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Yeah everything in time. Seats and upholstery was redone but the dash... I was always afraid of doing a repaint but if I take my time this Spring and mask everything off properly I should be good to go

These are a few OHV pushrod engines Im currently salivating after. They are not exactly factory OEM engines. Well, one of them is a crate engine based on a production engine and the other is a hopped up, souped up, bored and stroked version of a production engine built by a reputable yet unnammed NASCAR engine builder. A legit 426 cubic inch "HEMI" from Mopar. I could do without the supercharger and have it naturally aspirated but if you twist my arms for half a second, Im sure Ill be convinced to accept this set-up. This next one is a legit 455 cubic inch V8 based on the LT1. Trans Am depot's SD455 percistant effort on selling us Trans Ams even though there are no more Trans Ams. But I think they bought the rights to use the name and logos so I think this effort is as legit of an SD455 Trans Am as there ever will be. Both on the 455 part and on the Trans Am part.

I wonder about crazy things all of the time...probably why you are sane and I am a bit insane...

Huh. I don't find myself wondering about things that will happen after I am dead, much. ;)

But.... But... Im also equally giddy about AC induction motors. Tesla's version for me as of now, (other manufacturer's automobile AC induction motors to follow I guess) would be like the equivalent Ram Air IV 400, or Pontiac's-Olds'-Buick's respective 455s. Or Mopar's 440 six pack of the good ole days.

The problem I see with the Giulia is that FCA, if they truly want Alfa Romeo to build on this.... will have to keep this car fresh every 5-6 years. They won't get away with letting cars get old like the LX's, or the long in tooth (but worth it) product cycle of the RAM's... I also think that Alfa Romeo with its new focus for luxury and sport, like most Italian brands of sports cars and exotics.... is incompatible with electric power-trains. Hybrids maybe, but full electric... There's no point. Imagine a world many years from now... where the electric version is the regular model and the high performance model still has an internal combustion engine, and you'll pay a gas guzzler tax on top of that...

LOL!!! Skippy? Ive been called and nicknamed many things over the course of my 45 years on this planet, Skippy was never one of them. Its a first for me. Skippy... Nerdy, yet cute, but invisible to Mallory because not Alpha male. He probably became a billionaire by creating a techie company start-up in Silicone Valley and is having the last laugh as Mallory probably is divorced with 2-3-4 kids living in a trailer park because she chose a Nick type ignoramus...(Nick was lovable though) Yeah...Im not seeing Skippy in me. Back to the Giulia. Yeah, had I understood the 4 cylinder part a tad better and not been blinded and biased towards that Ferrari engineered and tuned V6 , I would have not referenced it in the first place. So I kinda feel like Nick at this point in time. Without the earring of course. PS: I was always more like...no, not an Alex P. Keaton type, but another Michael J. Fox character. Like Marty McFly. Nerdy, yet cool. Cute, but not a hunky beef steak. Calm yet jumpy. Sporty and athletic but clumsy at the same time. Shy and introverted yet rock-n-rolly and arrogantly loud. laisser faire but aggressive That is why I love Oldsmobiles. They capture me perfectly. Sporty and classy. Not too sporty like Pontiac. Not everyday man's Chevy. Not 1%er Cadillac and not a Doctor's or Lawyer's professional job Buick. But Oldsmobile. A bottom end Olds could be bought by an everyday blue collar man if he was a hard working soul and played his cards right. A muscle car 442 could be as sporty as a Pontiac. A high end 88/Delta 88/Super 88 and the like could be a professional's ride. It could also be bought by a 1%er that wanted to stay stealthy and not advertise. The Giulia and BMW and Acura and Buick after Olds went away, want to play in that former Olds playground. Apart from BMW, all others have failed. Even BMW is faltering somewhat. Audi has success, but they too are becoming what Olds became in the late 1980s to early 1990s. What is amazing with Oldsmobile, they kept that high image for a good 80 years straight. Lost it but kinda regained again just before GM pulled the plug on them. Back to the Giulia. The a ONLY redeeming quality it has is that V6. And the suspension set-up on it that out does BMW. But Im not so sure people care for an ultimate driving BMW-like experience anymore. In the 1990s, this car would most have definitely have dethroned BMW and would have stolen market share from BMW 3 series buyers. Not so much in 2018. OOPSIES. 2019. Another Nick moment.

Please be more direct and let us know how you really feel. I really kind of agree with you. Cadillac's designs seem much more fresh and vibrant. I like elements of it, but overall I can do a lot better for the money. CPO CTS-V is calling my name.... The car in question is the four without the glorious six...you still feel a rise in your pants when you look at this, Skippy?

