Rams Eye The Track Guy

I had a rental car the other day for a little trip. The car was a 2018 Toyota Corolla LE. My experience with this car is one that I had to share. You see, people say this car is an appliance, it is soulless, it just gets the job done, etc. I never thought I'd say this, but I hugely disagree. It is not fair to the Corolla and does not give the car enough credit. This car is not an appliance, it is far from it. It is absolutely full of soul..

UNfortunately, that soul is a demented, evil, mean, avenging spirit. Appliances are happy to hum along doing their jobs. The soul in this car hates cars, driving, and everything that has to do with either. I think it must have been killed by a car thousands of years ago and has been plotting its revenge on the automobile since then. I know, there were no cars thousands of years ago. But maybe someone from the future traveled back in time and ran them over. Their soul must have lingered on. It sounds a little far fetched.. But I'll ask you t…

Get your pitchforks sharpened and your torches lit up. There is a new Camaro vs Mustang comparison test and one of them walks the other. This time, it is the most recent comparison test between a 2018 Camaro SS 1LE and a 2018 Mustang GT posted by Motor Trend a few weeks ago. The results are the stuff of classic and long lasting brand rivalry so let's dive straight in. There is so much I want to talk about that it was difficult to pick where to start. Power seems to be the simplest and it's the one most are interested in so I'll start with that.

      2018 Camaro SS 1LE      2018 Mustang GT Perf. Pack0-30 mph1.8 s1.9 s0-40 mph2.5 s2.6 s0-50 mph3.2 s3.5 s0-60 mph4.1 s4.4 s0-70 mph5.1 s5.4 s0-80 mph6.5 s6.7 s0-90 mph7.9 s8.1 s0-100 mph9.4 s9.7 sPassing, 45-65 mph1.8 s1.9 s1/4 mile12.5 s @ 115.2 mph12.6 sec @ 115.1 mph
Before we compare to the Camaro, let's compare to the pre-refresh S550 Mustang. Did Ford deliver on its claimed 25 hp gain starting with the 2018 Mustang GT? …

It's BACK! Finally, after years of rumours, Ford has revealed the 2019 Mustang Bullitt at the 2018 Detroit Auto Show. Ford got the looks absolutely bang on. Of course, it'll never be as good as the original.. but we're comparing it to a 1968 fastback Mustang here. The upgrades are very subtle but true to the original, and if you're at all familiar the Bullitt Mustang, you'll not mistake the new one for anything but a clear tribute. And looks aren't the only thing Ford tweaked. Let's get straight to the meat and potatoes: power.

As expected, the 2019 Bullitt packs more hp than the standard GT. It starts with the upgraded Coyote 5.0 litre V8 (read more here: 2018 Mustang Upgrades) with direct and port injection, but improves on it by cribbing the Shelby GT350's intake manifold and 87 mm throttle body. Ford says it will make "at least" 475 hp, so I figure the official figure will be 480 hp, a healthy 20 hp over the standard GT. Torque is unchang…

Ford really wants to sell you a Mustang with a turbo four cylinder. They started by derating the V6 engine in the 2015 S550 compared to the 2011-2014 S197 V6 to make the EcoBoost 2.3 litre more differentiated. Then, they offered a performance pack on the EcoBoost but not on the V6. Now, they killed the V6 all together for 2018 and will only sell you a V8 or this EcoBoost. I love a good V8, everyone who knows me knows that. This is a Mustang, which means it needs a V8. If those aren't enough reasons, I always prefer natural aspiration over forced induction. That's three strikes against the EcoBoost-powered Mustang. But I'd be lying if I said the idea never intrigued me.

It's the lightest (if you account for features). It has the best weight distribution. It has the same great chassis as the GT. It's very affordable and it has a lot of potential to make more power. Aftermarket? Endless support. There's plenty of good about it. The question is this: if you stop t…

A few years ago, I was still a student and I had a class called Internal Combustion Engines. It was easily one of my favourite classes, as you can image. Studying engines, calculating hp, torque, efficiency, and exhaust flow for grades? Sign me up! It wasn't just the content, though, as magnificent as it was. The class itself was taught by the coolest prof there is. You may think you've had a cool prof, teacher, coach, or instructor, but I've got the standard by which all educators must be measured.

For one, he or she has to teach something that is cool.. does it get cooler than Internal Combustion Engines? (No, in case you're wondering). This one is also a true gear head, so much so that he sticks around after class and argues about cars, performance, lap times, and racing. And occasionally does so in the middle of class.. For one class project, I proposed comparing the engines and specifications of the C6 Corvette ZR1 and the Ferrari 599, in an attempt to "reve…

Last year, I joined the ranks of amateur wheel-to-wheel racers and went to race with the fantastic Vantage Motorsports racing team (to read more, go to The Ram's Eye Goes Racing). It was just as much fun and rewarding as I imagined it would be so I was really looking forward to this (2017) season. Unfortunately, life has a habit of getting in the way of things you want to do so that's exactly what happened this year. I missed all but the last round of the race season, which was on Sunday September 17. It seems, though, that I had a full season's worth of racing experience in one day..

For starters, I missed the early morning call, which meant I had to start from the back of the pack in every race. No problem, I liked that I'd have more racing to do. I went out in the practice session and I found out I was very rusty.. My first hot lap was a 1:27.x, about 5 seconds off the pace of the car on the Toyo R888's that were on it. Second dropped to 1:26.x, then I settled i…