Cars We Love & Who We Are
More than the polished parts and hard to find pieces, the special interest vehicles people collect embody the character of each owner. “Cars We Love & Who We Are” profiles individual special interest vehicles and the proud owner committed to its preservation.
Conversations with People We Value
Talking with skilled professionals who support our passion for collectible automobiles.
Roads We Remember
Some roads discovered far from home reward us with a once in a lifetime driving experience. Others are old friends revisited to elevate our spirits and celebrate the joy of life behind the wheel.
In Search of the 7th Royale Series – All the Episodes Here
Conversations With People We Value #14
As car enthusiasts we revel in the beauty, the performance and the perfection of the vehicles we love. We also recognize that for the vast majority of us the skills required to properly maintain the 4-wheeled objects of our affection exceed our level of expertise. The responsibility for preserving our classic automobiles at a high level rests on the shoulders of a shrinking body of skilled artisans. As these gifted craftsmen age out of the community we find ourselves painfully aware of their critical value in preserving the health of our classic car hobby. Once plentiful, this, now, dwindling breed features men who rank as savants in their respective fields. None more so than Steve Ellis.
Rebuild it and they will come –
The life of Carburetor Steve
Steve Ellis with custom tri-power for a Chevy small block
Sitting on Steve’s work bench, the three Weber carburetors belong to a 1964 Ferrari Lusso. Steve, in the process of explaining his complete rebuild of the, now, perfect threesome, gets interrupted by a guy who bursts through the door announcing his entry with a warning. “This box stinks! Careful when you open it.” Within the stinking box resides the carburetor for a 1948 Dodge sedan afflicted with vintage gas from before Hess sold toy trucks. As Steve says, “Welcome to my world.”
1948 Dodge 1-barrel and 1964 Ferrari Lusso Weber tri-power
Better known and revered as Carburetor Steve, Steve Ellis has displayed his total mastery of everything “carburetor” for 41 years with the last 37 years spent in his own business, Steve’s Carburetor Shop in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. Totally at home and at ease amidst a thoughtfully organized chaos of carburetor innards and completed foreign and domestic setups, his shop features completed examples of vintage carburetion ranging from the mundane to the exotic.
Since Steve began, profound changes driven by emissions requirements, computers and performance demands have morphed the nature of carburetor rebuilding. Over the last 40 years Steve’s business has pivoted from an emphasis on supporting a vast population of primarily generic travel appliances to providing life support for the vehicles owned by automobile enthusiasts dedicated to enjoying the landmark cars that brought the 20th century’s golden age of the automobile to life.
Steve says
, […]
Cars We Love & Who We Are #14
While it had the potential for disaster, I was confident we could pull it off. My crew had arrived at the Silvercup Studios in Astoria Queens hours before the black tie crowd of VIPs would begin to gather on the evening of December 16th 1992. Famous in later years as the site for shooting Sex and the City, Mad Men, the Sopranos and numerous major films, on this particular night the huge top floor studio resplendent in Christmas trappings would host a dinner honoring the President and CEO of Volvo Cars of North America. Tonight would be his gala retirement dinner. My responsibility would be to deliver a special gift as part of the entertainment. Hours before delivery it remained a work in progress. No worries.
A Volvo Christmas Classic – “It’s a Vunderful Life”
Cheery, bright, in the midst of her career and utterly fearless if she believed in the mission, her name was Nancy Fiesler. Fiesler was part of the Volvo North America Holding Company Communications Department at a time when the Volvo name in North America adorned trucks, marine engines, construction equipment, buses and sports equipment in addition to automobiles. Fiesler had been assigned many of the responsibilities involved in planning the retirement dinner of CEO Mr. Joseph L. Nicolato.
