By Tim Odell
All right folks, the time has come for you, our loyal readers to decide which of our numerous nominees is most deserving of the largely unrecognized as meaningful Hooniverse Car of the Year!
This year’s selections were picked from a nearly infinite pool defined only by what we could think of off the tops of our heads. In fact, things weren’t even limited by the tops of our heads, as we’ve got two reader submissions in the mix as well. After the jump you’ll find all of this year’s nominees and a poll. We’ll be keeping this post live and stuck to the front page through the 31st, so as to hopefully catch as many of you as possible. Remember to vote early and vote often!
The Octo-Door Pontiac Safari Wagon:
Here at Hooniverse, we loves us some wagons. Also: (rear wheel drive) Pontiacs and absurdity. Three for three, baby. Of course, 1960s Yank Tanks weren’t known for their structural integrity from the factory, let alone at double the length and door count. I’ll also point out it’s probably the second slowest car on the list, behind the 1907 Itala. That said, think of it as a blank slate. A blank slate the size of Manhattan…just easier to get in and out of.
The Octocar aka GLCOAT8
Continuing with our love of oversized absurdity, we come to this eight-wheeled, twin-rotaried, gull-wing equipped thing, currently referred to as the GLCOAT. (Greatest LeMons Car of All Time). Currently in the care of Officer Bloch, a real-life action hero otherwise known as SpeedyCop, it’s got a few … issues … that need to be worked out before it’s ready for a LeMons race. Of course, the fact that it’s in violation of at least three major rules (price, no kit cars and the weight limit), along with the fact that it was clearly built by someone (believed to be deceased) who took it at least mostly seriously, has raised more than a few hackles. After all, doesn’t it deserve better? Furthermore, there are a lot of non-running unfinished piles of parts and unfulfilled aspirations out there, what makes this one so special? Oh, wait … it’s probably the double-rotaries or the 8 wheels.
The Wullet:
Never has a HCOTY nominee received such great campaign writing. Alex has gone all-out for The Wullet, a 1978 Malibu wagon with a 350-ectomy and a 454 CID replacement heart. In all likelihood, the Wullet is suicidal – terminally rusty, terminally overpowered, terminally ugly. It just doesn’t give a f***. Seasoned with hair metal and on-demand burnouts, with plenty of room for later-regretted hormonal hookups in the back, the Wullet is nature’s way of saying “do not touch.” In other words, a Hoon’s siren song and an inspired HCOTY nominee.
MotoCzysz E1pc Electric Superbike:
Never a man to shy away from a challenge, Tanshanomi’s candidate for HCOTY is two wheels short of a full deck, but stacked to the gills (literally) with high-capacity li-ion batteries putting down menacing power and torque numbers. Plus you really can’t argue with the engineering, passion, and design prowess of MotoCzysz in bringing out an electric motorcycle – one that has your Gixxer in its sights. Tanshanomi invokes a future of tinkerers wielding multimeters to tune their E1pcs for maximum hoonage, and it’s a future that sounds pretty frickin’ cool. Just add a Mr. Fusion unit and you’re all set.
Chad Copeland’s Datsun 620 Drift Truck:
How cool is the 620 Drift Truck? Let me count the ways. There’s the 300 RWHP SR20DET nestled forward (and the radiator out back!). There’s the Flying-Tigers-inspired shark maw art our front accentuating the military flat olive paint. There’s the reworked transmission tunnel fabricated with a True Temper wheelbarrow. The list continues – like a menacing green Pokemon, you’ll have to read the article to catch ’em all.
GNX-powerd Lotus Esprit:
It’s hard to top the backalley-knife-fighter-with-a-crack-habit attitude of the Buick GNX, a car so full of disdain for the status quo, stoplights, and wallflowers that it became forever associated with our childhood embodiment of evil, Darth Vader. Springing the forced induction mill from its G-body lair, and slipping it into a midnight black Lotus Esprit was kind of like the automotive equivalent of dropping a speedball into your tall, cool class of Plymouth gin. Would Chapman approve? Honestly, who cares? Just look at it!
1907 Itala Red Dragon:
Other HCOTY nominees are engineering marvels, audacious experiments, or exceptional performers, sure. But none of them has the lairy-chested ballsy-ness of the Red Dragon. Simply put, it’s the Jack LaLanne of autos – it’s older than your grandfather and it can still do more pushups than you can. Owners David and Karen Ayre are no softies either. That’s because this 103 year old Italian monster has been through more than 18,000 miles (30,000 km) of punishing competition driving since 2007, competing in the Peking-to-Paris historic rally twice so far, with the owners at the wheel. Surely they’re mad, but they’re mad in the way we like. And anything more than a century old that can take the sort of abuse that causes dedicated modern racers to weep deserves your HCOTY consideration.
BMW 335d:
Sure, he may be the punk new upstart at Hooniverse Central, but Jacob’s not fronting with the BMW 335d he’s nominated. The reality is the young hotfoot toasted a 4th gen Mustang at a stoplight in a diesel family sedan, one with a slushbox nonetheless. A sedan that returns more than 40 MPG in mixed cycle driving, has enough torque to pull stumps, and is just as comfy as any modern BMW. If we were discussing some customized car of hypothetical marque X accomplishing these feats of performance and efficiency, we’d congratulate the customizer for a damn good show. Should the 335d be knocked simply because it rolled of a Brucified assembly line, not someone’s basement? That’s up to you, voters.
[poll id=”64″]
Remember, when 2010 ends so does this poll! Make sure your vote counts … get it in before midnight December 31st!
Ed – It has been brought to our attention that we neglected to include skitter’s nomination – the first-gen Taurus SHO – in the poll. The reason, as you’ll surely understand, is that scotch doesn’t scale up well. We’re adding it to the poll now, and we’ll come up with a suitable handicap for it so it’ll have a fair-ish shot.
Jeff Glucker 
Peter Tanshanomi
If you care anything at all about this site and what it stands for, there is only one answer: the Itala. Everything else is just a pretender to the throne.
SpeedyCop's car would beg to disagree…
Much as I like the GLCOAT and agree that Speedycop is the guy to finish the build, I've got to go with what the Ayres have already accomplished with that Itala. By comparison, my own efforts now leave me feeling like the stay-at-home owner of a new Camry.
Of course, assuming the project comes together as expected, the GLCOAT might end up in a good position for HCOTY 2011.
If…er…when…Speedycop gets that monstrosity going and finishes a race, I expect nothing less than an epic tale much like the Ayres and the Itala. When that happens, you can fully expect my vote for it.
Of all the cars on this years list (and I must admit, I am a bit biased) SpeedyCop's Octocar is the one I have a problem with. If its a car that is going to be finished as a driver, great. If it's a car that is going to be finished as a race car, OK.
However, we all know it will be entered in a 24 Hours of LeMons event, and this is where I have the problem with this entry. The car is too heavy per their own rules, it is too expensive per their own rules, and it will likely win the IOE award, thus alienating anyone who works within said rules.
I like Officer Block (I even invited him to participate in the last New England Event before he decided to drop the TurboDiesel into his 63 T-Bird) and I think he's a hell of a guy, but I'm not in favor of this move what-so-ever.
Now, as many have suggested, if it was brought to the race alongside another batshit-crazy car and used as a 'pace car' or Judgemobile, well…
I don't think he'll get the IOE. I suspect they will create a special, one-time award for him. The same they would do if someone entered a genuine Wienermobile. Just my opinion, of course.
Also of course, I think Lemons has transitioned from "fun to participate" to "fun to watch," or at least is in the process of it. I'm not sure where I stand on that, but it doesn't matter much either way.
For the record, I'd love to see the wienermobile on the track.
If that thing is allowed to race at all, I quit Lemons.
That last *thing* evil genius showed up with was too fast and too well built. It way exceeded the $500 mark and that 302 seemed worked over and wore a fresh coat of ford blue engine enamel. Their live axle seemed pretty well set up and the way it was blowin everyone's doors off definitely changed my mind. The metrognome legitimately could be 500 and it still has its flaws, so that's okay, but a car that's basically been fabricated from tubing…
Anyways, I don't want this thing competing at Lemons, though it'd be a fine pace car.
You gotta admit, the Wullet seemed destined, until challenged by the Red Dragon… All hail the Italia!
The Itala may be about the 'great car' and 'great driver' but the story doesn't include the 'great mechanic'. For all I know the Itala was bought in great shape and raced instead of kept in a climate controlled garage. That's cool and even ballsy. But I'm the kind of hoon that takes pride in the building of the perfect beast. Knowing every part, every noise, every rattle of a car because I put it together. And, nothing is more beastly than the eight wheeled freak. Sure it may not meet the Lemons rules but it will be a hell of a sight to see. I'm sure there will be a lot of smiles. And, sure it wasn't completely built by one guy. Rather it has been pass from one nut to the next to live once again. That's really cool.
If you're trying to say that the Itala story doesn't include the "great mechanic" aspect, you clearly didn't read the article. He's had to manufacture his own parts for a 103-year-old car. On the side of the road. Over night. In a foreign country. In time for the next day's rally stage.
To each their own, of course, and I don't begrudge your choice, but talking smack against the Itala is a bit like saying, "Georges St. Pierre ain't so tough. I could take him on, I'm sure he's not as bad-assed as he seems on TV." Just a bad idea.
This 1907 Itala was found whilst on a night rally in the late 1940's on a farm in Oxfordshire and was "going back to nature" with a tree growing through the middle of it and was immediately purchased from the land owner and brought back to life by Group Captain Rexford Welch in the 1950's and then after a few years of use and being shown at local shows was laid once again to rest again for over 40 years (and sadly NOT in a heated garage!!) until 2004 when it was then bought and resurrrected by Vintage Restorer David Ayre (wwwdavidayre.com) to compete in the Centenary 2007 Peking to Paris.
After a 2 year full resoration by david it was put on "test" on the 2007 Peking to Paris and completed the rally without major mechanical problems. Since then it has completed the "Nile Trial" and the "Pebble Beach Motoring Classic" as well as many local events as well as the more recent 2010 Peking to Paris.
Further details of the owners "mechanical" skills can be read on http://www.davidayre.com
Thanks for the history and the link. It rounds out to an even more amazing story than just: Rich guy has cool car and time to roll it from Peking to Paris.
I stand corrected, guys. Thanks for the lesson.
The Italia was not bought in great shape … nor kept in a neat little garage … the story SHOULD include the 'great machanic' who worked his socks off to get the car in the shape its in. Maybe you should google David Ayre and see his work… it might change your oppinion
we don't play those games here…
I'm really sorry about that… A moment of immaturity on the 'net ruins it for everyone. I hope you don't hold my vote for the GNX-powered Lotus against it.
No worries… live and learn. Have fun here too, just no firsties, Haha
I feel a bit like Homer Simpson in the "A Star Is Burns" episode, with the Italia Red Dragon cast as Barney Gumble's touching but unfortunately titled "Pukeahontas" and the Wullet as "Man Getting Hit By Football".
The Italia has heart, but the Wullet had a Wullet.
No greater compliment has been paid to the Wullet. Thanks Scroggs.
The octocar is just too ridiculous not to get my vote. That lotus is a very close second, though. Of all the cars on the list, I think I want that one the most. I'd probably sell a kidney AND a testicle to get it.
They are all winners, but for me, that 8 wheeled, twin rotary monstrosity is really something special. Special Ed? Maybe, but still special.
I'm leaning towards the Italia – it exists to be driven, to be driven hard, and it's been kept in existence in spite of what's theoretically newer, better technology. That's our way, right?
But they're all great picks.
Cars need to be driven, otherwise they have no purpose. And the Itala is driven, and a lot. So it gets my vote.
<DIV>I agree, but not everyone feels that way. Hell, I'm just impressed to see it's not a museum piece (which would be sort of understandable).</DIV> <DIV style=”FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: times new roman, new york, times, serif”> <DIV style=”FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: times new roman, new york, times, serif”>
All are excellent representatives of Hooniverse and I thought the voting would be close…unitl Dearthair came along with his submission.
I went with the Itala: the ultimate answer to the ultimate question of life, the Hooniverse, and everything.
This was truly difficult for me, but the Octocar won my heart because it's just the sort of thing I'd build when I was 8.
Without first reading the comments or checking the running results, I almost voted for the GNX Esprit because I didn't think that my gut choice, the Itala, stood a chance. Instead, I voted with my heart and found that the Itala is leading by a mile. This is definitely the right site.
I had to vote for the Esprit because my standard test is "Would I drive that to the grocery store and park it comfortably."
That's exactly why I voted for the Italia.
Yes, but you could park the Itala virtually anywhere and never get a ticket, as everyone will assume it's supposed to be there for some event or promotion. You could leave it on the steps of any city hall and nobody would blink, though tourists would probably take photos.
You make a very good point. Aww, who am I kidding? I love them all. Well, maybe not the bike or the Bimmer so much. But I wouldn't kick them out of the garage either.
Dearthair's post made me rethink; it needs to be a pairing of awesome car and awesome drivers. One cannot exist without the other. That leaves Speedycop and the octo-car versus Italia and the Ayres versus Copeland and his drift Datsun pickup. My vote goes to the Italia; I think the differentiator is the almost romantic relationship they have with their car; it is really man and machine both working to get to the same goal. We here all have our opinions on what car is the coolest, awesomest, whatever, but chasing the relationship shown here is the thing we have in common.
When Speedycop gets their car running, I might sway, but for this year, Italia it is!
My vote went to the Italia as well, but I was torn between that and the 620, precisely for the reasons you made. Copeland and his drift truck have a great story. I wish I knew more of the Ayers's story, but in the end I decided that because of the 103 year old racecar driving so far in such places, it should edge out the truck regardless of story. It was a very tough choice though. Oh and since I'm not going to be alive then, I call 2113HCOTY going to a 103 year old Mazda2.
More of the Ayres story well "History" can be found on their website :- http://www.davidayre.com and hopefully they will update their blog at some stage!!
itala-davidkareayre.blogspot.com
Thanks for the link. Sorry for the late reply, this post had too many comments to load on my sad computer at home.
Better yet, a Mazda2 that you own and drive everyday until you're old, then gets passed down to some
looneyvintage hatchback connosieur who decides to run it in the upcoming Beijing to Paris rally.I can't decide whether that Mazda should find itself equipped with eight wheels sometime in its life.
While I admit that the Italia is the coolist, I want to drive the GNX Exprit the most and I want to own the 335d the most. So many choices…
You did not just call a car a Beemer up in here did you?
Sincerely,
Car Internet Police
If you look closely, it's actually a Beezer – cobbled together from handbeaten Rocket A65R gas tanks and two Rocket 3 triples welded together and converted to diesel power.
drift datsun! such a rad garage build. love it.
RATSUN DRIFT TRUCK!!!!!
These are all fine machines, which the Wullet is not. That's why it gets my vote. It's a sick, wrong, and completely inappropriate bundle of hell. It's not historic like the Itala, nor bizarre like Speedycop's whatever the hell it is, it's not plain awesome like the Lotus. It's something I can imagine myself owning and just having a complete blast with.