Thelma.. 66 Impala

FACTS: We know that the C8 Corvette and a number of her contemporaries in GM's 2020 stables will have a Pushrod Small Block Engine. This may very well be the last and the finest small block engine. We do not know much beyond that. PREDICTION: The following is my prediction on its specifics. You will have to wait half a year to find out if I am right or if I am close... RPO: LT2 Aspiration: Naturally Aspirated Construction: Aluminum block and heads Cylinder Spacing: 111.76 mm (4.400") Bore x Stroke: 103.25 mm x 101.6 mm (4.065" x 4.000") Displacement: 6,805 cc (415 cu-in) Static Compression: 11.5:1 Fuel requirement: Premium Unleaded Gasoline (91 Octane) recommended / not required Valve Train: Push rods with roller lifters, concentric cams-in-block with dual cam phasing, cylinder deactivation via collapsible lifters Power Output: 525 bhp @ 6000 rpm Torque: 512 lb-ft @ 4200 rpm Maximum engine speed: 6,300 rpm

I am saying there will be additional potential left untapped when ICE is eventually replaced with electric

Pensy T1 was a steam engine that never really lived up to its full potential because diesel came on the scene so fast post WWII. There is a trust trying to re create one... https://prrt1steamlocomotivetrust.org/ I could see in 40 or 50 years people looking back at this small black the same way...never really lived up t0o its potential because electric came on the scene.

Always fun working on your own ride... Love the vintage action! Granted it is just plastic but I still really love 53 to 56 Ford Trucks....

I watched live that run and it still is awesome even on YouTube. Future is Electric screaming by!

The above post makes me want to build a Factory 5 Daytona Coupe kit.

The future here...electric. Ready for the next generation of electric cars.

I saw an earlier 70's Grand Prix out on the road and thought of you.

I feel quite the opposite.

Ahh- wasn't enough in the pic for me to recognize it. Guess I would've also assumed the interior was super sano like the exterior. I sent my B-59 radio out, had it converted to electronic AM/FM/aux jack- looks 100% stock on the outside. I also cut in holes in the package shelf for 6x9s (my car only had a 4x9 dash speaker), still have to do the doors for 6.5"ers.

Big, brash, fuselage-bodied '69 Fury VIP hardtop coupe, with the uber-cool 'recall' magnesium rims. 1,059 built, 215-in overall length, all steel & cast iron, 3670 lbs.

Just thinking back.. I remember when I got my STS backin '05 .. GM was putting actual 40 GB HARD DRIVES in cars for music... Now I put all my music on a 64GB Flash or SD cards

DRIVEN: 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe SEL 2.4 AWD and 2.0t Limited AWD HIGHS: -Pleasant new shape, and a new larger size. Not a tweener anymore. -Value for the dollar. Sticker prices comparable to Equinox / Terrain in a much larger package. Lots of standard safety equipment that is not yet standard in even near lux or lux makes. -Nice space inside, both rows, Nice cabin width, ample leg room, nice driving position with really comfortable seats, even the back seats comfortable. Super hot heated seats. -Not a luxury interior but nice fresh design, and some interesting new materials for non-luxury. Dash plastic is nice, door plastic decent, even the fake wood in the SEL trim, even though its obviously fake, is unique and interesting; blends in to the overall level of design nicely. Fresh and interesting looking seat cloth which looks nicer than a lot of other competitors average seat cloth these days. Some of the roof / liner material simulates a linen and is a nice change from the normal stuff you see from everyone else. Excellent and precise fit of interior dash and panel pieces. -Nicely effective center stack and gauge layout. Maybe too simple for some, but very easy to use and identify. Gauge / display are crisp and look good when lit in blue. Touchscreen in a nice spot up high. -Sport drive mode is available and actually is a noticeable change in engine shift points and aggressiveness. -Nice size cargo area, very usable. Seats easily can fold down when at the passenger door. -Steering wasn't objectionable. The average consumer would be good with it. -Turbo 2.0 engine is fairly pleasing in noise and smoothness. While not much quicker seemingly than the 2.4, it does feel like a choice most owners would be far more happy with over the life of a lease or payment book. LOWS: -Lane keep assist is too damn determined to keep you in the lane; it's very aggressive to point of being creepy. Makes me concerned how well Hyundai does the safety systems in terms of reliability and proper functioning. -Really hated how the gauge lighting changed to Pontiac Excitement! red when you selected the sport drive mode. -Touchscreen is pretty small by today's standards.... it could stand to be angled up a little more to the eye, too, actually. -Even with as decent as the interior is, it clearly remains a non luxury / non aspirational interior. -2.4 engine is spunky, but pretty noisy and maybe average smoothness or below at best. In combination with a power sapping all wheel drive, it's not an endearing powertrain combo. It takes a lot of coaxing to get decent motion out of it. -2.0 engine as mentioned above is better, and is smoother overall. The issue with the 2.0 and AWD combo is that it maybe isn't as much faster than the 2.4 that it should be. I almost think they should make the 2.0t standard on all trims but the base trim. And they should try to get more tune of the 2.0 if they can. In both cases, overall, the powertrains just don't feel anything besides average or a below average in overall feel and performance. -I mentioned creepy above, in fact at the end of the day there is just an overall little bit of a creepy feel to each Hyundai I drive and this has that in spades as well. Something that is slightly unfinished and unpolished about it. But maybe it's because I am so used to driving domestic vehicles that Hyundai just feels weird each time. Sort of like, this is reverse engineered greatly sort of feel. SUMMARY: Perfectly pleasing and a more than adequate for most of Hyundai's buyer base.....those who want cheap payments, easy credit, value, good list of standard safety features, and lots of warranty. It's hard to know where this sits compared to Hondas and Toyotas etc. The size upgrade to the Sante Fe really makes it a good 'value' choice vs. a Ford Edge, for example, although I am guessing i would much prefer the Edge each time. The SF is definitely no longer a tweener you'd compare to something in the compact SUV class. The perfectly acceptable interior and the space it affords will also be seen as a plus among buyers. Drivers seeking class leading driving dynamics may not go for the Santa Fe, but those who don't really care will be absolutely fine with how it drives. It's what I call a B, scoring lots of points for value and being appealing to a wide buyer base, and having lots of space. There are many of those buyers out there. But be sure to look at other choices, many of which would be a more satisfying rig overall. the Santa Fe is still nothing aspirational for sure. It's nothing that is a great disappointment though, either.

