I went to Mazda Zoom Zoom Live! yesterday and got to drive the Mazdaspeed6, RX-8, Mazda3, CX-7, Miata, and Mazda5. It was awesome fun. The Mazdaspeed6 is really fast, and I had forgotten how much fun it is to throw the Miata into turns. We used a stopwatch on the matched time course and I got within .004 seconds of the target time.
I got a couple of The Cardigans’ albums to answer the question of “Whatever happened to those guys?“, and they’re pretty damn good.
I am signed up once again for NaNoWriMo. Wish me luck.
They told us there was no speed limit, and that we could drive as fast as we wanted. So I did, and I thought it was fast enough to be pushing the limits of the car.
Then we sat in for a hot lap with the professional driver.
I didn’t know cars were capable of performing to that level.
Continue reading “Auto Erotica - Part 2″
The Kia Rio is one of the cheapest cars available at a starting MSRP of $10,195. Add to that the 10 year / 100,000 mile warranty, and you’ve got what could possibly be a great deal. But as we all know, you get what you pay for.
Continue reading “Auto Erotica - Part 1″
I was puzzled as to why I didn’t like the new Ford Mustang. I recalled seeing the concept version on display about a year ago and completely falling in love with it. It looked really agressive and retro, the direction that Ford should be taking it after the previous generation that was just horrible. So why then, after seeing the latest photos in magazines and driving by the Ford dealership, did it just look “eh” to me?
My biggest complaint about the previous Mustang was how plastic-y it looked. Something to do with the pronounced wheel arches and the tacky “Mustang” imprinted on the bumper. The new one gave off that same plastic vibe to me. But anyway, on to my results as to why the new Mustang just didn’t cut it for me.
To put it as simple as possible: They made changes. A lot. Here is a link to Dieselstation’s gallery of the 2005 Mustang GT Concept, and a gallery for the 2005 Mustang. Looks like I can’t link to the galleries directly. You can find your way.
- The taillights now more closely resemble the previous model’s, and the design of the exhausts being built into the bumper was returned to a more traditional design. Concept vs Production.
- The side vents have been removed, the rear side window is now actually a window, smaller wheels, front nose less angled and not as aggressive, and the body in general is “thinner” and sits higher off the ground. Concept vs Production.
- Hood scoops gone (excellent design on the concept, btw), front signal/fog lights changed, and the nose in general has more of a downward slope, again going back to the less-agressive stance they’ve given the Mustang. Concept vs Production.
To sum it up, this isn’t the same car I saw a year ago. Now that I’ve figured out why I don’t like it as much as I did a year ago, it really puts my mind at rest. Shame they didn’t go with the original concept though, it seems Ford thought it to be too radical and different and decided to go back to some more traditional workings, and thus some parts of the car slightly resemble the last generation’s.
Anyone wanna buy me the concept car?
Volkswagen Releases First Official Golf V GTI Photos. Looks promising. I’m not the biggest fan of Audi’s latest move to the funky “shield” grills they’re putting on the newer models, but the look is alright on the new GTI. As can be seen in the older GTI in the background, I like how the new grill is reminiscent of the old grill. Aside from the looks though, I’m more excited about how it’ll perform, seeing as how the new Golf is already getting good reviews from European magazines.
A pair of sunglasses that come apart as chopsticks. Of course…you could always just use your hands to eat sushi…
Jimi sends along an article discussing how SUVs are actually banned on many residential streets because of their heavy weight. There is a 6,000 lb limit on thousands of streets in Los Angeles because of the danger vehicles that weigh that much pose, not to mention how they tear the road up more. What’s more interesting though is all of the loopholes allowed to SUV owners, letting them get tax breaks and being exempt from the gas guzzler law.
I’m all for going against government and leading the socialist revolution, but this is encroaching on the topic of environment more than it is on the topic of cheating taxes. Gluttony rules all.
Someone get me this Wicker Park Soundtrack. An acoustic version of “A Movie Script Ending”? A Postal Service cover of Phil Collins’ “Against All Odds”? A cover of Coldplay’s “The Scientist”? Who cares that Josh Hartnett is in the movie, gimme the soundtrack now.
Rice:
De-riced:
Yay, finally swapped out the taillights on my car. The older clear ones, while not bad looking at all, just looked too…racer/rice for me. Like the nasty ones you see on Altimas these days. The reds turned out to be a bit more pink than I had expected, but they’re still good. Now I can stand out from all the other Mazda3’s.
Big thanks to my dad for helping me figure out how to take the lights off/on. Stupid bolts in tiny places where you can’t reach…
Another one for fun:
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