Rallies are race events where cars drive fast over changing road surfaces. The comparison is about how a car can bounce or wiggle when it loses tire grip.
“Singer” here means a special Porsche build shop that takes classic Porsches and upgrades them with modern engineering. The point is that the speaker saw one in person, not just in magazines.
Car
Porsche
Porsche is the car brand they’re talking about. The whole conversation is basically about how they got interested in Porsche cars.
The Porsche 356 Speedster is an old-school Porsche from the 1950s/60s era. People love it because it’s light, fun to drive, and it’s a classic collector car.
Audi is another German car brand mentioned alongside Volkswagen and Porsche. It’s relevant because it shows the speaker’s background across similar European cars before focusing on Porsche.
The Porsche 918 Spyder is a very expensive, very fast supercar made by Porsche. It uses a mix of electric power and gasoline power. The podcast mentions it because it’s part of the speaker’s Porsche-related background.
The Porsche 911 GT2 RS is one of Porsche’s most hardcore track-focused 911s. It’s the kind of car that usually gets special upgrades and careful tuning, not just basic maintenance.
The 24 Hours of Daytona is an endurance race where teams drive for a full day. The goal is to keep the car running and manage strategy over many hours.
This is practical advice for performance modification: research the right approach and use a shop that understands the specific platform. For track-oriented cars like a Porsche GT2, the “right shop” matters because tuning, cooling, and reliability all have to work together.
A tire separation means the tire’s internal structure fails, causing the tread/sidewall to detach or come apart. At high speed this can be extremely dangerous, and the speaker’s description highlights why tire condition and inspection are critical for track use.
The quarter mile is a common drag-racing distance used to compare acceleration and performance. The speaker mentions their earlier car’s quarter-mile time as part of their drag-racing background, which frames how they measure speed and power.
Autocross is a motorsport where drivers navigate a timed course with tight turns, usually on a closed lot or track. It’s a great way to learn car control and setup because small changes in tires, alignment, and suspension can show up quickly in lap times.
NASA is a motorsports organization that runs track events and driver programs in the U.S. The speaker mentions starting road racing with NASA and later instructing for NASA, which indicates structured coaching and event participation rather than casual track days.
SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) runs driver schools and licensing programs. The speaker’s “top of my class” result highlights how these schools are used to build fundamentals and earn the credentials needed for more serious racing.
Thunderhill is a race track where cars go around a course at speed. It’s the kind of track racers talk about when they’re describing where they competed.
A “setup” is how the car is adjusted for the track. Lowering the car can change how it grips and handles, so other teams may copy it if it gives an advantage.
“First race in that car” means they hadn’t really proven it yet in competition. It’s exciting, but it also means you can’t fully predict how it’ll behave.
“4.1 liter” is the engine size—how much space the cylinders have. Bigger engines can make strong power, but the exact result depends on the whole setup.
Suspension is what connects the wheels to the car and controls how it rides and handles bumps. Adjusting it can make the car feel more stable and predictable.
Road America is a well-known race track in the U.S. Drivers like it because it has lots of different corners and feels very “real” compared to smaller tracks. If someone’s driven there, it usually means they’ve done serious track time.
Daytona is one of the biggest and most famous racing venues in the U.S. It’s known for very fast racing, so driving there is a big deal for a track enthusiast.
LIVE
Welcome to Porsche Pattern with Bracken Helms, the show where we hear Bracken and his distinguished
guests from the Porsche community patter on about Porsches and all things automotive.
Porsche Pattern is sponsored by Circuit64. Circuit64 creates authentic automotive apparel made for
like-minded automotive enthusiasts. The links for Circuit64 are in the shown notes. Okay, let's get to it.
