kirks5oh

i would certainly agree that from a 'right or wrong' standpoint, its most definitely the owners fault for abusing the truck. regardless, sometimes when you want to run a successful business, you occasionally have to do things that don't always make sense financially in the short run----like doing $20k in repairs to trucks that are being misused. from a marketing standpoint, you're right, this looks bad for ford. out of the millions of people who have been made familiar with the issue, and have heard about ford's response----do you think anyone has said to themselves "wow, based on this information, i really need to buy myself a new ford truck"??

congrats. good luck. will be interested in seeing some future videos of this beast running.

this. lulz on the 'gaybook' comment. couldn't agree more.

i'll find the link, its on corvetteforum.com. they are factory sized. 19X12 in the rear, and 18X?? in the front. i paid right around $1k for the wheels with black lugs. they have c5zo6 wheels, zr1 wheels, etc. :fuckyeah:

well played sir. someday, i'll learn how to take better pics, and get a better camera. at this point, the 'user' is the limiting factor

replicas. couldnt' justify spending $4-5k on another set of oem stock wheels, that will likely spend 20% of the time on the car. they are 2 pounds heavier than stock in the rear, which is more than offset by the lighter non-runflat tires. now, i just need h/c/i/exhaust.

thanks man. its missing two cars right now

its an optical illusion, not sure exactly why they look so small, but i agree, they look like 245's. the vette tires are on the bottom below. cobra tires are on top http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/923/20110615160846638.jpg here's a better shot. i even measured the tires using microsoft paint, and they measured right out to 345. the new drag radials for the rear of my cobra are on the right for comparison---they are 315's http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/8121/tire1y.jpg

here are the stockers. the black wheels are not necessarily meant to be 'replacements' for the stockers. i still like taking the car out with the wife, and the DR's are no good in the rain. these are meant to be track wheels, in hopes of getting the car on the track http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/8891/dsc01169l.jpg i need to find a reputable shop around me to do tint.

decided to get a spare set of wheels for my vette. still have the stockers with the stock runflats as a backup, or if i take the car on a trip. the tires are 275 nitto invo's up front and 345 nitto NT05r's in the back. haven't really gotten any driving experience, it was raining today. for whatever reason, the picture makes the rear tires seem small---they are barely bigger than the stock 325's--nittos always seem to run narrow http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00609.jpg http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00607.jpg http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00610.jpg http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00601.jpg http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00588.jpg http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv265/kirks5oh/DSC00598-1.jpg

+1 i know its uncool to do this in a thread, but check some other forums where these cars are sold.

i wouldn't race him. shit, he's probably got at least 100 grand in just the engine alone. certainly not going to go for pinks against him at race wars

ctsv can easily fit 3 in the backseat

saw this for sale on cadillacforums. glws

i've had great results with nittos. i had 275 555r's on my GTO (they will fit, no problem) for a few years---no problems in the rain, and they gripped like no other. and, they're very affordible. i just got a set of NT05r's for the rear of my vette with invo's up front. the 05r's are NOT designed for rain as stated above. i'd go with the invo's, or the 555r's. just get on discounttire.com and read the reviews

"not a bad way to spend 10 grand"

i second this emotion. went to sandals grande at st lucia with my wife about 5 years ago before we had kids. amazing, amazing trip. you can't go wrong with sandals--food, alcohol, accommodations were all top-notch. plenty to do. probably the best vacation i've been on, no question. we went for 7 days, all inclusive, and it should fit your budget

who defines the limits of a car?? clearly ford did not, and that's part of the problem here. i will agree that this is 'unchartered territory' as far as vehicles go---how many other pickups are out there similar to the raptor (don't even mention dodge power wagon)?? bottom line, the internet has revolutionized car advertising, car sales, and car enthusiasm in general. why do i mod my cars?? am i concerned about someone in my tiny town of 33k people being able to outrun me in a 25mph zone in the middle of our town?? no, i see someone on an internet website with a new GT500 with minimal mods running door to door with a c6z. this raptor story is all over the internet for everyone to see---and ford will lose more in future sales (i can guarantee it), compared to spending $20k to fix those 14 raptors, and then issue a general statement regarding abusing the truck when you build cars/trucks like these, 90+% of buyers are simply buying the car as a novelty. they will likely baby it, and never truly push it to the limits. its the 10% who WILL drive it near/at/above the limit that you have to deal with. ford has 'dealt' with them poorly, if you ask me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4W0eobLLpk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88UjLPMW4Gw&playnext=1&list=PL62B7B93C042821F3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsyGOexjdQM don't make commercials like this and expect owners to drive the car like a pussy

Who here would buy a raptor after seeing all this? Not me

So when nissan makes a gtr with launch control, and you break the car because you use it just like they do on the commercial, you're just supposed to put on your 'man pants' and buy another $20k transmission? Rule #1 in sales--the customer is always right

losing control of a car and smashing it into a wall is completely different from driving the car EXACTLY like the guy on the commercial does, or EXACTLY how the magazine articles (that car companies frequently quote in their commercials) do. when you play a commercial over and over again that you designed windshield wipers on a car to withstand 190mph, don't complain when someone actually drives the fucking car 190mph as car companies continue to push the envelope with performance, these things are going to happen---they can step up to the plate and fix it, or they can 'bitch out'. ford chose to 'bitch out' in my opinion----i'm someone who could easily be a perspective buyer of a (another) niche vehicle, just not a ford one

getting better.

no one buys this truck to take the fucking kids to school. if a zr1 gets starved for oil because the owner is driving the car too hard at the track around long curves, and zr1's all over start blowing motors----do you expect GM to tell the owners they were abusing the car?? fuck off?? go buy another $20k motor?? good luck?? or they can back their product up because on the commercial they advertise that "america still builds rockets", and they show the car ripping it up on a road course. the same thing goes for nissan with the GTR launch control debacle. don't advertise all over the various car mags that the car can hit 60mph faster than your competitors, and then hang people out to dry when they test it out. when you plan on capturing marketshare (new buyers) by demonstrating to them that they can absolutely beat the fuck out of this (special) vehicle, you have to be prepared to deal with those who are going to push the envelope. if you can't warranty the car, then it had better be clearly defined what constitutes normal and abnormal usage before it becomes an issue

no doubt, i could wax my buddy's S5 with all 3 of my performance cars. but i have to admit, i'm not sure i've ever heard a better sounding V8---he has a B&B catback on the car---it sounds absolutely incredible. as stated, the interior on these cars are very nice, they can be driven without a care in ANY weather columbus could produce (buddy drove his all through wisconsin winter without an issue). if you want a clean, sexy, daily to take the lady out in--get the S5. if you want to do any mods, and/or track the car, or want something fast, get the vette