Wed, 30 November 2016
652: George Levy is an automoitve journalist who's first book, Can-Am 50th Anniversary is now available.
George Levy is a Boston native whose name rhymes with Chevy. He’s a lifelong racing fan and his first car was a BRE-styled Datsun 510. He owns a number of Shelby Mustangs and lists among his major life achievements as dodging death by the hands of an international drug-smuggling cartel while visiting Carroll Shelby’s home in Mexico… while on his honeymoon. George is the former editor of Autoweek and sits on the board of directors of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. His latest venture is his new book titled Can-Am 50th Anniversary. The photography for this book is by Pete Biro, yesterday’s guest here on Cars Yeah. |
Tue, 29 November 2016
Pete Biro is a photographer and journalist whose 50 plus year career started when Road & Track magazine asked him to supply them with a story on the Barneson Special, a custom-made sports car. The iconic David E. Davis Jr. discovered Pete’s work and gave him assignments for Car and Driver magazines. Pete and David traveled the world covering races including Le Mans, Grand Prix’s, and most major races and he shot for Sports Illustrated, Time, Life and many others. He met and became friends with many of the great drivers including: Dan Gurney, Phil Hill, Bruce Mclaren, Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, A.J. Foyt, Richard Petty and many others. He worked for Dan Gurney as a public relations guy during the time Bobby Unser won the Indy 500. His latest endeavor is supplying photos for the new book Can-Am 50th Anniversary collaborating with author George Levy. |
Mon, 28 November 2016
650: Bogi Lateiner owns 180 Degree Automotive in Phoenix and is one of the stars on the TV show All Girls Garage on Velocity.
Bogi Lateiner is a master mechanic and owner of the award winning auto repair shop, 180 Degrees Automotive in Phoenix, Arizona. A writer, a speaker, and a teacher, Bogi is passionate about improving the reputation of the automotive industry and changing the way women, in particular, feel about cars and the automotive repair experience. Bogi teaches automotive basics to women around the country, consults and teaches classes to repair shop owners and other small business owners, and appears as one of three female mechanics on All Girls Garage on Velocity Channel. |
Fri, 25 November 2016
649: Mike Skinner is a NASCAR Truck Series Champion and the American "Stig" on The Grand Tour with Jeremy CLarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.
Mike Skinner’s racing career spans more than 40 years. He started racing in 1975 in a wrecked Plymouth Road Racer. He ran on dirt tracks, winning three championships, racing at night while holding down a day job to pay for his track time. He’s raced stock cars to NASCAR trucks both in the U.S.A. and abroad and in 1995 he was the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion. Mike’s worked in television and radio as a personality and today you can find him racing his NASCAR Trucks up the hill at Goodwood Festival of Speed, running in vintage racing events, and cohosting Skinner Round-Up on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Mike supports charities through the annual “Skinner Round-Up For Charity” event, and serves as a spokesperson for Hope For The Warriors, a military nonprofit dedicated to restoring self, family, and hope for post-9/11 service members, veterans and military families. In 2013, Mike was inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. Currently he's the American "Stig" on the new Amazon series The Grand Tour with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. |
Thu, 24 November 2016
Jim Carpenter is the owner of Italian Design and Racing in Mesa, Arizona. He's been modifying Ferraris since 1987 helping his customers fulfill their dreams. He and his team modify Ferrari bodies, chassis, engines, exhausts, gearboxes, and much more. He has designed and completed numerous convertible conversions for the Ferrari 308 models plus adding spoilers and accent parts. Racing though is Jim's true passion and he has completed many 308 model conversions to fully compliant SCCA race cars. His clients enjoy their cars in SCCA, historic, Ferrari club track and racing events. A recent build involved modifying a 330 GT 2+2 chassis using a Ferrari P4 style body plus a Ferrari 550 Maranello engine. |
Wed, 23 November 2016
Nick Candee is the Vice Chair and Historian of the Aston Martin Owner’s Club East serving eastern Canada and the US. He is the former editor of The Vantage Point magazine, an Aston Martin Club publication and he is the Principal of Candee & Company with over 30 years of expertise in international corporate planning, specializing in Latin American markets. Nick just published a new book, co-authored with Stephen Archer titled The Aston Martin DB4GT published by Palawan Press in the United Kingdom. This 544 page book with over 800 photographs and illustrations examines in detail the history of every DB4GT manufactured including the design and development of the car. It is a definitive collectors book telling the brilliance and craftsmanship required to build these magnificent cars. |
Tue, 22 November 2016
Philip Caggiano is an automotive designer who combines his passion for luxury and collectable automobiles with his love of creating custom furniture where good design is the common thread. He is a designer, fabricator, and the President of his Design Firm in Westchester, New York. In addition to building custom cars and individualizing supercars Philip is a multi-disciplined designer, artisan, engineer, and fabricator who has mastered old world craftsmanship in the construction of his contemporary furniture where he holds multiple patents. He has refurbished classic cars and worked for Ferrari, Porsche, and BMW helping their motor sports teams. You’ll find him published in numerous magazines from Sports Car Market to Cavallino and the recipient of many design awards. |
Mon, 21 November 2016
Neil Pitt is the President of Speed Digital in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is an experienced business and information technology leader who has worked in a variety of industries including retail, financial services, telecommunications, transportation, and information technology. Speed Digital creates proprietary software and digital platforms for a range of enthusiasts in the automotive and classic car industry. Their focus and commitment is dedicated to helping dealers increase profits through powerful, custom web and marketing solutions keeping their customers on the forefront of technology. |
Fri, 18 November 2016
Scott Tucker is the General Manager at Borelli Motor Sports in San Jose, California. He is a highly experienced automotive technician, tuner, concours-level vintage automobile restorer, a college instructor, and skilled business manager. Working closely with the owner, Ralph Borelli, the team at Borelli Motor Sports provides their clients with the finest in performance automotive care and restoration. Scott was a calibration engineer and software developer for Dinan Engineering, North America’s largest BMW tuner. He was the service and restoration manager at Canepa Design where he cared for a wide variety of classic collector and vintage race cars. His long career around formidable automobile has allowed him drive everything from a Yugo to a Ferrari 250 GTO. |
Thu, 17 November 2016
643: Keith Kaucher is an automotive designer and the owner of Kaucher Kustoms in Santa Monica, California.
