody I know, albeit only casually, to let me loose on his stable. He's got a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, and a Bugatti Veyron. I suspect they're pretty nice, too. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Ken Waller wrote: I bet if you went to your local dealer, you could easily get a demo drive ! The phrase before the comma would be the difficult part. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Sun, Jun 07, 2009 at 10:20:14PM +0100, mike wilson wrote: Ken Waller wrote: I bet if you went to your local dealer, you could easily get a demo drive ! The phrase before the comma would be the difficult part. Not here - I'm in Silicon Valley. Porsche dealerships are commonplace (my local one is on auto row, next to the Ford/Buick/Toyota/Audi/... dealerships). Heck, within five miles I've got a place that wants to sell me Bentleys, Aston Martins, etc. Here's their used car lot: http://www.jfwaf.com/PAW/PAW.php?name=PAW0710 -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: There is governor in the black box, ignition cuts Off at 115 MPH and comes back on at 110 MPH. Engine Only doing 2800 rpm in fourth gear at 115 MPH. FYI -The engine is goverened to that speed due to several things but mainly due to the speed rating of the original tires. I lied. For a very short time I owned a '73 Mach I with a 351 Cleveland, C6 tranny and 9 rear end. I never found out how fast it would go because it got too squirrelly to steer at about 110. 9mpg if I drove the speed limit. 6mpg if I drove it like it was meant to be driven. It's the only American car I've ever owned that I actually liked. But a couple months after I bought it a Mustang collector offered me nearly twice what I paid for it. I think he was going to pull the drive train and scrap the body. -- Scott Loveless Cigarette-free since December 14th, 2008 http://www.twosixteen.com/fivetoedsloth/ -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Jun 7, 2009, at 14:56 , John Francis wrote: On Sun, Jun 07, 2009 at 10:20:14PM +0100, mike wilson wrote: Ken Waller wrote: I bet if you went to your local dealer, you could easily get a demo drive ! The phrase before the comma would be the difficult part. Not here - I'm in Silicon Valley. Porsche dealerships are commonplace (my local one is on auto row, next to the Ford/Buick/Toyota/Audi/... dealerships). Heck, within five miles I've got a place that wants to sell me Bentleys, Aston Martins, etc. Here's their used car lot: http://www.jfwaf.com/PAW/PAW.php?name=PAW0710 Well, that got me started on your Picture a Week album until after a couple of years I was able to break off and get back to business. Nice idea, and nice collection, including some very nice captures. Did I glean that you moved here from England? Joseph McAllister Lots of gear, not much time http://gallery.me.com/jomac http://web.me.com/jomac/show.me/Blog/Blog.html -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
My Boxster was only the second car I've had that needed nothing off the showroom floor. The other was my GT350, but that was in 66. Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f - Original Message - From: Rob Studdert distudio.p...@gmail.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Sunday, June 07, 2009 1:36 AM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. I this is the hardest thing to convey to anyone who just thinks a car has four wheels and gets you from point a to point b. Porsche make drivers cars straight off the factory floor, I wish I still was able to afford one (or two as used to be the case). -- Rob Studdert HURSTVILLE AUSTRALIA Tel +61-2-9554-4110 UTC +10 -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
My local dealer is within walking distance of the house (even at 10 below zero). You don't know how tempting it is. He also sells Maserati's out of the same showroom as well as Volvo's. Owning a Volvo worsens the temptation because I need to go in there occasionally. jm - Original Message - From: mike wilson m.9.wil...@ntlworld.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Sunday, June 07, 2009 5:20 PM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) Ken Waller wrote: I bet if you went to your local dealer, you could easily get a demo drive ! The phrase before the comma would be the difficult part. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Cars I have owned 1962 Chevy Impala SS My first car. It was what got me my wife! 1957 Mercury Parklane Cruiser After getting the wife I had to downsize to the Mercury for cheaper payments! 1958 VW Beetle Car we bought overseas on Guam. A real Guam Bomb! 1968 Toyota Corona Bought on Guam just before we returned to the states. It was the domestic Japanese version and some parts were not available in the US, like the rod bearings when it spun a few one day. Traded it in on the 69 Chevy Wagon. 1957 Rambler American SW Bought it from a shipmate for 24.95 so he could order seat covers for his VW from J C Whitney. The insurance was going to cost me over 100.00 per year so I sold it for 100.00. 1969 Chevy Townsman SW Had a lot of shortcomings but was the best car I ever had for many years to come. I still have very fond memories of that car and things and places we did in it. Car and Driver once voted the 69 full size chevy's in the top ten of best cars ever made! 1972 Toyota Corolla Bought new to travel from home in Concord,CA to the USS Enterprise in Hunters Point Naval Shipyard every day for 7 months. Then took it to Guam when we were sent there in late 72 1981 Chevy Malibu SW A drunken Piscataway Indian rearended the wife in the 69 Chevy wagon forced a new car sale just when interest rates went to 16% Thanks Jimmy Carter! The Chevy had lasted from 1969 til 1981 and had 187,000 miles on it. The engine had been rebuilt at 104,000. 1970 Datsun 210 Sedan second car while on Guam for last tour there. Sold the Malibu Wagon to an Air Force dude who needed a newer car to take back to the states and retirement. 1983 Nissan Maxima SW Diesel Replaced the Malibu. I paid 9700 cash for it in Guam. It lasted til 1996 when I traded it for the Mazda. The Maxima had 186,000 miles and still got 36mpg on the hwy. 1984 Honda CRX Bought it new on Guam and took back to Washington, DC. I put 47,000 on it in just a couple years and then sold it to a young female sailor who thought it was sporty. 1973 VW Beetle bought it from a friend at work and did a complete restoration. It was one nice looking and fun driving VW. Then I found the VW Camper on a used car lot and had to have it. Had to sell the Beetle to afford the camper. When we retired to FL in 90 the new tags were going to cost over 500.00 per vehicle so I sold the camper. I still regret that! 1973 VW Camper Maybe more fond memories in it than the 69 Chevy wagon! 1990 Plymouth Grand Voyager bought to give the wife a more reliable car than the Nissan Maxima that had lost the power steering seals. The Plymouth is why I will never buy another Chrysler product. 175,000 miles and 3 transmissions. When the 3rd one died I junked it! 1996 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera for the wife to replace the mini van. 1992 Mazda PU B2000 replaved the Nissan Maxima 1986 Chevrolet Cavalier SW The son was turning 17 and a drivers license. I couldn't bear to let him drive the Mazda and destroy it so I sold it for more than I had paid for it and bought the Cavilier SW. It was a good beeter for the son until he bought his own car, a Jeep CJ 1993 Buick LeSabre After the son took over the Cavalier I needed a car. Bought from a friend. It had 83,000 on it and I sold it in 2004 when I bought the Scion. The Buick had 177,000 and the tranny needed rebuilding. 2005 Scion xB bought it the day after Bush 43 won reelection to celebrate. Well, at least the car has proven to be a winner! 