jimrankin

Good info from both of you about the boot. With two microphone inputs it should make it easier to "fix" one in place and move the other around for comparison and once I find a "best" spot for the moving one start changing the "fixed" ones location opposed to the new benchmark. I love the sound of racing almost as much as the video footage. As soon as I get some room back in my garage (clearing out a bunch of woodworking tools on Craigslist hopefully) I'll get the 7 out of the trailer and start playing with the GoPro II. I have managed to take a lot of the "jangle" out of the boot area over the last couple of years so maybe it will pick up the rear tire and exhaust I couldn't get before. Hopefully I'll finally be able to watch with the volume "on". LOL.

RNR was finding that some things that "felt" faster were actually slower. I was watching some of my gopro footage after that track day, timing each clear lap, and found that I was pretty consistent, which probably only means I'm making the same mistakes over and over again. I really just do it for fun but part of the fun is passing, not being passed. With a N/A 2.2L "7" it's all about corner speed as you are not going to keep up with most of the V8 boys on the straights, power or aero wise, so I guess finding that extra half second in-through-and out of the corners is the answer. It should also help with finding out what tire works best or suspension changes since I really have a problem with remembering from one track day to another just what the car felt like before. I have a LOT (70++) of heat cycles on the NT01's I'm running but I really can't tell you if they have degraded as I've never really timed laps or noted the exact conditions and they still feel OK to me. I also can't tell the difference in minor pressure changes so just keep them between where they felt sloppy loose and where they felt skittery, which is quite a few pounds different. I am semi-hopeless at most modern technology but I'm finding that it's mostly "just using it till it starts to make sense" and not giving up when you get frustrated with it. I'm hoping that works with datalogging.

I love all of the cool work that a CNC program can turn out, especially compared to my tools which are a felt tip pen, a hammer, a bigger hammer and my great BIG hammer. LOL. Oh, and lots of spare raw materials.

I good friend of mine (He lets me drive his Z06 so he can't be too smart LOL.) did the Z06 driving instruction mentioned above. He was very happy other than a little repair cost for a fast off track into some stones not far off track taller than a Z06 can clear (now removed I hear). Lots of heel/toe, threshold barking etc. and he did go through the brand new set of tires each car starts with.

Got a new GoPro Hero II with the option for two outboard microphones. I've been using an original HDHero and the sound sucks sooooo bad I only watch any track footage with the sound turned off. Now all I have to do is figure out which mic's and where to put them. Oh, and start taking ginko or whatever so I actually remember to turn it on before going on track. LOL. Was watching some downloads from RNR's data logger at the last track day (very interesting how he can pick any corner, or any part of a corner and compare it to the different laps etc.) and think I may play "Santa" to myself some time in the near future and invest in one. I already know there is LOTS of room for improvement in my driving and I'm a slow learner so it will probably help the learning curve improve. Happy New Year and fun filled trouble free 7'ing to All!!

I can't be sure but looks like a Harley VTwin sitting up front. The original V twin did look a lot like that though....

If only my arthritis wasn't bothering me so bad I'd throw you a "peace" sign... LOL. Hey, and a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year or whatever it is your celebrating to all who read the post.

I know the Audi turbo 5 cyl is kind of unique and has a good amount of power, but Speedwagon is right about sourcing parts and getting some real HP into a project. The Donkervoort seems like it's already wide enough and could have used the Ls1 and the new auto or 6 speed manual from GM for probably less money, a lower CG, more HP, more torque and no turbo heat under the hood. Never say NO to free HP.

Was just reading about Saab going belly up, not a surprise as it has been going on for quite some time, but was suprised to see that one of the potential buyers was "Zhejiang Lotus Youngman", a Chinese company. When it all shakes out at "Lotus" with who really owns the name I hope we will not all be driving Zhejiang 7's. LOL.

Better talk LOUD, after one too many concerts (and driving a "7") most of our generation don't hear too well any more. LOL.

Between your post and the flash mob video I actually think I'll make it through the whole day with a smile

Ever wonder why a ZAP comics book was hilarious and made perfect sense to you "the night before" but was totally undecipherable the next morning. If so, yes, you were there. LOL.

I'm a "60's generation" survivor with a fading memory but I think I lived that picture on many an evening, maybe too many an evening..LOL.

The Orange needs something to offset it and the black wheels and top fit it to a "T". And with the top off the wheels will be an even more striking counterpoint.

