E N D L E S S R O A D
Road Chatter XLVI
P.O. Box 655
Falling Waters, WV 25419
Shop: 304-274-5074
FAX: 304-274-5076
endlssroad@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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IN THIS ISSUE:
Car Trivia Questions
Giovanni Cases
Give Away
Formula 1
My Favorite Car
Bits and Pieces
Car Trivia Answers
15% Off Purchases For Your Trivia Questions
======================= ** ======================
Car Trivia (answers are later in this newsletter)
1) Everyone (well, everyone before the Rice Rocket era) knows that Ford
was
famous for their venerable Flathead (an engine that had the valves
positioned in the block beside the cylinders). Stick a couple Stromburgs
on
there, mill the heads, add headers feeding into a couple of Glaspacks, and
you got yourself a fast car. Well, it sounded fast. That ended when Ford's
1954 OHV (overhead valve) came along. GM and Chrysler had flatheads, too,
although the 1955 Chevy OHV V8 pretty much wiped out GM's use of flatheads
in their cars. But how long did Chrysler hang on to selling cars with a
flathead?
2) For those of us that have purchased a new car sometime in our lives, we
may have seen F.O.B. on our invoice. 'Yeah, yeah, probably just another
thing for them to charge us for.' But, what does the term F.O.B. on a new
car's sticker mean?
3) Last issue, we tested you on the full names of Car Builders, like Henry
Ford and Enzo Ferrari. Now, let's try drivers:
Early Grand Prix - Arnoux
Early Grand Prix - Ascari
Early Grand Prix - Fangio
Early Grand Prix - DePalma
First US Grand Prix Winner at Watkins Glen - Ireland
Last US Grand Prix Winner at Watkins Glen - Jones
US Road Racer - Revson
1st Indy 500 Winner - Harroun
Chaparral Builder/Driver - Sharp
Chaparral Builder/Driver - Hall
Indy Champ - Foyt
Indy Champ - Jones
Four Pettys in NASCAR that were or are drivers
Two Wallaces in NASCAR that are drivers
Two Marlins in NASCAR that are drivers
Dragster Driver - Force
And five Andrettis
4) There was talk that two-time two-wheel world champ, Valentino Rossi,
was
considering joining Ferrari's F1 team. If he had, he would not have been
the
first. What former motorcycle champion joined Ferrari in 1963 and won the
World Championship in 1964?
5) When Alonzo won the F1 championship this year, he was the eighth driver
to win back-to-back championships. How many of the other seven drivers can
you name?
--- Retreads ---
These next three questions are from over two years ago. If you remember
them
from before, consider this a memory test.
6) You remember the Aztek from a couple years ago; it was around just long
enough for every car magazine on the planet to knock it, then it quietly
disappeared. The Corvette C6 came out at just about the same time. What do
the sleek Corvette C6 and the much criticized Aztek have in common?
7) What 1989 movie had Dan Aykroyd note: "Cars don't misbehave, Mama, they
have to be caused to misbehave?"
8) One American auto builder had been reaping profits from its performance
car for over 20 years. But, in 1987, times were changing, and sales were
dropping on their long-in-tooth model. Buyers were going for the lower
priced front wheel drive coupes. The American company took one such
Japanese
coupe, designed their own body, and proclaimed that this would replace
their
long-standing sporty coupe. Suddenly, they were deluged with more than
4,000
letters from enthusiasts protesting the blasphemy of calling a front wheel
drive a replacement and namesake to one of America's favorite cars. What
could the company do? They had invested millions and made commitments to
parts manufacturers all over the world. And now their customers, their
loyal
and very vocal followers, were calling them names. What did they do?
And the last two are from four years ago.
9) The Porsche Company is famous for its racing sports cars. Although they
did go F1 racing in the 1960's, what other Formula One cars did the
Porsche
Company design?
(I never said they would all be easy.)
