Lauren

Friday loomed and a day off from driving. I think on trips like these it's good to have a break and take in the scenery as you go. So with that in mind we thought we'd head up to the Schilthorn and Piz Gloria at 2970m which is where On Her Majesty's Secret Service was filmed in 1968 and Blofeld's lair. This involved taking four cable cars on the ascent and it wasn't cheap at a cost of £137 for the both of us! Still, we had to do it and though expensive I think it was worth it. We spotted a Swiss registered GT86 in the car park. Obviously I left a club postcard under the wiper: IMG_4611 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2581 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Here's the view from Murren which is after the second cable car: DSC_2584 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr And after the third, we stopped for coffee at Birg: DSC_2585 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Incredible views: DSC_2587 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy has a look at the view: DSC_2588 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr And on the glass floor of the viewing deck extension: DSC_2597 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The view towards Piz Gloria: DSC_2600 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Mark and I at Birg: IMG_4612 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr And from the top at Piz Gloria, looking back to Birg: DSC_2602 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr You can see Jaungfraujoch to the right, it's the saddle between the two peaks: DSC_2604 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2603 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr There was a lot of references to the James Bond film, On Her Majesty's Secret Service. It kind of made it a bit cooler still and they had a lovely exhibition on the lower floor of Piz Gloria. DSC_2613 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Film scenes: DSC_2615 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy checks out 'Sir Hilary Bray's' foot! DSC_2617 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The view back to Piz Gloria. Pity about the crane: DSC_2623 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We opted for dinner at our hotel that night. We realised that all the restaurants in Grindelwald were basically hotel restaurants and with the incredible view of the Eiger from the outside dining on the hotel balcony, we figured it was a good option to eat yet more Rosti and get a little drunk! IMG_4615 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr IMG_4616 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr And one tired, Indy, it had all been a bit too much! IMG_4617 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

Thursday and we had a long drive to Grindelwald in Switzerland. The plan was to take the Simplon Pass as recommended by a friend. Though the pass had quite nice views, it was a busy main road and not the driver's road I was expecting. There were a lot of road works and subsequently a lot of traffic too. Never mind, it was an easy drive. Due to a road being closed ahead, my satnav re-routed us, adding some 40 kms to what was already a 400km+ drive, but there was a bonus that we only became aware of us we climbed away off the valley floor. Imagine my delight when I realised we were heading for the Furka pass. Now we didn't do all the Furka Pass, as halfway up we took the turn for the better (I think) Grimsel Pass. Oh wow. There were a lot of bikes on the road and these can be a bit of a pain when you're pressing on. They tend to overtake you on the straights then are obviously slower round the corners and I seemed to caught up in a throng of bikes in front and behind me. I admit, it was unsettling and did interfere with the flow, so I opted to pull in for a latte at the top of the pass. DSC_2562 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The start of the fabulous downhill is what you can see ahead. DSC_2565 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2566 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2568 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr What can I say? The downhill was an absolute blast, the brakes on the car held up well and we were just running around the tourist traffic. The road is well sighted and it was just a joy to be able to attack the road on the way down. From there it was a couple of hours to our hotel. We had left Lake Garda at 10.30am and we didn't arrive due to the detour at our hotel in Grindelwald until 6.45pm. I had done all the driving and I was feeling pretty tired by this point. The view from our hotel balcony was simply breathtaking though, straight at the Eiger! IMG_4607 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We ventured into town which is a favourite haunt for Japanese tourists, they seem to arrive by the coachload. Switzerland is beautiful, but oh so terribly expensive as we found out. Still there was the reward of traditional Swiss Rosti, this is a fried potato dish (think hash browns) and tends to have melted Swiss cheese and can have bacon and pretty much whatever else you want. I had mine with spinach and as is traditional a fried egg on top! Wonderful. Swiss Rosti by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr It's amazing how mucky dog paws can get, as Indy had cut her paw at Lake Garda a few days earlier, she demanded a paw wash! IMG_4609 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

