About The Owner
Melvin Sancho Hodges II is a lover of life, with a passion for people, travel, learning, and vehicles. With over two decades of professional and personal experience in the automotive world, he has developed practices and a rolodex of peers that allow him to reach spaces that few others can when it comes to blending skillsets to create amazing interactions for anyone he comes into contact with.
Hodges has travelled far and wide to learn as much as he can in his automotive journey, and he has been known to share his knowledge with a keen emphasis on the passion that drives all enthusiasts—regardless of where they stand in the lifestyle. His authenticity has lent him a unique and innovative voice that reaches destinations using different roads than many of his counterparts. These adventures have been coined ThisFastLife because there is no telling how each day will turn out, but there is a solid conviction that it will be different than the one before it.
E.C.D. Automotive Designs Land Rover Defenders (D90 and D110)
E.C.D. Automotive Design began importing Land Rover Defenders from the U.K. to Florida about 10 years ago and, since then, the company has grown into a brand that offers customers the option to choose how they’d like to personalize up to 12 models available in their catalog. I was fortunate to get a chance to drive two of their products and, since they started with Defenders, I was happy that it was their bread and butter (a D90 and a D110) that I was able to sample. It was explained to me that every ECD is built to spec based [...]
2025 Bentley Continental GT Speed Edition 1 – “Extraordinary Has Been Found”
I recently had a chance to spend some time with Bentley’s new Continental GT Speed Edition 1 and all I can say is “WOW.” Having driven the second and third generation GTs, I’d thought the amazingly progressive jump between the two of them was about as much as a manufacturer could make, but what Bentley has accomplished between the third and this-newest, fourth generation, is hard to believe. If that sounds like I’m putting it on extra thick like one of those old, scratchy wool sweaters, keep reading. Firstly, Bentley’s celebrated W12 that made its debut in the first generation [...]
“N mode, baby… All day, every day.” (2024 Hyundai Elantra N)
When I initially approached the Hyundai Elantra N, I really did not know what to expect. Many had made news of the brand’s eye towards producing legitimate alternatives to more aggressive options from Acura, Honda, Toyota, and even Subaru, but beyond a conversation with a former co-worker who bought at Veloster N a while back, I had no personal scope of reference to get an idea of what Hyundai has been up to. After driving the 2024 Elantra N, however, the two words that jump out at me are “surprised” and “impressed” due to how fun and rewarding it is [...]
2023 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (short take) – “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye”
Even in Hades hot 100+ degree temperatures, the Camaro ZL1 lapped an impressive five hours without missing a beat. The six speed manual mated to Chevy’s 650hp/650lb-ft LT-4 is an excellent combination for those of us who enjoy shifting our own gears while being hitched to one of the fastest road (and track) cars out there. Just as impressive was the neutral handling character, which allowed speeding on course on the verge of understeer all day, but never crossing that radius-expanding line. Of course, there was enough power on tap to create oversteer with the throttle at any time, but [...]
Test Ridden: LiveWire One
The LiveWire One is a very good looking motorcycle. It has a stance that looks aggressive, yet familiar to enthusiasts who like ‘naked” bikes. Looking more closely, it is also fitted with parts that are known for their quality and performance in every space. There is a promise made that the LiveWire will live up to its name before it ever turns a wheel, simply based on its appearance alone. I was smitten by the chance to ride one of these babies, and I had even started contemplating the notion of purchasing one when I kicked my leg over the [...]
Ruchlos Rallye (2021)
A few years ago I met a guy named Steve and it became quickly apparent that we both shared a zeal for cars, speed, adventure, people, and family. With all of those similarities, we became instant friends. We’ve stayed in touch, and on a fast and fun drive we went on last winter, he mentioned that he was planning on attending a vintage Porsche rally in West Virginia later in the year. Being the curious car lover I am, I began probing him about how the event was organized, the people who’d be there, and blah, blah, blah. Instead of [...]