Happy Honda Days!*
We sent a version of this out to members yesterday as an email, but we thought everyone should see it because we’re grateful for all of you. In a year of increasing media uncertainty, our members and readers have been manual-Volvo-240 reliable. The Autopian’s churn rate is 1%, or, put another way, 99% of members stay members. That’s essentially unheard of in the media world.
The Autopian also has the best community – automotive or otherwise – on the web. We’d like to thank our commenters for helping keep this a great place to hang out, even when not everyone agrees (the timing belt v. timing chain debate has continued into 2025!). As if the comments weren’t enough, our Discord (which is open to everyone, FYI, should someone ask) is where the party never stops. A huge thanks to everyone there, and especially our volunteer moderators, who keep the vibes on point basically 24 hours a day (thanks in part to the large number of Australians who pitch in).
As you may know, our co-founders and senseis, Beau and Jeff, also have a small sideline concern called Galpin Motors, and everyone there provides a huge amount of support. We’re so grateful to the crew at the various dealerships, offices, GAS, The Horseless Carriage (the best restaurant in LA), accounting, legal, HR, and Galpin Media.
You may never interact with Jill, but Jill is one major reason why this entire organization hasn’t accidentally fallen into the ocean. We love you, Jill, and couldn’t do this without you! Also, Jill once worked for Chris Bangle, and she’ll let us tell that story one day.
Like a 4.0 Jeep inline-six, this site never stops running, and that’s because of Jazel. If you’ve ever had a tech issue and emailed Matt, and he couldn’t figure it out, it’s the team at Jazel who fixed it. They turned Jason’s drawing into a website, and we’re forever grateful that they get it when we suggest things like adding a “glovebox” or “night panel” to the website.
There are all sorts of other people working behind the scenes to make The Autopian a growing and going concern. All those great t-shirts and stickers that get mailed to you? That’s the wonderful team at Inkcentric. They do both the production and the increasingly complicated fulfillment (also, a big thanks to Stephen, who figures out the complicated web of apps to make our databases work). If you need anything printed, you should give Inkcentric a call. And if you need a pin like one of our amazing member pins, that’s the incredibly talented Leen Customs. Toys? Everyone likes toys, and Candy Lab Toys has become our partner this year on this crazy adventure into this brand-new world. We’re so grateful for all of them.
We have so many partners who have helped us create some wild projects. Thank you to XPEL, eBay Motors, Copart, and Hagerty for their support this year.
Do you enjoy reading this site? That requires writers. We want to thank everyone who shared their stories with us, especially frequent contributors like Mark, Huibert, Tycho, Brandon, Laurence, The Bishop, SWG, Emme, Alanis, Adrian, Travis, and Andrea.
Honestly, this could be 19 more paragraphs long. As challenging as the media landscape is right now, we are the luckiest people in the world, and are so excited to do it all again next year. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Mail Stuff!
Our amazing friends at Inkcentric got this year’s member shirts done a little early, and Leen Customs was early with the renewal pins, so Inkcentric is calling in some extra shifts to try to get as many welcome gifts and renewal gifts out as possible. As always, if you move, change credit cards, want to upgrade your plans, change your shirt size, et cetera, please you can do it right here.
We’re also mailing stuff out to members as we have swag. If you’re Cloth member, we could also use your address, though if you get randomly selected, I’ll make sure to reach out to you. We’re sending out a fancy radio-control car to a Cloth Annual this week. It’s random!
Happy Holidays!
– Your Autopian Crew
*Or Lexus December To Remember, Toyotathon, Texas Truck Month, Autobianchi Mega Saturnalia, or whatever you celebrate.
Thanks Autopians for making this a pleasant place to spend time. I learn something new here nearly every day. Because of Torch, Mercedes, David, and the rest of the writers here the hours of entertainment are so much more valuable than the cost of a membership. I also appresciate the tone that everyone helps to maintain in the comments. I may not always agree, but rarely do I ever find anything offensive. Between the writers and the commentariat, this place has become an integral part of my life.
Thanks everyone and enjoy whatever holidays you celebrate.
A Merry Cisitalia To All, And To All A Stearns-Knight!
Bent Wishes To All!
I GET IT
How big do the t-shirts come? I’m a 3X Tall, so no shrimpy shirts need apply.
How about a Crop-Top?
I hear they’re coming back….
I’m a size L in t-shirts… I’m 5’8/150 and the small I accidentally ordered fits like a smedium. Large fits me just right with room to roam. At 3X tall, I’d get the largest available.
We need an easier way to upgrade our subscriptions. or maybe I just need to be smarter and figure it out on my own.
