Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee Picture Gallery

Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee attracts a wide range of vehicles every Saturday.  This includes exotics, classic, tuners, motorcycles, race cars, and anything else you can think of.

Here is a great picture gallery kindly provided by Jack Moschetto of Gypsy Jack Racing.  You can usually find him at Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee with his beautiful and very customized blue Yamaha R1.  I would have used some of my pictures, but his photography skills are much better then mine!

Where: Hunt Valley Towne Centre, 118 Shawan Rd, Hunt Valley MD, 21030

When: Saturdays, 7:30 am – 10:30 am

Why: Because you like talking with other gearheads!

Sylvania SilverStar zXe’s, The Best Headlight Bulbs

Slyvania SilverStar zXe
Slyvania SilverStar zXe

As the days are getting shorter with winter upon us, I am sure you are using your headlights more. Inevitably one of your headlight bulbs is going to burn out or be on it's last legs, putting you in the market for new headlights. When you take a trip down to the auto parts store you should consider upgrading to some better bulbs, like the Sylvania Silverstar zXe's.

Sylvania was nice enough to send me a set of zXe's for my 96′ Honda Accord. Some fans of Adam's Auto Advice might remember I also wrote a review of the Slyvania SilverStar Ultras.  (Also see my review of the Sylvania Headlight Restoration Kit.)  After using the zXe's I wouldn't bother with the Ultras because the zXe's are hands-down better.

This was made obvious one night while driving to a friend's house in Northern Baltimore county. The roads to his house are small, twisty, and lack streetlights where walls of trees line the side of the roads. This forced me to rely on the zXe's. With the brights on, they effortlessly lit the way for my Honda Accord. I had driven this same route with the SilverStar Ultras which were great, but definitely not nearly as good as the zXe's. The dark roads were simply no match for the light that the zXe's produced.

Another night, driving home on a dark Baltimore city street, I noticed two people walking in the middle of the street. I mean they were literally walking in the middle of the street! I braked and swerved around them honking. Luckily I saw them far before an accident would have occurred, but I am pretty sure I wouldn't have seen them as early without the zXe's.

Also, when driving in rain or bad weather, the zXe's shine. They are particularly useful at night when it is raining.

What makes the zXe's superior is fullness of the white light and the intensity. Some headlight bulbs provide a wide lighting area but the light diminishes around the edges, reducing their effectiveness. This doesn't happen with the zXe's crisp illumination.

“SilverStar zXe headlights use a proprietary cobalt blue coating combined with xenon halogen gas technology to generate a color temperature that rivals HID.” according to the description on Sylvania's website. Part of the appeal of the zXe's for auto enthusiasts and tuners is they mimic High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlight housings without the expense and hassle of installation. A big advantage to the zXe's is they are 100% legal and Department of Transportation (DOT) approved so you don't need to worry about running into any legal trouble. Sylvania hopes you will consider these before buying a set of HID's. While the zXe's did slightly improve the look of my Honda Accord with slicker lights, I am not sure the zXe's are a true replacement for the overall look of HID headlights. This is strictly my opinion though, maybe they look better on other cars.

One complaint I have read about the zXe's is that they do not last as long as regular bulbs. Slyvania doesn't really advertise it in big bold letters but on the box it does say, “Slyvania SilverStar zXe lamps are engineered to achieve the highest performance possible, which results in product life that is less than standard lamps.” So they are not trying to hide this or mislead Sylvania customers. It states this limitation clearly and it might be something to be aware of before purchasing them.  I have been using my zXe's for a number of months and haven't noticed that the light has diminished or had a bulb burn out though.  If they do I will let people know.

Once you use Slyvania's zXe's you will most likely not care about what the box says. It would be hard to go back to using any other type of bulb for your headlights. They are better and brighter then anything I have ever used and if you buy a set, I am pretty sure you will be happy with that choice.

Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee

Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee is having it's 6-month anniversary tomorrow morning.  My friend Gypsy Jack has told me it's turned into quite a big and fun “gearhead” meetup for people from around Maryland and Pennsylvania.  People will even drive up from Virginia for Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee to my understanding.

The Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee not only attracts a wide range of people, but cars and vehicles are diverse too.  Classics, tuners, exotics, sportbikes, cruisers, lowriders, hot rods, etc.  You name it, someone is going to come by with it, probably has, or eventually will.  Check out some pictures from Hunt Valley Cars and Coffee.

