There is, though, one that does combine the two. You guessed it – Auto Journalism. Those working as automotive writers are also in many cases avid photographers as well. But no matter what function they provide towards getting the product out, they all share true passion for the subject. And they need to, as like most writing jobs, you’re in for the love of it, not the monetary rewards.

One such journalist is our own Russell Purcell. I was introduced to Russell ten years ago by an old editor of ours who had been to a house party and noticed some great motorsports photography on the wall. After finding out who had taken the photos, he suggested that Russell get a hold of me as we had recently launched RPM and were looking for writers.

Purcell indeed joined our writing team and immediately put his stamp on the publication by producing some very well-constructed and informative pieces on personal collections that featured cars like “The General Lee” from the Dukes of Hazzard TV series, as well as industry features on companies such as Intermeccanica. And he has continued to bring features and photography to the pages of our publications year after year.

One such feature was produced last year for our sister publication, Trucks Plus, entitled “Real World.” Russell located several Ford truck owners and solicited their feedback on the new F-150. The group gave their honest opinion whether they felt it was practical, functional and affordable. The piece was great reading and was received favourably by both readers and critics alike.

So much so that it earned him the most prestigious award of Journalist of the Year, presented by Jaguar Land Rover Canada at the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada’s annual journalism awards, held last month as a part of the organization’s Car of the Year “Testfest” event. The panel of three judges with extensive journalism and literary backgrounds said they were impressed with Purcell’s body of work “that showed outstanding imagination, originality, variety and range of subject matter.” Purcell also won the Wakefield Castrol Award for Excellence in Automotive Journalism in Technical Topics, and tied for first runner-up in this category as well. Russell is also widely acknowledged to be one of the best automotive photographers in Canada and has received several national awards in that category as well in the past.

We are very proud of Russell’s well-deserved achievements, as there are few in the industry that go to the efforts he does to find the right angle to a story…and of course the perfect shot.

Until next month…Keep it Rollin’.

Story by Budd Stanley

Last month we discussed the aerodynamic impacts of a rear diffuser on the back of a car. This month, let’s talk front splitters. If you are going to go to the trouble of building a flat under-pan (if your car doesn’t already come with one), you’re not going to want to forget the a front splitter. Unlike the rear diffuser, which doesn’t really work unless your car is sitting on the ground and has a proper flat-bottom, a front splitter is much more effective in everyday circumstances.

First, what is a front splitter and what does it do? Quite simply, a front splitter is a lip that sticks out from under the front bumper into the flow of air impacting the front of the car. Its purpose is just as its name implies, it splits the air coming towards the car. Splitting the air has two important effects on a car’s handling. One, it reduces the amount of air and therefore the air pressure going under the car. This low pressure air is directed along the flat bottom and on to the rear diffuser, setting the diffuser up to do its job in the rear.

Second, air that is directed over top of the splitter hits the bumper, or air dam. Here, the air gets curled into a back eddy, producing a high-pressure area. And with any surface having low-pressure underneath and high pressure on top, you’ve got yourself down force.

All seems simple and easy, right? So now you’re thinking of making one for your own car, right? Well, like a diffuser, a splitter is only useful in a low-riding car, but it is much more useful when you do have a low car and easier to construct. Also you will need a bumper with a flat bottom to give a good tight fit between the splitter and the air dam. Any large holes will reduce the effectiveness of the splitter.

You are going to want to use a strong material such as carbon fibre, of if you didn’t win the lottery, aluminum or polycarbonate plastic. Second, you’ll need to fasten the splitter to both a subframe and the front bumper securely to handle the down force it will create. If you can’t stand on the splitter without breaking it under your weight, you aren’t doing it right. Other than that, it’s pretty simple – build a platform around the shape of your lower bumper, leaving a 2-to-4 inch lip on the end to reach out into the airflow. The splitter should be the full width of the bumper and should reach as far back under the engine as possible, as this will create the best results as well as offering several good mounting surfaces. Finally make sure that the splitter is mountedparallel to the ground. The flatter it is to the surface the better it will work.

