James Wehr’s final Instagram post came roughly one hour before the 27-year-old car influencer died in a fiery McLaren crash alongside his 22-year-old passenger.
The image showed a police cruiser pulling him over in Newport Beach, a last public moment before the purple supercar slammed into a tree near Culver Drive and Deerfield Avenue in Irvine shortly after midnight Sunday. Orange County firefighters battled the blaze while police waited for smoke to clear before recovering two bodies from the wreckage.
Alexis “Lexi” Kramer, the passenger, had flown from Lakeland, Florida on Friday to meet Wehr for the first time after the pair connected on Instagram about one month prior. The weekend included their first date, breakfast and drinks together, and attendance at Wehr’s regular car show in San Clemente, where he founded the world-famous South OC Cars and Coffee gathering.
A family member of Kramer’s told The Post that Wehr had represented himself as separated from his wife Emma Wehr and claimed a divorce was underway. Orange County court records reviewed by The Post showed no such filing had been made.
“[He] talked to her every day all the time and finally got her to fly out to California to come see him,” the family member said, adding that Lexi had a passion for “American muscle cars and motorcycles.”
“She loved the car community, so it’s such a tragedy that that’s what ended her,” the family member continued.
Kramer worked as a Hooters calendar girl and had built a following of her own before the fatal encounter. Her relative described her as “kind and funny and charismatic,” noting that “so many people reach out and share their wonderful experiences with Lexi” in the aftermath.
Dashcam footage from another vehicle, captured the McLaren’s rapid acceleration before the vehicle encountered what appeared to be a wet section of pavement. The brake lights flashed as the car swerved right and collided with the tree, erupting into a massive fireball that left debris scattered across the roadway.
Ziggy Azarcon, a public information officer with the Irvine Police Department, addressed the investigation in a statement to The California Post. “We believe that speed was a factor in this,” Azarcon said. A law enforcement source additionally confirmed to The Post that investigators believe Wehr was operating the vehicle at the time of impact.
The McLaren sustained catastrophic damage in the collision, splitting apart and burning as first responders arrived on the scene. The vehicle’s distinctive purple paint was consumed by flames that required significant firefighting effort to suppress.
Wehr had established himself as a central figure in Southern California’s car culture through his weekly South OC Cars and Coffee events, drawing enthusiasts to San Clemente for regular gatherings. His influence in the community made the crash particularly resonant among fellow collectors and fans who had attended his shows.
“As you can imagine, this was very shocking and hard,” Kramer’s family member told The Post, reflecting on the sudden loss.
The Irvine Police Department’s investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash remains ongoing, with authorities continuing to examine factors including speed and road conditions that may have contributed to the fatal outcome.