The White Elephant in the Room

He did.

He would wash it and put it back on.

This week on That Car Show, we talk about Ryan's recent experiences

driving what he says is the best car he's ever driven.

We also talk about Lindsay's experiences at the valet.

Always check how many toes your valet driver has.

I talk a little bit about being a victim of crime.

We then rave for a little while about the Jim Carna video.

The latest Jim Carna video is out of this world.

We talk about that in a little bit of detail.

When was peak Mercedes?

We have three different views and three great perspectives.

So we'll talk about that for a little bit.

Secret Santa, it's that time of year where sharing is caring.

We go on to Drake Motors website and pick out a car for each of us.

Some usual predictions, but also a couple of surprises.

Why elephants?

It's a new thing to me.

We don't have that in the UK, but did you get a dashboard Jesus?

Those gifts and many more in the white elephants conversation.

And finally, we announced the winner of the latest book competition

where a lucky winner has won a copy of the ride book.

All that and a whole lot more on this week's That Car Show.

Oh, hey.

You are my spirit animal.

Welcome to this week's episode of That Car Show.

And those that can't see, we have a Grinch.

We do.

We're done with that.

I was going to say, if you do the entire show in that math,

I would be impressed.

That's a commitment.

I've got some sort of fake hair in my mouth now.

It's called Grinch fur.

Grinch fur, munching on Grinch carpets.

And we're off and running.

We're PG-13.

We're going to end the year on a bang.

Yeah.

Anyway, welcome to this week's crew show.

The crew are in festive spirit as we start to see in the Christmas holiday period.

How are you guys doing?

Great.

I feel like the end of the year is just like full speed ahead.

It'll be here before we know it.

How about you guys?

And it's been a year, isn't it?

It has been a year.

Yeah.

It has been a year.

All of the Instagram memes of like, yeah, the year was like January, January, January,

like fast forward.

And now we're in December.

Yep.

That's how it feels.

Yeah.

It's pouring out for 2025.

Old jokes, engagements.

We've had it the long, haven't we?

Yes.

I know.

Yeah.

Big wave changes that no one saw coming that are amazing.

But yeah, like, didn't have any of this on my bingo card.

Yeah.

But we're still smiling.

That's the main thing, isn't it?

Yes.

We've still got Grinch mouth.

Right.

We're going to claim the day with, if you need a last minute appetizer for that party

that you forgot, don't forget Dan's favorite Grinch fur.

Grinch fur for the win.

Ryan, I think the last time we spoke to you, you were going to go on a road trip in the

Genesis.

I was going to go on a road trip.

But yeah.

Yeah.

So God, where does the time go?

Because we've had nothing but guest shows since that happened.

Yeah.

Big ups, as they say, for the Genesis GV70.

It's a hell of a thing.

A lot of car for the money.

It was a wonderful companion for the journey.

And then I've got another journey coming up for Christmas and Toyota, they've been kind

enough to provide me the car we all lusted after at the LA Auto Show.

Do you recall?

Wait.

The Toyota Crown Signia.

Oh, yes.

The Crown sedan or station wagon.

This is the station wagon that no one knows exists, including myself until I saw it at

the LA Auto Show.

I had driven the sedan when that was new at a press day, but I didn't even know that

this wagon existed.

And the reason why is because they are marketing it as a crossover, as an SUV.

Wagon is nowhere to be found on the website.

And then we all saw, to bring this back to Genesis, that new wagon that they've introduced

or that they've announced, I guess, is supposed to be coming up.

People are losing their collective shit.

And yet Toyota has a station wagon of their own that maybe isn't quite as cool, but it's

still pretty cool.

And it's got a great interior and it's available now.

And so I get one for Christmas to drive to the Twin Cities for the holidays.

And so thank you, Toyota.

I'm looking forward to that.

Fantastic.

How many hours behind the wheel did you do in the Genesis?

And was it comfortable?

It was wonderful.

It was about 2,000 miles when all was said and done.

We drove through record winds the whole way there.

We stopped at some incredible roadside attractions along the way.

You'll have to see my auto blog article for more.

But yeah, it's a really fantastic thing.

It's like 360 horsepower or something.

So all the power you'd ever want, great through weather.

As you see in the article, I had some struggles with the Bang & Olufsen sound system and dialing it in.

But other than that, the car was damn near perfect for a family road trip.

And yeah, hoping the Toyota is a similar kind of thing.

Well, you'll be definitely comparing.

It's a very similar comparison.

And you're doing the same.

You're doing another long road trip in it.

So it'll be a good, you'll be able to really compare.

360 horsepower is enough to terrorize the Iowa drivers.

It is.

Yeah.

And in fact, there is a four cylinder version as well.

And that's maybe a closer analog to the crown because even though there is a six cylinder hybrid in the sedan,

the wagon for whatever reason only comes as the four cylinder hybrid.

So I guess this is more of a comparison with the lower level GV70.

But no, I'm looking, I'm looking forward to it.

I like these drives.

Like you said, it's been a hell of a year.

And there's really, you know, no opportunity to check out like there is a 12 or 14 hour road trip.

That's true.

That'd be fun.

And Lindsay, I hear there's a story about valets, but I want to know more.

I can't wait to tell you guys.

So it's a pretty quick story, but I've been thinking.

So this happened.

I valed the X three last weekend.

The manual X three.

Yes.

That's key to the story.

So it was a thing, a manual X three in case you're listening and you don't know this was very much a thing when the X three first generation,

second generation, first gen.

They only did the manual in seven and eight.

Okay.

Yeah.

So yeah.

So mine is a manual.

And I, anytime I valet it, I always check with the valet because they don't expect it to be a manual.

Not everybody can drive a manual anymore or whatever.

But I was meeting some friends and I had gotten stuck behind somebody going 20 in at 35.

So I was more delayed than I wanted to be.

And I was, you know, racing to get in and through the keys.

It didn't stop to ask the guy whether he could drive a manual.

And I made it just inside the door of the restaurant.

I was giving him my coat and the guy came back in the restaurant.

He's like, uh, ma'am, um, could you, uh, would you mind stepping outside and I was like, oh, he can't drive a manual.

You know, and I was laughing at myself.

I forgot to ask him.

So we're walking back out and I, he said, yeah, I just, I didn't realize it was a manual.

And I said, you know, I always check and I meant to and just forgot.

And he goes, yeah, my toe fell off.

So I can't drive a manual right now.

And he goes, but if you can just, you can back it right in here.

It's all, I'll help you.

And in my haste to get that taken care of and join my party, I didn't really pause on that.

And I kind of laughed like, you know, that's a funny like way to say I can't drive a manual.

So I backed the car in and he came over to thank me again.

He's like, I'm so sorry.

Um, and I was teasing him.

I said, does this mean I got a discount since I parked my own car.

And he said, yeah, he said, you know, I don't know how this works, but you get to keep your keys.

And I said, great, thank you so much.

I appreciate it.

Happy to do it.

And as I got out of the car, he started to say again, yeah, I just, I can't drive a manual right now.

And I said, did you say that your toe fell off?

And he said, yeah, I lost two toes.

And I looked at him and I realized he's not kidding.

