Pictured here, a crowning achievement of the human race pitted against the sheer magnitude of planet earth. Yes, the Model T is a monumentally significant innovation that not only put middle America on wheels but also revolutionized the manufacturing and marketing of mass market products for the century to follow. While other automakers were hand-building in the dozens per month volume range, Ford was cranking out a model T every 93 minutes. Not bad for a farm boy from Detroit. But in the grand scheme of it all, the car and newfound sense of industry that it catalyzed, are mere blips in earth’s infinitely chaptered log book. The mountains of Glacier National Park, for instance, were formed 170 million years by huge glaciers of the last ice age. The bedding structures of these rock formations are believed to be the remains of the earliest identified animal life on Earth. To put it bluntly, we are merely visiting here.
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Modern smart phones are entirely too good. My Droid, for instance, has a 16 GB hard drive that is so big that I often forget about pictures I have taken around the city. I cleaned house a little bit recently and figured I would share. These vehicles were seen in and around Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Enjoy
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Raceway Park in Englishtown, NJ was brimming with love for Deutschland during Waterfest 16 last weekend. The annual VW/Audi car show and motorsport event is the largest of its kind in North America and saw damn near 20,000 in attendance this year. Attractions like a tire burn-out contest, drag racing and various judged car shows kept people pretty entertained throughout the 2-day event. And if that didn’t quite keep your attention, there were enough aftermarket part sponsors and vendors to occupy almost a mile of display space. Seriously, they took up a mile of display space at the 2009 event.
Be sure to check out our Engines of Waterfest featured gallery. It’s choc full of glorious headers, carbon fiber accent kits and other engine bay goodies these German car freaks stuffed under the hood.
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Time Square served as the finish line for 125 2010 Gumball Rally cars that participated in the 3,000 mile, cross-continent journey that started in London on on May 1st and ended in our very own Time Square a scant 7 days later on May 7th. Needless to say, locals and tourists alike flocked to the intersection of 42nd & Broadway to catch an eyeful of automotive exotica. Sure, there were a bunch of Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Aston Martins and other six figure sports cars. But perhaps the coolest arrival of all was Tony Hawk in the A-Team van.
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Pictured: Art dealer, silk screen artisan and lover of fine Porsches Bertrand Delacroix inside his print shop in the Boerum Hill area of Brooklyn
We peeked into Bertrand’s massive Brooklyn loft with big, stupid grins plastered onto our faces. Why? Because the 16,000 square foot, mixed use building was filled with enough cool toys and hip furnishings to make any grown man blush. There is a hang glider suspended from the ceiling, vintage French mopeds displayed in the foyer, a beautiful wood-carved pool table and humidor and a bunch of over sized modern paintings hanging from the wall. Perhaps coolest of all, there is a 1:1 Porsche to Pug ratio – seriously, there are 3 of each strewn about this amazing bachelor pad. For the record, Bertrand does have a girlfriend and we’re guessing this glorious man palace didn’t hurt in cementing the relationship.
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Pictured: GM Executive Director of Interior Design David Lyon inside the 2011 Buick Regal
GM gave us an advance preview of their new Buick Regal before it hits dealerships this May. We weren’t able to drive this particular pre-production unit for fear of the wheels rolling off into Park Avenue traffic, but the sporty-looking sedan definitely has some curb appeal – taught surfaces, an athletic stance, upscale styling cues and a level of interior refinement that goes beyond hard plastic and faux chrome accents. Overall, the aura (no pun intended to Saturn may they R.I.P) is decidedly European, which makes sense considering the Regal started life in Germany as an Opel Insignia [GM’s German subsidiary]. The Insignia has been on sale in Europe for about a year, where it sold more than 140,000 units and nabbed European Car of the Year honors. GM tells us it is often cross-shopped with the Audi A4…not too shabby for a brand that was selling rolling barcaloungers not too long ago. The Regal is also sold in China where Buick has achieved unprecedented sales success and possesses an almost Rolls Royce-like status in terms of prestige.
GM is down to its core brands after laying Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Oldsmobile to rest and selling off Saab to the Dutch. So it seems Buick is more important than ever for the GM brand portfolio. But as any auto marketer will tell you, there is no greater challenge than bringing a once great brand like Buick back to life. If Cadillac stands for luxury and Chevy for mass market quality and affordability, that leaves Buick square in the near-luxury segment currently occupied by the likes of Acura, Lexus and Infiniti. Fresh product and contemporary design seen in Buick Lacrosse and Enclave certainly aren’t hurting their chances based on the younger wave of buyers flocking to Buick dealerships. We caught up with 20-year GM vet David Lyon to get his take on things. Dave currently oversees interior design across all of GM’s brands and was formerly Executive Director of GM Asia Pacific Design where, among other projects, he oversaw the design of the utterly gorgeous Buick Riviera concept. More pictures and a Q&A after the jump.
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Pictured: Vintage auto parts giant, eccentric car collector and Packard maniac Fred Kanter with his current daily driver, a two-tone 1979 Buick Electra Limited
We arrived at Fred Kanter’s massive Boonton, NJ warehouse early on a Sunday morning. I had seen the old building a million times before while speeding past on nearby I-287 and was always intrigued. You can’t really miss the place – it has a massive Packard sign affixed to the side as if the iconic, and now defunct, automobiles were being manufactured inside. But Fred, an engineer by trade, is in the business of preserving old cars not building them new. Along with his brother Dan, the Kanter bros started their first automotive business, Kanter Auto Parts, in 1960 when they were teenagers. That company is now the world’s largest supplier of new, used, and reproduction parts for vintage American cars.
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If there were one day of the year that was less offensive than others to drive one of these around, I guess Monday was it. So kudos to the owner of this extra obnoxious HumVee for buying a vehicle that is utilized properly 1 day out of the year. I’m not in the Sierra Club or anything but buying one of these just seems absurd at this point. Yes, I know – high powered sports cars get the same or worse gas mileage as this H1. But at least they fit inside lanes and accelerate like a bat out of hell.
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What did I get for xmas 2009? A few Xbox games, a new lens for my camera and, oh yeah, a massive blizzard that dropped 26 inches on us just before we needed to get into the car for the annual Virginia to North Carolina family holiday trip. The Prius wasn’t exactly cutting the mustard so we rented this fully loaded Chevy Traverse instead.
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This Brooklyn chopper stands out like a skinny girl at a Jenny Craig meeting. From the hand-tooled leather saddle and handmade pipes to the intricate paint scheme and hand formed tank & rear fender, the design detail is simply exquisite. Further supporting this bike’s ultra clean looks, the designer omitted the front brake and fender. Hundreds of man hours and a silly amount of cash have likely gone into its construction. And as you might be able to tell, form definitely trumps function. Your spine will pay for looks this good – the rigid tail and lack of any suspension underneath the seat mean this baby is a real buckaroo over the city streets. This custom chopper is what we call TTT – Tavern To Tavern.
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