Here in Scottsdale, Arizona, you can feel the sun searing your skin within minutes of stepping outside. I hope you’re finding a way to beat the summer heat. A great way to do that is to read this installment of Car Connections in the comfort of air-conditioned room. I am having the Random Word Generator spit out three words and now I’m going to find ways to link them to automobiles. This week’s words are conductor, second, and tube. How would you associate these words with cars? Tell us in the Comments section below. (And click here for more Car Games!)
Photo courtesy of the McLaren Press Room
Conductor: Speaking of heat: Metal conducts heat, but the engine bay that holds the McLaren F1’s 6.1-liter BMW V-12 is lined with real gold foil because that material is so good at reflecting the heat this juggernaut of an engine produces. After all, it’s easier to hit 240 mph when the carbon composite bodywork surrounding the engine isn’t melting.
2002 Lexus IS 300 (Photo courtesy of the Lexus Newsroom)
Second: Time. Watch. Chronograph, which is a type of watch with a stopwatch function. The first-generation (2001-05) Lexus IS 300 was noteworthy not only because it was designed to take on the BMW 3 Series with its straight-six power and rear-wheel drive, but also because it had chronograph-style gauges: the speedometer surrounded three subdials for the fuel economy, voltage, and temperature.
Photo courtesy of the Lexus Newsroom
(As a watch guy, I’ve always had a soft spot for this sport sedan for that reason. Plus, Lexus made a wagon version of the IS 300 called the SportCross!)
Aston Martin DBS (Photo courtesy of Aston Martin)
Tube: Pneumatic tube systems at banks. Aston Martin! While filming the car chase in the 2006 James Bond movie “Casino Royale,” which finds 007 driving an Aston Martin DBS at high speeds, chasing after the people that kidnapped his love interest Vesper Lynd, the production team kept trying to get the hero car to roll. Its initial efforts involved using six-inch and even 18-inch ramps to unsettle the car’s balance, but those didn’t work. The team had to resort to extreme measures: To make sure it could get the desired effect, the team cut a hole in the floor of the DBS and installed an air cannon that fired a piston against the ground. That did the trick, causing the car to roll seven times — and set a Guinness World Record for the most barrel rolls in a car. You can watch the car-nage in the video below.
Does today’s round of Car Connections make you want to add a McLaren, Lexus, or Aston Martin to your garage? You can find one at ClassicCars.com and AutoHunter.com.