Like it wasn't a throw away.

It wasn't a funny way of saying anything.

And I'm like, all right, I have time to get the story.

So I said, what do you mean your toes fell off?

Like they came off and you said, oh, frostbite, but it's fine.

I just can't put pressure on my foot for right now.

And I'm like, I might just skip the whole dinner because I need the story.

Have to find out what happened.

And he was so nonchalant about it.

And I was looking at him.

Was he like a ski bro or something?

Like what was his angle?

Homeless?

Like how did he get frostbite so bad that his toes fell off?

And he was, I know he was a young guy.

He wasn't really volunteering much.

So I didn't pry beyond confirming that he wasn't kidding when he said his toe fell off.

Yeah.

But so that is definitely the strangest reason that a valet has not been able to park the car.

Yeah.

Validate this by the flip flops he was wearing.

Do you think it was embarrassment?

I can't drive stick, but I can't tell them I can't drive stick.

So I'm just going to make a story of that.

I lost toes.

Well, that's, we were talking about it at the table because I told everybody later.

I'm like, you guys have to hear this story.

This is why I was even later joining you because this was unfolding at the front door of the restaurant.

And people started going like same thing.

Like, do you think maybe he just didn't want to admit that he can't?

So he came up with this story where he's like, what can I say where nobody will question me?

They will feel empathy for me.

You know, so it'll take the sting out of you have to park your own car for somebody that might get frustrated about that.

You know, it was wild.

And I mean, I'm always happier parking my own car anyway.

So, you know, I would never wish that on anyone.

But yeah, I walked back in the restaurant just kind of like, what just happened?

He didn't say I lost my toes or, you know, they just fell off.

Well, that's why when he first said it and we were in the shuffle of like getting it sorted out and getting the car actually parked,

I didn't really pause on it because I'm like, that's such a funny thing.

Toes don't generally just fall off.

They're not generally detachable on their own without something.

So it was so funny.

I went like, oh, haha.

Yeah.

And then I thought, no, like that's also a very odd thing to say if that's not what's going on.

Yeah.

Shout out to the band King Missle who had a song about a detachable body part many years ago.

I was thinking about that song.

For those of a certain era, they will enjoy the reference.

And if you don't know, just search detachable song.

Yeah.

Also very nonchalant protagonist in the song.

Yeah.

For dealing with what he was dealing with, the unfolding of that story and how he lived his life was fascinating.

He put it back on.

He did.

He would wash it and put it back on.

I like part when he finds it on a blanket next to a toaster and he has to pay.

He has to buy it back, takes it home, washes it and puts it back on.

I know this one.

Are you in for a treat when we're done recording?

You get to go look this up or I will send it to you if I remember, but it was like, was it mid 90s, Ryan?

It was 93 because it was the one year I worked at a college radio station and it was in heavy rotation because, you know, there never been a song like that before that point.

And probably never will.

That kind of show playlist.

Right.

King Missile.

I'm so glad you knew the band name because as we were talking, I'm like, wait, there is one other time I have been hearing about a detachable body part, but I couldn't think of the band.

Speaking of what's on your head, Lindsay?

This is our holiday show.

That's right.

So these are an antler.

I have an antler headband with ears and some bells and holly and garland actually now that I'm looking at it.

And I have a Christmas tree sweatshirt on, but you can't see it.

And these antlers are determined to fling themselves off my head.

So we'll see how long they last.

Also, Ryan did normal attire.

Right.

Well, come on, give me a little credit here.

This could be office Christmas party.

Totally.

Drunk uncle.

So this was a gift.

This is, I don't know how you pronounce this.

It's one of the Glenn's.

It's a Scotch.

Glenn Morangy.

Okay.

I didn't want to get it wrong.

This is from friend of the show, Dan McGinnis.

So I'm going to open this up tonight and drink this.

So either office Christmas party or drunk uncle, but I'm going to tie and I'm drinking Scotch.

So cheers.

Best of play.

For the win.

Dan McGinnis is the best.

That's amazing.

He's a champ.

Yes.

Gentlemen.

And he let you drive his recently modified car.

Guys.

And now I was afraid this was going to happen.

So if you're listening, you probably know, I have a 17 GT4.

Well, Dan, if you're listening, probably know Dan has what's probably the highest mileage

718 spider in the country.

He's got, I think 103 XXX 1000.

Well, it just keeps ticking up too.

Yeah.

And he, so, you know, on his, on his original clutch, which is kind of crazy and he drives

a son of that car.

But anyway, he figured maybe it was time for a clutch.

Apparently he didn't even need a clutch, but he decided this is a good time to do the

shark works re gearing.

So if you know the seven, eight cars, you know that they're geared very long.

So you can do 58 or whatever in first year.

Right.

And it's kind of like that throughout the range.

So shark works.

And then there's another, I think it's demand out on the East coast.

Yeah.

Offer.

Well, they do a couple of things.

They do a engine conversion.

If that's, yeah, if that's your thing, but, but really more importantly, they do this

re gearing.

And so they gear the gears.

So they're much more natural, right?

So no matter where you are as you accelerate, you're in the power band.

And it's, it's, it's awesome.

It's awesome.

So you had a new clutch put in, you had this, this re gearing done, and then they put a lighter

flywheel in at the same time.

And it's magic.

It has ruined me for anything else, including my own seven, 18, because it is that that good.

Now it's like tens of thousands of dollars to do this.

Yeah.

So you have to ask yourself, is it worth it?

It might be.

It's that good.

And it just transforms and, you know, an already amazing car into something that's just sublime.

And I just cut it was good.

It was just so good.

So if you ever have the chance, I mean, Matt Farah has this, I don't know if he has sharkworks,

he may have the demand.

He did the man one.

Yeah.

Engine and gearing.

And yeah.

Yeah.

I was told to look into sharkworks years ago for the GT three.

And I remember poking at the price tag, but it sounds like it's worth it.

It might be.

It just, and then you've got your out without your car for like two or three months, right?

Well, they, they get it all together and they ship things back and forth and stuff.

But it is so, so good.

It feels like you were dry.

You know, we're at altitude here, right?

You know, Denver's 52 80.

We only go up from here.

And so it feels like you are driving the car at sea level, right?

But it's better than that, right?

It's just tighter and just, it was just so good.

And Dan's Dan, so his car is aligned just so with the exact, you know, right toe in and

all this kind of stuff.

And it's just that, that, that may have been the best car I've ever driven.

The best sports car I've ever driven.

Holy moly.

Those mods.

Wow.

That's a big price.

That good, that good.

So someday when my ship comes in.

Right.

When I stop drinking and spend my money instead.

It's a lot cheaper than, it's a lot cheaper than the Carrera GT.

Well, that's for sure.

That's for sure.

I mean, to be honest.

Would you have one over at Carrera GT?

And then the balance in my bank account, 100%.

Yeah.

100%.

High price.

Again, the only word is sublime.

It's just fantastic.

And you wouldn't think that such a small thing would make such a big difference,

but it also kind of pisses you off that Porsche didn't just make the car like that.

Right?

Yeah.

So there's that.

Well, you know, they're, they're creating jobs.

