Remember this car from the auction? It's OK if you don't because I sure did. Next to the 1970 Monte Carlo the 1967 HT Sedan Impala is one of my favorite cars that I would love to own. But the prices on those have skyrocketed due to the Supernatural show, which I am a big fan of. (Monte Carlo love? Tokyo Drift... Sue me...)

When I saw the below picture of the engine bay I had a raging boner...
Yup, those heads... Bit big for a 327 smallblock. This is a honest to god 396 big block car. And under the hood, while naturally lived in by XYZ, it looks original and complete. In love doesn't even begin to cover it.

I knew it wouldn't be for me. Colorado, no way to get it here and the sight unseen thing just won't work. If it got here with massive issues that means it isn't drivable without structural work my $10K budget that has been carved out would be blown before the mechanicals can even be touched. It went for $6,250.00 + 10%. Guess we'll never know if it could be a driving for not too much more invested...

I ended up sending the listing to a local shop called "Maupin Metal" who started out as a Supernatural Build shop and now does that and other full custom work. He ended up buying it! When I asked if he knew about it before I sent a message he said no. Strange how a post on OPPO lands a local business with a car.

AAAAAAND if I make it to "Maupin Metal" on the 28th of this month it's going to be at the shop so I can see it in the flesh! Like I said, it isn't for me. But I really hope it is a solid car (no bunk frame etc) so he can either keep it for himself or make a tidy profit. If I make it I'll likely shoot a little video perhaps. At least take some pictures and give an update on it.

@MidEngine that won't happen till I am 60 here. People always ask what people would do with a significant cash inflow. I say pay off the house even if it completely wipes out that big cash day. No debt = freedom.

@MUSASHI66 I really... Really... Really... Don't want it... Just more stuff that will age horribly...

I've always loved the MR2. The mid engine runabout for the common man. The story for me definitely started when I got my drivers license. I would frequent a local MR2 forum in the Netherlands for quite a few years as an enthusiast and potential buyer. It never ended up happening unfortunately. Via my YouTube channel I would find myself in an AW11 and in 2018 and I met my hero in the form of a 3SGTE swapped SW20 in 2019. Meeting your heroes can always backfire, but it didn't at all. It was everything I thought it would be.

Fast forward to 2021. I got no clue how it all came together. I think Jose, who owns the black MKIV Supra I reviewed a while back, knew Lance who has this MR2. A few messages later and we're shooting a review. This statement probably spoils the review but; It should have had a V6 from factory. MAJOR NSX vibes.

What do you guys think of the MR2? And which one is your favorite? For me it's definitely the SW20. I like the AW11 as well because it just oozes 80's. Never really liked the 3rd generation for some reason. Never driven one and I would love to. But I just can't get super exited by the way they look compared to the SW20!

I despise drink drivers. I honestly believe drunk driving enforcement is way too lax. The moment someone is caught isn't the first time they did it. They habitually do this. I propose a zero tolerance policy. Get caught? You can't drive, ever again. I am not saying have a beer (depending on the size, if you go to a German place you can order a damn liter of beer and that is definitely too much) but even two regular glasses during a nice long dinner with dessert isn't going to tip the scales much for most people. No, those people who are pulled out of their car not being able to see straight let alone walk straight? Boom, license gone for life. Maybe that would sober some people up or get people to do the right thing. If I go to the German place? My wife drives back. I am NOT good to drive. 100% Don't have a friend? Walk... Or get an Uber. So simple.

May he rest in peace. My condolences to his family, friends and everyone else affected by his passing.

What they wrote was the truth... From a certain point of view

Got to love the Obi Wan clause...

So 4 years ago, in 2017, I connected with Collin and reviewed his 1970 Deuce and a Half. That was a very cool experience and to date still the heaviest vehicle I have ever driven. About a month ago the phone rings and I pick up. I use the phone for work (outside YouTube) so every call gets answered. My old iPhone was replaced and I lost a bunch of contacts in the process, Collin's being one of them, so the number was just a number. Collin being a car guy he says "Hey, this is Collin, the guy who let you review his Deuce." We might not remember a name, but a car? Never!

