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asfeedin · 5 years ago

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Ayrton Senna’s F1 cars through the years

On the 26th anniversary of his death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, we look back at the cars Ayrton Senna drove throughout his illustrious Formula One career.

Senna is widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in racing history and he raced in some of the most iconic cars ever seen in F1. We start, of course, at the very beginning…

American driver Juan Manuel Correa on the F2 crash that left him with life-altering leg injuries and claimed the life of Anthoine Hubert; his recovery; and his hopes of a comeback. Listen to the latest episode

1984

Toleman TG183B

A young Senna got his break with the little Toleman team, but the first model he raced was the car which had contested the previous season.

Senna would record a pair of sixth-place finishes in South Africa and Belgium, but the TG183B’s final race would be one for the history books — the 1984 San Marino Grand Prix was the only F1 event Senna ever failed to qualify for.

Ayrton Senna made his debut at the 1984 Brazilian Grand Prix with the car Toleman had used for the previous season. Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

The upgraded TG184 was introduced for following event in France, the fifth of the season. Its most famous performance would come with Senna at the wheel one race later.

Toleman TG184

A rookie Ayrton Senna rose to prominence with Toleman in 1984 after finishing second at the Monaco Grand Prix. Mike Powell/Getty Images

The rookie Senna announced himself to the racing world at the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix. The team’s new car was a step forward and Senna would be given an immediate chance to show his talent. Starting 13th with the rain pouring at the Monaco Grand Prix, Senna carved through the field.

The Brazilian caught and passed race leader rival Alain Prost just before the red flag was waved on lap 32. Senna initially celebrated a win, but the rules stated that positions must revert back to the lap prior to a race being called off. Senna had to settle for second position rather than first, but he had underlined his superstar potential.

Senna would visit the podium twice more, finishing third in Great Britain and Portugal, earning the attention of Lotus.

Mike Powell/Getty Images

1985

Lotus 97T

The iconic John Player Special livery and Ayrton Senna’s famous helmet colours were paired together in 1985. Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

Senna’s meteoric rise continued with the beautiful Lotus 97T, decked out in the iconic black and gold of John Player Special, in his sophomore year. Lotus was not the team it had been in the late 1970s and was still hurting from the death of team boss Colin Chapman in 1982, but Senna’s first season saw something of a resurgence.

The Renault-powered 97T would be competitive. Senna, who had replaced Williams-bound Nigel Mansell, would win his second race with the team, mastering heavy rain to win by over a minute at the Portuguese Grand Prix. Another victory followed at Belgium’s Spa-Francorchams circuit later in the year.

Seven pole positions across the year helped forge Senna’s reputation as a fearsome qualifier, which would remain one of his most revered traits throughout his career.

1986

Lotus 98T

Ayrton Senna joined Lotus in 1985 after his breakout rookie season with Toleman. Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

With his status as a future superstar now unquestionable, Senna threw his weight around ahead of the 1986 season. With ’85 teammate Angelo de Angelis leaving for Brabham, Senna vetoed the signing of British driver Derek Warwick. Little-known Scot Johnny Dumfries took over the role of No.2 driver instead.

In the season often considered the peak of the turbo era, there was pressure on Lotus and Renault to build Senna a championship contender. Renault’s EF15B engine would be one of the most powerful to ever run in a Formula One car.

Despite Senna recording eight pole positions across the season, Lotus was unable to convert that raw power into a title challenge. The Brazilian would have to settle for victories in Spain and Detroit. He finished on the podium on six other occasions but car reliability issues ultimately left him to settle for another fourth-place finish in the championship.

This would be the last Lotus to carry the John Player Special livery and its last with Renault, which withdrew from F1 at the end of the season.

1987

Lotus 99T

Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

Another famous colour scheme replaced Lotus’ John Player Special look, with the blue and yellow livery of Camal being introduced for 1987. Honda, who would become a key part of Senna’s career, joined as engine supplier.

The bulky 99T was fitted with active suspension which helped Senna to bumpy street circuit victories in Monaco and Detroit (Lotus’ last win in F1), although the system contributed to a car which was ultimately tricky to set up on a lot of that year’s courses. Senna would claim just one pole position throughout this season, but despite the 99T’s flaws he was competitive enough on Sundays to finish a career-best third in the championship.

Greater things awaited Senna, however, and his three-year stint at Lotus had caught the attention of Ron Dennis and McLaren.

1988

McLaren MP4/4

Ayrton Senna’s McLaren tenure started with arguably the greatest F1 car ever made, the MP4/4. Pierre-Yves Muel/TempSport/Corbis via Getty Images

Senna’s rise continued with a move to McLaren for the 1988 season and he was gifted the best car of his career. Some consider the Honda-powered MP4/4, designed by Steve Nichols, the greatest F1 car ever built and it remains one of the most dominant of all time.

MP4/4: Why McLaren’s ’88 car achieved legendary status

In this car Senna had one of his most legendary performances, at the Monaco Grand Prix. Senna out-qualified Prost by 1.427 seconds and would later liken the lap to an outer body experience.

“I was kind of driving it by instinct,” Senna later said. “I was in a different dimension. I was like, in a tunnel well beyond my conscious understanding.”

“That was the maximum for me; no room for anything more. I never really reached that feeling again.”

In his determination to humiliate Prost, Senna ignored calls during the race to slow down and crashed while leading comfortably on the Sunday.

Footage of that moment featured prominently in the 2010 documentary about Senna’s career.

youtube

The DNF did not matter in the grand scheme of the season, where the MP4/4 won all but one of the 16 races. Seven of them belonged to Senna and were enough for his first championship.

In a quirk in the rules, Prost actually out-scored Senna across the season 105 points to 94. However, only a driver’s 11 best results were counted towards the championship – in those stakes, Senna scored 90 to Prost’s 87.

1989

McLaren MP4/5

Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

McLaren’s dominant ’88 season had allowed it to put a lot of effort into developing the MP4/5. Turbcharged engines were banned and naturally-aaspirated engines made compulsory, meaning this was fitted with a 3.5 V10 Honda engine.

It was less dominant than its predecessor, winning 10 of the 16 races.

The MP4/5 is the subject of one of the most famous moments in F1 history, a major flashpoint in the legendary Senna-Prost rivalry.

While the teammates vied for position at the penultimate round, the Japanese Grand Prix, they made contact and came to a stop at the final chicane on lap 46. Prost retired from the race on the spot but Senna’s car was pushed back to the race track, pitted for repairs and won the race. However Senna was disqualified from the race result for his push-start, which handed the title to Prost.

Senna was outraged and vowed to never forget the perceived injustice of the decision.

Ayrton Senna signals for marshals to give him a push-start after colliding with Alain Prost during the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix. TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Images

In something of a reversal of the previous year, Senna enjoyed the better season on paper, winning six races to Prost’s four. The relationship had reached breaking point and Prost moved to Ferrari for 1990.

1990

McLaren MP4/5B

Same colours, new teammate – Ayrton Senna was joined by Gerhard Berger in 1990, with rival Alain Prost switching to Ferrari. Sutton/Getty Images

With Prost gone, Senna set his sights on a second world championship, with the affable Gerhard Berger taking Prost’s seat. Prost had taken designer Nichols with him to Ferrari and McLaren entered the year with a modified version of the MP4/5, named the MP4/5B.

Once again it enjoyed a pace advantage in qualifying, which suited Senna perfectly, but it was well-matched by that year’s Ferrari. Senna again won six races and arrived back at the penultimate round in Japan with a chance to win the title, still seething from what had happened a year earlier.

Another infamous moment followed in the race. Senna had a slow start from pole position and Prost took the lead on the run down to Turn 1. Their cars wouldn’t make it any further than that, as Senna ploughed into Prost as the Frenchman moved across to take the right-hander. Both drivers retired from the race, meaning Senna was champion.

Allsport UK /Allsport

1991

McLaren MP4/6

Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

Powered by a Honda V12, the McLaren was the benchmark for the rest of the F1 field again in 1991. It remains the last F1 car to win a world championship with a fully manual transmission or a V12 engine.

Prost failed to win a race all year and was sacked before the final race following a dispute with Ferrari, helping pave the wave for Senna to become a triple world champion. The Brazilian won the opening four races and three more in the second half of the campaign as he finished comfortably clear of Nigel Mansell.

Senna’s most memorable win of the campaign was his first and only victory on home tarmac, the Brazilian Grand Prix. He lost third and fifth gear in the closing stages and was so exhausted from the effort of keeping it in the race he had to be dragged out of his car after finishing.

The MP4/6 would be Senna’s final championship-winning car, as McLaren’s period of domination came to an end — it would not win a title again until 1998. He would race a modified version of the car in the opening two races of the following season.

1992

McLaren MP4/7A

Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

This car was originally slated for introduction at the fourth race of the year, but a new rising power prompted a change of tact. The Renault-powered, Adrian Newey-designed Williams FW14 was a marvel. After seeing Williams win the opening two rounds, McLaren boss Ron Dennis brought forward the launch of the MP4/7A by a month.

With the new car Senna claimed three victories — in Monaco, Hungary and Italy — in what was his least competitive season since leaving Lotus. The first of those wins saw him hold off a charging Mansell around the streets of Monte Carlo in what has gone down as a classic F1 battle.

Mansell and Williams claimed the title that year and the era of dominance officially came to a close as McLaren’s Honda partnership finished. McLaren and Honda would re-form its partnership in 2015 for an ill-fated three-year partnership.

1993

McLaren MP4/8

Ayrton Senna’s final year at McLaren was with an uncompetitive Ford engine. Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images

With Honda gone, McLaren’s 1993 car was powered by Ford. Although Prost and Williams ultimately won the season comfortably Senna achieved some remarkable results early in the year, winning three of the opening six races and leading the championship until the seventh.

However, the car gradually dropped off the pace, while the Williams got stronger. Senna went eight straight races without visiting the podium in the MP4/8, which was the longest such spell of his entire career.

One of his three wins is arguably his most renowned, the 1993 European Grand Prix at British circuit Donington Park. In soaking conditions Senna passed Michael Schumacher, Karl Wendlinger, Damon Hill and Prost on the opening lap.

He would cap his McLaren tenure with wins at the final two rounds, Japan and Australia, his last before switching to the Williams team which was now the dominant force in F1.

1994

Williams FW16

Ayrton Senna would start just three races with the Williams FW16. Hewitt/Allsport

Senna’s switch to Williams promised so much but ultimately ended in tragedy.

The Newey-designed car was an evolution of the 1993 Williams Prost had claimed a comfortable title with, but without a key ingredient. The active suspension system Williams had pioneered in the previous two years had been banned and preseason soon revealed shortcomings with the FW16.

Newey would later say: “The 1994 car was not a good car at all at the start of the year. It was very difficult to drive. We developed the aerodynamics using active suspension and we developed them [to work] in a very small [set-up] window.

“Having had active suspension for two years, when we then lost it we had more trouble re-adapting to passive suspension than other people who hadn’t been on it for very long.”

Senna retired from the first two races, won by Benetton’s Michael Schumacher. Senna’s frustration at the start of the year was heightened by a suspicion Benetton was running illegal traction control software on its car, an allegation never proven.

Changes were made to the FW16 for the third race, the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, but the world never got to see if they could have rebooted Senna’s title campaign. After claiming pole and leading away at the start, Senna crashed and was killed at the Tamburello corner at the beginning of the sixth lap.

Senna’s teammate, Damon Hill, was narrowly beaten to the title by Schumacher at the final race of the season.

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railcamuk · 6 years ago

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RAILCAM RECOMMENDS...

Away from the full scale railways we cover, many of our admin teams and members also enjoy the much smaller scale model railways. One name that may have slipped you by in the model railway world is Accuascale, who recently came to our attention, and that attention needs to be shared!

A member of our senior admin team, with a love of all things BR Blue, has recently dusted down the old layout in his loft and is in the market for a quality sound fitted Deltic to lead the resurrection of his layout, this is where we first came across Accurascale.

