I did learn that day that that 2nd Gen RX7 could move.
I got to work up north and parked in our carpark, shaking the office with the depth of the exhaust note. I was happy like pappy.
Now to decide what's the plan for the music which I wasn't interested in. All I wanted was to learn about the engine and cars, so the music didn't concern me.
I consulted with Jerry, who's a music boss and I priced the setup and parted it out.
Sold the stuff to a couple friends and took that money and put it towards maintenance costs for Sarah, my new experiment.
So that evening after work, mih boy Jerry, said he'd follow me up the highway to make sure I got home safe. I was thinking, nah that's not necessary de car wukkin (there are no problems with the vehicle).
So we set forth from the office up the Churchill Roosevelt Highway to the East.
Everything going well, I'm taking my time, Jerry following in his car behind and just as we were coming over the crest in the highway, right around the Nestlé junction heading east, before the lights you know, in the middle lane of all lanes, the car cut off.
Everything.
Like no lights, no nothing.
I grind to a halt.
Jerry stops behind me and puts on his hazzard lights.
And now the two of us there in the middle lane at 7:30 pm on a busy monday evening trying to keep nearest the cars and not be sucked into the vortex created by the cars wizzing by.
We're there, no flashlight to use after popping the bonnet to troubleshoot. So it's like ok, what do we do.
Right we need to get the car over to the shoulder.
Easier said than done.
A foolish but necessary desire at that time. Not foolish because we were stupid, but foolish because of the time in which we were going to attempt to carry out this manouever.
So we gauge it as best we could.
Jerry positioned himself to push from the left side, I from the right, with one hand on the steering wheel.
On a good day, that 2600 plus pounds would not be easy to push from a dead stop but that day was not a good day, and we needed to move the car, it could not stay there.
So we utter some words of prayer and wait for a space in the light continuum created by the cars passing by with their headlights blaring.
And we were off....
Slowly...and then less slowly...and I'm steering and we're getting through and no cars are coming to remove us from the earth...and then as the gravitational forces began to act upon this once immobile automobile, we began to face another problem as the slight incline lent a kind hand to the car now in full motion.
We began to contemplate Newton's Laws of Motion.
His First Law states that: An object at rest tends to stay at rest, or if it is in motion tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by a sum of physical forces.
Second Law: A body will accelerate with acceleration proportional to the force and inversely proportional to the mass.
Third Law: Every action has a reaction equal in magnitude and opposite in direction.
Now we had clearly understood the power of the first part of Law One and had applied a sufficient force, generated by the combined energy derived from our recent dinners and propelled into action through our then slowly moving but now moderately galloping feet, to overcome that inertia.
Now we were being faced with a combination of the second part of Law One and the full power of Law Two.
One, if we could not sufficiently apply an external force to the moving object, in this case a 2nd Gen RX7, it would continue to stay in motion with the same speed.
The combination was that this body, was accelerating in a manner that relied heavily upon the mass of said object.
In this case it was a very heavy broad 2nd Gen RX7.
We clearly had to quickly become pioneering Physicists of our time or that car was most assuredly going to meet with the insides of the drain it was very nearly almost directly upon.
And so with all the strength I could muster I stretched out my hand and leaned through the window to grab the handbrake that Mazda had so brilliantly placed on the far side of the transmission lever in the Right Hand Drive models, and thankfully I was able to reach it just before the world came to an end.
And when we popped the bonnet after catching ourselves, we saw that the battery cable had come loose and so we tightened it and proceeded to home with no further adventure.
And that's how I brought Sarah, my first RX7 home.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Sarah's First Service.
Previously:
Bringing Home Sarah (Part I).
Rotary Owner and Loving It.
Is She The One? (Part II)
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Bringing Home Sarah (Part I)
So I left by Tony that Monday morning a very happy camper.
I had journeyed to the southland as I mentioned before to carry out this transaction and I was quite pleased with myself. One could say I felt like I ate cake.
I had noted that the car was below half with fuel, and so I asked Tony how to get to the nearest gas station. He rattled off some directions and I figured, hey It's Trinidad, I can't get lost.
I suppose one can only be so wrong about getting lost. In my case I was plenty wrong.
So I set forth in my Blue Turbo II Series 4.5 RX7 in search of fuel. On a quest to quench Sarah's thirst.
And I drove and drove and turned corners and saw fewer people and more greenery and less buildings, and more shrub and less concrete but I was still thinking, I must be approaching it soon.
I figured, look I have a bit of gas, I have my cellphone and so what could be an issue?
I glanced over at my phone to be greeted with a No Signal icon.
Not the best of graphics to encounter whilst on a road trip with little sense of direction.
But I kept going, until I came to a set of traffic lights at a junction.
I figured I'd turn right and head into whatever town, and look for a gas station.
As I was turning I read the sign which indicated to me that I was in Debe.
I thought to myself, but that is not exactly close to where I was in San Fernando.
Say what I figured, worse case I'd enjoy some alloo or challoo pies and the famous doubles. (These are tasty Indo-Trinidadian savoury delicacies for the non-Trinidadian readers. Debe is famous for doubles.)
So not too far in, I spotted a gas station and pulled in.
Now to find the gas tank lever, without looking like a complete noob or as if I stole the car.
I look around and thankfully pull the gas tank lever and not the hatch glass.
The attendant fills it up and I ask how to get to the highway to head to town.
He says, take the Ring Road by the lights and keep going.
So said, so done. I kept to the road, still no signal, but with faith in fresh fuel and that lovely rumble from the dual exhaust I set forth boldly.
