My Black Brick

I saw a Subaru Baja with a cap on the back yesterday and thought THAT was crazy. But this thing is sheer genius.

Via: There, I Fixed It

I’ve been doing road trips to camps all summer. This week is gymnastics in Paramus, so I’ve been piling 5 girls into the brick for the 25 mile trip. The 3rd seat is nice in that it doesn’t require a booster seat; the belt is low enough that it fits 5 and 6 year olds. When I tell the kids they’re going to have to ride in the trunk they laugh and laugh.

Claire is thrilled to sit in the front passenger seat, but the Jonas Brothers are never loud enough. Sigh. Is it too much to wish to have my daughters grow up to be Mastodon fans?

This war-weary brick was preparing for an epic confrontation at the Sussex, NJ state fairgrounds a couple weeks ago. I wasn’t able to catch the evenings event but spoke with the owner, Joe, and found out this was his third demolition derby with a Volvo 240. He totaled his first 244 but this 245 lived to smash another day after an oil fire put him out in the middle of competition last year. He tells me he makes the entry fee by selling plastic interior parts to bricksters in Europe.

I tried to contact the driver last week to find out how he did but haven’t heard back. Joe, if you’re out there, send us a report!

Via poepoephoto

Volvo Wagon Specs, 1990-1993:

• 2.3 liter / 141 cui fuel-injected four cylinder
• 114 hp, 136 f/p torque
• EPA – 20 mpg city / 25 mpg highway
• 0-60mph – 10.1 seconds
• Wheelbase, in. – 104.3
• Overall Length, in. – 190.7
• Overall Width, in. – 67.7
• Overall Height, in. – 57.5
• Curb Weight, lbs. – 3051
• Cargo Volume, cu. ft. – 76.0
• Seating Capacity – 7
• Front Head Room, in. – 37.9
• Max. Front Leg Room, in. – 40.1

Another great photo from David White.

I put the rack over the back, which put most of the weight over the rear of the car. It wallowed a little on bumps, but nothing too bad. The sport springs and anti-sways stabilize the ride so the car doesn’t feel overloaded. And the Yokohamas were pretty quiet.

Went camping at Covered Bridge campsite in the Catskills this weekend and somehow my buddy David managed to shoot a pic of us tooling around the curvy roads along the river without wrecking his SUV.

I was luck enough to have a neighbor of my parents donate the roof bin they used to use on their 940. The Sears “Ex-Cargo” was the same model my parents used to have on top of our 1979 Olds Delta 88 when we made trips to the beaches of North Carolina. It’s nice and tall and practically doubles the cargo area, enabling me to actually see out the back window with all our equipment.