Car enthusiasts from all over Southern California arrived in force early Sunday morning to celebrate JBA Speed Shop’s 100th Coffee and Cars anniversary. Over 200 muscle cars, 50 JBA customer vehicles, and even a Ferrari cruised into the 15,000 square-foot performance shop’s parking lot in San Diego, California proving that the SoCal car enthusiast lifestyle is alive and well in 2019.
The turnout was so big (over 34 dozen donuts were consumed in all!) that many of the high-performance vehicles had to be ushered to adjacent parking spots around the shop to accommodate the large crowd.
Since 1985, JBA Speed Shop has built a reputation for being the premier aftermarket performance shop here in Southern California. Owner J. Bittle and his team of performance specialists have more than 130 years of combined experience servicing early model restorations and late-model performance cars and trucks.
In a state that adheres to some of the tightest emissions laws in the country, JBA sets the industry standard in CARB compliant performance tuning and specializes in both forced induction and naturally aspirated builds for enthusiasts here in Southern California.
Photo Credit: Don Cole
Keeping The Car Culture Alive In Southern California
JBA Speed Shop’s inaugural Coffee and Cars started from humble beginnings. On Sunday, September 12th, 2010, the team at JBA opened its doors to the public with the first event at the JBA Performance Center in Kearney Mesa, California.
“When we originally started our Coffee and Cars event back in 2010, we decided it would be cool if we could give back to the car community that keeps JBA revving with a real honest and pure speed shop event,” said owner J. Bittle. “Folks would cruise in at dawn for some coffee, tea, donuts, and breakfast burritos. We would share build stories and watch racing events on a big screen TV. Fast forward to 2019, and the second Sunday of every month at JBA continues to be a real honest and pure speed shop event. No reenacting, “Just badass cars and badass speed!”
But what makes this particular gathering of car enthusiasts so unique each month is the performance-minded approach that J. Bittle and his team bring to this event. The team completely opens its doors at these monthly events to show the public the services that are offered at the shop.
Enthusiasts can walk through the many different lift bays and get a first-hand look at what projects are being worked on for that month. On many occasions, there is even a car or truck that is strapped down on the dyno and attendees can watch in real time as the team performs a dyno test to see what kind of power that particular project is putting down.
This past weekend, JBA had the additional performance bay across from the main building open to show off its newly renovated full-service alignment and wheel shop.
But of course, the crowd favorite has to be the burnout box. This is truly what makes the C&C event so unique, and the reason many SoCal car enthusiasts return each and every month.
Under the direct supervision of Mr. J. Bittle himself, the team selects a certain amount of cars each month to perform controlled burnouts in the designated burnout box.
In today’s ever-changing world where loud exhaust notes and smokey burnouts are often forbidden at these types of events, the team at JBA gives new and experienced enthusiasts the chance to experience the thrill of lighting up the tires in a safe, controlled environment.
JBA Speed Shop‘s monthly Coffee and Cars is a chance to experience being a car guy in its truest form. With the additional concerns that many enthusiasts have for the future of a lifestyle we are passionate about, it’s refreshing to know that there is a performance shop still here in Southern California that will keep our dream builds alive.
