scathing

Yeah, I'll pay that. Holden worked long and hard to give their small / medium car range a dose of quality and respectability by using Euro cars (your average Astra is built pretty well and appointed, considering the price point)....and now they're just going to piss it away by using Daewoos. While these stunning one-offs are always good for brand image, what people see most about your brand are the cars on the street. So you can build the most gorgeous looking street machine that can't be driven at more than 15km/hr (not that you would, since the car's 22mm off the ground and the HVAC probably doesn't work) but when you're stuck in peak hour traffic and eveyone sees something that, at first glance, you swore was a Lacetti or some other stupidly-named car......

Lower profile wheels will reduce sidewall flex, which helps to improve turn-in and feel. It won't necessarily improve traction, as the lack of deformity means you also don't get an increase in contact patch size as you load the tyre up. Because of that, it may actually decrease grip, although you'll really only notice it at the limit. The lack of compliance will also affect your car's handling negatively on less-than-perfect surfaces, as well as increasing the risk of damaging a rim. As Duncan pointed out to me when I had brain fade on another forum, wider rubber doesn't necessarily mean more grip. For the same car (same weight etc) and the tyres at the same pressure, the contact patch is the same size regardless of how wide your tyres are. What does change is your track, which can improve handling. I believe that wider rubber is also more susceptible to tramlining. The optimal width depends on a variety of factors. Wider rubber is great in high grip conditions, but you want narrower tyres in low grip. Having wide rubber tends to increase the possibility of aquaplaning.

That thing looks like your classic street machine. Unlike when the Commodore Coupe was unveiled, this thing just looks horn. If they build it in a similar design to that (even without the supercharger, but it has to be a V8) at a price I could afford, I'd consider trading in the Nissan for one..... Unlike the new Mini, new Beetle, and most of those Yank vehicles, this is one "retro" design that I really like.

I like the FTO. I've come close a couple of times to buying one. For what it is (a hot looking FWD hatchback) it does a very good job. The "poor man's Integra" is unfair. The only reason its "poor" is because its a grey import, so the car is second hand and doesn't have the OEM markup that comes with a locally delivered model. If ITRs were only available as grey imports as well, they'd probably get referred to the "boring brother of the FTO". In Japan, the GP Version R goes toe to toe with its similarly "limited edition" rival, the Integra Type-R. The GPX does a great job against the Integra VTiR, and the GP would also have a good showing against the GSi (bear in mind that the FTO was built in the DC2 days when comparing models). The cars handle well, for a front driver of that age. Its "setup" is similar to the DC2R (lightweight FWD coupe, revvy engine, LSD) and I believe it has won a Japan Car of the Year award.

Saw one on sale in Drive last week, actually. FWD turbo "sports cars" aren't my cup of tea, but they definitely look different.

What's the tyre life on the T1R like?

Your naivety is so cute. The cops can still hand you a defect notice regardless of if you have an engineering certificate or not. People seem to forget that what the cops issue is not an authoritive ruling that your car is not legal - its just that they suspect that the car may not be, and they would like someone to go check. With an engineer's certificate they're less likely to hand you one, especially if you're being polite, but give them reason enough and they'll just write on the notice that they suspect your parts have been modified beyond the scope of what was certified originally (and, don't forget, they only have to "suspect" that its not compliant), or they've degraded since the signatory saw them (just like defecting a dead stock car) and chances are the notice will stick. Of course, if you really give them attitude they could always "suspect you of doing burnouts", and under the burnout law (which requires no proof, just suspicion) they can impound your car instead of letting you drive it home.

$400 would buy springs, or most of the way to a set of swaybars. Better tyres aren't banned under the new laws (although on 18" you'd be lucky to get one semi-decent tyre), and a set of decent sports brake pads are available. What kind of tyres are you running? How are your brakes going? Who said anything about turbo'ing your R33? There's more to performance than going fast; all the Jap import guys get all snotty over bogans with the fact that their cars stop and handle better than some Falcodore. Why not improve on a good thing? Or, since you're planning on getting rid of the car and buying another one as soon as you can...you could just stick the money in the bank or spend it on stuff that has a higher return. Mods don't really increase the value of the car, and getting rid of them on the second hand market won't see you get too much back. You could also do an advanced driver training course every year and / or a couple of track days, to learn more skills and to keep them sharp. But, as I said, it depends on what your priorities are. If you're after something to work on the driving craft rather than something to be seen in, there's still plenty you could do to make your car go quicker point to point without violating the law. New suspension, new brakes, grippier tyres and weight reduction don't "modify engine performance", and its always a good feeling to outrun someone with more power than you.

Don't shoot during the day. Narrow alleys tend to only be in built up areas, so you won't find too many during the day that don't have a fair amount of throughput. Unless you can get your camera etc set up quickly and reel off your shots, you'll be holding up traffic.

Definite maybe.

