Motor Heads: Cars, Trucks, Tractors & Hvy Equip.

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Yeah, I'm looking at a new (used) Ram. These are some nice features.

Just bought a new Crosstrek. Nice car, no complaints but it's pretty technical. Taking some time to learn how to use all the features. Going back to dealer this week for questions & answer session. It was scheduled the day I picked it up.

Good luck with your hunt.
 
I have a 2017 RAM 1500 3.8L. They ride okay, but mine had the platic intake crack at 60k which cost $1k to replace. Also had a bad fuel injector.
 
Pulled the trigger. Used 2022 with 15k miles. Rambox, multi function tailgate, Hemi with eTorque, lots of bells and whistles.
Like searcher said, there is a lot of technology and engineering in this thing...

 

Big MUSCLE Tractor! The 1963 Massey Ferguson 97 Has A VERY Unique Story About Who Actually Built It!​

Sep 18, 2023

5:55

The Massey Ferguson 97 was a big, powerful tractor, but it was actually built by Minneapolis Moline - a competitor of Massey's back in the day. Collector Nick Smith of Iowa shares the story of his unusual, and beautiful muscle tractor that puts out more than 100HP - the 1963 Massey Ferguson 97!
 

Revers Trike Build​

Sep 24, 2023

40:55

In this video we will show you how we built a three-wheeled vehicle that will allow you to have some fun on side gravel roads, dirt roads and more.

We used, among others:
250 CC engine with manual gearbox (4 forward and reverse)
The wheels and front suspension come from some ATV 110
Rear wheel size 18x9.50-8 used on ATV 250
 
Building your own has, I'm sure, it's Oh-Wow factor; but for probably less money anyone could buy a small dual sport motorcycle.

Not as cool as a three-wheel, you say? You say that, until you ride in one.

A reverse trike rides like a snowmobile - it turns and tries to throw you off. (a trike with two rear wheels WILL throw you off, by tipping over).

A dirt bike, or any motorcycle, doesn't throw you off unless you wreck it. You turn by banking. It's possible to steer completely with your hips, just keeping a light grip on the bars. Of course you can force things with the bars, too...by pushing DOWN in the direction you want to turn. But you take turns fast, and smooth, and well-planted, and never in fear of going off over the side.
 

Everything You Need To Know about the Subaru Key Fob/Keyless Entry​

Oct 9, 2023

8:52

Subaru key fob/keyless entry can be confusing at first. In this video, I show you how to use your Subaru key fob along with some tricks I have learned on Subaru key fobs. Some of these tricks include how to put your Subaru key in sleep mode, how to wake up your Subaru key after it's been in sleep mode, how to lock your Subaru key inside your car, how to start your Subaru with a dead key fob battery, how to replace your Subaru key fob, and more!
Secret Pin Code Access Video: • Secret Subaru Pin Code Access
 

The Gathering at the Roc, 2023 - Part 1 Arrival and Hot Rods Everywhere!​

Oct 14, 2023

15:30

In this episode, we begin a 3 Part series from this year’s Gathering at the Roc in Bartlesville, OK. Hot Rods, custom cars and so much more are all arriving into town to kick off the weekend. Be sure to watch upcoming Part 2 and Part 3 videos from the reliability run and the show itself at Woolaroc.

Watch the other parts here: https://www.youtube.com/@OpposingCylinders/videos
 
I don't believe it.

Especially from Woke Jalopnik. They like to hire "diverse" staff - like "writers" who are militant lesbians from Manhattan and who've never driven a car in their lives.
 
Added a couple more to the stable in the past couple months. Came across a 1950 Ford 8N for sale not too far away, and it is in excellent shape so I grabbed that one. This is an iconic tractor in America's agricultural history. To this day, it has the features and functions to effectively help maintain a small acreage.


Also got a 1958 Ford F-600 from my father in law. In really good shape, but the brakes don't work. There is a leak or a loss of pressure somewhere in the brake system. As long as you fill the reservoir with brake fluid every time you use it, and pump the brakes a few times to build pressure, they will work well enough to get by. I might take the side walls off the box and put a couple transfer tanks on the bed and use it as a fuel truck.