So they're investing in the economy by creating this opportunity for Shark Works to step in.

That's, that's right.

That's right.

That's what it is.

I just, did you ever get the chance?

I don't want to drive it because that means you'll know what you're missing.

Right?

Well, that's it.

We all, the three of us have this car, basically.

Right.

Manual transmission, 718s with the four liter six.

Or mine's a nice one.

But yeah, you know, I mean, and they do the gearing for both models.

And I mean, it really is that good.

I mean, it might upset you.

Don't come anywhere near me with that car.

Yeah.

It's the mod whose name you dare not speak.

Right.

But it's the top because also if somebody's going to throw you their keys, like far be

it from any of us to turn that down, right?

Yeah.

Also you guys in convertibles, I think you got it figured out.

Yeah.

We've even cross shopped a spider or a cab or Boxter or whatever.

I just, you know, and we took that car out and it was just like the perfect weather day.

You know, it was just, it's just perfect.

Do you find that you leave your top down a lot on the car?

I do.

My car's not being driven at the minute.

Yeah.

It's got a license plate back on it.

Well, it's not on it yet.

I went to the UK for a week and when I came back, someone had stolen my license plates.

Can you believe it?

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Did they, do you think it was for the registration stickers because you didn't have a personalized

plate, right?

No, I think it was for the license plate frame.

Oh, that's right.

So I've got a or had an 1199 license plate frame, which for those not in the know, there

is an amazing charity called the 1199 Foundation.

And if you contribute to that charity, you get a license plate to say that you have a

frame.

And in theory, all the funds go to fallen officers and not in theory in reality, all the funds

go to fallen officers of the California Highway Patrol.

And, you know, those things are quite hard to come by.

They look at your driving record and all that sort of stuff.

So the cheat code is probably to steal it.

So it's probably on eBay somewhere.

I do have new license plates through fault of my own kind of.

I spent almost the day at the DMV this week.

Oh, no.

So the first thing I did is I went to AAA.

Those are not familiar.

AAA is a driver's members club.

It's been around for, I think, over a hundred years.

And they're able to do licensing in many ways, shapes and forms.

Yeah.

What I found out is the only thing they can't do is replacement license plates for stolen.

Of course.

The one thing you need help with.

Yeah.

So I then went to the DMV.

I lined up very nice people.

They told me I didn't have two forms of ID on me.

So I then had to go home, come back with the passport and then line up again.

So I think by about two o'clock, I had license plates in my hand.

I just need to get them fitted to the car now.

But yeah.

So in answer to your question, it's not been driven much at all with the top down or the top up.

Yeah.

Right.

Yeah.

The top is irrelevant at the moment.

Yeah.

I'm telling you it was Sia all day long.

It's, I mean, the good news is that it appears they haven't damaged the car.

Right.

That's that would be the worst.

Yeah.

No cameras in the garage.

Not in the garage, unfortunately.

So ongoing investigations apparently.

So we all see.

Let's talk about a more fun, a more fun topic.

Have you guys seen what is the, I think the best YouTube video of the year,

which is the Jim Conner with Travis Pastrana in Australia.

So I have not seen it yet, but I have been seeing your messages about it.

So I want to hear your take on it and then I will be watching it with that.

Lindsay, if there was a naughty step, you'd have to go and stand on it right now.

It's true.

It's cool.

Dan Supernanny Pilling.

Yeah, there we go.

Yeah.

Doubtfire or whatever the equivalent is.

Yeah.

Well, they were both British, so.

Well, Scottish.

Let's not.

Oh, that's true.

Supernanny was British, right?

Yes.

Yeah.

Okay.

From the British Isles.

Would you accept that?

The British Isles.

That will work nicely.

So Ken Block obviously had a history of creating these videos that were called Jim Conner.

Yeah.

And in essence, they were celebrations of tire shredding and seeing what you could do

with cars.

And Ken was a master and he would be able to put cars in positions that would be a first

take.

And obviously when we lost Ken, Travis Pastrana took over.

Yeah.

And I think last week they launched the latest video in the series of Jim Conners.

Travis is Down Under.

He is sporting a big moustache and he is in a Subaru Brat.

Do you guys remember the Subaru Brat?

I do.

And I remember you got to spend some time with Travis before he went to film this, right?

Yeah.

The funniest thing in that was I spent the day with Travis driving him around LA back

in August.

The funniest thing was he told me in the car that he was doing this new Jim Conner.

But he said it was top secret and he couldn't tell me where it was going to be.

And then towards the end of the day, we bumped into a friend of Travis's at one of the events

I was driving him to.

And at the end of their conversation, his friend went, I'll see you next week in Australia.

So I was like, ah, so that's where it's going to be.

So through no fault of his own, you found out.

No.

So this video is just so beautifully shot.

That's the first thing.

It's, you know, it's a masterpiece.

I shared it with some friends of mine the other day who are not car people and they

were stuck to the screen.

They were watching it and just couldn't look away.

So that's my first takeaway is that it's just visually stunning.

So that's the first one.

The second one is the brat.

So they took the brat to and those are not familiar.

The brat is a pickup, a two door pickup that has two seats in the back to get around the

chicken tax.

And we didn't really have the chicken tax, but from what I understand, the chicken tax

was that America was selling too many chickens to Europe.

And in return, they put a tax on trucks.

So American trucks and other trucks were being taxed heavily.

So to get around that by putting two seats in the back, it was no longer a truck.

Is that right?

Yeah, it was to make it not a truck, quote unquote.

Yeah.

Let's just qualify this.

It's a very small, right?

It's like a car.

It's more like a mini El Camino than a truck, right?

Yes.

It's a tiny thing.

It's a tiny thing, a sporty looking thing.

Yeah.

But I do remember all the cool people of a certain age when I was younger driving those

around, I just thought those were the coolest thing.

Two little seats with grab handles, right?

Yeah.

It was just such a weird thing.

So they've previously done the hugster, which is like the little wagon.

Yeah.

They've done an air slayer.

And this time around, the brat got the treatment of Vermont sports car racing.

And if you're not familiar with Vermont, those guys turn cars into rally cars or hill climb

cars.

And they took the car and they applied a lot of magic to that car.

One of the first opening scenes, and I won't ruin the video for everyone, they've got to

go watch it.

But one of the opening parts of the scenes, Travis takes on a river crossing and later

in the video, someone else takes on a river crossing and there's two very different outcomes.

So, you know, the car is fantastic.

The visuals are fantastic.

Some of the scenes, there's one scene where there is a jump and the camera pans to the

inside and floating is the sunglasses and the hat.

And they're just floating in the sea.

It's just beautifully shot.

So, yeah, it's funny because when Ken was around, Ken tried to do a Hoonigan in Australia

and the government of Australia said no.

So I guess it's a good testament to his legacy that they recognized how important, you know,

the series is now and said yes.

Well, and there was something, maybe it was in the lead up or when they went to start

filming this.

I think Brian Scott posted something he shared about when they had tried to do the initial

one in Australia and the permits were denied or whatever the issue was.

They made that into their marketing campaign because I can't remember where they ended up

shooting it.

But when they released it, they're like, it was, you know, too big for Australia was

the slogan basically.