2001 Saturn LW200 SW Replaced the Cutlass Ciera for the wife. It had 93,000 on it when we bought it for 6000 bucks. So far it has been a good car except for a computer than needed replacing. It is the 4 banger so sorta gutless, but hey, it gets over 30mpg on the hwy! Now I am almost 67, retired, and starting to think we can get by on one car. Thinking of selling both and buying something that might qualify me for that tax credit for replacing a car older than 7 or 8 years old, whatever it is. Anyone have any suggestions! :-) Walt On Fri, Jun 5, 2009 at 4:50 PM, John Sessomsjsessoms...@nc.rr.com wrote: More or less in order starting from age 16. I don't think I've forgotten any: -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Well, I don't have the car history that a lot of you guys have, this post should really be in the Windows bashing thread, but here goes... 72 Mercury Capri (1.6 litre IIRC automatic). This started out life as my mom's car, hence the slush box. Met an untimely demise at the hood of a large domestic something or other. 65 Olds F85 4 door. 330 CID (or something) 2 speed slush. Died at the hands of my mom, who drove it home with a blown rad hose. 72 Mazda RX-2 with a crazy powerful non stock motor that dyno'd 50% more HP than stock. Ugly little 4 door sedan, didn't handle worth shit, but if you didn't have a 350 or bigger, I'd probably win a street drag. That car fooled a lot of people driving American muscle. 76 Yamaha RD400. Funny little sewing machine that was deceptively light, especially the front end of it. 78 Kawasaki 650 (bought in the fall of 1976). Not at all funny very powerful bike. Top heavy, hard to keep grounded, but very fun and fast. Prone to speed wobbles on wet pavement. Like that's any fun. 73 Mazda RX-2. Bought because I liked the first one so much. This one was a dissapointment. 78 Harley Davidson Superglide. Nice bike, suffered from some electrical problems in the starter. Inexplicably, HD left the kick start off this model. Probably an AMF thing. Traded it for: 79 HD Low Rider. This was an absolute joy. It was the first of the 80 inch engines, and the last of the cast iron shovelheads. Engine was factory balanced and blueprinted (whatever that means). Stolen from me 2 years later, never recovered. 81 HD Wide Glide. Nice factory chopper with an early aluminium block. POS engine. Thankfully stolen. 1980 Honda Accord hatchback. Flawless car, gave me 250,000 trouble free km with only routine maintenance. Obviously not a CVCC engine. BSA Lightning motorcycle, I don't recall what year. Isle of Mann gearing, it was hard to keep it on the ground, but it had a low top speed and shook like an epileptic crack whore. 1972 Triumph Trident. Great bike when it ran. Required more maintenance than an 18 year old mistress. Got tired of the constant wrenching, so traded it for a BMW R80. Very prone to speed wobble if not on absolutely smooth pavement which doesn't exist where I live. Sold it before it killed me. 1976 BMW 530i. Nice, comfortable 4 door sedan, no better quality wise than a full sized American car. Put lots of money into this one, only to have it catch fire while I was driving it. I figured it was the Heirich Himmler edition. Escaped from it moments before it exploded. 1998 Pontiac Grand Am. Nice driving car, notchy transmission and a very touchy clutch. Fatally flawed Quad4 engine which blew up with 22K km on the clock. I ended up with an inch thick stack of repair invoices on it before I gave up. Got it running well enough to trade and dumped it for a 1990 Nissan Axxess AWD. Funny looking micro van that was tough as nails. I did my best to pound the life out of it, but it kept coming back smiling. Eventually got nailed by a Ford sport ute and totaled. 1995 (I think) Isuzu Trooper. Would have been a nice car if GM hadn't insisted on putting one of their garbage transmissions into it. Bad exhaust routing caused by the badly engineered transmission decisions caused the exhaust pipe to run too close to the starter. It ate one starter a year, like clockwork, every year I owned it, and the tranny cost me over 3K to fix after it failed miserably at 60K KM. I took a bath on it, but got out from under it when I bought my 04 Titan. So far, it's been a good, solid truck, though it has had it's share of recalls, mostly due to electrical oversights. 1995 Nissan X-Trail. Actually my wife's car, but I'll include it since I paid for it. Bought it to replace her 1985 Toyota Tercel 4wd wagon. Basically an appliance on wheels. Very small, surprisingly invisible vehicle. I'm now working on teaching my dog to pull a cart, don't know if this will count as practicle transportation. William Robb -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Sat, Jun 6, 2009 at 11:17 AM, William Robb war...@gmail.com wrote: Well, I don't have the car history that a lot of you guys have, this post should really be in the Windows bashing thread, but here goes... My history is even shorter, having only owned 2 cars and had 2 others on loan. 1986 S-10 Blazer 4x4 - With the 2.8 V6, 5-speed and offroad package. This was my mother's but became essentially mine as of my 16th because Mom could no longer drive it. Surprisingly reliable little SUV, worked well for me and for the family until it started eating CV joints. UNderpowered though, that 2.8 was reliable but couldn't get out of its own way in an SUV. 1988 1/2 Subaru Justy AWD with the 5 speed. My first car. Lots of fun to drive, lots of money to fix. Got me around for quite awhile until I blew a main bearing seal at highway speed. A new block cost more than the car did. GREAT pizza delivery car. $20 in gas got me through a week. 1986 BMW 325i - Had this on loan from my Grandmother for a summer. A real blast to drive, beautiful handling. Was getting long in the tooth by the time I had it (summer of 1999). 1994 Eagle Vision ESi. My mother bought this to replace the S-10 in 95, I bought it off her a couple years ago. Reasonably reliable, comfortable, roomy, great highway car. Has the bulletproof 3.3L engine. A big car with mid-size mileage, good looks and lots of visibility. Parallel parking always is hard because it's difficult to tell where the car begins and ends due to hood/tail curvature. Really wish Chrysler had something comparable today. -- M. Adam Maas http://www.mawz.ca Explorations of the City Around Us. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
- Original Message From: William Robb war...@gmail.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Saturday, June 6, 2009 8:17:19 AM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) it had a low top speed and shook like an epileptic crack whore. Just like the shutter in a Pentax 67... ;-) -Brendan -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Ken, Did you ever blow any of the head gaskets on the Super Coupes ? No, Never did. Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f - Original Message - From: 27...@comcast.net Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) Ken, Did you ever blow any of the head gaskets on the Super Coupes ? - Original Message - From: Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Saturday, June 6, 2009 12:56:31 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) I guess I'll play also - 1953 VW used- yeah the one with a split rear window. 