Copyright © 1995-Present
Dr. John Krane
Past Cars
- 1986 Buick Skyhawk (Red 2-door, manual transmission)
First car, owned 1990 - 2000
My dad bought this car for me in 1990 for $3000. I had it through college, graduate school, and a little beyond that. The car fell apart before I stopped driving it. I gave the car to a guy who ran it in a demolition derby. He got more horsepower out of the car in those few minutes than I did in the entire time I owned it! That experience taught me the value of keeping a car in good mechanical condition.
- 1987 Jeep Cherokee (Blue 2-door, auto transmission, Command-trac 4-wheel drive)
Owned 2000 - 2009
I bought this as a winter beater, to protect the Z from harsh weather. Turns out I loved driving the Jeep for what it is! I gave it 5" of lift and a set of rock slider rails. I traded the Jeep for the Rogue (below) via Cash-for-Clunkers. I miss my Jeep to this day. Much of my mechanical knowledge came from working on this Jeep.
- 1988 VW Fox (Blue 4-door, manual)
Owned 2001 - 2003
This was a fun little car because I bought to learn how to shift gears without using the clutch at all. All you need is the courage to just jam that shifter into place at the right moment. I gave this car to Cars-for-Kids after a year or so. This car taught me that car ownership can be a very casual thing indeed.
Current Cars
- 1993 Nissan 300ZX Twin Turbo (Black 2-door, manual, T-Tops)
Owned 1999 - Present
This is the first car I ever bought for myself, and still my favorite car. It has about 410 HP, which was monsterous when the car was new. I have upgraded the suspension with race-ready parts, but have kept the body in stock condition.
- 1998 BMW 323IC (Black 2-door, auto, Convertible)
Owned 2008 - Present
I wanted to try a convertible car, and I found it was a great deal of fun. Not exactly a sports car, it is more fun to drive it at a stately pace. My fiancee liked the quality of the car so much, she got her own BMW (below).
- 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX Wagon (Black 4-door, manual, turbo AWD wagon)
Owned 2001 - Present (The 2002 model year was available in late 2001)
My fiancee's second car, purchased brand new. A huge amount of fun to drive in fresh snow. She learned how to drive a stick with this car. If this car interests you, it is currently for sale!
- 2009 Nissan Rogue SL (Black 4-door, auto AWD)
Owned 2009 - Present
Bought this brand new to replace the Jeep, and I love it. I think it is the future of cars. The AWD system does thrust-vectoring to get you around corners, the bluetooth phone-via-stereo speakers is fantastic, and I love the intelligent key.
- 2010 BMW 328i X-drive (Black 4-door, auto AWD, with moonroof)
Owned 2010 - Present
My fiancee purchased this car brand new, and it is the latest addition to our stable. With this car, we officially have too many! But the ride and quality are out of this world.
Past Motorcycles
- Xingue 50cc Scooter (Black Chinese no-name scooter)
Owned 2003 - 2007
Purchased off E*Bay for $500. It got me from home to the train station with ease and got 80 mpg, but the carberator was very temperamental and I couldn't stand it after a few years. Also, the scooter was so slow that cars menaced me on the roads on a regular basis. But I didn't need a motorcycle license to drive it.
- 1995 Kawasaki Ninja EX250 (Black...detecting the theme?)
Owned 2007 - Present
This replaced the scooter right after I got my motorcycle license. A much better commuter vehicle, this also served as an excellent beginner's motorcycle.
- 2010 BMW S1000RR (Black, what else?)
Owned 2010 - 2014
This is Germany's long-delayed answer to the japanese sport bike. A true monster with 193 horsepower, this 455 lb bike has about 10% more power than its rivals, and with me on it, has a better power-to-weight ratio than the Bugatti Veyron!
Current Motorcycles
2007 Ducati 1098 Biposto (Red! The streak of black vehicles is broken!)
Owned 2015 - Present
In its day, this was the bike to beat. America's quota of these bikes was sold out before the first one reached our shores. The sound of the motor, the confidence the suspension gives you in the turns, and the character of the power delivery just can't be quantified.
2013 Yamaha Zuma (Black)
Owned 2013 - Present
I got so tired of being stranded at the train station by the Ninja. That carburator would fail to start the bike in a hard rain, or in cold weather...exactly the times you want the bike to start so you can ride home instead of walking! With this scoot, I never worry about it starting, plus I can store the helmet under the seat and out of the weather. Works great as a quick grocery-getter too.
2014 BMW HP4 (Blue and White, so maybe bikes don't have to be black.)
Owned 2014 - Present
This is the High Performance version of the S1000RR that I traded in. It has the same motor with an upgraded ECU, an upgraded chassis, and the industry's first semi-active suspension. Compression and damping rates are controlled by the ECU depending on shock extension, shock speed and direction, acceleration/deceleration, and lean angle.
Every current 4-wheeled vehicle is black. (The motorcycles have broken the theme though.) Black is so gorgeous on a vehicle, and when clean, it is so reflective! A true enthusiast's color. There are plenty more vehicles that I want, but I'm running out of garage space...
