Dude, if my ride were as cool as these, all the honeys would be flocking to me. I guess I gotta get started on it.. whistle tips here I come! Wouldn't it be awesome to have the first bososoku RX-7 in the US? (yes this is all sarcasm) (^_-);;

Tags: bososoku

A few months ago I somehow found myself at the Great Mall, and while trying to avoid the plethora of baby carriages and kids in their long white t-shirts and Nascar attire, I came upon an unlikely sight. In a hall that was not have a whole lot of foot traffic, an island full of capsule toys -- these were on the top, but none were available below. If you see any, let me know or help me pick up a set! (^_^) I'm pretty amazed that there are actually toys made of classic rotary cars .. kids are still into the SA22C RX-7?

Tags: mazda, toys

I guess I never really told everyone that I sold my last FC3S Turbo II. People are still surprised to hear that it's actually gone. It was a great car but it went to a new owner that trust to take good care of it, and is actually using it for what it was built for -- the track. I was lucky enough to take it out for lapping sessions several times while it was in my custody and it handled it wonderfully. After eight years of RX-7 ownership I feel like it's time to move on. I'm fairly certain that I will keep my FD3S, as I don't use it as a daily driver.. when/if I actually need a car to commute in, I'll likely get an RX-8 to supplement it. I know a lot of people hate it, it's slow, it's ugly, etc. I love it though. Watch this video and perhaps you'll change your mind too.

So I got this message on AIM from the new owner, and I thought I'd share some photos he sent over.

Aren: Your FC awsome lol
Aren: thanks for the great car
Me: sweet, no problem
Aren: took it out to drift battle



Ouch -- at least I didn't do it (^_^);;


Finally -- here's one of me, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey.

Tags: drifting, fc3s, rx-7

Bentley will get a kick out of this. Maybe I hit my head when I flew off my bike, but for some odd reason I felt compelled to purchase a Honda. After spending several hours behind the wheel of Don's NSX, I was really tempted to buy one. Why?

It was pretty fun -- handled well, good low end torque. It was also quiet and comfortable, two qualities that my FD3S RX-7 lack -- though only due to upgrades. I think I'm just getting old and I want something therapeutic to drive.

My only complaint? It was fracking slow. It seriously needs boost. It was nice though, probably the only Honda vehicle I'd ever buy.

Thankfully I came back to my senses and decided not to join the dark side. I am still trying to figure out what car I should get to use as a daily driver though. I am sorta leaning towards a NB Miata, but that could just be Marvin's influence. I don't know if I want to spend a lot, but I was thinking perhaps an Infinti Q45, a Jaguar S-Type, or a Mazda Millenia since these aren't cars you see all the time. Any other ideas?

I always knew the Fast and the Furious was a gay series. Here's proof. Thanks to Stan for sending this in.

My 1995 FD3S Mazda RX-7 is finally shaping up. It's almost done - here's a teaser. I'm glad it's almost done -- I wouldn't want to spending oodles on it when I finally purchase a house! Let me know what you think.. not *too* ricey right? right?

Well, here's the trailer. So many people IM'd me about this I thought I should share their comments.



Sami (AIM)
11:13:45 PM
that is the gayest thing I ever saw in my LIFE
god
GOD
WTF
doesnt it just make you angered!?
GAH

Jared (AIM)
11:12:14 PM
it looks like it sucks

Walter (AIM)
11:10:19 PM
at least the director is an Asian American... and he got his buddies in the film... I'm sure he couldn't do anything about the lead character... but some of those clips drifting was tight...
its just gonna be funny or dangerous how many po-dunk kids start doing it without actual knowledge of how to do it.
ive come to the fact that they don't care about the ppl that is in the scene... it everyon else who isn't in it
might see this though.. or pirate it.. ahahaha

Stan (AIM)
11:20:04 PM
haha gay

Bentley (AIM)
11:36:22 PM
i think this might be a fast and furious i might actually like watching
Justin (AIM)
11:38:08 PM
wow you're the only one to say that
Bentley (AIM)
11:45:47 PM
all the others were crap
11:45:58 PM
this one actually has skill put into it

One comment isn't like the others. I don't want to have to see it, but I might have to, just to see what kind of idiocy is going to be unleashed onto the streets. I'm sure a lot of stupid kids are going to get injured due to this movie: They're easily impressionable after all.

You can stop bugging me for the video. It's finally online. It took a while since I was fooling with iMovie and was trying to learn how to do some effects.

Eric starts in the drivers seat, Stan behind him. Joe is in the passenger seat in front of me. Upon the switch, I end up in charge and burn rubber to our next destination. A perfect pit stop. You get to see my Pink Pumas in action, a real treat. Yeah, I really do have pink shoes, I wasn't kidding. (-_-);;

Not much has been going on lately so there hasn't really been a lot of photos taken. Yesterday was Sheldon's birthday, if Eric sends me the photos we had an outing at House of Prime Rib.. there are some cool pics.

Many thanks to Don @ NCDA for hosting the event, it was probably the most fun I've had at the track in a long time, and definitely the most track time I've had in a day. I was incredibly tired by the end.. Below are samples, the gallery is here.

Breakfast of Champions... Jack in the Box. (>_<) Race day food sucks..


While everyone else was still prepping their cars I got to go out and do a couple laps. (^_^) This car certainly looks at home on the track.


Watching cars go off track never gets old. It looks like Stan's car, but it's not.. I don't know who it is. Luckily I only went off once, and there wasn't a huge cloud of smoke. (^_^)

I've been asked why there hasn't been an update lately.. I've just been too busy out and about to update this, besides, I didn't think people actually looked at this page..

Anyways, here are a few photos from this past Friday's track event at Buttonwillow Raceway. A full update will come soon with a gallery and a funny video. (^_^)

Oooo, this is the speed demon I took to the track. It doesn't look like much but it's awfully fun.


The drifters tore through tires like they grow on trees.. (>_<)


Going off at Buttonwillow is safe, there is nothing to worry about hitting.. you'll just get your car a bit dirty.

After just two nights in Vegas, I'm hella burnt. Several firsts this weekend, my first trip to Vegas, my first ride in a limo, first trip to a convention of San Francisco besides E3. The SEMA show was ginormous; two million square feet of nothing but cars and aftermarket accessories.

I ended up being pretty lucky, I ended up with zero dollars in my wallet at exactly the right time, lunch just prior to the flight back. Makes it seem like I planned perfectly, I'm impressed with myself. =) (No, I didn't gamble away my money)

One thing I noticed.. and actually really makes me feel old -- in the lobby of the Stratosphere hotel they were playing freestyle, an Angelina song if I remember right. Then again, it has been ten years since it was popular..

Anyway, the photos below are only a sample of what could be seen here.

Thanks to Gary, we got to tool around the strip in a stretch limo the whole first night. We got to see a lot of the city and every place we visited was free -- a benefit that I appreciated greatly. (^-^)


Look, a blow-off valve bigger than my head! (o_O);;


bling bling for reals yo.. one million dollars EACH. (T-T)


A pink RX-7, awesomeness! Looks very pimp to me.. seeing this and many other nice cars is motivating me to finally finish up mine.. and paint them pink? (Maybe Sami will finally convince me to do it.. huh.. maybe..)


How could we possibly leave Vegas without at least partying once.. thanks to Gary again for setting us up with our night time itinerary and providing us with transportation and company.

Our trip to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey was a huge waste of time. Not only did we come back empty handed, but we wasted lots of time traveling, prepping, and sitting there doing nothing.

For a complete rundown on the events of the day, you can read my write up at barotary.com. There are photos included as well.

I know it seems like I've been complaining a lot lately. Someone cheer me up.. please? (-_-);;

Even though Sevenstock 7 was just more of the same, it was still a pretty fun trip. If you're curious about the event, there are tons of photos available here.

LA is fun. I don't know that I could stand to live there, but it is worth going once in a while. It wasn't too hot this time so that's probably why I was in a good mood the entire trip. People down there just seem to be a lot more friendly than here, it's weird, I always thought it was the other way around. (-_-);;

Special thanks to Bentley for letting us crash at his place. Inebriated Gran Turismo is always fun; though I kept winning. Rematch next time!