For our last day around Lake Garda, Tom drove us to one of his favourite haunts the quieter Lake d'Idro. This is a much quieter lake with no real powerboats and is a quiet and tranquil place. It was still sizzling in the mid thirties though: DSC_2371 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr A quick stop for liquid refreshment by the lake: DSC_2372 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2374 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We then went to a mountain village called Bagolino. How very Italian and just beautiful: DSC_2375 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The houses seemed to be hanging off the hillside: DSC_2378 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2380 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2385 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Being on the mountainside there were lots of steps: DSC_2396 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2397 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2398 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr IMG_4599 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2412 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2418 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We took the road on from there and for Tom this was new territory. The beauty of being able to drive around is that you can simply stop wherever you want. We picked a cafe in a small fairly non-descript town for lunch. We were about to experience the best Italian meal we had on the whole trip! Mark had this wonderful Gnnochi that was simply sublime and Tom and I tucked into this incredible pasta with a béchamel sauce, just wow! IMG_4601 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Mark and I were encouraged to have a liqueur which was said to have 'a taste of the mountains'! It seemed a lot like ameretto to us, but was very nice! IMG_4602 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr After a wonderful lunch we hit the road again and soon we were climbing: DSC_2419 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr This time towards the Baremone Pass. This pass is listed under Italy's most dangerous road at 1450m, http://www.dangerousroads.org/italy/254-passo-baremone-italy.html This is about half unpaved and would have been difficult in my car, but thankfully Tom's car has much better ground clearance, so it was no issue. The pass is mostly single track and was built during the First World War by the military to move artillery towards the Italian borders in the Alps. DSC_2423 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2435 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Stopping for a breather and Mark takes a walk: DSC_2446 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2460 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2465 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Mark looking a tad unhappy after suffering vertigo on the Baremone Pass! DSC_2480 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2484 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr A well protected outer edge of the pass, typical of what we were to experience. This is a road less travelled I think! DSC_2487 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2491 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2493 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Mark in the midst of vertigo! DSC_2499 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2505 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2512 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Atop the Baremone Pass: DSC_2511 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2516 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy manages to find a stick, but there is nowhere to throw it! DSC_2520 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2523 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We took a long drive back and stopped at Lake d'Idro, Tom and Indy had a swim, then out for more pasta that night.

On the Saturday, we were to meet up with another intrepid traveller and GT86 owner, Chris. He'd gone the other way round the Alps and was staying in Riva on the north of the lake. Fortunately it was merely an hour or so down the Autostrada to where we were in Desenzano del Garda. And then there were two: IMG_4577 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Naturally this caused some interest in the car park around Tom's apartment block and soon people were out taking pictures of the cars! Tom dropped us off in Sirmione and we were soon eating Italian ice cream. Now I must add, that I'm not really that keen on ice cream, but Italian ice cream is a must do! Hazelnut for me. Chris can be seen here clearly enjoying himself! IMG_4578 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Unfortunately the weather turned and the rain set in, so about all we could do was grab some shelter in a bar and drink the afternoon away. It could be worse I guess. Then the next day it was our turn to meet Chris at his hotel in Riva. Tom drove us, but the traffic was a nightmare and it took two and a half hours to travel what should have taken an hour and twenty minutes, but never mind. IMG_4579 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Chris had told us a lot about his hotel which has it's own resort and I must say having gin and tonic (Sipsmiths Gin as well!) was a bit of an albeit expensive treat. Oh how decadent! IMG_4580 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The weather was mind numbingly hot and it seemed as if there was no escape. Even Indy plonked her belly down in a puddle in a sunken manhole cover on the pavement at one point. We sought solace in the hotel grounds which were beautiful and slept on the sun loungers out of the sun! More pizza and pasta was consumed before a late night trip back. The next couple of days were 'Indy day's and we found a dog beach especially for dogs. Indy was in her element! Tom and Mark staying out of the sun! IMG_4582 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr On the dog beach and a very happy Indy paws! IMG_4588 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Baldo beach, the stuff of Indy heaven! IMG_4586 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy with her favourite uncle in Lake Garda: DSC_2352 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr A dog's life, she even has her own sun lounger: DSC_2355 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Meanwhile, Mark found it all a bit too much: DSC_2369 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We stayed in a hotel for our last two nights in Lake Garda, it was getting very humid and we needed aircon. The view from the balcony could have been better, but at least I could see my car: IMG_4592 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr It turned out that next to the hotel there was a classic car hire place, I went round and took some pics of what they had: IMG_4596 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr IMG_4597 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Alas no Ferrari's. Well it is Italy! IMG_4598 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