Anything's worth what you're willing to pay for it. The only waste of $400 a year bigger than plates with some pithy (pseudo-)word would be if I just went to a bank, withdrew $400 in 5c pieces, let the bank take their handling fee, and then poured the difference down a drain. If it were a one-off cost, maybe....but I'm not going to pay upkeep on something as useless as a license plate. $400 a year would pay for a Comp-R semi-slick with some change, or maybe 2 street tyres, or bits and pieces for my car, or any range of stuff that would have a tangible benefit to the way my vehicle performs. But, that's just my thoughts and my priorities (which you asked for, before all the vanity plate fans tell me to STFU). If you feel that your automotive goals aren't complete unless your car has a thin sheet of metal screwed to the bumpers of your car, with up to 6 alphanumeric characters that you'll never see while operating said vehicle and enjoying your apparent sports car the way the manufacturer intended, then by all means go ahead. Given your limited budget, you can't afford to modify it with all the performance parts you want and a set of vanity plates, you just need to decide what part of the automotive experience is more important to you....

The best shot I've seen has been in Pitt Street Mall. Can't find the photo now, but its from the southern entrance. Technically that spot is an access area to the Centrepoint carpark, but you'd be hard pressed driving your car through there during the day. But underground carparks are good. So are narrow alleys in the city. Under the bridge (on either side of the harbour) can also get you some good shots.

They got replaced by the DZ101s, which a couple of people (me included) have used and been similarly impressed with them. Too bad Dunlop's getting rid of the DZ101's too, and not replacing them with another series.

Here's Dan Rutter's comments on acetone additives. Dan's no automotive engineer but he is technically minded, tends to do a bit of research based on scientific first principles, and has a pretty good bullshit detector. That last link seems to be from an actual automotive engineer, and makes for interesting reading.

That said, I know people that have made claims with cars that had turbo timers. Not sure if it was on the policy, but their cars are back on the road and they didn't pay for it themselves.

You can listen to the noise being emanated from random people on the Internet, or you can ask the only entity that can give you an authorative answer. Just call them up asking for a quote with a fake name, and mention that you've got one and what their policy is in regards to it. People on here can say anything, but chances are they're not the one approving or denying any claims you may make in the future. And telling your insurer that some guy or girl on some Internet forum said they'd fork up is hardly going to sway them.

Just remember kiddies, its only P platers in turbo cars that speed excessively and drive like idiots...............

I always get the urge to go for a drive. Most of the time I'll not bother (since I can't be arsed getting dressed) but, I used to just drive for the hell of it. I'm on shift work now too, so sometimes I'll go cruising during the day since all the good roads are deserted. Sometimes I'll go eat Red Rooster in Gosford just because I can. I used to use driving to calm me down. When I was really aggro (usually late at night) I'd just go for a drive. Not to thrash the car, but just driving at the speed limit and loop from my place to half way across Sydney, buy a coke from a servo, and head back.

http://www.exvitermini.com/mnagata.htm What a champ.

Yeah, a WRX forum would be the best to post it on. The "rotten egg" smell is sulphur, and I noticed it in my first car (which was designed for Super) when I ran it on really shitty unleaded, which has a lower octane rating. Dropped in some Super or Premium, and it was fine. What kind of fuel are you running? Not just the octane level, but the brand. If you're putting regular unleaded from some dodgy independent (or even dodgily-run brand name place, really) then: 1. Why are you driving a WRX, or any sports car, if you're going to do the automotive equivalent of making an athlete drink sewage? 2. Try running it on Shell, Caltex, Mobil or BP Premium. I don't think its a new cat problem. When I got my car it had 24km on the odo, and it never stank. It's also only ever had 3 tanks of anything less than 98RON fuel go through it, too. The old man's last 2 cars, which was designed for regular unleaded, has never stunk up either. But then he's always run it on Caltex for the first car, and then BP for the second. It could be that the cat isn't screening out all the sulphur from the exhaust, though.

Silvia NSW's Dyno Night is on the 29th. I'll probably come to this one and watch, since I've already pretty much told the SilNSW guys I'll be running my car up at their event.

My car's being set up as a quick street sports car that will make the occasional track foray. Its a car I can drive around town, and is fun on a country road. It'll be faster than standard, but not harsh and loud. I'm not going to sink a small fortune just to extract another couple of tenths out of my lap time, since I'm not reaching its limits anyway.

I wash my car as often as I can. I washed it twice last weekend, but before that it was about two weeks. One of my mates has moved in to a relatively new apartment block, that has a car washing bay that recycles water. I just go visit him. So not only can I wash my car under cover for a more spot-free dry, but I'm also not "wasting" potable water.

You will be when there's not enough drinking water left in Sydney, and it either has to be transported in from elsewhere or people compete for what's left. Since water is a chemical that practically every living thing is physically addicted to, its not like you can just choose not to drink if the price of water starts matching petrol in its rate of increase. Sure the government has f**ked up, but its just retarded to live by the mentality, "Hey, if other people are doing something that I know is stupid, then its OK for me to do it too". Australia's most popular car is the Toyota Corolla; if its good enough for the majority of the car-buying public, why don't you sell your niche-model grey-import coupe and park your bum in a Levin?

This coming Sunday is looking good for me.