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Bill Gates in trouble with his 959!!!

Discussion in 'Other Off Topic Forum' started by rush109, Dec 18, 2006.

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  1. rush109

    rush109 F1 Veteran

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    #1 rush109, Dec 18, 2006
    found this over at digg.com....

    http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,20943828%5e15322%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html?from=public_rss

    Gates car flagged down

    DECEMBER 18, 2006
    FOR Bill Gates, the wild ride may be over. An environmental crackdown in his home state of Washington has threatened his "midnight jaunts" in a semi-legal supercar, his Porsche 959.

    The Microsoft billionaire has been a fast-car fanatic since his19th birthday, when his lawyer father helped him to buy his first Porsche.

    These days the garage at his mansion near Seattle is packed with German sports cars.

    The crown jewel is the 959, which can reach nearly 320km/h in20 seconds.

    Fewer than 250 were made, as Porsche designed it as a technological test-bed and made a loss on every sale.



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    In 1988, Mr Gates and Paul Allen, with whom he founded Microsoft, both imported 959s, but they remained "street illegal" until 1999, when then president Bill Clinton granted a"show and display" exemption that let owners drive a limited mileage.

    This exemption is under threat as Chris Gregoire, the Democrat Governor of Washington, considers ways to cut pollution, with further legal curbs on vehicles causing "gross emissions".

    Mr Gates recently joked that, because of the concerns of his wife, Melinda, "my Porsche days may be coming to a close", but friends believe he will not surrender his right to drive the 959 without a fight.

    "What he really wants is his own racing track, but I'm not sure Melinda would go for that," said an associate last week.

    The Sunday Times

    The Australian
     
  2. CMY

    CMY F1 World Champ

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    #2 CMY, Dec 18, 2006
    I'm sorry.. what's the problem with his 959? Sounds like the normal wife and kids dilemma to me. :)
     
  3. amenasce

    amenasce Three Time F1 World Champ
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    #3 amenasce, Dec 18, 2006
    *The crown jewel is the 959, which can reach nearly 320km/h in20 seconds*


    LOL


    Anyway, i hope he doesnt listen to his wife and build his own track. He deserves it !
     
  4. Webby

    Webby F1 Veteran

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    #4 Webby, Dec 18, 2006
    Do these idiots like Gregoire really think that cracking down on less than 250 cars will help curb "gross emissions" :rolleyes:
     
  5. ryalex

    ryalex Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #5 ryalex, Dec 18, 2006
    For a Governor to want to go after Gates for emissions on a car there are only a handful of in the world is ridiculous. It's not like everyone in Seattle is going to buy a 959 now. The car probably makes 1/10 the emissions of an 18-wheeler.

    The real fight should be over commercial vehicles. The whole tight regulation on importing many high end $$$$$ cars seems crazy because it's so much money and legislation that really only affects a few dozen (*maybe* a few hundred) potential imports a year. This is not going to turn the skies brown with pollution. If a sophisticated buyer wants to take his chances in a Zonda that might not be US crash tested, let the buyer sign off on it. This is not a "protecting the ignorant masses" argument.
     
  6. henryr

    henryr Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #6 henryr, Dec 18, 2006
    they car would likely qualify for the "shown go" EPA DOT exclusion. looks like another reporter looking to stir up a little something with one of the greatest americans
     
  7. BMW.SauberF1Team

    BMW.SauberF1Team F1 World Champ

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    #7 BMW.SauberF1Team, Dec 18, 2006
    "Pollution" problem from two 959s in Washington that are only allowed to drive 3,000 miles a year? Riiiiight. If that law is changed, I hope Bill Gates buys thousands of semi-trucks and hires drivers to drive in circles around that guy's neighborhood. And by the way, all Show or Display cars must meet EPA requirements upon importation.
     
  8. johnei

    johnei Formula 3
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    #8 johnei, Dec 18, 2006
  9. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    #9 SRT Mike, Dec 18, 2006
    If I were Gates, I would tell that Democratic Governor that if he denied me using my 959 because he eliminated show and display, that I would move Microsoft out of Washington.

    Yeah, that may sound extreme, but Gates has serious FU money and can do as he likes. Gates > Gregoire, and the law needs to be laid down.

    But then again, I am a bastard.
     
  10. ryalex

    ryalex Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #10 ryalex, Dec 18, 2006
    I would threaten to uproot Redmond and Southwest Bellevue, cut them off into the ocean (or Lake Washington) and secede from the US. :D
     
  11. tbakowsky

    tbakowsky Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #11 tbakowsky, Dec 18, 2006
    I don't get what all the hoopla is about...its really not the great of a car. I spent the better part of a weekend behined the wheel of one, didn't really feel like anything special. Took it for an emissions test, failed by .2 percent on the C0, not bad for a car that does not have cat coverters. The government is just being an ass as usual.

    E-tests should be performed on the majority of cars on the road, not cars that have a very limited production.
     
  12. dozzina

    dozzina F1 World Champ
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    #12 dozzina, Dec 18, 2006
    Just what I thought when I read this. The governor is pissing with the CEO of one of the largest private employers in the state. (Perhaps the second largest that pays it's own healthcare.) I guess he just doesn't plan on being re-elected.

    Nice sound bite, but it might bite back. What an idiot.
     
  13. Meister

    Meister F1 Veteran
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    #13 Meister, Dec 18, 2006
    It's unreal that the Gov can take the time effort & $ (our $) to crack down on couple of 959's that are .2 over, yet I see (on an everyday basis) a camry or F-150 billowing smoke 6 car lengths behind itself in traffic.......
     
  14. ryalex

    ryalex Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #14 ryalex, Dec 18, 2006
    Are they legal in Canada?
     

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