Hilbillyhomeboy

Big fan of House here. Last nights episode was awesome. Yeah, holy shit @ the Cuddy dance scene...wow. Not only did she look hot, but she's got some moves. I watch CSI Miami too. Good show, but the cheezy ass lines from "H" get on my nerves. CSI Las Vegas is much better.

Oh it snowedED... :gasp: http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48127 :taco flavored kissies:

Mr. Marx would be proud.

Killer list! I'll add "bicycles with banana seats". 80's was nothing but pop and one hit wonders? Umm, no. 80's was a solid mix of everything. Some of the best metal ever made is a product of the 80's. There would be no mainstream rap without the 80's. There was much more going on than the battle for the queen of the mall between Tiffany and Debbie Gibson. I do think most of the music is weak today. It's nothing but the same crap warmed over and over. No originality at all, especially in country and rap. This whole techno/house/trance/whatever BS is what confuses me. I just don't get that at all. The Ohio river was never safe to swim in, we just didn't know it back then. The biggest problem with these kids today, is YOU, the parent(s). Quit trying to be the "coolest mom or dad EvAr" and teach your kids what it really takes to survive on this planet. Your 8 year old does not need a cell phone, ipod, and probably not a $600 console game system either. Nor do they need to have access to Youtube, MySpace and other adult oriented outlets. They do need grass cutting and snow shoveling jobs, and to clean their room, and taught the value of a dollar, etc... Hand outs and lack of reprocussions for negative behavior is the worst thing a parent could possibly do to their child. Believe it or not, your kid is not an angel, probably even an :asshole: at times. Accept it and stop blaming everyone elses kid, or even worse ADD, ADHD, and all that scapegoat jazz... Sorry got a little OT there... :woops:

For a first time buyer, you're sure doing everything right! Kitchens and bathrooms are where it's at, and you're going with the right materials. If you can swing it, I'd go with solid surface counters, stainless appliances, maple cabinets. That's pretty much the standard in a nicer home like you have. Many folks go with granite, which is beautiful, but a little maintenance is involved so I'm not crazy about it personally. You will see a very healthy return on investment from the kitchen if done properly, as well as the bathroom(which you're definitely on the right track there). Going to be one sharp looking house. I am a real estate appraiser.

My opinion should be evident from my username. I dislike Gordon for different reasons than most. Those reasons are related to how he handled his fame and fortune. Specifically how he treated those who supported him whe he was a peon. He's a sell out little bitch. I like Jr. and Harvick. Always been an Earnhardt supporter so when Jr. stepped up to the big leagues it came natural to be a fan. Plus I love Budweiser anyway. Win, win, win. Hate to see him not sporting #8 next year, going to be a little odd. I knew him and Teresa would never see eye to eye after Sr. died so I saw the parting of ways on the horizon.

I'm hoping to make it still. Need to find out what's up with my POS...

Agreed. Also, you are not guaranteed a place on the road when merging, contrary to popular belief. If I can move over I will, other than that you're on your own.

Very cool pics. That Caddy went 9's? Shit son... Was the board on? (doubtful I figure) Curious what it trapped.

Thanks Anthony. IPS is too backed up right now with other cars, so I won't be able to make it unfortunately. Hopefully I can catch the fall date, as I'd like to get out and meet some CR members.

My parts came in Saturday, so things are looking up for me. Got to put it back together now and hope it all works out.

Waiting for parts. So I can't sign up and take the chance they don't make it and lose my money. Damnit, I want to race!! Jeremy

The fatshit tank cat is hillarious.

what the hell indeed...

I should be up for this. Can't fully commit just yet as the car is under the knife for more goodies.

FHA is certainly a good deal but can be a pain as was mentioned. For no money down, NO pmi, market rate, and no huge inspection process(like FHA) I suggest Fifth Third Bank. It's called their "professional program" and it's not specific to first time home buyers. Also, has NO income restrictions. You do need good credit, decent debt to income and decent time of employment. foxystealth - Why are you here? Did you used to live in the Columbus area? Surprised to see someone else from 3si here.

Funny you mention that. The original wooden body kit was done by my home forum, 3si.org several years ago We all pooled our money together and one cat made it happen. First one was a Sentra and the 2nd was a CRX. Even better? Sold the heaps on ebay, and made money, haha. That damn Sentra has been all over the place, magazines, videos, etc. It was done as a big joke, never thought anyone would actually pay any attention. That cluster parody is awesome, too funny.

