December | 2019 | drivetofive

Archive for December, 2019

Rev-Machine: My New “Super Sonic Blue” 1999 Acura Integra GS-R 5-Speed

Posted in California, Integra, Road Trip on December 27, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (1992 Integra GS-R 3-Door): 251,401

Odometer (1992 Integra GS Sedan): 73,376

Odometer (1999 Integra GS-R 3-Door): 136,246

Life’s too short to drive boring cars, right?

I think this is one of my favorite car commercials of all time. And it doesn’t even show the vehicle!

Needless to say, the Integra GS-R is all about having fun. And fun it is.

On June 8, 1999, a businessman in the motion picture industry bought an Integra GS-R with 6 miles on it for his 18-year-old son. The car had been special-ordered through Santa Monica Acura in Southern California in a rare, two-year-only color called Super Sonic Blue Pearl. Not only was the car equipped in the highest-available trim level short of the track-ready “Type R,” it was outfitted with an accessory underbody kit and fog lamps. The MSRP was $22,555.

The showroom probably looked something like this at the time (see Super Sonic Blue Integra at top right).

The Integra stayed with that original owner for over 10 years before being passed along to its next owner. Time went on, and Santa Monica Acura closed in 2015. Meanwhile the Integra continued roaming around Orange County and ultimately ended up serving as a daily driver for a resident of Burbank who commuted every weekday to Frazier Park in the Tejon Pass, about a 120-mile round-trip each weekday. Snowy weather is common there in the winter.

Well, now it’s 2019, it’s the holidays, and it’s my birthday tomorrow, so I’m as excited as that 18-year-old was. I just bought that car. And to me, it’s one of the most widely acclaimed sports coupes of the neo-classic era. It’s time to diversify and evolve the collection of cars in my garage, and while some will not be going anywhere, I’ve decided it’s time to move the 1992 Integra sedan to its next owner so that gives me a space to fill with something a little more fun and a little more modern. Introducing my latest ride:

I flew from Phoenix to Burbank on Christmas Eve to collect my latest toy. My flight got in a little after 3:00 p.m. and I was scooped up at the airport curb in a blue Jeep Wrangler by the seller and his girlfriend. We took care of business a few miles away at their home, and I was off on my way to enjoy the 8,200-RPM redline and the open road. I got home just a few minutes after midnight on Christmas Day.

As for the plan with this Integra: It will play a key role in a new YouTube series of restoration videos, much like the 8-episode playlist I’ve already put together on my 1996 SLX. Feel free to tune in for updates from time to time. The car looks decent in pictures and video, but I promise you this: I made a list of 30+ things it needs, and that’s just the beginning. First order of business was getting it registered and AZ legal which I completed on 12/26.

Things will move at a slow pace here until the 1992 sells and I have a little more financial wiggle room, so if you or anyone you know might be interested in that car, let me know! Here’s the first in my series of videos on this latest ride.

Initial odometer reading

After a quick clean up of the wheels & tires

“Grand Prix engine,” it was pronounced. It is really a rev-happy machine.

“The Second Most Fun Car on the Road.” The photo speaks for itself.

GS-Rs separated by 7 model years.

My friend Ken had a funny comment about my Christmas gift to myself.

Rare sighting of a 1995 Legend SE at my local grocery store. I left a note!

Other news – thanks to loyal reader Karna for hooking me up with a burlwood shift knob for the RL!

And check out my new garage art. This one’s for you, Josh. (See: Fantastic Fives)

And I finally got some of my RADwood posters on the wall. That room is about done!

Have a great weekend!

19 Comments »

K1 Speed Go-Karting Event & Holiday Travels, & Automotive Updates

Posted in Arizona, ILX, Legend, Milestones, PAPA, SLX, Utah on December 22, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 222,222

It seems I’m getting quite a few chances to put the pedal to the metal lately, including a visit to Apex Motor Club earlier this year, and two events at Bondurant a few weeks ago. This time, I joined some fellow members of the Phoenix Automotive Press Association and we scaled back the size of our racecars to engage a little bit of friendly go-karting on a Friday morning.

K1 Speed opened its doors for an early morning race session specifically for our group. I was proud to finish in the first half of the pack, but I was clearly outclassed by more skilled drivers in our group. K1’s cars are all-electric, and they’re a lot faster than you’d think! I put some of the driver training to work and honestly thought I’d rank better in the final standings. Journalists John Priddy (left) and Wally Cahill (right) still let me at least pretend I was a first-place winner on the podium post-race.

Coming in at first place was newly-appointed Managing Editor for ClassicCars.com, Tom Stahler.

