Roy

He is simply a victim of his success. Funny enough i am coming around ... slowly. But his comments about the triathalon was a backwards step, and his dismissal of his accident in Canada annoyed me, but appreciate it was in the past and had to concentrate on looking forward. The way he come back at Silverstone with the result was impressive as it woudl have been easy to let all the negativity steam roll his season.

I suspect a lot of people are posting have their rose coloured glasses on re the old Grp A days and more variety in cars. I love the Grp A era more then most. But thats only because i loved the cars, the racign was 9 times out of 10 crap. Winton with the M3s shining was a highlight, and for some reason the V8 Commodores did well at Lakeside. Other then that it was usually a cake walk fo the GTR and or Sierra. Teams didnt front for every round, towards the end of the years the teams woudl pop up tryign to get kms under the belts for Bathurst. So, i dont know why people are blamign Ford and Holden, i think they have done a great job. AVESCO need to support the lower categories and not rape them for fees to race on the same weekend. And i think whilst the series is well supported, it is too dependent on Ford and Holden funding

I read a report earlier this year that his books were in clearance bins at stores for 2 squid His Dad should never have comissioned the bios

I cant put my finger on it either, i love all forms of motorsport and can watch almost anything racing. But my interest in teh V8s has dwindled since mid last year. But i do remember in the late 90s when Toyota was told "no room here" Oh well, only another year or two and Cockraine will will be gone and will see what transpires after that. They need less tyre grip and less aero for me, lenghten braking distances and make the cars more variable to drive so created more legit passing opportunities

Im probably pissing in your pocket, but i am curious to know the asking price of the R33. Will be earning pounds shortly so

RE the publics perception of the V8s. I hear you, but personally i think even if the engines are pulled from road cars etc, people will be even keener to see the big bangers continue to be raced. I just think thats the way the flag blows and will continue to do so. I suppose its important to distinguish between public perception and racing fans. Not really peas in the same pod. Racing will never be green , and i think the trend for road cars to go green will mean motorsport will hold onto the old guard as long as possible, and fans will love it as it will remember them of the golden days of when anyone could own a 6L Chev road car. So when we are all running around in 1.8L turbo diesels i think the appeal of the big V8s will be even greater.??????

But my point is, Holden and Ford have spent lots of money on local motorsport. AVESCO are the ones running the show and strong arming tracks and categories. I just think back to the end of 1992, what would have happened if Ford and Holden didnt put their hands up to homologate new shell, aero and engine packages etc for a new series? We woudl have been running around in privateer cars that were being built by teams with problems with equality between cars. And I hear what you are saying about turning it into a two horse race. But i just see it differently. I consider it as more a case of the last two manufacturers interested in motorsport in this country. They cant be blamed if all the other manufacturers walked away. Hell even the 2L saw many of the manufacturers walk away after 4 or 5 seasons. So whilst i am not enjoying the current series like i did back in the 90s with mad Thomas, Seto etc all running around. I dont blame the manufacturers for the situation. I blame Avesco for steering it to where it is today. The only blame i lay with Holden and Ford is that they did push their agenda when it comes to framing the rules. But it was an easy sell for them as there was no other attractive option So, happy to be steered in the right direction, but i think the above is a pretty fair perspective. AVESCO = CARNTS. But Ford and Holdens support has been pretty good, especially when you think the series is in its 15th year. More then anything its time for a change.

Cool, but i still think you are better buying another car. It would be horrible to see the R34 hammered by an off, which realistically is almost a sure thing. Not because of lack of ability, but not being used to navigators, not knowing your navigator combined with having a big, heavy powerful car.

