Mikelly

I'll pick it up today... And trust me, I know both kinds of Porsche owners... In the First Settlers chapter, I enjoyed the good group of car guys who just loved cars... few, if any Porsche snobs... In the Washington area club, which is closer to me, it was pretty bad... Enough so that I changed chapters... A few nice guys, but not worth weeding throught the bad to meet the good. I'll own another Porsche for sure... It's the most well engineered and easiest to maintain machine I've ever owned, and by far the most powerful and easiest to drive at the limit. I'm picking up the M3 today if it checks out... Going with my checkbook and a cartrailer to bring it home...It'll be a daily driver, and it has Bilstein PSS9s, Carbon moonroof delete, airbags removed, bunch of other mods, all the emissions removed, chipped, CAI/header back exhaust, and some other stuff... It still has the full interior and Vaders... Also has two sets of wheels/tires for it... Car was a daily drive/AutoX car that TomBaRace's boss Kyle owns... Kyle owns classic aviation Just shouth of Harrisonburg, so it's been maintained by an aircraft mechanic for the last two+ years... Should be a nice ride...And it's the right color... Silver! Mike

Sorry to hear this, Owen. Obviously you need to feed your family, and that's job one... But a couple of suggestions from a guy who hires people for a living: In this economy, the most expensive (and often the most skilled) are the first to go. Makes no sense to anyone except for owners of failing businesses at the time. Shoot for a slightly lower income, which is 110% counterintuitive. Have dialogue with the employer about this very topic... How healthy are they? Do you need to continue quietly searching while you take this gig? Don't be affraid to ask the hard questions. Many times employee candidates don't. Regardless whatever you get as a job to hold you over, start researching what it would cost to start your own business... I've said this before and will say it again... You'll never be in control of your future working for someone else. You'll always be a player in theirs, nothing more. Get a good accountant and a good lawyer. Do not skimp on insurances to make your business and keep your business legal. Get licensed and make sure you are registrered with the state. We've been in business for 6 years, took $12K and turned it into a multimillion dollar corporation and haven't missed payroll once. There are headaches, and challenges, tough times and hard decisions. But the reward is the ability to get up every day and look at yourself in the mirror and know that you are the boss and you control your future. Mike

I've had a little bit of "lull" while I was dealing with the sale of the 996Turbo. I also am awaiting some boots to repair the CV boot I managed to lose on the driver's side rear. Once we've addressed that issue, I'll get it ready for the next track event... There's also an E36M3 being added to the stable this coming weekend, we think... Mike

If you're willing to "commute", you can find homes much cheaper, and at a much larger spread... Clive, you've been to my home... 5 Acres, bought at the peak of the housing boom, and it was $500K... Now homes similar to it are selling for 2/3rds... There's a lot of work in the Richmond/Charlottesville/Fredericksburg region... Yes, some NOVA area population is very dense... But not all... Mike

You can buy 2001-2004 911Turbos modded all day long for $40-55K. They're simply amazing to drive in all conditions. Fit, finish and engineering of the 911Turbo is a cut above anything I've previously owned. It's simply an awe inspiring machine, in the right configuration and in the right hands. Having the ability to drive the car to the track, wrapped in leather, fully functioning AC, and a killer sound system, running it hard on the track, then driving it back home, still wrapped in leather with the AC blowing cold. Hope this helps give a glimps. Mike

Garvice, My fourpost lift has wheels for it to move around. What I do is move the lift forward at an angle and then we can get the car in at about a 45 degree angle thru the opening. Now, on the situation with the twin post and four post lift, I find having both combined works very well. Especially when setting a car up and trying to work out bumpsteer, it's nice to have the twin post to work the platform of the fourpost so you can simulate the travel of the suspension on all four wheels. What's more, I've not had any issues working around each of them to get work done. Mike

Today Tom Harris (Member Tombarace here) got married to his childhood sweetheart Brittany. Some of you may remember a donation drive I held about 10 years ago when Tom was involved in a horrible car accident that nearly took his life at the age of 16. Over the years he and Brittany have become our adopted kids. So today was supposed to be their special day... A week ago today another young man had the unfortunate horror of life's dark side close in on him, and he lost his battle with, well we're still unsure until toxicology reports come back. All we know is that an employee of my wife's lost her son under questionable and tragic circumstances. So, today we got up, went through our morning routine, got dressed and drove from our home an hour east to a memorial service for a life lost way to soon. The friends and family spoke of a young man who had finally found peace with his maker, and who had started to find a direction in life, one with hope, promise and conviction. The preacher gave a wonderful sermon about our human battle with sin, and our inability to escape it. About the love of a god who would simply look past everything and love us all for our blind faith and belief that he does love us, just for who we are. So after a morning of sorrow, sadness, and the realities of our mortality, we piled back into the car and headed 2.5 hours west to Shenandoah. Tom has been like a son to me over the last 10 years. We've grown close, and I've come to be so proud of who he has evolved into. Seeing him marry his childhood sweetheart was truly the storybook. Tom and Brittany have survived his two destroyed legs, physical therapy to put him back together, educations, careers, crappy jobs with bad bosses, and a new home that was attacked by arsonists before they could even move in. These two kids embody the spirit and desire to not only survive, but to succeed. And they're just so damned cool together. Tom and Brittany after the nuptuals... First Dance... It's been a day filled with wide ranging emotions!

