The Classic Motorsports Virtual Monterey Kickoff Cruise-In Presented by Hagerty and eBay Motors Is Starting Early!

This is my 1962 Porsche 356S Coupe

Walt Pennington

walter.w.pennington@gmail.com

Chris Conrad's 2016 Jaguar F-Type S with manual transmission.  

My 1967 Alfa Romeo GT 1300 Junior. Along with an early Laguna Seca Can Am race poster. Look forward to seeing everyone next year!

67.5 Datsun roadster 1600 stroked w/H20 and 5 speed. Bre memorabilia from Monterey 2018 

XK 120 with poster from 1954 movie shot at Pebble Beach, drama directed by Roger Corman with footage from the road races.  Car has been in the family for the last 10 years, dragged out of a widow's garage by the AAA tow truck and brought home to have the engine rebuilt in our backyard --- Pretty sure it is the only 'driver' on the road when it is taken out.  First time in 15 years we will not be in Monterey for Car Week.

In reply to Richard Chong :

Hi Richard,

Is the Ascona still with you?

I owned a Manta A and B. Sadly I sold it to a buyer in San Francisco.

Thanks

Steve 

Very cool stuff to wrap up our show this evening. I was just watching some old movies from the Pebble Beach Road races and an Xk 120 that looked like hat one was featured.

1971 Karmann Ghia- Bought new in 71 and restored the Ghia myself- One Owner- Howard Koby

In reply to barryconnally :m

Your Spitfire looks familiar. Was fthe Spitfire featured in Classic Motorsports  Magazine?

Thanks

Steve

As a resident of Carmel CA, I have enjoyed Monterey Car Week for decades.  We have brought various of our sports cars to the various events over the years.  We have also been Hagerty clients since the beginning.  For this virtual event, I couldn't resist taking a photo using my tripod in front of our Carmel beach with my Ferrari 458 Spider holding an issue of Classic Motorsport featuring the first Ferrari model I owned (a 308).  My 458 is a keeper as it is the last naturally aspirated mid-engined car Ferrari will ever produce (no turbos or hybrids for me).  As I drove around Carmel today there were just a few exotic cars that decided to make the trip this week.  I'm missing the sights and sounds that usually accompany car week.

Gil

In reply to mlmgm :

Love the Jongbloed wheels. 

In reply to Paul Eklund :

Was this you, a year ago on 280?

1974 MGB, in original rare Aconite. San Francisco is my prop, props to San Francisco!

In reply to Crossworth :

It was featured about a year ago.

Here is my 1960 Austin Healey 3000. It's a lovely 20 footer but always starts and gets smiles and waves everywhere we go. Props are a bottle of CA Zinfandel and my 2019 Solo Nationals shirt.

Looks like that beautiful Healey is our last contestant for 2020. Entries are now closed. We thank everyone for participating and showing us their beautiful cars. We also want to thank Hagerty and eBay Motors for helping us make this event happen. We will be consulting with our class partners and judging all day tomorrow. We will then announce class and overall results on Thursday.

In reply to BretDodson :

Talk about skin of my teeth! I decided to enter an hour ago and ran down to the lake to snap these pics. Ran home and seemed to encounter every slow poke or city bus meandering about. Car ran like a champ as always. It's been in the family for 40 years and is lovingly referred to as "The Healey" by many folks. It has been pulling grocery getting duty during the pandemic, but also provides for some escapist jaunts about town when cabin fever strikes. We love this car and though it will never be concours quality beautiful it is a treasured member of the family.

In reply to BretDodson :

Glad we got you in. It is definitely 10:00 PM here, and we had a few sneak in just minutes before things ended.

It makes my heart really happy, that our readers have so many cool cars. Glad we could use this event to get a look at the toys in everyone's garages.

This is my '68 BMW 1600 cabriolet that I took to Monterey in 2002 to participate in the BMW club's "year of the car" event that year.   My prop today for this photo is a windshield plaque for the club's Legends of the Autobahn event.  'Hope you enjoy seeing #61 of 1682 of this model made.  Ben.

This is my 1966 BMW 2000CS that I'm driving to Monterey tomorrow from LA, to attend the few events still happening there this week.   We can't miss a year in Monterey, having been going to Car Week annually now for over 30 years.  This car has been there before,  and my prop today is a map of the peninsula.

