Ole Orange Bang: Ripping It A New One
Urban Outlaw

Those of us who are fortunate enough to have a project car will know the feeling that you get when you first pull your car out after a complete transformation. For me, the wait was all too long – almost two years of not driving my Z car, affectionately named ‘Ole Orange Bang’ after the Mexican rice drink. When I finally got to take the sucker out for a lap around the block with my brand new turbo motor, I was smiling from ear to ear. Then, when the tires lost traction just from stabbing the throttle in second gear, my palms got sweaty. What kind of feeling was this? Could it be love? Maybe…

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I’m sure there are many young Speedhunters out there who have yet to experience such joys, and I just have one piece of advice for you guys. Cars never stay perfect. They are meant to be driven, and pushed hard.

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Sure, there are show car builds and that’s fine considering it’s a major part of car culture in general, but I’m not talking about those project cars. I’m talking about the ones that make you feel alive when you get behind the wheel. I’m talking about ones that make all the right noises.

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The last time I took Ole Orange Bang out to play I drove it in the Global Time Attack finals. It was a fun event, but I destroyed my Nismo 1.5-way LSD in the process. Once again, the poor Z-car sat in my garage, waiting for a new rear end.

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In an effort to make my car a bit more streetable I sourced a R180 diff with an LSD from a 2005 Subaru STI. It bolted in with minor modifications and now the car is more streetable than ever. The timing was perfect and the swap was done just a few days prior to the drive we took with Magnus Walker and a few members of the Speedhunters crew.

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It’s been over two years since I stepped foot in this garage, but it was nice to come back. Since then it’s has evolved so much.

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My good friend Ben Chandler came with me the first time around, and together we produced the very first Magnus Walker story on Speedhunters.

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Since then, nothing seems to be able to contain the Urban Outlaw and his stable of Porsches.

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What would you guys do if you had this many amazing cars to choose from every morning? I’d go nuts just thinking about which one I’d take to go to the bank.

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I have yet to check out any of the new 930 Turbo cars that he has been acquiring.

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One of which happens to be the very first Turbo ever sold.

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All of the Porsches that Magnus collects are unique in their own right, but there is one that I just can’t wait for him to restore.

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There’s a super-early ’64 sitting under that cover, and it’s been untouched since I last saw it. It will be a glorious moment when this car sees the light of day once again.

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As always Mr. Urban Outlaw gave everyone the grand tour.

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Especially because our fearless leader, Rodbot Chong made the trip across the pond.

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In my mind, there is no such thing as having too many project cars. But for Magnus there are just too many kiddies in the pool, and the collection has spilled over into other parts of his massive warehouse.

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Cars in various stages of restoration can now be found all over the place.

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I couldn’t believe it, but there was even a non 911 – this mint example of a 924 Turbo. I’d love to see what the Urban Outlaw version of this car will look like.

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The grand tour was great and all, but what I really wanted to do was to hit the road.

Hit the road Jack
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I’m pretty sure my lonely little S30 was saying ‘C’mon guys, let me be a part of your club!’

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I have to applaud collectors like Magnus, because he is always touting people to get off their asses and go out for a cruise.

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After all, there’s no point in having a fancy little sports car if you don’t get to stretch it’s legs every now and then, right?

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Magnus might be a few inches taller than I am, but he fit in my car just fine.

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My SR20DET has almost 1000 miles on it since I dropped it in, and soon I will be adding a few more goodies including a newer turbo and some more reliability bits, like an oil cooler. So far I have averaged 24mpg, which is not bad considering my ‘spirited’ driving habits.

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Seeing as my car is of 1970 vintager, it was only appropriate for the 911 collector to drive his famous number 277 car, which was built in ’71.

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Two sports cars from the same era, modified in completely different directions.

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It was time to roll out, with Rod Chong driving the RTR Mustang, and our new friend, Jeremy with the supercharged Miata bringing up the rear.

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Ben Chandler also tagged along in a camera car, which was a good thing considering we lost the rest of the gang right off the bat.

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There is nothing like a free and clear Los Angeles freeway on a Sunday morning. No one with any sense of responsibility could keep up with us.

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What a dream it was to run a rear end with fresh gears. The R180 with the Nismo LSD took almost eight years of abuse before it seized, but by the end of it’s life it was rattling like a maraca.

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We waited for the rest of the crew at a service station located near the base of Angeles Crest Highway.

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Riding shotgun with me was Will Roegge of Keep Drifting Fun fame. Recently, Will and I did video together following Matt Powers doing a 360-degree spin while mid-drift. We used Ole Orange Bang as a camera car, and you can clearly hear my turbo motor.

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My car is not perfect, and I won’t justify any part of it. There are plenty of surface rust spots as well as many paint chips from all my camera car duties over the years.

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But seeing Magnus’ pride and joy all chipped up and worn made me realize that even though these cars could not be more different, they are used for the same purpose.

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I thought I was nuts for running 60 tread wear semi-slick ADVAN A048Rs on the street, but Magnus takes it one step further by running full-slick Hoosier A6s.

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Eventually Rodbot showed up. Being the sensible one and not wanting to wreck Vaughn Gittin’s car, he drove at a steady pace.

Built to fly
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We all headed up Angeles Crest, but didn’t get very far as the European group had to take off later that evening. Although our run was cut short, it was still fun to drive with the gang. You can check out the route here.

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This sight took me straight back to my parking lot meeting days back in high school, when the only modification you had on your car was a cold air intake, and maybe a few stickers. Still, they’re good for at least 50 to 60whp, right?

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It’s funny, because from the outside looking in it must have seemed like we were all just a bunch of strangers with cars from all walks of life, who just happened to park in the same rest stop.

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One of my main complaints about newer cars is their soft rev limiters. Now I know what you Speedhunters out there are thinking, the manufacturer just put those in to protect the motor blah blah… But there is just something so satisfying about hitting a limiter powering out of a corner with your tires just clawing for grip.

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It’s funny because this ’71 long-nose 911 does not even have a rev limiter, and one of Magnus’s favorite photos of his car is when Sean Klingelhoefer snapped a pic of the needle buried all the way to 8,000rpm. Was it designed for that? No. Was it totally awesome? Yes.

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Even though we had to cut our time short it was still fun to go on a Sunday drive with one of the most influential Porsche tuners in North America.

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I continued my drive with Jeremy through Angeles Crest, and even though I was there to feature his car, all I wanted to do was continue down that windy mountain road. Two Japanese sports cars from different generations tearing up the pavement and occasionally bouncing off their rev limiters.

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Eventually we stopped and I did have a chance to get some nice shots of his car in action, so you can expect to see that feature soon. You can bet that on the way down we did not hold back though. After all, what’s really the point of building a project car if you don’t drive it hard?

Larry Chen
Instagram: larry_chen_foto
larry@speedhunters.com

Additional photos provided by Ben Chandler

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47 comments

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1

wheatgod  If hipsters have cars this extensively yet tastefully modified then sign me up

2

Rob Zombie really likes Porsches

3

How big of a guy is Magnus, Larry?

I'm about 6' 6", so I'm pretty sure my dreams of owning an S30 have already been crushed..

4

''Magnus might be a few inches taller than I am, BUT HE FIT IN MY CAR JUST FINE''


so he fitride your car all the way in

5

NYporkdept wheatgod  ^ What he said.....

6

@Larry Chen Thank you so much for including a shot of the 924 Turbo. Can't wait to see your post on the MX5!

7

PowerTryp  Damn was it clean. Almost off the showroom floor.

8

Slinger  Haha, sorry. Although my friend who is about your height fit in my passenger seat with it all the way back. Plus my seat rails are bolted directly to the stock locations. If you mount a seat without rails then you even have more room.

9

Love the yandere plate on the mx-5.. nice and sweet, till you hit that throttle.

10

Larry Chen PowerTryp Did the Pasha interior make your stomach queasy? Don't stare at it too long it's been known to induce acid trips in people who've never taken acid in their life.

11

Aldarris  Yeah, that Miata was super fast. Very lightweight and more than enough power.

12

PowerTryp haha, you are too funny.

13

Wow Larry Chen  
Your Z looks dope. Looks pretty finished now.

14

Every time I see ole orange bang, I get a nother reminder to ping the guy who has a S30 '73 in my neighbourhood. His plate stick shows it hasn't been on the road legally since 1998, and I'm just itching to have the ownership. It is a crime to not drive a car like that!
Thanks for the post, I'm always impressed by the diversity. Amphibious cars next week? Possibly. :)

15

Dammit Larry! When can I take you up to Palomar????

