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Potential

"Continuous effort -- not strength or intelligence -- is the key to unlocking our potential." -- Liane Cordes, self-help author

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Room 8

A man arrives at the gates of Heaven.
St. Peter asks, "Religion?"

"Methodist," the man says.

St. Peter looks down his list, and says, "Go to Room 24, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8."

Another man arrives at the gates of Heaven.

"Religion?"

"Baptist."

"Go to Room 18, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8."

A third man arrives at the gates.

"Religion?"

"Jewish."

"Go to Room 11, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8."

The man says, "I can understand there being Different rooms for different religions, but why must we all be quiet when we pass Room 8?"

"Well, the Catholics are in Room 8," St. Peter replies, "and they think they're the only ones here."

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Fairlaine variants

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Laziness

"Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired." - Jules Renard, French author

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Japanese banks

Origami Bank folded last night. Apparently Sumo Fund Managers went
belly up and Bonsai Bank, after a period of stunted growth, now plans
to cut back some of its branches.

Kamikaze Bank took a dive and 1,500 staff at Karate Bank got the
chop. Analysts report that there is something fishy going on at Sushi
Bank and staff there fear they may get a raw deal. Onsen Bank has
taken a bath and even Miso Bank is in the soup. The share value of
Samurai Bank has been slashed.

On the plus side, now is a good time to buy Karaoke Bank, its shares
can be had for a song.

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Fairlaine variants

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Longevity

"A light heart lives long." - William Shakespeare, English playwright

Women will multiply what you give them

Whatever you give a woman, she's going to multiply.

If you give her sperm, she'll give you a baby.

If you give her a house, she'll give you a home.

If you give her groceries, she'll give you a meal.

If you give her a smile, she'll give you her heart.

She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. So--if you give her any crap, you can expect a ton of shit.

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The "Last" V8s Part 5

It is interesting to note that, while fuel consumption figures as there for the 3.3 and 4.1, they are missing for the 5.8. Too much of a shocker, perhaps. Also, note that the S-Pack was available on all engines.

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Make friends with time

"We race to win, but at what price? Driven by the threat of time, we wonder why we feel so empty at the end of action-filled days." - Diana Hunt

Do you fly through each day with your eyes always on the clock? In western cultures, we’ve been taught that we need to impose our own order on life. As a result, we think we need to control every aspect of our day.

How might you enter into a new relationship with time? How might you take back the power you’ve given to the clock?

This is the time of your life. How are you spending it?

"When busyness is the measure of time, no matter how much time exists it is never enough." - Diana Hunt

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Let's pretend we're married

A man and a woman who had never met before found themselves assigned to the same sleeping room on a trans-continental train. They tried to make other arrangements, but the train was full and they were both very tired. They agreed to make the best of it for at least one night. There were two berths, and the man gallantly agreed to take the upper one.

At 1:00 AM, the man leaned down and gently woke the woman saying, "Ma'am, I'm sorry to bother you, but would you please reach into that closet to get me a second blanket? I'm awfully cold."

"I have a better idea," she replied. "Just for tonight, let's pretend that we're married."

"Wow! That's a great idea!" he exclaimed.

"Good," she said. "Get your own fucking blanket."

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The "Last" V8s Part 4

Falcon GL.

Here is the catalogue spec sheet for the Falcon GL. Many people doubt that the GL could be fitted with the 5.8 litre V8, but the catalogue shows that it could be. What is intriguing is, why the 5.8 and not the 4.9 ? It could be that Ford knew they would be equipping the police with the big lunger and there was no need to offer the good officers any more luxury than they needed, yet they required the grunt and torque ?

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Teachers 'fear' smart students

by Caroline Milburn , July 14, 2008 The Age, Melbourne

TOO many teachers fear having very bright students in class because they feel ill-equipped to deal with them, according to a visiting campaigner on gifted children. Rosemary Cathcart, one of New Zealand's leading educators in the field of gifted education, says their lack of confidence is caused by a weakness in the way teachers are trained. Most undergraduate courses do not include gifted education as a routine part of teacher training.

"The reality is that most gifted children are going to spend most of their time in regular classrooms, especially at primary school," says Mrs Cathcart, who is in Australia to speak at the Australian Association for the Education of Gifted and Talented national conference in Hobart. "But because teachers do not have gifted education built into their basic training they will have a limited understanding and recognition of gifted children. I've had a teacher say to me, 'That child must be gifted because her handwriting is so neat,' and another has said, 'We can't let that boy join the gifted program because he's too naughty'.

"We haven't prepared teachers well enough... we need to equip them with the skills to help these children." In Australia, a 2001 Senate inquiry into the education of gifted children found teachers were poorly trained to cater for highly able students, estimated to represent between 5% and 10% of all students. The inquiry found many gifted children were suffering from under-achievement, boredom and psychological distress because their needs were not being met at school. It recommended all state and territory education departments should require teaching degree courses to include at least one semester unit on gifted children, including how to identify them.

• Mrs Cathcart, a former teacher who now runs an education consultancy, led a successful campaign in New Zealand to get the government to acknowledge the special needs of gifted children. Education policy was changed to include a new regulation that simply says all schools are required to identify and provide for their gifted students. The initiative included extra funding for advisers to work with New Zealand schools and a handbook to be sent to all schools.

In Victoria, education department policy documents include the gifted under the umbrella of special needs students. But peak parent groups say the wording is so confusing few schools realise that gifted children fall into the special-needs category. The 2001 Senate report acknowledged the problem and recommended all state and territory education department policies make it clear when they refer to special needs that it includes giftedness. Rhonda Collins, a Victorian parent involved in gifted education lobby groups, says scant progress has been made since the 2001 inquiry and parents hope the newly created National Curriculum Board will introduce a coherent policy.

The 12-member board, established by the Federal Government, is devising a national curriculum, from kindergarten through to the end of high school, for English, maths, history and the sciences. "It's an opportune time for the board to formally recognise gifted as special needs," Ms Collins says. "If it does that it will make it clear that this group of children, through no fault of their own, through a genetic predisposition, require a differentiated curriculum in all schools. "Giftedness occurs across all socio-economic groups but schools are not finding these children in ethnic groups or in Koori groups. Schools tend to still think of gifted children as being white Anglo-Saxons from the eastern suburbs. The focus is on performance instead of the child."

Mrs Cathcart says Victoria's decision to expand the SEAL scheme, a program aimed at bright students in government secondary schools, was a welcome development because research showed it was crucial for gifted children to share regular activities with other talented children. "Otherwise they can feel alienated in the classroom and they can shut down from expressing their ideas, even with a good teacher who tries to differentiate material for them." She tells teachers that having a gifted child in the classroom is a bonus and strategies to engage them also enhance the learning of other students.

"A lot of teachers think that having gifted children in the class means an immense amount of extra work or they can feel threatened if they think the child might ask them a question they don't know the answer to," she says. "I tell teachers not to be afraid of working with these children... there are simple strategies, such as introducing unexpected elements into a lesson, that children will pick up on. We have the opportunity to engage with minds that bring a different kind of freshness and new ideas to our lessons."

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Amen

A pastor's wife was expecting a baby, so he stood before the congregation and asked for a raise. After much discussion, they passed a rule that whenever the preacher's family expanded, so would his paycheck.
After 6 children, this started to get expensive and the congregation decided to hold another meeting to discuss the preacher's expanding salary. A great deal of yelling and inner bickering ensued, as to how much the clergyman's additional children were costing the church, and how much more it could potentially cost.

After listening to them for about an hour, the pastor rose from his chair and spoke, 'Children are a gift from God, and we will take as many gifts as He gives us'.

Silence fell on the congregation.

In the back pew, a little old lady struggled to stand, and finally said in her frail voice, 'Rain is also a gift from God, but when we get too much of it, we wear rubbers.'

The entire congregation said, 'Amen.'

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The "Last" V8s Part 3

Number crunching

I am not going to produce a chart for the numbers as that is available elsewhere on the internet. Instead, there seem to be some rules for the XE V8’s that are worth following.

Allowing for wagon variants, there were three distinct XE model lines offered with the V8; the Falcon GL, the Fairmont and the Fairmont Ghia. Wagons were offered in both Falcon GL and Fairmont models. The V8’s were split between 4.9’s and 5.8’s. And there was a specific model sold only to the police. Here are the varieties and total figures:-

Falcon GL 5.8 - sold to the public and the police - 423

Fairmont Ghia 5.8 - sold to the public as an ESP - 178

Falcon GL sedan 4.9 - police only - 43

Falcon GL wagon 4.9 - 139

Fairmont sedan 4.9 - 64

Fairmont wagon 4.9 - 345

Fairmont Ghia sedan 4.9 - 1197

Remembering that there were a total of 2389 XE V8’s we can see that almost half, 1197, were Fairmont Ghia sedans with the 4.9 engine. Included in this total are 360 ESP’s. We can also see that the police liked the big V8.

