The Unmuffled Auto News

July 3, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Gifts for the Car Enthusiast

More of the Best Japanese Sports Cars Ever!

This is a follow-up to one of my most popular posts of all time. Japan has given us some of the most iconic, endearing, and usable sports cars ever to drive.

1959 Datsun Sports/Fairlady: It was known as the Datsun Fairlady in Japan, but over here, it was known as the Datsun Sports. It came with a 1,500 cc engine, a 1,600 cc engine, or a larger 2,000 cc engine. It started as a cheaper competitor to the MG Midget, but it had a fiberglass body instead of the aluminum used in the MG. It developed into one of the most successful road-racing cars in the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America).
This is a 1962 model, but it is essentially the same as the 1959 model.
1963 Honda S500: This was Honda’s first car. While it’s successor, the S600 enjoyed numerous class wins in the SCCA and other road racing bodies, the S500 shouldn’t be forgotten. The S500 weighed a mere 1,500 pounds, and it was powered by a tiny 500 cc dual-overhead-cam engine with a 9,500 RPM redline. It had one motorcycle influence – chain-driven wheels. It was a fast, sprightly little car that could hang with the big boys.
1965 Toyota Sports 800: This was Toyota’s first sports car, and while it wasn’t a hit in the US, it’s had a devout following since day one. It has 44 horsepower, and a removable targa top. Oh, and it’s pretty cute.
The only thing that isn’t stock about this beautiful 1965 Toyota Sports 800 are the wheels, but I think it adds a nice touch.
1967 Toyota 2000GT: Riding off of the success of the Sports 800 in Japan, Toyota decided to build a competitor to the Jaguar E-Type. The result is the absolutely stunning Toyota 2000GT. Toyota teamed up with Yamaha to develop the engine and transmission, and boy did Yamaha deliver! It’s an achingly gorgeous car that breezes well over $1 million at auction.
1968 Datsun Bluebird/1300-1600/510: Datsun essentially reverse-engineered the legendary BMW 1600, and this wonderful rally/drift machine was born. It was known as the Bluebird in Europe, the 1300-1600 in Asia, and the 510 here in America. It still holds 2wd rally records. It’s one of the most legendary sports coupes ever made, and you can buy one for a relatively low price.
This is a picture from one of the original advertisements that Datsun put out in 1968. The No. 85 car is one of the legendary rally cars.
1970 Datsun 240Z: This is certainly one of the most beautiful sports cars ever made, let alone one of the most beautiful cars ever made. My grandparents and dad used to own one, but guess who decided to sell it so I couldn’t enjoy it? It had a single-overhead-cam inline six cylinder engine, a five speed manual, and fully independent suspension. European sports cars never knew what passed them.
1971 Mazda RX-2 and RX-3: These cars were the precursors to the legendary RX-7. The RX-2 set so many records and poles in IMSA that rotary engines got banned. The RX-3 went 160 mph at Bonneville.
This is a 1971 Mazda RX-2. It’s not exactly pretty, but it got the job done.

This is the slightly larger 1971 Mazda RX-3. It’s equally homely, but it was much faster than the RX-2.
1979 Toyota Celica: The original Toyota Celica was for all essential purposes, a Datsun 240Z with icing on the cake. While it didn’t have a six-cylinder engine, it had a rear seat, and therefore, more utility. It was originally somewhat homely, but then the legendary AE86 generation came around, and it had totally ’80s styling, man.
Most teenage boys in the late 1970s and early 1980s really wanted to own a 1978 Celica notchback, like this. You can decide if they really wanted it that badly.
1982 Datsun Maxima: This is the precursor to the Nissan Maxima. It borrowed powertrain components from the 240Z, and was supposed to be a very fun car to drive.
1985 Toyota MR2: You can call it Mister Two. It was inspired by the then-fast Ferrari Testarossa. It was a break from the monotonous, boring cars Toyota had been cranking out…oh wait, they still are!
You can call it Mister 2.
1986 Honda Civic, CRX, and Prelude Si: The year 1986 was a good year for car people. Honda released the Si model for the Civic, CRX, and Prelude. It upped speed and handling prowess. These cars are still fast enough to keep up with a modern Porsche Cayman on a winding road or a race track. Plus, you can get them for very little money, as Honda made a lot of them!
This is the 1986 Civic Si, which was basically a four-seat CRX. It had more utility, but was slightly slower.

The 1986 Prelude Si was a sporty, yet very refined car. It had tuned port fuel injection, which was rare for the time. Yet, it was still affordable to the everyman.

This is the infamous 1986 Honda CRX Si. It’s still fast enough to keep up with a new Miata.
1988 Honda Prelude: Honda took the already-impressive Prelude Si, made all of it’s equipment standard, and then added four-wheel steering to it. It was a speedy little car.
1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata: It’s a sprightly Lotus-inspired roadster that is now the world’s favorite roadster out there. It took all of the fun charms that British and Italian roadsters had, and added bulletproof reliability to the mix. It’s also the world’s most popular race car. Need I say more? I really want one (hint, hint Zayzee)…
1991 Acura NSX: Acura’s NSX is still one of the most amazing supercars ever. It’s so reliable that you can daily drive it without having to worry about overheating it. It has a sleek aluminum body that looks fabulous in red (just to rub it in to Ferrari), and it’s 3.0-liter V6 revs to 8,000 RPM. It’s V6 has the original VTEC system, which is just a variable timing and lift valvetrain. VTEC comes from motorcycles, but it first appeared in 1989 with the Acura Integra GS-R for Japan only.
It’s 24 years old, yet it’s still incredibly fast, and has styling that is superb.
1994 Toyota Supra: The Supra finally matured in it’s fourth generation. It’s still one of the most legendary sports cars around. It’s twin-turbocharged 2JZ-GTE engine further catapulted the Supra into fame. Most have been tuned to within an inch of their life, so it’s rare to see a stock fourth-generation Supra.
1992 Mazda RX-7: The third, and final generation of the legendary Mazda RX-7 arrived in 1992 with sequential turbocharging, beautiful bodywork, and vastly improved handling. It’s been successful on the racing circuit, and is still winning awards in Formula Drift.
2000 Honda S2000: How does Honda celebrate their 50th birthday? By building an incredible successor to the S600, that’s how! The S2000 was powered by a 9,000 RPM 2.0-liter VTEC four-cylinder engine that screams to the heavens. It’s supposed to be one of the most visceral and engaging cars ever to come out of a factory’s doors.
2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII: It’s a cross between a road-racing machine and a rally car. It had massive Brembo brakes, Bilstein shocks with lots of travel that somehow allowed for perfect car control, and a massive, provocative carbon-fiber rear wing. It’s instantly recognizable.
2004 Mazda RX-8: The Mazda RX-8 was the last dying gasp for rotary engines. It had doors like an extended cab pickup truck, and a backseat. It drank fuel like a sailor, and ate oil like a long-haul trucker. If you started driving it before the engine was warm, you’d flood the engine. If you turned it off without letting it idle for a few minutes, you’d cook the rotors. Yet, people still love them.
2009 Nissan GT-R: Nissan took the GT-R to uncharted heights in terms of performance. It has a twin-turbo V6, AWD, and a video-game dashboard just for kicks. It’s performance is truly astonishing. It can grip like nothing else out there, and it’s acceleration is only rivaled by hypercars like the McLaren P1 and Porsche 918 Spyder. And a garden-variety brand-new one costs about $100,000.
It’s Godzilla! The nickname came around after an automotive journalist looked at all of the races that the original GT-R had won, and proclaimed it “Godzilla.” It’s a fitting nickname.
2012 Lexus LFA: Lexus took a stab at the supercar market with the clunky and odd LFA. They brought a butterknife to a minigun fight. They built 500 LFA supercars that are somehow coveted right now. They aren’t fast by supercar standards, and they aren’t very much fun to drive. Their transmission can never replicate a shift, so you either get slammed back into your seat, or you don’t notice it shifting at all. There is no in between. That being said, it’s 4.8-liter V10 sounds spectacular, and revs to the heavens. Lexus likely lost money selling each LFA. Building supercars is an expensive, risky business.
2012 Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ/Toyota GT86: This might just be the best Subaru/Toyota pairing ever. It’s certainly an odd pairing – Toyota and Subaru are competitors, but their collaboration resulted in a really fun car. The Scion FR-S is a bit more loose, as it’s meant more for drifting, whereas the Subaru is a bit tighter, as it’s meant for canyon carving and track duty. They’re really affordable – a well-optioned one comes in about $30,000, and they have a lot to offer: RWD, fuel efficiency, fun-to-drive factor, reliability, standard manual transmission, etc.

Those are what I think to be more of the best Japanese sports cars ever made. I’d love to hear more of your stories about any of these cars, or which one is your favorite.

June 30, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Movie Cars, Random, Website Reccomendation, World News

How a Gargantuan Caterpillar Mining Truck is Built

There’s no need for an assembly line with this behemoth. It’s so big that it is literally assembled on-site.

Everything about this mining truck is massive. It’s got 4,000 horsepower, the engine displaces about 6,500 cubic inches, the entire truck weighs more than a million pounds, and it can carry 400 tons. Colossal doesn’t do this thing justice.

Caterpillar shows us just what it takes to build this mammoth machine. It all starts at the plant in Decatur, IL, but the whole thing isn’t assembled until they get out to the job site.

I’ve attached the video. It’s certainly worth about three minutes of your time. Let me know what you think of this cool timelapse video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAVYizVoLww

June 26, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, I Challenge You!, Random

Go to Car Shows if You Like Fonts

I’ve always loved writing, and seeing different fonts has always interested me. While I’m no expert in typography, it’s still interesting.

Car shows are always a great place to see compelling fonts. The best part for me is that even the smallest of car shows often have small details that are just begging for attention. Look long and hard over each car. Admire the chrome or sticker fonts.

Most of the time, classic Mopars (Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth, DeSoto and Jeep) have my favorite fonts. They often have multiple fonts for various decals and badges all over their body. Plus, the cars often come in vivid color combinations. My favorite color combination is Petty Blue, with a black vinyl top, and the chrome script font.

While it might seem odd or funny to us, designers back then wanted cars to stand out. They did this by slathering the cars in outrageous, spectacular colors, putting big yowling engines in them, and putting upwards of 20 badges all over the car. Think of a new car that has more than 20 badges that isn’t a high-performance or modified car.

Let me know what your favorite scripts on cars are. I’d love to hear yours.

I’m a huge fan of the:

Italicized “Camaro” on the Chevy Camaro
Big, bold raised lettering on the Chrysler “IMPERIAL”
Curvy lettering in the “Ford” logo

June 24, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Random, The History of Autos

Porsche Never Designed the 911 Around it’s Rear Engine

It’s certainly one of the most iconic automotive designs ever.

I’m sure that if you named just one thing about one of the air-cooled Porsche 911’s, it’s been written about. While being in and around the car is like watching a movie you’ve seen multiple times, it still has that mystical allure that reels you in each time.

Seeing the car is an experience that is hard to forget. It’s probably because you can’t compare the design to any other car on the road. It’s incredibly and undeniably unique.

Yes, it’s got a hint of VW Beetle and the Porsche 356 that preceded it, but we tend to forget those cars when we see one. The car was designed to carry four adults and their luggage around in comfort and style, yet be fun to drive.

Most “true” sports cars only have two seats, yet the 911 has four. This is odd, but somebody high up at Porsche presumably wanted something that could carry more than two people. Unless they wanted to make it incredibly long, the engine would have to be behind the rear axle.

However, this isn’t the universally-accepted truth. The idea that Porsche is wedded to the engine-in-the-back philosophy is one that you could seriously consider. The 911 was preceded by the mid-engine 550 Spyder, then followed by the mid-engine 914, the front-engine 924 and 928. The purpose-built racecar built by Porsche in the same era, the 904, was mid-engine. The car that truly preceded the 911 was the rear-engine 356, which was essentially a rear-wheel-drive VW Beetle with a nice interior. For all essential purposes, the 911 is the second and final Porsche rear-engine design, redone a few times. Even the 356 began as a mid-engine car.

This rear seat thing is why the driver sits higher than most other sports cars. It allows their legs to be slightly more bent, which gives more space to the folks in the rear seat. This is also what makes the roof so tall, as well as how far forward the windshield goes.

It’s flat-six engine is only three cylinders long, so the rear overhang is no longer than most front-engine sports cars. But, it’s also significantly lower overall than most other sports cars.

Most people rail on the car because of it’s rear-engine location, but the truth is, that’s not the most interesting part of the design. They should focus more on the tall and forward-positioned windshield, and the single sweep backwards to the tail end of the car.

The original Porsche 911 was a massive 15 inches shorter than the Jaguar E-Type, which is really the only comparable car in terms of cabin space and performance. In short, the 911’s proportions are more to do with the fact that it was designed to carry two people in the back, rather than having the engine in the back.

The real allure of the 911 for me is the fact that Porsche placed function over form, yet created an intensely beautiful and unique car that nobody else was capable offering. It is utterly unique, and nothing can quite compare to it.

The interior is nothing special, but there’s something beautiful and understated about it. It’s very simple, but owners say that the car is far from basic. The car may be small, but it’s far from cramped.

There is something that draws me to the surprising compactness of the original 911. It’s actually a small car. While I know that modern cars have grown substantially, the original 911 is about the same size as a stock 1930 Ford Model A. It’s really not a big car, yet it’s got an impressive amount of utility to it. I really want to drive one, or at least ride in one.

This is the infamous Porsche 550 Spyder. James Dean died in one.

Most racers in the 1960s got started in either an MG or a Porsche 356, both of which dominated the road racing circuit for many years.

June 19, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Car Reviews, Field Trips, Gifts for the Car Enthusiast, Random, Road Trips, World News

Why a Rare Porsche Will Top $1.5 Million at Auction

While you could say that just about any Porsche 959 is a stunning car, this one is just an absolute neck-turner. It’s black over carmel brown, and it’s one of only three made in this color combination. Talk about rare.

Porsche only made 337 959’s from 1986-1989. Each and every single one of them is still a technological tour-de-force, but when they came out, there was truly nothing else like it on the road.

The car that I’m talking about is a 1988 model, and it could be yours, should you be going to the Gooding & Company Pebble Beach auction in August. It’s sale price is estimated to be between $1.6-1.8 million, which, if proved accurate, will only reflect the voracious appetite for collectible Porsches like this.

The Porsche 959 remains one of the most technologically-advanced and interesting supercars ever built. Up until recently, they were a rare, astonishing sight in the US, due to the idiotic, bureaucratic import laws that the US has. Why? Because only 50 out of the 329-337 (production numbers vary, depending on who you ask at Porsche) built between 1986-1989 came to the US. However, since the bulk of 959’s were built before 1988, the import laws are completely open on them, meaning that you can drive them legally on US roads without fear of the car getting crushed and you getting massive fines. This is very good news for American car enthusiasts and collectors.

Gooding & Company is calling this car a “Komfort” model, which means that it’s the road-going version of the 959. Komfort was Porsche’s way of differentiating the road-going 959 from the “Sport” version of the 959, which raced in everything from rally to endurance racing. The Komfort cars were powered by a 444-horsepower, twin-turbocharged, 2.8-liter flat six-cylinder engine that was connected to a six-speed manual (most cars at the time still had four-speed manuals – a six-speed was simply out of this world). It was completely ahead of its time in terms of speed, technology and handling.

“Car & Driver” recorded a smoking 3.6-second 0-60 run, and somehow had the cojones to get it all the way up to 190 mph. Porsche says that the car has the potential to hit 205 mph, so it seems obvious that “Car & Driver” just didn’t have the nerve…That being said, the 190 mph that they recorded held their top speed record until 1997 and the McLaren F1.

What made the car so revolutionary was the fact that it had electronically-controlled AWD. The only other production car to use electronically-controlled AWD was the Audi Quattro, which started using the system back in the mid-1980s. This system could distribute torque depending on the dynamic load on each wheel. It could also be locked at a fixed torque split.

I’ve never quite seen such a beautiful Porsche, and while I’ve never seen a 959 in person, this is an absolute stunner. The 959 is high up on my automotive bucket list, and this one only elevates it to be alongside other legendary cars like the Pagani Huayra, Dodge Daytona, Ford GT40, and Shelby Cobra, among others.

I’ve attached the link to the car from Gooding & Company for you to look at. There are very few details on it, but they will be available closer to the auction date (think late July). http://www.goodingco.com/vehicle/1988-porsche-959-komfort-2/

If you can’t afford that much, there is a beautiful 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS Lightweight at the same auction that is estimated to go for $1.0-1.2 million. I’ve attached the link for it also. If you have the means, I highly recommend buying both and driving the wheels off of them. Cars like these are meant to be driven. http://www.goodingco.com/vehicle/1973-porsche-911-carrera-2-7-rs-lightweight-3/#tab1

This is the 959 coming up for sale in August. It's beautiful. — This is the 959 coming up for sale in August. It’s beautiful.

June 16, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, cars and music, Humor, Random

A Fun Music Video

This is going to be a quick and fun post. For those of you who remember the band “Berlin” from the 1980s, you might know their 2013 single “Gasoline & Heart.”

For those of you who have never heard of Berlin, let me give you some background:

Berlin is a synth pop group formed in 1982 in Los Angeles by bassist John Crawford, singer Terri Nunn, and keyboard player David Diamond. They quickly made the charts with their provocative single “Sex (I’m A…),” which came from their gold-selling debut EP Pleasure Victim.

They quickly made the group whole with the addition of guitarist Rick Olsen, another keyboard player, Matt Reid, and drummer Rob Brill.

Their first full-length LP was the gold-selling Love Life album of 1984. By 1985, the group had been trimmed down to the trio of Nunn, Crawford, and Brill.

The following year, they went platinum with their hit “Take My Breath Away,” which was the love theme from the Tom Cruise movie, “Top Gun.”

Nunn left the band in 1987 to pursue a solo career, so Brill and Crawford joined the Big F.

The band reunited in 1999 to record new songs, as well as perform a concert. The studio and concert recordings were released as Berlin Live: Sacred and Profane, which was released in 2000.

2001 brought a whirlwind of recording sessions, which included co-writing songs with Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins, among several other artists. The end result, Voyeur, was their first full-length album in well over 15 years.

How does this relate to “Gasoline & Heart?” Well, the single was created without Nunn.

Truthfully, the song is just OK, but it’s got great footage of classic hot rods back in the day. It’s a fun distraction for a few minutes. Enjoy.

June 14, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Field Trips, Gifts for the Car Enthusiast, Random

What to Look for When Buying Used Engine Parts

Used engine parts can be a great deal, if you know what you are looking for. They can also kill your engine. Here’s what to look for in used engine parts. Most of the places that you’d go engine parts hunting are swap meets. Bring a cheat sheet of engine codes and casting numbers with you, or you might end up with a completely different part than you need.

