About wdb

wdb

I've been lusting after an old British car in which to revisit the many many years I spent with them in the past. I keep looking at Elans and Sevens, maybe the occasional E Type. But every time I see a picture of your little blue Sprite I think, that would do just fine. Thanks for the stories and for the inspiration.

wdb

I'm with you -- Ed doesn't know what he's missing. I drove Peugeots for many years; two 505's, the first a 1983 S and the second a 1988 Turbo S 5-speed, with a lovely little 405S manual wagon in between. In every case the ride quality and the seat comfort were unlike anything I have experienced before or since. I daresay the Turbo was the perfect sedan. It did everything with grace, panache, aplomb. It made me grin at the oddest times, like when I took a small bridge too fast and the car got all loose and light -- but just for a moment -- then collected its skirts and gently set the whole works down on the other side, leaving me in no doubt that I was back in complete control. Delightful. Yep, Ed's crazy.

wdb

Golly, you care about all the wrong stuff. Or maybe you just write like you care? Hard to tell. We recently put up a garage, the first garage I have had in my 65 years (at the time) on the planet. I had outlets put in for electric car chargers. I imagine I'll get one someday, but not quite yet. I'm still having far too much fun picking up BMWs, Mercedes, and Porsches at the bottom of their oh-so deep depreciation curves. I've looked at used Tesla Model S's but a big sedan really doesn't fit my lifestyle at the moment and people for some reason think Teslas don't depreciate. Maybe when the Mustang-E hits that point, maybe then I'll go electric.

wdb · ‎17-06-2021

"HFII" on the keys, horn ring, who knows where else. EGO. 🙂 Spent most of its life in France, did he leave it there after LeMans? Or maybe he stored it there to use on race week for the years he went. Interesting car and story. Should be a humdinger at auction.

wdb · ‎12-06-2021

Well duh.

wdb · ‎12-06-2021

The US military probably gave Segre a letter of recommendation. It would have opened a lot of doors post war I'm sure.

wdb · ‎02-06-2021

Downgrade the pickup. Sell it, and buy another one with more miles and less glitz. Pay for it in full, right up front. Get that monthly monkey off your back. It's amazing what you can do with that kind of free cash each month.

wdb · ‎26-05-2021

Byeeee.

wdb · ‎26-05-2021

First of all, thank you for your service. Secondly, NO FREAKIN' WAY should you have PTS-anything. Let me tell you what that really looks like. Specialty steel mill (read: 2000 acres of smoke, gigantic buildings, gigantic ingots, and more gigantic transporters hauling them around). Cars that are not street legal because of a myriad of reasons, in which nerds and geeks leave their comfy surrounds and venture forth to perform Various Acts. Chevy. 1984. Cavalier. Wagon. Hah! What did I tell you!!

wdb · ‎26-05-2021

Dammit Jack. I'm speechless.

wdb · ‎06-05-2021

I think it's cool, and said the same on the Z4 forum that supposedly gave this guy a bad time. A lot of other folks said the same. If he can't take a few negative comments mixed in with the rest, maybe he has the problem -- not the folks on the forum. Or maybe he just feels the need to exaggerate. Makes the story a little better I guess. The bottom line for me would be some video of the car in action on dirt. How about it Fischer?

wdb · ‎29-04-2021

Last of the low longroofs from MB. They're going the Outback route.

wdb · ‎29-04-2021

S212 owner here. The only thing the AMG lacks is a MBTex option; that would make it truly a utilitarian beast.

wdb · ‎27-04-2021

Great review. Maybe give us the straight dope on Jaguars next, please?

wdb · ‎17-04-2021

"A smart person knows that new cars are a complete waste of money." Tell that to GT40 or Enzo buyers! I know, I know -- exceptions that prove the rule. 😉 I personally love people who buy new cars. They make the job of buying used cars that much easier.

wdb · ‎15-04-2021

I'm curious about how the author would feel about working at that enthusiast dealership on a Tuesday afternoon.

