mickq

I just love fast, good performing cars. I dont care too much who makes them (Hyundai, Daihatsu and a few others excluded!) Id certainly go an SS over the XR8. XR8 sounds good, but the fact is its SLOW! I couldnt believe how much of a letdown it was when I drove one. I was tossing up getting one instead of my second T....ended up getting a MK2 T Order of *daily* drivers Id like to have would be: - The new V10 BMW M5 - The current M3 (or when the V8 one comes out soon...that may even knock the M5 off the top of my list) - A T with an edit of some kind - Wouldnt mind an STi in the garage too, when Im in that kind of mood. - A 6 litre holden...maybe a Clubsport (but they arent worth the extra $$$ over an SS).

Yes, they still have the Gen III (LS-1). HSV are selling some final ones with LS-2's in them. Its annoying actually, because all those sold in the US (as the GTO) are made here where ours are, but have LS2's! I confirmed today that the SS with the 6 litre engine is running a bit late - partially due to fuel prices meaning big engines are selling slower so its taking longer to get rid of the remaining 5.7 litre engines. They are currently due out early next year with the 6 litre. I wouldnt be surprised to see prices go down, as big engines are selling less now. Apparently HSV sales have dropped off a fair bit recently due to petrol prices....this will flow down to the SS too soon. HSV's are starting to go very cheap second hand apparently. Many people are (groan) trading them in for smaller cars. There are tons on the market. so does that mean its still using the gen III?? I thought they wouldve thrown an ls2 in the bugga <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

None needed...the T is quick enough to blow off the smell... Me too....... But tell me, what industrial strength cleaner did you use in the shower to get the Expensive Daewoo stench off of your skin mate. <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

no idea unfortunately. We get cars via the company we work for, and the price we pay per year includes endless fuel, tyres, servicing, all insurance etc etc. We dont look at the normal price...but I knwo my company gets it for....lets just say considerably better than 25% discount when they buy it.

not even the slightest bit of clunk or driveline lash at all, in any gear, under any level of engine load. The whole driveline felt very, very refined. I felt a bit embarrassed getting back into my Mk2 6spd T, as it was clunky, knocking, and a very notchy gear change!

I was checking out some HSV's at a dealer today, and the dealer told me what it is - the ones with a sunroof have a 3" lower roofline. I sat in one without - no problem. I sat in one with a sunroof (an older one with the old bonnet) and same problem - insanely low.

hey a question, who is your Internet Service Provider (ISP)? is it a company called hotline.net.au or similar? And do you have something like a download limit alerter or something installed from them? That entry is the only one I dont recognise. The 66.249.89.104 entry is OK...that's google. The blackbox.mshome.net bit is ok too, as that's something Windows makes up when you use Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) on your PCs. The large number of UDP listening ports is a little unusual, but none of them look suss and nothing is actually connected to them (at the time you did netstat). It also seems you have netbios turned on. if you dont need it, turn it off. You wouldnt believe what you can get access to using that if you know what you are doing - you can even browse other people's hard disks! Just as a safety measure, try this (if it kills your net connection on the other PC, then un do it) 1) Go to Control Panel 2) Double click on Network Connections. 3) Right Click on Local area Connection and choose Propeties 4) A bunch of tick boxes will appear. For normal use you should ONLY have ticked the following: - Client for Microsoft Networks - Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). - You may also have one such as Internet Connection Sharing (ICS). Tick that as well if its there. UNTICK File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks UNTICK QOS Packet Scheduler (dont need it). Also, what sort of internet connection do you have? Dial up modem, ADSL, Cable internet?

