NoBraking

Leen Customs has created waves in the automotive community, and built a brand around his unique take on the collectible enamel pin. However you have probably never heard of the man behind Leen Customs. In our latest episode we had a chance to talk with Hansel Echeverria or as you might know him Mr Leen Customs.

Hansel Echeverria grew up in Los Angeles, working as a freelance artist. Graffiti was something he was fascinated with and that is where Hansel started his art career and earned the moniker Leen. However it wasn't until he started attending design focused events and he noticed brands and artists made these very cool collectible pins. But there was never something that was about car culture, so he thought it might be a good idea to try and design some automotive-style pins and lo and behold Leen Customs was born.

The pins now number around 1,000 and are varied from Hollywood icons, hotrods, race cars to celebrated vehicles in the automotive community. The first one was a Subaru rally car because it was his favorite car at the time, and he has never looked back.

In this week's episode we get the chance to talk to Myron Vernis. Myron has been described as having one of the most eccentric car collections in the world. These days people can track him down as Junkman356 and follow the latest from his garage in Ohio. However I think the best way to describe Myron is he is a dedicated automotive enthusiast with an eye for things that are a little outside of the norm. Nevertheless, he hasn’t retired from finding odd and unique cars Myron has a little more than a "handful" of cars and like any dedicated enthusiast is always looking for that next vehicle to find its way into his garage.

He has a wealth of knowledge on so many different types, manufactures and styles of cars. It was a real highlight to get the chance to talk to talk with Myron. Please make sure you take a listen, follow Myron on Instagram and just enjoy his dedication for automobiles

This episode we talk to Scottie Sharpe from Scotties Workshop. A Philadelphia native who now resides in California's Bay Area that started his professional career with computers and now finds himself running a vintage BMW restoration shop. Having motorcycles at a young age Scottie got the BMW bug early thanks to a BMW 2002, but it wasn't till his desire to attend events such as the Moto Melee really saw him delve in vintage BMW's with a 1962 BMW R60/2.

Over the next several years he dismantled and rebuilt that bike several times, always seeking to make it more reliable, and to increase the performance. Part of that quest for increased reliability and performance led him to meet Duane Ausherman, Joe Groeger, Roy Reynolds and several others who were master BMW technicians. The more time he spent with them picking up tips and tricks and hearing about their careers as BMW master mechanics, the more the lifestyle appealed to him. In 2011 he answered a Craigslist ad from someone who needed help with a restoration and the next thing he knew he had a bevy of old BMWs lined up in my driveway awaiting restoration. In 2012 he quit his job and started working on motorcycles full time.

Scotties Workshop now has four departments: vintage workshop, classic workshop, paint shop and machine Shop. They started with an original mission to provide the best repair, maintenance and restoration services for vintage (1948-1969) BMWs, but due to the demand that has had to grow over time. Scotties philosophy in repairing and restoring old motorcycles has always been to try to use the same tools and techniques that were used when the bikes were built back in the ‘50s and ‘60s. In essence to keep that vintage energy flowing through the bikes. He wants them to feel old, right down to the tools and techniques that are used to repair them.

Talking to Scottie I was able to understand the vintage appeal and what it requires from him and his employees to keep the life in these old souls that we call motorbikes.

Before you listen to this episode we need to take a step back and understand what happened in Northern California in 2018. If you are from the West Coast, or even anywhere in the United States, you more than likely already know of what now appears to be "regular" fire seasons. At the time the ‘Camp Fire’ was the deadliest wildfire in California history. The towns of Paradise and Concow were almost completely destroyed, each losing about 95% of their structures, while the towns of Magalia and Butte Creek Canyon were also largely destroyed. Paradise is around 50 miles north of the California state capital, Sacramento.

I was connected to Allyn Pierce by Nick Ashby from Rockstar Garage. You might remember Allyn, moreso probably his Toyota Tundra, better known as Pandra due to his experience of surviving the 2018 Paradise Fire that devastated the city of Paradise, California. Pierce works in healthcare by day as a nurse but will forever be remembered for his bravery and astonishing heroics. His story which is remembered through social media is the life-affirming tale of real heroism in the face of what felt a certain death.

I caught up with Allyn two years after the experience to talk about how extraordinary things have happened to someone who considers themself to be just a regular guy. It is an opportunity to see from Allyn's perspective the changes that have come about through all of this.

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Jon Sibal is an artist who shares his work across two domains. In his digital automotive renderings he works with partners to bring conceptual ideas to life. The flip side of this is his work as an inker which can be seen in over 100 titles from the likes of Image Comics, DC Comics, Marvel and many more.