Intake Manifolds: Most factory performance air intakes are fairly easy to identify because there is a casting number and date code on them. Cast iron intakes are virtually indestructible, but are fairly heavy. Aluminum intakes offer better performance, but are more susceptible to problems. Look at the thermostat’s counterbore, as it is common for that area to get rusted and corroded on aluminum intakes only. If it’s not too badly eaten away, any good machinist can repair it. If it’s badly eaten away, look for another one. If you really want it, however, the bad area can be cut out, and a new piece can be welded on and machined to the original shape. It’s common to see other problems, and if it looks like it’s been modified, make sure that it was done well!
Pistons: Careful with these. Most new pistons are relatively inexpensive, but you can score a good deal on them at a swap meet if you know what you’re looking for. If there’s a full set of them and they’re still in the box, you’ve got a great deal. Get them if they fit your car. If they are used, be sure to clean off all of the carbon deposits from the tops and inspect them thoroughly. Also, check for ring lands and grooves on them – this means that something was wrong with the engine that they came out of, and that they are damaged. DON’T buy those! If they don’t fit your engine, they make great pencil or screw holders.
Connecting Rods: Used connecting rods are very difficult to evaluate without the proper equipment. Yes, it’s easy to bead-blast and hone an old pair, but you need to take them to a good machinist to make sure that they are good to put into your engine.
Camshafts: If it’s unused, in it’s original box, and has full documentation from day one, you can definitely consider it. When buying used camshafts, it’s very difficult to tell whether it’s a stock, weak camshaft or a high-performance camshaft. Plus, modern camshaft technology has advanced so much in the past 50 years that it’s worth it to just buy a brand-new camshaft. It’ll be easier to get one that’s essentially tailored for your driving style.
Exhaust Manifolds and Headers: Exhaust manifolds are sturdy parts, but can be abused and broken. It’s not uncommon to find a broken stud in an exhaust manifold. Luckily, they are fairly easy to remove. Used headers can be a great deal or a massive head ache. Ask the seller what they fit, rather than, “will they fit on my Challenger?” Check the welds and flanges on the headers – if the flanges are warped, they will not seal against the head, resulting in exhaust leaks. You don’t want to be like Freiburger and Finnegan from Roadkill. Also inspect headers for dents and scratches that could have come from bottoming out or from hammering them into place.
Carburetors: Have a carburetor cheat sheet on hand when you go looking for carbs. You can determine it’s original application and CFM rating. The overall appearance of a carburetor is a good indicator of it’s health. Rebuild kits are available for nearly every carburetor under the sun, so it makes it a good deal less risky to buy a used carburetor.

These are aluminum intakes for Chevy big-block V-8s.

People will try to sell you pistons in conditions far worse than this. They don't even make good pencil holders! — People will try to sell you pistons in conditions far worse than this. They don’t even make good pencil holders!

These are brand-new connecting rods for a Chevy small-block V-8. You can luck out if you know what you are looking for at a swap meet.

This guy lucked out and found a camshaft for his Dodge pickup with the Cummins diesel engine at the Pomona swap meet.

This is what you'll see when you go in search of headers at a swap meet. — This is what you’ll see when you go in search of headers at a swap meet.

This is the sight you'll see when you go to a swap meet to find carburetors. — This is the sight you’ll see when you go to a swap meet to find carburetors.

June 6, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Humor, I Challenge You!, Random

Can You Text and Drive in This Great New Game?

I’d like to say sorry for this post coming out today. As I had to attend a friend’s graduation yesterday, I was unable to post. I do think however, that this post will make up for the delay.

Before we get down to business, let’s get one thing clear: texting and driving do not mix well. If you get caught by the police, you get a big ticket, and could possibly lose your license, depending on if you’re a repeat cell phone law violator. It’s incredibly dangerous, and can kill or injure a lot of people because you just couldn’t wait to respond. Never, ever pick your phone up while driving! Let’s all get one thing clear: texting and driving in the real world is much different than texting and driving in this hilarious new game called SMS Racing.

It’s a total remake of the 2013 browser game that had the same name. The 2015 version uses all new material, and it shares only a name and a concept with the original game.

It was built for the 2015 Oculus Mobile VR Jam, where many app and game developers are teamed up to create the most captivating VR experience possible.

We’ve all seen or heard of the dozens of texting and driving games out there, many of which are dry, boring attempts to teach teens the dangers of texting and driving at the same time. Enter SMS Racing. It’s a whole lot of fun. Let me tell you why.

When you start the race, you’re told to finish a lap as fast as you can while responding to text messages without crashing, all within a limited time frame.

An instructor talks to you during the race. She encourages you to keep up with all of your social connections, and to focus less on the road. This is when all of the sarcasm that the developers have kicks in. She tells you that texting is an important part of driving, and that it would be rude not to respond to your friends.

Should you fail to respond to a message within ten seconds, you are told to “…restart, or keep driving and reflect on how it feels to have no friends.” That’s cold.

The game has several features that were not in it previously. It has a Time Trial and a Race mode, a head tracking feature to change your view based on movement, artificial intelligence rivals who also text and drive, and city and suburb maps.

This review is based on various user reviews, plus video recordings of the game. I haven’t played it…yet, but if and when I have a chance, I will do a full review of it!

