gunat

I suppose- given that the car isn't a daily driver, i left it with him for 1 month- but i prefer not to rush the job as i want good work to be done...

I have a 1303 and i take it to a Baas in Mount- just off templers road. He does mechanical and body repairs- pretty decent. Contact: Premaratne 777 580 294 Good luck

Currently, 3M is easily available at any dealer/ detailing centre that carries the 3M logo (as far as i know). Just be really careful which one you get- there is an extensive range, and the one you want to get is the showroom finish ("quick" wax). Mothers, Meguires are not easily found in SL- most of them are personal one-time imports. Turtle Wax/Formula 1- any paint shop carries them! Also, it would be worth paying a visit to M.Maktoum (spelling?) on Union Place (not sure of the name, but its the only auto-paint mixing shop opposite of A*W...roughly)- and see what they have in stock...

Since you're looking for something mild that won't cut the paint: 1. The unfallable turtle wax- not the best on the market, but gives a polish that lasts about 2-4 weeks depending on the weather. 2. For a deeper, lustier shine- i've found that waxes that have "carnauba wax" as an ingredient- meguires, Mothers, Autoglym (very expensive!) work pretty well. 3. 3M Showroom Finish- i'm using this right now; and IMO, its a great wax that lasts long...no carnauba ingredients though.... good luck

To add to milinda's response- components like warranties and after sales services are not decided on a corporate level. ie. Ford does not dictate what mazda/jaguar/volvo etc must do entice customers. That decision is made entirely at a brand-level marketing/sales level. Each brand has their own strategy as to how they will attract customers. Having said that, how do two brands end up side by side? ( i take duncan's example of the Ford/Mazda pickups). Typically, this ends up being a dealer decision i'd say; its most likely cheaper/economical to carry both brands based on transport/logistics costs (especially if both vehicles come off the same production line from the factory...)

I've had 3 different owners (evo+SIRs) users tell me not to touch them- including one of the SL racing drivers. They're not suited to our roads, and unless you drive on smooth surface 100% of the time, the suspension takes a massive beating.

the Gold 996 was orginally brought by the owners of the the importing company at the time. Unusual colours- champagne gold with green leather seats....its a standard Carrera.... I've heard that there's a crashed 996 coupe that was brought to SL under somewhat scrupulous circumstances, and its sitting in a garage somewhere in colombo....where, of course...is the question.

Elcardo did my GT- i had them do it to original spec, with slightly more bass....decent. But...their finish is absolute crap- very shoddy and not up to spec in terms of overall visibility. I have yet to change, but i am going to go to sacha to get my next end-to-end system done. I've heard that tokimo is no longer as good- the customer service is crap, and the work is messy....

Eagle F1's, is what you're refering to, i suppose- i've not a single good thing about those tires; they wear unevenly, and wreak havoc on the suspension...

I, for one am willing to pay that extra to get the japanese tires, just because i feel i can be confident that the quality standards are strictly adhered to... All in all, if it a set of tires that your company is paying for, i wouldn't be too worried...so long as they're a decent set... For sure, they're good tires. Every OTHER size is available but my specific size...they even had 185/60 R14....but not 195....

Fuzzo, As its an automatic, its not surprising that the wear is high. When the car is brought to standstill, do you switch to neutral everytime? If no, thats one way of putting extra stress on the brakes. And town running in C'bo is the worst, given there so much stop/starting- it puts far more load on the brakes than long distance running... Case in point- we have an Escudo Auto, and that needs new pads every 30k or so... But one other thing to check is your disc rotors. It is possible that your front rotors have hairline cracks running from the inner to the outer diameter. Basically that means that the rotor is no longer smooth, and high friction leads to high pad wear. The crack should be visible by eye. Ideally, you should replace the rotor...or you'll endlessely go through pads. Good luck

yeah dude...they have 15"....but not 195/60 R14's....! My luck...

