The First Slow Car Fast Event of 2020
A new book signing, plus unexpected auctions and the rise of 4x4 shows.
A weekly newsletter by Ryan K. ZumMallen | @zoomy575m
Happy Race Day, especially to the woman who convinced the Internet she sanded her tires perfectly flat “so that my car will ride smoother on the interstate.”
Well, 2020 sure is off to a hell of a start.
We wrapped a busy holiday season with orders for Slow Car Fast keeping us signing and shipping and signing and shipping. And so on. If you haven’t gotten yours yet and are thinking of doing so, don’t worry, more copies are on their way to inventory now.
And if you want to grab one in person, come see us at this upcoming event!
We’re extremely proud to partner with Autobooks-Aerobooks, a Los Angeles staple and the oldest and largest automotive bookstore in the country. You can pre-order a signed copy right here, and pick it up in-store on next Saturday, February 1 from 10:00am-2:00pm. We should have a great crowd! Come on out!
I’m so thrilled to start the year this way, and can’t wait to tell you more about some of the other plans we have in store. Now, let’s get to the news!
Culture
YouTuber and Instagram star Alex Choi took a break from desecrating supercars to take his Radical SR3, a non-street legal racecar, through a coffee shop drive-thru.
Emelia Hartford has the whole video. They were towing the Radical with a Tesla when it ran out of juice. Then a tire on the trailer blew. Fun watch. Illegal, but fun.
File this one to the “Cars Are Too Fast” file. McLaren pulled off a major achievement when its 1,000-hp Speedtail hit the 250 mph mark in testing. Then they did it again. And again. And 27 more times.
How long has Indy 500 winner Will Power been waiting to make this joke? If I had to guess I would say… his whole life:
How good have video games gotten? I bet you can’t tell which of these images is real and which is fake.
For the most astute auto industry analysis, of course, you need only look to the sitcom Frasier from 20 years ago:
Electric performance mods are coming. The tuner Bisi Ezerioha scared the hell out of Hot Wheels director Jun Imai with a recent test of his Porsche EV.
The Tesla Cybertruck is design malfeasance. But the CyberKart, made in a garage by race-driver brothers Jordan and Ricky Taylor with cardboard and tin foil, is delightful.
I absolutely loved this essay about chasing the dream of #vanlife and finding complete disaster.
Video Reel
Stanford engineers built a robot = Nerds. The robot is a DeLorean and they taught it to drift = I’m listening.
The film “Apex,” about auto personality Alex Roy and his quest to break the Cannonball record from New York to L.A., is now available on Netflix, Amazon and iTunes. Catch it if you haven’t yet.
I don’t like when idiots leave car shows with outrageous drifts that endanger spectators. I do like when they unknowingly do it right in front of a cop.
If you’re going to spend $2 million on a Ferrari SP2 Monza, you should absolutely take it snow drifting in the Alps.
Slow-moving traffic on a freeway on-ramp is no problem if you have a Volvo, some dirt and a screw loose.
Race Results
Formula One teams seemed eager to lock up their futures over the holiday. Ferrari signed Charles LeClerc to a whopping five-year deal and Max Verstappen re-upped with Red Bull for four. So yeah, Charles v. Max is going to be a thing for the foreseeable future.
Veteran motorsport journalist Sam Smith is leaving e-racing365, and penned a beautiful goodbye with memories from his time watching Formula E grow into a sensation.
In a huge step forward for the league, the all-women’s W Series will compete alongside Formula One in both the U.S. and Mexico this season.
The Forza RC racing series counted down its top ten passes of the 2019 season, which is a pretty clever way to package highlights to attract new fans. Some great action and talent here. I really enjoyed No. 5.
The real Dale Earnhardt Jr. hopped on the online sim iRacing to trade paint with a few lucky gamers. Super cool to see the different ways sim racing is making dreams come true.
Loved this Twitter thread of notable drivers of Jewish descent through history. Hope everyone had a nice Hanukkah!
Some demented race fan took an IndyCar video game from 1995 and installed modern liveries on all the cars.
Remember Cole Hearn, the NASCAR crew chief who abruptly quit a dream job? He’s running a ski resort in his native Canada.
Ask A Millennial! Jeff Hernandez, 31
Trucks are everywhere these days. Not just far-off dirt trails and towing boats and horse trailers, but showing up in curated shows specifically dedicated to our 4x4 friends. That’s how I found Jeff, whose pristine Toyota trucks keep popping into my Instagram feed as he tours the SoCal shows to share his rides. Here is an edited version of our conversation:
The 4x4 community has gained a ton of interest through the power of social media. Toyota trucks and 4Runners were not being restored like they are now. In recent years they’ve shot up in price and interior parts are becoming sacred because of such high interest and little aftermarket support for restorations.
I host a Quarterly Classic Toyota Truck Meet and there’s no doubt in my mind they would have not taken place without it. Instagram, Facebook and other outlets let me advertise and connect with other enthusiasts with the push of a button. Something that amazes me is bringing both the older generation and newer generation together at these meets. It’s great to see them connect, share and gain knowledge on these older vehicles. And I’m lucky enough to have met some of my closest friends through the power of social media.
The recent “overlanding” interest has definitely attracted younger 4x4 enthusiasts. The Toyota 4Runner has made comeback because of it. I see them at all the trails. Aftermarket support and accessories are everywhere. Some of these rigs are being built to handle any terrain being thrown at them. Sometimes the older generation gets a little aggravated because all the nearby trials are becoming congested. But it doesn’t matter if you’re driving a 1980 4x4 or a 2019 4Runner — the thing they have in common is passion for off-roading.
I love going up Angeles Crest in my ‘87 Toyota 4WD Turbo, or cruising the coastlines in my ‘86 FJ 60 Land Cruiser, usually with some Rebelution playing through the speakers. I just love the feel of the older 4x4 Toyotas.
Auction Block
The Red Pig itself, a replica of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 that finished second at the 1971 24 Hours of Spa, is open for bidding. In a lot of ways this is a forefather of modern automotive taste: Pumped up by AMG, stripped-out luxury sedan, egregious rally lights and stickers — what’s not to like?
Everyone shut up and buy me this 575 GTC Evoluzione, the last V12 racecar built by Ferrari.
A German race garage is selling a *chef’s kiss* perfect Citroen BX 4 TC rally car and now it’s my favorite website.
How much is an ill-fated supercar from the ‘90s that barely ran when it was brand new worth? Sure, why not:
More sign of the times: Congratulations to a replica Ferrari 250 GT California from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off for selling for $396,000…
…which just barely edged out one of Paul Walker’s BMW M3 Lightweights. The complete set of five went for more than $1.3 million.
On the other hand: A 1967 Mustang driven by Steve McQueen in the film Bullit went for $3.4 million. Old muscle isn’t dead yet!
And Finally…
You may be a car nut. But come back to me when you draw up your own sets of auto-themed nail designs.
Drive hard and be safe.
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Want your event included? Shoot me a note with subject line “Race Day” at ryan@carrarabooks.com.
Don’t forget to follow Carrara Media on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and visit our store to order your copy of Slow Car Fast in paperback or eBook.