16

I can't wait for the Movie starring the Urban Outlaw & Rodbot Chong!

17
TarmacTerrorist

I'd say posting negative comments in every article is the new hipster trait frankly.
It's also pretty scene to call everything g scene before you start that BS too.

18

That comment about both cars from the same era reminds me of this shot I got a trackday some years ago... https://flic.kr/p/btJDcy l

19

Beautiful car, I have a 280z of my own just begging to be restored. Sadly due to financial problems that won't be until at least 10 or 15 years from now. :(

20

I really can't believe right now that the turbo was from your car Larry. I thought Matt Powers had turbo'd his LS engine...

It's always great to hear a turbo spooling, regardless if it's on a car or a truck... :D

21

WHY DIDN'T I GO ON THIS DRIVE??

22

KeithCharvonia I love the fact that you're just seeing this now.

23
Tom Westmacott

Great article, love the pics of the Z with contemporary 911s, seeing them lined up together is really evocative.

24

PowerTryp KeithCharvoniaSeriously. Like, Leroy should be pissed.

25

PowerTryp KeithCharvonia  I knew about it, it just seemed like to much with covering the Porsche Festival of Speed and driving back in Arizona on the same day, then back in the office on Monday.

26

D1RGE PowerTryp KeithCharvonia  I think Leroy (and Sean) would have enjoyed the drive too. Next time.

27

wheatgod Stop raging, you pathetic nerd.

28

Man, I haven't had the chance to take my Abarth out on a nice spirited drive since I installed the ECU piggyback and blow off plate...I would love to make the trip from Phx for a drive like this.

29

kog  That's gotta be all sorts of fun.

30

KeithCharvonia  We purposely didn't invite you.

31

KeithCharvonia D1RGE PowerTryp Leroy is too busy.

32

SeBaBunea  Yeah, Matt has about 450 whp, but I keep up just fine in my turbo Z.

33

zuberbomb  That is sad. Sorry to hear.

34

D1RGE  What is that?

35

Kirk_B  Flying cars.... But seriously go leave a note.

36

AllenAznan It's getting there.

37

Larry Chen kog Oh, oh it is...30HP bump over stock, 24lbs boost and a way more responsive car over stock. Never thought I'd be able to say "I'm glad I traded in my Miata"

38

Larry Chen KeithCharvonia  Didn't want me holding you up? I did have a trunk full of tools and a floor jack, not exactly conducive to canyon carving...

39

Larry Chen Kirk_B  Were you looking at MSN this morning? They did have a story on Terrafugia TF-X... 320 km/h with vertical take off.

I've left him a note, talked to him and my next step is to get the owner of the shop to start pressuring him to get the car out of the lot. Its on my mind every day.

40

zuberbomb  Do the free, but labor intensive stuff. Clean, disassemble, sand, paint. All that stuff in free or cheap and takes a lot of time. Progress is good for the soul. :)

42

Larry Chen Awesome write-up Larry. I think far too often I forget the reason I have my car and get too focused on what minor things wrong with it. A spirited drive makes me forget all these things quickly!
I cant wait to get my 260Z finished, your Ole Orange is a big inspiration to me! I think I will also be using an SR20DET.
Look forward to the supercharged Miata feature as well! Another car I love to bits!

43

S2k_adz You won't be disappointed. The SR has more than enough power for me, I keep up with cars with much more HP due to how light the car is. 2190 lbs wet, fully loaded.

44

KeithCharvonia zuberbomb Yeah I've already took the car apart completely and sand blasted if, all I need to do is order almost every part there possibly is to build a car and start on it, only problem is I'm eighteen and unemployed lol. I'm confident though that once I get a job and save some money down the road I will restore it to its former glory.

45

@LarryChen I keep getting pangs of guilt for straying away from that purist L series though! What have you got in the way of drive train? Are you running the S14 box running to the R180 diff? Did you need a modified prop?

46

didnt think driving with slicks was allowed...??
would love to get a project car, but i dont have anywhere to put it!

47

Larry Chen, I saw you up in San Gabriel Canyon on Christmas Eve. Passed you in my blue Miata, cheers!

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