Author Archives: Trevor Freeman

About Trevor Freeman

Trevor is a real gearhead who loves everything from classic American muscle cars to high-performance exotics. When he's not reading about cars or taking photos at a car show, he's probably out cruising around. He is currently working on restoring a 1980 Chevrolet Monza hatchback.

2003 Chevrolet AstroLanche Custom Van

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astrolanche1Have you ever dreamed of having the comfort of a full-size van with the cargo capacity of a short-bed truck? Have we got the vehicle for you! Meet the Chevrolet AstroLanche.

This amazing vehicle began life as a run-of-the-mill 2003 Chevrolet Astro Van. At some point, it was converted to have a shortened pickup bed, similar to the Hummer H3T.

astrolanche2The bed uses the Astro van’s “Dutch doors” as a tailgate, while the rear hatch has been moved forward to just behind the second row of seats. Below the rear glass, there appears to be nothing separating the bed from the passenger area – which is great for hauling lumber or perhaps a full-size ladder.

For all the custom work that has gone into this truck-van hybrid, I think my favorite thing about it has to be the name “AstroLanche.”

The Last Ford Galaxie

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last-galaxie-sideIn October of 2015, I was on a road trip to New Mexico that took me though the old Route 66 town of Holbrook, Arizona. Holbrook is famous as the home of the Wigwam Motel, which has been featured in numerous movies for its teepee-shaped rooms.

The Wigwam plays up to tourists with a bunch of old cars parked on the property, ranging from 1940s to 1970s vehicles. Skipping past the Studebaker and the Oldsmobile, I went right for the malaise-era 1970s Ford Galaxie.

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2015 GoodGuys Southwest Nationals in Scottsdale

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goodguys-2015Although the GoodGuys Southwest Nationals was celebrating its 18th year in Scottsdale, this was my first time ever attending the three-day event. The show was held at  WestWorld, the same venue that hosts the famous Barrett-Jackson auction every year in January. With so many classic cars in one place, it was easy to draw parallels between the two events.

However, GoodGuys is not an auction – nor is it “just a car show.” It has a car show, autocross event, swap meet, vendor exhibits, model and pedal car show, and much more!

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SEMA 2015 Show Photos

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It was another great year at SEMA 2015 – the automotive aftermarket industry’s annual trade show extravaganza in Las Vegas! For four days (November 3-6, 2015) the convention center was packed with over 2,000 custom vehicles and more than 120,000 attendees.

Our editors will be bringing you detailed coverage of the show in the coming weeks, but for now, here are some photos of some of my favorite cars I saw at the 2015 SEMA Show!

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Outside of the 2015 SEMA Show in Las Vegas

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Vintage Kart Co Launches Inaugural Scottsdale Grand Prix

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cycle-cars-pavilionsAcross the country, the demand for amateur racing events is on the rise. Everything from SCCA to locally sanctioned autocross to private track events are seeing more people than ever become interested in the world of motorsports.

Accordingly, there are an abundance of high-performance cars on the market to meet the needs of today’s competitive drivers. There are street-legal drivers such as the Lotus Elise and Ariel Atom to factory turn-key track cars from Rossion, Noble, Saleen, and Factory Five Racing. However, all of these cars have one thing in common: they require a huge investment of cash and resources to get started.

What if there were a way to enjoy the thrill of motorsport without sinking a fortune into in a high-end racecar, a second garage, and an enclosed car hauler? Well, now there is a way – meet the Mini Racer.

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What’s the Deal with JDM Badges?

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jdm-badges-acura-nsxI have noticed that a lot of drivers in the import car scene like to re-badge their vehicles with emblems from the Japanese Domestic Market.

Acura NSX change theirs out to Honda NSX, since they don’t have Acura in Japan. Some Lexus drivers do this with Toyota, although they did start selling Lexus-branded vehicles in Japan in 2005. Nissan 350Z drivers rebadge their cars as Fairlady Z. Here’s a Pontiac GTO driver who re-badged his car as a Holden, as they are sold in Australia.

I want to ask every one of these people: what satisfaction do you get out of doing this?

How can you slap a Honda badge on your Acura NSX because it’s “more authentic” but overlook the fact that the steering wheel is still on the left hand side? Have you already done every other mod to your car and just couldn’t think of anything else to do? I just don’t understand the motivation behind putting JDM emblems on your US-spec car. Maybe it does something for you, but I find it utterly silly.