December 2021 Marin C&C photos

I had not been to a car show in forever and the boy wanted to go to one. So I found a sort-of-local show (45 minutes away), woke up early, and went. It was worth it. We both had fun.

The first thing we checked out was this dune buggy getting reverse winched out of a travel trailer. The badge said Cox, which appears to be a toy company. Later we saw this buggy wearing huge sunglasses. You read that right.

E28 M5.

FC RX-7.

SWB Land Rover truck. This was my son's favorite car at the show.

Unrestored(?) Corvette.

Celica GT.

Saleen Mustang.

V8-powered Volvo.

1968 Mark II Cortina.

Why does this Aston Martin look so unusual? Is it a hardtop? I don't think I've ever seen one like this. This was my favorite car at the show.

Another rad Mustang.

Dirty 968.

I told my son I learned to drive in one of these. He was distracted by the van.

Another old Merc.

Monza coupe.

This classic was just non-chalantly parked.

My Daily Driver: @midnightdorifto's Mazda Miata

1. How did you come to the decision of buying this car?

Haphazardly and with virtually zero foresight, which is entirely out of character for someone who is studiously researching the car they want to buy (import?) 5 years from now. I woke up on a Thursday morning with zero desire to own a Miata, received a phone call, and by Saturday morning I was a Miata owner. Didn’t have a place to store it, it didn’t run, and I didn’t even know if I fit in the car. Real sound decision making throughout the whole process.

2. What has your ownership experience been like?

Both the bane of my existence and a flood of proud accomplishment. When you buy a car that doesn’t run, it’s sort of like you’ve got 200 bowling balls that you need to store somewhere long-term that excrete fluids and accumulate both spiders and invoices. The car first fired to life in my ownership after about a year and a half at 2AM on a Monday morning. Having put the car together with the assistance of YouTube, Chilton, and generous friends who in no way took pity on my mechanical abilities, there is this sort of pure, almost inaccessible joy that comes with fixing something that was destined for destruction. Of course, it’d be another two years before it was ready to daily drive in virtually stock trim, but that’s a different story. It’s been my primary means of conveyance on and off for the last 3-4 years now despite owning more reliable and more comfortable vehicles. Again, sound decision making.

3. What is your fondest memory with this car?

Probably getting it on a dyno. That’s a weird sort of memory since I wasn’t even driving, but for me the car went from a scribbled notepad of ideas to something that cleared major project milestones and was reliable enough to drive to work and back. Taking something from a pile of parts in my backyard (now with the help of a shop and a knowledgeable tuner, it’s all fun and games until you introduce forced induction) has been a journey that I was not expecting to be as rewarding as it was. The car went from running on two cylinders in my girlfriend’s carport to being a rather quick little roadster.

4. Why do you love cars?

Oh I have no idea. I thought it was genetic, and I still think it might have something to do with being brought up in car culture from a very young age, but I’m not sure it’s just nature at work. I love the history and the stories and the idiosyncrasies and the solitude and the camaraderie and brilliant engineering and The Good Colors. I love having a special language that allows me to immediately access people on their level. I sort of love the whole bit. 

Ed.: Read more of @midnightdorifto's thoughts at Trust in the Machine.

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If you would like to participate, just answer the above four questions and submit one to three photos of your daily driver to milhousevanh at geemail. Thanks and have fun!

My Daily Driver: @knoffc's Mazda5 (with a manual transmission!)

1. How did you come to the decision of buying this car?

This car has actually been in my family a long time- my Dad wanted something that was spacious and could carry a lot of people/stuff, but didn't want a full-sized minivan or a crossover. He settled on the 5 since he also liked the idea of driving stick. When he couldn't find one with the 5spd on the used market, my perpetually frugal father took the unusual step of buying one brand new from the dealership.

A few years ago after I got divorced, he sold it to me on the cheap so I had something reliable to drive, and that's when my love affair with the car started.

2. What has your ownership experience been like?

So far I've racked up 40000 enjoyment-filled, trouble-free miles. I don't think there's a single other vehicle out there that combines as much functionality and fun in such a small footprint (it's shorter and narrower than the current Civic sedan.) There's been trips to school, the hardware store, the family cabin, the Black Hills, and even Devil's Tower. Somewhere along the way, I started buying stickers of the places the van had taken me and adding them to the rear windshield.

Earlier this year my girlfriend and I purchased our first vehicle together, a 2017 CX-5. Since I usually do the school runs, we decided it made more sense for me to drive the newer, safer vehicle to cart the kids around in. But after one week I missed my van too much and went back to having it as my daily driver.

3. What is your fondest memory with this car?

It's tough to pick a single memory, but one thing that consistently brings a smile to my face is attempting to set speed records flying through empty roundabouts. There's no greater joy than timing a downshift just right so you tap into all 153hp at just the right moment to slingshot you off the final curve.

4. Why do you love cars?

I have loved cars as long as I can remember. My parents have drawings I made in preschool of my Dad's "cool black car," a mid 80's Dodge Daytona. As I've gotten older, I've begun to see cars in a bit more appliancelike light- as cool as a Miata sounds, you can't fit a 2x4 in it, and certainly not both of my kids. But instead of being bummed by this realization, I've made it my goal to continue enjoying what I drive, and my Mazda5 is perfect for that.

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If you would like to participate, just answer the above four questions and submit one to three photos of your daily driver to milhousevanh at geemail. Thanks and have fun!

