Category: cars

  • Canepa Cars & Coffee returns for 2017 (gallery)

    Canepa Cars & Coffee returns for 2017 (gallery)

    If you don’t know about Bruce Canepa’s shop and the Cars & Coffee the shop runs throughout spring and summer, you’re missing out on one of the most impressive car gatherings in California. Although Canepa is known for restoring priceless vintage cars and race cars, there’s always a good mix of cars during the Cars…

  • Hooked On Driving review: a newbie’s perspective

    Hooked On Driving review: a newbie’s perspective

    After hemming and hawing for years about signing up for my first track day, I finally bit the bullet a couple of months ago and signed up with a Hooked On Driving trackday at Thunderhill Raceway Park. Speaking with my friends about what track day organizations I should go with, Hooked On Driving was always…

  • Driving Roads: Palomares Road, the East Bay’s hidden gem

    Driving Roads: Palomares Road, the East Bay’s hidden gem

    Hidden in the East Bay hills is one of my favorite driving roads. Palomares Road runs between Castro Valley and Fremont, running parallel between highways 880 and 680. It’s a beautiful two-lane road that features a gorgeous view of lush, green hills as well as some redwood trees. Palomares offers a blend of quick sweepers…

  • Review: Nameless Axelback with 5″ offset mufflers for BRZ/FR-S/GT86 [UPDATE w/ video]

    Review: Nameless Axelback with 5″ offset mufflers for BRZ/FR-S/GT86 [UPDATE w/ video]

    The stock exhaust on the BRZ sounds asthmatic. You can tell Subaru and Toyota wanted the car to be a relatively quiet daily driver but for us enthusiasts want a bit more sound. Subaru and Toyota engineered a sound pipe that connects to the intake tube to pump induction noise into the cabin but sounds…

  • This Pokéball shift knob cover will make me the coolest kid at the car meet

    This Pokéball shift knob cover will make me the coolest kid at the car meet

      My stainless steel WC Lathe Werks shift knob combined with the hot California sun add up to create a molten ball of pain when left baking outside. I love the weight, look, and feel of my metal shift knob but its biggest downside is that it gets too hot to the touch if I…

  • The LEGO Ferrari F40 is a masterpiece

    The LEGO Ferrari F40 is a masterpiece

    The new LEGO Ferrari F40 model did justice to the car I obsessed over as a kid. At the time of its release, Ferrari was known for its V12 engines, which made the twin-turbo V8 F40 a bit of an oddball. The car made 471 HP and only weighed 2,400 lbs, which is about 300…

  • Mountek nGroove vs. Koomus CD-Eco: comparison and review

    Mountek nGroove vs. Koomus CD-Eco: comparison and review

      There are a ton of ways to mount your smartphone in your car from suction cups to vent mounts. However, not all vent mounts work in every car and suction cups may fall off when the temperature changes. The best solution for me has been CD slot car mounts, which cannibalize the CD slot…

  • 11 reasons why I still love my Subaru BRZ

    11 reasons why I still love my Subaru BRZ

      The Subaru BRZ isn’t perfect. I’ve already written about the 12 most frustrating things about the BRZ but after three years of ownership, I’ve never been tempted to sell or trade in the car. The BRZ has always been a controversial car with critics lamenting its lack of power and its fans lauding its…

  • 12 most frustrating things about the Subaru BRZ

    12 most frustrating things about the Subaru BRZ

    I love my Subaru BRZ but it’s not without its frustrations. This shouldn’t be much of a surprise since the car is a cheap Japanese sports coupe after all. There are always compromises that manufacturers make when creating a car. Family sedans compromise fun and handling for luxury and utility. Sports cars compromise utility and…

  • Why I choose to drive a manual transmission

    Why I choose to drive a manual transmission

    My left leg is tired. It’s 10PM on the 4th of July and I’m stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 heading towards San Francisco. I glance at my Waze app and it’s a sea of red. I slowly inch off the clutch, add a tiny bit of gas and repeat. Clutch out, gas, clutch in.…

  • How to drive on a two-lane backroad

    How to drive on a two-lane backroad

    Summer’s here and you’ll likely find yourself driving along some beautiful backroads on your way to your vacation destination. But unlike the highway, there are specific rules and etiquette for driving on backroads that you may not realize. Here are my tips on how to drive safely and courteously on two-lane backroads. Be aware of what’s…

  • Photos from Blackhawk Cars and Coffee, June 2015

    Photos from Blackhawk Cars and Coffee, June 2015

    Last week I finally got a chance to attend Blackhawk Cars and Coffee in Danville, California. I knew it was going to be a big gathering of car enthusiast but I was blown away by the sheer size and variety of cars. Anne and I met up with a few of the guys from the…