I get the $ for the GT. Here's a regualar B (rubber bumper though) near you I just noticed on eBay. $7K might be more affordable & it has an aftermarket hardtop:
Skookum Maru
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Re: Skookum Maru
Hello Chris,
AAH, A3!
I bought the first A3 Sportback that our local Audi dealer had. I'd been waiting for it to make an appearance in the U.S. .
I loved that car. It went to someone I know with a 140,000 miles on it it 2013.
I'd ordered a TTS that I love even more.
I was concerned about it not being a 6-speed manual but found the dual-clutch, sequential shift transmission, to be pretty interesting.
Only 36,000 miles in a little less than 10 years. I drive it just a few times a month since I retired in 2015.
When I uncover it in the garage it still surprises me with it's good (TMI) looks.
Folks ask what it is since there are so few around. It's possible they've never seen one.
Regards,
Alan
3E3E9349-94A1-4638-8649-17B1E1D2BFA6_1_201_a.jpgComment
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Re: Skookum Maru
As for the fuel gauge, it's really simple, reset the trip odometer if you have one, if not, write down the number. Believe me, you get used to it when your car comes with a factory supplied dipstick.Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Hello Chris,
AAH, A3!
I bought the first A3 Sportback that our local Audi dealer had. I'd been waiting for it to make an appearance in the U.S. .
I loved that car. It went to someone I know with a 140,000 miles on it it 2013.
I'd ordered a TTS that I love even more.
I was concerned about it not being a 6-speed manual but found the dual-clutch, sequential shift transmission, to be pretty interesting.
Only 36,000 miles in a little less than 10 years. I drive it just a few times a month since I retired in 2015.
When I uncover it in the garage it still surprises me with it's good (TMI) looks.
Folks ask what it is since there are so few around. It's possible they've never seen one.
Regards,
Alan
Stop building character, there's no need for it: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Intellige...erId=101087374
As for the fuel gauge, it's really simple, reset the trip odometer if you have one, if not, write down the number. Believe me, you get used to it when your car comes with a factory supplied dipstick.
Someday I'll get a set of those and wire them up with a period aftermarket column switch. In the meantime I'm happy to make hand signals. Even if most of the time people just wave back at me... As for tracking fuel, I used to use exactly the system that you recommend but the speedometer and odometer died a few months back making it impossible to track mileage. I haven't had a chance to track down the problem yet. Could be the cable, could be the gauge.- Chris
Any single boat project will always expand to encompass the set of all possible boat projects.
Life is short. Go boating now!Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
There were period correct ones but they seem to have disappeared. Right now all I can find are these, a little less ugly ones (maybe a chrome spray paint will help). https://swifthitch.com/collections/s...s-for-trailers
If the odometer is dead (ruptured cable more then likely), the next method is time. You work out the approximate gal/h consumption then start the on-board cronometer every time you drive. Strap an old wristwatch to the steering wheel, or use your phone. I'm sure by now someone has even made an app to tell you how much time you spend in the car. Of course you can also develop a routine to fill her up every monday, but that doesn't work on longer drives.
Just to stay old school, there are still watches with bezel calculators for fuel consumption, time, etc.Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Y'all entertaining a descent into the realm of Lucas, Prince of Darkness, and no love for the E-Type Jag, prettiest of the lot?
And why this lust for coupes? Roadster or GTFO, people. And no whining about Seattle weather! These are British cars fer cryin out loud.Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Lucas is fine, as long as you carry a spare set of points, a condenser, & a coil in the glovebox. What else would it be for? Oh right - some silicone spray for the ignition wires & cap."If it ain't broke, you're not trying." - Red GreenComment
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Re: Skookum Maru
(Photo by Steve McKelvie)
However I am looking forward to the full British car experience, Lucas electrics and all. Although at one time I did have a 1966 Maserati Sebring that featured Lucas fuel injection and fuel pumps. That system was developed for the Jaguar D-Type and was both fantastically complex and fantastically expensive to service. I ended up replacing it with triple Weber DCOE carburetors and was much happier after that.
As for the Jaguar E-Type... That is one of my all-time favorite cars. Just sublime. I may have E-Type dreams but I have an MGB bank account so that's what I'm looking for now. And a coupe because I like coupes. I've had convertibles as well, including this 1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce Spider which was restored by my grandfather:
The wind-in-your hair thing is fun and bracing, but to be honest I think coupes are almost always better looking than roadsters, the MGB and the fabulous E-Type included (leaving aside the somewhat unfortunately-proportioned E-Type 2+2). That's a personal preference of course - others may reasonably disagree. And coupes were more frequently raced in period, so I associate them with performance more than the open top versions. Plus I think I got enough weather riding motorcycles in my 20s and 30s and bicycles in my 40s so I don't need to experience any more of it than necessary in my 50s.
