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VWVortex.com Miscellaneous Features If you’re like the staff here at VWvortex, the holidays bring mixed emotions. Sure, we all love to open gifts, but how much thought really goes into socks or pajamas? What car enthusiasts really want can’t always be wrapped or bought at the mall. As we travel the world to cover shows and events, we are constantly on the lookout for cool things to fill our own offices and garages. We’ve assembled a list of some of the best stuff we’ve come across in the past year. And they all beat the hell out of PJ’s.
www.tamiyausa.com
VW Driver Gear Interlagos Scarf So, you own a new GTI and you're just dying to work more Interlagos cloth into your wardrobe? Well, you're in luck. VW's signature plaid pattern is now available on a scarf, and just in time for winter. Wear it proudly, like all the Burberry snobs on the morning express. The scarf is part of the current Driver Gear lineup available through any VW dealer. Or you can skip the trip and order it online instead. At just fifteen bucks, it's easily the coolest stocking stuffer you're likely to get this year. drivergear.vw.com Simpson Pit Shoe
As with the Model T, you can have the Simpson Pit Shoe in any color so long as it’s black. A one-shade model this may be, but black is perfect for hiding grease and other stains that come along with garage work. And, at $44.95 the Pit Shoe won’t break the bank. www.simpsonraceproducts.com
Prints and posters for the garage or office wall are a classic gift, especially when the subject matter is Volkswagen. Our search this year had us browsing sources outside the USA. One online store we stumbled across was Parc.de from Germany. Simply put, if you’re a fan of virtually any European marque, this website likely has more print and poster selection to suit your interests than you’ve ever seen. You could spend hours just perusing their stock. No matter what era, from vintage to modern, this store seems to have it all. The website is available in English. Pricing is in Euros. www.parc.de Matchbox Cars
Looking over the latest offerings from Matchbox, we found the new GTI, the original Beetle and Microbus. If that's not enough, there are also S4 Avant and TT Audi offerings. Matchbox cars are widely available at most local toy stores and general wares stores such as Target, Sears or Walmart. Cars are also available on Ebay.com and various other online outlets. www.matchbox.com
For the auto enthusiast who has everything, we’re guessing this vacuum may be an unknown. One of the most powerful vacuums on the market, this vacuum is ideal for automotive and garage uses. Blow dry your car, inflate a raft, blow leaves or vacuum your car’s interior with specially-designed car attachments. The standard Vac-N-Blo offers portability, allowing you to take it remotely for on-location detailing at a car show or keep it in the garage for home use. The Jumbo Vac-N-Blo isn’t portable, but mounts on the wall and features five times the bag capacity of the standard unit. www.metrovacworld.com Road Rage Flip Book
In recent years, aggressive drivers have gotten a bad name. Sure, there are some complete psychopaths on the road, and we’ve all encountered them. But, 9 times out of 10, we’re guessing most drivers are passive aggressive, getting irritated but not postal when drivers with no sense of etiquette insist on riding in the left lane. For these people, we may have found the answer with the book of Road Rage cards. Warning, some of these messages are a bit vulgar, but this flip book will help you rapidly get your point across to other drivers… if you can get them to look over. Even if you never actually use it on the road, you'll have good laugh flipping through it. www.roadrage.com
Murphy’s Law states that the one time you need that glovebox flashlight, the batteries will be dead. Perhaps the folks at ThinkGeek.com think Murphy and his laws should go jump in a dark lake as they now offer the Forever Flashlight. Simply shake the flashlight for about 30 seconds and, using Faraday’s Principle of Induction, the light charges the built-in capacitor by passing a magnet through a metal coil and creating enough juice to light the LED light source for about five minutes. www.thinkgeek.com NINCO N-Digital Slot Car Track
If you want to take your large-scale slot car racing to the next level, NINCO has the answer. Introduced earlier this year, the NINCO N-Digital system utilizes digital control technology to deliver more features and a more realistic racing experience. By going digital, drivers can keep track of lap times and do things like changing lanes and turning lights off and on while driving. But more importantly, NINCO N-Digital allows for different racing modes. GP (Grand Prix) mode allows you to program either for a set race time or number of laps. FL (Fastest Lap) mode is great for qualifying to determine race position. PS (Pit Strategy) mode requires the driver to watch fuel level while racing- an empty tank leaves a dead car on the track! There are many, many more features available with this setup. Any existing NINCO Track can be converted with a Digital Conversion Kit. Any manufacturer’s 1/32 slot car can be converted to NINCO N-Digital with the simple addition of a Digital Control Chip, which measures about an inch square. Most better hobby stores carry the NINCO system. www.modelrectifier.com Last Open Road Novel Series
Levy is amazing at intertwining a genuine historical perspective on the cars, drivers, and attitudes of the day with a lighthearted and entertaining storyline. Adding to the authenticity of each of the stories is Levy’s own experience as an SCCA road racer and all-around car enthusiast. There are four books in the series: The Last Open Road, Montezuma’s Ferrari, The Fabulous Trashwagon, and Toly’s Ghost. If you don’t think you have time for a novel, start with Levy’s short-form book, The Potside Companion, intended specifically for time-out reading spells. Many racetrack souvenir shops carry these books, but don’t expect to find them at your local Borders. Your best bet is to shop online directly. www.lastopenroad.com DashDAQ
The DashDAQ was the recipient of the Best New Product award at this year's SEMA Show. A full description, including video demonstration, is available on the DashDAQ website. www.drewtech.com
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