I was feeling like Captain Dré of the RX Enterprise
"Mazda - - - - the Final Frontier.
These are the voyages of the RX7, Sarah.
Its mission: to explore strange, new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."
Starring: Dré as Safeq
And then I hit that highway, and let loose to see what that baby could really do...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Bringing Home Sarah (Part II).
Previously:
Rotary Owner and Loving It.
Is She The One? (Part II)
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
I had journeyed to the southland as I mentioned before to carry out this transaction and I was quite pleased with myself. One could say I felt like I ate cake.
I had noted that the car was below half with fuel, and so I asked Tony how to get to the nearest gas station. He rattled off some directions and I figured, hey It's Trinidad, I can't get lost.
I suppose one can only be so wrong about getting lost. In my case I was plenty wrong.
So I set forth in my Blue Turbo II Series 4.5 RX7 in search of fuel. On a quest to quench Sarah's thirst.
And I drove and drove and turned corners and saw fewer people and more greenery and less buildings, and more shrub and less concrete but I was still thinking, I must be approaching it soon.
I figured, look I have a bit of gas, I have my cellphone and so what could be an issue?
I glanced over at my phone to be greeted with a No Signal icon.
Not the best of graphics to encounter whilst on a road trip with little sense of direction.
But I kept going, until I came to a set of traffic lights at a junction.
I figured I'd turn right and head into whatever town, and look for a gas station.
As I was turning I read the sign which indicated to me that I was in Debe.
I thought to myself, but that is not exactly close to where I was in San Fernando.
Say what I figured, worse case I'd enjoy some alloo or challoo pies and the famous doubles. (These are tasty Indo-Trinidadian savoury delicacies for the non-Trinidadian readers. Debe is famous for doubles.)
So not too far in, I spotted a gas station and pulled in.
Now to find the gas tank lever, without looking like a complete noob or as if I stole the car.
I look around and thankfully pull the gas tank lever and not the hatch glass.
The attendant fills it up and I ask how to get to the highway to head to town.
He says, take the Ring Road by the lights and keep going.
So said, so done. I kept to the road, still no signal, but with faith in fresh fuel and that lovely rumble from the dual exhaust I set forth boldly.
I was feeling like Captain Dré of the RX Enterprise
"Mazda - - - - the Final Frontier.
These are the voyages of the RX7, Sarah.
Its mission: to explore strange, new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."
Starring: Dré as Safeq
And then I hit that highway, and let loose to see what that baby could really do...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Bringing Home Sarah (Part II).
Previously:
Rotary Owner and Loving It.
Is She The One? (Part II)
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Monday, March 29, 2010
Rotary Owner and Loving It
If you've been following the story thus far, you'll have seen the progression from the Lioness, Josephine, that sweet green Peugeot 306, to the Nissan Primera that got away because of the financial hurdles.
You'd have clearly observed how I was first introduced to the world of Rotary, born out of then frustration and bad mind into the potential for a fire spitting dragon of an automobile.
You also were with me through the interesting balancing act of dealing with fears of the lady I had begun to build a relationship with and ensuring that in pursuing this Rotary Dream that it not become a daylight nightmare.
You walked with me through the process of deciding upon the right one, which had its hurdles and now we are at the point where it's does this guy Tony who placed the small ad in the paper that week have the one?
So it's a normal Saturday afternoon and I link up with my boy, Juma to head down by Jerry in Chaguanas since he knows the Southland better than us and the last thing anyone really wants when going to check out a car is to get lost and end up reaching late or not at all.
It doesn't sit right with the seller if you can't organise your business to actually present yourself before for viewing of the automobile.
Now mind you, this was not the first trip Jerry and I had made to the southland to check a RX7.
We'd been to see a 3rd Generation RX7 in another part of south that was selling somewhat cheaply, only to find out subsequent to that trip that the guys selling the car were a bit shady.
So we were hoping that this was not a repeat performance, but the thing with buying a used car these days is you can never really tell. Shady people don't really advertise to you that they are shady, as that will have a negative impact on their profit margins and give them a bit of a public relations nightmare for their existing and future customers.
On the other hand, non-shady people sometimes are clueless as to what they have, and or have been swindled by some other shady person and you end up buying cat in bag, or pig in bag as people from other islands say, and now I as the new buyer have to deal with dat tantenna.(craziness, just a mess, for non-trinidadian readers)
So in this whole journey because I wasn't buying from the dealership and I knew very little, I was trying to do my best in this whole thing and hoping I wasn't put into a precarious position.
The lack of vaseline involved in some car deals does not render the buyer someone who is pleased post transaction completion.
So I get the directions from Tony and we jump in the car for the road trip.
So when we arrive in front of Tony's house, we see this blue 2nd Gen RX7 just sitting in his garage low down on her haunches. And though I could not articulate it at the time somewhere deep down I knew, yeah this is it, she's the one.
So we went through the usual things, price, issues, the seller's sales pitch, my questions, Jerry and Juma's scrutiny of the car to assist in keeping things balanced. Then Tony and I go for a test drive, and though there was a slight breakup in the acceleration I figured once all other things were proper I could resolve that with a little servicing.
So we arrive back at the house and finalise for a transaction the following Monday.
Monday comes and I take a taxi down to south in the early morning, ready to drive back up with my new baby. Tony and I meet, I give him the cheque and he gives me the keys and a receipt.
And then I sit in a RX7 for the first time as an owner and I feel good. I bounce the starter, hear that deep rumble from the dual exhaust barrels and drive off into the future...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Bringing Home Sarah (Part I).
