WTF Friday: Mid Engine E30

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Feb 21, 2014

The e30 has become one of those cars that people will do literally anything and everything to. The spectrum of what has been done ranges from lowrider all the way to Baja vehicle so I really shouldn’t be all that shocked by today’s car.

But I am.

Up until this point every e30 project I’ve seen has retained it’s native FR engine/drive wheel configuration because most (self included) feel the chassis is fairly well balanced straight from the factory.

However as evident by many a WTF Friday post well enough is simply never good enough, so Romanian Toma Alexandru grabbed his tools and got to work.

The motor sitting where a seat resides in a standard trim e30, is an M50 that Alexandru says puts out 350hp. Backed by an Audi 500 transmission this car has reportedly run the quarter mile in 11.5 seconds with a 60 foot of 1.7 seconds.

These numbers made it Romania’s fastest NA BMW in 2013.

Sadly there’s no real build thread to speak of but there is a decent video below:

If you want to keep track of current updates here’s a Facebook page where you can do so.

Those crazy Romanian’s what will they think of next?

Winter Wednesdays: Because Federal President of Germany

By

DaveT

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Feb 19, 2014

0

When I first stumbled upon the photos in today’s post I figured that the car was sat on the track for some sort of promotional photo shoot, I mean why else would a 1000hp Porsche 917/10 be sitting in the middle of a track in the dead of winter?

As it turns out the car was at Nürburgring by request of the Federal President of Germany, Dr. Gustav Heinemann.

Dr Heinemann wanted to go for a spin and though it was snowing driver Willi Kaushen obliged because evidently the Federal President of Germany simply isn’t someone you say no to.

Not being a complete lunatic Willi kept things pretty reserved so that all parties (and machinery) returned unscathed.

Source.

Theme Tuesdays: Volvo C30s

By

DaveT

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Feb 18, 2014

3

Looking through my ever growing folder of photos I noticed that I had accumulated more than a few c30 photos over the years.

Since the 3 and the C30 are such close cousins I have, on occasion, found myself on a c30 forum or two and whenever I find myself on a message board I don’t frequent I often type ‘slammed’ in the search box and see what comes up….

volvo_c30_2r — Brobets work on damn near anything

volvo_slamr — Can’t go wrong with a little OEM+ styling

volvo_c30_4r — If I were to paint my car any other color it might be this

volvo_c30_1r — Nice use of color on this TMB equipped C30

I’ve posted this car a few times previously, just might be my personal favorite

volvo_c30_6r — Ocean city has such gnarly ins and outs

volvo_c30_3r — This photo would have been a little more relevant in December, but nice cars none the less

My car and this one just so happen to be on the exact same suspension setup

volvo_c30_5r — Go figure they make good race cars too

Turns out I’ve seen one of these in person previously

volvo_c30_12r — Going to end things with this WTCC C30

volvo_c30_13r — Perhaps I should revisit the tripoding theme sometime soon?

Event Coverage: The 2014 Canadian International Autoshow

By

DaveT

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Feb 18, 2014

2

The Canadian International Autoshow is currently running now until February 23rd and for car enthusiasts across the city it serves as a great way to get out of the house and check out the latest from manufacturers, and local tuning shops in the GTA.

In addition to signalling the upcoming end to winter (thank god), for me the auto show always makes me think about my younger days when I used to go with my old man.

I’m sure at the time he didn’t put much thought into the whole thing beyond silencing my constant chat of “I’m bored” but to me it made a lasting impression and indirectly lead to the site you see here today.

Hopefully this is still true for the hundreds of kids that attend every year. The photos today are from media day which I am always very grateful to get a chance to attend because it means that said thousands of kids are not in my photos.

Domestic OEMS

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_dodge_challenger — Chrysler was proud to announce the return of the functional shaker hood on the Challenger

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_dodge_challenge_shaker_hood_1 — Nice to have this piece of automotive history back in the game

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_jeep_wrangler_sport — Beefed up Wrangler Sport on wheels reminiscent of old Countach ones...

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_dodge_viper_front — Personally I find the current gen Viper pretty appealing

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_dodge_viper_side — I just wish they didn’t sit quite so high…

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_ford_3d_mustag — I’ve read a lot about 3D printing so it was cool to see this 3D printed Mustang as part of the Ford display

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_ford_mustang_tails — Flashing lights during the debut of the new Mustang

European OEMS

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_audi_leds — Audi’s LED accents in their headlights are often imitated but never quite duplicated

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_audi_s8_2 — The new S8 really is a thing of beauty

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_audi_s8_3 — The gap between the fender and those 21″ wheels actually isn’t even all that bad…

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mercedes_bemz — I believe this was a CLA 45 AMG

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mercedes_benz_model — Once again MB managed to suck me in with their model display… this year with a collection of 300SLs