wdb · ‎15-04-2021

I don't care how it is categorized. It's a jaw-dropping, astounding vehicle, lovingly and accurately constructed to the highest standards. 'It's a real Deusie.' So is Jay Leno. My hat is off to him.

wdb · ‎23-03-2021

My girlfriend's dad bought a 1960 Corvair in 1969. It had a 3-speed on the floor and a bench seat; when my stature-challenged girlfriend was driving we had to jam lever several inches into the seat cushion to get those gears. Also, it was lethal. Making a right-hand turn on residential streets, doing no more than 20 MPH, I managed to fold both tires up under the back end. I would have done the same thing Smith did, put it on its side if the car had had a higher center of gravity. I know they fixed it in later models; his car must never have had the fix applied.

wdb · ‎18-03-2021

I inherited L8R G8R from my dad when he passed recently. Cost me a few twenties and the usual dose of DMV hassle. I like it way much better than NEW YORK. So no, not worth $20M to me.

wdb · ‎10-03-2021

Am I the only one who has "Super Seven" stuck in my head? I just always refer to them that way. Great article. This is a bucket list item of mine. So much so that I almost don't care that the kit price seems ridiculously high.

wdb · ‎05-03-2021

Always had a thing for the (unpictured) Mini Marcos myself, although that Broadspeed might become my favorite going forward. It's downright handsome.

wdb · ‎05-03-2021

So, the guy who abandoned the original cars in Europe after they had won the championship changed his mind and had one custom made for himself. Somehow I can't feel all that good about the story. Still, 7 'original' Daytona Coupes is better than 6 I guess. And it will of course bring silly money, because Carroll Shelby. Please don't misunderstand. I am a *huge* fan of what Shelby and Ford did in the 1960's. Just not so much about this one.

wdb · ‎27-02-2021

How soon we forget the Mustang II -- a woebegone slander of the Mustang badge that Ford sold for many many years. It kept the badge alive, that's about it. I suppose it was closer in concept to Mustangs before and after, but it's soul was as far removed as this new thing's to a true Mustang. I'm too old to be fully aware of what Supra means to Gen Xers or whoever it is, but I had a 2005 STi and so have some immersion in JDM culture. While the new Supra may not contain enough Toyota parts to soothe the author, it seems to me that it fills the same niche the originals filled. I have also read that Toyota engineers pressed BMW for more reliable bits; time will tell how that worked out, and in the meantime I'd happily drive one. Not so much the "Mustang" E.

wdb · ‎26-02-2021

Clown shoe or elf hearse? You decide.

wdb · ‎05-02-2021

I agree on the low speed aspect. There are a few straight-ish sections that are probably long enough for a McLaren-class car to hit triple digits, but there is a hairpin waiting at the other end. I did it a few years ago, in pretty much ideal conditions. I stayed in second gear in my Z4 for most of the turns, with plenty of 3-2 downshifts. The corners are tight! I was surprised to read that the author was in 3rd; perhaps trying to stay below the meat of the torque curve in wet conditions? Also, I stayed on my side of the yellow line the entire time. That is not a suggestion on the Tail, it is a requirement if you want everyone to enjoy the road with any degree of safety. It's a heck of a road. Go and enjoy, but be smart.

wdb · ‎30-01-2021

What is it with 3-wheel vehicles and con artists anyway.

wdb · ‎27-01-2021

My E93 has huge doors. I suspect the coupe has the same doors.

wdb · ‎11-01-2021

Two. Hundred. And. Twenty. Miles. An. Hour. In the open-wheeler. On tires that were known to simply disintegrate at high speeds. Good God Gertie. Politics be damned, that is an achievement. I never until now knew about the side skirts and underside subtleties of the speed record cars. It's amazing and very very sad how much is lost when humans make war on a large scale.

wdb · ‎11-01-2021

2004-2005 STi is my favorite but only because I spent 117,000 pleasureable miles watching one quiver on the other side of my windshield. Darned thing always looked like it was ready to detach and take flight. Of the ones listed I think the Vette is the most attractive, in a menacing way; "I mean business".