Wullet or Esprit? Both so amazing and I wish both were in my front yard. I'll have to choose the one I would be able to live with(and continue living after driving. The GNX Esprit.
I was torn between the datsun and the itala, but I had to go with the datsun. I miss my old 720.
Right on! Glad to see Datsun votes with integrity at heart…
I voted for the Ratsun twice, for the record, and I'm legit to the tune of 57p! Not only is it the most impressive budget production, but the post about it was by far the most well-written. I mean, he actually talked to the guy and all. I'm trying to vote based on which car is the most deserving rather than which is the best ABC afterschool special backstory, but the details do help me appreciate the machine in that writeup.
Move along, drifters, nothing to see here.
I do wish we could give some sort of bonus vote to the regular commenters so they have more of an impact than the one-time visitors who appear just to cast a vote on the HCOTY and never be seen again.
Mitch, You could do just that, but that's like rigging an election in which the only voters who count are the "Property Owners" or the "Non Minority" electorate.
Yes there seems to be a few people who gravitate to the "Drift" entry (and yes, I am to blame for this nomination), but look at it this way…. it is generating a few more "eyes" to this site. Preaching to the Choir tends to get stale, and you will gradually lose your fan base…. Tell me I'm wrong here.
I'm thinking more along the lines of shareholders. Every vote is equal, but some people are able to own more shares based on how long they're there.
I have absolutely NO problem at all if your drift entry wins. That'll be just fine with me, because then you get to type up the "award" post. 😉 But let's say it ends up on Bimmerworld forums, and suddenly there are 14,200 votes for the BMW, with a max of 50 votes for everyone else. That's more where my concern comes in. I don't care who wins, but I'd hate to see the results get skewed by a special interest group.
(And no offense to the Bimmer, I think it's a very clever nomination as well, I just chose that as my example. I'm just more concerned about hypotheticals than about anything actually happening.)
Perhaps count the number of Hoon Ponts and add one (so that people with zero points still count), and multiply the user's vote by that number for the final tally.
Not to add fuel to the conversation, but isn't that kinda 5/8th's vote?
But that would mean that the winner would be whichever car engineerd voted for.
Also, I totally missed the reference to "drifters" as "people who are interested in the sport of drifting". I assumed he meant "drifters" as in the nomadic sorts of drifters who come to a site once and then never come back again. Looking back on my comment from the other meaning of the word, I look like I'm being a great big asshole to your nomination, Jim. Totally not intended. Sorry about that man!!
the Itala by a country mile…they don't….have….a roof….and even that can't stop them hooning around the world (insert daft punk video)
@NMUspidey: no worries, live and learn…
There's a "reply" button right under each of the comments… not sure if you've seen it… 😉
I tried posting a comment from my stupid fucking piece of shit HTC hero…
Wow, the drift truck has garnered a lot of votes recently.
one more for the Datsun!
Even though i can't vote (or already voted without knowing it), i'm not sure it matters. I kinda like 'em all anyhow. Given the opportunity to vote, i'd end up casting it for the Itala. But i could choose just about any of the entrants for that race just as easily and for almost the same reasoning.
So excluding the unobtainable level of awesomeness that is the Itala, i'd go with the First Gen SHO.
And if this was an instant runoff style ballot i'd have voted SHO, Itala, Lotus, Datsun, BMW (should be in wagon form), Wullet, 8-door Safari, Octocar, electric bike.
datsun drift truck!
Gotta go with Chad's truck. that thing is beyond awesome.
chads datsun drifter truck. its so mean
DATSUN TRUCK FTW!!!!
not that you care but i did look at all the other builds before i casted my vote, yes i am a ratsun member and iv followed this truck for some time. i just really like this truck, IRS and a sr in a pickup that size is just to bad ass.
i am sorry that your site got flooded with alot of us ratsun member, i think a few of them did vote for other cars tho…
Dude I voted for it too, it's an impressive build, and there's a reason it has a following. Cheers
Just make your first comment as good as your own reply, and you're among friends.
EXACTLY.
Sorry a bunch of us ding-dongs overreacted. I think everyone just kinda freaked.
It is one hell of a truck. Oh, BTW, welcome to Hooniverse!!
I don't think that I overreacted. Personally, I'm not sorry for thumbing it down. It is what it is. If one decides to comment like an Internet troll, one gets treated like an Internet troll. I'm not trying to act stuck-up, because I can about guarantee that 99% of us on here have a "OMG FTW PLZ THNX!!!" type of comment floating somewhere out in Internet-land, and I'm sure we have all pissed someone else off, but the whole reason for this place is because we all grew out of Internet infancy. Anyone that has tracked the posts/comments from this site knows that we defected from somewhere else in order to get away from that type of crap, and that our type of commentary usually contains sarcasm, wit, and the occasional "guy movie" reference. Now that the milk has been spilled, I'm sure we are all ready to clean it up and move on. So, "skunk", if you are indeed going to stick around, we are a good bunch of car enthusiasts, and are always glad to have another to hang with, we just don't like trolls around here.
Wagon Wednesdays is one of the best recurring features of Hooniverse, so I voted for the Octowagon, even though I think the Red Dragon is the best Hoon car.
It looks like my vote recorded for the Lotu-X, though. Did the counts get out of whack when the SHO got added?
How do we vote? I know I didn't vote last night when I was drunk (because the post didn't come out 'til this morning), but would like to tonight when I am as well. The GNX-Lotus is in bold in the list (indicating I've already voted for it), and while like every other car in the list it is quite magnificent, my first and only choice for COTY is The Wullet.
Like the Esteemed Cpt. Severe stated above (paraphrasing), "It's weird, it's strong, it's…. wrong!
The two of us carry a special bond because we were both in on the nascent explosion of Punk-Rock in the late 70s/early 80s, and the Wullet embodies all the pathos of that era. Since we both work in fields (he's a Hard-Rock Miner, I'm a Truck-Driver) where blaring out the beliefs and music of our youth would be (ahem)….. problematic, the Wullet would allow you to scream, "I Don't Care About You,…F*ck You!" without completely flipping out your co-workers.
Completely NSFW (language, spitting, kicking, et al)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVViiaHovMI
Yeah…saw that when I showed up last night, but it's working for me now.
Try a hard refresh (crtl + f5) , then try clearing cookies and coming back.
As the IT/tech guy, I apologize for the complication and frustration. My time and skills are limited, particularly while travelling this season.
Yay! Thanks….. Always wondered what those buttons on the top did….. Now I know what one of them does!!!!
Always a big thumbs-up for anyone who brings Fear to the conversation.
Just do me a favor, if you summon the ghost of GG Allin; warn us first.
I had the same problem for a while. Ended up voting for the GNXsprit when it fixed itself anyway.
I'll walk through my mental process here…
The 8-door Limo is cool, weird and awesome, but not the most-so of the list, nor is it something I'd be into for much more than a brief novelty appreciation.
The Octo-GLCOAT-car is…well…epic, in an accurate sense of the word. I will tell my children about it. If/when this thing runs, I'll be in awe. I refuse to get worked up about the whole LeMons thing, because…well…LeMons isn't worth getting worked up about at all.
The Wullet is sweet, and I'd love to own it. Unfortunately, it's no more than the collection of it's parts. As I said before, I think I could build it in a weekend entirely within the local Pick-Your-Part.
e-Bike is really, truly cool and awesome, but I'm not a bike guy.
Dorifto-Datsun-truck….hmmm…I appreciate it, but it's not making me drool. If it wins, I'll have no problem with it, as Chad did an awesome job building it, and I'm a big fan of increasingly kooky drift vehicles.
