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In my one-time visit to AA (Automobiles Anonymous), I have an admission that can make me self-conscious: My 6-year-old son is not into cars. This contrasts with fellow writer Derek Shiekhi’s son, who seems to have embraced his inner off-roader. I’m completely alright with this.

Early in his youth, my son developed a fascination with garbage trucks. Was it the size? Was it the automation? I don’t know, but any or both of those things can be an attention-grabber for kids. And if a side-loader was worth stopping the world for a look-see, then a rear-loader was worth searching out so he could see actual trash being compressed by hydraulics (a pastime from my youth). In turn, my son also enjoyed pointing out cans (as well as fans, though I could never get a straight answer while at Home Depot whether it was because the words rhymed or that fans were intriguing, animated items).

Over time, I developed a habit of purchasing a Hot Wheels diecast for him during every supermarket visit. He was always dazzled, though, in retrospect, it likely was due to these being gifts. I was merely trying to connect the dots between his love of trash trucks and his potential love of automobiles.

However, this past autumn, my son accused me of buying diecast for myself. Smart kid! He simply was not interested. The battle has been lost! The truth is that my kid has a lifetime to determine whether he’s interested in automobiles. If he doesn’t develop the interest, that’s just fine with me, as he’s an individual and can determine for himself what he likes.

Over the past year, my son has developed an affinity for robots and kraken. Robotics have gone up a notch or two in recent years, so there are several points of interest in that aside from the fact that he has been afraid of our Roomba in the past. And kraken? Octopus, squid, and any other sea creatures are always interesting, so I don’t get bored . . . but it isn’t about me, right? Add Legos and Minecraft to the mix and I truly have a happy boy.

Right now on AutoHunter, you can find this restored 1972 Chevrolet C10, which is powered by a BluePrint Engines 383ci stroker V8 paired with a custom-built 700R4 four-speed automatic transmission. Highlights include power steering, power front disc brakes, and air conditioning. Finished in Spanish Gold and White over a brown vinyl and yellow houndstooth cloth interior, this custom street truck is now offered by the selling dealer in Missouri with a clear title.

As part of the restoration, the body was refinished in Spanish Gold and White by Tommy Zarella of Candy Apple Customs in Boca Raton, Florida. Exterior features include chrome bumpers, woodgrain trim on the sides and tailgate, dual mirrors, sliding rear window, bed liner, black roll-up tonneau cover, and dual exhaust outlets. Not visible are the electric exhaust cutouts from Granatelli Motor Sports, which let out even more of the engine’s sound.

This classic Chevy pickup sits nice and low over a set of 17-inch front and 18-inch rear American Racing Torq Thrust wheels, which are wrapped in 235/55 Michelin Pilot Sport and 295/45 Toyo Proxes tires, respectively.

The body’s Spanish Gold flows into the cabin, where it’s complemented by brown door cards with woodgrain inserts, a brown dash pad, wood-rimmed steering wheel, brown carpeting, and brown vinyl bench seat with yellow and black houndstooth cloth inserts. Power steering, air conditioning, and Pioneer AM/FM/CD/USB/AUX stereo add convenience and comfort to all that style.

Instrumentation consists of a 100-mph speedometer, 8,000-rpm tachometer, and gauges for the battery, temperature, fuel level, and oil pressure. The odometer shows 1,286 miles, reflecting the mileage accrued since the restoration was completed.

Under the hood is a BluePrint Engines 383ci stroker V8, which has 10:1 compression and comes equipped with a cast steel crankshaft, four-bolt main caps, aluminum heads, hypereutectic pistons, and hydraulic roller camshaft. On a dyno, the engine produces 436 horsepower. A 700R4 four-speed automatic transmission that was custom-built at Arnst Ocean Automotive in Delray Beach, Florida, sends the engine’s output to the 3.73:1 limited-slip rear end. Power front disc and rear drum brakes keep both ends of this truck pointed the right direction.

If you want this upgraded and customized 1972 Chevrolet C10 headed your way, bid on it before the auction ends on Monday, February 9, 2026, at 11:45 a.m. (MST).

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

People from New York City have two distinct reputations: being aggressive and being snobby. The latter was likely the inspiration for Chrysler’s New Yorker nameplate, as the Big Apple was one of the top cultural centers of the world, full of demonstrable sophistication when its residents weren’t vacationing in the Hamptons. Our Pick of the Day is one of the earlier versions to use this nameplate. This 1942 Chrysler New Yorker Club Coupe is listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Torrance, California.

The original New Yorker was a special 1938 sub-model named the Chrysler New York Special, though interestingly, it was based on the C19 Chrysler Imperial Touring Sedan and powered by the higher-horsepower engine that powered the Custom Imperial. The sub-model was produced only as a four-door sedan with the choice of two colors (or four two-tone combinations) and a fancier broadcloth interior. For 1939, the name evolved into “New Yorker” and the sub-model expanded to four different body styles, including a two-door sedan and two coupes.

For 1940, the New Yorker (as well as the new Traveler and almost-new Saratoga) became a stand-alone model, absorbing the Imperial and leaving the Crown Imperial as the premium offering within the Chrysler fold. Available body styles were expanded to include a convertible and a formal sedan. Unlike the Royal and Windsor, the New Yorker was powered by a straight-eight.

Styling was much more massive for 1942. The grille consisted of five chrome bars that ran across the front end and wrapped around the fenders to the wheel wells; the same fender treatment was repeated at the rear. Running boards were semi-concealed by the doors for a more streamlined appearance. New Yorkers rode on a 127.5-inch wheelbase and were powered by a 323.5ci “Spitfire” straight-eight offering 140 horsepower with a Stromberg two-barrel. Three-speed Fluid Drive was standard, with an available Vacamatic semi-automatic as an option. As in previous years, a Highlander plaid or Navajo “Thunderbird” upholstery was available for a $20 upcharge.

“Blackout” trim was instituted for cars built after December 1941, with production ending at the beginning of February 1942 so factories could devote themselves to the war effort. That makes cars like this pre-blackout 1942 Chrysler New Yorker Club Coupe an interesting footnote on several levels. Yes, the design was used from 1946 until 1948, but the Thunderbolt-influenced styling of the ’42 was unique, lacking the baroque grille of the later cars. The Club Coupe was positioned as a swanky personal car, perhaps a coupe version of the dashing convertible. It features “luxury appointments including the marbled Bakelite dashboard with a detailed instrument panel and rare factory options of its day including the original radio and heater, indicating a loaded and no-expense focus on basic, durable luxury by its original owners,” says the seller. “The cloth upholstery is original spec, as is the carpets and dashboard plastic. The brightwork is all very good quality, and the car is a wonderful driving older restoration that performs as good as it looks with recent extensive servicing including a full engine tune up, brake overhaul including master cylinder and wheel cylinders.”

This example is one of only 1,234 built for the abbreviated 1942 model year, the third most popular New Yorker for ’42. For $35,500, you can own this stylish, upmarket coupe, but don’t be surprised if admirers are hesitant in approaching you—they won’t know whether you’re a sophisticate or just irascible.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com

The quartet of cars seen below are currently for sale on AutoHunter or ClassicCars.com. They all share one thing in common. Care to tell us what that may be?

Be sure to answer in the Comments section, but don’t think you can get away only with that—we want you to give us the model year, make, and model as well. Who’s gonna step up to the plate?

Click on a photo to reveal each car

Every Tuesday, you will find a new automotive game at The ClassicCars.com Journal. You can also play past puzzles by clicking here!

Bentley’s history is filled with racing, but the Bentley Bentayga X Concept takes the British automaker to a new kind of track: the FAT Ice Race in Zell am See, Austria.

