All posts by ndubs77

A BMW 528i is a Superior Rental Car That Will Spoil You

BMW 528I 5

Rental cars, they’re usually total crap that you’re only willing to put up with for a few days because they serve a purpose. Some trips can really use a bright spot, though, and for us gearheads a car can be just the thing to brighten up life.

I lost both of my grandmothers this summer, within a month and a half of each other. What can I say, it hasn’t been ideal. It was just my mom and I going on the trip, out to Tucson, Arizona last weekend. My dad was away singing in China, and my girlfriend had her busiest work weekend of the year. We were flying out to Phoenix, and then driving 100 miles, or so, down to Tucson. While we were definitely looking forward to seeing my mom’s side of the family and catch up with everyone, it was still a trip meant for saying goodbye to my grandma, Jody, who we all hold very dear in our hearts.

This trip was definitely one that needed as many bright spots as we could give it. So, when the rental car lady told us we could have a BMW 528i for only $20/day more than the Chevy Malibu we had booked, we were like, “Oh hell yes!” If we were going to be cruising through the desert at high speed, we might as well aim to be as comfortable as possible.

I hadn’t even planned to do an article on this trip, but when life hands you a Bimmer….

Continue reading A BMW 528i is a Superior Rental Car That Will Spoil You

1966 Porsche 906/Carrera 6 Racecar at Radnor Hunt

Porsche 906 Carrera 6 Racecar Radnor Hunt 2

The Porsche 906 comes from the end of the era when racing cars really could be used on public roads. I mean, imagine a LeMans LMP car blitzing past you on the highway today. It’s a pretty incredible thought, and that’s exactly what the Porsche 906 was.

Just 50 Porsche 906s were produced, and they’re all worth millions of dollars at auction today. I haven’t seen one since my visit to the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart a few years ago, and this was really the first time I’ve looked closely at one.

Like so many Porsches over the years, the 906 won’t shock you with its raw numbers. It’s 2.0L flat six produces 220hp, or a little less than a modern Honda S2000. Not too crazy, right? Well, when you consider it also only weighs 1,280lbs, you’ll find the 906 has a better power-to-weight ratio than the current 991 GT3 RS, even with its mighty 4.0L engine.

Ah, the merits of lightness…

Enjoy the photos.

Continue reading 1966 Porsche 906/Carrera 6 Racecar at Radnor Hunt

This Purple Challenger Hellcat is a Rolling Middle Finger Aimed at Everything Society Holds Dear

Purple Dodge Challenger Hellcat 2

There’s a reason Toyota doesn’t offer the Camry in “Bright F*cking Purple.” That’s because it takes a certain kind of person to pull it off, and most of them aren’t interested in a forgettable family sedan. They are, however, interested speed, style, and badassary in general.

As it turns out, the 707hp Dodge Challenger Hellcat is quite appealing to purple-car-driving people. The audacity of the color suits the personality of this apex muscle car so well. I’d even say it’s my favorite color on the Hellcat, bar none.

Red cars are for people who think their hot-shit. Black cars are for people who think their a badass. Purple cars are for people who just want to start shit with the world. I mean, it’s a “girly color,” right? Go ahead and tell the guy driving this that, and you’ll probably be staring at a set of taillights before you even know what happened.

This purple Hellcat reminds me of Johnny Cash’s song, “A Boy Named Sue,” because it seems to inherently provoke the world. Its a 200mph muscle car in a world where the highest posted speed limit is 85. It’s entirely unacceptable, if you go by the rules of society. Luckily, we still live in a world with a decent bit of social wiggle room. Cars like the Hellcat can still be driven on public roads, you can exploit its massive performance freely in between speed traps.

Oh, and on top of its insane color, this Hellcat also had a manual gearbox. No excuses needed. It always breaks my heart when I see one of these beasts with only two pedals.

This is pretty much how I’d spec-out my own Hellcat. It’s always awesome to see one of my exact dream cars in person, in the parking lot at the Lime Rock Historics. I hope you enjoy seeing this car as much as I did.

Continue reading This Purple Challenger Hellcat is a Rolling Middle Finger Aimed at Everything Society Holds Dear

Consulier GTP at the Lime Rock Sunday In the Park: EDIT – Warren Mosler Responds

Mosler Consulier Limerock 1

The Internet is a funny place, folks. Sometimes you write something about an obscure car you saw at a car show, and then get a response from the very person who created that car. Well that’s exactly what happened here.

I saw this Consulier GTP at Lime Rock over Labor Day weekend, and I wrote the segment below after some quick research for context on the car. Evidently, Mr. Mosler had some issues with what I found, and hey, who else would know better than him, right?

I haven’t altered anything here. I wanted to let the man himself say his piece about the car he created. I have left my original words intact below along with his responses.

Read it for yourselves, and see what you come away with:

Mosler Consulier Limerock 2 Mosler Consulier Limerock 3

Continue reading Consulier GTP at the Lime Rock Sunday In the Park: EDIT – Warren Mosler Responds

The Paddock at Lime Rock: Ferrari 250 TR and Maserati 300 S

Ferrari 250 TR Maserati 300S at Lime Rock

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. Well, this one is worth that, plus around $30-40 million. These two legendary Italian racing cars sat side together, waiting to greet us as we began our day at the Lime Rock Historics. It’s great to see they’re still being used as intended after all these years, even despite their substantial value. Racecars should be raced, plain and simple. They aren’t meant to be paperweights.

-Nick

McLaren 675LT at the Radnor Hunt Concours

McLaren 675LT Radnor Hunt Concours

One of the many gems in the car corral, though I think few other cars present could keep up with this hardcore McLaren. Despite not being a P1, the 675LT is a biblically fast car.

RUF CTR3 at the Greenwich Concours

RUF CTR3 Greenwich Concours 1

“Hey, sweet Cayman you got there, dude!”

That’s not what you say to the owner of one of these insane machines. This is no mere Cayman, my friends, this is a RUF CTR3. Sure it’s made of Porsche bits, like all other RUFs, but this is a car they made themselves. The front of the car comes from the Porsche 997 GT3 RS, but the whole rear structure is bespoke, and not from a Cayman as you might expect.

The CTR3 is the ultimate RUF Supercar. With around 700hp coming from its twin turbocharged, 911-derived 3.8L Flat-6, it was one of the fastest cars on the planet when it hit the streets in the late 2000’s. In a time when the 1,001hp Bugatti Veyron was still outlandish, the CTR3’s 3.1 sec 0-60 sprint and 233mph top speed was rivaled by very few. It’s still damn fast today, we just now live in a world where people in Teslas everywhere can run 0-60 in 2.7 sec, and it’s totally crazy.

This is the first and only RUF CTR3 I’ve ever seen in person. RUF planned a max production run of just 50 units, and I’m not sure they ever completed it, so it’s is extremely rare.

Enjoy the pics!

Continue reading RUF CTR3 at the Greenwich Concours

Rally Car Showdown On Everyday Driver

The guys at Everyday Driver put together the comparison shootout we’ve all been waiting for: Golf R vs Evo vs STI vs Focus RS.

See which emerges as the ultimate daily weapon!

-Nick