January | 2017 | drivetofive

Archive for January, 2017

Visit to the 2017 Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction

Posted in Arizona, Car Show on January 26, 2017 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 550,387

Odometer (ILX): 190,802

“You barely put a dent in that.”

That’s not a comment anyone wants to hear when they’re walking past an $800,000 supercar like music legend Steven Tyler’s Hennessey Venom, or a 1 of 1 Pontiac Kammback Trans Am, or a showroom fresh 47-year-old Chevy pickup with 400 original miles on it.

Fortunately, my friend Chris wasn’t talking about denting a car. He was talking about putting a dent in this gigantic footlong jalapeño & cheddar sausage I picked up from one of the vendors at Saturday’s 46th annual Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction.

You’ve never quite seen an automotive buffet like the one in Scottsdale, Arizona this past week. Over an 8-day period, some 1,700 collector cars found new homes in one of the best-known and widely-viewed auctions in the country. For anyone with a hankering for a slice or two of literature and automobilia, that’s on the menu too. Since 1989, Scottsdale’s venue for the Barrett-Jackson auction has been Westworld, not far from my home. My friend Chris flew in from Baltimore to see what all the sights, sounds, and tastes had to offer. We didn’t go home hungry.

Chris and I attended the auction on Saturday morning. Weather in the Phoenix area had finally broken from a 4-day stretch of rain – much to the relief, I’m sure, of the many people who had their prized, gleaming garage queens out in Westworld’s staging areas for display prior to being auctioned. The ILX got stashed several miles away in the offsite parking lot and we caught a shuttle bus to the epicenter of activity.

It was a star-studded afternoon: Justin Bieber (Ferrari 458), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Chevelle), and Burt Reynolds (Trans Am) each took the mic at different times during the day to hawk their rides. Chris and I made the rounds in both the interior and exterior staging areas. High-dollar “Salon” cars had premium parking in the enclosed areas nearest the auction block. Other cars – not quite as elite but still well out of my price range – resided in the external grounds shaded by tents.

There didn’t seem to be much rhyme nor reason as to how the parking was arranged. It wasn’t uncommon to see a Volkswagen Beetle parked next to a Hummer, parked next to a 1962 Chrysler. But that’s what kept it interesting. There was something for everyone. And new this year, there was a live video stream on B-J’s website so that the “auction action” could be viewed by car enthusiasts both near and far. In all, the week+ long festivities wrapped up with $102 million in sales, with the auction being attended by 320,000 people in person.

Now the automotive buffet got even more interesting. My friend Jonathan Klinger from Hagerty called and offered a couple of tickets to skybox #11 in the auction hall – an exclusive opportunity to rub shoulders with the cast & crew from Velocity TV channel. Not to mention, snacks and drinks were on the house, and the view from high above the show floor couldn’t have been better. I’ve now been spoiled with skybox access twice, since last year I attended in Acura’s skybox when the 2017 NSX VIN 001 was auctioned off for $1.2 million.

Barrett-Jackson truly was a feast for all the senses. Now if only I could have brought home some take-out. In the form of a shiny new toy, of course. Many thanks to the organizers of Barrett-Jackson for admitting me with a media credential this year!

Here’s a short video I captured of Bieber’s Ferrari on stage with a few of his comments at the end.

Bus ride from the “offsite purple lot” where we’d parked the ILX, several miles away.

Media creds!

This NSX used to be Berlina Black. It’s a custom build by Clarion car audio.

The “Salon” area, including Justin Bieber’s matte-blue-wrapped Ferrari in the foreground.

This 1958 Chevy Corvette was named “Eye Candy.”

30-year-old Buick GNX with only 1,524 miles on it.

I always think of Skittles candy when I see a color like this McLaren was wearing.

“Breathing New Life Into a Legend”

Loved this “barn find” Shelby Cobra GT 350. They didn’t even run it through the coin-op wash!

The “tri-five” (55, 56, 57) Chevy Bel Airs are always a hit.

I loved the design on the dashboard of this 1962 Chrysler Imperial.

Only 246 miles on this Pontiac! Talk about fresh.

Quick meet-up with RealTime racing legend Peter Cunningham.

This pair of 1970 Chevy pickups came from a barn in Alberta, Canada. Each one has fewer than 1,000 miles on it.

What’s not to love about a bright red 1990 Lotus Esprit?

Outside tent area with vendors and more cars

Sing it with me. “Apple bottom jeans….”

Custom car builder Dave Kindig in the background at the Velocity TV skybox.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on stage talking about his Chevelle.

“Chasing Classic Cars” host Wayne Carini.

Thanks for coming along!

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Rock & Roll Marathon Weekend – Future Classics Car Show – & Special Visitors

Posted in Arizona, Car Show, Running on January 22, 2017 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 550,387

Odometer (ILX): 190,476

It’s been a full house at Hotel Hugie this week. I’ve had company cycling in and out for the past week or so and I’m happy to play host! Visiting from Palm Springs, California was my friend Scott who came to town on business AND to market his bright yellow 1977 Honda Civic which went up for sale at a collector car auction later in the week. It brought $14,000!

Last Sunday, I ran the 14th annual Rock & Roll Half-Marathon in Phoenix with my mother who had driven down from Utah. Race day weather couldn’t have been better: even though the forecast had called for a 30%+ chance of rain, things stayed dry and the overcast skies kept it from getting too warm. In the end, I somehow pulled off a 2 hour, 22 minute finish time with mom sneaking past the finish line at 1:58.

Darn it mom, I’ll beat you someday.

On Monday evening I attended the second-annual “Future Classics Car Show,” sponsored in part by ClassicCars.com, Hagerty, as well as other names in the collector car industry. It was open to all years, makes, and models, but I opted to take my 1994 Legend GS sedan since it hadn’t seen the light of day in a few weeks. The car didn’t exactly fit in — most vehicles in the show were more of a ‘tuner’ variety, with big wings, decals, and racing wheels. But I was happy to represent the all-stock Japanese luxo-sedan. Parked next to me was my friend Kyle in his 2005 Pontiac GTO, which incidentally ended up winning a trophy in its class. Congrats, Kyle!

On Wednesday, I made a trip to the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport to pick up my good friend Chris who’d just flown in 5 hours from Baltimore to spend a few days with me. Chris and I have been ‘car friends’ since the late 1990s when we were both dabbling in Honda Prelude circles. This week, he became the first of my friends who has driven all 6 of my cars. There you go Chris, the proof is in writing! You win the grand prize!

It was an action-packed few days complete with highs and lows. Mother Nature dished out lots of rain which put a damper on Chris’ travel plans, but it didn’t keep him from taking a trip to Sedona in the Legend sedan and hiking 7 miles in the mud to Devil’s Bridge. Getting there was an adventure in itself. He’d intended to take the NSX but only made it 15 miles north of town when the car left him stranded thanks to a faulty ignition switch. A $195 tow and $101 (parts & labor) repair later, the car was back on the road the next day thanks to Science of Speed in Chandler. First time that one has seen a tow truck in the five years I’ve owned it!

On Friday, I telecommuted and supervised Chris while he did some ILX maintenance for me, including replacement of rear brake pads, the engine air filter, and the serpentine belt.

I introduced him to my favorite Mexican place, “Lose Dos Molinos,” on Camelback Road later that evening to compensate him in part for his labor efforts. A couple of other special guests made their debut at my home including Mark McCourt and Jeff Koch from Hemmings, then Jonathan Klinger from Hagerty. Talk about friends in high places. I was honored to have such automotive elites checking out my home and garage. I thank them for helping keep the car collecting community alive.

Speaking of car collecting, you’ll soon read more about my trip to the 46th annual Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction which was our source of entertainment all day Saturday. Watch for an upcoming post on that.

