Cars and Coffee Concord

Old and new, all kinds of cars!

On the third Saturday of the month there is a MONSTER sized Cars and Coffee up in Concord. Not to be confused with Concord Massachusetts and the Shot Heard Round the World, this event is in the parking lot of Charlotte Motor Speedway! You know, Charlotte, in North Carolina, the NASCAR center of the planet! It was a bit chilly this December, but man it was a big turnout of people and cars. And as the name implies, there really was coffee! 

Bond, James  Bond...err, I mean, Martin, Aston Martin V12 Vantage GTS. In yellow yet!

Nice row of the newest Corvette, the C8 mid-engine.

This my friends is a Volkswagen Thing. Yes, the name of the car is a "Thing." 
A few days ago, I was watching Jeopardy, and they showed a photo of one of these, and believe it or not none of the three smarty pants contestants knew what it was!
While I'd like to think that shows I'm smarter than them, I think the real answer is that I'm just older than them. 
Oh well, I'll take it! 

Lamborghini with Blew By You license plate. 

I'm not up to speed on all the models of Lambo, so I appreciate it when they put the name of the model on the seats and on the side of the body!

Here's another Lamborghini. I didn't catch the license plate, but this one really did "Blow By Me" out on I-85 on the way into Cars and Coffee. It was still sounding nice about a half mile in front of me. 
For once I didn't speed up to see what it was, and sure enough that paid off since it was parked when I got to the Speedway!

Nothing like a classic Chevy Suburban that's been lowered!

On the other hand, an even older Chevy Bel Air Nomad station wagon is mighty sweet!

I had a great time talking to the owner of this modified 1973 Toyota Celica. 
Nothing against all the Corvette, Mustang, and other modern cars at the show, but seeing something unique like this was very cool. 

Nice Rat Rod. I liked the Cleveland Press newspaper mailbox on top of the engine, which of course requires me to say, "SEND IT!"

Not sure if that's real patina or artificial patina, but it's a cool looking truck either way. 

Holden was the Australian GM. This nice car has a Whipple supercharger too. 

Another classic Chevrolet

Toyota Supra in, uh, whatever color they call this! I liked it. 

Ford GT in a classic Gulf livery. 

Huge air intakes for mid-engine

I don't have a PhD in Aerodynamics, but I believe the term for this car with all the air channels, wings, and ducts, would be what scientists call "FAST."

Volvo P1800. I didn't see The Saint around, but he drove one of these on TV back in the 1960s. 

Volvo wanted to get a sporty car into the US market, so here's one! After Roger Moore played The Saint, you might have seen him in some other roles as a guy named Bond, James Bond. 

The 1800 model was built over about 10 years, so you'd think there would be a ton of them around. 

The chrome trim on the door handle continues on the rear quarter panel. 

Volvo 

I liked the Superman badge on this car.

Lots of parking, lots of cars, Welcome Race Fans!

My Favorite Holidays!

 

Ferrari 296GTS.
Here we have the PERFECT stocking stuffer!
Note: You might need a bigger stocking!

Yes, it's the most wonderful time of the year! As 2023 winds down it's fun to reflect on where we've been and where we're going in the future. If you have family around, so much the better. Here in the USA, we have two big holidays coming up. They're SO big, they might even be celebrated around the world too! I can't wait!

These bad boys start about $372,000. 

You might have some loose change under the couch cushions. 

Maybe a LOT of couch cushions!

The first big holiday is coming up on December 25th: Racecar Gift Giving Day! If you're shopping for me, I wear a size 296GTS Ferrari! In red. Thanks!

It even looks fast from the rear view. 
Which is how most people will be seeing it. 
If you're one of those "numbers" people, it's got over 800 horsepower.

The 2nd big holiday actually kicks off the next year, because it happens on January 1st. Hard to believe, but this new year holiday has the super creative name of HAPPY NEW YEAR OF RACING DAY! It's got the words "NEW YEAR" right up front, so there's no confusion! Some people are so into this holiday that they kick off partying the night before and then start celebrating and kissing the INSTANT it turns into January 1st at midnight. Crazy, right? 

Some countries and other cultures have a different calendar, and their New Year starts on a different day, so I can only guess that they are entitled to TWO NEW YEAR OF CAR RACING DAYS per 365 days! WOW!!

Only about a week of shopping days left to go!

Interstate Drivers; We Need to Talk!

Toyota Prius cut-away view from a car show, just for fun!

OK, you're driving on an INTERSTATE highway, divided directions of travel, and multiple lanes going each direction. Folks, I hate to break it to you, but some of you HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU ARE DOING! Here's a few tips to make everyone a little bit safer on the roads: 

1: If it's dark, gloomy, rainy, foggy, or any kind of low visibility while you are driving, TURN ON YOUR LIGHTS! Hey, believe it or not, some of our fine 50 states have a LAW that when your windshield wipers are on (rain) that you MUST turn on your headlights! In some states their signs use the phrase "BURN" headlights, which of course means to turn them ON! Again, maybe YOU can see fine, but when I'm coming up behind you on I-79 in the FOGGY and RAINY hills of West Virginia, you are INVISIBLE in the spray and darkness! Oh, and INVISIBLE equals UNSAFE. 

Shoot, this is such a big deal that most new cars have daytime running lights that are on ALL the time! For safety! That leads us to the next tip...

2: You're driving around with your daytime running lights on, but guess what? Your TAILLIGHTS may NOT be on. With DRLs being a fairly new invention, a LOT of us aren't aware that they might need to turn on the REGULAR headlights just so that the taillights come on. I've seen a TON of you doing this in the dusk and dark, headlights on but NO taillights. It's not rocket science people!

3: TURN SIGNALS, TURN SIGNALS, TURN SIGNALS. Hey, did you know that in some of our wonderful 50 states that it is a LAW that you SIGNAL before ALL LANE CHANGES? It's true! OK, maybe it's not a LAW in your state, but it's a good idea. The biggest safety improvement you can make is to be PREDICTABLE on the road, and signaling BEFORE you turn or change lanes is a great way to do that! I guarantee you that if you turn or change lanes in front of me without signaling that the words "THANKS FOR SIGNALING" will sarcastically come out of my mouth!