The words ‘iconic’ and ‘legendary’ are far to often thrown around these day, but when it comes to the Deltic, these words are truly justified. The size, power and of course sound, of these monsters of the East Coast means to this day, long after they were withdrawn from front line service, they are still adored by many in the railway world.

Accurascale are producing a bumper range 17 highly detailed Class 55s, due for release towards the back end of 2019, and they look good, very very good. Wether you are a BR Blue or Two Tone Green, Pre or Post TOPS, or even the rather striking Porterbrook Purple, Accurascale have you covered, available in both DCC Ready or DCC Sound Fitted.

The specifications list is endless, and for the detailed railway modeller they are a joy to read, but don’t take our word for it, browser the full range at https://accurascale.co.uk/collections/class-55-deltic and see for yourself, but be warned, you will want to buy one!

This brings us on to the next big announcement from Accurascale, and this ties in with our recent visit to Model Rail Scotland in Glasgow. A number of our admin team made the trip up to Glasgow on the Caledonian Sleeper, taking in what could be one final run on the old MK3 stock, before the stunning new MK5s are gradually bought in to service throughout 2019. So what does this have to do with Accurascale you ask? Well take a look here https://accurascale.co.uk/collections/mark-5-coaches

Stunning coach packs of both the Caledonian Sleeper MK5s and the striking TransPennine Express MK5a ‘Nova 3’ push pull sets. The Caledonian Sleeper packs are split up in to portions that are prototypical of what runs on the nation network, enabling you to build a rake from the 6-coach Aberdeen portion, 8-coach Inverness portion or the 4-coach Fort William portion of the Highland Sleeper. If it takes your fancy you can even build the full 16 coach rake! If your layout is that big, we would love to see it.

If the Lowland Sleeper is your preferred journey, you can also build up the two 8-coach portions that make up the Glasgow and Edinburgh service.

Each coach, even at this early stage, is boasting a multitude of museum quality individual parts, which include a fully detailed and painted/printed accurate interior and stay-alive lighting!

So you have your coaches, what about a locomotive for them? Well Accurascale have your back, with an extensive range of Class 92 locomotives being released at the same time as the coaches (Expected Q1 2020), which will include Caledonian Sleeper and GBRf liveried example that feature regularly on the beds, as well as highly detailed DB Cargo Red, EWS and various Two Tone Railfreight Grey options available. https://accurascale.co.uk/collections/british-rail-class-92

We have seen the TransPennine Express Nova 3 fleet in test on our cameras in recent weeks, and the striking livery and return of push-pull working causing quite a stir. Two uniquely numbered sets of 4 coaches and 1 driving trailer, which will complement your Dapol Class 68, are currently available to order, with an expected delivery dat of Q1 2020.

With prices extremely reasonable for this level of quality and detail, you can’t really go wrong, you can even pay a deposit and spread you payments to suit your needs. In a hobby where the prices seem to only rise, this is a very affordable way of adding to your collection.

From personal experience, via chatting at Model Rail Scotland and during ordering, I have to say the dedication of the team at Accurascale is second to none, and the customer service is amongst some of the best I have ever experienced, and for all that and more, Railcam Recommends….. Accurascale.

https://accurascale.co.uk

#rcrecommends

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jurassicparkpodcast · 7 years ago

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Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom LEGO Sets Announced!

Hot off the press following last week’s Toy Fair news (Read more here: ) we have news today from Universal and LEGO regarding their LEGO offerings for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Anyone who knows me will know I do a lot of LEGO photography, so for me, this is incredibly exciting to finally have official images of a sample of the LEGO sets released. Without any further ado, let’s jump into the news:

"We are thrilled to be expanding on our long-standing partnership with Universal in 2018. This year will bring a wide assortment of LEGO construction sets, collectables, licensed apparel and animated content, all based on Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” said Jill Wilfert, Vice President of Inbound Licensing and Entertainment for the LEGO Group. “Jurassic World is an iconic property that appeals to both adults who grew up with the property and to their kids who have embraced this world with the new films. The team at Universal has a strong long-term plan in place that will continue to build the property globally, and we are excited to give LEGO builders of all ages even more options when it comes to playing with Owen, Claire and the iconic dinosaurs like Blue in LEGO form." -- LEGO Announcement

Our first offering in the Fallen Kingdom line is 10758 T-Rex Breakout– featuring the iconic T-Rex we all know and fondly call Rexy. This set is a Juniors set, meaning that it is traditionally a simpler-style LEGO set released for younger fans. The T-Rex in this set, whilst identical to the one included in the 75918 T-Rex Tracker set from the Jurassic World line, is a nice opportunity for fans who missed out on those sets to get the iconic star in a set for 2018. I also love the fact that LEGO opted to include Rexy in a Juniors set – leaving room for other dinosaurs whom we could potentially see in the main line. This set also includes Claire, an ACU Mercenary, and a figure which looks like Lowery. Whilst I can appreciate the nod to Lowery, the lookalike would have been so much better being a fully committed Lowery – using the Jurassic Park T-Shirt torso which we all loved the character for. This is one of my few gripes with the line – they missed a chance to include a wonderful tribute to Jurassic Park. The new Claire figure, however, looks fantastic. The little lab build here is nice – with incubators and a small pen for a baby dinosaur which would look great built into a larger scene – just like that stickered screen with a map of Isla Nublar. The smaller baby dinosaurs are one of my favorite components of the new line, and I am delighted that LEGO introduced them. The eggs included here look nice here too – and they seem to be consistent as both this set and the Helicopter set revealed include them. Is this possibly foreshadowing a Fallen Kingdom plot point? The rest of the builds, whilst simple, look nice – although the gate suffers from using the standard piece found in all LEGO Juniors sets of this scale. Whilst it would certainly look better at its full scale, this set is a great set for children – and a nice opportunity for fans wanting the T-Rex from the JW line.

Following on from this, we have 75928 – Blue’s Helicopter Pursuit. This set features a predominantly large helicopter, which looks like many LEGO builds we have seen in recent memory. However, it looks good in Jurassic livery, and has the potential to be rather spacious – something which is exiting as we may be able to get a bunch of mini-figures on-board this vehicle. Here we also get a small quad-bike in a dark red colour which looks like a rather nice build – making use of LEGO’s new front tow-bar piece to good effect. We also get Owen here, featuring a brand-new hairpiece, face print and costume. The face print, whilst slightly off, is a nice distinction from the one seen in the Jurassic World line – and I appreciate it a lot. We also see what appears to be a mercenary sporting flight goggles and a different ethnicity, which is always nice. Lastly, we get Ted Levine’s character of Ken Wheatley, who looks good here. He doesn’t feature any leg print, but his torso looks accurate to what we have seen from his character, and the face sculpt here looks good. We also have a nicely detailed cage trap which looks really nicely-built and has some cool habitat-style elements built into it, and lastly, Blue the Velociraptor. Blue’s colour scheme here is vastly different to the one included in 75917 Raptor Rampage, and for me personally, I prefer the original one. This one just feels a little too extreme to me – but it is nice to see LEGO trying new things with the dinosaurs. A fun thing to note here is the back of the box – showing us what appears to be a Carnotaurus, the rumored Indoraptor, Blue, a Stygimoloch, a Pteradon and the baby dinosaur. This is a nice tease as to the other dinosaurs we can expect to see in the line, so I cannot wait to see them revealed in their entirety.

Lastly, we have 10880 – T Rex Tower – LEGO’s first venture into the Duplo line for even younger children. Here we get simplified builds at only 22 pieces, but the Owen figure still has his charm. The jeep is nice with its printed components, and the T-Rex whilst not fully accurate, is bound to be popular with younger children. It is wonderful to see LEGO reaching out to younger children, as childhood is really the age where a fascination with dinosaurs can begin. It’s also cool to see that this is a Jurassic World set – NOT a Fallen Kingdom set. This gives me hope that perhaps, in the future, we may see sets based upon the past films too. Those were the three sets shared in LEGO’s PR brief at International Toyfair with Comingsoon.net – what do you think? I think we have lots of wonderful components here, and I really like the box-art we are getting with these new sets. Especially the core-line sets, which feel very visually appealing and capture the colour scheme of Fallen Kingdom well. It is also interesting to note we get 13 sets this time around with 2 retailer’s exclusives – dwarfing the offerings we saw for Jurassic World. Now the success of the line is assured, could we see even more in the future? Only time will tell.

Are you excited for the LEGO Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom sets? Or are you waiting for other products to be revealed? Comment below, and stay tuned for all things Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

Source: ComingSoon.net

#lego #jurassic world fallen kingdom lego #jurassic world lego #ken wheatly #ken wheatly ted levine #carnotaurus lego #lego jruassic world announcement #jurassic world fallen kingdom #jurassic park 25th anniversary #tom fishenden #article

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goftor-blog · 5 years ago

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Still going strong

Snapped this routemaster bus in King William street today, still in regular service, mainly as a tourist attraction but still going strong nevertheless

Routemaster Manufacturer

Associated Equipment Company

Capacity

57/64/65/69/72 seated

Operator(s)

London Transport Northern General Transport Company British European Airways

Specifications

Length

27 ft 6 in (8.38 m) 30 ft 0 in (9.14 m)

Width

8 ft (2.44 m)

Height

14 ft 4 1⁄2 in (4.38 m)

Floor type

Step-entrance

Doors

1 door

Weight

7.35 long tons (7.47 t)

Chassis

Integral, with front and rear subframes

Engine(s)

AEC AV590 9.6 L or AEC AV690 11.3 L or Leyland O.600 9.8 L 6-cylinder diesel Retrofits: Cummins C-series/ISBe DAF Iveco Scania

Power output

115 hp (86 kW) (AEC AV590)

Transmission

AEC 4-speed automatic/semi-automatic

The AEC Routemaster is a model of double-decker bus that was built by Associated Equipment Company (AEC) in 1954 (in production from 1958) and produced until 1968.[1] Primarily front-engined, rear open-platform buses, a small number of variants were produced with doors and/or front entrances. Introduced by London Transport in 1956, the Routemaster saw continuous service in London until 2005, and currently remains on two heritage routes in central London.

The Routemaster was developed by AEC in partnership with London Transport, the customer for nearly all new Routemasters, although small numbers were also delivered to the airline British European Airways (BEA) and the Northern General Transport Company. In all, 2,876 Routemasters were built,[1] with approximately 1,000 still in existence.

A pioneering design, the Routemaster outlasted several of its replacement types in London, survived the privatisation of the former London Transport bus operators and was used by other operators around the UK. In modern UK public transport bus operation, the unique features of the standard Routemaster were both praised and criticised. The open platform, while exposed to the elements, allowed boarding and alighting away from stops; the presence of a conductor allowed minimal boarding time and optimal security, although the presence of conductors incurred greater labour costs.

The Routemaster became one of London’s most famous symbols, with much tourist paraphernalia continuing to bear Routemaster imagery, and with examples still in existence around the world. Despite its fame, the earlier London bus classes that the Routemaster replaced (the RT-type AEC Regent and Leyland Titan RTL and RTW counterparts) are often mistaken for Routemasters by the public and by the media.[2]

Despite the retirement of the original version, the Routemaster has retained iconic status, and in the late 2000s work began on an updated version, which is set to enter service in 2012.

The driver’s cab of an early Routemaster RM8. The Routemaster bus was developed during the years 1947–1956 by a team directed by A. A. M. Durrant and Colin Curtis, with vehicle styling by Douglas Scott. The design brief was to produce a vehicle that was lighter (hence more fuel efficient), easier to operate and that could be maintained by the existing maintenance practices at the recently opened Aldenham Works. The resulting vehicle could seat 64 passengers despite being three-quarters of a ton lighter than the preceding RT, which seated only 56. The first task on delivery to service was to replace London’s trolleybuses, which had themselves replaced trams, and to begin to replace the older types of diesel motor bus. The Routemaster was primarily intended for London use, being designed by London Transport and constructed at the AEC Works in Southall, Middlesex, with assembly at bodybuilder Park Royal Vehicles, a subsidiary company of AEC.

