CSC Blog

Nope, this blog isn’t about Muhammed Ali, Tyson, Sugar Ray, Camacho, or any of those guys.   We’re gearheads, and the focus today is on boxer engines.

The boxer engine configuration is one that has been around for a long time and it has powered quite a few cars, motorcycles, and aircraft.   The boxer name presumably comes from the horizontal motion of the pistons…they jab out (and back and forth) like a boxer’s fists.   It’s a cool designation.

If you’re a rider you probably know of the twin boxer engine in BMW motorcycles.    Other motorcycles that have used the boxer configuration include the German Zundapp, the Honda Goldwing and Valkyrie, the Japanese Marusho, and several Chinese and Russian BMW clones (the Russian Ural and at least four Chinese outfits making BMW copies).  Hey, Harley even made a boxer during World War II…it was a copy of the BMW boxer, and it would have gone into rate production had it not been for a vehicle the Army found more useful (and that would be the Jeep).

The boxer engine concept found a home in more than a few automobiles, too.   Consider the one we’re probably most familiar with…the VW Beetle.   Did you know that the Chevy Corvair had a six-cylinder boxer?   And that Subaru has both four and six cylinder boxers in its wonderful cars?  Let’s not forget Porsche…they’ve probably created the most advanced boxer engines in the world (although in my opinion Subaru’s engineering is right there with Porsche’s).

Airplanes, too, use the boxer configuration.  There are so many I couldn’t begin to describe them.     Google “airplane boxer engines” and you’ll see what I mean.

Yep, the boxer has found a home in all of these vehicles…but for our focus here, I’ll turn back to the VW drags this past weekend.   What’s cool about this photo collection is the extent to which these V-Dub owners have turned their four-cylinder boxer engines into chrome-laden jewels.   And one more thing that’s cool about the bling on these engines:   If you see any goodies you like, our Pro-One sister company can provide it.

Enjoy the glitter, folks!

Onward and upward, boys and girls…I just received a nice photo and note from my good buddy Carlos.  The photo shows a very cool Rickman desert sled with a Matchless motor, so stay tuned! 

And yes, I still have a photo or two to show you from the VW meet in Irwindale this past weekend!

Ride safe.

More VW stuff, folks!   This time it’s the vans.   They sure were pretty.   I don’t know much about VW vans, so this blog entry consists mostly of photos.   Some of the front foldout windows were cool, as were the vans with a big locomotive-like headlight (were these factory options?).   And make sure you take note of the 23-window van…those really command a premium.

First, a quick video…

And a bunch of interesting VW van photos…

The next series of photos will be engine studies, and I’ll probably post those tomorrow night.   I’m off on a one-day secret mission tomorrow, so it will be tomorrow night before I post those.

I’ll tell you what:  That day at the VW drag races was a real treat.   Like I said, the photo ops were awesome.    I hope you can see that from the photos we’ve been featuring on the CSC blog.

Later, folks…

I guess the bottom line in watching the VW drag races is this:   I had no idea you could make a VW perform like I saw yesterday.    As a guy who grew up around small block Chevrolets, GTOs, and Mopars, I thought the VW thing was just sort of cute.  You know, they could make them faster, but they’d never really be fast.   Boy, was I ever wrong!

The cars I saw yesterday were nothing short of mind boggling.   I didn’t get to watch all of the racing, but I saw one VW hit 113 mph from a standing start in 1/8 mile.   And before these cars ran, they all did burnouts that were just awesome.  I had no idea.

Here’s one of the burnouts I saw.   Some of these cars actually got sideways…

Another thing I thought was impressive was watching the VWs launch.   Many of them wheelied off the line.   Wow! 

That 300mm Nikon lens sure did its job yesterday.   You can really reach out there with it.

The cars were just flat intriguing.   I guess it’s all part of being a gearhead…if it has wheels and a motor, folks are just going to fuss with the thing until it looks and performs like they want it to.   Corvettes, Ferraris, California Scooters…you know the drill.    VWs are no exception…

Wheely bars.  On a VW Beetle.   Who’d have thought? 

This fellow had a GoPro mounted on his car.   I’d sure like to see the video…

More striking VWs….these cars sure were nice.

Some of the VWs looked stock (they have different classes) and some were all out race cars. 

Here’s one that looks closer to stock…but the tires are a dead giveaway…

They even had VW station wagons racing…and this puppy was quick!

Here’s another VW drag racing video…if you can’t make out the time at the very end (on the board), this one ran 112 mph and change in just one-eighth of a mile!

That’s it for now, folks…the next set of photos will be of VW vans…another cool area with lots of eye candy!