Users of the game say that the constant need to text can become frustrating at times, which only further demonstrates the sole purpose of the game.

They also say that when you finally get a lap in, you’ve probably cursed the game to hell and back, but you’ve probably crashed just as many times. In the end, it’s all smiles and a good chance to laugh at how ridiculous it is to put texting before driving.

Please don’t. Driving requires a lot of attention, and you could kill yourself or others because you just had to glance down at your phone. It can always wait. If you can’t wait, pull over in a safe spot and read the text or social media alert.

Here’s some video from the VR Jam. https://youtu.be/07hY2JenhMQ

You can check out the game, and even download it at http://vrjam.challengepost.com/submissions/36780-sms-racing

However, you need the proper VR gear, but if you do, it seems like it’s worth a shot.

June 2, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Field Trips, Random, Road Trips

What the OPTIMA Search for the Ultimate Street Car is Really About

It all began at the SEMA show in 2004 or 2005. OPTIMA’s Director of Product Development and Marketing, Cam Douglass, was in awe of all of the pro-built cars being shown, and couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to these cars than just having brand name parts and looking cool.

It took him a few years of talking to people and a whole lot of planning, but then Douglass met Jimi Day, and the idea became a reality. It went from the SEMA show floor to the nearby track, Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch.

As expected, Pro-Touring cars were all over the headlines. I mean, how could they not be when iconic cars like RJ Gottlieb’s Big Red Camaro and Steven Rupp’s Bad Penny Camaro were competing? In fact, they continued to grab headlines because Gottlieb and Rupp were more than willing to push both themselves and their cars to the absolute limit.

In the first year alone of OUSCI (OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational), there were some well-performing cars in the field. There was a 2004 Porsche 911, a brand-new Pontiac G8, a Lincoln MKX of all things, a new Dodge Challenger, and several late-model Corvettes.

Why such a diverse field of cars? Because otherwise, how would you determine what the “ultimate” street car really was? The whole point of OUSCI is to see if SEMA show cars could perform as well on the track as they could look good at a show. There never were, and never will be limitations on the year, make, model, or build style of the cars. Otherwise there would be no real valid way to determine whether the winner was the ultimate street car.

The OUSCI field is the most diverse it has ever been, with cars like Jonathan Ward’s 1948 Buick ICON Special to Dieter Heinz-Kijora’s 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG, and more than 100 cars in between those extremes. Yes, Pro-Touring cars are still a big part of the mix, but anybody who owns a street-legal car or truck has a chance at getting to the invitational. Just ask Thomas Smith about his 120,000 mile daily-driven 2005 Subaru WRX STI.

If you’re interested in going to a qualifying event to just watch, or to try and get to the invitational, they happen all over the country. I’ve attached a link for you, where you can register for a qualifying event if you’re interested at http://driveusca.com/events/

Every vehicle that makes the cut is placed on display at SEMA for a week, before heading out to the OUSCI at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

This is 2010 OUSCI competitor Mike Musto's 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona replica. He's a host for the /DRIVE network on YouTube, which I highly recommend, and this is one of the coolest cars I've ever seen. — This is 2010 OUSCI competitor Mike Musto’s 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona replica. He’s a host for the /DRIVE network on YouTube, which I highly recommend, and this is one of the coolest cars I’ve ever seen.

This is just a beautiful picture from Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It was taken at the end of the 2014 OUSCI.

This is Bob Benson's totally cool 1972 De Tomaso Pantera from the 2013 OUSCI. It's just epic looking, isn't it? — This is Bob Benson’s totally cool 1972 De Tomaso Pantera from the 2013 OUSCI. It’s just epic looking, isn’t it?

May 29, 2015 zoomvroom Car Culture, Random, Tech Talk, The auto dictionary. Look it up here!

How Porsche DNA is in Your Car

Porsche and the rear window wiper are forever linked in the annals of automotive history, and for good reason.

While rear window wipers were accessories as far back as the early 1940s, they never became commonplace for a variety of reasons that I’ll talk about in a bit. Italy became slightly interested in them in the mid-1950s. Ferrari installed a pair of them on a 1955 Ferrari 250 GT Europa by Pinin Farina.