Rear platform of Routemaster RM 1776, with updated hand-rails for Heritage Route operation. It was an innovative design and used lightweight aluminium and techniques developed in aircraft production during World War II.[3] As well as a novel weight-saving integral design, the Routemaster also introduced (for the first time on a bus) independent front suspension, power steering, a fully automatic gearbox and power-hydraulic braking.[4] This surprised some early drivers who found the chassis unexpectedly light and nimble compared with older designs, especially as depicted on film on tests at the Chiswick Works "skid pan". Footage of Routemaster RM200 (VLT 200) undergoing the skid test at Chiswick was included in the 1971 film On the Buses.[5]

The Routemaster design was a departure from the traditional chassis/body construction method. With London Transport being the primary customer, the option to use different bodybuilders was unimportant. The design was one of the first "integral" buses,[4] with the bus being a combination of an "A" steel sub-frame (including engine, steering and front suspension) and a rear "B" steel sub-frame (carrying rear axle and suspension), connected by the aluminium body.[1] The gearbox was mounted on the underside of the body structure with shafts to the engine and back axle.

Prototypes

FRM1 at the LT Museum Depot London Transport received four prototype Routemasters, which were placed in service between 1956 and 1958. The first two were built at the London Transport works at Chiswick, the third at Addlestone by Weymann and the fourth, an experimental Green Line coach, at Eastern Coach Works at Lowestoft. The third and fourth had Leyland engines.[4] The Routemaster was first exhibited at the Earl’s Court Commercial Motor Show in 1954.[3]

In 1961, a small batch of 24 longer RMLs (30 ft compared with the standard 27 ft 6in) were built as a test, before eventually going into production from 1965.

In 1962, the front entrance RMF concept was tried, with a single bus RMF1254 based on the trial RMLs. This was exhibited and toured, leading to a small number of orders as the RMF and RMA class.

In 1964, just before mainstream production of the RML, the final front-engined Routemaster model, AEC started work on a front-entrance, rear-engined Routemaster, the FRM class.[6] Completed in 1966, it was not produced beyond an initial prototype, FRM1. This saw regular London service, then on tour operations, before being withdrawn in 1983. This vehicle acquired the nickname "Fruitmaster".

Production

Production of mechanical components was undertaken chiefly at AEC’s Southall site (though a significant number had Leyland engines) throughout the life of the Routemaster, with body construction and final assembly at Park Royal. AEC itself was taken over by Leyland Motors in 1962,[7] Routemaster production ceased in 1968.[7]

The majority of production examples were 27 feet 6 inches (8.4 metres) long to meet the then maximum length regulations. The regulations were later relaxed and 30 feet (9.1 metres) "long" types were produced, although these were delayed by union resistance to the extra work for conductors.[8]

The production classes were designated as follows: RM – standard bus (27.5 feet (8.4 m)) RML – (lengthened) bus (30 feet (9.1 m)) RMC – coach (27.5 feet (8.4 m)) RCL – (lengthened) coach (30 feet (9.1 m)) RMF – front entrance bus (essentially a demonstrator to encourage sales outside London) RMA – front entrance bus (designated by LT when purchased from British Airways)

RM and RML class RML class RML 2304 owned by Millwall Football Club, painted blue in the club’s colours. At 2,120 RMs and 524 RMLs, these make up the majority of Routemasters. The RML class was simply a standard RM with a distinctive and seemingly out of place half-window section added in the middle giving eight extra seats. This was not a dramatic change, as it took advantage of the modular design approach of the Routemaster that would be copied in the future by other manufacturers.[8] The RML was originally to be the "Routemaster Leyland" designation, with ER to signify "Extended Routemaster".[8] The RM and RML featured a cubby hole beneath the rear staircase where the conductor could stand while not collecting fares without obstructing boarding/alighting passengers.

RMC and RCL class Preserved RCL 2233 in London Transport Green Line livery. The RMC was a coach version, produced for the "Green Line" routes. RMCs had modified suspension and interiors to allow a longer range and more comfortable running, and were fitted with an electrically operated door instead of an open platform.[9] The RCL was a long version of the RMC with a larger engine and similar coach style features.[10]

[edit] RMF and RMA class

The RMF and RMA class were production versions of a front entrance model Routemaster, primarily for non-London use.[11] Like the coach class, they featured an electrically operated door, although the staircase was moved to the front of the bus along with the door. After being exhibited and demonstrated to other operators, the RMF attracted little interest, apart from an order from Northern General Transport Company as the RMF and, in a short version, from British European Airways (BEA) as the RMA class.

Northern General Preserved Northern General "RMF" Routemaster in two tone red and cream pre-NBC livery. The British Electric Traction subsidiary, the Northern General Transport Company, introduced the RMF class in 1964/1965, with an initial batch of 18, followed by another 32 and later joined by the prototype RMF1254.[11] This order created considerable interest and raised eyebrows within the bus industry, as Northern had been one of the biggest investors in the new rear-engined Leyland Atlanteans. However Northern shared many routes with their Tilling brothers United who operated the Bristol Lodekka and the Atlantean just didn’t match the performance and passenger satisfaction of United’s Bristols, so Northern brought in the front-entrance Routemaster as a better match for it. The fleet were fitted with Leyland engines and a higher-ratio rear axle for operation on longer trunk routes.[12] Other notable differences were a standard single panel front destination blind screen, sliding windows and a one-piece driver’s windscreen.

Northern General 2105 Preserved in livery as delivered new. They operated in various Northern red and cream liveries[13][14] before surviving into the National Bus Company era receiving the poppy red corporate livery and NBC Northern fleetnames. The RMF fleet wore long standing adverts, "Shop at Binns". Northern Routemasters where well liked by their crews, the high axle ratio meant a good turn of speed on some of the long distance routes such as the Newcastle-Darlington, and the advantage of power steering was well appreciated on the heavy urban services in Gateshead and Sunderland. Their service in the north also produced the odd sight of a Routemaster with a rollsign for service "X1 to Scandinavia", by virtue of the connection to the ferry line from North Shields to Scandinavia.[15] However throughout the 1970s it became increasingly uneconomic for conductor-operated buses on inter-urban services, and despite the driver and customer satisfaction for the Routemaster in the North East, the management had little option but to replace them. Ultimately Northern placed a large order for Bristol VRs featuring a combination of both ECW highbridge and Willowbrook bodywork in 1977 to replace them. The last Routemasters were used until 1980, when they were disposed of in a variety of ways,[11] some finding use in London, although none were deemed suitable for regular London service.

British European Airways

BEA introduced the RMA class buses built to the shorter length (with trailers) in various liveries in 1966/1967 for use on airport bus service between the West London Air Terminal (above the London Underground triangle between High Street Kensington, Gloucester Road and Earl’s Court stations) and Heathrow Airport.[16] These were all eventually sold to London Transport after being withdrawn in stages in the 1970s, finding various roles.[17]

Colourful Routemasters RM 6 in Golden Jubilee colours. With the Routemaster’s longevity, there have been Routemaster buses painted to celebrate both the Queen’s Silver and Golden Jubilee, in 1977 and 2002, i.e. 25 and 50 years on the throne respectively. 25 buses were painted Silver to celebrate the Silver Jubilee,[18] and out of 50 buses painted gold in London in 2002, 15 (12 RML, 3 RM) were Routemasters.[19]

During privatisation in London, from 1986, several private operators won contracts to operate London bus services, some of which including Routemaster operated routes. Before an 80% red rule for liveries was reintroduced in 1997 by LT, the contract tendering authority, some of these new entrants proceeded to run Routemasters in their own non-red liveries, most notably Kentish Bus on Route 19 and Borehamwood Travel Services (BTS) (now part of London United Busways) on Route 13.

The iconic nature of the Routemaster also appealed to the many new operators outside of London that appeared post-1986 in the UK following bus deregulation. Several operators took second hand Routemasters from London as a cheap way of expanding their fleets to stave off competition from new operators emerging after deregulation.[20] Likewise, start up operators also chose the Routemaster as a distinctive looking bus for their own start up operations. Subsequently, Routemasters were seen around the country painted in a variety of proprietary colours, and were used in regular service in Southampton, Blackpool, Glasgow, Perth, Dundee, Hull, Carlisle, Bedford, Corby, Manchester (Stagecoach), Southend and Burnley.[4] During this era, several Routemasters found their way through more than one company and were also often loaned between operators.

One of the earliest, if not the earliest, examples of deregulated use of Routemasters was early in the history of the Stagecoach Group. Now one of the largest post-deregulation operators in the UK, Stagecoach combined the vintage Routemaster with their new and striking corporate livery of all-over white with red, orange and blue stripes,[21] to start one of their first operations, Magic Bus, in Glasgow, Scotland, in the late 1980s. This contrasted with the traditional identities still in use at the time.

Two preserved Reading Mainline Routemasters. Towards the end of this period, in 1994 in Reading, new operator Reading Mainline built up a forty five strong Routemaster fleet to compete with the established operator Reading Buses, in the process becoming the largest operator of Routemasters outside London. They used conductors to compete on speed in the town centre and, in the outskirts, took advantage of the rear platform to operate hail and ride sections of route. After building up a network covering nearly the whole town, Reading Buses posted their first ever financial loss to purchase the company in 1998, with Reading Buses continuing Routemaster operation for another two years albeit reduced in number, until 2000.

With the costs involved in running elderly two-man buses and with a general reduction in the number of operators, buses and services in the years following in the deregulated industry as competitors merged or sold out, these examples of use outside London declined through the 1990s. Many of these buses found their way back to London to assist with the refurbishment program or as basic spares donors or to increase the fleet size generally.

The final withdrawal from mainstream London service saw another resurgence in the use of Routemasters outside of London[20] but, this time on a smaller scale than the post deregulation public transport fleets. Post 2000, usage was characterised by small novelty or seasonal routes.

Green livery Preserved RMC 1476 coach with rear folding doors, in the "NBC Green" livery of London Country Bus Services, lighter than London Transport "Country" green. The "green Routemasters" originally worked for LT’s "country division", which took coach type RMC and RCL buses, for Green Line services, and later standard bus RMLs. The RMC class were initially used on Green Line routes in outlying towns.[9] Similarly, the RCL entered service in areas where the RMC was not introduced.[10]

These vehicles passed to the nationalised National Bus Company’s subsidiary London Country Bus Services (known simply as London Country) in 1969, which took over outlying areas of LT bus operation resulting from the 1968 Transport Act. The transfer comprised 69 RMCs, 43 RCLs and 97 RMLs.[4]

By the latter half of the 1970s, most of these vehicles had been re-acquired by London Transport, as London Country modernised and standardised its fleet and as increased car usage and improved commuter railways reduced suburban bus demand. Most of the RMLs found use on red London bus routes,[4] and the RMC and RCL class were cascaded into the training fleet.[9] As the RCL class was relatively new (in Routemaster terms) and LT was suffering from lack of parts, between 1980 and 1984 several of the RCLs were converted to standard bus use.[22] RT 1702 and RT 227 buses, as distinguished from Routemasters The heyday of Routemaster operation was its first 25 years of operation, until September 1982,[23] when the type started to be withdrawn and transferred to training fleets, due to service reductions.

The RM class was placed in service from 1959 to replace trolleybuses, which finished in May 1962. Subsequent Routemasters, the last 500 of which were the RML types, began replacing the previous generation of buses, the RT-type AEC Regent and Leyland Titan RTL and RTW. RMLs also displaced RMs on central routes to cope with higher loadings.[8] The last Routemaster, RML 2760, entered service in March 1968.

The original London Transport concept included the routine overhaul and refurbishment of the Routemaster fleet at London Transport’s Aldenham Works, usually every five years. Here the buses were completely stripped down and rebuilt, and left the works almost as new. As the number of Routemasters in London declined, however, and newer bus designs not suited to this practice were introduced, the overhaul routine was abandoned and Aldenham Works closed in the mid-1980s.

