Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover Take Route 66 in Austin’s Bayside Blue 1999 Nissan 25GT Turbo

Last updated on 17 May 2026

Some families keep their stories in photo albums. Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover put theirs in the miles—two names on the same map line, tracing Route 66 with a gearshift in hand and the particular glow of Austin’s Bayside Blue 1999 Nissan 25GT Turbo leading the way.

This memory is brought to you by Oh Sherri Irish Pub — Testing the partner system

This story is brought to you by

Oh Sherri Irish Pub

Testing the partner system

Visit Oh Sherri Irish Pub →

"Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover Take A Road Trip On Route 66 in Austin’s Classic Dream Car a Bayside Blue TV2 1999 Nissan 25GT Turbo, (RHD) Right Hand Drive, 5-Speed manual transmission, known as The Mother Road, spans roughly 2,448 miles (3,940 km) through eight states, beginning in Chicago, Illinois, and ending at the Santa Monica Pier, California.
While the road was officially decommissioned in 1985, about 85% of it remains drivable today via historic alignments and state highways.
Essential Planning Tips****
Duration: A minimum of 14 days is recommended to see the major highlights without rushing. A leisurely pace can take up to 3 weeks.
Timing: Spring (May) and Fall (September to October) offer the best weather and fewer crowds. Summers are extremely hot in desert stretches, and winters can bring road closures in the north.
Navigation: Traditional GPS often defaults to interstates. Use specialized resources like the Route 66 Navigation App or the EZ66 Guide for Travelers to stay on the historic path.
Centennial Celebration: The year 2026 marks the Route 66 Centennial, featuring special events and tours across all eight states.
Top Must-See Stops by State****
Illinois: The "Begin Route 66" sign in Chicago and the Cozy Dog Drive In (birthplace of the corn dog) in Springfield.
Missouri: The Gateway Arch in St. Louis and the Meramec Caverns, which feature vintage barn advertisements.
Kansas: ***The shortest stretch (13 miles), featuring Cars on the Route in Galena.
Oklahoma: The Blue Whale of Catoosa and the futuristic Pops 66 soda ranch in Arcadia.
Texas: The Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo and the Midpoint Café in Adrian, the mathematical center of the route.
New Mexico: The historic Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari and the Spanish-influenced plaza in Santa Fe.
Arizona: The Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Standin' on the Corner Park in Winslow, and the gateway to the Grand Canyon in Williams.
California: The desolate Roy's Motel & Café in Amboy and the iconic End of the Trail sign at the Santa Monica Pier.
==========================================
The 1999 Nissan Skyline 25GT Turbo (often referred to as the ER34 GT-T) in Bayside Blue (TV2) is one of the most recognizable and highly sought-after configurations of the R34 chassis generation.
While Bayside Blue was originally an exclusive factory option for the top-tier R34 GT-R, many 25GT Turbo models are repainted or customized by enthusiasts to pay homage to the legendary GT-R aesthetic while retaining the rear-wheel-drive dynamics of the GT-T.
Car Specifications & Highlights
Engine: Powered by the 2.5-liter RB25DET NEO straight-6 turbocharged engine, delivering an official 276 horsepower from the factory.
Drivetrain: Traditional rear-wheel drive (RWD) setup, typically paired with a 5-speed manual transmission and Super HICAS four-wheel steering.
Chassis Code: ER34 (distinct from the BNR34 GT-R chassis).Paint Code: TV2 (Bayside Blue), a deep, rich metallic paint that shifts vibrantly depending on light conditions.
Current Market & Availability
Because these vehicles have cleared the United States' 25-year import law, they are completely legal to import, register, and drive on U.S. roads (with state-specific compliance rules like California's CARB requirements).
According to market historical data tracked on CLASSIC.COM, the average price of an R34 25GT Turbo hovers around $50,319. Clean, GT-R-style modified versions finished in Bayside Blue are regularly sold by prominent JDM vehicle importers:
Toprank Importers frequently features well-sorted Series 1 ER34 models.
For instance, a beautifully converted 1999 25GT Turbo in TV2 Bayside Blue (originally black) featuring an Uras body kit, GT-R wing, and Advan wheels was listed for $63,995.
Garage Defend and Kuruma Imports also stock and source ER34 Skylines, offering secure storage options in Japan for buyers planning out long-term transport
==========================================
#NissanSkyline #1999NissanSkyline #1999NissanSkyline25GTTurbo #BaysideBlue #25GTTurbo #ToprankInternationalVehicleImporters ##ToprankInternational #Route66 #WinslowArizona #ChicagoIllinoi #SantaMonicaPierCalifornia #Route66Centennial #CozyDogDriveIn #MeramecCaverns #CarsontheRoute #WhaleofCatoosa #Pops66 #StandinontheCorner #MidpointCafé #WinslowVisitorsCenter #BlueSwallowMotel #MinnetonkaTradingPost #WigwamMotel #GrandCanyon #EndoftheTrail"

When Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover chose a right-hand-drive Skyline for an American legend like Route 66, it wasn’t a contradiction—it was a signature. Austin’s dream car doesn’t just “take you there.” It asks you to pay attention: to the way the TV2 Bayside Blue shifts under different light, to the deliberate click of the 5-speed, to the small moment of recalibration every time you pass or turn because the steering wheel is on the “other” side. On a road built from habit and memory, that tiny strangeness makes everything feel newly alive.

Route 66 is famous for its bookends—Chicago behind you, Santa Monica out ahead—but a trip like this is really a series of shared pauses. Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover had the kind of itinerary that holds both wonder and appetite: a “Begin Route 66” sign that begs for a photo, a Cozy Dog Drive In stop where the corn dog is somehow more than a snack, the Gateway Arch rising like a clean, metallic exhale, and Meramec Caverns where old advertisements still feel like voices that never fully left.

The road tightens in places—Kansas’ short stretch passing in what feels like a single long breath—and then opens back up into its oddball poetry: the Blue Whale of Catoosa, Pops 66’s tower of bottles and neon, the slant of Texas light against the Cadillac Ranch, and the Midpoint Café where the math of the route turns into a grin you can’t quite hide. In a car that looks like it came from a different chapter of American car culture, Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover were writing their own version of “classic” in real time.

New Mexico and Arizona are where Route 66 stops being a concept and becomes a mood. It’s the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari—neon that makes night feel friendly—and then Santa Fe, where the air changes and the architecture makes you speak a little softer. Later, there’s the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Winslow’s “Standin’ on the Corner” wink, and the pull toward Williams and the Grand Canyon gateway, where even the car seems to idle with a kind of respect.

And then California—the stark, sunblasted honesty of Roy’s Motel & Café in Amboy, and the final drift toward the Santa Monica Pier where the “End of the Trail” sign doesn’t just mark a finish. It marks proof. Proof that Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover did the big thing, the long thing, the thing you talk about for years because it refuses to stay small inside your chest.

What I love most about this memory is how much it holds without bragging. The route is historic, yes—decommissioned but still drivable, still stitched together by old alignments and stubborn affection—but the heart of it is simpler: two people in one car, agreeing to the same days, the same detours, the same gas station decisions, the same playlist arguments or comfortable silences. That’s family, distilled.

Maybe that’s why Austin’s 1999 Nissan 25GT Turbo fits this story so well. A Skyline like that carries its own kind of nostalgia—RB25DET NEO under the hood, rear-wheel drive, the legend of Bayside Blue—and yet it’s also a practical promise: if you take care of it, it will take care of you. On Route 66, that promise becomes intimate. Every clean shift is a small act of trust passed back and forth between generations.

There’s something quietly brave, too, about choosing time over speed. The plan here—two weeks at minimum, longer if you can stand to keep the world at arm’s length—suggests Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover weren’t trying to conquer the road. They were trying to live inside it. To let each state feel like a different room in the same long house, and to leave with the kind of tired that means you did it right.

And with the Route 66 Centennial arriving in 2026, this trip feels like it landed right on the edge of a wider celebration—without needing the crowd to make it meaningful. Harvey and Grandson Austin Hoover already had their own ceremony: the start sign, the neon, the landmarks, the long horizon, and that Bayside Blue paint catching whatever weather the day decided to give.

Photos from the Memory