Drifting At Turner Field Up Close Video And Sound

The Mustang Sports wagon.

by Miguel Caparros 

This article was prompted by a posting from Sam Fiorani, another automotive historical journalist on his website, Automotive Travel about the sale of a recently built 1965 Ford Mustang Station Wagon. I remember my initial fascination with the cover and article from Car and Driver magazine 1966 October issue. The car was never officially connected to Ford, but it was commissioned by the account executive Barney Clark of J.Walter Thompson, Ford's advertising agency. The conversion from a GT coupe was done in Italy by the coach works of Intermechanica. Originally sports wagons were know as shooting brakes in England. Wealthy sportsmen would commission local coach builder to build a two door sporty wagon with tailgate from which they could load hunting dogs and guns for some game shooting. Later Volvo actually was the first to take the concept of the sports wagon into major production in 1971 with the P1800 ES.

   

When JWT was done with the car, it was locally sold in New York, where it became a very special daily driver. It was last seen and photographed in a Levittown neighborhood on Long Island.

  

The Red car with the Gold Shelby Stripes is the one in Sam's story. This car had a no expenses job done to it and a modern drive train to make it as useable as any new car.

It is surprising how many individuals have taken it upon themselves to make Mustang wagon conversions. With out really digging to deep, I found 7.  

The Blue 65 has a very pleasing look due to the the slender B and C pillars and the well cut and fitted rear side windows. A white Shelby GT350 sparks the thought, if you are going to build a wagon version might as well make it something truly remarkable. 

A pewter 67 looks real good and classy.

Here is another rendition of a second generation Mustang, this one looks like a 68. Take a close look at this red conversion. The amount of work that it took to graft the top and tailgate from what looks from the photo to be the rear pillars from a 1965 Ford Country Squire. In 65 Ford came up with a system of scooping air from the pillar and directing it across the rear glass to help keep the rear window cleaner.

Here is another red one that seems to have taken its roof, side windows and hatch from the AMC Hornet wagon.

I am certain with the exception of the Intermechanica build, the others used existing production car parts. The rear fender kick up of the Mustang adds complication for using sheet metal and glass from existing cars. If I was asked to do such a conversion I would look at several different donors for the rear would be; the Ford Fairmont Wagon, Pinto Wagon, AMC Hornet wagon, and the Chevy Vega wagon.

If some one offers to sell you their original Prototype 65 Mustang wagon, walk away, Ford never ever made a prototype wagon. The closest they came to it was this mock up from 1966 but the front looks like the 67 and the rear looks like a Gremlin.

A Future Ford Mustang

Ford Motor Company Photo
Your Halo Car is selling real well, it ranges in price from very affordable to outrageous. But it sells to a cross section of buyers from the youngest to the oldest and it is selling. So what do you do? Abandon the plan and start with a completely new design! According to the Wall Street Journal this is the direction Ford is taking the Mustang. Could this be 1974 all over again? For those that were too young to remember or those who are the at age of forgetfulness, Ford did a complete redesign of the, by then bloated 1973 Mustang. The first fuel crisis was in full swing and Ford execs decided to make the Pinto into the new Mustang II. It was a very painful 4 years and the car did not sell well.
This great looking car made its debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show last year. The thought is to attract the tuner class of younger customer and go head to head against the imports. All fine and good but just branding a car a Mustang does not make it so. I think they under estimate the draw to the younger set of the Mustang brand as it stands. The older customers are the ones that are buying the $40,000 plus Shelby and Roush special edition cars. It is the 20 somethings that are signing for the notes on the equally stylish $22,000 V6 powered cars. Although they do not posses the gravity bending horsepower of  the Mustang Boutique cars, the 300 horsepower and relative light weight equate to fantastic performance and great fuel millage of 30 MPG on the highway.  The younger set is willing to pay a slight penalty for the uniquely iconic Mustang look, it is just so right. It also has to be a rear drive car. All you have to do is to look at the Super Coupes from Toyota, Hyundai, and Subaru, they are making turbo powered smaller copies of the Mustang and in my opinion the Mustang as it is does not need to make any apologies, or be redesigned to look like the imports. If you agree send me a note and I will forward it to Ford.

