My Mustang & something i found at Ford’s Garage.

It has been forever since i last blogged; i’ve been busy with University studies and the upcoming Kuwait Architecture Students Association’s 7th Annual KASA Exhibition.

A few months back i took my car to the dealership for a slight vibration that would randomly occur in any gear and after a few days of diagnosis and random part replacement it turned out that the driveshaft was unbalanced and needed to be changed.

Around three months later i took it in to have the steering wheel re-centered and they discovered that the front bushings needed to be replaced and lucky for me it was covered under the 3-year or 60’000km bumper-to-bumper warranty but unlucky for me the parts weren’t currently available and would have to be ordered.

Less than a week later my clutch died! I was shifting from second gear to third gear when the clutch and flywheel plates suddenly decided they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together. It was 1:10am and i was in Jabriya heading to the gas station when it happened and after a few phone calls to Ford’s 24 Hour roadside assistance hotline they came to collect the car.

The following morning i got a call from my service advisor and he told me that the parts would cost 599KD and their labour charges would be 129KD giving a total of 728KD!

Now i was already planning on going for a Cold Air Intake System and a 93 Octane tune and so obviously the stock clutch wouldn’t last long after those modifications. I told him that it is too expensive and i would be getting an aftermarket replacement clutch. I found the clutch i wanted, a Spec Stage 2 clutch which can hold upwards of 400rwtq and an aluminum flywheel which should give me a better off the line launch and overall drive ability. After shipping and installation it would cost me around 490KD. He returned with some unwelcome information, an aftermarket clutch would void my 5-Year or 100’000KM warranty on the Engine, ECU, Transmission and Rear Differential and that after discount the price was lowered to 615KD. I remembered that my front bushings needed to be replaced and that i was sometimes having trouble engaging/disengaging the clutch when at wide-open-throttle so i changed the clutch with them.

Less than a week later i got a call from the dealership telling me the front bushings had arrived! Hip hip hooray! He also asked me if i had been having problems with my new clutch and i had. It still wouldn’t engage/disengage at high rpms and at random instances fourth gear would spit back out, they sent over a technician to take the car out for a drive and lucky enough second gear wouldn’t engage at all and fourth gear too. They told me the car would get done by wednesday if there was nothing wrong with it and if there was something wrong with the transmission it wouldn’t.

It still hasn’t finished. Regardless, the more interesting thing is what i found in the dealership when i was waiting to collect my car after the clutch replacement.

At first i didn’t know what this car was but after a little research it turns outs its a Farboud Farbio GTS sports car.

Winter 09′

Low temperatures + Cold Surfaces + Rain + Low Traction = KEEP THE TRACTION CONTROL ON! 

NHTSA New Side Impact Crash Testing

The NHTSA has just launched a new part of their crash testing program that will test the force of the impact when a car crashes into a lamp post or an equally skinny object.

Ive always wondered if the current side impact crash testing is even remotely related to the impact of a pole in real life and i guess these new tests will regulate future standards and affect the safety designs of car companies in future.

The videos below show the tests preformed on a 2010 Mustang, and 2010 Mustang Convertible. Now ive seen crash test before and even side crash testing, but results like these are a bit alarming. The 2005+ Mustangs have all gotten five star crash rating for driver and passenger frontal and side impacts, as well as rollover performance by the NHTSA but these new tests might show otherwise. Have a look at the video and look at how the chassis reacts, I’m glad its still intact and very stable, the distortion is very minimal compared to what ive seen in real life but I’m guessing the speed they are tested on are a lot slower than what ive seen in real life too.

This will evolve the standards of crash safety greatly. And it looks great too! :P
Videos after the jump!

Nissan GT-R Police Car

Yesterday i heard from a friend of mine who works for the Kuwait Times that the UAE has just acquired 25 Nissan GTRs as part of their police task force. I didnt believe it at first but another friend just dropped me this link on Facebook!

It’s not a wise idea to run from the police in any case, but this is especially true if you’re being chased by the world’s first Nissan GT-R police car.

Entering service with the force in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, this 485-horsepower supercar made its world debut at the recent Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The iconic Nurburgring-thrashing supercar is one of the fastest cars in the world, holding the record for the fastest four-seat production car in terms of acceleration. It can sprint from zero to 100 kilometres an hour in just 3.5 seconds.

