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The 3000GT-VR4
Bought on January 7 1991 as a
graduation gift from my Mom, my 3000GT is black and has the VR-4 option
package. This includes a twin intercooled turbo,
fuel injected, four valves per cylinder engine with a peak output power
of 300hp and 307lb-ft of torque. It has all wheel drive and four
wheel steering with limited slip differentials. It is a blast to drive,
and a bear to keep clean. It can achieve a 0-60mph time of 5.3
seconds (Motor Trend, 3/91). It cost about $30k to purchase.
A conclusion to the Twin Turbo run
This
story has a conclusion. On March 18, 2016 we were driving
North
on Rt 3 in Crofton, MD when all of a sudden, I saw a puff of white
smoke coming from the driver's side of the hood. The engine
died
immediately. It would not restart. Luckily, there
was a gap
in the traffic, and we were able to push the car to the side.
Opening the hood and looking in, I could see the fan belt was
shredded. It was towed to my mechanic a few hours later, and
the
next day we heard the bad news: Timing belt was broken. There
was
most likely major engine damage and the car was basically totalled.
The last image I shot of the 3000GT. This was taken in Fall of 2015.
Photo shot on the final night while being loaded onto the tow truck.
For
years, a former coworker had said that if I ever wanted to sell the
3000GT, he would buy it. By now, he had retired and had time
on
his hands. I sold it to him for $500 as I knew I would be
able to
see it run one day again. He lives close to me and I
sometimes
pass his house to see if he has done any work on it.
Despite the 3000GT being 25 years old, I had not thought much about a replacement. After some searching, I settled on trying out the Lexus RC F. I wanted something that was a four seater coupe with lots of power. I also wanted something with aggressive styling. On Sunday, April 10 2016, I visited a local dealer that had a leftover 2015. It was available for a test drive and liked it immediately. While I was departing the dealership, they asked if I wanted to take it overnight for an extended test. I thought it would be nice to have it Thursday night for our weekly skate night at the rink and said I would come by Wednesday to pick it up. The salesman then asked "Why don't you keep it till then". I could not refuse the offer and drove the RC F for the next few days. Well I totally fell in love with the car. It was like putting on an iron man suit and going out in the world. Needless to say I bought the car when I came back on Friday that week.
So far, I have painted the calipers red (with Brembo silver lettering), and added an aero kit consisting of a front lip and side skirts.
Despite the 3000GT being 25 years old, I had not thought much about a replacement. After some searching, I settled on trying out the Lexus RC F. I wanted something that was a four seater coupe with lots of power. I also wanted something with aggressive styling. On Sunday, April 10 2016, I visited a local dealer that had a leftover 2015. It was available for a test drive and liked it immediately. While I was departing the dealership, they asked if I wanted to take it overnight for an extended test. I thought it would be nice to have it Thursday night for our weekly skate night at the rink and said I would come by Wednesday to pick it up. The salesman then asked "Why don't you keep it till then". I could not refuse the offer and drove the RC F for the next few days. Well I totally fell in love with the car. It was like putting on an iron man suit and going out in the world. Needless to say I bought the car when I came back on Friday that week.
So far, I have painted the calipers red (with Brembo silver lettering), and added an aero kit consisting of a front lip and side skirts.
My new ride is the Lexus RC F. This is the high performance coupe with
the 5.0 Liter 467 HP engine. 0-60 is in the 4.2 second range.