Fact: According to a report in the Rocky Mountain News, two brothers died when testing their modified Chevelle on the roads around a Denver warehouse district. Both men, in their 40s, died when the car hit a loading dock at more than 100 mph.
Facts And Rumors
Fact: William J. Faenza Jr., 35, was charged by police in Lehighton, Pennsylvania for allegedly driving 182 mph in his Lamborghini Diablo while drunk. The speed was calculated by timing the Diablo over a fixed distance according to a report from the Associated Press. Dang, we were hoping that some trooper in a really bad-actor Crown Vic had chased him down.
Fact: The Los Angeles Police Department confiscated its first two cars under a new municipal law that allows them to seize cars involved in illegal street races. "We're taking lethal weapons off the streets," Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo was quoted as saying by the Long Beach Press Telegram. "We're taking them and we're not giving them back." The disposition of the two cars, a '89 IROC Camaro and a similar '90 model, hasn't been determined yet. However LAPD Chief William Bratton has suggested crushing them in front of their drivers. Ouch.
Fact: Ford is spending at least $200 million to advertise the new F-150. This is supposedly the most expensive vehicle launch ever.
Fact: In August 2003, Toyota sold more vehicles of all types (cars and trucks) in the United States than did Chrysler.
Fact: Pontiac will call its '05 replacement for the Grand Am the G6.
Application For Sainthood
Dear Pope,
My friends and I have decided that we need to recognize a friend of ours. Jim Peterson lives in the San Fernando Valley in Southern California with his wife Mary. It seems that a few months ago, Mary left for a week or so to visit her mother. But when she came back, various pieces of a chrome yellow '55 Chevy frontend had appeared on the pool table. It seems Jim had run out of room in the garage to assemble the '55 front clip, so he figured he could do it in the living room and be done before she returned. That didn't happen.
Now, fast-forward a couple of months and the frontend is finally finished, complete with aluminum radiator, polished A/C condenser, and meticulously-installed stainless steel bolts and fasteners. It's now time for the front-clip moving party. Amazingly, Jim's friends managed to get it out the front door without scratching the paint even once, so Jim is happy as it now resides on the front of his '55 where it belongs.
But this letter is really about nominating his wife Mary for sainthood in the Catholic Church. She has to be a saint if she put up with this nonsense for several months and didn't just kick him and his '55 front clip right out the door. So, please consider our friend Mary for sainthood. Oh, and if Jim has a brain in his head, he'll never attempt this stunt ever again. He may not be so lucky the second time!Respectfully Submitted by The Friends of Mary Peterson
Scholarships In 10W30
The Castrol GTX Top Techs program for 2003 concluded last August with the award of a $7,500 scholarship to Daniel Gilbert, a second-year student at the Houston campus of Universal Technical Institute. A full $2,500 of that came from Car Craft's publisher Primedia because, dang it, we care.
Here's Daniel Gilbert, some drag racer named John Force, and Top Techs regional winner Pete Johnson, who served as an honorary pit-crew member for Force during the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals.
With $2,500 speeding out of Primedia and into Gilbert's scholarship, we're just going to have to tighten our belts around here a little bit more. So no more filet mignon for lunch, and we're going to have start paying for our own midafternoon massages down at Madame Vu's.