Escape from LA - Escape to New York

[Bootsy]

such an emotive photo................I think I have a very similar one after a particular jaunt around the m25.

It's got that early 90s, just been on an all nighter throwing shapes (and the dude behind looks as though he's still throwing them), on way home but let's watch the sun come up whilst we come down kind of vibe

[kvinyl]

such an emotive photo................I think I have a very similar one after a particular jaunt around the m25.

It's got that early 90s, just been on an all nighter throwing shapes (and the dude behind looks as though he's still throwing them), on way home but let's watch the sun come up whilst we come down kind of vibe

^ nail on the head there...

loving the story so far, bring on the next installment

[J-Low]

Next installments tomorrow night when I can sit in front of my computer....

As for the guy standing behind me in the picture - yes, one of the early acid house parties. He lost the plot slightly, started barking like a dog & eating grass by the bus stop. Then after thinking the bus driver was an alien, he bit the bus drivers arm & it took two policemen to wrestle him off...

That kind of thing seems to happen in my life....

Watch this space

[Timo]

Next installments tomorrow night when I can sit in front of my computer....

As for the guy standing behind me in the picture - yes, one of the early acid house parties. He lost the plot slightly, started barking like a dog & eating grass by the bus stop. Then after thinking the bus driver was an alien, he bit the bus drivers arm & it took two policemen to wrestle him off...

That kind of thing seems to happen in my life....

Watch this space

Classic

Love the story so far and the piccies (that first one has taken me right back to the early 90's, when I too had a beetle), can't wait for the next installment

[Nige]

Next installments tomorrow night when I can sit in front of my computer....

As for the guy standing behind me in the picture - yes, one of the early acid house parties. He lost the plot slightly, started barking like a dog & eating grass by the bus stop. Then after thinking the bus driver was an alien, he bit the bus drivers arm & it took two policemen to wrestle him off...

That kind of thing seems to happen in my life....

Watch this space

I've just been reading my favourite online news journal and it reminded me of this article

[Darren65]

I just love a good story and I feel this is going to be great. Keep it coming, slow, teasing, a bit at a time. can't wait to see some photos. What a fantastic maiden voyage! Lucky, plucky girl! (Gloria, I mean )

Regards
Mike

Not another one of those loooooong, drawn out threads, that seem to take forevvvvvveeer!

I wonder what Jude has been reading!

[210bhp]

I just love a good story and I feel this is going to be great. Keep it coming, slow, teasing, a bit at a time. can't wait to see some photos. What a fantastic maiden voyage! Lucky, plucky girl! (Gloria, I mean )

Regards
Mike

Not another one of those loooooong, drawn out threads, that seem to take forevvvvvveeer!

I wonder what Jude has been reading!

Regards
Mike

[J-Low]

This tale is getting my Monday morning off to a good start, more please

Ps. I see Roger used to sport a No Worries sticker on his door so I'm guessing that pic is 92-94?

Back in the day, I did a lot of photos for No Worries when they did the Beetle Bash at Santa Pod... I think a couple even made it into Volksworld

I'll get busy typing tonight....

[J-Low]

I've just been reading my favourite online news journal and it reminded me of this article

That is an excellent article!!!!!

[J-Low]

Gloria’s undercarriage left quite a lot to be desired; & what I desired was a car that could carry me safely across America, but be also be the basis of the constantly evolving stealth, sleeper, outlaw bitch car in my head. Call her what you want, she has taken on many different incarnations whilst I have been sat at work staring out the window. Just don’t tell the passengers that.

Here’s the thing: I am on this learning curve; it’s so steep I’m worried I’m going to slide off the side of it into the abyss – seriously, my head has gone into mini meltdown on more than one occasion,& it’s not just the thought of the bills that has scared the crap out of me. This isn’t just lifting the lid on Pandora’s Box.... Remember those Jack in the Box toys when you were a child? A scary clown jumps out at you on a spring, & it’s supposed to be fun....??? Amplify that by a thousand, & that’s what was going on in my head.

Another phone call to Marco; it’s ok, I have him on speed dial, & he’s becoming used to this slightly erratic, naive approach to putting together the project – I think he ‘gets’ me though. Fortunately, we seem to have hit a wavelength that works for us both, & slowly I’m beginning to speak his language, but there’s a lot to take in.

“Never go faster than you can stop”, he said.
“Eh?”
Imagine him talking very slowly – like us Brits do to foreigners when we go abroad....
“Ne-verr gooo fast-er tha-n yooo caann stoooop”
OK, I think I got it that time.
“What are you talking about?” Clearly, I hadn’t quite got it....
So, I sat down & pinned my ears back for the - Suspension & Brakes 101.
Now, I got it.
It occurred to me that actually, he was pretty bloody good at what he does, & let’s face it, I’d trusted him this far.... I have to tell you though, it’s very hard for a girl like me to trust a man, any man who says ‘trust me’; somehow those words just look all wrong in the same sentence.
Moving swiftly on.....

Suspension porn alert......

