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Greetings Saturn Enthusiasts!
Please enjoy the latest January SPS Updates…
‘The Fast and the Furious’ to be Released on Video and DVD
One of the most popular movies of 2001, ‘The Fast and the Furious,’ will be released this month on video and DVD.
The story is that of an undercover cop, Brian, who assimilates into a gang of street racers in an attempt to investigate a rash of hijackings. Along the way, he befriends his primary suspect, Dominic, and falls in love with Dominic’s sister!
OK, well regardless of the storyline, this fun film flaunts some exceptional camerawork and effects. And the coverage of the hot cars (and, ahem, ‘hot chicks’) is inspiring and alluring if not award winning. And this movie is essentially Hollywood’s first portrayal of the sport compact car phenomenon.
‘The Fast and the Furious’ is available for purchase at Amazon.com, Walmart.com, and Circuit City. And of course, it will be available for rent at most video stores throughout the country. For more information, visit the official website at http://www.thefastandthefurious.com.
Product News
Electroluminescent white gauge kits are finally available for the 95-98 SOHC Saturns! Our latest performance gauge sets feature a powered electro-luminescent display that looks white during the day but creates a soft modern glow at night. Glow color can be changed from blue to green using the inverter included in the kit. This kit includes gauge faces, adjustable power inverter, and needle removal tool. Part number NR3726AEL fits all 95-98 SOHC with mechanical odometer. Available now for $104.95 per kit.
The idea of a ‘high performance wiper blade’ may seem funny at first, but this is no joke! PIAA’s revolutionary new Super Silicone Wiper system utilizes a silicone compound that has been impregnated directly into the wiper blade to provide a continuous application of silicone onto the windshield each time the blades are used. This ensures an ever-present fresh coating of silicone on the windshield, which forces a beading action of the water as it hits the glass. The water slips effortlessly off the coated glass, making the glass water-repellant, and allowing you to enjoy excellent foul weather visibility. Each car set includes both driver and passenger sides and blade inserts that are good for up to 12 months. Kits are available for both S cars and L cars, and you may choose from the basic black or stylish carbon fiber finish. Prices start at just $39.98 per car set. Please visit the Online Store for a complete list of part numbers, applications, and prices.
The powerful, reliable, and economical Max series light bulbs are now available in the 880 and 893 bulb types. We have found these bulbs to be very bright and to have excellent quality. Use the 880 for any foglamp that requires 880 bulbs, including the stock foglamps in all 96-02 SL2 and SW2, 97-02 SC2, and 2000-02 L series sedans and wagons. Use the 893 for any foglamp that requires 893 bulbs, including the stock foglamps on 95-96 SC2 models. (Hint: we recommend these as a higher-quality alternative to the Luks 880HYP27 and 893HYP37.5.) The 27 Watt Max super white 880 bulbs, part number JM880MAX, and the 37.5 Watt Max super white 893 bulbs, part number JM893MAX, are available now for $30.00 per pair.
Many more new products will be introduced very shortly. But although we are excited about the new items, we must use discretion about releasing new product information because sharing any information before solidifying all of the facts can inadvertently mislead customers, employees, and supporters. Please visit our web site often and watch for future updates. Many more exciting items are on the horizon!
January Specials
Red Line synthetic oil has been proven in competition for years. We strongly recommend Red Line synthetic oil for any motor that will be used for high rpm racing and track events. This month only, buy four quarts of Red Line synthetic 5W30 motor oil and get one Saturn brand oil filter (SAT21000872) free! (Don’t forget to also get a fifth quart for top-off and a new drain plug seal! Drain plug seal is SAT21007240 for $0.86.)
Sprint’s SPR8500 lowering springs have always been a low-price value leader, but our sale price makes them an even more incredible value! Features include a 2.0-inch drop, great ride quality, limited lifetime Sprint warranty, and a blue powdercoat finish. Hurry - they won’t last long at these prices! Sprint SPR8500 2.0-inch Lowering springs are normally $159.00 per set but are on sale now for only $149.00 per set!
Please visit the SPS web site (http://www.spswebpage.com) for more details!
SPS Racing
(Editor’s note: Last month, we featured the results from the ARRC race that took place November 9-11. At the time, the ARRC was the most recent race and was presented as soon as possible in order to make the newsletter as current as possible. However, by featuring the ARRC race results in November, we skipped the Mid-Ohio race from October. What follows here are ‘new’ not previously presented results from an October 6-7 race.)
Following a big win at Watkins Glen in September, team scR/R^3/SPS Racing went to Mid-Ohio on the weekend of October 6-7 with high hopes. The car set-up finally appeared to be maturing, the team was settling into its groove, and – as a new secret weapon – we had recently bolted a new set of very lightweight Volk racing wheels onto the #34 car.
With the car finally at minimum weight (at last,) the list of usable excuses was growing shorter.
As it turned out, everything went according to plan. In a field of 23 ITA cars, we managed a third-place qualifying spot and turned in our best lap time of the year – a 1:46.4. While we were still a tenth of a second off our best 2000 lap time, the conditions were far from favorable. So we headed to the grid on Sunday looking to make it two wins in a row.
Sunday morning greeted us with the coldest day of the year. It was only the beginning of October, but it felt more like January. Alas, dealing with the unknown of the weather is just part of racing. However, in addition to the cold weather, before actually making it to the grid, we had to deal with a host of other off-track issues - such as a canopy that decided to commit hara-kiri overnight and a quarter-inch thick layer of frost on the racecars. Since the canopy was a complete write-off, we elected to divert our efforts at de-icing the car before making our way to the track. Luckily, Pat, Dan, and John had bought knit caps the night before, so at least their heads were warm…
When the green flag flew the next morning, the track temperature was only 32 degrees Fahrenheit (that’s 0 degrees Celsius for you Canadians, eh.) By turn 1, the second place qualifier found out just how slippery cold tires could be and sailed off track before he knew what had hit him. Not to sit back and watch from the sidelines, the SPS Racing team (James in the #34 car and Mark Rushbrook in the #21 car) quickly filed in behind the leader and proceeded to run away from the pack.
After twelve laps of ‘follow-the-CRX,’ James made a pass for the lead heading into the keyhole. It stuck, and we actually led one complete lap before the CRX managed to return the favor running through the section known as Thunder Valley. Despite James’ best efforts, we simply could not catch him in the remaining three laps. But at the checkered flag, we were a scant 0.6 seconds behind the leader - less than five car lengths at 80mph.
On the way to our second-place finish, we also managed to record a 1:45.8 lap – a new scR record at our favorite track and only 0.2 seconds behind the winner’s best. The icing on the cake was Mark’s third-place finish, also with a personal best of 1:45.8.
(Details being what they are, James actually ran a 1:45.87 while Mark ran a 1:45.89, so James gets bragging rights as the fastest ITA Saturn around Mid-Ohio. Not that he would tirelessly remind Mark of this or anything…)
The 2001 scR/R^3/SPS Racing season officially ended with the ARRC race in November. But planning is underway now in preparation for the 2002 season. If all goes well, we may add a third car and begin training two new VERY young crew members in 2002. Be sure to see the latest at the scR website, http://www.teamscr.com.
Get Printed Updates Any Time
By now, most Saturn enthusiasts realize that SPS adds new items to our large inventory on a very regular basis. And for virtually anyone reading this newsletter, the SPS website (located at http://www.spswebpage.com) is often the easiest way to stay informed about new items.
But some customers prefer the convenience of a printed catalogue. So since 1996, we have printed four separate editions of our color catalogue. However, unlike the website, revising and distributing a printed catalogue entails significantly greater time and expense. As a result, we can only afford to create entirely new catalogues on approximate 18-month intervals.
Nevertheless, separately printed supplemental updates for the both the catalogue and the price list are maintained on an on-going basis and are available at any time. So if you are an existing SPS customer and wish to receive the latest updates, just call or email us. We would be glad to send the latest update and price list to you at no charge! (Be sure to confirm your current address while you’re at it!)
SPS 2002 Event Schedule (tentative)
Jan 1: SPS closed for New Year holiday
Apr 20: SCCA school at IRP
If you have any questions about anything in this newsletter, please Contact Us.
To view previous editions of the newsletter, please visit the Newsletter Archive.
If you wish to add an email address to the list, please do so at http://spswebpage.com/email/addemail.html. If you need to remove an address from the list, please do so at http://spswebpage.com/email/del.html. Please do NOT notify us directly with your removal or addition requests!
Until next month, HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR!
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