I seldom like modern car's wheels, but I do like these a bunch. On the other hand, except for the Edsel-esque grille opening, the entire exterior is about an anonymous as they come. In profile or from the rear, it could be ANYTHING. Interior also feels dated to me.

I like the sounds the Quadrifoglio makes. The V6 on this is awesome. Ferrari engine tuners really know how to make an engine sing. The Guilia's silhouette has a lot in common with a BMW 3 Series. And it does not help the situation when BMW 3 Series cars have looked the same since about 10 years now. This might explain some of the blandness. I do think the Guilia is sexy enough, but maybe the glorious sounds of its V6 have me blinded with how sexy it might really be in the looks department.

Good, now we are getting somewhere. So, what do you think the objective of tariff or the trade policy should be? Shouldn't it be to stop the outflow of wealth from your country to others (aka trade deficits) and preferably to cause wealth to flow into your country (aka a trade Surplus)? Now, if that is the objective, doesn't it make sense to tariff goods from countries you have a deficit with and impose higher tariffs on countries with whom you have a more deficits? For anyone living in your country, they still have all the choices in the world. They can buy a US made shirt or a Chinese made shirt. The difference is that the Chinese made shirt of a comparable quality and brand value will not cost substantially less. Sure, that makes the shirt more expensive. But, think about it. If you don't do that, how is it any different from saying that we want a minimum wage, healthcare and workers comp insurance to increase the standard of living for workers, but it only applies to Company A but not Company B? Won't Company B will get all the business, while Company A go belly up and its workers all wind up on welfare! It is not different when it comes to countries and trade. Forget everything you learned in ECON001 -- nobody gives a rat's behind about comparative and absolute advantages in man-hours when those man-hours don't cost the same amount of money! Free Trade = Suicide

Great, and we reject Woodrow Wilson and all the other morons of Free Trade. Free Trade doesn't work, period. You can either have high wages and high standard of life, or you can have free trade. You can't have both! You CANNOT have a minimum wage, environmental rules and social safety nets -- inflating what it costs to make anything in your country -- while allowing goods made elsewhere without such nonsense to be imported and sold with no tariff or minimal tariffs! How is that supposed to work? Free Trade will only ensure that you import everything while all your workers are unemployed and on welfare. If you want free trade you need to allow companies to pay $0.05 an hour, skip workers comp, forget health insurance and have no environmental rules. Better yet you need to allow indentured servitude (aka slavery). There is no such thing as a service economy -- you can't delivery pizzas to each other and prepare your neighbors tax return when the country makes nothing and had expended its wealth to buy everything. It's unsustainable.

China DOES NOT BUY American built cars, period. It doesn't matter if they raise the tariff to 40,000% All US brand cars sold in China are built in China in factories which are at least 50.1% Chinese owned. For GM, it's called the SAIC -- Shanghai Automotive Industrial Corp -- where they build Chevys, Buicks and Cadillacs. Free Trade is suicide. The USA should impose a 100% tariff on all imports from all countries with whom we have a trade deficit. Maybe we can start with 10% increasing by 5% every year until there is no longer a trade deficit with the said country. We don't mind trade without tariffs. But, trade generating deficits instead of surpluses does not benefit a country. Any country shuld be able to Trade with the USA without tariffs -- so long as they take the necessary measures and adopt the necessary policies to buy as much US exports and they sell to the USA. It's very simple as very fair. Any country who wants to sell to the USA without buying US exports will eventually see tariffs in excess of 100% in 20 years and rising. Of course this is all contrary to WTO rules, which is why the USA should withdraw from the WTO -- a wealth re-distributive organization whose membership is not in the best interest of the USA or any developed nation. BTW, this is called Mercantilism -- aka Trade for NATIONAL profit.