Old Itch

I've got the itch to buy something old. I've been perusing Auto Trader, saw a few promising leads on eBay for a Karmann Ghia. I first stumbled upon these unique Volkswagens back in high school when the original plan was to find a reliable car for my sister, when the search turned into a personal quest, and the local paper yielded a one-of-kind example with a flat 6 stuffed in the back where the once mousy, air-cooled VW motor resided. The car was a perfect example of a wolf in sheep's clothing. The engine was sourced from a Chevrolet Corvair and had more than 3 times the power of the stock engine and at least that many multiples in the torque department.

Photo source: harrisburg.craigslist.org

The car was a blast to drive and in spite of the extra heft of the engine, it still handled well. Get aggressive on the gas and the clutch let you know it's doing double-duty with the smell which was a mix of burnt marshmallows and formaldehyde. Driving the car in the rain made for fun fishtailing and careful application of the clutch mixed with moderation of the brakes and inputs of counter-steering helped to keep this in check. The car is still in the family, but is about 15 years past due on a complete overhaul and restoration. As with most garage projects, it wasn't perfect to begin with and perhaps I could pay my brother visit to convince him that I can resurrect this fine car.

More to follow...

3-D Rd.

U23D is the theme today. The local IMAX theatre featured this excellent execution of a three-dimensional, sonic experience. The experience is well worth trying to beat the cut-off for a ticket release which for Bono and the boys would take only a few minutes, and unless you’re lucky enough to win the tickets from the local radio station, those tickets will guarantee you nosebleed status where everyone is reduced to G.I. Joe figure-sized icons and not the early large examples.

Photo from sacbee.com

What does U23D have to do with an automotive blog? Well nothing really until you experience the virtual concert. The opening song was “Vertigo” and this song has all the right mix of guitar riffs, fast beats, and lyrical genius to qualify it as a good song to blast while you’re attacking a curvy mountain road which brings us to our next topic…

Top 5 roads with the right mix of scenery and curves:
Being a California native this list is slightly slanted, but these are all stretches of pavement I’ve personally experienced:
5. California State Route 1, Shoreline Highway, between Jenner and Fort Ross State Historic Park- this stretch of road is about 5 miles long but there are enough switchbacks and coastal cliffs with spectacular views of the Pacific to make it on this prestigious list, plus this small section of road that redefines the term “hairpin”:

View Larger Map

4. Grizzly Peak Blvd, Orinda, CA- this windy stretch of road with the intimidating name (there have been no grizzly sightings in the Berkeley Hills since the 1860’s, no worries) bypasses the Caldecott Tunnel and affords some excellent views of Berkeley and the San Francisco Bay below.
3. Waimea Canyon Road, Kauai, Hawaii- this island gem descends down from one the wettest places on earth, Mount Wai’ale’ale, the road cuts through the midst of a huge 3000' deep canyon dubbed by Mark Twain as the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific”. Of course the road descends down to the shoreline affording great views of the canyon and the Pacific.
2. California State Route 330 (City Creek Road), San Bernardino Mountains- curves, breathtaking views , and a relatively high speed limit (55 MPH on most of the road) makes this 6% grade a fun road for canyon carving and also a great workout for those brakes.
1. South Grade Road, Palomar Mountain, California- this masterpiece nestled in the mountains north of San Diego redefines what a mountain road should be. There are plenty of twists and turns to make it worthy of a mystery novel. On a clear day there are views of the Pacific and with the great weather of the Southern California affords almost year-round enjoyment of this ultimate of mountain passes.

View Larger Map

Anyone have any other stretches of road to share?

Little Repair Shop of Horrors

In my short life I've heard one too many stories of people getting screwed by dealers and repair shops. In a recent experience a former coworker of mine took her car to the dealership to have her tire replaced. Total cost of repair was in the neighborhood of $300! I've had family members also report of similar fates when faced with dealers trying to up sell them on a tire replacement when they came in for a simple oil change. Personally, I've had my share of terrible service like the time I took my car in for a fender bender and the simple 5-day repair ended up taking twice as long. This facility was a recommended shop by my insurer and is not one I'd send my enemies to.