Decline in London A Routemaster next to a DMS class one man operated bus. The Fleetline was slated to replace the Routemaster, but eventually was outlived by it. Many of London’s bus routes were converted to one-person operation (then known as one-man operation, or OMO) in the 1970s, out of a desire to reduce operating costs and address staff shortages. There was also, for a time, a parts shortage for Routemasters, aggravated by the closure of AEC.[24] With the introduction of single-deck Red Arrow services in London and successful conversion to modern rear-engined OMO buses around the country, LT was considering replacing Routemasters with modern buses. The operation of the Routemaster (very) gradually contracted to central areas only, with RMLs replacing RMs, where LT felt that the Routemaster still provided an efficient means of transporting large enough numbers of people to justifying the economics of two-man operation.[25] The rapid acceleration and rugged construction of the Routemasters also proved to be more suited to urban conditions than some more modern designs.[25]

The Routemaster fleet remained largely intact for around fifteen years after production ended in 1968, with withdrawals mainly due to fires. Following the defeat of the GLC in the House of Lords regarding their subsidised fare scheme, major service reductions followed in September 1982. Consequently, the first withdrawals commenced, with many of these early disposals being for scrap. The continued practice of route conversion to one person operation resulted in a steady trickle of withdrawals. This practice had largely halted by 1988, with comparatively few withdrawn up to 1992.

In the 1980s, several of the returned Routemasters purchased from Northern General, BEA and London Country, which had doors rather than an open platform, were put to use on London Transport’s revived sightseeing operation The Original London Sightseeing Tour, alongside the RCL class (some converted to open top buses),[22] the RMF class,[11] and the RMA class.[17]

Privatisation of London buses Routemasters RML 2724 and RML 2680 wearing First London and London General post-privatisation paint schemes, 2005. In 1984, the process of privatisation of London bus services began and the Routemasters were transferred from London Transport operation to several different arms-length business units based on different garages, leading to minor additions to the standard red livery. Nine of the twelve new operating units inherited Routemasters, Centrewest, Leaside, London Central, London General, London United, Metroline, London Northern, South London and East London.[26] During this time, following the failure and premature withdrawal of heralded replacement vehicle classes such as the DM/DMS class Daimler Fleetline, the Routemasters that had not yet been disposed of saw their lives extended for use until privatisation. Where new route tenders called for Routemaster operation, these were leased from London Buses.[26]

By 1994, all the operating units had been sold and this produced some colour livery variations and additions to some Routemasters from their previous all-over red liveries. In the new London route tendering process, all but one of the Routemaster operated routes were allowed to keep their now privately-owned Routemasters[4] for the five-year contract period and further refurbishments resulted.

Life extensions Routemaster RML 2619 in 2003. Since the ending of production at Southall and later closure of the Aldenham works, new options for extending the life of the Routemaster became necessary if they were to continue to run. This made sense as even by 1987, when some buses looked decidedly worn out, inspections by London Buses revealed the basic structure of the buses was still sound,[24] requiring only replacement of engines and interior/exterior renewal.

From 1992 to 1994, all but two of the RML type were refurbished for ten years further service. This work, which included updating the interior to modern tastes and substituting Iveco or Cummins engines, was carried out by Mainline, TB Precision, Nottingham truck & Bus and by one of the new London Buses business units, Leaside Buses. 100 RM class vehicles were also re-engined.[4] Post-privatisation, in 1996, the Routemasters on London Central’s RMs on route 36, Stagecoach London’s RMLs for routes 8 and 15, and Arriva’s RMs for route 159, all received new Scania engines.[4] Between 2001 and 2004, under new mayor Ken Livingstone and Transport for London, the replacement authority for London Buses, further refurbishment saw TfL buy back forty nine RMs from a variety of sources. Initially started by Marshall Bus, this was continued by Arriva London when Marshall ceased trading in 2002.

Withdrawal from London A Routemaster seen with its replacements, a modern double decker and a bendy bus. Final 159 journey, December 2005.

Routemaster on Route 12 towards Dulwich, South London, in 2000. During the new millennium, debates surrounded the issue of whether to replace or retain the Routemaster in London service. Supporters cited its continued mechanical fitness, speed of boarding and tourist potential, while opponents pointed to the economics of running increasingly elderly buses when newer, larger and more modern designs were now on the market following a resurgence in the bus manufacturing industry after recession in the 1990s. Opponents also pointed specifically to the lack of accessibility of the Routemaster in light of impending relevant legislation, which meant all new buses now entering service in London were of a low-floor design. The emergence of off-bus ticketing technology also reduced the argument for better dwell times, whereby the Oyster card and off-bus ticket machines would reduce the time it took to board the bus.

In 2004, following his second election campaign, Mayor of London Ken Livingstone announced the phasing out of the type in order to provide a bus service in the capital fully accessible to wheelchair users. Government legislation requires full accessibility by 2017 under the Disability Discrimination Act. As a consequence, the Routemaster was officially withdrawn from general service on 9 December 2005, although it remains in regular service on two "heritage" routes (see below).

Withdrawals began on the dates below as the routes’ five-year contracts expired. Route 15: 29 August 2003 Route 11: 31 October 2003 Route 23: 14 November 2003 Route 94: 23 January 2004 Route 6: 26 March 2004 Route 98: 26 March 2004 Route 8: 4 June 2004 Route 7: 2 July 2004 Route 137: 9 July 2004 Route 9: 3 September 2004 Route 390: 3 September 2004 Route 73: 3 September 2004; replaced by bendy buses Route 12: 5 November 2004; replaced by bendy buses Route 36: 28 January 2005 Route 19: 1 April 2005 Route 14: 22 July 2005 Route 22: 22 July 2005 Route 13: 21 October 2005 Route 38: 28 October 2005; replaced by bendy buses Route 159: 9 December 2005

The Routemaster was gradually phased out of service by the end of 2005. A television documentary shown that year revealed that Livingstone had commented in 2001 that "only some sort of ghastly dehumanised moron would want to get rid of Routemasters".[27] By December 2005, only one route was left, the 159 (Marble Arch — Streatham). Friday, 9 December 2005 would be the last official running day.[28] On Thursday 8th, 24 special buses, including preserved RMs and RMLs, plus a number of their predecessors from the "RT" bus family, made guest appearances on the 159 route.

RM2217 arrives for the last time, surrounded by crowds. December 9, 2005. On Friday, instead of doing a normal shift, with crews ending normally at around 11pm, on police advice,[29] the day was split into two duty shifts,[29] a Routemaster shift, and a VLA class shift (Volvo B7TL/Alexander ALX400), the replacement bus for route 159, with the Routemasters due to be replaced in the middle of the day.

Towards the last runs to the garage, crowds blocked the four-lane road,[28] bringing all traffic to a standstill. RM2217 was set to be the last official running bus, as per the timetable. Heavily delayed, RM2217 even took 10 minutes to turn the final corner into Brixton Garage.

The bus left the public highway at 14:07, accompanied by duplicates provided by preserved buses RM5 and RM6. Due to the delays, RM54 was actually the last in service, running into Streatham Station stand a few minutes later,[29] before running dead to Norwood Garage.

Later, RM5 and RM6, followed by RM2217 were moved to the old LCC Tramways depot at Brixton for press photographs in the quieter surroundings of the old tramways depot which, at the time, was complete with still visible tramlines. Heritage Routemaster running off service on Route 9. Two heritage routes were immediately introduced in London, recognising the nostalgia for the type among ordinary Londoners and their appeal to tourists. Although these buses are operated under contract to TfL and accept standard Travelcards, Oystercards or cash fares, they only operate for a limited time during the day duplicating short sections of two regular London bus routes. The Heritage routes operate around ten buses each,[30] with five each in reserve. Heritage route 9: Olympia-Warwick Gardens – High Street Kensington – Royal Albert Hall — Hyde Park Corner — Piccadilly Circus — Trafalgar Square. Heritage route 15: Trafalgar Square — Strand — Aldwych — Fleet Street — Cannon Street — Monument — Tower Hill.

The buses used were specially restored from remaining examples for this service and have clean environmental engines, modern electrics and sealed windows.

Other public transport uses

Most use of Routemasters in UK public transport service has now ceased.

Nottingham & District Omnibus Routemaster followed by a Nottingham City Transport bus. On 7 April 2008 Routemasters were also introduced on a regular bus route in Nottingham, England.[31] They were operated by Bellamy’s Coaches Ltd with red Routemasters branded as the Nottingham & District Omnibus,[32][33] on route 20 on a 20 minute frequency from 7am to 7pm, six days a week.[34] Bellamy’s positioned the conductor and open platform features of the Routemaster as being able to compete with the incumbent operator’s Nottingham City Transport (NCT) services, on increased speed of travel through the city centre bus stops, and through hail and ride operation in the suburbs. The Routemasters were withdrawn on 28 June 2008 with the company citing low passenger demand, although to satisfy bus service registration requirements, the service continued using single-decker buses into August.[35] The council, which has an 82% stake in NCT, was criticised for not doing enough to provide information about the service in public facilities, and for increasing the competition selectively on the Routemaster route.[34]

The London and South East of England operator Metrobus had retained a green-liveried Routemaster, RML 2317 (CUV 317C), obtained from sister company London General, which is sometimes used on regular routes as well as private and preservation appearances. This RML has however, now passed to Brighton and Hove Buses where is was painted into the livery of Thomas Tilling Ltd. Cavendish Motor Services operate RML 2324 in a light green and green livery, for special journeys as well as a relief bus for a number of their routes in the Eastbourne area.

Wilson’s Coaches of Greenock operate three Routemasters (one open-top) mainly on private hire workings, but also see service on the company’s routes from Greenock to Clydebank, Helensburgh and on Saturdays prior to Christmas on the company’s local Greenock service.

Non-public service use A Routemaster in use as a cafe in Brick Lane, London. Aside from the London heritage routes, the last major operator of Routemasters in service in the UK, is in Edinburgh, Scotland. Local operator Lothian Buses tour operation Mac Tours[36] uses a variety of closed and open top Routemasters on regular tour bus duties.[30] Another tour operation, York Pullman, currently use two Routemasters on a city tour of York.[37]

Several operators in the UK maintain Routemasters for private hire usage, with the majority held by the successors to the former London Bus units, Ensignbus, London Bus Company Ltd (formerly Blue Triangle) and Timebus Travel.[30]

Many cities around the world have a Routemaster or an older RT variant somewhere, often privately owned and used for many different purposes (from Preservation to Hot Dog stands, tour bus to shop). Routemasters can be found far from Britain in places such as Sri Lanka, Australia, New Zealand, China, Canada, Croatia, Southern California, Malaysia, Fairbanks, Alaska and Stanley in the Falkland Islands.

A number of Stagecoach-owned Routemasters have been exported to Montreal in Canada, where Stagecoach now provides a tourist service around the city. This is a unique case of London Routemasters being operated on a daily service in a foreign country by a former London Routemaster operator.

Source Wikipedia

Posted by Bernie Lampert on 2012-02-23 18:03:50

Tagged: , Lampert , London , Routemaster , Londonbus , RedLondonbus , KingWilliamstreet , FujiF200EXR , Londontransport

The post Still going strong appeared first on Good Info.

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itsworn · 7 years ago

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Saying Goodbye To The Latest Mopar Special Edition!

For 2017, and in celebration of Mopar’s 80th anniversary, the Mopar ’17 is one trick looking Challenger. With a total of 160 units split evenly between the two snazzy, hand-painted two-tone paint schemes, 80 cars painted in Pitch Black/Contusion Blue, and another 80 in Pitch Black/Billet Silver, it’s a nod to 80 years the Mopar brand has been in existence from its humble roots as a line of antifreeze products in the 1930s.

Because of the limited run, don’t expect to see another Mopar ’17 Challenger in the lane next to you at the stoplight. That low-production number gives you instant exclusivity. Like when you’re displaying in the late-model show car field at the Carlisle All-Chrysler Nationals and among the rows of 2008-2017 Challengers, you’re the only Mopar ’17s in the whole fairgrounds.

