The place I have been storing some of my cars just sent me a note that my low-power trickle charger overcharged and ruined the new battery in the Lotus Elise. It was suggested to me that you should always put a trickle charger on a timer, so that it only […]
It doesn’t seem like all that long ago when 20 grand was enough to own an honest-to-goodness exotic Italian sports car. Driver-quality Ferrari 308 GT4s, Lamborghini Urracos and Maserati Meraks were all within reach for a middle-class wage earner with some diligent saving and a bit of patience. Today, however, […]
Every red-blooded car collector has at some point (or many points) in their life looked at some cool little race car and wondered, “Hey, wouldn’t it be fun to buy that and go racing?” Certainly, many people have over the years, but for those who haven’t jumped in, the prospect […]
It’s gotten to the point where I get so many robocalls on my cell phone that I don’t answer it when I don’t recognize the caller. Most often, it’s someone trying to sell me a Medicare supplement plan. Next most common is someone pushing an extended warranty on my car. […]
Seaside, OR, is just 78 miles from Portland. The route there, out Highway 26, is a relaxing mix of 60-mph roads traversing the Coast Range and 80-mph straightaways through Tillamook Forest. It is one of my favorite “Sunday drives” and I like to make it as often as I can […]
In August of 1980, we were on our way to Monterey when an ad in Hemmings Motor News caught my eye: “1965 Alfa Romeo Spider. Twin carburetor version. Two owners. Gray with red. $22,000.” This was followed by a Portland phone number. Times being what they were, I waited a […]
“The Submerged Cathedral (La cathédrale engloutie)” was written for piano by Claude Debussy in 1910. It is based on an ancient myth of a cathedral that is submerged off the coast of an island. In the morning it rises up from the water, accompanied by the sounds of chanting priests, […]
Until this weekend, I was unaware that Maserati had built a commercial-grade spin dryer in 1956. That was until SCMer Chris Bright poured me like tube of freshening agent into his replica Maserati 350S and took me on a Friday afternoon blast through downtown Portland and the surrounding hills. During […]