Meet James Harris | President of Bruin Auto Club

We had the good fortune of connecting with James Harris and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi James, how does your business help the community?
As part of the Bruin Auto Club, we look to connect students socially with each other and members of the community around us, as well as help them explore the incredible city they live in! We host weekly events that look to give students an opportunity to hang out and meet others with similar interests, focusing on helping them break out of their bubbles, and public events that expand these opportunities to the whole community around us.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m currently a third-year student at UCLA, studying Economics and minoring in Entrepreneurship. Beyond college, I’m looking to go into consulting and hopefully travel around the world. Getting to where I am today hasn’t always been easy. Balancing academics, leadership roles, and career preparation has taught me the importance of time management and adaptability. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that success often comes down to taking initiative—stepping up in a leadership role, finding creative ways to improve efficiency, or pushing to learn new skills.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is an excellent question, as a large part of what we do as a club is trying to find spots like this to meet and enjoy. I would say the best places to enjoy in LA, whether you’re here for a week or only have an hour to spend, are the viewpoints. At the top of roads like Stunt Road and Mulholland Drive, you can find spots to pull over and enjoy a beautiful view of the city, stretching as far as you can see. These are particularly spectacular at night, where you can see the still-bustling activity and lights from the city from a quiet, peaceful spot in the hills. Before or after that, you can go to Dave’s Hot Chicken and get a delicious spicy chicken sandwich (or their new cauliflower one if that’s more your thing). I’d also recommend attending one of the car events in the area, as there are plenty on Instagram open to all, which an excellent opportunity to meet some fantastic people.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to shout out the rest of the Bruin Auto Club staff and members. We are a community made by all of us. Without the staff organizing amazing events, managing our outreach, and building relationships or the members that show support and come out to these events, we wouldn’t be able to accomplish any of the fantastic things we’ve done, from the events with over 500 attendees to the sponsored track days.

Website: https://uclabruinautoclub.wixsite.com/bruin-auto-club

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bruinautoclub

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdharris9/

Image Credits
Nate Wheeler, Ray Chen, James Harris, Yes Services Photography