White Lightning

I've always been partial to some RS Ford's. I've never cared for some of them but any Ford that was stamped with the RS logo and had true motorsport pedigree has appealed to me. The Escort RS Turbo S1 was a homoligation road going version of the group A rally car. Many people didn't like the Escort S1 because it was front wheel drive and tended to suffer from torque steer.
The car featured a boosted 1.6 CVH unit that produced about 130bhp. This isn't considered much by standards today, but in the 1980s this car was considered quite quick. The marketing campaign called it 'White Lightning' due to only being sold in white.

Good examples today can fetch up to £6,000, but like many Fords they tend to rust quite badly if not looked after or have been abused and driven very hard. To see more clean examples check out the RS Owners Club or Passion Ford.

Before and After

It's always interesting to see what a blank canvas will be turned into.

I wonder if I'll own a garage that looks like this one day.

Driver Focused

From left to right, NA8C Roadster tuned with Maruha Motors components, Lotus Exige 260, and a Porsche 911 GT3RS. Huge price difference but all totally focused raw driver's cars.

944 - Road & Track

I found myself last night all of a sudden thinking about a owning a Porsche 944 again. A few years back I looked into selling my Roadster and buying an S2 Turbo 944. Insurance premiums stopped me doing so but I have since found some really cheap N/A 944's for sale that look to be in quite good condition for the price. Here are a few photos I found whilst browsing around. Although the 944 was considered the poor man's Porsche in the 1980s, Tiff Needle still rates this as one of the finest handling cars ever produced.

As you can see from the photo above, the gearbox was placed at the back of the car in order to help with weight distribution. The 944 really is a focused drivers car with a very small price tag.

We'll see how things go but I could imagine myself having a sorted 944 tucked away in the garage with the Roadster.

Inside Line

1987: Brands Hatch: 1000 K/M

RE Amemiya Mazda AZ-1

This is what happens when RE Amemiya get hold of a Mazda AZ-1. The engine has been replaced with a 20B 3 rotor unit and the only part left from the AZ-1 is the gull wing doors. The car features suspension from a Porsche 962 and the brakes are the same that will be found on the Ferrari F40. This car was influenced by the Mazda  AZ-550 Type C but is longer, wider and has the power plant mounted longitudinally. I can just imagine this car tearing around Le Mans in the mid 90s.

Lifestyle

I recently came across these photographs and thought they would be good to share. You can't help but laugh at some of the clothing ranges here especially considering that original brochures were produced in the 1980s.

If BMW's aren't your style then don't worry, Mitsubishi make an anorak for the Colt.

The jackets remind me of a Kawasaki jacket my dad was given in the 80s. Are these clothes so uncool that they are now cool?

M Power

Love the Beast

After buying Retro Cars recently I saw an article written by Rob Richardson (Racer86) regarding the documentary 'Love the Beast'. The film follows Eric Bana from a teenager to present day regarding the ownership of his 'beast', a 1974 Ford Falcon coupe. Although Eric is a film star, it shows his passion for cars and racing from an age when fame and fortune hadn't found him.

All I will say is, if you're a true petrol head and cars are your life, watch this film as it will make total and utter sense.

Once I had watched the film it made me question why I put my car back to standard and want to sell it. Sure it has its faults, and needs job sorting here and there, but that's the point of tuning cars. I now have the vision in my head of looking back in 20 years at my car in whatever state of tune it will be in and thinking 'that car is a part of my life'.

Open Wheel

Save The Nürburgring

I came across this petition online.

Please offer your support for the Nürburgring,

http://www.gopetition.com/petition/41698.html

Regards

Porsche 917 - Endurance Racer

As it's the first post of 2011 I wanted to feature an iconic car that had huge success at one of the world's most gruelling and demanding races, Le Mans 24 hours. The Porsche 917 is a very special competition car. The car featured components made out of magnesium and titanium in order to keep the car as light as possible. Certain weight reduction methods were not so costly, such as the gear knob being produced out of balsa wood.

To show the impact this car had on the motorsport industry, in 1997 the 917 was hailed as 'The Greatest Racing Car of All Time' in Motorsport Magazine.

Here is a clip of the film Le Mans (1971) starring Steve Mcqueen. The scene building up the tension just before the beginning of the race is still an all time classic.