Can one avoid these nightmares disguised as businesses? Here are some simple rules of thumb:

1. Dealers thrive on lack of knowledge and will take any opportunity to sell you something you don't necessarily need. This overall theme spans from the showroom to the finance department and into the repair shop, and any hint of unpreparedness will guarantee an opportunity for them to pounce on you like a field mouse being swiped up by a barn owl. Bottom line: don't fall for their tricks and do your homework before stepping onto the car lot.
2. Car repair shops also rely on lack of expertise and will also take advantage of you when you're not looking. Avoid shops that look untidy or if the person running the establishment gives you the creeps. Bad vibes = bad repairs and huge headaches!
3. Get an educated opinion before you take your vehicle in for repair. If you know someone that knows enough about cars, let them look at the problem if it's not too much of a problem. Call them if you're stranded even. An easily-remedied dilemma such as a dead battery is simple to fix and can avoid having to be towed to a shop in the first place.
4. Do research before taking a car into the shop. If that check engine light came on it's usually an emissions related failure and some models are notorious for common problems. Go to forums such as Edmunds for some insight into your car's troubles. The fix could require only 5 minutes worth of labor, some basic hand tools, and could save you hundreds!

5. Get a recommendation before leaving for the shop. I know I shared my insurance horror story up above, but in spite of the delayed service, the repair was still done to my satisfaction. I took my Jeep to have a transmission rebuilt at a local shop and was fully satisfied with the experience, the maintenance tech even showed me the part that had failed, and I have since recommended this shop others and have not once received a call with bad news or someone cursing me.

Any of you have any horror stories to share?

Minty Fresh Headlights?

As promised I busted out the toothpaste and got polishing. When you think of toothpaste beyond the dentist-recommended two-minute routine of minty, circular motions, brushing teeth is essentially a form of polishing with a mild abrasive. The result is a clean, slick surface and fresh breath.

Before:


This is a headlight after 50,000 miles, the clear plastic covers oxidized and hazy (kinda like the sky over San Bernardino on a hot summer afternoon).



This 99 cent travel-sized Crest is good enough for at least 5 pairs of headlights. Apply the paste in small circles, let it dry to a haze (about a minute), and then clean off with a mild cleaner (such as a diluted solution of Simple Green). The whole process took less than 5 minutes.

After:


Like the miracle of an infomercial, the results are astounding! As you can see the headlight shows much brighter and perhaps the biggest return is the improved visibility.

Now get drivin'!!

Alfa-bet Soup

Alfa Romeo is coming back to America. What is an Alfa Romeo? Unless you've owned one or can recall the movie The Graduate where Dustin Hoffman's character drives a great example of the marque's design passion, a '66 Spider 1600, you may not be familiar with the Italian automaker. Alfa disappeared into obscurity, at least on our shores, back in the mid-90's, shortly after Renaults became rebadged Chryslers when Lee Iacocca took over Jeep and AMC back in 1987.

The model with all the buzz, and perhaps one of the most beautiful cars to ever be produced is the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, it will be hitting our shores this summer, and 90 lucky Americans will be driving this compact and curvaceous Italian GT coupe.



As you can see, this car, much like Maserati, which has also recently returned to our shores is looking to harness raw desire in anyone who has any resemblance of taste. It starts with the short overhangs both front and rear that make car the look like it's ready to attack the curves of a mountain road. The side glass with its single panel appears as if was guided by a French curve and several carefully-executed hours.

If you've got the lust for the 8C with a V8 originally sourced from the Ferrari Modena, and $250,000 burning a hole in your pocket, go and sign up for one. This is one Italian that will turn heads.

Stay tuned when I'll test toothpaste on my car in hopes of fighting that terrible gingivitis...

Intro to Car Point

I'm a self-confessed car nut. It started when I was 4 years old and spent much of my time sketching cars on a desk my father built from solid pine, sweat, and laquer so thick you could of swore there was a sheet of glass covering the piece of furniture. I've read about cars since I was 12 (that was about the same age I actually started to enjoy reading, as long as it wasn't of the assigned variety). Does all of this make me an expert? Not exactly, but like a sports buff who can spit out the ERA stats of the Yankees back in '81, I can tell you the performance numbers of almost every Porsche built since the brand's beginning. I don't work in the industry so my views aren't overly jaded, although I do have biases based on experience and observations while sitting in gridlock along the 91 freeway (a notoriously gridlocked freeway here in Southern California).

As for this blog, my purpose is to educate, test, rant, rave, enlighten, repair, explain, discuss, break, install, damage, and not all necessarily in that order, about the car itself, products used to fuel it, fill it, clean it, repair it, and outright improve it. Stay tuned...