Rob King, part one. Alright, Rob King is the owner of Escargo, you've probably heard of it,
I know I had heard of it, reading enough magazines growing up that I definitely knew what Escargo
was when I moved to California. Again, this old story, I did this back when I was transcribing
the interviews and publishing them in like magazines or whatever. And so, so I didn't care about the
audio. I mean, some of it, I even have food in my mouth when I'm talking. At first, when I went back
to try to look at this, like, because some of these interviews I published, they were done this
way. But this one was so bad because it was done in a restaurant. So I was kind of like, yeah, I'm
going to have to go redo this. So I called him and kind of asked him like, oh, can we redo this?
Because now I do podcasts and the audio was bad. And he said, okay, so we're trying to figure out a
time to do it. But then my friend was like, I can fix this. And so I thought, okay, I won't waste
this time by going over there and like interviewing him again, if I can fix this. So he fixed it,
I think it's pretty good. I mean, you should have heard it before. I mean, the people in the
background were were as loud as me and him. Okay, what do we talk about in this one? So he brings
up Terry Zaconis car because he used to have a car like Terry Zaconis. Terry Zaconis passed away
just recently. I think it was last year. I don't know, time goes by so fast now. I was actually
going to interview him because he's good friends with someone I'm really good friends with. And
I had met Terry before. Terry's like the autocross king, I guess.
We also talked about how he got into Porsches and where it has led to, where he is now.
We talked about some of the crazy car builds he's done. We talked a bit about his racing.
Oh, when I talk about being at easy and seeing Rich's car coming down the street looking like a
monster. Oh my God. I can't imagine this thing getting faster. Like I'm on the side and I just
hear a bunch of noise. And it's like the back end squatted and it's coming down the street. You
normally cars are accelerating. They're coming right at you fast. Like it's like darting around
like little little darts on the road. Like it's so going so fast that the tires are having problems
keeping traction. So it's like coming at me and it's kind of like moving as it's coming at me,
like moving around on the road because like you've seen some of these rallies where they come out of
the corner and they just hit it and like they kind of skip around on the road a little bit.
That's what it was doing. So he tells me, Oh, we're trying to get a little bit more power to
it. I'm just thinking, Oh Lord. Anyway, so we also talked about Rumba, which is kind of a famous car.
And then when I first moved to California, I went by his shop and he had a singer in there. So he
was one of the first guys that was kind of helping build the singer or not build, I guess, but like
helping him out. I don't know. He talks about it. But I thought that was pretty crazy because you
saw it in all these magazines, all this, you know, that prototype, that green one and stuff. And
then to just walk into the shop and see what's sitting there. The one, not many, like the one
they had. Anyway, here's Rob King part one. Is it getting my food order? Okay, what is this cargo?
What is this cargo? It's a Porsche shop. Where did you come up with the name as cargo?
My 11s. Yes, car goes. What attracted you to Porsche? Porsche. My dad bought his first Porsche
when I was like 10 years old. And then he had a sell it shows. I was gonna have a little brother.
He told him, I don't want a brother. I want the Porsche.
What's your story? How old were you? I was 10.
That's a big gap in eight. How many? Actually, I was nine because he's nine years young.
But I've always loved Porsches right now. What car did you get introduced to Porsche?
And it was obviously your dad's. I started working on both wagons and Porsches. So I was really less.
So first ride in a Porsche. Probably your dad's was nine years old. What kind of what kind of car
was it? This is a 356 Speedster. Oh, that's cool. How did it feel when you got your first Porsche?
And how were you? I bought my first Porsche in 1974. I was 17 years old was a 68 911 L.
L was an S with a Chibo. Right. It was a Targa Soft Lendo. I wish I had it to the
legs because you cannot find that burn in it. I know one one guy who learns a lot.
Terry's a current. Still has more drives that every day. What's it called? Something with a name.
He's got a name for it, right? Marcia or something? Yeah, you know the guy. Yeah.
How long have you been in the business? See, I started working for Volkswagen when I was 15.
Volkswagen Audi Porsche 18 years. I worked for this. It was Leon C. Felton Volkswagen.
