Thursday, February 19, 2026

Jim Jeffords, former Milwaukee-area racer and manager of AMC’s 1968 Javelin Trans Am campaign, partnered with designer Brooks Stevens, also of Milwaukee, to design the custom AMX-R featuring a Ramble Seat.


Candy Apple Red, flat-black on the hood, 15" Spyder rims






https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/car-of-the-week-1968-amx-r-prototype

Ford Racing and Red Bull are starting a nationwide tour, the Red Bull Showrun, set to debut in San Fran on Feb 21st before heading to Phoenix, March 14th, and Atlanta on March 28th, followed by additional stops across the U.S.


this weekend's Red Bull Showrun, will feature off-road racer Mitch Guthrie Jr. and rallycross champion and former F1/NASCAR driver Scott Speed, who will be joined by Red Bull Test and Reserve Driver Yuki Tsunoda, and freestyle motorcyclist Aaron Colton. 




 Fans that want to catch this exhibition in action can do so for free, and no tickets are required, either. 

Red Bull Showrun presented by Ford Racing is a series of F 1 demonstrations across cities in the USA, where F1 cars take to the streets alongside exciting vehicles from the world of motorsport

A new state bill aims to shield certain information about California’s High-Speed Rail project from the public. The project is set to one day connect Los Angeles and San Francisco and, eventually, maybe, San Diego and Sacramento.

the state has already spent about $15 billion on it over the last decade and a half, while the total cost projections for the full project have ballooned from the original $45 billion estimate presented to voters in 2008 to anywhere between $88 billion-$128 billion today.

a new state bill would limit public access to certain information about the project. AB 1608 would bar the inspector general from releasing what the bill describes as “project weaknesses,” including security risks, fraud controls and pending lawsuits.

The first phase, running from Kern County to Merced, is scheduled for completion in 2033.

The California High-Speed Rail project is actively constructing a 171-mile, electrified "Initial Operating Segment" (IOS) connecting Merced, Fresno, and Bakersfield. As of early 2026, 119 miles are under construction with major progress on structures, and track laying is beginning. This segment aims to revolutionize Central Valley transit, with passenger service projected between 2030 and 2033.


https://hsr.ca.gov/project-overview/project-sections/central-valley/

A teenager from Chipping Norton filmed herself on Snapchat speeding and laughing, days before she killed two people in a crash, uninsured, in a BMW Mini

She was 18 years old when she killed a taxi driver and his passenger in a crash less than a month after passing her driving test.

She had been travelling 96mph in a 60mph zone in Gloucestershire seconds before impact.

She had admitted two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and causing death by driving whilst uninsured.

She also pleaded guilty to three counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving in relation to the incident.


TSA agents were sometimes permitted to keep a percentage of travelers’ cash they helped seize

TSA has stripped more than 10,000 travelers of their money since 2014, but the supposed “criminals” are almost never charged after their cash is taken.

A class-action federal court case could finally end this outrage.

“TSA has secret policies that tell its screeners that they must seize travelers’ cash,” Dan Alban, the lawyer leading a nationwide class-action suit against the agency, tells me. Alban is with the Institute for Justice, which is fighting to stop airport checkpoints from being Constitution-free zones.

But traveling inside America with hefty amounts of cash is perfectly legal. That doesn’t stop TSA from plundering passengers on any and every BS pretext.

In August 2019, 57-year-old Brown was flying out of Pittsburgh International Airport carrying her father’s life savings — $82,373 — which he wanted her to deposit in a joint bank account near her Boston home.

A TSA agent noticed the Tupperware loaded with the cash while scanning Brown’s luggage and summoned a Drug Enforcement Administration agent, who speedily announced he was seizing the money.

There was never any allegation Brown came by the money illegally.

After the media publicized a lawsuit challenging the seizure, the TSA returned the money seven months later.

Until recently, TSA seizure efforts partnered with the Drug Enforcement Agency, whose asset-forfeiture program’s unofficial motto is “You make it, we’ll take it.”

The government doesn’t have to prove the person is guilty. Instead, the feds simply take the cash, and private citizens must engage in a long, expensive fight to attempt to get their money back.

TSA condemns travelers for concealing money even though more than 500 TSA agents have been fired for robbing passengers.


https://nypost.com/2026/02/17/opinion/a-class-action-lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-tsa-from-unlawfully-seizing-flyers-cash/

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) investigators recently conducted a sweeping series of “sting operations” targeting commercial driver’s license (CDL) schools in violation of federal regulations

the FMCSA uncovered “more than 550 sham CDL training schools found in violation of the FMCSA’s standards of safety.” 

