Alexis “Lexi” Kramer, a Hooters calendar model who traveled from Florida to meet a car influencer she had been speaking with online, has been identified as the second person killed in a fiery McLaren crash. The collision also claimed the life of the founder of the world’s largest weekly car meet.
Kramer, 22, of Lakeland, Florida, died with South OC Cars and Coffee founder James Wehr, 27, after the supercar struck a tree, broke apart and caught fire in Irvine, California, early Sunday.
Kramer had reached California only two days earlier to meet Wehr face to face. The two connected through Instagram and had reportedly spent about a month communicating, her grieving sister, Gracie Kramer, said.
The 22-year-old bartender, whose Instagram biography described her as a 2026 Hooters calendar girl, shared Wehr’s enthusiasm for cars and motorcycles. During the weekend, the pair went on their first date and attended his popular automotive gathering.
“She loved the car community, so it’s such a tragedy that that’s what ended her,” Gracie told the California Post.
Gracie said Wehr paid for Lexi’s airfare after allegedly telling her that he and his wife, Emma Wehr, were separated and moving toward a divorce.
But Gracie said she questioned that account. Orange County court records reviewed by the Post reportedly showed that no divorce case had been filed.
“That man lied to my sister and said his divorce was finalizing and he was fully separated,” Gracie said.
Alexis ‘Lexi’ Kramer, 22, had flown from Florida to California just two days before the fatal crash that claimed her life
James Wehr, 27, was killed when the supercar split apart and burst into flames after the early-morning Irvine crash
The McLaren reportedly struck a curb before crashing into a tree at 12:20 a.m.; it split in two and caught fire, killing both occupants
“[He] talked to her every day all the time and finally got her to fly out to California to come see him,” Gracie said.
Kramer and Wehr spent part of Saturday at the South OC Cars and Coffee event before leaving later that evening.
Gracie said the pair dined at Nobu and later had drinks at the Pendry Hotel in Newport Beach, hours before the fatal crash.
Wehr posted a photo from the Pendry on Instagram before sharing another image that appeared to show the black 2019 McLaren 720S stopped by police.
It remains unclear why the supercar was stopped.
Shortly after midnight, the McLaren was sitting at a red light near Culver Drive and Deerfield Avenue in Irvine, according to police.
Investigators said the vehicle then accelerated at high speed when the light changed before the driver lost control.
The McLaren clipped a curb and slammed violently into a tree at around 12.20am, breaking apart and erupting in flames. Both Wehr and Kramer were killed.
Kramer and James Wehr had been talking on Instagram for about a month before meeting in person
The 22-year-old shared Wehr’s enthusiasm for cars and was particularly passionate about American muscle cars
The Florida native worked as a bartender but was preparing to take a major step forward in her career
Authorities have not publicly said who was driving. The circumstances leading to the crash remain under investigation.
Gracie said her family supplied dental records to the medical examiner to help formally identify her sister.
Kramer’s death came as she appeared to be embarking on an exciting new chapter of her life.
She had recently earned an associate’s degree from Polk State College and, according to her sister, had just landed a new job in a leadership position with another company.
Gracie described her as ‘kind and funny and charismatic’ and said she had been inundated with messages from people sharing memories of her sister.
‘As you can imagine, this was very shocking and hard,’ she said.
In an emotional Instagram tribute, Gracie recalled being taught by their mother that sisters were supposed to be the one person who would always stand beside each other.
‘Lexi was so much more than just my best friend, she was all of my love, my heart, my attitude, and my humor wrapped into a smaller, more chaotic, less filtered, package,’ she wrote. ‘She was my other half.’
Wehr’s sudden death has sent shockwaves through the Southern California car community he helped build.
He founded South OC Cars and Coffee with his father, Simon Wehr, and the pair spent years overseeing the Saturday gatherings at the Outlets at San Clemente.
Emma, Wehr’s wife pictured above, posted an emotional set of photos of the pair, including on their wedding day, alongside a heartbreaking tribute to her late husband
Wehr had posted a clip on Instagram of a police car parked behind the black supercar at Newport Beach just an hour before the deadly crash
Sisters Lexi, left, and Gracie Kramer are seen smiling at the camera in a set of photos posted by Gracie after her sister’s death
Lexi’s sister Grace posted a heartfelt tribute to her sister on Instagram. ‘I don’t know what to do now without her. The love of my life,’ she posted
The event describes itself as the world’s largest weekly car show and can attract anywhere from 800 to 2,500 vehicles, bringing together generations of enthusiasts.
‘Getting to see people come out every week and enjoy the show,’ Wehr previously said of the gatherings. ‘We see multiple generations of people walking around with their cars, and it’s a great environment. We’re super lucky.’
His mother, Sarah Wehr, remembered her son as a ‘magnificent man’ whose devotion to his family and friends was ‘second to none.’
‘I remember your first steps at our home in Perth, Australia. The first time you said “Dada!”, your very first word,’ she wrote in a heartbreaking tribute.
‘I remember everything. All of it.’
She remembered his ‘insanely great belly-laugh’ and ‘cheeky smile,’ before adding: ‘Thank you for all the years we were blessed to know and love you James. This slices from all sides.’
Wehr’s wife Emma also shared photographs from their life together, including their wedding day, as she mourned the man she said had opened her eyes to everything life could offer.
‘James, I never thought the day would come that I’d have to say such a final goodbye,’ she wrote.
‘Getting the opportunity to love you will always be the greatest blessing in my life.’
She described him as ‘smart, kind, funny, loving’ and ‘genuinely one of the best people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing.’
‘Whether its in this lifetime or the next my heart will always find its way to you,’ she added. ‘Rest easy my love.’
Emma described her husband as ‘smart, kind, funny, loving, and genuinely one of the best people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing’
Friends described Wehr as one of the ‘biggest inspirations,’ a ‘modern day Paul Walker’ and an ‘icon in the car community’
His sister Sophie said she could not ‘imagine a world’ without her brother, while his aunt Milly called him her ‘darling nephew’ and said the legacy he left behind would endure.
Friends from the car community also flooded social media with tributes.
One, Amanda, described Wehr as a ‘modern day Paul Walker’ and ‘an icon in the car community,’ saying his death would reverberate among enthusiasts far beyond Southern California.
‘Thank you for creating a community that became a family,’ she wrote.
Another friend, Jasper, recalled thousands of miles spent alongside Wehr on rallies, road trips and drives, as well as countless hours talking about their ambitions.
‘We had big dreams, big goals, promises we made each other,’ he wrote. ‘And when it’s all said and done, and I see you again, you’ll see that we achieved it all.’
Wehr’s family has asked for privacy as they mourn the loss of their ‘darling son and brother.’