There are a couple of other conventions which we need to mention:-

All of the 5.8 powered Falcon GL’s sold to the public were four speed manuals, and all of the 5.8 powered Fairmont Ghia ESP’s were manula cars as well. The only automatic 5.8 powered cars sold were the Option 36 police package cars. By historical convention, the police preferred gving their officers automatic cars. However, there are examples of police spec manual cars. It would also appear that the automatic used behind the 5.8’s was the old FMX gearbox.

With regard to the 4.9 powered cars, while exact figures for the police Falcon GL are not known - there may be the odd manual trans car - every one had an automatic transmission, the C4, except for 100 Fairmont Ghia ESP’s which had a manual gearbox. Until someone produces GL figures, or a survivor car, these ESP’s were the only manual 4.9 XE’s produced.

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Principals as Leader-Managers

by Dr Alvy and Dr Robbins

Principals often view leadership and management as two different roles, but the most effective principals know how to blend the two.

HOW TO LEAD AND MANAGE

For example, when a principal is "monitoring" student dismissal at 3 p.m., that responsibility should be viewed as both management and leadership, Dr. Alvy said, because the principal is making sure students are safe as they are leaving school and taking the opportunity to talk with students, teachers, and bus drivers about the day and important educational issues -- such as, "Monica, I heard you did great on your math test yesterday; well done!"

It is hard to determine [a principal's success in those roles] unless a principal has a clear vision and mission of his or her job -- one that is focused on instructional leadership," he noted. "We cannot determine if we are successful unless we have a target or standard to judge our performance. The leadership vision needs to be about helping students succeed academically and as citizens, and helping faculty and staff develop as professionals with a common vision and mission about school and student success. Based on the vision and mission the leader needs to set goals, and assess whether the goals have been addressed during the year."
• maximizing quality instructional time.
• using data.
• managing their time effectively.
• using staff meetings to leverage professional learning.
• reflecting.

"Also consider the emotional needs of the child," Dr. Robbins said. "You need to build heart into the school plan. Remember heart in the equation of learning."

MANAGING TIME, DATA

A simple way to maximize learning time is by observing how effectively teachers use the first five minutes of class time, Dr. Alvy said. "Look at how the first five minutes of class goes. If you lose five minutes a day, that's 15 hours of instructional time a year." He also recommends principals pick up examples of student work as they walk around the building. "One of the most valuable management tools is data," Dr. Alvy added. "Make sure you make decisions based on research. Consider what do on a daily basis to improve student achievement. Remember to put data in context."

To successfully use data, combine leadership and management roles, Dr. Alvy continued. "While managers are concerned with generating and collecting data sources, leaders go beyond merely connecting, and scrutinize the most valuable data sources given contextual realities and perceptions," he said. "Leaders then make decisions and act in the best interests of students, faculty, and the school." One new principal, for example, in reviewing student referrals, noticed that kids only were referred to the office for negative reasons, said Dr. Robbins, an educational consultant who lives in Virginia. The principal told the teachers that he wanted to change the policy so kids were referred for good things as well. He papered the wall in his office with notes from kids who wrote about the good things they did and signed their names. "It changed the climate of the school," Dr. Robbins noted.

Principals also should take the time to walk through the school, a strategy Dr. Alvy and Dr. Robbins call Leading and Learning by Wandering Around. "One principal had a sign that said 'Out Learning' that he would put on his door when visiting classrooms," Dr. Alvy noted. "He had note cards with every teacher's name on them and would mark the date he visited a classroom and what the teacher was doing."
"Ask yourself, 'What parts of the school should I be visiting but I'm not?'" Dr. Alvy said. "Where you go in the building says a lot about you." To help manage time, Drs. Alvy and Robbins recommended Covey's time management matrix. This suggests dividing tasks into categories urgent and important, urgent and not important, not urgent and important, not urgent and not important. "You need to organize and execute around priorities," Dr. Alvy added.

REFLECT, REFLECT

Many principals would say that reflecting on their job and what they do is a luxury they can't afford, but Drs. Alvy and Robbins insist it is critical to being good leader-managers, because reflection deepens learning perspectives. As an example of the value of reflection, Dr. Robbins noted that one principal realized that kids referred for fighting were being teased about body odor. The principal did some research and learned that the students reported for fighting were receiving free or reduced-price lunches, and thought the families might not be able to afford certain hygiene products. The principal asked people who traveled to collect the soap and shampoo hotels leave in the rooms and donate them to the school. The principal made it known to the students that the supplies were available. "No one has abused the supplies, and the fights dropped to zero," Dr. Robbins said.

For principals who say they cannot find time to reflect, Dr. Alvy said he would sympathize with their frustration and time management constraints. "I then would ask them to talk about their typical day," he told Education World. "We would engage in a conversation about their vision, mission, and goals for the year. If instructional leadership and supervision for student growth and teacher success are not part of the mission and vision, I would suggest strongly refocusing their priorities." At the same time, Dr. Alvy noted, principals need to remember that there are days in which the best plans go awry -- that is just part of the job. "The daily surprises are a reality, thus it is essential to focus on the mission and vision," he said. "The mission and vision serve as a compass to guide one over and around the hurdles that occur each day."

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New boots

An elderly couple was vacationing in the American West. Sam had always wanted a pair of authentic cowboy boots. On the next to the last day of their vacation, he saw the perfect boots on sale, bought them, and proudly wore them home.
He sauntered into their hotel room and said to his wife, "Notice anything different, Helen?"

Helen looked him over, and said: "Nope."

Sam replied excitedly, "Come on, Helen, take a good look. Notice anything different about me?"

Helen looked again. "Nope."

Frustrated, Sam stormed off into the bathroom, undressed, and clomped back into the room, completely naked, except for his boots.

Again, he asked, a little louder this time, "Notice anything DIFFERENT?" Helen looked up and said: "Sam, what's different? It's hanging down today, it was hanging down yesterday, it'll be hanging down again tomorrow."

Furious, Sam yelled, "AND DO YOU KNOW WHY IT'S HANGING DOWN, HELEN? IT'S HANGING DOWN BECAUSE IT'S LOOKING AT MY NEW BOOTS!"

To which Helen replied: "Shoulda bought a hat, Sam; you shoulda bought a hat."

Anagrams

DORMITORY:
When you rearrange the letters:
DIRTY ROOM

PRESBYTERIAN:
When you rearrange the letters:
BEST IN PRAYER

ASTRONOMER:
When you rearrange the letters:
MOON STARER

DESPERATION:
When you rearrange the letters:
A ROPE ENDS IT

THE EYES: !
When you rearrange the letters:
THEY SEE

THE MORSE CODE :
When you rearrange the letters:
HERE COME DOTS

SLOT MACHINES:
When you rearrange the letters:
CASH LOST IN ME

ANIMOSITY:
When you rearrange the letters:
IS NO AMITY

ELECTION RESULTS:
When you rearrange the letters:
LIES - LET'S RECOUNT

SNOOZE ALARMS:
When you rearrange the letters:
ALAS! NO MORE Z 'S

A DECIMAL POINT:
When you rearrange the letters:
IM A DOT IN PLACE

THE EARTHQUAKES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THAT QUEER SHAKE

ELEVEN PLUS TWO:
When you rearrange the letters:
TWELVE PLUS ONE

AND FOR THE GRAND FINALE:
MOTHER-IN-LAW:
When you rearrange the letters:
WOMAN HITLER

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The "Last" V8s Part 2

Figures show that Ford registered 66,849 Falcon/Fairmonts in 1982. Figures also show that of these, 3340 were V8 powered. That is almost exactly 5%. This is a far cry from the early years of the Cleveland V8, for example, 1972 when of 77,093 XA Falcons, 23,150 were powered by the ‘new’ Cleveland V8. This is almost exactly 30%.

The six/V8 percentage figures seem to have dropped off dramatically in 1977, perhaps as a result of the improved cross flow headed six, and then plunged even more in 1980, when yet again, improvements were made to the six, this time the fitting of the alloy cylinder head. The V8’s problem may not so much have been a falling out of love with the V8 as a falling in love with the improving six.

While some of the above figures cannot be completely relied upon, and it should be remembered that 1982 Falcon/Fairmont registration figures include the last months of XD production, the figure for XE’s fitted with V8’s is known:- 2389.

You would expect that there may be some logic to how Ford fitted their V8’s to the last Falcon’s. But then again, if you have been working your way through this site, you will find that there was little logic to much of what Ford did with regard to their cars.

To understand the V8 XE’s you have to first understand that Ford built cars for the general public, and they built cars for their greatest fans, the police. By the time the XE came along, Australian police forces were very comfortable with their big, V8 powered interceptors/chasers. Hence a proportion of the V8 powered cars went to them.

Ford were also keen to use V8’s in the XE station wagon as they appreciated that many of their wagon customers needed the extra torque inherent to the V8.

And Ford also knew that they had customers who wanted big, fast, sporty optioned V8 powered cars. And for them, they refined and sold their ESP’s.

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To Repeat or Not to Repeat

A précis of 2006 research paper by Dr Helen McGrath

"Over the last 75 years, a pool of research-based knowledge about the effects on students of repeating a year level has been accumulating. It now overwhelmingly indicates that there are neither academic nor social advantages for the majority of students who repeat a year of their schooling. There is probably no other educational issue where there is such a huge gap between what the research says and the practices that schools continue to adopt.

Paradoxically this discrepancy between evidence and practice has never been more apparent than in recent times when evidence-based approaches are being strongly promoted by educational systems across Australia. The practice of students repeating a year level is widely accepted in Australian schools but there are few statistics available on rates of repeating. Kenny (1991) has estimated that approximately 14% - 18% of all Australian students repeat a year, especially in the first four years of schooling.

Jimerson (2004) and Owens and Magliaro (1998) have argued that there are significant risks for schools in continuing to follow the unsupported practice of repeating students in the face of such unambiguous research which directs otherwise and warn that such practice may constitute ‘ educational malpractice’.

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Milk

Although the new movie "Milk," about San Francisco's Harvey Milk, is a very recent release, a pirated DVD of it is already available in China.
It's called "Melamine."

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The "Last" V8s

25th November, 1982 marked the date of the last production V8 powered Falcon. At least, that is what the Ford publicity machine at the time said. It would seem a strange thing to ‘advertise’, that your car company was abandoning producing V8 powered cars after fifty years and three months, and yet there were the management and workers pictured ‘celebrating’ the last of the V8’s as a Silver over Charcoal 4.9 litre , manual transmission equipped Fairmont Ghia ESP rolled off the line.

Except, of course, as we know now it wasn’t the last Falcon V8, as the V8 re-appeared in the EB Falcon less than ten years later.

Plus, there is even some doubt that the featured ‘last Falcon V8’, the above mentioned ESP, was actually the “last” one at all.

However, what can be said was that in November, 1982, after an eleven year production run, and some 250,000 examples, we saw the last fitting of an Australian cast and assembled Cleveland style V8 in a Falcon.

Ford’s rationale in cancelling the V8 was impeccable. As the 1980’s arrived, the world was suffering its second oil crisis, and many countries were still in recession. Large cars, like the Falcon was, with large engines, like the Cleveland V8’s were, seemed like anti social dinosaurs. The competition had downsized with the European derived Commodore, a nimble, classy looking car alongside the broad shouldered, blocky Falcon and its siblings.

Giving the XD Falcon - which Ford themselves had given a Euro style as opposed to the US style of the XA-XC’s - an aerodynamic makeover; a sophisticated, engineering upgrade to its suspension and dynamics; and, most importantly, a modernised and fuel injected version of its solid straight six, seemed the logical step.

Ford had the first two improvements in place for the introduction of the XE Falcon in March, 1982, but the third, the efficient and more powerful six, was still some months away. No worries. Just drop in the big old bent eight. Okay, we’re shutting down the line for other things, but we will have plenty of the old donks left to tide us through.

And then, magically, and unexpectedly, the economy got better, the oil crisis passed, and Australians started liking their big old Falcons again, and maybe, just maybe, Ford could be Number One in sales. And, em, whoops, we seem to have run out of V8’s.

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We have striped the new car to give it a little more visual impact. Tee hee.

Instructional Design Questions

In his book, The Art and Science of Teaching: A Comprehensive Framework for Effective Instruction, by Robert J. Marzano suggests teachers examine the following questions when planning their units of work. Hope you and your teachers find these useful at your school.