Linn, you've personally seen my car trap over 130, and there are multiple vids on CR showing me over 140.

It's already been voluntarily dropped twice where I live. So, to answer your question..."yes", because it's already happened. *warning, going off on a related tangent* If you want to talk about gasoline and the way end user prices are set all you have to do is follow the futures market. THAT is what determines the price of retail gasoline. Excepting a catastrophic disaster (read: Katrina). Price gouging would only come in to play if the cost of oil wasn't so high. If the actual cost to procure oil and refine it into gasoline cost them $1/gallon and they were selling it for $4/gallon...that is gouging. If the price that Exxon pays for oil goes up 20% and they raise gas prices 20%...but none of us know the actual figures so... The profits of Exxon aren't solely based on sales at the pump, most profits are generated by other means. There are oil companies that aren't making as much money as well, Exxon isn't the *only* one out there. I don't like the high cost of gas either, I don't like the big profits oil companies make, but there is a *lot* more involved here than pump gasoline. It's like saying an earthquake wasn't so bad because "only 100 people died", not looking at the fact that thousands of buildings were destroyed, fires ravaged the city, and power will be out for weeks.... I don't know why everybody is so upset about the oil companies profit, because it is actually much less than many other industries. Exxon Mobil had a Net Profit Margin (NPM) of 9.7% in 2005. That means that for every $1 of revenue, they made a profit of 9.7 cents. BP had a NPM of 6.0%, and Chevron was 7.1%. On the other hand, Microsoft had an NPM of 30.8%, Glaxosmithkline 15.4%, Bank of America 19.6%, and McDonalds 12.7%. Heck, even Coke made 21.1%. Where are all of the people up in arms about the profits of these companies? Coke is making more profit from the bottles of Dasani water that you buy than the Oil companies make from your gas, but that's not making the front page of the news. The reason the oil companies are/were making record profits is because the price of oil had gone up significantly. But the oil companies do not control the price of oil. They just happen to benefit when it goes up. Here's a very simplified example: Let's say you sell widgets. It cost you $90 to buy the materials and have the widgets assembled. You sell your widgets for $100, so you have a net profit of $10, or a NPM of 10% ($10/$100). Let's say for reasons beyond your control, the price of your material goes up to $180, so you start selling your widgets for $200, so your profit doubles to $20, but your NPM remains at 10% ($20/$200). Your profit margin remains the same, you aren't trying to screw anybody, but you have record profits because the cost of your product went up due to circumstances beyond your control. This is basically what is happening to oil companies. They aren't screwing people, just making money in a capitalist society. It's not their fault gas prices are high. Here's a nice explanation. I know it's on ConocoPhillips website, but it's still good information. http://www.conocophillips.com/newsr...oil_profits.htm If we want cheaper gas, we need to get the price of oil down. And for that, we need less dependency on foreign oil. Let's drill in Alaska. Let's get oil out of the shale in Colorado. Let's build more refineries. And let's get all of the states to agree on one blend of gas. Every state has it's own requirement for what blend of gas can be sold, so the refineries have to make many different types, which costs money. This cost gets passed on to the consumer. And let's not forget, while the oil companies make a few pennies of profit for every gallon of gas sold, the government collects taxes of up to 70 cents per gallon, depending on what state you are in! And for those of you who say we should tax these oil companies more (or any big business for that matter), remember, these companies don't really pay tax. They pass that cost on to the consumer. So if we raise taxes on them, they will just raise their prices to make up for it. Anyway, I don't like paying high prices for gas any more than the next guy, but let's not put blame where it doesn't belong. It is much more the governments fault than the oil companies.

You should be able to do better than 6.5% going FHA. 6.5% is the going 30 yr rate for any reputable bank (read: not some BS mortgage company). There are also lenders that will do NO money down, NO pmi, and market rate for 30 yrs. No income restriction, but credit needs to be clean and DTI must be in check. 5/3 bank will do it all day every day. It's called their "professional program". At a minimum you can drop the total fucking waste that is known as "PMI" and be under $1,200 in Franklin County. Jesus y'alls mill (tax) rate is craaazzzzzzy. Damn. That same home here would be over $1,000 less in taxes annually....in the best section of town.