Really well done and much better looking than most of the "too over the top to be called a 7" cars out there. The only thing I don't understand is just why someone would pay that kind of money for something that most of our cars can blow away on a track or twisty. In this case some of us could probably even keep up or pass on anything but a really long straight. I don't see that big a market for just selling it as a toy to the super rich. But then, they have been around for quite a while so maybe I'm just not in touch with what 130K means in the specialty car market anymore. Creature comfort well over a 7 but still not up to what I think of as the 130K level,and not a hack of a lot more room either. I'd rather build two sevens for that pile of cash, one just a gutted track day monster and the other a little bit pimped out for the street. Oh, I just answered my own question! People who spend 130K+ for a toy don't know, or want to find out, what a busted knuckle feels like. LOL.

Their focus group should have had at least one person over 14 and should not have been pulled from a Transformers movie audience. LOL. I have seen a few cars so Fugley you just had to love them but these just don't fall into that catagory. Too bad because they are close enough to the mark that a little bit of fine tuning could have, if not made them totally desirable, really have taken the edge off the Fugly.

What Scannon said about drinking saving you is TRUE! I was standing at a bus stop the other night after leaving my favorite "watering hole", a bit worse for ware. I saw a bus approaching at a pretty high speed and took my hand off the bus stop pole I had been hanging onto to wave it down as the driver, who was not even in uniform, did not apper to have seen me, or much else. Luckily for me I was saved by alcohol as having let go of the bus pole I had no other support, lost my balance and fell backwards into the shelter, luckily landing on the bench just in time to watch the bus take out the pole I had been moments before holding onto. If I had been sober I would probably be dead right now. I've learned a valuable lesson from this incident and will never in the future wait at a bus stop sober.

Probably better than some of the driving I see on the freeway every day. At least Stevie was getting some advice....

Nice aero on the rear fender. It might also keep a few burned shins from happening! Doesn't help with the stone chips, I guess any 7 is bound to get them though.

"Fugly"!! You said it all. Don't these people ask anyone outside their own group "what do you think of this" before they get past concept drawings?

At the beginning of the war they were shooting down everyone elses early 30's vintage aircraft with their superlightweight low wing loading modern fighter. By the time we got some modern aircraft up against them the fragil airframe, radial profile and the original "power to weight" ratio of the Zero was offset and their advantage pretty much went away. That said, they sure were hell against biplanes and even heavy stuff like P40's we sent against them.

Really an impressive aray of "7"'s, for any country. I hope the interest in the V8 Supercars doesn't detract from the interest in smaller, lighter cars that has seemed to stay very healthy "down under", including NZ. I had the pleasure of spending several months in NSW back in the late sixties and it seemed like the motorheads there were all about Sprites, Midgets, MG's and just about anything small that could be made to go fast. Probably had a lot to do with the available cars with RHD but also seemed to be a lot of pride on getting the most out of as little as possible. I liked the sense of humor on the car in photo 39 and 53 with the "7" the "right side up" for the rest of us northern hemisphere folk. Great post, thanks for the photos.

No heater in mine except a flip up vent through the firewall over the passengers feet. I've tracked it in the cold before and the full face helmet and driving gloves were enough for a 20-25 minute track session. Would not want to do 100 miles on city streets at 30-35 degrees as I'm just a big pussy where being cold comes in. Biggest problem at the cold track days is getting some heat into the tires. I felt like someone had sanded the track for most of the day. Is a good way to see just how the rear will swing out without having to get to butt cheek clamping speeds. LOL. Hope you get some clear weather and have a great ride.

For some reason (probably because it's just so damm beautiful to begin with) the E Type can get away with just about any tire treatment you want to throw on it. Put a set of wide white walls on my XK150 and it would look like even a pimp wouldn't want it. Anything but blackwalls and chrome wires just doesn't fly, even if period correct. Love your XKE. Early chrome bumper cars are the only "real" E's.

I'm going to be at a Thunderhill track day Friday and it's looking like right about freezing for the first session so I guess for some of us there "is no off season". LOL. Where he is sending the car to sell it's going to be the "dark, cold, wet and Christmas Season" I was talking about so unless someone has been waiting for just this car the walk-in customers may be a bit slow. We get really hot summers here too (not the Bay Area, but the valley sees triple digits on a regular basis)just not as "sticky". Been through a couple of southern summers and a humid 90 there is like our dry105 here.