This morning, a BMW somehow managed to flip over at a 4-way intersection in front of my office.  It was loud enough that I decided to go out on a coffee break, and am astounded at California drivers.

This intersection isn’t anything groundbreakingly difficult to get around in, it’s just 2 lanes of traffic in every direction, with some lights to tell people when they should go or stop.  I’ve seen a lot of really stupid things happen here, from horrid drivers to worse pedestrians to homeless people singing to UPS drop-boxes, but this tops it off.  California licenses should not be valid in other states.

If you’re ever in Oakland, and are up for a challenge, try driving South on Broadway and turning right so you’re headed West on Grand.  Apparently it’s spectacularly hard to pull off.

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courtesy of ~anuradha

“Rice Racer” or “Rice Burner” is a commonly-used derogatory term for automobiles. I consider RICE to be an anagram for “Race Inspired Cosmetic Enhancements“. If you toss a body kit on your car for purely cosmetic reasons, it’s likely that you suffer from Rice. It’s an epidemic. There are varying degrees of rice, and some aspects are open for interpretation. Clear corner lights and altezza headlight/taillight combos are common disputes on automotive forums.

This car is essentially the epitome of rice racer. It has a massive fart can, is lowered too much, the wheels are too tall and not wide enough for the car, the body kit scrapes the ground on turns, the paint job cost more than the car, and the driver has no idea what he’s doing (throttle control would be a good thing):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bml8DONNSCo

Now, I don’t have a problem with making a car look terrible and not gaining performance. What bothers me is the fact that many “rice” modifications are actually dangerous.

My own CRX had clear corners, clear bumper lights, a nasty hairball of stereo wiring, a red-themed engine bay, and cut springs that didn’t fill the strut perches. My big issue is the cut springs. Everything else is physically harmless, but incorrectly cut springs destroy the travel of the car’s suspension, making it skittish and unpredictable. If the car were to go over a bump at a speed high enough to decompress the spring, it could easily wiggle off its perch and suddenly one corner of the car has no suspension. Also, the camber wear on the tires was bordering suicide, especially because the tire would regularly rub against the inner fender well. All around, a horrible idea for any car.

Rice Cop has a wide selection of tickets with the intention that you will print them out and distribute them as needed. Some of the user tickets are especially creative, and you’re encouraged to create and submit your own as well.

Unfortunately, this seems to be an incurable disease. Try not to make fun of them too much, but instead educate them on how cars actually work. If they want a car that looks fast, at least give it the ability to go fast, and don’t endanger everyone else on the road while doing it.

Possible Craigslist posting idea for the previous owner:

Previous owner was a smoker
Custom lowering kit (could use a camber kit)
NO RUST!
Extremely clear windows (but don’t touch them!)
Great ventilation (see above)
Gaza-theme custom camo paint job
Some assembly required, batteries not included.

I was riding my bike this weekend when this Impreza caught my eye just down the street from my house.  It looks like a fairly run-of-the-mill Impreza or WRX but it’s kind of difficult to identify after the engine and glass have mostly melted away.

I wonder what the story behind this is.  The front-end damage definitely suggests a crash, and the entire interior is completely roasted.  The driver’s seat frame either melted, or the seat was removed.  Even the aluminum engine is melted and drooping.  Someone pried the trunk open, possibly removing the dead bodies or trying to save their stereo system.  It was just off 580, so it’s entirely possible that an engine fire started on the freeway and the driver pulled off at the next ramp and bailed out as flames consumed the car.  It could also have been stolen and torched to destroy evidence.  Maybe it was even an insurance fraud attempt?  I can only guess.  What’s your take?

In any event, it made for some good pictures!

By now I hope you’ve read the feature on Yuta Akashi’s 240z over at MotorMavens.  If not, go ahead.  I’ll wait here.

It’s been kicking around the ‘net quite a bit lately, and has received overwhelmingly positive reviews.  It is my least favorite car I have ever liked.  I need to qualify exactly what that means.  I love the rawness of Yuta’s work.  He has a purpose, and does everything he can to get there.  Nothing will stop him, and most of all he doesn’t get hung up on details.

On the Street

As a daily driver, this is a terrible car.  Yuta stretched and slammed it, which immediately takes it down a few notches as a streetable machine.  It’s nearly on the ground, and he can’t even leave the front bumper on when driving through unfamiliar territory.  It does still have the ever-simple l24 engine with round-top SU carburettors as a redeeming point.  Because of that, it’ll never run perfectly but you can pretty much guarantee that it’ll always run no matter what.

On the Track

As a track car, the same things hold it back.  The engine does not perform well under hard turning, suffering from oil and fuel delivery problems.

