The Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este is the most prestigious car show in the world, and Jason just attended for the first time. As always, it's about the cars first, but this show differentiates itself from the big American show, the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, in some significant ways. Jason and Hyphen discuss the show, the old cars, the sounds they make, and of course the beautiful new BMW Coupe Touring Concept, which made its debut at the stage. And the Hyundai Vision N74 Concept, as well as the production BMW XM SUV. === The Carmudgeon Show is part of the Hagerty Podcast Network Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Range Rover is arguably the definitive luxury SUV, and it wasn't possible without the long-lived aluminum Buick V-8. The Buick "Small-Block" 225-cubic inch V-8 was made entirely out of aluminum — very rare for the 1950s. It wound being turbocharged for the one of the first-ever production turbocharged cars, the Oldsmobile Jetfire. It was ultimately too expensive for production, and was fraught with casting issues, so Buick killed its V-8 — and Rover bought it. The powerful V-8 was (literally) the driving force behind the Range Rover — arguably the first SUV to create today's Luxury SUV formula. In this episode, walking encyclopedia Derek Tam-Scott and automotive journalist Jason Cammisa discuss the Buick V-8 in all its applications, including Jason's favorite 5-door, rear-drive luxury hatchback, the Rover SD1 3500. They also discuss a hair-raising incident Jason caught on his dash cam — a Mustang that passed him at over 150 mph on the shoulder, coming within inches of hitting him. == The Carmudgeon Show is part of the Hagerty Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is about the new G87-chassis 2023 BMW M2 — except, it's not. Jason spent a week with an M2, and it coincided with doing a video on the Ferrari Dinos — the 206, 246, and 308 Dinos. What happened, Jason admits, is that the M2 is a perfect example about how the automotive world has gone in the wrong direction, prioritizing isolation and speed above the experience. Measured against its modern peers, perhaps the M2 is okay, but every enthusiast owes it to themself to try some old experience-first cars. Derek Tam-Scott exercises his prodigious history muscle and the boys lead us through a history of the redheaded-stepchildren of the Ferrari lineup — the 206 Dino, 246 Dino, and 308 Dino. And how that "less-than" name (Dino) actually was the highest honor possible: the cars were named after Enzo's fallen son. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Luftgekühlt has just happened in Northern California, for the first time, and Derek attended. So, of course, Jason wants to know: can any single-marque car show ever be cool? Or was this just a bunch of "Porsche-weenies" showing off their roof-racks? As usual, the answer isn't quite that straightforward. Of course, Jason starts out with a rant about Porsche drivers on the freeway, and Derek responds to it with logic. The problem, as always, is that air-cooled Porsches really make sense as a primary collector car, because they're so inherently, incredibly good. So does that make a show consisting of only one car boring? Definitely not, it turns out. Because these shows, like all shows, become about the community, the people, and the friends you make from them. Porsche-weenies are just as cool, it turns out, as VW nuts or BMW nerds. There's also discussion of the single-marque water-cooled VW shows on the east coast: Wateriest, H20 International, and "Cincy," the Ohio-based annual Scirocco Cruise-In. And, of course, Jason's surprise 23-year-old timing belt on the Honda Beat. And Derek's incredibly well-sorted 964-chassis Porsche 911. Which Jason doesn't like because it's too good. And the C4-chassis Chevy Corvette and Corvette ZR-1. And the Tesla Roadster. Plus, they discuss the 3-seater Talbot-Matra Murena, proving that the Carmudgeon Show talks about cars you've never even heard of. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the Carmudgeon Show, we discuss hot-hatches and daily drivers with automotive journalist Sam Smith. Discussion centers around the Toyota GR Hot-Hatch Twins: Jason has driven both the GR Corolla and Yaris, Sam has driven only the Corolla, and Derek only the Yaris. Which is best: Corolla or Yaris? And is either as good as the 2023 Honda Civic Type R? And is the CTR, in turn, anywhere near as good as the original Integra Type R? Sam used to own an ITR.  Unrelated, Jason used to own a W202 Mercedes C43 AMG, and Derek showed up to the studio in his new-to-him C43, which replaces his Mk7 VW GTI as his daily driver. Turns out that both Jason and Sam also have Mk7 Volkswagens (e-Golf and GTI, respectively), and so the boys discuss daily drivers.  In fact, Jason and Derek realize they've owned so many cars in common — W201 190E 2.3-16, R129 Mercedes SL, to name a few — that Jason almost accuses him of being a copycat. Meanwhile, Sam educates us on the Neue Klasse BMW (and its differences relative to the 1602 and 2002-series coupes).  Find Sam's podcast, "Driven to Fail" wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. It, like the Carmudgeon Show, is part of the Hagerty Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices