The Clock And A Or B

The clock is ticking. Well, and not to be too morbid, the clock is always ticking for all of us. I am referring to more of a short-term clock, a very short term.

My wonderful wife and I signed the necessary papers yesterday to sell our house. Although closing is not until next week, our part is done. The signing was actually rather anti-climactic. We went to our realtors office; only one employee was there. We signed maybe four or five documents although we did pause to call our realtor with a question before we finished signing. We did have to wait a few minutes at the beginning for the forms to be emailed to the realtor and printed.

After about a half hour we were done and we left. A couple of days after we close on the sale we will sign the papers to buy our new house; that time has already been set.

It seems like the actual buying and selling transaction, the execution of the necessary documents, is just not as big a deal as one would think, at least not from my perspective. You sign your name a few times and you have completed the most significant purchase and sale of your life. Since we are not getting a mortgage to buy our desert home I don’t think that transaction will take even an hour.

The clock is ticking; by the end of the first week in November my wonderful wife and I will be living in the desert in a house we own. At least, that’s the plan.

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If I were doing an In Or Out? post, this would be the day as I believe I have published all, or virtually all, of them on Tuesday. However, I have another idea.

The idea came to me from the post that was originally supposed to be called Lexus A or Lexus B. What if I offered you a choice of two cars that weren’t necessarily of the same make? You could use any criteria you want to choose between them. Let’s see how this goes…

See the source image

The top photo is a 1968 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS (picture from Restore A Muscle Car) and the bottom photo is a 1968 Dodge Charger R/T (photo from an unsecured site, autorestorationice). No, if I make this a regular feature the cars will not have to be from the same year.

For the Camaro, RS (Rally Sport) was an appearance option with its most notable feature being the hideaway headlights. The SS (Super Sport) option was about performance. In its first generation (1967-69), the Camaro was available with many different drivetrain combinations. The badging on the car shown reads “396.” If so equipped, the max output for that engine, an output only available with a manual transmission, was 375 HP/415 LB-FT of torque.

Of course, the R/T on the Charger grille stood for “Road/Track.” 1968 was the first model year for the second-generation Charger, a car almost universally admired by American car aficionados. The R/T was available with either the 440 cubic-inch V-8 Magnum engine or the legendary 426 cubic-inch hemi V-8, The Elephant. Either engine was available with a 4-speed manual or the 3-speed Torqueflite automatic. The hemi output was rated 425 HP/490 LB-FT of torque, but most of those “in the know” think the official rating was a ruse and that output was closer to 500 HP/525 LB-FT.

OK, which car would you prefer, the ’68 Camaro RS/SS or the ’68 Charger R/T? That would be an extremely difficult choice for me, by the way. I am a big fan of both cars.

If I post tomorrow, it will probably be a short one. If not, I will hopefully see you on the flip side. Stay safe and be well.

#TheClockAndAOrB

#Anti-ClimacticTransaction

#1968ChevroletCamaroRS/SS

#1968DodgeChargerR/T

#somanycarsjustonelife

#disaffectedmusings

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Dream Addendum

No, the post title does not refer to an addition to a sales contract where the seller agrees to give us a huge credit for home repairs AND throws the family Ferrari into the deal.

I had a very disturbing dream last night. I dreamt I was watching a woman in a funeral home being taken to view the remains of her husband or son or brother, I don’t know which. The funeral home employee opened a large door that led to a collection of long, rectangular metal boxes. The employee pulled one out and opened it, but instead of a funeral urn or body being visible what looked like the skeleton of an alien being appeared made of something that looked like wood, but was obviously not. Both women reacted with horror as did I; I woke up. WTF?

This is the second time in recent weeks that a rectangular metal box has featured in a dream. I am attributing the tone of these dreams to moving/virus stress, but the details remain inexplicable.

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While I was compelled to share that dream (OCD), let me offer something more pleasant. According to 365 Days Of Motoring, it was on this day in 2007 that Nissan announced the “new” GT-R. The car went on sale in Japan in December of 2007, but was not available in the US until July of 2008.

The GT-R has always been powered by a “hand-built” twin-turbo 3.8 liter (232 cubic inches for Bill Stephens) that now produces, the car is still being built, 565 HP/467 LB-FT of torque in base spec. In the Track Edition and NISMO versions, the output is 600 HP/481 LB-FT. The specialty GT-R50 engine produces 710 HP/575 LB-FT.

The car used to be a relative bargain among performance cars, especially one bordering on supercar status. With the NISMO MSRP now exceeding $200,000, it’s not so much of a bargain and, let’s face it, the car is a little long in the tooth. Still, it reads like it’s a hell of a car with all-wheel drive and great handling to go with its powerful engine. From Car Scoops a picture of a Nissan GT-R:

See the source image

A GT-R is not on my immediate “want to have” list, but I wouldn’t mind having one in my stable if I suddenly found myself orders of magnitude wealthier. Anyone have anything to offer on this car?

#DreamAddendum

#DisturbingDream

#NissanGT-R

#somanycarsjustonelife

#disaffectedmusings

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Bye-Bye Dunkin’ Donuts

Yesterday, I had intended to take a drive in my Z06 as the stucco repairs have made it impossible to do so. (The crew truck(s) blocks the garage.) The stucco crew was not supposed to work yesterday.

