Can we do best cities to autocross in? San Diego is currently near the tops for me there, because the lots they use at Qualcomm stadium are large and built into the hills so the courses are fast and much more interesting. St. George UT is utterly gorgeous on the old airfield above town, with 360 views of red rocks. I…

I was commenting primarily on the styling—I wouldn’t turn down an opportunity to hoon any of these. It’s ironic I suppose that I’d most like to drive the EK civic Type R even though I think it’s the biggest turd of the bunch in terms of exterior design. EF Civic is the archetype that none since have measured up to,…

I was waiting for someone else to actually post about the car rather than the scene. This was the second family car I remember growing up and my dad, the car guy forever limited by family and budget, loved it—basically an rx7 with a back seat and an a little offenhauser knock-off 4 banger instead of the rotary. I…

ugly

Exactly the same thought I had, though I also thought the Cobalt was not too bad considering, so maybe there’s something wrong with me.

Don’t worry, she’ll wait for it.

For a car that has very few of these issues, the Volvo 240 heater fan is one of these. The heater fan is at the very center of this weird box with the heater core in it and the exploded diagram of how to get to it is crazy. If your 240 fan is toast, and they do fail, it’s usually more hours of labor than the car is…

Saab

A friend of mine’s family car growing up was a Tercel. They sold it when they left the drain plug off the oil pan and the engine seized (no telling how long they drove it that way). The new owner pulled the head, freed the pistons with a block of wood and a big hammer, replaced the head and continued to drive it who…

You are spot on and Volvo used both Garrett and Mitsubishi, with the Mitsus lasting longer. Neither last as long as a red block engine before rebuild though. Also, while chasing boost leaks and oil leaks from the turbo are fairly minor repairs, never having to worry about it is a big difference. Finally, the turbos on…

Also, the turbo will break. I love Volvos, I love my Volvo Turbo, I recognize that turbos sort of ruin Volvos. Take all that reliability stuff and throw it out the window.

The engines will probably be ok, especially if putting on lots of miles in a short time is what you’ll be doing. Over the years the extra heat under the hood fries everything rubber and plastic, however. It’s possible that today’s tanks and hoses are made from sterner stuff, but EVERYTHING not made of metal under the…

Yes, that’s been a thing for a while—see rat rods. There’s a euro version too: http://rat-look.com/

Then used cars will be the best cars, as they just maybe always have been.

I’m surprised how many people want to punch cars in the face based on their drivers. Its not the car’s fault! I was thinking more along the lines of cars that broke at bad times and were especially difficult to repair and maybe devoid of any redeeming qualities to make them worth continuing to mess with. I have had…

Weird. But hot.

What about cars that inexplicably fix themselves? I had an ‘83 SR5 Corolla that I pretty much continued to nurse along well after its natural life had ended. Though it smoked mightily at startup and pushed a lot of blowby out the pcv breather I made, the rings sealed sufficiently to deliver pizza without becoming a…

“I too have a chopper that is a terrible motorcycle, but sure is fun to take to the bar.” Well then, maybe I’ve misjudged you. Perhaps we can be friends after all. It is worth noting that I actually have had two of those little Yamahas and the one with the crazy rear swingarm ended up like it did because I wrecked…

It is also critical to make sure the training wheels are positioned at the correct angle so that they make contact with the ground immediately in a high speed turn. I can’t believe this guy omitted them entirely. This bike is a deathtrap.

I’m with you dude. VintageRider cannot possibly actually own and ride a motorcycle. I own and ride a motorcycle, and I’ve met people that own and ride motorcycles. For christ sakes I’ve met this guy: