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No signal? Oh-my-god! How am I going to get out of the airport? How will I find the autostrada? How can I find out where I'm going? I'm beginning to get nauseated again. What if it can't lock on the signal? First the car, then the navi. I pull out into airport traffic hoping that it'll kick in.... Just as I enter the autostrada it speaks....
Thank-you-god. With the address dialed in, I pick up the pace. Yep, definitely a turbo. I kick it and it goes. Then without warning, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding,.... WTF is that noise? I slow down, the noise disappears. Kick it up again & the ice cream truck is driving through the neighborhood again. I pull over, pull out the owners manual, surprised there is even one and turn off the speed limiter. While I'm in the settings, I also adjust the headlight aim back to "0," its highest settings from #2 which is equivalent to driving 190km/h with your headlights aimed 2 ft in front of you angled towards the ditch. I also reset the radio so it can pick-up traffic info if they decide to broadcast it, which is hardly ever. I'll figure out later how to connect my iPhone to the aux port. ( I find out later there isn't one. Fiat - f***ing-Idiots-At-Torino). In the meantime I'll enjoy the sights and sounds of static on the radio and take pictures as I drive. I reach the toll booth to get onto the highway, and shift to neutral. I take my foot off the clutch to coast to a stop and the f***ing car dies again. A big letter S with rotating arrows flashes on dash. Whatever happened to a simple diesel that pollutes the air I breathe? Why is there is so much useless electronic pollution control crap on this car? I take my ticket, the gate opens so I can zoom away, but the cars not running! s***! Now what?!... Instinctively, I push the clutch in so I can shut the ignition down to restart and the stupid car starts right up. Start/stop technology. f*** I hate this car, there better be a disable switch....
Off I go, back up to speed... 125, 130, 145, heh heh... 155. The navi gives off the signal that photo radar is ahead, I slow down then pick-up the pace again. As I cruise along well into the lose my license in canada forever zone, I'm surprised to see this Alfa with flashing headlights lights coming up fast. I pull to the middle lane just as granny in an Alfa Mito BLOWS past me like I was standing still. Not 5 seconds later, some a****** on a motorcycle with female passenger doing at least 200 passes on my right, in my lane, inches from my mirror, between the car I was parallel with, just blows right by and passes granny with the Mito, crests the hill and disappears in the horizon.
The rest of the drive is uneventful. 90 minutes (+/-) and 7.60€ later I pull into Collelongo, unwind, and check out the house I haven't been in since 1992. Tomorrow is a rest, get aquainted, see old friends, have a beer, see what ive missed in 19 years day. Then Tuesday morning, i'll drive to the outskirts of Modena, a mere 5 hours & 478kmy away for my 3pm meeting with Pagani Automobili S.p.A...
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