Which brings us to the final chapter of Chris’ visit, in which we took a 250-ish mile round trip to Tucson & back in the Legend coupe to tour the Pima Air & Space Museum, a collection of hundreds of retired aircraft. My favorite was getting to see the Douglas VC-118A that served as Air Force One for Presidents Kennedy & Johnson during the early 1960s (pictured below). On the way back, I introduced Chris to In-N-Out Burger, a favorite fast food chain in this region. He said the shake wasn’t half bad.

That puts a wrap on what you’ve missed during the last couple of weeks. Now, make the most of the few minutes of the weekend that remain! I know I will! Until next time.

Interior of Scott’s 1977 Civic.

Some literature my friend Richard sent me. Love this old stuff!

Scott gave me a huge “A” for my garage. It used to adorn an auto show display booth.

Also had a visit from my friend Ryan and 3 of his 4 kiddos. The guest book is filling up nicely!

Not to mention this crowd of troublemakers I hosted for pasta dinner the night before the half-marathon.

Another shot from the Future Classics Car Show

Grabbing a bite with Sam and Kyle

Headed to pick up Chris from the airport and my friend Lance happened to be right behind me! He snapped this shot!

Chris’ arrival. He’s come out at least 3 times now from Baltimore to visit.

Shots Chris took with the Legend sedan on the Red Rock Scenic Byway in Sedona, Arizona.

Maintenance underway!

Mark from Hemmings gave me these awesome VHS promotional tapes from the 1990s! I can’t wait to put them to use!

This postcard was inside one of them. “The question isn’t whether to lease an Acura, but rather which Acura to lease. We understand what a difficult decision it is, and we recommend you seek professional help. From your professionally helpful Acura dealer.” Love that! I’ll take one of each!

Visit from Hagerty’s main man in Traverse City, Jonathan Klinger.

Hitting up a mecca for airplane geeks

The SR-71 Blackbird, this example from 1964, maxes out at over 2,100 miles per hour and flies at 85,000 feet. This is a serious aircraft.

Double-double, animal style! If you know what that is, you’ve been to In-N-Out Burger.

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2017 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Michigan

Posted in Car Show on January 11, 2017 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 190,267

Aloha from 35,000 feet. As I generate these thoughts, I’m midway through Delta’s 4-hour flight #2021 with service from Detroit to Phoenix, and luckily a sweet old woman swapped me into her window seat way back here in row 31 so I can at least enjoy the scenery a little.

The North American International Otto Show. Wait – Otto? Yes. Did you know that the Detroit Auto Show was originally named for Otto Shaw, a German Immigrant who opened Detroit’s first used car dealership on Woodward Avenue? The show was named the Detroit Auto Show until 1989 when it finally took on the “international” flavor when organizers decided it was only fair to recognize the fact that more than just the United States produced cars. This factoid comes from “autoblopnik” with tongue in cheek, but one fact holds true with definite certainty: This show is the country’s most extravagant display of automaker fanfare related to new model releases each year.

This year marked the 5^th anniversary of my first trip to the show, back in January 2012. At that time, I was attending the Media Days as a guest of Acura along with a group of a half-dozen or so automotive bloggers. The main event of interest for me was the unveil of two cars that year: The ILX Concept and the NSX Concept. Oddly enough it has taken Acura almost these entire last 5 years to fully bring the NSX to market (it sold between 60 and 70 units in December 2016) but the ILX is already in its 5^th model year and has had a light refresh as of two years ago. Heck, by the time the fully-redesigned second-gen ILX comes around (maybe for the 2018 model year?) I’ll probably have 200,000 miles on mine.

Redline Reviews, hopefully by now one of your favorite YouTube car review channel subscriptions, invited me to be part of the team. I worked with Editor-in-Chief Sofyan Bey, along with his support staff members Peace and Rob, who together produce some of the most thorough and timely video segments in the industry on automotive reviews, new vehicle reveals, and other industry news. We stayed at a ruggedly industrial repurposed bottling plant from the 1930s on Fort Street, just a mile away from Cobo Center which is the convention hall that becomes the epicenter of all NAIAS activity for the week.

