It happened. TTAC finally has their very own Ford Sierra.
It's true: the UK-spec Ford Sierra I promised to TTAC readers has arrived. Well actually two Brits, as our man Captain Mike Solo imported both his Peugeot 205 1.6 GTI and my Ford Sierra Ghia at the same time. And while I eagerly awaited the Sierra's arrival in Houston, I could not meet the ship at the port. The precious cargo went up to an official military delivery area in Dallas, about 4-5 hours away. If you think getting the car from Europe to USA was tough, try making the journey from Houston to Dallas. Due to timing between my work schedule, the storage fees at the receiving area and Captain Mike's legal signature required to take delivery, the Sierra waited for at least another month before getting home. Mike signed for both British beauties (so to speak) and proceeded to trailer off his pretty little Pug. Apparently the staff was more impressed with the bizarre brown space ship on wheels, though most of that credit goes to the exhaust leak from the 2.0L Pinto mill. One of my racer friends from the 24 Hours of LeMons, Brian Pollock of Property Devaluation Racing, promised to tow it from the place you see here to his workshop filled with similarly bizarre and crappy old Fords. But then the starter in Brian's Cummins I-6 converted Ford F-350 took a dump. No dice. He had a friend in the tow truck business who'd do us a solid, and deliver the car to Brian for $125. Considering the alternative of leaving the Sierra in this spot, I gladly paid that. I don't like how that white S10 is staring at my Rio Brown Ghia goodness! And there it goes. The deliciously Brown Ford is off to meet LeMons cars, LeMons racers and eventually…its very Brown-toned new owner. So what's up with the random belt shot? This is one of the many steps required to get me (safely) over to Dallas. See, the Mehta fleet includes a 2006 Lincoln Navigator with a ROUSH Supercharger from an F-150. And while the roots-style fed, tubular exhaust header equipped Navigator sucks down plenty of premium fuel, the massive torque and close ratio 6-speed transmission makes towing damn near anything a breeze. But, just in case, here's the part number if the belt decides the Sierra isn't a worthy trailer queen. Luckily there was no need for drama, the Supercharged Navigator happily made it here. There's my Sierra! FINALLY! And after spending far too much time trying to get the Sierra on the back of the stupid fast Navigator, it was ready to go home. Note my smile with the ratchet straps, as I am terrible with these things. Combined with the stress of my normal work week, the labor involved in making this day happen and my level of exhaustion while driving up to Dallas, this was no small feat. I need to clone myself. But still, there's always time to smile. Even if all my friends know it's official: I'm absolutely nuts! And it got worse. Apparently the Sierra was homesick, longing for some proper UK weather. The rain went from British charm to Gulf Coast beat down in a matter of minutes. I took this terrible shot while filling the Navigator at the gas station: the wind was so strong I was soaked under the station's prodigious roof. The day went from tiring to absolutely miserable. But with a bit of caffeine, my two road trip buddies Todd and Angie, the open highway and the amazing view at my back…well, it was all worth it. I doubt I'll ever have another automotive purchase experience like this one. And FWIW, the Supercharged Navigator got 9 MPG on the way back. Annnnd we're back! The weather cleared up in the Bayou City just long enough to get the Sierra off the trailer. And, as the Brits say, the Sierra is now "home and dry" with the rest of the Mehta fleet, some of them shown here. This is also a good time to mention the theme song for this milestone: Click here to view the embedded video. I gotta see you, I gotta be with you, We'll make it better now in every way, Yes, home and dry. So what's next? Fixing that massive exhaust leak, coming from the gap between the engine and the manifold. Too bad the hood release also decided to fail. On the plus side, I finally bought a proper set of Ford shop manuals, sporting this helpful diagram. Looks like I'm spending one morning with the Sierra, a pair of jacks, a flashlight and one very, VERY long screwdriver. Thank you all for reading. Get your hands dirty and enjoy your Sunday! from The Truth About Cars http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com | |||
| |||
| |||
|
Sunday, June 3, 2012
TTAC Project Car: Home and Dry!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Archive
-
▼
2012
(7297)
-
▼
June
(664)
- Fifty Years of the Trans-Canada Highway
- Hammer Time: Finding A Cheap Ride
- LeMons Arse-Sweat-a-Palooza BS Inspections: Britis...
- This Week's Most-Read Stories
- Junkyard Find: 1980 AMC Eagle Coupe
- Most-Watched Video Reviews of the Week
- Toyota And BMW Plan To Take The Lead In Commercial...
- Phil’s Podium Of The Automotive Pure: Ten Trick Te...
- 2013 Dodge Dart 1.4 Turbo/Dual-Clutch First Drive:...
- 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed: What’s Headed Up ...
- Jaguar Adds V-6, Turbo Four, New Gearbox to U.S.-M...
- 2012 Jeep Wrangler Freedom Edition Proudly Wears t...
- The Continental: Another Detroit Designer for Opel...
- 2013 Audi A6 Allroad First Drive: Off-Road Looks M...
- Audi R8 e-tron Sets “World-Record” Lap Time at the...
- 2013 Ford Focus ST First Drive: The Hot Focus Deli...
