THE VAN

  During one’s lifetime, we all own at least one vehicle with “personality.” Mine was a 1962 Ford Econoline van. It was the barest and most stripped version produced, with a 200 cubic-inch straight-six motor, 3-speed manual trans, two front seats, and the minimum...

DRIVEN: 2023 Genesis Electrified GV70 AWD Prestige

Premium EVs are here.  And you’d have to look a long way to find a nicer one than this decidedly upmarket two-row Genesis. Unlike some EVs there are few choices in terms of motors, drive wheels, and extended range batteries: The EGV70 comes one way, and...

Virtual ProjectCarsNCoffee

We’ve all done it.  Eyeballed a car/truck/bike/boat/plane looking a bit down on its luck if not outright abandoned, that immediately sparked our restorational imaginational.  If I got my hands on that thing, I’d make it bitchin.  I guess it’s all an...

DRIVEN: 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Hyundai Ioniq 6

Hyundai has quickly become one of the industry’s most major forces in the development and production of EVs.  Two of its slicker offerings are the Ioniq 6 sedan and the Ioniq 5 four-door hatch (or demi SUV). Both are based on much the same technical and...

THE LAST LAP – One of the stranger accidents ever at the Indy 500

I love motorsports history, especially that of the Indy 500, Formula 1, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Click on any image to see it full size in high res Since the first Indianapolis 500, held in 1911, won by Ray Harroun in a Marmon, 73 people have died at The Speedway...

DRIVEN: 2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Tremor AWD

Since its introduction a couple years back, the compact 4-door only Ford Maverick pickup has been hot property.  They’ve been tough to get and often sell for a premium over the window sticker MSRP.  There were all sorts of supply chain issues for certain...

DRIVEN: 2023 Hyundai Elantra HEV Limited

              I can’t tell you how many so-called experts proclaimed that as soon as pure EVs became more practical and prevalent in the marketplace, the conventional, non-plug-in regenerative hybrid (HEV) would be instantly...

When near Detroit, eat at Ford’s Garage

              Click on any image to see it full screen in hi res   Detroit, Dearborn, Pontiac, Lansing, and Flynt are just some of Michigan’s many car company towns.  In Dearborn — definitely Ford country —...

DRIVEN: 2023 Toyota Corolla SE AWD Sedan

(Click on any image to see it full screen in high res) Toyota introduced its (and nearly everyone else’s) foray into the hybrid car world with the original Prius, and for some years, the only way you could get Toyota’s innovative regenerative hybrid...

Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance – and the winners are…

  PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (August 20, 2023) — A prewar Mercedes-Benz roadster that was first owned by the Shah of Afghanistan—one of just three similar cars surviving in the world today—was awarded the top prize at the 2023 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. This...

Cool Cars Are Where You Find Them

  Click on a photo to see it full screen in hi res As you’ve likely heard me say before, its true: cool cars are where you find them, often right under your nose.  Check out this crazy trio of vintage Oldsmobiles (remember that brand?  Opposite of what the...

The Point of Driving It Home — Is the Point

You can click on any photo to see it full size and in high res.   The joys of benchracing aside, I generally dislike “Me and My Car” stories.  You know, when someone – friend, clubmate, or journalist – prattles on and on about some car they have or had and why...

Fabulous Fiorano — Ferrari’s Private F1 Test Track

To Tread Upon Hallowed Ground Lapping The Ferrari Factory’s Test Track [Doubleclick on any image to see it full screen in high res] Some places are sacred; Mount Everest, the Wailing Wall, the Taj Mahal, or the Coliseum in Rome.  Places that move you, for their...

DRIVEN: 2023 Hyundai G80 Electrified AWD

Doubleclick on any image to see it full screen in high res Other than Ford GTs, and this or that Ferrari or Porsche, I get more questions about EVs than just about any other vehicle right now, so as you’ve likely noticed from recent posts, I’m working my...

DRIVEN: 2023 Hyundai Elantra Limited

When the fourth gen Hyundai Elantra came online in 2006, it played as a strong competitor to the Ford Focus, and several other compact coupes and sedans; in terms of value, standard equipment, and content levels, I felt it bettered the popular Ford in several key...

Proof that You Can’t Fix Stupid

[CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO SEE IT FULL SCREEN IN HI RES] There’s a famous Latin expression, used primarily by the legal community, that goes Res Ipsa Loquitur, which pretty much means “The Thing Speaks for Itself” somewhat filling the need for the...

DRIVEN: 2023 Hyundai Santa Cruz Limited AWD

(Click on any photo to see it full screen in high res) I have for years been berating carmakers for inflating the compact pickup market into extinction.  As most American brand pickup trucks got “longer, lower, wider” heavier, less fuel efficient, more...

The Gathering at the Oaks Concours, Medford Oregon

The Fourth Time’s A Charm Photos courtesy Kirk Gerbracht; click on any photo to see it full screen in high res Now in its fourth year, Gathering at the Oaks is becoming a meaningful force in the Southern Oregon classic and collector car scene.  It’s a very egalitarian...

NOW IN PRINT: PORSCHE SPECIAL EDITIONS

I’m pleased to say that my latest book project, after interminable delays due to Covid, inflation, deflation, supply chain issues, a rail strike, locust, rickets, acne, heartburn, and goodness knows what else, is alive and well, in print and available in time...