Moving to L.A. from Australia - Looking for car/clubs :P
 

Hey guys,

Sorry this is a little off topic, but couldnt find anywhere specifically that it suited on here..

I am moving over to LA next week, from Australia... Well I am still going to be back and forth a lot, but I am working on projects in both countries, so I needed a home base there .

I have an apartment sorted in West Hollywood area, but I dont know a single person in all of USA, so I am hoping to make contact with some people so as to not be completely in the dark when I get there

I am a car nut (I have a BMW M5 V10, Porsche Boxster S, turbocharged FR-S, and a few other cars over here in oz), so was hoping to get the low down on where to go for car meets, check out some work shops and so forth.

I am going to be looking into buying a car as soon as I land, currently have my eye on a nice M6 over in Orange county, but I have heard the dealers over there can be sharks (same as anywhere I guess), so I was hoping to get some inside info to make sure I don't get burned.. If anyone can suggest a place to buy a car, or where to specifically avoid, I am all ears :P I also noticed the Porsches over there are 1/3 the price of here, so I havent ruled them out yet either :)

Would love to meet some peoples and get to know the scene there too, so if anyone wants to hit me up on here just PM me and can chat :P

Hope it's not as scary as the news makes it seem, with gun wielding maniacs everywhere (JK!)

1) Welcome to Murika! (imagine some explosions, gun shots, bacon cooking, 3/4 naked bleach blonde women, and Tom Cruise walking in front of a door way with John Woo doves flying by)

2) Bring some VB's

3) In Murika, cash is King; you control your money and what it gets spent on. always keep your eyes on the dealers hands (applies to more than just casino/cards) and see what he's changing. most stealerhips will change the terms of agreement/contract right under a persons nose without them noticing as they have the gift of a silver tongue, able to sell ice to polar bear as it were. stearlerships will do anything for straight cash, and there's always room to negotiate as they mark up the price on cars pretty hard over here. always know the MSRP (if buying new) or KBB (if buying used) before purchasing/viewing/kicking the tires of a vehicle you want. and always remember: dealers want your money more than you want to give it up, and they'll try to make you think this is the best deal you'll ever get for the rest of your life. personally, i take a couple copies of print outs with hand written notes showing how much lower i can get the same car for at another stealership.

4) I live in San Diego, about 1.5 hours down the coast. i've been to LA a few times now and i have no clue about West Hollywood. I'm usually either in Venice Beach, Orange County, Compton, Watts, or Long Beach.

5) if all else fails, you could pick up a 986 for pocket change.

5) we call our gun wielding maniacs Vice Presidents and/or Republicans, lmao.

Welcome!

Did I read this right? Porsche in Au cost 75% less then they do in the states?

Don't worry, I'd like to believe the reports of gun wielding maniacs are a little over sensationalized. I mean, there hasn't been a mass shooting in at least a week so that's good news! The bad news is that you're moving to Cali who seems determined to make sure the only people in the state allowed to be armed are the gangbangers, criminals, and cartel members so good luck! If one of those guys decides to pull, maybe all the honest citizens can talk him down with kind words or hugs. :D

LOL! hah

and no a 986 Boxster S in australia is $40-50k, the new Roadster is $180k...


If there are any functions there you guys will be hanging out id love to know about them, so im not sitting all on my lonesome every night ;)

I already bought my new license plates, to go along with the theme of every other "WTF" plate i own ..

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.n...95791732_n.jpg

Now the next battle is going to be trying to work out how to pick it up from the DMV (apparently they are difficult to deal with? or so movies tell me).

Thanks for the replies so far and maybe Ill eventually catch a few of you out there :D

Mark

Btw
 

Kalifornia is very close to the United States. I don't even think you'll need a passport if you decide to visit the States while you're in Kalifornia. However, when you try to re-enter Kali you will be stopped and searched. (Of this I am not kidding) The last time they stopped me and asked if I had any fruits or animals in the car I told them no, and since they didn't ask, I didn't volunteer that I had a .38 on my hip.

Welcome to the Left Coast and you'll love the car scene in LA!

People tend to band together by the cars they like.
In your case since you like Porsche, be sure to look up the Aryan Brotherhood - they seem to prefer German engineering.

As for the Holden/General Motors type crowd, you'll find MS-13 are (obviously) into the numbers on cars like hp, torque and gross vehicle weight.

The Latin Kings are also a Holden/General Motors type crowd, but they tend to accessorize their cars with a Latin flavor. They seem a fun group though.

If you like Asian cars, the clubs to check out are the Yakuza and Wah Ching. They seem to have a lot of "fan boys".

Then finally, the longest standing car clubs in LA are the Bloods and the Crips. They really go their separate ways and don't have much in common, so going between the 2 groups until you pick the one you really like is highly recommended.

Hope that helps! :D

WTF I assume you will be working close to West Hollywood, it is the homosexual capital of So.CA so if you are comfortable living in that environment you will have a short commute to work. I assume you will be going in & out of LAX alot & W.H. is about a 1.5 hour drive away so if you want PM me & I can recommend best location to setup camp. I would rent a car when you 1st land with navigation for a week or 2 so you don't have to rush to buy a car, also you need to see how secure your parking will be. Don't worry about car activities, the only problem in L.A. is choosing which you want to do. I would think a Brisbaner would want to be near the beach. :cheers:

Ha BYpro - Brisbane has some of the worst beaches in Queensland - its situated on a river estuary.....
If you go less than 50 km North or South of the city its a different story - some of the very best.
No matter what, WTF is going to have a big change in life - good luck in your venture.

BYProdriver is right, there are many places better to live than WH in the LA area OC is closer to LAX and much nicer, great car shows indeed!
My favorites are the Roadster Grand National and once a year the drive to Laguna Seca for the Rolex Historic Races
.

You guys are killing me! LA is second only to New York for being the most exciting place in the US to live. The car scene is awesome and it's easy to find other people who have the same interests. The social life is incredible too. You will love it.

aren't Porsches like a dime a dozen in LA?

I would suggest joining the PCA club for that region. I'm sure any of the area Porsche dealers will tell you which clubs they sponsor for meets/rallys. Then join the local SCCA chapter and ask about autocrossing. Must be some stadium lots in the area used for that. I know San Diego has one of the best autocross lots in the country. I'd also check out that Magnus fellow from the Urban Outlaw documentary. He restores old 911's and sells his own brand of urban clothing. He's Brittish but you both sound funny to us so you'll have something in common.

p.s.
Move to Manhattan Beach. Have a friend who moved there. won't shut up about how much he loves it. Says "a car guy like you would love it"

O.C. PCA has a better autoX lot at the former USMC airport in Irvine.
I lived in Manhattan Beach for 10 years, I miss it sometimes but it just got so congested.