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Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars, Uncategorized

Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400 Review: Turbocharged For Your Pleasure!

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Infiniti Q50 S 3.0t Review 12

I’ve been waiting for the Japanese luxury brands to go turbo for a long time now. They’ve been keeping their cars pretty simple for years, and that’s great for reliability, but in the end, the turbo European cars were faster, a lot faster.  Well now it seems the tables have turned. Infiniti has finally joined the turbo game, and they’ve brought a ringer.

Their new 3.0L twin turbo V6 comes in two flavors, one with 300hp and one with 400hp. The first will compete directly with the existing sport sedan pack, and the second will blow them away. Even with the German’s conservative horsepower claims, none of their offerings reach the 400hp mark. That means the high-output Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400 I drove here is some very serious business.

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Car Shows, Uncategorized

Stanced Porsche 996 at First Class Fitment

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Stanced Porsche 911 Carrera 996

I must admit, I’ve always liked this style of aftermarket facia on the Porsche 996. This one we saw at First Class Fitment was nice and clean.

-Nick

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato at Amelia Island

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Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato Amelia Island 4

The DB4 GT Zagato is one of the most beautiful Aston Martins of all time. Swooping Italian lines over a capable British GT racing-developed chassis, it is a sublime combination!

With its 314hp straight-6, the DB4 GT Zagato was one hell of a performer in the early 1960’s. It was capable of 0-60 in around 6 seconds, and could top 150 mph. It also had a lightweight design and a capable chassis, so it was very much an all-round performer. Even today, it would still roast many respectable cars.

The big draw, on top of this Aston’s styling and performance, is its rarity. Only 19 of these DB4 GT Zagatos were produced, and they are worth many millions of dollars today.

Amelia Island was actually the second time I’ve seen this one. I saw it a few years ago, where it was the star at a local cruise night in Hopewell, NJ, where it was being worked on.

The Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato is one of my favorite classic cars, period, let alone Aston Martins. I was so privileged to have some quality shooting time with the car after most of the show cleared out. It even had it’s own design plans on display in the trunk this time.

I hope you all enjoy the gallery!

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Car Shows, Uncategorized

Pagani Huayras at The Quail, A Carbon Fiber Extravaganza!

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Pagani Huayra Blue Carbon The Quail 1

With Pagani dropping the new Huayra BC at the Geneva Auto Show, I thought it’d be a good time to share some the “normal” Pagani Huayras we saw at The Quail.

My favorite was definitely the blue carbon over tan Huayra you see above. It was absolutely stunning. Paganis have such rich detail in every aspect. They’re one of the few seven figure cars that actually seem like they should be worth that much. Their craftsmanship is about as close to perfection as can be, right down to the strands of carbon fiber lining up across panel gaps.

I also love The Quail because you get such access to everyone. Mr. Pagani himself was just walking around talking to people, and I had the distinct honor to speak with him myself for a few minutes. He’s as nice as everyone says, and really appreciates anyone who is enthusiastic about his cars.

Pagani is by far my favorite automotive brand, and I am captivated in my very soul whenever I see a Pagani up close. Even if I just glimpse one for a second, it will surely be the highlight of my day. These cars have a serious power to inspire.

Enjoy the gallery of these magnificent machines!

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Car Shows, Uncategorized

Mercedes G63 AMG Monster Truck at First Class Fitment

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Mercedes G63 AMG Monster Truck First Class Fitment

The Mercedes G63 comes from the factory as a fast, off-road-capable SUV, but for this owner, it clearly wasn’t enough.

-Nick

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Hot Rod Volkswagen Beetle at Lead East

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Hot Rod VW Beetle Lead East Front

Gotta love a Hot Rodded Herbie!

-Nick

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE, Uncategorized

TBT: Back to a time when cars were made with elbow grease, and a touch of class

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Pre War Lincoln Interior

Opinions, Uncategorized

Reaction: 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV

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chevrolet-bolt_ev_2017_800x600_wallpaper_01

$30,000 gets you 200 miles of electric driving. Well played, Chevy, well played.

It would seem the new Bolt EV is prepped to lead the way for the affordable AND viable electric car. The Nissan Leaf was a complete joke, people, this isn’t. Now let’s all hope there’s no “GM catch” to the Chevy Bolt down the line that will ruin it.

Likes: GM seems to have gotten the price and the range just right for what buyers have been yearning for in an electric car.

Dislikes: Marry Barra still seems to think it’s all about “beating Tesla”. Elon Musk wouldn’t have released Tesla’s patents to the whole industry if he didn’t want everyone to play his game. Her somewhat brawny attitude about beating Tesla makes me wonder if the mindset behind the Bolt is good GM or bad GM. Let’s hope they didn’t cut too many corners so they could be first to market in the $30K range, before the Tesla Model 3 hits.

-Nick Walker

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Slammed BMW M6 Convertible at First Class Fitment

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First Class Fitment BMW M6 Convertible

This slammed BMW M6 V10 Convertible was the first car that caught my eye this year at First Class Fitment. Even before I was inside the show, I shot it through the fence.

It was an immaculately done car, with a beautiful color combo, and some fine detail work.

Enjoy!

Slammed BMW M6 First Class Fitment 2 Slammed BMW M6 First Class Fitment 1 Slammed BMW M6 First Class Fitment 4 Slammed BMW M6 First Class Fitment 5

-Nick Walker

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Various Racing Machines in the Laguna Seca Paddock

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Porsche 956 Laguna Seca Paddock

Some more shots from the Paddock of Laguna Seca during Monterey Car Week, here is a gallery of awesome racing cars, old and new.

I always love seeing the old pre-war racecars sitting right next to more modern racecars, like Group C, because it really puts in perspective how far the automobile has come in just a few decades. That said, the drivers of those older racing cars were men among men. Those cars were not especially slow at all, reaching over 100mph, but with very primitive technology.

Enjoy the spectacle!

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Uncategorized

Opinion: 5 Favorite Cars of 2015

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Porsche Cayman GT4
Most of all, I love what the Cayman GT4 represents. It lets us enthusiasts know that Porsche hasn’t forgotten about us, and that they recognize the specific demand for GT cars with manual transmissions.

Sure it would be better with a shorter final drive ratio for shorter gearing and even quicker acceleration, but we’re splitting hairs. The car is phenomenal fun by all counts, and is in such hot demand that they immediately sold out. That says all that needs to be said. I’d take this over a paddle shift 911 GT3 / GT3 RS any day of the week.

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Mazda ND Miata
Mazda released the 4th generation Miata to some high acclaim. It features a variety of improvements over previous models, and it returns to about the same size and weight of the original Miata. It’s nice to know that cars can still get smaller and lighter in our modern times, when everything in the auto industry seems to be enlarging.

This is the best Miata yet in my opinion, and I’ll share more about why in a review article very soon. Be sure to check back!

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Car Shows, Uncategorized

Nissan Hakosuka Skyline 2000 GT-R at Laguna Seca

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Nissan Skyline 2000 GT-R Laguna Seca

This JDM gem was lurking in the paddock at Laguna Seca. It is a 1971 Nissan Hakosuka Skyline 2000 GT-R, the great, great, great grand daddy of today’s R35 Nissan GTR.

These things are worth a pretty penny now, too. In fact, that same weekend another Hakosuka GT-R sold for $242,000 at auction in Monterey.

The Skyline 2000 GT-R is now a godfather figure amongst Japanese cars, and rightfully so given the lineage of groundbreaking cars it produced.

Enjoy the pics!

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