Moto Miwa: First batch of BRZ's and FRS left Japan for Long Beach, CA
 

Moto is very close to some very high ranking Toyota people, maybe someone else on these forums can elaborate. He just posted this on his Facebook. (yes, I'm aware some have been spotted in Washington / Canada previously)

http://i.imgur.com/86AKf.jpg

Attachment 6858

The Auriga Leader (picture he linked to) apparently services the Atlantic Ocean. According to NYK's very incomplete and out of date shipping schedules, they have three RoRo vessels (roll on / roll off -- car carriers) serving the pacific, Virgo Leader, Hoegh Kobe, and Altair Leader.

Virgo Leader is currently in the Indian Ocean, Hoegh Kobe is in the Arabian Sea, leaving Altair Leader... which is currently heading eastbound out of Japan. http://sae.tweek.us/static/images/em...emot-dance.gif

if that's the actual ship carrying the brz/frs, then that vessel is heading to brunswick, GA according to marinetraffic.com with an eta of 5/7/12.

http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shi...MMSI=564268000

edit: feedbag beat me to it. damn you're good lol.

:thanks::bellyroll::popcorn::happyanim::happy0180: :party0030::confused0068:

It's possible they could stop on Long Beach on the way, too. Hit Long Beach, go to the Panama Canal, go to Georgia... though it's also possible that they're not using NYK at all too, I suppose.

Here's another useful link

if that guy is really close to subaru/toyota heads, then i don't see why he'd find a random pic of a nyk ship. i have a feeling it's actually the aurgia leader vessel. hmm

Auriga Leader is currently north of the UK, that's a fast ship :P

edit: FleetMon is a nice site, though it seems their data is a bit older than the other sites'

yeah you're right lol.

then the only ship that could be carrying the brz/frs is the altair leader ship.

how often do these ships go across the pacific? even if it was once a month, that'd push the expected dealer date to about june. they just have to be in this ship lol. :eyebulge:

Eh, I feel like mid May is still pretty feasible. That's when some FR-S owners have been told to expect their cars (granted, they're supposedly stateside already) It can take about two weeks to go across the pacific, and then probably another week going from the port to the dealership depending on where you live.

do you know what it means when a ship is registered in country x? i thought nyk was a japanese shipping company. they have ships registered in other countries such as singapore.

I think it's related to customs / maritime laws / etc. I think ships change their flags all the time.

i've noticed all the nyk vehicle transportation ships have the name 'leader'.

i narrowed down the search criteria to all cargo ships registered in japan that have the name leader in it.

i think the screen shot below will give an idea of the possible ships carrying the brz/frs.

http://i.imgur.com/aTMcQ.png

i don't think so. here's another pic of the auriga leader. it clearly shows 'singapore' painted on the back of the ship.

http://img.fleetmon.com/thumbnails/A...1.940x1000.jpg

i've spent way too much time on this already lol.

It'd be kind of funny if everybody stalked this car for a few weeks as it crossed the ocean just to find out it was the wrong ship.

You know what always strikes me about ships like this. In order for it to stay upright the center of gravity must be below the water's surface. That means, with all the cars on board, and all that body yo can see, it's HEAVIER under water where you can't see. Kind of mind-bending...

Man all the Japanese ships have awesome names, I hope it's coming on Altair cause the FRS is awesome and so are eagles.

Just a general FYI, a ship's registration and home port have nothing to do with what it is carrying or where it goes. A ship's registration and location of the owner has nothing to do with what flag it flies.

I don't think that's how buoyancy works... I could be wrong though. I think the width of the ship helps keep it upright. This is why you occasionally see them tip over in large storms or when unloading.

http://media.caranddriver.com/images...-s-429x262.jpg

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...n-snafu-at-sea

I remember reading an article about this salvage operation and how one of the salvage guys died when he slid down across a deck.

Also sad they destroyed all those cars. Soo much potential extrication training. :(

Usually a sudden capsize is either weather related or ballast related. I can't find a definitive answer on whether the CG has to be under water. But all the example diagrams have it below surface.

Now, granted, ship stability is a lot more complex than I thought, having three mechanical centers that interrelate. So it might be possible that a CG height above water is possible. But I have trouble picturing how that could be stable .

Just imagine one of those floating basketball hoops in the pool. The CG is most definitely not under the water but it still stays upright.

Jeez, you guys are so good at tracking down this info; we should all go to work hunting criminals and terrorists after the BRZ/FR-S's reach our driveways and we have nothing else to look forward to!

I can see it now: The FT86 International Crime Unit

True, but it doesn't see ocean storms. And it's more of a floating platform. Think pontoons.

I'm not sure what's the best part of this thread....

1. The great news that BRZs/FRS's are coming over
2. Learning more about ships than I ever expected on a car forum
3. This picture

I'm voting for the picture. I'm still laughing!

So since this car has low CoG, does the cargo ship that carries it must have a low CoG? I learned a new thing everyday.

LMAO :lol:

Here I am at work laughing out load with people wondering what the heck is so funny...this has to be the best thread in a long time...both for its informational value AND the laughs...
...that dog pic is simply too much! :lol:

whatever boat our cars are on...I hope it stays upright and with a tailwind!

I found this while surfing for ships that might be carrying Subarus. The article is dated today.

"A cargo ship carrying more than 2,800 brand new cars has sunk after colliding with another vessel in the fog-bound English Channel.

The Tricolor, a Norwegian-registered car carrier, had 2,862 motor cars on board and 77 containers when it collided with the Kariba, a container ship, 30 miles east of Ramsgate.
The Tricolor had picked up its cargo in Zebrugge, Belgium and was on its way to Southampton, said Per Ronnevig, spokesman for its owners, shipping firm Wilhelmsen Lines.

Mr Ronnevig said, "We do not yet have a figure for the value of the cargo. We are working on the figures now. It will be several million dollars certainly. "The ship was carrying new cars but we are not sure what make they were yet."


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz1syddOrxB

Those are exactly the same two ships and the same location as mentioned in the C/D article listed previously. Some of the text matches exactly. I'm guessing this Daily Mail article is actually from 2002 and somehow got mislabeled.

I heard Auriga Leader is equipped with Bespoke but it cost extra for peal paint. :D

they also saved $10m on the construction cost of the ship by not badging it Subaru

I heard it doesn't have a trunk liner though! Instead, it has a whole ocean liner.


...I tried

Air and Sea... Bah... Man was clearly meant to be on dry land... Driving a BRZ or an FR-S.

I'm just glad it's captain chair doesn't have those ugly red bits.

...*rimshot*

My favorite quote from a different (aviation) forum:

"If God had meant for man to fly... he would be born with much more money"

I don't think the date is mislabeled. I think they just display the current date at the top of the page and neglected to put the date on the story itself.

Haha, very nice.

http://www.filmofilia.com/wp-content...ck_sparrow.jpg

You fucken pirates, lolz. Not this again, ayau !