Hey everybody. Long story here goes:
So shortly after I bought my car, I had a reasonably sized leak in my power steering fluid. The belt survived, but it had whipped a large amount of gunk onto my alternator. Early last spring, I took the car to my mechanic because of the noise coming from my engine bay.(Swedish Import Services, great guy, if you have a Volvo or Pre-gm Saab definitely check him out.) Anyway he said he wasn't quite sure and he recommended me to AutoScandia. They charged me 84 dollars and gave me an estimate of $850 to replace my alternator. My friend Weston agreed to help me drop in the new alternator during the summer and out schedules never matched up. Enter Jake Thiewes. He helped me a lot and huge props to him and all others who helped me get in the new alt in. Using online logs (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.saabcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48122">http://www.saabcentral.com/forums/showt ... hp?t=48122</a><!-- m -->) we spent all Sunday taking out the old alternator. The bracket had four bolts, one of which was a complete bastard, jammed between the ear lip of the bracket and the round top of the alternator. I had already purchased a "perfect fit" alternator from Olympus. But things were unhappy when we held the old, gunk covered alt and it fit in the palm of our hands. The next day I borrowed Jake's tank and went to Olympus for the new part. Props to Olympus for giving me a full refund even though the extended time I had the alternator. Anyway second day we drop the new alternator in pretty quick. However, the old one has a neck to reach the extra few inches to get to the belt. Impact gun the neck off the old one and onto the new one. Easy enough. We throw everything back in and on. Jake kicks it up to about 5,000 RPM and a loud clunk followed by sawing sounds. The neck had fallen off because there was not enough room for both the washer and bolt to hold on the neck. Within about two hours we had everything back out, neck on without the washer, and everything back in and ready to go. I'm out by about 7:45 on Monday night after first arriving at about 11 in the morning on Sunday. I am ridiculously confident in my skill at replacing GM900 and OG9-3 alternators now. Look no further if you need help with that.

Hey all! Little late on my intro but better late than never. My name is Ryan and im a sophomore here at JMU majoring in GS with dual concentrations. Im from Charlottesville VA which is just south east from Hburg. I've worked on cars for a number of years and have done a bit of everything there is to do. I drive an 86 Z28 camaro that my dad and I rebuilt after it had been sitting in someones driveway for five years. A fun project that has led to a lot of time hanging out in the garage. The car has been modified a decent amount and the list goes on and on. If you'd like details feel free to message me. I couldn't get the pictures to work for now but ill come back and post a few.

http://imgur.com/a/HPZa5

Here's a link to an album I threw together.

Hey so... I'm planning on driving down on Saturday of College Solo weekend (the 17th) so I don't have to endure a long drive down and back up on the same day as the autocross.

Anyone want to do dinner, drinks, whatever-the-hell on Saturday afternoon or evening?

Hi everyone! I'm Connor, I'm a junior Intelligence Analysis Major here at JMU. I'm originally from Long Island New York and I drive a 2014 Ford Fiesta ST. I bought the FiST in May, but prior to that I had a 1999 Mustang GT Convertible. If my first two car purchases didn't indicate this already, I'll just put it out there now and say I'm a pretty big Ford guy. '69 Boss 429 is my favorite Ford, but my favorite car is the Aston Martin V12 Vantage S. Most of my time spent at home is with friends either modding a '14 Focus ST, or attempting to get an '03 Ranger to stop misfiring. (Not as easy as it sounds) So I guess I'm decent with a wrench. I do have a general idea of what direction I want to take my car in, so hopefully I will get started on that soon. MM has been a lot of fun so far, and I'm looking forward to meeting everyone else!

FYI, SA2015 spec helmets are coming out. Which means that SA2010 are on closeout pricing. Some good deals, some okay deals. SA2010 is still good for 6 more years (typically they allow the year after as well) for NASA and 11 more years with SCCA.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.ogracing.com/sa2010-helmet-sale?utm_source=OG+Racing+Newsletter&utm_campaign=f99612b04f-OG_Newsletter_100115_SA2015_arrival&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_81932ca515-f99612b04f-213506681&goal=0_81932ca515-f99612b04f-213506681&mc_cid=f99612b04f&mc_eid=691b099c24">http://www.ogracing.com/sa2010-helmet-s ... 691b099c24</a><!-- m -->

Hey guys! I'm Alex, and I'm a new transfer student. Technically, I'm a junior, but it's more like I'm a freshman.

Anyway, my current rides are a 2001 Miata, a 2003 Ford Ranger, a 2014 Mustang, and a 1971 VW Sand Rail project. I'll attach pictures of everything but the Ranger, mostly because who cares enough to take pictures of their 2WD 2.3L Ranger?