You’ve no doubt concluded that I had a lot of fun shooting VW photos this morning…and you, of course, are correct.

Steve, TK, and I were almost the very first ones at the Irwindale track this morning…we were there at least an hour before sunup and it was cold.   It was foggy, too, which is something we live with here in So Cal this time of year…we call it the marine layer (I guess because the fog comes in from the Pacific Ocean).  

The VWs started arriving not too long after we did, and as soon as we had enough light I started snapping photos.   Like I said in the last post, this next set shows some of the interiors…and folks, these VW dudes and dudettes are seriously into their Bugs.   You’ll see…check out these restorations (and in one case, an intact rat job…)…

One nice thing about that early morning marine layer….we had nice, even lighting.   It’s the best possible weather for capturing cool images, and most of these were with my trusty Nikon 28mm lens.  

Here’s the interior of a really nice convertible Bug…

That one above is just awesome.

Here’s another cool one…

The next photo shows the rat job I mentioned.   This one is going for a well-worn patina look, and I think the owner succeeded.   The steering wheel and the seats look new, but everything else appears to be original…

And in case you were wondering, here’s the Bug the above interior resides in…

I like it.   You can see the fog behind the Beetle…and it actually had lifted quite a bit by the time I shot this photo.

Oh, here’s another cool one…this is the interior of the VW carrying that Pee Wee Herman toy you see below.   You can also see this VW behind the guys with the rusty bicycle in our last blog entry…

Folks, this is very cool stuff.   It was almost like being in an American Pickers episode.

Here’s the interior in a VW-powered James Dean Porsche replica car.  It’s just like the one TK shot for our blog a day or two ago.   Very cool stuff…

And our last interior shot…this Bug was parked right across from the CSC/Pro-One Booth, and it was gorgeous.   Bright colors really make these Beetles come alive, and the interior on this one was spectacular…

There was just so much cool stuff out there today it was hard to select what was most exciting (that’s why I’m bombarding you good folks with multiple blogs on the day’s photo ops). I have a few more coming…one on engines, one on the cars, one on miscellaneous goodies for sale at the swap meet, one on VW vans, and one on the VW dragsters. I sure hope you like VWs, because I have a lot of cool stuff to share with you.  You can be sure I’ll include some goodies on our favorite motorcycle, too…but for the next day or so, stand by for more good VW stuff!

Folks, there were so many photo ops at the VW drags and swap meet today that I think I’ll try to categorize some of my favorite shots.   This one shows some of the toys on display…

There were a lot of other cool things there today, too…so keep coming back for more!   I think I’ll do VW interiors next…

One of many fun aspects of the VW drag races:   Trick or treat!

A lot of the young ladies there were dressed for Halloween.     Check out Kaylee on a 250cc P-51 California Scooter!

 Here’s another…

Boo!

…and Boo! again…

That’s it for now…I’ll be posting more photos from the VW meet later!

…we grabbed this photo?

The drag races were just awesome this morning…and I had my 300mm lens with me to capture some of the excitement…

More to come, boys and girls…

Our good buddy Gordon went for a ride with us a while back and he posted this dynamite video…

Gordon uses a GoPro video cam, and I just may have to take a look at one of them…I really like their wind noise cancellation software. It lets you hear the engine a lot better than my camera.

Thanks, Gordon!  Dynamite cinematography and awesome riding!

There’s lots more to come, folks…but in the meantime, a couple of teaser photos and a quick video…

Steve and TK took me to the VW drag races in Irwindale this morning, and all I can say is wowee!   How about a VW hitting 113 mph in 1/8 of a mile!  

Stay tuned, as there’s lots more to come!

Most folks know about the James Dean crash in his Porsche.  It happened right here in California about 150 miles north of where I am right now.    I’ve been through that intersection in my silver sports car (slowly, of course).

Dean and his car make for an iconic image….

A couple of days ago TK grabbed these photos in front of our plant.   Fibersteel (http://www.fibersteel.net/catalog/) manufactures kits to build replicas, and from the looks of these photos, they really nailed it…yep, this is a replica, folks…

Those are great photos, TK, and thanks for sending them to me.

Here’s something I’ll bet you didn’t know…James Dean only got that car because someone else turned it down.   The Dean Porsche was originally ordered by another person who decided he didn’t want it after it arrived at the dealer.   I met that man, and I can tell you he was a far more interesting person and he accomplished way more than James Dean ever would have.   Interestingly, their last names rhymed.   But that’s another story for another time…if you want to know about it, let me know.

Later, folks….the water heater broke at my house today, and after mopping up, I’m hanging around waiting for the plumber to arrive.