Marco...talking about other manufacturers, you do unterstand that is how we ended up with V8s here in Aus? Toyota were getting their ass kicked in Gp A and were never too serious. Nissan Aus wanted out after it had achieved what it had set out to do. BMW were not too interested in running cars locally. If it wasnt for Morris Snr and Longhurst Snr rolling in cash and bank rolling cars and teams with Frank Garnder and BMWs then BMW woudl have been absent as well, as it wasnt a proper factory team. And thinking back to the Super Tourers 2L cars, how many were factory efforst. Brad Jones was a really a privateer with limited factory support running old chassis from OS. I cant think of a single factory supported team. And nothing has changed locally with regards to the number of manufacturers wanting to race in a class of Touring Cars Ford Aus and Holden were great in getting behind a new local formula and continuing to support a domestic series of racing. Ppl write them off but back in teh day they were the saviour of the series. But where to from here? Well really nowhere unless its a control formula, as here in Aus unless we are attracting local manufacturers, no other compnay will want to be involved as the spend isnt worhwhile for our size market. There is no easy answer. But i dont think ppl should write of Ford or Holden, they have done a good job in supporting large amounts of teams and giving us a competitive series with good numbers. There are not many other series in the world that sport fields of 30 competitive cars week in! So not sayign they rule. But i think ppl have to be fair and appreciative of what the lcoal manufacturers have done for our local motorsport scene. What AVESCO has done with leaching other categories sickens me...but that is a different thing

Snowie, it will take more then 10k to get your car Targa spec. Your cage is dollars, turbos, race suit, intercom. I hope you are right re the 10k figure, but i think you can almost double it

But why get rid of the V8s? If you are running the big shells and weight then you need the displacement. So either let the V8s run, as a racing motor they are fine and dont need to be related to the road going models. Or, move to a smaller platform which means 350hp V6s are enough to make the things interesting to drive, rather then underpowered, over tyred Poop Boxes

DJ, i take the point and its a very valid one re the combinations of drivers that McLaren have run. But i find it interesting to look at the team and driver that wins the championship, then look at where the team mate ran that year. When Williams and Ferrari and even Benetton/Renault are winning WDC the team mate is often 3rd or higher and often win the COnstructors to boot. McLaren dont seem to do that. Maybe its just my impression, perhaps i should go back and research it better. But my gut feeling is McLaren even when they have the best driver/car combination for the season, the second seat often suffers. It could be as simple as not having engineers that work well with a particular driver, relationships ... i dont know. Frank Williams and Patrick Head are even more hard headed and critical of drivers but even they dont have the staff turnaround that McLaren have. I cant see Williams getting out of the mess they are in. Next year is just going to be deeper for them as i cant see Rosberg hanging around. They really need Toyota to close up shop and pool resources! Come on Williams, i want to see them back at the front!

I noticed Terry has been on a post-a-thon But here is the thing. Its motorsport and the class thing? How many teams are going to want to build a car for a lower/slower class. Sure it could be viable, but i dont see the big teams getting behind it.

Yeh, i can understand that. But he was the journo talking to the Garry Rogers etc. So i suppose its a matter of , was he a journo or a V8 driver towing the line. It turns out he was a V8 driver towing the line I still watch the V8s and really enjoy the racing. But even i am starting to tire of the "show" they are putting on

This is crap. My car has been tuned for 100RON and that what i use. If i know i hvae a few hundred kms between motorsport events then i use the 98. But i make sure that there has been a tank of 100 in there before i hit the track. My car really woke up with the 100 as it takes a lot more ignition. Sucks that it wont be available anymore. WHAT changing markets are they talking about. Its not like Aus has a shortage of ethanol!

Come on Richard, in my days of watching F1, McLaren has only been a happy place when there has been a lap dog in one of their cars. ie DC and Berger who were both talented drivers, but didnt cause a fuss and were just happy to be in a competitve drive that let them win races, but never really the championship Stefan Johansson and especially Rosberg were not hacks but didnt get near Prost. Neither of them lasted more then a season. The when Prost and Senna were together and both competitve animals there was problems. Senna and Berger were happier times, but again even when Senna winning the championships Berger was down in 4th or 5th in the WDC. Then you had Andretti, he wasnt happy. Then you had Mansell and Brundle who both stuffed around for less then a season. It wasnt until you got the subservient DC alongside Mika that there was any routine to the McLaren operation, and people agree that most other drivers would have torched the joint if Dennis handed them the same hand he did DC. When DC left we are back to the pre DC era of drivers only lasting a season at best. The team is obviously not a happy place for most drivers, and even when their favoured driver is winning WDC there other driver is back 3 or 4 places. Look at Ferrari and Williams when they have dominated the championships. Often the number 2 driver comes in 2nd or 3rd in the WDC

