FTO AUSTRALIA

Have had a victory! Took a white FTO for a drive yesterday with pod filter & cat-back exhaust. As soon as the mivec cut in, I was sold! My wife also had a drive, which she never does as she "does not like driving other peoples cars". Women.... Anyway, she really liked it, so it is now full steam ahead. Will be refinancing the house just after Christmas, so will be putting the car at the top of the list.

However, that was not the reason for my post. It got me thinking, where would it be best to fully appreciate the car. Not driving around the city, or highways, that is for sure. My thoughts turned to 3 pieces of fantastic blacktop

1. Apollo Bay to Colac, Victoria
Approx 50km's of driving nirvana. Starts off with a very windy, twisty section through a rain forest (about 15-20km's) before opening out into long sweepers and short straights through farming country. Spectacular scenery, spectacular road. Drove it in my Civic this year. Long way from Newcastle, but would go back for sure.

BTW - has there ever been a cruise along the Great Ocean Road? Would be worth going to, even from NSW.

2. Singleton to Windsor (Putty Road), New South Wales
Only went along this once, half in a car and half in a tow truck (no, not an accident. Had second tyre blowout in the space of a couple of hours. Not my car either). Is a revered stretch of road to test your cars speed and agility. Not to be taken in Winter, as can have ice on it! Approx 200km's.

3. F3 Freeway to Wangi Wangi, New South Wales
Got to drive this pretty much every day for a few years while I lived with my old man. You would think you would get sick of it, but you don't. Has a small section that we (dad and I) like to call our "test track". Doesn't go for long but is fantastic.

Sorry for the long post . Will keep them briefer from now on.

funny, i was actually gonna come up with this topic later this morning, hahaha... great minds think alike ey?

well glad to see you've 'seen the light' to settle for the FTO. looking forward to see your new toy someday!

whereabouts are you located MRX?

as for my 2c, my favourite stretch of black top (in Vic anyway) would have to be:

1. Great Ocean Rd (Torquay to Apollo Bay)
2. Arthurs Seat
3. Mt Dandy

I would have to say 1. great ocean road
2. mt dandenong tourist rd
3. pacific hwy (just prior to taree)
4.the black spur

Mt Dandy is great, especially at dawn when there are very few cars on the road and the sun rises through the tree tops. It's also great because it is relatively close, you don't have to make a day trip out of it.

Great Ocean Rd (Torquay to Apollo Bay) has some nice straights that you can wind the car all the way out (damn limiter), of course I am speaking hypothetically After that, fom Lorne onwards, it's too twisty to get much speed up, and too many slow cars to get in the way.

oh did i also mention that there is a long striaght along Western Hwy enroute to Ballarat which allows you to max out to the speed limiter (if you have one) or 4th gear before a sweeping bend...?? hehehehe... :D

well i'd have to say

*Old pacific highway sydney to (as far north as you want to go)
Mix of high speed cornering and technical parts. not too hilly (great at night time as there are no cars)

*Sutherland National Park
High speed cornering, great at night times. 1 nice straight to relax on, best to do at night (after midnight) there are no cars on the road)

* Macquarie pass.
Very tight low/medium speed cornering (either all down hill or uphill depending on which way you are going). Off camber corners, Drop offs through corners (like the big dipper). This would be increibly challenging at nigth time.

Steve I get the feeling that you like cornering......

Robb...

don't know what gives you that idea?

The roads inland of Apollo Bay, Vic are great.
The drive over MtHotham and down to Lakes Entrance, Vic was also great fun.

smorison wrote: * Macquarie pass.
Very tight low/medium speed cornering (either all down hill or uphill depending on which way you are going). Off camber corners, Drop offs through corners (like the big dipper). This would be increibly challenging at nigth time.

Incredibly challenging is right ....some of those corners freaked me out and that was day time

come to a hair pin and when the exit is 180 degress and about 5metres down it makes you adjust your entry speed fast

SilentBob

yeah it was a great challenging drive wasn't it

we'll have to organise another trip down there in the new year sometime.

WE've got some good roads up here too. Although most of which I'm sure no one here knows about.

1. Cawarral Road, It's a back road that links two of the towns here that runs through a town called Cawarral. It's very fast and open with corners that dip and drop with some very tight and tricky corners closer to town including a really tight left hander that runs onton a bridge, it tight, blind, and drops a few metres, is lots of fun.

2. MT Archer Road. Here's a hill climb, the posted speed limit is like 40 but it's fun at a lot more than that. The corners are very quick and challenging with up hill bumps and little drop offs. The way down can be pretty interesting too. A very good test for brakes. My Rally cars brakes where only jsut starting to work when I reached the bottom (go racing brakes!).

3. The Caves Road. This is a road out to a tourist attraction and is usually pretty busy. It's very tricky with tightening corners and changes in the camber and surface of the road mid corner.

Of course all of these roads are public and I in no way condone illegal or reckless driving.

.......damn, can't believe i left out Albert Park Drive LOL..!!

GPXXX wrote:.......damn, can't believe i left out Albert Park Drive LOL..!!

especially when there are 22 FTOs driving in convoy and everyone else is stopping and staring.

oh yeah i forgot to add the highway that goes from (just south of) coffs harbour to armidale... 100km/h posted speed limit and i couldn't get near that on a lot of the bends...

great drive through the blue mountain range that one!

ruchi wrote:

GPXXX wrote:.......damn, can't believe i left out Albert Park Drive LOL..!!

especially when there are 22 FTOs driving in convoy and everyone else is stopping and staring.

boy we really oughtta do that again sometime, shouldn't we?? hahahaha!!

yarra blvd, as i only live 5 mins from it!!

thecook wrote:yarra blvd, as i only live 5 mins from it!!

that area is a drifter's heaven hehehehe...

...but not a very long road though'. i think the fun is over in 5mins max if you go flat out, what a shame...

the blvd in ivanhoe is ok for a small run
otherwise black spurs,
also a couple of the blote bridge on ramps, where you get to circle nearly 300 degrees at 120km is kickass

lol mikey, first time i went there i was amazed.. couldnt believe how much it reminded me of initial d...

the road was clear, smooth, no sticks n gravel... but downside of it was that it was a bit too short... when my friend stopped infront of me, i thought to myslef... "WTF IS THAT IT?"