And then Salmon Butter. I worked for Salmon two years. Then I opened a shop with a Devin Wales
high tech auto motor. I worked there for about four years. And I started this car ago in 1990s.
High tech auto, that sounds familiar. Is it still around? Yeah, it's right down the street.
What's that? It's my ex brother-in-law. Did you just want to do your own thing or was it not
didn't I go to love? It was time. Okay. How are you? So why did you get involved in the Porsche
business? I always loved Porsches. When I was 17, I told my father I want a Porsche. He said,
oh yeah, how are you going to buy a Porsche son? So then I got to sell some of my Volkswagen's.
I had like five. So I sold like three of them. I made $4,500 in my 68 and a target. And it was
what color? This bright orange. Like black and turquoise. How did your business changed or evolve?
I started out by myself. I ran at one song in the shop. Then I ended up overnight.
About a year later, I heard two guys. I was busy enough to keep three of us busy.
Then I took over the whole shop. What do you want to go over the whole shop?
Well, I ran at one song the shop first. Okay. And then there was another shop in there got him
out of there. I took over the whole shop. Okay. What do you like about your job?
Everything. Customers working on the cars. In your opinion, what is the most exciting car you have
dealt with? We just had a GT2 RS in 2019. Yeah, I was here when it was here. We modified it.
That was a pretty cool car. Yeah, but we've done a lot of really cool race cars we've built
over the years. One was Vanzaneses. You probably saw it on the wall. Yeah, which one?
Yellow with purple flames. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was pretty cool. Yeah. What do you think the
wilders or craziest build you've done? He's been I was probably it. Okay.
We took that in 2000 to Elkhart Lake. We're out of America.
And a shifter broke. So we didn't qualify. We started fast. And we won the race.
Then we got it. It was a per workers choice. You got the plaque on the wall. Workers choice.
So it means all the workers that worked the track voted our cars the coolest car on the track.
What series was it in? It was sports club racing. We did a lot of AMSA racing. I did AMSA racing
with TRG Racist Group, Kevin Buckler. Okay. I worked with them for 10 years crewing a car.
We did 24 hours of Daytona, 12 hours of Sebring. We were on the road every weekend.
Yeah. So how did that build come about? Van's analysis? Yeah. I met Van
20 something years ago. We worked on the car, but it was a stock Conturba buddy.
And then we just got we'd do something really cool. Put some really wide band night three body
work on it. Had a hood scoop. And Dave Taylor was working with me. He did a lot of the build on it.
He did the motor transmission. That's what I usually do.
That was a wild car. Do you have a name for it?
Where'd the name Roomba come from? There's a Roomba? Roomba. Where'd it come from? That was
another crazy build. That was a street car. Yeah. The owner. That's what he called it Roomba.
That's it. Mark Johnson. Yeah. Ritz brought it over the easy one time for Ritz Coffin.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. He just bought it. He's the fourth owner of the car. So he owns it.
How many of you owns it at this mine? I do have the car. He didn't own it at the time.
He bought that about three months ago. Oh, okay. So yeah, he didn't own it at the time.
We just showed it over easy. And then Ritz shot about it and he ended up buying the car.
Ritz, man. Ritz also owns a GT2 like mine. Funny thing is after I bought my GT2,
five of my customers bought it after. It's kind of the car to hell.
What do you think about the new ones? Do you like the M997?
I love my 997. Do you like to get a newer car?
Or are you kind of like... I'm pretty happy with what I got now. Right now I just want to
modify my GT2, get it up to about 854. That'll be my next step on that. I need to fix it.
This is not another power order. Yeah, I didn't know the GT2 was yours until last time I came here.
Yeah, GT2s are pretty rare. It's a cool car. Yeah. Advice for someone that wants to modify their car.
Do their research. Go to a good shop. I know what they're doing.
