May 20, 2008
Jekyll and Hyde
In response to Wendy’s comment left on my profile page (dang, been a long time since I last checked it), yes, I can be a devil at times, most noticeably when I’m behind the wheel. In short I’m a road bully.
I tailgate whoever is blocking my lane, which includes two wheelers. Strangely enough, I’ve never tailgate any motorist who’s wearing religious headgear. I keep my distance from them and at a very safe speed. But 50 year old uncles riding along the dotted line, and soccer moms in SUV were not spared my wrath.
Side swipe road hogs. No body contact, just near misses. Sometimes when honking is just not enough, it needs a much bolder way to send a message to them.
Weaving through traffic like someone who’s going to shit his pants.
On a lighter note, my preference for cars has adopted such Jekyll and Hyde characteristics.
Favourite car for the moment is the Tesla Roadster electric sports car which I read in one of Top Gear Malaysia old issues. 100% torque 100% of the time, what more can I ask for. Plus, zero emission, cleaner then any hybrid or hydrogen cars out there. 200 miles per charge (about 312km) isn’t a bad figure, KL-Penang in one charge. And you can charge this car at the comfort of your own home. No more hunting for petrol stations when the needle drops. "And no more loud engine noise. The only noise will probably come from the humming of the electric motor and the tires on tarmac.
Last but not least, chassis design and suspension tuning by Lotus!
The dark side is, none other then brute force of all American muscle car the Ford Mustang GT500. The only influence of such brute cars I have are from games like Need For Speed Carbon, and movies like Dukes of Hazard. It’s probably a sick excuse for a car. All it does well is go straight and turns while there’s still traction on the tires. The mind blowing torque and horse power is enough to pull a caravan, or drift cars who graveled themselves. And it’s noisy, dirty and expensive (AP permit + import duty + tax for a 5L monster), plus no right hand drive. Still, I find myself admiring at pictures of the Mustang GT500. The low rumbling engine noise is like music to the ears. And there’s this magic in muscle cars that attracts me. Probably it’s the masculine design, which many modern Japanese cars are starting to adopt, for instance the GTR35.
Comparing price tag, the Mustang GT500 is marginally cheaper then the roadster, but buying the Mustang GT500 also means I have to take up a loan for fuel if i were to take it as my daily ride. Lets not forget the right hand drive issue.