National Post

(Photo: Criminals, beware the mighty law-enforcing Nissan GT-R police car in Abu Dhabi. Credit: Handout)

Read more: http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posteddriving/archive/2009/11/17/world-s-first-nissan-gt-r-police-car-enters-service.aspx#ixzz0XIAtScO1
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It looks disgusting and although it is fast, i think it will remain just a show car because even if the police take it to the streets, its nothing that a Stage-1 GT500 or Z06 cant handle.

C’était un Rendez-vous by Claude Lelouch / France / 1976

I just found this breathtaking short film by Claude Lelouch. Just listening to the sound of that engine gave me goosebumps! I love Ferraris and its videos like this that make me love them even more. Towards the beginning of the video there is an amazing shot from the Ferrari driving up to the Arch of Victory(Arc de Triomphe) at Avenue des Champs-Élysées and the rest of the video is just insane, running red lights and Wide-Open-Throttling in the streets of Paris. Give it a view, car lover or not, the cinematography is worth it. Click this link for the video.

This is what was written on the blog i found it on:

On an August morning in 1976, French filmmaker Claude Lelouch mounted a gyro-stabilized camera to the bumper of a Ferrari 275 GTB and had a friend, a professional Formula 1 racer, drive at breakneck speed through the heart of Paris.

No streets were closed, for Lelouch was unable to obtain a permit.
No dialogue, just the squeal of tyres and the roar of the engine. Breathtakingly insane.

I read some of the comments from the website i found it on, and everyone says the car he used was a Mercedes Benz and not a Ferrari but after filming it he dubbed it with the sound of a Ferrari 275 GTB. And that the driver was not a Formula One driver but Claude Lelouch himself. Great video non the less.

Source: http://shortsbay.com/film/cetait-un-rendez-vous

2008 Ford Mondeo – Temporary Replacement Car

It has only been 19 months since i first got my 2008 Ford Mustang GT but its already done 50’000KMs and it was time for the regular service. Since the beginning of summer the car would vibrate at random and unpredictable times, it started at higher speeds, i figured it needed new tires, brake pads, rotors and maybe some new shocks so i replaced all of those but the vibrations persisted and when i finally took it in to Ford on the 28th of September and requested a complete suspension and drive-train checkup, a few days later i was informed they had replaced a few parts from the front suspension, Lower and Upper control arms, bushings, etc… and that the drive-shaft was damaged and has to be replaced. Unfortunately the parts were not in stock so they would have to be shipped over from abroad; this would take at least 30 days and because of a TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) issued by Ford regarding the drive-shaft, i cannot take my car for the time being and bring it back once the parts arrive. The good thing is that all of the parts have been replaced on the warranty. And the best thing is, even though it took them two weeks to give me one, Ford has a replacement vehicle policy for cars that would stay in the garage for a month for issues regarding their 5-year warranty.

I figured they would eventually call me up giving me an old and crusty Focus with roll down windows and plastic for rims, but it turns out they don’t give their customers anything of that standard. I was given a full option orange 2008 Ford Mondeo!

Now i wouldn’t call it orange because if this car is orange i really have no idea what colour my Mustang is… but the car is registered as orange in their registration papers so i will name that colour as orange for Ford’s sake.

I had hoped they would give me a Mondeo, i really enjoy driving front wheel drive cars for daily activities and i was very happy they would give me one. At first i anticipated a world of boredom but after getting in the car seat and giving it a go i can truly say this car is really something special and full of optional gadgets.

The car i was given comes with a 150bhp 2.0L I4, its a lazy engine and it is mated to an extremely unresponsive 6-Speed Automatic transmission but non the less it is really fun to drive. Acceleration is almost non-existent after 90 kph and torque feels good on the first 2000-3000 rpms but completely disapears closer to redline making the last 1000 rpms of the engine feel like an eternity.I cant give you a zero to sixty figure but i can tell you that 4th gear overtaking was impossible and that even with a 2km stretch, i couldnt take it over 140kph.

As far cornering is concerned, it does it with ease and even at high speeds. A day back I took it around some tight bends and it preformed very well, and this morning i took it on some long fast bends and it also preformed much better than i anticipated, as good as my Mustang, just slower and not as exciting.

