I am not one for getting up early or going to bed early. So if your up late watching Adult Swim you may have seen a little show called Squidbillies. The name says it all, but one episode showed Early (the patriarch) driving his monster truck with Truck Nuts. Now, Granny is in a walker and she has Truck Nuts on it that are chrome and Early is jealous and now I am jealous. I am thinking to my self that A. I need a truck and B. I need Chrome Truck Nuts, and guess what…. I found them and they do exist. I guess now all I need is a truck so I can pimp it out with some nuts.
Then, spend this week getting your car ready, because next Friday the season will be in full swing. I will be updating events all this week and getting rides ready to go and show (which I have not done yet). I also will be getting my camera and a video recorder ready for the Show N Shine kick off party and car show (more to come). So stay tuned or if your in the area stop by the shop and scream at me really loud.
mleighto@carshowkiosk.com
May 3, 2008 Hamilton Senior Class Car Show (I will try to make, but probably not). May 4, 2008 Bearing Burners Auto Club 30th annual Car Show (Be in Ypsi, So send me some pics, please). May 4, 2008 27th Annual SHOW & SHINE STREET ROD SHOW (Full coverage). May 6, 2008 Mid MI Modern Muscle CC weekly cruise (I will try to make, but we will see).
For complete listings see the Michigan Car Shows, May 2008 Page.
A friend of mine wanted me to assist him in finding a car to purchase. While looking for an affordable daily driver is not my cup of tea, I agreed because I’m a swell kind of guy. Somehow or another the topic of the worst car I have ever worked on came up, and a whole laundry list of junk came to mind. My first thoughts were the cars that did not deserve to be fixed, let alone worth driving. There was that 80’s era Escort that I spent months on porting the heads and polishing rods just to put back in a blown out car. The suspension was shot, full of Michigan rust and the sagging headliner did nothing for all the engine work I did. The car screamed for a week before the clutch gave out and sent pieces through the bell housing. As crappy as that car was it was not the worst. Some complicated procedures on some tough cars came to mind, but there is only one car that I ever really hated: The Delorean. For such a cool looking car with worlds of potential, one wonders how it could considered the worst. It could have been the electrical demons that doomed it to be being a colossal disappointment or it could have been the disastrous engineering that left me scratching my head at every turn. It could have even been the fear that at any moment the doors could fail to work and I would be trapped inside while not being able to fit out the tiny windows. Or maybe it was the fact that every time I got in and out I banged some appendage on something.
As I think more about it, I realize it was most likely the fact that I could not get the fuel system straightened out and working correctly, so I gave up. I found some sucker that was reputable to work on it and after a year and way too much money spent, the car finally worked. The failure on my part was not so discouraging after I discovered it took more than three mechanics, several rebuilds of the fuel system and over a year to finally fix it. Don’t get me wrong, my ego was still bruised. After the car was finally running good, however, the speedometer and passenger window failed. At this point not much else could fail or cause me grief because it had all failed at least once before. Then someone from somewhere had some Miami Vice dreams of living the good life and purchased the car, and I felt a little sad that the DeLoreon and I had such a rocky relationship. But not really. I had been abused by that car the same way the kid is in the “very important” after school special. I was ecstatic to have it out of my life for good, and I didn’t feel bad for the Don Johnson wannabe who bought it either. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that it probably wouldn’t get him any chicks and it couldn’t travel in time. I might have felt better about the car, or felt some remorse over selling it had I found some secret cache of money while I was working on it or if it had a flux capacitor, Nah. Because even if it had contained any of those, I would have removed them from such a crappy car. Nothing could save the car with the winged doors and cool name from being the worst car I’ve ever had the displeasure of working on.
It seems these days that you can have your Mustang fried, boiled or scrambled. With so many options makes and models, which one do you choose? Let’s start with the base and work our way up.
2008 Mustang 4.0L is your base model starting around $19k. It comes with a gazzillon packages to choose from, like my favorite “Mustang Warriors in Pink“.
2008 Mustang GT 4.6L V8 with 300hp. This will run you a few more bucks than the base model.
2008 Bullitt Mustang Starting at $31k, 4.6l v6, HP 315, Torque 325, Tremec 5 speed, Sport tuned chassis, 3.73 limited slip solid rear axle, Limited production of 7,700. When you can not come up with something that has not already been done, revamp what you got with vintage styling and slap a name to that will sell. Nothing really stands out and makes this car a little bland, despite all the extra “Bullitt” Styling.
2008 Shelby GT500/ GT500KR Pricing has been all over the board, but expect to pay around $80k or higher. The 5.4l v8 producing 500hp is a great added bonus for the buck. The styling and every detail lives up to the Shelby name.
2008 Shelby GT/ GT-C $48k will get you 310+hp and cool Grabber Orange paint with lots of racing inspired upgrades. At just $10k more than the Ford GT it is well worth the money for the extras.
2008 Roush Mustang Roush offers 6 Mustangs to choose from. The base model at 210hp all the way to the 435hp 427R with price tags peaking at $60K. Nothing to cool on the bottom end other than a name and some minor changes.
2008 Saleen Mustang Saleen offers seven Mustangs to choose from, and horsepower from 390hp to 620hp one can not complain. By far the best styling one is the H302 which is also offered as a Dan Gurney signature edition.
I could mention Unique Performance and Chip Foose, but who would want that crap. My money would be on the Shelby KR and/or the Saleen H302. Both offer great styling in a racing package.
It was a relief having completed the fabrication on a big section of the floor pan. It took about three days to measure, bend and roll the section that goes over the drive shaft hump and up the rear frame rails. I spent all day today welding it in place; I just needed to weld one little section when I ran out of wire on the welder. That seemed to be a good time to call it quits. I would try to explain how I made it, but just the thought of trying to do that now makes my head hurt. I will write a “how to” on a less complicated section and include some good pictures. It was a real pain to make and get it to fit tight in that odd ball space, but hey, it is still better than watching American Idol.
Here are the before and after pictures of the floor pan install.
mleighto@carshowkiosk.com
