New cars

[jetfire]

Back when Todd was in town to teach the Get SOM/Speed Kills class a couple of months back, we talked about new cars, because apparently he was tired of his Super Nissan and wanted a grown up car. We discussed the value of a low profile car that has a high top speed, as you're less likely to get a ticket in a silver sedan that looks like it came straight from soccer practice. Taking this advice to heart, on Memorial Day I rewarded myself for all the hard work I've done over the last two years at building my business and bought a new car. For the few people on here that actually know me, it's essentially the perfect car for my personality AND shooting style.

http://gunnuts.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/240283_2013898674447_1453219717_32246926_681945_o-e1306967954273.jpg

If this was an episode of Top Gear, I believe that James May would describe it as "obscene".

[Creeper9]

Very nice!

Wonder what the rest of the Top Gear cast would say!?:p

[YVK]

it's essentially the perfect car for my ... shooting style.

This is...subtle:cool:. Let me guess, favorite gun is a nickel-plated 1911 loaded with +P 230 gr ammo?

Congrats on the car!

[jslaker]

This is...subtle:cool:. Let me guess, favorite gun is a nickel-plated 1911 loaded with +P 230 gr ammo?

Congrats on the car!

Close. Gold tiger-striped Desert Eagle.

[NGCSUGrad09]

http://www.ped/altothemetal.com/index.php?ct=news&action=file&id=3177

That thing gotta Hemi?

[Joe in PNG]

Very nice!

Wonder what the rest of the Top Gear cast would say!?:p

Hammond would most likely either 1) Like it or 2) Say it doesn't measure up to the classics.

And Clarkson would, of course, call it "rubbish". Then he'd find a way to destroy it in a cool manner.

[ToddG]

it's essentially the perfect car for my personality

... Liberace-grade flamboyant ...


AND shooting style.

... out of control at high speed.

Sorry dude but when you throw the softballs it's just too easy...

[jetfire]

Sorry dude but when you throw the softballs it's just too easy...

Hey, when you're right you're right! Shelley saw the car and said "this is so you I want to give it a revolver and see how well it shoots."

Although, my fascination with muscle cars makes sense when you think about the guns I shoot primarily - revolvers and 1911s. Muscle cars are really only good in a straight line and are outperformed by modern cars, plus they're constantly out of gas. Revolvers and 1911s are really only good for specialty applications and are outperformed by modern pistols, and you constantly have to reload them.

[orionz06]

Hey, when you're right you're right! Shelley saw the car and said "this is so you I want to give it a revolver and see how well it shoots."

Although, my fascination with muscle cars makes sense when you think about the guns I shoot primarily - revolvers and 1911s. Muscle cars are really only good in a straight line and are outperformed by modern cars, plus they're constantly out of gas. Revolvers and 1911s are really only good for specialty applications and are outperformed by modern pistols, and you constantly have to reload them.

I will never be able to look at cars the same way again. I hope to god I don't find out I drive the XD or CZ of cars...

[Joe in PNG]

I will never be able to look at cars the same way again. I hope to god I don't find out I drive the XD or CZ of cars...

Are the words "Yugo", "Fiat", "Chrysler" or "Plymouth" printed anywhere on your vehicle? If no, then I think you may be ok.

[DonovanM]

Congrats on the purchase. It's uh... subtle... no not really :p

I too am seeing a correlation between cars and guns.

I drive this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/vehementi/car/IMG_8007_1210x806.jpg

And shoot these:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/vehementi/DSCF0667z.jpg

Coincidence? I think not.

[LittleLebowski]

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h251/baxshep/GT.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h251/baxshep/th_Fingergrooves2.jpg

[TCinVA]

Umm....

http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h353/TCinVA/Charger1.jpg
http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h353/TCinVA/charger2.jpg

Actually a lot of the Charger you're driving is probably Mercedes.

