LA CAR REPORT—Well, it appears as though we avoided the apocalypse that some seem to think would occur in 2012, but there’s something we can’t avoid – the new laws that apply to California drivers in 2013. Each year new laws are added and some are changed and, like anything else in life I guess, some things you hear seem to make perfect sense while others make you scratch your head and ask “What the heck were they thinking?”

BACK SEAT DRIVING— Poor James Bond, his Aston Martin is always getting shot at. What would he drive while that’s in the shop? Or should he even be driving an Aston, given it’s so easily identified with the agent from the Secret Intelligence Service? We asked the LA Car editors to give us their choices for what James Bond should drive. With that in mind, we give you seven cars for Agent 007—from the obvious to the outrageous.

GALLERY— There they stand. Cars once considered toys, now on display as if national treasures. It’s the 8th annual show by the Japanese Classic Car Show Association, and it’s become the largest old-school Japanese car event in America. Exotics like the Toyota 2000GT are there, alongside one-time everyday transportation like the Toyota Corona, Datsun 510. Microcars like the Honda 600 and Subaru 360—the first Soobie to reach these shores. LA Car was there and captured these pictures at the exhibition.

BOOK REVIEW—This is the latest in a seemingly endless parade of books about Carroll Shelby. One thing for sure about CARROLL SHELBY the Authorized Biography: It is, hands-down the longest. With 550+ pages of small point type, very narrow page margins and a 13-page index that tachs out at over 2,500 individual listings from ACOC to Otto Zipper, it’s the mother of all Carroll Shelby books. LA Car readers, get ready to be Shel-shocked.

GALLERY—Justin Bieber has one. So does Flo Rida. We’re referring to a car wrapped in vinyl. This is what Bieber did with his new chrome vinyl-wrapped Fisker Karma. You can actually change the car’s color at a fraction of the cost of paint with a vinyl wrap. And you can take it off to go back to the original color. One of the standout wrap artists on the West Coast is Lyle Beckwith, the creative force behind Vinyl Styles of San Carlos, California. His work has been prominently displayed on automotive bulletin boards. LA Car showcases a gallery of some of the works from Vinyl Styles.