GNXsprit…definitely drooling, and definitely awesome. A car I'd love to find an excuse to own, and probably couldn't build myself. That said, it's merely a "B", as the story/adventure/build isn't really part of it…it's just an awesome eBay find.
Itala…gets my vote. Awesome museum-grade car that they're flogging on an adventure I wouldn't take my built Jeep on. Honestly, early/pre-war cars are interesting, but not cool to me, but seeing it put to use wins me over.
335d is admirable, but just not on the level of the other competitors. Check back in 15 years.
(belated, sorry) SHO is also awesome…but just not a car I can get beyond appreciating. Like, I don't actually want one. I'd rather have a Contour SVT or a P71.
Anything, anything, anything but a new BMW.
I dunno…
To me this was about all of us here at the Hooniverse community having a damn good time… shooting the s#!t about crazy cars and voting on our favorites with like-minded folks. Who WE here at Hooniverse thought was the most Hoonworthy.
Truth be told, I'm also Ratsun member (and have been for quite a while) along with a whole bunch of other Datsun sites, and I know a bunch of you are too. In fact even some Datsun fans here have been grumbling about today's hijack.
Look, in my mind getting a bunch of online-friends to vote for you in a community they haven't been a part of (…as of yet, welcome Ratsun folks, have a look around, stay a while) isn't winning OUR vote. It's stuffing someone else's ballot box and makes the outcome not really worth a crap. Certainly not in the spirit it was meant to be given, which is a pile of crap and a bottle of Scotch. How do you know if someone really likes your rig if you have to go on a raid-campaign or buy someone's vote? Answer: you don't. And unfortunately you never will… swing and a miss.
How many of those votes were earned just because it's a cool truck and not just because a call was put out to help rig the votes? Only those that were submitted before the call went out can be considered truly untainted (4:45PM, local Ratsun time). And that aint right.
Damnit, I'm a HUGE Datsun nut, and I would have liked to see it pull a good HONEST showing. Unfortunately it's now a show of forum-force instead.
http://community.ratsun.net/topic/27355-i-need-yo…
Hey folks, welcome! You want to come vote, ok cool… but at least check out the stories on the other cars first. Figure out what the "award" and this site is about first. Some of the non-Datsun-drift-truck entries are insanely awesome too. Do the stand up thing and give them all the consideration they deserve. Then your vote will mean more than just hot-piss-in-a-can.
And second, check out some of the other articles here. This is a great place, I bet you'd like it. Datsuns and wagons and rusty-smokey diesels are revered here, as are all kinds of other bat-s#1t crazy stuff. And the Datsun didn't need to cheat. The honor is in the nomination itself.
Agreed. I'm a huge Datsun fan…and felt my heart break a little when i found a very nice looking 510 for sale in Denver last night that i can't do anything about right now. Chad's truck is a sweet build and it's a Datsun. That being said, the monkey wrench in internet polling like this is always how easy it is to skew.
I don't think that there are any internet polling programs that support preferential/instant runoff voting (where the voter ranks all the choices as opposed to first-past-the-post style polling like this). It's perfect for an application like this, and it's only downfall is that it is possible for a candidate to not win a clear majority in one round.
That's exactly what I was concerned about above. Frankly, it kinda pisses me off. I don't begrudge the choice at all, and it is not in any way because my result is being pushed out. It would piss me off if I were in last place, or if I were the one winning. It's basically rendering our results null and void because they're being fucked with by the equivalent of a 4Chan spam attack. How many of those results are legit, and how many are forum members voting from every computer they can find to rig the results? I'm not running off to an internet cafe to vote from every computer there, just to inflate the results, but maybe I should be, since that's what they're bragging about.
Sorry, this HCOTY was my idea last year, and it's forum spamming that wrecks it for us all. Apparently I'm going to have to develop a system for next year, and that sucks.
Mitch, this is part of it, being on the Internet and all. If you notice the "DATSUN FTW OMG" are being thumbsdowned into oblivion.
I understand your point and agitation at what may or may not be happening. If we get 10,000 votes for a particular candidate, the usual group of knuckleheads around here will probably write that off as the winner, with some amusing… possibly epic, comments about the situation. The real winner then becomes the one the group generally agrees upon, probably after some very epic and possibly amusing comments. Think of it as the very early days where we didn't really keep to any topic in threads and all had a lot of fun doing so. Going off topic can be very fun. In essence, we are the Internet embodiment of Lemons, sure someone wins, but it's who does the most with the least that is the real winner.
A weighted voting system or some sort of exclusive rights sounds like REDACTED. I for one would not participate.
We are beginning to take it and possibly ourselves too seriously. If someone screws the results, let them. I will personally start the thread to discuss why that car should be crushed.
This is Hooniverse. What ever is most popular, we will like the car right behind it.
Good calls.
In fact, they essentially "hooned" our little poll, which is the online equivalent of doing a brodie in the cyber front lawn. And we can all appreciate a good cyber-ninja-brodie. I hope some of them stick around, because Ratsun folks are pretty hard-core-hoons and an interesting bunch.
I like the insight that every "fix" for what is happening here goes completely against what this site is about. I can now go back to drinking heavily and posting inappropriate steak sauce recipes on vegan websites.
Speaking of off-topic, have you tried CANDIED BACON?!?!? OMG….
I have tried candied bacon. Unnatural, and yet tasty.
Every fix? I realize that the one i suggested isn't technically possible, but all it would do is have people rank the nominees one through whatever. So if someone from a dedicated forum shows up they can number one vote whatever they came to vote for but they'd also need to order the rest of their nominees as they see fit. In this case it would be more likely to get drive-by voters to read the great writeups for each nominee.
They might still skew polling, but in that style, all the other votes count for something too. The winner is the one who gets the most overall points.
You're right, of course. I'll sit back and shut my face-hole. I think it's mostly just that I take offense to anyone fucking with the system. In the same sense as I dislike someone who drives up the shoulder in a stopped row of traffic, then cuts in front of everyone, it just pisses me off when someone rigs the results. If I come in last, I don't care, same as if I'm the last car in line.
I suppose I should just rely on the Hoons to keep karma in balance. And you're right. Stop taking it so damn seriously. It still feels a bit like my baby, so I'm protective. I'm gonna head down to the 'States where there's no internets so I can't get so worked up.
Damn, someone told Canada we didn't have the internets! Now they will make fun of us!
I hate it when people disregard the rules and do as they feel entitled, but at the end it's really not any big deal to me unless they crash and then I get to sit and wait for their dumb asses to be towed out of the way.
You're a big part of the reason most of us are here. You are entitled to be protective and bear out your vision. But at the same time, relax and enjoy the community here. I sent a Christmas present to someone I have never met and thought it was the best. Anyone else receiving a gift from me wouldn't have found that nearly as cool as I did, and my recipient did. We here in the fringe like doing random and amusing things, so start plotting how you can put you're warped little mind into spinning whatever outcome we get. That will make some great reading.
Note, we all go bat shit crazy when JoSchmo posts about his Datsun.
Wow. This comment is humbling and yet, enabling at the same time. I had the highest of hopes for Eleanor and yet the worst year on record (personally) so it didn't materialize due to sh…tuff happening. Repeatedly. She is currently hibernating for the winter. I do however have a plan for the spring and I have acquired the necessary tools to get the job done so look forward to some more updates when the weather gets more wrencher-friendly.
No worrys man, as the proud owner of a project truck without space or money I feel your angst. Nothing quite goes as planned, and if it did it would be weird.
I'm just disappointed that a well done custom Datsun truck that can actually be used cannot stand on its own merit. That's what's bugging me.
If you've created something awesome, people can appreciate it for what it is. This thread leads me to believe that Chad thinks the truck can't/is not awesome enough and thus needs a boost. I'm glad he regards Hooniverse this highly, but the confidence he has in his car is…less? And it's not like a small site like Hooniverse can win him publicity; if he did this on Jalopnik/Autoblog it would've made sense.
Funny thing that you say that. I have never asked the Datsun to be anywhere or posted up on anyone's sites or on any magazines. Anyone that knows me knows that I will never talk about my truck unless you ask me directly. Do I like talking about the truck? Sure. But that's only because I spent a year and a half of my life where that was all I did. I didn't go to events or parties and missed several family outings just so I could get one more thing done. The only reason that my truck made it here is because Antonio at Motormavens asked if he could do a shoot with the truck and hooniverse pulled it from there. I never once submitted my truck to anyone for attention. I don't need attention nor do I want it. Ask anyone who knows me, I'm a wall flower. The only time my truck has been submitted for anything was for the One of One car show with HellaFlush. And that was so I could get a good parking spot at Formula D in Atlanta. And then the truck ended up staying at the S3 booth for the rest of the time because they were wanting to put it in their magazine. And their booth was even closer to where I was sitting than the car show thing.
The summary of what I'm saying is that I built my truck for me and me alone. I don't care what anyone else thinks. Everyone has opinions and it's just that. Their opinion. It's not going to change the way I feel about my project. If you guys want to pull it from the listing that's completely fine with me. All I know is that I was sent an email saying that I was up against some stiff competition and that I should invite some friends to help vote. And that's what I did. My wife put it on Facebook and my name has popped up all over with support. I can't change what other people are doing. I was only doing what was asked of me. If that is a problem then delete my nomination. It's not like I'm looking for any kind of recognition or trophy or approval from anyone.
Sorry so many people got butt hurt over me doing what I asked to do.
OK Guys, let's give Chad a little more respect here. This is a guy who built a bad ass truck, for a sport that I know very little about. This is suppose to be Hooniverse, "Staking a claim on the Automotive Fringe"…. well you can't get more on the fringe that with this truck.
Chad…. Your vehicle is amazing, and you own another Bat-Shit crazy car with the JDM Soarer. You are the embodiment of a Hoon, that builds crazy cars, and drives them like crazy. We have had a few heated moments, and a few people on here are a little overprotective.The Editors knew we were going to have this type of Fan-Based reaction, be it from the BMW Boards, or the 24 Hours of LeMons Contingent, to the Drifting community.
I want to personally thank you for alowing me to write all about your truck, and detail the build for the Hooniverse Community. Nothing has been said about you or your awesome truck that is anywhere near negative, and in fact the editorial staff as a whole really digs your workmanship, your choice of chariots, and your Hooning skills.
I am sorry for the way this polling seems to look, but with any controversy there are new opportunities to explore. We have never had this many people vote on any of our polls before, and we have gained some new perspective into the world of Drifting, and their many fans out there. We are a fairly new community, and invite you, your family, your friends, and your fans to come on in, take a look, and leave comments like yours.
Welcome Chad. You have certainly open our eyes.
Well said Jim…
Chad, your truck rules – please hang around here and you will see this is a great community that is passionate about all-things automotive.
… though I didn't vote for you 😉
You didn't do anything wrong, and the whole controversy thing is kind of sad. Great truck. I see other people promoting their choices to be voted for on Facebook, and that's no different, it's just harder to track, source-wise, where the votes are coming from. Again, great truck, great build, great story; that's why you got my vote. Happy New Year, hope you stick around.
Thanks for coming out and spilling the beans. But y'see, from my side I only saw random people coming in purely to vote for you, your thread over at Ratsuns, and the sudden jump in votes. As a fan of this site I saw all the entries with equal criticism, but yours stood out because you were the only one actively promoting. And some vote without thinking. I'm glad you have the support you have, and I respect the work you've sacrificed so much to do, but the other entries all have their own compelling story.
It's good that you don't mind how people see you, and as long as you're having fun, then it really doesn't matter. It's just that I, a fan of this site, worry when your supporters went really overboard and IMO undermined your pride and joy with the whole voting-from everywhere-I-can thing, that's all.
I feel very bad for what happened to you, sorry. I have a slow computer at home and this post would become a blank white page and hung browser once it hit more than 100 comments or so, so I did not see all this happened. Early on I posted a comment where I had a difficult time deciding between your truck and the 103 year old racecar. In the end I chose the Italia, but it was a hard choice. I like your truck and all that you did and learned very much (nice use of wheelbarrow for example).
I have not been to hooniverse a long time, but what happened here I have not seen before, so I think it's an exception. I hope you find something you like here regardless of what happened and come back. To my thinking the voting does not matter, being nominated was special in itself. You and your truck are both very interesting and thanks.
"This is why we can't have nice things"
These cars are all awesome! I'm lusting after the GNX Lotus, and the Itala and it's story are damn cool, but I'm going to go with the new guy on this one.
Folks are going to customize and drive cars no matter what who wins HCOTY. But by if the diesel wins, maybe we can get it some more attention and more sales. That in turn will bring even more diesel goodness to America. I was very disappointed when Subaru announced that they werent bringing their diesel to America because Amercans don't buy enough diesels. Here we have a chance to support a good new car, maybe not a great car, but a good car, and hopefully move the market in the right direction.
Next year can we have separate categories for new vehicles and appropriately used vehicles?
I wouldn't be too disappointed if I were you. I obviously haven't tried it myself, but every review I've read about the Subaru diesel said that it was terrible. If we want the diesels to spread in North America, we only want the best ones!
There is so much win in all of these but in wiords from a movie "There can be only one" so I had to choose the Italia. Even though I submitted the Octo Wagon the Italia is just so bat shit crazy it is awesome. But then again I do live in NJ so voting early and often does come naturally….
Itala
Butus
Airporter
Octocar
Wullet
e-Bike
Driftruck
Taurus
BimDiesel
Perfect! Of course, I only looked at your choice for last place….
I love the Red Dragon, and I soooo wanted to vote for it. The history, the madness, the dedication of the team… As far as stories go, I think it is the winner of all the HCOTY nominees. But when it comes to what would I want to see in my driveway, it just doesn't have what it takes for me.
So I put in my vote for the Lotus. Yes, there is no backstory, it's just an awesome find. But I think if anyone here found it under their tree, it would be out running its paces the very next day.
Actually, it'd be the same day for sure.
I guess the Uberbird has an unfair advantage for this award? Maybe give it an emeritus status for the Hooniverse.
I voted for the Wullet since I have experienced a too large motor in that body style on the street.
The Uberbird would be what's cast on the actual HCOTY trophy… should it ever exist.
Octocar.
The only thing that could eclipse a car with Double Rotaries would be a car with a Double Rotisserie.
drift truck !
drift truck
check out the itala link on You Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_-FZCjBJ7A (Aboard a 1907 Itala on the peking to paris)
and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNygXEYUC_Q (1907 Itala overtakes a bentley)
Drift truck? Really? That's interesting. I wouldn't have thought it had a chance when put up against the Octocar and the Red Dragon. I would have thought that even the GNX Lotus would come out ahead of the Drift Truck. Hmm.
I am not the least bit interested in drifting (however, the looks of a lot of those cars appeal to me), but that truck is very, very well constructed, looks great, and the whole package clearly means business.
I'm here to fix deinen cabble.
And vote for the drift truck.
yall are taking this whole Internet thing pretty seriously haha.
Dear Lord….. What have I done?
It was a solid nomination… that went a bit sideways.
Yeah, actually, we do. Some of us have put hours of work into this, and to have a bunch of people clicking furiously without reading the articles is insulting.
Yeah, remember what I said earlier? Fuck it, flame on.
If they get enough negatives, they get kicked off the internet, right?
It seems referring to him as "Hangin' Chad" was prescient!
Don't let the electile dysfunction get to you. It happens even in America.
Besides, it's just a bunch of cars and a Rad Ratsun DoRifto FTW!
I voted for one of the cars, but the above sentence was fun to type. And maybe some of our guests will stick around. At least the ones with a sense of humor.
/ducks and runs
In reading the thread on ratsun.net cited above by ZomBee, I found this:
"After looking at the Red Dragon, I feel bad for voting against it. That thing is awesome."
If it generates comments like that, I'd say don't worry too much about the voting.
I actually thought that was pretty funny…
(thumbs up!)
ITALA FTW!
It's been amusing watching all the thumbs go up and down furiously throughout the day…
I'm going to go home, drink some Brandy and explain why I think things are not right with this situation. Maybe…..I'm just not real impressed with some of the new comments I see. Reminds me of a post I made her awhile back. Maybe some of them can learn a thing or two from it.
NEW HOONIVERSE RULE: anybody who types "FTW!!!" in a comment numbering less than 2 sentences will be hereby nuked from orbit.
It's the only way to be sure.
At any other time I'd make a smart-ass FTW comment.
Oops…
Even if its me? Shit. I should have read this first before commenting on Truck Thursday.
Can we auto-eliminate "EPIC" at the same time?
It's strange. I've tuned out of the word EPIC. All I see is blank space.
"Fail" must go too as an overused meme-word. And 'hella" as an intensifier should have never existed at all.
I respectfully disagree with your criticism of Hella as an intensifier.
<img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5126/5307670173_c04a7d3d16.jpg" width="350">
No problem if it's a proper noun.
SAAB image FTW!
As a recent transplant to norcal, I am learning to embrace "hella." It doesn't help that everybody here says it in every other sentence, but if you ignore that one late 90s South Park episode, it makes more sense.
For example, I would never describe something as "hella sweet."
However, I did recently tell somebody that I spent "hella money" on beer-brewing equipment, and my coworker described herself at a party as "hella Mexican." The difference in usage is subtle, but important.
'Hella' should be used as an abbreviation for "a hell of a lot of" or "extremely;" not so much as an intensifier for other adjectives and adverbs.
The elementary school-friendly version, "hecka" is also awesome. As I was told too often working in schools, "you're hecka white."
"That's white" was also used as an insult, which I found kind of funny. Where are you in Norcal? I'm in SF. We need a Hooniverse member Google Map.
I'm way out in the boondocks, toward Yuba City. I like it here.
There really should be a map. That would be helpful to everybody.
Here it is.
First off. I need to explain this. Hooniverse is very important to me for a few reasons. My mental psyche being one. This is home to me in many ways. Two, I was here at the birth and the writers are considered friends of mine in many ways. So to many of the new "readers" here, this years voting seems very ugly, very wrong to me because of things I have experienced through my life.
Next, Chad's Dastun is a work of art. I believe it is a worthy contender for this years HCOTY. Everything about the truck is true to the Hooniverse and what we believe in. Build what you love, for yourself, and the others will appreciate it.
The new readers, who have come from whatever regions of the internet they were on, I assume drift regions. I googled a few names I saw so I ass-u-me a majority of the votes are from that automotive group. What you are doing is wrong in many ways. Not breaking rules wrong, not voting or friend wrong. Just wrong. Please, follow this link to see where I am coming from in my response here. Please scroll down to my comment.
http://hooniverse.info/2010/11/18/hooniverse-asks-…
That, literally, is what I see happening here right now. Chad's fans and friends flooding the votes to win, no matter the consequences. No matter if they insult the fans, true fans of this site, or anger the people who created this place. No matter if they slap someone in the face and talk about "taking the internet seriously"
If this is how it is going to be, fanboy voting and spreading the word to win the day. I would love to nominate a car to be in this contest. I can fucking lock solid guarantee I could lock up the top spot without much effort with my personal and professional connections in the automotive industry and hobby that I have been apart of for over %80 of my entire life. Hell, with the votes where they are at I could just make sure my first choice, Itala, wins. I choose that car over others after reading through each and every story. Knowing the car is far from perfect, but fuckna a, it is what the Hooniverse is all about. But I won't do that, cause it happened to me and still does. I won't go there. It aint worth it to the hobby that I love so much.
Build it, drive it, love it and not wonder what your friends or relatives, coworkers or fanboys think of it.
/the following was after a 12 hour day keeping peoples cars moving on the road and then finding a bottle of Brandy. Love me, hate me. I don't care. I'll still buy you a beer if you love automobiles like I do.
I love ya. Where's my beer?
Sitting in the fridge whenever a Hoon steps through the door. and i Hoonlove you also.
Aww, a Broughamance buds. 🙂 If I ever make it to wherever it is you are, I'll collect.
Good on ya. Once again, I wish you were closer so's I could shout you a beer.
Well said and very good point. I think it speaks badly of Chad that he is prodding his chronies to pack the ballot box.
I missed all this that happened since the computer at home is so slow. Thank you for writing this, it said very well the point of view of everyone that had been hurt by what happened. If you're ever near Batavia IL, stop-by for beer too. It's a real shame that people voted without thinking about the other cars. I do feel bad for Chad as well since it is a great car and I don't think realized what would happen and that it would be offensive.
This is the kind of site that makes me exclaim out loud, at my desk, at work, upon realizing it is Wednesday, "Wagon Wednesday"! It's the type of place that none of my friends understand why I enjoy. It's the happy medium between the commercial droll pablum of [redacted] and the intensely interesting but understandably infrequent posts at AUWM.
It's sand in my underpants to see the whole forum fanboy "vote for me you guys" thing. Show up once, ask a bunch of "duh, how do I vote?" questions on your forum, and then post some FTW!!!!! comment… super lame.
It's not what Hooniverse is about. Replace your FTW!!!! comment with something about how awesome it is that we have a debate between an 8 door Pontiac wagon, a 100+ year old car crossing Asia, and a homebuilt 8 wheeled car with two rotary engines and the wrong (right?) number of everything else. Think about how absurd, unique and awesome that is. Then, if you suddenly feel at home, welcome.
It's not letting me vote and I'm too lazy to go through and troubleshoot.
The Pontiac and Lotus are both cool cars but there's nothing "2010" about them. The SHO has the same problem.
Despite the excellent write-up the Wullet is just a beater malaise wagon with a monster under the hood, and not a particularly interesting monster at that.
The E1 isn't a car and, like the Bimmer, it's far too sensible to be the Hooniverse's COTY.
While I love the drift truck it's a purpose built drift truck, as such, it's actually kind of tame. If he used it as a daily driver it might have had a chance at winning my vote.
This leaves us with the GLCOAT and Itala. The GLCOAT currently doesn't run and baring an absolute miracle it's not going to by the end of 2010 so it's only connection to 2010 is that it was bought by SpeedyCop.
Therefore, my vote (if I could cast one) goes to the Itala. Yeah, it's a purpose built race car that isn't daily driven, but it's from Nineteen Oh f**king Seven. It did Peking to Paris in 2010, it's owned by people who clearly "get it" and embody the spirit of the Hooniverse, it is my Hooniverse Car of the Year.