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Mike Burroughs is a Renaissance Man proficient with both the camera and the pen as well as many tools in the workshop and we have yet to mention his talents behind the wheel. However in this episode we talk to Mike about his interest in the automotive world, the birth of Stance|Works, his many incredible builds and his soon to be new project(s) for 2021. His hope with Stance|Works is that every car he captures, every account he shares, and every wrench he turns he hopes to push the "car community" forward and preserve the essence of its history.

Stance|Works was originally founded as a safe haven for automotive enthusiasts that had an affinity for pushing the boundaries of wheel fitment and stance. In the years that have passed Stance|Works continues to grow and push its goal. The goal is to share the everyday inspiration and dedication found in enthusiasts' garages, driveways, and streets around the world through beautiful imagery and heartfelt story telling.

Toyo Tire has brought back the Toyo Tires Treadpass with a dozen one-of-a-kind vehicles making their world debuts online in a 3D showcase. This means auto enthusiasts can experience one of the most popular destinations of the annual SEMA Show from the comfort and safety of their home with Toyo Tires Treadpass 3D. With a dozen one-of-a-kind vehicles making their world debut, Toyo Tires Treadpass 3D provides virtual attendees the chance to explore the vehicles with a both a detailed spec sheet and a 360-degree view.

We were given the chance to speak to a number of the Toyo Tires builders about their vehicles and how 2020 has impacted their creative process. The builders and their builds include:

1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS "BULLY" by Ben Craven

Features a 1000 HP Supercharged Engine, race tuned suspension with splined sway bars and custom valved coil overs, SPAL cooled power steering coolers, thermostatically controlled oil coolers, and Toyo Proxes R888R tires 

2020 Chevrolet Corvette C8 by Alex Lawn

Features the first Pandem C8 widebody kit in the U.S., Airlift air suspension, full Borla exhaust, Ld97 forged wheels, and Toyo Proxes R888R tires

2018 Honda Civic Type R "LMTLS R" by Luigi Arroyo

Features the first complete Varis body kit for the Civic Type R, custom Alcantara interior, a full paint color change, and Toyo Proxes R888R tires

2020 Jeep Gladiator "BBJT" by Mitch Button

Features a Metalcloak "Duroflex" Game Changer Suspension with 6PAK Shocks, Undercloak Integrated Armor System, additional storage solution systems, and Toyo Open Country M/T tires

1955 Mercedes Gullwing Widebody Droptop by John Sarkysian

Features a real modern AMG frame and drivetrain, S Klub 300sl droptop, Koenigsegg style doors, electric hatch and trunk, custom dashboard and interior, and Toyo Proxes Sport tires

1993 Toyota 4Runner "5150 Lux" by Scott Kanemura

Features a drag race tube frame chassis with a shorten rear ended and 4 link suspension, bored and stroked Toyota in-line 6 3.4 liter turbo charged 2JZ turbo, a custom interior with a unique double floor system for style and aerodynamic advantages, and Toyo Proxes TQ tires

Hannah Maloof was born into the car world. Her father Sammy Maloof owned a race shop Maloof Racing and the family spent plenty of time at the track. It was natural that this became her lifestyle growing up around the smell of race fuel and disassembled race engines. When Hannah turned 16 she started racing at the drag strip and this led to a move into precision driving under the tutelage of her father.

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Jeff Cox and Reggie Wynn work for Turbonetics / Precision Turbo and Engine. Jeff works on the Engineering side and Reggie works on the Sales side. Turbonetics has been a leading source for OEM and aftermarket forced induction systems and components since 1978. All Turbonetics products are designed and manufactured in house and Turbonetics works closely with customers to develop unique solutions for any forced induction challenges.

Precision Turbo's racing heritage can be dated back to 1989, when PTE worked with John Ligenfelter on his Bonneville Land Speed record setting Trans Am. Since 2008, Precision Turbo and Engine customers have compiled over 119 World Championships and set over 256 World Records. Precision-boosted vehicles have set numerous records and won championships in a wide array of racing sanctioning bodies including NHRA, ADRL, NTPA, PPL, NMRA, NMCA, NSCRA, PSCA, ORSCA, WCHRA, Fun Ford, NDRC, NOPI, and NSCA.

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Billy Rehbock holds a Master of Science degree in Journalism from USC Annenberg. Before that he was a graduate of Loyola Marymount Univserity. His role now is the Social Media Editor at Automobile Magazine where he curates and manages Automobile Magazine's social media channels with editorial and paid content. When he is not focused on social media he can be found hosting videos for MotorTrend and writing stories for the website and the print magazine.

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