Houston Coffee & Cars: March 2012. Amazing Turnout including 3 Aventadors, 2 McLarens, 2 LFAs and 1 Mercedes SLR Roadster

It’s that time again! The first Saturday of every month, where I somehow convince myself to roll out of bed while it’s still pitch black outside and drive 45 minutes northwest to Cypress for Houston Coffee & Cars.

Not that I didn’t have motivation to do so on this cool morning. The owner of the 2008 TechArt/FabSpeed 911 Twin Turbo Cabriolet that I had just shot had asked me to take the car to Coffee & Cars to show it off and see what reaction it induced. I (very) gladly obliged and showed up at the owners house around 7 a.m. to pick up the beast. It sat in the driveway, the soft curves of the Porsche’s wide hips splaying the morning light rather nicely. Even though it was under 60 degrees, I forced myself to drive to Coffee & Cars with the top down, as it is the only way to make an entrance at such an illustrious event. With the heater cranked up all the way, I shivered on down the road, hearing the twin turbos slowly start to wake up behind my head, spooling and sighing as if stretching after a good night’s rest.

As I headed towards Vintage Park in Cypress on highway 249, I was able to stretch the Porsche’s legs a little bit. The turbos provide easy passing power in any gear, with a slight hint of lag before they spool up and begin to force-feed the engine. I settled in behind a 1980’s 911 Turbo and a brand new 991 model that were both clearly on their way to the same destination and enjoyed the rear view of the new 991. Much better looking in person than in photographs, the 991 is longer than the previous 997 model. Soft, elegant curves emphasize the visual length and width. I was unsure about it on paper, but my mind is now changed having seen it in person!

As I exited onto the feeder towards Louetta, the smell of combusted fuel swirled around the open cockpit of the Porsche. Daylight had slowly approached, and the entire lot was filled with a hazy golden light. There were already lines of individual makes and models lined neatly in rows by model year. Ferraris, Porsches, Lamborghinis and various American classics were already keeping the lot at about 40% capacity. I drove up towards the Vintage Park arches that are the central focal point of the lot and was welcomed by a well dressed staff member from Coffee & Cars. “Good morning! Porsche, I see. Your family is over here to the right” and gestured towards a row of 911’s gleaming in the morning sunlight. Although I wasn’t the owner of this Porsche, and therefore not part of the “family”, I allowed myself the luxury of living this dream for a few moments, getting goosebumps while backing in next to a jet black 911 GT3.

As starting time approached, the lot very quickly filled up. By 8:30, the lot was completely full, and cars were beginning to have to double park to fit. The diversity of this gathering has become one of the richest of any car show around, those with paid admission included. American classics, Italian exotics, Japanese supercars, finely tuned German sports cars and more sprawled across the large lot, numbering over 1,000 vehicles in total.

I walked around shooting everything that caught my eye. It was the 3 (three!) 2012 Lamborghini Aventadors that were getting most of the attention for the better part of the morning until two brand new McLaren MP4-12Cs, one bright orange and one slate gray, rolled into the lot. As if attracted by some unseen force, people peeled away from other cars and gravitated towards the McLarens, following it from the driveway to their parking spots. To me, honestly, the MP4-12Cs just did not have the striking curb appeal that many other exotics have. While it is no plain jane, it is just overshadowed by the likes if the Lamborghini Aventador and Ferrari 458 Italia.

Cars began to slowly filter out of the lot around 9:20 or so, so I took my requesite spot at the driveway to catch a few videos of the ultra-exotics leaving. With their exhausts trumpeting loudly in the morning air, they began to file out one by one down the gauntlet of spectators clamoring for a shot in the driveway.

After most had made their way out and all that was left of the faint roar of their engines on 249, I decided to call it a day. I packed my gear into the trunk (hood?) of the Porsche and headed back to the owners house to begrudgingly hand over the keys.

It was another amazing turnout this month at Houston Coffee & Cars. It is a simply unbeatable event, in both size, quality and price (free!). I am looking forward to what awaits us next month!

On to the photos!

Ferraris gleaming in the early morning sun