Ocean liners are the largest vehicles ever used for public travel. For example, The Michelangelo, the sistership of the one in the video, was as long as three football fields and weighed as about as much as 262 Jumbo Jets (747s). That many jets could carry could carry about 109,000 passengers, while the ship could carry only 1775. That left a lot of extra space for restaurants, casinos, and mechanical-horse exercise equipment (as you’ll see).
Of course, liners couldn’t compete with jets. This film was made in 1967 as the ocean liner era was coming to an end. It looks like it was an amazing way to travel.
Actually, you still can still travel that way, if you’d like. The QE2 makes the trip from New York to Southampton in seven days. Fares start at about $1,000/person for an inside stateroom.
If you’re in the San Francisco Bay Area and have an interested in seeing huge, circular blades slicing through big redwood logs, head up to historic Sturgeon’s Mill this weekend, west of Sebastopol for their open house. They run the mill four times per summer. This is their first session of the year.
Here’s a post I wrote about it a couple of years ago, including some video of the mill in action.
South African off-roader, Andrew St. Pierre White, takes a stock Land Rover Discovery on what he states is Southern Africa’s most difficult road, Baboons Pass in Lesotho.
He does the trip with friends in two well-prepared Defender 110s. By the looks of it, it’s not for the faint of heart. Will his stock Discovery make it through without a scratch?
Read more, to see Part 2, below. Read the rest of this entry »
There’s something about these old Wagoneers. They grow on you. This was America’s first luxury SUV: rugged, wood-paneled, beautiful. This 1988 Jeep Grand Wagoneer is powered by a 360 c.i. (5.9-liter) V8 and has a low 140 hp but a respectable 273 lb-ft of torque, and an automatic transmission. It has traveled just over 100,000 miles, although the seller states that engine was replaced at 66,000 miles. He also states that the truck has been restored. He lists a number of replaced parts but doesn’t state whether this was a frame-off restoration or not.
According to Wikipedia the 1987–1991 (the last year of production) models are considered the “best of the breed,” as these include upgrades such as better paint and wheels. The 1989-and-later trucks had further fit, finish, and mechanical improvements. One such improvement was a rear wiper assembly which, unfortunately, this one lacks.
The color combination on this one is fantastic though: Spinnaker Blue and wood paneling over a beige leather-and-fabric interior. Check out how thick the carpets are. Have a look at the amazing plaid ceiling.
This Wagoneer is available on ebay and located in Everett, Washington. The bidding currently stands at $7,100 with an unmet reserve. The Buy-It-Now price is $44k. The auction closes in about four days.
If you’d like to do additional research, check out Wagoneer World, a Texas Wagonner dealer, GrandWagoneer.com, a restoration shop with hundreds of photos on their site, and, of course, Wikipedia.
More photos of this truck below.
Update 5/21/2013: The truck was bid up to $10,100 on ebay but failed to meet reserve.