1959 Bugeye Sprite - used with factory fibreglass hard top, with radials on the front bias on the rear a real fun ride - my college ride - sold for what I paid for it. 1966 Shelby GT 350 new - bought new the last month in college - this one could go faster in second than the Bugeye could top out at. While on my way to Dearborn from New Jersey, for my job at Ford, I topped it out on the Ohio Turnpike at slightly over 140mph (indicated). Unfortunately some one else wanted it more than me - it was stolen 5 months later and the remains were found in 4 days behind a gas station near Flatrock speedway, near Toledo, ah if only Could have bought a new 66 GT350 from Ford WHQ but decided I didn't want to go thru that again. Got a speeding ticket while test driving a 66 911S Porsche, passed it up for a new 67 Cougar GT. Got married - things change alot here Wife got the Cougar, I picked up a well used 66 Ford Fairlane with the hypo 289 4 speed. Did a clutch job on it in a driveway decided I'll never do that again !968 Falcon 6 cyl/auto used - solid cheap transportation 1969 Mercury Capri new - that I managed to turn into a non streetable car with alot of suspension engine mods making it very competitive in local gymkhanas and almost a 'B' sedan for SCCA racing. 1972 (?) Pinto Wagon new - with some engine mods some BFG radials it became a great traveler. 1972 Ford Maverick used - more solid transportation for my daily commute 1975 Ford Econoline E350 used - a brute but very dependable 1976 Ford Econoline E 150 new - less of a brute still dependable. 1979 Fiesta S new - A well build little commuter that really performed, I loved the 1600cc crossflow pushrod engine in it. 1982 - began a 24 year run of company lease vehicles - Always tried to lease vehicles I would like to own - included several Thunderbirds (including Super Coupes), one of every year Taurus SHO's, several Explorers, Mercury Scorpio, several Escapes others I can't remember. 1995 Ford Contour v6/5 speed new - a great handling commuter vehicle for me. 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. 2008 2009 Escape FWD new - nice size for two people long distance travel. My auto tails to date Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Back then I lusted after a 914 2.0L but was too involved with sedan racing in SCCA/IMSA to have the money to purchase one. Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f - Original Message - From: Joseph McAllister pentax...@mac.com Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) On Jun 5, 2009, at 21:56 , Ken Waller wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. Exactly my feelings after only an hour in my 1973 914 2.0, 30 years earlier, after disappointing test drives in a 240Z and a Fiat Spyder the same week. Weight distribution, braking, cornering, shifting, and comfort all were exceptional. Acceleration was very good for a 4 cylinder engine. Plenty of passenger room for my soon to be wife, or my Malamute, but not both. Ended up buying her an identical used 914 for her 21st birthday in 1979, a 1.7 ltr that I had to do some upgrading on to get the same performance and appearance groups installed (vinyl sails, chrome bumpers, mag wheels, sway bars front and rear, some upholstery) and yes, she was quite a bit younger than I. Without me the car weighed 2173 lbs. A few hundred lbs less when I auto-crossed thanks to no spare tire, no passenger seat, no door or seat-back panels, no floor carpet front or rear, shaved Minilites vs stock mags, no tools, lighter Gel based battery, no trunk mats front or rear, unlined braced but ground lightened roof. In other words, stock. :-) Though utilizing the flat 6 engine from the 911 series, the Boxster was positioned as the 914 was to be an entry level car to suck you into Porsche's grip. If it doesn’t excite you, This thing that you see, Why in the world, Would it excite me? —Jay Maisel Joseph McAllister pentax...@mac.com -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Lets see here. 1973 Datsun 1200 coupe. Great car but rusted incredibly fast. Body was toast at 40,000 miles. I had enough money left after i bought this, last year of college, to either get a radio or rust proofing, i took the radio. 1979 GMC Jimmy. My first ordered truck. Three on the tree, 2 wheel drive. It had carpet, roof insulation etc. Never get carpet for a work truck:-) 1987 Chevy 4x4 pickup, 8' box(my first lemon)Spent the first 2 years in the dealers shop. It would just stall out when ever it felt like it. Many a time on our main hwys it would die and i had to wrestle it to the shoulder, then it would restart. Turned out it was a problem with the duel tank switch. It was stolen from a job site in March 1994. Sucker.:-) 1994 GMC Sierra 4x4 extend cab 6.5' box, Three transmissions later, see below. 2003 GMC Sierra 4x4 extend cab 6.5' box, So far not a bad truck, great mileage, but tranny problems. This will probably be my last GM product, if they can't buold a decent tranny after 100 years, they never will. Dave -- Documenting Life in Rural Ontario. www.caughtinmotion.com http://brooksinthecountry.blogspot.com/ York Region, Ontario, Canada -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
RE: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
My car history has one theme. All American/rear wheel drive/V8 except the first. '69 Camaro V6 chevy '71 Sport Lemans V8 pontiac '71 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '79 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '84 T-Bird V8 ford '95 T-Bird LX V8 ford No imports on my list of any make. I havent bought a car in over a dozen years. This '95 T-Bird has been far and away the best car I have ever owned. 4.6L V8 DOHC multiport fuelie With rear wheel drive and independent rear Suspension. Just over a 100K miles on it and still Running smooth as silk. Only thing I don't like is There is governor in the black box, ignition cuts Off at 115 MPH and comes back on at 110 MPH. Engine Only doing 2800 rpm in fourth gear at 115 MPH. I would really love to find out how fast it would Top out at with the governor ripped out. I have A beef with Ford Motor Company on that one. What is odd, is if I had the reasonable money To put together/buy any car I wanted today, I would go back to the '69 Camaro but go with Compeltely restored stock exterior and interior But all new top line 2009 drive train, electonics, and suspension. That would be freakin aweseome as a daily driver. Too bad I cant even come close to affording that Setup. Oh, well its nice to have a plan at least. J.C. O'Connell ( mailto:hifis...@gate.net ) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
You might be able to buy an aftermarket chip for that computer that will cancel the governor while enriching the fuel mixture a bit and improving the ignition advance curve. Paul On Jun 6, 2009, at 5:39 PM, J.C. O'Connell wrote: My car history has one theme. All American/rear wheel drive/V8 except the first. '69 Camaro V6 chevy '71 Sport Lemans V8 pontiac '71 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '79 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '84 T-Bird V8 ford '95 T-Bird LX V8 ford No imports on my list of any make. I havent bought a car in over a dozen years. This '95 T-Bird has been far and away the best car I have ever owned. 4.6L V8 DOHC multiport fuelie With rear wheel drive and independent rear Suspension. Just over a 100K miles on it and still Running smooth as silk. Only thing I don't like is There is governor in the black box, ignition cuts Off at 115 MPH and comes back on at 110 MPH. Engine Only doing 2800 rpm in fourth gear at 115 MPH. I would really love to find out how fast it would Top out at with the governor ripped out. I have A beef with Ford Motor Company on that one. What is odd, is if I had the reasonable money To put together/buy any car I wanted today, I would go back to the '69 Camaro but go with Compeltely restored stock exterior and interior But all new top line 2009 drive train, electonics, and suspension. That would be freakin aweseome as a daily driver. Too bad I cant even come close to affording that Setup. Oh, well its nice to have a plan at least. J.C. O'Connell ( mailto:hifis...@gate.net ) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