3800lbs is the fully loaded curb weight. Take a look around at other cars and you'll see it really isn't THAT heavy. You're picking up ~200 lbs but you're gaining all wheel drive and all wheel steering. The cars are also built like a tank, structurally speaking. I have seen some absolutely terrible accidents in these cars and most times the folks walk away. As turbotrio said the 6 speed t-case is money. It is iron vs. the 5 speed which is aluminum. We now have 5 speed aftermarket t-case options for less than $1,000. Unless you plan to drastically modify the car (over 500awhp) it's not going to be much of a concern if the engine and tranny mounts are in good shape. For under $1,000 you can run at least mid 12's....absolutely. Why do some people fail at this? Because they buy the cheapest VR-4 they can and start modding with no regard to the cars general "health". I have a little saying that goes "You can't make chicken salad out of chicken shit" I actually bought mine for my wife to drive in the winter time at first. She had an absolute blast being able to pin the gas pedal to the floor with no worries of careening out of control. That's when it was stock. It makes a ton of power now and she won't touch it. If you have any questions at all, feel free to ask here or send me a PM. I am very experienced in these cars and would be happy to help you and your wife make a good decision. All wheel drive rules by exactly one metric fuck load.

:asshole: LOL, they aren't the lightest that's for sure. Stock curb weight is right around 3,800. They can be lightened to 3250(ish) and still appear stock. Lightest of the light and current trap speed record holder is around 2,800. It's a tin can, stock appearing from the exterior. 151 mph is what it went at 9.73. Current ET record is 9.66 but it's an auto and went 139. 93+ comes with a forged crank out of the box. 93 also marks the changeover to 4 bolt mains, although it's not needed. Mine is a lowly 2 bolt and holds power just fine. A stock VR-4 can run mid 12's for $500. MBC, intake, data logger, downpipe, gutted pre-cats. Damn good bang for your buck....until the mod bug bites.

You're correct Orion. We had a double edged sword going. The 6 speed t-case is iron and real solid, but the bell housing is prone to crack. The 5 speed t-case is aluminum and breaks easy, but the bell housing is rock solid. Unfortunately the parts aren't interchangable. We now have two upgrade options for the 5 speed t-case. A billet SS one and a cast SS rendition. The 6 speed guys are having to weld in a reinforcement plate in the bell housing to keep it from scattering. I love my 5 speed. 6 speed swap was all the rage 3-4 years ago. I refused to do it because I hate the ratio of the 6 speed. Turns out now the 5 speed, with the upgraded t-case options, is where the beef is. 3rd gear in my 5 speed will do over 140 with the rev limiter bumped to around 8 grand. Somehow the half shafts, stock is all we have, hold up perfect. I know two guys who have sheared a rear but that's it. I'd also like to add my Stealth is the 3rd most powerful 3000GT or Stealth on the planet, thanks to IPS. The #1 spot is held by an auto car with twin 4088R's, that laid down 935 and spun a bearing as soon as it got off the dyno(doesn't really count to me but whatever). #2 is 873awhp and I'm #3 at 856. Soon as we go back to the dyno (got to get the head lift issue sorted first) we will take the #1 spot. Might take a little spray but the record will be ours.

OK. Yeah it was just poor presentation, especially considering I hadn't even heard his name at that point. Water under the bridge at this point, I was just running down through everyone at IPS. Thanks guys, I've really been through hell with this car. If I would have just scrapped the first shops work immediately and told IPS to give it their treatment I would have saved $20,000. Jeff and the guys were trying to salvage everything they could. Once the new shortblock was built and the old one disassembled we all knew it had been a losing battle. If only we'd had a crystal ball. I am a self employed real estate appraiser who works very hard and lots of hours so I can have toys like this. I have a very cool wife that doesn't shop til she drops and NO kids. Had I met Jeff first, I could knock nearly $50,000 off what I have invested in this car. Damn you Carl Grover Motorsports. No Justin, not directed at you. Yeah this car hasn't even begun to E.T. yet. My short track is atrocious and kills my 1/4. I think my best 60' to date is a low 1.9.....terrible for an awd car. Once I figure out how to launch it, she's going to scream. High 9's is the ultimate goal, got enough trap already, just need the driver.... Jeremy

