A Car Nut in LA

[hawkeye122]

Hey Guys,

This weekend, I'm going to be spending some time in the LA area to see my Brother. He will be working for some of it, which leaves me some down time. Where would one go to do something Car-related? Any Museums? How about car lots that don't mind you just looking around at their nice cars? Where would be a cool place to get photos for the "What did you see today" Thread?

I plan to post a couple updates about my expedition, in case somebody is bored.

 

[astrosdude91]

I think I can field this question.

As far as car museums, there are a few to choose from. First is the Petersen Automotive Museum Off of Wilshire Blvd in Hollywood. Easily one of the best auto museums in the world. If you're going to do anything car related, I highly suggest making a visit to Petersen top priority. The cars and exhibits are fantastic! Others include the Marconi Collection south of LA in Tustin, The Nethercutt Collection in Sylmar, and the Riverside International Auto Museum in Riverside.

As far as spotting goes. Beverly Hills, Bel Air, and Hollywood are probably your best bets unless you want to travel into the mountains.

You could also do the Cars and Coffee meet in Irvine. It takes place I believe every Saturday at Mazda's North America HQ. That's where the car enthusiasts of the LA Basin bring out their rides.

Hoped that helped.👍 Have fun in LA. My friend and I drove from Houston to California to do exactly what you want to do. We both had the time of our lives!

 

[hawkeye122]

That all sounds brilliant. Thanks mate!

 

[NISM0_SKYLINE]

Pretty much everything Astros said. Be sure to try to make it to Cars and Coffee though if you can. Get there early. like 7ish to make sure you see the most cars since they come and go all morning. And after the show you can head out to Newport Beach and see the Ferrari dealership and McLaren dealerships there. I'm not sure if they're open, but they're about 15 minutes away. I've been to the Peterson Museum and the Marconi museum, both are nice, but if you can only fit one, I'd say the Peterson.

Also, up in Van Nuys you can go past the Galpin dealerships. If you've ever seen the TV show Pimp My Ride, you'd know the name GAS Motorsports and they have a shop there. If you're luckly, you can get into the museum there and see some pretty cool cars. The dealerships themselves are cool too, there's one that's the largest Ford Mustang dealer in the world with tons of different Mustang editions. And when I was there I saw a lady getting searched by a a couple cops .

Anywhere in LA can turn up some nice cars, it's a little random, but Astro has the best places. Santa Monica Blvd and Hollywood Blvd's are two good main roads to either cruise, or just pick somewhere to sit and watch the cars come by. Just watch out for all the homeless people. Beverly Hills never fails to have something, like Rodeo Drive, it all depends on when you're there and what comes by. Or if you want a scenic spotting time, drive out to the Pacific Coast Highway, Highway 1, and cruise it. People always cruise it in their cars, I seem to have more luck going up towards Malibu. It's a bit of a drive, it's more just a go and turn around whenever you want thing.

I love LA so I'm jealous you're going, but if you're into cars, LA is one of the best places to go. I'll be waiting for pictures for sure!

 

[tryingtosearch]

I pass the car dealership Black Horse Motors almost everyday on my way to work. They're good at always having something worth looking at in there. I've seen F40s, F50s, even an CLK GTR in there. I'm sure they wouldn't mind you looking. It's on La Cienega pretty close to the Peterson Museum.

 

[astrosdude91]

O yeah, if you're into car dealers. there are plenty to be had. Beverly Hills has a McLaren, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Bugatti dealer, just to name a few. In my experience, they don't mind you looking around, as long as you respect the dealer.

Also, one more note to add to my previous post. If you plan on visiting a museum, be sure to call ahead to make sure they're open to the public on that particular day. My friend and I drove to the Marconi Collection, only to arrive and find out the place had been rented for a private event for the entire day. So we didn't get to see the Collection.

Above all else though, speaking even as a car enthusiast, The Los Angeles area has soooo much to see and do. If you just make it about seeing cars and going spotting, you'll miss a lot. Be sure to look around every now and then. I made the mistake my first time in LA trying to car spot the entire time. The second time, I did more than just car related stuff.