On paper

Cosmetically, it’s about perfect.  It’s a gorgeous visualization of Yuta’s priorities.  He wanted it low, wide, and straight and it’s beautiful.  I’m not a fan of form before function, but when someone really nails the form with no holds barred I can’t help but respect it for that.

This meet was a whopping success, with a great turnout of cars, killer people, and bbq that kept everybody coming back for more!  I co-hosted this meet with Gollum from HybridZ, and wanted to wait for some pictures to start rolling in before posting anything here.

Some of these cars are obviously driven daily, used and abused, and all the more beautiful for it.  There was a nice sprinkling of rust, worn interiors, missing dashes, and tires reaching the end of their roads here.  This was exactly what I was hoping to see, I just hate when automotive enthusiasts feel too embarrassed to bring their car to a meet because it isn’t “clean” enough.  I say any car that runs and is fun to be behind the wheel of is good enough to bring out and introduce to the other cars.  It’s also a good way to get feedback and recommendations as to how to go about fixing the small issues that do exist.

We missed Craig in his v8 Scarab at the last meet, but finally got to see him this time.  The amount of documentation that came along with this car is quite literally staggering.  From the exhaust layout diagram to the original paint code, it’s all there on paper.  A Scarab s30 is a very special beast, since it’s one of the first designs to put a Small Block Chevy v8 (which really isn’t small at all) into a Datsun s30 chassis.  Realistically, the documentation is worth more than the performance gain and this car is a thing of beauty.  It gives off an aura of history and class that’s very difficult to match.

Some unexpected (but very welcome) visitors showed up in Mini’s!  These two little cars are superb examples of what a Mini should look like, and although I didn’t get to go for a ride in either, I’m certain that they run like they’re on rails.  Seeing the owners hop up and down on the front end barely moves the suspension, a strong indication that whenever they’re driven, they’re really DRIVEN.  I absolutely cannot get over just how small these cars are, the engines and alternators look almost like toys that you’d give to a child to learn the basics of turning plastic wrenches on plastic bolts.  These two machines are pretty serious about what they do though, and I’m sure they’re just a blast to drive around in.

Although I always love seeing well-built Z-cars (especially those with LS1′s installed), the diversity of cars at this meet really won me over.  A couple Toyotas, a Mitsubishi, the Minis, a motorcycle, and even an S13 came.  You’re certainly invited to head on over to the photo gallery and see some of the incredible cars that showed up.   Keep your eyes peeled for event hosting tips, we made a few mistakes with this one that I don’t intend to repeat.  I’ll go over the pro’s and con’s of how it was handled and organized, and go over what we could have done to make it even better.  With some effort, you could become the host of a local meet in your own area, or help to better organize a meet that’s already established.

Courtesy of michaelwhays

I’m hopping on a plane today to begin my vacation from California to visit friends and family that I haven’t seen in far too long.  I have content scheduled to fill the time I’m gone, and will hopefully have some parts for the s30 when I return.  Wish my sister a happy graduation, my best friend a splended wedding, and wish that all the foods I’ve been missing make their way into my gullet (save Lee Circle Grocery, the producer of the most artistically masterful burgers on the face of the planet… they’re rebuilding).

In case you hadn’t heard already, Cash for Clunkers has passed House.  The important thing to note is that any vehicle less than 25 years old but manufactured before 2001 is elegible.  As of today, that means this bill won’t be taking any vehicles older than 1984 off the road.  As far as I’m concerned, that’s a win.  We won’t be losing any “classics”, but you might want to stock up on what will soon become Japanese Nostalgic cars, like the Honda CRX or older Mazda RX-7′s.

If you’re looking for some related reading, either google it or read through these articles:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2009-05-11-chrysler-gm-cash-clunkers_N.htm

http://www.carthrottle.com/just-in-cash-for-clunkers-passes-house/

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31183767/

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0609/23550.html

http://jalopnik.com/5285833/a-guide-to-the-cash-for-clunkers-bill

I hosted a SF Bay Area meet recently, and we had a superb low-key high-quality turnout.  We had Toyota, Datsuns, and Nissans representing the potential for each type of vehicle.  The BBQ was great, the people were great, and the views were amazing.

Unfortunately, Lake Anza is a bit bigger than I had expected and we completely missed Craig (poor guy was driving all around the dirt roads up there trying to find us).  The next meet will be in Orinda, where our last Zcar meet was.  Everyone is invited, and I’m expecting to see a lot more classic cars in addition to the Japanese cars.

I’ll post more pictures as I receive them, and look forward to seeing even more of you at our next meet!