i) Here is the thing, BMW, Audi etc would not be interested in throwing the money at an Australian team so that they can race their cars in our series. Its debatable whether Toyota would even be bothered. They are already the countries biggest volume selling manufacturer. So with no factory support for the cars and teams, it leaces teams paying for the development cost....only to have problems with equality accross the makes. ii) No way is there any point to us running a GT type championship. Again if Holden and Ford are shy of the dollars for V8s, they dont want anything to do with the cost of GT cars. So that means that in order to get chassis to run the local teams will become a dumping ground for Europes superseded chassis'. Not a good thing since technically we have some of the smartest and best touring car teams and engineers in the world. And dont think small grids of old GT cars from OS is going to be a good series. iii) The only real alternative i see is a form of production car racing with different classes, under / over 2.5L etc So i have asked this elsewhere, who actually has a tin top series that is great to watch with interesting cars? Credit where credit is due, the local product is very good touring car racing. As hrd said, a control chassis with a bin of control engines etc is really the best option. That means provate teams can run whatever shell they want, and wont require big dollars from a manufacturer to develop the car. There is enough debate over aero between two makes, so if more makes are going to be in the mix then control chassis will be needed. Teams can shorten track and wheelbase to suit the panbels/model they want to run, and also may influence the weight they run. This way disgruntled Triple 888 and DJR could easily run Aurion panels with their choice of engines. BUT, here is the big thing. Who is to say Toyota or any other manufacturer are going to be happy for a team to start using one of their branding on a race car? Who is to say that if whichever manbufacturer is getting their ass kicked they dont site ownership of marketing rights to the car , name and team etc? Grass is always greener...but be careful its not only green because of the amount of shit on the other side Sine Gp A dies off Aus has probably had the longest running and most successful tin top series. Maybe its time for another global series that is of interest to various manufacturers?

The place near my old apartment on Sydney Rd. It is on the left hand side headign out of the city. NO POLL required. They are massive, tasty and yes i can still eat two

Yeh, i was surprised by how much of a YES man Cam was! He was really towing the V8 Supercar line and was a little one eyed

I was going to go this arvo, but went for a 20k walk around the bay instead. I get my suspension back this week so soon

Fact is the cars at the tops of the time sheets could all run 10s, or very low 11s. Giant could perhaps give a 9 a scare. So qtr mile runs wont prove anything other then the fact that to do the times the top guys are doing, you need good power and power down. But we already know that

What annoys me is that Australia has enough reserves and refineries (foreign owned) to almost be self supported and therefore sheltered from global oil prices! Only years ago, out retarded politicians as always lacked the planning skills required of a government and sold the rights to our reserves to OS oil companies. The catch, the Aus govt didnt have to absorb the cost of exploration and refining so they lazily collected the millions from the sale and patted themselves on the back. Why would an OS oil company be interested? Well the Aus govt agreed that the oil from our fields would be sold locally at global rates. So even if a barrell of oil is costing the earth OS, well we pay the ungodly price. Rather then the price for our only locally sourced oil. FARKIGN GOVERNMENTS! Its true, the dumbest kids from school are always the ones 20 years later who somehow find themselves in charge of us all

Was thinking about going and driving the same stretch of road in my car to see how my car goes

I didnt always agree with Montoya, but he was an amazing talent and i miss him not being on the grid. Rather then the vid posted earlier, this is what i remember him for http://youtube.com/watch?v=YOW-jngVoT4 And DC will be missed... Now Kimi is no Mr Personality for journos but he comes up with some pearlers

If Mav was a rockstar, he would be Rick Astley. He sipped wine and giggled too