Auto Shows/Museums

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Coronavirus hasn’t halted 2020 Classic Car Week

Monterey Auto Week, the varied collection of pricey rarities, vintage race cars and coveted relics, is scheduled as planned on the Monterey Peninsula in August. But the uncertainty of the coronavirus virus restrictions could still halt the annual celebration of automobiles. Beginning with the Monterey Kick-Off Cruise-In on Alvarado Street in Monterey and continuing through the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 16, the international gathering including more than 30 attractions. “We care deeply about the entrants, judges and guests of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and we want to act wisely in regard to this new challenge that we are all now facing,” organizers posted on the event’s website. “Our event is several months into the future, and we

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Nvidia GTC GTU Tech Conference set (virtually only)

Danny Shapiro, Senior Director of Automotive at Nvidia Corporation in Santa Clara, is as knowledgeable as anyone in the autonomous automotive segment. It’s a good thing because the industry is accelerating as quickly as a Tesla. The autonomous driving future is among the more recent challenges for Nvidia, which started in the gaming industry. But the technology company is at the forefront of delivering solutions to automakers for self-driving cars, infotainment, digital instrument clusters, rear-seat entertainment and advanced driver assistance systems. Not much of the ever-changing automotive technology world won’t be examined in Nvidia’s GTC GTU Technology Conference. It’s just that this year, it will be a virtual conference. Conference organizers, citing the uncertainty of the coronavirus, have changed the

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Consumer Telematics Show 2020 offers auto tech immersion

SPONSORED CONTENT TU-Automotive has powered B2B automotive technology events for over 20 years. Having recently combined with WardsAuto and Wards Intelligence, we are able to offer much more top industry-led expert content through conferences, exhibitions, reports, digital media and more. Join us in 2020 for the first in our series of events, Consumer Telematics Show 2020. Join us on January 6 and immerse yourself in the future of automotive technology. Automakers are no longer just focused on the exterior. Increasingly, the consumer is being swayed by the in-vehicle experience. To stay competitive, automakers are adopting new consumer-centric technology that seamlessly brings our creature comforts into the car. CTS 2020 talking points include: • Entertainment: Will the future car be seen

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2019 LA Auto Show: global debuts galore

The yearly LA Auto Show is a must-attend event for experts and those who view automobiles and trucks simply as necessary annoyances. It’s the first major car show of the automotive season despite is unique dates near the end of the calendar year. A multi-floor, multi-hall extravaganza of more than is home for more than 500 exhibits and dozens of manufacturers and the North American or global debuts of their vehicles. The show provides a welcomed automotive overload, and it will be held Nov. 22- Dec. 1 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. It’s all about entry-level cars, top-end luxury vehicles, the ever-expanding alternative fuel industry, custom made machines and unique concepts. But unlike visiting a car dealership where the

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#107, LA Auto Show set for industry spotlight

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:55 — 38.3MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreThe yearly LA Auto Show is about a month away. It’s always a must-attend event as the first major car show of the automotive season despite is unique dates near the end of the calendar year. Alexis Evans, the show’s communications director, is our guest on Episode #107 of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia discuss this year’s show with Evans. The event’s public days are scheduled Nov. 22. to Dec. 1 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The location is the multi-floor, multi-hall venue for dozens of manufacturers and the North American or global debuts of their vehicles. With

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Auction backfire halts rare Porsche sale after $53 million mistake

What’s a $53 million error among friends, collectors and vintage Porsche fanciers? It likely what was the biggest blunder in car auction history, an auctioneer with a hard-to-decipher Dutch accent at RM Sotheby’s on Aug. 17 during Monterey Auto Week began bidding on a 1939 Porsche Type 64 at was heard at $30 million. The starting bid for the one-of-kind vehicle was actually $13 million. It’s what was expected for the spacecraft lookalike. Only three of the cars were built and the prototypeup for auction is the only survivor. But monitors in the room showed the bid at $30 million. It quickly escalated to $40 million, $50 million, $60 million and then $70 million. While a stunned and quickly confused

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100-year Bentley legacy set for Monterey Auto Week

Bentley Motors’ continued centennial celebration will be highlighted in several ways during Monterey Auto Week, most notably the British carmakers’ spotlight on its past, present and future. The varied occasion will be held Aug. 15-18 during the now nearly two-week yearly celebration of all things automotive on the Monterey Peninsula. A featured marque during the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Bentley will showcase several all-new and soon-to-be-available vehicles for the United States market. Highlights will include the debut of the Flying Spur luxury four-door Grand Tourer and the EXP 100 GT: a vision of luxury mobility in 2035. The Bentley spotlight will also include the new Continental GT V8 (coupe and convertible) and the Bentayga portfolio of Design Series, Speed, V8

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#96, Husband-wife turn personal vintage car fleet into rentals

Erin Sollecito looks into the spacious warehouse and begins to talk about the vintage car fleet spread in front of her like they’re part of a family. She’s driven many of the vehicles rented by Monterey Touring Vehicles and knows their pedigrees. Sollecito, the company’s vice president of business development, is our guest this week on The Weekly Driver Podcast. The episode is particularly timely since Monterey Auto Week, now nearly two weeks long, begins unofficially on Aug. 5 and ends on Aug. 18. Monterey Touring Vehicles is the creation of Heather and Rob Gardner, a husband-wife team who live in Carmel Valley. Rob Gardner is a physician; Heather is a research scientist. And they decided their private vintage car

