Hi, I’m Scott

My name is Scott Leazenby, and I’m a car guy. I’ve been a car guy for as long as I can remember. My earliest memory is of a brown 1976 Chevrolet Monte Carlo model car when I was about three years old. I played with that thing constantly, and looking back, it was probably the spark that ignited everything.

By age ten, I had Hot Wheels, Matchbox cars, racetracks, and those amazing battery-powered Stompers. In early 1985, at the age of 10, I started drawing cars (like, seriously drawing cars). My parents gifted me a Motor Trend subscription in 1986, and that changed everything. Growing up in southeastern Michigan near Detroit, with family working for the Big Three, I was surrounded by automotive culture. By 13, I knew I wanted to be a car designer.

From Designer to Driver

Getting my driver’s license at 16 felt like getting a license to drive anything – Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and even my sister’s beat-up 1983 Pontiac 6000 that I inherited after she left for college. I drove that thing hard through high school, and worked summers as a lot boy at Martin Buick-Oldsmobile-GMC in Fenton, MI. Being around new cars every day was a dream.

I went to college for car design but switched to general industrial design to keep my options open. After graduating in 1996, I planned to buy a Camaro Z28. Instead, I ended with a brand new 1996 Eagle Talon TSi. Over the years came a 1998 Dodge Neon R/T, a 2002 Toyota Celica GT, a disappointing 1996 Ford Mustang GT, and my beloved 2004 Nissan 350Z. My favorite car ever, until I crashed it trying to drift in 2007. Seven freakin’ thousand dollars in damage taught me real quick to respect what cars can and cannot do.

When I got married in 2009, the 350Z had to be traded in on a 2010 Honda Fit. Eventually I found my way back to a 2012 Mustang GT in 2016. A fast, loud, comfortable second car that actually paired with the Fit quite nicer than you’d probably expect.

My Philosophy Towards Car Ownership

I’m not a wrench guy, and I don’t modify my cars. I keep them stock. Maybe different wheels or tinted windows, but that’s it. I love cars the way the designers intended, preserving automotive history as it left the factory.

Why DriveAndReview Exists

I launched this website in 2011 to share my automotive experiences with every car I drive, own, or rent. Even something as basic as a 2013 Ford Focus is fascinating to me in one way or another. In 2015, I added a YouTube channel. At 51, I’m still building model cars, still drawing cars, and still getting excited every time I slide behind the wheel of something new.

Cars have been the constant thread through my life. From that brown Monte Carlo to today’s Mustang GT, the passion has never faded.

Thanks for being here.