Story and Photos By Nigel Matthews

I can appreciate the Concours d’LeMons perhaps a bit more than the average person having judged for a number of years at the most serious and intense Concours d’Elegance in the world, the Pebble Beach Concours.

Attending the inaugural Concours d’LeMons in Toro Park, near Salinas, California, was a bargain at a mere $20 admission – $155 cheaper than a ticket to Pebble Beach. The Concours d’LeMons bills itself as a celebration of the oddball, mundane and the truly awful of the automotive world. Judging from what I saw at the event, they delivered on all that they promised and possibly more.

To enter a vehicle, you have to pass the scrutiny of the selection committee by answering three tough questions:

1. Do you take yourself painfully seriously?
2. Do you think expensive cars are interesting?
3. Are your shoes, sunglasses or underwear embossed with a marque logo?

If you answered “no” to all three questions, you’re eligible to enter the Concours d”LeMons.
Step two is to pick a class from the list supplied by the organizers. If you can’t find anything suitable, the organizers will make one up for you. You might receive an award, and you might not! No whining is allowed either way. Another rule is picnic baskets and champagne are not allowed on site; these would be far too posh and might upset the vendors operating the two onsite taco trucks from nearby Salinas and the chap manning the tap of the beer keg of the onsite beer corral.

Having owned a few of the cars in some of the classes, I think these classes and awards seemed very appropriate.

Unmitgated Gaul, pre-1970 Citroen Ami, Renault Caravelle, etc. Award: The French Legion of Horror.

Rueful Britannia, 1966-current. Award: The Royal Order of MOT (Ministry of Transport Test) Failure.

Needlessly Complex Italian, 1974-current. Award: Conoscete un Buon Meccanico?
There were some special awards that included the following classes:

Wretched Rejects: For any vehicle that has been refused admittance by a major Concours; the rejection letter must be displayed on the vehicle during the event.

Carrozzeria Iacocca: For K-Cars and their zillion derivatives.
The three biggest losers (in reality the winners) of the entire Concours could take home one of the following awards:
Worst in Show (the ultimate award)

Biggest Loser: This is awarded to the car with the largest percentage of depreciation (could that be a Jaguar?) and finally the Most Dangerous.

The judges are guaranteed to be the best in the country, if not the world, for being inattentive, capricious and open to bribery (liquor and food being their favourites). Satisfactory bribes earned the “Ribbon of Dishonour,” which was placed on the recipient’s windshield. I am sure the word is now out and the display of rotten LeMons in Toro Park is going to grow and grow.[PSGallery=1bposok1er]

Review by Russell Purcell

When it comes to aftermarket engine components for Harley-Davidson motorcycles, there are few companies, if any, that can compare (or compete) with S&S Cycles. The company derives its name from founders George Smith and Stanley Stankos, two innovative motorcycle enthusiasts who were making names for themselves tuning motorcycles to go fast at the dragstrip and beyond. Initially, the small outfit produced aluminum pushrods, but this would soon be followed by the company’s now legendary carburetors for both racing and street applications. The quality, performance and reliability of its components led to a fruitful collaboration with industrial giant Harley-Davidson, for which S&S began building complete engines.

S&S Cycle turned 50 in 2008, and to commemorate this major corporate milestone, the company’s executive team came up with a unique marketing idea. The concept of the “World’s Biggest Build-Off” was devised to trumpet the horns to the masses and generate a buzz within the motorcycle performance industry. The plan was to invite 50 of the world’s best custom motorcycle builders to each build a bike around the same number of special, commemorative S&S engines. Upon completion, the bikes would assemble at the company’s headquarters in La Crosse, Wisconsin, for an enormous anniversary party. The staff at S&S, members of the media, invited guests, and the 50 builders would cast their votes to determine which of the bikes stood apart as the best-of-the-best and award the builder a $50,000 cash prize.

In an effort to document this tremendous project, the company commissioned noted motorcycle writer Howard Kelly and photographer Michael Lichter to create a book to celebrate the creativity and engineering skills of the selected builders, all of whom choose to use S&S engines and components as a foundation for their incredible custom motorcycles.