I spent an hour driving a brand new final series Monaro around Ringwood last night. Man do they sound GOOD! I went in an auto one a year or so ago and wasn’t that impressed. This time it was a new manual (US style) and the latest one and a very different experience. They are tiny inside though - my hair rubs against the roof which is dumb as Im not THAT tall (6’1). If you were 6'3 and above, forget it unless you like driving with your head sideways. Boot is tiny. Getting in is hard as I have to duck under the roofline over the door area. You would need to be small AND do yoga to get into the back seat easily. Must say the car is full of size compromises. Great for a single guy who isnt too short or too small, but a compromise for everyone else. The sound is one of the best things. Wind the windows down and open the sunroof and its great. That US style exhaust is unreal and I wish all aussie cars had it instead of our generally muted versions. Power is pretty good too - you can feel the difference a huge rotating mass makes. Hard to tell in comparison to my car as the power delivery is just so different. Power sometimes comes on quicker – no turbo spool up needed. Pull from 2000 revs was MUCH MUCH better than I expected...makes me think twice about taking them on at low speed! The latest one puts out 260kw/500Nm. 1692kg. The engine feels very solid because its just so BIG....getting back into mine, the engine felt much less significant - although still quick. 1st gear goes OK...hard to judge against the T until I run them side by side. Easier to get off the line fast though as I dont think the torque comes on as strong and suddenly as the T so you can more easily put the power down. I reckon mine would kick it in 3rd from say 80-150kmh no dramas whatsoever, but 1st and 2nd, no idea until I run some tests. Gearbox is *much* slicker and very smooth when changing - not one ounce of notchiness or tightness despite only 1500k on the clock, although I admit it feels completely remote so you dont get the real detailed feeling that you do in mine - but it makes mine feel very rough and notchy and unrefined in comparison (although I reckon mine feels stronger too). Not one iota of diff or other driveline-related clunk. Clutch is a little too light (suits the girly Expensive Daewoo drivers I guess) but works ok. Brakes are the squishy have-to-press-them-far type, but stop the car well. I prefer the T’s brake feel as always-squishy brakes can get very scary when you really heat them up and the pedal starts to get near the firewall during hard braking. Handling seems tight - can feel the difference only 2 doors make to the body/chassis dynamics. Overall, I was pretty impressed other than the size. A lot better sound and performance than the SS and earlier Monaro I drove about a year ago. A great car to drive. But the zillions of compromises mean I dont think I would own one. Maybe if I was 4 inches shorter. That sound though – it is simply awesome. And the performance would keep me relatively happy. Must say, the 6 litre SS will be my most likely next car unless Ford do something amazing as I believe they have been slack in updating things much over the last few years....I can only imagine what that 6L engine would be like!

Assuming you arent doing anything unusual with your low level settings - which judging by your post you are not likely to be, 4000 packets at a likely MTU of 1500 = 5.85MB. that's not a whole lot of data over a 10/100Mbps LAN, although it does indicate something is going on as its a lot more than normal if you arent sending files. What you should do is work out over that same time what amount of info is going out over the modem. You can use a program like DU Meter to measure the traffic on a particular interface - but Im not sure if it works for USB although probably does....if USB uses a MAC address. (Havent used a USB modem so havent checked - but bluetooth does so USB probably does for network capable devices). You can then run DU Meter and see if that traffic is going out on the Internet, or just between PC's. If its going out on the Internet as well, Id consider running an Antispyware program on both PC's to check all is OK. Also worth trying on each PC: shut down all internet using apps such as Messenger etc. On each PC pressing Start-->Run and type in cmd When the black box appears, type in netstat -a It will then show you all network connections on that machine - look for anything unusual! There should not be anything like user1.blahblah.com or similar there if you have shut down all progs on your PC that use the internet. If there is, it may be an indicator that something on your PC is maintaining a connection to the internet.

Oops, sorry, you are right I meant around 70 in 1st in my Mk1 and 75 in 1st in my Mk2...and the 100+ speeds in 2nd. Although so I hear it you can get over 90 in 1st with an edit and increased redline! Holy crap Mick! My manual ute doesn't do 110kmh in first!!! Nor does my phoon do 115-120 !! Me thinks you meant 2nd...... <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