Previously:
Is She The One? (Part II)
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
You'd have clearly observed how I was first introduced to the world of Rotary, born out of then frustration and bad mind into the potential for a fire spitting dragon of an automobile.
You also were with me through the interesting balancing act of dealing with fears of the lady I had begun to build a relationship with and ensuring that in pursuing this Rotary Dream that it not become a daylight nightmare.
You walked with me through the process of deciding upon the right one, which had its hurdles and now we are at the point where it's does this guy Tony who placed the small ad in the paper that week have the one?
So it's a normal Saturday afternoon and I link up with my boy, Juma to head down by Jerry in Chaguanas since he knows the Southland better than us and the last thing anyone really wants when going to check out a car is to get lost and end up reaching late or not at all.
It doesn't sit right with the seller if you can't organise your business to actually present yourself before for viewing of the automobile.
Now mind you, this was not the first trip Jerry and I had made to the southland to check a RX7.
We'd been to see a 3rd Generation RX7 in another part of south that was selling somewhat cheaply, only to find out subsequent to that trip that the guys selling the car were a bit shady.
So we were hoping that this was not a repeat performance, but the thing with buying a used car these days is you can never really tell. Shady people don't really advertise to you that they are shady, as that will have a negative impact on their profit margins and give them a bit of a public relations nightmare for their existing and future customers.
On the other hand, non-shady people sometimes are clueless as to what they have, and or have been swindled by some other shady person and you end up buying cat in bag, or pig in bag as people from other islands say, and now I as the new buyer have to deal with dat tantenna.(craziness, just a mess, for non-trinidadian readers)
So in this whole journey because I wasn't buying from the dealership and I knew very little, I was trying to do my best in this whole thing and hoping I wasn't put into a precarious position.
The lack of vaseline involved in some car deals does not render the buyer someone who is pleased post transaction completion.
So I get the directions from Tony and we jump in the car for the road trip.
So when we arrive in front of Tony's house, we see this blue 2nd Gen RX7 just sitting in his garage low down on her haunches. And though I could not articulate it at the time somewhere deep down I knew, yeah this is it, she's the one.
So we went through the usual things, price, issues, the seller's sales pitch, my questions, Jerry and Juma's scrutiny of the car to assist in keeping things balanced. Then Tony and I go for a test drive, and though there was a slight breakup in the acceleration I figured once all other things were proper I could resolve that with a little servicing.
So we arrive back at the house and finalise for a transaction the following Monday.
Monday comes and I take a taxi down to south in the early morning, ready to drive back up with my new baby. Tony and I meet, I give him the cheque and he gives me the keys and a receipt.
And then I sit in a RX7 for the first time as an owner and I feel good. I bounce the starter, hear that deep rumble from the dual exhaust barrels and drive off into the future...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Bringing Home Sarah (Part I).
Previously:
Is She The One? (Part II)
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Monday, March 22, 2010
Is She The One? (Part II)
Having given the previous context of my balancing my desire for a kindred spirit with the high octane racing fuel flowing through my veins, I now set out to find the right RX7.
It was not an easy journey.
Now even though I knew I wanted a 2nd Gen RX7, and I wanted to build life with this beautiful woman, I knew it was not going to be a casual task that I was undertaking.
The statistics have shown that usually in the pursuit of these two diametrically opposed entities, that of a beautiful woman and a high performance sports car, many a great man has failed.
The success rate is low, as usually either the man is given a choice by the only speaking party in the two, of that red car out there or me.
Most men have chosen the latter as, they couldn't bear to see the car set on fire by the one speaking, in a fit of rage after the man said something like "I'm not comparing my sports car to you Baby."
Usually, I'd heard, women don't take too kindly to those words, and fail to see the correlation between the hordes of cash and time spent on what to her looks like any other hunk of metal and the thrill shown on the man's face as his spirit soars going around that corner at upwards of 120km, with the coilovers, strut bars and polyurethane bushings doing their work to keep that baby going.
So all this I knew and so just as a momentary consideration to calm the fears of the woman who I was now forming this relationship with, I decided to explore a nice simple family vehicle, owned by a friend of mine Garvin.
It was a simple, black, four door, with a slight wing on the back to add a little flare.
And as expected, the woman loved the car, and it was at that point that I knew that if this rotary experiment failed, I would have to settle for a nice simple grocery getting
Subaru WRX GC8 model.
So I did try, but since I still had to get a loan, the astronomical insurance costs couldn't be borne by myself at that point and it was back on the rotary trail, no holding back.
I hunted, came across 2nd gen shells, and would have to source an engine and build it up. I didn't think I could absorb that as yet, cause I didn't know anyone trustworthy at the point nor where to get everything.
So a running car was preferred.
I came across a very sweet 1st gen, blue with a series 4 (2nd Gen) engine in it, owned by a guy called Michael.
I thought about it, but there was going to be some work to do that I figured made just getting the right 2nd Gen worth it.
A Sunday afternoon I saw a red 1st Gen in the paper. Went checked it out and considered it.
But the owner, Jameel, was sending it to do over the interior and some other stuff and so I'd have to wait.
So we are in early November 2006 now when on the Friday of the same week that I saw the red 1st Gen RX7, after almost 2 months of active hunting had gone by, I saw a small ad in the paper for a 2nd Gen RX7.
So I called and I spoke to a guy called Tony, who said I could come and check him the next day, Saturday down in the southern part of the island.
And so said so done.
