I recently spent a week in our nation’s capital, and as Marion Berry, the crack-smoking ex-Mayor once observed, “If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very very low crime rate.” Fortunately, we didn’t encounter any of that but rather it was the traffic congestion that was so horrendous. Perpetual roadwork on I-95 meant that at one time we spent nearly two hours in traffic to go just 30 miles. Understandably, this can be quite an inconvenience when you have to cover 1000 miles each way.
While exotic cars were few and far between (I spotted an Aston Martin Vanquish Convertible in Georgetown) I managed to hit the Caffeine & Octane event in Atlanta on the way back. I covered this event last year and it does not disappoint. The emphasis is on exotics and muscle cars, and where else can you see a circa 1960s Mercury Cougar race a Ferrari F430 and Porsche 911 down I-75?
Caffeine & Octane is held the first Sunday of every month and the weather on that early August morning couldn’t have been nicer. The event officially kicks off at 8 a.m. but I stumbled out of the Marriott behind it at 6:15 when it was still dark and found the parking venue was already half-full. Larry the Cable Guy once joked that even a cheerleader couldn’t arouse him out of bed at 5 a.m. and I feel the same way. But despite dragging in from D.C. just five hours earlier, I was determined not to miss it.
Off in the distance, I could hear the quiet morning being shattered by random bursts of high-pitched acceleration as the cars drew closer. Only owners and enthusiasts with gasoline in their veins are dedicated enough to sacrifice a Sunday morning for this. And at Caffeine & Octane, the mantra “If it’s too loud, you’re too old” doesn’t apply to music but to a car’s exhaust system. Georgia has smog testing but clearly there were a lot of clever individuals who had circumvented it as the air was rife with the sweet smell of race gas and horsepower.
BEVERLY HILLS CONVERTIBLE: I was hoping for a good Ferrari turnout so I could see some newer models such as the 458 Italia and 599 in the flesh. Unfortunately, the sole new 2013 Ferrari California there was more country-club cruiser than racetrack corner-carver. Introduced in 2008, this 2+2 hardtop convertible resurrects the "California" name used on the 1950s Ferrari 250 GT (a model some may remember from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off). It has been speculated that this vehicle was originally destined for Maserati until high manufacturing costs forced Fiat to rebadge it as a Ferrari. Nevertheless, it represents a number of production firsts for a Ferrari such as direct gasoline injection, a folding metal roof, multi-link rear suspension, a seven-speed dual clutch transmission and a 480hp front-engine V8.
DOG DAY AFTERNOON: “You Lucky Dog!” takes on a literal meaning as this pit bull looks pensively from the passenger seat of a Porsche 911 GT3 RS. Thankfully, Michael Vick was not driving but the thought of the dog’s claws digging into the soft Alcantara seats makes baby Jesus cry. The GT3 designation comes from the FIA European race series of the same name and signifies a lightweight model stripped of such luxuries as air-conditioning, rear seats, sunroof and sound deadening materials. The RS for “Racing Sport” lightens it further with a carbon fiber hood and rear wing, ceramic composite brakes and a polycarbonate rear window. The bizarre orange-on-black color scheme also attests to either a really strange fascination with Halloween or a history of bad decisions such as letting a canine ride in a $100,000 sports car.
STRIKING DISTANCE: I can now cross this off my automotive bucket list as I’ve been wanting to see one since they debuted last fall. However, the Gunmetal Pearl paint and the $5000 racing stripes are not a combination I would have chosen. With “Dodge” noticeably dropped from the name, the 2013 SRT Viper slithers on with a 640hp 6.4-liter V10 and numerous upgrades and improvements over the last generation. Standard amenities now include electronic stability control, traction control, xenon projector headlamps and LED daytime running lights, turn signals and tail lamps. Despite being slightly slower than the Corvette ZR-1 around a racetrack, the Viper remains the most visually arresting domestic available.
BLACK SUNSHINE: Regardless of sporting the oldest design here, this 2004 Porsche Carrera GT was easily my top pick at this year’s Caffeine & Octane. Like the Viper, it also uses a V10 that generates 612hp and traces its roots back to the 1992 Formula One Footwork team. Strangely, the Carrera GT’s development was stalled in 1999 so Porsche could focus on its new mass-market Cayenne SUV. However, interest in the project and revenue from the Cayenne allowed Porsche to build 1,270 units with 604 of those coming to North America. In tribute to its Le Man heritage, the Carrera GT’s ignition is to the left of the steering wheel and has a wooden gear knob similar to the one in the legendary Porsche 917.
WEAPON OF MASS DISTRACTION: The highest horsepower award goes to this 2006 Ford Shadrach Mustang GT by Pure Power Motorsports. Surprisingly, this bruiser-blue pony make 900hp from the factory 4.6-liter V8 courtesy of twin water-to-air Precision turbochargers, dual water-to-air intercoolers, a Metco billet turbo plenum and a Kinsler 8-Stack injection system. And keeping the highly-stressed engine in one piece are (among other things) forged aluminum pistons and Manley H-beam connecting rods. It may not be pretty, but it sure is powerful!
DUKW DYNASTY: This was the only vehicle I actually rode in (aside from the 2013 Chrysler Town & Country we rented) but it was faster in the water than anything else here. The DUKW (colloquially known as “Duck”) is part of DC Ducks, a company that offers 90-minute land and sea tours of the city. Originally built after the invasion of Pearl Harbor in 1942, it was the bastard offspring of a British deep water sailor, a Lieutenant from MIT, and a yacht designer. Powered by a GMC 270 cubic-inch six-cylinder, it weighs 6.5 tons and has a top speed of 50 mph on the highway and 6 mph in the water. Unfortunately, ours was missing its original .50-caliber machine gun which is something I would have loved for the traffic jams.
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