Believe it or not, the handling is pretty good considering that the car is just shy of two tons with nothing in the trunk or in the passenger compartment. The brakes...well, the brakes are fine for driving on interstates. They are hopelessly ill-suited to taking that vehicle around mountain roads. If you aren't rocking the Brembos, expect the el-cheapo factory discs to engage warp factor 37 the first time you try and take the back roads up to a place like Pittsburgh. (which is still better than going through Maryland)

A couple of weeks ago I went to a range in West Virginia that required going over a mountain to get there. I won't say how fast I was taking some of those turns, but it was fast enough to actually cause the police officer in the passenger seat to experience some real fear. With the right tires and a sensible approach to turns the big machine responds fairly well with tire squeal and an ever so slight feeling of oversteer at the back end to let you know that you're soon going to exceed the limitations of your skill in the car. Of course, I do all of that going uphill...downhill I drop it into 3rd gear and use every trick I can to scrub off momentum because the brakes only have so much stop in them and if you're not careful it's easy to exhaust that early.

[orionz06]

Umm....

[IM G]http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h353/TCinVA/Charger1.jpg[/IMG]
[IM G]http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h353/TCinVA/charger2.jpg[/IMG]

Your towels on the ground send shivers up my spine!

[TCinVA]

Your towels on the ground send shivers up my spine!

They were done for the day and did not touch the car after that. ;) Swirl marks are the enemy.

[jetfire]

Nice car, TC. Actually, the first order of business for the car is Brembos. I live in Washington, where all our roads west of the Cascades are nothing but curves and hills. After some informal experimentation, I realized that having better brakes would be a really good idea.

[LittleLebowski]

They were done for the day and did not touch the car after that. ;) Swirl marks are the enemy.

Which is why you should always wash, polish, and wax in straight lines.

[orionz06]

Which is why you should always wash, polish, and wax in straight lines.

Myth. You should use products that do not install swirls to begin with. If they don't swirl direction is not an issue.

[ToddG]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8Vs-KMuqjI

[LittleLebowski]

Myth. You should use products that do not install swirls to begin with. If they don't swirl direction is not an issue.

Absolutely anything can cause a swirl, particularly dirty cloths and airborne contaminants. Usually, you are making swirls but you're filling it temporarily with whatever product you are using at the time. I used some of the very best products and after a few months, I could see the swirls. Switching to straight lines changed everything.

[orionz06]

Hmm, not sure. I have done 1/2 of a car one way and the other 1/2 the other and from a spring to summer saw no difference. The expected swirls were there but otherwise the car was great. I was using a Lake Country sponge and mostly doing ONR washes, but I would do full washes with a Schmitt and a good shampoo with a foam gun and filtered water.

The only exception is not bringing up grunge from the bottom panels to the top, care needs to be taken in this instance.

Now I have a brand new car and haven't had time to wash it since I got it in April! It might see some Wolfgang Fuzion within the week though.

[JM Campbell]

If you can get it I would suggest a company called Malco, they make a wax/glaze called Nano Glaze. Top notch stuff and a body shine that is super good. If anyone owns a "super black" Nissan the dull cloudy haze is a problem of the past.

The new products with "Nano Technology" is the way to go to keep your finish up.

I'm a firm believer in micro fiber towels one use only and toss them out. Perfect to dry the car, clean seats, panels, dash, windows, remove wax, and dress plastic/rubber trim.
Terry cloth towels are the thig of the past and actually help cause the swirl marks.

You should also look into a foam pad wax applicator that is not wrapped in cloth. Very bad for a painted finish same principle as the Terry cloth towels.

In my experience you should stay far away from solvent based tire shines. It reacts with a chemical used as a release agent in tire manufacturing to release the tires from the molds, the sling off of the tire dressing that accumulates on the fenders will turn brown splotchy bbecuse of the chemical reaction. I strongly advise all Nissan and Infiniti owners to only use a "water or silicon" based tire dressing/shine.