On that topic I have an amusing (to me at least) anecdote about motorcycles, convertibles, and weather. Up until I was in my mid-twenties I owned only motorcycles, and rode them in every sort of weather, including snow up to a point. One frigid, damp Seattle morning - the sort where it feels like it's going to snow but hasn't quite decided to yet - I was riding down I-5 when I passed a guy driving an MG Midget with the top down. My first thought was "Damn that looks cold!" My second thought was "That was a hilariously dumb thing to think - you are the one riding a motorcycle!"
How I came to own that car is a great story of its own, but more to the point(s), it had some interesting features that were inherited from the twin cam six cylinder engine's heritage powering Maserati racing cars, including twin plugs per cylinder, two coils, two sets of points... basically two of everything that could go wrong in the ignition system. Like this.
One day my then-girlfriend and now wife Victoria and I were out driving it on a lovely spring Seattle day, as one does when one is young and has no obligations other than to drive a beautiful car in the sun. Only to have the car suddenly fail to proceed. We pulled over to the side of the road and I opened the hood and stared at the engine for a bit. It had always been remarkably reliable so I had gotten complacent and had left the house without any tools at all so I was at a stand - what to do?
We had plenty of gas, and I was reasonably certain that the fuel system was working fine because I had completely rebuilt it - tanks, hoses, pumps, filters, everything - when I installed the carburetors. That left the ignition. The amazingly complex, dual-everything, ignition. Where to start? The heart of the whole thing was the Marelli distributor, with its maze of spark plug wires, $800.00 (if you could find one) no-longer-available distributor cap, and not one but two sets of everything inside that could go wrong. Always go for the most complex bit first, I thought, as it's likely the source of a problem. So I popped the distributor cap off and poked around. And found that one of the sets of points had moved on its shaft and was not opening at all. Points not opening meant no spark. No spark meant no joy from the big six. But, foolishly, I had no tools so I could not solve this entirely simple problem. Argh!
Casting about for a way out of my own mess, I saw that we were parked a block or so away from a 7-Eleven store. I thought there was just a chance that they would have some sort of screwdriver that we could use to fix the problem. So Tory walked down the road to see what she could find while I stayed with the car. A few minutes later she came back with what tools were available. It was the cheapest sort of no-name screwdriver, pliers and adjustable wrench set imaginable. Utterly worthless. But I was able to use it to open the points again and gap them by eye just accurately enough to get us home again.
So there you go. Lucas ignitions don't scare me much after dealing with the Italian variety!- Chris
Any single boat project will always expand to encompass the set of all possible boat projects.
Life is short. Go boating now!Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Having owned many British cars & some Italian ones, I have to agree that Italian electrics are a pretty good training course for British. The real joy in British electrics is when you have an old car with cloth insulation where the colors have all faded to a dull brown.
Your comments on coupes vs. roadsters perfectly 'splains why we have the different types: different strokes for different folks!"If it ain't broke, you're not trying." - Red GreenComment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Having owned many British cars & some Italian ones, I have to agree that Italian electrics are a pretty good training course for British. The real joy in British electrics is when you have an old car with cloth insulation where the colors have all faded to a dull brown.
Your comments on coupes vs. roadsters perfectly 'splains why we have the different types: different strokes for different folks!
Originally posted by HRDaviesThe fixed-head coupe E was several mph faster, quieter, stronger, and to many eyes, better-looking than the drop-head ...- Chris
Any single boat project will always expand to encompass the set of all possible boat projects.
Life is short. Go boating now!Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Originally posted by HRDaviesWell, if we're gonna talk strange ...
- Chris
Any single boat project will always expand to encompass the set of all possible boat projects.
Life is short. Go boating now!Comment
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Re: Skookum Maru
Casting about for a way out of my own mess, I saw that we were parked a block or so away from a 7-Eleven store. I thought there was just a chance that they would have some sort of screwdriver that we could use to fix the problem. So Tory walked down the road to see what she could find while I stayed with the car. A few minutes later she came back with what tools were available. It was the cheapest sort of no-name screwdriver, pliers and adjustable wrench set imaginable. Utterly worthless. But I was able to use it to open the points again and gap them by eye just accurately enough to get us home again.Alex
“No matter how bad things may seem, you can always make them worse.” - Robert "Hoot" Gibson, Astronaut
http://www.alexzimmerman.caComment
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