- McLaren Officially Confirms MP4-12C Spider, Provid...
- Cars.com's Convertible Buying Guide
- New or Used? : Seeking A California Vintage
- Toyota and BMW Announce Further Ties, Adding a Joi...
- Mercedes-Benz Reveals the Not-a-Station-Wagon 2013...
- We Be Sippin’: Nine Technologies that Significantl...
- GM’s Brazilian Spin: Dog Of An Engine Devours Any ...
- Where is Gas the Cheapest?
- Toyota Expands Floormat Recall
- Overcapacity In Europe: It’s Worse Than We Thought
- General Motors Looking To Cut Engine Lineup By 40 ...
- BMW And Toyota To Jointly Develop Sports Cars And ...
- Daily News Briefs: June 29, 2012
- Canadian Auto Plant Caught Up In Abortion Debate
- Take That, China: Japan Finds 200 Years’ Worth Of ...
- Adventures In Marketing: The Cocainiest Car Ad of ...
- Junkyard Find: 1969 Volvo 145 Wagon
- The Secret Of The Tiffany-Blue LFA, Or How Those A...
- 2013 Subaru Impreza: What's Changed
- 2013 Audi Allroad: First Drive
- Best Selling Cars Around The Globe: The Millionair...
- 2014 Chevy Tahoe / GMC Yukon Spied: Next Generatio...
- 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Postponed...
- 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Spy Photos: The Next-G...
- Mazda Considers Hotter Miata with 205-hp MX-5 GT C...
- The (Nearly) 1.0-g Nissan Leaf: Getting an EV to G...
- Next-Gen Alfa Romeo Spider Won’t Be An Upscale Miata
- Aston Martin Produces Another 77 One-77s: Okay, Th...
- LeMons Good/Bad Idea of the Week: Twin-Turbo Taxi!
- What’s Right With This Picture: A Father’s Advice
- 2012 Chevrolet Equinox: Car Seat Check
- C/D Video: We Thrash the Ariel Atom 300
- Trackday Diaries: How’d that Cadillac crash, anyway?
- Consumers Want Backup Cameras, Blind Spot Systems
- Hyundai Generation Why Intramural League, First Pl...
- Edmunds Issues June Sales Forecast: No Major Changes
- Ford’s Traffic Jam Assist Combines New and Existin...
- Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Chrysler 200 Convertible
- Mazda Can’t Make Its CX-5 Fast Enough
- GM Preps for Wireless Charging Tech by Filing to T...
- Daily News Briefs: June 28, 2012
- How to Drink Less (Fuel): Five Tips for Efficiency...
- Ford Predicts 47 mpg for C-Max Hybrid
- Generation Why: Throw Some D’s On That Spark!
- Carbuzz Builds Chinese Firewall To Lock Out Lone D...
- Chasing Perfection: 1000 Miles in the McLaren MP4-12C
- BMW/NedCar Now In Talks
- Junkyard Find: 1987 Chevrolet Nova Sedan
- Fun at 40 mpg: Real-World Mileage Test with Chevy ...
- Fiat’s Viaggio To Bolster Chinese Exports
- 2013 Nissan Altima: Explaining the Trim Levels
- The Zen of Cupholders
- World’s Largest Automaker 2012: Toyota Leads After...
- 2013 Porsche Cayenne GTS First Drive: A Little Mor...
- Here’s Why Your Mileage May Vary (A Lot) from the ...
- Toyota and Gazoo Racing Twincharge a GT 86 for Goo...
- How Dampers Work: We Slice Open Four Types of Shoc...
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Mazda’s Rotary Has Left the ...
- Trackday Diaries: I can tell you how to win a Lemo...
- Cadillac ELR: More Details On How the Volt Will Be...
- Ford System Could Block Incoming Calls While You M...
- 2013 Subaru Forester: What's Changed
- Cars.com Reviews the 2012 Volvo XC70
- Hyundai Generation Why Intramural League, Second P...
- 2013 Dodge Dart Video
- Daily News Briefs: June 27, 2012
- Carnewschina: Carbuzz Is A Bunch Of Thieves
- Ask An Engineer: Natural Gas For Dummies
- Ford Developing Traffic Jam Fighter
- Question: What Car Most Needs a Spec Racing Series?
- Cars.com Family Reviews the 2012 Infiniti QX56
- Junkyard Find: 1996 Volkswagen Jetta Trek Edition
- BMW And Toyota To Make Announcement This Week
- Opel Restructuring: Baby Steps Instead Of Big Bang
- Piston Slap: Of Winter Tires and The Nürburgring D...
- Vellum Venom: 2012 BMW 750Li
- Best Selling Cars Around The Globe: 1992, The Year...
- 2013 Hyundai Veloster Turbo First Drive: A Sportie...
- 2011 Mini Cooper S Countryman ALL4 Long-Term Wrap
- Four Hundred And Thirty The Hard Way: Porsche Intr...
- BMW M School: Learning How to Go Fast in German
- Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 141
- 2013 BMW 640i Gran Coupe Tested: Six Plus Four Equ...
- Ford Aims for 47-mpg City Rating for C-Max Hybrid,...
-
▼
June
(664)
No comments:
Post a Comment