The automotive community for the next week will be tuned into the SEMA/Apex show in Las Vegas as the world’s largest auto convention takes place at the convention center. SEMA is widely known as the most insane display of crazy builds, new products, and automotive celebrities all happening around a full week of casinos, parties, [...]
Your car is a form of self-expression. What you do to take the car from a standard example, identical to the other models, and turn it into something that represents your creativity is something strictly personal to you. Down to the little details of your car, everything becomes how you want it to be [...]
What does it mean to be a ‘car enthusiast?’ For many, the term is almost interchangeable with a title of superiority in conversations about automobiles. Especially when those conversations involve the introduction of cars built for efficiency, comfort, space, utility, and a price point. What is even more intriguing than the term itself is the [...]
A little over a week ago, while we were here hosting our own cars and coffee, the rest of the North American tuner car culture was fixated on a special event with similar Volkswagen roots to our own. For twenty years, Ocean City, Maryland has been home to an event that in recent years has [...]
When you spend time around a diverse crowd of car folks, you inevitably lose your bias towards a specific slice of the automotive world. My car history is varied and arguably well-rounded, but being here at ECS has exponentially grown my interests to include cars from a much broader spectrum than I previously considered. If [...]
In 1980, Mercedes introduced the recently developed ‘Special Class’ prestige luxury sedan to American markets. The gas crisis and ‘gas-guzzler’ tax imposed upon cars on American roads led to the development of this car, and specifically its engine, as a response to those rules. Only a company like Mercedes would so adamantly redesign an entire [...]
From a young age, the 1970’s captured my imagination and heavily influenced my life through the music, aesthetic styles, and most importantly, the cars from the era. The Grateful Dead was an iconic band from the decade that resonated heavily with countless followers, myself included, as they embodied the musical taste of the ten [...]
There are seemingly endless numbers of cars featured in posters found on bedroom walls and fawned over by nearly every car enthusiast. Icons of motorsport history like the BMW E30 M3 or tuner legends like the infamous Nissan R34 GTR are cars we can all agree take up a sizeable portion of our imagination. Then [...]
There are two ways to purchase those rare and desirable parts for our cars. Enthusiasts can either pay out the nose for brand new parts (if they are still available) or search the internet for used parts to save some coin. If you are the thrifty kind, or just on a limited budget, it can [...]
After an exciting few months, we have the winner for our MK7.5 GTI sweepstakes car we built in partnership with Racingline, Stoptech, Liqui-Moly, and several other amazing sponsors. If you have followed along, you saw the GTI transform from a totally factory MK7.5 to the most heavily modified example we are aware of in [...]