And they just leveraged it into a funny story and made that the whole campaign.

So, you know, Australia seems to have noticed.

Yeah.

It's a must see.

It's really, really well done to your point, Dan.

And I don't know how they keep topping themselves, but they do.

Right.

And in a world of CGI and, you know, an AI and all that, I mean, this still like captures

your attention.

Again, I don't want to ruin too much, but that brat looks awesome.

It looks better than any RWB Porsche.

I'll tell you that.

And there is a scene where they are sliding on a peer in the tail end of the car.

It's like a rail slide on a skateboard.

Yeah.

And it's just, just phenomenal.

Like I, the skill set and just the giant, giant balls that man has, that combination

makes for some absolutely wonderful viewing.

Absolutely recommend it.

Two thumbs up.

And just really, really well done.

Beautifully shot.

And just, I don't know, you think you're a good driver and then you watch something

like that and you realize how much you have to learn.

Wow.

Yeah.

It's phenomenal.

Well, maybe I'll make that one of the movies for family movie night over the holidays.

It's 20 minutes or something, right?

And if that, right, it's, yeah, it's, it's a good one.

Really good.

So hats off to everyone involved in that.

They've done a great job.

Yeah.

Can we watch it?

So next year is 250 years of America.

It's also a hundred years of Route 66.

So the first car company that's really kind of celebrating that is Chevrolet.

And they've already announced some special editions for next year called the Chevy

Stars and Steel Edition.

So if you guys have seen this.

Yeah.

I've read about it.

Yeah.

Polarizing, what do we think?

I'm sort of, I'm not sure if there's, I love the idea of celebrating these milestones.

It sort of feels like a bit of a marketing ploy to sell cars because it sounds like the

only differences, the package is not a performance package.

It's just cosmetic, if I'm understanding correctly.

Yeah.

So that's exciting.

And if you're a Chevy enthusiast and a patriot and you know, all of that, I could see the,

I could see the appeal.

I'm just curious how big the audience actually is.

Yeah.

What do you guys think?

I'm just looking at it.

It looks like they did it in 1974.

Oh, they did.

Yeah.

This is, this is the modern version of something they've done before.

And it's available in five, five models.

Okay.

Now, Stars and Steel is not a good name.

Let's start with the name.

Let's start there.

Is that like a Jackie Collins book?

Dan, hand me your Grinch mask.

All right.

I'm going to write it.

This is, it's a Jackie Collins book back in the days when the covers were actually like

oil paintings instead of AI generator.

Yeah.

The Grinch knows what's up.

I'm not a fan of this kind of crap.

I'm just going to come out and say it.

First of all, it was a very different America 50 years ago when we were celebrating our

bicentennial.

We're a much more divided country in 2025.

I don't think the celebration has quite the same zing, right?

Stars and Steel to your point, Lindsay just sort of seems like a grab.

I don't know.

You know, just wrapped up in patriotism and I just, I, I, yeah, give me a little something

extra.

Right.

Give me.

Yeah.

I kept reading.

I'm like, okay.

And they get suspension or, and it has a horsepower boost or anything.

Yeah.

I don't know.

Yeah.

You know, again, just like Porsche is creating jobs by leaving this, you know, opportunity

for shark works.

Maybe Chevy is trying to unite the country or GM with this new package that they'll be

offering next year.

It's a unifying thing.

It's, yeah.

It's a hands across America.

Yeah.

Exactly.

That was the proposal.

You really want to, want to go back.

Now I just, listen, the three of us, I mean, Danny didn't grow up in the States, but Lindsay,

you and I, I mean, we grew up in that era of like, let's like slap some stickers on

a car and make it, you know, now it's special.

Right.

So I think I'm just so cynical about that kind of stuff.

Yeah.

And I mean, I don't know if they look better if it was, but it's just an appearance package.

And I don't know.

The more things change, the more things stay the same, I guess.

I'm sort of side eye about stuff that's solely an appearance package.

Like it has to be really special for me to not sort of be like, eh, it's not for me.

You know, like there has to be, there has to be some differentiation.

I think partly because you know, they're going to try and charge a premium.

I would assume.

Yeah.

And it's really at the end of the day is for some decals or paint.

I think it's stickers.

I don't know.

Not for me.

Two thumbs down from that car show.

Dan's all over it though.

Right.

You got an order.

Yeah, cancel my pre-order.

You get tickets to, I don't know, whatever the ladies country in western festival is free as well.

You don't, but that would be a good idea.

It could be worth it.

I was going to say that's how they're going to coach.

Yeah.

So the gauntlet is now laid down for you can do better.

Let's see what you can do to celebrate 250 years of America.

That's right.

Ford always does better.

Right, Lindsay?

No question.

Yeah, you heard it here.

We need more happy cars in our lives and see it.

I'm going to come to the rescue with one.

Did you guys?

Yeah.

They're so cute.

And I saw them.

I first saw them in France at the beginning of the year.

And I'm so excited to hear they're going to be here.

Yeah.

It's a, it's a cute little thing.

I mean, that's what it is.

It's a, it's a cute little thing.

And I hope they sell and you know, that's the kind of car we need.

Right.

I mean, a little more.

I think did we step on the name?

It's the Fiat topolino, which always makes me think of mama topolino and cars too, too.

Yeah.

And it means topolino means little mouse.

And I don't know that it looks like a mouse, but it's, I guess, I was surprised to read

in the article that it's more on par with a Moke, which if you know what that is, it's

kind of like, it's like a modern thing almost like car esque, but I think it's a lower horsepower

vehicle.

So there was some discussion in the article about whether it's allowed on the freeway.

But they really do.

Like when I first saw one on the street, I'm like, this looks pretend.

I don't know what this is.

I want to, is this something you'd want to take on the highway?

Like what is, I'm looking at the horsepower now.

I would not.

Do you know how many horsepower this car has?

It doesn't sit, but it does say that it will unlikely exceed 30 miles an hour.

Well, I'm going to tell you, it has eight.

It has eight horsepower.

Wow.

Eight whole horsepower.

I want more.

It has five.

And I push it.

We know that Italian horse power is aren't always thoroughbreds.

No, no, eight electric horsepower guys.

And it will do less than 50 miles on the charge.

Beats a golf cart, right?

Or does it?

I mean, if you look like if that, especially if it's, if it's like on par with a Moke and

a golf cart, really, if you looked at it, you were going to use it that way.

Then, you know, it's kind of a fun thing, but certainly not a primary vehicle.

I guess, at least in my mind.

Yeah.

It puts a smile on your face.

And that's the main thing, isn't it?

Yeah.

It would also put a smile on faces of being me and you trying to fit in the thing then.

Yeah.

There's a Christmas card for next year.

That's the show Christmas card.

Is that our gimmick for next year is like what tiny cars can we make you guys trying

to get into?

Yeah.

That's so funny.

I saw somewhere that the LFG from my as Manx one car of the year and don't know where I

saw that.

I'll have to look it up, but on the flip side, that is a car.

I would definitely go for a spin.

Absolutely.

Right.

Yeah.

Which is kind of funny because in theory, those are on, they're in the same category.

