Rattletrap - The Ford Focus Forum

**hafftrak** · 07-02-2009, 07:13 PM

I have been lurking these forums for a few years now, the Focus being on my short list of cars to replace the aging Honda. I have PM'd several people over the years when I would see a car I liked for sale, but nothing had panned out.

Then I saw an ad pop up:
"For Sale - Early '00 Malibu Blue ZX3"
Reading the ad, I could tell this was someone who truly loved their car and put their heart into it. A car that was clean, had some tasteful mods, and didn't need a couple grand worth of de-ricing. I sent a PM, and received a polite, yet skeptical response. Good. This was a guy who wasn't going to let his car go to just any schmuck. After a couple messages, I convinced Brian that Rattletrap would be in good hands, and a deal was made. I flew out to PA on a Monday, getting there about 7:00pm. After a very smooth transaction and titile transfer, good Chinese food (the best in town!) and some good stories about the good old days (Brian's dad has a lot of good stories!), I hit the road about 10:00pm.

Only a couple shots from the road... the turnpikes aren't really that scenic:

One in its new home, ready for autocross:

I got home around 5:30 Tuesday night, pretty wiped out. I sent Brian a message letting him know, and went to sleep.

So not only did I get a good deal on the car I wanted in the color I wanted, I had the pleasure of meeting a couple of the nicest guys you will ever meet.

I plan on keeping with the subtle/euro theme of the car, no body kits/underbody neon/altezza lights/giant vinyl stickers/crazy ****. I'll keep this post updated whenever I finish a project on the car.

**LowZX3on17s** · 07-02-2009, 07:20 PM

looks good. enjoy it man.

**2focusd** · 07-02-2009, 07:21 PM

It's great seeing the ol' girl all cleaned up and being loved

Here are my final shots taken of the car with Dean as the proud new owner

-Brian

**focuspl99** · 07-02-2009, 07:21 PM

you look like a solid owner!

take care of rattletrap

**hafftrak** · 07-02-2009, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by focuspl99

you look like a dork!

fixed

**2focusd** · 07-02-2009, 07:34 PM

Maybe now we'll actually get you posting, Dean

-Brian

**mrs2focusd** · 07-02-2009, 07:52 PM

haha i find it great that brian's dad had stories to share

just kidding, his dad loves me!

and i wouldn't be surprised no matter how clean if you found curly hair everywhere, haha since we both have curly hair

**slipster17** · 07-02-2009, 09:12 PM

glad to see Rattletrap is in a good new home.

You take care of it Dean... or I'll drive down and bust out your knee caps

I'm sorry, that's just the Italian in me talking, lol. Welcome aboard!

**SaucyMuffin** · 07-02-2009, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slipster17

glad to see Rattletrap is in a good new home.

You take care of it Dean... or I'll drive down and bust out your knee caps

I'm sorry, that's just the Italian in me talking, lol. Welcome aboard!

I got concrete shoe molds... wait shouldn't have said that outloud

**Spatakula** · 07-02-2009, 11:11 PM

Got a mighty fine suspension on that car.

-spatakula

**Armanduhx3** · 07-02-2009, 11:24 PM

Congrats, teh car looks good.

Glad its in the [FJ] fam[ily]

**Ataru** · 07-02-2009, 11:42 PM

You didn't state in any of your posts, but where abouts do you live Dean?

**2focusd** · 07-02-2009, 11:43 PM

He's in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That's right, Rattletrap had to take a ~1000 mile drive to get to her new home

-Brian

**Mjasinski** · 07-02-2009, 11:46 PM

Ahh im gonna have to hunt it down haha

**Ataru** · 07-02-2009, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2focusd

He's in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That's right, Rattletrap had to take a ~1000 mile drive to get to her new home

-Brian

Ah man......another wheel whore?

At least Kyle has another Focus to autocross with now.

**secondechomatt** · 07-02-2009, 11:50 PM

always good to see these kinds of stories on the jet!

**1svt4u2c** · 07-02-2009, 11:57 PM

Sweet! Glad to hear the car went to a good home! Congrats on the sale, and welcome aboard hafftrak!