1. What will I do to establish and communicate learning goals, track student progress, and celebrate success?
2. What will I do to help students effectively interact with new knowledge?
3. What will I do to help students practice and deepen their understanding of new knowledge?
4. What will I do to help students generate and test hypotheses about new knowledge?
5. What will I do to engage students?
6. What will I do to establish or maintain classroom rules and procedures?
7. What will I do to recognize and acknowledge adherence and lack of adherence to classroom rules and procedures?
8. What will I do to establish and maintain effective relationships with students?
9. What will I do to communicate high expectations for all students?
10. What will I do to develop effective lessons organized into a cohesive unit?

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She doesn't really like cars and LOVED being surrounded by them, hearing every last detail for 3 hours. Not.

Home

After the dance, young Charles asked the young girl if he could see her home – so she showed him a picture of it.

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Heaven will be like this.

Cleveland 4V Engine

Quite a bit of discussion and research has gone into the 4V Cleveland engine issue. The main issue is that Ford Australia called all it’s GT Cleveland engines 4V’s to represent the 4 venturi carburettor fitted as standard to XW-XB GT’s.

The imported US Cleveland’s were all fitted to GT’s with the large port 4V heads whereas the Australian built Cleveland’s were all built with small port heads known as 2V’s but retained the 4V designation due to the Australian 4 venturi manifold with small port inlets.

To identify the imported engine in the 1970-1972 cars is that they have a D block casting on the top passenger side of the block and a coil tag identifier & tappet cover sticker of CK608 for Manuals and CK609 for Automatics.

The heads have a 4 stamped in the top corner. In late 72 and 1973 cars they have a square block casting on the top passenger side of the block and a coil tag identifier of CK617 Manual only. The heads have a 4. (dot) stamped in the top corner.

Australian engines were fitted to automatics from mid 72 and manual GT’s from late December 1973. These engines are identified by the square block casting mark and small port heads with no coil tags. Ford Australia continued to import the large port 4V heads and many of these made there way onto the Australian engines for racing, press cars, dealer fitment, spare parts counter sales etc.

Australian engines carry the GF (Geelong Foundry) casting mark beside the oil pressure sender but the CF (Cleveland Foundry) casting mark is also found on later engine blocks. The CK617 imported large port square block engine was limited to the XA Manual GT’s and a small number of 1973 XB Manuals (72 coupes and 139 sedans).

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The Tower Burger is back!

A 'shimmy' at high speeds

A woman ran over a mattress and decided to keep going.
The ensuing jumble finally whipped around enough to put a tear in the gas tank.
The subsequent lack of fuel is what finally brought this vehicle to its knees.
It had still managed to drive 30 more miles decently with a 60lb tangle wrapped around the driveshaft.
This genius complained that the vehicle had a "shimmy" when driving at high speeds.
This is what the dealership found . . .

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Nothing beats family.

Pregnant?!

A woman burst out of the examining room screaming after her young physician tells her she is pregnant. The director of the clinic stopped her and asked what the problem was. After she tells him what happened, the doctors had her sit down and relax in another room and he marched down the hallway where the woman’s physician was and demanded, “What is wrong with you? Mrs. Miller is 60 years old, has six grown children and nine grandchildren, and you told her she was pregnant?” The young physician continued to write his notes and without looking up at his superior, asked, “Does she still have the hiccups?”

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Pretty.

XB GT Specifications

Engine Specifications:

Type: 351 cubic inch (5.763 litre) Cleveland V8
Bore & Stroke: 102 x 89mm (4.00 x 3.50in)
Power (DIN): 224kW (300bhp) @ 5400rpm
Torque (DIN): 515Nm (380lb-ft) @ 3400rpm
Compression Ratio: 11.0:1
Configuration: Front mounted, longitudinal, 90 degree V8
Head Design: Pushrod & rocker OHV with hydraulic lifters
Fuel System: Ford Autolite '4300' 605cfm 4 barrel downdraught carburettor
Ignition System: Single point Autolite Distributor - changed to Motorcraft Oct 72
Exhaust System: Cast iron manifold, low restriction twin exhaust
Manual Gearbox :
Type: 4 speed all-synchronised
1st: 2.78:1
2nd: 1.93:1
3rd: 1.36:1
4th: 1.00:1
Reverse: 2.78:1
Automatic Transmission:
Type: 3 speed FMX
1st: 2.40:1
2nd: 1.47:1
3rd: 1.00:1
Reverse: 2.20:1
Rear Axle:
Type: 9in removable carrier type, Limited Slip 'traction lock' Diff, 28 spline
Ratio: Manual 3.00:1 or 2.75:1 (Optional)
Automatic: 2.75:1 or 3.00:1 (Optional)
Suspension:
Front: Independent angle poised ball joint, coil springs, shock absorbers, wishbones and anti-roll bar
Rear: Hotchkiss type with semi-elliptic leaf springs, shock absorbers and live axle

Brakes:
Front: 286mm (11.25in) Servo assisted discs
Rear: 254mm (10in) Servo assisted discs
Steering:
Type: Re-circulating ball power assistance (Optional)
Ratio: 16:1
Wheels & Tyres:
Wheels 6.0 x 14 Steel - Silver painted Steel '12 Slot'
Tyres E70HR14
Instrumentation:
Speedometer: 140mph or 240kmh
Tachometer: 7000rpm
Oil Pressure: Gauge
Water Temperature: Gauge
Fuel: Gauge
Voltage: Gauge
Ignition: Warning Light
High Beam: Warning Light
Brakes: Warning Light
Clock: Analogue
Dimensions:
Length: 4808mm (189.3in)
Width: 1969mm (77.5in)
Height: 1369mm (51.9in)
Weelbase: 2819mm (111.0in)
Front Track: 1524mm (60.0in)
Rear Track: 1524mm (60.0in)
Weight: 1587kg (3500lb)
Turning Circle: 12.0m (39.4ft)
Fuel Tank: 79.6lt (17.5gl) 122.9lt (27.0gl) (Optional)
Seating: 5
Performance:
Top Speed: 193km/h (120mph)
0 - 60mph (0 - 100 km/h) - 8.1 seconds
Standing 1/4 mile (400m) - 15.8 seconds

XB GT COLOUR CODE CHART
Paint Code Paint Name Total Paint Code Paint Name Total
X Red Pepper
280
M Yellow Blaze
262

3 Polar White
218
U Burnt Orange
164

V Apollo Blue
130
6 Mulberry
110

H Tropic Gold
89
P Emerald Fire
83

K Tango
69
B Onyx Black
65

2 Tropicana Green
57
E Sandstone Beige B (June, 1974)
42

R Copper Bronze metallic 41
7 Walnut Glow
34

9 Snow White (March, 1976)
28
Y Kelly Green
25

C Sky View Blue
23
9 Sandstone Beige A (November, 1973)
20

5 Deep Aqua
19
F Frosted Lime
14

T Outback Bronze
13
Z Sherwood Green Met.
13

4 Neptune Blue
9
C Antique Beige (March, 1976)
9

G Banana Blush
6
S Satin Brown Met. (May, 1976)
6

Y117 Brambles Red
6
L Mushroom Beige
5

Y113 Rothmans Blue
5
Y377/Z801 Ultra White
5

Y376 Sogo Port Wine
4
Y045 Corporate Blue
3

Y304 New Look Grey
3
A Blue Steel (May, 1976)
2

A Yellow Sand
2 Q Coolmint Green Met.
2
Y051 New England Green
2 Y356 Kwikasair Violet
2
Y390 Euclid Green
2 Y396 Lime Glaze
2
Z201 Light Orange
2 Z857Z857 Deep Ivy
2
Y120 Daimler Blue
1 Y138 Red Satin
1
Y154 Betta Primrose
1 Y161 Royal Umber
1
Y244 Pepsi Yellow
1 Y264 Fanta Orange
1
Y277 Vintage Burgundy
1 Y301 S.T.C. Yellow
1
Y308 Budget Green
1 Y314 Rothmans Filter Blue
1
Y324 Diamond White
1 Y340 Hughes Blue
1
Z192 Not Known
1

Random family images

A rare thing - a seagull without a chip.

Pipe explosion

The pictures below are a result of a guy using a post hole digger without calling for pipe locations and he hit an underground cross-country gas pipe.

Random family images

Yes, that is the real one - only 3 left. Name your price, but they wouldn't take it.

Pedestrian

The teacher asked the class to define “Pedestrian”
Tom raises his hand and says: “A person who can be easily reached by car.”

Random family images

MAster of the facial twist.