Where: Hunt Valley Towne Centre, 118 Shawan Rd, Hunt Valley MD, 21030

When: Saturdays, 7:30 am – 10:30 am

Why: Because you like talking with other gearheads!

People usually gather in front of the closed Best Buy, since that is where the most parking is.  Most people go over to Caribou Coffee to get coffee.  Some people stay until 10:30 but I believe most are out of there by 9:30.

FYI after or before) Cars and Coffee I would recommend going to the Pennsylvania Dutch Market on York Rd.  All you do is take a right on York Rd and go for about half a mile and then turn left onto Ashland Rd.  The baked goods, donuts, and food there is AMAZING and it's run by Amish.  Also the coffee here will be better in my opinion.  It's a great thing to do if you have out-of-town guests or want to treat yourself.  The Amish have me hooked on their apple fritters and cookies!

R&H 1st Annual car show to benefit the Children’s Guild – Saturday July 16th

Ford GT

R&H Toyota will be holding their 1st Annual Car Show tomorrow, July 16th.  There will be great activities and events taking place, all for raising money for the Children's Guild.  A wonderful organization that serves the needs of children with trauma disorders, autism, or disabilities in the Maryland and DC area.  What was the impetus for starting the car show?  “We moved our service location from Reisterstown Road, and people didn't know where we were.  We decided to put on a car show and donate the proceeds to a worthy Charity.   The Children's Guild was an excellent choice.” says Jan Braverman coordinator for the event.

The show will include over 100 different vehicles of all kinds.  There will be Ferraris, Porsches, motorcycles, hot-rods, and imports at the show.  Mobil1 will have a racing simulator setup for attendees to try out and they will bring their NASCAR race car to display.  Shell will also have a racing simulator and their race car as well.  (A certain blogger is definitely going to try out both racing simulators.)  An automotive rotisserie, which aids in car restoration, will on be display as well.  R&H Toyota and R&H Mercedez-Benz will be setup with booths, raising money, and selling items for the Children's Guild.  All participants in the car show will receive a goodie bag and dash plaque.  New cars will also be on display from R&H if you are in the market for a new vehicle.

The show is Free for attendees, and it will be a great event.  Remember it's not just about cars, it supports the Children's Guild.

What: 1st Annual R&H Car Show to support the Children's Guild

When: Saturday, July 16th 2011 (9am – 3pm)

Where: Toyota Service Center, 15 Music Fair Rd, Owings Mills MD, 21117

Admission: Free for attendees, $15 pre-registration $25 day of show to participate

Hereford Zone Car Show – Saturday June 18th

This Saturday there is going to be an awesome car show, the 7th Annual Hereford Zone Car Show.  The show is open to all makes, models, and years.  If you have a vehicle with wheels, you can bring it!  In past the show has had Model A's, Model T's, Hot-rods, classic cars, Ferrias, Lamborghinis, motorcycles, and even Fire Trucks.  This year should be bigger and better than ever before.  There are 200-300 vehicles expected this year, which is a lot larger than past shows.

The show also has an important cause to support, the Leib McDonald Techincal School Scholarship Fund.  The scholarship is for a graduating Senior from Hereford High School who will be attending a technical school for automotive technology, diesel mechanics, motorcycles, or HVAC..  Travis Brown is this year's recipient.  He was awarded the scholarship 3 weeks ago, and will be attending York Technical Institute for Motorcycle Mechanics.  Recipients are judged on several criteria including GPA, attendance records, letters of recommendations, and good fit for the scholarship.  It's a bit of a challenge to receive the scholarship and Travis should feel proud he got it.

Including the car show, right across the plaza there will be 100.7 The Bay's BBQ Bash.  There will also be activities for the whole family.  Crafts, games, live music, face painting, and contests with prizes.  Cars will be judged with 25 trophies to the top vehicles on display, and 34 different awards.  The first 100 cars will receive a great dash plaque.  It will be a fun day for all!

 

What: 7th Annual Hereford Zone Car Show

When: Saturday June 18, 2011 (10am-3pm)

Where:  Executive Plaza ll Corporate Center, 11350 McCormick Rd, Hunt Valley, MD 21031

Admission: Spectators Free, $10 registration fee for vehicles


For more info visit: https://www.hzcarshow.com/Home_Page.html

 

*Special thanks to Chuck Ritzmann – Committee Member for Hereford Zone Car Show