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BMW 2002 – Holt Ave, Los Angeles

June 8th, 2010 by Nick

Nothing wrong with a custom 2002. Blah blah blah stock this stock that blah blah. Sometimes you gotta just do what you want to make the car your own. This thing has been pushed and pulled to fit into the owner’s mold of his ideal car and he couldn’t be happier. No, I’m not making assumptions that the driver is, in fact, a he. He happened to come out of his house while I was visually molesting his car with my iPhone. Bobby doesn’t care about resale value or keeping a binder stocked full of original receipts and bills of sales, he claims that got thrown out at least five owners ago. He’s in this to “drive this thing into the ground.” He loves it and so do I. Keep on truckin’, Bobby.

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Toyota Land Cruiser LWB – Wilshire Blvd (Koreatown), LA

June 2nd, 2010 by Nick

You asked for it! That’s what I whispered to this long-wheel base Toyota Land Cruiser diesel as I snuck up on it in a seemingly deserted parking structure. I mean, c’mon, what car isn’t begging to be photographed when perfectly back into a parking spot on the ground floor of a Koreatown lot while all the rest of the poor saps are at work? Before they were bulbous, available in colors they should never be available in and came standard with a multi-disc changer and iPod adapter, the Land Cruiser was a badass piece of Japanese off-road machinery. Standing the test of time, this beast is still more than capable of handling the rocky terrain of the foothills or the treacherous streets of Miracle Mile.  No matter what, Toyota, both then and now, got that two-tone thing down pat with that unmistakable crisp roof.

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Chevy Chevelle SS – State St, Santa Barbara

March 12th, 2010 by Nick

So Sick. Super Sexy. Sensationally Stylish. Simply Smashing. Sensually Seductive. Sinfully Smooth. Assign what words you will, the SS is worn like a badge of honor on all worthy bowties, and worn with pride. This drop-top Chevelle was sitting pretty in a bank parking lot when I ran across the street to capture its powerful, nonchalant stance. Like the silent man with a double black-belt, leaning calmly against the bar — he doesn’t need to talk about the fact that he can kill you twelve different ways with his hands — but he can. Of course, when your muscle car comes with its own guard dog, who cares what color the belt is.

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BMW 2002 – Sawtelle blvd, West LA

February 24th, 2010 by Nick

2002 isn’t a great year to be named after, but I guess it’s better than 1987. Okay, maybe it’s just a number to differentiate between 2 and 4 door models. And although all cars look good in the rain, this 2002 might just look better than most. It’s the perfect mix between tying a sweater around your shoulders and heading to the tennis club, and racing the VW next to you through the canyon.

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Volvo 1800E – Hewwit St. – Downtown Los Angeles

February 22nd, 2010 by Nick

Soccer moms and squared-off backs? PSSSHHHH. Before they made the safest cars on the planet, they made cars good enough for second rate James Bond actor’s wannabe James Bond roles. Yeah, I said it. Understated yet classy, refined yet tough. Almost makes me wish our Swedish friends would jump on the American throwback train, dip into their archives and design a heavily inspired 2013 1800.

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BMW 2000CS – Mission Street, Santa Barbara CA

February 15th, 2010 by Nick

Badges? We don’t need no stinkin’ badges! Alright, it has a few left on it, but other than those, this thing could care less about what fancy, German car plant it originally came from. This ride was set up to rip, and it looks the part. It is just dirty and banged up enough to recognize the owner loves it, but knew it’s roll at the same time. The cracked, faded paint mixed with the snooty angle of the front grill gives the car an air of arrogance – like a retired, handsome prize-fighter.

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Under the hood: Daniel Miller

January 20th, 2010 by Nick

Pictured – Beat reporter, rocker and all around cool guy Daniel Miller and his 1972 Datsun 240Z

In a town known for fakes, phonies and fantastic tales projected at 2.39:1, a man whose job it is to find the truth has a tendency to fall out of focus behind the sheer number of those trying to pass off the fabricated as fact. But when that same man emerges, red-lining it, from the depths of obscurity, behind the wheel of an early 70′s exotic with stretched lines and sleek curves, that man gets noticed. Even if that exotic was paid for in Yen.

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Porsche Carrera – Robertson Blvd., Los Angeles

January 11th, 2010 by Nick

car1aWe all know that feeling. You suddenly notice the girl next door. You finally pay attention to what’s beautiful about that famous painting. On the radio, you hear an old song your dad used to sing along to in a whole new way. That thing you’ve experienced a million times suddenly becomes…something else. Because of the setting, because of who you happen to be at that moment, a familiar thing takes on a whole new life. The ordinary becomes extraordinary. That old Carrera has been parked there for months, but walking by today, it stood out. The lines looked sleeker and the fenders more brooding. The old familiar statue took a breath, and we took notice. No need for dates and codes, trim levels or colors, we’ve all seen it a million times. Just another Carrera parked on the curb.

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Chevy Camaro Z28 Type LT – Holt Ave, Los Angeles

January 5th, 2010 by Nick

CAMARO Z28 TYPE LT - HOLT AVE, LAThe dented rear fender from prom night ’77. The cigarette burn from a drunken night at the disco on new years ’80. The scratch down the passenger door from shopping kart bowling on a warm night in ’83. The stories these survivors tell through their scars and battle wounds get silenced during a restoration, and the soft whispers of debauchery fall on deaf ears under a glossy coat of candy.

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Under the hood: Robbie Pyle

December 24th, 2009 by Nick

Pictured – Robbie Pyle and his 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GT

Robbie Pyle and his 1965 ALPHA ROMEO GIULIA SPRINT GT
An Alfa Romeo isn’t exactly the car people picture when referencing a self-proclaimed “skate-rat.” But believe it or not, a dirty skateboard fits just as nicely in the back of a vintage European classic as it does in any other cool car usually associated with younger “hip” kids in LA. However, looks can be deceiving. In a town where appearance is viewed as being essential to status, Robbie breaks the stereotype.

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