Petrolhoma

Cars and Car Culture from an Oklahoma Gerhead

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Last weekend I took off for Enid Oklahoma with a lead from Craigslist to guide me and some cash burning a hole in my pocket! Lo and behold I found a wrecked focus svt in the back lot of a small auto repair shop. I had been prepared to take the coil springs from it as well... But they were modified in a way that I as a mechanic, would frown upon. Still, pretty excited for this score. Hoping to have them in my focus by next weekend! Pics to come! Keep on wrenching!

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Working on the cover of issue 1 of the Petrolhoma zine! Updates will follow and be updated to this page. Stay tuned!

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Just purchased V-Rally 99 edition from the vintage stock. I then found and dusted off my copy of Top Gear Rally to see how they stack up. Expect a game review soon! Until then, keep wrenching!

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Out on the town I saw this lovely 1st gen Integra throwing me a wink

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Putting rally lights on the Focus, aww yea. I've always been a fan of rally racing, especially the gnarly class B stuff from the 80s, so owning a Ford Focus, I figured it was about time!

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Saw this lovely old Corolla SR5 while walking through OKC's Plaza district. I've always loved old Japanese RWD cars. I once had an 81 Corolla wagon, my dad and I fixed it up and got it driving. It made for a nice little daily driver, but I was broke, stupid, and 21, so I sold it. And that is on my top 10 list of regrets😩

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Nice little Starlet just north of the Plaza district in OKC

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Super cool Saturday!

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In latest updates I finally covered the gauges in the Isuzu so they look (less) shitty. Also while driving through town I spotted this used 240sx sans front fascia. It also had gutted interior for the maximum drifts... But an automatic :(((( It would be easy to be a dick about that at this point, buuuut, it would be coming from someone who once attempted mad drifting in a v6 automatic Mustang with glass packs and an over priced rear window louvre, so I digress. I wonder what stories this car had to tell? Maybe some time this week I can inquire :3

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Finally gave a cover to my aftermarket gauges. Looks a little rough around the edges, but it's nice to know oil pressure and water temperature ;)

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Had the pleasure of attending the okc auto show with my dad. I was impressed by what some of them had to offer, surprisingly mostly by Hyundai, but I was still sticker shocked nearly to death and it reinforced what I already beleive.., Which is never buy a new car, ever. Give it a few years and pick that shit up on Craigslist. Keep wrenching!

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Mini truck love

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Wayback Wednesday,

The Scariest Vehicle I have ever Driven, 

Hello, fellow gearheads. What I have here is a little Petrolhoma segment titled Wayback Wednesday, where I will give a little anecdote from days of motoring past, be it from my own personal life, or from the automotive scene in general. 

This, my first, tells a tale from my own life, when I was a little bit younger, a little bit more careless, and the interstate highway was still a big scary place.

It was the summer of 2008. I was 18, and at that strangest of crossroads where high school was still a fresh memory and college was just around the corner. I still had a few weeks of summer left before I shuffled off to university, and I had recently quit my job as a Dollar Tree cashier. 

When the opportunity presented itself to earn a little spending money via delivering phone books, I jumped on it. 

You see, while in high school I had met a young lady through some friends. We had a bit of a casual friendship, and she had an entrepreneurial spirit. So that summer she started a phone book delivery business, and I was enlisted to aid.

The work itself was fairly pleasant, not much to write about there. But the real catch, was our delivery method. We had to use her personal vehicle, which was a ratty 1990s Ford Explorer, second gen, you know the body style that was embroiled in that horrible Firestone Tire rollover controversy?

We loaded to full capacity. You could not see behind you, save for the side view mirrors. From the rear hatch to the back of the front seat, packed solid with phone books. 

At one point in this journey we picked up one of her friends, a giggly bubbly teenager, as they both clamored into the passenger seat I was thrust behind the wheel and...

MY GOD

As we are barreling down the highway my employer and her sidekick cannot stop giggling at their own jokes, while I, white knuckles wrapped around the shitty fake leather steering wheel, am gripped by terror.

The slightest turn of the Explorer sends it careening with maximum body roll into the next lane, while I scramble to over compensate. After about 15 soul-shattering minutes of this dance with death, we pull off into a strip mall parking lot, ready to unload.