There is governor in the black box, ignition cuts Off at 115 MPH and comes back on at 110 MPH. Engine Only doing 2800 rpm in fourth gear at 115 MPH. FYI -The engine is goverened to that speed due to several things but mainly due to the speed rating of the original tires. Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f - Original Message - From: J.C. O'Connell hifis...@gate.net Subject: RE: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) My car history has one theme. All American/rear wheel drive/V8 except the first. '69 Camaro V6 chevy '71 Sport Lemans V8 pontiac '71 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '79 Cutlass Supreme V8 olds '84 T-Bird V8 ford '95 T-Bird LX V8 ford No imports on my list of any make. I havent bought a car in over a dozen years. This '95 T-Bird has been far and away the best car I have ever owned. 4.6L V8 DOHC multiport fuelie With rear wheel drive and independent rear Suspension. Just over a 100K miles on it and still Running smooth as silk. Only thing I don't like is There is governor in the black box, ignition cuts Off at 115 MPH and comes back on at 110 MPH. Engine Only doing 2800 rpm in fourth gear at 115 MPH. I would really love to find out how fast it would Top out at with the governor ripped out. I have A beef with Ford Motor Company on that one. What is odd, is if I had the reasonable money To put together/buy any car I wanted today, I would go back to the '69 Camaro but go with Compeltely restored stock exterior and interior But all new top line 2009 drive train, electonics, and suspension. That would be freakin aweseome as a daily driver. Too bad I cant even come close to affording that Setup. Oh, well its nice to have a plan at least. J.C. O'Connell ( mailto:hifis...@gate.net ) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On 6/6/09, Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. I this is the hardest thing to convey to anyone who just thinks a car has four wheels and gets you from point a to point b. Porsche make drivers cars straight off the factory floor, I wish I still was able to afford one (or two as used to be the case). -- Rob Studdert HURSTVILLE AUSTRALIA Tel +61-2-9554-4110 UTC +10 -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Wow. I've had only three cars in my driving life. 18 - 1972 Mercury Capri. It had a 2600cc V6 in a body that didn't weigh very much, especially mine since I only had the passenger seat in the car half the time. I wrecked it twice, the last time I lost the entire steering rack. Shouldn't have put any money into at that point but did anyway. 20 - 1989 Dodge D50 pick up (Mitsubishi Mighty Max). I worked at a Dodge dealership from 1988-1992 so I got the truck for $100 over invoice cost. White with light buckskin interior. I went on the dealer trade to pick it up and so I drove it when it only had 3 miles on the OD. It cost me $172.66 a month for 60 months (10,359.60). I paid it off about a year early. I had that truck for 14 years and when I sold it in 2003 it had fewer than 95,000 original miles on the 90Hp 4 cylinder. 34 to present- 2003 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab. I ordered this one from the factory and paid cash for it. It has has every option available except for the rear window defrost which I felt I could live without and got the sliding rear window instead (mutually exclusive options), and the largest V8 option. It is rear wheel drive, but I think if I had to do it over I would have gone with the 4X4. It's been a great truck and it was one of the last in the diesel tractor body styling. I decided against the larger 5.9L V8 that they were putting into the RT trucks as that got like 12MPG. I opted for the 4.7L instead. This turned out to be a good decision when gas hit $4 a gallon. I did opt for a 3.92 rear end with Limited Slip. The truck is torquey as hell. I love my truck. I'm not sure I'll ever own a car, I think I might just be a truck guy for life. But, if someone wants to buy me a Challenger with a Hemi I wouldn't say no. ;-) -Brendan - Original Message From: John Sessoms jsessoms...@nc.rr.com To: pdml@pdml.net Sent: Friday, June 5, 2009 4:50:17 PM Subject: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) More or less in order starting from age 16. I don't think I've forgotten any: (16) 1961 Bel Air 4 dr; 283 powerglide - an automatic that could be push started. Actually my parents car that I inherited because I could fix it. 196x-something Morris Minor that I never got running - who knew from English Whitworth? (21) 196x-something Fiat 850 Spyder; breaking a fan belt ripped out the oil seals - it was very prone to breaking fan belts. Sold it after my foot went through the driver's side floorboard. 1964 Bel Air 4 dr wagon; the rear bumper fell off and took the license plate with it on the way to a Deep Purple concert. The Highway Patrol was pretty understanding about the whole thing. 196x-something Fiat 124 Spyder; you'd think I would have learned my lesson from the 850. (25) 1965 Mustang convertable; 289 4 speed ... some drunk a$$hole ran a stop sign smashed it. Total loss. 1972 Pinto wagon; weirdest car I ever knew - body made in USA was all metric hardware, engine made in Germany was all SAE standard hardware. All I could afford after the insurance company screwed me on the Mustang. 1964 VW Van; another non-starter - it ran, but could not pass NC's safety inspection. 195x-something Volvo; maybe a 544 - the only thing my ex-wife got when she took off. As I remember I only paid a couple hundred dollars for it. It ran OK, but needed work. I didn't have time to fix it up before she took it. (30) 1980 Chevrolet Citation; the only car I ever bought brand new off the show-room floor. Never, ever buy the FIRST YEAR of any new automotive technology. Great concept. Lousy execution. 1981, 1983, 1984, 1987 Chevrolet G20 long-bed vans; 350 V8, Auto, AC - LOTS OF ROOM INSIDE. Leased by my employer. I bought the last one for residual value at the end of the lease and drove it another 10 years. Should have kept it and put a new motor in it. The company switched to Chevy Astro vans I drove several of them as well. (40) 1978 MGB Tourer; Safety Fast. Mid-life crisis and I couldn't afford a Porsche. Drove it until some knucklehead pulled out in front of me smashed the front left. Bought a 1979 Tourer from a junkyard for parts and rebuilt it myself, but kept the parts car as well because it was too complete to get rid of. In 1996 the car was vandalised and I've never been able to get the ready to rebuild it. I've still got both of them. Maybe next year. (48) 1995 Ford Escort wagon; 4 cyl, 5 spd, AC, Cruise, power everything - NON-interference engine (don't worry about that timing belt - run it 'til it breaks). Problematic cooling system. I think there's some kind of plastic radiator that part melted and clogged the block. I got stuck in traffic in July 2002; it overheated ONE TIME and blew the engine. Literally the temp guage went up to the peg, bounced and came right back down. Got another 5 miles before it lost power and died
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
