Florida, Seen Through The Eyes Of A Car Enthusiast

"Vicente Esteve" (vicente-esteve)
06/29/2015 at 16:00 • Filed to: Florida, Car Spotting

I just arrived from a great trip to Florida where I visited a good number of the best places the state has to offer. I will spare you the boring details other than the food was good, even a Mexican can get a sunburn and there are more pharmacies than anyone would deem reasonable. Now, on to cars!

I took my Sony A6000 with me the most times I could to snatch up any interesting car that would be worth showing to you. The spotting began in Mexico city, where I decided to spare a few hours in a lifted glass bridge above the entrance. This is what I saw:

Avenger on police duty.

Why own a Raptor in one of the most congested, maniacal cities? Because Raptor.

A very clean VW Fox? I am not sure.

The new Charger in Federales duty is extremely cool.

Awesome Passat wagon.

Peugeot 406 sedan, hadn’t seen those in ages!

We arrived in Miami at around 8 PM, exhausted from the flights but I was more than excited for the car we would be renting. My father had made the reservation for a “Premium” class car in Enterprise which meant we would get a 300 or something similar. I was adamant we would end up in a Fusion, which I was not unhappy about, but the car we ended up in was so much better. The guys from Enterprise were great, the service was excellent but I was even more happy we chose them when the employee took us to the lot and said “You can have anything you want here”.

The convertible Camaro was my go-to choice since this was Florida after all, but the need for legroom and trunk space dictated otherwise. There was a tempting Infiniti Q50, but still it wouldn’t be too commodious and I really dislike Infiniti. There was the venerable LS rental spec Suburban which I was curious to check out, but when I saw the final vehicle right at the corner of the lot I couldn’t resist. “We’ll take that one”.

Why did I chose a Navigator? First of all, it is the most comfortable/premium vehicle we could have got which would be important due to all the trips we would make throughout the trip. Second, we own a 2007 Expedition EL with the old V8 and comparing the new Ecoboost was too enticing. Our bright red Lincoln was an absolutely excellent companion and I wouldn’t want anything else after our trip.

We arrived to the hotel exhausted but ready for the long stretch tomorrow to the southernmost point in the US, Key West. It was a 4 hour drive and what a drive it was. I wasn’t going terribly fast, but the views were great and the places around the several “keys” were always charming. The Ecoboost engine was a peach, always being extremely responsive and averaging 26 MPG throughout the whole leg. Try doing that in the older Mustang V8!

Key west is a wonderful place, sort of like a town where they test nuclear weapons before they nuke it. Everything is sedate, people are friendly and the vibe is of complete hospitality. Another bonus from this place is that I learned to drive a scooter, which was very amusing. Now, on to the cars:

Family.

First P85D without a condescending number plate!

Spyder, which I wouldn’t buy since the engine isn’t under a glass cover for the world to admire.

This M4 seriously caught me by surprise in a very unassuming alley.

Pretty much the official car of Florida.

A cheeky NA!

A gorgeous 911 Turbo.

And another Porsche!

All flavors of roadsters!

Yeah, this happened.

After 3 days in Key West we ate a great breakfast to sustain the six and a half hour trip to Captiva Island and Sanibel Island which were on the complete opposite side of the peninsula. On the way there I saw what seemed to be a Lamborghini club with all sorts of colorful beasts belting and wailing in the other side of traffic which meant I couldn’t snatch any pictures. Again, I drove every mile in the Navigator and as I got more familiar with it my love toward it grew and grew. My average speed was about 80 mph and the average MPG was 22 which is not bad for a red dinosaur with THX surround sound.

This is what I call a rest stop:

More family! The place even had dummies inside dressed as gas station attendants. Now that I think about it, it’s pretty creepy.

Captiva Island was something I would have never expected, it’s sort of like a secret resort that not much people know about where anyone can hide and enjoy scallops all day long. Sadly, there weren’t much cars here, but after 3 days we would be in Miami where the real spotting would commence.

The two and a half hour trip back to Miami was quicker, averaging 80 and overtaking to see what the Lincoln could do. It never skipped a beat. The most interesting thing I saw on the way there was a V10 TDI Touareg with 2 Kayaks on the roof and 3 bikes at the back, belting at 83. When we reached Miami I took the camera out and started shooting, this was the result:

Miami skyline.

A nice Cruiser.

Sweet Fierro!

It looks like a bug but sounds like a lion.

Another NA rolling about in Ocean Drive. Weird why the top isn’t down.

The sounds, te looks, the presence. It’s all sorts of majestic.

This is where new M BMW’s feel most at home. Cruising and posing down busy streets.

Just a Golf.

7 passenger Charger.

MP4-12C>650S

Just a dignified Range Rover.

Just a C7.

Duo of Panameras.

Second Ferrari I saw, the sound didn’t disapoint.

Nice GTS, the lines of this car are gorgeous.

This is the best way to cruise here.

I can’t believe this is 10 years old.

A Mercedes that will be missed.

An insane GLA45

Ballerin’

Proud XJS

I am starting to like Bangle.

Obviously I saw hundreds of these.

We should have renter either of these.

Happy to see a lot of Ghibli’s.

I don’t know why, but this old Boxster just looks right.

914!

Matte Maserati with a tag for disabled person?!

E39 M5, Aston V8 Vantage. Nice pair.

This deserves to be on a track.

A wagon for Oppo.

A stately looking Bentley

What a great trip this was, and part of it was thanks to the car that carried us around. The Navigator is an underdog in it’s class, but its performance, technology, presence and comfort are extremely good to make it a fantastic overall package. Hope you enjoyed it!

DISCUSSION (35)

BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 16:33

This is exactly what it feels like to be a car guy in Florida. Also, I’m glad that you had fun in Miami.

Also, nice Beetle R-Line 2.oT 911 Turbo. They really do look nice.

Vicente Esteve > BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo
06/29/2015 at 16:41

I am not glad about not meeting though! May-be next time.

Justin Hughes > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 16:57

I’ve pondered renting a motorcycle in Miami and cruising down the Keys. Do you think that would be worth doing? Or would I just be bored on the endless straightaways?

RustedSprinter > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 17:01

Kinja'd!!!

Sweet!

KnowsAboutCars > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 17:05

Kinja'd!!!

Looks like VW Santana to me. And that Peugeot is 406 not 306. Nice photos!

DoYouEvenShift > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 17:20

Great pics man! Glad you had a good time. I live here and love every second of it. Its true, great cars everywhere! Just yesterday I saw the cleanest Testarossa ever, red. No pic cause I was driving.

Vicente Esteve > Justin Hughes
06/29/2015 at 17:43

Motorcycles in the Keys work great. In the scooter I used I was very happy (truth be told it was my first time riding one). Since I had never gone there I was extremely surprised at how many things I saw on the road, all the antique stores, boats, docks made the trip even on a Navigator very enjoyable. Even on straightaways there is always something to see, this coming from a person who has lived on the coast all his life and has gone several places in the caribbean.

If you want to find the nicest road to have fun with concentrating on driving, it isn’t one of the best.

Vicente Esteve > RustedSprinter
06/29/2015 at 17:45

I was so happy to see it, I found it in the back of a Target parking lot and had to go and take a pic.

Vicente Esteve > KnowsAboutCars
06/29/2015 at 17:46

Santana yes! That was it.

Will revise the mistake on the Peugeot thanks.

Vicente Esteve > DoYouEvenShift
06/29/2015 at 17:47

Thanks! Where of all the places do you live, Miami?

Justin Hughes > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 17:54

I’d probably rent a Harley, like I did the last time I visited Florida, and I know US 1 isn’t exactly a twisty road. That sounds worth doing, then. Thanks!

DoYouEvenShift > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 17:57

Im in Orlando, but I do get around whenever possible.

Vicente Esteve > DoYouEvenShift
06/29/2015 at 18:05

It’s a gorgeous place, hope I was there right now.

RustedSprinter > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 18:28

Awesome! I should of bought a Fiero lol.

Vicente Esteve > RustedSprinter
06/29/2015 at 18:38

You’d be the hero of Oppo.

Nauraushaun > Vicente Esteve
06/29/2015 at 22:50

Did you really need all the leg room and space of a Navigator? Was it just the two of you?

Vicente Esteve > Nauraushaun
06/29/2015 at 23:15

4 People, 5 large suitcases.

Trust me, I wanted to have a convertible.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Vicente Esteve
06/30/2015 at 05:18

not too shabby!

Vicente Esteve > pip bip - choose Corrour
06/30/2015 at 09:48

Thanks! I enjoyed it very much.

Nauraushaun > Vicente Esteve
06/30/2015 at 23:09

Good point.

JR1 > Vicente Esteve
07/02/2015 at 16:34

Kinja'd!!!

Sanibel Island. I was just there and admired those two Fords myself. I do love Bailey’s. And I want to live on Sanibel island one day and drive up in a Dusenberg. I would sit out front and eat a donut and drink a free cup of coffee while I watched people admire my car.

Vicente Esteve > JR1
07/03/2015 at 09:34

All of this!