“Since its birth in 1937, Mopar has evolved from the name of an antifreeze product to a global customer-care brand,” said Pietro Gorlier Head of Mopar Parts and Service. “The Mopar ’17 Dodge Challenger, our latest limited-edition vehicle, is a testament to this philosophy, showcasing how Mopar assists owners in personalizing all FCA US vehicles.”

We dig where the brand’s coming from and evolving to, and the Mopar ’17 Challenger is a great indicator of good things to come.

For example, under the Shaker hood of the Mopar ’17 resides pure Hemi goodness in the form of 392 cubic-inches that puts out 485 horsepower with 475 lb.-ft. of tire smoking torque. All Mopar ’17 Challengers get the Tremec six-speed manual transmission, so you’ll have to row it around town, but that’s okay. After our weekend with the Mopar ’17 Challenger, we racked up over 1,000 miles heading to and from the Motor City to Maple Grove Raceway for the Dodge NHRA Nationals. From the super highways of the Ohio and Pennsylvania Turnpikes, to the country roads that we shared with Amish buggies, the Mopar ’17 was a blast to drive.

Looking at that Shaker hood for our weekend road trip to Maple Grove was even better sitting in the performance seats that are customized with Tungsten Mopar logos and stitching that includes the Mopar logo embroidered on the seatbacks. The Challenger’s interior stands above the other domestic performance coupes in its class.

We did turn many heads on the road with the Mopar ’17’s two-tone custom painted Contusion Blue and Pitch Black livery. The inherent bodylines of the Challenger provided a seamless segue point for the colors. The custom Mopar 392 logo also gets hand-painted at the Mopar Custom Shop. The rear deck spoiler gets the Pitch Black treatment, and the Mopar Design badge on the spoiler tells the world your Challenger is special. Speaking of badges, a special serialized Mopar ’17 80th Anniversary plaque gets installed on the radiator core support under the hood.

The only available wheel and tire package on the Mopar ’17 is the 20 x 9-inch aluminum wheels with semi-gloss accents and center caps featuring the Dodge logo. Grip comes from 245/45R20 Goodyear F1 Supercar tires. Our complaint is the tires need to be taller and wider to fill up the wheel wells and give the Mopar ’17 a more aggressive stance and better handing when pushed hard (although we’ve admittedly been spoiled by the looks of the new Widebody Hellcat.) The four-piston Brembos are good, but the red painted six-piston versions would be better and look much cooler.

The limited-edition Mopar ’17 Challenger sold for $55,790, excluding taxes and destination fees. Will it be a future collectable? It’s hard to say. With late-model Challenger production numbers soaring compared to the original E-Body, it probably won’t be in our lifetime, but that’s okay, as it gives us more of an excuse to drive them harder and harder.

Turnkey Mopar Vehicle History The Mopar ’17 Dodge Challenger is part a limited club of modern muscle cars, and what you may not have known is that it’s the eighth limited-edition Mopar-modified vehicle series. It was about seven years ago when the marketing folks at Mopar came to the realization that since they develop, test, and sell performance parts and accessories, why not do a limit run of specialty vehicles to showcase their parts in action while promoting the brand?

It made perfect sense, and since many limited-edition Chrysler, Dodge, and Ram vehicles (such as the Ram Rumble Bee, Ram Daytona, Charger Daytona, Charger Police Pursuit, and Challenger Shaker) had unique Mopar content installed at approved tier-one up-fitters, the logical thing was to do a Mopar-branded vehicle.

That’s what happened when the first fully branded Mopar-modified vehicle debuted in 2010. It was known as the Mopar ’10 Challenger, and it was a rolling canvas to demonstrate to diehard enthusiasts how they can customize their personal vehicles and make it their own with Mopar parts and accessories. So here’s a quick overview of the Mopar Edition vehicles.

Mopar ’10 Challenger R/T Being the first Mopar edition vehicle, the team learned a lot when developing the Mopar ’10. The Chrysler Design Team worked with the Mopar guys and went through the performance parts shelves to fortify the already potent 5.7-liter Hemi by adding a fresh hood air venting system, cold-air intake, a front strut-tower brace with shock caps, and a unique engine cover. Under the decklid, they installed a rear strut-tower brace to stiffen the chassis and improve the handling characteristics of the Challenger. It even had the functional, vented T/A-style hood with vintage hood pins and Mopar logos and graphics splashed all over.

Mopar ’11 Charger R/T Mopar went the four-door route and chose a Charger R/T for their Mopar ’11. Like the Challenger, it was black and packed a 5.7-liter Hemi for motivation, but the Mopar engineers swapped out the stock differential with a 3.91:1 LSD unit that dramatically improved 0-60 and quarter mile times. Under the hood a Mopar strut tower brace came standard as did larger, vented brake rotors. The interior was wrapped in Katzkin leather.

Mopar ’12 300 For Mopar’s 75th anniversary, they went upscale and went with a Chrysler 300. Like the previous Mopar special-edition vehicles, it was powered by a 5.7-liter Hemi and was backed by a five-speed W5A580 automatic transmission. Mopar added a unique Mopar shifter that made the Auto Stick more fun. Like the Mopar ’11 Charger, the differential got swapped from the 3.06:1 to a 3.91:1 final-drive ratio. Burnouts galore for the 500 units made!

Mopar ’13 Dart Probably not the best plan from Mopar, considering the Dart’s lackluster sales, performance, and time on this planet. It did get outfitted with select Mopar parts and accessories that included performance upgrades such as a lowered sport suspension, revised steering calibration, sport-tuned exhaust, ground-effects kit, and premium brake kit with slotted rotors. Five hundred Mopar ’13 Darts rolled off the line.

Mopar ’14 Challenger R/T Shaker For 2014, the factory Shaker option returned on the Challenger R/T and since installation was part of a Mopar upfit program, it made sense do a unique branded vehicle. The Mopar ’14 Challenger was available in Bright White or Gloss Black exterior paint and they had two Mopar stripe options. Once again, the 5.7L Hemi provided the power and only100 units were built.

Mopar ’15 Charger R/T Taking a break from doing a turnkey limited-run vehicle, Mopar launched the ’15 Performance Kit for the 2015 Dodge Charger R/T. The Mopar ’15 kit was a street-legal performance package that included the Scat Pack Performance Stage Kit 1 which added 18 horsepower and 18 lb.-ft. of torque to the 2015 Dodge Charger R/T with the addition of a Mopar Performance cat-back exhaust, cold-air intake, Stage 1 premium fuel powertrain control module, and high-flow oil filter.

Mopar ’16 Ram Rebel With a limited run of 500 vehicles, the Mopar ’16 Ram Rebel started out as a Ram 1500 4×4 Rebel Crew Cab in either Flame Red/Brilliant Black two-tone or Brilliant Black monotone. Then the cool bits and pieces were added, like an aluminum dual-bezel sport performance hood (embellished with a matte-black hood graphic), off-road wheel flares, special Mopar ’16 blue-and-black graphic stripes, power steering box skid plate, black front bumper skid plate, 17-inch satin black wheels, serialized Mopar ’16 glove box badge and a set of stainless-steel door sill guards. Optional parts and accessories installed included a cold-air intake and cat-back exhaust system. Only 500 Mopar ’16 Ram Rebels are out there so they’re also hard to find.

Happy 80th Birthday Mopar! Our Pitch Black/Contusion Blue Mopar ’17 Challenger is an awesome way to celebrate eight decades of this iconic brand, and the best Mopar Special Edition yet!

Looking sexy from any angle, the Mopar ’17 is the brand’s eighth limited edition vehicle, offering customers a turnkey, customized, fully warrantied vehicle that will get attention wherever it goes.

Between the fenders of the Mopar ’17 sits a 6.4-liter, 392 Hemi pumping out 485 horsepower and 475 lb.-ft. of torque. While not officially adding to the pony count, the cold-air package does seem to offer some extra grunt once at speed.

Each Mopar ’17 Challenger includes a commemorative owner’s kit and serialized Mopar ’17 80th Anniversary badge mounted on the radiator core support. Ours was the “pilot” car for the program, hence the “00 of 80.”

Every Mopar ’17 Challenger gets the same rear-deck spoiler as Scat Pack and Demon models (Hellcat Challengers get a more aggressive version which is needed for more rear downforce.) The Mopar Design badge is very cool and a nice touch.

Another cool feature of the Mopar ’17 Challenger is the air-catcher duct system via the headlamp. Robbed from the Challenger SRT Demon, Hellcat, and T/A models, it’s another source of fresh air coming into the air box.

Mopar Shaker strut tower braces and caps are silver powder-coated; their increased rigidity improves the handling of the 4,200-lb. Mopar ’17 Challenger.

The Mopar ’17 Dodge Challenger comes with this cool Owner’s Kit, packaged in a custom Mopar box with content including a “birth certificate” with vehicle specifications, date of manufacture, proprietary vehicle number, a special Mopar ’17 booklet, and a Mopar 80th anniversary badge.

No decal here! A special Mopar 392 logo is hand-painted on the front fenders at the Mopar Custom Shop during the transformation of the Mopar ’17.

Inside the Mopar ’17 are comfy yet firm performance seats that are customized with Tungsten Mopar logos embroidered on the seatbacks.

Here we are showing off the Mopar ’17 in the Mopar Alley behind the grandstands at Maple Grove Raceway during at the Dodge NHRA Nationals. It got its fair share of looks and questions from the race fans and Mopar enthusiasts.

The post Saying Goodbye To The Latest Mopar Special Edition! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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runwayrunway · 1 year ago

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No. 11 - Japan Airlines(’s logos)

Last time on Runway Runway, @vultureworth asked me to cover the fictional little plane from cartoon animal doing cute things game Animal Crossing. The airline featured in the game, Dodo Airlines, has a logo which is a nod to JAL’s iconic Tsurumaru crane logo.

...can we talk about the JAL logo? And the liveries which came with it, I guess, but I’m really here to talk about JAL’s old logos.

(but someone did request JAL, and the logos and liveries are absolutely not independent from each other, so we will also discuss the liveries.)

The Tsurumaru, designed by Jerry Huff at Botsford, Constantine and Gardner of San Francisco, has been a mainstay of the airline since its 1959 introduction, but it hasn’t always been the main logo. In that sense there’s been a real on-off relationship with it, and they’ve had some pretty weird stuff in the interim. Like, does anyone else remember this? This...thing?

From 2002 to 2011 this was the JAL logo. Am I alone in hating this so so so so much? The shaded three-dimensional curve overlaid on the entirely flat black text is, frankly, the stuff of nightmares. I cannot believe anyone would willingly replace the Tsurumaru with this monstrosity, even if you try to jazz it up with a fancy name like 'arc of the sun'. I have an even harder time believing this was designed by Landor Associates. Did something terrible happen to them in 2002? How does something like this get created and approved?

Okay, okay. Fine, it’s ugly. How does the plane look overall?

Sure. Sweet and simple. Okay. I like the metallic color framing in the slice of red on the winglets, I like the shade of red used on the plane itself. The fully matte circular cutout is striking. My issue here is that this feels like three liveries hastily stapled together - the logo, the red winglets and fin, and then the full JAPAN AIRLINES text. Nothing is stringing them together at all. Why is the red so matte if the logo is reflective and shiny?! Why are the tail and winglets the only elements that tie into each other in any way?!

This is straight up blue. This color doesn’t appear anywhere on the rest of the livery. It’s just blue.

I thought for a minute I was inventing the concept of this and that it was just the same metal color used for accents elsewhere but...no...I got out CSP and did some eyedropping in a bunch of different places just to make sure it wasn’t an artifact of the lighting and

Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s blue. I feel like this is definitely blue. Am I insane or is this blue. What in the world. I hate it when a livery has features I like at first glance but then you look closer and it starts falling apart.

D+. This weird 2002 livery and logo gets a D+. I don’t like this.

Moving on. Moving on promptly.

From 1989 to 2002 they also had this wordmark, another Landor design, which I actually don’t hate. For one, they kept the Tsurumaru on the tail throughout instead of canning it entirely - already a huge plus. Also, the typeface is better (darker, better contrasting, DELIGHTFULLY spikey), the red used is a lot nicer, and the uniform flatness makes the text actually pop somewhat, versus the 2002-2011 logo which kind of obscures it. This is fine. I don’t dislike this at all. But okay. Okay. Enough about wordmarks. How does it look on the plane?

