Crusin’ the Okanagan – May Tour 2016
What a wonderful weekend!! We arrived to a friendly group of organizers who handed out the registration packages and escorted us out to waiting buses to go on a tour for the afternoon. There were two amazingl venues on our bus tour. Our first stop was the Summerhill Winery, where […]
Rally in the Valley – May Tour 2015
On a beautiful spring weekend, May 8 – 11, 2015 Central Fraser Valley Chapter hosted our 57th Annual May Tour. Over 100 vintage and antique vehicles and almost 250 people arrived at the Ag Rec Centre in Abbotsford. They were greeted by a very enthusiastic and energetic team lead by Jack […]
Porsche Museum Visit: The Birth of the 911.
I had planned to tick off two major boxes on my automotive to-do list. One was the Hungary F1 race, and the other was the BMW Welt and Museum in Munich. In upcoming blog posts you’ll get to read all about those two experiences, but today I’m documenting my spur of the moment visit to the Porsche Factory and Museum in Zuffenhausen near Stuttgart.
Vintage Hollywood Stars.
As many TV show and film makers have learned, choosing the right car for a project can pay off in a big way. Many distinctive automobiles have even managed to achieve a level of worldwide fame that would make most A-list celebrities envious. Here are three famous cars that have […]
A Morgan Story.
Vintage. It’s a strong word. It commands respect. To call a car vintage to people who don’t get cars is to associate age. But to car enthusiasts it’s an instant association of “they never made anything like it again.” Take, for example, the 1950s. I like to think of the 50’s as a period in time where the focus of manufacturers didn’t center around design or power, but instead to get a vehicle in every home of every freedom loving American. It was a reward for winning the war, and they rewarded well. The American powerhouses produced
Future Priceless Classics.
A few days ago I wrote an article on my personal blog (alexotics.blogspot.com) about the impending end of the analog car. As I spoke about the dying breed of lightweight, unadulterated, manual transmission rear-wheel drive coupes, I realized that these ‘end of an era’ cars could make for great investments – and great fun.
When looking at the Italian super cars, the one standout
Vintage Service Stations.
A friend of mine sent me some terrific old photos of bygone era gas/service stations. They were fun to see and brought back some memories.
I’m guessing that most guys our age worked pumping gas. For me, there was Harold Lehman’s Esso station at the corner of Broadway and Bayview, three houses away from my childhood home and…
Leon Rumpf’s ’25 Buick Restoration
The story behind this McLaughlin Buick started for me in September of 1977 when I was living and working out of the small town of Bassano in southern Alberta. My job allowed me to travel throughout the rural area and encompassed several other small towns in my district. It was on one of my travels that I spotted the car in a deserted old farmstead. I recognized it as a…
Henry Ford’s Jungle Ghost Town.
In 1927, Henry Ford was the richest man in the world. The Brazilian rubber industry was booming as a result of the industrial revolution and rubber prices had begun to rise. As the Ford Motor Company relied heavily on rubber tree plantations the decision was made to break the Brazilian rubber monopoly by building a factory smack in the middle of the Amazon forest. Due to a…
Old Modern Technology
When I attended the Ontario College of Art in the early 70’s, one of my teachers was an interesting guy named Richard Beal. He taught design…
One day, when I was heading into the school, I noticed Richard parking his car in front of OCA on Beverly Street in the Dundas and University Avenue area. His car was a stunning and quite rare