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Celebrities, test drives, rare cars set for LA Auto Show

Celebrity interaction, more test-drive availability, increased mobility solutions, custom cars and a host of world vehicle debuts are set for the LA Auto Show. The annual 10-day extravaganza of all things automotive will be held Nov. 30-Dec. 9 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. And there will be something for everyone, whether you’re an avid car enthusiast or a first-time visitor to the more than 100-year-old show. Consider a few highlights: * Amazon Gaming Lounge: Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May are bringing high-jinks and hot laps to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in The Grand Tour Game, an episodic racing game based on the hit Prime Original series, The Grand Tour. Created by Amazon Game Studios, The Grand Tour Game transports players to exotic locations, where

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#59, Technology, Chinese influence on tap for LA Auto Show

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:58 — 49.4MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreThe LA Auto Show began more 100 years ago and it’s always changed with trends in the automotive industry — pick-up trucks to alternative fuel vehicles. This year’s show, scheduled Nov. 29-Dec. 10 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, will be no different. More than 60 vehicles are confirmed to make their North American or global debuts. Lefteris “Lefty” Tsironis, the show’s marketing and communications director, is our guest on episode #59 of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Tsironis takes co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia through the show, concepts to the increase of Chinese manufacturers to the enduring tradition of manufacturers’ ambassadors, once known

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BMW, electric start-ups set for big presence at LA Auto Show

Much like the unusual circumstance of new vehicles debuting throughout the calendar year, the global auto show circuit begins at the end of the year at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The show, preceded since 2016 by press and trade days and a connected car expo, AutoMobility LA, doesn’t bill itself by age. It’s had several hiatus years. But since its debut in 1907 when 99 vehicles were showcased on a skating rink, the LA Auto Show has become a go-to event for automakers to unveil new models and concept vehicles. The tradition will continue this year, beginning Nov. 26 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, when established manufacturers such as Volkswagen, Toyota and BMW will have several models making

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Ferrari, Duesenberg combine for $70 million auction records

Rare cars selling for high prices is nothing new at Classic Car Week on the Monterey Peninsula. But several records were set this year, including a 1962 Ferrari becoming the most expensive car ever sold at auction and a 1935 Duesenberg becoming the most expensive American car ever sold at auction. The Ferrari 250 GTO, sold at RM Sotheby’s on August 25 as part of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, fetched $48.4 million. The 1935 Duesenberg SSJ formerly owned by Gary Cooper sold for $22 million at the Gooding & Co. Pebble Beach auction. It was also the most valuable pre-war car ever sold at auction. The two records helped catapult total sales for the collectible car auctions to about $368 million, a 12 percent

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Classic Car Week: Rare Tucker celebrates 70th anniversary

The automotive industry has its share of eccentric businessmen with utopian dreams for fine machines. Preston Tucker was in the fraternity, but his legend has lasted far longer than the car he conceived. Tucker and his cohorts made 51 vehicles, designed in Michigan and built in Chicago. The prototype was called the Tucker Torpedo, the production model the Tucker 48. It was manufactured in about a one-year span beginning in 1946 was unveiled as 1948 model. The Tucker 48 was rear-engine, rear-wheel drive and had a four-wheel independent suspension. It had a horizontally opposed V6 engine with 166 horsepower. It had a pop-out safety glass windshield, padded dash and doors and the upper doors were cut into the roofline. It

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Mecum Auctions: Everyman’s show in Classic Car Week

Ask John Kraman a question about automobile auctions, vintage cars, industry trends or automotive history and answers come fast and furious. He’s as enthusiastic as anyone, and his knowledge flows as fast as verbal clarity allows. As Director of Company Relations and Lead TV Commentator/Analyst for Mecum Auctions, Kraman will be part of the large staff again working the world’s largest car auction during Classic Car Week. The rapid-fire affair, among several auctions held throughout the gathering of all things automotive, will be held Aug. 23-25 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa and Del Monte Golf Course. About 600 cars — exotics, muscle cars, sports cars, vintage vans and pick-up trucks, tractors and memorabilia — will all be

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Citroën debuts as Beach Pebble Concours d’Elegance marque

Build a vehicle with the combined talents of an Italian sculptor and industrial designer and a French aeronautical engineer, and the result is a Citroën DS. The plan was a secret for years. But when the car debuted at the 1955 Paris Auto Show, the automotive industry was forever changed. The French carmaker will be a featured marque for the first time at the Concours d’Elegance. The annual finale to Classic Car Week will be held Sunday at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Named after André-Gustave Citroën, who founded the company in 1919, the wild creation was the replacement to the Citroën Traction Avant. As the first mass-produced car with modern disc brakes, the Citroën DS arrived as the collaboration of

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Industry fuel cell expert clears the air on hydrogen

Nineteen months ago, Chris White did something no one else in Northern California had done. She leased a new car that operates only on hydrogen. Honda, Toyota and Hyundai are manufacturers offering hydrogen-only vehicles. Mercedes-Benz and GM also have plans for hydrogen-only vehicles, the emissions of which are water. The 2017 and 2018 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell are available for lease only in only 12 dealerships in California. Five locales are in the San Francisco Bay Area, one is in Roseville. The long-time Communications Director of the California Fuel Cell Partnership in West Sacramento, White also lives in West Sacramento. But she often travels to San Ramon on business and Truckee to visit relatives. Hydrogen stations are located in both

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