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.

Chris Harris Bids Farewell to the W204 C63 AMG

Ladies and gentlemen, please bow your heads and join Chris Harris in a moment of silence. The introduction of the 2015 C-Class means its W204 iteration is not long for this world. In departing showroom floors, it will also take the naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8 C63 AMG along with it. Mercedes’s next-generation hot rod is […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 7, 2014

Motor Trend: 2013 Mercedes GL350 BlueTEC 4MATIC Long-Term Updates 1 and 2

In years past, family truckster duties were handled by vehicles such as the affordable Chevrolet Suburban and the Jeep Grand Wagoneer. Mercedes has had just such a rig on the market for a much shorter time: the GL-Class. Motor Trend recently made one its long-term test vehicle. It ended up being loaded in more ways […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 6, 2014

The G63 AMG 6×6 is Stateside!

The steel, rubber and glass equivalent of Bigfoot has been spotted in the northeastern United States, people! Mercedes-Benz’s G63 AMG 6×6 is a 9,000-pound beast and its leaving its 37-inch tire tracks in New Jersey and New York. What’s more surprising than the three-axle offroader’s looks (and its 7.8-second zero to 60 time) is its […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 5, 2014

Aston Martins Will Not Wear AMG Tags

Late last year, 6SpeedOnline spread the word that Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin agreed to a technical partnership in which the former firm would supply V8 engines to the latter. Now, the finer details of the union are coming to light. The head of Mercedes-Benz’s car division, Dr. Dieter Zetsche, said, “A subtle involvement with Aston Martin […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 5, 2014

Matt Farah Gets Shot at in a Bulletproof S600

You know those videos with mind-blowing action and the fine print at the bottom that states something to the effect of “All stunts performed in a controlled environment”? Yeah… This is not one of those videos. Matt Farah and superspeedersRob drove out to a remote location in a $150,000 bulletproof S600 to see if it […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 3, 2014

Autoblog Takes the E550 Cabriolet for a Quick Spin

So you’ve got $68,225 set aside to buy you years of top-down motoring. But you don’t want to test-drive a convertible in these frigid winter temperatures. Lucky for you, the crew at Autoblog braved the elements to evaluate the Mercedes-Benz E550 Cabriolet. Autoblog has even saved you trouble of deciding which color to pick. The […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | February 3, 2014

AutoBlog Reviews the CLA45 AMG

Dec. 25 came and went several weeks ago, but, recently, AutoBlog’s Steven J. Ewing probably felt as if it was Christmas morning every time he stepped out his front door and saw a Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG waiting for him. No matter the timing, it must have been because he was a good boy last year. […] More »

By: Derek Shiekhi | January 22, 2014