I can not resist these.
If anyone has photos of the Team Deep Stream Car, please put link in comment or send them to mmcchesn@ford.com and I will post them.
The Lotus Eleven.
This car is not of this world.
Edgar Allen Poe said that perfection was not achievable in this life.
Well, either Colin Chapman and Frank Costin proved him wrong or they were from a higher place. Since Costin was no angel, we can rule out heavenly intervention. Yet, I still think that they didn’t belong here among us earthlings. The Eleven is virtually perfect, and perfection isn’t something we see here.
The first time I saw an Eleven in the flesh was at Mid-Ohio in 1988. I stood slack jawed as “Team Deep Steam” rounded the hairpin in what looked to be a highly polished UFO. I concluded that I had somehow stepped through a worm hole in Lexington Ohio when the Eleven seemed to levitate around the track.
Prior to this event I believed that Malcolm Sayer had a corner on liquid metal design, but here was a car whose fluid form upstaged even the great Jaguars of the ’50s. It moved like a flying saucer. After some thought, I determined that the round shapes peaking out from under the mercury skin were not wheels…
…they were landing gear.
My list of favorite cars may have no end, but it has to start somewhere. So here it starts…
The Triumph TR-4 is so brutally honest as to deserve a top spot on my list of great sports cars.
When I look at the pile of parts in my garage that is a ‘65 E-type and think that if I had just bought a running TR-4 twenty years ago instead of the Jag I could have been driving a classic. Instead, I’ve had the pleasure of looking a never ending pile of work for two decades.
I could have been happy with a TR-4.
The TR-4 is tough, masculine and unashamedly British. It is also a good car. It handles well and has plenty of power. It will drop its top when the sun is out, and assuming you’ve done the maintenance (Lucas elimination), it won’t let you down. Drive it, own it, and enjoy it while never having to worry about getting a door dent. Heck, a door ding may improve the image. You won’t look like you are trying to be cool, while effortlessly being so. A TR-4 says you have great taste but nothing to prove. Style without stigma. Pleasure without plastic. Perhaps no one will envy you (except me) but no one is going to think you are compensating.
IMHO upgrades should include a roll bar, Panasports, leather interior, a built motor and a canvas top. I’d go BRG insead of Red.
I got the following response via email from my brother-in-law Steve;
“Markus,
I have 5 kids and not a whole lot of money. What kind of car should I buy? Some kids say I look good in pink. I really want a sports car but not in love with them. Can you tell me how to put struts on a car? Should I really use a coil compressor or should I just use a blanket and be careful? Do you think I could do one side in 3 hours? If so, could I possibly do the other side in 1? I don’t have a steep learning curve.
Your loving brother in law
Steve”
My Sports Car pick for Steve is above.
Leah says you might want to buy the shoes below (Prada) to go with your new car… But I think you need a more sensible heal.
As a car designer I am frequently asked to give my advice about cars. Usually the requests have to do with buying a current production transportation appliance. The questions often resemble this, “I have 2 kids and a dog and not a lot of money, what should I buy, Fusion, Camry or Accord”?
Yawn.
But every once in a while someone has the good fortune/bad sense to be in the market for a sports car - a toy to own and drive for the joy of it. These cases get my undivided attention. It is a wonderful situation, similar to when, say, a woman in Macy’s asks my wife to help pick out dress shoes. It’s real good, you just roll in it.
When someone asks me about buying a sports car I am ready. I am Madden on football. I’m armed with overbearing opinion and endless stats. I will hit you with questions first, to set the boundaries. Will you race it? What is your taste, price range, national bias, personality type, mechanical aptitude, garage space? Certainly price sets the toughest limitation, but there is an enormous number of choices for new or classic sports cars for any price range. However, given a fixed set of objectives I believe that there is always one best car for any one person. I’ll formulate a perfect answer to your sports car need.
But here’s a secret. Want to be happy with a sports car? Then take my answer and toss it.
Don’t even pretend to buy a sports car for a rational or calculated reason. There are none. A Fusion is a much better choice than even the most practical sports car. And NEVER ever let someone else’s ideas (even mine) affect your decision. Buy a sports car because you absolutely love it. Buy it because it makes your mouth wet. Buy it because you’ve just gotta have it.
Look, ultimately the car is going to be a pain in the butt, no sense living with something that you will suffer with IF you don’t love it.
What would that be in womans shoes? Prada heels?
The Rumble Strip is hosted by Andrew Smith and Mark McChesney. Andrew is a Senior Marketing VP, I am an automotive styling designer. We are friends that share a common obsession with internal combustion. We have many other interests, but we will concentrate (or scatter) our prose on our passion for great automobiles - history, racing, design, marketing, leadership, personalities, and just about anything else that moves us on wheels, wings, or water.
My co-conspirator is a man of great intellect, wit and charm. Expect great things from Andrew. My contribution however, will likely be more ramble than rumble.
I am going to dive straight into the shallow end here and tell you what I have been doing for the past 2 weekends. I have been busting some knuckles.
I do not like to wrench on cars, I’d rather drive them, look at them, design them, critique them, wax them, anything but work on them. But necessity has a habit of producing a mechanic now and then.
Last weekend I replaced the front struts on my Gen 7 Civic (my beater/commuter/winter car err and summer/fall/spring car). I will talk more specifically about my choice to own this car at another time, but tonight is DIY report.
The strut issue seemed to start after I bought new tires at Discount Tire. A vibration had developed. I took it back and had the balance rechecked - they told me it was right. Instead of arguing I swallowed my pride and set my mind at figuring out what else may be wrong. I noticed that the wheel shook when I hit ruts or pot holes (Michigan). A check of the ball joints/tie rods showed them to be good. After some more deep thought I came to the conclusion that the problem was the struts.
This was a job that would have cost me $600 or more at the dealer. I paid $199 for the struts at Parts+ (net - fast shipping btw) and did job in an afternoon and learned some things - chiefly that I COULD do it myself. Struts are not as difficult as might be imagined. Advanced Auto has a great tutorial (I didn’t watch it = male ego). It only required a few hand tools (ratchet, torque wrench, 6 sided metric sockets, various swear words, a blanket, and a space heater). First side took 3 hours - mostly wasted looking for the right wrenches. Side two took an hour. Steep learning curve.
I did not use a coil spring compressor, that would would have taken an extra 5 minutes to go rent at AutoZone. I took the dangerous route, wrapping the removed strut assembly in the blanket to contain the recoil and undoing the top mount with one hand while covering my privates with the other. No damage done, but remember that there is a lot of energy in a spring. Do not be hasty - be careful. Do as I say not as I do and rent a strut compression tool.
The car is doing great now. I feel great for doing it myself, and my wife feels great that $400 was saved for doing better things.
Later that night, sporting my new found mechanical confidence, I tore into the front suspension of my son’s 1st Gen Miata. More on that tomorrow. - Mark
