In my experience (almost 40 years ago), they would be maybe 20' above the ground (if it’s a ridge top or whatever) or the trees when they opened the doors. Dumping that much weight allows the plane to gain altitude quickly, so you would see the drop start 20' up, but end up much higher at the end.

A buddy in college had the ‘83 Turbo Coupe until he got t-boned at a light.  The Turbo Coupe was a serious ride in the late-80s, and the SC was a real step up.  I doubt you’ll find a better example anywhere, and if you have any nostalgia for mid-80s aero cars, this is the one you really want. 

Yes, but based on the tools in that shop, and the way they did they work, I’m going to say that they’re probably pretty good at it, and that they’ve done this many times before.

TireRack is absolutely the way to go. I looked at the Amazon option, I *might* be able to get something that works, but I’ve had this car for 8 years now, so I’ll wait until my next one before I seriously look at getting some steelies.

Am I the only one looking at the pictures and wondering what evidence there is of a fire? Seriously, I don’t see anything smoking, anything that looks burnt, I don’t even seen any indication of water used to put out the fire.

Are you sure about TireRack selling steelies?  I’ve tried to buy them for my last 2 cars, and not even an option.  I’ve considered making a detour from a Northern VT ski trip to Canadian Tire, because they do sell steelies in 18" sizes that fit my car.  The problem is that’s it’s only about $25/wheel more to buy…

Dodge Karavan. The K-Car of Minivans. Common platforms are the future, especially with electric cars, and Chrysler basically made their entire lineup of K-Car variants for a while.

Had an A4 since new, living in NYC, mostly storing it in a garage a couple miles north of my apartment. Was coming up on 75k miles, the garage I used was attached to a repair shop, they quoted me a great price on a timing-belt/water-pump change.

Slightly off-the-wall question, but as the MSRP is within a few percent, if you had to buy one car as a daily driver, would it be the RS3 or the Ionic 5N?

Exactly my first thought.  I kind of like the rest of the package, but that accent, from that view, just looks cheap, hinky, and poorly executed.

Funniest road-rage incident I’ve ever seen took place in Manhattan, on W 86th St, at the intersection of Central Park West. Two brand new German sedans, a Mercedes S-class & a BMW 750 get in a minor spat about who is in which lane. The light is red, the drivers (both men in the 60s or so) are yelling at each other,…

Ford Focus RS. Was still priced below the average new car in the US, serious performance, but an absolutely normal Focus for all your hatchback needs. Sure, the Golf R was a bit more grown-up, but the RS just feels more substantial.

Still my platonic ideal of the entry-level Japanese sports sedan. Quick enough, really balanced handling, largely invisible to revenue enforcement, and affordable enough for an E5 to buy a lightly used one.

Damn, I’ve been a V1 owner since I bought my ‘91 Sentra SE-R (in ‘94). I’ve been thinking of upgrading, since my two current ones are from 2007 or later.  My detector still saves me at least one speeding ticket a year, and the new ones can integrate with your smartphone to bring in the Waze speedtrap info (I think).

I’ll never be a huge fan of his music (was way to into punk when Slippery When Wet was released), but he’s been a good dude for a long, long time. And as I’ve aged, and become a true (transplanted) New Jerseyan, I’ve come to appreciate his music at least.

The only thing that bothers me at all is the steering wheel being upside down in the pictures.  How do you do that?  Still  NP all day, but I want to know the thought process.

I’m of an age where I remember these cars, including the root beer brown one running around my town in the mid-80s. They are so damn sexy looking, and that engine bay picture is almost pornographic.

Passing a car under the speed limit. Driving to a wedding in CT in 2006. My wife is in the passenger seat, attempting to pump breast milk for our very premature twins who are in the NICU. It’s I-95 N through central Connecticut. There is a car doing 5mph under the speed limit in the left lane. There is also a police…

I’m honestly surprised that this is the first vote for the NSX that I’ve seen.  Such a brilliant vehicle, balanced rather than overpowered, and it still looks gorgeous today.

There is a 9-3 & a 900 (with a lot of rust unfortunately) directly across the street from Montclair State University in NJ.  Think the house used to have a third Saab.