So a couple old Fords added to the old Deere tractors (in post 34 of this thread) give me a nice little collection of useable old equipment.
 
These people have a great youtube channel. They're farmers from Montana. I'm not a farmer (by any stretch of the imagination) but enjoy watching how they maintain and repair their equipment.

The 715HP BEAST! Most Powerful CASE IH Tractor Ever Built Steiger 715 Quadtrac | Part 1​

Oct 24, 2023

24:55

We've got the beast for a week, let's go!

Introducing the Steiger 715 Quadtrac, the epitome of raw power and cutting-edge innovation in the world of agriculture. This remarkable machine is not just a tractor; it's a testament to the relentless pursuit of excellence that has made CASE IH a name synonymous with rugged dependability in the farming industry. With the Steiger 715 Quadtrac, CASE IH has unleashed the most powerful tractor ever to roll off their production lines.

►SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR CHANNEL PARTNER CASE IH!--------------https://www.caseih.com/northamerica/e...

Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@WelkerFarms/videos
 

223MPH Homemade 3 Liter Sheet Metal Engine Sets New Speed Record​

Oct 25, 2023

7:51

Pete Aardema and Master Machinist Kevin Braun are on a whole different level when it comes to hot rodding. This action packed video is unscripted and shows what it takes to be competitive in the land speed racing scene.
This homemade 4 cylinder Turbo 3 liter 3 valve sheet metal engine was designed and hand built by two highly talented engine builders who have the ability and knowledge to make lots of horsepower a set lots records on the lakebed.
More information on this one-off engine build can be found here: https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/how...

Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GregQuirin/videos
 
Sheet metal engine, huh? Powell Crosley tried that, with his line of postwar cars.

They ran great...for thousands of miles. ONLY thousands of miles. The meltdown of the Crosley brand of autos, happened faster than the later Yugo did...troublesome as the Yugo was.
 
This one is different.

The Greatest Tools at sema!​

Oct 26, 2023

13:54
 

Part 2
29:14
 

First Four-Wheel Drive Tractor? This Massey Harris GP is A True Blast from the Past!​

Nov 3, 2023
4:32

Here's a look back to the 1930s and the Massey Harris GP. Merv Lawrence of Indiana is plenty proud of his four wheel drive tractor that looks a whole lot different than a tractor of today. Merv likes his GP in unrestored condition!

Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ClassicTractorFever/videos
 

 
The battery car is going to be like the Wankel, writ large. Remember the Wankel? Or has anyone read its history? It was a game-changer. Made IC engines obsolete. Only three moving parts, or four on multi-rotor engines.

Mazda and GM invested billions into it. Mazda couldn't make the engines last, and finally reduced the lineup to one sports model, the RX-7. GM spent for a license to build the patented product...a plant to make them...spent all this BEFORE basic testing, which showed structural and emissions issues. Finally abandoned it.

American Motors also bought a license; and Volkswagenwerk AG bought the whole company, NSU.

This is gonna be ten times worse. The corporate corpses this battery-car debacle leaves, will litter business history for a century. If it's even written. Ford, IMHO, is already terminal. Government Motors is probably hoping for a repeat of 2009; and FiatChryslerStellantis will probably go to the CCP, and offer itself for sale.

And Tesla...they've done a wonderful thing, with all their price cuts. They've cut the value of owners' cars - dropping the value in the used market, to where many of them are underwater. That's before even the real-world life of those batteries are considered. And Musk himself has lost his halo as a saint to the Left.

Maybe not all Musk's fault, but things are not playing out Tesla's way. I expect it, too, will become a Chinese company, if it survives at all.
 

How Farmers Are Teaching Old Tractors to Think for Themselves​

Farmer Nick Welker’s tractors steer themselves nearly as effectively as the latest Teslas. They were built in the 1970s.

Welker has spent years outfitting the machines with satellite-guided steering systems, giving him cutting-edge technology without spending $700,000 for a new tractor. The last improvement two years ago on his 52-year-old tractor cost $20,000.