I made a road trip, with two of my boys, Jerry and Juma, whom I mentioned before down to south to see what I hoped would be the one.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Rotary Owner and Loving It.
Previously:
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
It was not an easy journey.
Now even though I knew I wanted a 2nd Gen RX7, and I wanted to build life with this beautiful woman, I knew it was not going to be a casual task that I was undertaking.
The statistics have shown that usually in the pursuit of these two diametrically opposed entities, that of a beautiful woman and a high performance sports car, many a great man has failed.
The success rate is low, as usually either the man is given a choice by the only speaking party in the two, of that red car out there or me.
Most men have chosen the latter as, they couldn't bear to see the car set on fire by the one speaking, in a fit of rage after the man said something like "I'm not comparing my sports car to you Baby."
Usually, I'd heard, women don't take too kindly to those words, and fail to see the correlation between the hordes of cash and time spent on what to her looks like any other hunk of metal and the thrill shown on the man's face as his spirit soars going around that corner at upwards of 120km, with the coilovers, strut bars and polyurethane bushings doing their work to keep that baby going.
So all this I knew and so just as a momentary consideration to calm the fears of the woman who I was now forming this relationship with, I decided to explore a nice simple family vehicle, owned by a friend of mine Garvin.
It was a simple, black, four door, with a slight wing on the back to add a little flare.
And as expected, the woman loved the car, and it was at that point that I knew that if this rotary experiment failed, I would have to settle for a nice simple grocery getting
Subaru WRX GC8 model.
So I did try, but since I still had to get a loan, the astronomical insurance costs couldn't be borne by myself at that point and it was back on the rotary trail, no holding back.
I hunted, came across 2nd gen shells, and would have to source an engine and build it up. I didn't think I could absorb that as yet, cause I didn't know anyone trustworthy at the point nor where to get everything.
So a running car was preferred.
I came across a very sweet 1st gen, blue with a series 4 (2nd Gen) engine in it, owned by a guy called Michael.
I thought about it, but there was going to be some work to do that I figured made just getting the right 2nd Gen worth it.
A Sunday afternoon I saw a red 1st Gen in the paper. Went checked it out and considered it.
But the owner, Jameel, was sending it to do over the interior and some other stuff and so I'd have to wait.
So we are in early November 2006 now when on the Friday of the same week that I saw the red 1st Gen RX7, after almost 2 months of active hunting had gone by, I saw a small ad in the paper for a 2nd Gen RX7.
So I called and I spoke to a guy called Tony, who said I could come and check him the next day, Saturday down in the southern part of the island.
And so said so done.
I made a road trip, with two of my boys, Jerry and Juma, whom I mentioned before down to south to see what I hoped would be the one.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Rotary Owner and Loving It.
Previously:
Is She The One? (Part I)
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Is She The One? (Part I)
They say, yes they, and don't ask me who they are, because there is always some they who say things that people take as gospel
But anyway, as I was saying, they say that no account is complete without the love story.
I suppose there must always be that struggle to define one's humanity.
There must be that never ending desire for more than oneself, a longing to find a kindred spirit to share exploits of cars slaughtered on the tracks, or the rally stage.
To have someone to help with the oil change, or the tear down and rebuilding of gearboxes, someone to be there with you in the grease and dust and grime of the underbelly of this pursuit of automotive nirvana.
I guess one can always dream.
Because though, throughout history another they have always said that, behind every great man is a great woman, that same they has never said that, behind every car man is anything other than exhaust.
I suppose that may be, because any woman who stands behind any man in a real sports car is usually of the deaf variety, and looks more like she can bench press the man than he can carry her over the threshold of love.
So bearing all this in mind, I think it fit to spend a couple moments on my quest for a kindred spirit in the midst of this RX7 madness.
When I last left off, I had settled on pursuing a 2nd Gen RX7 having been exposed to a fire breathing dragon 3rd Gen in Sangre Grande.
This was in mid September 2006.
Almost a year prior to this, in Oct 2005 I met the most beautiful woman in the world.
We met through a mutual friend, Sonia whilst this woman was completing some studies in Barbados.
You may ask well how dat happen, since I live in Trinidad but is one Caribbean and we integrating long time.
Now this girl, didn't like cars that went fast, but I didn't know this at the time.
We were just getting to know each other. I was however made aware of this subsequently.
So jump forward a year now, when I am contemplating this automotive pilgrimage and it's becoming clearer that this girl isn't like the others and may be that kindred spirit.
But I'm still balancing this desire to know more about cars, and cars of the Mazda variety.
So when I was contemplating the 3rd Gen and the machinations required to procure such a wonderful piece of machinery I was balancing the fact that if this girl is the One that They spoke of, and if this Rotary Experiment failed on me I may just miss the love boat.
So I knew I had to be as careful as one can be, given all the circumstances.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Next: Is She the One Part II?
Previously:
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
But anyway, as I was saying, they say that no account is complete without the love story.
I suppose there must always be that struggle to define one's humanity.
There must be that never ending desire for more than oneself, a longing to find a kindred spirit to share exploits of cars slaughtered on the tracks, or the rally stage.
To have someone to help with the oil change, or the tear down and rebuilding of gearboxes, someone to be there with you in the grease and dust and grime of the underbelly of this pursuit of automotive nirvana.
I guess one can always dream.
Because though, throughout history another they have always said that, behind every great man is a great woman, that same they has never said that, behind every car man is anything other than exhaust.
I suppose that may be, because any woman who stands behind any man in a real sports car is usually of the deaf variety, and looks more like she can bench press the man than he can carry her over the threshold of love.
