Hello,
My name is Brian Sullins a.k.a. Guardrail.  I own a stock '01 Tracker 4dr. with the 2.0 liter engine and am looking to modify it.  I plan on doing a lift, lockers, and gearing in the transfer case and axles.  I am glad I found you guys, this is a great source for info on my ride so I have just joined your forum.  Look for later posts concerning my soon to be no longer stock Tracker.

Welcome to the board Guardrail. Get her built and we will hit 'Guardrail' at Tellico.
Zig

Welcome Guardrail, glad to have ya. Bet that username has an interesting story behind it.

hey, hope you like to think "out of the box."  we have been doing some pretty crazy stuff in the last few months so sit down, shutup(just kidding), and hold on.  lata stu

Welcome, be careful this board can get addictive.  We're all zukahalics and it might be catching....  

Guardrail was a name I "earned" while driving Volkswagens at their test facility which was at PIR near Phoenix Az. at the time.  If anybody actually wants to hear it, I may tell the story sometime.  Kind of embarrassing really, but entertaining none the less.

If anybody actually wants to hear it, I may tell the story sometime.  Kind of embarrassing really, but entertaining none the less.

I'm up for some entertainment, Let's hear it
Zig

Ok, here' goes,
It was the summer of '92.  I was driving durability test vehicles at the Volkswagen Arizona Proving Grounds at Phoenix International Raceway.  Our durability route took us over Mingus Mtn. near Jerome Az.  I was driving a Eurovan over the mountain one day doing a pretty good clip (for a minivan, all things, after all, are relative).  Two turns before I entered Jerome was a right hand sweeper with about 200" of verticle wall to my left and 200" of drop to my right.  As I was entering the turn, Boston came on the stereo.  I leaned over to turn up the stereo while simultaneously leaning the van into the turn.  The action of leaning to turn up the stereo (and not paying enough attention!) caused me to turn right more than I should have and the right side rocker caught the guardrail making a horifying bang and scrape as it did.  When we stopped for lunch 15 minutes later, I told my supervisor and he said to tell the boss when we got back.  When the boss asked me what happened, I just told him the truth.  I said "Well, I had my head up my a**.  I leaned over to turn up the stereo when I should have been paying attention to the road."  I believe it was my brutal honesty that let me keep my job.  Needless to say, I bet I am the only person on this site that has cracked up a $1,000,000 hand built prototype and managed to keep his job as a "professional driver."  The name has stuck with me ever since. :

I want a job like that, where do I apply

Thats cool The best work/driving thing I pulled off was passing the boss in a new v-8 thunderbird sideways in a curve (damn thost rides drift well on wet roads). I thought I would be fired but he just complimented my driving
Zig

Ok, here' goes,
It was the summer of '92.  I was driving durability test vehicles at the Volkswagen Arizona Proving Grounds at Phoenix International Raceway ....snip....I was driving a Eurovan over the mountain one day doing a pretty good clip (for a minivan, all things, after all, are relative) ....snip.... As I was entering the turn, Boston came on the stereo.  I leaned over to turn up the stereo while simultaneously leaning the van into the turn.  The action of leaning to turn up the stereo (and not paying enough attention!) caused me to turn right more than I should have and the right side rocker caught the guardrail making a horifying bang and scrape as it did.  ....snip....

Did they relocate the radio knobs to the steering wheel, or relocate the radio for better 'human engineering' ergonomics? Maybe that was the test, speed plus a song, for the radio location and it had nothing to do with the Eurovan handling at all?  

They left everything right where it was.  I was afraid that if I told them where to move the radio to, they might tell me where to find another job!