Dope. #22

author: unknown

What to watch this weekend (Nov 4th - Nov 7th)

• Australian V8 Supercars - Surfers Paradise Street Circuit, Australia. Thursday @ 12pm - 2pm (SPEED/SPEEDHD) (Replay)
• Off Road Championship - Classic short course off road racing in Crandon, Wisconsin. Friday @ 4pm - 5pm (Discovery's High Def Theater)
• WRC - Spain Rally. Preview & Days 1 through 3. Saturday @ 9am - 11am (Discovery's High Def Theater) (Replay/Highlights Sunday @ 10pm)
• Formula 1 - Brazilian Grand Prix; from Cicuito Carlos Pace-Interlagos, San Paolo, Brazil. Qualifying. Saturday @ 12pm - 1:30pm (SPEED/SPEEDHD)
• Formula 1 - Brazilian Grand Prix; from Cicuito Carlos Pace-Interlagos, San Paolo, Brazil. Race. Sunday @ 10:30am - 1pm (SPEED/SPEEDHD) (No Replay)
• GT - Racer: Le Mans: Classic cars race on the track in Le Mans, France. Sunday @ 11am - 12pm (Discovery's High Def Theater)
• D1 Grand Prix - All-Stars at Fuji International Raceway in Shizoukaken, Japan. Sunday @ 4pm - 5pm (SPEED/SPEEDHD)

This weekend is chock full of awesome. I even put the V8 Supercars race replay of last weeks airing in the mix, because of news that DTM Racing specs should make their way to the Australian V8 Supercars series (among others) within a couple years time. The F1 drivers chase is about as wide open as it gets and WRC is a now race for 2nd place, but there is a nice addition to the menu; GT Racer. This Hi-Def mini series debuted on THD last year, much to my personal enjoyment. GT Racer is a documentary style look at those who participate in classic automotive racing; self-funded, enthusiast, tribute racing in original spec. There were six episodes in the series, so look around the web for the others (hopefully THD is replaying the entire season). Turn the furnace back on and enjoy the weekend.

Photo courtesy of clbuzz.com



White Wagon: day one.

Well, it's here.

The 91 passat wagon has come home,
and it's time to get to work.

And do i have a lot of work ahead of me. Front suspension is mostly toast, and the motor needs a complete teardown. There are also small issues in the interior, mostly broken trim pieces that I'll scavenge over the next several months. A full and complete scrubbing in and out is also in the cards.

First, however, was to get rid of the grime on the corrado "sebring" wheels. They won't be on long, but they need to be serviceable while they're there. A quick acid wash (I love the 80's!)and a high pressure spray down was enough to get about 90% of the years of baked on crud to relinquish its devilish grip. However, there's quite a bit of stains leftover, so it looks like a spray down with some generic oem-wheel-silver-in-a-can is in the future. With the clamp on wheel weights on the outside of the wheel, however, this step will have to wait until i can have them rebalanced. The crubbage is great, as well, so a mild scuff down will commence immediately prior. In the meantime, a quick blowover on the centercaps got it looking respectable enough from ten feet.

Next on the list will be a repair to the passenger control arm. The rear bushing is almost completely shot, due to the oil/coolant mixture pouring itself onto the original 150,000 mile units and wearing it out even faster than normal. A temporary setup will be dispatched immediately to remedy this particularly annoying situation as I clunk down the road.

A complete 16v refresh will start probably in December, as well as a full suspension refresh. OEM +/- is the order of the day, with upgrades as I go along. Until then, here's a pic or two to tide us all over.

before:


after:


Little things!

Quick Vid: Chris Harris' perfect 911

I forgot about this classic vid from years past and found it once again. Enjoy.



Video hosting courtesy of ahpadt.

Quick Vid: Autocar - Britains Best Driver's Car 2010

It's a light week here on ROTL, but thankfully Autocar fits the bill. One of these days I need to buy another Autocar mag for the living room...


Video courtesy of Autocar of course.

dope. #21

Blast from the past, back before MAX POWER turned into a softcore porno mag.

Car Pron: Gentleman Drivers Club @ Nordschleife

I found this great ring video not too long ago. What was interesting wasn't just the fact that one of my favorite women on earth, Sabine Schmitz, was performing a ring taxi service for those looking to experience a lap of the Ring', in a GT3RS driven at the limit by an expert driver, but also that this was actually part of an organized effort of a new company; The Gentleman Drivers Club. This company gives enthusiasts opportunities like this one, to experience famous race tracks and road venues with professional drivers. For Sabine, of DMotor and Motorsport fame, it was just another day on the job. Enjoy.



Video hosting courtesy of GentlemanDriversTV.