This is very messed up. Last time I hated the logo but thought the high concept of the livery itself was fine. This time I like the logo but I think this livery is sort of nonsense. It’s almost all white, and then it has a bunch of features stapled on - the Tsurumaru, the ‘J Bird’, and the picture of a bird that’s just there? And it has a tiny illegible little ‘Japan Airlines’ written on it, as if people don’t know what JAL stands for. As if they’re not one of the biggest and most recognizable airlines on this planet. And as if this text for ants would help them if they didn’t.

I really, really like the logo and how it’s integrated here. The grey wrapping around the nose is really fantastic. I like that part. I like that part a lot.

I still have to give this a D+ because the rest of it is so incoherent.

At this point I’ve sort of come to a conclusion about JAL - oh, I should probably mention their modern livery while I’m going into this dramatic mental spiral, shouldn’t I?

Font choice is good. Tsurumaru looks nice as always. Really a shame they realized this and went “awesome, we don’t need to design the rest of the plane then”.

D+. Try harder. Apply yourself. Meet me after class. This is making me sad.

It somehow just feels like all of JAL’s liveries were an afterthought that nobody thought to put any creativity or real consideration into. It sucks because Japan is obviously full of incredible graphic designers and rich artistic traditions to pull on for iconography. (Bafflingly, in the 50s they used an American advertising agency, so the Tsurumaru was actually designed by a Westerner, which feels so wrong, doesn’t it?) Look, I lived in Japan as a child, so even if just having eyes and seeing photographs and accounts wasn’t enough to know this - Japan has way more to offer than a plain white fuselage with elements that feel like they were picked at random to just get the design process over with. The white doesn’t feel clean and intentional and meaningful like it does on some of the nearly-all-white liveries that I actually like (yes, they exist, I have two queued right now!), it just feels like nobody bothered to design the plane! It makes me very sad.

One of the reasons it’s making me sad is that I have a vision of what this could be. Keep the red and grey logo and the little line that goes around the nose. Keep the red winglets and fins. Maybe make the red circle on the fin larger so it envelops more of the rear fuselage. Put the Tsurumaru silhouette over it, so the bits of the logo which are white are painted over it and you clearly see its head. Does that make sense? Am I conjuring an image in your head?

Well, JAL certainly doesn’t see my vision. And I don’t currently have a graphics tablet so I can’t do anything to make anyone see it. You’ll just have to use your imagination, I’m afraid.

And I also have to mark all of these down for not also having the airline’s name in kanji. Especially when JAL’s nickname in Japanese, ‘Nikkō’, is literally written in two characters - “日航” - which would take up next to no space at all and be pretty easy to integrate. I know it’s like three letters, a fairly large portion of Japanese people read at least some English, and even those that don’t can probably recognize the text for ‘JAPAN AIRLINES’, but it kind of goes beyond an accessibility thing. I don’t think Japanese people actually have any meaningful issue with planes only having English text on them, or at least I hope not, because I can’t find a single airline in the country that does feature kanji (or any other form of Japanese text) on its livery, but I actually still think that JAL should do it anyway. A flag carrier is meant to represent the country it flies for. Latin is not the official or most commonly used script in Japan, and it feels very wrong for what is basically the country’s brand to exclusively use it.

But we’re not here to talk about their liveries anymore, even though they make me sad.. That verdict has been passed. No...what brought me here is their logo.

JAL first adopted the Tsurumaru in 1959, like I said. The airline, however, has existed since 1951.

So...what is this mystery logo from the dark ages of JAL’s branding?

This Star Wars situation.

I don’t know what I think about this. I don’t know how to feel. This just isn’t a JAL logo. My mind refuses to comprehend this fact. This is sincerely bizarre.

...this typeface is so weird that I almost think I like it.

I can’t find any properly sourced images of planes from this era, but they seem to only have the logo very small and lack anything except the airline’s name written in plain black kanji on a blank metal fuselage, which is...typical for that period. This is barely about the livery at this point anyway. This post was all an excuse to expose you all to the 1951 JAL logo.

Well. You’re welcome.

A D+ for Japan Airlines, shockingly consistent in their shocking incoherence since at least 1989.

#tarmac fashion week #grade: d+#region: japan #region: east asia #region: asia #era: 1980s #era: 1990s #era: 2000s #era: 2010s #era: 2020s #japan airlines #flag carriers #retired liveries #landor portfolio #double sunrise #long haul #requests

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wristwatchjournal · 4 years ago

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The Petrolhead Corner – The Ultra-Cool Restomod Volvo P1800 Cyan

The trend of restomodding a classic car has resulted in some fairly amazing cars. It is a delicate process not to butcher the original car too much but improve on every little bit you can. Bigger and better engine, retouched bodywork, performance suspension, high-performance suspension and brakes, that kind of stuff. The latest in a long line of sub-zero-cool restomods is the Volvo P1800 Cyan in a striking blue livery! Low weight, high power, beautiful package; sounds like the ideal recipe for another Petrolhead Corner episode!

The Swedish brand is known for reliability and safety, as Volvo has focussed on reducing fatalities for decades now. Their core goal is to eliminate the risk of dying in a car crash entirely by developing the safest cars they possible can. For a long period of time, this meant Volvo had an unjust reputation of being a bit bland, a bit boxy and well, boring. The last 10 or 20 years or so the design of the cars has shifted to create some of the most understated yet cleanest looking cars on the road. And, not content with the range of people-carrying estates and SUV’s even sparked (pun intended) the launch of Polestar.

The return to sleek and elegant looking cars is a welcome one, but throughout the years there have been other very interesting cars too. For instance the Volvo PV444 and PV544, the Volvo Amazon and of course the P1800. The latter was made famous by staring in the TV-series The Saint during the sixties, where it was the car of choice for Simon Templar, portrayed by Roger Moore. This show pre-dates his James Bond era, but there are similarities in style, to say the least. That very car featured in an episode on Jay Leno’s Garage:

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The Volvo P1800 is a handsome looking sports car and is perhaps the most iconic Scandinavian car in terms of design and familiarity. It was launched in 1960 and is a mix of Italian styling and reliable Volvo technology underneath. The front-engined, rear-wheel-drive car was launched simultaneously with the Jaguar E-Type, a car that was also in contention to star in The Saint. But with Jaguar passing on the opportunity, Volvo accepted it which helped sales for their new car. Between 1962 and 1970 about 40,000 coupes were built, followed by about 8,000 shooting brakes between 1970 and 1973 when production ended. Today it is a much loved classic car which is still relatively affordable.

Cyan Racing was responsible for Volvo’s racing division since the mid-nineties. Mostly operating in Swedish Touring Car Championship and the European Touring Car Championship it achieved multiple wins and titles and sprouted some truly awesome cars. One of these cars is perhaps the coolest estate car ever created: the Volvo 850 Estate touring car. This car ran in the British Touring Car Championship and was a real oddity, but a competitive one! It was piloted by Swede Rickard Rydell and Dutchman Jan Lammers who’s a former Formula 1 driver and Le Mans 24 Hours winner. Check out this cool tribute video by PistonHeads:

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In 2010 Cyan Racing presented their first concept car intended for the road. The heavily modified Volvo C30 Polestar was real pocket-rocket, as the small hatchback had a 405bhp 2.5-litre turbocharged 5-cylinder engine in the front. This was followed by the even more powerful Volvo S60 Polestar. Power came from a straight-6 engine and topped out at 508bhp. Linked to a four-wheel-drive system, the car could outperform even the most laureled German competitors. Neither of these cars made it into production but it would be the springboard for the rejuvenated Volvo performance branch.

Where the story of Cyan Racing and the Volvo P1800 meet is with the recently presented Volvo P1800 Cyan. This resto-modded classic is Cyan Racing’s take on a proven concept; strip a classic car down to the last nut and bolt, restore what needs restoring, and build it back up again but improve just about everything you can really. We see this concept work brilliantly with Singer Porsches and the Alfaholics GTA-R 290, and to an extent even with the Lunaz Design Rolls Royce Phantom V. When done right, the result can be pretty damn incredible!

The Volvo P1800 Cyan is a purpose-built custom car, with a limited production run being planned. It is fitted with a 2-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine from Volvo (obviously) but other Volvo engines are possible too. The engine is tuned to 413bhp in this first built P1800, but again different power outputs can be provided based upon the clients’ preferences. To accommodate the new tech underneath, the body has been strengthened and altered where needed with high-strength steel and carbon fibre. The track of the car is quite a bit wider than the original P1800 so the bodywork has been widened too. Another change to the outside is the removal of the chrome trim along the side of the body. Being a racing team means the suspension is of course fully adjustable.

In terms of performance, Cyan Racing leaves us in the dark a little. There’s no word on acceleration or top speeds. Considering the fact the car weighs less than 1,000 kilo’s and has little over 400 horsepower, I’m sure it is a properly fast car. The focus is on being as good as can get drivers car, however, so every unnecessary bit is removed. No ABS, no power steering, no stability control, no traction control. Just you and the machine, and every bit of talent you can muster. No word on pricing too, but as always with these builds, consider the bill as pretty steep! If you are up for it, Cyan Racing invites you to get in touch and work out how your Volvo P1800 Cyan might look.

More information on Car & Driver and DriveTribe and of course Cyan Racing’s own press release.

The post The Petrolhead Corner – The Ultra-Cool Restomod Volvo P1800 Cyan appeared first on Wristwatch Journal.

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olivereliott · 5 years ago

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Gentleman’s Express: Revival’s ‘BMW R90Esq’ restomod

The custom scene is replete with R-series BMWs, but they still split opinion. Purists say they’re classics that should be kept original; others are happy to whip out a grinder and get to work. This tasteful BMW restomod from Revival Cycles should be enough to satisfy both camps.

You’d be forgiven for thinking this airhead is the iconic R90S, but you’d be wrong. It’s actually a R90/6, the roadster cousin to the sportier S, given a hefty dose of S style.

As BMW’s first ‘superbike,’ the R90S legacy includes an AMA Superbike Championship win under Reg Pridmore, and the introduction of BMW’s famous Daytona Orange livery. But this /6 is likely to turn even more heads on the street, because Revival have done an excellent job with it.

Remarkably, this 1976 R90 has had one owner since new. It was his daily runner for many years, but he rode it less and less over time, and it eventually just sat for decades. So when he took it to Revival’s workshop in Austin, Texas, his intention was to have it restored back to stock.

As conversations progressed, the allure of the R90S’s history proved too strong, and the concept evolved into a gentleman’s sports tourer based on the S.

That meant it would need a fairing, a bigger fuel tank, a different seat unit, and twin discs up front. It also needed some luggage, and a paint job worthy of its source material. So Revival set to work.

Given the age of the motor, it was torn down and rebuilt with new pistons, rings and valves. The S had a different compression ratio to the /6, but the homage didn’t need to be that accurate. So Revival opted for a pair of Dell’Orto PHM 38 mm round-slide carbs for a little boost, matched up to pod filters and custom-made inlet manifold adaptors.

Other new parts include Venhill throttle cables, a lightweight starter motor and a custom-built stainless steel exhaust system.

A new cover was fabricated to replace the air box, and to house the electronic bits. The R90/S now runs off a custom wiring loom, with a Bluetooth-capable Motogadget m.unit Blue control box, and an Antigravity lithium-ion battery. Revival also wired in a regulator/rectifier from Rick’s Motorsport Electrics.

The R90 is sporting some sweet chassis upgrades too. There’s a set of fully adjustable 38 mm forks from CR Suspension up front, held in place by custom triple trees. And the rear end’s held up by a pair of Icon shocks, dialed in to the owner’s weight.

Revival managed to source an original pair of gorgeous Lester wheels for the BMW—a popular upgrade back in the day. They were fully refurbished and painted, and a new axle machined for the front. Then a pair of classic touring-specific Metzler Perfect ME 11 tires went on.