FAT International started off as a logistics company that transported fashion in Europe and sponsored motorsports to promote its express delivery service. It was quick on a racecourse, too: FAT claimed an overall victory at the 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans with a Dauer 962 LM. These days, FAT International “produces clothing and connects people at offline experiences like the FAT Ice Race and FAT Mankei while its mission is to change motorsports forever starting at the grass roots: with the FAT Karting League.” FAT’s Ice Race is a celebration of exotic cars and their cultural significance as well as a multi-class race. Most recently, FAT started a multi-year collaboration with Bentley, which led to the debut of the Bentayga X Concept.

Based on a Bentayga Speed, the X can blast across the ice thanks to its 641-horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 – and blast out its sound through an Akrapovic titanium exhaust system. Permanent four-wheel drive and an air suspension with a 48-volt active anti-roll setup makes sure that that supercar output is controlled and delivered precisely.

Of course, racing in such an extreme environment calls for some upgrades, so Bentley widened the track by 4.7 inches (120 millimeters) to increase the X’s stability and pushed the wheel arches out 1.6 inches to accommodate the change and the new Brixton forged one-piece 22-inch wheels and off-road tires. To keep the X from turning into a snow plow, Bentley raised its ride height by approximately 2.2 inches (55 millimeters), giving it nearly 12.2 inches (310 millimeters) of ground clearance and a wading depth of more than 21.6 inches (550 millimeters – perhaps if the track’s ice starts to melt underneath?).

A roof rack hauls gear (if you look closely, you’ll see a Bambino-size Go Kart used in the FAT Karting League) and serves as the platform for a quartet of auxiliary lights.

Given how wildly different the X Concept looks from regular Bentaygas, it’s logical to assume that it’s just a one-off for its deal with FAT, but it might lead to something more. And that doesn’t mean wishful thinking that Bentley may make a production version of the X or something like it. Bentley came out and said, “This unique Bentayga X Concept has been developed to stimulate and gain feedback for an enhanced off-road capable Bentayga.” Is there more than a snowball’s chance in Hell of that happening? We’ll have to wait to see.

I think many of us have purchased a car we regret buying for one reason or another. Maybe it turned out to be horribly unreliable or you bought it before a major life change that rendered it incompatible with your finances and/or lifestyle. Or perhaps you bought it primarily for attention, not your own satisfaction.

Many people take this concept to the extreme by getting into debt up to their eyeballs by—in the words of David Mamet—signing “on the line which is dotted.” Rolling around in a new Mercedes shows the world that you’ve “made it.” Believe me—I understand the impulse, but only your family and friends care about your success. Everybody else is too busy trying to “make it” themselves to notice your flashy new wheels.

And I’ll venture to guess that an expensive luxury car is most enjoyable when you can truly afford it. Tom Ripley’s approach to life in the 1999 film “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” that it’s “better to be a fake somebody than a real nobody,” is not a motto to live by.

A lot of guys buy certain vehicles to impress the opposite sex. I’m not saying that that tactic never works because, in the past, when I was out testing high-end press cars, I occasionally noticed women were more interested in me than they probably would’ve been if I had rolled up in a beater Toyota Corolla. But overall, whenever someone has made it clear that (s)he’s impressed by what I’m driving or comes out of the woodwork to start a conversation about it (such as the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500), that person has been a dude—or three.

The truth is that no matter what you drive, people will notice it. And it’s normal to want them to like what they see (who wants to catch a disgusted sneer?), but you have to be honest with yourself: do you want to buy that sports car or off-road truck to get a reaction out of fellow drivers and people walking by, or because it gets an emotional reaction out of you? Your opinion is the only one that really matters. Yeah, someone at a red light may give you a slow nod of approval or shout out, “Cool car,” but the vast majority of people you’ll pass won’t even notice your ride or you in it. Even if someone out on the road thinks your car is the most awesome one (s)he’s ever seen and is convinced that you’re this generation’s Steve McQueen, you’ll never know anyway. Why pay for a minuscule possibility of impressing total strangers who don’t even know you exist? They’re not paying for the car—you are.

