The Tonkin name is definitely a northwest staple and Brendan Tonkin didn't fall far from the family tree. Brendan talks to us all about the new Ineos Grenadier, track time with dad, overlanding, and more, all while his dog became best friends with Nick while we recorded. Brendan has some big plans for Grenadier owners, so we'll check back with him this summer for more exciting updates.  We also got to check out the new Ineos Grenadier at the Avants Toy Drive in partnership with Collectors'...

How big of a hammer do you need when you race Baja in a Porsche 911? We seek to answer important questions like these as we chat with James Manning from Rothsport about Baja, Porsches, and…GIN! Not only does James do awesome things like race Baja, but he also is the owner of The Falls Distilling and makes some damn good gin!

With 55 years in the business, Heckmann & Thiemann have seen it all. We get all the good stories from President and CEO Phyllis Thiemann and Master Technician Bryan Reeves. We talk about the stuff classic Porsche people don’t usually like to in this episode like the Cayenne, Boxster, and even RWB, dive into the topic of the air-cooled boom and how it has impacted owners who bought “cheap” 911s, talk about how to store a car for 20 years, and so much more! Did you know the 356 was going to...

We went down to Portland to visit some of our Avants friends and partners to the south! This week we finally got to chat with one of the smartest and nicest people we have interviewed to date, Chris Delano, President of IPD. Chris is as true of an enthusiast as it gets, who has always loved Volvos and upgrading them in every way. If you have a Volvo, you need to check out IPD! https://www.ipdusa.com/

Greg Stanley is a great story teller. He gives us the inside details of the recent, record breaking 250 GTO sale by RM Sotheby's and much more about his own collection. 

This week we have a great chat with Vinny Russo, Operations Manager at Westside Collector Car Storage and Special Project Manager for The iD Agency. Vinny talks with us all about his history with Spyker, Hennessey, VF Engineering, and more.  We had some serious audio issues with Riverside, our online podcasting host. Vinny's audio turned out great, and he does most of the talking in this episode. We assure it's worth listening to as Vinny is an extremely interesting guest with a lot of great...

This week we chat with Kara Coraci Sellentine! Kara keeps the laughs rolling in and talks to us about all things Alfa, Formula 1, working on Jerry Springer, and more! 

With the arrival of the R8 it's time for us to take on the next supercar build! We'll be starting by working with our friends and sponsor, STEK to cover the whole car and add some tint, then we have a few more creative mods to add. We'll be sure to keep you all updated as we go along. There is new, exciting news from Triumph and Ducati who will be entering the very competitive world of Motocross. And in a surprise to almost no one, EV sales have begun to drop like a rock, and Toyota flat out...

When we say Wade Kawasaki never lifts, we mean that figuratively and literally. From humble beginnings working at a service station as a kid, to racing, and coming up all the way up in the automotive industry to Executive Chairman at The Wheel Group, Wade has truly done it all. Wade and his wife Rose continue to play a pivotal role in keeping the automotive industry going and ensuring that it continues to grow. In his "free" time Wade also acts as Executive Director, Political Action...

Dan gets some first hand experience using the surprisingly good "Buy It Now" Autotrader feature and the new E-Ray configurator is live! Does it change your mind on the new Z06? It may have changed ours!

As the UAW strike comes to a close and wages go up, you can bet those CEOs aren’t going to take a pay cut, which means the money has to come from somewhere! Hint, it’s you, the consumer. This week we chat about the strike and how it’s going to be passed on to the consumers. Got some thoughts on the strike? Give us a call or text and let us know at 425-298-7873!

In this episode we talk about the the worst places to drop your pants. We have done a lot of driving all over this great planet and we have found some incredible places to go, but every now and then we come across places you probably just shouldn't stop at. 

Megan has Covid, Dan has a cold, Nick is still getting over his cold, and so of course we spent all of our time being sick browsing Facebook Marketplace for the coolest cars and other good deals. We found a snowcat, a fighter jet ejection seat, R8s, vintage Corvettes, pre-crashed motorcycles, and more! 