So bearing all this in mind, I think it fit to spend a couple moments on my quest for a kindred spirit in the midst of this RX7 madness.
When I last left off, I had settled on pursuing a 2nd Gen RX7 having been exposed to a fire breathing dragon 3rd Gen in Sangre Grande.
This was in mid September 2006.
Almost a year prior to this, in Oct 2005 I met the most beautiful woman in the world.
We met through a mutual friend, Sonia whilst this woman was completing some studies in Barbados.
You may ask well how dat happen, since I live in Trinidad but is one Caribbean and we integrating long time.
Now this girl, didn't like cars that went fast, but I didn't know this at the time.
We were just getting to know each other. I was however made aware of this subsequently.
So jump forward a year now, when I am contemplating this automotive pilgrimage and it's becoming clearer that this girl isn't like the others and may be that kindred spirit.
But I'm still balancing this desire to know more about cars, and cars of the Mazda variety.
So when I was contemplating the 3rd Gen and the machinations required to procure such a wonderful piece of machinery I was balancing the fact that if this girl is the One that They spoke of, and if this Rotary Experiment failed on me I may just miss the love boat.
So I knew I had to be as careful as one can be, given all the circumstances.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Next: Is She the One Part II?
Previously:
Rotary Revealed
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Rotary Revealed
There is a famous story in Automotive History about Ferruccio Lamborghini and Enzo Ferrari over a clutch problem that Mr Lamborghini was having with a Ferrari 250 GT that he had purchased.
It is stated that Mr Ferrari in his accustomed arrogance, stated that the issue was not with the clutch but with the "farmer" who had a tractor building business.
Annoyed by this, Mr Lamborghini is said to have set out to build a V12 sports car because he was convinced that nothing Enzo Ferrari was doing, he couldn't do.
Outside of the Caribbean, this is referred to as starting a project out of spite. In Trinidad we call dat bad mind.
Insert me here into a version of that story.
I wanted to learn about cars, and started to approach options and all efforts had been thwarted and I was now on the brink of abandoning the idea all together.
I figured if I had tried to get a balance between an insurance friendly car, to get a loan to experiment, Primera, lost out on the long shot of the Altezza and was not seeing any other option presently, I might as well out of pure bad mind just go full out sports car.
Someone else may have just gone with an everyday grocery getter and called that Patrick, but I figured
"What I got to lose going all out?"
So I analysed my situation.
I knew that my shoestring experiment budget was not going to let me enter the high end market so I said well let me just see what is out there.
I decided to focus on a few clear elements.
RWD - cause it's just so much fun
Not too expensive - because eating Crix and wind isn't a scalable diet
Accessible parts - well that I'd need to meet the right people for
Not too old - cause not all old sports cars really have the right look
Interestingly enough, just around the Primera time I had seen a car that I had never heard about, this one ya,
1st Gen RX7 and wondered about why the back was so ugly, and what was this 13b business.
But the price seemed experimentery nah, and it was RWD so I said aight well since I don't know bout this RX7 thing, let me do a bit of reading before I venture any further and look around for sales.
So I searched through Trinituner and did some google searches and was reading fine and dandy and beginning to like this rotary engine thing.
It seemed not too exotic, but certainly worthy of exploring.
I liked the look of the later 1st gens, the 2nd gens and most definitely those 3rd gens.
So it was now to find the right one.
So one day I come across this 3rd Gen for sale.
I call the guy and he's up in Grande and I arranged to go and see it.
One of my boys, Damion and I went up on a cool breezy Sunday afternoon to meet the guy, Glen.
So we're there and checking out the car. He's explaining how he just rebuilt the engine etc, did over the interior and why he's selling etc.
Then he's like, let's go for a test drive.
And we pile into the car, with mih boy, kinda squeeze up in de so-called 3rd gen backseat.
And so we going and he accelerate lil bits and it was sweet, but den when we were decelerating I was hearing a bit of popping from the back, and Glen was like, "Oh yeah dat's just a lil fire"
I say NAH! De Car spitting fire!!!!
I must get me one!!!
So now for the Mathematics of an Advanced Level.
I tried all how to work out how to get that 3rd gen but I knew that even if I happened to get through, that after I drive from Grande, it would park up home cause I wouldn't be able to buy gas.
So I figured, well the 1st gen may be too old for my first option, and the 3rds were out of my range and so I'd try for a 2nd Gen if I could just find one...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Is She the One? (Part I)
Previously:
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
It is stated that Mr Ferrari in his accustomed arrogance, stated that the issue was not with the clutch but with the "farmer" who had a tractor building business.
Annoyed by this, Mr Lamborghini is said to have set out to build a V12 sports car because he was convinced that nothing Enzo Ferrari was doing, he couldn't do.
Outside of the Caribbean, this is referred to as starting a project out of spite. In Trinidad we call dat bad mind.
Insert me here into a version of that story.
I wanted to learn about cars, and started to approach options and all efforts had been thwarted and I was now on the brink of abandoning the idea all together.
I figured if I had tried to get a balance between an insurance friendly car, to get a loan to experiment, Primera, lost out on the long shot of the Altezza and was not seeing any other option presently, I might as well out of pure bad mind just go full out sports car.
Someone else may have just gone with an everyday grocery getter and called that Patrick, but I figured
"What I got to lose going all out?"
So I analysed my situation.
I knew that my shoestring experiment budget was not going to let me enter the high end market so I said well let me just see what is out there.