The special run of 50 engines utilized by the builders for this project is comprised of a mix of six different types in an effort to represent the company’s offerings over the five-decade period – P-Series (93-cubic inches), SB-Series (100-ci), SH-Series (93-ci), V-Series (145-ci), T-Series (126-ci), and X-Series (117-ci). The author used this differentiation as a way to group the participants and thus, lay out the book in six sections.

There is a chapter devoted to each builder and their respective bike, and Kelly’s concise writing style is such that he grabs your attention with key tidbits of information about both man and machine. He focuses on the meat of the project – the process of building the bike, and of course, what makes each rolling masterpiece special. I found it interesting to see the wide range of designs and how builders use everything from recycled parts to cutting-edge technology and engineering to turn their visions into rolling, high-performance art pieces.

These compilation books are great, as the reader is able to quickly flip to the section they desire, but they also provide an avenue to introduce lesser-known (but equally skilled) builders to a like-minded audience.

Some of the best-known, U.S.-based builders are represented including the likes of Jesse Rooke, Kendall Johnson, Rick Fairless, Orange County Choppers, and three generations of the Ness clan.

International standouts include Chica and Keiji Kawakita (both from Japan), Branko Built (Australia), HogTech (Sweden), Odyssey Motorcycles (France), Stonebridge Motor Company (England), Special Parts Supply (Netherlands), Nicolas Chauvin (France), Walz Hardcore Cycles (Germany), Aldo Querio Gianetto (Italy), Fred Kodlin (Germany), Road Rage Customs (New Zealand), and Canada’s Dan Roche.

The collection of photographs used to decorate the 224 pages of this book are absolutely stunning, and will no doubt leave you daydreaming of climbing into the saddle and hitting the road. Michael Lichter’s skilled lighting and clean studio backdrops allow his tack-sharp images to roar off the page. As a photographer, I found myself truly amazed at how well he could capture the essence of each bike, as well as the passion and enthusiasm of each builder, in only a handful of images.

For the most part, the custom chopper craze seems to have run its course when it comes to its place in popular culture, as the seemingly endless variety of chopper-based reality shows that populated the likes of the Discovery Channel, Speed Channel, TLC and A&E have all but evaporated from the airwaves. For a time, every second guy on the street was wrapped in an OCC T-shirt or wearing a West Coast Choppers’ beanie, but now, these have been replaced by flavour-of-the-week MMA-branded gear. However, there are still the diehard custom bike enthusiasts out there looking for one-of-a-kind dream machines and the sense of individuality and freedom that comes with rolling down the highway on a loud and raucous chopper. Judging from the eye candy displayed on the pages of this book, these individuals better have very deep pockets.

www.motorbooks.com
ISBN: 978-0-7603-3603-8
Price: CAN$49.99

RPM: How does Scion fit into Toyota’s lineup?

Larry Hutchinson: Scion brings a great opportunity for us in Canada. It’s used to attract a young, trend-setting demographic and it will bring new people to our brand(s). We’re seeing this in the U.S. currently. There’s a certain demographic in Canada that’s really on the leading edge of all the trends, all the new brands, and they even create the brands in the marketplace. Scion provides them the opportunity to personalize, customize and really take hold of the brand and take it where they want it to go. We’ll introduce those people to the Scion brand across Canada in September 2010.

RPM: Tell us more about Scion and its history.

LH: Scion originally launched in California six years ago and rolled out in phases to key states like Florida and New York over about 18 months. It’s across the U.S. now and, depending on the year, sells to the tune of about 150,000 vehicles a year. Scion has been a very successful brand. It’s the youngest car brand in the States and now North America, and the tC model is the youngest-owned car in North America, so it really has attracted that younger trend-setting customer we were hoping it would. We have also found a very high percentage of Scion owners move to a Toyota or Lexus if they don’t stay with Scion.

RPM: Is that why you have decided to bring it up here? What’s the rationale for launching in 2010?

LH: Canada is a small car market that appreciates uniqueness, style, fuel economy and value. Scion plays to all of those things. 2010 is a great time for a number of reasons in Canada from economic and demographic points of view. The youth market is also growing in Canada and is a little more affluent than it’s been in the past. The economy, we think, is going to be a little stronger the next few years overall. Also, the product life cycle of the vehicles have aligned really well so it makes sense to start now.