Money is too hard to come by and life is too short to buy something you don’t really need and—much worse—don’t even truly want. Get something for you, a vehicle that you enjoy driving . . . even if nobody is around to notice.

Modifying a car can be tricky because it might not come out right, but this 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, aka “Bodacious,” that our correspondent Tyson Hugie spotted was done well. Previously owned by retired NFL player Patrick Peterson, it’s finished in a stealthy gray with black stripes on its cowl-induction hood, a black rear spoiler, and black custom wheels.

The cabin is furnished with black leather seats from TMI, Dakota Digital gauges, a Billet Specialties steering wheel, and air conditioning. This F-body may look low-key, but its engine definitely isn’t. Under the hood is an LS7 7.0-liter V8, which is paired with a TREMEC T-56 6-speed manual gearbox. Other upgrades include a Fast LSXR intake manifold, Cahill Customs cold-air intake, and Holley Terminator X Max ECU. We think this is a great example of a Camaro restomod – and so did the person who paid $93,500 for it at the Barrett-Jackson 2026 Scottsdale Auction.

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The E31 BMW 8 Series was BMW’s first foray into the full luxury grand-touring car world in the modern era. The original 8 Series project began in July 1981 and was expensive, costing more than 1.5 billion deutsche marks. The project was completed in 1986, but the launch of the 8 Series was delayed due to the still-strong sales of the 6 Series coupe, which the 8 Series – offering more performance, more technology, and a substantially higher price – was created to replace.

Today’s AutoHunter Spotlight is one of these BMW super coupes, a 1996 BMW 850ci with 109,000 original miles, listed by a dealer in Denver, Colorado. (While that mileage may sound high, many of these cars have been driven past 200,000 miles and are still going strong.) The auction ends Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. (MST).

The 8 Series was finally introduced to the public at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show, and the car was well received. Timing can be everything, though. The BMW 8 Series went on sale during the recession of the 1990s, when the appetite for high-end European cars was anything but at its peak. As a result, BMW sold a mere 6,920 units in the American market. 

The seller describes this 850ci as being powered by its original M73B54 5.4-liter V12 mated to a five-speed Getrag ZF 5HP30 Steptronic automatic transmission. The car is finished in the great color combination of Oxford Green over a tan leather interior. It is offered by the selling dealer with an AutoCheck report and a clear title.

The exterior of this 850ci looks to be in overall good shape, with some small scratches visible. The AutoCheck report indicates the car had an incident resulting in what they call “severe structural damage” in December 2025, but I honestly don’t see evidence of that in the photos. That being said, I would want to have the car inspected by a BMW shop.

The interior looks nice. There is some minor wear on the seats, but otherwise everything appears to be in good overall condition. The seller notes that there is some cracking on the center console bezel.

Under the hood is the awesome BMW M73B54 5.4-liter SOHC V12, which produces 326 horsepower and 361 lb-ft of torque. When it debuted, the model was said to be capable of a 0-60 time of 6.3 seconds and a top speed of 156 mph. The engine compartment looks to be nice and clean, and the seller states that the car was serviced last year.

As mentioned earlier, I would advise getting a few more details about this car from the seller because of some of its history. This can easily be asked about in the comments section of the listing, and I am sure that the seller would respond. If it checks out, then I would throw a few bids on this car, because a V12-powered BMW GT car is something very special. Has any of this piqued your interest? If so, don’t delay – the auction for this 1996 BMW 850ci ends Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. (MST). 

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

During a trip to buy fireworks at True Value Hardware, I stumbled upon a 1957 Ford Fairlane plastic model as part of Revell’s Snap-Together series. As I had been told that this was the first car my parents bought upon arriving in America, I snapped it up (pun intended). Our Pick of the Day is a similar car, though nary a plastic piece is to be found. This 1957 Ford Fairlane Town Victoria is listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Osceola, Pennsylvania.

At the time, I had never seen a 1957 Ford in the metal, so I felt I needed to buy this model. I knew nothing about what engines were available (it wasn’t on my radar at age 8) or what models were in Ford’s lineup, but I just knew that it was something that should be on my shelf.

