5 litre Ford V8 from a '93 Mustang powering chain-driven wheels on the end of swing-arms with hydraulic suspension (with additional spring & shocks suspension) ... and seven feet of independent travel. Up and down.
Interesting (and hard to stop), but not sure how it would scale to a more useful body than the existing two-seat-inline frame. Also, while it doesn't have a problem with side gradients, not sure how it would cope with crevasses and trenches across the line of travel (the kind of thing that caterpillar tracks are handy for).
Picked up from one of silenttex's rather fine "What's on the net?" posts.
new car hallo all, i'm EdwardS's ex, i'm car mad, and shopping for a new car, and i heard a viscious rumour that someone here was considering selling a Toyota Sera. I've just had my car written off while parked, and i'm looking for something new with slightly odd criteria; i want something retarded, awesome, and entirely inappropriate to fit my subwoofer to. i LOVED the seras, but i also quite fancy a land rover, a daihatsu hijet mpv, a 100nx, or a nissan pao. what i'm looking for is suggestions for stuff i might like. have you seen something great for sale? did you own something that anyone would love? let me know! i am terrifyingly open to suggestion. :)
Truly inspiring 4x4 ... Following a side-link from one of my favourite webcomics (The Whiteboard), I discovered that the creator, 'Doc' Nickel, had finally managed to put his automotive image gallery back online. 'Doc' is, by profession, a paintball engineer. And also a blacksmith, component fabricator and general batterer of things metal (including a rather fine sculpture of a wolf's head (made of over seventy pieces of 22-gauge sheet steel - he doesn't do things by halves)).
But, in addition to a 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado, the highlight of the "other stuff" gallery is something truly strange ...
A 1965 Chevy Corvair body mounted on the chassis of a '77 Blazer, Where he did all of the engineering, building etc (except the paint spraying). I presume it gets a little slow sometimes in Alaska ...
I'm bored and doing a sort of quiz to find the favourite cars of my friends; I also guess I know most people here. And look! I even found an incentive!
All the old cars have gone now. No Seras, no Supras, no RX8. There have been a few in between - an MR2, a Delica L400 and a Suzuki Ignis Sport (actually great fun for what it was), but now I've got the car I really, really wanted.
2.7 V6 24v twin-turbo HDi diesel - slightly over 200bhp, and a lot of torques indeed. Not the main reason, though; it also has hydro-pneumatic suspension, massively comfortable seats and is astonishingly relaxing to drive. And still does 40mpg.
Keele Services
Waiting to deliver my IIgs to a new owner, and bored, so here are some pictures of the C6 in the wild.
Profile
Is it me, or are parking spaces too small? The C6's most impressive angle, I think, showing the single sweep planned by the designer with that curious headlight shape. I really want to get it in profile with the two cars I feel influenced it and perhaps occupy the same market segment, the Mercedes CLS and Audi A6 (which has a similarly, but not as dramatic, elongated glass area). The Audi's boot clearly influenced Citroen in the late 90s model.
A question for turbo drivers I recently got myself a '94 Saab 9000 turbo, after the last time I filled up its gone all lumpy and lost a lot of power (I think the knock sensor is cutting power when I accelerate hard). I'm pretty sure I wasn't daft enough to put diesel in it (fingers crossed), at least I was aiming for 95RON unleaded although I was rather tired at the time. I've driven around 100km on this tankfull so far, on a hot engine. But I've just tried to start it from cold and it runs, albeit still lumpily, and theres not the clouds of black smoke I'd expect from a diesel accident.
So, I wondered if anyone out there drives a turbo and has any experience with using poor quality fuels? What fuel do you use? Will I be alright if I just fill up with higher octane fuel?
The question is whether to join the Harley Owners Group or not. Bearing in mind, committees are riven with dissent and politics, and I'm minded not to join any club of any sort that is remotely organised and has membership fees, I'm thinking no. It's really only the technical help I'm interested in. And a quick perusal of the Essex Chapter home page reveals a bunch who singularly fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down. Besides, they don't look like the type of bunch who take to a contrary, cantankerous, pain in the arse like me.