sounds like "ice" ... ice is basically pure un-f*cked with speed. VERY addictive. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ice is actually less pure than normal speed. Its been chemically altered in a very simple process - the exact same way crack cocaine is made from cocaine. Takes stuff all time to do it and you can do it in your kitchen with no special anything needed. A little speed makes a lot of ice, which is why ice is so cheap. It is the only drug that is known to be instantly physically addictive. It causes an irreversable chemical change in the brain the very first time you use it. Not a good drug at all. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hmmm, I think you got it the worng way around. One cannot take a quantity of every day speed, or base for that matter and turn it into ICE. Comparing ICE and Crack Cocaine (or free based) in terms of manufacture can't be done as the two groups are totally seperate. YES they are both central nervous system stimulants, but the similarities end their. ICE cannot be made in a kitchen, and it cannot be done in a series of simple steps...the industrial organosolvents used, MSM for example, and others would kill you if inhaled and not wearing the propper PPE. that's why, unlike previously mentioned, ICE is very EXPENSIVE, the latest stats and figures that I see from Canberra put ICE as the most expensive illicit substance to purchase by the gram. Street for 1gm of ICE = approx $450-500 compared to High grade cocaine (82% and above) = approx $350-450. The only reason ICE isn't the largest illicit problem we face is because of it's expense, however, go to NEW ZEALAND and you'll see it running rampant though all socioeconomic classes, it's a major problem over their, more commonly known as 'P'. Instantly physically addictive? Can be made in you kitchen? Less pure? So Cheap? Please, if such comments are posted, even if you think your right, check, double check and for the hell of it, check again. A lot of people out their go out, with the advice of their friends, wrongfully take something, thinking its something else, and end up having me standing over them with other MICA paramedics, about ready to adminster a 200kj shock of electricity into them. A topic like this needs to be 100% accurate, otherwise wayward comments are just as dangerous as the substances themselves. Darren <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Mate perhaps you have been a little to "into" ice, but you seriously dont know what you are talking about. Ice is a hydrochloride salt of d-methamphetamine. Its easy as pie to make. If you dont understand the chemistry behind it (and its obvious you dont) then go ask any first year chem student and I have no doubt they could explain how to convert amphetamine to d-methamphetamine hydrochloride in two simple steps. You will need a jar, some filter paper, a couple of liquids found at any hardware store, and a fridge. All very complex as you can see. And to give you real world independent proof, here is a quote from Hawai'I about ice labs. Oh, and Im sure you dont realise it, but Hawai'I is where Ice first appeared in the US, so they kind of have a wee bit of experience in the substance... "Super labs mass-produce methamphetamine, usually churning out hundreds of pounds a month while conversion labs are intended to convert powder methamphetamine into a smokable, crystal form. Conversion labs are easier to conceal, build and move than are production labs. These labs can be set up in a closet, a bathroom, the trunk of a car or a cardboard box." http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/...7/ln/ln02p.html Im sure you dont know this either, but speed production is the tricky part. Its actually very easy, but all methods use some interesting chemicals, which due to a combination of toxicity and flamability make life in a meth lab rather exciting. And the majority of makers use no gas masks or similar. The solvents are bad but not THAT bad. But you wouldnt know that either, would you? As I said, the method of making ice is the same as is used to make crack. Crack is also exceedingly easy to make once you have the cocaine. Its the base that's the complex bit to manufacture. Although you can make speed in 2 jars, a pot and a couple of bits of filter paper. But no, let me guess, you need a supercomputer and a Level 4 biohazard lab right? Get real. Making a slight change to its structure that makes crack and ice is about as easy as chemistry gets. Its even easier than making GBH. But no doubt you dont know much about that one either.

Are you in an auto or manual? What im writing below is mostly relevant to the manual: The reason I ask is that yes the acceleration will be lots better, but you will also likely find if you are in a manual you will need 3rd gear to reach 100kmh which means you lose time on a gear change - which isnt good for 0-100 times. At the moment the Mk1 5 speed gets about 110kmh in first and the Mk2 6 speed about 115-120 (cant remember but will look again this arvo). Dropping the diff will mean a quick change into 3rd, a spurt of acceleration and then you will be at 100kmh. Hard to say if you waill have a better time, but in general an extra gear change isnt desirable. Id do the sums to work out the max speed in each gear and see if you can live with it. There are progs on the internet that can tell you that. It will also impact freeway speed cruising as in the Mk1 5th is pretty well callibrated to allow good acceleration at 100kmh but still be economical. 6th in the Mk2 is the same, although really only accelerates well at 120kmh. You may find your freeway cruising isnt as good economy wise, although I think the 6 speed will be less impacted than the 6 speed.

Oops...brain fart. See post below.

sounds like "ice" ... ice is basically pure un-f*cked with speed. VERY addictive. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ice is actually less pure than normal speed. Its been chemically altered in a very simple process - the exact same way crack cocaine is made from cocaine. Takes stuff all time to do it and you can do it in your kitchen with no special anything needed. A little speed makes a lot of ice, which is why ice is so cheap. It is the only drug that is known to be instantly physically addictive. It causes an irreversable chemical change in the brain the very first time you use it. Not a good drug at all.

How insane is this? Saigon Intersection - 3MB

Be interested to hear the results, but I believe you wont get any more kms. Probably no more kms than unleaded (even though its theoretically possible) ...but definitely no more kms than premium of the same octane you have increased your unleaded to using the additive. The thermal efficiency of the engine is the biggest deteminant of efficiency (in terms of km per litre or similar measure). Octane does not effect thermal efficiency - unless of course the octane additive causes a reduction in the BTU of the fuel - which is definitely possible. IN that case you would exect worse fuel economy.

