12-07-2011 Inner Circle

Greetings Turbo Regal Inner Circle Members - 12-07-2011

IN HONOR OF THE 70th ANNIVERSARY PEARL HARBOR ANNIVERSARY -

Today we remember and honor the 70th Anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by Japan and the official entry of the United States into World War II.

At that time, my father-in-law, Nick Tinari was in the Army and stationed at Scoffield Barracks. He witnessed the Japanese planes flying over the base on their way to Pearl Harbor.

In 1998, I interviewed him on an audio tape for an article I was doing. I asked him questions about the events at the time. It was a very informal session on a Sunday afternoon in my home office. Although it's not the best recording (since you can hear my typewriter in the background), it's an interesting eyewitness account of that fateful day.

Nick passed away in 2001 after a courageous battle with cancer.

Our niece posted my interview on You Tube in 3 segments.

If you would like to hear it, you can search Nick Tinari on You Tube or here are the 3 links...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JUm-5U4P8c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvkADFBxuu0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neXwUC5gZOQ




A CENTURY OF BUICK -

Last week we wrote about Chevrolet turning 100 years old.

In 2003, Buick hit the century mark. Buick, like all the GM divisions, has a lot of history.

In 1914, Buick moved the steering wheel to the left side.

By 1923 Buick had already produced its one-millionth car, which was quite an accomplishment.

In 1930, for just one year, Buick introduced a low priced Buick called the "Marquette."

By 1931 all Buicks were powered by a straight 8-cylinder engine. To mark the 50th anniversary in 1953, Buick produced a limited edition 1953 Skylark.

Of interest to our readers, 1987 was the last year for the turbo/intercooled Regal Grand Nationals, often called quickest American cars until Buick offered the 547 even quicker special-edition 1987 GNX.

PHOTO 1 - The top left photo shows the cover of this promotional piece. The lower photo shows the opened 4-page spread of all the important cars from each of the 100 years 1903-2003. In the top right photo we highlighted with a red arrow the two of the cars in the top right portion of the last panel - the 1986 Grand National representing 1986 and the GNX representing the year 1987 for Buick.

PHOTO 2 - All these facts and many others are on this beautiful full-color brochure from Buick produced in 2003. The photo shows the inside 2-page spread with a breakdown of the important milestones by the year they happened.



CHRISTMAS SPECIALS -

Time is running out to take advantage of our Christmas Specials. We must receive your order by 4 pm Friday, December 16th, 2011.

One great gift idea for that Turbo Regal owner or enthusiast in your family is to buy any of the books I've written.

PHOTO 3 - Shows the 4 books I have authored in the order they were published, and Pete Hoffman's engine book. Our best seller is the first book entitled, "KIRBAN'S GUIDE TO 1986 AND 1987 BUICK TURBO REGALS" and runs just over 400 pages, Part #6757. My follow-up book is entitled, "KIRBAN'S GUIDE TO BUYING A USED 1986 & 1987 BUICK TURBO REGAL," which runs just over 200 pages, Part #6846. The last two books I wrote are full of very helpful tips, trivia, and sources relating to the 1986-1987 Buick Turbo Regals. These two books are full of useful information based on over 315 cars we have bought and sold over the years. They are entitled, "DENNIS KIRBAN'S TIPS, TRIVIA & SOURCES FOR 1986-1987 BUICK TURBO REGALS Volume 1 and Volume 2." Volume 1 is Part #7027 and Volume 2 is Part #7088.

I would be happy to personally autograph any of these books if you wish. They are all in stock in time for Christmas delivery.

We also have Pete Hoffman's book entitled, "INFORMATION GUIDE 1986-1987 BUICK TURBO REGALS ENGINE," Part #7039. It runs almost 100 pages and covers the complete engine and related information.

All these books can be found on our website by typing in the part number.

Here is a link to all the books we offer:
http://www.kirbanperformance.com/products.php?search_text=books&submit_button=

There are lots of other items (such as DVDs and T-shirts) that would make great gifts.

