Question about rims and intelligence

[jdbutler]

Spinning wheels = Rolling advertisement for crack salesman.

[glatt]

Hey, tw, that's a good post.

[Bullitt]

Well i guess someone has to stand up for these people and i guess itll be me. I love everything about cars. Especially driving a stick shift. It's like having your own personal roller coaster really. These people, along w/ myself, enjoy customizing and messin w/ their cars because thats what they love do, its their hooby, their lifestyle. And driving is fun! Ya'll sound like those people who complain about boring sex. Its just somthing you do to get it overwith and done. You have to make it fun by changin it up and MAKING it fun.

Now granted, I think some of this stuff is pure crap like the spoilers for front wheel drive cars and resonators for lil 4 bangers that only put out 120 hp, and POS's that have rims that are worth more than the car, blah blah blah. But its all part of the culture of car customization and if you don't respect it, then you have no right to criticize it. Period.

Personally, I own a '03 Civic stick and i love driving that thing. And ( i know ill never hear the end of this) I have a blue neon underbody kit on it (the car is silver w/ a black nose bra). SO WHAT? Does that make me less of a person, an underling compared to everyone else who just drives their car and gets it over with? No it doesn't. It just makes me a person who enjoys making his car look a bit different and fun looking than all the rest of the cars out there. Its my hobby, my passion, and I don't appreciatte unwarranted, uninformed attacks on it.

Let my flaming begin.. bring it on.

[ladysycamore]

Originally Posted by Bullitt

Well i guess someone has to stand up for these people and i guess itll be me. I love everything about cars. Especially driving a stick shift. It's like having your own personal roller coaster really. These people, along w/ myself, enjoy customizing and messin w/ their cars because thats what they love do, its their hooby, their lifestyle. And driving is fun! Ya'll sound like those people who complain about boring sex. Its just somthing you do to get it overwith and done. You have to make it fun by changin it up and MAKING it fun.

Now granted, I think some of this stuff is pure crap like the spoilers for front wheel drive cars and resonators for lil 4 bangers that only put out 120 hp, and POS's that have rims that are worth more than the car, blah blah blah. But its all part of the culture of car customization and if you don't respect it, then you have no right to criticize it. Period.

Personally, I own a '03 Civic stick and i love driving that thing. And ( i know ill never hear the end of this) I have a blue neon underbody kit on it (the car is silver w/ a black nose bra). SO WHAT? Does that make me less of a person, an underling compared to everyone else who just drives their car and gets it over with? No it doesn't. It just makes me a person who enjoys making his car look a bit different and fun looking than all the rest of the cars out there. Its my hobby, my passion, and I don't appreciatte unwarranted, uninformed attacks on it.

Let my flaming begin.. bring it on.

Won't hear it from me. I personally enjoy oogling at the car culture...on occasion, I'll watch the DJ Flex show on the man channel..um, I mean SpikeTV. And Syc and I was fascinated with "Pimp My Ride" series on MTV (http://www.mtv.com/onair/pimp_my_ride/). Love it! It made me appreciate the art of detail even more than before...all the work that goes into it and the things they came up with to put in the cars! Too wild! I think there is something sexy about a guy that works on his car. Hell, at least he's being productive *shrugs*.

So what did you think of the trend of the "car" movies like The Fast and The Furious? I thought it was cool. A lot of creativity went into making those cars look so fine.

[tw]

Originally Posted by Bullitt

Now granted, I think some of this stuff is pure crap like the spoilers for front wheel drive cars and resonators for lil 4 bangers that only put out 120 hp, and POS's that have rims that are worth more than the car, blah blah blah. But its all part of the culture of car customization and if you don't respect it, then you have no right to criticize it. Period.

Personally, I own a '03 Civic stick and i love driving that thing.

Posting is a car customizer. For example, five years before it was standard in Detriot, I built and installed an electronic ignition in a Ford 6 banger. Did I improve the car? No. Experimented numerous times and failed to improve performance. But learned significantly from the experience. Other problems with late 1960 and early 1970 cars that I would learn of later due to that experience. Knowledge possible because I gained much from customizing.

A difference. I customized with the intent of trying to accomplish something productive. One question that got answered - why could a teenager do what Detroit could not?

Others customization that apply to that question. Intermittent windshield wipers (that I never successfully integrated to the 'beat' of music). Burglar alarm (attempted multiple designs - some succeeded whereas others did not). Investigated but failed to make an anti-lock brake system (getting reliable valves became difficult). Played with various adjustments to the steering system (and will never go back to any car with that obsolete 'even in 1960' worm gear system such as in every Camaro). Discovered why drum brakes should never be on the front wheels of any vehicle. A system to measure instantaneous fuel economy.

So you tell me what the difference is between this car customizer verses a joker who pays $400+ for a rear spoiler or big bucks for headlights that look bluish but provide less light. A most stupid modification are those who spend a hundred to replace orange rear turn signal assmblies with inferiour red rear turn signals only because the light assembly is pretty -highlighted by aluminum foil. A major difference exists between a true car hobbyist verses a customizer with too much money and no fundamental knowledge.

In the meantime, no one was available to teach me any of this. I had to find and obtain information - in the 1960s when information was harder to locate. Again, is there a difference between this customizer verses one who spends $1000+ on wheel rims? You betcha. Big difference. So do I have the right to be critical? I am simultaneously amused and melancholy at what I see. Its an absolute shame to see so much money and labor spent with no intent for improvement and no real respect even for simple science.

For the same reason, anything with an automatic transmission becomes so much more difficult to drive. So again, I am so amused at those who fear to learn even simple things - and therefore insist they cannot drive a stick.

[xoxoxoBruce]

If the exhaust pulses interfere with each other, then you have MORE noise

No.

[tw]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

No.

Yes.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by tw

Yes.

Explain how interfering impulses which create more backpressure and slow the exhaust, will make it louder. And don't tell me it's because Bush lied.

[russotto]

Originally Posted by glatt

Hey, tw, that's a good post.

Well, it's technically incorrect on a few points. But at least it's fairly short.

[xoxoxoBruce]

More noise means the engine now has less power to wheels. Lower gas mileage. And yet these fools actually 'feel' it creates more power.

I agree with most of your post but that point is not necessarily true. Factory exhaust systems are designed with many compromises. Maximum performance requires low (but some) backpressure and preventing the exhaust pulses from the individual cylinders from interfering with each other. I could expound until everyone falls asleep, but that’s not nice.

The funny thing about the Harleys is that straight pipes (no mufflers) will reduce horsepower about 12%.

Back on thread, most cops will determine if you actually came to a full stop, at a stop sign, by watching the front wheel. Spinning wheels may get you a ticket.

[tw]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

I agree with most of your post but that point is not necessarily true. ... Maximum performance requires low (but some) backpressure and preventing the exhaust pulses from the individual cylinders from interfering with each other.

If the exhaust pulses interfere with each other, then you have MORE noise and LESS engine horsepower. Again, more noise means less performance.

For those who want to throw a grenade into the mix - yes an Indy car has better performance and makes more noise. But which Indy cars have higher performance? The ones that make less noise. All else being equivalent - less noise means a better car, more horsepower, less pollution, longer vehicle life, etc. But you cannot tell that to the fools who just know more noise means a 'cool' car. So just laugh at them. They don't even remember principles taught in junior high school science.