I really never intended to keep this car, but since I can't seem to sell it, I might as well drive it.


She's come a long way since then, but this is how she looked when I picked her up.


A little about me; I have always been into cars, and they've always been a big part of my life. My father was a sales manager at International Auto Parts, which was pretty much the only source for new Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Lancia parts on the east coast. He also parted these cars out, and so from the time that I was old enough to stand, I was holding the proverbial light. As soon as I was old enough to reach the clutch, I started driving around the family farm in an old VW bug. Let me tell you, if you've never plowed through a field full of cow crap in a motorized tin can with no windows at 60 in the rain, you're really missing out. Also, the highlight of my life was probably when I got to drive a F430 around for 15 minutes.



I've made a living for the last couple of years selling used cars and car parts. I have connections in pretty much every salvage yard within 200 miles, so if you need a cheap used part, I can probably help you out. I also have a dealer license, so if you need to know wholesale or Manheim value (helpful for negotiating at car lots), I'd be happy to look it up for you. Only downside to this whole business in college is the amount of crap that I have laying around my room. My roommates and I are actually seriously considering starting a junkyard / dealership when we get out of college.




Looking forward, I'd really like to sell the Miata and the Mustang and pick up a C5 Z06 Corvette. Rumor has it that there's a member here who's looking to sell one? (hint hint, I'm interested)

Anyway, I'm excited to be a part of this community, as it seems like a great group of people. I also hope that it's not overly apparent that I've worked my way through half a fifth of Fireball since starting this post.

Have a great night!

-Alex

I'm guessing this is a long shot. I'd probably have to head to Richmond as the closest place, but I was wondering if someone near Hburg makes custom downpipes? More specifically a downpipe for a 3071r with a t25 hotside(faces upwards). Doubt anyone in Hburg has the expertise to do it...

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Hey guys my name is Chase Lewis, I am from Goochland, Virginia. I drive a 1965 Ford F100 built not bought, with a 560ish hp 460, 3 speed. I also drive a 05 pt loser. Also if my dad isn't home or if there is a show I may get to drive a 2014 Shelby GT500. I wanted to join MM because i love cars it's my life not to mention i want to be an automotive engineer. I don't know what else to write, so yeah. END
Shelby:
Pt Cruiser:
Truck:
....I like pictures

Hi all! My name is Caroline and I’m a freshman at JMU. I’m from Basking Ridge New Jersey, which is around 45 mins from the city. I love all cars, however I’m a sucker for classics (1969 Camaro SS is the dream). I've helped install parts on jeeps to trucks to my own mazda, so I would love to give a hand to anyone installing anything!



I drive a 2009 Mazda 6, all stock unfortunately. Since my brother and I both use it, he refuses to have it modded even in the slightest. It’s broke 200,000 miles but it’s still hauling! I'm looking to buy a used car over the summer, so if any of you have any cars that you're planning on selling, let me know!

I definitely have a lot more to learn, and I can't wait to learn some cool things from you guys. So excited to meet you all!

I was just reading a Keith Code email newsletter and thinking back to my track day at Phillip Island 2 years ago, and how it was probably the best track day I've ever done, and how I hope to do it again and go faster. That moment coming up the front straight and seeing the track fall away and the Southern Ocean rising up on the horizon is just one of those moments that you live for as an enthusiast.

I rode decently but pretty conservatively that day. I had rented a bike that I didn't want to owe several thousand dollars on (like 3 other guys did that day) and I had to catch a flight that evening. But I still left kinda feeling that I could've been a bit less tentative and enjoyed myself more. I guess I can always go back there, but given that it's an expensive 20 hour flight I really don't know when I'll ever get to go there again.

Then I got to thinking about other moments I wish I had back. There wast that time I was test driving the dealership's WRX on a back road with Pete and another friend. As I approached a corner with gravel in it my lizard brain thought, "I have all-wheel drive..." I didn't consciously think, "I don't need to slow down" but that's pretty much what AWD meant in that moment. As we slid towards a fence post I thought maybe I can rotate the car and change its trajectory, which I did, but I was already doomed to hit that fence post. Just a moment of boost-induced idiocy and *bang!*.

One session I wish I had back was my first motorcycle race weekend. On the last race of the weekend I had a last lap battle with another noob where we swapped position five times and I beat him at the start/finish line. Only problem was I left the action cam off =/

I can think of a few others like that time I crashed Chan's 318ti or when I went down to VIR for a race and had to scrap the weekend because my bike wouldn't idle properly but I'd like to hear what are some other times people wish they could have a motoring do-over.