Tell me about your racing past. I wanted to ask this anyway, but Ritz kind of was like the one
that, oh, you should really ask this. He says like a lot of people don't know how much racing you've done.
I've done silver seat twice. I did it at a Porsche Target. We finished first in the turbo class
with an NA Porsche. We averaged 142 miles an hour for 92 miles. That was in Las Vegas,
Elie, Nevada. I went back and did it again in a twin turbo that I call. It was an 86 roof.
And that 50 miles into the race, a tire separated at 192 miles an hour coming over a hill crest.
It took about a half a mile to get the car under control, but I never went off the road.
Maybe a quarter mile. When I was doing 192 miles an hour, we had full telemetry in the car.
It shows that I was reaching speeds of 202 miles an hour on the straights.
My average speed at that time was 183 miles an hour. 52 miles before the tires separated.
That was a little bit of a hint. Yeah. I started out with a Volkswagen Doom Buggy with about 200
horse. It did 1105s of a quarter mile. So I used to drag race it. And I used to autocross the Porsche
Cup all the time. That was a lot of fun. I started road racing when I can't remember what year
it was. Started with NASA and ended up instructing for NASA for about 10 years, 30 years ago.
I went to SCCA racing school. Back then it was true weekend. I finished the top of my class
out of what? 150 students. I was number one, which was pretty good. Yeah, that's pretty cool.
So it's just a driving school or a... Well, NASA... Well, I went to SCCA school to get my
race license. Okay. But I got too busy at work, so I didn't really race much
in SCCA. Now when I opened my shop, I started doing weekends of the racetrack, helping customers.
So I actually quit driving for 12 years. It was the first 10 years of the shop.
I was basically working 16-hour days. And weekends, we'd be flying to Florida to do a race.
We're going to Wisconsin. We're going to Vegas. We're going to Thunder Hill. We're going to SCCA.
Serious point. I was barely around on the weekends. It was always car related. Working on a car.
You were with the team or you were driving kill? No, no, I was with the team. I was
screwing the car. Most of the crew were shop owners from all over, which are still good friends
today. Perfect power. Sol was out of Chicago. Count Williams was Gordon. They all own shops.
They're also good friends. We spent a lot of time together.
So we kind of went over what kinds of cars were you involved in racing?
From Volkswagen rabbits to basically purses. I helped through a buddy with a Honda CRX,
BMW, Mike Courtney, Mark Kerber. What other days of the race track? What's the best and
the worst thing about racing? When you break. Especially at 12 hours of sleep riding or
daytona. Because you got to fix it and you got to get back out. The best thing is winning or
finishing it on the podium. You've done that many a times. What do you consider your biggest win?
Well, in 1995, we were at our first instant race of service point against all the best.
My setup was lower than everybody's. We won the race. And everybody thought it was a fluke.
All the next time they showed up on track, all their cars were as low as ours was.
So they changed their setup. That was the hell of a race.
The best series was that. The car was just built. It was the first race in that car.
Anywhere. It was a brand new car. We had two days to play with it and test it.
And that was it. And that was the race. That's how tight it was to get in car racing.
What was the first car you were involved with that made it into the publications?
Caxland's magazine? Oh, shit. It was before that. It was the VW Apportion magazine.
When I was at high tech, there was a lot of articles of stuff that I would fabricate and do.
How outside of war you were when you got your first article?
I thought that was pretty cool. I've gotten quite a few articles in the past.
You just got two articles, you know. 9-11 Persil were UK magazine.
Yeah, I have those upshot. And those ones are pretty recent?
Yeah. Which ones, which ones were there?
One was on Rumba and then the other ones are the Rich Coffins.
Blue Curve. That one back there? Yeah, we're in the back room.
Yeah, I saw that thing coming down the road at easy. He gave someone a ride.
It's a monster coming down the road. Well, that's going to even be a better weapon
fuel injection. Hopefully it should make one more power.
It's a 4.1 liter, making close to 450 horse.