Out back you’ll find the BMW’s original drum brake, but Revival threw together a modern setup for the front. It includes four-piston Brembo calipers and EBC floating discs, Goodridge banjo fittings and Sniper lines, and a K-Tech master cylinder and levers (brake and clutch).

As for the bodywork, that’s all new. Revival have brought the front end up to spec with a R90S fairing, and a /7 tank that’s effectively the same as the S unit. The fairing’s sitting on custom-made brackets, and has been extensively trimmed inside—to rid it of the original instrument panel. The tank’s unmolested, but is topped off with a Monza-style cap from Motone.

The headlight’s a Bates number, mounted on a custom bracket. Just behind the fairing you’ll find a set of chromed cafe-style bars from LSL, a Tommaselli throttle, Revival’s own custom switches, and an Oberon bar-end mirror. There’s also a Motogadget Chronoclassic speedo, keyless ignition and bar-end turn signals.

Moving to the back, Revival fabricated their own tail section from aluminum—echoing the R90S lines but with a tighter effect. There’s a Biltwell taillight frenched in at the back, and a seat from Revival’s leatherwork department, Revival Ltd., up top.

Just below it is a custom subframe, finished off with custom license plate bracket. It’s flanked by a set of handsome Revival Ltd Duro panniers, sitting on hand-made supports. Custom fenders and mounts round out the bodywork.

With everything perfectly proportioned, the ‘BMW R90Esq’ works as both a restomod and a homage to an unforgettable motorcycle. It’s the final paint job that really pushes it over the edge—an immersive tobacco burst that was never in BMW’s catalog, but should have been.

It’s not all about the looks though: before handing it back to the client, Revival popped the R90Esq onto their dyno, to the tune of 60 horses at the back wheel. And it’s shed 61 pounds since it rolled through their doors.

For a bike that’s over four decades old, it sure looks fresh … and with enough original BMW-ness to impress even the most devout purists.

Revival Cycles | Facebook | Instagram

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olivereliott · 5 years ago

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Custom Bikes Of The Week: 18 August, 2019

This week we’ve uncovered a classic Garelli converted to electric power, a Suzuki SV650 with an endurance racer vibe, and a trio of stunning BMWs, including a slash-7 kit for the R nineT.

Suzuki SV650 by Bandisca The SV650 is widely considered a superb bang-for-buck buy. It offers decent performance and handling, for not too much money—but no one buys it for its looks. Enter husband and wife team Alf and Mihaela, from Romanian shop Bandisca.

Despite Alf’s initial skepticism, Bandisca have transformed this 2001-model SV into retro-fabulous endurance racer. It actually took them almost two months to decide on a direction, but in the end, the 1990 GSX-R750 became the inspiration for the build. So they started with a 90s GSXR replica fairing from Airtech Streamlining, which had to be modified heavily to match the SV’s bones.

The subframe and aluminum tail piece were made in-house, and matched to a Honda NTV fuel tank. Putting everything together wasn’t a walk in the park though, and called for some out the box thinking, and a number of one-off parts. Bandisca wanted to make sure the SV would go as good as it looks too. So they treated it to a full engine rebuild with upgraded cams, tuned carbs, a performance clutch and whole lot more.

The exhaust headers are custom too, and terminate in a Spark muffler. This SV650 also has Showa forks, a custom YSS shock, and a new wiring loom built around a Motogadget m.unit. It’s unrecognizable as an SV650, and what’s more, Bandisca plan to take it racing too. [More]

Garelli Electric Conversion by Mokka Cycles Here’s something completely out of left field: a classic Garelli KL50 Cross, converted to electric by Arpi at Budapest’s Mokka Cycles. It was commissioned by a Swiss client who already had a petrol-powered Garelli, and wanted an electric one too.

It’s a very clever, and incredibly neat, conversion. A compact 5 kW brushless direct current motor sits where the original two-stroke power plant did, mounted to the stock brackets via custom-made adaptor plates. There’s two sets of Lithium batteries—one where the air box used to be, and one just under the fuel tank.

The tank itself is just a shell now, covering the various electronic components that make this little scrambler go ‘whizzz.’ Up top, a Cycle Analyst all-in-one dash pokes through where the fuel cap normally goes. Range sits at about 40 km, with a mere two hour charge time.

Arpi also added the forks, yokes and drum brake from a Honda CL250. The custom seat’s covered in Nappa and Alcantara, the handlebars are from Renthal and the switches are Arpi’s own design. There’s a lot of subtle custom work—from the headlight ears to the skid plate, right down to the chain tensioner.

In an industry where electric bikes are still trying to figure out what they want to look like, we need a whole lot more of this. [More]

BMW R100GS by Karoo Bespoke Motorcycles While the iconic BMW R80G/S gets all the attention, the newer R100GS is really the one you want. The larger motor and upgraded final drive/swingarm design are big plusses…but the downside is that it’s not nearly as pretty.

Gadso Hautmans at Karoo Bespoke Motorcycles in Hamburg agrees, so he’s finessed his R100GS Paris Dakar to be nicer to look at. It’s not a full-on custom job; just a tasteful restomod that hits all the right notes. “No thrills,” says Gadso, “just welcoming to the eye.”

The biggest change is up front—Karoo ditched the square headlight and its metal cage, and built a new system with two small round lights and a Hella spot. The fairing wears a pair of tiny turn signals, with matching items out back.

The donor came with an ugly DIY rear fender and no exhaust, so Karoo had some work to do there too. This GS now wears a SuperTrapp can, a custom made leather seat and a new clear windscreen. The crash bars have been powdercoated white, and the wheels finished in black. [More]

BMW R1100S by Lucky Custom The second you strip an old BMW airhead boxer down, you’ll realize why they’re so ubiquitous on the custom scene. They’re laid out simply and logically, making it easy to swap stuff around. But tearing into the more modern and complicated R1100S, is a whole other story.

That makes this transformation by Lucky Custom that much more remarkable. Argentinian builder Lucas Layum had to go deep to massage the R1100S’s lumpy form into the piercing cafe racer you see here. That even meant ditching two of the BMW’s three frame sections, and fabricating a new trellis frame to redefine the sports tourer’s lines.

The front-end was reworked too, with Lucas swapping the BMW’s quirky Telelever suspension for a set of Honda CBR1000 forks. The new skeleton called for new body parts, so he also shaped up a steel fuel tank and headlight nacelle, and a waspish tail unit. There’s also a set of finned side panels, hiding away the revised wiring and battery.

Lucas also added LED lighting, and new clip-ons and rearsets. And he built a full stainless steel exhaust system too. It’s a killer new look for the 1100—especially with that pitch perfect M-inspired livery. [More]

The BMW R nineT, slash-7 style Unit Garage have been making bolt-on parts to make modern Beemers look more vintage for a long time now. This is their latest offering: a plug-and-play fuel tank for the R nineT that’s a dead ringer for a classic /7 unit.

The tank ships in four different colors (with a blank option too), and works using the stock gas cap, along with the OEM fuel pump, filter and lines. It’s also designed to work with both the stock R nineT seat and Unit’s own catalog of seats and side panels. It is a bit shorter than the OEM unit though, so there’s also an optional waxed leather pouch to close up the tiny gap it leaves.

The blue demo bike Unit are showing off here is loaded with a few of their other parts too—like their new Öhlins fork kit. It features a set of black 43 mm upside-down forks, fully adjustable, and fitted with CNC-machined triples. There’s an Öhlins shock out back, along with a Unit seat and valve covers.

Even though the tank’s the biggest visual hit, there’s a ton of potential for mixing and matching with the rest of Unit’s catalog. My favourite combo is the classic R80G/S vibe: white tank, BMW motorsport stripes, red solo seat, and Unit’s significantly more attractive than stock side covers. Irresistible. [More]

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itsworn · 8 years ago

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Recreating History: The 7-11 1934 Ford Altered Coupe Then, and Racing its Tribute Now

Roots. Contrary to ingrained logic, 712 precedes 7-11, and 715 precedes 712. That’s how the Hindu-Arabic numeric system applies to the Peckerheads Racing ’34 Ford, anyway.

How the numbers add up: Prior to our feature coupe’s birth, Jack Hart’s Texaco station in Pasadena, California, produced and sponsored the 715 ’32 five-window coupe, a consistent brawler at Eisenhower-era Los Angeles basin dragstrips. But the 715’s successor would storm on to even greater glory.

Originally crafted by the adolescent Phil Turgeson at Hart’s subsequent Orange, California, Texaco location in 1956, Turgeson’s 712 Jr. was a ’34 coupe packing Jack Hart flathead V8 power. Ray Rucker and Nealan Mackle acquired the 712 Jr. in 1959, swapped in an overhead Chevy, and ran it at Santa Ana until May 1959, when the gates were permanently locked. The 712 Jr.’s short day in the sun was done before being fully realized. For the moment.

Rucker and Mackle sold the coupe to Santa Ana–area local Kent Singleton in 1961, a package deal that included Ray Rucker as driver/tuner. At that point, Turgeson’s dark blue paint was swapped for Singleton’s competition orange, the name was changed to 7-11, a blown and injected 283-inch Chevy replaced the carbureted 265, and Singleton-Carrillo-Nelson lettering appeared on the decklid.

This team successfully ran the coupe at myriad Southern California venues through 1962, when it was sold to Santa Ana Hunters Car Club President Allan Zale, who raced it up through the late 1960s. Zale can’t recall the name of the lucky party for certain but concedes it was likely a Mr. Paul Collins who traded him a dragster project for the 7-11, somewhere between 1963 and 1965. It is unknown whether Collins ever raced the car. And that was that for the original 7-11 coupe. Until its stunt double showed up.

Never Forgot

Kent Singleton’s half-brother, Mike Dowell, had accompanied Kent and the 7-11 to most of its 1960-1962 races and formed a strong emotional bond with the car. To Dowell, the ’34 absolutely represented Altered-class drag racing at the grassroots level. He never forgot it. And in 1992, weary of merely reminiscing about the car, Dowell put out an all-points bulletin for the 7-11. His pleas for information on the whereabouts of the coupe were published in some magazines, but the only response came in 1994, via a letter to the editor in Street Rodder magazine from a Mr. Jay Lockard in Fountain Valley, California. Lockard included photos of the car sitting in his neighbor’s driveway. Could that neighbor have been mystery man Paul Collins? Alas, by the time that issue was read by Dowell, the coupe had pulled another Houdini. The permanent kind.

Dowell’s obsessive search for the 7-11 was called off in 2001, when he finally accepted fate and decided to re-create the coupe. In conjunction with longtime pal Curt Vaught, a sound body was located in Colorado, mutual friend “Peachy Julian” Alverez procured a pair of TCI framerails, and the next chapter of the 7-11 legend was introduced. Now relocated to southern Oregon, Dowell and Vaught’s 7-11 vision was supported and realized by some of the West’s finest craftsmen.

Tiki Alverez (nephew of Julian) performed the aggressive top chop and bodywork at his Costa Mesa, California, shop, but the majority of the build took place after hours at chassis fabricator Bill Comstock’s Medford, Oregon, facility, from 2002 to 2003. Dowell oversaw chassis construction, while Vaught presided over drivetrain chores. This 7-11 offspring finally took its first baby steps in late 2004 at Southern Oregon Dragway, with Vaught at the wheel and 2 gallons of alky in the tank. It pinballed all the way downtrack, guardrail to guardrail, but still carded an early-lift 10.11 at 146 mph.

While consistently inconsistent, the 7-11 had been reborn. The coupe took up residence in Dowell’s garage, and life went on. Then the Peckerheads came to the rescue. Accidentally.

It was 2008 when the unofficial Peckerhead Racing team happened upon the 7-11 in Famoso Raceway’s crumbling pit area. Dowell and Vaught had hauled the retired coupe to the March Meet just to display, but the Peckerheads instantly had other plans. Already occupied with a Bonneville entry (the 57c ’33 Ford coupe) and their unofficial “Moonlight Speed Shop,” the five unofficial members from the Reno area realized their aching need for a drag coupe as well. Over the course of the weekend, Peckerhead Tom Christian and 7-11 owner Mike Dowell hammered out what both parties agreed to be a fair deal, and the 7-11 odyssey took a turn. Toward Reno.