John, I like this part of your car history (story). Joe 195x-something Volvo; maybe a 544 - the only thing my ex-wife got when she took off. As I remember I only paid a couple hundred dollars for it. It ran OK, but needed work. I didn't have time to fix it up before she took it. - Original Message - From: John Sessoms jsessoms...@nc.rr.com To: pdml@pdml.net Sent: Friday, June 5, 2009 7:50:17 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) More or less in order starting from age 16. I don't think I've forgotten any: (16) 1961 Bel Air 4 dr; 283 powerglide - an automatic that could be push started. Actually my parents car that I inherited because I could fix it. 196x-something Morris Minor that I never got running - who knew from English Whitworth? (21) 196x-something Fiat 850 Spyder; breaking a fan belt ripped out the oil seals - it was very prone to breaking fan belts. Sold it after my foot went through the driver's side floorboard. 1964 Bel Air 4 dr wagon; the rear bumper fell off and took the license plate with it on the way to a Deep Purple concert. The Highway Patrol was pretty understanding about the whole thing. 196x-something Fiat 124 Spyder; you'd think I would have learned my lesson from the 850. (25) 1965 Mustang convertable; 289 4 speed ... some drunk a$$hole ran a stop sign smashed it. Total loss. 1972 Pinto wagon; weirdest car I ever knew - body made in USA was all metric hardware, engine made in Germany was all SAE standard hardware. All I could afford after the insurance company screwed me on the Mustang. 1964 VW Van; another non-starter - it ran, but could not pass NC's safety inspection. 195x-something Volvo; maybe a 544 - the only thing my ex-wife got when she took off. As I remember I only paid a couple hundred dollars for it. It ran OK, but needed work. I didn't have time to fix it up before she took it. (30) 1980 Chevrolet Citation; the only car I ever bought brand new off the show-room floor. Never, ever buy the FIRST YEAR of any new automotive technology. Great concept. Lousy execution. 1981, 1983, 1984, 1987 Chevrolet G20 long-bed vans; 350 V8, Auto, AC - LOTS OF ROOM INSIDE. Leased by my employer. I bought the last one for residual value at the end of the lease and drove it another 10 years. Should have kept it and put a new motor in it. The company switched to Chevy Astro vans I drove several of them as well. (40) 1978 MGB Tourer; Safety Fast. Mid-life crisis and I couldn't afford a Porsche. Drove it until some knucklehead pulled out in front of me smashed the front left. Bought a 1979 Tourer from a junkyard for parts and rebuilt it myself, but kept the parts car as well because it was too complete to get rid of. In 1996 the car was vandalised and I've never been able to get the ready to rebuild it. I've still got both of them. Maybe next year. (48) 1995 Ford Escort wagon; 4 cyl, 5 spd, AC, Cruise, power everything - NON-interference engine (don't worry about that timing belt - run it 'til it breaks). Problematic cooling system. I think there's some kind of plastic radiator that part melted and clogged the block. I got stuck in traffic in July 2002; it overheated ONE TIME and blew the engine. Literally the temp guage went up to the peg, bounced and came right back down. Got another 5 miles before it lost power and died. Aluminum engine, blown head gasket, warped block, warped head. Ford Dealer told me it would cost less to get a replacement from Mr. Engine than it would for them to repair it. Apparently did the same thing to the replacement engine in 2004 while I was overseas. (55) 1998 Mazda 626; 4 cyl, 5 spd, AC, no power nothin'. I had three hours of transportation to go looking for a car in January 2005. I added after market cruise control. Been a good, reliable car, but nowhere to throw out a sleeping bag in the back. I've averaged 30 mpg city, 36 mpg highway and 31 mpg combined - about 5 mpg better than the EPA rating. For Sale - $2500. (59) 2005 Ford Focus Wagon; 4 cyl, 5 spd, AC, Cruise, power everything, 6 disk CD in dash. I've had it two months and the new hasn't worn off, although I already know a couple things I got to fix - clutch switch to disengage cruise control and the master control for the rest of the power windows have to be fixed. Not as much room to throw out a sleeping bag as I originally hoped, but I'm working on that too. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
This will be a good memory test for me. Let's see. The first car I ever bought was a 1934 Ford Tudor. I paid $150 for it in 1963. It came with a Pontiac engine laying on the floor where the back seat shold have been. With the help of three buddies, I pushed it home -- about a mile and a half. Put it together and drag raced it. It went 12.56, 112 mph. The Pontiac engine was a 1960 NASCAR 389. Lucky find. My first driver was a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 with a 312 V8. Paid fifty bucks for it in 67. It had bad steering parts. Used it to deliver pizzas until the right front wheel fell off. Literally. I chiseled the VIN tag off the door post and abandoned it on a Chicago southside street. A 57 Dodge followed, then a 57 Desoto. Both had the 325 V8 and no floorboards. They had rusted out. Next was a 62 Studebaker Lark convertible with a flathead six that had a burnt valve. I used it to deliver pizzas, but totaled it when I rear ended someone. A 62 Pontiac Catalina convertible followed. It had a four-speed and a 389, but it had been converted from an automatic, so it had too high of a rear axle ratio and went through clutches. I eventually put a 4.10 : 1 ring and pinion in it, which was really too low for that stock motor. Oh well. About that time I sold the 34 Ford and bought an old top fuel dragster. I built an injected Pontiac engine with 12:1 compression, a roller cam, and mechanical fuel injection (an enderle/algon hybrid of my own design). It ran 8.65 187 on 70% nitro, but I couldn't keep head gaskets in it, even with copper O-rings. Pontiacs had only ten head bolts in those days. My next drive was a 61 Olds, followed by another 62 Pontiac, then a 59 Pontiac. I sold the dragster and bought a crashed 442 Olds funny car with a supercharged 426 Hemi that was pretty badly damaged. I also bought a 67 Barracuda funny car with no drivetrain. It was the original Chi-- Town Hustler and had been campaigned and stripped by someone else after Austin Coil and company got rid of it. I rebuilt the hemi and got a friend to build a competition torque flite, and I put them in the Barracuda. I couldn't afford to run it, so I essentially gave it away to the guy who was going to drive it and let him take over the financing. I worked for him for a percentage of the gross. We named it Flite Master, which was the name of the transmission builder who gave us the free gearboxes (which had to be changed every run). It went 7.42, 205 at Kansas City. The best it had done in its Chi-Town days was 7.35, 197. But it was only with the advice of Coil that I was able to make it work that well. My driver at the time was a mint 1969 Lincoln Mark III. It eventually shorted out while parked in my driveway and basically burned to the ground. It was a beautiful car. Sad. I followed with a 63 Impala Super Sport that was kind of trashed. After the Barracuda, we built an all new funny car: a 1973 Dodge mini Charger, which was a shortened and narrowed fiberglass Charger body on a tube chassis. The Charger managed a best of 6.51, 225 at New York National Dragway on Long Island. It was called Qu Voe Charger. Qu Voe was an automotive additive company that gave us 10K. A lot of money in those days. After two years we replaced the Charger with a 1974 Corvette named Fever. It was yellow and beautiful. but it handled like doo-doo, as a result of the short tail and not enough rear downforce. It did a best of 6.35, 237 but crashed violently.. Eight end over ends at over 200 mph and a ball of flame. . The driver walked away with a concussion and broken ribs. After that we ran a Mustang that looked like a police car, complete with mars lights, and was called Chicago Patrol. It ran 6.41, but it was short lived, because the guy who drove it and owned it went to jail. That, of course, is another story for another day. My daily driver at the time was a 1969 Javelin that belonged to the girl I married. That was followed by a 1973 Hornet, because only an AMC dealer would take the Javelin in trade. Next was a Toyota toaster van. By the I was working for car magazines, so I always had a press car. Got into advertising shortly thereafter, working on the Jaguar account and bough a Jag 79 XJ12L in 1985. Kept it for 22 years. Next were company cars from ad agencies: a Lincoln Town Car, a Buick Park Avenue, and a Dodge Intrepid. That was followed by a Dodge Stratus, then another Intrepid. A Dodge Caravan came in there somewhere. I also leased a Dodge Durango, a Pt Cruiser, and a Jeep Grand Cherokee. While working in LA I found my 55 Chevy BelAir Convertible and shipped it back home to Michigan on a Chrysler enclosed transporter with a couple of Vipers to keep it company. I've owned the Chevy for nine years now, and it's pretty close to mint, with 25K on the clock since it's frame-off restoration. My daily driver is a four-door