I think its fair enough. Turns out the police were lying to their supervisors and saying they had called off the pusuit as ordered (because the supervisor deemed it was too dangerous as per guidelines) when in fact they were still pursuing the offenders. That places us all at risk - they call off pursuits when its getting too dangerous and the police chasing close by is leading to the offender running red lights at high speed and so on. Not only did they lie to their supervisors, but some of them did tricks like changing frequencies on their radios so they didnt hear the "call it off" order that they knew was coming. Dont get me wrong - the dickheads committing the crimes deserve to pay, but NOT at the cost of Joe Blow driving home from work getting T-boned by a crim doing 150 through a red light with the cops 50m behind him. Reminds me of a case that happened about 1km from where I live. Cops chased 4 x 15yo kids in a car they had stolen. After about 30mins of pursuit the kids started driving very recklessly trying to get away. The chase got to high speed and the cops were ordered to call it off, drop back without lights and sirens, as the helicopter was nearby and would take over. The young idiots were doing about 150kmh in a residential 60 zone and had run several lights at high speed - leading to the (correct) order to stop the close pursuit. The guys crashed into a tree or fence, Either 2 or 4 of them died. The cops immediately claimed they could not be blamed for pursuing them too hard as they had dropped back and were 2km away, as their supervisor had ordered. They said they arrived an estimated 4mins after the crash. However at least 2 witnesses who lived where the crash occurred said the cop car came to a halt at the scene less than 10 seconds after the accident. It was pretty clear the cops had lied and were still actively pursuing when the crash occurred. Them stealing some sh*tbox car wasnt good, but being realistic catching them immediately instead of a bit later was not worth all their lives. Seems like similar problems are occurring in NSW and its suddenly got public. I understand the cops chasing bad guys - all very exciting and they must be keen to get them, but not when it places everyone else in severe danger. that's why I dont have a huge problem with the "call it off" rules as they tend to be applied in reasonable and well defined circumstances. The only time I can see it being "stop them at all costs" is when they are actively trying to kill people, ram cars etc and have shown even when not pursued closely they will continue their running red lights at high speed etc. That being said, when a criminal manages to only kill himself and those who joined him in the crime, I dont exactly feel bad...

Im guessing you blew the pipe off the turbo outlet. Common event - I did it within a few days of getting my first T. And a second time earlier this year. Interestingly my Mk2 has never had it happen...yet When the car is cold, follow the big black pipe that comes out of the top centre of the engine down to the front of the turbo which is on the left side of the engine as you face it from the front of the car. Give it a wiggle and see if the pipe has come off the turbo. Do not stick your fingers in the front of the turbo as it can still be spinning 5 minutes after the engine stops. (I have timed it!). If its loose, you need to loosen the "worm screw" which is supposed to hold it on, slip it back on, and then re-tighten the worm screw. If its loose and you arent confiedent touching it, you could also try popping into a Ford dealer and asking if they woudl mind putting it back on for you - should take them all of 30 seconds. When its blown off it can have varying effects, partially dependent on whether its sort of blown loose (and thus some boost is still reaching the engine) or mostly off and no boost reaches the engine. It changes how the engine drives quite a bit. It also produces a much louder pop-off type sound when you stop accellerating. The turbo noise as it spools up is also much louder and may be the noise you refer to. The reason is instead of the compressed air being blown up that big black pipe into the engine, it is being blown into the engine bay area - and as it doesnt have the pipe to help muffle it, its much much louder. I must say the turbo's impellor spinning in the open at near 100,000rpm does sound very cool.

it is well worth checking that Ford wont void your engine and exhaust warrantee prior to using E10. Just because its available at a servo doesnt mean its a Ford recommended fuel. My local BP also sells racing fuel (unleaded) and some fantastic old fashioned leaded fuel with 115 octane and a whopping 1.6g of lead per litre. I would definitely check with Ford BEFORE letting them know E10 is being used. I personally wont use it. I wouldnt take the chance with a high performance engine I drive hard every day. Especially over a couple of cents per litre. If a couple of cents make that much difference, Im not sure why someone would buy a sports car that you know can use more fuel than standard - buy an XT Ethanol is most definitely in the interest of big fuel companies for the time being. For one simple reason - it is not subject to the same amazingly high taxes as petrol is. By substituting 10% ethanol, they are probably reducing the cost per litre (retail cost) by about 8%. 8% of say $1.30 is 10.4c so you should be paying around that much less per litre. However often you wont. You may save around 5c....and guess which multi-national mega corporations make an extra 5c per litre as a result??? The oil companies. They love it, and will continue to useadditives like ethanol and toluene as much as the laws allow them to. Even an extra 1c per litre profit translates to tens of millions extra profit per month - or more. The Govt will catch on pretty soon and boost the taxes on ethanol as they will be losing taxes on petrol as a result of ethanol usage. BUT they will only do that once a fair whack of the population has started using it. The only time I could see the oil companies moving away from ethanol is if the public runs away from the stuff, or if the taxes are raised such that they dont make extra profit, or if the ethanol producers gear up, import their own fuel and start selling ethanol blends that dont put money in our oil companies pockets.

