Doc1647545523

Congrats, Mark. And thanks for taking time out to talk when we met at NTR.

You bought your Cobalt when you were 26, right? :whistle:

Welcome. And I guess you realize that you haven't landed in a drama-free zone.

From a motorcycle T-shirt: "Youth and talent are no match for age and treachery" If you need to start practicing using a walker, I've got some modded ones you can try out. Happy Birthday.

It's not a major problem if you can get the whole car dry before the rinse water spots. If you're finding you can't, you can place an in-line filter which remedies the problem: http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/car+care/car+washing/car+cleaning+tools/in-line+water+softener+%26+deionizer+with+fittings.do?search=basic&keyword=37244&sortby=newArrivals&page=1

Funny you should mention that. I was there today with starkmaster and his lovely lady, and a VERY STRONG gust of wind came out of nowhere, blew for about 15 secs, blew merchandise, metal racks, and boxes all over the vendor area, lifted one canopy, poles and all, up into the air about 20 feet before crashing down into another display. We all were astonished that with all the metal flying, nothing hit any of the cars parked amongst all this stuff. However, I would say that for that 15 seconds there were some very terrified Ferrari and Lambo owners. :eek2:

That was just my usual Saturday night "escort," running a bit late and trying to catch-up .... :gone:

I have gone in previous years, but the bike display is pretty thin. Chris often wins with his MV, and I saw a guy win one year with a V7 Moto Guzzi that he'd bought off the internet for 4k the week before. So, the bikes are not that impressive, really. Many, many Ferrari's though. The cars are great. MAG brings new cars, plus they "escort" cars from local celebs who wish to remain anonymous. Some beautiful Italian machinery alongside some pretty snooty people. And it's for a good cause.

Well, since I get a police escort :gone: anytime I'm around a Sonic on Friday and Saturday nights, it seems the more fitting car to drive .... And since it has a Gen II 5.7 V8, I suspect it would get modded pretty quickly if I started bringing it out to meets.

An American car? You mean one of those over-sized, low-tech, garish gas-guzzlers? Hmmm ..... yeah, I guess I've got one of those http://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/limophoto.jpg

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2312941173447863684

I certainly agree with the Exige being the better representative of Colin Chapman's dream for Lotus. But I'm not sure I'd agree that he wouldn't build an Evora .... He designed and built the Elan +2, a four-seat stretch of the Elan. And it wasn't just a blip on the screen: Lotus produced about 5,000 of these from 1967 through 1974. They were marketed as "the family man's sports car." Chapman himself drove one which was painted gold with a silver roof. It was sold at auction about two years ago. It's not really history to me ..... more like recollections from my teenage years .... http://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/elaninwales.jpghttp://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/67page2.jpg

It always interests me to see what Lotus is up to. Although they've stayed with certain basic concepts over the decades, their offerings swing from supercars such as the Espirit to the bare-bones, its-all-about-weight, track cars such as an Exige S. Often, they produce only one or two models, then change to a totally different car the next model year. I believe they're right on the mark with this Evora; in fact, they should have introduced it earlier (there was a M250 concept car like this in 2000). Lots of people with the 40k it takes to buy an Elise are stopped only by the difficult egress and cramped quarters. Many of you have tried out the driver's seat of my Elise and can appreciate that even with the top off the car, it's not the easiest thing to get out of even if you have both hands free. The "trunk" (more of a cubbyhole next to the motor) won't even hold a full-face motorcycle helmet. If you really love driving in the twisties, you'll put up with the ergonomic inconveniences. But there are buyers who will jump at the chance to get the exclusivity of a Lotus if they can actually comfortably use it for a night out on the town or a trip to the store and can actually use the car in the rain (not recommended with an Elise or an Exige). And even at the projected price of 65k, it's still 40k less that a ZR1. Regarding power, I don't know that the Evora is that divergent from Lotus's current offerings. The Elise is 1850 lbs and has 190 bhp. The Evora is 2975 lbs with 276 bhp. Pretty close on the power-to-weight ratios. Lotus has seldom been about horsepower but has always been about handling. Reviewers have remarked that driving a Lotus is about as close as you can get to a Formula 1 driving experience in a production street-legal car. I agree with that. For buyers who dream about owning a Rapide, a Gallardo, a Continental SC, or a Maserati, this will be a car with the comparable exclusivity and style (IMHO) but at 1/3 the price of the other cars. And with the Toyota engine and drivetrain, they are much less troublesome. LOTUS used to stand for: Lots Of Trouble, Usually Serious. Live with the maintenance costs of a Lambo, Bentley, or Ferrari for awhile, and the prospect of Toyota reliability and 30 mpg start looking pretty appealing. http://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/July%20cars/Lotusinterior.jpg

Consider it sold, guys. I'll be picking it up tonight.

:doh: I screwed up. That's the weekend of the Indy GP races, so I can't attend. I've got one paid spot for this track day which you can buy from me, in case you don't have PayPal .... just pay me at the next meet. PM me if interested.

In and paid :thumbup:

I can meet up with you at Sonic-Polaris and you can join me and my police escort down to Hamilton road :gone:

typical Cobalt behavior

I'll check it out tonight. I've been getting annoyed by the surveilance lately at Polaris. I've had two stops in 10 days by the State Patrol (last Saturday the Patrol and the Sherriff pulled me over two blocks from Sonic). Maybe they thought they needed backup because I might hit them with my cane. Neither time did I get a ticket, but in both cases they claimed they "estimated" me to be speeding (which I was not). No laser, no radar, no pacing ... just "estimated." Saturday they observed "I saw another car following you from Sonic .... maybe a friend of yours?" As long as I'm not breaking any laws I don't feel I owe them much. If they want to try to ticket this geriatric driver with zero points on his license based on their "estimate" (at night, from a moving patrol car) well, I guess we'll have our day in court. So much for my demented rant, I'll check out the new Sonic tonight. Hope to see you there.

Welcome, Mandy. Thanks for the video clips and for giving me the special "title."

Welcome! I met you and Mike for the first time last Sunday. I enjoyed talking to you about bikes. I hope to see you two at more meets.

Welcome Sharp, clean car. I hope you bring it out to the meets.

Moving on, eh? Well, that's okay by me, just don't take my walker, it's got my name on it. And here's a rep from one of your elders ....

Wow! The track day at Kil-Kare was lotsa fun. My thanks go to my coaches: TE7two, V8 Beast, ND2RACE, starkmaster03, Brady@PPC, and Thorne. (Yes, I had to have the whole process explained to me, step-by-step, and ND2RACE let me ride as his passenger once before I tried it on my own). My first run EVER was also my best of the day: 11.88 @ 117 mph. I got 8 runs total, all between 11.88 and 12.22. I believe the car is significantly faster than that, I just had problems getting along with the intrusive electronic stability program (can't be switched entirely off). Yep, I did two runs with the top down and the back massage on. I wish more CR members would have attended--fast or not so fast, I think everyone had a good time. People were friendly and courteous, no ricer behavior, good conversations over sandwiches while the motors cooled a bit. Hats off to the organizers. http://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/July%20cars/SLfront.jpg

Aha! Tricked you again. THAT was merely one of my many Lotus decoys .... lulling you into a sense of false security, while the REAL Lotus circled your doomed Cobalts like a black vulture surveying the red carrrion strewn across the practice fields of Berliner Park .....