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mercedes_benz_s550 — Not that I could ever afford one but for whatever reason ‘matic’ in the name of my car would bug me…

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mercedes_pedal_cars — Couple Benz pedal cars that I might be able to afford…

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_porsche_gt3_cup_front_1 — Porsche held the North American début of their new 911 GT3 Cup car

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_porsche_gt3_cup_rear — With a 3.8L 6 pumping out 460hp I reckon a lot of people will enjoy this view

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_porsche_gt3_cup_side_close — 80mm slotted/vented steel rotors with six piston calipers sure look good behind those center locks

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_porsche_gt3_cup_side_1 — Should be ripping up the Canadian Tire Motorsport park this year

Japanese OEMS

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_scion_top_tuner — Replacing Pat’s FR-S in the Scion booth this year was the Top Tuner challenge winning Racemode FR-S

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_skyactiv_race_car — The new 3 looks like a six and it’s weird so I took pictures of this instead

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_subaru_wrx_covered — Subaru covering up their new WRX STI prior to the reveal

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_subaru_wrx — And here it is…. the Evoabru

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_hyundai_luxury — Hyundai is really driving hard to the hoop with their current line up of luxury vehicles. Wonder what kind of sales numbers they will put up?

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_nissan_sport_sedan_concept — This would be a really sleeksport sedan, if Nissan releases it

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_nissan_sport_sedan_concept_3 — Very aggressive front end but the segment kind of needs it

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_lexu_vip_auto_salon — This IS350 was…. interesting.

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_lexus_1 — Didn’t catch the name of this Hybrid concept from Lexus but it looks much better than the car above

Auto Exotica

I almost completely forgot about the Auto Exotica room up until about ten minutes before close, I’m glad I hustled my way down there however because otherwise I would have missed a few noteworthy cars.

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_auto_exotica_2 — …which makes taking pictures very enjoyable

Pfaff Tuning

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_porsche_gt3 — The GT3 earlier in this post would look great in this livery

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_mclaren_1 — A quick peak at the custom ADV1 wheels on Pfaff’s McLaren 12-C Spa -F

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_twin_turbo_r8 — Pfaff brought this insane v-10 R8 with a Heffner Twin Turbo kit

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_mclaren_p1_side — The simply outstanding McLaren P1

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_mclaren_p1_front — Akebon carbon-ceramic brakes…. 186mph to 0 in a hair over six seconds

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_pfaff_mclaren_p1_rear — I don’t even think ‘Dat Ass’ is quite appropriate here

Cruise Nationals

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_cruise_nationals_2 — Once again left to my own devices in this room full of awesome

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_cruise_nationals_3 — Black and raked this car looked great

Richard Petty’s Superbird

This year Muscle Car Alley featured Richard Petty’s Superbird and having never seen a race ready Superbird in person before I took more than a few pictures of it.

In comparison to some of the other race cars at the show it was pretty awesome in it’s relative simplicity.

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_richard_petty_front_1 — That legendary nose cone that contributed to the aerodynamics package that made this car unforgettable

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_richard_petty_side_1 — The original “Big Wang”

Sport Compact Evolution

Normally the Sport Compact Evoloution section of the car is full of cars I’ve seen several times over the year before but this year Nextmod brought out one car I didn’t see at all last year and one that had undergone a serious makeover.

Not to be out done Can Jam brought their time attack STI to the show as well.

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_subaur_canjam — Can Jam’s Subaru hammered to the floor for the show

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mitsubishi_evo_aph — APH’s Evo is just about ready for this season of racing. Can’t wait to see it out on the track

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_mitsubishi_evo_gunmetal_1 — A street/track prepared Evo from APH

Nextmod’s Liberty Walk R35

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_nissan_gtr_libertywalk_nextmod_side_1 — I knew Peter had some plans for the 2014 season but I really wasn’t expecting Canada’s first Liberty Walk GTR

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_nissan_gtr_libertywalk_nextmod_fitment_close_up — Tire specs are 375/20/21, and the wheels are ADV.1s

canadian_international_auto_show_2014_nissan_gtr_libertywalk_nextmod_top — Quite the site to behold and easily one of the most talked about

Also if you have not noticed yet the site has gone through a bit of a redesign so welcome to the new stanceiseverything.com!

Winter Wednesdays: Snow Runner

By

DaveT

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Feb 12, 2014

0

At this point I am pretty much over winter 2013/14 and all it’s nonsense. Rapidly approaching the mid point of February I know the end is year but to be honest it’s not nearly close enough.

Obligatory complaining aside this Road Runner is pretty bad ass. Classic 70’s muscle car styling at it’s very best.

OG’s keepin’ it gangster.

Source.

Theme Tuesdays: Nissan Gloria/Cedric/Cima

By

DaveT

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Feb 11, 2014

7

Doing Theme Tuesdays religiously since 2009 means that on occasion I draw a blank when it comes to what to post each week.

