NB4C

To each his own. The plus of an N/A V8 is its sounds - it's an earth shaking rumble, but they're very peaky engines with peak torque at ~5000 RPM, it takes time to rev there. I prefer torquey so it's the 6T for me, and it only takes a $300 exhaust mod to improve the sound.

Now that's one nutcase convertible. I'd love to see that thing fly down a drag strip or even see how it takes corners

I can understand how you feel Maximus. I think almost everyone has been affected directly or indirectly by mental health. Back in high school, a friend of mine had really dark thoughts about self harm. Fortunately he got over it within a year, it was a major relief for us all.

Someone asked for pics ?

"We need to keep that money here in Australia. You can keep the money in Australia by spend- ing it at garage sales, going to a cricket match or footy game, or spend it on prostitutes, beer and wine (domestic ONLY), or tattoos, since those are the only businesses that may still be owned by Aussies." Well, at least there's an excuse to visit a hooker now ... "it's called being AUSTRALIAN"

Wasn't there a dude on this forum who confessed to getting blown while driving a ute ?

A bang for buck performance car sure has it's issues At least it's still more reliable than an Alfa.

If I could have my own way with number plates I'd do cream white on pale yellow, ultra low contrast makes it harder for cams to read at night.

I've heard stories about a wanker in my area who does the 'circum-navigator' (cuts around the entire car) on premium new cars parked on the street. I agree, these people deserve to be shot.

This is worthy of Darwin Awards.

If quarter mile times aren't what you're about, then there's no need for the F6 or a modded XR6T. The stock XR6T can generate about 0.7Gs of acceleration on take off. Good enough for street thrashing considering the Draconian speed laws that are in place. Spend 47K on the T and 20K for a nice holiday and make the missus forget about your big spend.

I would have initially guessed 200 kg for a 4L engine, now I'm guessing 100kg. It's really hard to tell unless you weigh the block. Did those guys strain much ? A big adult weighing 100 kg could probably lift 70 kg from an uncomfortable position and 200 kg all out in an ideal position at a gym.

Now that quarter mile time officially smokes the Bugatti Veyron. Good job. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bugatti_veyron#Acceleration

You can get plenty of that in Kings Cross area, some will do it for < $50. Jokes aside, have fun in Sydney, HS.

Yeah, Senna - that puts things into perspective. I know that Al. has a density of 2700kg/m^3 and cast iron is 7800kg/m^3, so the Al. block should have a significant weight advantage (should be a lot more than the 15-20kg Venom quoted). It explains why a Corvette Z06 can hold a massive 7L V8 in the front, and still handle well.

Thanks for the tips guys I've had a thought about it and my original design was just too wide and difficult (although the wide platter would've looked awesome). I've decided to change it to 130 x 130 x 120 mm (40 layers of 25 coins) - much more compact. I'll use maple wood for the base and one wall, and use a sheet of folded acrylic for the other 3 walls.

Hey Guys, I want to set myself a task, collect a $1 Australian coin every day for 1000 days. It's to remind me that each day is precious and that I should make the most of each day. I'll need a display box to hold them. The interior dimensions need to be: 260mm wide x 260mm long x 40mm high I'd like all side faces and the lid to be transparent, base doesn't have to be transparent. Any ideas on where I can buy or how I can build such a box ? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I was thinking of a wooden base with clear acrylic walls and a massive acrylic lid, but there could be better designs. Cheers.

Thanks for the heads, I too had a habit of occasionally doing full throttle overtaking, because back when I was driving my dad's Camry - it was absolutely necessary. With my '06 XT, it would be a bit reckless. On day 1, I got tail gated on my way out of a roundabout - so I floored it and went from 20-80 in 3 seconds ... way more than I expected from a 9 grand car from pickles. Lets hope I can keep my license after I buy a T.

Cast Iron: Pros: Wear resistance / Longer lifespan More resistance to overheating Cheaper Cons: Heavy Harder to cool Takes longer to heat up to operating temp (takes 20 minutes on a 15 degree day) - causes the engine to use more fuel when cold. Aluminium Pros: LIGHT WEIGHT Conducts heat very well - easier to cool Heats up to operating temp quickly - reduces overall fuel consumption Cons: Less resistance / Shorter lifespan Overheating damages it much faster More expensive --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ford's been using cast iron engines in their Falcons (and even the 2010 Shelby GT500 ). If Ford used Al. block engines in their falcons, you'd end up with a lighter / more efficient / faster accelerating vehicle. But I guess what's stopping Ford is the cost. I know GM used Al. in their new V8 engine blocks. What are your thoughts ? How much lighter would the Falcon be with an Aluminium 4L Barra engine ?

ROFL. My friends define binge drinking as when someone pukes, passes out, pisses himself or all 3. Even a 16 year old kid could take 4 standard drinks without any dramas. Seriously, if Rudd wants to control drinking, he should issue an "alcohol card" to everyone over 18. Every purchase at a bar would require the card to be scanned, subtracting drinks off the daily quota. A good limit would be say, 12 standard drinks every 24 hours. 8 beers - in my opinion that's more than enough. I know there are ways around it, but generally, it'd mean less drunken behaviour on our streets.

Track car: Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

Not good news but not the end of the world. I only go out drinking 1-2 times a fortnight, and do ~5 drinks each time. Plus I don't smoke. But I don't agree with this taxing mayhem. Rudd is taxing industry for emitting CO2, it cuts profits and actually makes it even harder for them to research and invest in cleaner technologies. You know what, humans breathe and emit CO2, lets tax humans for breathing.

Yeah, I didn't think it was likely to be that cheap. The RS has the agility of a mongoose - a match for the Evo. But don't underestimate the Mazda3 MPS, my friend works for Mazda and said that thing beat the WRX STI and EVO in a recent rally championship. I find the quoted 0-100 time of 5.9s was a bit underwhelming for the RS (compared to Evo 5.4s / 3MPS 5.6s) , I know it'll make up for it with insane lap times, but I still like my straight line punch.

Toyota once made some nice tuneable performance cars in the 90s - supra, MR and Celica. Only problem is, Toyota is too desperate to bail when certain models start returning less profit than expected. They prefer bread and butter cars (I.e. Camry and Corolla). I hope the new RS retails for under 40K (maybe not likely): (1) It needs to be competitive with the Mazda3 MPS (42K) (2) 45K can buy an XR6T, I'd feel ripped off if I didn't take the larger and more luxurious car for similar money.

An Old Beetle Car Station Wagon vs Camaro Smart Car vs Ferrari Station Wagon vs Pontiac GTO