But he wasnt in manual mode, so not sure you are saying that is relevant, or the transmission had nothing to do with it? Most people with autos drive with it in normal auto mode most of the time. Mix a modded car - or even spirited driving in a non-modded car - with a wet road, and one day its likely the gear box will change gear when you dont expect it, dump you in the middle of peak torque, and you will be out sideways instantly. Happens time and time again, and we have seen a few instances on this site alone. Normal driving, not a problem. But put your transmission in the situation where its on the edge of jumping down a gear and it decides to when perhaps normally it wouldnt be expected to, and it becomes a handful really quickly. A true manual gearbox is a mechanical link. There is no "brain" making decisions, and hence no unexpected gear change event can occur. Even in an auto T in sports mode you dont have pure control of the gears. It doesnt mean that autos suck - it just means under certain circumstances ithey do pose a higher risk. (generally wet roads when you accelerate a bit, and worse still wet corners). That car copped a fair hit. Even a branch stuck in a door handle! Deek...what was airbag detonation like? Not something I have been through. (Never had an accident in a car with bags). I agree, and its one reason why I always drive a manual. It wont jump down a gear when you arent expecting it. Even in something like a stock SS, I reckon I would get caught out eventually in the wet...probably on a corner. Factor in mega HP in a modded T and its just about guaranteed to happen. Glad he is ok. Cars can be replaced. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> but if he was in manual mode it would never of dropped down a gear, cant blame the box though. Dazza. <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yep, I have had it. one of the heat shields. Can be one near the turbo, or one a bit further back but still not far from the front drivers tyre.

I agree, and its one reason why I always drive a manual. It wont jump down a gear when you arent expecting it. Even in something like a stock SS, I reckon I would get caught out eventually in the wet...probably on a corner. Factor in mega HP in a modded T and its just about guaranteed to happen. Glad he is ok. Cars can be replaced.

No idea what happened to him. Probably traded in his BMW for a Expensive Daewoo though, I reckon. (That little factule is based on statistics: from his viewed actions I estimated his IQ. I then subtracted some more to cater fo the likely damage the event did, and that left an IQ low enough only to buy a Holden.). I am pretty sure I see many of his mates driving down Chapel St quite regularly. Anyone who locks his accelerator down and then exits his vehicle is just plain dumb. Iff you really wanted to, you can do similar burnouts with one foot in the car on the accelerator and then if anything goes wrong, the car returns to idle. (And probably stalls about the moment it runs over your leg, but *prior* to your body taking about 600kg of weight....).

The TC works in two stages: there is a soft cut and a hard cut. The soft TC is the "stumbling" you will feel, and its caused by the timing being adjusted...retarded from memory (couldnt be stuffed checking!). It results in lower power. The second level is caused by a partial cut to ignition to quickly drop power. You generally need to try if you want that one to kick in. You can definitely feel it. You can also overcome it even in a standard T, to get some wicked sideways action - but one great part of the system is if you back off, the car pretty much auto recovers, which is unreal as you get the ability to flick out, and recovery canbe as easy as reducing the accelrator pedal a bit - you dont even need to do quick countersteering in many instances. The methods used are quite similar to those used for the redline cutout, which also has a hard and soft...and the hard one makes you feel like you would fly thorugh the windscreen if you werent wearing a seat belt! The application of the brakes are not used as part of the TC system. The only brake related component is the ABS sensors which are used to detect if the wheels are spinning faster than the speed the car things it is going. (ie it detects wheel spin). Electronic stability control (insert cool sounding acronym here...) is in the brand new models and DOES play with individual brakes according to what the car is doing. Its more aimed at stopping spins caused by over-correction than anything and in general instead of using the ABS sesors to detect wheel spin, it relies on gyroscopic rotation of the car around the mid point - ie it detects the car is starting to spin. It then looks at the ABS sensors and works out which wheel is moving at what speed, and from there can work out what wheel needs some braking applied, in order to stop or slow down the spin.

What amazes me is if you watch the front of the car, it seems to lift just about completely off the ground, so his body is carrying about half the car's weight! Hate to think of the exhaust burns too with the engine at redline. Ouch.