Please also use proper saftey equipment too, IE: latex gloves when handling wax (applying and removing) and other cleaning/shining chemicals. Read the back of the bottles and look up the MSDS info online, to be honest it might just scare the crap out of you when you realize what is in them and what it can and will do to you.

Disclaimer: I work in commercial auto field and the above mentioned products might not be available on the public market.

[LittleLebowski]

I can only speak from personal experience but switching to straight lines while washing, polishing, and waxing made an immediate difference in the cars I used to maintain (I don't waste my time on vehicles anymore). Switching to Zaino was also helpful.

Also, I cannot trust any company that has the buzzword "nano" in it. I truly believe that 95% of all "nano" products on the market have precisely zero real scientific justification for use of the word.

Back when I cared about vehicles....

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h251/baxshep/DSCN0621.jpg

[DonovanM]

Nice car, TC. Actually, the first order of business for the car is Brembos. I live in Washington, where all our roads west of the Cascades are nothing but curves and hills. After some informal experimentation, I realized that having better brakes would be a really good idea.

I used to live on Union Hill down there in Redmond. I would hit 70 on the wonderfully curved and steep, but woefully short roads leading up to it every day after work.

It was the highlight of my day... I hated my job.

[orionz06]

If you can get it I would suggest a company called Malco, they make a wax/glaze called Nano Glaze. Top notch stuff and a body shine that is super good. If anyone owns a "super black" Nissan the dull cloudy haze is a problem of the past.

Their products are jam packed with fillers and are intended for dealers to order in bulk more so than the enthusiast. Detailing is one industry that is backwards and the enthusiast level products are often times better than the "pro" stuff. That is also why you will see many products having cherry scents. People want to see and smell a difference. Dealers work on volume and spending the proper amount of time is not possible. Instead you silicone the piss out of it, fill the swirls, make it smell like cherries and have them back in 2 months.

When an enthusiast does it, they do it once in the spring and remove the swirls, not fill them.

And I agree, "nano" means "stay away"... If you were looking for something I would suggest reading Autogeek, DetailingBliss, or DetailersDomain. Many of them have pet brands, but among those pet brands are lots of top notch products.

[JM Campbell]

ETA: the previous mentioned wax is "Nano Care Polishing Creme" I believe this is the same product for the non commercial market.

http://www.prestaproducts.com/Nano_Cleaner_Wax-details.aspx

[orionz06]

I am pretty sure Malco sells under Malco. I have seen their stuff around in the past.


Changing back to the OP: Are you going to larger rotors and calipers?

[Beamish]

Back when I cared about vehicles....

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h251/baxshep/DSCN0621.jpg
I hear tell that car could could make the trip between The Mineshaft and The Anvil in record time back in the day...

[ToddG]

Back when I cared about vehicles....


Is it even legal to have "cared about vehicles" and a picture of an RX-8 in the same post?

0-60 faster than a Clydesdale, maybe...

[LittleLebowski]

Is it even legal to have "cared about vehicles" and a picture of an RX-8 in the same post?

0-60 faster than a Clydesdale, maybe...

I believe 0-60 was in the 6's? Anyway, it reach a witnessed 166MPH. It was also very fun to drive. I don't miss it; it drank gas and my Acura TL 6spd was a better car.

Anyway, I like my bike.

[jetfire]

I used to live on Union Hill down there in Redmond. I would hit 70 on the wonderfully curved and steep, but woefully short roads leading up to it every day after work.

It was the highlight of my day... I hated my job.

Honestly, the real reason I need better brakes is because I'll be 70-75ish on the freeway and come around a corner and BAM there will be some a-hole in a Prius going 63 MPH in the f*cking fast lane.

[JM Campbell]

To clarify that link was followed through Malcos sight and was redirected to there from Malcos sight after clicking on the automotive division.
http://www.malcopro.com/

As stated before I have detailed professionally for 13 years and have had the best outcome using the Malco branded product. For now the Malco stuff is working very well with some finish issues that I have seen from the factory.

