Well, its no secret that the current clad Corolla is well over-due for its model year makeover. Toyota has now hung onto the current design, extending the conforming, utilitarian, and conservative (read: boring) outlook for 2 extra years. In some circles I have heard this to be a really interesting strategy:

1. Civic/Mazda3/Lancer are all enjoying a facelift late 2005 Impreza hits the scene in new-dapper present, mid-2006.

2. Celica is retired, RSX is hung, Civic SIR/TypeR is introduced in respective domestic markets, WRX/STI/MazdaSpeed3 readily available

3. Yaris making a nill impact with the dealership offered ‘aero package’ For those that absolutly unaware of Toyota’s new “flagship” sports compact, let me paint you a picture:

Yes, get a good look at that rear. This thing doesn’t have enough horses for you to see it again once you’ve passed it.

WTF is up with Toyota? are they too busy ENJOYING WORLD DOMINATION WITHOUT A SPORTS CAR? WTF???????
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With street racing related deaths on the rise across North America, governments and police forces are having to try new and drastic measures to combat the illegal and dangerous activity. On Wednesday in California, several known street racer’s rides were sent to the crusher to send a message to other racers that their hobby will not be tolerated.
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Like it or not, street racing is part of our culture. Long romanticized by song writers and authors, there is no denying that songs like “Dead Man’s Curve” are anything but a glorification of the danger surrounding street racing.

I was cruisin’ in my Stingray late one night
When an XKE pulled up on the right
And rolled down the window of his shiny new Jag
And challenged me then and there to a drag
I said, “you’re on, buddy, my mill’s runnin’ fine
Let’s come off the line, now, at Sunset and Vine
But I’ll go you one better if you’ve got the nerve
Let’s race all the way
To Dead Man’s Curve”

But isn’t that part of what it’s all about? The danger of getting caught. The risks. The humbling experience of losing. Somewhere along the way though, the reality of those same dangers sets in. Killing an innocent bystander is not an acceptable byproduct of some fun today, nor do I suspect it was a very welcome outcome in the Fifties.

Over at Left Lane, there was a bit of talk about Toronto’s own Jim Kenzie’s recent article about some possible upcoming legistlation to ban performance mods in the wake of the tragic death of a married couple. Joe at MyFordDreams2 and Jalopnik have posted about similar laws coming in the Bay area in sunny Cali. What nobody noticed though was the news from the day after Kenzie’s article was published.
A 31 year old Torontonian died when he wrapped his late model Porsche 911 around some immovable object while racing his cousin. It’s not just teens who do stupid things. You would think that this guy would have discovered the Driver Advancement days held by the local PCA region.

As true enthusiasts, it is all of our jobs to show the green, testosterone filled racer wannabes that there are safe places to drive their rods. Most car guys really have no training & the first time they have any advanced training they are blown away by how little they really do know about car control. A couple of weekends of autocrossing will change a driver’s skill level and awareness forever. All for about the cost of a decent lunch.

By all means folks, let’s keep enjoying the fun, impromptu stoplight battles. Just a little common sense and a little less cajones and maybe we can stop killing people in the name of fun.

Last week, the Provincial government here in Ontario announced that they would be working to make street racing a criminal offence. Within days of this announcement, a couple were killed on the way to celebrate their 17th wedding anniversary when they turned left in front of a street race in action. Investigators estimate that the Civic that hit them was travelling in excess of 150 kmh, or just under 100 mph. The 18 year old driver will be facing criminal charges when he is in more stable medical condition. Of course the timing of this tragedy was perfect for the media and the politicians and this kid will spend years in prison, because he was a moron who thought he was invincible.

Of course the biggest tragedy here is the 7 year old who has no parents. Why? Because 2 delinquents didn’t have the smarts to take it to the track and (here comes some controversy) because the parent who was driving didn’t look properly before turning into oncoming traffic. Yes, sometimes people die because they too made a mistake.

The purpose of this post though is to ask the question “when does street racing become a crime?”

Any warm blooded male (and many females for that manner) would be lying if they said they had never left a light a little bit faster than they should have when there was an opponent of some sort in the next lane. Last night, while returning home from a kid’s baseball game, Mrs. G ran her Protege5 through the gears to “beat Daddy” at the urging of our 2 boys, while Miss Shelby sat beside me and asked why Mom was racing us. Just to have fun. People have been having impromtu street races since we’ve had cars. Before there were cars, there were bicycles and even horses. Unplanned, uncontrolled races are nothing new, nor are they ever going to stop. It is the competitive nature of humans. Modern pop culture owes a lot to the hot rod culture of the 50’s. Where would we be without the Beach Boys or Jan & Dean. But wait…as we groove to the tunes, it is really a song about death from street racing.

The very lawyers who are campaigning to make steet racing a criminal offence show up at the courthouse in Audi S4’s and BMW M3’s, not to mention the odd CTS-V. Are we to believe that each one of them hasn’t lit their beast up when leaving a light even once?

Obviously it is tragic when someone dies of any cause, even more so when it is a result of someone’s selfish misbehaviour. That is not my point. If someone dies, it seems pretty basic that the racers involved are guilty of criminal negligence. But what about the 2 guys who make eye contact at a light, notice each other’s sweet ride and launch the car when the light turns green, only to stop at the next light, wave and drive away normally. Did they just commit a criminal act?

Where should the line be drawn? What can we do to add some element of control to the more extreme street racing?

Whenever a blogger misses their stride, they always seem to post some sort of apology to their readers. In most cases, life has just caught up with them and the blog suffers. In The Garage, it really isn’t all that much different, except for the fact that it really is garage stuff that has been catching up with things.

Over the last week, I’ve been busy moving from the Nissan store to the Mazda store & the change has been fairly time consuming, not to mention a bit stressful. The up side to this is all the new road test candidates! First up will be my new 2006 Mazda6 wagon. I know it’s got all the toys & a gearbox, but I don’t know what colour it is or even how many gears it has!

Kart racing season truly starts for our house this weekend, with the arrival of the new engine, fresh from Arnold Racing Engines. Both days this weekend will see the Grant family invading Mosport once again.

Last weekend saw me cleaning a winters worth of kid crap out of Mamma’s Protege5.

Occasional contributor Petri has been getting caught up in the IRL world lately. The daily grind of highway management has been interrepted with schmoozing with the likes of Dan Wheldon and Buddy Rice, not to mention Scott Pruett and a certain Nascar champ. Hopefully he’ll have some time to bang off a few words here and there in the near future.

As for The Garage, we should be back up to our normal pace soon, as life settles in at the dealership.

Watch soon for opinions on street racing penalties from The Garage, along with more road tests and maybe an interview or two.