wdb · ‎26-12-2020

" It’s true that Americans, in general, are buying more capacity in vehicles now than they did twenty or forty years ago, but this is probably a Good Thing. It’s a function of increased automotive longevity and lower running costs." And let's not forget those handy 8-year mortgage terms. Americans are buying bigger than they need and more than they can afford. It's Not Good. I don't care about big pickups and I am 100% behind the vastly improved efficiency, brought on let's not forget by those pesky gummint folks. But please people, stop buying huge pickups just so you get enough room for the family. There are better, FUNNER ways to haul them.

wdb · ‎07-12-2020

Audi TT fits that range.

wdb · ‎01-12-2020

Both LCA's bent?!? The kid needs to fess up as to what *really* happened. Might save you throwing good money after bad.

wdb · ‎18-11-2020

I LOL'd. Great work!

wdb · ‎18-11-2020

The Fulvia. It just looks like it wants to make you smile.

wdb · ‎01-11-2020

A bit of hype all around, including from Hagerty in this case. The auction house thought the sales would net $35M - $40M and they netted $44M. A few crazy people spent crazy money on a few cars. I'd wager that happens at nearly all auctions. In the meantime sales went about 10% above high projections. Yawn.

wdb · ‎21-09-2020

I really love the clean lines. Move those front wheels ahead about 3 inches though, or else shorten the nose. Too much overhang! I'd buy one.

wdb · ‎20-09-2020

Every Tesla front end reminds me of Neo in 'The Matrix' when Smith skins his mouth closed. I can't shake it. They need to figure out a grille. Despite that, I thought the Model Y was kind of cute in the first picture. Then I read that those are 21 inch wheels, and I realized that this thing is just another one of the burgeoning bevy of behemoths polluting our roads of late. No thank you, no thank you, no thank you.

wdb · ‎16-09-2020

Dibs on the jackstands.

wdb · ‎13-09-2020

Re the dash writing: who wrote it, and when? If it was Rene Dreyfus in 1937 would that make it okay? I'm appalled by the negative comments. Don't read it if you don't like it, or at the very least have the decency to keep your negativity out of the comments section. I look at these cars and I see history and art. They are all spectacular examples of human endeavor and ingenuity. If I have any complaint it is that I wish their owners would do as much as they can to make them available to the greater public. The guy who locked up the Atalante for 50 years -- not even driving it! -- bugs me. Hopefully its new home will have windows.

wdb · ‎03-09-2020

I was coming home from work in my '05 STi one evening when I came up behind one of these; I honestly have no idea which flavor. But I saw the driver's eyes in the rearview and the next thing I know he's planted his right foot, so I'm going to go with it having been a 400. We're about 1/4 mile from a 2-turn sequence that is a favorite of mine, and sure enough the Lexus took an enthusiastic line. I followed from a respectful distance, smiling. Ever since then I have wanted one of these cars.

wdb · ‎20-08-2020

(Cue PT Barnum)

wdb · ‎19-08-2020

So where's the hat?

wdb · ‎18-08-2020

Agree 100% on the "I could care less what you think about me driving with the top down in <insert inappropriate month here>." I have an E93 328, the first 3 series with the origami metal roof. It has AWESOME seat heaters, and I sourced a wind blocker for the back seat, so it is downright cozy even in winter. I take it out whenever I can and get my vitamin D fix. Oh and that metal roof turns the car into a very comfy coupe on those too-hot summer days as well. 😉

wdb · ‎16-08-2020

I had to wash the car twice for this picture. Once before, and once after! Confounded rain.

wdb · ‎05-07-2020

Worst. Car. Story. Ever.

wdb · ‎26-06-2020

What cleans the threads on the thread chaser? You might want to spin a nut or die on that bolt before hacking away. That way you can use it to clean up the threads as it comes back off. I also taper the first couple of threads to ensure a smooth start.

wdb · ‎04-06-2020

I use a piece of bicycle tire inner tube to de-wobble my wobbly extensions. Works great, doesn't leave goo behind, lasts a very long time -- 20 years so far.