As far as this whole fanboy (no offense intended) flood goes, I have no problem with it, the Datsun Drift Truck is fantastic, however spend a little time outside of the box (kinda our theme here) and put some thought into your comments. If you want to join in the festivities and support your favorite, more power to you. My advice to you though would be to hang around and perhaps elaborate on your comments and see whats going on here. Hooniverse is the "Cheers" of the automotive world where everyone knows your name.
For the record, I ended up voting for the Lotus. Go ahead and thumb this comment down, though, because I am a visitor and obviously just here to ruin the Internet for you.
<img src="http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/8717/jumptoconclusions.jpg" width=499>
Exactly.
Welcome JJ…hope you are able to stick around and enjoy all things Hoonable in the Hooniverse.
The Lotus? Great, now the vote's being flooded by people coming here just to vote for the British car. Well, this one person, anyway. Will the madness never end?
Personally I'm just waiting for the BMW folks to arrive en masse, only to discover that they'll have to call their cars "Beemers" if they want to be counted.
I hear there are free cream teas and scones with jam if you vote British….
Tempting, but still not worth it.
On an almost related note, I stopped my MG Metro at an intersection in Seattle yesterday and noticed a woman in her late fifties glancing repeatedly at the car as she walked in front of it. Upon reaching the sidewalk she turned and continued to eye it in puzzlement. I rolled down my window (right-hand drive, of course) and she said, in a bemused and amused tone (and with a very British accent), "No." I smiled and replied "Yes." She reasserted "No" and I again countered with "Yes." She shook her head ever so slightly, then turned and walked away.
I always meant to tell you, and never got around to, how glad I am to know that Seattle contains at least one MG Metro. The delicious irony being that your little 70hp A-Series must have had the legs over a lot of it's '80s US contemporaries. A 4.1 Eldorado, for example, would be easy meat. Plus you get to amaze people with your red seatbelts.
Thank you. It's an early '82 (Y reg), so the red seatbelts are set off even more strikingly against its black interior. Sadly, however, its contemporaries are getting to be thin on the ground and, as many have noticed, performance (particularly low-end acceleration) has improved so much over the last few decades that it can be a struggle just keeping up with what is now considered normal city traffic. Nonetheless, here you go: Metro in Seattle
<img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5048/5307591010_178ea7cd61.jpg" width="350">
on one of the city's renowned sunny days.
Ah, later wheels (or GTa or Advantage limited edition?) Looks magnificent. Nightfire red? (or am I making that up?) Seriously, Sir, I emplore you to use any means whatsoever to keep her on the road.
Incidentally, did you ever come across a childrens storybook called "The Little Red Metro" ? Early reading for me, and probably my first step into car-dom.
It's the original cinnabar red paint (code CMT), mostly, although it's had a partial respray at some point. The wheels are from a Metro Turbo– funny you should mention them along with the exhortation to "use any means whatsoever…" because as of last week, those wheels are no longer on the car. I couldn't find a new set of 13" tires that were both narrow enough and of sufficiently low profile to fit inside the wheel wells (Mk1 Turbo spec is 165/60 13), so I tracked down a set of 12" Mk1 Metro pepperpot wheels from a guy in Malta, a set of 145/70 12 tires made in Indonesia, special lug nuts from an outfit in California, and a set of NOS center caps from, of all places, England, and swapped them. The new tires are a bit smaller than the original Mk1 specification (155/70 12), but at least they fit.
I had never heard of the Little Red Metro books. Now I know there are four in the series, all out of print, and have just ordered used copies of the three I could find. Thanks for the tip!
"Little Red Metro Finds A Home" is a real tear-jerker. The poor old Allegro when he says "I'm obsolete". Gets me every time.
Also, a pint of Speckled Hen awaits you to reward your sheer Metro-related effort. Keep it up!
You and I, dear sir, are going to have to meet up for a pint. White Horse Trading Company in Post Alley, perhaps?
Sure– drop me a line at mh******@es*.wash… well, if you're local, you can probably guess the rest of a UW address.
Aren't Beemers bikes and Bimmers cars?
That was the point Eggwich made the other day, above. However, I don't see it as a mistake so much as a deterrent.
I completely missed the fact that it was British. It must have been the lack of oil spots in the driveway.
Buick drivetrain. Must be a recent swap, as the Britishness hasn't had time to permeate it. Yet.
Ruin, nothing. Obviously, You Get It. I hope you like what you see here, and we look forward to more of your smartass comments. Cheers.
You'd be able to get to those visits a lot quicker, though, you have to admit.
Well, having just polished off some roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, i'm going to mention why I voted Octocar.
I have dreams. We all do. I dreamt that I could turn my Rover into a Honda V6 engined nitrous-assisted track-day weapon. Never happenned. I ended up selling her on eBay for £46.
I followed my dream of being a car designer all the way through University, then I graduated and became a car salesman instead. The current dream is to become an automotive journalist. Whether that'll ever happen, who knows? But it's a dream to cling to, anyway. We all have them, they're healthy. Dreams are great.
One guy had a dream of an eight-wheeled behemoth with rotary engines. It was his dream, nobody elses, other people probably wouldn't have understood anyway, there probably aren't enough hoons out there. And steadfastly, without listening to any of the voices of reason, our hero continued the build, creating a leviathan that came tantalisingly close to completion. And then he died.
He was well on the way to realising his dream, but fate cut the story short. Yeah, it was probably pure folly, but I like to think that, had the Octocar been discovered a few years earlier, the brotherhood of the hoon could have lent a hand in the madness.
Vote Octocar, and support dreamers everywhere.
I came over here to vote for the drift truck BUT after seeing and reading about the Red Dragon — and not the fanboy comments that the "regulars" who most ,if not all of, dont pay a dime for this sites operating expenses —changed my vote. Also if you "regulars" wanted to have you own site maybe you could start your own and lock it so nobody could ever see or use / clutter it up. Now i think i will go down to my local FORD dealership to check out what kind of company would invest in a internet site in order to keep it FREE for me and my new cars buying friends.
I started my own site, but nobody ever goes there and I just sit here in the corner.
Seriously, we're delighted whenever people visit for the first time. Like having visitors at home, it's all good until they take contol of the stereo, put their own posters on the wall and begin moving the furniture.
Welcome aboard. Drinks are served in the lounge. Two drink minimum to use the bathroom.
Bathroom? Oh, you mean the Fiero.
You had me at "FORD."
I was on board with "FORD" but he lost me at "new cars buying."
I kind of feel like I should have voted for the Lotus solely based on the fact that it's the only car I've ever seen that actually looks good with black wheels with a silver lip. It's such a common look, and it all too commonly looks bad.
[polldaddy 4317971 http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/4317971/ polldaddy]
Come on you Guys AND Galls wake up and and vote for the ITALA and "Chase the Red Dragon to Peking" – it is truly Awesome and a real one off so get voting before its toooooooooooooo late 🙂
I have proven that regardless of the repercussions, like name calling and "unease" at having the drift community in YOUR forum, the drift community is strong and supportive of its members. You call them fan boys, we call them friends, customers and family. When one of us deserves recognition, we don't mind giving them just that. Chad deserves all the voting we have done.
We are Garage Zero and we are Hoon Fu#*ing Classy. We daiily drive old school beaters with monsterous and obscure engine swaps. We don't wash our cars before meets and you can HEAR us coming before you SEE us coming. We do it for the love, and we do it with a smile on our face. Garage Zero has the best parties and meets in Atlanta, and we open the doors to ALL the car communities. Drift, Old School, American Muscle, Stance, VIP, even Hoon; all of it takes sacrifice, committment and love. It is something we live everyday and have an enormous respect for.
I put the call out for the vote. I am the hijacker. My only advice to you is don't be scared, buckle up your 5 point harness and just friggin enjoy the ride. At the end of the day, isn't the ride what it is all about?