10) In 1955, the first Thunderbird was a sleek two seater. In 1956,
Thunderbird's second year, there were only a few minor changes. The
biggest
change was to mount the spare tire on the back bumper. Why did they do
this?
==================== ** ====================
* Giovanni Cases
The diecast collectors from our retail shop will remember the great
Giovanni
cases we carried. They have all the diecast sizes from 1:64 to 1:18 and
more
odd sizes than you can count. We still supply them for a few of our
customers. And we can do the same for you. Find the case you want on
Giovanni's website, contact us, and we will have it shipped directly to
your
door; same price as Giovanni, but no state tax or shipping cost.
www.GiovanniPlastics.com
Endlssroad@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
** ====================
* Gift Certificate Give Away
Our regulars know that every month, we give away a $30 Gift Certificate
from
Endless Road to one of our regular Road Chatter readers. We are happy to
say
the winner this month was Harold from Cheverly, MD.
Again this month, for every purchase our regular Road Chatter Newsletter
recipients make, we will put their names in our drawing, and the person
whose name is drawn will receive a $30 Gift Certificate from Endless Road.
Good Luck.
==================== ** ====================
Formula 1
Clay Regazzoni 6/1939 - 12/2006 R.I.P.
Ferrari 1970 -1972
BRM 1973
Ferrari 1974 - 1976
Ensign 1977
Shadow 1978
Williams 1979
Ensign 1980
About the only way to know if anyone reads this stuff is if someone tells
us
when we are wrong. Our friend, Andrew, really nailed us this time. In the
last issue, we listed all the tracks that Formula 1 had run on in the US.
This is what we had:
- The American Formula 1 Grand Prix has run at the following tracks:
Dallas
Detroit
Las Vegas
Long Beach
Phoenix
Riverside
Roosevelt Raceway
San Francisco
Santa Monica
Savannah
Sebring
Watkins Glen
That's twelve tracks.
(From http://www.ddavid.com/formula1/story.htm)
This is what Andrew had to say:
=======
Dispute over the question of F1 tracks in the US.
Obviously leaving out Indy...
This list includes several tracks which only held races prior to 1950 and
the current F1 World Championship. Forix has that the U.S. Grand Prix has
only been held at nine tracks, Watkins Glen (20), Indy (11 - oval), Long
Beach (8), Indy (7 - infield), Detroit (7), Phoenix (3), Las Vegas (2),
Riverside (1), Dallas (1), and Sebring (1).
The 11 races on the Indy oval were not F1 Grands Prix, it was simply a
race
which counted toward the World Championship, and you couldn't really
consider Las Vegas a track, it was more of an autocross...
=======
- It is true; Indianapolis was left out of the list, my mistake.
- I should have worded the question to cover races for the World
Championship.
- I do agree that the Las Vegas race was a joke, but the points did count
for the F1, title regardless of the size of the track.
- Andrew, I do appreciate you bringing these points to my attention. At
least we know someone is paying attention. How about we give you 15% off
your next purchase for your trouble?
2007 Schedule . . . maybe
This is not cast in stone; it may change several times yet.
March 18 Australia
April 8 Malaysia
April 15 Bahrain
May 13 Spain
May 27 Monaco
June 10 Montreal
June 17 Indianapolis
July 8 Britain
July 22 Germany
August 5 Hungary
August 26 Turkey
Sept. 9 Italy
Sept. 16 Belgium
Sept. 30 Japan
Oct. 7 China
Oct. 21 Brazil
==================== ** ====================
This month, our 'MY FAVORITE CAR' story is by our friend, Mike P.
Project 'Wedge-Works'
I was surfing the web, looking for Triumph TR8 coupes to see what was out
there, and interestingly enough, a web site came up on my search: TR8
restoration at www.croyde-bay.com/workstr7v8-restoration20.htm. It was an
individual named Steve in the UK that owned a '78 LHS TR8 Coupe that was
being converted to TR7 V8 works rally car specifications. I found it to be
fascinating! From a bare body, plus pictures, details and talking to
owners
of original works rally cars, he was building a unique wedge. To make
matters worse, there was a link to Richard Connew's web site
www.tr7-tr8.com
and I could watch vintage films of the TR7 V8s in action.