It was then I looked under the front of our vehicle, and it all made sense. Not only was it an unstable platform to begin with, but the front sway bar WAS ACTUALLY SNAPPED IN TWO. Not one of the links, but the sway bar itself. 

Mind you, dear readers, I work on police cars and other healthily abused municipal vehicles for a living, and never again have I seen something like this.

Due to my current line of work I have had to opportunity to drive a slew of equipment on wheels: tandem-axle dump trucks, garbage trucks, an International 7600 with a 30-foot trailer.

But, to this day, nothing has been as scary as that Ford Exploder loaded with phone books and teenagers. 

Thanks for reading, Keep on Wrenching!

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Building on a budget.

If you’re a gearhead like me, (I’m assuming you are if you’ve been unfortunate enough to stumble upon my blog), then you’ve dreamed of piecing together a wicked project. 

Some of you may be well on your way. Others may still be in the first stages, deciding on what you want to start with, and now you’re scouring craigslist for the right example. Others still may have the vehicle in the garage, completed, torn down, or somewhere in between. An old 4-wheel drive Bronco for hitting the trails, a ratty stripped down Miata for a weekend warrior at the autocross. Different strokes

To those who are pouring the time and resources (especially money!) into making that dream project a driving reality, I salute you. For those in the beginning stages. I salute you too. 

As you’ve seen, I have two projects of my own. A little 5-speed Focus I’d like to make into a daily driving weekend auto crosser. And a little Isuzu.... that I still haven’t figured out yet. 

But I say be patient. It can be a long long road. It’s been cold. I don’t have a garage to work in, so when winter comes, I bunker in and the projects take a rest. I’ve also been broke. But today was strangely warm out. I took the wheels off the little Focus, checked the brakes, and painted the tire lettering. And, it felt pretty good. 

One thing at a time. 

Keep on wrenching my friends :)

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Japanese Cars!

I love old Japanese Cars. Why? The question is why not!

Long before I ever had the slightest inkling of interest in cars or turning wrenches or anything automotive, I was introduced to Japanese culture through anime. 

I was a kid in the mid 90s, and it was a good time to be getting into anime. Cartoon Network was introducing a generation of proto-milenials to Sailor Moon, Gundam Wing, Dragon Ball Z and more with its Toonami block; ARII Macross model kits were lining the shelves at local hobby shops, and video stores were beginning to carry the edgier stuff you couldn’t see on TV (Did that character say “Damn?!” Oh my O_O )

I couldn’t get enough. One thing I especially loved were the mecha, those blocky, harsh-angled, edgy humanoid fighting machines. This was the beginning of my love for things mechanical.

And, in a way, that love translated into the angular, futuristic design of the Japanese cars of the 80s and early 90s. Who can’t love those square taillights, pod-like instrument clusters, and hidden pop-up head lights?

I’ve owned three Hondas: an ‘86 4-door Accord, a ‘90 Prelude, and a ‘96 Prelude. All three were a joy to own. They weren’t fast, especially by today’s standards, but they were FUN. There is a simple pleasure about throwing around a feather-light nimble front wheel drive car with an agile chassis.

And hey, my Isuzu’s not bad either. I’m happy to have an old pickup truck. I mean, sure, I’d rather be fixing up a 2nd gen Celica, 3rd gen Prelude, or Supra, but hey, a truck is the next best thing.

Thanks for reading, guys and gals. Keep wrenchin!

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Junk yards. God bless ‘em! 

One blessing about selecting an early 90s Isuzu truck for my current project is that 90s Isuzus are pretty common, I mean, almost mid-90s GM common. I think the only thing that would be easier to find parts for would be a 90s S10 (and you never know, it may happen!) 

Another wonderful thing about Isuzu is they liked to build multiple vehicles on the same platform as well: Pickups, Rodeos, Amigos. Like that Rodeo rear end with rear discs? Bolt it on! Digging those Amigo bucket seats? Take em! Isuzu used a similar approach with engines, so, in some cases a turbo Imark could make a great donor for a 5-speed pickup truck. Gotta love ‘em.

I was pressed for time on this particular adventure, but I did manage to score an intake manifold. More updates on that coming soon!

Thanks for reading, guys and gals. Keep wrenching!