A great recap for an interesting weather year. Keep up the good work!

I'm keeping my 9000 Aero for as long as possible. I'd love to have 99 Turbo as well. Wonder if the B234R could be made to fit in a 99's engine room?

[Begin pedant mode]
The FX16 was not available (at least in the USA) in 1985
The MR2 in the picture set is a 1986. The 1985 MR2 had black bumper inserts and aero package pieces.
[End pedant mode]

I agree completely the 1985 was a great year for Toyota. They had their mojo and were making interesting *and* reliable cars. My parents bought and still have a 1987 Mr2 and a 1988 FX16 GTS. Both are great cars.

Do we get heart clickies?

No worries. I'm an insufferable pedant who couldn't let that sentence go unstickled. I'm liking your contributions, your take on the news is particularly refreshing.

Q: Anyone put a V10 into a mid-engined car yet?

The Porsche Carrera GT had a mid-mounted v10. The LamborghAudi Gallar8 also has a v10.

A Viper motivated mid-engine car would be deliciously awesome. I want one.

I've always thought the tail lights on the E9 Bimmer are similar when viewed in profile to those of the 275 GTS. Maybe the heavy brow of the trunk lip contributes as well. Regardless, whenever I see a 275 GTS I think, "hey 3.0 CS...).

Totally unrelated, wine fueled ramble:
Check out the photos of the Fiat 500 Abarth I found while trolling the web for info on my probable next commuter car. The shots are from a Fiat fan called FIATALY, I just posted 'em to a blog.
http://startinggrid.org/2011/10/28/fiat-500-abart...

Can't wait for a test drive, looks like a fun little runabout.

Well done! I should have looked more closely at the bolt pattern on the wheels.

Looks kinda Abarth OT-ish. Off to google for a bit...

Edit 12 minutes later:
And I'm stumped. It looks like it's based on the rear engined Fiat bits. I couldn't find any Abarth OTs with that crisp a cut on the Kamm tail, or the little vent chingus on top.

Fail of my google-fu.

There is always something interesting to see at the Trevi fountain... Guzzis are nifty motorbikes; a good blend of style, size, comfort, and power.

My favorite Trevi moment was stumbling through late one night after a significant amount of grappa following a great meal which itself featured a significant amount of wine. At Trevi, there was a football(soccer) team celebrating a big victory with many beer kegs and much singing. There must have been 200 fans all drunkenly bellowing their team song.