I did forget to go to Diddy Reese though, and Wes keeps telling me how good they were, damn it!

I'll be at Laguna Seca this weekend for the American Le Mans Series. I'm entering my FC3S into the car show.. Wish me luck! =)

I haven't posted any photos for a while, so here's a sample of what you've been missing. I'll post the rest soon. Look! I'm blinking as usual.. I need to learn to stop! (>_<);;

This was supposed to be an update filled with photos, commentary and whatever else I usually write about, but apparently I lost 95% of my pictures. They'll display on the camera fine. (Well, most of them. ) So it looks like I've got very little to show for the trip.

90% of the photos ended up looking like this. Most of them much worse. I don't know who those two guys are, they just ended up being in the background.


Out of the two or three pictures that did end up OK, this is the only that looks presentable. (The others are in-car pics or the back of other cars, not interesting if you can't see the rest of it.) That's Stan and Jon staring at the spoiler. I'm sure they're jealous and want a huge BATMAN style wing too. (^_-);;


I'll update again in the morning. I did end up with a few other goodies, some cool t-shirts, the Yamaguchi (Making of the) RX-8 hardcover and some random posters that I picked up. I got lots of extras to give to friends, but they'll have to make time to get them. Seems like everyone is busy nowadays.

The other thing I ended up with is.. a new RX-7. I'll post more details about that in the next update.

Looks like fun in LA this weekend! I leave tomorrow afternoon with Stan and Jon to meet up with Wes, Seth, Ghetto D, and countless others at Sevenstock 8. This will be the first year I don't take a car down to show off; after my car was broken into I sorta lost interest in the whole scene. I think the trip will be a good experience for me, it'll force me to decide if I want to continue or just move on, and get a different car. (>_<)

If anyone wants anything from LA, let me know. I'll be grabbing a huge box of cookies from Diddy Reese! Westwood is always fun to hang out in, too bad I don't know anyone at UCLA anymore. Hanging out there was always more fun since I got to hang out with Faithy and others.

I'll be sure to take lots of pictures. (^_-)

Yes, that's a second generation RX-7. Yes, those are bees. Yeah, it's pretty spooky. I think the photos speak for themselves. (No, it's not my car, just something I found online.)

Whoever did it, knew exactly how to open the car from the outside, and dive in for the ECU and remove it semi-cleanly.

Parts taken are of no use to any other cars, and are probably not to be resold. When the light comes out tomorrow, I'll check to see if anything is broken or missing.

I miss the old days, when you could trust your fellow RX owners, but now that the entry price of an FD is in line with a Civic.. andy kid can buy one and that brings crime like that, I suppose.






Wonderful. Almost enough to make me give up and get a different car.... How about a Scion? A HOT PINK xB? (>_<)

"By Gregg Kilday

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Indie director Justin Lin has jumped in the driver's seat for the third film in the "Fast and the Furious" franchise.

Lin, who established himself on the independent film scene with 2002's "Better Luck Tomorrow," will shoot the sequel to Universal's two previous car race movies in the fall on locations in the U.S. and Asia.

The new film -- tentatively titled "The Fast and the Furious 3" -- will be set in Tokyo amid the underground world of Japanese drift racing. Its plot centers on Shaun Boswell, who, to avoid jail, goes to live with his uncle, a military officer, in a cramped apartment in a low-rent section of Tokyo.

The first "Fast" movie, directed by Rob Cohen and released in 2001, grossed $207 million worldwide. Its sequel, "2 Fast 2 Furious," directed by John Singleton and released in 2003, took in $236 million worldwide. Together, both DVD titles have sold more than 20 million units.

Lin -- who was born in Taiwan, and raised in southern California -- directed, co-wrote and was one of the producers of "Better Luck Tomorrow," which revolved around Asian-American high school seniors who embark on a crime spree. He is in postproduction on Disney's "Annapolis," starring James Franco, Tyrese Gibson and Jordana Brewster, which is scheduled for a fall release.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter"

I did like Better Luck Tomorrow though.