Interest had picked up sufficiently that, in 1957, rear wipers made their next public appearance at the 1957 Salon de Genève on the new Lancia Flaminia Berlina, another Pinin Farina creation. While they were highly praised for their functionality by the press, nobody quite caught onto the idea. This should come as no surprise: outside mirrors, which greatly aid rear visibility were considered superfluous to Italians.

Eight years later, a wealthy German industrialist contacted Porsche with a request. He wanted a wiper installed on the rear window. Porsche set about developing a rear window wiper.

You can only imagine what other Porsche enthusiasts thought when they saw this fine gentleman cruising the boulevards with his fancy new car and it’s rear window wiper. The factory began to receive an increasingly large number of requests for similar installations. The demand was so great that Porsche offered a dealer-installed or DIY retrofit kit. This wasn’t even enough – Porsche decided to make it a factory option in 1966.

The early rear wipers were rudimentary at best, but they did the job. The early wiper arm pivot shafts had bushings angled inward and outward, which enabled it to be mounted to the edge of the air intake recess on the existing engine lid.

In 1967, as the rear wiper option gained massive popularity, engine lid pressing dies were slightly modified to incorporate integral mounting pieces for the rear wiper installation. This eliminated the need for the angled adapter bushings. These were included on both sides of the engine lid to accommodate both left-hand-drive and right-hand-drive applications.

Volvo took note of Porsche’s little invention, and added one to the 145 in 1969. The time for rear window wipers had finally arrived.

By the time the OPEC oil crisis arrived in the mid-1970s, rear wipers had become commonplace on hatchbacks, station wagons, and off-road machines like the Chevy Blazer and Ford Bronco. These body styles were perfect applications for the rear window wiper: because of the lack of a rear deck (a trunk), a rear window is bound to collect more dirt and grime than a sedan or pickup truck’s.

Since 1965, Porsche has remained a devout follower of the rear window wiper, offering it on every single fixed-roof production car after the 911, with the exception of the 914, as it had a recessed rear window and long rear deck, which eliminated the necessity of a rear window wiper.

It doesn’t matter how old the Porsche is to make this option desirable. It goes far beyond a functionality statement. It’s a perfect visual metaphor of the classic Porsche essence and character that has carried through today.

You can still feel the original Porsche character today. The 356 and 911 (through the 993 generation), with their air-cooled reliability (their engines were souped-up VW Beetle engines), rear-engine traction, fully-independent suspension with incredibly long travel, and generous ground clearance meant that these were not cars to be taken lightly. They were not smooth-road sports cars like the Triumphs of the same era. They were truly all-weather, go-anywhere-on-any-road cars. This set them far apart from the other sports cars of the era, which generally had low ground clearance, borderline-at-best weather sealing, limited traction, horrifically unreliable everything, and marginal-at-best cooling systems.

It should come as no surprise to you that early Porsches were even better for all-weather capabilities than most standard sedans when the weather got yucky. Those early Porsches don’t care about the meteorological conditions or terrain. They will get a driver and their passenger to almost any destination in comfort. They truly have the functionality of a Swiss Army knife. The stark functionality of a rear window wiper expresses this.

Almost every Porsche that went rallying was fitted with a rear window wiper until high-speed rallying and weight reduction made them somewhat obsolete. Anybody who has ever gone rallying or bombing up and down a fire road knows just how important a rear window wiper is, especially after a big slide.

Most Ferraris, Jaguars, and Corvettes are taken out when the weather is nice. It’s always been that way. Porsche owners have never been afraid of taking their Porsche out when it’s rainy or snowing. A rear window wiper, in addition to it’s functionality, signals to the casual observer that they are gazing upon a car that earns it’s keep. While it’s great to have a car that wins trophies, how often is that car driven?

To the uninitiated Porsche enthusiast, a rear window wiper would seemingly ruin the looks of the car. Let me explain it this way: a Porsche with a rear window wiper is like seeing Sean Connery as James Bond in black tie slipping a steel Rolex Submariner onto his wrist. It’s a seemingly incongruous functional instrument that seems out of place, but it hints at capabilities at his beck and call.