I decided to focus on a few clear elements.
RWD - cause it's just so much fun
Not too expensive - because eating Crix and wind isn't a scalable diet
Accessible parts - well that I'd need to meet the right people for
Not too old - cause not all old sports cars really have the right look
Interestingly enough, just around the Primera time I had seen a car that I had never heard about, this one ya,
1st Gen RX7 and wondered about why the back was so ugly, and what was this 13b business.
But the price seemed experimentery nah, and it was RWD so I said aight well since I don't know bout this RX7 thing, let me do a bit of reading before I venture any further and look around for sales.
So I searched through Trinituner and did some google searches and was reading fine and dandy and beginning to like this rotary engine thing.
It seemed not too exotic, but certainly worthy of exploring.
I liked the look of the later 1st gens, the 2nd gens and most definitely those 3rd gens.
So it was now to find the right one.
So one day I come across this 3rd Gen for sale.
I call the guy and he's up in Grande and I arranged to go and see it.
One of my boys, Damion and I went up on a cool breezy Sunday afternoon to meet the guy, Glen.
So we're there and checking out the car. He's explaining how he just rebuilt the engine etc, did over the interior and why he's selling etc.
Then he's like, let's go for a test drive.
And we pile into the car, with mih boy, kinda squeeze up in de so-called 3rd gen backseat.
And so we going and he accelerate lil bits and it was sweet, but den when we were decelerating I was hearing a bit of popping from the back, and Glen was like, "Oh yeah dat's just a lil fire"
I say NAH! De Car spitting fire!!!!
I must get me one!!!
So now for the Mathematics of an Advanced Level.
I tried all how to work out how to get that 3rd gen but I knew that even if I happened to get through, that after I drive from Grande, it would park up home cause I wouldn't be able to buy gas.
So I figured, well the 1st gen may be too old for my first option, and the 3rds were out of my range and so I'd try for a 2nd Gen if I could just find one...
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next: Is She the One? (Part I)
Previously:
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
So where did I leave off...
Right I was frustrated...
I had the downpayment, the process had been going fine and then bam, completely collapsed from under me.
So no Primera it seemed.
No Peugeot since that was already gone.
So what could I possibly check out?
Well let me jump back in the past a bit just before the Primera episode.
Not too long after selling the Peugeot, I had checked out what I thought would be a good option.
A Toyota Altezza, 6 spd manual, Beams engine. IS 200 not RS 200.
Well how did I reach from a 306 to consider an Altezza?
Well plain and simple just around the time I sold my Peugeot, one of my boys,Sean bought one, a RS 200 tiptronic business.
So you'd think well I just went looking for one.
No actually, as impressed as I was with the car at that particular stage of my journey I was contemplating going diesel also and had checked out a Nissan Frontier.
I heard some stories about issues with those from a mech, and so figured I'd just widen my scope and look at Ford Rangers also.
It was in looking through the paper a day,for available Rangers that I just happened to see an Altezza for sale.
So because I had nothing to lose, I said hey lemme go and jess check it out and gape at the car lil bits.
Yeah I've always loved cars, so sometimes a good gape is just what the automotive soul needs.
Yeah I know what you might say, I wrote
Ode to a Classifieds Forum Piper, so what am I doing gaping
But as I mentioned in the post, I am guilty of the same thing sometimes.
So yeah I went to check it out, and it was owned by a young lawyer.
It was in immaculate condition and well maintained.
We went for a test drive and it was cool.
I figured hey, what's the worst that can happen if I check out a loan for this.
I wasn't too sold on the thought but figured I'd give it a shot.
So I told the guy I'd see what my options looked like and call him.
I think that was like Monday round lunchtime so. It was a rainy day.
Went and played football with the fellahs from the office the Tuesday afternoon
Wednesday morning I wake up not feeling too well
Gone to the doc, and boom I have Chicken Pox.
Ah say well yes!
So I called the lawyer to alert him in case he never had pox right.
And explained well I can't really go checking out no loan with pox so after 2 weeks I could pursue.
He said well, we'll see how it goes.
2 weeks passed and would you believe the very day I get cleared by the doc, the car sold to someone else?
I say well it just wasn't for me
But it was during my sick time that I saw the post for the Primera and checked it out post Poxness.
So yuh understan now how I jess (just, for non Trinidadian readers) frustrated.
I get Pox while trying to go after one car.
I get loan issues pursuing another
So what am I to do now?
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Rotary Revealed
Previously:
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Right I was frustrated...
I had the downpayment, the process had been going fine and then bam, completely collapsed from under me.
So no Primera it seemed.
No Peugeot since that was already gone.
So what could I possibly check out?
Well let me jump back in the past a bit just before the Primera episode.
Not too long after selling the Peugeot, I had checked out what I thought would be a good option.
A Toyota Altezza, 6 spd manual, Beams engine. IS 200 not RS 200.
Well how did I reach from a 306 to consider an Altezza?
Well plain and simple just around the time I sold my Peugeot, one of my boys,Sean bought one, a RS 200 tiptronic business.
So you'd think well I just went looking for one.
No actually, as impressed as I was with the car at that particular stage of my journey I was contemplating going diesel also and had checked out a Nissan Frontier.
I heard some stories about issues with those from a mech, and so figured I'd just widen my scope and look at Ford Rangers also.
It was in looking through the paper a day,for available Rangers that I just happened to see an Altezza for sale.
So because I had nothing to lose, I said hey lemme go and jess check it out and gape at the car lil bits.
