My '69 911 has a mag crankcase and transmission case. It would be a bad day if it caught on fire. :)

I was also scared to work on it... it all looked so complicated! Following this car I'm back to doing all my own work. life lesson learned.

I survived all that pain... but the thousand dollar alternator was the last straw. I traded the car for a 2010 Jetta sportwagen TDI. Haven't regretted that decision. So far the Jetta has had 0 problems in 45K miles.

I was a dumb ass and took it to a dealer. :(
Bad me.

BTW, super glad you got the experience! It is really awesome to step into the carrier world for a while.

DV ops were a bit disruptive to our routine, but it still was awesome to share what we do with people who wouldn't normally get to have an experience like that. It was actually kind of cool to do escort duty for the DV's because it's easy to start taking what we do for granted; when you see the amazement and wonder…

Not exactly what the common sailor experiences... ;)

Finished 9 months on NIMITZ back in December 2013. What's cool for a day or two is mind numbing after a month or two.

We had the "good" fortune of being in the right place at the wrong time during the last international crisis, Syria. That bundle of joy got us 79 days straight underway in the Red Sea and an…

Take this!

I formed such a strong opinion because I actually saw one just hours before this article was published. It was disabled access modified, and I'm sure it is great at that job, but I just am repelled by cargo and mini-vans that graft on truck noses in a misguided attempt to "look tougher" or "less like a mini-van". My…

I have owned a bunch of air cooled VWs and I daily drive a '69 Porsche 911... I guess I'm past fearing dropping engines. :)

You're right BTW, in a fleet vehicle ease of maintenance is a big deal, and I'm sure this design helps.

I like it and would drive it... but a warning:

I don't care how capable it is: it's still the ugliest thing to insult the eyeballs of the world since the chevy Uplander.

What in almighty hell did I just watch?

The hold up? Diesels in Europe, which still generally cost less and can be just as efficient..

So the car isn't pretty, it isn't fast, and it isn't in very good shape.

It isn't rare or desirable, it wasn't previously owned by (insert celebrity here).

I love me some German goodness, but this one doesn't even have a cool funky 5 cyl to recommend it. It's pretty cheap, but not cheap enough for me. CP.

It's awesome, but it's still ugly as malaise ever got. No way any American car from the '80s is worth $15K to me.

...even if it does have a turbo larger than my wife's car.

I daily drive a '69 German car. I hate Ethanol. :)

I daily drive a classic and there are some significant other considerations: