Cars
A Fix for Car Fixers?
September 20th, 2012
Computers are in charge of almost every aspect of your vehicle these days, from telling the transmission when to shift to controlling the door locks. When something goes wrong, as it inevitably will, who has the specialized, sometimes proprietary, knowledge and tools to fix the problem? The dealer who sold you the car, of course. But as a 2009 Consumer Reports survey found, motorists aren’t always satisfied with the service they get at dealers. They want choices. Independent garages want the business. Competition benefits everyone. Read more »
Community
Phast Cars!
April 12th, 2012
Some people organize car shows because they dig cars, and some do it for the recognition. Frank Miranda, the eponymous owner of Phat Phrank’s Mexican restaurant, is putting one together to increase the peace. Read more »
Wheels
Vegas Velocity
February 2nd, 2012
Dream Racing is open for business at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, joining companies that will put you in the driver’s seat of NASCAR racers, street-legal exotics and drifting cars. While there are other outlets where you can indulge those particular fantasies, Dream Racing is the only place in the world for laymen to buy time behind the wheel of a Ferrari F430 GT, a 2,700-pound, $250,000 purebred racing machine. Read more »
Cars
Gearhead Nirvana
November 10th, 2011
SEMA—the massive automotive aftermarket exposition put on by the Specialty Equipment Marketers Association Nov. 1-4 at the Las Vegas Convention Center—was all about paint, tires, wheels, stereos, tools, kit cars, car repair, four-wheel drive, new technology, gizmos, farkles and eye candy. More than that, it is also where industry types come to make deals and get inspired. Which is why it’s closed to the public, lending an air of exclusivity to the affair. And, yes, you missed something cool. Read more »
Cars
Memories, Built for Speed
November 3rd, 2011
Art Goldstrom has a wheelchair, which is not unusual for a 77-year-old. What is out of the ordinary is that Goldstrom’s wheelchair is powered by a 400-horsepower Cadillac Northstar V8 engine and has wheelie bars on it. He drag races it. He also has a Radio Flyer wagon just like the one you owned as a kid (except his sports dual jet engines) and a Zamboni ice-resurfacing machine repurposed to carry dancing girls and a margarita bar. Read more »
Car Crazy
The Social Networker
Andrew Ross
September 22nd, 2011
Andrew Ross is Mini guy. The first car he ever owned, while still living in his native Australia, was a Mini. He’s worn a necklace with a Mini charm on it since high school, collected some 300 toy Minis, and owns two life-size examples of the marque: a yellow and black 2003 Cooper S, and a “classic” 1978 version painted Ford orange. He sums up his fascination with the diminutive cars thusly: “It’s not a Camry. There’s nothing wrong with Camrys; they’re fine cars. But they’re boring. I want something that stands out.” Read more »
Car Crazy
The Showman
The Amazing Johnathan
September 22nd, 2011
A lot of people start collecting cars as a way to preserve happier times in their lives. But not John Edward Szeles, better known in these parts as comedian/magician The Amazing Johnathan. Even though he’s a Detroit native, Szeles didn’t get into cars until about 10 years ago when he surprised his wife with a 1957 Porsche. He had it all set up: The car was gift-wrapped, waiting for her in their driveway when they returned to Las Vegas from a trip to Los Angeles. “Unfortunately, that was the time she picked to tell me she wanted a divorce,” he says. Read more »
Car Crazy
The Builder
Gordon Tronson
September 22nd, 2011
If you have to ask why, you’ll never understand Gordon Tronson. There is absolutely no practical reason to build a twin-engine, 1,000-horsepower hot rod, by yourself, in your garage. If you can somehow make sense of that, try this: Unlike practically every other twin-engine car ever built—and there have been quite a few, from drag racers to street cars—the power plants in Tronson’s car are mounted side-by-side. It’s much easier to put them in-line, but Tronson doesn’t do easy. Read more »
Car Crazy
The Shade-Tree Mechanic
Jeffrey Deitch
September 22nd, 2011
A 1972 RS SS Camaro with a big-block engine isn’t the car of Jeffrey Deitch’s dreams. He speaks more glowingly of the German engineering that went into the BMW 2002tii he bought recently, a car that started right up after sitting for 22 years. Deitch, a 45-year-old computer programmer, estimates that he’s owned 90 cars. He buys them, fixes them, drives them, sells them and buys more. They come and go. But the Camaro has a backstory. Read more »
Car Crazy
The Collector
Brett Torino
September 22nd, 2011
There is a place where three Hemi ’Cuda convertibles are parked in a row, paint gleaming and their tops peeled back as if you’d just walked into a Plymouth dealership circa 1971 and discovered that somehow a tenth of all Hemi ’Cuda convertibles ever built had rolled into one showroom. This is Mopar Valhalla, a vast gathering hall of mighty Chrysler heroes long past. But it’s not mythical; it’s an actual warehouse on Sunset Road that houses the private collection of real estate developer and philanthropist Brett Torino. Read more »