This is the set up:
451200 Frt A-Arm Bushing (Frt 2
451210 Frt A-Arm Bushing (Rea
911.341.049.01 Ball Joint
930.347.191.02 930 Rack Boot
930.347.031.01 930 Tie Rod
930.347.313.01 Stop Washer
911.341.049.01 Ball Joint
911.341.041.33 LF Bilstein
911.341.042.33 RF Bilstein
AP.45 78-89 Front Pad Set
SWAY BAR KIT Front Sway Kit
Remove and replace struts; Remove, recondition and install front A-arms; Install new A-arm bushings; Remove and replace tie rods; Re-plate hardware; Align
551220 Spring Plate Bushing
903185 Rear Sway Bar Kit
WEVO MOUNT Sway Bar Mount
911.333.009.00 SC Spring Plate
Remove and replace rear suspension bushings; Install rear sway bar brackets on body; Install aftermarket rear sway bar; Align rear of car

Don’t ask. Seriously, just don’t, OK? The invisible tractor beam of the dream had a serious grip on my inner psyche by this stage. Drugs...What are they when you have, I don’t know, let’s call it Outlaw Fever- just to put a name on it..... My thoughts? Suck it up Cupcake – you wanted this. So, I asked him to go ahead, then went for a long lie down in a darkened room & listened to whale sounds.

Right, I’m off for a curry; more later.....

[Bootsy]

You have a way with words Jude. Hurry up with the curry

[DeRRis]

Trust me, I'm liking this story!

[neilbardsley]

Interesting I was talking with the Mrs about doing this. Buying a car on the west coast and driving it across the US! I think it might have to wait a few years.

However, great story so far.

[Nige]

Nothing like shiny passivated suspension parts to get us lot hot under the colar.

[J-Low]

Just to fill you in on the pictures, Rear SC spring plate, SC rear t-bars, Bottom of front end ... SC front suspension, front strut, brakes, turbo tie rods, aluminium cross member

Curry: chicken shashlick, peshwari naan, & Kingfisher, in case you were wondering....

Right then.....so, I have had a good long lie down to recover from the emotional rollercoaster of this Porsche ‘ownership experience’ I have heard so much about; & so far, my ’experience’ has included something that felt close to heart failure, blind panic, a massive adrenalin high, & moments of sheer terror when I sat on my sofa with my head in my hands wondering what the hell I was doing. All this with a car that is nearly 6000 miles away, that I had never even laid eyes on. Sounds like awesome fun, doesn’t it......?

I felt that Gloria’s suspension & brakes were a part of the project I could put to one side; but I knew her engine was going to be pretty tame compared with any modern car, especially since I have been wrapped in the sterile silk sheets of my Audi S3’s. I mean, they’re great cars: good fun at traffic lights, stick to the road like glue when you want to throw it into a corner, irritating son of Del-Boy as you undertake him on the slip roads onto the motorway at high speed. Fun? Yes, but sterile. There’s no real ‘feel’, no direct ‘connection’ to me & the machine around me. It starts, it drives, it’s safe. But isn’t that what you want from a daily driver? I suppose so.

What gives you that great ‘feel’? You remember that song we sang at school? ‘The knee bone’s connected to the thigh bone; the thigh bone’s connected to the hip bone....’ Well I’m beginning to understand my car like that song. Her legs had been sorted out, but in order for her legs to go fast - she has to have a strong heart. At the end of October I started a thread on DDK asking for engine builders. I’d requested that there be no handbag swinging, just good honest feedback, & I’m happy to report there were no handbags at dawn but a couple of interesting PM’s fell into my inbox.... One from Mike Moore, who, I’m sure you know, is building the 1972 911 S/RSR to Martini Prototype. Wow. I mean, have you checked out Mike’s car? Have you been able to absorb the finite detail this guy is going to???? I have to admit, it’s way beyond anything I have planned for Gloria, but what really got my interest was his enthusiasm for the guy building his engine....

Do you ever have moments when you feel slightly disconnected from reality? Like, it’s all happening to your clone in a parallel universe somewhere, or is that just me? You are probably the same – at times, it’s really hard not to let your imagination run away with you when you can sit there, poring over glossy magazines, skimming over images on the internet: click, click, click, groan – & in your head, you’ve just spent the money you have put aside to replace the patio doors because the double glazing has blown. But it’s ok, it’s alright, we can justify it – well, that’s the next hurdle, isn't it? Finding the excuses to justify it.

So, I’m bouncing ideas off Marco, whilst making plans to meet Mike & his engine guy Neil Bainbridge. Mike, well what can I tell you, except we exchange a couple of one liner emails, he seems pretty laid back & we arrange to meet at Neil’s place. This is all still pretty surreal. I’m talking about an engine build on a car that is 6000 miles away, that has yet to be driven across America to arrive in Newark, hopefully in one piece for shipping.

I guess it’s pretty obvious that once I get my teeth into something, I can find the whole experience pretty absorbing & exciting. Being a veteran of a few adrenalin sports, I should know the signs.... Who am I kidding? Of course I the signs... I need pulling back down to reality, & a short pep talk from Marco does just that:

‘Slow down, enjoy the process. Hey, look at this project as a moving target....’

I get it, honestly, I really do. But, I have lived my life so far with my finger on the fast forward button, just so I can fit everything in. Slowing down is something I find hard to do. So, the following week, I arrange to meet up with Mike & Neil......