To All The Cars I've Loved Before: Classic Car Restoration, JDM, and Automotive History

Click here to share your favorite car, car story or any automotive trivia!
2011 Subaru WRX cross-country trip and 1986 Honda Accord memories. In this episode, we welcome Ethan Banks to the virtual garage. While the IT world knows him as the co-founder of the Packet Pushers podcast network, we’re turning back the odometer to explore his lifelong obsession with car culture and automotive history.
Ethan shares the story of winning a World Rally Blue 2011 Subaru WRX on Cars & Bids and embarking on an unforgettable father-son road trip across America. We also dive into his first car stories, including a manual 1986 Honda Accord that suffered a snapped axle on the LA freeway, and his perspective on building a 300-horsepower VW GTI sleeper.
In this episode, we cover:
🏎️ The WRX Road Trip: Buying a 2011 Subaru WRX and driving it from California to New Hampshire.
💥 First Car Memories: Life in a manual 1986 Honda Accord hatchback and the move to a 1989 Ford Taurusbeater.
🚀 The GTI Build: Teaching the next generation to drive stick in a modified VW GTI with a Cobb tuner.
🏎️ Porsche Obsession: Why the Porsche 930 Slant Nose with the whale tail is the ultimate dream ride.
🧠 Automotive History: The story of Ralph Teetor, the blind engineer who invented Cruise Control in 1950.
🎮 Virtual Racing: Doug's sim racing laps in a Mazda Miata at P1 Sim Racing.

Don't miss Ethan's favorite past episode with Neil and Ruchin, authors of The Kansal Clunker, discussing their 1998 Acura Integra restoration: https://buzzsprout.com/2316026/episodes/18696226
Connect with our guest: 
🌐 Website: packetpushers.net 
🎥 YouTube: Packet Pushers Network
          *** Your Favorite Podcast Automotive Nostalgia Podcast ***
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
🔗🌳 Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved

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Click here to share your favorite car, car story or any automotive trivia!
AMC Gremlin restoration and Mercedes AMG history with Matt DeLorenzo. Inside the birth of the Dodge Viper and the Honda CRX...
In this episode, we sit down with automotive journalism royalty, Matt DeLorenzo. With over 45 years in the industry—including serving as the Editor of AutoWeek and a founding juror of the North American Car of the Year (NACTOY) awards—Matt has truly seen and driven it all. From buying a $2,000 AMC Gremlin as his first car to rubbing elbows with Carroll Shelby, Matt shares the unbelievable history and stories behind the metal.
In this episode, we cover: 
🚙 First Cars & Clutches: Matt’s $2,000 blue AMC Gremlin, and learning how to drop a transmission in a college parking lot. 
🕹️ Saving the Manuals: Why out of all the hypercars he has driven, a simple 1984 Honda Civic CRX remains one of his favorite cars of all time. 
📉 Design Disasters: A hilarious debate on "Badass Cars with Terrible Rear Ends," from the infamous BMW "Bangle Butt" to the Hyundai Ioniq 6. 
📖 Automotive History: The true story of Mercedes-Benz's AMG division, Chrysler's 90s concepts, and how the Dodge Viper changed the industry. 
⚡ The Future of EVs: Why the future of the auto industry isn't just electric, but an "All of the Above" approach for consumers.
Don't miss Matt's favorite episode with friend and colleague, John Davis from MotorWeek: https://buzzsprout.com/2316026/episodes/18157530
Whether you love modern hypercars, weird 90s concepts, or just the feeling of banging through the gears of a manual transmission, this episode is packed with automotive history.
          *** Your Favorite Podcast Automotive Nostalgia Podcast ***
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
🔗🌳 Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved

Love the show? Please follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Click here to share your favorite car, car story or any automotive trivia!
1985 Mazda RX-7 restoration and Hudson Hornet history with Zack Pradel. In this episode, we sit down with the founder of the Shooting Cars YouTube channel to discuss the logistics of filming over 1,700 car reviews and the "soul" of the machines that made us.
Zack shares his personal automotive journey, from blowing up his first 12A rotary engine as a teenager to his family’s heirloom 1931 Ford Model A. We dive into the driving dynamics of the Hudson Hornet, why the R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R is the ultimate dream car, and the fascinating history behind abandoned Saturn dealerships and pop-up headlights.
In this episode, we cover:
🏎️ The Rotary Obsession: Zack’s history with the Mazda RX-7 FB and FC, including engine swaps and rust-bucket rescues.
🎥 The Art of the Review: How he built a catalog of 1,700+ automotive videos by reviewing everything from grandma’s car to the Chevy Traverse.
⏱️ Automotive History: Video essays on 55-mph speedometers, the GM EV1, and the customer-first culture of Saturn.
🇯🇵 JDM Legends: Why the Nissan Skyline GT-R is "sheer terror" and the joy of the 1993 Mazda Miata.
🍦 Family Heirlooms: The heartwarming story of his grandfather’s 1931 Model A and the "Dairy Queen breakdown" dad joke
Connect with our guest: 
🌐 Website: https://zackpradel.com 
🎥 YouTube: https://youtube.com/@ShootingCars
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved
Love the show? Please follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
          *** Your Favorite Podcast Automotive Nostalgia Podcast ***
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
🔗🌳 Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved

Love the show? Please follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Click here to share your favorite car, car story or any automotive trivia!
Air-cooled VW culture and women in classic car restoration. Restoring Volkswagen Beetles and the "Muth" Super Beetle...
“Every car tells a story, and those stories reveal exactly who we are.” 
In this episode, Doug and Dave welcome professional corporate and lifestyle photographer Marla Aufmuth into the virtual garage. While Marla has documented landmark cultural events for brands like Nike and TED Talks, her heart belongs to the air-cooled Volkswagen community. 🏎️💨
Marla shares the history of "Muth"—the 1976 sunflower yellow Super Beetle convertible her father bought in Germany and shipped home nearly 50 years ago. Named after the German word for "strength" or "courage," the car became Marla’s classroom for life, where she mastered the clutch on the daunting hills of San Francisco. 🇩🇪✨
Inside This Episode:
📸 The VW Women Project: How Marla turned a pandemic hiatus into a mission to photograph and interview 40 women across 10 states to acknowledge their place in car culture.
🌻 Sensory Nostalgia: Why the smell of horsehair, vinyl, and a hint of gasoline serves as a sensory time machine for vintage VW owners.
🚐 Forbidden Fruit: Marla reveals her ultimate dream car: the European VW California—a hybrid "three-room" apartment on wheels that isn't available in the States.
🇯🇵 The 25-Year Rule: Dave explains how the 25-year cutoff allowed him to import his own Japanese Kei van and how others can do the same.
📐 Automotive Logistics: A hilarious debate on whether Marla's 6’3” husband can actually fit comfortably into a tiny Japanese Kei car.
Don't miss Marla's favorite episode with Guinevere from Freccia Brothers, The air-cooled auto specialists in the North East. https://buzzsprout.com/2316026/episodes/16886205

Our full conversation with @marlaaufmuth from @vwwomen is officially live! We’re talking about the "thrum" of an air-cooled engine and why Marla is skipping the ID Buzz for a hybrid VW California camper. 📸🇩🇪
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From mastering San Francisco's hills to hearing about 28-bus restoration shops in Nevada, this episode is a deep dive into why we love the metal that shapes our lives. 🚐📐
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🏁 Link in Bio to listen to the full episode!
While you’re there, check out our vault of 70+ episodes of the best car stories on the web! 🎙️🏎️ 

#ToAllTheCarsIveLovedBefore #CarsLovedPodcast #vwwomen #aircooled #vwbeetle #superbeetle #womenwhodrive #carphotography #muth #outnow #podcastlaunch
Whether you are a lifelong "VW person" or just love a story about the metal that shapes our lives, this episode is a love letter to heritage, community, and the courage to stay in the driver's seat. 🎙️🛠️
Connect with Marla:
Website: vwwomen.com 📸
Instagram: @marlaaufmuth 🌻
Binge the Library:
If you enjoyed the trip down memory lane today, please follow us and tell a friend. With 71 episodes in the vault, we have a garage full of stories waiting for you! 🚗💨

Listen to past episodes: buzzsprout.com/2316026/episod
          *** Your Favorite Podcast Automotive Nostalgia Podcast ***
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
🔗🌳 Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved

Love the show? Please follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Click here to share your favorite car, car story or any automotive trivia!
Classic car restoration of a 1998 Acura Integra. How a father and son rebuilt a "Teggy" to climb Mount Evans...
"We sat on a rock in the driveway, stared at the car, and thought: What did we just do?" 🛠️🧩.
What happens when a father humors his son’s "crazy idea" to buy a $5,000 project car during a global pandemic?. In this episode, we’re joined by Ruchin and Neil Kansal, the father-son duo behind the book The Kansal Clunker.
Neil shares the incredible story of receiving his driver's license just 24 hours before the world shut down, leading to a deep obsession with a "piece of junk" 1998 Acura Integra named "Teggy". Together, they navigate a ground-up restoration with zero prior experience—learning everything from interior teardowns to wiring via YouTube and the support of a "mafia-like" car community.
In this episode, we discuss:
🏎️ The "Teggy" Transformation: Taking a 1998 Integra from a clunker to a machine capable of climbing 14,130 feet to the summit of Mount Evans, Colorado.
🛠️ Learning the Hard Way: How to rebuild a car when you’ve never even taken off a tire.
🤝 The Power of Shared Projects: How the "Kansal Clunker" became a masterclass in collaboration, vulnerability, and father-son bonding.
🚙 The 4Runner Debate: Neil’s shift to a new Toyota 4Runner and his defense of the controversial 4-cylinder turbo engine.
🍎 Generational Legacies: From Ruchin’s silver Mitsubishi Galant memories to their current project—a 1983 Alfa Romeo Spider.
Whether you're a seasoned mechanic or someone who just "sat on a rock" staring at a project, this episode is a beautiful reminder that every car tells a story—and the best ones are built together.
Connect with our guests: 
🌐 Website: thekansalclunker.com 
📖 Book: The Kansal Clunker (Available at thekansalclunker.com/book or wherever books are sold) 
🔗🌲 Find all our 70+ episodes, social links, and YouTube video podcasts here: linktr.ee/carsloved

          *** Your Favorite Podcast Automotive Nostalgia Podcast ***
Connect with us: 
📧 Email: [email protected] 
🔗🌳 Visit our LinkTree for all 70+ episodes: https://linktr.ee/carsloved

Love the show? Please follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