London / Day 2

Day two begins! One things we've noticed about UK is the sheer amount of concerts, the quality of those listings, and best of all, NO TICKETLEAP! Hopefully while we're out here we will be able to catch at least one or two shows, because the music here is the right flavor here. Bonobo or Ghostpoet anyone?

Got pretty stoked to spot one of these driving by. A special version of the Citroen DS3, the "Racing" model features some pretty sporty colored trim and graphic decals with the better performance that's packaged with it. I've noticed that modern Citroens, in person, generally look pretty sharp and I dig the charcoal/orange combination this example was sporting. 

Some great deals with food out here, burger, crisps (fries still exist in UK, but refer to the skinny versions), some onion rings, and a draft beer sold as a package at £7. To give you an idea of how that compares to food pricing in general, a Starbucks drip would be £2-3 and a prepackaged sandwich would be about £4-6. Also, a lot of places offer meals that include draft beer or cider (also very popular out here). This is my kind of city :)

I'm in UK, I had to...

It seems that, as far as London goes anyways, the majority of high-end cars are British. This may seem like a "well duh, you're in Britain!" kind of thing, but as someone who was lucky enough to grow up around many high end cars, the lack of premium German or Italian cars (with the exception of the E/CSL's, 911's and Maserati Gran Sports) and the constant spotting of Bentleys and Aston Martins is a little eery. 

Not complaining though, who could get tired of these beautiful shapes? 

Rush hour in the tube. It gets a little cramped. Watch your pockets! 

Back to Oxford Circus. 

Another DS3 looking sharp in black. Peugeots are more popular, but the Citroens look better IMO. 

Michelle looking pretty happy with our friend and future roommate Steph. 

More tomorrow!

Entering London / Part 3

The 3rd and final part of the first full day of London. This one is going to be more images than talk, so here we go! 

A certain someone would be pretty happy around here considering there are SIXTEEN store locations here in London. 

It's weird seeing American cars here.  

Heh, AZZ.... 

We don't know how so many people can wear heavy coats riding the Underground considering how hot and humid it was. 

Murica! Fuck yeah! Apparently the 49ers will play an exhibition game out here soon, if we can get the tickets, we would definitely want to support their visit! 

My first Ford Capri spotting and what a find! I never knew of this car before this spotting, the Tickford Turbo. Tickford was a coachbuilder and took a couple of 2.8 Capris to turbocharge. The result was a very torque heavy and a unique (badass IMO) looking Capri. It may have been a bit of a failure due to a high pricepoint and (supposedly) an unreliable powertrain, but then again, many of the coolest cars out there are on paper failures. 

For a moment, I first thought it was an Aston Martin I was unaware of. Kinda reminds me a bit of a V8 Vantage. Anyways, moving on...

Great quote

I was surprised to see Texaco was even still around, let alone in UK! 

*whew!* Finally! End of day 1. From here on the posts should be more efficient. We're already a couple days in and I'm building up a decent stock to post now, so look forward for daily updates on the British travels of myself and Michelle!

Entering London / Part 2

One of the things people warned me about London was the food. "Say goodbye to good food, because it doesn't exist in England." Well, at this point, I can honestly say that stereotype is completely wrong. Since here, we've encountered nothing but great tasting food, and we haven't yet reached for the higher priced meals yet. If food like this breakfast on toast is what we have to look forward too, then we don't mind at all!

She's really excited to be in London, really.

We know about Dover Street Market and Goodhood, but discovering these other boutiques will be a fun experience. It's always great to discover dope pieces from brands you never heard of. 

Buildings definitely make up part of London's character. From old to new, none of them are uninteresting. Well, except for many of the flats which are often just bland bricks. 

Not the kind of water one would want to swim in. Remember, London is the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and there's plenty of evidence of that to this day.  

Car time again! This is about as perfect of an all-round car to me as it gets. The only way it could get better is if it were an Alpina 2.7. 

Little Cappuccino anyone? 

Heading towards Central London now. 

Part 3 posting soon

Entering London / Part 1

Whew! Taking a new step in life and I find myself traveling to London for a few months. There's so much to learn and experience, but fortunately I'll be with my girlfriend Michelle for most of this journey. Company always makes experiences better. 

As soon as we arrived, we headed to our temporary location over in Hackney. Our hosts are very kind and the place was clean and modern, but what we (particularly Michelle) was really looking forward for was the dog. And what a dog! A beautiful golden German Shepard, she was massive! Fortunately, like most large dogs, she was a very kind and welcoming dog that loved attention and despite the long, extra thick coat she wore, shed considerably less than the Corgi and cats that I roomed with before. 

Honestly, the fur here is the only evidence that she sheds. Anyways, onto the streets! 

And of course, it'll be cars. Saw a fair number of these Nissan Qashqai throughout the day, looks a lot better than the Rogue they sell in the States. 

Next up was this E46 compact. They only sold the Compact model in the States during the E36 gen, and honestly, I don't think we were missing out on much by not getting this model. I do like that seagreen/dark grey (even though it's really just dirty wheels) color combo though. 

Vintage bikes (and cycles) are pretty common around here. While I'm a fan of the Cali-style cafes such as the creations by Deus, there's something pure about a stock, well worn but well maintained Euro bike. 

We made our way over to Broadway Market, a quiet but chic area with the main road lined with young cafes and art stores. Made it just in time to catch some filming, though we think it was just for a commercial. 

One thing I certainly noticed was the amount of street art. Even compared to SF and LA, areas that are quite liberal with such art, the amount and variety seemed to be greater here. Whether it be a scribbled drawing or a paid advert, everywhere you looked there some something. Small wonder why artists such as Banksy come from here.  

And here's another pic of a car, this time an old Citroen 2CV. Yup, definitely in Europe. Part 2 to be posted soon. 

Car Spotlight / GTP ZX-Turbo

Because race car.

Car Spotlight / Hakosuka

The BMW E9 will always be THE coupe for me to obtain and one day I believe I can achieve it since, luckily for me, I actually prefer the lower 2800CS models over the more sought after 3.0 models and idolized CSL models. However, if I had the room and means to have a 2nd classic coupe in my imaginary garage, it'd undoubtably be a black Hakosuka. Something about the great squared off looks and a brilliant carbed straight 6 packaged in a reliable and relatively easy to drive vehicle just checks off all of the right boxes for me. Many car enthusiasts believe that the 60s was the greatest era for automotive design and with great cars like this, you'd be hard pressed to argue otherwise. 

Car Spotlight / Turbo Lotus Elise

Boosting an Elise to deliver around 350 hp is much like giving caffeine to a fly, giving a serious dose of speed to the already nimble body that it is. I always saw these cars as that perfect transition vehicle between the more roadster styled cars (S2000, Boxter, etc.) to the borderline road-legal go karts (Caterhams and Atoms).  Definitely a car that could bring a smile to my face should I be so lucky to have the keys to one in the future. 

Car Spotlight / FFTEC x TechArt 996

To those who know me, iIt's not secret that I am a fan of Porsche 911s. It is also no secret that, if I were to choose the one generation of 911's I dislike the most, it'd be the 996. There is, however, three redeeming factors about the 996.

1. As much as I enjoy the air-cooled motors, I agree it was necessary for Porsche to introduce water cooling in order to stay competitive.

2. It was the generation that introduced to us the GT3. 

3. The Turbo and GT2 were the models that brought me back from the loss of the 993 Carreras/Turbos. I actually like the way they look and given the amazing opportunity to drive a few, I really enjoyed them, despite the examples I drove having the most difficult clutch (stage 2 racing clutch with hair-thin slip margin) I've ever experienced. It's not difficult to see why many considered it an exotic that you could daily, as it performed both duties admirably. 

This was a project by FFTEC sporting a TechArt aero package. Personally, I feel the Turbos and GT2s look best when left alone; some subtle wheels and a little drop is all I'd ever do. But, I have a little soft spot for the TechArt kit as I remember seeing these as a kid when I was learning about German car tuning, so the nostalgia of it all helped redeem it to me.