Yeah, I wouldn't have believed that the wing could survive such an impact:

The Cermis incident involved an EA-6B Prowler, the 4-seat electronic warfare aircraft based on a stretched A6. Amazingly, the plane - with a full crew of 4 - landed safely.

I'm pleased there are people out there willing to put their time into projects that answer "What would have happened if..." kinds of questions.

Yeah, I didn't realize they have a separate roof panel on the vehicle. I can't think of anyone else that would do that...

A surprising number of dump truck drivers try to save time by taking off on the return trip without stopping to wait for the extended dump bed to come come down.

I was ready to say "No, No, No."

Well: Except I still pay attention to 0-60 times - because it's about the only typically-published performance metric that I can actually replicate without going to a track (of course, the other one is 5-60. So there.) and not inviting too much notice from the local constabulary.

Everything in my brain wants to say "CP!" But it's only 2K. And has a stick shift. Chrysler hardware from the 80's wasn't very robust - but it was usually cheap to keep on the road.

Think about what was really available in 1977: Yes, the X1/9 was really cool. Unlike many cars from that era, the look of the X1/9 has aged pretty well. Today? Well, today it's still slow - but also still fun to drive.

The Acela trains are fast - but they're running on tracks whose beds in many places have been in place for 100+ years. Yes, they could speed the trip quite a bit by straightening out some of the worst sections of the route, but most of the problem areas are near cities; moving the rails would requiring bulldozing…

It's also fun to see what insane boost can do to an X1/9...

Yeah, there's probably some truth to that. But once I got past the wimpy engine (I had a '74 - which had only a 1.3 liter engine and 4 speed transmission), Italian quality control and suspicious plastic bits, it really was a fun driving car. Bayless Midwest (disclaimer: Haven't used them; just appreciate their X1/9…

Fiat X1/9. Yeah, it should have come with a bigger engine. And shouldn't have rusted as easily as it did. But it remains my definition of a go-kart-on-rails driving experience.

Don't forget the X1/9...

True. However, I also now have 3 kids - so 911 projects will have to wait...

CR: I'm interested! Have any pics of the project on-line?

Thanks for the info! Again: I don't know them; haven't used them - but I like their approach, as written up on their web site. If only they could live up to the promise...

Sorry to hear that... I've never used them; I just like the approach.

Yeah, not all well-priced 911's are bargains. You've got to plan - and budget - for the day when an engine rebuild will be needed (I like the approach of http://www.motormeister.com/; you can unbolt your 911 engine, strap it to a pallet - and ship it to them. It comes back ready for years of reliable running).

Worse yet: A car-loving friend happened to be along on the test drive. And he's reminded me more than once since then that he should have purchased it himself after I backed out...