**2focusd** · 07-02-2009, 11:59 PM

Dean and I talked about a set of wheels that he wants for the car, and let me just say that I'd support that idea 110%

-Brian

**slipster17** · 07-03-2009, 12:01 AM

^^muddin tires right?

**2focusd** · 07-03-2009, 12:04 AM

Oh absolutely. We talked about ripping out the suspension to put in leafsprings

-Brian

**MugsyTheGr8** · 07-03-2009, 01:46 AM

thats pretty sweet. its always cool when the new owner is someone who is an enthusiast who will appreciate your car as much as you. glad to see you are going to be putting it to good use, too. what class are you prepping it for?

**o2_designs** · 07-03-2009, 06:03 PM

Nice! Another great car for MN...

Dean, you autoXing this weekend?(sunday)

Locals are gonna tear it up!!

**hafftrak** · 07-03-2009, 06:25 PM

I wanted to, but it looks like both MOWOG 1 and 2 are sold out.

**o2_designs** · 07-03-2009, 06:45 PM

MOWOG 1 and 2 are the Valleyfair ones from last month. We're on Mowog 3 this week...

And if you show up early and get ont he waiting list, they usually let about 10 cars in for no shows and such...

Otherwise, in order to get in, you normally have to sign up the day registeration opens...its hard to get a spot...

So if you want to autoX this weekend, its at DCTC, and show up early and get on the waiting list!!!

**hafftrak** · 07-03-2009, 07:24 PM

Whoops, I meant MOWOG 3 and 4. Didn't know that about the waiting list... about how early should I be there? The DCTC track is a LOT of fun.

07-02-2009, 07:13 PM	#1 (permalink)
hafftrak TEAM Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Minneapolis Posts: 181	Rattletrap I have been lurking these forums for a few years now, the Focus being on my short list of cars to replace the aging Honda. I have PM'd several people over the years when I would see a car I liked for sale, but nothing had panned out. Then I saw an ad pop up: "For Sale - Early '00 Malibu Blue ZX3" Reading the ad, I could tell this was someone who truly loved their car and put their heart into it. A car that was clean, had some tasteful mods, and didn't need a couple grand worth of de-ricing. I sent a PM, and received a polite, yet skeptical response. Good. This was a guy who wasn't going to let his car go to just any schmuck. After a couple messages, I convinced Brian that Rattletrap would be in good hands, and a deal was made. I flew out to PA on a Monday, getting there about 7:00pm. After a very smooth transaction and titile transfer, good Chinese food (the best in town!) and some good stories about the good old days (Brian's dad has a lot of good stories!), I hit the road about 10:00pm. Only a couple shots from the road... the turnpikes aren't really that scenic: One in its new home, ready for autocross: I got home around 5:30 Tuesday night, pretty wiped out. I sent Brian a message letting him know, and went to sleep. So not only did I get a good deal on the car I wanted in the color I wanted, I had the pleasure of meeting a couple of the nicest guys you will ever meet. I plan on keeping with the subtle/euro theme of the car, no body kits/underbody neon/altezza lights/giant vinyl stickers/crazy ***. I'll keep this post updated whenever I finish a project on the car. __________________ Dean MNfocus.com Last edited by hafftrak; 07-06-2009 at 09:44 PM.*

07-02-2009, 07:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
LowZX3on17s Senior TEAM Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Stuart, Florida Posts: 1,174	Re: Rattletrap looks good. enjoy it man. __________________ 2001 Twilight Blue ZX3; 2007 Dodge Charger R/T; 2004 SVT Focus; 2008.5 Mazdaspeed 3 (gone) 2008 f150 STX - that's it...for now It's Great to be a Florida Gator 2006 King of College Sports

07-02-2009, 07:21 PM	#3 (permalink)
2focusd [FJ] Addict Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Uniontown, PA Posts: 15,364	Re: Rattletrap It's great seeing the ol' girl all cleaned up and being loved Here are my final shots taken of the car with Dean as the proud new owner -Brian __________________ Godspeed, Colin McRae, may you live on forever as the reason countless people fell in love with the Ford Focus (myself included). 1968-2007 '08 Carbon Grey Metallic Hyundai Tuscani GT V6 Early '00 ZX3 - E-spec in progress (Rattletrap) - Gone but not forgotten!

