Entries from December 2007 ↓

Suzuki is leading the way in the new street motorcycles that it is releasing for 2008, and it has one of the most versatile line-ups in the industry. One of the newest additions is the “B-King” a naked sport/standard motorcycle that takes the crown on two fronts.

The first is speed.

This motorcycle has been built with the legendary Hayabusa 1340cc engine. Making this the fastest, naked bike on the planet. The engine has been re-tuned slightly so as not to take away from the Hayabusa’s title of fastest production motorcycle. In addition to the engine, the “King” is equipped with typical Hayabusa components like inverted front forks, adjustable rear suspension, and front and rear disc brakes making it not very light at 520 lbs, dry. Another thing that is not so light is the $12,899.00 MSRP.

But I said there were two things that “B-King” takes the crown for 2008 and that is the most unattractive motorcycle to date. I can’t really explain what happened between the concept that was revealed and what went into production. The concept has a more aggressive stance, looks lower and has huge wheels, where as the production “B-King” has terrible looking mirrors, wheels off of what look like a GS500F and a very upright stance. There is one feature that Suzuki did leave from the concept and that was the duel coffee can mufflers shoved under the tail. Seriously? It looks like Suzuki picked-up what was left of the meteorite from the movie Armageddon and slapped a couple coffee cans and wheels on it and called it good.

I guess if I want Hayabusa power, lighter weight, and better looks, I should stick with the sexy Hayabusa which, by the way, happens to be $900 dollars less on the MSRP then the “B-King”. The extra $900 might as well be the nails in the coffin. They should have named it “Suc-King”…

[Austin: I cannot stand the way this motorcycle looks. I disagree with Allen about concept to production changes. The concept looks better but only slightly. They both look like crap, and I am actually surprised that they brought this into production at all. The side view is one thing but from the top, the tail is HUGE. I am looking for more pictures to post on this beast. ]

The new Corvette ZR1 has a subtle design element that quietly speaks volumes. When you peak under the hood you see the awesome LS9 from the standard Corvette with a hi-tech supercharger strapped onto the top. Normally in a Corvette you see the the “twin flag” emblem all over the place. It is on the hood, under the hood, on the steering wheel, on the door sills, on the wheels, and on the floor. The ZR1 is no exception to this except that when you lift the hood, instead of seeing the standard twin flags on the airbox you see the twinflags making the eyes of an extremely stylized skull.

Now that is tough. This seems to represent only one possible thing. That the ZR1 means death. The 620hp in this 3300 lb car are meant to destroy the competition. There is no doubt that the Vette is going to take down the Viper throne, which it currently only holds in terms of American power. The Z06 has always been hoping to wrestle with the Porsche 911 Turbo which it has always fallen behind, but with this new Corvette rendition we will have to see.

The Corvette ZR1 is basically the fastest, most powerful, production corvette in history. That is the short story. The long story is that the ZR1 is so heavily modified from its origin that it is almost a completely different car altogether.

The ZR1 is targeting 100hp / liter making 620 hp at 6500 rpm and hits 585 lb-ft of torque at 4000rpm. Those numbers are high but get this. From 2600 to 6000 rpm you will have 90% of the torque available. With that much low end torque, I am imagining this to be a great car for power in the twisties. The horsepower starts to really kick in at around 3000 rpms with 300hp right in the middle and it just keeps climbing from there.

You might notice the brakes on this beast. They are Brembo 15.5 inch carbon-ceramic rotors on the front and 15″ on the back. That is a $20,000 option on a Ferrari. Impressive to say the least. There should be no question of its stopping abitily.

There is plenty more to discuss involving the ZR1 and so we will continue to cover it. Right now it looks plain awesome. Somehow I think I need to talk my wife into taking out a few mortgages against the house as well as convincing her that 110hp is completely inadequate for our growing family and that 620 would be far more reasonable. I am sure she will understand the need for a $100,000 Corvette when I tell her that it is the best one yet.

Allen: I concur! If the devil had to drive a new production car, I’m pretty sure this would be it. The ZR1 Skull just adds to the attention to detail that Chevy has put into its high performance car for years, turning an already awesome car into something sinister. That little skull screams “Death to all who oppose the mighty ZR1″ with its half grin.

As for Austin taking out a second, third, and four mortage for the ZR1, I’m all for it but you might have to explain to your daughter why she gets left behind. Even with its $100,000 price tag they still didn’t make the ZR1 with a back seat.

I was thinking on my way to work about what I would like to have if money was never an issue. Since it is the season for gifts we figured Austin and would write our Christmas lists out and explain why we want what we want. I believe most of the stuff on my list pertains to vehicles, speed or various things having to do with elements of this site.

Allen:

1. A Red Rider Double Pump Action BB gun. Why? Duh, haven’t you seen A Christmas Story? Besides I can shoot out tires on Austin’s Sentra. And no, won’t shoot my eye out. (Austin: I grew up with one of these. Good luck killing a bird with it. It’s hard.) I’m not trying to kill a bird, just shoot out your tires…

2. This one is a triple whammy. A monster truck, Lotus Exige, and Toyota Prius. The Toyota Prius is for my sister Laura (Austin’s wife) which she will need after I demolish Austin’s Sentra with the Monster Truck, crushing it so far in the pavement that it will become a permanent fixture for everyone to look upon. That leaves the Exige, which I will drive up in and hand Austin the keys. Finally his mouth will stop hurting…

+ =

3. A Triumph Daytona 675 - Because it just looks so good I want to hang it on my wall like a piece of art. But seeing as how it is a motorcycle, I can ride it around and show it off.