“Fearless” Nancy Fiesler
Nicolato a retired Marine had started working for Volvo in 1958 as a Volvo parts representative in the New York area. By 1981 Nicolato had reached the heights as President and CEO of Volvo Cars of North America. He had been my boss when I had worked for Volvo. A savvy, no nonsense guy with a keen understanding of the automobile business, Volvo customers and Volvo dealers, Nicolato could be tough but was always fair. And Nicolato loved Volvo. It used to be said, “If you cut Joe, he’d bleed Volvo blue.”
As part of the evening’s entertainment Fiesler wanted something unique, Christmas themed and memorable for ”Joe.” My phone rang. As a one-time Volvo employee and life-long “friend of Volvo” well grounded in Volvo lore, I was delighted to be given the opportunity to make Fiesler’s vision a reality. We brainstormed and despite many thunderclaps of creativity we kept returning to a ridiculously funny and inspired concept that made no sense for such an important occasion except […]
Cars We Love & Who We Are #13
This past Saturday a large number of the local Drivin’ News (drivin-news.com) community gathered at Paul’s Motors in Hawthorne, NJ for Carnucopia II. Many brought their favorite classic car, the one they love to drive and that others love to see. They also brought a generous spirit intent on supporting the Tri-Boro Food Pantry’s efforts to meet the growing Covid driven need of individuals for food assistance.
Carnucopia II, Classic Car Food Drive
Tri-Boro Food Pantry Director Janelle Larghi accepting donations with Burton Hall from Drivin’ News
Thanksgiving weekend’s Carnucopia II represented the second effort this year by the Drivin’ News community of automotive enthusiasts to support the efforts of the Tri-Boro Food Pantry.
Tri-Boro Food Pantry Photo credit: Julia Chang
Pantry Director Janelle Larghi explains that since Covid came to town demand on the Pantry’s resources has increased five-fold. Janelle makes it clear that the Pantry couldn’t do it without everybody’s help. She says, “We really appreciate what the Drivin’ News folks have done.”
Larghi’s connection to the food pantry runs deep. Her grandfather co-founded it in the early 1980s. Larghi says, “the Tri-Boro Food Pantry’s mission calls for providing food to anyone in need who comes here for help. Plain and simple”
Serving primarily Bergen County, Tri-Boro Food Pantry clients represent a large cross section of people including working class families, senior citizens, immigrant families and handicapped residents from local facilities.
Housed in the auditorium behind the Pascack Reformed Church in Park Ridge, the Tri-Boro Food Pantry describes itself as a place where hungry people are fed. From soup to cereal, eggs to milk, diapers to dish soap, this food pantry is committed to helping people live. Hunger isn’t something that only happens in other places. It happens here.
Packages readied for pick-up Photo credit: Burton Hall
An impressive operation to witness, Janelle, her husband Dave, and her small dedicated team of volunteers function with a seamless blend of wartime military logistical efficiency and a caring personal warmth expressed with an upbeat energy. Janelle seems to know everyone’s name. Her welcome never lacks a smile or a kind word. While assembling and distributing hundreds of parcels of food there is always time to stop and enjoy the signing voices of two recipients […]
Here’s this week’s question:
Chrysler is known for its “Hemi” engine. To what does the term “Hemi” refer?
Answer to last week’s question:
What did Felix Wankel develop? The rotary engine
About the blogger
Burton Hall has written for an automotive client list that includes Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Maserati, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Peugeot and Volvo. He has also written for The Washington Post, AutoWeek, Corvette Monthly, Jaguar Magazine, BMW Magazine, Hemmings.com, Hagerty Magazine and numerous auto restoration buff books.
A member of the Society of Automotive Historians, he, in 2014, created and has since taught the adult school program “Collectible automobiles as a passion.” In 2020 he originated and has since produced the Drivin’ News blog.
As a classic car hobbyist, He owns a 1961 Corvette that he bought in 1967, a 1953 Jaguar XK120MC Drophead Coupe that he restored after finding it disassembled in a barn in 1980, a 2003 BMW 330i he bought new and a 1951 MG TD that presently serves as a planter and centerpiece in his garden. All are great drivers, except the MG which has a few bugs.
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