07-02-2009, 07:21 PM	#4 (permalink)
focuspl99 [FJ] Racist Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 6,526	Re: Rattletrap you look like a solid owner! take care of rattletrap __________________ Paul

07-02-2009, 07:34 PM	#6 (permalink)
2focusd [FJ] Addict Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Uniontown, PA Posts: 15,364	Re: Rattletrap Maybe now we'll actually get you posting, Dean -Brian __________________ Godspeed, Colin McRae, may you live on forever as the reason countless people fell in love with the Ford Focus (myself included). 1968-2007 '08 Carbon Grey Metallic Hyundai Tuscani GT V6 Early '00 ZX3 - E-spec in progress (Rattletrap) - Gone but not forgotten!

07-02-2009, 09:12 PM	#8 (permalink)
slipster17 Senior TEAM Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Palmyra/ Carlisle, PA Posts: 2,577	Re: Rattletrap glad to see Rattletrap is in a good new home. You take care of it Dean... or I'll drive down and bust out your knee caps I'm sorry, that's just the Italian in me talking, lol. Welcome aboard! __________________ _R E C A L L_ .,___,,_ /___l__\__ l(o)____(o)l <--2001 Egg Yolk Yellow Eurofied ZX3 see it on CarDomain - team edm - 160k+ miles

07-02-2009, 11:11 PM	#10 (permalink)
Spatakula Stoned Scorpion says, "GET OVER H.....OOhhh! Brownies!" Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Rälëigh, NC Posts: 10,689	Re: Rattletrap Got a mighty fine suspension on that car. -spatakula __________________ CAPS LOCK IS CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOL.

07-02-2009, 11:24 PM	#11 (permalink)
Armanduhx3 "Shut Up man, get on my horse" Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Jacksonville, Florida Posts: 1,691	Re: Rattletrap Congrats, teh car looks good. Glad its in the [FJ] fam[ily] __________________ aRmanda\|\|Tweet\|\|Building teh zx3\|\|Girls of FJ

07-02-2009, 11:42 PM	#12 (permalink)
Ataru Team Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Oklahom Posts: 13,520	Re: Rattletrap You didn't state in any of your posts, but where abouts do you live Dean? __________________ Owner of SONIC the HEDGEHOG - 2003 Sonic Blue SVT Focus ZX5 [FJ] focaljet - GUIDELINES - GALLERY - [FJ]WALLPAPER - STORE - SPONSORS - SEARCH - Any Questions?

07-02-2009, 11:43 PM	#13 (permalink)
2focusd [FJ] Addict Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Uniontown, PA Posts: 15,364	Re: Rattletrap He's in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That's right, Rattletrap had to take a ~1000 mile drive to get to her new home -Brian __________________ Godspeed, Colin McRae, may you live on forever as the reason countless people fell in love with the Ford Focus (myself included). 1968-2007 '08 Carbon Grey Metallic Hyundai Tuscani GT V6 Early '00 ZX3 - E-spec in progress (Rattletrap) - Gone but not forgotten!

07-02-2009, 11:46 PM	#14 (permalink)
Mjasinski Senior TEAM Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Saint Paul, MN Posts: 1,643	Re: Rattletrap Ahh im gonna have to hunt it down haha __________________ 2000 Autumn Orange ZX3 "Op Orange" 2000 CD Silver ZX3 "Bullet" the beater *2005 Pitch Black ZX3, not mine but i do all the work on it* My Space

07-02-2009, 11:50 PM	#16 (permalink)
secondechomatt [FJ] Specialist Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Trenton, MI. Posts: 5,293	Re: Rattletrap always good to see these kinds of stories on the jet! __________________ BRONCO BFG/RUST/WHITETRASH/TREEFAIL "The existence of flamethrowers is proof that someone, somewhere, said to himself, "I want to set those people over there on fire, but I don't feel like walking over there to do it."