“I’d love to upgrade some equipment, but our net profit per acre is so low we can’t afford it,” said Welker, who grows wheat, canola and lentils. “We’re not going to be a buyer.”

More:

 

Fever Flashback: The Late, Great Stew Paquette and His Amazing Farmall Museum!​

Nov 10, 2023

5:00

We look back to our visit with one of the great Farmall collectors, Stew Paquette in Florida. Stew is gone now, but his passion for collecting and the visitors who enjoyed the museum he created will never forget him. Everything changes -- but this is a fun memory to look back on! And, by the way, Stew knew his stuff too! Enjoy!
 

This sounds like a neat business venture. I notice you want 25 - plus years old cars. Is this because of the 25-year rule?

I don't know a lot about the federal import rules as per safety / smog stuff, but PA has inspection requirements that have to be met to "legally" drive a vehicle on the road. To get your vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle) inspected you have to have the vehicle legally registered, insured and show proof of that.

If you (or anyone else is interested here's some links to the requirements:

25 year rule

Vehicle Equipment and Inspection Regulations



Emissions (if you drive less than 5K miles per year the vehicle is exempt)


You can get a ticket if your sticker(s) are expired.

All this said, if you could import different cars into the country, get them into compliance with whatever state they would be used in I think you could make some $$$$.

Here's a company that does something similar:

 

My First Car was a 1959 Renault 4CV​

Like some other young boys of my generation, my car lust was fueled in part by a book published in 1954 titled The Red Car, authored by Don Stanford. The novel was about a relatively poor kid growing up with a love of cars who, by a series of happenstance, was able to buy a partially wrecked MG TC—a small British sports car with two seats, wire spoke wheels, and a racing heritage—and repair it. Of course, the car was red and by the end of the story it brought the kid happiness, success, and a pretty girl.

Of course, my car lust started prior to reading the novel. Family lore has it that my first word was “automobile,” and long before I could read The Red Car, I could identify any kind of vehicle on the streets of Brooklyn, New York; apparently, I would interrupt conversations to do so. That habit, annoying to some, continues to this day when I see something remarkable on the road. My defense is that if I do not interrupt, the vehicle will be gone and only I will be able to enjoy the automotive eye candy. Typically, no one else cares, but I blame my obsession and annoying habit on The Red Car.

 
This sounds like a neat business venture. I notice you want 25 - plus years old cars. Is this because of the 25-year rule?
Exactly.

The trick in this, is to get them across US Customs.

State laws are a different matter. As I indicated, it would mostly be buyer-beware time. States that allow titling of such cars, no problem. States that do not...the buyer would have to be advised and have to sign acknowledgement.

That said, receive money and deliver goods. Driveaway an option, or hire drivers off the Internet (with background checks). States with strict licensing laws, deliver under contract with an auto carrier or flatbed truck.

Operating capital would be a big problem, but it wouldn't prevent a small startup. The BIG problem is figuring out Mexican society - how to find sellers; how to verify paperwork; how to use the laws, such as they are, to prevent getting screwed.

I'd need a Mexican partner, and with him, there goes a BIG part of my own profit.
 
A lot going on there.

Yes, that was a VAM American, based, as he said, on the AMC Concord. I saw a LOT of them in Houston 1982 - back then, Mexico was in a (relative) boom period. A lot of the immigration from Mexico, then, was of the driveaway type. Drive up, go to an INS office stateside, figure out what you needed to do. And then, with papers in order, drive up with your maybe-paid-for VAM.

I don't remember seeing any on used-car lots; of course, there was no 25-year rule back then, and VAM didn't exist in 1957. It was Willys do Mejico, and not State owned, at the time.

Anyway. Much of the VAM car makeup was straight off AMC designs. But made locally - Mexico required a high domestic content, that was why Nissan, VW and Willys set up plants there. Hoping the Mexicans never nationalized them...Willys was the weak player, and cooperated when Mexico nationalized the plant and created VAM. In fact Kaiser and then AMC, cooperated with licensing and even shared engineering, with VAM.

