Video: My Corrado VR6 Turbo Stage 1 In-Car with iPhone 4 and Gorillapod

I just finished installing a Stage 1 Kinetic Turbo kit into my Corrado VR6 and wanted to try to take in-car videos. I’m only running 5psi (wastegate supposed to open at 7psi) so nothing crazy..yet. But I really posted this to show how easy it is to make decent in-car videos with an iPhone 4 and a $30 Gorillapod flexible tripod. My suspension is pretty stiff so I’m actually surprised that it turned out more stable than I expected. More videos to follow in the future. But for now enjoy!

Corrado Specs at this time:
Kinetic Stage 1 Turbo, OBD1 w/Distributor
7psi Wastegate opening at 5 psi
3″ Downpipe into 2.5″ TT Exhaust.

USF1 Electrical Wiring System Video

The USF1 website is just awesome. I’ve mentioned it before, but I have to again. Formula 1 is a sport that is so competitive that many of the teams try and keep everything they do a secret. It’s nice to know that USF1 is willing to put out alot of great information about the development of their car. On the opposite end, Ferrari is the most secretive team. Yes it probably helps them and may be one of the reasons they are successful (the main reason being that they are one of the richest teams), but for the fans I don’t think it’s right. I’m not a fan of Ferrari F1.

On the other hand, Red Bull Racing has been very good about showing and educating fans about the sport and the design of their cars. That’s what makes me a fan of their team. Well, I’m a fan of Sebastian Vettel also because he brings enthusiasm to the sport. Their Red Bull F1 website is also informative. If you think they’re losing their competitive edge by giving away their secrets, they’re not. They still came in second place last year! The guys at Speed Channel, including Peter Windsor of the US F1 team, went out of their way to praise this aspect of their team. So it’s no surprise that US F1 has been equally cooperative. Because of this, I’m not just a fan of them because they represent the US. I suggest you support them too!

Case in point, check out their video on the Electrical Wiring System of their F1 car. As a wiring system engineer, this video they posted is right up my alley. What a fun and interesting job it would be to do wiring on an F1 car! There are many electronic systems on an F1 car to keep busy.

Just one look at the steering wheel of a typical F1 car and you can see how complicated and important the wiring must be.

Music Remixes and Sampling

Have you heard of any remixes of The Imperial March (Darth Vader’s Theme) song from Star Wars?

The first time I heard one was this past July when I took a trip to San Diego. I took the trip cuz I had never been to SD and I heard good things about it. Well coincidentally the Comic-Con show was going on the same weekend I was there. Now I’m still not sure what the show is all about, but there were many people dressed up as their favorite comic characters. Some were even dressed up at the bars that night! So in honor of the show, the DJ at one of the bars played a dance remix of The Imperial March song and I really liked it. When I got home I searched for it and guess what I found instead. A Rage Against The Machine remix of the song and it kicks ass!

Rage Imperial March Remix on YouTube

I am a huge Rage fan because they make music that you can listen to no matter your mood, positive or negative. But most importantly, I think their creativity is second to none. I have just about everything the members of the band have done, including their other projects or spinoffs like Audioslave and One Day As A Lion and some of their collaborations with Wu Tang Clan, Prodigy and Snoop Dogg. But this one was totally unexpected but a pleasant surprise. Which brings me to another point.

I find it funny that the majority of rock bands who use music from older songs call them “covers” while in rap/r&b/hip hop they can just add in their own rhymes and call it their song with not so much credit to the original. Do you agree? For example I was driving to my friend’s BBQ out on eastern Long Island and once I got into Suffolk County I lost many of the radio stations tunable from NYC and Nassau County. So I had to surf for other radio stations, which isn’t a bad thing. Sometimes it’s good to try the older stations because you can discover where the melodies from current hip hop artists originated. Well I came across an oldies Hip Hop station and the song “Juicy Fruit” by MTumes was playing. The same melody was used by The Notorious B.I.G. in his now famous “Juicy” song. The only credit to the original is the title of his song, which doesn’t even work with the message of his song which is to tell a rags-to-riches story. Now I knew that he used an older melody but I needed this reminder. I’m sure there are many people who had no idea!