2025 JAVA HOUSE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY

Posted on August 8, 2025August 8, 2025 by MartynL

Fast cars and coffee pods provide perky stimulation for INDYCAR fans at the 2025 JAVA HOUSE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY. CGC’s Jim Palam was trackside. WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca is about a four-hour drive North from my home in Solvang, CA, and a world away from mundane tasks that make up my average days. It's no surprise that we are sometimes called Adrenaline Junkies; our hearts beat faster, and our focus is sharper when we're participating in enthusiast automotive activities. So it was wi...

’62 PLYMOUTH 413 MAX WEDGE MUSCLECAR

Posted on August 1, 2025August 1, 2025 by MartynL

Whatever the ’62 PLYMOUTH 413 MAX WEDGE MUSCLECAR lacked in style, it more than made up for with Super/Stock performance! In 1957, the Automobile Manufacturers Association’s ban on member auto racing participation and promotion was about as effective as the United Nations! Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors signed on, but never actually stopped developing and producing high-performance engines and “supporting” racers. Many of the high-performance brake, chassis, and suspension packages were ini...

’64 FORD 427 GALAXIE

Posted on July 26, 2025July 26, 2025 by MartynL

Ford continues its Win On Sunday, Sell on Monday marketing mantra, with a packed performance portfolio including an updated ’64 FORD 427 GALAXIE. In 1964, Ford carried over its winning ways with new engines, race-only cars available for purchase, a game-changing Mustang, and aggressive dealer marketing and advertising programs. “It is the full intent of the Ford Division to continue its total commitment to open competition during the 1964 model year. For only under the conditions exi...

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’: CORVETTE CONCEPT

Posted on July 24, 2025July 24, 2025 by MartynL

With apologies to the Mamas & Papas, GM’s latest - CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’: CORVETTE CONCEPT - is inspired by Southern California! GM has revealed the second in a series of three Chevrolet Corvette concept design studies to debut in 2025. The California Corvette concept was developed by GM’s Advanced Design studios in Pasadena, as part of a global design project. This latest concept reimagines the Corvette with a futuristic, Southern California twist and reflects GM’s deep roots in the SoCa...

WEDGE REVOLUTION @ PETERSEN MUSEUM

Posted on July 20, 2025July 20, 2025 by MartynL

Concept and production cars on the cutting edge are showcased in the WEDGE REVOLUTION @ PETERSEN MUSEUM. Innovative cars that pushed the limits of automotive design will take center stage in the newest exhibit, WEDGE REVOLUTION @ PETERSEN MUSEUM. The Wedge Revolution: Cars on the Cutting Edge will open on August 2nd and explore the emergence, evolution, and impact of head-turning, wedge-shaped concept and production automotive design from the 1960s to the 1980s. Located in the museum’s Desig...

’66 OLDS 4-4-2: TRI-POWER ROCKET!

Posted on July 12, 2025July 12, 2025 by MartynL

One of the early adopters of street performance (’49 Rocket V-8 coupe), Oldsmobile kicked butt with the ’66 OLDS 4-4-2: TRI-POWER ROCKET! When carmakers announced their 1966 models in September 1965, it was like the Musclecar/Supercar floodgates had opened. Ford had already proven that its 1964-1965 marketing mantra – “Win On Sunday, Sell On Monday” – worked. For 1966, Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors unleashed their all-time hottest models, and it was nirvana for car enthusiasts and ...

DEFENDER OCTA: BLACK, BOLD & BOOSTED

Posted on July 3, 2025July 3, 2025 by MartynL

Powered by a 626-horsepower, twin-turbo 4.4‑litre mild-hybrid V8, the new DEFENDER OCTA: BLACK, BOLD & BOOSTED is truly a rock star! Defender OCTA Black, the master of on & off-road performance, has a new, even bolder attitude. Extensive black detailing for the high-performance 4x4 hero gives the toughest, most capable, and most luxurious model in the Defender family an even more purposeful presence and greater luxury. As many as 30 exterior elements have received black finis...

‘69 BOSS 302 ROAD & TRACK MUSTANG

Posted on July 2, 2025July 2, 2025 by MartynL

Ford’s new Boss, Bunkie Knudsen, fast-tracked the long-awaited ‘69 BOSS 302 ROAD & TRACK MUSTANG, Dearborn’s Z/28 Camaro challenger. Mustangs had been on two-year restyling cycles, and there were major changes in 1969. Overall length was increased by almost four inches and width by approximately one-quarter inch. Curb weight was up by 140 pounds. Leading the charge was a portfolio of Mustangs, ranging from the Boss 302, above, photo by Stuart Schorr, to the R-Code 428 Cobra Jet Ram...

CHRYSLER 300: LETTER SERIES SUPERCARS

Posted on June 19, 2025June 19, 2025 by MartynL

Chrysler jumped on the performance bandwagon in 1955 with its 300-horsepower C-300, kicking off a decade of CHRYSLER 300: LETTER SERIES SUPERCARS. Chrysler’s letter-series entry in the 1955 horsepower wars, weighing in at more than 4,500 pounds, could accelerate to 60 mph in the 9s and top out at 130 mph. In NASCAR competition, Kiekhaefer’s legendary Chrysler C-300s were the cars to beat. Chrysler’s Hemi, one of the most successful engines in American racing history, was unstoppable on ...

FERRARI 308 BUYER’S GUIDE

Posted on June 15, 2025 by MartynL

Hagerty’s Alisdair Suttie analyzes the ‘affordable’ machine from Maranello in this 1976-1985 FERRARI 308 BUYER’S GUIDE. One of the last real Ferraris manufactured when Enzo Ferrari was intimately involved in making decisions and creating new models, the 308, above, owned by Sarasota Café Racer's Graham Cave, bridged the gap between sports cars and Supercars. In many ways, it’s the entry-level or Junior Supercar that Tom Selleck turned into the true star of TV’s Magnum P.I. Fallen out of...