Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Kenseth survives fire and rain to win 2012 Daytona 500. Coverage, results, photos, and crash video

During the Sunday rain delay coverage of the 2012 Daytona 500, they played the 1979 fight scene (as they always do), and my dad recalled us watching that race live on the TV that my parents had in their bedroom in Omaha. I've watched every Daytona 500 since, and I've seen some pretty strange things over the years. But this year may have been one of the strangest. More on that shortly.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

And the Oscar goes to ... Pontiac Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit

The Academy Awards are this weekend. I know this, because General Motors put out a press release talking about how they have provided a lot of the cars featured in big movies over the years.

Recreations of famous cars are all over the place. I always threaten my wife that I’m going to build a Fall Guy truck. Of course, the last thing I need around here is a junky old lifted ’82 GMC long bed. But still, if I had unlimited space, time, and resources, I’d be rockin’ it like the Unknown Stunt Man.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Wagner's Classic Auto Sales is the place for shiny things in Bonner Springs.

If you’ve got some time to kill and want to go see a few really nice old cars, you could do a lot worse than checking out Wagner’s Classic Car Sales in Bonner Springs. I like make it a regular stop, because the cars are always changing.

When you’re looking at my pictures, you may notice a disproportionately large number of them devoted to one ’59 Impala. Clearly, I was smitten with the small-block/Turbo Glide/factory air machine. Some of that had to do with the colors—sparkling Cameo Coral Metallic and Snowcrest White over a stunning Inca Silver interior.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

President's Day at the KC Auto Display

Despite being a little cold and damp, President’s Day was a good day. I didn’t have to go to work. I got to hang out with my son. The post office was closed, so no one could deliver any bills. And we got to go check out some cars.
For many years, the KC Auto Display has been a nice place to visit on a day off when there weren’t many car events taking place. They don’t always have the best cars. They certainly don’t have the worst cars. But they always seem to have an interesting selection of muscle cars, customs, and classics beneath the utilitarian roof of their Lenexa warehouse.

Friday, February 17, 2012

2012 Chicago Auto Show, and a Blues Brothers update

Chicago, Illinois. A bit of our automotive history died this week near the windy city, while the world got a glimpse of our automotive future.

The biggest story, of course, is that demolition has finally begun on the Dixie Square Mall in Harvey, Illinois, near Chicago. Even if you don’t recognize the name, you probably know this mall because one of the most memorable car chases in movie history was filmed on location there. Who can forget that crusty ’74 Dodge Monaco barreling through the Toys ‘R Us and leveling kiosks in the 1980 hit The Blues Brothers?

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Monster Jam Kansas City. It ain't what it used to be

For as long as I can remember, I have been attending monster truck events. And whenever Monster Jam hits Kansas City, you can bet I'll be there. But for all of its success and popularity, this fringe form of motorsports has really changed--and in some ways, not for the better.

I grew up in Nebraska, and when I was a kid, these shows were considerably more grass roots. Monster trucks were sort of a novelty, and their claim to fame wasn't so much that they could jump real high, but rather that they could slowly crush and destroy cars. Glass and plastic would pop and crack, leaving all kinds of debris and carnage scattered around. But it was unlike anything else, and it definitely seemed cool at the time.

Friday, February 10, 2012

2012 Kansas City World of Wheels caters to all automotive tastes

If you've been wondering when I was going to get around to covering a new Kansas City car show, your wait is over. Finally, after all these weeks and months of winter, the 52nd-Annual World of Wheels car show is in Kansas City, so we've got a little local action to check out.

I really do look forward to this show every year. Sure, part of it is that I want to get out of the house, but it actually is one of the bigger events in the area. I wouldn't say this year's offering was the best ever, but I certainly wouldn't have wanted to miss it.

Monday, February 6, 2012

San Diego Air and Space Museum features historic aircraft, and a special connection to Ford

Since the car events are a little on the light side in Kansas City during the winter months, I’ve tried to bring you stories from various places outside of town. In the past couple of months, we’ve visited car museums in St. Louis, the auto show in Detroit, and auto collections in San Diego.

This is the last story in the San Diego series, and although the San Diego Air and Space Museum isn’t strictly an automotive collection per se, it does have some things that I think may be of interest to the readers of this blog.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

2012 Super Bowl Car Commercials

Well, it's Super Bowl time, and for every person that is excited about the game itself, there are two more that are watching it for the commercials. And why wouldn't they? When you think about the investment that a company puts into a spot on the big game, you realize that you are watching something pretty special.