I created a log-in and signed up, read a few posts, and then when I bought the FJR1300, I didn't go back. That said, My two riding partners have C14s and man, the newest is a bad beast. Might be my next motorcycle... I put about 8K miles per year on my bikes between commuting and fun rides. Mike

So about that motorcycle trip to clear my mind... Thursday and Friday were wonderful... Did over 450 miles down the BRP to get into Blowing Rock... Then the second day we did about 250 miles going into Ashville and Back on nice twisty roads... And then the rain and snow came... The last two days of riding were F'n miserable with the cold, the high winds and the frozen precipitation on the bridges and overpasses. We had planned to ride between 1500-1800 miles. I managed a total of 1300 due to trying to wait out the snow storms on Saturday which gave us a late start, and then having to leave the parkway on Sunday, due to the risk of ice on the Parkway. Oh well... Next year we'll do our "annual" trip in July so we can ***** about the heat, like years past! Mike

And hey, Washington DC area is getting MORE and MORE like Southern California every year... We now have: Earthquakes Forest Fires The mountains The Ocean And more liberals than you can shake a stick at... Oh yea, and jobs... Lots and lots of jobs! Mike

So it's been six days since the Porsche was sold and I have decided to get the red Zcar in the shop and start looking at what it's going to take to get it sorted for its owner: Getting ourselves quite the Zcar garage going now... Sorely miss the black beauty though... Mice had made a nest in the car two years ago, and I have no clue what we may find... There is rust also in the engine bay, the rear hatch strut towers, and various other places from where the car has been in and outdoors. Also, it appears that the rear flare on the driver's side had cracked under the paint, and now moisture has frozen and lifted the paint/bodywork over time. There are also other areas where the paint has been nicked or rust has come through. Fortunately it's all surface rust and the timing of getting the car out of the weather is probably very good... This much I already know it needs: Starter replaced Steering shaft replaced Conversion from Fuel injection to Carburetor (unless owner wants to convert the system to FAST or other ECU) Wiring sorted All fluids flushed Paint/body work I'll be having a discussion with the owner to see what he wants to spend and is willing to do. My goal is to get the car into a state of operation such that it can move under its own power. Then it'll be up to Jim to decide on the rest. Mike

Clive, You already know my opinion on the subject... Close to Washington DC will guarantee you a life of work options... Mike

So the bigger question that comes to mind is this... Due to the extreme angle, is it the internal components (the cage) that are cutting the boot from the inside out? My guess is that this is the case and I'm wondering if there's a fix for it? AND I'm wondering why it is that there is so little traffic on the site and so few contributors lately... Hmmmm Mike

So I have less than 200 miles on this boot and just found it... Is this a common issue with these axles? Not real happy seeing this with such little use... Mike

Michael, I'm probably going to stick with a fixed roof car for a replacement when the time comes... I agree with much of what you posted above, but the biggest challenger I see with the Datsun Z is to get it to be as dead reliable as a track car as the Porsche is. And that just speaks to that "german" engineering and that "porsche" tax, I suppose. And personally, I'd do the Turbo kit on the Miata. It just works better... Mike

Few shots of sibling rivalries... Man I'm gonna miss this car... Really already Bummed about it...

Yea, Um... Well... The Spec Miata has been the best buy for building a true learning tool for the kids and the friends who have used it for their first introductions to DE. As to what people do in the pits when they take to the track, I wouldn't even know how to respond... And for all the Zcar bravado, my Z has been more of a headache than any track car I've owned, at and off the track... I'm sure it'll get better with time, but make no mistake, the Zcars that show up at my events are typically broken and in the pits, or being lapped by Spec Miatas and lesser cars. I "hope" to break that mold, but who knows. Mike

W-O-W

No worries... I'm not sure what the future brings... I've got the Zcar, and will be installing the FAST fuel injection system and the CCW wheels over the winter, and I'll continue developing it. I'm actually thinking about buying a Porsche factory GT3 Cup car. I really would like to own a real, factory built race car, but we'l have to see. Who knows... I would really like to pay off my house BEFORE I get to deep into another expensive supercar. Mike

I did put a baffled/trap door pan on the car and have not seen any drops in pressure. That said, I also employ an accusump, a canton remote filter, a cooler, and a high pressure Miloden blueprinted high pressure pump. I'll be installing a mechanical oil temp gauge, along with the mechanical gauge I currently use. Hopefully I'll get more accurate monitoring as things go... Mike

Well it isn't like I'm going to sell it tomorrow... I don't have a "buyer" yet. So as long as I have the car, I'll continue developing and driving it. It'll be at the track in the coming month... Mike

David, I'll be running Hoosier R6s in 245 (front) and 275 (rear) sizes on my 9.5 inch TSWs. I plan to upgrade to CCWs with a 275 and 295 over the winter, along with fuel injection. Mike

David, As I mentioned in my email offline, I'm running 400# rear springs, 500# front springs, no rear bar, 1 inch front bar, ZF Racing lower bits, GC camber plates up front, AZcar chromoly arms in the rear with AZcar rear upper plates. The strut inserts are Koni 8610s. The car is surprisingly NOT bone jarring, even with the extensive cage and subframes. When I was driving around Watkins Glen with a passenger in the car, we both noted that the ride was exceptionally compliant. Running 2.5- front camber, and 4+ caster, with 2.2- camber in the rear. I'll find out within the next month or so how the car performs! Mike

This car is now forsale! Please see the ad in the 4sale section! Mike

Because I've been made an offer that only a fool would refuse. I've owned the car for four years, had my fun, and enjoyed it beyond belief. I have a chance to get most of the money I've put into this car back out of it, and it's one time where the amount of time spend in the car, vs. the amount of money invested, vs. the amount of money made in the sale works out to my favor. So, right now, where I am in my life, it's time. I've learned a lot in the 4.5 years I've owned it, and in my opinion, the Porsche experience has been the best of any brand I've had, and I've had many... 48 cars to date and the brand and the engineering just work for me, and in a big way. This was my first Porsche, but it will likely not be my last. Mike