Mar 24, 2024
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...
Jan 23, 2024
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...
Jan 13, 2024
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...
Jan 4, 2024
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...
Dec 24, 2023
Like Ford GTs? So do I – perhaps my Favorite Cars in the World, which is why I thought you might enjoy this news….MS “Museum Visitors to Experience Trio of Automotive Marvels Assembled for First Time” Ford Motor Company Media Archive, Petersen Automotive...
Dec 15, 2023
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...
Nov 27, 2023
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...
Nov 11, 2023
The late great Dean Moon was a character and three-quarters. Truly one of the early high priests of hot rodding, besides being a dragstrip and Bonneville racer, Moon was a sharp-eyed photographer, and major producer of hot rod and racing parts. His famous...
Nov 1, 2023
Clara and Henry Ford had but one child, he being Edsel Bryant Ford, born November 6, 1893 in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan. Ford the younger became a highly influential member of the Ford family dynasty, and also in...
Oct 18, 2023
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...
Oct 6, 2023
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 —...
Sep 4, 2023
(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...
Aug 29, 2023
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...
Aug 17, 2023
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...
Aug 3, 2023
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...
Jul 12, 2023
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...
Jun 7, 2023
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...
May 27, 2023
[double click on any image to see it full screen] One of my very favorite automotive happening is, (sorry) happening this coming weekend. The Friends of Steve McQueen Car and Motorcycle Show is a great show with something(s) for everyone, recognizing and honoring an...
May 10, 2023
37TH FABULOUS FORDS FOREVER SHOW MAKES MOST OF NEW HOME AT IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY IRWINDALE, Calif. – Having finally found what appears to be a sustainable long-term home, the truly world-famous Fabulous Fords Forever (FFF) show is charging handily through its fourth...
Apr 24, 2023
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...
Mar 13, 2023
[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...
Jan 10, 2023
(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...
Dec 23, 2022
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...
Nov 24, 2022
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...