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
- Original Message From: paul stenquist pnstenqu...@comcast.net To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Friday, June 5, 2009 6:25:45 PM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) This will be a good memory test for me. Let's see. The first car I ever bought was a 1934 Ford Tudor. I paid $150 for it in 1963. It came with a Pontiac engine laying on the floor where the back seat shold have been. With the help of three buddies, I pushed it home -- about a mile and a half. Put it together and drag raced it. It went 12.56, 112 mph. The Pontiac engine was a 1960 NASCAR 389. Lucky find. My first driver was a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 with a 312 V8. Paid fifty bucks for it in 67. It had bad steering parts. Used it to deliver pizzas until the right front wheel fell off. Literally. I chiseled the VIN tag off the door post and abandoned it on a Chicago southside street. A 57 Dodge followed, then a 57 Desoto. Both had the 325 V8 and no floorboards. They had rusted out. Next was a 62 Studebaker Lark convertible with a flathead six that had a burnt valve. I used it to deliver pizzas, but totaled it when I rear ended someone. A 62 Pontiac Catalina convertible followed. It had a four-speed and a 389, but it had been converted from an automatic, so it had too high of a rear axle ratio and went through clutches. I eventually put a 4.10 : 1 ring and pinion in it, which was really too low for that stock motor. Oh well. About that time I sold the 34 Ford and bought an old top fuel dragster. I built an injected Pontiac engine with 12:1 compression, a roller cam, and mechanical fuel injection (an enderle/algon hybrid of my own design). It ran 8.65 187 on 70% nitro, but I couldn't keep head gaskets in it, even with copper O-rings. Pontiacs had only ten head bolts in those days. My next drive was a 61 Olds, followed by another 62 Pontiac, then a 59 Pontiac. I sold the dragster and bought a crashed 442 Olds funny car with a supercharged 426 Hemi that was pretty badly damaged. I also bought a 67 Barracuda funny car with no drivetrain. It was the original Chi--Town Hustler and had been campaigned and stripped by someone else after Austin Coil and company got rid of it. I rebuilt the hemi and got a friend to build a competition torque flite, and I put them in the Barracuda. I couldn't afford to run it, so I essentially gave it away to the guy who was going to drive it and let him take over the financing. I worked for him for a percentage of the gross. We named it Flite Master, which was the name of the transmission builder who gave us the free gearboxes (which had to be changed every run). It went 7.42, 205 at Kansas City. The best it had done in its Chi-Town days was 7.35, 197. But it was only with the advice of Coil that I was able to make it work that well. My driver at the time was a mint 1969 Lincoln Mark III. It eventually shorted out while parked in my driveway and basically burned to the ground. It was a beautiful car. Sad. I followed with a 63 Impala Super Sport that was kind of trashed. After the Barracuda, we built an all new funny car: a 1973 Dodge mini Charger, which was a shortened and narrowed fiberglass Charger body on a tube chassis. The Charger managed a best of 6.51, 225 at New York National Dragway on Long Island. It was called Qu Voe Charger. Qu Voe was an automotive additive company that gave us 10K. A lot of money in those days. After two years we replaced the Charger with a 1974 Corvette named Fever. It was yellow and beautiful. but it handled like doo-doo, as a result of the short tail and not enough rear downforce. It did a best of 6.35, 237 but crashed violently.. Eight end over ends at over 200 mph and a ball of flame. . The driver walked away with a concussion and broken ribs. After that we ran a Mustang that looked like a police car, complete with mars lights, and was called Chicago Patrol. It ran 6.41, but it was short lived, because the guy who drove it and owned it went to jail. That, of course, is another story for another day. My daily driver at the time was a 1969 Javelin that belonged to the girl I married. That was followed by a 1973 Hornet, because only an AMC dealer would take the Javelin in trade. Next was a Toyota toaster van. By the I was working for car magazines, so I always had a press car. Got into advertising shortly thereafter, working on the Jaguar account and bough a Jag 79 XJ12L in 1985. Kept it for 22 years. Next were company cars from ad agencies: a Lincoln Town Car, a Buick Park Avenue, and a Dodge Intrepid. That was followed by a Dodge Stratus, then another Intrepid. A Dodge Caravan came in there somewhere. I also leased a Dodge Durango, a Pt Cruiser, and a Jeep Grand Cherokee. While working in LA I found my 55 Chevy BelAir Convertible
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Brendan MacRae wrote: Do you still wish you had the blown 426? The engine, I mean...!? I don't know if it's still true, but as of four or five years ago you could order a brand new, crate 428 or 429 (your choice, they had both) from Ford Racing Performance Parts. -- Thanks, DougF (KG4LMZ) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
That wouldn't suprise me. I'd like the 429. I wouldn't have anything to put it in, but then, the fun is in the looking. - Original Message From: Doug Franklin jehosep...@mindspring.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Friday, June 5, 2009 8:01:00 PM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) Brendan MacRae wrote: Do you still wish you had the blown 426? The engine, I mean...!? I don't know if it's still true, but as of four or five years ago you could order a brand new, crate 428 or 429 (your choice, they had both) from Ford Racing Performance Parts. -- Thanks, DougF (KG4LMZ) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Jun 5, 2009, at 10:36 PM, Brendan MacRae wrote: - Original Message From: paul stenquist pnstenqu...