GTAm

Some news on that. Looks like there is some progress. http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2013/1305_bmw_toyota_sports_car_taking_shape/

Suzuki is on death watch by auto industry analysts. The US pull out is to save money. They are alive only because they are so dominant in India. They desperately need to tie up with a larger manufacturer if they wish to survive. VW owns 20% in Suzuki but they have been at war with each other recently. That 20% stake is a stumbling block for another manufacturer to approach Suzuki. It's simply a matter of time before someone swallows them up. They have a very strong brand image in Asia so would make a perfect partner for a company that's weak in the region.

Yes he is refering to City cars or City Sedans. Handling is definitely not the right word. Responsiveness and Agility are also terms asscociated with sporting cars and are parameters of driver enjoyment which again links it to "driver's cars". I guess what Uditha is looking for is "ease of use in the city", "highly manourvarable with excellent visibility". A car even an unskilled (or less skilled) driver can manage to manouver around with little effort and no stress. These are typically chosen by women and men whose driving ability is well below average, which is the majority on our roads I am convinced. I recall an example when I replaced a Sunny FB15 with a Mazda BJ5 for the accountant after the first day of use he asked me if the power steering was working properly because the Mazda's steering was significantly weightier than the Nissan's . I owned a BMW E36 at that time and I told him that if he drove it he would say that it did not have power steering. There are 40 employees working in the office I am attached to right now mostly males. Recently as I was extremely tied up with work I asked EVERYONE who uses a car if they could take my car (Alfa 159) and go to Cinnamon Lakeside (our office is at Nawam Mw) and pick up something. EVERYONE refused because the car was manual! That's a small sample of the scale of (in)competence on our roads. There is a colleague of mine for whom reversing is the hardest thing in life despite owning and driving cars for the last 15 years!

True. Actually even the W123 is a doddle to drive.

CJ5, Morris Minor?? Really? I have had just one single experience of driving one and did not enjoy it at all. First I did not seem to fit properly behind the wheel, the seat would not go back. Then the steering wheel itself felt very high and in my chest. The steering was heavy and I struggled to get upto speed, the gearbox was very notchy. I don't know maybe I drove a bad car

Actually almost every modern average (non-high performance - I'm talking Corolla, Civic etc) Japanese car feels like a toy to handle if you are coming from something like a BMW for example.

The US one is decent looking. Looks a bit Dodge Dart inspired which is a good thing. The Japanese one looks horrid to me. Yuck!

Fiat Panda 45 that my father owned briefly. Like a very comfy Mini. And it was an auto as well.

Not sure why I'm unable to post full size pics. I recall being able to do it long before.

Maybe, and maybe not

That depends on how good or bad the body is and will vary from tinker to tinker. Some of the best guys are very expensive. It's best to get recommendations based on previous work done and ask for a quote from a few and compare. Can you show us some close up pics?

Good man!

Everyone calls it Browny but it's actually "Brawny". Our company had one several years ago for goods delivery and it had a very poor record with us and we had to rebuild the engine twice. The 3rd time we bought a replacement used engine. We bought it unreg. I think it was a 2200. Not sure if it was just that our particular example was poor or it was that the engine did not have enough torque to carry the prescribed payload and the weight of it. We had 3 Bongos before that (in a row) and they were bullet proof workhorses. That's said the Brawny created one unforgettable if scary memory for me. Me and 6 of my buddies went on a incredible trip in it to Trinco during the war days but for that Avurudu week there was an uneasy cease fire. On a particular stretch near Dambulla one of our hot headed guys insisted on "taking the wheel" and scared us white when he did an indicated 140km/h and the road wasn't deserted as such. I thought we would get airborne but because it was 7 guys the weight just kept in down I guess. He's one of those "senses off" guys who has no clue about a vehicles' limit. Needless to say that was the last time I gave him "the wheel".

Kinky Chinqui?

Wide body yes. Stripes no. At least not yet....

If it were my choice I would save the money for now and upgrade the wheels to the next size up when tyres need replacement. That will do to the car what no colour can.

That's absolutely not true I can assure you. Nothing has been finalised yet.

Exciting project no doubt. But I hope you know how "not easy" it is going to be. Your idea is quite vague. You really need to start with what kind of car you are looking for - the end result. Simply slotting a Jap turbo engine into an Escort can give you an ill-handling car at best or an undrivable car at worst, which either way will be a lot of wasted time and money. You need to find an engine that weighs similar and is located similar. For the increased power you need to beef up everything - brakes, sus and so many other things. "Power is nothing without control" I think you really need to go onto some specialist fast Ford forums (google is everyone's friend ) where people have successfully done this kind of thing and learn. Your post above only indicates to me (and I could be wrong - but it's incredibly brief and vague to take very seriously) that you have no idea and are just at dream stage. In my opinion restoring an old car to original spec is one of the hardest tasks in Sri Lanka. Swapping an unrelated engine will only add to it. If you want more performance from an 'Scort you need to consider the following first. 1. What's the maximum I can get out of massaging the current engine - Most practical and retains the originality 2. Swap the engine with a bigger/more powerful engine that appeared in the model. - That's what most people are doing and for good reasons. After you have detemined that these routes are not enough for your Godzilla slaying Escort, only then you should consider a turbo Japanese engine swap provided you know the level of mods, work and money involved and realise how easily things can go wrong.

I know of an orange one which just got a 1.6 Pinto planted........on Wednesday.

Ideal setting for a horror movie I would say......

I must say I was initially very skeptical about Tesla. However some years ago I read a story in CAR magazine and was impressed although still there was some skepticism. Looks like they're finally taking off. I'm quite impressed. I don't think things would have come this far if not for Obama.

Colombo - worse than Bangkok with all their traffic jams? That's scary!

Those were the sleepy days at the Scuderia (and Ferrari itself) MD before LDM was given the reigns. Under his stewardship it's hard to imagine SF not being a front runner. The scary thing is that he's now 66 years old.....Although he still looks good . Yes Soichiro was a guy with a passion for motorsport. That was the winning ingredient back then and of course there was the rest of the dream team.

Went to see the Hellboy yesterday. Very little progress since my last visit. However work on the outer side sills have begun. Here's a pic of the left outer sill still being placed and aligned with the doors. This is an example of what sets this guy apart from your average metal worker. This is lower part of the rear door aperture. This panel is curved and arced in many directions. But he has manged to make a brand new one. And judging by his previous work I know the doors will fit perfectly. This the lower part of a door. You can see how tacky the previous repair has been. Whoever who did it is either incompetent or a cheat. Or both.