(See our web for a picture of a great modified street TR7.)
With a TR8 coupe needing a restoration of my own, I had a few options to
choose from: a modified street car, SCCA ITS race car, or original. The
ITS
car was not that exciting due to how uncompetitive SCCA has made the car.
A
modified street car brought back memories of the Woody White 'BAD 8' coupe
I
had owned years ago. Original was not too far from reality since my car
was
about 90% stock. After seeing the original works TR7 V8s and some
conversions, I was sold. I spent over three months and lots of emails to
owners of replicas and original cars. The Steve mentioned above gave me
some
insight, but it was Bert Smeets of Belgium and Neil Sawyer in the UK that
helped me out the most.
Bert owns not one, not two, but three ex-works TR7 V8s! Oh, I forgot to
mention he also has the Janspeed TR7 V8 that ran in Le Mans! Bert has
helped
me with body colors and pictures of many details that are Works-Only
preparation. Neil's car was a bare body shell and was being prepared to
rally specs as they were back in 1980/81 for Car & Car Conversions. The
best
thing I like about these TR7 V8s is they still go out and compete and have
battle scars to prove it!
(See the newsletter on our web for pictures of two rally TR7s.)
The subject of my conversion is a 1980 TR8 coupe; 5-speed, A/C, Ermine
white
with green and black interior. The motor was in the process of being
rebuilt, and some form of restoration was to begin after 2nd gear
disappeared! The clock has about 91k on it, and the body seems to be
almost
perfect, with some small areas of rust blisters around the windshield and
rear window.
(See the newsletter on our web for a picture of Mike's TR7 in process.)
eBay has been the biggest help in finding the parts I need, along with Tim
Lanocha of Lanocha Racing, Woody Cooper of the Wedge Shop and Simon from
Robsport in the UK. I have managed to get together the stickers/decals,
driving and fog lights, hood pins, bonnet latches, T-pull cables, a
Bilstein
jack, (4) 13x7 rims, (8) 13x6 rims, 2 roll cages, fiberglass front bumper,
and most important, the rally flares/arch extensions and front spoilers.
The
tire selection for 13-inch rims has been the biggest headache.
(See the newsletter on our web for pictures of the loot Mike gathered for
the transformation.)
The flares seem to be the most costly, with the dollar being pretty weak
compared to the sterling/pound. After some research, it seems that four
different types of rear flares and three types of front spoilers were used
over the lifespan of the TR7 & TR8.
(See the newsletter on our web for pictures of all the flares and spoilers
Mike gathered.)
At this time, I have removed the interior, brake lines, rear end, engine,
transmission, glass, bumper and lights. During this process, I found a
sticker under the head liner that read the following:
BODY PASSED
BODY No. with hand written "LHS V8"
NOV 1978
This seems to confirm the rumors that unsold cars of one model year were
renumbered to the next model year till they were sold! To solidify this,
the
1978 catalyst emission sticker on the door has been covered over twice
with
a 1979 and finally a 1980 catalyst sticker, and the VIN plate on the
windshield has one rivet holding it on.
........
If you have any comments or information for Mike, it would be greatly
appreciated. Send us an email, and we will forward it to Mike.
If you have fond memories of one of your fine machines and would like to
tell us about it, send us your story, and when we use it, you will have
your
pick of any item we have on our web. Bob, our contributor from the
previous
issue, chose one of our great Monaco posters.
(See the newsletter on our web for a great picture of the Group 44 TR7.
Group 44 is Virginia's hometown team that made good.)
==================== ** ====================
* Bits and Pieces
DO NOT get rid of your VHS machines; there are many great racing videos
that
are available on VHS tape and not scheduled to be put on DVD. And for
those
of you finding it difficult to find new blank tapes, we carry the Maxell
tapes.