Keith Kaucher is an automotive designer and the owner of Kaucher Kustoms in Santa Monica, California. He has designed more than 60 custom cars ranging from a 1936 De Soto Airflow to a 2009 Camaro. He creates custom automobiles for clients around the world. He’s designed many wheels from aftermarket to OEM including the 2004 Mustang Bullit. The first of his designs he took to the Grand National Roadster show in 2006 won first place for Best Post War Hardtop Traditional Custom. Since then he’s earned numerous awards and trophies for his car designs. His latest car is the 1960 Buick named “Lectrafied” and it won the 2016 Grand National Roadster Show. When you ask Keith which of the cars he’s designed are his favorites you’ll hear him say, “My next design...”. |
Wed, 16 November 2016
Joel Clark is an automotive artist who has had a career in the creative field since graduating from Central St. Martins in 1996. In the depths of the last recession he picked up a paintbrush and started creating. He works in a medium combining hand cut vinyl graphics in a collage form creating sculptures. His mix of bold, graphic colors result in a hand-crafted look creating a hyper-realism Pop Art style that transforms real objects, including vehicle parts, in to pieces that become surreal. His art invites the viewer to create their own narrative – such as “Where is the car and what is it doing there?” |
Tue, 15 November 2016
641: Dick Ruzzin was an automobile designer and Director of Design for General Motors of Europe and Chevrolet
Dick Ruzzin was an automobile designer and Director of Design for General Motors of Europe and Chevrolet, when he retired. He owns the only Corvette powered De Tomaso Mangusta built at the factory. During his career Dick worked on over 140 car design programs including the Opel Maxx, the inspiration for the Swatch Car. During his career he also created car design exhibits, automotive shows, design awards for NAIAS, furniture, Christmas parade floats, graphics for the Americas Cup and the Woodward Dream Cruise in Detroit. Since retiring he has written the book about the De Tomaso Mangusta, titled Bella Mangusta, penned magazine articles, and works in education as a mentor for design students. |
Mon, 14 November 2016
640: Stephen Plaster is the Chairman and CEO of Evergreen Investments and the Managing Partner at Passport Transport and Champion Brands.
Stephen Plaster is the Chairman and CEO of Evergreen Investments and the Managing Partner at Passport Transport and Champion Brands, in addition to being the Chairman and CEO of numerous other companies. Evergreen Investments is a private equity firm with a focus in the buyout of small to mid-sized companies where their portfolio includes: Champion Brands, Empire Pipeline, Empire Exploration, Passport Transport, and many other companies. Stephen’s passion for cars runs long and deep and part of his holdings include Evergreen Historic Automobiles, a facility for events and the collection. Passport Transport was founded in 1970 and is a leader in the shipping of fine automobiles around the country. He sits on the boards of many companies, and his automobiles have been displayed around the country including LeMay-America’s Car Museum where he received their Master Collector Award. |
Fri, 11 November 2016
639: Jim Hazen is the Founder and Owner of The Drivers Society creating exclusive accessories for automotive enthusiasts.