We had a nice long conversation, but what it boiled down to was this: They were having a shakedown day for the vehicle / armor division of the Cavanaugh Flight Museum to drive all the vehicles and he thought it would be cool to film. The icing on the cake came in the form of climbing in and getting a ride on a tank (M50 Super Sherman, and also a M41 Walker Bulldog, but those are for a later video). There were 4 vehicles lined up, and instead of me filming them driving around it was more like: We need to work on the tank, so we'll get you set up on these 4 vehicles so you can drive them.

3 out of the 4 vehicles have unsynchronized manual transmissions. For those that don't know: That means you need to double clutch like you should and actually rev match every time by ear, every time and without fail. Got some double clutch rev match instruction in the M38a1 jeep and was then left to my own devices. There would be plenty of fail in the video, first time ever driving vehicles like that.

My favorite was without a doubt the M3a1 Scout Car. It is actually also the oldest vehicle I have driven to date. 1942. What better vehicle to take that crown than a cool one like that? There were and actually still are times where I want to quit this thing. But when you come across opportunities like this you start to realize that if you did quit you would have never had this experience.

Any of you ever drive a military vehicle?

Cavanaugh Flight Museum Website: https://cavflight.org/

It's always good when you see a Testarossa! As a kid from the 80's it shares the pedestal with the Countach. I've seen way more Testarossas though, I think it was the first supercar I ever saw as a kid. I just love the slats on the side, and the fact you have that gated shifter. Perfection. I spoke with the owner and we geeked out a bit. This one has over 90K miles by the way, original paint too. It's a driver! The owner said he put over 1000 miles on it the past month. Love that it gets driven!

The Jensen Interceptor will always be one of my favorites too. But, when my eye saw that M5 badge on an E34 wagon? Very rare, imported from Europe because the US never had them and all original looking. Loved it! Nearly made best of show if I am completely honest, but the way that Testarossa looked? Couldn't bump that car.

The Testa was naturally in the list of photos I showed my kids. But they went for something completely out of left field. The 2.5RS(ti). Classic looks, and STi swapped. It went like STINK and sounded AMAZING (can't recall the time stamp, but it's in the Asian car section).

Yeah, great show to end 2021 with. Now lets see what 2022 has in store!

You got to have balls to drive that in the snow given the low end torque on those is enough to slay those meats on dry pavement if you even look at the gas pedal wrong. I guess that is why a lot of people, at least initially, went: see? SEE!

The Toyota MR2, in particular the second generation (SW20) model, has always been a favorite of mine. So when I was invited by Lance, who's 2GR SW20 I reviewed, to film at MR2 Nationals the answer could only be yes.

I parked my Passat GT at the fringes of the show with all the other support vehicles and started shooting. It was very hot that day so I took plenty of breathers in between. It was also kind of odd shooting since I had no clue what to expect.

The community was very welcoming though, and when asked at the AutoX starting line if I could put some cameras on their cars while they did a lap they all just said yes.

So much fun hanging out with the MR2 crew and it just makes me want one more. I did commit to shooting MR2 nationals next year and weather depending I want to make all days. It would have been so cool to get footage of the dyno day, show, auto x, drag day AND track day. Would be even cooler if I could do it in my own MR... But that... Is going to be something that we'll have to wait and see!

Funny thing, it was my son's turn to pick the cover car. He is immediately drawn to the W30. I ask my daughter and she picks the AW11 which was the thumbnail of this topic. I am personally very hung up on the SW20, the AW11 is cool too and the W30? Last place. Although I have heard that out of the three the W30 is the best handling one of the bunch. More of a straight line person myself so the SW20 punches that ticket nicely, it has that impeccable 90's "supercar" styling and the 2GR swap... OOOOOOOOFFFFFFF!

@Plymouth-Superbird yeah, they are awesome. This one is gone though due to people doing too much outside the show.

@pip-bip I fixed that pretty quick... What can't be fixed is that the show is done. Over. The city of "The Colony" has decided that no car shows are allowed in their city anymore. No clue why, I assume there are a couple of high ranking people who decided that.

They rather have people start pop up meets where they will have zero control I suppose...

I got no clue what is going on with the weather forecast lately. The last two shows should have rained out but instead it was a scorcher where temperatures went into the 90s. I definitely got my sweat on, but it seems less than last summer when I had about 25lbs more on me. We'll see what happens next month and the one after that, temperatures only go up in Texas!