During the course of the five-day effort, FMCSA “mobilized more than 300 investigators across 50 states to conduct over 1,400 sting operations,” officials said.

the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously last week to add increased oversight to the sheriff’s budget, including mandatory monthly reporting on overtime allocations.

The Santa Barbara County sheriff’s office paid out $21 million in overtime last year — with the top overtime earner making $170,000 in overtime on top of a base salary that was $103,000,

In some cases, they attempted to justify how they continue to run over budget. A recent audit “suggests that employees are taking advantage of the contract their unions negotiated to maximize the number of hours qualifying for overtime, by substituting paid sick or vacation leave hours for regular work hours and then making up the rest of their work week with hours that can be billed at time-and-a-half overtime rates,” the Independent reported.

“It’s a very common practice,” Santa Barbara Sheriff Bill Brown told supervisors. 

Brown also acknowledged the overtime problem is rampant but not with just his office. “This is common throughout government — throughout the state and throughout the country,” he said. 


https://www.sfgate.com/centralcoast/article/santa-barbara-sheriff-overtime-21358937.php

Did you know that some new cars won't shift into Neutral unless the engine is running? new Porsche GT4 Porsche GT3 RS


Like the 2022 Corvette, you have to turn on the engine for it to be able to shift in neutral.

 There’s no neutral release or anything like that.

 The only way you could release it is take apart the trunk of the car, access the transmission, and use a special tool that’s provided by Chevy to be able to put the car in neutral so you can push it. 

This tool costs about $200.

And this guy? Has had the worst of luck, in cars. Don't feel too bad for him, he's stinking rich. He bought a new Porsche GT4 after owning a Porsche GT3 RS, and his new Porsche GT4 required an engine warranty replacement. His GT3 RS had issues and was out of warranty. His Corvette chewed through an engine in it's 1st 7000 miles, and got a warranty replacement engine

Ford just donated a bad ass truck to Mike Rowe Works, customized by Hennessey Performance, to help Mike raise money for the next round of work ethic scholarships









Someone named Stupid didn't check that the valve was open.


undergoing the final stage of testing, a cabin pressurization test, before being declared ready for return to service.

During the process, the cabin pressure relief valve was found to be fully closed and had not been rechecked, as was standard procedure.

Wednesday, February 18, 2026

accentuated, I think is the correct term. Chris Burley in the UK owns this '37 Fordor




1Tulsa is celebrating 100 years of Route 66 with the largest classic car parade ever on May 30th (thank you Robert L!) They will try for a 3000 car parade, and set a new Guinness World Record


The Cruise route will encompass 5.5 miles of Route 66 within Tulsa’s city limits. 

The record attempt is officially for “Largest Parade of Classic Cars,” currently held by Dorado, Puerto Rico and set in April 2017. That parade has 2,491 cars.


29 passenger vehicles and seven semi-trucks were involved in a pile up on the Northbound I 25 near Pueblo Colorado, four people were killed and 29 were injured. The news only says high winds were the cause "Blowing dust due to high winds "

There were heavy winds at the time of the crash and blowing dirt that caused “brown out” conditions.

There was low to no visibility for drivers, the state patrol said.

Among the 29 people taken to hospitals, one was in critical condition, seven suffered serious injuries and 21 were treated for minor to moderate injuries.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/02/18/colorado-car-pileup-pueblo/88735413007

Impala? Bel Air? Biscayne? raced in A SS/FX, used to be at the address that now has several race cars all on trailers




it's not often I see an early Mustang with the original black plates

 

this 300 ZX has seen better days

another project that's been under the car cover since at least 2007



seen on todays walk



the one on the right has been under a car cover since 2007, the one on the left since 2017, and there's another in the garage with no front end. This home owner has 4 elks, and they don't run 


this one above, from 2007 when it was in front of his place, and not under a car cover, is now around the corner. I shit you not, he doesn't even park it in front of his place anymore







what if....

... that great big bunch of bikers heading down the freeway started with one guy, who went to a friends house, and said, hey, wanna come out and play? And they just went from one pals place to another buddy's place and gathered up the whole bunch to head out, have some fun, grab some burgers, and see some road? 

Nice.