The next day, was for the chill out part of our trip, catching up with Tom in Lake Garda and having a few days off from driving. We had an easy 125kms (and hour and a half) drive to our friend Tom in Desenzano del Garda which is near to Sirmione at the southern tip of Lake Garda. It didn't take long before Indy was in the Lake. Some things never change. We even found a stick! IMG_4576 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr After a trip to the local shopping mall to pick up supplies, we went into Sirmione. This is a beautiful part of Lake Garda and features a point that goes out about mile into the lake. It's got ancient Roman ruins at one end and also you have to cross a drawbridge to gain entry. It's a place packed full of piazza's, ice cream parlours and restaurants. A nice place just to hang out. There is also Jamaica Beach which is where the rock extends out like a reef into the lake, keeping the water shallow and warm. Indy didn't hang around getting into it! DSC_2327 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Mark in the foreground, Tom behind: DSC_2330 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Soon the heat got to us and we escaped to a bar where the beer was cold and there was shade and a breeze to cool us: DSC_2349 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Pizza on the piazza was had that night with lashings of beer, then back to Tom's.

Our next drive, was possibly one of the best drives I've ever had over Alpine passes. Driving into the Dolomites was simply spectacular and literally as you drive out of Cortina you are hit by endless hairpins on a serious ascent on the Falzarego Pass. This rises to 2105m, but it's the way it does it. The pass is cut into the rock, but generally well sighted. As you climb there are no obvious big drop offs and whilst the road surface varies in quality, with some amazingly grippy brand new surfaces you soon hit old and worn road surfaces with breaks in the tarmac. But it's not enough to slow the pace. As we descended I found myself getting into a lovely rhythm with the car, just cruising past locals and getting into the flow of the road. It wasn't long before we had to stop take a few pictures as the Dolomites are simply breathtaking. DSC_2294 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr What a road! DSC_2301 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Obligatory picture of my car and I: The GT86 and I by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Dropping into the valley and it wasn't long before we were going back up again, this time on the Giau Pass which is even higher at 2236m. This is equally spectacular as the ragged and sheer faces of the Dolomites reveal themselves. Unfortunately we didn't really get any pictures as there was a long way to go, but we stopped off and took a cable car up Col Rodella for lunch and some amazing views. IMG_4567 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy was happy! DSC_2310 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2312 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr As you can see, it really is stunning: DSC_2314 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The valley below, which would be our route through: DSC_2320 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr At the top of the hill on the mountain there is a restaurant with a sky terrace. What a place to have lunch! You can see the cloud coming in here: IMG_4570 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr IMG_4571 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr It's mad how the views change from one minute to the next. This peak just seemed to always have cloud around it: DSC_2324 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr This was simply an epic day of driving with just incredible scenery. Whilst we were on the road all day, we had a nice two hour break for lunch going up the cable car. The mountains changed as we headed towards Bessano Del Grappa becoming less fierce and daunting in their appearance, but it was time to find the hotel and stop over for the night. The hotel I booked in Nove was really lovely, but it was seemingly on it's own in a pretty non-descript area. The beautiful (well according to the photos) Bessano Del Grappa was a a fifteen minute drive away. Feeling tired and also feeling the heat (it had got progressively hotter as we headed south into Italy), we dropped our bags and headed to the only restaurant in town which was next to the hotel! Nice room though: IMG_4572 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The restaurant was bizarre as we sat out front on a busy intersection without a blade of grass anywhere and trucks coming and going just a few metres from where we were sitting. Still it just goes to show you can't always get it right when it comes to pre-booking all your hotels. It was in stark contrast though to previous nights where we had stayed some where notable and in a different country three nights running.

So the Grossglockner Pass. This pass has been in the news recently after two British guys went through a barrier and fell to their death. But I really think Alpine driving is not about trying to set records, it's about enjoying the drive and the scenery and whilst you can drive briskly, it is obviously simply not worth the risk of having an accident or falling off the edge of the road when there is a 2500m drop! The Grossglockner is Austria's second biggest tourist attraction as it runs alongside the Grossglockner mountain which is the highest mountain in Austria at 3798m. This road which is the highest surfaced road in Austria at 2504m was started in 1930. The idea was to open Austria to tourism and the road was completed in 1935. It costs €34.50 to drive the Grossglockner but you do get a sticker included with that. Also for another €5 you can get a book with the history of the pass which is a surpsringly good read! I'm sure many would like to hear about how I blasted up the pass with the exhaust richoteting off the mountains, but the reality is, this is not a quiet road. There was a lot of traffic on the first section and sometimes you just have to sit back and admire the view. There are lots of parking places on the way up where you can pull over and take a picture. We opted to do this, to let the traffic disperse. Here's Mark with my car: IMG_4553 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The views are absolutely spectacular: IMG_4555 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr As you can see, the cloud was coming in: IMG_4560 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr For some reason the traffic cleared for a good five minutes and I was able to get a bit into the ebb and flow of the Grossglockner, heel and toeing down through the gearbox for the inumerous hairpins as we ascended the pass. Here you can see (well sort of) further up the pass that the cloud was closing in: IMG_4561 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The reality was as we neared the top, the cloud descended and not in a good way. Quickly the joy of the Alpine views dissapeared, but a shame though that was, it just got worse and worse on the way down. In fact it was so bad, I could barely see twenty metres ahead of me. I had to resort to foglights on front and rear which is the first time I've used them in nearly seventy thousand miles. It wasn't safe to drive over twenty miles an hour, visibility was just so poor, I could hardly see where the road went. Eventually as we decreased in altitude it did clear. I admit, I do feel a little short changed as I only saw half of the pass and the downhill is nearly always my favourite part. Never mind, we had to keep pushing on and into Italy. We crossed the border into Italy at Winnebach and the Italia sign was on the side of someone's house! We pressed on in what was a long day's driving to Cortina D'Ampezzo in Italy which hosted the Winter Olympics in 1956 and where Cliffhanger, The Pink Panther and For Your Eyes Only were filmed. Cortina is a pretty little town which is obviously rammed come the Alpine skiing season. In the summer, though, it's a little quieter. We arrived in typical so I hear, Cortina weather, which is rain. The view from our balcony gives you an idea: IMG_4562 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Soon the rain was to be torrential, so we sought solace in an Italian restaurant to sample the first pizza of our trip. It tasted good! IMG_4563 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy was predictably a little tired, but not so tired that she couldn't take a little fuss from the waiting staff. IMG_4564 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr From there and after a break in the rain, we dashed along the pedestrianised high street and found a bar suitably not far from the hotel. IMG_4566 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr It was a small bar full of locals and very Alpine in presentation. We sampled a few beers and I had a natter with some of the locals, well the ones who could speak English.