You could argue they are, but I think, you know, you wouldn't take the topolino off road.

You wouldn't take a moke off road.

Like the Myers Manx cars are infinitely more capable, but still.

The LFG has what?

600 horsepower.

I was going to say.

Yeah.

Right.

So this was a table by classic driver and it was ranked number one as the coolest car

of 2025.

Okay.

And I witnessed this car at Willow Springs.

I think Lindsay, you were there as well.

Yeah.

Towards the end of the day.

And if you've not been to Willow Springs, it's obviously a track out in the desert,

but there's a big, I guess it's not quite a mountain, but a big hill in the background.

And at the end of the day, Richard Tuttel got in this thing and just put it up the mountain.

Let's say it's a mountain.

Yeah.

I was going to say it counts as a mountain.

Yeah.

This thing is impressive.

So, but again, another car that puts a smile on your face and we need more of those.

Absolutely right.

Yeah.

Very good.

Should we do some secret Santa?

We should.

That car show is proud to partner with Drake Motor Cars.

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like here at that car show.

Think Velocity Broncos, Audi RS6s, Acura NSXs and air cooled Porsches.

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and check out their amazing online reviews from all across the country.

But our friends at Drake need your specialty car too.

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So reach out to Drake too if you've got a great enthusiast car that just doesn't get

driven like it used to.

Find out more at drakemotorkars.com and let them know you heard about them on that car

show.

So, in honor of our partner, Drake Motor Cars, I thought what we would do is do a bit of

a round of secret Santa and I've asked the guys to pick one car from their current inventory

list.

And that's not an easy thing to do because the inventory list seems to keep moving.

I guess they're selling lots of cars this time of year.

That's right.

People are buying presents.

Yeah.

And I'm a size pre-runner if anyone's asking.

Pick one present for each of us and justify your decisions.

So who wants to go first?

I'll go first because you just unintentionally segwayed into my choices and I'm also feeling

very good about my choices.

Interesting.

Yes.

So, for Ryan, I went with the 2000 Acura NSX which is currently listed on their site

for just under $160,000 because I feel like we talked about those recently.

Yeah.

I think it was because of there's a company that's bringing them back and doing like a

bit of a rest-o-mot and we were talking about would you take that or the original and since

this is an original, I was like, that looks like Ryan's size.

We'll go with that.

And please excuse the chorus in the background here.

It's got the Type R thing going on, right?

The white over white.

Yeah.

The Compass Pack is super true.

Yeah.

I think that's funny because it was at the top of the list on the website when I looked

and I'm like, well, I can't go with the first one.

So I had to look at the whole list and then I came back to that.

I'm like, nope, that's the one I'm picking for Ryan.

And then I don't know if in your families we try to equalize the gift value.

Yeah.

Very important.

Again, when I was looking at the list, I'm like, all right.

So what stands out to me for Dan and it's hilarious that you just said pre-runner because

what I landed on was the 1965 Ford F100 pre-runner for your, and I've decided it's now an annual

journey for you at a minimum is your Trek to SEMA off road.

It's like, this is what he needs.

And I'm declaring that you now are going every year doing that.

And since the truck was only about half the cost on the site of the one that I chose for Ryan,

I'm like, Dan also gets the 1979 BMW 528i, which is listed for about 60,000 on their site.

I just thought that was something unique.

You don't see those too often.

I think the crew at Spikes has a five series around that vintage and they've been raving about it.

So I was like, all right, Dan gets to, I spent the same on both of you.

Everybody's happy.

That's very cool.

Nicely done.

Thank you.

Ryan, you happy with the choice?

Yeah, no, I'm pretty happy with that.

I really, I really like that car very much.

It's a good looking thing.

I have a whole new appreciation for NSX.

Apparently at the exact same time the rest of the world does do and prices are going up, up, up.

That's how you know you're on the right track.

That's right.

This car solves the one problem too that I maybe have with the NSX and that just, that means a little more power.

So there you go.

Well, if I could go next, Lindsay, there's really only one choice for you.

And that's the 1966 Ford Bronco, but it's a Velocity Bronco.

I saw that.

So that also solves the problem of not enough horsepower.

And I've seen this truck in person.

It's a beautiful thing.

So Velocity is kind of like Singer for Broncos and they have this beautiful green over tan model.

It's got a coyote engine in it and it's just, I'm sure it drives like all get out.

But that's the only choice.

What else could I get here for you?

I mean, there's that 2012 Accord with 29,000 miles.

But I think this is the one for you.

I know.

I kept coming back to the Accord and going like, how do I work this in like for one of you guys?

But I just couldn't make it work.

It might be the world's nicest Accord.

It's gorgeous.

2012 Honda Accord.

It's a beautiful red metallic.

It is like as an example, if that's what you're looking for, it looked beautiful.

Yeah.

109.

Yeah.

And Dan, for you, there is only one option and that is maybe I'm projecting here the 2008 Ferrari 430 Scuderia.

It is a beautiful black car.

No racing stripes.

I've been in one of these cars and they're fantastic.

I just love everything about them.

They're, you know, the naked doors, right?

The door panels and this kind of thing and the aluminum floors and everything.

It's just, it's an awesome, awesome vehicle.

And that would be what I would choose for you, Dan.

But I do know now that that's a little pricier than what I chose for Lindsay.

Is it?

Yeah.

So I owe you 150 grand, Lindsay.

And in that case, I'll bridge the gap with a 2024 F-150 Raptor just to complete the Ford showcase showdown package for you.

Nicely done.

Dan, what do you have?

Everyone's happy.

Well, Ryan, for you, I'd pick the mini just because I wanted to see you.

So without even knowing that we were going to make you guys get into tiny cars, you took the mini.

That's amazing.

This is a 1962 mini.

I don't know what the innocenti is.

Do you guys know?

I don't.

I have, I've heard this about minis.

So I don't know.

I mean, it makes me think there's some sort of Italian, you know, business going on.

Yeah.

Was it maybe sold through an Italian dealership?

Or was it?

No, I don't know.

It's been fully restored.

It looks beautiful.

An innocenti mini, an innocenti mini is an automobile introduced by innocenti in 74.

So I'm wondering if it was like a licensed, yeah, it was a licensed manufacturer of the mini built in Italy.

Yeah.

So, so even now we're a little quality.

An Italian company would license from a British company.

Yeah.

Now we just have more questions.

Yeah.

But yeah, just for the fun of it and you can do your best Mr. Bean impression.

I've driven one.

I've driven a classic mini with right hand drive manual and all this and I really enjoyed it.

But I was like this the whole time, you know, it was, you know, it was, it was not the most comfortable position, but

Interesting.

So yes, for sure.

And Lindsay, I was going to go with the same choice as Ryan.

I get two vintage Broncos.

Instead, I thought I would go for the America, America Rates to the 911, which is obviously a 964.

Yeah.

And I think in the summer, you would rock that car.

I kept looking at that one too, you know, because as your holiday shopping, of course, you find things for yourself.

So excellent.

Right.

And that's a pretty good two car solution.

I like it.

Yeah, it is.

It is.

So there we go.

Everyone's happy.

DrinkMotorCars.com.

Find your own.

That's right.

That's what we're talking about.

Shall we get in the Docs DeLorean again and get back in time?

Let's do it.

So I was thinking because we did such a good episode with the folks at Mercedes Classic that this time round we would go with Mercedes.

So the idea here is that you've got the Docs Time Machine from Back to the Future.

And you can go back to any moment in time.

But in essence, the moment in time that you go back to has to be peak for the manufacturer that we pick.

So this time round, we've picked Mercedes-Benz.

Who wants to go first on what is peak Mercedes-Benz?

I can go.

So I ended up going with, because I was thinking about what we talked about with Nate and the different cars that they have at the Classic Center.

I ended up going with, I would go back to 1957 because I would love to see the specific 300 SL Roadster that was at the Classic Center that had come out of the Rudy Klein auction.

I would love to see that car at the dealership and kind of, I guess, maybe cheat a little bit and follow its life until it ended up at Rudy Klein's junkyard.

Because that would answer so many questions.

What were those cars when new? What did they cost when you?

What was a new Roadster going back in the day, today's dollars?

I'm guessing it was around 100 grand, but that's just, that's just a guess.

I think Dan's going to check with our research assistant.

I'm asking our research department as we speak.

It's thinking, oh sorry, they are thinking.

So the Goldwing Coupe would have been listed at just under 7000.

Okay.

But by the end of that production run, so obviously they improved the brakes and stuff at the end, they would have been under 9000 US dollars.

Alright, what is that in 2025 money?

So let's, it is.

We have more questions for the department.

Wait, is this right?

That was an $800,000 car, or the equivalent of back then?

$7000 in 1957 had the same buying powers, approximately $807,000 to $810,000.

Now that doesn't, that seems way too high.

I've got here adjusted, it says 95,000.

Okay, that sounds more.

Kids, you can't believe everything you read on the internet.

So 95,000, I mean, that, that's, you know, that's, you know, you're going to spend more on an SL now, but it's in the ballpark, right?

Yeah.

I mean, that's, that, that attracts.

So, but you still had to have some money to buy one back then.

They weren't, you know, they weren't given.

Yeah, not everybody was picking one up.

Yeah, yeah.

When they were all painted white at a red interior, according to Nate, but yeah.

What else was in the lineup though at that time?

There was, is it the Ponton, the sedan?

Could have been.

I don't know.

I was just so focused on the roadster.

I didn't look.

I mean, that's, you know, so you could have gotten the, let's see, the 300 SC Cabriolet, the 180 sedan, which is nothing to write home about.

But that would have been like the C class of the era, right?

Yeah.

I mean, it was really all about the going in 57, right?

Or at least the roadster.

Yeah.

Well, I think too, like, you know, like with so many of the cars that we talk about the full impact or, you know, significance wasn't understood or even present at the time.

It's only when we look back.

So I always, I think it would be really interesting to see something that is so highly regarded or considered such a big deal now, like, to see what it was like in period.

Yeah.

So what about you, Dan, the same neighborhood?

Well, I'm going to be giving you guys a bit of a story.

So I suspected that you would both go for either 50s or 60s.

So I thought I would go for something a little bit different.

So when this car came out, this is what was playing in the nightclubs in the UK.

Snap the power.

Yeah.

And.

Nice.

The journalists at the time said the following things.

Mercedes declaration of war.

That was car magazine.

They, they said brutal in appearance, but precise in execution.

Now you could argue they were talking about me, but we'll move on from that point.

Brutal in appearance, precise in execution.

I love that.

That's a T-shirt right there.

Even more fitting than for the car.

Perfect.

Yeah.

The most extreme road car Mercedes has ever built.

And Clarkson said designed by engineers who had stopped caring what the board thought.

Nice.

So this is March 1990.

Yeah.

And this is a DTM bodied road car.

It is over revs over 7,000 RPM.

The only made 502 units.

And this was the Mercedes Benz 190 evolution two.

Good answer.

So yeah.

So that was my Mercedes.

I am a fan of the, the gullwing.

I think it's the most beautiful car ever made.

But I want a street car.

Yeah.

That's true.

That car just looks so badass.

That car just still just looks so badass.

That is such a, such a thing.

Right.

Such a thing.

Wet.

It is.

It is that big wing and just, you know, you didn't even have to be into racing to know

what those looked like going around the track.

Right.

Because, you know, that imagery is just iconic.

And, you know, up against, you know, M3s, E30s and, you know, whatever else was on the,

what else was on the track at that time?

Like, I feel like they were XJ Jaguars.

Maybe the Tom Wilkinshaw racing Jags.

I don't have to cut that out.

It would maybe be the E30s.

No, it would be the E30s.

The Evo's.

They did Evo's as well, didn't they?

Yeah.

That's right.

There you go.

Yeah.

M3, right?

Yeah.

Otherwise it would be like Vauxhall's and stuff, but they wouldn't have a chance.

Right.

Omega's.

Right.

Like the Vauxhall Omega.

Yeah.

Which is another car, amazing car.

That was a damn good era for cars, right?

For sure.

Well, I'm somewhere between the two of you, but definitely leaning more toward what Dan

said.

And for me, the car that's always spoken Mercedes to me or always, always, has always been the

Mercedes that just was the most Mercedes of the Mercedes was the W124.

So the Bruno Sacco designed E-Class that came out in 1984.

But 84 was an interesting year for Mercedes-Benz because you could get the new E-Class, but

I believe you could still get the old E-Class.

Right.

They were transitioning into this car, which was a very different car than the one that

came before it.

Right.

You went from round headlights to this, I don't know, this Autobahn slab of a thing.

Right.

But, you know, you had quite a lineup of power trains too.

Right.

You had just a lot of diesels.

You could get the, the SEC.

Right.

The big coupe.

The 190D and the 190E was introduced in 1984 as well.

So that was a neat thing.

On the rare occasion, you see one of those 190Es on the road now.

They're tiny.

They look impossibly small.

Right.

You could get the 380SL and the 560SL.

And you could get a Galantavagan in 1984 too.

So for me, that was, that was kind of peak Mercedes across the board.

A little bit of the old, a little bit of the new, but really ushering in that Bruno

Sacco design era, which to me are still my, my favorite Mercedes Benz cars.

So 1984 for me.

I love how we've each gone for a different date, but I thought we were going to go for

the same one.

I know it's pretty diverse actually, which makes it more interesting.

We should flip this game on its, on its end sometime and pick the worst year for a particular

mark.

I don't know that you can point to a bad year for Mercedes, for example.

Let's get our audience to challenge us.

Yeah.

So in the comments on Instagram, let us know which brand we should go for next and let

us know which era and whether we're going for the best era or the worst era for that

brand.

Yeah.

I love it.

Yeah.

Where do we go from here?

Because we've done Volkswagen, right?

We've done Porsche and now Mercedes Benz, right?

So where do we go?

Well, and we did Ford, right?

We did Ford.

Yes.

We're checking them off the list.

Yeah.

And don't say like Kia or some bullshit like that.

Let's go with the legacy brand please.

So we have a little bit of an equal opportunity game.

No, apparently not.