Carroll Shelby Crosses Life's Finish Line

Remembrances and Photo by Miguel Caparros
A mentor, a friend, passed on yesterday. I first met Carroll Shelby, when I was too young to know, I was 6. I was with my Father at the 1957 Nassau Speed Week, I was introduced to many of his friends including Carroll Shelby. At the April of 1965 New York International Auto Show I saw Carroll Shelby again. He had a small space where he was displaying the new Shelby GT350, a Cobra, a Sunbeam Tiger and a Ford GT40. I was 14, he said he remembered me and wondered if I was going to follow my fathers footsteps in racing. In spite of the demands on him, he took the time to walk me through and explain all the cars to me. As I was leaving he gave me a poster of the GT350 that was a reprint of an ad that ran in Competition Press and Autoweek. I still have the poster. He shaped mine and my families life, he goes across life's finish line with yet another first. He is the longest living heart transplant survivor, by a mile. May we learn from all the giving you have done of yourself Carroll Shelby.

About the photo. I have owned a GT350 and drove countless other Shelby cars over the years, the Dodge Shelby Turbo we bought it new, we still have it. All the children learned to drive in this car. We even have a daughter named Shelby. We miss you already Carroll.

The Varsity, !964 Mustang Introduction And A1968 Datsun Road Test

Stories, videos and photos by Miguel Caparros.

An Automotive tradition in Atlanta is the cruise in the 1st Thursday of every month. The Varsity down town cruise in has been going on since the 70's. It is hard to imagine Thursday nights with out the thousands that flock to the Iconic anchor of the Varsity empire that is billed as the worlds largest drive in with out what is with out question is one othe the largest gathering of cars in Atlanta. I have never been able to put an actual number on the crowd, the fluidity of the event makes it very difficult. Some visitors have their spots that they have been at for two generations and others just float in and out but many stay past the departure time of 9pm. One interesting thing I noticed when I first attended 4 years ago was the diversity of the people and the wide range of the ages. 

Here is my Tribute Video to The Varsity Downtown.

1965 Ford Mustang GT Fastback. 

In 1964 I was the luckiest kid in the world. I lived a few subway stops form the New York Worlds Fair. Dad took the whole family on opening day and I was presented with a golden ticket. I could get in to the Fair for the next two years any time I wanted!  And you know I did!  The first day was very special as it was the Introduction of the Ford Mustang.  The Ford Pavilion is the first place we went. Since we were there early the line to ride in a new Mustang was not very long, I picked a red convertible for us to sit in for the ride inside the Ford pavilion.  The following April I would meet Carol Shelby at the New York International Car Show, he gave me a poster of the GT350. Four years later I would own one of Mr Shelby's creations. Thirty years later I would be working for him. I guess you could say the Mustang was an important part of my life.  Where the GT 350 was very good for what it was intended it was not the best street car in the world, Hair trigger clutch, a very stiff suspension and lots of noise are not acceptable in a daily driver, unless you happen to be a teen ager, or race car driver or both! The Mustang Fastback presented in this video is in my opinion the best compromise of  Style and Performance as any car of the period. This GT even came with the milder of the two 4 barrel V8 with a rated 225 HP. The optional engine was a solid lifter High Performance unit that was rated at 271 HP and was the basis for the GT350 engine that put out 306 HP. The GT was a dream to drive, Smooth, a transmission that was a smooth to shift, the clutch was firm and did not need the strength of The Governator to push the pedal down. The suspension was firm without being jarring. If you wanted to abuse your self you could order it with out power steering, something I would never suggest as the manual steering is not only slow but very heavy at low speeds. The GT350 came without power steering and a very fast ratio that made it almost impossible to steer at anything below 25 MPH, I remember the GT350 it came with an ad for Weider muscle building system.  Today the GT is a wonderful collector car that can be driven any where.  The closing credit Photo is the roof of the New York Pavilion at the Worlds Fair. You may remember it from the movie Men in Black, the flying saucers! This was the roof of the building that connected the two buildings supporting the saucers. Much to my mothers horror I laid down on the floor and took the photo on that first day. 

