My Last Post. Here at Least.

I have decided to shut down this blog after three years, over 400 posts. And a whole bunch of awesome car sharing. It was so much fun. And I am glad that on average, 3,000 people a month from around the work check it out. I will leave all the content up, I just wont be posting more.

But, my new site greenfieldhillfollies.blogspot.com 

will be taking up all my time. 

I will be posting about cars, racing there too. But it will also be about our time building a new post and beam garage. Yeah! And just restoring and landscaping our new home. Which is actually a converted 1896 dairy barn.

And it is located in Greenfield Hill in Fairfield, CT. So, we will see how the pastural, crew up on the hill react to our ramshackle, creative approach to cars and all.

Please visit me there. 

Kevin Gosselin (aka Faston Hanks)

Preparing for SPEC TECH

First off, that is an iPhone screen grab image - I was too lazy to go out and snap a photo(which I thought I did in the first place).

But, there is always doing on a race car. And I needed to add a cover to all the electrical switch cut-off wires. Now, that is racy. it is the bottom of an baby-wipe bottle.

Then, I needed to add an external pull cord so I could race with PCA. NASA does not require this, but the ol' club does. So, I gathered one up, thanks crew at Vintage Racing Services, and I was able to put it in in about an hour. Now, I just need to get the sticker to put right next to it and I should be good.

We'll see as I take the car to tech on Monday.

The Only Viper I Want

Blame it on Gran Tourismo. But I always enjoyed sliding the Viper around the pixel tracks.

So, when I spotted this racer getting unloaded on Hudson street, I got a little misty.

Cayenne S Brakes Get Freshened

My Cayenne S, 2004 vintage, has proven to me at least a reliable and rugged vehicle.

I've now amassed about 10,000 miles on it in the past year. And, it was high time I had to do some work on it. And the warning sign 'Brake Pad Workshop' keyed me into the fact that it was due for pads.

A quick inspection showed huge lips on the rotors all around. So, it was time to replace pads, rotors and of course sensors.

I picked up my parts for Pelican and Vertex. I shopped a bit for best price. Decided to go with the Hawk blue pads as well because I do some towing with the truck and like their performance for less than the cost of OEM.

I also did get new hardware for each corner. Well needed as the old pins and clips were a bit roughed up by the removal process.

This job has been covered in several places online. So, I won't give a step by step, but will add a few tips to the DIY knowledge.

1 - When the light comes on, you might have 500 miles left before you hit metal on metal. You can't ignore this job. You can see the fronts how thin they are in the above snap.

2 - It helps to have a friend, or a Dad, who can help at a couple of points. Most notably when pressing in the pins, you can see in the above how he compressed the clip so pin insertion was easier. But, this applies to any disc brake car, not just Porsche.

3 - Make sure to remove the brake line from the clip at the rear rotor before trying to remove the top caliper bolt. Otherwise, you have a chance of screwing up the thread dragging the screw out crooked.

4 - The cheap, cheapest XZN set on amazon was totally fine for this job. (needed to remove rear caliper bolts and e-brake adjuster cover) Don't spend more money on this than needed.

That is all. Will be sure to update on wear and dust in the future. But, now that I take the train, I might put 10 miles a week on the truck.

Now in NYC. Car Spotting.

There's owning and driving a Ferrari engined Fiat.

Then, there is doing the same in New York.

Then, there is letting some parking attendant park it. Cue the Ferris Bueller now.

But, that is what I saw walking along Hudson Street this fine morning.

Hats off to you, you bold fellow. Keep the V6 revs high and your eyes open for cabs.

So Long High Plains Raceway. Hello Lime Rock. Moving Back East.

I'm two weeks into my new job in NYC.

Hence the lack of postings.

But, as of March 3rd, the family and my family of cars will be on a truck headed to the East Coast. We plan to live in CT while my job is a long-ish commute to SOHO. But I need the garage space.

So, looking forward to racing at NJMP, Lime Rock and all the other old east coast tracks. The above pics are quite evocative of Lime Rock. They are on this site. They show some racing in the early 60s.

Brilliant.

New Article. Drop Top Vignale.

I don't recall if I told everyone about this fantastic 1-of-a-kind Vignale bodied car I wrote about for Classic Motorsports.

But, the article is finally on newsstands and it is fantastic. If you like hearing about remarkable cars owned for decades by one family, you'll love this story.

Sure, it made the cover, barely, of the mag, but it is still the cover.

Enjoy.

Those Crazy People in The Netherlands

So, these guys have been around for a while. The Huet Brothers that is. The HB in HB coupe. But this is the first I have seen of a new coupe they would like to produce.

It is simply stunning.

Check out more here.

Best. Sports Car. Documentary. Ever. 1965 Targa Florio

That you can watch this gorgeous 40 minute documentary about the 1965 Targa Florio for free is one of the bonuses of the internet. This is spectacular stuff with which to while away the post-NFL time.

In it you see up close, unvarnished racing action. Interviews with drivers. In car footage of dogs scampering across the roads. Why were these types of races outlawed again?

All the racing legends are here. Graham Hill, Paddy Hopkirk, Vacarella(sp?). The latter the Sicilian born schoolmaster who wins the Targa. A school teacher driving a factory Ferrari! Only in 1965.

Love it. Love it. Love it.

And that sign I screen grabbed - does that mean that mom's should hold onto their babies or watch out so the driver's don't sully their daughters?

Watch it here.