Wonderful Conversations

      When I worked at T and J Performance, I befriended a fellow employee whilst "doing my time" at the jailhouse known as Truck and Jeep Performance. To amuse ourselves, we would have lengthy conversations on many subjects such as from Religion, car culture and psychology. These conversations would tend to become exercises in our literary abilities and most often times would elaborate into friendly debates. 

     After I escaped the penitentiary, I had the fortune to enlist into a company that sells products to T and J's, so I am able to frequently have discussions and email correspondence with Max. One thing you have to know about Max is that he is an exotic car buff. Frequently he would (and still does) send me pictures of exquisite specimens, consistently these would coincide with a date that reflects the name of the roaddancer he had sent over and they would easy become extended conversations and deliberations regarding some aspect of the vehicle. I would like to share one of those such emails:

Max:   Your attention please:
Tomorrow is 5/12.
We present, for your approval, the Ferrari 512 Berlinetta Boxer.

Thank you.

Max

[these are just two of the several that were sent over]

Jake:  For some reason, the black one looks gawd awful to me, but the red one looks clean and sleek. What the heck is it with pop up head lights? I dislike them very much. Eliminate the pop up headlights, make them fixed pieces, and make the turn signal not so ginormous and it would be a sexy car.

Oh, and I know it's no where NEAR 9/14 but attached here is my rebuttal. I present to a completly restored 1974 914 2.0. The President of Rampage just recently finished it and drove it to work today. It's GORGEOUS.

 

 Max: Yes, okay.

You are entitled to your opinion (however flawed it may be).

But please, examine the body sculpture carefully (please mind the wheel openings radii and the lower body flanks). Note the sensuality of the design; the flow, the essence.

Be aware that the "Ferrari" brand is referred to as a "marque" and that Pinanfarina, the company responsible for the body, is referred to as a "design house."

Pause a bit to momentarily to imagine the Autobahn potentialities, then

return to work.

P.S. - It is nice to hear that another drove the restored 914, however, I cannot help but question, when do you get to drive the car? It is your experience while in that driver seat that I wish to hear of. I await your opinion of that, however unlikely that may be.

Jake:  I agree whole heartedly that the body lines, wheel wells and overall design of the body is near perfection. I do emphasize the near though...Eliminate the pop up headlights. Leave the lines the exact same as they are with the headlights in the down position, just put a small headlight into the location, smooth and clean.

Something like this on this equally beautiful RX-7...

 

It creates a constant smooth, sensual body line, regardless of the time of day the vehicle is driven.

Now, regretfully, I do understand why pop up headlights became popular. In the ages that pop up headlights were utilized on new vehicles, the technology fell short. Lights were not the high powered HIDs that we have today. Lights were large, cumbersome necessities rather than an integral part of the lusciousness of a gorgeous work of art. Rather than have hulky grotesque headlights all the time, they confined it to only during the hours when the monsters are needed. In my mind though, this should have been enough reason (especially for companies like Porsche and Ferrari) to eliminate the need for pop up headlights all together. Had they truly taken the matter seriously, pop up headlights would be a brief hiccup in the automotive design world. Instead, however, we have a large myriad of our history wrapped around fugly lighting. I place the blame squarely on the shoulders of the high end manufacturers. They set the stage and in this moment, they set it up for failure.

To explain to you how serious I am on this matter, if there were only one modification I could do to a Generation 3 RX-7…it would be to change the headlights.

 Regarding the driving of the 914…I would absolutely LOVE to, but alas, I will never ask to do so. If it is offered, you will be one of the first to know of it and I will give you a full recounting of the experience. 

Max: Very well stated sir.

Your argument holds weight and lends credibility to the opinion you have thus far stated.

You have succeeded once again in removing any desire for an argument or opposing viewpoint from this camp.

One small note, however...

Upon reflecting on my past road-dancing experiences with my 914, I am reminded of the balmy California nights we shared skating the roads cresting the mountain canyons and the ensuing flatlands.  On the occasions whence daylight ceased and I was left to wrestle with the darkness at hand, I would flip the switch to actuate the headlamps.  In unison they would rise, piercing the darkness with a steady beam of light.  This would serve, obviously enough, as an...

Oh forget the syntax and prose! 

The thing that was cool was while driving the 914 with the headlamps down, it seemed like it was; a small nimble car. Normal enough and very typical. But with the headlamps on and flipped up, it seemed to transform into a bigger car somehow. I suppose it was because it changed the line of sight from the driver's seat looking down the hood. Something about having to look past the headlamps when flipped up somehow set some kind of borderline or something. I don't know what it was exactly, but just driving it that way at night was cool, sort of like 2 cars in 1?

Jake: Hahahhahaa I love our conversations! I can marginally understand what you mean, 2 cars in 1 but I would need to drive a praiseworthy vehicle in a situation such as you describe to fully appreciate the effect you speak of. I merely can base my judgments on looks and what I hear from other people on how they drive. I have driven a couple vehicles with pop up headlights but they were not to the caliber of a 914, let alone a Ferrari. A meager Fiero and Firebird [edit: They were quite fun though] would not do this instance justice.

I can see how the transformation would be somewhat exhilarating. Transforming into a beast of the night, prowling and hunting for the next curve to devour.

That’s it, I just need a sports car!!!