This week we have a very special guest, Steve Saleen! Steve joins and talks to us all about the creation of the Saleen brand, Mustangs, the S7, the Bronco, and the upcoming S1! This won't be the last you hear from Steve, he's got a lot more stories coming your way on upcoming episodes. 

Karen Brown has the job we all probably want to have, doing all the awesome car events you keep hearing about! Krissy and Adam met Karen and said she was a guest we just had to have, and sure enough, they were right! Karen has a wealth of knowledge to share and some great stories.

A lot of people have made a name for themselves in a part of the automotive industry, but R.J. De Vera helped make an entire division of it. If you're not working in the industry, you would probably know R.J. as the kid playing Gran Turismo in the first Fast & The Furious, but he was one of the main people responsible for bringing the cars to the movie itself. From his days working in print, to Hollywood consultant, to creating his own wheel brand, to a long career at Meguiars, and now...

If you're in the PNW, you might know Victoria. From working The Shop to playing at the track to rebuilding her various car projects, she keeps herself pretty busy in the car community in spite of also being a full time student. Victoria got into cars on her own, just like any of you can do, and should. On this episode we talk about the unfortunate learning curve of necessity and have a few tips on keeping your car out of the hands of thieves. She also has a few UW parking tips if you're a...

Nick is back from his annual trek of working Monterey Car week! Things are changing down there for sure, so if you haven't been to car week you definitely need to get it on your bucket list sooner than later. While Nick was way, Dan was busy installing a new gym and researching the in-and-outs of doubling or even tripling the horsepower on the Honda Monkeys. Are you a motorcycle tech? Have you gone down the engine building rabbit hole and had it go horribly wrong? Give us a call at...

On this episode of Shop Talk we discuss the YouTube videos that keep us learning, laughing, and entertained like the true group of ADHD adults we all are. From mowing lawns to testing ratchets, we've got some good stuff for you to check out. Megan also officially buys Dan's Monkey and Dan shares his unrelenting desire for a sentry gun.  Dan's...

Dan took a big road trip up through Canada to Sun Peaks, Emerald Lake, Lake Louise, Banff, and Jasper National Parks and we think you should too. Outside of the Alps, this is probably the most beautiful mountain terrain on the planet, and it’s not even that far of a drive. Where do you think we should go next? Give us a call and let us know! 425-298-7873!

This is our official 300th podcast episode! Rather than the usual walk down memory lane, we started discussing the desire of hitting the 200 MPH club. What’s the cheapest car we could do it in? What’s the fastest we’ve gone? Where would you do it? We would love to know if you have hit 200 MPH, so give us a call and leave us a voicemail! 425-298-7873! A special thanks to all of you who helped get us here. It’s a long list, but we couldn’t have ever done it without the support of Avants and our...

After 2 years of planning and multiple hiccups, we finally took our capable Honda Monkeys to McCall to ride parts of the IDBDR and beyond. Friend and previous Backcountry Monkey participant Brian Elich joined us on our latest and longest adventure and joined us on this episode to give us his point of view on why McCall is still magic.

This is another episode where we interview some people and instantly wish they were closer so we could all hang out and be friends. We talked to Toby and Nicole Pond, the official importers of some of the finest seats on the market, Scheel-Mann. As we always say, spend your money where you spend your time, so if you love to drive like we do you owe yourself a pair of these top quality seats. More than that, Toby and Nicole have some really fun car stories and own some of the most incredible...

On this fun shop talk episode we talk about upcoming cars on Dan's list, the shop and studio update, tool boxes, and choosing the right trailer for Megan's make believe husband. 

This week we speak to the official photographer at Indy, Chris Owens! Chris started his career in photography early and took over as the head track photographer at Indy at 23 and is now the Manager of Photo Operations at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Chris has worked his entire life as a photographer, and at the still young age of 34 is one of the most respected and talented photographers in the motorsports world.