Cars and Coffee Unley

Meet the two local legends who revived a well-loved event in the Adelaide Car Scene.

Written and Photographed by Harry Williams, Hillside Media. Last updated 22 March, 2022

Patrick James (left) and Tom Stuart (right) discuss on their passion for organising the monthly event of Cars and Coffee Unley, and what their own pride and joy is.

After the cancellation of Cars and Coffee Unley in early 2021, long-time attendees and enjoyers of the event Pat and Tom discovered that with the absence of this well-loved event, there was a gap in the car community of Adelaide. “It was obviously a very popular event back in the day, with some very high-quality cars, but after a lengthy period of time, the event was not able to be run anymore”, Mr James says. “We believed we had the resources and a team of likeminded enthusiasts who also wanted to get the event back up and running.”

“It was always such a great event, and I felt that the community had done a disservice by having it left behind,” said Mr Stuart. “Naturally there was a bit of groundwork involved, but once everything was set up and all of the procedures were in place, it was fairly easy to run, so at the end of the day we thought why not? Why should we let things like this fall by the wayside and be forgotten about, when there was a great platform there to start off with.”

“The support so far has been fantastic,” Pat said.

After attending multiple Cars and Coffee Unley events myself, I can say that it has certainly been a major success under new management. “We didn't have to build it too much as well because it already had a great name for itself”, said Tom Stuart.

A nice selection of cars seen at recent Cars and Coffee Unley events.

Tom Stuart and his 2010 Toyota Majesta G Type F-Package

So, what goes into organising an event of this calibre? “Tom and I do a lot of it together; he does a lot more to do with the event management and logistics. We all kind of share equal responsibilities, and we take turns in marshalling; however, we never have to do much on the day due to all of the participants behaving so well.” Patrick says.

“Initially my role was to run around interfacing with local businesses, with council, with shopping centre management, just trying to make sure that we had all the things in place that we could run this event smoothly with no issues. Now my role is more towards the social media side of things, so taking photos, posting about the event, trying to manage a bit of public relations as well.” Tom said. Tom does an amazing job managing the event’s social media. The Instagram page racks up over 2.3 thousand followers, and publishes some extremely professional photographs taken by Tom himself.

“We love how the event is going at the moment, and to just to maintain a consistently positive event is what we really hope for.” Mr James admits, “That's all we really care about at the end of the day.”

“We want to preserve the amount of variety that we have there” says Mr Stuart, “There's a good range of cars and great variety, which has always been the main goal. We would love to maintain that and even increase it further as well. Essentially, we want to have a great platform for the community to be able to come out, enjoy themselves and have a good day. The idea was to bring back what we enjoyed as long-time attendees of the event.”

When being as passionate about cars as Patrick and Tom are, you are sure to have a few nice things of your own. And that’s certainly the case when it comes to these two companions.

“I currently own a 1990 Mazda MX5 NA6” says Patrick, “I bought it off a good friend of mine, who essentially built the whole thing. It's got a built 1.6L long-nose engine, that obviously has a turbo attached to it, with Mazda Familia GTX Rods and Pistons making it a forged motor.” The car also has a NB series 6 speed gearbox and 15x9 wheels, among other various modifications. Pat’s second car is a 2013 BMW M135i.

“Currently, I have a 2010 Toyota Majesta G Type F-Package” says Tom Stuart. F-Package is the highest model in the series of Majestas, and it’s fitted with a 4.6L V8 and factory air suspension. “It's a very smooth and comfy car, which is why I bought it, selling my previous car that was a daily driver that I turned into a bit of a race car. I wanted something that I had a bit more piece of mind and a reasonable economy for a V8. Petrol prices still hurt a little bit, but that's alright.” With aftermarket 20-inch rims, Tom’s car is very much a show car as it is a luxury cruiser. “It's a daily so I'm trying to be somewhat responsible.”

Patrick James and his 1990 Mazda MX5 NA6

But what actually drew them to the cars? With so many unique automobiles on the market, we wonder why Pat and Tom chose these two.

“I like how it's essentially a road registered go-kart and that's what makes it so fun to drive” says Pat. “There's no power steering, no traction control, no ABS, no sort of electric assists whatsoever so it's really just you and the car.”

“What attracted me to it (the Toyota Majesta) initially was the value for money; I don't think there is any other car on the market where you can get reclining, heated and cooled seats, a mini fridge, TV screens, a V8, air suspension, and it's something that you can get looking great sitting low with nice big rims for this sort of price.” Tom said.

Now that we have heard from the organisers of this prestigious event, it is time to get an opinionated view from an attendee.

I myself am a long time attendee. Ever since my photographic journey began, I looked towards Cars and Coffee Unley as my favourite event. The early morning rise is always worth it, with immaculate built cars and new million dollar supercars being lined up next to each other is a perfect representation of the variety that Pat and Tom were talking about. I personally love the time of day that the event is set; the golden morning light creating gorgeously aesthetic images. Everyone is always in a good mood, and it is a perfect way to show off your pride and joy.

Ben's Nissan S15 Silvia

Ben is a very well known figure in the Adelaide car community, recognised for having one of the cleanest built Nissan Silvia S15s in the Southern Hemisphere. Ben is also an attendee of Cars and Coffee Unley, and always makes an entrance when he does.

"First of all I love the diversity of the event in the sense of all of the different cars that it brings out. There isn't any sense of tribalism." says Ben. This is something that I completely agree on. At Cars and Coffee Unley, you see circumstances of when a Ferrari owner will come into conversation with a teenager with his first car. Different groups of people converge, and it is great way to create connections through the car scene. "It's a very chilled out and well behaved event, and in that it attracts a crowd of people that may have not attended other events that promote different types of activity" he says, "the event has gotten huge, and I believe that it really reflects on the organiser's hard work."

Cars and Coffee Unley happens every 3rd Sunday of the month, at Unley Shopping Centre (204 Unley Rd, Unley). Head down for great coffee, immaculate vibes and meet Tom and Patrick for yourself!

Some unique rides at a recent Cars and Coffee Unley event.

Links

Cars and Coffee Unley Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carsandcoffeeunley/

Tom Stuart Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frighteningmcqueen/

Patrick James Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/2pjz_/

Ben S15 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benfulcongregation/

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