On Monday, January 9^th, we staked out our spot in the Media Center by 6:30 a.m. (remember, that’s 4:30 in the morning for this Arizona guy!) and hit the show floor running by the time the first press conference, Chevy’s, kicked off at 7:30. In all, the day involved walking some 14,000 steps totaling out to over 8 miles. Each automaker’s booth more impressive than the last, many of which offering up food and beverages in attempt to woo the journalists. It worked for me. I’ve never met a finger food I didn’t like.

A productive day it was. In all, Sofyan and crew – myself included – captured footage for 10 videos. Noteworthy subject matter included the new Subaru WRX, Chevy Traverse, GMC Terrain, Honda Odyssey, Ford F-150, Kia Stinger, Lexus LS500, and Toyota Camry – all of which are either brand new or very substantially revised models for the 2018 model years and beyond.

The crazy thing is just how far the bar continues to be raised. Almost every press conference transcript includes the words “safer, stronger, more fuel efficient, faster.” Every year we seem to be creeping ever-closer to automotive perfection. Where a few years ago it was revolutionary for an automaker to have a 7 or 8 speed automatic transmission, some (Odyssey, F-150) are now getting 10 speeds.

Going by the wayside are large displacement V8 engines. Even the 2018 Lexus LS series (above), which debuted 28 years ago in 1989 as the company’s flagship sedan, for the first time will now only be offered with a twin-turbo V6 motor. That’s not to say it’s taking a step back in power, since the V6 still pushes out over 400 horsepower. And the “electrification” of the automobile industry expands with each year. Honda announced that half of its new models in the next 3 years will be “electrified” in some way. Gas pumps are inevitably being replaced by power plugs.

A full day of work by me and the rest of the Redline team was followed by an evening at the charming home of Motor Trend Editor, Frank Markus, and his husband Michael in the suburb of Royal Oak about 25 minutes north of downtown. I picked up a friend from the airport and we headed to the festivities. There, I was able to rub shoulders with the automotive elite like auto reviewer Jason Cammisa who hosts Motor Trend’s “Ignition” segment and garners tens of thousands of views, as well as Steve Siler and Brian Gurney, pictured above.

Detroit got its fair share of overnight snow on Monday – so much, in fact, that my rental Chevy Sonic LTZ was nearly stuck a few times while I navigated my way around town. I’m a noob when it comes to snow driving. I’ll remind you, it’s been 11 years since I moved to Phoenix. I made a few visits to local friends and made my way back to the McNamara terminal at Detroit’s international airport. And with that concluded an action-packed 48 hours in Motor City. It was worth every second, and every air-mile. Thanks for reading!

Here’s a 13-minute video of some ramblings Sofyan and I shared after the first day of the show.

Dollar rent-a-car gave me the choice of any compact in this lineup. I just picked the Sonic at the far end.

Press conference lineup for Monday morning, January 9th. Each automaker gets 25 minutes to wow and impress us.

Visiting my friend Waseem who just recently bought a place in Grosse Pointe, about 10 mi north of downtown.

Waseem’s 1990 Legend LS tucked away.

Dinner with other local friends Hass and his lovely wife.

This was an amazing fish taco from a place called Batch Brewery.

Our AirBNB accommodations in downtown Detroit.

The crowd goes wild over the 2018 Chevrolet Traverse.

Still one of my favorite designs ever: The Genesis G80 rear.

Nissan is bringing out a Rogue Sport model that looks pretty snazzy.

A run-in with none other than the famous “HondaPro” Jason Richmond, who has built a career out of being a Honda brand advocate. You go Jason!

Toyota’s new 2018 Camry is trying pretty hard to look sporty. This “XSE” version even includes quad exhaust tips.

Big in the news is Kia’s latest offering, the “Stinger” GT. Complete with Brembo brakes and the whole 9!

Sweet car in Motor Trend Editor Frank’s garage. 1985 Town & Country!

Snowy Tuesday morning in downtown Detroit. I got to use the ice scraper on my Sonic.

