The GTi is in the shop after being smashed up, right? So, for the first time since about 2003, I've been driving the Mustang around full time. Ow. Oh yeah, that's why I stopped driving a stick every day. My clutch knee is definitely sore, so as much fun as this has been, I'll be happy to get the GTi back.

Also, it will be very interesting tracking the Lotus at Infineon next weekend with the Shelby Club. I wonder how long it will take my brain and muscles to remember which car I'm in. Will I cook 5 and spin? I doubt that, at least.

The Mustang feels pretty damn good since Rob tightened things up. In particular, turn in is much, much improved. I'd love Love LOVE to take it to the Shelby Club event next weekend, but there's still something not right. I tend to agree with Rob's driveshaft out of true diagnosis as it seems to be RPM dependent. For example, right at about 90mph in 5th (so between 3500 and 3900 RPM) the car suddenly starts to shake like it's about to come apart at the seams. Oh well, it'll be fun to stack the Lotus up with some Mustangs.

The GTi might be ready tomorrow.

Finally, a "hammer and scalpel" picture:



iPhone, I know. Sorry. I wasn't planning on having the cars together but I was forced into a car shuffle after we crashed the GTi last weekend. I had to get the Mustang back from Dietsch Werks, where Rob had balanced the wheels and tightened a bunch of bolts. We was going to check the balance of the driveshaft as he's pretty sure it's off, but he didn't have time. I drove the Lotus down on Tuesday, took a cab over to Rob's shop, left the Mustang at Google overnight and took the shuttle into work on Wednesday.

The Mustang certainly FEELS like it's had a bunch of bolts tightened, but it still starts to shake at about 85mph. Unlike the shaking in the Lotus, which was bad wheel balance, this isn't coming through the wheel but rather via my ass. I'm definitely going to drag the car back down to Rob when the GTi thing blows over and have him check the driveshaft. A nice aftermarket aluminum one won't be very expensive.

More on the GTi in a future post once I get the pictures.

The smooth Snow Queen feature is strongly suspected to be ice originally just under the soil, uncovered by the thruster rockets as Phoenix set down on the north polar plains of Mars. In fact, the apparent holes or depressions in the Snow Queen's otherwise flat surface are located just under the thrusters.

Exhibition boxing at the Tera Nova High Industrial Tech car show:

 

(full set here)

So wrong:

Pictures from the historical NASCAR demonstration race at the Hooked on Driving event last Saturday at Thunderhill:



I was fortunate to be able to get up close and personal around turn 11 for the race. I was finally able to get continuous focus to work for the first time, ever. I mean ever. Continuous focus simply never worked on the D100 and I got used to doing without it. I got so many quality shots on Saturday that it almost felt like I wasn't doing anything and the camera was doing it all. I'm still not used to having equipment that works!