So, to our first Alpine pass, the Hahntennjoch Pass. http://www.dangerousroads.org/europe/austria/3580-hahntennjoch.html Naturally it's listed in dangerous roads, but it does have something of a full on start. The road rises very sharply and soon you're into a series of hairpins with steep inclines. Unfortunately only a few minutes after the start, we got stuck behind a local bus. It soon transpired though that the bus drivers was on a bit of a mission! We noted he had only one poor passenger onboard, but still there is a limit to what a bus can do. Eventually the bus stopped, presumably so the passenger could escape and finally I was able to get going. I admit, perhaps I got carried away with the ebb and flow of endless chicanes and hairpins and swooping bends as we climed the pass. This tended to highlight the lack of secured items in the back of the car tending to fly around. After being told to slow down a few times, I eased my pace and soon we were atop the Hahntennjoch. IMG_4550 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We were met by a Dutch couple who had driven up in their Jaguar XJS V12 and yes, it had overheated, producing it's own Alpine stream of coolant! We wished them good luck and stopped to catch our breath. Here's Mark and Indy with my car: IMG_4549 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr From there, the downhill loomed and Mark made it clear that I should curtail my pace somewhat. So I did, but still enjoyed carving our way down the side of the mountain and getting a chance to take in the views. It was thoroughly enjoyable and for me, just what it's all about. From there we had around an hour driving through the valley at the bottom to our destination for the night, Innsbruck, Austria. It's a pretty city with a medieval feel to it. DSC_2262 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The big tourist attraction here is the 'Golden Roof'. DSC_2274 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr This was built in 1500 and designed as a 'royal box' whereby royalty would observe tournaments and events in the square below. DSC_2271 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We always look for traditional dishes for dinner wherever we go and for me anyway it provides a way of knowing we've travelled to somewhere new. This time it was Schnitzel. This is breaded pork and really I didn't find it that amazing, certainly not as fun as the Tarte Flambee or the wonderful Rosti we had in Switzerland. Still, Indy liked it! DSC_2267 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We had a nice walk around the city in the evening and sampled some very good beer. DSC_2271 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2266 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The following day we were up early, breakfast had with a wonderful selection of cooked meats and soon we were on our way. We were planning the Gerlos Pass and the famous or perhaps now infamous Grossglockner High Alpine Pass. For some inexplicable reason the Gerlos Pass was just full of Dutch tourists driving quite slowly. This was ever so slightly infuriating as there was nothing we could do, so we opted to stop off for a walk around halfway up. DSC_2275 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2276 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Weirdly they even had a golf driving range here! DSC_2280 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Indy managed to find a stick too: DSC_2284 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr There was a cafe by the reservoir which had it's own outside bar and BBQ area, the owner had a Cavalier like Indy, so we got on well! DSC_2293 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

Just so you know, all cars have had alternators since the 1960's. Before that it was a dynamo. If your trip is not long enough, then you could experience battery drain over time. Short trips less than five minutes could prove an issue if that's all you do.

It's funny but I honestly think most people would choose the AE86. Most people have never seen one in the flesh, it's that whole nostalgia thing and all that pedigree stuff. I like both. The GT is more accurate and quicker everywhere, but there is such a sense of occasion to driving the AE and the looks you get......

Stock camber or lack of it is okay, but leads to vagueness on turn in and understeer. So it's a 'safer' setup. Given that camber bolts cost pretty much nothing, why wouldn't you really?

Took both cars out tonight for pics: AE86 % GT86 2 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr DSC_2640 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

That's nothing on the front, though Steve. The rears are pretty close though.

Changed title of thread to correct spelling!

Well, I run 2 deg neg camber on the front and 1.75 on the rear. I've had this setup for 18 months and about 40K miles. My last set of front tyres wore down a lot on the inside edge but the previous set didn't noticeably. Though admittedly I run down the last set (which were part worn when I got them) down to 2mm. There are no safety issues with doing this. It makes the car feel sharper and improves turn-in. Sure if you want a 'safer' handling setup keep stock camber and toe all round. But if you like to corner hard, it certainly improves things. I haven't got lowering springs, I've got coilovers, so no need for camber bolts on the front, though I do have the offset bushes on the lower wishbones for the rears, so I can equalise the camber properly.

Well, you would be best to get the front camber bolts. A bit more negative camber the front helps turn in. For the rear, you may get lucky and lowering will increase the negative camber and it may be just right. If it's within half a degree either side it's not too bad. You have to redo your geo setup, yes. Changing the springs and lowering the car will change the geometry.

Camber bolts on the front strut enable you to adjust the camber to a point anyway. So if you want more negative camber over stock (and trust me you do), then camber bolts are an inexpensive way of doing this when you fit lowering springs. About £30 from Fensport. For the rear, when you lower it there is no provision to set camber. So you need offset bushes for the lower arms, which allow you get the camber equalised and achieve the desired amount on the rear. Again available from Fesnport. Check their website for the price but around £50.

Jay is supplying kits to Fensport, so buy from them. Jay is not allowed to trade on here after all the issues, but you will have no problems with Fensport.

Don't let go of the steering wheel when it starts to oversteer!