I think you mistake the concern of the regulars here. Yes, there was name calling in some cases, but who doesn't cuss when they get fed something unexpected?
I myself like the little drift truck, and I applaud you and your community. But I think your efforts sidelined the spirit of the contest- as in which of these misunderstood/undervalued/overlooked wheeled joys was the best. It isn't a popularity contest- the big sites have those, and this community isn't about what is the most popular, or who has the most "friends". It's about which ride has the most panache.
So some of the regulars are feeling a bit tiffed because what fan club is going to come to the rescue of the Safari Wagon, or the Wullet? Nobody.
Everyone is flattered at all the attention you sent our way, whether they've said so or not. I just hope that some of you guys put your feet up and compare notes and have heated (but SFW and friendly) about the less fine automotive points with those of us here, rather than just drifting through as fast as possible just to throw us the bird.
Cheers!
The spirit of this contest lives within the Garage Zero doors. Check out our site. This website, this Hoon "philosophy" is what we live for. So, we happen to have a lot of friends, AND we happen to believe in supporting those friends. That in and of itself should only increase the membership and traffic to your site. I for one, am happy to see others enjoying what we enjoy daily. My husbands 1976 rotary swapped Toyota Corona sports more rust than a metal recyling yard and is (just as Chads truck is) daily driven (even in the carpool lane). It also sports a "Hoon Fu*#ing Classy" Sticker on its windshield. I expect your membership will grow and it will be in part due to my call to vote for one of our own, but it will be more because we are like minded and are happy to join in the fun!
As for throwing the bird, we would NEVER do that. If we drifted by you, you would see only the thumbs up and a big fat grin for what we both are driving!
Thanks for taking the time to give us the back story. It must be pretty cool to discover one of your friend's rides on another web site. Celebrating that find and sharing it with your forum members is completely understandable.
Every community has slightly different expectations around behavior, and the initial interactions are often awkward. We like our English as well as our cars, and tend to frown on the whole "OMG FTBBQ" thing. We were also hoping that the poll would allow us to select a vehicle that best serves as an icon of our appreciation for the automotive fringe, rather than a show of support for any one owner / builder. Bottom line around here though is that anyone who takes the time to read the post, consider what it's about, make a considered vote and maybe even post a thoughtful comment is welcome, and we hope you come back.
Really? I know – i think – what you're trying to say with "The spirit of this contest lives within the Garage Zero doors." But it comes off as extraordinarily pompous. So maybe i don't know what you're trying to say, come to think of it, because the rest of your post comes off just as pompous.
Given the tone of most of your "friends" who've come here, i have a feeling that whatever you were doing when you drifted by me, you'd be getting the finger. Because if your friends drive like they comment, they deserve at least that much.
LittleYodaPickup put it very well, but for more clarity, see the comments a bit below this one. We have no problem with Chad winning; we have a problem with people coming over and being disrespectful on our site. I don't care one bit if Chad's truck wins, and I'd really love to see the HCOTY grow and become an award that people really want to win. But I don't want that to happen at the expense of a solid community. Now, if all those people had come in posting about WHY they were voting for the Datsun — assuming, of course, that they have a reason other than "it's a Datsun" — then we'd love them and hug them and buy them beer and ask them to never ever leave. And if it won, we'd probably think you were all nuts, but we'd be thrilled with it.
Instead, we got a whole lot of disrespect. So get your folks to show US the same respect as they would the people at those meets you describe, and we'll all get along great.
I just want to say this: Drift Truck controversy aside, I hope that this leads to some cross-pollination in terms of Hooniverse readers going out and checking out what the Garage Zero folks are all about, and vice versa. I don't think anyone here for one moment would say that Hooniverse represents an anti-drift perspective … it might not be a focus, but heck, we're about the VEHICLES, and as Chad's truck demonstrates we all can appreciate a great build with a great story. That's certainly not what anyone has a problem with.
So now that you've been over here, let me say, welcome! I'm personally a longtime reader of Alexi's Noriyaro blog, and I've spent some time on Garage Zero. I'm going to do my part by coming over and being a good ambassador of the 'Verse.
Whats happenend to the voting – has it been frozen? This page wont let me vote??
refresh or reload the page in another browser. Happened to me also. It will let you in, voting will carry on I ass-u-me and maybe we will all have a group hug and drink a barrel of breffas scotch when it is over.
Were do I vote for the Itala?
Chad was told by the administration to go out and get votes, then you guys started being a bunch of babies, so he was told to stop.
Cry harder.
That's enough. Show some respect on someone else's board. It's not the campaigning that's pissing us off, it's that kind of attitude from the people coming over. Read the responses on here. It's not the influx, it's not the campaigning, and we would all be totally happy to see Chad's truck win or we wouldn't have nominated it. We are not happy with a bunch of people being disrespectful.
I'm not swinging the banhammer yet, because we actually WANT you guys to come over, but we're giving a LOT more leeway than we normally would. All we are asking is that you try and respect our community, but nobody has managed to try and do that yet. We put a lot of time and work into this place, an it's like pissing all over it to come in and be rude. Want us to be nice? Try being polite while you're here.
Last warning for yourself.
Scroll down thru the entrants n tick the circle on the left next to 'I WANT TO CHASE THE RED DRAGON TO PEKING' 🙂
No circles here….
Octocar all the way, but the Italia is a close 2nd, and the drift truck 3rd.
The red dragon is a winner wotever lol
Here here
check out the red dragon's blog & website! :O) http://davidayre.com/Vintage_Car_Restoration_Blog… http://itala-davidkarenayre.blogspot.com/
Awesome real hands on guy deserves an honors award as well as the hooniverse 🙂
Red dragon to win ……. Or else !!!!
Chad who n wots a datsun?? Like to c that driving round in a 2111 lol
A couple of reminders to regulars and newcomers:
1) This is a vote for an award that comes with a prize of nothing.
2) This is not an election or ballot measure, meaning next week when this post is off of the front page, things will be just the same as they were last week.
3) Play nice. Seriously. If you're here to vote for any of these cars, you're already into some bitchin' machinery. There's no reason anyone in support of any of these cars should feel animosity to anyone else. We're already into some weird and awesome stuff, we should all be able to get along.
<img src="http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/internet_argument.png">
3b) (mostly to new folks) We try to keep things above the "LOL/FAIL/WIN/OMG/Haterz gonna hate" level here. Yeah, it's the intertoobz, but that's kinda the point. There's no shortage of idiocy, so we're of the opinion you can get that elsewhere. Just to be clear, it's not me saying everyone's that way, just a minority.
3c) (also for new folks) That's me at the top of the page here, just for reference. I run this little circus in between my day job, my 10 month old kid and my 4 project cars.
Protip for making the comments/voting work
Refresh the page (F5)
Hard refresh (ctrl + F5) and/or clear cookies.
Of course, it's 8:33 west coast time, which means it's pretty much done anyway, so my apologies for any complications.
That worked great.
Happy New Year to all!!
Solution to this weird situation? Above is speculation that LeMons crew will create special prize for the Octocar, why not use the same system and find some accolades for drift-Datsun, as it is great car. HCOTY should go to Red Dragon however.
A new year has come. We sit at 200 comments on HCOTY and the winner of this years award is Chad's Ratsun Drift truck. Congratulations, Chad. Despite the controversy involved and issues brought up yours is a deserving truck and your work on it astounding.
Great job,
Without addressing the larger issues, might I just say that while it wasn't my choice, the Drift Datsun is 100% worthy of the HCOTY trophy and all of the (imaginary) benefits that it confers.