I thought the same thing, but I just pulled the trigger and did an upgrade – the site automatically credited me for my time left on the existing one. Super easy!
Go to the link in this article then click on the menu top right, then go to “subscriptions” to change plans. I just upgraded to velour, can’t wait for my birthday art! Thanks for recognizing the” behind the scenes” that make this such a great place to hang out!
Ghosn bless us every one!
This is the only site I pay a subscription to. I’m glad I’m doing it to. I may upgrade my account come renewal time.
Please keep up the great work everyone. Plus we need more SWG posts!
Thank you! Also I keep telling SWG this!
The volunteer mod squad on Discord is 40% Australian!
That’s on an integer basis: 2 of the 5 are Aussies. It’s not a 23-and-Data-Breach DNA thing.
It could be both! Are DNA tests required for moderators? Probably wouldn’t matter, I guess. They’d all come back 100% Autopian.
AUTTIE AUTTIE AUTTIE!!
OI OI OI!!
I read the “thanks” section and in my head it sounded like the episode of Sports Night where Dan and Casey thank all the crew who work on the show.
I miss the Car Talk credits, Statistician Marge Inovera, Seat Tester Mike Keister..
Hairdresser Bud Tugly, Russian chauffeur Pikupand Dropov.
The law firm Dewey Cheetham & Howe
Director of Cold Starting, Martina Neverturnova
If you’re having half the fun we are, then we’re having twice as much fun as you.
Happy holidays to all the cargenerates at the Autopian. Best to all the staff, writers and commenters!
I hope that my employment situation stabilizes and I can become a member in 26.
I love the NSU RO-80 shirt! Weird is good!
I try to find any excuse I can to wear it out (I wear a uniform for work, so I generally don’t ‘pick’ my clothes).
Unfortunately, I have yet to have anyone comment on it.
A safe Volvodays and Merry Mazdays to you, too! Thanks for all you all do.
I, for one, welcome our future Formicidae overlords.
I’d like to remind them as a trusted web community, we can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves.
Address added, fingers crossed!
The ant internet is a really hard nut to crack.
Great job guys.
FWIW: hard to beat timing belts on an older Italian motorcycle. Back in the 90’s it was annually or 5000km/3000miles, and a part of “basic maintenance”, and then progressed into every 2 years or 20,000km/12,400 miles by the 2000’s.
Every 30 k in an early gold wing.
I can’t believe you missed out Festivas, although at least that means I get to air my grievance here.
Thanks for a great website!
The non-denominational
FordFestivuas holiday, back to the honest basics.There’s goes the invite to be a guest on Spikes Car Radio!
We’re celebrating Festivas tonight, but we will probably skip the airing of grievances. I think our focus will be the feats of strength. The torque wrenches are at the ready.
Reminds me I need to figure out what happened to my Festivas pole. Suppose I could make another, as mine was made from an old pizza box and toilet paper tubes wrapped in foil in honor of the holiday.
Boy I sure miss the “Studebaker Year End Maker Days” of yesteryear.
Nothing today is like a close out deal in a smoke-filled, male dominated, cheesy-grinning, fast-talking, white leather belted salesman in the 1950’s. Oh wait….
“Or Lexus December To Remember, Toyotathon, Texas Truck Month, Autobianchi Mega Saturnalia, or whatever you celebrate.”
I always hate it when I say Merry Christmas and someone passive aggressively responds with HAPPY HONDADAYS!
just waiting for: Homeandautobundlextravafestasaveathon
Soon the OEMs will start charging subscription fees to celebrate the year-end sales events. Cherish them while you can.
I get a funny tingle when I’m wearing one of my Autopian shirts and somebody recognizes it. Thank you for that.
This became my favorite site from Day One, and I look forward to Cold Start, Mercedes’ articles, etc. every day. I tried to show support by buying a T-shirt I can’t even wear, since I accidentally ordered….a small…which I am not. So now I just drive around with a sticker on my Wrangler.
Thank you for all the entertainment & automotive education.
You can make a cushion from it if it won’t fit you. I did this with some shirts I liked the print but were otherwise too worn out to keep going.
I check the site at least once per day because there is almost always something worth reading!
Thank you for making something worth caring about on the internet!
You’re all good eggs, guys. Keep it up – and enjoy the holidays, whether it’s Christmas, Toyotathon or some obscure taillight-based feast on the calendar (looking at you, JT).
I’m picturing something like Hannukah, only the lights on the menorah are sequential.
Haha, that is a wonderful mental image.
And amber, obviously
😀 I’m going to take the ‘manual Volvo 240’ comment as a personal shoutout, even though I know it’s probably not.
Autopian people, the feelings are mutual. 🙂