ok, this morning i went for coffee. i skipped work today so i went B.A.M., got my special drink, came out and started the truck. the oil light was on and i heard some ticking noise. didn't think much of it at first, thought i'd go home and put oil in it and be alright. so then around 2:30 i was going to go to Lowes and get a water hose for our place, but first! more coffee. i came out got in a started the truck. this time i thought i would try and figure out where it was coming from. i happen to noticed it wasn't coming from inside, but from underneath the hood. so i pop the hood and turn my head to try and find it. so i figure it sounds as if it's coming from the ignition coil, so i turn the truck off and start checking connections. i grab the coil wire, tight on the coil. then i grab the one on the cap and it falls off in my hand. i was like hock: hock: hock: hock: so i'm thinking i have to get to Advance and get a new cap. i laid it back on the cap and it started up. since it was driving that way the first time, i figured it would again. i drove slowly down 33. after finding that i knocked off a cap on the upper intake (rough idle) AND finding a spark-plug loose, everythings fine now

i still can't understand how i was able to drive with the coil post broken clear off, well burnt off, but oh well!

so I'm looking for a set of race seats, which pretty much means I have to get harnesses too....

what's the consensus, do I have to get a cage (or at least rollbar) at the same time? The only reason I've heard to not have race seats without a bar is that when the car rolls, and you're strapped in, you can't duck if the roof doesn't hold up. IMHO, that's pretty silly reasoning.

Your thoughts?

MM,

There's a $15 Evo R/C car on W00t if anyone's interested:

http://www.woot.com

As with anything, supplies are limited and today is the only day it'll be offered.

OK, time is drawing near, and although I am still not near ready, it is time make a decision. The supra runs great, never fails, and really doesn't have any issues, except needs tires. The 240 has lots of issues, but I want it for a track car and every time I track the supra is another duel with the devil, IMO. Below are listed pros and cons of each. Read, analyze, help me make the decision.
Supra:
has zero major problems
very stable track platform and I am very familiar with it
good for starting the season, since I'm used to it
nothing will be rushed in preparation for it and nothing will be modified
has ABS (hah, i like it, what can I say? )
tires are going to cost me $500+
needs oil change, brake bleed, change pads at the track
heavy boat
absolutely not disposable as a vehicle so I just can't push the car, this is my baby!
240sx
light and very nimble, feels great, lots of fun and tossable into turns
disposable. Putting this hunk into a wall won't hurt my feelings, they are a dime a dozen
lightweight makes it feel fast
current tires won't go (one of the belts is busted in one of them, tires from hub swap are fine)
still to do: seatbelts, windshield wipers, oil change, clutch problem, E-brake, door swap, hubs, brakes, suspension
im running out of time and rushing myself
no experience on the track with this car
not really familiar with the car in general, mods will dramatically change the car

what do you think?

Post pics here of whatever you want that you think I could use as a header image on the site.

Things to keep in mind:
1. Picture must be wide but have a small focal point so that it fits between the blurb and the MM logo
2. Picture must be relatively high resolution
3. It can be of your car or of an event you attended.

Have at it!

Stolen from Honda-Tech, this reminded me a lot of JMU: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/chainspix.htm">http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/chainspix.htm</a><!-- m -->

That's what jack should do!

Car Vs. Telephone Pole:

http://cms.firehouse.com/content/article...5&id=32289

Eric Langbein and Jeremy Wimpey(JMU Grad Student) competed in the first round of the Rally America National Championship in Atlanta, MI on Jan 28-29. After 2 days of competition they finshed 11th overall and 2nd in class (PGT). On the way they set several very fast times on stages, (one 3rd fastest stage Overall and two 5th fastest O'all stages)

The Team campaigns a 1988 Celica AllTrac (named Angelica). Pittsburg based Langbein got a chance to practice some snow driving at Beaver Run on the way to the event.

A driving mistake on SS8 lost the team 9 minutes, as they waited to be pulled from a snow bank by fellow competitors.

Winning the class was the team of Tanner/Faust in a Subaru WRX.

The team hopes to continue competing the National Series throughout the 2005 Season. The next RA event is in Oregon, followed with 6 more rallies in Maine, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, 2 in Colorado, and the finale in MI.

Sponsorship Oppurtunities are available, contact wimpeyjf (at) jmu dot edu if interested.

For detailed results see:

<!-- w --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.rally-america.com">www.rally-america.com</a><!-- w -->

pictures at :

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.stcimages.com/rally/05snodrift1/5e9g9688_026089.htm">http://www.stcimages.com/rally/05snodri ... 026089.htm</a><!-- m -->

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://stcimages.com/rally/05snodrift2/329_img_9690_0520329382a.htm">http://stcimages.com/rally/05snodrift2/ ... 29382a.htm</a><!-- m -->

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://stcimages.com/rally/05snodrift2/328_8a2c7671_010402.htm">http://stcimages.com/rally/05snodrift2/ ... 010402.htm</a><!-- m -->

Do a google search for underwhelming and look at the first one, or just hit im feeling lucky