Head Case Motorsports

[VPI]

Not even sure why I bothered carrying my camera around.  Lots of great cars out but I never bothered documenting them.

 

[grawk]

It was fun.

[VPI]

Looks like VWs problems are deepening.

http://money.cnn.com/2015/11/03/news/volkswagen-scandal-carbon-dioxide-fuel-consumption/index.html

Wonder if that explains why I average 10 MPG in the city.  

[TMoney]

A Porsche has long been my dream car, but the deeper this thing goes the more harm they do to the brand.

I won't be in the market for one for many years but some of the bloom has come off the rose.

[grawk]

yah, who can image a porsche that isn't as economical and clean emissions as a prius?!?!

[HemiSam]

^^^LMAO.  I think buyers will get over it pretty quick when it comes to the high end brands, certainly here in Houston where they sell like hotcakes.

 

HS

[Hopstretch]

A Porsche has long been my dream car, but the deeper this thing goes the more harm they do to the brand.

I won't be in the market for one for many years but some of the bloom has come off the rose.

Anyone who buys a diesel Porsche deserves to get fucked over.

[emoji6]

[catscratch]

I've ranted about this before, but I think the scandal will go well past VW. Cheating on these sorts of tests is pretty common, and manufacturers sending tuned cars to the press so they perform better, or cars with non-stock tires so they grip better, is hardly unusual these days (or has hardly been unusual ever). EPA themselves are responsible for this in part, since their tests aren't very representative of real-world use either. At the end of this, EPA testing methodology will have to change,  and manufacturers will either have to be more honest in designing cars to meet regulations (unlikely), lobby for less restrictive regulations, be more devious about circumventing them, or just play the dinosaur strategy and wait until the whole bloody thing blows over. Either way, the surprise here is not as much about VW being lying cheats but more about fairly commonplace manufacturer dishonesty finally coming into light. All IMO of course.

Remember the time when all high-performance Japanese cars had exactly 276 horsepower? Yeah...

Edited November 4, 2015 by catscratch

[VPI]

Anyone who buys a diesel Porsche deserves to get fucked over.

 

The gist I got from the story is that the problems run to cars not equipped with Diesel engines. The auto industry self reports a lot of this stuff and I am thinking VW might have been presenting false numbers on a lot of cars to get maximum performance. 

[Hopstretch]

As far as I can tell, the new EPA assertions apply only to 3.0 TDI engines in the Cayenne, Touareg and Q5 etc. But VW has now admitted it may have a problem with CO2 emissions as well, so who knows where that will ultimately lead.

[Dreadhead]

http://www.engadget.com/2015/11/03/volkswagen-gasoline-emissions-lied/

 

We'll see how it all plays out.

[TMoney]

Obviously I couldn't care less about diesel Porsches.

I worry that there has been something rotten going on at the core of Volkswagen group for quite a while. The deeper this thing goes the uglier it seems to get.

[grawk]

all the chicanery is about making the cars drive better at the expense of emissions.  It's like you get the free stage 1 tune.

[padam]

Maybe that's why the Mazda 2.2 'SkyActiv' diesel is still not available in the US.

It is quite an engine, the best diesel that I've driven. Very smooth (ok it could be even quieter but it is not unpleasant), almost no turbo lag and amazing torque, way better than the equivalent petrol (does not hurt that the Mazda6 is also one of the lightest in its class). Hopefully it is reliable as well. It is already three years old I wonder how they can impove it further but with the emission rules it might not be that easy.

[VPI]

Finally starting to get the Forester XT (STI) where I want it. STI Swift Springs, STI Steering Wheel and Nameless Performance exhaust. Drives soooooo much better now.

[grawk]

It's ready for Katie's. 

[TMoney]

Nice job on the Fo'ster. If I ever drive my WRX out to DC I'll turn it over to your capable hands along with 10k and let you go to work.

[grawk]

Nice job on the Fo'ster. If I ever drive my WRX out to DC I'll turn it over to your capable hands along with 10k and let you go to work.

Jeff didn't do the work, and wasn't constrained by a poor person's budget...

[TMoney]

Jeff didn't do the work, and wasn't constrained by a poor person's budget...

At the very least he does do a good job with those car washes.

[HemiSam]

Great looking steering wheel!  The one on my Jeep SRT is similar and I've grown quite fond of it.

HS

[VPI]

Ah, you have one of those crazy Cherokees that fly.

[HemiSam]

LOL...I guess I do.  It's been fun.  I went from my daily driver being a 2010 Dodge RAM crew cab to the Jeep and the technology is pretty wild relatively speaking.  Been a lot of fun.  The 8-speed with paddles mated to the 6.4L is good fun on the highway.  The launch control...well, that's just good sport but completely unnecessary.  4.4 0-60mph in a pig on all season radials is pure comedy.

 

HS

[VPI]

After the drive home I can say that the XT is finally where it should be as the sportier version go the Forester.  Swift Springs ride smoother on regular road than the stock springs and the dual stage springs really kick in on the curves.  Did the corkscrew exit twice on the way home.  Once the tires are replaced with something non-awful this thing will be a really fun drive that can also haul all my stuff.

[swt61]

Nate, you ready for a very slightly used S4?

[VPI]

Yeah I was just telling Dan that I really do not have any reason to have two slow, but sometimes fun cars.  I should dump the S4 and get something actually fast.

Some late night shots of the work.