Though 1955-57 Chevys appeared to be a bit more common on the street at the time, truth be told, the 1957 Ford was the sales winner for the calendar year. Nineteen fifty-seven was an interesting model year for Ford because it introduced two bodies—both six inches lower than before—within its full-size portfolio. The lower-end Custom and Custom 300 were on a 116-inch wheelbase, while the Fairlane and Fairlane 500 were on a longer 118-inch wheelbase. Though subtle, the styling was slightly different between the two—mainly from behind—with the fins on the junior models being a bit less prominent.

Engine choices were mostly similar to before, but two high-performance versions of the Y-block made an appearance. The 312 V8 with dual quads (known as “E-code”) put out 270 horsepower, while a supercharged version (“F-code”) of the four-barrel (itself rated at 245 horses) was rated at 300 horses. The only transmissions available for both were a three-speed manual (with or without overdrive) or a three-speed Ford-O-matic automatic. Other engines included a 212-horse 292 V8, 190-horse 272, or 144-horse 223ci Mileage Maker six.

Fairlane 500 styling featured a longitudinal dip from the fins, then shot forward to end near the headlights. Regular Fairlane trim featured the same initial launch from the fins, then angled back to the top of the rear bumper. This led to attractive two-toning opportunities that made the exterior of the Fairlane model distinct from the Fairlane 500.

Ford made a fuss that its Fairlane “series of fine cars offers revolutionary new ‘hardtop’ styling in the conventional two-door and four-door sedans” in addition to Ford’s pillarless Victoria styles. “Sunburst” wheel covers were standard on all Fairlane models.

Ford’s gamble lasted one more model year, upon which the 1959 Ford reverted to simply using one 118-inch wheelbase for all four models. This 31,615-mile 1957 Ford Fairlane Town Victoria was the second-ranking four-door hardtop in Ford’s portfolio. “This car runs like a top and drives like a dream,” says the seller. “When people see this car they always seem to look twice and comment on what a beautiful car it is.” This Colonial White over Silver Mocha four-door hardtop is powered by a 292 V8 with a two-barrel carburetor and an automatic transmission. “It has dual exhausts which have a nice sound,” adds the seller. “There’s no rust.”

In a world where wealthy collectors are ready to shell out over $1 million for a vehicle, this 1957 Ford is quite refreshing—it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. In fact, if you were smart, you’d pay the asking price because the fact that this car is now going viral means it will not last long at $20,000.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com

In what feels like another story on the death of the station wagon, Hyundai is reportedly going to be phasing out the Santa Cruz pickup. As reported by Automotive News, Hyundai plans to replace it “with a larger model engineered to have wider appeal.”

The Santa Cruz was a new take on the Subaru Brat or, for you fans of American iron, the Ford Ranchero and Chevrolet El Camino. Today, we have the Ford Maverick, which doesn’t elicit any romantic notions because it doesn’t look like a car with a bed in the back—business up front, party out back, if you will. And it’s that Blue Oval pickup that has ruined the Santa Cruz’s chances of survival, it seems, as Car and Driver says the Korean was outsold by the American by more than six to one in 2025. The periodical adds that the Santa Cruz has about five months of inventory, which means production for 2026 will be scaled back for the time being.

Of course, the unibody Santa Cruz is based on the Tucson crossover, which has not had any sales issues. But this announcement hurts a bit because there is something to appreciate in the variety of vehicles that are available in the marketplace. Perhaps a market without a car-based truck that still looks like a car appears to be a quaint notion, but fans of Detroit iron tend to think like that.

Car and Driver says that Hyundai’s future plans should include a body-on-frame fighter in the mid-size segment (read: Colorado, Ranger, and Tacoma), which is new territory for Hyundai. Expecting more of a Ridgeline competitor too? We have a few years to see what Hyundai whips up, so for now, let’s bow our heads and pay our respects