With 2.0L I4 cars, i would usually brag about fuel economy, but with my style of driving, and the lack of acceleration from the lack of power, i managed a 14 L/100KM average over the last 2 days. So to put things into perspective for you, the 4.6L V8 in the Mustang gives me 13.8L 100/KM when i drive it exactly the same way, and im sure its because the little engine spends so much time and effort trying to reach the speeds i like to travel at (FYI: within the speed limit).

The car came with a 6-cd-changer, heated and cooled seats, dual automatic climate control, steering responsive headlights (took some time getting used to these, i kept thinking a speeding hooligan was about to smash into me when i was switching lanes), xenon high and low beams, front fog lamps, built in telephone (which i still cant figure out how to operate), a sunroof, automatic folding and dimming(photochromic) side mirrors, 17 inch alloy wheels, cruise control, steering wheel sterio functions and enough space to store 3-4 dead bodies.

Overall, this car can strike great confidence to any driver, skilled or unskilled, and after just 2 days of driving it i can already tell you this car would be the number one seller if only people would give it, and Ford a chance before they go for a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord. I am not so sure how much it sells for, but if i had to price it myself, i would say 7000-7500KD is a good price for this car. Give it a test drive if you are looking for a 4-door family saloon, im sure this car will put a smile on your face.

2010 Saleen S281 Mustang

Ever since the facelifted Mustang S197 dawned on us this year, not one of the usual crazy and impressive tuning houses of Saleen, Roush, or even Shelby have provided a platform more impressive than the standard Mustang.

With the 05-09 Mustang, owning a V6 was nice until you were to park it next to a GT, in which case your V6 would now look like a bag of crap, the same went for the GT, it was great, just dont park it next to a GT500… and its pretty much the same way between the GT500 and the KR’s and Supersnakes…

But with the latest installment of Mustangs, the LX, GT and GT500 are almost all equal in design aesthetics.

As soon as i saw the latest GT i knew its going to be very difficult for Mustang modifiers to find a body panel to make prettier or meaner and over time almost all the tuning houses have helped prove my point. I dont even find the GT500 much more impressive than the GT, the GT looks great as it is, i wouldnt go for a GT500 over a GT anymore.

But yesterday Saleen released a few teaser shots of their new S281 Mustang and from the little images i can see it looks like it may be the first tuner to get it right…

Check out two more images and some details in the autoblog article.

The Return of Hachi-Roku

Ever since Toyota announced plans to create a new RWD 2+2 seat coupe i have been on the edge of my seat; an AE86 reborn would bring nostalgia to a lot of car fans. Today Toyota released the first photographs of the official car, named the Toyota FT86 Concept. And it is definitely worth the wait.

The new car features a Subaru derived Flat-4 engine, a 6-speed manual transmission and rear wheel drive. Combine a near perfect engine with a perfect chassis and transmission and im guessing an even better weight distribution and we may now have the sports car of the future; light weight and great engineering.

But to add to that, Toyota made it an extra good looker too, with an extra good looking interior.

I just hope the interior doesnt change much when it hits the production lines.

Read the AutoBlog.Com article.

Behind the scenes: GT PSP @ Laguna Seca Raceway

GT PSP & PSP Go!

Sometime in the past few days i posted about the new GT5 release date. They just released the new advert for GT on the PSP featuring a really cool video of a ZR1 chasing a group of cars around Mazda’s Laguna Seca Race Track! Watch the advert on the embeded youtube video below.

For a while now ive been thinking about getting a portable gaming device. I wanted my old Nintendo GameBoy Color back but thats not exactly going to be as fun as i remember it. I did some research and looked at different platforms, there are a lot of good, new and fun toys out there. I liked the GameBoy Micro for its size and simplicity, and then while i was on ThinkGeek.Com i found the Pocket Retro Game Emulator that looks like a GBmicro but plays alot more games, but im still not sure if i will use it. I mainly want it to emulate the old games i used to play on the Sega Genisis and SNES.

I looked at the Nintendo DSi but i never really played on one and im not too good with touch screens because they kinda piss me off. The next best thing is the Sony PSP and recently the PSP GO! I’v played on the PSP before and the battery life sucks, gaming is cool and the thing does have some pretty cool features but its still not as much fun as i expected it to be. Hopefully things will change when GT on the PSP finaly gets released.