Here is the Video of the Mustang.

In the early to mid 60's Datsun was the one on the move in the US market while Toyota was still sleeping.  Datsun was taking on the British car industry head on as it recuperated from WWII. Datsun was one of the companies that benefited from the leadership of  W. Edwards Deming, he was chosen by the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers (SCAP) a title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the Occupation of Japan following World War II.

I remember the first time I saw an SPL 311 and my reaction to it. The quality of build seemed much better than the MG, Triumph or Alfa Romeo, given the fact that much of the technology was under license from US and  Great Britain.  As great as the quality of the mechanical aspects were concerned, the quality of the interior vinyl and plastics left much to be desire.  In spite of that, they slowly chipped away at the established manufacturers with a product of superior 

mechanical quality and value for the money spent. The SPL 311 line finished in 1970 with the Datsun 2000, A car that had to be taken very seriously as a performance sports car. It was the follow up that put the final nail in the coffin of the British dominance, the 240Z, Fairlady.
Driving impression of the Datsun 1600 from 1968.  First thing I noticed was the size of the car, it felt bigger than an MG Midget but smaller than the MGB. The controls and switch gear had a quality feel to it and the standard Am Fm radio was completely integrated into the dash. Also well integrated was the heating and ventilation levers and switches and they had a light feel as opposed to some of the British cars that felt as if you were trying to move a rail road track change lever with a tooth pick.

One stab of the gas pedal and a light pull of the choke and the car started right up and the choke was not needed after a few seconds and the engine settled to a smooth idle.  The clutch was unusually light as was the shift the lever. As I took off I could immediately sense that although the steering was light it did not have the precision of the British rack and pinion and the ride motion was both soft and choppy at the same time. Getting on the power made me smile as the little 1600 had power equal to if not better than the 1800 in the MGB. But it was the great feel of the gearbox that got my attention. Both precise in movement and light in feel.  Taking it through my favorite set of twisties in Coral Gables It felt good but not as well planted as an MGB or my own Alfa. But there was no question in my mind that Datsun had a winner here, specially when you take into consideration the price. 

The video on this Datsun is here.

Road Atlanta’s Formula Drift 201

By Miguel Caparros Jason Cole Photos

 

Although this is only a two day event, I got personally involved by having my friend and Formula Drift 2010 World Champion, Vaughn Giddin Jr., come on to our Live Radio Show on Garage71 May 5th. This apparently kicked off a wave of excitement with our listeners and they showed up in droves. I saw so many faces that I know from the area who came to this drift event for the first time. The volume of activity on our website of photo and video postings shattered the previous record. I think Professional Drifting is reaching the main stream, the heart pounding excitement of door handle to door handle competition and the non stop action of the rounds with long intermission breaks to permit a lunch break or go into the hot pits to see the drivers and teams up close, I think this is going to get bigger.  The lead article from Stephanie Gullion is a fresh look from some one that had never been to a drift event before.

Photo by Jason Cole Story by Stephanie Gullion.

Showing up at Road Atlanta’s Formula Drift 2011 around noon on Saturday,I had no idea what to expect. Most tuners would roll their eyes when I reveal that the only drift knowledge I came with on Saturday was from…yes, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. And I had just enough common sense to know that there would be no parking decks to tear through and no mountainside showdowns to decide who would leave town, so that wasn’t going to be much help. But by race’s end at 9:30 that night, thanks to the help of my motor mentor, Miguel, and some new friends from the crowd, I not only understood drifting, but couldn’t wait to see more!

My afternoon at Road Atlanta’s Formula Drift began with a tour of the pits with racing veteran, Miguel Caparros. For any newcomer to the sport, I strongly recommend you get to the track early to check out the cars (and get a bunch of free merchandise, take a passenger seat drift ride, and enjoy photo ops with the sponsors’ lovely ladies). Drifting is nothing like your average car event—cars go through the track in tandem, and being first to the finish line is not the objective, that’s why getting an up-close look at the inside of the cars goes a long way to understanding what’s important on the track. How many other racing styles involve applying the hand brake and body kits that are designed to fall off the car on impact? The sponsors’ spokesmen are always nearby eager to answer questions (and plug their products of course).

Although the professionals weren’t set to face-off until 4 o’clock, the practice (beginning at 2) was nearly as exciting as the main event. It is clear that the drivers love what they do, and aren’t going to miss any chance to show off their skills and get the crowd pumped up. By the time practice got started, the track was already packed and the scene was one giant party with tents, grilling, and drinking.

Unlike other racing styles and events with long-standing traditions and unspoken etiquette, newcomers to Road Atlanta’sFormula Drift were enthusiastically welcomed by the crowd and the announcer clearly explained the rules and judging decisions throughout the event so that no one was left to guess what was going on. With only a 12-year history in the United States (the 8^th year at Road Atlanta), everyone involved is eager to help the drift following grow to keep events like this coming back and bring more to the area.

As for the heats themselves, well you just had to be there or watch the videos on South East Wheels Events . Suffice it to say, they didn’t disappoint! Ranging from over-eager drivers skidding straight into the “kitty-litter” on the first turn, to perfectly synchronized runs, to mechanical failure and even a fiery wreck, Formula Drift at Road Atlanta, literally had it all.

While I don’t feel that my day-long immersion into drift car racing qualifies me to go into the subtleties of the sport, if you’re interested in finding out more, I encourage you to check out Formula Drift’s website (http://www.formulad.com/) and www.drifting.com to learn more and catch a live streaming of Formula Drift events. Hope to see you next year for Road Atlanta’s Formula Drift 2012!

Here is the perspective from our Photographer and accomplished drag racer Jason Cole

The south gets....Smokey!

That's right, if you noticed the haze in the sky around Atlanta this weekend don't worry...we was all up in smoke after a few of the 800+ Hp beast at Road Atlanta roasted their tires. May 6th & 7th Road Atlanta hosted round 2 of Formula Drift , a 7 round drifting competition that started April 8th in Long Beach California and will end in Irwindale ,California Oct. 8th . This makes the 8th year Road Atlanta has hosted the Formula Drift event and word from the web is they haveconfirmed a 3 year extension for this completely intense show of driving skill. Friday started off with Pro/Am practice and qualifying ,which is held in the turn 10 complex of the track. A cool bit of info I heard announced is that 8 years ago the horseshoe ( 10b) was created just for this event. A starting line that's a straight shot downhill where the goal (points wise) is to hit 80mph before the left-hand turn,and if you mess up just a little...you end up in the gravel ,which is nick named "Kitty litter" and a few found it on both days. The right-hand to left-hand turn into the horseshoe is uphill until the exit which made for some of the best full throttle high rpm drifts , the smoke clouds would sometimes hide spectators on the other side of the track...it was just too cool. Another little extra Friday was seeing F2000 series race, it went down during the break in drifting action. Saturday, was PACKED out. I thought by getting there early I would find a good parking spot , haha never mind the spot I had a hard time with the crowds of fans along the road. Making my way to the pit's to cover that scene I noticed the diverse fan base, from young to old , mostly all carrying or wearing Nitto, Hankook, Falken etc. gear. Trying to capture the scene and get good pic's in this highly crowded area I used my wide angle lens & my height to my advantage. Most of the drivers & crew could be met down there, just hanging out tweaking on the cars, prepping for the big day. The Formula Drift scene knows how to show their fan's a good time, I was even able to meet many of the drivers, not to mention Vaughn Gitten Jr (2010 FD Champ) , you know, I got a picture with him. This event makes you feel so much a part of the sport (minus the driving) that you just stay entertained all day. When it came time for the main competition of a field of 32 the bleachers were packed , and you could feel the excitement all around. The sun was setting creating a warm glow on the track and when the cars put up all that smoke and made the turn out of the horseshoe their headlights would barley creep through the cloud , just making for such a cool sight to see and hear. If anyone gets a chance to go to a Formula Drift event (or any drift event) don't miss out, it's a cool motor sport that's fun to watch.and to be apart of !

If you want to see more of Jason's Photos Click Here!