Here’s a few more shots, reflecting back on the remainder of the Cars&Coffee events held during 2011…
Wishing you all a safe, prosperous and Happy New Year…
(All photos by the author)
Looking Back on 2011, Cars&Coffee style, Part 2…
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Monthly Archives: December 2011
Looking back on 2011, Cars&Coffee style…
With the year rapidly winding down, I felt this would be a good time to reflect on 2011 and a few of the vehicles found Saturday mornings at Cars&Coffee / Irvine…
Stay tuned for Reflections on 2011, part 2
(all photos by the author)
Seasons Greetings…
Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and Happy New Years from digitaldtour
Christmas Porsches, a McLaren MP4-12C, Lamborghini LP 700-4 Aventador, and a chance encounter with two of Southern California’s car culture giants…
A week before Christmas and all through the lot, the Porsches were searching for that ideal parking spot… I arrived this week at Cars and Coffee a little earlier than usual, and was able to watch under the cover of darkness, the assortment of multi hued Porsches, and the other makes and models of cars arrive. The Porsche faithful were queued up in their usual row, with these two beauties positioned towards the middle of the row, in holiday color thus the title “Christmas Porsches”…
And assembled on each side, were a variety of other Porsche present for the mornings event…
The folks from Truspeed were once again in attendance, this week sharing their red Outlaw 356A coupe.
And a few more Porsches parked along the row…
Also on display was this low slung, hip high example of a Factory Five, GTM coupe, with a highly modified appearing big block motor…
Located several rows over, was this beautifully restored, silver right hand drive Bentley, complete with pristine red leather interior, burl wood dash and stunning chrome trim. My friend Dave had passed this car coming off the freeway, and had mentioned seeing a pristine, right hand drive silver coupe, possibly a Rolls Royce. Now we had located that very car, which turned out instead to be a classic Bentley…
In close proximity, just up the row from the silver Bentley was this stunning green on green, Jaguar XK 150 roadster…
Then several more rows over, located towards the back of the parking lot, was this beautiful, curvaceous slate blue Morgan coupe.
Surprisingly, each of the rear windows opens up towards the centerline of the car, similar to the opening and closing movements of a butterfly wing.
This beautiful two toned, Tri-5 Chevrolet Bel Air ( below), is part of the K&N Filters show car fleet, and another beautifully prepared car. The attention to detail, and fit and finish on this car were spectacular…
Parked immediately behind the Bel-Air, was this brand new, Volcano Orange McLaren MP4-12C, courtesy of the local dealership, Newport Beach McLaren. And parked right next to the McLaren, was a brand new pearlescent satin white Lamborghini LP 700-4 Aventador, on display for the morning courtesy of Newport Beach Lamborghini.
As the event began to wind down, and the cars began thinning out, we came across this very cool black, full fendered 1932 Ford Roadster.
As I was shooting the car, the owner walked over and introduced himself as ” Bruce” to my friend Dave and I. I suddenly realized that “Bruce” was in fact Bruce Meyer, the renowned Los Angeles based car collector and active participant on the classic, hot rod and sports car scenes. He shared with us that he had come to Cars& Coffee that morning with his friend, Barry Meguiar. Yes, that Barry Meguiar, of Meguiar’s car care product fame, and the host of the cable TV show Meguiar’s Car Crazy.
Bruce proceeded to tell us a little about his car, and our discussion then shifted over to the custom wheels. If you look closely, you will note that they are in fact a center lock set up, complete with safety wired knock-offs. We learned that these wheels and hubs were period correct, and just happened to be vintage Indy car racing parts from back in the day.
Our conversation then shifted focus to the car’s power plant, and with the release of two spring-loaded latches, Bruce opened the louvered hood, revealing a 350 c.i. small block.
Bruce then mentioned someone from his group that morning making a comment that he and Barry Meguiar were like” two peas in a pod”, to which they responded saying they were more like “two B’s in a Rod” (Bruce and Barry and the ’32 Ford). With that, a photo opportunity was warranted, to document the two friends enjoying the mornings car show and Bruce’s ’32 Ford roadster…
This encounter was the epitome of what the car hobby and the Cars&Coffee event is all about; the opportunity to share ones passion for cars with friends, and the making of new friends along the way. With our impromptu photo session completed, Bruce and Barry wished everyone a Merry Christmas, the roadster was fired up, and off they rumbled to continue on their morning drive.
“Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays” to all from digitaldtour…
(All photos by the author)
Porsche GT3 cup cars, the elusive White GT3 RS4.0, a Scion FR-S and more…
Saturday morning as I pulled into the parking lot at Cars and Coffee / Irvine, and made my way towards the row where I usually park, I was greeted by the lunar eclipse bathed, silhouettes of two Truspeed Porsche GT3 cup cars parked diagonally in formation, anchoring an all Porsche row. Mixed in amongst the row were several Porsche 356’s , a couple early 1960’s short wheelbase 911’s, a Porsche 924, 914-6, and a handful of 911’s from the 1970’s, ’80’s and 90’s. And aligned like bookends, opposite the cup cars were two matching speed yellow Porsche 996’s: one a tricked-out 996 GT3 and the other, a 2003 GT2.
Now back to the two GT3 cup cars…
Car # 45 (below), the Truspeed / Privacy Star Porsche GT3 cup car, is the 2011 World Challenge cup series winner, as driven by Patrick Long, the only American driver with Porsche factory driver status…
The car below, the # 29 Porsche GT3 cup car, was fresh from its second place finish at the 25 hours of Thunderhill race the previous weekend. It still wore its acquired patina of race rubber, bugs and dust across its exterior, as evidence of the previous weekends battle. The strange luggage rack looking devices spanning the front hood as I found out, and as were demonstrated, were high output LED light bars, perfect for lighting up a racetrack in the dead of night. These two light bars combined with the headlights and dual sets of driving and cornering lights recessed into the front nose, were more than sufficient for lighting up a dark racetrack, and getting the attention of the driver immediately ahead on the track.
After I finished shooting the Porsches, I noticed a crowd gathered around a low black coupe parked in the end space of the smaller perpendicular parking lot. As I made my way through the crowd, I saw a badge on the nose of the car that read Scion. As I got closer, I recognized the car as the new collaboration between Toyota and Subaru, with the Scion being Toyota’s version. It also wore some subtle Greddy graphics displayed about the car. The badge on the back identified this car as an FR-S model, although the Subaru model will wear BRZ badging. Out back, the blue tipped, dual titanium exhaust dominated the view, framing the rear diffuser panel. After a few minutes, the hood was opened up to reveal a Subaru boxer motor, and a few go fast parts, such as the purple anodized, front shock strut adjustment plates. The car appeared to have been lowered, and was riding on a set of silver Rays wheels, wrapped in 245/35ZR-19 rubber. Given the crowd around this car and the buzz it was generating, it sure looks like Toyota has a hit on its hands…
As I was walking away from the Scion, I caught a glimpse of a white Porsche moving through the parking lot. As I got closer, I realized this was the elusive white Porsche GT3 RS 4.0 that I had heard about the previous week, making its way out of the parking lot.
So far I have been lucky enough to have seen three GT3 RS 4.0’s since October, out of a total of 600 produced. Now only 597 to go…
(All photos by the author)
Good Karma, an assemblage of Porsche 993’s, Pantera’s bearing gifts and the Woody car club hosts Toys for Tots……
Saturday morning, December 3 started off cold and breezy, as the sun began to rise over Cars&Coffee in Irvine, California. As the cars made their way into the parking lot , still under the cover of lingering darkness, a low slung, silver sedan caught my eye as it made its way into the lot in search of a parking space. As the car drove up the aisle towards where we were standing, it suddenly dawned on me that due to the lack of engine noise and the cars unique styling and profile, that this was in fact a Fisker Karma.
(I had seen a white Fisker Karma at this years SEMA show back in November, however this was my first public sighting).
As soon as the driver had parked the car, and exited along with his passengers, the Fisker was mobbed by those already at the event, wanting to get a closer look. I decided to wait until the mob thinned out, before going over to take a closer look. As soon as there was a lull, I headed over with camera in hand to capture the moment.
Another very subtle design detail is the seamless integration of the solar panels into the center section of the roof…
My next stop was to check out the assemblage of Porsche 993’s that had begun arriving in mass, around the same time as the Fisker. Due to the size of the group, they chose to park towards the back of the lot, to ensure there were enough spaces for all of their group.
It was now time to make my way over to where the Pantera Club had staged, ready to deliver all of their collected toys to the Marines who were on site to collect for the Toys for Tots toy drive.
Located just across the parking lot, opposite from the Pantera row, were the cars representing the Woody club. The members of this car club have been responsible over the years for organizing and hosting the Toys for Tots toy drive, and coordinating the presence of the Marines on site to collect the toys from the Cars & Coffee participants. A great group of people, and a beautiful selection of Woody wagons on display…
On a personal note, in addition to being able to experience all of these amazing cars in person last Saturday morning, I also found it very rewarding to witness the car community come together to insure that the children of families in need will be assured of having a Merry Christmas.
(All photos by the author)
A look back at Jim Busby Racing and their BFGoodrich Porsche 962’s, circa April 1985…
Following on their 1984 IMSA series participation, in which Jim Busby Racing had campaigned a pair of Lola Mazda T616’s with sponsorship by BFGoodrich, the start of the 1985 IMSA season saw the team step up in class with their debut of two Porsche 962’s, with continued sponsorship provided by BFGoodrich, and engines built and tuned by the Southern California-based Porsche specialists, ANDIAL.
The first opportunity to see these cars in person for those of us in Southern California, would be at the Los Angeles Times Nissan Grand Prix, to be held at Riverside International Raceway in April of 1985.
With the fielding of a two car team, two separate driver line-ups were created and announced; BFG Porsche 962 # 67, would be piloted by team owner and driver, Jim Busby, and teammate Rick Knoop.
Their sister car, BFG Porsche 962 #68, would be driven by the team of Pete Halsmer and John Morton.
And by virtue of being the latest team to join the Porsche 962 juggernaut, Jim Busby Racing was assured of drawing the Porsche faithful to their garage area on race weekend, to check out their new team cars.
The first challenge to be faced by the two teams at Jim Busby Racing would be the qualifying of their Porsche 962’s for the weekends 6 hour endurance race…
By the end of qualifying, Pete Halsmer and John Morton in the #68 BFGoodrich Porsche 962 had qualified second, with the #67 BFGoodrich Porsche 962 of Jim Busby and Rick Knoop, qualified in sixth place. Thus the stage was set for Jim Busby Racing and the following days 6 hour endurance race. Now it was time for the team to formulate their respective pit strategies for race day.
As the sun dawned Sunday morning, it quickly became apparent that the racing community and fans would once again be rewarded with a beautiful, clear sunny Southern California day, perfect weather for an endurance race.
With the competitors aligned in formation and being paced by the pole sitter, the cars accelerated towards the stat/finish line, and with a wave of the starters green flag, the race was underway. The obvious challenge facing the two Jim Busby Racing teams over the next six hours would be to get the #68 BFG Porsche 962 into the lead, and maintain their position to the end. Their second challenge would be to assist the #67 car, to work its way up through the field, and at the end, hopefully be in position to score a podium finish. I’m sure no one at the start could have imagined the triumphant success that the Jim Busby Racing team would share later that afternoon…
The following shots are of the two team cars at speed, each running their individual strategies and race pace…
Jim Busby behind the wheel at speed, approaching turn 8
Co-driver Rick Knoop, entering the downhill section into turn 7
#67 BFGoodrich Porsche 962, with Jim Busby behind the wheel, on the uphill section into turn 6…
#67 working its way through traffic, turn 8…
#67 chasing down slower traffic, entering turn 6…
Car #67 exiting turn 8, accelerating down the back straight…
BFG Porsche #68 leading the #86 Bayside Disposal Porsche 962 of Bruce Leven, through turn 8…
#68, BFG Porsche 962 lapping slower traffic, approaching turn 8. (Note the red racers tape stripe across the right front headlight. This was used by the team during the race to visually differentiate car #68 car from its teammate, the #67 team car, since they were virtually identical when viewed from the front. The teams could then monitor each car as they crossed the start / finish line, or upon entering the pits for service. At a glance, the crews instantly knew which of the two cars was coming in without seeing the cars number on the fender top).
#68 BFGoodrich Porsche 962, passing Bob Akin’s #5 Coca Cola Porsche 962, downhill section into turn 7…
#68 BFGoodrich Porsche 962 at speed, approaching turn 8…
As the field began stopping for the first of many scheduled pit stops over the course of the day, the following shots represent just several of those scheduled pit stops executed by the Jim Busby Racing teams during the race…
Pit stop by car #68 for driver change, refueling and tires…
Ready and waiting if needed…
Driver change and new BFGoodrich tires…
Rick Knoop and crew awaiting arrival of car #67 for upcoming pit stop…
#67 crew readied for driver change, new BFG tires and refueling…
BFGoodrich Porsche 962, #67 approaching its pit box, with Crew chief, Co-Driver (Rick Knoop) and fuel man at the ready…
Pit stop underway; Jim Busby exiting the car, Rick Knoop behind the wheel, refueling and new tires at the ready…
After a day of very competitive racing, well choreographed pit stops and obviously a successful set of race strategies by Jim Busby Racing, the final hour of the race saw the #68 BFGoodrich Porsche 962 running in first place, with its sister car (#67) running in second. With each passing lap and as the clock ticked down, the crews continued relaying information to their drivers, updating them regarding each team cars relative position and the gaps / intervals to the next placed car, through the use of pit boards. As each car exited turn nine, the pit boards went out for the drivers to quickly read as they rocketed past the start / finish line to begin another lap…
As the final minutes began ticking down, the team anxiously awaited car #68 being given the white flag, indicating the last lap. All that was needed to insure the overall win was to complete one final lap, with car #67 running a strong second place. The stress was evident on the face of team owner and driver Jim Busby, as well Alvin Springer of Andial ( standing to Jim Busby’s right) as they waited for car #68 to complete its final lap…
By the time car #68 had made its way down the back straight and was exiting turn 9, the team had all made their way trackside, to cheer on car #68 as it crossed the finish line, winning the race…
And following shortly after, car #67 crossed the finish line, capturing second place, delivering a one-two finish for the team…
Jim Busby, his son and a crew member celebrating the teams first and second place victories…
As cars #68 and #67 took their cool down lap, the crew made their way back to the pit wall to await each cars return to the pits, to pick up the team and drive them all to victory lane…
Arrival of the team cars at victory lane…
One very happy team owner /driver: Jim Busby, celebrating his teams first and second place finish at the LA Times Nissan Grand Prix, April 1985.
(Below) John Morton and Pete Halsmer being awarded the first place trophy for their overall win at the LA Times Nissan Grand Prix, Riverside Raceway, April 25, 1985.
The second place finishers from car #67, Rick Knoop and Team owner /driver Jim Busby, celebrating on stage with teammates John Morton and Pete Halsmer (see photo below).
The final photo opportunity of the day; car # 68 with its first place trophy.
Jim Busby Racing and their BFGoodrich Porsche 962’s had served notice to their competition that weekend of their teams depth and potential for success, and established themselves as a potential threat for the remainder of the 1985 IMSA season.
(All photos by the author)
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