Matt

YouTube video by Amazon MGM Studios Project Hail Mary | Official Trailer 2

Two concerns:

1. I'm really tired of seeing Ryan Gosling on screen.
2. The book is...not that good. 😕

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VYs...

Oh we'll import *anything* not originally sold here. 👍

I need to play that, but it kind of intimidates me. It took me (with LONG gaps, obviously) years to really master 2000. Is the learning curve from 2K to 3K steep?

Ha! Say what you will, I still love a rotary and would love to own another FB (I've owned 3—so far). 😁

At least they're easy to rebuild! The swapped engine did eventually pop an apex seal, but that was my own fault for not rebuilding the carb or verifying the OMP system was working (or running premix). I think it was preventable.

Depends whether you mean becoming a car buff, or turning a wrench. I knew a lot of "theory" before I had any "practice."

Back in college, I did an engine swap between another FB RX-7 and this one. Loved (almost) every minute. That was ground zero for my shadetree mechanic hobby.

Hey there we go.

You don't run your brights in traffic. Between your low beams and theirs, there's more illumination of potential hazards. Then when you're solo, turn on the high beams.

Running LEDs in halogen lenses is like having your high beams on all the time. That's what the bumper sticker is referencing.

I don't think we've had auto or even manual leveling here in the US, at least not until recently. Many vintage Euro-spec cars with leveling knobs on their dashes...

LEDs are perfectly fine—in lenses designed to direct their light pattern. Retrofit them into halogen lenses and it's just bad news.

That's what the brights are for?

LEDs in lenses designed for halogens just scatter the light and blind oncoming drivers. 👎 They're already illegal in some communities.

My first guess was a Corvair, but it's not even on the list of Chevys... 😮

Cardle 2/5
Streak 1🔥

🔴 🔴 🟢
🟢 🟢 🟢
www.playcardle.com

Yup that's a -B.

I think that's an AV-8A; the outrigger wheels are at mid-span for the -B.

Being OBD1, my 540's M60 didn't have an SAP, thank goodness (wrangled with that thing extensively on my 330's M54 until I did an SAP delete). So stupid... Useful for the first minute or so after a cold start, then dead weight. 👎

It was the weight distribution that accounted for the difference in driving feel. The 525 felt like a little engine in a big car (which, to honest, it kind of was), and the pivot point seemed to be around the seat of my trousers. The 540's felt like it was up near the firewall by comparison.

Nope, recirc. ball for all variants. Still, absolutely lovely feel for both of mine (I6 & V8), with very little play on center—especially compared to what I was used to from that setup (FB RX-7 😬).

That's fascinating. I'm surprised they don't have the cats right up near the exhaust ports to help them light off more quickly; many/most OBD2 cars do. E34 540 was only ever OBD1, with cats farther downstream.

www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...
www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...

One model year only!

Even worse if it was a manual. 😕

You may have dodged a minor bullet in that replacing the EDC shocks is ridiculously expensive...

I was struck by how different my E34 540 felt compared to my 525. Linebacker vs. ballerina is what came to mind.

Yes! I've heard of that "charming" engineering decision. 😬🤦‍♂️

Profile of a light blue Lancia Gamma Coupe.

I don't know that I would rule out simply owning a car purely on unreliability grounds.

Daily driving, on the other hand... 😕

Still, even as a weekend fun car, something like a Gamma Coupe would be challenging.

I've not driven either! I'm jealous of your access. 😁

Re:the E34 M5, I return to this comparo often: www.caranddriver.com/reviews/comp...

Lancia all the way.

Guess I'll have to pick up this issue!

The E34 occupies a pretty specific niche in BMW history, old enough to be connected to classics like the E30, but new enough to have modern engine management & electronics, etc. Plus it has that *perfectly* proportioned, confident look. The E39 seems softer, more plasticky by comparison.

Fun E34 fact: The M30-powered 535 and M20-powered 525 models were the only variants with "upright" model badging on the trunklid; the later models italicized the numbers to match the angle of the trunklid parting line.

You should! I've owned 2. Loved 'em both.

There are SO many flavors to choose from, and they ain't getting any cheaper!

My cat Odin head bonks me like a Pachycephalosaurus.

I'm not complaining.

Those are good! Relatedly, I've always thought "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" was a pretty metal Christmas hymn:

I'm...not against it.

(said as someone who thinks the FD is the most beautiful car to come out of Japan, ever)

Least surprising news ever; Boeing is such a mess right now.