How much does it weigh? I think it's 2,100 pounds.
It's about 2,200 pounds. What project are you most proud of?
That's hard to say. There's so much over the years.
We were really proud of Rumba when we built that.
That was a full build. It turned out really nice. That's a pretty cool car.
So what happened with Rumba? The guy just said, do whatever you want?
That was his dream. To build something like that.
So he bought a tub. He bought a car. He stripped it all out.
Then he kept it for a few years. Pretty much lived in my shop.
He was just taking it out for drives on the weekends and stuff.
He moved to Vegas. He'd fly into town and just use the car. He never brought it to Vegas.
Well, one day you decided to sell it. He sold it to a buddy of mine.
I sure bought the car. I didn't.
Dan Zanis, but with another guy named Ken, Ken got the car and then we put a twin-verbal motor.
It was a G-50 transmission, right? It really made it that far.
Then recently, Rich Coffin just bought it from Ken.
Okay, when I first came there, I stumbled upon that was when you had the singer in there.
Why did the singer have it at your shop? Or what were you doing with it?
We built the exhaust on the first two singers. We were helping them out with a strain to a few
things out on the car. Basically, we worked on the prototype car and then the first car.
They actually don't sell. The green one? Was that the prototype?
The green one. The prototype was a color. It wasn't quite finished, but he showed it.
A little good to say. Then he took down the part and built the white one. So it was a green one
of the white. Then I helped him out with the suspension on it. Straightened out a few things
on it. I probably got to drive the green one about 100 miles. We put our drive in the back roads.
It was a lot of fun. Great guy. Beautiful car.
Why do you have so much Disney stuff in your shop?
Customer, my work bro, Pixar. So he brought the whole shop to the movie cars at Pixar before it
came out. And he brought me four posters from the movie cars. So I put those on the wall.
Then every time he came in, he'd bring me another post. And every time I'd built him a Porsche,
we'd finish it. And he had a cell. I did seven courses for him.
And as soon as he got done, he just sold them?
Every time. Every time they got finished. There was a reason he had a cell.
Then a six month cell in the road, he buys another one. And we built that one.
And I just sold him one three months ago. And he kept it for a month,
then he had a cellar. So I sold it to another customer. Then he just called me up last week,
looking at another Porsche in the back. The guy kills me.
Okay. Any horror stories with like a driver, other teams or in your shop?
Horror stories. Not really that I could really thank him.
Okay. Favorite track or race?
My favorite track to drive this service flight. Yeah, Libino Saco.
But I've driven around Road America. I was pretty cool.
Rotolana. Been around Seavering. And I've been around Daytona track. That's pretty crazy.
Yeah. But I never got to experience Rivalous tracks at Swief.
Yeah.
Thanks for joining us for today's episode. If you enjoyed the show,
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Special thanks to our sponsor, Circuit64. Goodbye for now. We hope we can get
together again for our next episode. Now get out there and enjoy the cars and the people.
About this episode
Rob King, owner of Escargo, talks Porsche roots, shop life, and a lifetime of racing and wild builds. He explains how a 356 Speedster and later a 68 911 L sparked his obsession, then details his path from Volkswagen work to running his own Porsche-focused shop. Highlights include GT2 RS modifications, the “Roomba” street build, and the story behind “Rumba,” plus racing tales from Daytona/Sebring and speed runs at Pikes Peak-style events. He also shares his connection to Singer—helping with early exhaust and prototype work—and why his shop is full of Pixar “Cars” memorabilia.
Rob King is the owner and founder of S-Car-Go Racing, a well-known Porsche shop and tuning specialist. His company has built several notable cars that have been featured in various automotive publications. Before starting his own shop, he worked as a factory-authorize Porsche mechanic for 18 years.
In this episode we talk about: -How he got interested in Porsches. -A few of the builds he has done. -Some of the racing he was involved in. -Early help he provided Singer Vehicle Design.