***
Our friend, Warren, says:
I went to retrieve a license plate one day and didn't have a screw driver.
The lady at the desk wanted to know if I wanted a plus or minus!
***
Floating around on the web:
I've sure gotten old! I've had two bypass surgeries, a hip replacement,
new
knees, fought prostate cancer and diabetes. I'm half blind, can't hear
anything quieter than a jet engine, take 40 different medications that
make
me dizzy, winded, and subject to blackouts. Have bouts with dementia. Have
poor circulation; hardly feel my hands and feet anymore. Can't remember if
I'm 85 or 92. Have lost all my friends. But, thank God, I still have my
driver's license!
***
At Amelia Island, Jim Hall, the creator of the Chaparral, told of when
they
had hooked up with Firestone Tires. Firestone gave them a set of
competition
tires to run on seven-inch-wide rims. Jim's people had created wheels with
an assortment of various width rims. So they tried them on seven-, then
eight-, then nine-inch rims. At the next race, Firestone found they were
running nine-inch rims. 'Well, we will have to make you bigger tires.'
And,
of course, Chaparral tried the new tires on wider and wider rims. At the
next race, Firestone found they were now running eleven-inch rims. Said
Jim:
'In about six months, we went from five-inch rims to twelve-inch rims!'
The
grip had increased so much they had to beef up their 'secret' automatic
transmission to take the strain.
***
Racers, Firemen, and Organists
Trent, a fireman and a friend of ours from our retail shop, once told us
how
his balaclava (the hood that firemen wear over their heads) has an open
mesh
in the top of it. He explained that the Nomex would keep the flames from
his
face, but, in a blaze, his own sweat could turn to steam and cause as much
damage as flames. For this reason, the mesh was added so that the steam
could escape up into his helmet. This feature has since been added to the
balaclavas worn by race car drivers.
It seems organists are keeping alive a technique that is slowly falling
out
of fashion in auto racing. Our friend, Rob, is the organist for a large
stately old church in the middle of Washington, DC. The organ that he
plays
has three tiers of keyboards, 20 push-pull levers on his left and another
20
on his right. At the base of the organ, there are 20 long foot pedals. He
showed us the specially designed shoes that he wears while playing these
foot pedals. The soles are quite thin, and the heel is hard leather.
'What do you need special shoes for?'
'Why, so that I can Heel and Toe.'
***
License Tag Novelists
These three are from a two-block-long car show this summer:
Orange GTO The Judge: ALL RIZE
1968 Firebird 400: FLYBYU
Blue Ford Pickup SVT: NHRA SVT
==================== ** ====================
Car Trivia Answers
1) Chrysler pushed their last flathead out the door in 1959. It was a 230
CID flathead six cylinder. It was available in the Coronet, Savoy,
Belvedere, Suburban, Fury, and Sport Fury.
2) F.O.B. means Free-On-Board; F.O.B. establishes who pays to ship,
selects
the carrier and owns the car during shipping. F.O.B. Destination would
mean
your car was the dealer's baby from the time it left the docks in Detroit.
(Well, Mexico, Canada, or wherever your pride and joy was built.)
3) The Drivers' full names are:
Early Grand Prix - Rene Arnoux
Early Grand Prix - Alberto Ascari
Early Grand Prix - Juan Manuel Fangio
Early Grand Prix - Ralph DePalma
- Not to be confused with Louie DePalma on 'Taxi'.
First US Grand Prix Winner at the Glen - Innes Ireland
Last US Grand Prix Winner at the Glen - Alan Jones
- You didn't think Parnelli Jones, did you?
US Road Racer - Peter Revson
- He was the son of one of the wealthy Revlon founders.
First Indy 500 Winner - Ray Harroun
- And he was the first to use a rear view mirror in racing.
Chaparral Builder/Driver - Hap Sharp (James 'Hap' Sharp)
Chaparral Builder/Driver - Jim Hall
- The sound Sharp/Hall was part of why they named their cars Chaparral.
Indy Champ - A.J. Foyt (Anthony Joseph Foyt)
Indy Champ - Parnelli Jones (Rufus Parnell Jones)
Four Pettys that were or are NASCAR drivers - Lee, Richard, Kyle, and Adam
Two Wallaces that are NASCAR drivers - Rusty and Kenny
Two Marlins that are NASCAR drivers - Sterling and CooCoo
Dragster Driver - John Force, 14-time Funny Car Champ
Five Andrettis - Mario, Aldo, Michael, John, and Marco
(Thanks to our friend, Ken G.)
4) John Surtees was the first man to win championships on both two wheels
and four wheels. And, so far, the only one to do so. Damon Hill started
with
bikes, winning 40 races on his Yamaha 350 in 1984, but he did not get the
championship.
5) The eight drivers that won back-to-back Formula 1 championships:
Alberto Ascari 1952-1953
Juan Manuel Fangio 1954-1955 (and 1956-1957)
Jack Brabham 1959-1960
Alain Prost 1985-1986
Ayrton Senna 1990-1991
Michael Schumacher 1994-1995 (and 2000 through 2005)
Mika Hakkinen 1998-1999
Fernando Alonzo 2005-2006
--- Retreads ---
6) GM's Pontiac Aztek and the then-new Corvette C6 were both designed by
Tom
Peters. What a turn-around in design from so many angles and edges of the
Aztek to the smooth flowing lines of the Corvette!
7) Dan Aykroyd explained misbehaving cars to his Mama in 'Driving Miss
Daisy.'
(When I had this question in Trivial Pursuit, I just knew it must be 'The
Blues Brothers.')
8) When Ford tried to pass off a re-bodied Mazda 626 as the new Mustang,
thousands of Mustang loyalists revolted. Ford then continued the
rear-wheel
drive Mustangs and called the re-bodied Mazda the Probe.
(AutoWeek August 31, 1987)
Keep this in mind now that Ford is discussing bringing out both a Mustang
sedan and station wagon, as discussed in the AutoWeek December 13.
9) During 1933 to 1937, Porsche designed cars for Auto Union. After the
war,
they designed for Cisitalia. Rumor is that they used the money from
Cisitalia to free Dr. Ferdinand Porsche from France where he was being
held
as a war criminal. And another bit of interest, the go-between for Porsche
and Cisitalia was Carlo Abarth of high performance exhaust fame.
(Thanks to our friend, Jeff, for this one.)
10) One thing that any good boulevard car has to have is room for a golf
bag
in the trunk. Ford found that a golf bag would not fit in the trunk of
their
new Thunderbird unless you removed the spare tire. By adding a
'continental,' they got around this problem. Then the longer tail on the
'57
took care of this oversight.
(The Acura NSX had a long trunk to accommodate two sets of clubs. The 1935
Auburn had a side compartment to fit a set of golf clubs in the side of
the
car.)
==================== ** ====================
15% Off Purchases For Your Trivia Questions
To Ken G. and Jeff M., thanks for the trivia questions. Remember, you both
will receive 15% discounts on your next orders.
We try to choose these trivia questions from several groups and still be
interesting. This time we got MOPAR flatheads, Invoice Jargon, Drivers,
Bikers, Two-Timers, Pretty Sports Cars & Ugly Siblings, a Blues Brother,
Fake Mustangs, a Porsche War Criminal, Carlo Abarth, and Big Rear Ends.
Anyone have any trivia questions of your own?
Send us an interesting fact on just about anything on wheels: cars,
trucks,
F1, Drags, Muscle Cars, weird obsolete car thingies, whatever, and, when
we
use it, you get 15% off all purchases on everything on your next order.
***
Thanks,
Dave Payne
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