Back I

["Mahoney, John" <JMahoney@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>>
No , It was Bucknum , not sure on an exact spelling, but pronounced Buck -num.
<<

No, it was Buckland.  An exact spelling but pronounced "BUCK-lund."  And he was born in Stoke, Devonshire exactly 161 years ago this past Sunday!

Sad that he is not better remembered --- by the AMC experts, especially.

Let's not duck more foul matters: because fowls are not always CANARDS, 

http://www.swiftmotorsports.com/images/aprcanard3.jpeg

"flairs" are not FLARES, and "to" isn't TOO.  Let's try to write right.   

Not only are the Japanese writing and racing "righter" than we seem to, 

http://homepage3.nifty.com/atelier/img/gallery/05sendu_r1/2104_30.jpg

http://www.so-net.ne.jp/s-taikyu/

but Europeans are still doing both better than America does, IN Japan! 

http://homepage3.nifty.com/atelier/img/gallery/05sendu_r1/2102_22.jpg
http://homepage3.nifty.com/atelier/img/gallery/05sendu_r1/2102_29.jpg

And it's not only on the track that we need to get our ducks in a row.

Click "web catalog" and pull down the menu under "Performance."  Then click "Aerodynamics" for what keeps 320 street-driven horses quacking

http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/s204/

and compare to the "excitement of cladding" from old hands in Motown. 

http://tinyurl.com/7jzqy

There's plastic and plastic, there's a new world, and there's the US.

So how're we doin' (and "we" doesn't mean Ed Koch or Joey Tribbiani)?

We can't build many more of today's GTs* than yesterday's SC/Ramblers: why aren't we ashamed by our performance --- on and off the racetrack?

(*Ford sold only 1302 last year and will "pull the plug" [early] this year; while Honda sold over 19,000 NSXs in 15 years.  And, when Honda built the last few, they cost more, even adjusted for inflation, than did an earlier 19,000+-unit two-seater ex-history.  For almost $100k, wouldn't one expect not an AMX, but an AMX/3?  When DaimlerChrysler's mini Marlin, er, um, -Crossfire- is axed [also early], can Detroit --- or Stuttgart --- claim, "We had planned to!" equally unconvincingly?)    

We can't even draw new car-body doodads (on '07 Cadillac AND Dodge?)

http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/01/3060000000053590.JPG.jpg

http://tinyurl.com/c2aa5

that haven't been done before ---

http://tinyurl.com/9ztuh

way back in, say, the year -2004-!

http://www.roverworld.com/images/Vehicles/BabyRange/RangeStormer-01.jpg

Get the picture?  America hasn't.)

http://www.autorevue.cz/automobilka/Ar.asp?ARI=6397&CHID=6&EXPS=&EXPA=