In reply to Tim Suddard :

It's so awesome you're doing this. I've been reading GRM since the first issue, when I was 16 and newly obsessed with getting into racing. I'm still an avid GRM reader, but have - erm... - matured to the point of also being a big fan of Classic Motorsports.

My buddies and I, when we were in our later 20s, used to tease guys my age now about being "50 year olds racing 30 year old cars". I was driving a NA Miata then and still am now. What happened!?!?

Thanks for running a business that brings me fun regardless of if I'm racing, wrenching, admiring, or daydreaming. Cheers!

 "An E34 is never late, nor is an E34 early, it arrives precisely when it means to."       

       —Behold, the legend of the 90's, the e34 BMW has entered the chat! 

     I have been attending the Monterey Car Week events every year since I was in the womb. Sadly, I hardly ever see any E34's at any of the events (save a few at Legends occasionally). It does not really surprise me because pretty much everyone I know has told me in some way or another to get rid of this driving machine. So when I stumbled upon this thread a few minutes ago, I thought I would share mine. Luckily, my obsession over this car leads me to take pictures of it practically everyday so I thought I would post one. 

     Let me formally introduce you to this 1993 BMW 525i. It truly is, The Ultimate Driving Machine. E34's have a reputation of being the most reliable BMW's ever built. This car was not only my first car, but it was also my mother's first car, and has been my daily driver for pretty much my entire life from preschool to college. I find E34's a common site to behold on roads to this day, and lately other E34 and E30 drivers in particular give a friendly wave or thumbs up when driving by. While this car inspires enthusiastic feelings in its fandom, in certain parts of the world, it is known as the Kamatarka. Such sentiments are the results of local mafias, mob bosses, and in particular loan sharks having a keen interest in owning the E34, particularly back in the 80's and 90's. The E34 is truly a celebrity of the 90's, being featured as the vehicle of choice by the namesake characters in iconic shows such as Seinfeld and Frasier. Moreover, it is featured in countless films such as the opening scene of the movie Mortal Kombat and the epic car chase of Ronin. 

     The E34 is the last BMW to feature seperated frontal quad headlights made of glass. It's legendary six cylinder engine has its roots in the M1 and offshoots into epic V12 which (heavily modified) found its way into the 850csi. In fact, just recently BMW revealed that the fastest production car at the time, the Mclaren F1, tested its V12 engine in a BMW e34 Touring (oh yes, e34 was also the first BMW Touring). I would wager a guess that the BMW E34 is the single BMW with the most variants and modifications put out from the factory. No two E34's are ever exactly alike (not just because the M5 was the last handbuilt BMW). Just google interior images, you will find the panels the door cards, the moldings, the buttons, etc... all are a little different, especially in different markets. When it was sold, the E34 was best in class for practically everything.

     I could go on and on but I think you get the idea... The thing is, this car has the classic BMW 6 cylinder exhaust sound, and probably the best horn sound ever. Heck, the leather is of such high-quality, it still has the original scent! It has the solid bank-vault door clank that used to be common in the 30's-70's but more recently can only otherwise be found in gelandewagens and 930s. It is much like my prop, Duchess Kitty who is standing before it: Strong, heavy, and agile.

     If nothing else, I hope other E34 owners will take pride in their cars, and hopefully that BMW will work on expanding their classics team to cover more parts for these machines so owners aren't faced with the dreaded NLA. Thank-you for taking the time to read this. Thank-you to those involved in bringing about this motorsports gathering of such spectacular automobiles.

Have a lovely concours viewing experience,

—A BMW driver who uses his turn signals

In reply to Crossworth :

You have a good eye and better memory. Yes, it made the big time in the Mar 2015 issue shortly before I started a second frame off restoration. 

Thanks

It is fantastic seeing all these wonderful cars, in the hands of owners who cherish them!  Anyone with enough money can buy a new car, but to drive an old sports car, you have to love it. I can see a lot of love in the classic cars displayed here.

In reply to Tim Suddard :

Hard to believe but it's been six years since Tom photographed it during that year's Kick-Off at the Folk Tale Winery.  Fun times!!