Look out! It's...
The Obnoxious Orange Aardvark
You've heard about it -- now SEE terrifying actual photos of the Obnoxious Orange Aardvark!

The Aardvark -- so named because of its long, pointed nose -- is actually a 1974 Saab Sonett III sports car with which I've been fiddling off and on since I bought it in March 1999.

It's basically a "hobby car," and for that purpose it's nearly ideal -- it didn't cost much to buy, needs enough things done to it to be interesting, but is reliable enough that I can usually take it for a drive whenever I get the urge. And because it's a strange, limited-production car with a small but enthusiastic cult following, tracking down parts or information for it has given me the opportunity to make the acquaintance of a lot of -- um, interesting people and have exotic experiences. (For example, sometime I'll recount the story of how I obtained a bootleg carburetor from a Dutch scrapyard in a transaction that, strictly speaking, may not have been entirely legal...)

For now, here are some pictures of the silly thing...

The latest "family portrait" - self and Aardvark clashing with the scenery of Omaha's Hummel Park on a fall day, October 2000. This was about the last day of the year that was nice enough to take the Aardvark out for a drive -- I try to keep it off the streets in winter to keep the Rust Trolls at bay, so since then it's been roosting in its hutch (except for one day in November when my "real" car went in for service and the 'Vark had to get me to work!)

The Aardvark shortly after I obtained it. Parked in the sun on the ConAgra campus, this is probably the best it has ever looked! It looks somewhat rougher now -- thanks to my inexpert efforts at bodywork -- but runs considerably better than it did when I took this picture.

Aardvark with the Nose Off!

One weird feature of these cars is that you can take off the entire nose section for easier access to the engine, suspension, etc. The car looks really weird with the nose off, but still can be driven this way if you (and the police) don't mind the lack of headlights, turn signals, etc. Here's what it looks like with the nose off:

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