So challenges, but challenges with some integrity, please.

Yes.

There you go.

Is the ask is always said better by the Brit.

Yeah.

Not that I act with a lot of that integrity stuff, but hey, come on.

Come on.

Did you see you in 1990?

March of 1990 to be exact.

I think I would have been like 11 or 12 in the club.

Listen to snap the power.

Apparently, I think it was like the junior disco, maybe.

Junior disco.

Ryan, we didn't grow up correctly.

We were missing out.

You're at the roller.

What did you guys have?

Did you have like four malls or something?

Yeah.

11 or 12.

Yeah.

We had skate parties at the roller rink and dances at school.

But they didn't call them dances.

At least where I was, they were mixers, right?

They're to mix.

Oh, right.

Tida.

Sounds fancy.

Yeah.

Mixers.

It sounds very corporate.

They were prepping you for post college work life.

That's right.

Yeah.

The biggest, the biggest acclamation at a junior disco was to see how far you could

slide on the gym room floor on your knees without ripping your trousers.

That was the sign you could dance.

And how far could you slide, Dan?

Oh, yeah.

It was immeasurable.

Do we want to announce the winner of the book?

Yes.

Let's do it.

We do.

So last week, we, we obviously had a great episode with two of the editors from the book

ride.

And we set a competition on Instagram.

Who is the winner?

And the winner is Matthew Fitzpatrick of Denver, Colorado.

So he's got a, his own copy of, of ride, the most iconic cars of the silver screen on,

on the way to his house.

So Merry Christmas.

Happy Hanukkah and all the rest to you.

All the things.

Congratulations.

With a name like Fitzpatrick, I'm guessing he celebrates Christmas.

Right.

Feels like a reasonable guess, but at a minimum, happy new year.

Or not.

What is the action for Matthew?

Do we need him to reach out to us with his address on Instagram?

He doesn't need to do a thing.

I already did that.

And passed his info along to the ride guys publicist and that book should be on its way.

So it's a great book.

I'm actually, so one of the things I've learned writing for auto blog is it's much easier

to take a guess that we've had on the podcast and turn it into an article.

Right.

Like we did with, like I did with Jay Turk, us from Sheffield, then it is to just, you

know, write a fresh article because you could take that transcript and you can turn it into

an article pretty easily.

But so I am writing an article about Chad Oppenheim and Matt Stone and the ride book

now.

That's awesome.

It'll be out probably by about the time you, you hear this.

Sounds like Lindsay and I need to get out of the proceeds.

Exactly.

You're absolutely right.

Yeah.

I think we're selling a few copies for him this year, at least doing our best.

So congrats, Matt.

And congrats on the book as well.

It's a great read and it's a lovely, lovely piece of material.

Right.

And you look at it and it's a beautiful piece of work.

Well, and you guys did a great job of having them on.

It was a fun episode to watch and listen to.

Thanks.

Yeah.

Good dudes.

And, you know, I said it before, I'll say it again.

I've never met a man who learned to drive a stick when he was a kid on a Lamborghini

Countach, but now I have.

Right.

Yeah.

There's definitely a story there.

More of a story.

Yeah.

Good dudes.

Good dudes and definitely enthusiasts like us.

What accomplishment say we have Christmas around the corner.

I thought it might be interesting to ask around white elephant gifts.

So this isn't something we really do in the UK.

But from what I understand is you usually set a price and you do gifts for each other

based on that price and it can be a complete shit show.

It can be a complete surprise, but these are, it's called a white elephant.

I don't know why is it called a white elephant gift?

Do we know?

Okay.

That's a really good question.

I don't know why it's called that, but it's, yeah, it's generally, you bring a wrapped

gift and they're not tagged with anyone specific generally and you can trade them.

And definitely the more entertaining white elephant exchanges are when it gets to be

a shit show.

It's really fun because you can steal them depending on the rules of your gathering or

your exchange.

Yeah.

Gifts can be stolen X number of times and then they're like whoever steals it on the last

time, then it's fixed.

But once they start being unwrapped, then people start looking around and going like, okay,

I want to steal that one.

I'm not going to pick an unwrapped one.

I'm going to go grab what so and so got.

And then that person goes and picks another wrapped one and it devolves from there.

Yeah.

I think the idea is to retain the best possible gift of the bad gifts that you can.

Well, yeah, the really terrible stuff off on other people.

That's the only reason I guess I can think maybe it's called white elephant.

Like what would you do with a white elephant?

No, a gray elephant, you'd be in business, right?

But a white elephant might be kind of sickly, I guess.

And it's an elephant and where are you going to put a white elephant?

Yeah.

That's my only.

We'll do a etymological study on that and come back with the results for the next episode.

And the next episode.

Or let us know in the comments.

Let us know why it's called a white elephant.

Yes.

Or make up some shit.

Wrong answers only.

Yeah.

I like that.

But yeah, we don't have it in the UK.

But I thought what would be a good white elephant gift for a car lover?

And I was slightly inspired because I've just watched Dogma.

And you guys familiar with Dogma?

I know the name.

I haven't seen it.

So Dogma is a Kevin Smith film.

Right.

He did Walmart.

Walmart.

What did he do?

He did wall, not Walmart.

I can't talk.

Not Walmart.

Mall rats.

He did mall rats.

Mall rats.

He did mall rats.

He did chasing Amy.

He did Jay and Silent Bob.

So this was one of his, I guess, later films.

It has all sorts of cameos in it.

But it's kind of all around the theme of religion.

And it starts at a church where they're announcing a new version of God.

And it's this kind of, hey, I'm your buddy God.

And he's got a wink.

And you look at the poster, you'll see what I mean.

Is this where the Buddy Christ came from?

I think it is where the Buddy Christ came from.

So I was wondering whether a dashboard Jesus would be a good white elephant gift.

I mean, it's very in the spirit of white elephant, actually.

Like that would actually be good.

It's, you know, because it's sort of the more absurd, the better.

Yeah.

On brand, as they say.

Yeah.

So Jesus literally is your co-pilot.

Exactly that.

Yeah.

Okay.

Bingo.

Yeah.

That or dash cam.

Drop the mic and go home.

So what else would be a good white elephant gift for car lovers?

So I came up with windshield wipers for your headlights because I think those are just so silly.

Oh, come on.

Come on.

That was like a, that was character.

Back to Mercedes, isn't it?

Air of cars, right?

Back to Mercedes.

How about eyelashes for your car?

Yeah, that's just tacky.

I think those are cool.

The wipers were cool.

Yeah.

Wipers were a legit status symbol on a car there for a while.

I know.

Like it was a big deal.

A little coyly antenna and yeah.

Yeah.

Because think about it.

It was just, I think Mercedes that had them Volvo.

I had a Volvo back in the day.

It was luxury cars that had them.

I just, I guess, unless you're off-roading, I was having a hard time understanding what,

like what the benefit is other than just being able to say, I have windshield wipers on my

headlights or I guess they would be headlight wipers on your headlights.

Yeah.

It's to sell more blades.

Yeah.

There's definitely a flex at the time.

And I, you know, I, because they didn't do anything in the rain, right?