My Daily Driver: @StatesOfMotion's Mazda3i Grand Touring

1. How did you come to the decision of buying this car?

I needed a car because we live in Manhattan, I teach in Bridgeport, and Metro North was getting to be unworkable for my schedule. Priorities revolved around ideas of practicality (fuel economy was important given the ridiculous commuting distance involved and ethics about carbon, and as we have our first baby on the way the ability to manage a car seat and stroller and support gear and so on was something of a concern) and some sense of meaningful driving engagement and gratification. 

I drove a lovely NA Miata, but balked at the lack of room and fears of street parking. After spending entirely too long glazing over while paging through cars.com and Craigslist ads, annoying everyone on Twitter to no end, and learning too many uncomfortable truths about post-1991 BMW 3s, I found the listing for this at a VW dealer in New Jersey. No, it wasn't what I really deep-down wanted (I still think about an early Boxster that was for sale in Nassau County) but she definitely checked all the real-world boxes while still showing ample signs of life.

2. What has your ownership experience been like?

She (it's definitely a feminine presence; I've named here Momoko) has been absolutely painless to keep aside from the inconsistent frustrations of New York City parking. Went in for a full dealer checkup soon after purchase and they said she was in well-maintained and very solid shape, which was reassuring. Fuel economy is well over forty miles per gallon if I drive like a grandmother and never less than the low to mid-thirties if I very definitely don't. You have to use the gearbox (and be smooth with it) to get the most out of the motor, but it's been great so far. I do occasionally check the price of 17-inch Enkei RPF1s at Tire Rack late on sleepless nights, and I desperately need to replace the door speakers.

3. What is your fondest memory with this car?

I've only had it since October, but so far? Heading back up to Bridgeport the day after spring break technically ended, just last week - March 16th. After watching the world spin into high alert over our developing catastrophe, being able to get in and just drive for an hour and whatever was intensely therapeutic.

4. Why do you love cars?

Part of it is the influence of the kind of parents who honeymooned at the Trans-Am race at Watkins Glen in 1970 and brought their firstborn (that's me) home in a BMW 2002. Part of it was being an awkwardly smart misfit kid who never fit into the scholastic mainstream but found a sense of significance in these creations that were half art and half science. Dad was an engineer at a series of Midwestern machine tool companies, so the workings of the industry were a constant presence at home. They're just fascinating creations, and the ability to move from place to place with speed and control remains a very human pursuit.

Patrick Frawley (@statesofmotion) teaches math and shepherds a flock of adjuncts at the University of Bridgeport. He previously wrote for Jalopnik and CarsDirect, and occasionally posts at his personal blog when the spirit moves him.

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If you would like to participate, just answer the above four questions and submit one to three photos of your daily driver to milhousevanh at geemail. Thanks and have fun!

My Daily Driver: @jslieberthal's Mazda CX-5

1. How did you come to the decision of buying this car?

My girlfriend and I moved to Seattle from Chicago six months ago. It's our first car as "adults" (technically hers) - we knew we wanted an AWD crossover for adventures but easy maneuverability in a city and smaller parking areas. A few months before the move, my little brother (differential/transmission specialist mechanic) suggested the first gen CX-5 and we never looked back.

2. What has your ownership experience been like?

Overall, the CX-5 has been everything we needed. 10K miles in just six months thanks to the cross-country move and plenty of adventures since. It's meeting our needs and giving us little trouble along the way. I detailed a full rundown of our experience so far a couple weeks ago here.

3. What is your fondest memory with this car?

Our cross-country move takes the cake here. Driving through Badlands National Park, Mt. Rushmore, Missoula, Coeur d'Alene and all the other scenic parts of the US along the way to the PNW made for a great drive.

4. Why do you love cars?

It's a family affair, tracing back to SCCA roots in Wisconsin via my grandfather and two uncles on my mom's side. It's been a fascination throughout my life - the thrill, smell and sounds mixed with the sense of control and speed cars afford you on an open road. Every drive should be enjoyable, and it's not hard when you have a passion for the vehicles getting us around every day.

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If you would like to participate, just answer the above four questions and submit one to three photos of your daily driver to milhousevanh at geemail. Thanks and have fun!

Let's talk FD RX-7

It all started with this example I spotted in traffic earlier this week. Hands down, it's the most beautiful car of the 1990s.

Other than the exhaust, everything looks original. It’s very base model looking yet it’s gorgeous. pic.twitter.com/EDUJYMp1mx

— Tamerlane's Thoughts (@TamerlaneBlog) September 16, 2019

Then, I saw this video on Jalopnik. Orlove and his boss drove one at the Duncan Collection in rural Virginia.

Then I read up about it on BAT. I assume you wrote this, Alan?

Finally, another video of the RX-7. Funny (not funny) story about the presenter. I met Mike Schlee at the only car launch event I have ever attended, for the 2014 Corolla in San Diego. I bumped into him at the bar and he was super nice and welcoming (he's Canadian, after all). He works for Subaru Canada now.

2019 Radwood Norcal photos

Another success!

After over a decade of going to car shows and museums, I am pretty jaded. But the Radwood shows, which focus on 80s and 90s cars, never disappoint.

Of course, the parking lots to these shows often have true gems, like this 4WD Toyota cargo van.

And this Aztek.

This diesel VW Dasher was recently purchased from this used car lot, which always has interesting inventory.

This old Subaru sedan was very clean.

When I posted these pictures on Twitter, this Escort GT and Buick Regal got the most comments and nostalgia-filled stories.

One of ten McLaren Mustang M81.

This was the highlight. Francisco bought this from a Michigan widow. The Impulse had been in storage since 2006! Two-toned, turbo, RS.

I thought this was a concept car, but it's an Acura NSX widebody. And it's for sale.