07-02-2009, 11:57 PM	#17 (permalink)
1svt4u2c Senior TEAM Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: York, PA Posts: 2,840	Re: Rattletrap Sweet! Glad to hear the car went to a good home! Congrats on the sale, and welcome aboard hafftrak! __________________ .._____ ............<--2003 SVT Focus /___l__\__ ........#2940 of 3985 l(o)____(o)l........Build Date 06/13/03

07-02-2009, 11:59 PM	#18 (permalink)
2focusd [FJ] Addict Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Uniontown, PA Posts: 15,364	Re: Rattletrap Dean and I talked about a set of wheels that he wants for the car, and let me just say that I'd support that idea 110% -Brian __________________ Godspeed, Colin McRae, may you live on forever as the reason countless people fell in love with the Ford Focus (myself included). 1968-2007 '08 Carbon Grey Metallic Hyundai Tuscani GT V6 Early '00 ZX3 - E-spec in progress (Rattletrap) - Gone but not forgotten!

07-03-2009, 12:01 AM	#19 (permalink)
slipster17 Senior TEAM Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Palmyra/ Carlisle, PA Posts: 2,577	Re: Rattletrap ^^muddin tires right? __________________ _R E C A L L_ .,___,,_ /___l__\__ l(o)____(o)l <--2001 Egg Yolk Yellow Eurofied ZX3 see it on CarDomain - team edm - 160k+ miles

07-03-2009, 12:04 AM	#20 (permalink)
2focusd [FJ] Addict Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Uniontown, PA Posts: 15,364	Re: Rattletrap Oh absolutely. We talked about ripping out the suspension to put in leafsprings -Brian __________________ Godspeed, Colin McRae, may you live on forever as the reason countless people fell in love with the Ford Focus (myself included). 1968-2007 '08 Carbon Grey Metallic Hyundai Tuscani GT V6 Early '00 ZX3 - E-spec in progress (Rattletrap) - Gone but not forgotten!

07-03-2009, 01:46 AM	#21 (permalink)
MugsyTheGr8 Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: new jersey Posts: 52	Re: Rattletrap thats pretty sweet. its always cool when the new owner is someone who is an enthusiast who will appreciate your car as much as you. glad to see you are going to be putting it to good use, too. what class are you prepping it for?

07-03-2009, 06:03 PM	#22 (permalink)
o2_designs Resident Wheel-Whore Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: mnfocus.com Posts: 11,153	Re: Rattletrap Nice! Another great car for MN... Dean, you autoXing this weekend?(sunday) Locals are gonna tear it up!! __________________ TUNED By FSWerks -- Parts by TOUSLEY Ford ~~BOOST CREW, Bottled Fresh since 2006 ~~ Vacuum Crew, Stirring things up since 2008~~

07-03-2009, 06:25 PM	#23 (permalink)
hafftrak TEAM Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Minneapolis Posts: 181	Re: Rattletrap I wanted to, but it looks like both MOWOG 1 and 2 are sold out. __________________ Dean MNfocus.com

07-03-2009, 06:45 PM	#24 (permalink)
o2_designs Resident Wheel-Whore Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: mnfocus.com Posts: 11,153	Re: Rattletrap MOWOG 1 and 2 are the Valleyfair ones from last month. We're on Mowog 3 this week... And if you show up early and get ont he waiting list, they usually let about 10 cars in for no shows and such... Otherwise, in order to get in, you normally have to sign up the day registeration opens...its hard to get a spot... So if you want to autoX this weekend, its at DCTC, and show up early and get on the waiting list!!! __________________ TUNED By FSWerks -- Parts by TOUSLEY Ford ~~BOOST CREW, Bottled Fresh since 2006 ~~ Vacuum Crew, Stirring things up since 2008~~

07-03-2009, 07:24 PM	#25 (permalink)
hafftrak TEAM Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Minneapolis Posts: 181	Re: Rattletrap Whoops, I meant MOWOG 3 and 4. Didn't know that about the waiting list... about how early should I be there? The DCTC track is a LOT of fun. __________________ Dean MNfocus.com

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