fumi

It's possible, but depending on what wheel mounting system is used on the Tamiya kit you might have to modify the brake disc to accept the wheel.

The Japanese car manufacturers lobbied for the relaxation of the fender mirror rule. They didn't want to have one set of mirrors for the Japanese market and a different set for the rest of the world on the same assembly line. They also argued the law was unfair to them as import cars were exempted. At the time the law was relaxed in 1983, fender mirrors were the standard of the law with door mirrors being allowable substitute. The Japanese government stuck to that rule for a long time and ordered all their cars with fender mirrors whenever they were available, and you can see them on cars like the FC3S RX-7, Z32 300ZX and R32 GT-R.

If it's Fujimi I'd lean towards their 90's Japanese subjects for a simple kit. Not a whole lot of parts or details in the interior, but the body looks reasonably good. The Koenig Testarossa is not that complicated, you can see for yourself: http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10040858

Does it really matter whether an American or a Japanese CEO pockets millions of bonuses at year end? My dad works for one of the biggest auto parts supplier in North America that supplies body panels and frames to the Big-3 as well as Toyota and Honda. When the Big-3 were shutting down assembly lines and closing factories it dealt the company a heavy blow, but the orders from Toyota and Honda kept them afloat. As far as my dad is concerned, it's the orders that keep him employed that count. And I'm sure it holds true for most workers in North America.

Funny you would mention that, of course there are casual hockey fans. Dallas, anyone? Where are all the Stars fans now? In fact, it can be argued that the explosion of casual fans in the 90's, along with expansions into new markets that don't see an inch of snow (Florida has 2 teams, California has 3, and they sold one team from Winnipeg to Phoenix, for crying out loud) and the myriad of changes to the game to suit the new "fans" (the yearly rule change on offside, moving the lines back and forth and doing away with the red line altogether, the tie-breaker changes that ultimately lead to the shoot-out, and let's make the puck glow for a season or two on FOX) did far more harm than good to the league when the fad is gone.

My first ever model was a Fujimi Enthusiast Model 911 Cabriolet. My mom's friend gave it to me as birthday present when I was 10 or 11; she probably thought it was just a toy and didn't realize how complicated those kits are. The only thing I managed to "build" was the oil can with the Porsche decal on. My first completed model was a Tamiya Subaru Alcyone XT Turbo, brush painted with black Tamiya enamel. While cutting the hood vent out with a box cutter the (rather dull) blade slipped and I ended up cutting my thumb. I also tried cleaning up paint on the clear parts with my dad's paint thinner, which clouded up the whole windshield.

Fujimi sponsors the Japanese Super GT 911 GT3R that they will release soon.

There are Ferraris and Lamborghinis and a whole lot of other car companies in the game and you guys are complaining about 65 Skylines? I've bought so many cars I wanted that I am now actually having problem with cash for the required cars in the later races.

You mentioned about front tyres in another forum. I think the Fujimi P7 would work well in both front and rear. On the real car the black panel on top of the engine is removable. There is also an access panel behind the front seats.

You can always order just the wheels and tires, either from Tamiya direct or the various Japanese mail order businesses.

Some hot hatches, like the Focus ST/RS and the Mazdaspeed 3, to go with the Fujimi Golf would be nice. And I'd really like a Fiesta.

Shaolin Kung Fu and Chi Kung is martial arts. Meanwhile, when I'm not modelling I'd watch whatever little hockey games they show on TV, and play Wii with my wife. I am also eagerly waiting for GT5 to come out.

My wife used to be very supportive of my hobby, until I have amassed a whole room of unbuilt kits, with quite a few duplicates. Now she tolerates it as long as it stays within the room.

There is no way production from other manufacturers can ramp up that fast to replace all those missing jobs, not to mention they don't need to hire that many people for additional production. You also have to consider the ripple effect. My dad works in one of the biggest auto parts supplier in North America that produce parts for Ford, GM, Chrysler and Honda, plus lately Toyota. The killing of the Saturn Sky/Pontiac Solstice alone caused an entire factory to close up. The GM/Chrysler/Ford factory idle caused him to stay home for 3 months. If it were not for a timely contract with Toyota, he would have lost his job already. If it were a smaller scale shop that only operates one or two factory, the entire business would have gone bust already. Now consider if both GM and Chrysler just "failed". Immediately everyone who work for them will be unemployed. Their dealerships and suppliers will also be in serious trouble; the ones that deal exclusively with them will definitely go out of business. And when those dealerships and suppliers fail, the companies that do business with them will also be affected. This will go on for several layers. It is simple to say the US is not founded on welfare and failure is just a part of life we need to deal with. In reality, you cannot afford to have that many people unemployed and that many businesses go bankrupt. Not bailing out GM and Chrysler with tax payers' money would have caused far worse consequences to the society.

You can also e-mail Norm at replmincomd@aol.com. No web site though and as far as I know he doesn't have soft copy catalogs.

Two things come to my mind right away: 1. Loads of auto workers will be out of job. 2. Loads of part suppliers will be out of business.

I believe the Corvette and the Cadillacs are sold in the UK, no?

You can call it a Chebby.

Well my experience with Perry's is different. I inquired about his 53 Ford in April, he said it was in stock, I ordered it and received it in a month. Shipped half way around the globe, no less.

By the time they release the G8 there were already rumours of Pontiac's impending death. Pretty hard to sell something from a brand that is about to be discontinued, and the reduced sales probably justified the decision to kill it. They are supposed to bring back the Commodore as the new Caprice police package. I think there is a market for them to divert some from the fleet sales to be offered as the Chevelle or Monte Carlo SS? It worked for the Germans, so we should just adopt it, and people will suddenly think we are German.

Funny you brought up the GTO. Most of the over-40 adults I know (and I know a lot of them) would not consider anything that has less than 4 doors. Those who would and could afford the initial asking price of the GTO bought a BMW instead. And the people who would want a GTO (under-30 coupe buyer) couldn't afford it, so they bought a Mustang instead. The problem with the GTO was that the market for it simply did not exist at the price GM originally was asking. As soon as they dropped the price to a more realistic level around late 2005, sales started to pick up.

Nah, the last T-Bird was based on the same platform as the Lincoln LS/Jaguar S-Type. It's entirely different from the Mondeo/Contour platform of which the Cougar was built on.

The last Cougar was not based on the Probe. It was Ford's last "World Car" in the Alex Trotman era: designed in Europe, based on the Mondeo, and intended to replace the Probe in North America and sort of revive the Capri in Europe. Deemed to be an old man's car in North America and too American in Europe, it failed in both markets miserably. As for the Marauder, it IS an old man's car. And it'd be just the same for the Cougar if Ford revived it yet again as a Mustang clone: an old man's Mustang.

I'm not surprised Ford is killing Mercury. I'm surprised it took them this long. At least GM tried to reinvent Oldsmobile as an import fighter before finally dropping it; for a long time Mercury has been selling the same cars as Ford with different grille, lights and bumpers for practically the same price. Why spend all the money to maintain a separate brand when it is fighting over Ford for the same customers?

Ferraris of late also have a silly grin. No one seems to be complaining. Ditto for the new McLaren road car. Haven't heard any complaints yet.