Once ensconced in the Moonlight Speed Shop, the storied coupe received a plan for the future that included more power. The Cyclone quick-change rearend (as per the 712 Jr.) made way for a 9-inch Ford unit, and a pair of wheelie bars was added. From that day, the 7-11 has been a popular attraction at Famoso’s March Meet and California Hot Rod Reunion events. At this writing, the Peckerheads’ efforts are producing consistent 9.60 at 140-mph time slips in the NHRA Heritage Series’ 9.60-index Nostalgia Eliminator III class, though they boast a best of 8.90 at 150 outside the class. Despite the wheelie bars, those numbers were recorded with airborne front tires. Somewhere in the Peckerheads’ 7-11 tenure, ownership was transferred to club member and driver Troy Moyle, but no other significant changes are planned. Says Moyle, “We might chase it a little harder, but we’ll keep it true to its roots.”

And so it was that the passions of an underground community of Santa Ana hot rodders gestated over a matter of decades to ultimately begat this “Son of” the 7-11 Altered coupe. And if history is any example, the Peckerheads’ coupe may well spawn a grandson or even great-grandson of the 7-11 to terrorize photographers and delight dragstrip railbirds in the years ahead. Let’s hope so.

Nothing profiles like a Model 40 (’33 and ’34) Ford. And the lines only improve in drag race livery. Sprinting-Greyhound-like front axle placement complements muscular rear haunches while visually balancing 112-inch wheelbase. Webber Graphics’ Peckerhead logo now joins Don Tippett’s 7-11 signage to unite past and present.

HR Deluxe readers with long memories may recall this photo from our Spring 2008 Comeback Issue and an “In Their Own Words” story with photographer Eric Rickman. We revisit it because it shows both of the Hart’s Texaco coupes sitting in the staging lanes at Santa Ana in 1957. The 712 Jr. (what would become the 7-11 coupe) is easy to spot in the lower left-hand corner; a close look at the center of the photo reveals a profile view of the 715 ’32 three-window. Its driver-side door is open so the numbers aren’t visible, but there’s no mistaking the body setback and distinctive hood sitting next to the car. (Photo courtesy Eric Rickman, Petersen Publishing Co. Archive)

Typical scene at Jack Hart’s Orange, California, Texaco station (circa 1956) revolves around Phil Turgeson’s 712 Jr. coupe, built in those very work bays. The station is still there and now sports three bays. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

Santa Ana Drag Strip’s pit area often resembled a war-zone triage center, with sheetmetal flying, wrenches spinning, and curses shouted. 712 Jr. crewman Bob McClelland services the coupe between rounds amid the chaos. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

Appearing decidedly ghostly while blasting through a Santa Ana fog, Phil Turgeson and the 712 Jr. hightail it to somewhere far past the finish line. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

Lacking an engine, subsequent owner Ray Rucker pulled the stock 283-inch Chevy from his daily-driven ’57 sedan and treated it to machining and assembly at Jack Hart’s shop. The stock block was fortified primarily with factory Corvette parts. The Weiand 6×2 induction system worked surprisingly well with this combo. On its first run, the 1,800-pound 712 tripped the lights in 11.72 seconds at 114.10 mph. It quickly settled into the mid-11s at 120ish and broke B/Altered records at will. Note tow bar dangling from front and taillight/license plate combo out back. (Jerry Nodestein photo courtesy Drag News)

Bob McClelland and Phil Turgeson remove the distinctive one-piece aluminum nose at an unspecified strip. Forty-three years later, Mike Dowell would discover a one-piece aluminum ’34 nose at a California swap meet—painted orange—said to be from a local high school auto shop class. So far, no credible link to the original 712 Jr./7-11 has been verified, but it was a perfect fit. Consider the odds. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

Drenched in fresh orange pigment, sans lettering, we find our hero in what is likely next owner Kent Singleton’s home garage in Modjeska Canyon (circa 1960). Halibrand and American Racing magnesium wheels replaced the painted steelies, updating the coupe to ’60s cool standards. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

Many mainstream sports fans got their first look at drag racing in the April 1961 issue of Sports Illustrated magazine, thanks to Singleton blazing across the cover. SI captioned this image: “Souped up to 450 horsepower, this car accelerates to speed of 128 mph on the strip.” (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

By 1963, Santa Ana Hunters car club president Allan Zale (that’s the Zale family photobombing the shot) had assumed 7-11 ownership. At this 1964 clubhouse gathering, the Hunters club flaunt both the 7-11 coupe and the Chuck Jones-Wayne Reed-Chuck Mailliard-Jack Chrisman Magwinder. The coupe’s iconic aluminum radiator-shell insert has been replaced with a clear plastic version here, featuring the Hunters logo brushed on by Ed Roth (for free). Kent Singleton’s small-block Chevy is absent this day. Zale clarifies, “The engines were always out of the cars—being rebuilt.” Allan Zale recalls the Hunters ordering a “stout” Mickey Thompson small-block Chevy for the 7-11. The Bill “Rosy” Hroscikoski-built M/T Chevy proved its mettle by pulling the wheels and torque-steering Zale directly into Pomona’s Christmas tree on its initial shakedown pass. That mill’s prodigious torque promptly twisted the stock frame (despite a cross-braced 4-point roll bar), and was ultimately swapped for a slightly milder model. (Photo courtesy Al Zale)

In the 1990s, Jay Lockard took the last known photograph of the original 7-11, parked in his neighbor’s driveway. The owner was converting it to street duty. Note cooling and exhaust systems for the six-carbed Cadillac engine. Nose removal offers clear view of 3-inch channel job. Days after Lockard’s sighting, the coupe vanished. (Photo courtesy Troy Moyle collection)

In re-creating the coupe, Tiki Alverez performed the 6-inch chop exactly as Phil Turgeson’s 1956 procedure, then the body and rails were hauled to Comstock Fabrication, the scene of this initial mock-up. (Photo courtesy Mike Dowell)

Yours truly, test driving an early iteration of the reborn 7-11 at Woodburn Drag Strip in Oregon. The test concluded with author and race car harvesting beans in the field beyond the finish line at 136 mph. The test monkey was promptly excused from future driving duties. (Photo courtesy Scotty Gosson)

Veteran photographer Paul Sadler dangled from a boom at Famoso Raceway to capture this hazin’-the-hides-right-at-ya moment. You also get a glimpse of the louvered aluminum top insert by Jamie Ford at Custom Metal in Applegate, Oregon. Jack Hart’s racing customers suggested the shop’s signature heart-with-lightning bolt logo. The belled headers were recreated by Jeff Henry at Comstock Fabrication, using vintage photos as a blueprint. (Photo courtesy Paul Sadler)

Troy Moyle launches the 7-11 into the latest phase of its odyssey at Famoso Raceway. Previous owner Mike Dowell lightened the ’34 I-beam axle on his drill press and vividly recalls the process as “A pain in the ass!” But thanks to Dowell’s labors, the car’s nose is now so light that wheelie bars are required. (Photo courtesy Scotty Gosson)

The Peckerheads’ interior remodel entailed swapping the handbrake for a foot-operated model, adding just enough electronics to be competitive, and moving the former between-the-legs shifter to a more ergonomic location on the rollcage, next to the fuel shut-off and chute release. Peckerheads added a trans brake to Mike Dowell’s Powerglide. (Photo courtesy Paul Sadler)

The Peckerheads have kept the upstairs visuals mostly as Santa Ana horsepower wrangler Chet Herbert had arranged them for Dowell. So the Weiand intake manifold (a street unit, modified for racing with a Bill Comstock burst panel), Mike Kuhl 6-71 blower, Hilborn two-port injection, Vertex magneto, and GM factory iron heads were all retained. But the Peckerheads bombproofed the basement with a new 355-inch Dart block, loaded with an Erson solid roller cam (complemented with roller rockers and stud girdles), JE pistons (8.5:1 compression) on Eagle rods, and a forged GM crankshaft, a respectful salute to the OE-based “Texas Flatheads” built at Jack Hart’s gas station. Peckerheads also added radiator where previously there was none. (Photo courtesy Paul Sadler)

A braced 9-inch Ford housing loaded with 4.30 gears has replaced Dowell’s 3.78-geared Cyclone quick-change (though it never broke). Wheelie bars keep hang time to a minimum while still allowing for entertaining launches. Decklid ventilation happened after Dowell and Vaught era. (Photo courtesy Paul Sadler)

The “Hart’s Texaco—Texas Flatheads a Specialty” lettering magically transformed any entry into a perceived threat at the track. Webber Graphics lettered this gennie ’34 hood that replaced Dowell and Vaught’s 1-piece aluminum unit. (Photo courtesy Paul Sadler)

Jack Hart and the Santa Ana Phenomenon

According to local gearhead jesters, there was a stout percentage of nitromethane in the water that supplied life to Southern California’s Orange County—the Santa Ana area in particular. That secret ingredient apparently supplied extra inspiration to every hot rodder in town. Some drank more than others, but it seemed Jack Hart got more than his fair share of the stuff.

An advocate of disaffected local youth, Texaco station owner Hart focused his mentorship on area hot rodders, and Phil Turgeson in particular. Just as Turgeson was an exceptionally quick study with a wrench, so did Hart know a thing or two about quick. Adrenaline, testosterone, and gasoline weren’t the only juices flowing at the Texaco station. Hart (directly influenced by Dr. Dean Hill, a New Mexico State University chemistry professor, who would become NHRA’s “Resident Chemist”) was an early proponent of both nitro and hydrazine. He was also highly regarded for his cylinder head wizardry, machinist chops, and tireless support of area racers, via discounted parts and sage advice born of hard-won experience. (Hart himself ran not only the 715 coupe but also a fuel dragster out of the gas station.)

Every bit the well-spoken and tech-savvy representative that Wally Parks longed to lieutenant his National Hot Rod Association, Hart was initially hired as Advertising Director of the sanctioning body’s National Dragster, but soon oversaw the Safety Safari, was named Competition Director, and was ultimately crowned Executive Vice President and General Manager of the NHRA. He was employed by the NHRA from 1962 until his passing in 1977.

Just how cozy was the Santa Ana hot rod microcosm? Curt Vaught’s dad owned the Harlowe & Vaught Auto Parts store in Santa Ana. Curt worked the store counter while driving and crewing for fellow hometown retailers Chet Herbert & Zane Shubert, who were neighbors of Dowell and Singleton. Local racers considered Santa Ana Drag Strip operators C.J. “Pappy” and wife Peggy Hart to be the unofficial God Parents of Santa Ana. That title was cemented when Peg began driving her dragster from the house to the track and back. And it was Kent Singleton who pulled a rattled Jack Hart from the remains of his crashed dragster years later at Lions Drag Strip.

Originally built as a street car in 1956, the Charles McCandless-driven Caddy-powered five-window coupe ultimately raced out of Hart Automotive as the 715. The 1,825-pound entry was very competitive, until lighter import-bodied Altereds took over the class. At Santa Ana Drag Strip (note track manager C.J. Hart in his trademark hat above the Deuce’s radiator shell), the 715 accepts a challenge from class bullies Bader & Ferriera and their hot Crosley (also with Cadillac power under the cowl). (Pics: Greg Sharp/NHRA Motorsports Museum)

The 715 coupe eventually turned 138.46 mph in A/Altered with blown Hemi power. Drag News featured the Deuce in its March 1959 issue. (Pics: Greg Sharp/NHRA Motorsports Museum)

Jack Hart surveys the action at Indianapolis Raceway Park during a smoke break in the late ’60s. His panoramic vantage point of NHRA’s ascent to sanctioning body dominance must have been spectacular. (Pics: Greg Sharp/NHRA Motorsports Museum)

The post Recreating History: The 7-11 1934 Ford Altered Coupe Then, and Racing its Tribute Now appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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