RPM: What is Scion and the demographic?

LH: ‘Scion’ is Greek for ‘descendant of’ so, in this context, it’s part of the Toyota family. Scion will attract a new buyer to the Toyota family, which is the idea – a younger demographic that we don’t currently get today. Typically, these are 18-to-30-year-old Gen Ys.

RPM: How is Toyota not addressing this market already with its current products?

LH: Toyota does very well today in the 25 to 40 and 20 to 35 age brackets, for example, but the type of buyer is different from what we get with a Scion buyer. Toyota customers get value, quality, dependability, reliability and all those things make Toyota great in the marketplace. But, there’s another type of buyer who’s looking for a more emotional-type purchase – an ownership experience, if you will. They want to personalize, customize and accessorize their own type of vehicle in order to be more leading edge. Scion brings those types of people to the market. With both Toyota and Scion, we’ll address pretty much the entire youth market in Canada.

RPM: What models will Scion sell initially? What options are there?

LH: We’ll be launching with the next generation tC and updated versions of the xB and xD models. The lineup will be similar to what’s in the U.S. right now. It’s too early to say anything about the tC other than it will be a full model change. Pricing will be set at a later time (June or July perhaps) but basically, each Canadian Scion model will come one way. We call it “mono-spec.” The customer then will have an opportunity to choose accessorization at the dealership and/or they may choose to do their own customization as well. At launch, there will be a wide range of accessories that will be available through the dealerships to personalize these vehicles, including wheels, body kits, stereo electronics and literally hundreds upon hundreds of different accessories.

RPM: What cities will Scion launch in?

LH: We’ll have 45 dealers in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver with a planned expansion phase sometime after the initial launch. We still have to talk with some of those dealers. They are really excited though! The dealers have wanted to do this for a while now. We’ve been kind of holding them back a little bit. They see the opportunity to expand their businesses with great new customers to get into the brand, a young demographic to move up within their dealerships as the years go by. The dealers love the products. They’re fun and exciting products, so they’re really looking forward to it.

RPM: Will there be Scion dealerships?

LH: We’ll have a unique Scion display at each participating dealer, with unique staff and training. We have a Scion sales process, which we worked closely with the U.S. on, and we have a lot of training to make sure that there’s a unique customer experience for these fast-paced, trendy people. It’s up to us to deliver the experience they’re expecting!

RPM: What kind of volume are we talking about here?

LH: Our goal for Scion is not to be a volume brand. This is about personalization, customization and welcoming a new owner base to the Scion franchise. Obviously, we have volume expectations, but before we worry about those things we’re more concerned about how we’re treating our customers.

RPM: What is the biggest challenge to launching this brand in Canada?

LH: This brand depends on more word-of-mouth, grassroots activity than a typical launch would. It’s very easy to buy advertising, create a commercial and create awareness for something. It’s very difficult to get the message out at a grassroots level and have people pick that message up and run with it. That’s the real challenge. Fortunately, there are already Scion owner clubs in Canada and people carrying that message here helping us do just that.

RPM: We’ve always like Scions because they’re different, affordable and customizable. In fact, trend-setting Canadians have been seeking out and importing their own Scions from the U.S. for about five years now. Your comments?

LH: It shows us there’s a base demand for the vehicles. Those people have gone to the States and have picked up a Scion or a Canadian dealer has gone down there and brought one up, which they can do. It’s okay to do that. It really speaks to the people wanting a Scion so bad that they actually go out of the country to find one and bring it in.

RPM: Who is Scion’s main competition?

LH: From a product point of view, I think we have something really unique. There are some other cars that have been introduced to the market lately that have a similar type of idea to the xB if you will (insert Nissan Cube here) but most people I talk to don’t really liken them to being equivalent to the xB. From a branding point of view, there may be others bringing unique products to market, but none of them are bringing a unique brand that really touches the consumer and gives them the canvas to paint what they want to paint. Scion certainly has an advantage there. As for who else attracts a younger buyer in Canada? Volkswagen does a little bit. Some Mazda vehicles as well, but they don’t bring the unique experience that Scion does.