Part of my drive was supposed to include a quick stop at the Dunkin’ Donuts shop (yes, I know they are rebranding as Dunkin’) at which I have stopped so many times in the last 10 years. I was going to stop for a coffee and two donuts, one each for my wonderful wife and me, and not for a “full” breakfast like I usually do. I was also going to give a parting gift (a little money) to the woman who has served me 99% of the time I go there and to the man who almost always helps her. (I think they are part of the family that owns the franchise.)

As always, I was greeted warmly and before I ordered I said that this would probably be the last time I would be in the store and handed the woman her gift. She began to cry. I was surprised and touched.

She gave me six donuts instead of two as well as a number of egg and cheese wraps, which is what we almost always order for breakfast. Everything was on the house.

I don’t know the names of the people who have served me so many times and they don’t know my name. Frankly, sometimes I have a difficult time understanding them as English is not their first language. Still, it is a place in which I have felt welcome for a long time.

We will not be Dunkin’ regulars after we move due, in large part, to lack of proximity. The nearest Dunkin’ is almost 10 miles from our new house; the store we have frequented is just a mile and a half away.

I just wanted to share that story. I will miss the Dunkin’ Donuts store and the people who have so graciously served me for so long. From sandiegoville an appropriate picture:

See the source image

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Technically, this is not a Frugal Friday post. Still, I thought I’d show an inexpensive car. From gtcarlot.com and Jim Trenary Chevrolet a picture of a car like one currently offered on AutoTrader, a red 2006 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS:

See the source image

The AutoTrader car has about 58,000 miles and is in Red over Ebony. We will not buy a car with a black interior, which would be way too hot too much of the time in the desert. Still, for an asking price of $9,990 that’s not a lot of money for a good-looking car with a 300+ HP/300+ LB-FT engine, even though it’s above the Kelley Blue Book® value range.

I am hesitant to write this, but I think that four-door cars are out of consideration as grocery car/taxi after we move. We simply will not need a car to function as a taxi more than a handful of times a year, but will need “grocery functionality” far more often. Why not shop for groceries in a good-looking car with some performance? A car like this or a Cadillac Eldorado also pays homage to a defunct model with a storied history.

#Bye-ByeDunkin’Donuts

#2006ChevroletMonteCarloSS

#somanycarsjustonelife

#disaffectedmusings

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Sunday Sales

Not counting the Model T what is the only American car model to reach the 1,000,000 mark in sales for a single model year? (I’m fairly certain that only one such car exists, but I am human and I could be wrong.) Any thoughts?

Behold the 1965 Chevrolet Impala:

See the source image

From carswithmuscles.com a picture of a 1965 Chevrolet Impala SS. Actually, the SS accounted for a minority of Impalas produced that year, which reached 1,046,514. Of those, 243,114 were Super Sports. (I think the total production I showed here does not include Impala wagons. Remember station wagons?)

As recounted here, I have an affinity for 1961 Impalas because of the ’61 that enabled me to get back and forth between college and home during my first semester while my 1967 Pontiac GTO was being repaired after a major accident. However, this affection for Impalas goes beyond the 1961 model year.

Like the Mustang I think the Impala was successful because it was stylish and versatile. Six different Impala types were available in 1965 ranging from a four-door wagon to a two-door coupe. The Impala was available with an inline 6-cylinder engine or multiple V-8s. The 1965 model was the first year of a major redesign or generation.

An aside: I don’t consider pickup trucks to be cars, but in case you’re curious (or even if you’re not) I don’t think the Ford F-series pickup truck has ever reached 1,000,000 in sales in a single model year. As far as I can tell, the high-water mark for F-series sales was about 940,000 in 2004. I also don’t consider the F-150 and F-350 to be the same model. In any event, and as I have written many times before, if Americans would lose weight maybe they would buy more cars and fewer trucks/SUVs.

For the US auto industry as a whole 1965 was a good year as production reached a record 8.8 million units. That means the Impala accounted for about one-eighth of all US sales. About 4.5 million Impalas were sold in the fourth generation (1965-1970). That’s more than twice as many cars as Packard sold in its entire history (1899-1958), which is not intended as a slight to Packard.

What is the best selling US car today? I have to admit that I don’t know, but I guess I can try to find out…I think that for 2017 the best-selling car in the US made by an American car company was the Ford Fusion with sales of about 210,000. (Total US vehicle sales were a little over 17 million in 2017.) However, Ford is probably going to discontinue production of the Fusion sedan in its effort to de-emphasize cars in favor of SUVs and pickup trucks although a Bloomberg story from earlier this year reported that the Fusion name might be used on an upcoming crossover vehicle. Just what America needs, another crossover….Boo!

Maybe I’m just an old fogey, but I am unhappy at the demise of the American car. I know that an older and heavier America finds SUVs and pickup trucks to be more comfortable, but I don’t have to like it. For me an SUV is like a necessary evil because we can’t take our cars grocery shopping nor can we drive them in winter weather. Wake up, Car Enthusiasts! One day that phrase will be an anachronism.

#somanycarsjustonelife

#disaffectedmusings