A Great Memory from Amelia Island, 2020

3 of 3: The Scimitars Reunited Highlights from the 25th Annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance The three Scimitar prototypes were reunited at the 25th Annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. Photo: Deremer Studios, LLC. Industrial designer Brooks...

Cool Cars spotted in Kanazawa, Japan, Photos by Mo

You may or may not know that one of my daughters lives and works in Japan.  She’s lived in several places during her tenure there, but is most currently based in Tokyo, and currently riding out the Co-19 wave in a lovely, historic city called Kanazawa (which...

DeTomaso Zonda Concept — Powered by Ford, but with a Twist

Most of you will remember Italy’s deTomaso Automobili (later deTomaso Modena) as producer of the Pantera in joint venture with Ford from 1971-74.  This relatively small specialty carmaker had other models too, relying mostly on Ford engines for power.  Even though...

Welcome to my Virtual CarsNCoffee

Dear gang, I miss my daily, weekly, monthly, favorite car events just as much as you do.  But in order to keep the old personal hardware active and moving, Linda and I take a walk at the end of nearly every work day.  We seldom go far from our neighborhood, but...

Hot Rod history spoken here…

I was talking cars with a friend who has recently moved from SoCal up to Oregon, and he shared with me some charming photos (dated 1943) of his father and uncle and their hot rodded Model A.  My guy’s name is Larry Harlan, and if you look closely at a couple of...

COVID Affecting Car Culture

Car Culture evolves over time and with society…     My thanks to Kirk Gerbracht for the idea and the pix. Stay healthy and well y’all, and hopefully someday we’ll all be back to fuzzy dice....

The World’s Worst Ever Engine Hoist

You MUST double click this to see it large, then go slowly around with your eyes, and you’ll understand not how risky, but how truly dangerous (and stupid) this was.  I wouldn’t use this rig to change a set of wiper blades, much less an engine and trans....

At Least 101 ways to screw up a Perfectly good car…

At Least 101 ways to screw up a Perfectly good car… By Kirk Gerbracht, and me We understand and respect that everyone is entitled their taste, be that for architecture, wine, movies, music and of course cars.  But some stuff is just so stupid it warrants a hard...

The Late and Absolutely Great Sir Stirling Moss

A lot has been said and written, and will continue to be, about Sir Stirling Moss who passed away April 12, 2020, at the age of 90, at his London home.  His racing record generally speaks for itself:  Sir Stirling Moss is one of the world’s most accomplished racing...

Friends of Steve McQueen Car Show Reset for Labor Day Weekend

  SHOW RESCHEDULED DUE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC As some may know, we have been forced to reschedule the 2020 show due to COVID-19        NEW DATES: The car and motorcycle show will now be Sunday September 06 (and not Saturday) for 2020. The commemorative dinner will...

Two new car books in the oven for you

Dear Gang, I hope you are all sheltering in place and supporting social distancing and such — all the better time to read. Assuming the book publishing business and market returns to normal once the virus crises is over, I’ll have two new books out for...

DRIVEN: 2019 Toyota Prius Prime

Everyone has opinions about Toyota’s Prius Hybrid; some love them, some revile them as the killers of all automotive fun, or accuse their owners of being arrogant — which to me is all BS.  I’ve owned one — a second gen 2005 model that we bought...

Another Amazing Amelia!

The annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance is among my very favorite automotive events in the world.  So many things make it special.  It’s held at a Ritz-Carlton Resort on the beach in Florida, so let’s talk venue. Founder and chairman Bill Warner...

DRIVEN: Mercedes-Benz C300 4Matic Coupe

  When the first Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedans came out in 1985/6, it was truly compact, not much bigger than a BMW 2002 / 3-series.  At first they were only four-cylinder powered, tidy, nicely equipped, and a sales smash.  Because of its diminutive size, everyone...

Early Rodders Club Cars N’Coffee, La Canada, California

I make it my point to attend “breakfast cruises” or “Cars N Coffee” events all over the world whenever I can find one. One configuration of my posse: Norbert on the left, then Paul, with the camera, who now lives in Oregon but was down visiting, Kirk in the striped...

Rocker James Hetfield’s custom cars Rock the Petersen

You may or may not know of James Hetfield, lead guitarist, singer and all around front man for the pioneering metal band Metallica.  I don’t know him personally, but among his talents and passions is a huge spot in his heart for custom cars and hot rods.  Many...

Rest In Speed, John Andretti

I’m crushed over the passing of John Andretti, January 30, 2020, after a four year long battle with colon cancer.  He was just 56 years old. Even though he wore the benefit and baggage of that famous name (being nephew of Mario, son of Aldo, cousin to Michael...

Clark Gable, Car Guy….

I hope you’ll enjoy this photo as much as I did setting it up and shooting it… Here’s the story: Clark Cable Greats Gather at Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles Acting icon and Hollywood macho guy and sex symbol Clark Cable needs little...

Volvo XC90 T6 AWD R-Design

The XC90 was Volvo’s first real entry into the Sport/Utility marketplace in 2002, and remains at the top of its model lineup as its largest SUV, and only 3-row seat model.  It’s been updated and remodeled several times over its near two-decade long life,...

Motor4Toys car show

I apologize to all of you for not posting this up during last month’s holiday season, just my own bad for not doing so.  But the event is so worthwhile, and the spirit and cause so good, plus a lot of great cars, I felt it was still worth a look and a mention,...