You almost had to have mud or something on the headlights, which wasn't going to happen

in your S class probably.

No, like you're not off-roading those.

Yeah.

Trouble prone, I remember.

They were never quite right.

One was always broken even when the car was relatively new.

It was just unnecessary, unnecessary complication.

But yeah, that's when cars were interesting when they had unnecessary complication.

Nice.

And Corinthian leather apparently.

Yeah.

I love it.

I discovered a whole genre of things that, give me that Grinch mask back, Dan.

You can Google something called car tables on Amazon and you will find dozens and dozens

of tables intended to use while driving your car or presumably while parked.

My favorite is from a company we know and love called Yonzi, named like only an Amazon

product can be named.

I get all of my goods from Yonzi obviously.

Yonzi.

That's why I've got my gift for you guys for Christmas anyway.

The spectrum of Yonzi gifts.

Make it a Yonzi Christmas.

But in any case, the one that really caught my eye is their $35.99.

It's 10% off on Amazon right now.

Two-in-one steering wheel, organizer, gap filler, foldable, carbon fiber look table

for laptop, eating food and writing at the wheel.

And I'll share the picture on our video or Spotify video on YouTube.

As you fly down the road.

Yeah, apparently, you know, it just doesn't seem like a very good idea.

They've got a mouse next to the laptop.

I mean, it's, you know, it's for the executive on the go for sure.

But I guess what kills me is that it's carbon fiber look.

Just in case you had a car table that looked heavy, right?

You know, now you've got one that looks like that.

Yeah, so I just didn't know that this was a thing.

It just seems like a very bad idea for a number of reasons.

And so that's my, that's my product for white elephant.

And you've both got one on order.

So figured out.

Oh, amazing.

Yeah, that's like, do you guys remember like the bad idea jeans?

I feel like the person that created that was wearing their bad idea jeans.

I don't know about the bad idea jeans.

I think it was an SNL skit.

Like it's definitely a throwback.

People of a certain age will remember, but yeah.

Yeah.

Well, I propose we each get a young Z desk and we do the next episode from

behind the wheel of our respective automobiles.

Only if we commit to recording while we're driving,

because you have to really experience the table fully and you can't do that.

If you're not.

That's right.

How does that work with airbags?

I mean, it doesn't.

Yeah, I think you're supposed to be parked.

No.

Then why do you need it?

And I think what we've learned tonight is we don't want secrets

on the presence from each other, but we're happy with the cars.

Yeah.

Well, we don't want, we'll take the secret Santa ones.

We don't want the white elephant ones.

That's right.

Now, one of you win the lottery and we can make this dream a reality.

Deal.

Yeah.

It'd be like the Oprah Vionsi tables.

You remember?

Remember?

Did you?

You know the whole thing about that, right?

Is then the people had to pay taxes.

No.

Yeah.

I remember that was the whole discussion because that was, I think I was in junior high

when she started doing that.

Okay.

And you know, as kids, you're like, wait, we got to get her parents on Oprah.

You got a free car and immediately all the parents are like, yeah, and a tax bill.

Yeah.

And do you remember the car that they gave away?

I want to say it was like a Chevy Beretta, but I can't remember.

It was a close Pontiac G six.

So everyone in the audience got a G six.

But the thing is some people got coups.

Some people got city ends.

There was a convertible.

If you may, may remember.

Yeah.

I did a road trip in the convertible once.

Did you really?

In California.

Yeah.

Huh.

Went to Yosemite and all sorts.

Wow.

So Ryan.

What do you remember about the car?

It wasn't given to me by Oprah.

I can tell you that.

Well, then what's the point?

Was it based on like dealer availability?

Like how did they decide?

I think it was all the same.

A Pontiac promo and you can see where that got Pontiac, right?

But, um, someone's, someone's, someone's submitting Pontiac for our best year

of.

Yeah.

They're like, huh?

Yeah.

I'll show them back to the sixties for that one.

Yeah.

GTO.

Yeah.

Interesting.

Well, what have we got coming up?

Anything exciting coming up for you guys?

Uh, no, hopefully just maybe do some drives over the holidays in the downtime.

But yeah, how about you, Ryan?

Well, I'm in the, the Crown Signia, uh, Toyota SUV, but it's actually a wagon.

Um, but you know, when I get these press cars, I can't just keep writing about the

same like route.

So we've got to mix it up this time.

So depending on whether we're either going to go north through the Dakotas or south

through Kansas and, uh, uh, in that route.

So, um, so it'll be a little different.

Be a little interesting.

I'm going to add an hour or two to my family's road trip, uh, just for content.

So that's commitment to the like, I love you so much and it's going to be fun.

Just trust me.

I'll win a Pulitzer for this one.

Right.

Well, that's kind of a fun little challenge because you probably wouldn't have changed

the route, especially if it adds time to the long drive, but it's a good excuse to

do that and kind of see some different areas of the country.

I mean, you decide whether it's Kansas.

Yeah.

I think it'll come down to sort of the weather at the moment.

The Crown Signia does have all wheel drive and I'm sure is a, is a, is a good car in

the snow.

Uh, but if it's anything too crazy, we'll probably go, go south, right?

Where there's presumably less, less snow and that kind of thing.

So I mentioned that I had this car to a couple of other automotive journalists and one said,

uh, I low key love that car.

Like, I would never say that, right?

You know, uh, yeah, yeah.

But I, if I could ever pick like a used one up at a, you know, a good price, I would.

So anyway, we'll find out.

Interesting.

So we would call that a guilty pleasure car.

So it's a car that you love, but you don't really want to admit to it.

So it's a guilty pleasure.

Yeah.

You're like, yeah.

Yeah.

So if you start using that as the title for your article, I'm definitely suing.

You're going to cut.

Yeah.

Using us for titles, using us for, uh, content.

I mean, I feel, I feel used tonight, Lindsay.

You know, if all the articles I've ever pitched to auto blog, I've only had one

turned down.

And do you know what that article was about?

No.

I got this out.

It's about us.

It's about the podcast.

It's about you and Dan.

And this little thing we do every Wednesday evening.

Wow.

Before you guys get too inflated, uh, an opinion of yourselves, they were not

interested.

I think the self promotion was just a little too on the nose, but, uh,

Right.

But thank you for trying though.

We appreciate it.

Just slide the links to the podcast and the article.

Right.

Yeah.

Band in Australia.

It's our version of band in Australia.

Yeah.

I think that is probably a show, isn't it guys?

I think it is.

Yeah.

Well, happy holidays, everyone.

I know.

We will, I guess we'll see everybody next year.

I don't know that this is the last show of the year, but stay tuned for a big

2026 for all of us too.

Yeah.

And the show.

We've got big stuff ahead for everybody.

Absolutely.

It's going to be a good year.

A prosperous year for all of us, right?

It is.

It sounds like a fortune cookie.

I'll take it.

Yeah.

That's right.

You will not lose any toes and you will have a prosperous new year.

That's the fortune cookie.

I know.

Well, from all of us here at that car show, we wish you a very happy holiday season

and we're so happy that you are with us.

We look forward to an amazing year of shows for next year.

And remember, always be driving.

The White Elephant in the Room

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