I spent the remainder of last weekend in northern Utah where temperatures dipped to a frigid 15 degrees during my visit. I was poorly prepared from a wardrobe perspective. But, I enjoyed the cozy and warm homes of friends & family members. This was the scene on the campus of Utah State University where I graduated with my undergraduate degree 14 years ago this month. Go USU Aggies!

Sunny, Jason, and Brady met up for some Mexican grub in Salt Lake City.

And it was of course awesome to see my grandma, who’ll be 90 next month.

Below are some photos of other recent visitors and events, as we near the end of this year (and this decade). My stepdad and mom were passing through Phoenix on a long layover flight this week, so I met up with them at the airport terminal for a bite to eat.

The cars have kept me busy these last few weeks. The NSX got an emissions check & new registration tags, the Integra GS-R got a battery, the Legend GS got new Michelin tires, the ILX got an oil change, the RL got a trip to Tucson, and the SLX got a much-needed bath after RADwood.

Here were some visitors from around the state who stopped by to say hello.

I also welcomed an out-of-towner from Austin, TX who’s been a friend of mine for many years. In fact, he’s the one who sent his 1993 Legend L sedan over to Arizona when it needed to find a new home in 2015.

My friend Karna sent me some sweet promo materials including a leaflet that had an NSX postcard that looks just like the real thing.

My friend Eric sent me some awesome-smelling cologne called Chrome Legend. I’ll be saving that bottle!

Andrew from Acura PR sent me two signed posters celebrating this year’s “IMSA” race series wins. I’ll be giving one away to a lucky blog reader. If you’re interested, let me know!

He also sent me the 11×17 display poster that was used at RADwood.

I like how they adjusted the original MSRP on there to nearly $60k in 2019 dollars.

I scored a few swag items from Ebay on the 1996 Isuzu Trooper because I was curious to see what kind of literature they put out back then, and how it compared to SLX stuff. As it turns out, some Troopers were better-equipped than SLXs! Example: The “Limited” model had headlight wipers.

I had an idea for a Christmas photo with red & green when my roommate James was road-testing a 2020 Toyota 4Runner recently. He had it nice and caked with mud for this early-morning glamour shot.

Twins! I’m looking after my friend Jason’s 1992 Integra GS-R right now. His car is 0718 and mine is 0343 so they’re separated by only 375 vehicles on the production line. Jason will be picking up his car in a few weeks, but in the meantime it’s enjoying being reunited with a close sibling.

Aztec Green overload.

“Drive your Legend to work” day, as requested by my friend Alex recently.

Yesterday, the ILX celebrated 222,222 miles on the odometer. I made sure I was driving 2,000 RPM at 22 miles per hour. And, I was driving with 2 friends on the 202 “South Mountain” freeway which is a brand new 22-mile stretch of interstate, literally opened just minutes prior. Amazing how the stars can align when you want them to! (Or when you want them “two.”).

Apple Maps still doesn’t even show the freeway as existing yet.

Before you go, I thought this was pretty cool and wanted to share. My friend Owen in Washington spent a couple years of his life gutting and restoring an old Bluebird bus into a liveable RV. Look at the level of detail in the finished product!

Two new episodes on my YouTube as well.

Have a great Christmas!

12 Comments »

Too SLXY for My Shirt: RADwood 2019 Car Show in Los Angeles

Posted in California, Car Show, Road Trip, SLX on December 9, 2019 by tysonhugie

Odometer (NSX): 116,405

Odometer (SLX): 140,616

Odometer (ILX): 221,578

Odometer (Legend Coupe): 572,261

Trip Distance: 353 Miles

“Hmm,” Chris said from the passenger seat as he shrugged his shoulders. “Sounds kinda scary.”

I was pretty deflated. I had just proudly pinned the accelerator to the floor in my red brick of an SLX and it did the best it could to get up to highway speed. Moments later, he gestured the making of a cross against his chest as we both collectively said our prayers that the old SUV would get us safely to Phoenix, still about 250 miles away, across the barren desert at nighttime with intermittent rain showers.

We made it. A bit of wind turbulence and poor visibility (one of my headlights is so dim it barely works at all) were about the only problems we had. We got home to Phoenix at midnight local time after an exhausting day of celebrating the totally tubular 1980s and 1990s in cars & culture. This was the third time I’ve attended the ‘RADwood’ show in Los Angeles. In 2017, I took the Legend, and in 2018, I took the Integra sedan. I always have a riot when being surrounded by such awesome people & cars.

And this time – in a perfectly orchestrated inconvenience – the event was held up a canyon with zero cell signal. So, from about 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., I spent the day doing what we all did during the 1980s and 1990s: Actually making real-life conversation with people. It was pretty freakin’ awesome.

My trip to RADwood was by way of two very special collector cars: a 1989 Dodge Lancer Shelby (Greg’s) and a 1998 Ford Contour SVT (Jason’s) – both with 3-pedal transmissions. Unfortunately for us, and for all other show-goers on Saturday, Mother Nature felt like giving us a few rain showers. While the downpours held out aside from a little trickle here and there, the mud left me wishing I’d brought my galoshes. It was so slippery, in fact, that I fell down while helping push a Honda CRX with a dead battery into its parking space. Good thing I had a spare pair of pants on-hand.

At least the 1986 Preludes owned by my friends Chris Hoffman and Chris Green looked spectacular.

The star of the show – at least for me – was a special project vehicle that I had a small role in bringing to life. It’s right here, pictured with none other than RADwood royalty Bradley Brownell himself, and my friend & automotive journalist Steve Ewing.

You’ll probably remember my old “Fir Green” 1997 Acura SLX that I picked up a year ago from a friend. It ran & drove okay, but the transmission slipped in third gear and the seats were thrashed. I enjoyed it for a few months around town as a Home Depot cruiser. Its life was about to change, however, when Andrew Quillin from Acura Public Relations asked me in late Spring if I had a lead on any SLXs for sale. I didn’t know of anything decent offhand, so I said, “You can have mine.”

And so it happened. On June 18, Acura’s fleet management representative drove away in the green beast from my house in Phoenix and I wasn’t sure if or when I’d ever see it again. Not only did I see it again, but, it had been transformed into a completely different vehicle. Over the course of the next several months, the SLX spent its summer in Marysville, Ohio, at Honda’s Research & Development facility, getting a cosmetic facelift and a full mechanical transplant. Behold:

Engineers James Robinson and Jordan Guitar led a team of people who swapped the tired, 178,000-mile 3.2 V6 with a race-tuned 2-liter turbo out of the Pikes Peak RDX racecar. But they didn’t stop there. The transmission was replaced with a push-button 10-speed automatic and the vehicle was equipped with Acura’s signature Super Handling All-Wheel-Drive (SH-AWD), plus a fully independent rear suspension. The only subtle hint that this SLX is something a little different is the hue of Performance Red paint and the side exit exhaust forward to the left rear tire.

While official drag-race numbers have not yet been captured, I’m fairly certain the SH-AWD SLX would smoke my stock example in any performance event. I haven’t yet driven it. I only took a brief ride during a mid-November film shoot in the San Diego area. The result of that film shoot is here, brought to life with the creative mind of Acura’s Zach Vlasuk.

As RADwood pressed on, I connected with friends and colleagues from near & far. I also got to be the eyewitness (or even acting clergy?) for the official sale transaction of a white 1988 Legend coupe that changed hands from one owner to another during the course of the show. The Acura representation across the show field was in fact pretty impressive: Even the award-winning second-gen Legend sedan driven by Rob Pia was in attendance, and it won a well-deserved trophy at the conclusion of the show.

Congrats, new Legend owner Daniel!

I made it through the afternoon without any further mud-slides, and I had a great time rubbing shoulders with the leaders & engineers who brought the SLX project to life. I even had about a dozen of them sign my dashboard with a silver Sharpie, including Executive Creative Director Dave Marek who drew me a picture!

As for the project SLX SH-AWD, it’s gone on to achieve all sorts of fame by way of automotive media outlets in every corner of the country and even internationally. Here’s an example of one piece by Jalopnik. And no, I’m not getting the vehicle back, but maybe I can sweet-talk Acura into a test drive. After some race training, of course :).

Here’s my 5-minute video on this year’s RADwood, and a few photos follow.

Westbound in the SVT Contour

Barrett-Jackson is one of many sponsors & participants in the growing RADwood movement. Pictured here is Matt Ferguson from Public Relations.

If I were to cheat on Acura, it might be for one of these. Love it.

Resto-mod SLX sporting custom floor mats, wood trim, reupholstered leather, and a push-button transmission. But – don’t worry – the tape deck stuck around!

My co-pilots Jason and Chris

Acura senior executive Jon Ikeda was out enjoying the party, too.

Even the former owner of the green SLX, Wyatt, popped in to say hello.

And now – if you are interested – here are a few shots from the filming of the reveal video, and a behind-the-scenes look at some of the effort it took to produce.

Three SLXs in one place! That never happens.

That engine is more than meets the eye! And you should hear it!

Setting up a camera mount on my Radiant Red

“For sale by owner” – come and get it!

Actress Amy McRoberts

Andrew from Acura – one of the main brains behind the operation.

Old and new in a San Diego garage

And lastly, since I’m too lazy to put these in their own blog entry, I wanted to thank and recognize a few people who have visited my house in the last few weeks including automotive journalists Clint Simone from Motor1 and Sofyan Bey from Redline Reviews.