New wheels :D The RX8 has gone back, after two pleasant years - and with all the chaos and stuff I'm dealing with, I've decided to wait until I can just buy my next car (Citroen C6) outright, no messing with contract hire and so forth. To keep me on the road, originally suggested for a couple of months but I think it'll be around for a year, then fitted with a V6 transplant, then around for some time after that...
A 1997 Toyota MR2. Okay, it's no Sera, but it does share the same sort of construction and build quality, has a glass roof, and has much better performance and handling.
It'll be subtly de-modded slowly to make sure everything is as Toyota intended before getting the V6, which I'm hoping can be installed with a standard airbox instead of an induction kit. I want this car to look absolutely as if Toyota intended it to be that way even when carrying a potentially supercharged 280bhp+ 3.0 engine ;) For now though, 170ish and four cylinders will have to suffice.
[advert] Mazda MX-5 My mates aca and easterbunny are partway through the process of spawning, and therefore need to scale up from their MX-5 convertible.
Mazda MX-5 Gleneagles Edition, 1996, 125000 Miles, £2250. Private sale.
Electronic instruments - bad. Certified used car warranties - good. Because when there's a fault with an electronically-informed instrument panel, nothing on it works - no fuel guage, no rev counter, no speedometer, no warning lights - and when the recovery company ask for the current mileage, you can't give them that, either, because the digital odometer's not visible ...
On the upside, Certified Used cars come with a warranty, which means that Chrysler arranged for it to be trucked to a dealership this morning to investigate, and it'll be covered. I checked the panel fuse myself, and that looked OK, but I'm hoping it's just a connection which has come loose, as I'd quite like the car back for the end of the week.
It would also appear that The Most Annoying Buzzer In The World™ (the one which beeps to tell you that you've put the manual 'box into reverse, for the benefit of USian drivers who are used to automatics which have a display to tell you which gear you're in, or that you've just got in and haven't yet put your seatbelt on) is on the same circuit, because that was also strangely absent when I fired the car up to load it onto the ramp.
technotom needs to sell his 2.8i Capri to fund a new engine for his favoured Capri. Anyone fancy owning a 2.8i Capri in Caspian Blue*, with full service history and original interior, including the mats?
* He's keeping the black one - he prefers the inline 4s.
Wheels 2007 is being described as an ‘event for all the family’ and will be held on the seafront at Littlehampton between Friday 27 and Sunday 29 July, 10am to 6pm.
Whether you’re interested in new cars, motorbikes, bicycles, skateboards and more, or want to check out the motoring club scene, this will be the event for you!
To ensure that there is something for all of the family, we’re planning a range of exhibitions to encourage people to stay longer at the show, giving you more opportunities to market your products to them. These planned exhibitions include:
* Car and motorcycle clubs * Vintage, classic and unusual cars * Remote controlled cars * BMX and bicycle displays * Skateboarding * Roller skating * Grass boarding * Mini car circuits (for children) * Scalextric challenges * Amphibious vehicles * Stunt teams * Associated trade stands * Sponsored novelty cars (e.g. Red Bull) * Armed Forces such as REME * Emergency Services * Entertainment * Quad Bikes
I will only be there on Saturday and Sunday as I need to get a few things done tomorrow.
Wings & Wheels is an exceptional family day out, showcasing some of the finest civil and military aircraft displays in the UK, combined with an astounding line-up of record breaking race cars and motoring displays.
Staged on the Sunday of the August Bank Holiday weekend, the action will include:
* a dynamic 3½ hour flying display * exciting record breaking cars * a fly-in of vintage and classic aircraft
* motoring displays * motorcycle displays * military vehicle displays
The event is being staged to raise funds for local charities.
And in case you are wondering Dunsfold is where they make Top Gear.
shocked
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