Tag: Cars

I was never that much into the venerated AC Cobra myself, because like meeting your heroes, it’s one of those things best worshipped from afar.  In other words, the reality of driving a Cobra is, well, a little terrible.  It’s unbelievably loud, the ride is harsh beyond description, and the creature comforts of the cockpit… well, there aren’t any.

Not my cup of tea, in other words.  If I wanted all the above (minus the overpowering roar from the overpowered engine), I’d just get a Lotus 7 / Caterham.

Well, until now.  There’s this bunch of guys who make AC Cobra replicas, and they seem to check off quite a few boxes.  Witness this beauty:

It has heated seats, FFS. [sound of Carroll Shelby’s corpse hitting 12,000rpm]

But for those who think this vision has somehow become pussified, fear not:

That’s a Roush 427R V8, producing 550 horsepower — and even better, it has a TKX 5-speed manual transmission.

(Be still, my over-stimulated heart… okay, groin.)

I’ve never been tempted to drive an AC Cobra on one of my demented long-distance road trips (e.g. here, here and here) because unless there were massages delivered to my aching back every hundred or so miles by beautiful maidens of the Orient, it would just be too damn painful.  But in one of these?  I might be tempted.

“But what about luggage, Kim?”

Oh yeah, that little detail:

I know that the prices of cars nowadays are too stratospheric, and the cars themselves are too gadget-ridden and wind-tunnel anonymized in terms of styling and they’re, well, just pussified.

But for just over $100k, I’m not sure you’d find something as red-blooded and… satisfying as this lovely thing.

If I’m going to risk being labeled a total pussy, though, I’d ask the guys at Backdraft Racing to fashion me a soft top against the rain because frankly, at my age I wouldn’t want to risk pneumonia.  Other than that:  vroom-vroom.

Conversation with Former Drummer Knob last week:

For those who don’t know what car we were talking about:

Here’s its story.  And here’s the listing for the one in the above pic.

Want.

Okay, so there’s this thing, and I have an almost pathological desire to buy it:

…and I think it’s exquisite.

No, it’s not an actual MG TD, but a copy.  Don’t care.  The reason I really want to buy it is this:

Take that, you safety Nazis.  The hell with you all;  my next birthday is my 71st, and that’s all there is to say about it.

Yup, it’s time for yet another of Kim’s Insane Trip challenges.  This one, however, is completely different.

Your trip is to drive along this course, taking as long as you want, during the months of June and August.

The starting point is Phoenix AZ, and you are at liberty to take either the easterly side (in an anticlockwise direction) or the westerly side (clockwise).

Now Alert Readers will note a couple of things about this trip, namely:

• while the proposed route goes close to major cities, it doesn’t actually allow you to go into any of them (not that one would want to), and
• there are no interstate highways involved.

Which is a critical part of the challenge, because:

There will not be any paved roads.  The route will consist of gravel, rural or tracks only, and will include shallow river crossings, mountain passes, steep climbs and descents as well as long stretches of desert or semi-desert roads.  The route, while testing, will not include any of the ridiculous “climb over boulders” or “cross that ravine” nonsense.  Any of the vehicles listed below can make the trip easily.

Each car will be fitted with a GPS device that will prove that you actually drove through the various checkpoints that will be scattered along the route.

The cars/trucks may carry spare tires and a decent complement of spare parts of things that are most likely to break.  You may stop along the way in any of the small towns you get to for gas, running repairs, oil changes etc., but the costs are out-of-pocket.

In the finest Top Gear tradition, you will be accompanied by a maintenance / repair vehicle (which has to be able to follow you on your chosen road) to make medium-serious repairs en route.  (Think:  modern-day Range Rover or Toyota Land Cruiser.)

You may take as many or as few companions for the trip as you wish, constrained only by the passenger capacity of your vehicle.  (Suggested list:  best friend, mistress/wife/girlfriend, mechanic etc.)  Or you can just go solo, for that matter.  Specify in Comments.

Overnight accommodation will be provided as needed, or you may want to just pitch a tent and camp wherever you are.  Remember:  there is no time limit.

Now what kind of vehicle, you ask, should you consider to make such a trip?  The choices are listed below, and they come to you gratis (see below for the stipulations).  In other words, when you follow the link (in the pic) to see the car’s specific details, ignore the price.  What you’re looking for are the following:

• will it make the trip?
• will you be able to drive over fairly rough country roads?
• will you require back/kidney surgery afterwards?
• will you be able to fix it en route if something breaks?
• have you always wanted to drive one of these?
• etc.

Needless to say, this being my challenge, there are no new cars — in fact, there are no cars made after 1995 — although some of them are ground-up rebuilds or restomods, but there ya go.  And you may not make any substitutions:  stick to the list.  Also, whether pictured or not, each will be fitted with a winch of sufficient power.

And while this is not a race, if you make it back to Phoenix inside a certain time frame you get to keep the car.  It’s your choice whether you want to race for that prize, or just enjoy the trip for as long as it takes.  What the hell, it’s a free car, right?

Finally, assume that all vehicles are in top-class running order.

Here, then, are your choices.

Read more