As regular readers know, I have a bit of a thing for Nissan’s modern Zed car. The car is just so good, that its’ joy to drive under almost all conditions. Equally happy on windy roads as it is in the snow (with winter boots of course) it is truly a world class all around sports car. When I saw the Nismo model sitting there waiting for me, I just had to give it a go. I mean, what could be better than taking a world class sports car, stiffening the chassis, beefing up the suspension and a bunch of other track tested bits and bites?

The 350Z Nismo wears a Super GT inspired body kit that gets mixed reviews. The more reserved among us (read fuddy duddies) feel the skirts and step ladder wing are a bit over the top, while others seem to thing designers could have gone a bit farther with the wing. Either way, there is no mistaking that this is missile is destined for track usage.
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I’ve always been a firm believer that first impressions are an important indication of what’s to come. The first impression the 2008 Saturn Sky Turbo was a bright and bubbly one that promised lots of fun. From a branding standpoint, there didn’t appear to be any logos indicating that this was the Redline model, other than the turbo badge on the aft flank. Sliding behind the wheel, I found the cockpit more suited to a round guy than the standard of the class, Mazda’s MX-5. The interior is actually as hip looking as the outside and was comfy to boot.
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The previous generation Sentra SER Spec-V was a bit of an odd little beast. Stiffly sprung and with bags of horsepower through the front wheels, it was a torque steering nightmare. The fit and finish inside and out was haphazard at best. Overall, it felt like some tuner had gone wild adding performance bits to a basic Sentra and had built a car that handled like it was on rails and went like a scared cat, but really wasn’t a very nice car otherwise.
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It is such a shame that cameras don’t catch the colour orange in all it’s glory cause this MINI Cooper S wears a coat that is eyeball searing shade of dayglo. Fortunately this little shoebox won’t be mistaken for a pylon any time soon. This thing is quick!

I’m somewhat ashamed to say that this was my first ever drive in a modern MINI and it’s already in its’ second generation. Why? Well, the opportunity just never presented itself. Over the past few cars I’ve heard terms like rollerskate, go kart, formula car applied to the MINI and I was eager to get on with MINI experience.
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Looking up and down the pit lane at Pocono Raceway, it was tough to make a choice for my first drive of the day. I wanted a platform that I was comfortable in and I wanted a front driver. Something from the Nissan world made sense and I took note that the 350Z convertible was available, but that would have gone against my plan of spending the morning with front wheel drive cars. Sitting there all alone, was the 2008 Altima Coupe 2.5S. Perfect. Not too much power in a family of cars that I’m familiar with.
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At the IMPA test days, we met up with some incredible car people, including Kenny Herman, the Executive Producer of Fast Lane Daily. Kenny and his team have put together a pretty slick package and some good on air talent. Last Friday, they took a chance and brought in some celeb talent in very shapely form of Olympic skater Oksana Baiul. FLD commentors seem to have a problem with the production on this one, but I didn’t notice any problems. Maybe that’s because I keep rewinding to look at Oksana’s lovely sculpted torso. You mean they were talking?

Day two of the International Motor Press Association’s Test Days takes us to Pocono Raceway, where the real fun begins. Not that off roading isn’t fun, but it’s a whole different type of session once the adrenalin kicks in.

As I’ve mentioned before, it’s been 15 years since I’ve driven on a track. Also, I’ve never done any competitive driving in a rear wheel drive car, unless you count a single autocross in my 1975 Fiat 124 coupe way back in high school. In other words, I was more than a little nervous and had put together a plan to prevent me from embarrassing myself. Also, it would be pretty bad for one of the new guys to bend some tin the first time out! My plan was to begin with a low horsepower, front wheel drive of some sort, possibly a platform that I’m used to so I could comfortably get back into the swing of things. As the day progressed, I would move to the faster machinery and then the rear drivers in the afternoon. Ultimately my plan worked, but that wasn’t without a bit of excitement on the first lap.
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When Toyota first revealed the FJ Concept, enthusiasts the world over pretty much begged them to build this retro off roader. And so, build it they did and they stayed true to the concept, adding in lots of cool details along the way. Stylistically, funky details abound from side marker lights to dash vents and roof rack to body colour inserts around the center controls. This thing really is cool.
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Like most guys, I’ve always had a fondness for Jeeps. The classic looks, coupled with off road capability brings to mind thoughts of cruising down to Baja with a blonde and a surfboard. As often happens with such fantasies though, reality is a whole different image. There is little place for a 4 passenger convertible in a family of five. Why oh why can’t they just add another seat to the classic Jeep body style. Hey wait! They’ve done just that! The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited is a 4 door, 5 passenger machine with rough and ready looks and a removable top to boot. Maybe I’ve gone to heaven.
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We’re not about political correctness here in The Garage, but we try not to offend anybody. Let’s face it though, any time you combine the terms off roading and HUMMER, you are bound to offend a few greenies. Oh well. I have to admit that one of the trucks I most wanted to like on off road day was the brilliant orange HUMMER H3. I’m a pretty flamboyant guy and what could be more obnoxious than a dayglow HUMMER with honkin’ big off road tires & giant tow hooks?
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