There's "mountain pass" races (historical races). Also, there's a karting track near me which once was (and maybe still is) the biggest karting track in europe.
And i believe that Schumacher probably had to pay quite a lot to buy a house in switzerland as a foreigner. If i'm not mistaken, it is very hard to even get a permit if you're not swiss.
I've setup a (very simple, mind :razz page for my car's restoration, regularly updated as I work on it RSS feed at the top if you want to keep up to date, I update the feed as I add new posts.
Wow, I never knew that. Is it for environmental concerns?
There is oil consumption but it's not that bad as long as you check the oil about once every 200 miles. Even the car's manual tells you to check the oil every time you fill it up with gas. Oil consumption is normal for the S2000's high revving engine.
You said you have an S2000 too? I am thinking about getting one of the new Miatas (2009-2010).
A few years ago Switzerland had a big green party campaign who convinced alot of the Swiss public that they were loosing a huge amount of their forests (something like the area of Belguim) and that cars were to blame. Even though most of this was unfounded it's had a big effect on Swiss car policy...
I believe internal combustion cars should be reserved for the track only for car nuts like us and that everybody else (all the "normal" people) should drive electric vehicles. Leave the "real" cars for the people who truly love them! This is how it should be.
I think it's a waste for people who don't even enjoy cars as much as we do to drive internal combustion cars and to waste so much of the earth's fuel. Ideally, everybody else should drive electric cars. The average person won't give a hoot about what their car sounds like, for example. They just use the car to get from point A to B.
This way, car manufacturers could focus designing gasoline cars for the track/high performance/sports car industry too. I'm not sure if this idea is the best from a business/financial perspective, but it sure makes sense for the car lovers who don't want to see the end of the internal combustion engine! If gasoline vehicles are to be permitted only in limited quantities due to pollution and lack of resources, it just simply makes sense to reserve them for the people who need/desire them most, instead of being "wasted" on all the people who don't even know about performance driving.
Imagine having to drive on the track with 1 gear, no clutch, and nothing but the electric motor buzzing. No more shifting, no more downshifting/heel-toe, How boring!
Besides, we have more fossil fuel reserves than they want us to think. That way they can hoard the prices. I doubt we'll run out in the lifetime of anyone of this forum, at least not till we're far into retirement and too old to go out looking for a twisted ribbon of perfection..
Yes, it's environmental concerns basically. It's also plain politics... the swiss governemt thinks that it would be the "wrong move / sign" from switzerland (in the eyes of the rest of the world) to allow cirquit racing again, now in a time of "global warming" etc.
I remember going to a track with an 1998 miata (1.8L engine) a few years back. The car never used a lot of oil, but after a day on the track and keeping it in high revs all the time, the oil level had dropped to "low" when i checked. And since i've heard that the S2k engine can drink quite a bit of oil, i thought it would be interesting to know how it is on a race track.
Are you planning to sell the S2k for the miata? I've heard the new models are even better, but i doubt it very much that you'll be satisfied after the S2k... but maybe as a daily driver...
I have an S2k (year 01, 60'000km) since a little more than a week now. It's everything i missed from the MX-5, and lots more! I love it!
I only managed to take one picture so far... driving the car is simply too much fun for stopping and taking pictures...
Keep reading the post...it's making a lot more than that now. But yes, back in the 80s when all the emissions regulations were really coming into play, companies were having a hard time making horsepower. The 5.0 Mustang of the same year was the first car to really become "fast" again, putting out 225hp and running mid/low 14 1/4 mile times stock for a cheap price. Since Ford couldn't have the Tbird outmuscling the Mustang, they choked the engine up with a horrible cam, restrictive heads and intake, and a different computer, putting it down to 155hp. Look back at horsepower ratings in the 70s and 80s...it was normal. Heck, there are 400ci+ big blocks at times only putting out ~175hp. It was a completely different time when those were built...you simply can't compare them to the stuff we have today, after 15-20 years of technology advancement.
And a funny thing to note to all the 4cyl/import lovers out there...with a stock 225hp Mustang 5.0 and an automatic, my Tbird got 22-24mpg city and 28-30mpg hwy; the best ever was a 3 hour highway trip where it got an amazing 33mpg...yes, we're talking about an old american V8 here.
To be fair you can get 250rwhp and 450rwtq from a 3L diesel. Shove that in your gas guzzling V8 and get smoked! watch him take that as a serious dig or something! chillax people!
you can also get a lot from girls. some if it you would not want though.
more on topic:
only a few hp in relation to the massive displacement, especially in older engines, is not uncommon for american cars. at least that's what i experienced. yay.
Yea. You've got some good points. But what I think we might see in our lifetime, is the end of manufacturers making gasoline vehicles, not due to the shortage of gasoline, but for emissions purposes. I am hearing more and more about future models using alternative power sources. It's good for the environment, and for the masses, but comes at a loss for those of use who still love gasoline engines.
jibber, I really like your picture! Have fun with her!
Zdenek, thanks!
And congratulations philipac! She looks nice! Yellow is a great color. It looks like a 2009 model, am I right? Is that the 2.0 or 2.2 engine? The 2.2s in the US have gold lettering on the valve cover. Oh, and I've always wondered what the thing in front of the head light is. Do you know what they are for? I am very curious. Thanks!
page for my car's restoration, regularly updated as I work on it 