I have been thrilled with the level of expertise and overall friendliness I have received from IPS motorsports and all of its' respective employees with one exception I will get to in a moment. Jeff - Overly friendly guy that will help out as much as he can. Jeff has been brutally honest with me even when he knew it would sting sometimes(refer back to all the shit I had to go through). He has led me down an unblazed trail (single turbo not common for my car) with phenomenal success thus far. Labor rate has been very fair and price of parts can't be beat in my opinion. Jeff has become one of my very best friends over the last two years. Mike - I don't see how anybody couldn't like this guy. He takes a little while to open up, kind of shy and reserved. Once you really get to know him, well you know you're not going to meet a better person. This is the kind of person that would give you the shirt off of their back. I've watched him turn a wrench or two and he is quick and proficient. Brett - This guy is a little different and can certainly throw you for a loop until you get to know him. I figured him out pretty quickly though. He's a no nonsense, no bullshit straight shooter. He has a way he wants things done and expects everyone else to follow suit. I've psent hours upon hours in the car with Brett and his knowledge is absolutely astonishing. I've watched him create several awe inspiring vehicles. I 100% trust my car with him no matter what. He is a conservative tuner who takes his time and massages the engine perameters slowly and accurately. A damn fine tuner and a great person to have an intellectual conversation with. Tank - Mr. fabrication. This dude can build anything. Just one of those guys that can pick shit up, stare at it for a few minutes, break out the TIG and go to work. He's fabbed up some really trick custom shit on my car. As far as mechanic skills, top fucking notch. This cat can work on anything. Ryan - I never got to know Ryan real well before he went to Slow Motion. The times I did speak to him he was cool. I also watched him vigorously and relentlessly wrench on my car into the wee hours of the morning trying to help me make a show or track event(same goes for ALL of the real techs at IPS). I was told that Ryan kind of gave the guys at Slow Motion, as well as some other little fags, a heads up on my car that I didn't appreciate but it was getting close to the end of the build so I let it ride. Word was starting to get around at this point anyway so whatever. You're still good in my book Ryan. Jason - I haven't spent a ton of time talking with Jason. He typically works on other things than my car. Seems knowledgable and certainly very pleasant in person. Usually pretty quiet. Greg - I do not like Greg, nor have I ever. I find him to be rude with a holier than thou attitude. I know people like Greg and I avoid them like the plague. Let me tell you about the first time I ever talked to Mr. Powers. He calls me up, while Jeff is on his honeymoon, and says...and I quote: (remember I'm not even aware this guy works at IPS) "Hi this is Greg from IPS motorsports. Listen man, we've been floating your bill for a loooong time now and it's time to pay up." "Umm, ok. Who is this?" "This is Greg from IPS and you need to pay $4,000 right now or your car doesn't get touched ever again." "Excuse me? I keep up with my bill just fine. Is my car ready for NG(national gathering for 3000's and Stealths) or will it be?" "I don't know man. All I know is there are cars here like a TT Z06 that is a $25,000 build. Way more than your car so you just need to pay." "WTF? You have no clue who you're talking to do you? I suggest you review the 20+ pages of my ongoing invoice and take special note to the $40,000 + I've spent ALREADY. Again, is my car done or not and who are you? Who told you to call me?" "No one told me to call you. I'm just taking it upon myself to reel in your bill. So, $4,000 or the car doesn't get touched. Those are your options." I gave him $3,000 even though I should have told him to get bent. I'm a very nice guy as anyone who has met me will attest. I am 30 damn years old and don't have time, nor the energy or patience, to play stupid little games. Yeah I was steaming at this point and told him that Jeff and Mike would be hearing of this. Jeff and Mike were none too happy. This was like beginning of June. My wife, always said "If I have to go up there, I swear to God you had better keep that fucking Greg asshole away from me. He has a massive attitude with no apparent reason or justification, I know his type. If I have to deal with him, the gloves are off" She got into it with him pretty good at Kil-Kare because he was running his mouth, as usual. Can't say I was exactly enthused either. Cliffs - My car was originally built by Carl Grover Motorsports in Ona, WV. A performance shop that was featured in PRI magazine with an 8 page spread and nothing, NOTHING, was done correctly except the body work. I turn it over to IPS Motorsports and after they overthrew the existing coup and the car was fitted with ALL IPS bits she runs top fucking notch. They will continue to get my business. :thumbup: