The legendary Hemi 265 Charger. Hear it scream.

I'm not sure that this post needs words as such.   Simply watching the video- especially around the 30-second mark- is enough to send tingles down the spine of all true Mopar fans. Even if you don't have pentastar-blood running though your veins, you just can't beat the sound of an Australia Charger with a Hemi 265 (4.3L) straight-six...

Call of Duty 4: top tips for Claymore fun

As you may have read in my previous article claymores are my friends, I just can't get enough of the little fellas in Call of Duty 4. I have experimented by placing claymores in all kinds of locations, and have employed many different tactics along the way. Here are some of my favourite top tips for claymore fun!

• Unexpected location strategy. I like to place the claymores in seemingly-random spots, usually where they can be partially obscured by grass. This provides a nice surprise for enemies who carelessly dash between supposed empty/safe sections of the map. By the time they see the claymore it's usually too late.
  
• Fall-back ambush strategy. When approaching a firefight, I often prepare for a possible retreat by placing a few claymores along the way. Point them in the direction you are traveling. Just around corners and along narrow laneways are obvious choices. Enter the firefight as usual, but if you feel the tide turning against you start backing away in a fighting retreat. Alternatively you can turn and run- that will work as a lure too. The enemy usually can't resist chasing you, and with his attention firmly focused on finishing you off he will inevitably miss your little insurance policy. Until it blows up in his face that is.
  
• Cover your tracks strategy. Slightly different to the fall-back ambush strategy in that you face the claymores away from your direction of travel. Very reassuring if you end up in a battle to know that you won't be caught from behind. You know what I mean.
  
• Block all entrances strategy. An old favourite for snipers and campers. Simply find a nice safe location with only a few entrances, then claymore the heck out of them. The first you'll know about an enemy attack is a large explosion and 10+ points on your score.

(image from mocoloco.com)

Tracking delivery of my VW Golf GTI

Thanks to Wallenius Wilhelmsen's excellent tracking website, I was able to see exactly how (and when) my Golf MkV GTI travelled across the world from Germany to Australia.  To perform the query all I needed was my GTI's VIN number.  I've included a picture of the results below (VIN number and some other details have been removed! :)

I thought it would be interesting to go on a virtual-tour by visualising the trip using Google Maps.  My 2007 3-door GTI was manufactured at Volkswagen's sprawling Wolfsburg factory in Jan 07.

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It was then transported across Germany from Wolfsburg to Bremerhaven

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In mid-Feb at Bremerhaven it was loaded aboard Wallenius Wilhelmsen's ship MIGNON

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And was then transported to Sydney Australia, arriving at the end of March 

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Finally, the GTI was transported 300km from Sydney to Canberra. 

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...where it remains today.  All pretty fascinating, don't you think?

Guitar Hero: aging disgracefully, or better than ever?

The Guitar Hero series would have to rank as some of the greatest games ever made. Simple to learn, but fiendishly hard to complete (on expert difficulty), the games have something for everyone. I was hooked after playing Guitar Hero II on Playstation 2, and thought that I would never make it beyond medium difficulty. Well, it wasn't long before I was working my way up through hard and expert, and seeking more songs I purchased a copy of the original Guitar Hero. Another great game with an excellent selection of classic songs, although the controls did seem a little unforgiving compared to Guitar Hero 2 (they must have finessed them for the sequel). I loved every minute of GH1. Actually, perhaps not every minute... trying to beat Cowboys from Hell on expert still makes me want to throw my guitar through the TV.

Anyway, my (elusive) main point is that since Guitar Hero 2, I think the series may have lost its way. Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s was a disappointment... at first. Nothing much had changed since GH2, except for the deletion of bonus tracks. Not a good start. However things rapidly improved, with the inclusion of some fantastic songs. Wrathchild by Iron Maiden anyone? The top-notch tracks were the saviour of GHE:RT80s. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, however, went right off the rails. The fundamentals were all still there, and the track list was decent, but the game just didn't have the same feel as the prequels. The one-liners and tips that appear during the game weren't funny anymore, and the in-game graphics had undergone a wholly unnecessary makeover. Why did new-GH-developer Neversoft mess with a winning formula? Why couldn't original-GH-developer Harmonix crank out one more Guitar Hero themselves before moving on to Rock Band? And while I'm asking questions, why am I still stuck on 31/40 songs completed (expert mode) in Guitar Hero 2?

So many questions...

Ferrari F430 Scuderia: who cares?

Ok, I admit that my title is probably a little harsh. The Ferrari F430 Scuderia is no doubt a brilliant car, as I'm sure auto journalists and the mega-rich will attest. But to be completely honest, I have always been far more excited by cars that are within reach of the ordinary person. And I am increasingly fond of cars that punch above their weight, so to speak, such as the recently-superceded Renault Sport Clio 182. There is something very appealing about a car that delivers maximum thrills for a budget price. Which leads me to the Toyota Yaris, or Echo as it was previously known in Australia. A well built car no-doubt (as all Toyotas are), but lacking in excitement. That didn't deter Kimi, who drove from the UK to Germany to have Toyota Motorsport fit a supercharger to her Yaris. Now that is truly inspirational! I for one would be proud to drive a supercharged-Yaris, and I wonder why Toyota doesn't make the kit available as an option in Australia? Surely a bargain-priced rocket would have wide appeal?...

(images from channel4.com and toyotaownersclub.com)

Top Gear Stupidly Hard Quiz - says it all really

Have you given Top Gear's Stupidly Hard Quiz a try yet?  As a longtime fan of Top Gear I figured I would do reasonably well, however my best result is a pitiful 15 questions right (125 laps left to go). Obviously I haven't been paying enough attention to the words of Messrs. Clarkson, Hammond and May. It's a tough quiz, no doubt about it.  Stupidly Hard in fact...

(image grabbed from Top Gear episode)

The 50 Worst Cars of All Time: priceless

I just couldn't resist this. Time has revealed its 50 Worst Cars of All Time, and it's a fun read. To save you clicking through endless pages, go directly to the complete list of cars. While some of Time's choices may be a little controversial (I like the 1958 Lotus Elite!), most of them emphatically are not. After all, who would argue that the 1998 Fiat Multipla, shown here in all its repugnant glory, does not deserve its rightful place in the top 50? And of course there are old favourites, such as the exploding lemon that was the 1971 Ford Pinto. I guess the best that can be said for these cars is that they have character, although it's the kind of character none of us ever want to experience first-hand...

(image from www.budapestsite.com)

Golf GTI on your Xbox 360

It's probably old news by now (given that SEGA Rally for Xbox 360 was released back in Sept 2007) but I was overjoyed to find that the game features a Golf GTI. It is beautifully modeled, and perfect in every detail. It looks like the GTI has gained an aftermarket stubby antenna, similar to the one I ordered from parts4euro.com. The game itself is fun, being a good blend of arcade racer and driving simulation. Actually, there really isn't much simulation in the game, that is unless you count the simulated mud and dirt. The mud realistically splatters your car during a race, until you decide to drive through a puddle (a kind of DIY car wash). And the dirt road cleverly deforms over time, leaving tyre tracks and indentations in the surface. A cool idea, although I couldn't really tell the difference as I blasted around the track chasing down the opposition. My only real disappointment with SEGA Rally is that the Golf GTI is too slow when compared with the WRX and Evo. It's a pity for VW fans that SEGA brought this dose of reality into their game...

Charger E49 - wish you'd bought one 15 years ago?

The Charger E49 is revered as the mightiest of all Australian-built Chargers, and rightly so. With a 0-100 kph time of 6.1 seconds, the E49 would impress in 2008, let alone in the 1970s when they were brand new. Not quite up to speed with your knowledge of Aussie Chargers? Never mind, the Chrysler in Australia website should fill in the blanks. As you'd expect, the second hand value of E49s has always surpassed that of common garden-variety Chargers. At the time of the photo, which I took at an "All Chrysler" day in the early 90s, I reckon E49s were selling for around the AU$30K mark. A quick check of the Australian Red Book (used car values) website demonstrates just how much the Charger E49 has appreciated over the years. Go on, take a look for yourself and prepare to be amazed. If you're anything like me, you wish you could have bought one 15 years ago and kept it in storage...

Call of Duty 4: Claymores are my friends

I am thoroughly enjoying myself as I work my way up through the ranks in Call of Duty 4 on Xbox 360. Not long after proclaiming that martyrdom is fun, I joined the ranks of those able to dispense martyrdom-goodness instead of just being on the receiving end of the perk. Well, it seems that all my FPS-Christmases have come at once with the claymore being added to my arsenal. I'm not a camper per se, however, when holed up in a nice tall building and scanning the battlefield through my scope, nothing irritates me more than some low-life sneaking up and stabbing me in the throat. The claymore is the perfect determent - a few well-placed mines (at the tops of ladders, inside doorways etc) ensures that no miscreants can rudely interrupt my sniping frenzy. It never fails to bring a smile to my face when I see that an enemy has stumbled into one of my cunning traps. Ah, simple pleasures...

(image from www.8tharmy.korea.army.mil)

Honda Civic Sport - perfect except for...

That's right, the Honda Civic Sport made our new car short list.  In the end, there was only one thing stopped us from signing on the dotted line.  But first - what were the stand-out features of the Civic Sport? Well, it's hard to go past the dash with its cool futuristic shape and digital speedo.  Before seeing the dash with my own eyes I presumed it would be gimmicky,  however it's really not.  The dash felt like it belonged to a newer generation of cars, and it made its competitors look pretty bland in comparison. 

The interior is quite well done in general, with leather seats and plenty of storage space.  Of course the Honda engine is good, being a 2.0 litre i-VTEC with 114kW.  Not excessive, but powerful enough to be fun.  We had the 5-speed automatic, which was a big improvement over other autos I had driven.  

The Sport looks good in my opinion- much better than the standard Civic VTI.  Having said that, take a look at the two images of the Mugen Civic.  What a fantastic looking car.  What a pity it's not available in Australia (as far as I know).  So, what was the one thing that prevented us from buying a Honda Civic Sport?  The size of the car- frankly, it's huge.  This didn't bother me so much, but my wife was adamant that we buy a smaller car.  And you can't argue that the Civic has grown significantly in size over the years.  Still, all-in-all, the Sport is a great car, and great value as well.

(images from www.honda.com.au and www.mugen-power.com)

New Fiat 500 - here in March

According to the motoring media, the new Fiat 500 will arrive in Australia in March 2008.  Don't get too excited though- apparently the first few months' shipments are all sold out.  I think the Fiat 500 is going to be a smash hit when launched in Australia.  Firstly, it's (reasonably) inexpensive when compared to its obvious rival the MINI Cooper, with pricing in the AU$20k range.  Secondly, it looks brilliant, and is endlessly customisable - just like the MINI. I created the two exterior pictures using Fiat's Video Configurator, selecting the colour schemes and options I would pick if purchasing a Fiat 500 of my own.  Good fun that :)  The third picture on the left is of the interior and dash, which look great - very different to anything else I've seen.  Unique and classy, while still appearing simple and user-friendly.  Perhaps the only thing lacking at launch is an engine with some power.  A 1.4 litre engine will have to suffice - at least until the Fiat 500 Abarth comes along.  Now that's more like it!...

 

(images from autos.yahoo.com and fiat500.com)

Buying a MkV Golf GTI: delivery checklist and tips

When the day finally arrived for us to collect our new Volkswagen Golf GTI, I naturally wanted the car to be perfect.  Thankfully everything went smoothly, but had the GTI not been up to scratch I am sure I would have identified any problems with the help of my pre-delivery checklist.  Compiled largely from info provided by the friendly guys on the Australian Golf MKV Forum, along with tidbits picked up from the web, I am sure that the following tips can help you spot any problems before you hand over any cash...

• Check that the dealer has completed a pre-delivery inspection (PDI) report, and that it is signed-off
• Make sure the car you receive is the one you ordered (including all options)
• Check that the instruction manual and paperwork are all present
• Take the car out into the sun to look over the paint for flaws
• Look through the interior, making note of any scratches, loose panels, dirty carpet or missing mats
• Make sure you get your VW bottle opener! (it doubles as a divider for the GTI's cupholder :)
• Make sure all electronics work (wipers, all speakers, trip computer etc)
• Ensure that the trip computer is set to your preferred language (ours was initially set to German!).  It's possible that this setting can be changed by the user on 2008 model GTIs, however it is only switchable by the dealer on 2007 GTIs like mine.
• Check to make sure the suspension spring spacers have been removed
• Make sure that the car has the correct amount of registration as agreed
• Check that the spare tyre and jack are present

This list isn't exhaustive, but it should help you to feel a bit more confident when handing over your hard-earned money.   ...especially when all you can think about is getting the car out of the showroom and onto the road!

VK Charger 770: the early years...

Before the rust and restoration, my VK Chrysler Charger 770 was in exceptional condition.  I won't add the word original, as the car had already received some aftermarket wheels (265s on the back, 245s on the front), along with extractors and exhaust system. The photos you see here were taken at an 'All Chrysler Day' in South Australia, where I proudly displayed my Charger amongst the other MOPAR-goodness on show.  

If you look carefully and compare these photos with those taken after the restoration, you will see that I made a few slight changes to the exterior.  These included removal of the rubber strip down the side, painting the grill black (the white teethy grill just didn't look tough enough!), and painting the entire rear in the original 'topaz gold metalic' colour.  As for the interior, well...  let's just say I decided on a whole new look which didn't include a trace of brown, orange, or tartan anywhere!  More on this later...

COD 4 pwns HALO 3

Am I the only person who didn't like HALO 3? Sometimes it feels like it, although Zero Punctuation's HALO 3 review gave me hope that there were people out there as underwhelmed as I was.  I bought HALO 3 on the strength of the reviews I had read, but on playing the game found it to be ordinary in the extreme.  After persevering with it for a day or so (and really wanting to like the game), I could put up with it no longer and traded it for Tom Clancy Rainbow Six Vegas.  Now there's a decent game!  

Compared with HALO 3, I  didn't have any trouble getting into Call of Duty 4.  COD 4 grabbed me from the first moment, and it hasn't disappointed since.  The single player game is absorbing and the multiplayer is intense- and with a real strategic side to it.  I was preparing myself to be let-down by COD 4 just as I was by HALO 3 (and COD 3 for Wii, come to think of it...), but it looks like the game reviewers got this one right.  :)

(images from got-next.com and activewin.com)

Unique Cars drives the Chrysler Charger 770

Here is a magazine article on the Chrysler Charger 770.  The article originally appeared in the Australian Unique Cars magazine -  a few years ago by my guess.  Interesting article none the less.

(image from Unique Cars)

Chrysler Charger: pre-restoration pictures

Looking back at the photos it's hard to believe just how bad the rust was.  Of course it was obvious that my Charger had rust, but it was only when the car was taken back to bare metal that the full extent of the problem was revealed.  And the problem was extensive!  I did not do the work myself - lacking both the skills and the equipment - but I managed to find a body shop that was happy to undertake the project for a price.  It is inevitable that a car built in 1976 will eventually start to rust, and given that I had already had the engine rebuilt, I felt an obligation to also rescue the bodywork from the sorry state it was in.  Was it worth it?  Yes and no.  Financially, no.  The sheer amount of time required to restore the bodywork to original condition (which included the fabrication of new metal panels) meant that the labour cost was very high.  On the other hand, the end result was stunning, with the Charger looking the best it had for many, many years.  There is no doubt that restoring the Charger's bodywork was the most expensive part of the project, and given the choice it may have been wiser (and certainly cheaper) to buy a different Charger without the rust issues.  But this was my Charger, my dream car that had served me well for many years.  I even displayed it at Chrysler car shows in the early days, when it was still in pristine condition.  Actually I have some photos of the early days, but I'll save them for a future post...

Hey Charger! :)

The title won't mean much unless you are (a) older than me or (b) an Aussie muscle-car nut. Hey Charger was of course the catchy advertising slogan for the Australian-built and designed Chrysler Charger of the 1970s. The beautiful looking example in these photos - a 1976 VK Charger 770 -  belonged to me.  The Charger was my daily driver for around 8 years, and I loved every minute of owning it.  Well... that's not quite true, I didn't love spending the bucket-loads of cash to restore the car.  But you gotta blow a lot of money restoring an old classic car at least once in your life, right?  And you aren't doing it right if you don't lose a bundle when it comes time to sell the car :)

For those tech-minded readers out there, my Charger had a 4.3 litre '265' straight-six engine, a 4 speed manual gearbox, extractors and a nice sports exhaust.  It went well and sounded amazing!  More about the Charger, including restoration pictures, later...

Sensible World of Soccer - a missed opportunity?

One of my all-time favourite games is Sensible Soccer (aka SWOS), first released for the Amiga in the early 90s.  My mates and I played Sensi to death, wearing out many TAC-2 and Konix SpeedKing joysticks in the process. The ultimate version was Sensible World of Soccer, which boasted thousands of real life players and teams from all over the world.  It was recently announced that Sensible Soccer was included in a list of the ten most important video games of all time - a fair call I reckon.  

So it was with great joy and anticipation that I downloaded Sensible World of Soccer on Xbox LIVE Arcade.  First impressions are that Sensi looks and plays just like I remember from all those years ago.  I swear that the goalkeepers seem much better in this version, but it's just as likely that my skills have diminished somewhat.  But what have Codemasters done to the online play?  - it's a mess!  It is almost impossible to host or join an online game, and when selecting teams both players control the menu at the same time.  Bizarre!  And if you are fortunate to get an online game going, prepare for l-a-g because you are going to experience a ton of it.  All in all a very disappointing experience. Fingers crossed that Codemasters rectify the problems soon.

(image from teamxbox.com)

Call of Duty 4: Martyrdom is fun

I've been playing Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare on Xbox 360 quite a lot lately.  I'm sure you all know from personal experience (or have read in the zillions of reviews on the web) just how fantastic this game is.  So I won't bore you with yet another COD4 mini review.   Although I am mostly getting M21-whipped by 14-year olds, I have managed to progress up through the ranks and obtain new perks, with Last Stand being my favourite.  Last Stand enables you to remain alive (but immobile) for a short time after being 'killed', so that you can exact some pistol-revenge on the enemy who assaulted you.  Maybe I'm just sick, but I can't help laughing each time I put a few 9mm rounds into an overzealous enemy who thinks they're about to finish me off.  Last Stand, however, pales into insignificance compared to the tastefully-named Martyrdom perk.  Martyrdom, as I have found out numerous times, causes the enemy you have just slaughtered to drop a live grenade next to their corpse.  I fall for it every time, with the grenade exploding just as it dawns on me that I should run away.  It's pretty awesome actually, except for the fact that I don't have the perk yet.

BTW, why am I having trouble getting a decent connection when playing COD4?  Occasionally I get green bars, but usually they are yellow or orange.  This doesn't help when fending off the hordes of juveniles with P90s, red-dot sights, and the ability to see around corners.  The joys of Australian broadband maybe?

(image from CharlieOscarDelta.com)

Golf GTI Mk5 line-up

I couldn't resist taking photos when I saw my GTI sandwiched between two Candy White 5-door GTIs in a car park recently.  Candy White was actually our number two colour choice, just behind Tornado Red.  

Coopers in the US of A

Not that this has anything to do with cars, games, or much else really... but did you know that Coopers beer bottles have a kangaroo on them in the US?  On a trip to the US in 2006 a fellow Aussie and I were surprised to find a shop selling Coopers, and we thought the addition of the kangaroo was a nice patriotic touch.  Bit of trivia for you...

Classics: Austin Healey "Bugeye" Sprite

Reading my blog to-date you might get the impression that I only like new cars, but that wouldn't be correct. While browsing through some of my photos I came across this picture I took at a Canberra car show a few years ago- a classic Austin Healey "Bugeye" Sprite. Doesn't it look amazing? There's something about two-door convertibles from this period that captivates me, and I'm not exactly sure why that is. In the case of the Sprite, the looks are definitely a major attraction, but perhaps it's also the purity and simplicity of the vehicle? Of course the reality of owning a classic car of this age isn't quite so rosy, with rust repairs and replacement of old failing parts being par for the course. If I had it my way, I'd skip all the hard work and hassle and purchase a fully restored and immaculate example straight off the bat... something like Noddy would do nicely!

And if an Austin Healey wasn't feasible, I'd quite happily settle for a Honda S600 or S800 instead :)

Suzuki Swift: a top contender

You will notice on these pages that I like small cars with a sporty edge. Actually, thanks to my wife make that small automatic cars, due to her abhorrence of changing gear manually. That created a dilemma, as you can count the number of small, sporty, automatic and inexpensive cars on one finger. Come to think of it, not even one finger, as to be honest there isn't a single car that fits the bill. You can buy a car that will meet three out of four criteria - no problems at all - but a car that meets all four requirements?... forget it. Here are some examples:

• Toyota Yaris: inexpensive, small, automatic, but not sporty
• Ford Fiesta XR4/ST: inexpensive, small, sporty, but no automatic
• Volkswagen Polo GTI: inexpensive, small, sporty, but no automatic
• Suzuki Swift Sport: inexpensive, small, sporty, but no automatic
• Mazda 3 SP23: meh. Didn't like it.
  
• Honda Civic Sport: inexpensive (ish - sort of), sporty, automatic, but not small (when did Civic's grow an extra size??). Actually, we took one for a test drive- more on this later.

Out of desperation, we decided to take a standard Suzuki Swift 'S' for a test drive. I wanted so much to like this car- after all it looks great, is cheap as chips, and meets all of our requirements except for one: sportiness. Still, no harm in taking a Swift for a quick spin to see for myself whether it's 74kW and 133Nm would be enough to make it a fun drive. And the answer is: almost, but not quite. The car is indeed fun to drive, being so light and easy to manoeuvre. The gated automatic is also not bad, allowing the driver to change up and down through its four gears. But the Swift just lacks the power to be really exciting. It would be fine as a run-about, and I'm sure the manual version would be a real laugh, but the automatic needs a much more powerful engine to give the Swift the level of performance that I was searching for. Sure, the Swift Sport is probably just about perfect with its 92kW and 148Nm, but forget about an automatic version ever making its way to Australia.

Still, I hadn't given up on the Swift. Driven (haha) by my enthusiasm for the looks and handling of the Swift, not to mention it's rock-bottom price, I investigated after-market solutions to the power deficit. That's when I stumbled across the Zage Swift Turbo Kit, which promised to double the Swift's power to 130kW for around AU$3000. Now that sounds like fun! Finding a distributor, I made enquiries and discovered that the kits were quite new to Australia, and I had the distinct impression that I might end up being a guinea-pig for the installation. In addition, a badly-translated Cantonese review of the kit specifically mentioned the turbo's dramatic on/off nature, and I started having visions of the turbo coming on-boost half way around a corner while driving in the wet. I got scared. In theory, an automatic Suzuki Swift with some nice wheels, custom intake and exhaust, and Zage turbo kit would be an awesome car. But to my conservative-mind the risks outweighed the benefits. On the plus side, if the Swift had proved to be perfect for us, then we wouldn't have ended up with a Golf GTI instead! :)