@comcast.net To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Friday, June 5, 2009 6:25:45 PM Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) This will be a good memory test for me. Let's see. The first car I ever bought was a 1934 Ford Tudor. I paid $150 for it in 1963. It came with a Pontiac engine laying on the floor where the back seat shold have been. With the help of three buddies, I pushed it home -- about a mile and a half. Put it together and drag raced it. It went 12.56, 112 mph. The Pontiac engine was a 1960 NASCAR 389. Lucky find. My first driver was a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 with a 312 V8. Paid fifty bucks for it in 67. It had bad steering parts. Used it to deliver pizzas until the right front wheel fell off. Literally. I chiseled the VIN tag off the door post and abandoned it on a Chicago southside street. A 57 Dodge followed, then a 57 Desoto. Both had the 325 V8 and no floorboards. They had rusted out. Next was a 62 Studebaker Lark convertible with a flathead six that had a burnt valve. I used it to deliver pizzas, but totaled it when I rear ended someone. A 62 Pontiac Catalina convertible followed. It had a four-speed and a 389, but it had been converted from an automatic, so it had too high of a rear axle ratio and went through clutches. I eventually put a 4.10 : 1 ring and pinion in it, which was really too low for that stock motor. Oh well. About that time I sold the 34 Ford and bought an old top fuel dragster. I built an injected Pontiac engine with 12:1 compression, a roller cam, and mechanical fuel injection (an enderle/algon hybrid of my own design). It ran 8.65 187 on 70% nitro, but I couldn't keep head gaskets in it, even with copper O-rings. Pontiacs had only ten head bolts in those days. My next drive was a 61 Olds, followed by another 62 Pontiac, then a 59 Pontiac. I sold the dragster and bought a crashed 442 Olds funny car with a supercharged 426 Hemi that was pretty badly damaged. I also bought a 67 Barracuda funny car with no drivetrain. It was the original Chi--Town Hustler and had been campaigned and stripped by someone else after Austin Coil and company got rid of it. I rebuilt the hemi and got a friend to build a competition torque flite, and I put them in the Barracuda. I couldn't afford to run it, so I essentially gave it away to the guy who was going to drive it and let him take over the financing. I worked for him for a percentage of the gross. We named it Flite Master, which was the name of the transmission builder who gave us the free gearboxes (which had to be changed every run). It went 7.42, 205 at Kansas City. The best it had done in its Chi-Town days was 7.35, 197. But it was only with the advice of Coil that I was able to make it work that well. My driver at the time was a mint 1969 Lincoln Mark III. It eventually shorted out while parked in my driveway and basically burned to the ground. It was a beautiful car. Sad. I followed with a 63 Impala Super Sport that was kind of trashed. After the Barracuda, we built an all new funny car: a 1973 Dodge mini Charger, which was a shortened and narrowed fiberglass Charger body on a tube chassis. The Charger managed a best of 6.51, 225 at New York National Dragway on Long Island. It was called Qu Voe Charger. Qu Voe was an automotive additive company that gave us 10K. A lot of money in those days. After two years we replaced the Charger with a 1974 Corvette named Fever. It was yellow and beautiful. but it handled like doo-doo, as a result of the short tail and not enough rear downforce. It did a best of 6.35, 237 but crashed violently.. Eight end over ends at over 200 mph and a ball of flame. . The driver walked away with a concussion and broken ribs. After that we ran a Mustang that looked like a police car, complete with mars lights, and was called Chicago Patrol. It ran 6.41, but it was short lived, because the guy who drove it and owned it went to jail. That, of course, is another story for another day. My daily driver at the time was a 1969 Javelin that belonged to the girl I married. That was followed by a 1973 Hornet, because only an AMC dealer would take the Javelin in trade. Next was a Toyota toaster van. By the I was working for car magazines, so I always had a press car. Got into advertising shortly thereafter, working on the Jaguar account and bough a Jag 79 XJ12L in 1985. Kept it for 22 years. Next were company cars from ad agencies: a Lincoln Town Car, a Buick Park Avenue, and a Dodge Intrepid. That was followed by a Dodge Stratus, then another Intrepid. A Dodge Caravan came in there somewhere. I also leased a Dodge Durango, a Pt Cruiser, and a Jeep Grand Cherokee. While working in LA I found my 55 Chevy BelAir Convertible and shipped
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Jun 5, 2009, at 9:25 PM, paul stenquist wrote: This will be a good memory test for me. I failed the memory test. Forgot my 59 Mercedes 220S and 58 Mercedes 300d that I owned in the seventies. That's a small d 300 btw. It had a 3 litre six cylinder gasoline engine with mechanical fuel injection. Great motor, similar to the gull wing coupe engine. In the late sixties I had a 55 Chevy two door BelAir post car with a 400 horsepower 327. I did a lot of street racing with that car all over Chicago. Paul Let's see. The first car I ever bought was a 1934 Ford Tudor. I paid $150 for it in 1963. It came with a Pontiac engine laying on the floor where the back seat shold have been. With the help of three buddies, I pushed it home -- about a mile and a half. Put it together and drag raced it. It went 12.56, 112 mph. The Pontiac engine was a 1960 NASCAR 389. Lucky find. My first driver was a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 with a 312 V8. Paid fifty bucks for it in 67. It had bad steering parts. Used it to deliver pizzas until the right front wheel fell off. Literally. I chiseled the VIN tag off the door post and abandoned it on a Chicago southside street. A 57 Dodge followed, then a 57 Desoto. Both had the 325 V8 and no floorboards. They had rusted out. Next was a 62 Studebaker Lark convertible with a flathead six that had a burnt valve. I used it to deliver pizzas, but totaled it when I rear ended someone. A 62 Pontiac Catalina convertible followed. It had a four- speed and a 389, but it had been converted from an automatic, so it had too high of a rear axle ratio and went through clutches. I eventually put a 4.10 : 1 ring and pinion in it, which was really too low for that stock motor. Oh well. About that time I sold the 34 Ford and bought an old top fuel dragster. I built an injected Pontiac engine with 12:1 compression, a roller cam, and mechanical fuel injection (an enderle/algon hybrid of my own design). It ran 8.65 187 on 70% nitro, but I couldn't keep head gaskets in it, even with copper O-rings. Pontiacs had only ten head bolts in those days. My next drive was a 61 Olds, followed by another 62 Pontiac, then a 59 Pontiac. I sold the dragster and bought a crashed 442 Olds funny car with a supercharged 426 Hemi that was pretty badly damaged. I also bought a 67 Barracuda funny car with no drivetrain. It was the original Chi-- Town Hustler and had been campaigned and stripped by someone else after Austin Coil and company got rid of it. I rebuilt the hemi and got a friend to build a competition torque flite, and I put them in the Barracuda. I couldn't afford to run it, so I essentially gave it away to the guy who was going to drive it and let him take over the financing. I worked for him for a percentage of the gross. We named it Flite Master, which was the name of the transmission builder who gave us the free gearboxes (which had to be changed every run). It went 7.42, 205 at Kansas City. The best it had done in its Chi-Town days was 7.35, 197. But it was only with the advice of Coil that I was able to make it work that well. My driver at the time was a mint 1969 Lincoln Mark III. It eventually shorted out while parked in my driveway and basically burned to the ground. It was a beautiful car. Sad. I followed with a 63 Impala Super Sport that was kind of trashed. After the Barracuda, we built an all new funny car: a 1973 Dodge mini Charger, which was a shortened and narrowed fiberglass Charger body on a tube chassis. The Charger managed a best of 6.51, 225 at New York National Dragway on Long Island. It was called Qu Voe Charger. Qu Voe was an automotive additive company that gave us 10K. A lot of money in those days. After two years we replaced the Charger with a 1974 Corvette named Fever. It was yellow and beautiful. but it handled like doo-doo, as a result of the short tail and not enough rear downforce. It did a best of 6.35, 237 but crashed violently.. Eight end over ends at over 200 mph and a ball of flame. . The driver walked away with a concussion and broken ribs. After that we ran a Mustang that looked like a police car, complete with mars lights, and was called Chicago Patrol. It ran 6.41, but it was short lived, because the guy who drove it and owned it went to jail. That, of course, is another story for another day. My daily driver at the time was a 1969 Javelin that belonged to the girl I married. That was followed by a 1973 Hornet, because only an AMC dealer would take the Javelin in trade. Next was a Toyota toaster van. By the I was working for car magazines, so I always had a press car. Got into advertising shortly thereafter, working on the Jaguar account and bough a Jag 79 XJ12L in 1985. Kept it for 22 years. Next were company cars from ad agencies: a Lincoln Town Car, a Buick Park Avenue, and a Dodge Intrepid. That was followed by a Dodge