Jim Hazen is the Founder and Owner of The Drivers Society where they create exclusive accessories for the automotive enthusiast, both men and women. Their products are inspired by historic motorsports and classic automotive design. He works with designers, artists, and artisan manufacturers to conceive and produce the finest products available. Whenever possible he utilizes materials derived from classic and modern cars and incorporates them in to his products. The goal is to offer accessories and apparel that fuels the passion we enthusiasts have and bring style in to our lives. Jim is the former Chairman of the Aston Martin Owners Club, North America East and an avid proponent of racing pre-1960 vintage cars. |
Thu, 10 November 2016
Gautam Sen is acknowledges as India’s leading automotive journalist and writer. He has written several critically acclaimed books on automobiles and his latest is titled Marcello Gandini: Maestro of Design. In 1986 he founded India’s first and subsequently most successful automobile magazine Indian Auto. Based in Paris, Gautam is involved in several projects to design and develop cars for the Indian and international markets, he consulted or India’s leading automotive manufacturers and he led the design and development of India’s first sports car, the San Storm. Since 2015 he has been a Vice President at FIVA (Fédération Internationale de Véhicules Anciens), the international federation for historic vehicles. |
Wed, 9 November 2016
Tim Layzell is one of the world’s leading automotive artists. He lives in the United Kingdom where he was raised and in 1995, at the age of 13, he won the British Racing Driver’s Club’s prestigious Young Motoring Artist Award and a career in art was born. Tim has two very distinctive styles with an eye for super realism and super detail while maintaining an element of nostalgia and pop art boldness. His enthusiasm for motor racing encompasses a majority of his work and he’s a regular participant in vintage rallies and trials events. Tim has many clients who commission his paintings and his art has been featured in magazines, on their covers, on posters, concours events, in galleries, and hangs on collector’s walls around the world. |
Tue, 8 November 2016
RJ De Vera is the Customer Engagement Leader at Meguiar’s Car Care. Formerly the editor at Street Magazine where he wrote and photographed the youth car culture movement. He was a consultant for the Fast and Furious movie franchise and one of his tuned automobiles was the Honda S2000 driven by the movies villains. He’s judged and hosted a car building competition show on MTV titled Trick It Out and he styled over 30 high profile image vehicles. RJ continues active in the car culture as a marketing and culture leader for Meguiar’s helping to ensure automotive enthusiasts passion for cars continues. |
Mon, 7 November 2016
Bob Folkestad is the President of Creative Werks, a company that specializes in electromechanical integration of RF devices in to a variety of applications. Creative Werks is the sole importer for General Cab Group of Asti, Italy, a company that manufactures GC Cooling electronic fans and blowers. He and his talented team focus on growing GC Cooling’s fans by integrating the product line that is used by Mercedes Benz, Volvo, Ferrari, and Maserati in Europe and the OEM market. Bob’s background in applied engineering and product design has allowed him to create more than 50 electrical control systems in the automotive industry. He also holds several patents for tools and firearms and he’s a pilot of small aircraft. |
Fri, 4 November 2016
634: Peter Kumor owns Gulllwing Moto Cars in New York where he buys and sells collecitble automobiles.
Peter Kumar is the Founder of Gullwing Motor Cars located New York. Born and raised in India, he worked as a young man in an auto parts store where his fascination with cars began. He opened his first car dealership in Miami, Florida and in 1988 he moved it to New York. At Gullwing Motor Cars Peter and his talented team buy and sell the finest collectible motorcars focusing mostly on European marques. Peter travels the world looking for the perfect vehicles for his clients and instead of consigning cars he owns his inventory. As for his company name, Peter was fascinated with the first Gullwing he spotted at a Mercedes dealership when he was young so bought a model that still sits on his desk today, and he purchased his first real Gullwing in 1993. |
Thu, 3 November 2016
639: Jay Howard is the Director of the Pinehurst Concours d'Elegance and Runs JHE Production, an events company.
Jay Howard is the Founder and President of JHE Production, one of the nation’s premier event and corporate meeting production companies. Founded in 1987 JHE Production handles fortune 500 company events for brands including Sprint, Coca-Cola, Bank of America, Ford, Chevrolet, NASCAR, IndyCar, and major sports teams. Jay is also the Director of the Pinehurst Concours d’Elegance that takes place in April each year in North Carolina at the iconic Pinehurst Golf Course. JHE has received numerous awards and distinctions for their business achievements and in 2016 they were acquired by CSM, a global leader in sports and entertainment. |
Wed, 2 November 2016
Malcolm Hogan is the publisher of Automotive Addicts and a consulting Internet marketing manager for a large software firm. Malcolm's passion for cars roots back to childhood. Since then, the passion has grown into a love he shares in his latest work, which can be found in many automotive publications, including his very own AutomotiveAddicts.com website and the Drive section of The Florida Times-Union, Northeast Florida’s highest circulated newspaper. Malcolm is also the founder of the monthly Automotive Addicts Cars and Coffee event in Jacksonville, FL, one of the largest venues of its type on the east coast of the USA. |
Tue, 1 November 2016
631: Alan Johnson has been a racer, high-erformance driving instructor, author, speaker, and SCCA National Champion plus a Porsche dealer owner.
Alan Johnson is a long time automotive enthusiast who was a high-performance driving instructor, author, racer, and speaker with four SCCA National Championships to his credit. He has class wins in the Sebring 12 hours, a TransAm win and raced in the Daytona 24 Hour. He co-authored the book Driving in Competition, a successful book on road racing and a re-write is coming next year. He was the owner and General Manager at Alan Johnson Porsche Audi and partner at Scottsdale Porsche, Audi, Jaguar, Land Rover. Alan was a board member at the San Diego Automotive Museum and currently serves on the San Diego Air & Space Museum Board. Today he is an Executive Consultant and Associate at MAP, Management Action Programs. |