New Page 1
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
15000
members - 11/04 |
|
12000
members - 03/04 |
|
10000
members - 10/03 |
|
9,000
members - 07/03 |
|
7,000
members - 01/03 |
|
5,000
members - 06/02 |
|
3,000
members - 12/01 |
| |
|
|
|
B5
of the Month – December 2003
Luke Taratus (Paninaro)
Atlanta,
CA USA
|
|
|
|
As
a teenager I was never into cars -- I found the expense and
responsibility of owning one daunting -- and therefore the
excitement most of my peers felt for turning 16 was lost on me.
So when it came time for me to buy my first car shortly before
entering college, a $500 A-to-B-to-A rusty Datsun Sentra wagon
suited me just fine.
Enter the 1991 Geo Metro Convertible. What can I say about this
car that isn't immediately evoked by merely speaking its name?
Needless to say, owning the Geo instantly turned me from a dud
with a sad ratty pride to a stud with a mad phatty ride, and all
was going well until a friend and I attended that year's Auto
Show. Along with all the new models on display was a custom
Civic Hatchback representing a local stereo shop. A custom
Civic, I thought, how interesting. This was 1996 and the
Honda craze was just beginning to explode. It should be no
surprise, then, that with the constant prodding of my friend I
decided to ditch the puny 3-cylinder Geo and jump on the
bandwagon.
|
|
|
|
Enter
a 1993 Honda del Sol Si. This was the vehicle that really got me
into cars and, more specifically, customizing. Unfortunately,
four years into ownership and three years after graduating
college and moving to Atlanta from New York the car was
beginning to wear on me. I wanted something new and something
more mature, but the Honda was going to be hard to unload with
its 150,000 miles, brain bruising suspension, and huge
"Combat Wing" adorning the posterior. Luckily, soon
after landing a new job in 2001 Dr. King, my nickname for the
del Sol, was stolen one evening from in front of my apartment at
the time. What joy!
|
|
|
Enter
The Archduke. The Archduke Ferdinand. The Duke. The car you see
here. I won't bore you with all his specs, you can find them in
my profile or on my website (retrophit.com), but I will say that
owning and modifying The Duke would have been impossible with
out the help of everyone here at Club B5. The information,
wisdom, and advice found in the forums is unmatched anywhere
else, and I am honored to have my Passat named this month's
"B5 of the Month."
-LUKE
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
