Kim and Rodman

The guy with 2 Cadillac Allantes

I just interviewed this guy for an upcoming Hooniverse post. He ended the interview with this: "My car is my independence. My car is my character. My car is my financial burden."

Pope Bendict's last ride was a W221 S-Class Mercedes

It's weird, not having a pope. His security detail is in a Phaeton. Skip to 1:36.

Adrian Sutil is back with Force India!

So who is going to drive his car at the China GP when he is denied an entry visa for his champagne glass incident?

The missing tourist

A local couple in their mid-20s went trekking through South America.  They posted Facebook updates daily while they visited Argentina and Chile.  Then, they got to Peru.  Radio silence.  No internet activity for weeks.  Money had not been withdrawn during the same period of time.  The worst was feared.  Their families back home were hysterical.  Co-workers and friends pooled money together for an award.

The authorities just found them.  On a river boat to Ecuador.  They had no internet access and had no idea people were looking for them.

The story caught my attention for two reasons.  One, their families could not have picked a douchier looking picture of the "missing" man.  I feel bad, as he is probably a nice guy.

Second, I have reconsidered my Central America itinerary.  I will not try to partially cross the Darien Gap.  I can't bare to put my wife and mother through the agony.  Plus, I don't have a decent picture of myself.

50 state highway patrol spotter guide

For your next road trip.

Via Car & Driver, Stipistop, and the Kevin Chen.

Ali G interviews Surgeon General C. Everett Koop

Obit here.

South Korean president Park Geun-Hye's Equus limo

The first female president was inaugurated yesterday.  Here is her Hyundai Equus armored limo with what is perhaps the smallest sunroof in the world.  Skip to 56:40.

New Grey Poupon ad starring weird Rolls-Royces

The original 1988 version:

The 2013 chase:

Exile Destinations, Part 6

Three thoughts while researching this:

• The only good thing about dictators with 20+ year reigns is that it's quicker for me to do the research.  I have to look at the bios of every leader from each country from 1975 on.  When there's a new leader every year, that's a lot of clicking and reading.  I shudder at the thought of researching Haiti.  Didn't it have a different leader every week during the early 1990s?
• There are a ton of Latin American leaders with Middle Eastern backgrounds.
• Ecuadorian president Abdala Bucaram (1996-97) has the most unique moustache.

51. Ecuador-- Brazil, Panama

52. Egypt-- 0

53. El Salvador-- 1 unknown country

54. Equatorial Guinea-- 0

55. Eritrea-- 0

56. Estonia-- 0

57. Ethiopia-- Italy

58. Fiji-- 0

59. Finland-- 0

60. France-- 0

Tally thus far: 

3x = U.S.

2x = Brazil, France, U.K., U.S.S.R./Russia

1x = Australia, Austria, Italy, Ivory Coast, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Somalia, Spain, Togo, Uganda, Uruguay, unknown.

8 Indonesian soldiers killed in Papua

A corner of the world people ignore (or don't even know exists).

A primer re Papua from 2012:

2 Citroen DS Safaris

As I mentioned previously, I went to Hanzel's during lunch yesterday to check on the progress of Tim's DS.  As we left for bacon cheeseburgers, Tim asked, "Did you see the two wagons I just picked up?"

Tim found these two non-running wagons in rural California.  They were stored in a large warehouse along with tons of Citroen parts.

Here is the first wagon.

This example came with air conditioning, which is apparently a rare option.

I love these clamshell tail hatches.  That thin bar on the passenger side holds the gate up.  A press of the release button on the bar, and the gate closes.

This jumpseat is in pretty good condition.

Here is the second wagon that Tim picked up.

I think Tim just stuffed as many parts as he could into the wagons and ran off like a bandit.

VW Phaeton assembly line

You know I've watched hundreds of Phaeton videos on Youtube.  This is by far the coolest.  As the kids say nowadays: Amazeballs!

The Waiting Room trailer

I'm going to try to catch this documentary today at the Grand Lake Theater in Oakland before they yank it.  As you all probably know, the American public health care system is a mess.  Highland Hospital is the public hospital for Alameda County, where Oakland is located.  It is where all the poor, the uninsured, the mentally ill, the homeless, and drug addicts end up.  Despite the strains on the facility, the staff sort of make it all work.

Last week's drive down to Southern California

I didn't take that many photos of the trip, but I want to share these with you.  We stopped for lunch in the college town of San Luis Obispo, which this book says is one of the happiest places on earth.  While my wife went clothes shopping, I hung out on the sidewalk and spotted this very tall Delica with British Columbia plates.  These Delicas are so rare, I remember every one I have seen in the States.  I saw my first one in Napa, then in Portland, then Oakland, and this one in SLO.

We then stopped in Santa Barbara because I wanted to show my wife the mission there.  In the 1700s and 1800s, the Spanish and the Mexicans built 21 missions in Alta California to convert and house Indians.  They were each a day's walk from the next mission.  Santa Barbara is arguably the grandest and most beautiful of them all.

Finally, we have this picture from my hometown of Irvine.  We visited a friend and I noticed his neighbor owns an Audi A8L.  Thus, this picture.

Seconds Saturdays 2013 schedule

Check out more pictures of one of last year's meets here.

Peter, Brendan, and other Bay Area people: Come by!

A message from the hosts, Chris and Henry Hanzel:

Greetings Friends of Seconds Saturdays,

I am pleased to announce we are back for 2013 starting on April 13^th at our new time of 9am.  Hooray for an extra hour of Saturday sleep!  In addition to our various SS-famous scone concoctions of the past (bacon, chocolate, cherry), for the April and May events El Sur SF elsursf.com will be selling their delicious empanadas from their restored Citroen H-van.  If you just can’t wait until April to try these delicious pastries, oh and dulce de leche filled churros (!), check out their calendar for their next location in the Bay Area.

In the meantime you can catch up on other action at Hanzel’s in the Fall 2012 issue of Motor Trend Classic with a story on Grandpa Ed’s 1952 HanzLift tow truck. It is also available online here, but really, buy the quarterly magazine.  It’s beautifully written, photographed and published each quarter.

Hope to see you at our 5 events this year: April 13^th, May 11^th, June 8^th, July 13^th, August 10^th

Peugeot D'Accord

During lunch, I stopped by Hanzel Auto Body to visit Tim and his Citroens (more on that tomorrow).  Here is a Honda Accord that I saw at the shop, with some Peugeot badging.