So the Hennessy Venom F5 Revolution. They had told people it would be at the show. I knew it would be near impossible to get a good shot so I figured I would have to take a quick pic and that was it.

Yeah, the thumbnail tells the whole story there... And yes, my son decided it was the #1 car so the most clickbaity title could be added. But I digress, only people who were invited were allowed inside the barrier and they kicked people out. Because I have been resident car show film guy for closing in on a decade I could take all the slider shots I wanted. Very cool to be next to a car where there are only 24 and retails for 2.7 million smackers... My YouTube cred (at least local) got me perks! WHOOOOO!

As I walked away to the exit shot location I decided to stop and grab some water. Hydration is key. I set down my camera rig and took a swig. My slider doesn't have a brake on it anymore and the ground was not level so the camera moved to one side of the rig and it tipped over. It had happened before so I didn't think too much of it. I get to the exit location, turned the camera on and the camera gave the dreaded message to re-attach the lens. The lens hood apparently hit the concrete and it broke the lens. My in laws have the same camera so I tried their lens it worked. Ordered a replacement that came in today for just under 200 bucks and we're back in business. Thank the maker, part of me wants to upgrade to a new camera, but that is a $2,000.00+ proposition. And then there is the fact I am still waiting on Sony to come out with a camera in my form factor that shoots 4K60. Right now the best they got is the a6600 which only goes up to 4K30. They've been rumoring a "a6700" for what seems like forever. Once they make it and it reviews good I'll jump on that ASAP. I'd love for it to not be an overheating bomb. I got my current a6000 in silver so it would reflect the sunlight...

@beefchips if I drop mine it falls in a million pieces... CRISPY! (Legit: mine is borderline burnt... LOL)

@beefchips said in Bacon on the grill....:

@tophercrowder said in Bacon on the grill....:

Maybe a weeks worth.
Thick cut Amish bacon.
BLT season is the best time of the year

Yep. Yesterday:

That bacon is raw... LOL

@NoJustNo said in I Don't Own a Car Now:

@Britishvillaininatl
I like that generation rabbit too. Great visibility, lovely motor that sounds great with exhaust work, and tossable chassis. Just don't expect to rev the motor to the moon.

100% Jake video for reference

Yup... Those are cool. Nearly had a 2013 jetta with the 5 banger AND 5 speed. Hindsight 20/20 I should have traded my Grand Marquis on it because 2 years later I dropped the trans on the GMQ. Ended up in a Passat VR6 so it wasn't all bad news but still... Would have put a straight pipe on the Jetta too... It's just too tasty of an engine note.

(and apparently the 6 speed from the GTI bolts up, they got cams and headers for the engine... It can be made to put down some decent power and rev higher to boot).

What? Who cares what you drive? Do they only want new cars in their corporate parkinglot or something? I can tell you one thing: I would never qualify for mileage reimbursement if their rules were set like that. (not that my current boss does, or any boss I have had in the states. Mileage was only a thing when I lived in the Netherlands. And it was paid regardless of transport means. Bicycle, Moped or Car).

My son brought home a stomach bug last year so I am well versed with the barfing action that comes with that... It had been probably 12 years since the last bout of that which I could attribute to IKEA food (never ate there again).

Hope you're good now. I hate barfing with a passion. Especially when your body wants to keep going and you got to time your breaths in between...

@frinesi2 said in Sales of the Lincoln MKC ARE ON FIRE!:

@tophercrowder I want to write a long tongue-in-cheek teslarati-style rant about how everybody blames Teslas and electric cars in general for being extra burny and spontaneous combusty when gasoline cars catch fire in much higher numbers every year

I love that comment and I dismiss that regularly from EVangelists with the following: Naturally ICE catches fire in bigger numbers, they bear 98% of the exposure to catastrophic events which can cause fires.

They often counter with "Per 100,000 stupid" to which I reply: How many 100,000 EVs are there and how many 100,000 ICE are there? They still think they're right while they are basing their opinion on an insignificant data set. They can come back when there is parity between the two.

When in doubt, go for the old one... I never had a classic but want one desperately. There just is something calming about driving a classic around. People seem to give you a wider berth and generally love seeing them around.