Note that Autodrome has stock of the Turanzas (japanese)- fantastic tires for comfort and performance, in wet or dry....my one reservation has been the high wear on the fronts....i think this is a inherent GT problem though...so i might actually resort to replacing with the same when the time comes i called SK munasinghe to see what range is available for the Dunlops- given my tire profile, the SP's aren't a fit- again, most of the high-performance segment tires like the potenza, advans, SP's are sub-60 profile.... SP's are great tires- i had 205/55 15's on a E30- brilliant traction, and since they were all-season tires, i actually used them through a New England winter without any issues. Yeah K, I was thinking of upgrading to 15"- and i still might, but i'm first seeing what options are there with the OEM size. Upsizing means budgeting about 60-70k...and budgeting that in is pretty crazy, considering that i'm probably going get Nadheera to do a full rebuild this summer....thats going to cost north of 100k...for sure... Launches? Me? You know Katu was the last time i'll try that stuff! Although, i managed to source a TRD clutch (not semi-comp though) from toyota lanka....and while clutch progression is only slightly different, the bite something else! Thanks for the suggestion- sadly, toyo's aren't in supply here in SL, unless some brave corner shop guy brings a few on personal import.... I too, am skeptical if the A539's are out of production yet- some yoko websites however, cite the C.Drive as the replacement for the 539....either way, the agent doesn't have any stock now... Yeah i remember those tires....was always shocked at the profile and whether they would survive SL roads...How's the comfort level D? I'm not too keen on loosing any tooth fillings man!

I guess i must watch that movie again.... I've got rendevous on my PC too...and there's always been a lot of discussion on this clip...mainly because its a one angle, single shot, single run video....how it could have been done without breaking several laws... Imagery is amzing and you can hear the beautiful sounds the ferrari engine makes through the streets of paris... On the following website http://www.rendezvousdvd.com/ "C'était un Rendezvous - The Legend You'd be hard-pressed to find a film as steeped in myth as "C'était un Rendezvous". Filmed in 1976 by seminal French director Claude Lelouch it is regarded as the ultimate in cinema verité. For many years it has been enjoyed as an almost Masonic secret among car enthusiasts. Whisper the words "Have you seen Rendezvous?" and you'll receive either a knowing, "No, but I've heard it's unbelievable" or a smug, "It is un-be-lieve-able". Lack of distribution has only fuelled the myths surrounding the film. Was Lelouch really arrested when it was first shown? Who drove the car? Was it Lelouch or a hired Formula One driver? What was the car? Was it really a Ferrari 275 GTB? How did he do it? A composite version of the rumours/myths (garnered verbally and from the web) would read something like this ; Lelouch had made enough money from his classic "Un Homme et une Femme" to buy himself a Ferrari, which he proceeded to drive with "enthusiasm" in his native Paris. Whilst shooting another film, a new bit of equipment was being used - a gyro stabilised camera mount. Lelouch then came up with the idea for "C'était un Rendezvous". The camera used only had a ten minute film magazine - hence the mad dash to the steps of the Basilique du Sacre Couér in Montmatre. On first showing, Lelouch was supposedly arrested. In his defence, he proclaimed he had taken all possible precautions. This included convincing a Formula One driver to helm the car (he refused to name him). Subsequently the film went underground - occasionally shown in front of a Lelouch full-length feature on theatrical release. Outside of this, only poor quality pirate copies on VHS or a badly worn print were available. These would be played at car club meetings and slowly the film attained its mythical status with the arrival of the internet helping to spread the word. What we do know is that there are no special effects or speeding up the film - Lelouch simply mounted the camera on the front of the car and shot it. This is what separates "C'était un Rendezvous" from all other films - it's "verité". Today, the audience walks into a movie, safe in the knowledge of computer-generated special effects or a production where there's enough money to block off streets and control the traffic. Lelouch had none of this. Richard Symons, a documentary film maker, with more than a passing interest in fast cars came to hear of it and managed to acquire a very poor 2nd generation VHS copy. He wasn't disappointed.... "I'd never seen anything like it, 9 minutes of adrenalin that simply leaves your jaw on the floor. To cut a long story short, we got in touch with the director, dusted down the 35mm negative, restored and re-mastered it for re-release - we've brought out all the details and colours and it looks stunning." "C'était un Rendezvous" has come to represent something more than an adrenalin rush. It uniquely captures a time and a spirit that seems a long way away from today. Lelouchs' brilliant ending only adds to this - making a beautiful sense out of the preceding nine minutes."

