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Cars and Coffee Springs Up in San Gabriel

image of the lineup of cars at San Gabriel Cars And Coffee on October 29th 2022

Come visit on the last Saturday of every month.

A new tradition began Saturday morning, Oct. 29th, as Cars and Coffee came to San Gabriel.

By Brian Kennedy

Wed, Nov 2, 2022 07:32 PM PST

All images by Brian Kennedy.

The brainchild of Dr. Felix Nunez, a local resident, Cars and Coffee San Gabriel started at 7:00AM and drew a nice handful of cars. Dr. Nunez commented on the reason for the event: “We want to bring neighbors, community members, together.” Of course the event, which will be repeated the last Saturday of every month, welcomes one and all from anywhere you might be. The next event is the last Saturday of November, the 26th. The gathered crowd talked Felix into starting at 7:30 on that day. The parking lot is at the corner of Mission and Las Tunas in San Gabriel. Look up “Paris Baguette San Gabriel” for the exact spot.

image of a white 1964 Mustang coupe
Dr. Nunez’s 1964 ½ Wimbledon White Mustang coupe

Cars gathered included the beautiful 1976 BMW of Ben, a local retiree, a white 1964 Austin Healey 3000, and a Mustang convertible from 1966. Also present was Dr. Nunez’s 1964 ½ Wimbledon White Mustang coupe. His father bought the car new, and Felix drove it to college years ago. It has since been restored and was recently painted at a shop in Las Vegas. Everything, down to the switch on the air vent inlet with its little “A” logo, is perfect on this car.

Newer cars were also represented, including Luca Nunez’s (Felix’s nephew) 2018 Audi A3. But Luca’s secret is that he has Corvette dreams. In fact, a cousin has a mid-1970s Vette for sale right now, red on red. It’s sitting in Dr. Nunez’s driveway waiting for some love. Maybe Luca will be the one to commission its revival.

image of a dark green 1948 Chevy Fleetline at the Cars And Coffee San Gabriel event.
Jerry's 1948 Chevy Fleetline

The oldest ride was a 1948 Chevy Fleetline, no power steering but fun to drive nonetheless, according to owner Jerry. The most driven was a 1968 VW Beetle, owned by Umberto and Jeanne, which had gone more than 200,000 miles before the odo broke - in 1980. The original owners, whose daughter superintends over the car now, drove it all over the place, including up and down California to visit when they lived up north.

If this sounds like a fun crowd, then make plans to join next time, wherever you come from. Heck, plan to bring a group. There are only a few simple rule requests. First, no talking about religion or politics. Second, no criticizing anyone else’s car. Third, please buy something at the sponsoring business, Paris Baguette, which recently opened.

image of a dark colored 1968 VW Beetle on display at the Cars And Coffee San Gabriel event on October 29th 2022
Umberto and Jeanne's 1968 VW Beetle with way over 200,000 miles

For information or to let Dr. Felix know you’re coming next time, email [email protected], and watch the LA Car calendar of events.

About The Author

Brian Kennedy's profile picture

Brian Kennedy

Brian Kennedy always wanted a ’66 Mustang. 10 years ago, he bought one – and he’s been restoring it ever since. Brian extended his passion for cars by covering events for magazines like Grassroots Motorsports, Sportscar, and Victory Lane – e.g., events in Cart, Pro Rally, Formula Atlantic, the SCCA Runoffs, Trans Am, SVRA, VSCDA, and VARA. He’s also profiled a number of cars and interviewed a number of personalities – among them: Gene Felton (IMSA), Hurley Haywood, Jerry Seinfeld, and Nigel Olsson.

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