Andy send me a PM with the details I will contact Jay. Same goes for anyone else. I will do whatever I can do to help sort this mess out. I hope I am close to a resolution for Tre87 in the next couple of days.

Putting on coilovers and polybushing, i.e. changing the whole suspension is what it needs. Lots of £££'s though. So it will take time to get the money together. An adjustable panhard rod would help align the rear axle properly too. I am likely to go for Bilsteins on the dampers and new springs and then polybush with adjustable lower and upper arms and an adjustable panhard rod as well too.

Went to pick up a new set of wheels yesterday. This was the first really long trip for the car, so a real reliability test. We had to drive from Manchester to Rugby and back. The wheels I bought are Work Meister S1's. I had this funny idea that when we met up with the seller, we'd change the wheels over on the on spot. Sounds a bit crazy I know, but why not eh? So we drove down, no problem, the engine feels really good and though I've not given it more than a third throttle and still haven't ventured much farther than 5000rpm, it's running really sweetly. A bit less sweet is the mismatched suspension. It just feels horrible, but the ride is bearable. Much work is definitely needed here. I had a relatively quick drive back on a familiar road on Friday night following a meal out. The front suspension has stock replacement KYB long stroke dampers. The car sits on TRD Blue springs we think and had TRD short stroke blue dampers that are adjustable. When I got the car it had TRD green shortstroke dampers in the front and the ride was well, just terrible. These are seriously stiff! So the car wallows about, roll control is not good, I think the whole suspension needs polybushing, as the bushings are likely 30 years old! Still, as I said, it really needs sorting out as whilst it is possible to settle the car and when the suspension loads up it feels okay, there is no precision at all. We met up with Zack from the Corolla Brotherhood in a pub car park and set about swopping the wheels over: Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr We lined Zack's car up with mine. His is a bit more serious 20v on Watanabes. Very nice. Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Close ups of the new wheels: Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Work Meister S1 for AE86 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr The new wheels have differing offset. The fronst are 0 and the rears -5. They are 15x7.5" running 195/50/15s. So after we put the wheels on we noticed there wasn't much clearance on the rears. Zack suggested we put the zero offset wheels on the back to help, but I thought we'd try it with th -5's. It took to the first set of services to realise they were rubbing badly over pretty much any mild bump or dip on the M1. I should point out the excitement had led us to miss the M6 turning off the M1, though I entirely blame not having sat nav! So we stopped at Leicester Forest services and it was clear that on the offside the tyre was getting shredded by contact with the wheel arch. So we swopped the -5 offset wheels to the front and the zero offset wheels to the rear. The weight of four stock wheels in the boot wasn't helping our cause of course. As I started jacking the car up two young guys came over and wanted to take pictures, I had a chat with them whilst Mark went off to find drinks. Once the wheels were swopped over we were on our way again, albeit it a different way home to what we had planned, but never mind. The rubbing was less but still present. So in the end we just drove home very slowly avoiding all bumps. The car looked so cool, but we couldn't drive it properly. So frustrating. My car has the GT Apex wheel arch extension trims, but all this does is reduce the clearance you might have. So rolling the arches is not a straightforward job really. The extensions bolt through the wheel arch lip too, so you can't just take them off and leave them. Weirdly it is only the offside that is catching but I think the car being lowered on a stock panhard rod has shifted the axle to the offside by a bit. The plan is to remove the inside material from the wheel arch extension and hope we'll have no more rubbing problems.

Dual clutch transmissions, but not slush boxes with a set of paddles on the steering wheel. Also there are those of us out there which is worth remembering that actually like to drive a car properly and find it more rewarding as a result! I wonder why it is in car reviews these days that journos get excited at the prospect of a manual box or why Ferrari 355's are soaring in value as they are the last of the Ferrarris with a manual box? A driver's car should have a gearstick and three pedals in it's purest form. You're right about luck though, there is no such thing.

Good luck with that. Hope you're not just flogging a dead horse though, it certainly seems like an autobox is not the way to do it if you want to produce a huge amount of power and then try to transmit it to the road.

That's weird, Captain, I only had a set of V105's in stock sizes fitted last week!