4. A private race track with facility for modifying and testing cars. Seriously? You have to ask why I want this? I could do anything I ever wanted to do on my own private race track.

5. A BMW 135i - I must have one. Twin turbo straight six putting out over 300 HP and rear wheel drive. Sounds like powerslide heaven!

6. 1967 Volkswagen Bus - I always wanted one of these with a Keg-O-Rator, couch and 42 flat panel T.V. inside. Sound like a party, right? The Keg will be Four Peaks Oatmeal Stout for good times with Austin.

7. World Peace - This is on everyones Christmas list, right? (Austin: Not mine)

9. (Don’t ask about #8 my wife made me remove it.) $10,000 to put into my Corolla GT-S and an additional $10,000 to put into my 240sx.

10. To win the Lottery and purchase everything on my Grown-Up Christmas List.

Austin:

1. For reals I want to fix my motorcycle. Last year the battery died and it was really cold. Since then other problems have arisen and it has not been ridden more than 200 miles in the last year. It is sad and it hurts me to see it outside. It is an ‘01 SV 650. Allen and I are both attached to this bike.

2. A Lotus Exige. It is totally unreasonable but I want a car that I can feel uncomfortable in for a reason. I want to drive my daughter around and hear her excited laugh when we drift a turn in the coolest car in the world.

3. A Subaru STI. For some reason this stays on my list. Great function, great performance, terrible fuel consumption

4. A Gyro-copter. What better way to fly the friendly skies legally without a license. (I think, I haven’t done the research) (Allen: Is that safe? It looks like something MacGyver put together.)

5. And this is really a very desirable car for me and has been for a very long time. Every racing game I have there is an Nissan S14 Silvia (or 240sx) sitting in the virtual garage. I think they are one of the best looking RWD Nissans out there. Simply smashing. They are the painful lust of a smaller more reasonable nature.

6. For 2008, I want an HDTV and a PS3 in time for Gran Turismo 5. I am not the only one out there I am sure, but I am very excited for this to come out, but unlike the other times, the technology is missing in my house.

7. I am going to agree with Allen that if I had the means, a private track would be great. I am sure the site would improve significantly if we had a track to test stuff on.

8. A 2008 Yamaha R6. When I go to the dealership, this is the bike that I sit on and feel at home in. I love my SV, but the R6 just seems like something from the future. It is so light weight that it just feels like a natural extension of my body. Yamaha, If you are reading this, send it my way.

WRX STI

There are a number of vehicles coming out in 2008 with over 300 HP and under $40,000. What is the best? Well, I’d love to tell you but odds are unless a manufacturer gives a few vehicles to test I won’t be able to give you an honest opinion. I can only list the car and based on specification from the manufacturer and give you a best guess. I’ll try not to let my Rear Wheel Drive (RWD) bias get in the way. With the criteria established - 300 HP - under $40,000 - here I go. Continue reading →

There is not a vehicle that I can think of that is more iconic then the Chevy Corvette. When I look at a Corvette I see the red, white and blue. The car symbolizes American history almost as much as the Statue of Liberty and is recognized through out the world. It is an engineering masterpiece that General Motors spares no expense on, and it is truly one of best vehicles available for the price.

I really have never met a person who didn’t know what the Corvette was or looked like. I’ve known about it since I was five years old, because my first Hot Wheels cars were a ‘76 Sting Ray Corvette and an ‘87 Corvette, and I loved both of those little cars.

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“Kizashi!”

“Gesundheit!” That was the response I got when I told Austin about this Suzuki Concept I saw.

Suzuki is thinking about putting out a new sedan/wagon and I think it looks awesome. It reminds me of the matrix, you know, the red pill that Neo took to get to the real world. I mean that in a good way.

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How to Initial your D…

“Drifting” is basically defined as a controlled slide, and it can only really be accomplished in a Rear-Wheel (RWD) or All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) vehicles that are rear wheel biased. There are many techniques to accomplishing drifting around corners all resulting in oversteer. Continue reading →

It’s about time we wrote about a truck! Geeze, what kind of gig are we running here, Austin? I’ve been rolling it over in head on what truck would be worthy enough to be the first that we talk about and I could only think of one. The Dodge Ram. Particularly with the Cummins Turbo Diesel.

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I was glancing around the other night, in hopes of finding a concept car that would meet my profile. You know the rear wheel drive, lightweight, enthusiast’s car I love so much, and guess what happened to appear. Something to spring life back into my hopes. Something that I could drive sideways and all I have to do is suppress my urge to… Continue reading →

I’ve talked to a few people who own hybrid cars purchased right from the factory. Their main reason for the purchase is gas mileage. That is one reason to buy hybrid, but it may not be the best reason.The biggest and best reason to buy a Hybrid is emissions. Hybrids don’t run while stopped or even under hard accelerations in the city, this fact alone reduces emissions tremendously. If you own a Hybrid it should make you feel good to know that you are polluting this planet far less than 90% of the vehicles on the road today.

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