Any Tractor Guys Into Sports Cars Too?

[1026R owner]

Boy, that's going from the frying pan into the fire...

The real estate agent told us the taxes were cheaper here! Seriously, don't miss crowded L.A., and it's pretty rural where we are here in northern Jersey. Love it here. Couldn't justify a tractor in L.A. neither.

 

[ultrarunner]

Yeah... the Super 7 was like riding on the ground... even as a child, I could easily reach outside and touch the ground while sitting in the passenger seat.

It was always my job to put gas in the GT40...

The first time I did it, I didn't realize there were two separate tanks... one on each side... so the car listed ever so slightly because I only filled the Driver's side.

My ideal home site would be in the county and not too far away from work..

I've seen some great set-ups in the Sierra Foothills... not really practical if it's 2+ hours to work each way.

The older I get... the more I realize I'm just not a city person... restrictions on land use, design review and prohibitions on out buildings, etc have all evolved since I was a child...

I bought my home from a neighbor that had built his 22 x 30 shop and another 600 square feet of garage in the 70's when it was still no problem and simple.

My good friend has the same problem because the city annexed their 100 acres with their modest home and tractor shed...

Simple things like doing my own paint and body work are no longer allowed.. all it takes is one neighbor to complain and that's it.

The property I have and that of my folks would be perfect otherwise...

 

[1026R owner]

We think country living is better than city living. We know all about two-hour commutes and don't miss them. Even in the country, it's getting more difficult to build garages and do stuff on your own land. It took us seven months to get approval on our garage. And no one had any issues with it; it took that long just to get through the red tape and get a variance approved. Lots of guys have problems when they try to work on cars or paint cars. I didn't even try to get approval to have a sink or any kind of water run to the garage. The cops came by here the other night when a semi was unloading two of our cars. We were not loud, but he was parked on the road, a lonely two-lane with very little traffic, easy to get around. Someone complained! Not sure how they think someone can move. We don't have one of those handy transporters like we used to see on Star Trek. That said, it's important to us to have the cars at home. Otherwise, it's too easy to not to see them. I really enjoy keeping them looking good and doing some of the basic maintenance, or just hanging out looking at them, drinking a beer or a cup of coffee, thinking, daydreaming. When we were in SoCal, we found we could do a lot with a small garage. At one point we had seven cars in a three-car garage, stacking them two of them on lifts. Having it crammed makes it difficult to work on them, though. We painted the floor in a checkered flag pattern, had vintage art on the walls, and it was great fun to hang out in there with friends. It was like adding a room onto the house.

I did not know that about the tanks on the GT 40. Very interesting.

 

[ultrarunner]

I hear you...

I've actually had the police show up because someone saw a tractor on park land...

Well that someone was me and I was 100% on family land...

Everyone assumes Mom's backyard is part of the park. City even cut and removed a chain she had across the back thinking it was city property... I went down to public works with copies of the tax bill and wanted to know how it could be city land when I have 45 years of tax bills.

Car Culture was huge in California growing up... now, not so much.

People in Marin County stopped to comment on why we shouldn't be driving on the road because our cars don't have modern safety and smog equipment... and no... none of the cars was smoking.

Lucky for me my immediate dozen or so neighbors are great... I'm there go to person in a pinch.

In an area with 100's of homes perched on hillsides... the person reporting could be half a mile or more away.

Congrats on getting the shop approved and in... nothing is more satisfying than being able to keep your equipment safe and secure and protected from the elements.

 

[1026R owner]

Some good GT 40 footage here from the Amelia Island concours:

https://www.ameliaconcours.org/newsandmedia/video.aspx

 

[ultrarunner]

Thanks for the links!

 

[dodge man]

Not really a sports car, but it's a lot of fun at the quarter mile tracks.. 2006 Dodge Charger SRT8 with nitrous.. Runs mid 10's with and mid 11's without.

I like your Charger. What have you done to it to get it in the 11's without nitrous?

 

[dmccarty]

...
Some of the cars have been in storage over 10 years and have not seen the light of day... they've been safe because no one knows they are there.
...

Years ago I read an article about a car that had been found in a garage/barn in Italy or maybe Sicily. The car was a classic Italian sports car and only a few of them had been made. This car had an aluminum body. The car had been parked at one end of the building AND THEN BRICKED in so it could not be stolen. :shocked::laughing::laughing::laughing: Course the car was forgotten for decades and eventually found behind the brick wall...

The problem was that the aluminum body had corroded away. I thought aluminum was pretty corrosion resistant but I guess it can rot away.

Later,
Dan

 

[sox3]

Just a few of toys I have had over the years.The Vette is the current toy.

 

[dmccarty]

UltraRunner,

Can you pass wind in CA without a permit, being taxed, fined, reported to the EPA, fire department and/or the POlice? :shocked:

Later,
Dan