When this happens I generally disappear down a rabbit hole of forums and blogs hoping for inspiration to strike.

This time inspiration came from instagram user Tandem Knights who suggested I take a look at his Nissan Gloria.

After doing so I was interested in seeing more of the chassis and well, here were are.

Since I am not extremely familiar with the chassis I’ve extended the theme to include the cars close cousins as well in an effort to avoid mistakes.

nissan_gloria_430 — Start things off with an American custom styled 430 Gloria

tandem_knights — The Gloria that lead to this post, apparently one of two in the US

nissan_gloria_cedric_330 — This car came up in my search multiple times and for good reason…

nissan_gloria_cedric_330_2 — …it looks awesome on those almost impossibly small Hayashi street wheels

nissan_gloria_c30 — While I am not a huge Boso fan I do like this Gloria C30

nissan_gloria_yankee_style — These are apparently done in a style called ‘Yankee’ which I take to me exaggerated American muscle

nissan_gloria_white — Found this on cardomain which is generally the last place I expect to find anything JDM

nissan_gloria_bagged_1 — Another car that came up repeatedly was this one…

nissan_gloria_red_2 — Which is cool because I think it’s awesome

nissan_gloria_cima — This is a great colour combination

nissan_gloria_rolling — About half a second away from being a simply stellar rolling shot

nissan_gloria_vipcar — Some restrained elegance from VIP car

Yudi’s M45 which is the North American equivalent to the Gloria so far as I can tell. He’s actually in the middle of rebuilding this car right now

nissan_gloria_drift — A little drift action from Shirts Tucked In

nissan_gloria_white_2 — This car looks a little to clean to be static but with VIP styled cars you can never be sure…

nissan_gloria_k_edition — I’ve always bee a sucker for deep purple so I love this K edition Gloria

nissan_gloria_camber — Camber fans these last two are for you

nissan_gloria_crown_majesta — A little extreme for my tastes but when in Rome…

Suggestions for next week?

The Natural Order Of Things

By

DaveT

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Feb 10, 2014

2

Actors who just so happen to be gear heads seem to continually be coming out of the woodwork; Rowan Atkinson, Adam Carolla, Dax Shepard, Patrick Dempsey and the late Paul Walker are just a few SAG card holders who are true enthusiasts and joining their ranks is Idris Elba with his series King Of Speed.

Evidently a life long petrol addict Idris decided to use his star power as a way to get behind the wheel of an assortment of awesome cars.

I watched the first episode yesterday and quite enjoyed it, so to remind myself to get back to the second I am going to post them both here.

Now I just have to get ’round to finishing season 1 of Luther…

WTF Friday: Festivus

By

DaveT

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Feb 7, 2014

1

Like the Geo Metro the Ford Festiva is a vehicle that is largely ignored by the after market automotive community. Yes some people occasionally put Mazda’s 1.8L turbo motor under the hood, and a select few own the coveted Shogun, but by in large they are ignored and I am sure none of you can remember the last time you saw one at a show or track.

That said if you happen to see this one at your local track or meet you might want to take a second look because the standard NA four has been pulled and replaced with a fuel cell.

Why a fuel cell? Well because the original fuel tank got in the way of the mid mounted Hyabusa motor.

Currently for sale on Ebay ($19,500.00 reserve) there’s no mention of whether or not the car was built by a shop or just a talented DIYer, but despite not figuring out (or bothering with) a solution for going in reverse the work looks solid enough to send around a track more than once.

Hopefully someone meets the reserve and this car doesn’t get parted out because I’m fairly curious to see some video of this car running.

Winter Wednesdays: 190 Below

By

DaveT

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Feb 5, 2014

0

When I was in college a friend of a friend had a 190e Evo that served as my first real introduction to the platform. Though it was a little worse for wear it wasn’t hard to see it’s potential hidden under years of neglect.

Despite being a drift car this 190 is infinitely cleaner than that one and perfect example of just how awesome these cars can look (and perform) when put in the right hands.

Eager for the white stuff to take it’s leave the owner/builder Alex Lindquist brought it out for a few shots before scooting it back into the garage.

More info on the car can be found via this Speedhunters feature and these photos were picked up on the Stance Works Forums.

Theme Tuesday: Chevrolet Chevelles

By

DaveT

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Feb 4, 2014

1

Last night, thanks to Performance And Auto Sound Magazine, I was fortunate enough to take in a pre-screening of the new Need For Speed Movie. After the film (which was quite a bit better than I anticipated it to be) director Scott Waugh stood up for a ‘Q and A’ session with Strombo.

One of the first questions asked was what car was his favourite of the movie and what he currently drives.

The answer to the first was a Torino featured in the first fifteen minutes, and the answer to the second is the car of today’s post; The Chevrolet Chevelle.