Grab Shots

Carspotting means being ready to grab a shot of a moving, sometimes fast moving, object. There is little time to think, so the camera must be on and the lens cap off in the passenger seat turned on its side just so, allowing a quick point-n-shoot. If the car is coming at you there is even less time. I usually leave the lens set to the widest setting and make sure I get the car in the frame. I don't know what I've got until I get home. These are a few grabs from the past few days. Featured are '50 MG, one Aston Martin, couple of Bentley Continentals, an arrest me red Ferrari 430 Spyder, a couple Lamborghini's and a couple of a favorite, the Porsche Caymen. Of special interest is a rare BMW Z8, a two seat front engine convertible. Less than 2,400 of these powerhouse beauties were sold in the US. I caught a yellow Ferrari 360 Modena head-on and closing fast, and my very first new Mustang GT 5.0, a breakthrough car for Ford with an engine that sounds like an Aston on steroids. Vroooom, indeed.

Gran Turismo

Gran Turismo is Italian for Grand Touring, or Grand Tourer in this context. Abbreviated in this country to GT, it describes a swift, powerful car that is designed to cover long distances with style, comfort and, above all, speed. The Ferrari 550 Maranello was their premier GT from 1996-2001. It is a two seat front-engine coupe powered by a 492 hp V-!2 with astounding performance. It's no featherweight sports car at more than 3,700 lbs, but this matters little on the open road. It has a roomy, superlux interior with room for golf clubs or custom made luggage for two in the boot. I can think of no better way to take a long drive up the coast or across a desert or outrunning helicopters in Nebraska. How did I managed to snag this silver beauty? I looked out my window and there it was, parked right out in front.

Personal Statement

The cool license plates are piling up, so let's get right to them. A lot of these are fuzzy grab shots with my i-Phone, so the quality isn't up to my usual standards. A few of these are from a collection at the best seafood place in Pensacola, Florida: Peg Leg Pete's. Some plates tell you about the owner, their frame of mind or a team they like. The meanings of some plates are known only by the owner, and it's probably best left that way.

The Spice of Life

The variety of cars to spot on Sunday in Las Olas is amazing. I took all of these shots within a mile of each other in about an hour or so. From the hardly exotic, but interesting Plymouth Prowler and a super hot rotary engine Mazda RX-2, cool cars kept driving by. The Porsche Turbo and Aston Martin Vantage are always a treat. I think I may have found the exact right color for a hot Camaro, and Ferrari proves that red is not the only acceptable color for their stable. But the catch of the day is the Bentley Continental Supersport. This is a car that has more weight on its rear axle than my Honda S2000 that accelerates from zero to sixty mph in 3.7 seconds. It's super serious exterior and carbon fiber and billet aluminum interior hint at the 621 Bees-in-its Bonnet and exude 'presence' like no other car I know.