Funny to see the list, because I had a few "oh yeah...!" moments thinking about the listed movies... Can't agree with the #1 Car chase, because i think Ronin along with the original Italian Job have the kudos... Top 20 Car Chases

Guys.... FYI for those of you who might be interested. I called UniMo, and got the details.. The A539 is now out of production and has been replaced by the not-so-funky C-drive, which although is assymetrical, is not much to look at. The going price is north of 10k, so its more expensive than the japanese BG turanza's.... The much loved ES-100 Advans don't come in my tire size, but are are roughly 14k a peice....great tire, i'm told by one of our Racing colleagues, but high wear....surprising, considering that Max finds them long lasting.... Research on the net has also seen one other tire popping up regularly. (surprisingly) Kumho- normally i'd be like "cheap sh*t"....but that was until a friend with a S2000 totally vouches for the ECSTAs he's installed to the rears... Sadly i don't think we get the performance range here in SL- might be a more reasonable option....

Vishiz...i hope you sourced them locally!

Max, if you don't mind my asking- where'd you get the tires, and how much?? thanks! v PS- Pirelli is a great tire, from what i've read but not the tire for tropical environments...given that they're italian and primarily made for (european) continental driving

Thanks Man... What i'm hoping is that these guys actually carry a decent range of tires, apart from the standard passenger car tire, which is what i'm not looking for... Will pay them a visit one of these days and see what's available... cheers

Hey Guys, Looks like i'm due for a new set of tires in about 1-2 months... Currently i'm running on Japanese BG's Turanza directionals 195/60 R14... While they were great tires, i've found the compound a little soft, and the front tire wear on the GT has been quite excessive... I know that UniMo has started the agency for Yoko's in SL- does anyone have experience buying semi-performance tires from them? If anyone has suggestions for other alternate (good) tires for a semi-performance car...pls add... cheers v

Close- Volvo is owned by another one of the "Big 3"....Ford... www.ford.com- the initial page actually shows off which brands fall under the ford hammer...

I can't agree with that statement- Saabs are engineered with a clinical elegance that very few auto-manufacturers can rival (anyone who's driven one/been in one might agree). Best way to find out is the do a net search on reviews by Brit/US magazines on any Saab- while not perfect, there is always a positive aspect to the cars design and performance. We have Saab to thank for one major engineering feat: Turbocharging petrol sedan cars(!!!) As early as 1981, the Saab 99 Turbo was the first incursion of TC'ing in a 4 door car...we could possibly call it the grand-uncle to the Rex's and Evo's of today.... There's one Saab in SL that i know of- its a 1988 9000 turbo- driven overland from Kuwait in 1990 as the gulf war broke out- it made it all the way to India, i believe, before being shipped over to SL. Saab is now part of the GM group, and shares some of the platform and underpinnings with the Opel/Vauxhall/GM cars...

Merc has done it again...battling it out in the unofficial Horsepower wars...they've got AMG to shoehorn another maniacal engine into the new S class... 0-100 in 4.4 seconds! AMG S65 Biturbo

True, true...badge engineering...even the Integra comes with an Acura badge...sigh. Lets not even bother with Infiniti, Scion, and the one that started it all- Lexus! Shelby GT500 eh andy?.....let me guess- you were sold just on that one car chase scene in "Gone in 60 s..." - i'd have to say that's one sexy car man....eleanor, was the name i think....

Granted...the Americans think they're on Plant America....anything "international" for a resident is anything outside their state- they're not even thinking borders...go figure! One thing though- the NSX was 100% japanese designed and built (they even flew Aryton Senna to Japan for the testing!)- but at the same time, it was one of few Japanese Sports cars that were legally allowed into the US...the only others being the 300zx; and Supra. This was in the 90's- when the NSX was at its peak... It blew away the American motoring industry because it was first time VTEC was introduced to that market...coupled with a mid-engine, aluminium frame concept...and given that this all happened in around '91-92...it was considered way ahead of its time.... But, the americans do come through once in a while- like the 1960's Ford GT40; but even then, the only way they could recreate that kind of car was to just come up with a modern interpretation of the same car!