Often there were minor differences in models. That one was a 1979 but had 1978 AMC taillights. The roofline was from the 1970-76 two-door Hornet.

The steering columns for ALL AMC products, in the 1970s and later, were Saginaw/GM. Kaiser Jeep bought their J-Series (later renamed SJ) trucks' steering columns from the same supplier that Studebaker used. I remember well, being in the Studebaker Museum, looking at the last Studebaker made...except for the horn button and ring, the wheel was identical to my old man's 1969 Jeep Wagoneer.

That supplier was phased out in 1972.

GM locks were used from about 1970 to the Chrysler takeover. Prior to 1970, American Motors bought locks direct from Briggs & Stratton. Yeah, we had a 1962 Rambler, too, for a few years. The speed at which it rusted out, was not to be believed.
 
Nov 18 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge dismissed an antitrust lawsuit accusing Elon Musk's electric car company Tesla (TSLA.O) of forcing customers to pay high prices and suffer long waits for repairs by monopolizing the markets for vehicle maintenance and replacement parts.

In a Friday night decision, U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson in San Francisco said customers in the proposed class action failed to show either that the alleged problems were "not generally known" when they bought their vehicles, or that they could not predict the costs to keep their vehicles running.

 

Grandpa's Big Win! Hot Rod Legends Aardema Braun Secure 2023 Championship with a homemade engine!​

Nov 18, 2023

3:42

Youtube Note: Music rights granted by Wevideo music library through a paid subscription.

Some interesting stuff on Greg's channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GregQuirin/videos
 

A 1972 IH 664 Grove Tractor! A Fever Flashback to Our Visit with the Late Stew Paquette in Florida.​

Nov 20, 2023
6:11

We made a few visits to the late Stew Paquette's Farmall Museum in Florida. Always a fun visit, and always something to learn from Stew. He's gone on now, but we still enjoy reminiscing and looking back at the beautiful collection he put together. This time we focus on a 1972 I-H 664 Grove tractor, which included lots of special features to make it suitable for use in a Florida citrus grove.
 
It won't be sold here.

Because...say it together, kids...REG-YOU-LAY-SHUNS.
 

THE BEST OF RATTY RAT RODS​

11:34

A video of THE BEST OF RATTY RAT RODS from Michigan and Florida
 

The Coolest Diesel Engine You've Never Heard Of, Cat 1693, Dual Overhead Cam Caterpillar.​

Nov 25, 2023

15:44

In this video we are talking about the Cat 1693 Diesel Engine, perhaps the coolest Diesel Engine that most people have never heard of.
 

Rare 1919 Best 25 Crawler Tractor Rescued in Airlift and Painstakingly Restored​

Nov 7, 2023

8:22

The online forum for the antique Caterpillar collectors’ community was all abuzz in December 2013. Two photos had just been posted by a hiker showing a rusted old crawler tractor in the hills of Simi Valley, California.
It was a 1919 Best 25 Tracklayer – the smallest tractor built by the C.L. Best Tractor Company and very rare. Only 300 were ever made by the company, which later merged with the Holt Manufacturing Company to form the Caterpillar Tractor Company in 1925. Most are gone today, with probably less than a dozen remaining, and only five or so in working condition.
The race was on among diehard collectors of the Antique Caterpillar Machinery Owners Club.
After a search that included matching the terrain on Google Earth, hiking uphill with backpacks filled with tools and hiring a Vietnam-era helicopter, Matt Veerkamp beat out the others and claimed the rare Best.
“I had competition,” he says. “Any Best and Holt machine is definitely sought after. They're worth more. They're more rare. They're hard to get. And then there are a few models like the Best 25 that are extremely rare, that you just don't have a lot of chances to be able to get them."
The video above shows the great lengths Veerkamp and Shawn Stover went to in finding and restoring the Best 25 and bringing it back to life.
To learn more about the rescue and restoration project, go to https://www.equipmentworld.com/collec...
 
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