 

[Patrick]

Newport Beach has all those dealers too. Really nice Down there.

 

[hawkeye122]

Well, that was a debacle.

The battery for my DSLR wasn't fully charged, so I got about 9 Shots in Newport Beach. The shutter then didnt want to open due to a low battery, so I went to the dealers Camera-less.

I went to a mall, and at the Valet there was a Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0 . I have a really bad Cell phone pic of it, but it was indeed there.

When I was on I-5 North Heading home, I saw a Alpina... (7 Series) which i got pictures of, and a couple other odds and ends(996 Porsche, a CL AMG that was fairly new).

At about Buttonwillow, I was passed at Great Speed by a VW Phaeton, Which I have pictures of.

Didnt make it to the Coffee thing, and we went to the Marconi Museum, only to find that it was Closed for a Private Event.

With regards to cars, pretty much nothing went my way. I really wish my DSLR was charged when I was in Newport Beach, I saw several noteworthy cars (R8 V10, Gallardo 560-4, An Older Zonda of some sort(Probably a C), and I was able to go to the McLaren Dealer. My brother(Who was the purpose of the trip anyways as I hadn't seen him in years) was able to convince the guy to actually Start the engine for us. MY god, what a sound.

All in all, the trip was brilliant because I got to see my brother. But car wise, next time I'm going packing a better Telephoto Lens, and PLENTY of spare, CHARGED batteries.

 

[GTMail]

Well, that was a debacle.

The battery for my DSLR wasn't fully charged, so I got about 9 Shots in Newport Beach. The shutter then didnt want to open due to a low battery, so I went to the dealers Camera-less.

I went to a mall, and at the Valet there was a Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0 . I have a really bad Cell phone pic of it, but it was indeed there.

When I was on I-5 North Heading home, I saw a Alpina... (7 Series) which i got pictures of, and a couple other odds and ends(996 Porsche, a CL AMG that was fairly new).

At about Buttonwillow, I was passed at Great Speed by a VW Phaeton, Which I have pictures of.

Didnt make it to the Coffee thing, and we went to the Marconi Museum, only to find that it was Closed for a Private Event.

With regards to cars, pretty much nothing went my way. I really wish my DSLR was charged when I was in Newport Beach, I saw several noteworthy cars (R8 V10, Gallardo 560-4, An Older Zonda of some sort(Probably a C), and I was able to go to the McLaren Dealer. My brother(Who was the purpose of the trip anyways as I hadn't seen him in years) was able to convince the guy to actually Start the engine for us. MY god, what a sound.

All in all, the trip was brilliant because I got to see my brother. But car wise, next time I'm going packing a better Telephoto Lens, and PLENTY of spare, CHARGED batteries.

That sucks about the camera. LA is probbly the best be for exotic car culture though. I own and work in one of those buildings right next to cars and coffee. I try to go as much as I can. For good car spotting, try Newport and Laguna on a Friday or Saturday evening/night. Hollywood is also an amazing place to sport cars. Saw my first Veyron and it was a SS on the street surrounding Rodeo Dr. Hope you come out here again!

 

[hawkeye122]

That sucks about the camera. LA is probbly the best be for exotic car culture though. I own and work in one of those buildings right next to cars and coffee. I try to go as much as I can. For good car spotting, try Newport and Laguna on a Friday or Saturday evening/night. Hollywood is also an amazing place to sport cars. Saw my first Veyron and it was a SS on the street surrounding Rodeo Dr. Hope you come out here again!

I think I'm going to try to come spend some time down there during Spring Break(I may not, I live in Redding, which on a map, is pretty far from the LA area.). If I get the chance, I'll totally go to the coffee and cars thing. I'll look so fly when I roll up in my Geo Tracker...

Newport was awesome. I am absolutely staying there again, with tons of camera stuff. Not only the cars, but the views, the things to do... Up there with my favorite places now.

As far as traffic goes, I think I was lucky. Coming in from the north on I5(I guess you lot call it "The 5") there was very little traffic and no CHP in the Angeles Forest area. That was fun, even in a Toyota Camry. In the city, there was dense traffic, but it was always moving. Not bad at all.