The PSP is priced at $170 and the new PSP Go isnt released yet but the pricing all over the internet is $250. As far as i can tell, the difference is that new new PSP GO doesnt have a UMD drive and has a totally different design. I might do some more readin later on to find out which one is better. I personally prefer how the GO looks to the regular one and i have to admit the sliding screen is not very practical but definately more practical that the length of the regular PSP.

Which one do you think i should get? And Why? And perhaps someone could clarify the differences between the PSP and PSP GO for me?

BMW Lovos Concept

Following BMW’s ingenious GINA Concept car, they have just released the Lovos Concept photos.
I found the GINA concept car to be something truly spectacular, showing profound ingenuity, a very respectable and smart concept and i believe it’s shape shifting form if applied to the automotive industry will produce many unrestricted designs. The way cars are put together today doesnt really call for a strong exoskeleton, and as such, maybe dont even need one? Most cars use an internal welded chassis or a combination of a monocoque chassis and a stronger internal one with crumple zones and little flexibility under strong physical forces. This GINA system would allow cars to have a strong internal chassis and an independently designed external shell, meaning, an unprecedented number of cars can have the exact same chassis but a completely different form and overall external aesthetics.

The Lovos is equally if not increasingly inspiring, however, completely different! And when i first saw the photo it instantly hit me, the flaps are air brakes, and possibly photovoltaics? And i was right.

I love the direction BMW is taking in automotive design aesthetic form experimentation, they are the only company i can think of out there today pushing the boundaries of automotive design in terms of ingenuity.

It made me wonder what kind of applications it would have into architecture and reminded me of the shape shifting exterior facade designed by FLARE FACADE. I always wondered why Flare Facade never thought of combining their shape shifting forms with Photovoltaics for sustainable applications…. Maybe they can be inspired to do so after seeing the Lovos. Or maybe i should do one myself?

AutoBlog Lovos Article and Photos
AutoBlog BMW GINA Article
FLARE FACADE Website

For Sale 2008 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500

Fresh of the boat is this Black stripes on black body fully modified and fully tuned 2008 Shelby GT500. My friend has just got his car, and after pushing his Toyota Supra well above 1000rwhp hes decided to sell this beast and remain faithful to his Supra.

This car has been feature on the cover of Fast Ford and belongs to Lethal Performance.
You can find a written article about it here.
And below you will find the video of it running a 10 second quarter mile a the drag strip.

It has 16’000kms on the clock and the owner wants 17’000KD for it. I think it is a bargain considering another friend five minutes earlier told me about a 2007 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 with less parts and less significance, more KMs on the clock and for the same price.

If you are interested hit me with a comment, but hurry up, because cars like these dont stick around for long.

Gran Turismo 5 Update: March 2010 in Japan

Autoblog just posted an update to the Gran Turismo 5 release date, its been delayed till March 2010 in Japan. Which does mean we dont get the international copy until months after wards. :(

But they have also released new details. The game will feature Nascar and damage rendering.

The shots from the renderings of the game are spectacular!
Check them out here!

Porsche 911 – Sport Classic in Kuwait

On Wednesday i heard that the new Porsche 911 Sport Classic is now available in Kuwait.

I think this 911 is the rarest of them all, and the man in the video will explain to you why. From what my friend told me, it is selling for 57’000KD at the Porsche Behbehani Dealership. A price i think is high for what is pretty much a regular Carerra S with an exhaust, bodykit and a redone interior, but low for a 1/250 car.

I might go have a look at the car in real life at the Behbehani Dealership and take some shots.

Click this for a detailed list of all the specialties.

Mini Cooper Car Wraps by TCH

When it comes to car customization, i like to stick within the boundaries of traditional modifications; go faster racing stripes on a muscle car, super stripes on a Mustang, nice, clean and simple deep dish rims/wheels, fat tires, minor touches on the interior with a little paint here and there and maybe a simple and elegant bodykit. Nothing to extreme. And nothing out of the ordinary.

But some cars ask for more, Like the Mini Cooper. When it comes to customizing a Cooper, there is no limit.

Over at TheCoolHunter.Com, they have released some illustration showing

Mini Cooper Car Wraps by TCH

I really like these, my faves would have to be the Pink Floyd wrap, and the pixelated one on the bottom left.