Yeah I've always loved cars, so sometimes a good gape is just what the automotive soul needs.
Yeah I know what you might say, I wrote
Ode to a Classifieds Forum Piper, so what am I doing gaping
But as I mentioned in the post, I am guilty of the same thing sometimes.
So yeah I went to check it out, and it was owned by a young lawyer.
It was in immaculate condition and well maintained.
We went for a test drive and it was cool.
I figured hey, what's the worst that can happen if I check out a loan for this.
I wasn't too sold on the thought but figured I'd give it a shot.
So I told the guy I'd see what my options looked like and call him.
I think that was like Monday round lunchtime so. It was a rainy day.
Went and played football with the fellahs from the office the Tuesday afternoon
Wednesday morning I wake up not feeling too well
Gone to the doc, and boom I have Chicken Pox.
Ah say well yes!
So I called the lawyer to alert him in case he never had pox right.
And explained well I can't really go checking out no loan with pox so after 2 weeks I could pursue.
He said well, we'll see how it goes.
2 weeks passed and would you believe the very day I get cleared by the doc, the car sold to someone else?
I say well it just wasn't for me
But it was during my sick time that I saw the post for the Primera and checked it out post Poxness.
So yuh understan now how I jess (just, for non Trinidadian readers) frustrated.
I get Pox while trying to go after one car.
I get loan issues pursuing another
So what am I to do now?
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Rotary Revealed
Previously:
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Navigating the Financial Labyrinth
So as you know, I went from a Peugeot 306, and was interested in purchasing a Nissan Primera, but needed some monies to embark on the journey.
So I first checked out my credit union, and their only initial concern was the age of the vehicle but I pointed out how good a condition it was in and they said it would have to be evaluated.
Cool usual process of search, etc etc
Things going well, ok enough interest rate and payment plan.
Jason was real helpful throughout the process, and as far as could be told it was a done deal.
Boom one day, the loan officer I had been dealing with called me with some concerns about the insurance coverage.
Now I didn't see what concern there could be, because the same brokerage company who had covered car previously were willing to continue insuring it and were giving me the option to pay half of the yearly premium upfront and the rest at the end of the month.
Made a great deal of sense to me to take the option, and try to ease de financial tension, but apparently that was a concern to the supervisor.
So me in my confusion tried to explain that the coverage would be there, blah blah blah...but they didn't wanna hear it.
So it was like, buh wha jed? (but how could this be? for non trinidad and tobago readers)
So I explained the scene to Jason and started to check out another insitution, a particular local bank.
But their interest rate was not coming with any vaseline and so the whole deal got catspraddled as I had no other way to afford that Primera.
And I had to just relax and hope for the best.
So I was back to square one, no car, no automotive lab, no practical learnings.
So I read a little bit and just kept searching trinituner for options.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Previously:
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
So I first checked out my credit union, and their only initial concern was the age of the vehicle but I pointed out how good a condition it was in and they said it would have to be evaluated.
Cool usual process of search, etc etc
Things going well, ok enough interest rate and payment plan.
Jason was real helpful throughout the process, and as far as could be told it was a done deal.
Boom one day, the loan officer I had been dealing with called me with some concerns about the insurance coverage.
Now I didn't see what concern there could be, because the same brokerage company who had covered car previously were willing to continue insuring it and were giving me the option to pay half of the yearly premium upfront and the rest at the end of the month.
Made a great deal of sense to me to take the option, and try to ease de financial tension, but apparently that was a concern to the supervisor.
So me in my confusion tried to explain that the coverage would be there, blah blah blah...but they didn't wanna hear it.
So it was like, buh wha jed? (but how could this be? for non trinidad and tobago readers)
So I explained the scene to Jason and started to check out another insitution, a particular local bank.
But their interest rate was not coming with any vaseline and so the whole deal got catspraddled as I had no other way to afford that Primera.
And I had to just relax and hope for the best.
So I was back to square one, no car, no automotive lab, no practical learnings.
So I read a little bit and just kept searching trinituner for options.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Frustrated Wannabe Amateur Tuner
Previously:
European Exodus
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
Monday, March 15, 2010
European Exodus
So as I pointed out in my last post, I had lived in the European automotive world for about a year and a half and had a very good experience with my first car.
I did have a lot of fun with that car, and she was cool with a sunroof, cd player and good sound system.
Enough speed for me at that time, and pretty much a good bit of things a young male driver could want :)
But when I sold her I wanted to learn more about cars, and couldn't afford to learn on the European platform and so opted for Japanese.
My "problem" was to find the right one.
So I searched on a local automotive website, that my friend Juma who does Wedding photography,
FlowFoto , told me about.
It's Trinituner.Com
You can check it out some time and see the kinds of things happening in the automotive world here in Trinidad.
So being a noob in the automotive game, I figured my best bet was to go with the most popular automotive brand locally, which would be Nissan.
Now being the most popular, ensures accessibility of parts but also can make your car a target for thieves for the very same reason, high demand for used parts.
So I figured, ok Nissan but not an Almera, because one it may be easily stolen and two, my Dad already had one and how cool is it to be getting into learning about cars and your car being no more distinct that your Dad's.
So I came across
a black Nissan Primera, UK Spec and decided to check it out.
I loved it from day one. The pictures on trinituner did not do the car justice.
She had what at that time I thought was a throaty exhaust, a bit deeper than I was accustomed to.
Compared to a car I got later on that my Mom was sure used to "Raise De Dead", a 1st Generation RX7 with a 12a brideported engine,
this Primera didn't make too much of a peep.
More on that 1st Gen later.
So the owner, a guy called Jason and I chatted about the car.
He really takes care of his cars and I'm still impressed by the condition.
We went for a test drive and I was sold.
So the only hurdle I had to cross was to line up the finances, because I would need a loan and the money from
Josephine, the Peugeot 306 would be the down payment.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
Previously:
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
I did have a lot of fun with that car, and she was cool with a sunroof, cd player and good sound system.
Enough speed for me at that time, and pretty much a good bit of things a young male driver could want :)
But when I sold her I wanted to learn more about cars, and couldn't afford to learn on the European platform and so opted for Japanese.
My "problem" was to find the right one.
So I searched on a local automotive website, that my friend Juma who does Wedding photography,
FlowFoto , told me about.
It's Trinituner.Com
You can check it out some time and see the kinds of things happening in the automotive world here in Trinidad.
So being a noob in the automotive game, I figured my best bet was to go with the most popular automotive brand locally, which would be Nissan.
Now being the most popular, ensures accessibility of parts but also can make your car a target for thieves for the very same reason, high demand for used parts.
So I figured, ok Nissan but not an Almera, because one it may be easily stolen and two, my Dad already had one and how cool is it to be getting into learning about cars and your car being no more distinct that your Dad's.
So I came across
a black Nissan Primera, UK Spec and decided to check it out.
I loved it from day one. The pictures on trinituner did not do the car justice.
She had what at that time I thought was a throaty exhaust, a bit deeper than I was accustomed to.
Compared to a car I got later on that my Mom was sure used to "Raise De Dead", a 1st Generation RX7 with a 12a brideported engine,
this Primera didn't make too much of a peep.
More on that 1st Gen later.
So the owner, a guy called Jason and I chatted about the car.
He really takes care of his cars and I'm still impressed by the condition.
We went for a test drive and I was sold.
So the only hurdle I had to cross was to line up the finances, because I would need a loan and the money from
Josephine, the Peugeot 306 would be the down payment.
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
Navigating The Financial Labyrinth
Previously:
RX7 Genesis
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
RX7 Genesis
My name is André, aka Dré or Safeq.
I live in the twin island republic, Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean.
I drive a 1991 red Mazda RX7 Second Generation Series 5 Turbo II coupe.
Her name is Ruby.
Presently she has an automatic transmission but that is scheduled to change.
Will update as that goes on.
This is my 4th rotary powered vehicle between 2006 and now.
I'm sure you're curious if you're here on this site to find out, well how did all of this start?
Well I hope you do enjoy the story.
Well let's see, the beginning.
I used to drive a European vehicle, french actually, a green Peugeot 306.
I got her in Jan 2004 and I called her Josephine.
She was a very loyal car, a bit expensive to maintain but very loyal.
The first problem I had with her was the fuel pump failing one evening after work.
I had to get the car towed up to my home and my mechanic, Bailey came and worked on it.
Other than that, I had a battery failure and had to replace the centre console, right triangular window pane and cd player after thieves broke into her a Sunday morning.
I must say that the handling on that car is the sweetest I have had for a Front Wheel Drive, FWD, and I do miss some elements of that.
Very good stock suspension also, Mac Pherson Struts.
Well the one "major" issue she did have was with the Porsche designed auto adaptive transmission which would hesitate from going into first gear properly from second upon deceleration.
And then you would have to pause, rev the engine a bit and it would then buck/jerk forward into first.
It was manageable but got to be a bit annoying at times.
I got an opportunity to sell her in mid 2006 and took it and decided to learn more about cars.
Because of my experience with the European autos, and since it was going to be an experimental journey, I figured my best bet was to look for a good Japanese candidate to make my laboratory.
So the search began....
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
European Exodus
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
I live in the twin island republic, Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean.
I drive a 1991 red Mazda RX7 Second Generation Series 5 Turbo II coupe.
Her name is Ruby.
Presently she has an automatic transmission but that is scheduled to change.
Will update as that goes on.
This is my 4th rotary powered vehicle between 2006 and now.
I'm sure you're curious if you're here on this site to find out, well how did all of this start?
Well I hope you do enjoy the story.
Well let's see, the beginning.
I used to drive a European vehicle, french actually, a green Peugeot 306.
I got her in Jan 2004 and I called her Josephine.
She was a very loyal car, a bit expensive to maintain but very loyal.
The first problem I had with her was the fuel pump failing one evening after work.
I had to get the car towed up to my home and my mechanic, Bailey came and worked on it.
Other than that, I had a battery failure and had to replace the centre console, right triangular window pane and cd player after thieves broke into her a Sunday morning.
I must say that the handling on that car is the sweetest I have had for a Front Wheel Drive, FWD, and I do miss some elements of that.
Very good stock suspension also, Mac Pherson Struts.
Well the one "major" issue she did have was with the Porsche designed auto adaptive transmission which would hesitate from going into first gear properly from second upon deceleration.
And then you would have to pause, rev the engine a bit and it would then buck/jerk forward into first.
It was manageable but got to be a bit annoying at times.
I got an opportunity to sell her in mid 2006 and took it and decided to learn more about cars.
Because of my experience with the European autos, and since it was going to be an experimental journey, I figured my best bet was to look for a good Japanese candidate to make my laboratory.
So the search began....
If you like how the story is progressing,
Leave Comments below or
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Next:
European Exodus
See pics:
My RX7 Story Facebook Page
Follow me on Twitter: MyRX7Story
Email me at safeq@myrx7story.com
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