BONUS MATERIAL! My friend Scott is storing a 1977 Honda Civic CVCC in my garage for about a week until it gets auctioned off.

And my roommate James is testing a 2017 Honda Ridgeline this week. That means there are a lot of Hondas around this house right now!

Finally, my long-time friend Chris stopped by this evening to show me his latest ride: a 1999 Mitsubishi 3000GT SL 5-speed. It only has 97,000 miles on it. I’ve loved these cars since they first came out.

Those seats were in remarkable shape for being 18 years old. Congrats, Chris!

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Birthday #35 and New Year 2017 Celebrations

Posted in Blog, ILX, Maintenance on January 7, 2017 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 550,089

Trip Distance: 232 Miles

Welcome back to the start of a new year and a few more miles to be driven!

Here’s how my last few years have gone.

2014: 128 blog posts, 115,740 views and 41,008 visitors
2015: 95 blog posts, 113,438 views and 39,165 visitors
2016: 84 blog posts, 107,955 views and 40,495 visitors

Clearly I’m posting less frequently and it looks like that also translates into fewer views overall, though somehow “visitors” remains steady. Today’s post is just a quickie as I’m out the door (and in the air) at 7:05 a.m. tomorrow morning for my annual trip to the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Michigan.

Here was a fun 2016 annual mileage summary that I put together a few days ago with some notes at the bottom if you’d like to geek out with me.

We need to have a moment of silence for a newly-departed 2001 MDX that reader “Russell” emailed me about. After 15 reliable years of service, his MDX succumbed to a rusty frame and had to be retired at 525,609 miles on the odometer.

Russell’s email stated:

Tyson, the harsh chemicals used to treat Connecticut roads took out my car today. The part of the body that bolts to rear axle was destroyed by the salts. Done at 525k. Picked up a certified RDX today w 55k.

Best of luck with your RDX, my friend!

Winter’s weather wrath is something we don’t really have to deal with here in the Grand Canyon State. My backyard, in fact, is still green and I had to mow it the other day – even if only to pick up a few fallen leaves from the tree back there.

I celebrated a milestone of my own last week by hitting 35 years on my odometer a couple of weeks ago.

It was a memorable occasion for many reasons. One of them was a visit from my friend Paul who’s based in Honolulu but happened to be passing through town with his mother and his girlfriend.

Later that evening, some of my friends took me out to eat at one of my favorite restaurants.

I pulled the Integra out on the grass for a couple of evening photographs.

One of the buildings in Tempe has windows that can be used to spell things out. When the Super Bowl was in town a couple of years ago, it said XLIX. Last week it simply said “2017.”

Speaking of XLIX, and ILX, I had a 190,000-mile oil change (they call it a “B1” service) and tire rotation last week. The technician noted a few maintenance items that may need to be addressed in the near future. Among them:

Rear brake pad replacement
Leaking rear shock replacement
Air and cabin filter replacement
Serpentine belt replacement
Brake fluid flush
Clutch fluid flush

Guess it’s time to blow the dust off the old wallet (I learned that phrase from Josh) the next time I go in for service.

My friends and I took a drive to Tucson, Arizona for our New Year festivities.

My friend James let us stay overnight in his historic 1914 home near the University of Arizona.

On my drive home, I received a picture of myself from another friend who wasn’t traveling with us but who happened to come up behind me on Interstate 10 westbound just outside Phoenix. The world is too small.

This morning I cruised down to Chandler, Arizona for an annual New Year Meet at Science of Speed, an NSX & S2000 specialty shop that I use for some of my maintenance needs. There was a really nice turnout – probably 30 to 40 cars. One of them was this unassuming 1992 Formula Red that looks a lot like mine.

Until you peek at the odometer: 347,216. Wow! The owner said he’d owned it for 14 years and the car is still on its original engine and transmission.

Have a great rest of your weekend! I’ll be freezing my buns off in Michigan but seeing some hot cars (hopefully) at the auto show.

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