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
I guess I'll play also - 1953 VW used- yeah the one with a split rear window. 1959 Bugeye Sprite - used with factory fibreglass hard top, with radials on the front bias on the rear a real fun ride - my college ride - sold for what I paid for it. 1966 Shelby GT 350 new - bought new the last month in college - this one could go faster in second than the Bugeye could top out at. While on my way to Dearborn from New Jersey, for my job at Ford, I topped it out on the Ohio Turnpike at slightly over 140mph (indicated). Unfortunately some one else wanted it more than me - it was stolen 5 months later and the remains were found in 4 days behind a gas station near Flatrock speedway, near Toledo, ah if only Could have bought a new 66 GT350 from Ford WHQ but decided I didn't want to go thru that again. Got a speeding ticket while test driving a 66 911S Porsche, passed it up for a new 67 Cougar GT. Got married - things change alot here Wife got the Cougar, I picked up a well used 66 Ford Fairlane with the hypo 289 4 speed. Did a clutch job on it in a driveway decided I'll never do that again !968 Falcon 6 cyl/auto used - solid cheap transportation 1969 Mercury Capri new - that I managed to turn into a non streetable car with alot of suspension engine mods making it very competitive in local gymkhanas and almost a 'B' sedan for SCCA racing. 1972 (?) Pinto Wagon new - with some engine mods some BFG radials it became a great traveler. 1972 Ford Maverick used - more solid transportation for my daily commute 1975 Ford Econoline E350 used - a brute but very dependable 1976 Ford Econoline E 150 new - less of a brute still dependable. 1979 Fiesta S new - A well build little commuter that really performed, I loved the 1600cc crossflow pushrod engine in it. 1982 - began a 24 year run of company lease vehicles - Always tried to lease vehicles I would like to own - included several Thunderbirds (including Super Coupes), one of every year Taurus SHO's, several Explorers, Mercury Scorpio, several Escapes others I can't remember. 1995 Ford Contour v6/5 speed new - a great handling commuter vehicle for me. 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. 2008 2009 Escape FWD new - nice size for two people long distance travel. My auto tails to date Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
Ken, Did you ever blow any of the head gaskets on the Super Coupes ? - Original Message - From: Ken Waller kwal...@peoplepc.com To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List pdml@pdml.net Sent: Saturday, June 6, 2009 12:56:31 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras) I guess I'll play also - 1953 VW used- yeah the one with a split rear window. 1959 Bugeye Sprite - used with factory fibreglass hard top, with radials on the front bias on the rear a real fun ride - my college ride - sold for what I paid for it. 1966 Shelby GT 350 new - bought new the last month in college - this one could go faster in second than the Bugeye could top out at. While on my way to Dearborn from New Jersey, for my job at Ford, I topped it out on the Ohio Turnpike at slightly over 140mph (indicated). Unfortunately some one else wanted it more than me - it was stolen 5 months later and the remains were found in 4 days behind a gas station near Flatrock speedway, near Toledo, ah if only Could have bought a new 66 GT350 from Ford WHQ but decided I didn't want to go thru that again. Got a speeding ticket while test driving a 66 911S Porsche, passed it up for a new 67 Cougar GT. Got married - things change alot here Wife got the Cougar, I picked up a well used 66 Ford Fairlane with the hypo 289 4 speed. Did a clutch job on it in a driveway decided I'll never do that again !968 Falcon 6 cyl/auto used - solid cheap transportation 1969 Mercury Capri new - that I managed to turn into a non streetable car with alot of suspension engine mods making it very competitive in local gymkhanas and almost a 'B' sedan for SCCA racing. 1972 (?) Pinto Wagon new - with some engine mods some BFG radials it became a great traveler. 1972 Ford Maverick used - more solid transportation for my daily commute 1975 Ford Econoline E350 used - a brute but very dependable 1976 Ford Econoline E 150 new - less of a brute still dependable. 1979 Fiesta S new - A well build little commuter that really performed, I loved the 1600cc crossflow pushrod engine in it. 1982 - began a 24 year run of company lease vehicles - Always tried to lease vehicles I would like to own - included several Thunderbirds (including Super Coupes), one of every year Taurus SHO's, several Explorers, Mercury Scorpio, several Escapes others I can't remember. 1995 Ford Contour v6/5 speed new - a great handling commuter vehicle for me. 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. 2008 2009 Escape FWD new - nice size for two people long distance travel. My auto tails to date Kenneth Waller http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
Re: Car History (was Re: Consumer Reports on cool cameras)
On Jun 5, 2009, at 21:56 , Ken Waller wrote: 2005 Porsche Boxster S new - what can I say, simply the best handling vehicle I've ever driven - not your typical committee car - these are designed by people that know what a driver wants provide it. Exactly my feelings after only an hour in my 1973 914 2.0, 30 years earlier, after disappointing test drives in a 240Z and a Fiat Spyder the same week. Weight distribution, braking, cornering, shifting, and comfort all were exceptional. Acceleration was very good for a 4 cylinder engine. Plenty of passenger room for my soon to be wife, or my Malamute, but not both. Ended up buying her an identical used 914 for her 21st birthday in 1979, a 1.7 ltr that I had to do some upgrading on to get the same performance and appearance groups installed (vinyl sails, chrome bumpers, mag wheels, sway bars front and rear, some upholstery) and yes, she was quite a bit younger than I. Without me the car weighed 2173 lbs. A few hundred lbs less when I auto-crossed thanks to no spare tire, no passenger seat, no door or seat-back panels, no floor carpet front or rear, shaved Minilites vs stock mags, no tools, lighter Gel based battery, no trunk mats front or rear, unlined braced but ground lightened roof. In other words, stock. :-) Though utilizing the flat 6 engine from the 911 series, the Boxster was positioned as the 914 was to be an entry level car to suck you into Porsche's grip. If it doesn’t excite you, This thing that you see, Why in the world, Would it excite me? —Jay Maisel Joseph McAllister pentax...@mac.com -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