Remember, you must call the office to take advantage of the Christmas Special pricing since our website can't calculate the discounts.



MORE ON CHEVROLETS 100TH ANNIVERSARY -

I found two items of interest that non-automotive companies have made celebrating Chevrolets 100th Anniversary.

PHOTO 4 - The top photo shows the Hallmark Keepsake Corvette ornament. It is based on the limited product Carbon Flash Black 2011 Corvette. This ornament retails for $17.95 at any Hallmark store. You can also find them on ebay for $24 and up. The real full-size model has special 100th year logos on the actual wheel center caps and has a special decal on the outside by the door pillar post. That model Corvette lists for around $64,000. (We will show more of this next week).

The lower photo shows a lighter made by Zippo Manufacturing Company located in Bradford, PA. It is proudly made in the USA. This unique lighter design is limited to 5,000 and each one is numbered on the face of the lighter. This one is #121. You can find these on ebay for about $28 each. The normal retail is around $44.95 each. If you are young enough, you may see these two items increase in value 15-20 years from now.



TRIP TO GBODYPARTS.COM -

At the end of last week I took a quick trip to see Brian Weaver, owner of Gbodyparts.com in North Carolina.

I sold him some parts and we talked about a few projects he is doing. I am not sure if he takes every customer that visits out to dinner but he took me to dinner at a nice Italian restaurant in downtown Bethel, North Carolina. Bethel won't appear on any tourist brochure for North Carolina! I think at night at best there is only about 3 businesses open!

If you have been there you understand what I mean. It's funny in a way that both Brian Weaver and Richard Clark both reside in North Carolina. Between the two of them, they have the largest concentration of Turbo Regals. They are both originally from Maryland.



ONE WORTHWHILE MOVIE TO SEE -

I went to the movies the other night and saw "The Descendants," starring George Clooney. Filmed in Hawaii, this movie has a great believable story line, humor and sadness. R rated for strong language. One of the best movies I have seen this year.



SERGIO SCAGLIETTI PASSES AWAY AT AGE 91 IN ITALY -

In the Ferrari world, Sergio Scaglietti is very well known. He designed the elegant Ferraris that won the Grand Prix races in the 1950s and 1960s. Those cars today fetch millions of dollars each!



A CORRECTION FROM LAST WEEK'S INNER CIRCLE -

When I talked about the company "KENNE BELL," I failed to make it clear that although the company was known as Kenne Bell, it was actually formed by two people - Lennie "Pop" Kennedy (legendary race driver and engine builder,) and Jim Bell (who also was a drag racer and would race against "Pop" Kennedy in southern California.) They would later team up, merge their names and start the company known as Kenne Bell. Thanks to Dave Walker for sending us this information.



MINI CONTEST UPDATE -

Concerning the tri-shield logo emblems mini contest results. We will cover this next week.



SLP FIREBIRD FORMULA NEW LOWER PRICE -

The seller now is dropped the asking price to $23,900. This is for the 400-mile red 2002 SLP Formula Firebird we pictured in the 11-16-2011 Inner Circle. This car will be finding a new home at some point.



FOR SALE - LOCAL TO US 2 UNUSUAL MERCEDES BENZ'S -

One is a 1973 all original 480SL with hardtop light blue with a brown interior.
Original interior and paint very very nice example $12,000.00

The other one is a very rare 1995 C36 sedan with the AMG package. From what I have read 1995 was the first year for the AMG package. Fewer than 300 were produced from what I have read. Car has 57,000 miles, was owned by a non smoker, and is silver with a black leather interior. Extremely nice example. Price is $6995.

For more information and photos, email me direct - [email protected]
Be sure to mention in the email which car interests you.



REPRODUCTION TRANSMISSION SHIFT CABLE -

This reproduction transmission shift cable (console models only) is special for the 200 4R overdrive transmission used in all the 1984-1987 Turbo Regals. This transmission shift cable is unique for this application.