I have used the 3M Trizact Perfect It 3000 Extra Cut Compound, Perfect It 3000 Trizact Spot Finishing Material, Perfect It 3000 Machine Polish, the followed by Perfect It 3000 Final Glaze to remedy most of the swirling issues I have come across.

It's all trial and error, I was just trying to throw out there my personal experience that I see everyday in my job.

[orionz06]

What are you guys seeing from the factory?

[JM Campbell]

Unfortunately when using a computer to paint all the cars we see various trash in the finish, dirt particles ect. Most of the time the contaniment is in the clear and a little wet sanding and further compound/polish rectifies the situation. If PGF is applied during trans port (paint guard film) condensation is traped/accumulated between the finish and film causing a milky wavy splotches that must have heat applied and the evaluation to what next steps have to be taken. Mind you these are fresh paint jobs straight from the factory and not a two to three year old vehicle.

The only paint job that I have seen that was flawless was the 8 layer factory custom paint option on the GTR that is hand painted by only a select few at the Japan facility. Truely a ultra clean job with depth thT seemed to go on for miles. Unfortunatly they are shipped by boat to Cali then railhead across the country and then trucked to us so as in all cars that travel that much in a non closed transport method IE inclosed truck trailer they are subject to the elements. Rail dust, fallout, bird dropping and road film during the transport process.

Keeps me gainfully employed but tired as hell most of the time.

[JM Campbell]

To the OP I'll check on the Brembo kit at our Dodge store. Although it might just be had through online retailers for less. But part numbers might be helpful in your search.

[JM Campbell]

According to my parts guy there is no upgrade kit through Dodge. Here are prt numbers to build your own kit if you want.

These are for the SRT8 Brembo package off a 2011 Challenger and should be the same for a 4 door charger. If you have 17/18" wheels they wil need to be upgraded too

Pad kit front 0 5174311-AC

Pad kit rear 0 517327-AC

Rotor Front (2) 0 5290538-AC

Rotor Rear (2) 0 5290537-AB

Caliper front 0 5175106-AB
Caliper front 0 5175107-AB

Caliper Rear 0 5175108-AA
Caliper Rear 0 5175109-AA


They are not cheap at all either through the dealer. Going through Brembo might be a more cost effective option or through a online retailer.
I hope his helps you out.

[Slavex]

seriously looking at picking up a used one of these from down south, but a 2009 (I think the photo is of a 2012)

http://www.2012-bmw-spyshots.info/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/bmw-650i-2.jpg

[NickA]

I too am seeing a correlation between cars and guns.
Just occurred to me that both my Glocks and my daily car (Honda Accord) were all made in 2001-2002. Not pretty but dependable, practical and paid for long ago.

[Blayglock]

I drive a Chevy Silverado and usually carry an H&K 45c. I guess that goes together?

[DonovanM]

seriously looking at picking up a used one of these from down south, but a 2009 (I think the photo is of a 2012)

http://www.2012-bmw-spyshots.info/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/bmw-650i-2.jpg

So, how's that gold tiger stripe Desert Eagle working out for you? :p

[DonovanM]

Just occurred to me that both my Glocks and my daily car (Honda Accord) were all made in 2001-2002. Not pretty but dependable, practical and paid for long ago.

Nice.

My car and my guns both are stylish, slightly more expensive than comparable models, run extremely well when properly taken care of, were both paid for somewhat recently, and are very pleasant to operate :D

I also regret the purchase of both to some degree, as neither of them are the most efficient of platforms :(

Funny how that works...

[DannyZRC]

a month ago I was selling an HK P2000 (v2 9mm) and a BMW motorcycle, and angling to buy a Hornady LNL AP.

now I've sold the HK and the BMW, and own an M&P (40 FS w/ thumb safety) and a new to me 2000 Isuzu trooper, and I'm angling to buy a Lee classic turret.

you can say it's been a transformative couple of weeks.

(and yes, much happier now)