SAAC Forum

A one minute paranormal short about a man and his cherished Corvette.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qpipkw9oS-M

Isn't today the 60th anniversary of the release of the Mustang?

 Three Forty Six Pak

By

Richard L. Elsliger © 2024


She was a stunning ride
The source of all my pride
A three forty Six Pak
On the ready to attack

The engine stirs to life
A sound so full of strife
With hand on pistol grip
I pop the clutch to let her rip

Into battle we must go
Man and mistress all aglow
We will own this road race track
Only me and my Six Pak

The green flag drops and we're away
We charge headlong toward the fray
Then my Six Pak takes the lead
A blur of paint at insane speed

But when I find around the turn
A phantom wreck that there does burn
I turn my wheel but lose control
My car begins to flip and roll

A grinding crash splits the air
My life will end it seems unfair
And when I leave this mortal dream
I know that Death does reign supreme

 

Yeah I know, not Shelby related but it is car related. Always a soft spot for old Mopar.  I took artistic license with the pistol grip and the three two barrels.  I do not believe that the Trans-Am version of the Challenger had either.  But hey, it's a poem.  It's fiction. Enjoy.  Or not.  Depending on your view of the car featured and/or quality of the poetry. 

I normally don't dwell on what really are routine celestial phenomena at any given time in any given place in the world but got inspired to write this ditty on the solar eclipse 2024.

The Solar Eclipse
By
Richard L. Elsliger 2024

When sun and moon and Earth align
The thought sends chills upon my spine
The sun and moon I cannot touch
Their beams and rays I cannot clutch

The sun shines light upon us all
But soon the moon will cast its pall
It moves with stealth across the sky
The sun's bright face it will defy

The time arrives the moon is here
A jaunty gloom so many fear
It glides with ease to block the sun
To tell us all the moon has won

But then the sun again appears
To warm the land, dispel all fears
I will not cross the river Styx
Yet still I fear the next eclipse


And no, I do not fear solar eclipses. Unless I stare at it unfiltered.  I plan to ignore it all on Monday and go about my business.  Besides, this is Chicago and the cloud cover will "eclipse" the eclipse, a spoiler for those who aspire to get a view.

I happened upon a discussion about the alleged weak firewall on early Mustangs.  Apparently the brake pedal application can cause the firewall to flex.  I also have a clutch pedal.  The car is not tracked but are there any potential nasty surprises I might encounter with anything breaking or bending with the current pedal setup? 

This is the starting point of a video showing a totally modified 67 fastback where the topic was mentioned.
https://youtu.be/RazJt1rESh4?si=s1qbdQBGKFnwac8I&t=907

I got to researching the issue (as I am want to do) and apparently Hane Performance (Walt Hane who raced and won the B Production in 1966 in an R Model) created a solution.  Not something I would really want to do to a street car and especially not to 6s843 but I don't like surprises while out on a jaunt.
http://haneperformance.com/Firewall-Brace.html
https://youtu.be/RazJt1rESh4?si=s1qbdQBGKFnwac8I&t=907

Apparently no new holes need to be drilled.  It looks awkward but perhaps necessary in a car with metal that is 57 years old? 

As an addendum, I can really recommend Hane's book "Racing to Riverside."  It was a very enjoyable read and he really analyzed the weaknesses he found in the R Model that he modified to make the car indestructible during the racing season in 1966.  The ingenuity he used on his R model was inspiring to say the least. I have no proverbial dog in the fight.  Just passing on a good read.
http://haneperformance.com/index.html

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lcD-ChO6i9Q

Maybe only the date changes and the rest stays the same.  According to Mark Twain history doesn't repeat itself but it sure likes to rhyme.

I wonder how many of us were as wild with our cars back in the day.  Me, I wasn't so brash.

843 came up on my Aldi receipt today. Maybe it's a sign to buy a lottery ticket.

Amusing to say the least.  I did not know that Henry Ford's mother died giving birth to her seventh child.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjqjoehA7kM

Bought a gym membership for the Hertz and woke up to this...
All kidding aside this car looks brutal.

Intellectual curiosity drives me to the question does anyone know what happened to Mr. Schmidt?  Would be nice to get a set of his now defunct torque thrust rims.  It is unfortunate he is not in business anymore.  Retired I guess?

An original paranormal story: Mr. Nitromethane

Runs 13 minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGdwp-Bl06U&t=

And yes, I know that 427s had single overhead cams. 427 SOHC right?  I made up the two cam idea.  It's fiction.  And yes, no way a decades old battery would work from a booster charge.  Fiction again.  Artistic license if you will.  And who is to say that it really happened in the real world of the story.  I leave that up to the prospective listeners.

A friend recently acquired a 70 Boss 302 and I suggested minilites for the car.  He became interested in said rims.  Does anyone know the correct size and spacing for a set of minilites on a 1970 street Boss 302?  Any assistance is appreciated.

Thinking random thoughts last night I realized that my car will be 100 years old in the year 2066 (maybe 2065 since the car is an earlier number).  My body, alive or dead, will be 103 years old.  If I can just hold on...

What did you do to my legs? Looks like a hover car. The next Back to the Future should be a Shelby Mustang.

My car is originally an automatic however now lives with a four speed and Hurst shifter. Curious what the 66 manual Shelby Mustangs have for a cover plate. I have seen a few pictures with what appears to be a floating chrome bezel. Below is the current configuration. Does it need a bezel is my question.

Said tires should arrive today or tomorrow for installation.  205 60R 15 front and 215 60R 15 rear.  I get minor rubbing on the rear but has not affected the inner fender lips but only scraped a bit of the rubber in spots.  Nothing too dramatic.  Clears perfectly in the front.  Question is keep the lettering out or turn the tires in for a plain black wall look.  Either way, the junky Kumho tires have to go.  They are almost 10 years old now.  Too risky to drive on them and in fact I should have gotten rid of them five years ago.  But life gets in the way, right?

Here are the details here:

"The lawsuit hopes to target the track by calling into question the track's zoning laws and lack of explicit racing use being in the track's permits."

https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/laguna-seca-lawsuit-homeowners-perplexed-as-iconic-race-track-materializes-overnight/?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_content=MED_UN_NA_EML_UN_UN_WeekendRoadTrip&hashed_email=ed91e4157659d4101e9800c08bbbdc9d75962840af2ac6fa2c52c64e1484682b&dtm_em=ed91e4157659d4101e9800c08bbbdc9d75962840af2ac6fa2c52c64e1484682b


I would use nuisance law as the affirmative defense (that they came to the nuisance)
"To be successful in a private nuisance lawsuit, the plaintiff must prove three private nuisance elements:
1. The plaintiff owns the property.

2. The defendant acted in a way that interfered or disturbed the plaintiff's use or enjoyment of the property.

3. The act was unreasonable.

Coming to the nuisance should be pled as an affirmative defense by the defendant.

I am confident that the track will win and get the suit dismissed however I myself would not let it end there.  I would file a malicious prosecution lawsuit seeking punitive damages against the plaintiffs and also seek sanctions for frivolous pleadings.

Whether pre-planned in collusion with the cop or not still funny.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0nJiyVrhAH/?igsh=OG9lczRiN2x0aXl4

The weather is incredible for this time of year. I could definitely handle winters like this from now on.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1mzPsIrTx0/?igsh=MWNqNXB1ZHZwc3gyaA==
Music credit from the movie Drive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcJGH82INkM

Used in the movie "Drive."  I can only wish to write something as moving.