GM discontinued the factory transmission shift cable several years ago. We recommend you keep one as a spare.

7368 - 1984-1987 Turbo Regal (Console Models Only) -
Reproduction Transmission Shift Cable - $36.95

Here is a link to the Shift Cable page on our website:
http://www.kirbanperformance.com/product/43908/REPRODUCTION+TRANSMISSION+SHIFT+CABLE+%237368.html



2011 CHRISTMAS SPECIALS - ENDS NEXT FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16TH!

Be sure to check out our website as we have announced our 2011 Christmas Specials. Discounts range from 10% to as high as 15% on a huge array of parts, including ZDDPlus™ for your oil. The effective dates runs thru 4 pm December 16th, 2011. Be sure to check out our website for complete details.

NOTE - Our website will not be able to calculate the discounts, so you MUST call in your order to take advantage of the Specials.

Here is a link to the 2011 Christmas Specials page on our website:

http://www.kirbanperformance.com/inner_circle.php?nak=155



DISCONTINUED PARTS -

Part #6902 GM Molded Door Seals has been discontinued.



GRAY PALLEX SEAT MATERIAL UPDATE -

Currently we only have enough for 2 kits left, as several customers have bought 2 and 3 sections of it to do several cars. So, if you have a 1985-1987 Grand National, you may want to get a sample of this material to see if it's something you want to have tucked away. Most of the pallex material you find today from companies sells for over $75 to $95 a yard.

We do NOT have the black pallex material. In many cases, the original black material should be good enough to simply re-use and install the new gray pallex material. The black is a lot easier to match whereas the gray is something that can vary. Keep in mind, before we sell you any material, please email me your name and address so I can send you a sample. That way, you know the exact shade of gray material you would receive - [email protected]

NOTE - We only have enough for 2 kits left.



ALWAYS IN A BUYING POSITION WORKS -

Got any turbo parts you are not using? Why not cash them in for parts you need with a Letter of Credit. Simply email me a list - [email protected].

Also, we are still buying dead or partially dead 1984-1987 Turbo Regals under $4,000 that are within 250 to 350 miles of our location.

NOTE ABOUT PHOTOS ON THE WEBSITE - We have heard from a couple people that have viewed the photos on the website. Because these have to be low-resolution photos to work on the Inner Circle segments on the website, any photos of text don't appear clear when enlarged. This is a problem when you are trying to see numbers, such as those on the VIN labels or pages from Options booklet. Also, because of photo reproduction and computer screen variations, the colors may not be true to the actual product or photo.

If you would like to have us email you any photo at the higher resolution for viewing, just email us and we will email them to you. Be sure to be specific on which pictures you want to see - Reference Inner Circle date and photo number 1, 2, 3 or 4 - [email protected].



NEXT YEAR - 2012 CALENDAR OF EVENTS -

TURBOBUICK.COM NATIONALS 2012 - MAY 2 - MAY 5, 2012 - Burlington, NC

For the latest information, go to - www.turbobuick.com/forums or - [email protected]

Event will feature free food, dyno, tech sessions, drag racing, and Auto-X. This is one of the first Turbo Buick events for the year 2012.



2012 GS NATIONALS - OCTOBER 10-13, 2012 - Beach Bend Raceway, Bowling Green, Kentucky

The Gallina/Duttweiler 6-second 200 mph doorslammer is already confirmed for this event.



EBAY LISTINGS -

If you would like to see any of the Kirban Performance Products items listed on eBay, here is a link to our store and auctions - http://stores.ebay.com/Kirban-Performance-Products-Inc_W0QQssPageNameZl2QQtZ%20km



ABOUT OUR EMAILS -

Any inquiries concerning used parts, you must email me direct - [email protected] - I will answer you. However, if I fail to answer you within 24 hours, please email us again. Since expanding into used parts, I get a lot of emails and sometimes I may forget your request or may not remember who requested the item.



IN CLOSING -

Time is quickly running out to get in on our Christmas Specials. Be sure to place your order now to save some money!

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