Rain Can’t Kill The Vibe: A wet morning at Nashville Cars n’ Coffee

It was going to be a big day. Not only was it Nashville Superspeedway’s monthly Nashville Cars n’ Coffee meet, but Stoopicold was happening right after at the same track. That would make it an all-day event.

Stoopicold is the car show and drift event hosted by Slammedenuff, and I couldn’t wait to get there, even if the weather forecast was all over the place. Sure, rain wouldn’t have stopped me, but I couldn’t enjoy my coffee if it were pouring, and I wouldn’t get to enjoy the cars if I had to stay under cover. There were downpours early in the morning, but at around 8:00am, the rain turned to drizzle. I decided to make a go of it.

I arrived at Nashville Superspeedway to find a surprisingly decent turnout given the weather. After catching up with a friend I made at a previous meet, and making a couple of new ones, I started my walkaround on the right side of the track. This is the public section, which fills up on a first-come, first-served basis – all cars welcome. I had parked my Civic Hybrid hatch in the first row, sandwiched between a Toyota GR86, a Chevrolet Corvette, and a Nissan 370Z. I’ve added a few personal touches to my Honda with more planned soon.

Walking further, a blue FD3S Mazda RX-7 immediately stood out as the star of the show, alongside a trio of BMWs – okay, two A90 Toyota Supras and an M3. Sorry, I had to…

As I grabbed coffee, more cars rolled in, and the meet really came together. Grey skies, open track, and an incredible mix of cars and trucks – it was beautiful. A Triumph coupe parked next to a Porsche 944 caught my eye; two different takes on vintage and analog from different eras. Then there was easily the flashiest vehicle there: a hot pink Toyota Sienna party van with a full sim rig inside. Unreal.

Other highlights included a supercharged E46 BMW M3 next to a turbocharged 7th-gen Honda Civic Si hatch. Then came a Lamborghini Huracán – not something I had expected to see –, a C8 Z06 Corvette in the middle of the lot, and a white B8 RS5  – an absolute monster and one of the last great Audis.

Wrapping up this side of the event, I passed a rare  MINI John Cooper Works GP3, a B-series-powered EK Civic hatch, a Corona wagon parked next to a Lexus LS 400, Raptor Baja trucks, RC drift trucks with trailers, and more drift cars staged nearby.

The reserved lot at Nashville Cars n’ Coffee is where you’ll find all the pre-registered vehicles, and while there were fewer cars here than at previous events, there were plenty of standouts – like this Maybach and a lineup of McLarens. I’d never seen a Corvette E-Ray in person before, so this one at the Tennessee Region SCCA booth was a welcome find. It’s quite cool to see a hybrid supercar with real performance value.

Further into the lot were various Porsches, Nissan Skyline GT-Rs, and even more RX-7s. The car that stole the show for me, though, was a Model T from more than 100 years ago.

The track entrance is where you’ll find a mix of American, European, and Japanese classics, and this air-cooled Porsche immediately caught my attention. I’ve seen 930 Turbos at this event before, but this particular car’s spec is quite rare.

Before I knew it, three hours had passed the meet had come to an end. It’s crazy how time disappears when you’re living in the moment and shooting hundreds of photos. Before heading out, I grabbed a few last shots: a flawless E39 M5 wagon build, a perfectly period-correct IS 300, a wild Mercedes C-Class that looked to be 2JZ-swapped with an immaculate interior, and finally an E30 325i alongside an E93 M3 convertible. What a way to end it.

Of course, my day didn’t end here – Stoopicold was kicking off in an hour, which gave me time to head out for a quick break before returning to Nashville Superspeedway for another dose of Tennessee car culture. Stay tuned for that story!