Derek Shiekhi

Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.

After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.

While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.

Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.

In addition to writing for a variety of Internet Brands sites, including JK Forum, H-D Forums, The Mustang Source, Mustang Forums, LS1Tech, HondaTech, Jaguar Forums, YotaTech, and Ford Truck Enthusiasts. Derek also started There Will Be Cars on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

Drive Buy? A BMW Z3 with an LS2

I’ve always found the original BMW M Coupe to be an oddly attractive car. Shooting brake designs are nothing new, but I’ll be damned if BMW’s doesn’t look completely unique. The only way to make what many deem the automotive equivalent of a clown shoe stand out even more is to add a big-ass wing […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | September 16, 2014

Raybestos Presents: A Two-Tone Trans Am

Cities spend a lot of money and time making sure they have impressive skylines. So why not put all of that effort to work as a bad-ass backdrop for glamor shots of your car? That’s what forum member ripgtp97 did in some of the pics you see here. He positioned his black-and-silver 2000 Pontiac Trans […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | September 12, 2014

Raybestos Presents: A 2002 Firehawk

For every thread in this forum in which someone shows off their Camaro or GTO, there’s probably 15 in which somebody asks how much a certain part will boost horsepower or drop strip times. I’ve seen a ton of incredible cars here, but you all never rest on your laurels. You’re always trying to improve […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | September 8, 2014

Raybestos Presents: A Trans Am for Touring and the Track

One of our forum members, Blackbirdws6, has a car for all seasons and moods. His 1997 Trans Am WS6 convertible can go top-up in less-than-perfect weather. When the sun comes out, he can lower the lid. Doing so exposes the partial cage – a good thing to have while cruising on public roads (just in […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | September 2, 2014

Chevy Sold 37,288 MY2014 Stingrays

If you bought a 2014 Corvette Stingray, you’re part of a special club. True, there are 37,287 members of this group, but you’re all driving bad-ass cars. Who wouldn’t feel special behind the wheel of a 460-horsepower American sports car icon? CorvetteBlogger states that big number, according to Corvette Product Manager Harlan Charles, takes into […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | August 27, 2014

Raybestos Presents: A Genetically Modified Goat

Forum member tom’s2005gto‘s goat started life as a 2005 model with the stock LS2 6-liter V8 and a six-speed manual transmission. Over the years, Tom’s bred his crimson creature into a big-displacement beast. After buying it in 2007, he “did the maggie 112 & Kook’s 1 3/4″ LT’s and a cam, [and] made 528 rwhp […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | August 22, 2014

New Corvette by the Numbers

There’s no denying the new Corvette is a numbers car. It develops 460 horsepower from 6.2 liters and eight cylinders, and costs thousands less than its competitors. Even its new automatic transmission is all about impressive figures. For instance, the eight-speed unit has two more forward gears than the one it replaces. Thanks to a […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | August 21, 2014