The Art Deco Era: Cars of the 1940’s

Posted on Jan 16, 2017 in Antique | Comments Off on The Art Deco Era: Cars of the 1940’s

The 1940’s were a time of great hardship and glory in the world. Within the automotive industry, it marked the end of an era, the spirit of patriotic duty, and the beginning of the jet age. Cars built in the 1940’s never sparked much of an interest for me. The era of coffin bodies, pontoon and suitcase fenders and art deco designs all seemed unworthy of any...

Acura Roadside Assistance Steers into App World

Posted on Jan 14, 2017 in Technology | 1 comment

Auto manufacturers today realize the car ownership experience must be a far-extending phenomenon to promote loyalty. Auto companies like Ferrari fosters favour for vehicles like the latest 458 Italia thanks to a wide merchandising chain. Mopar merchandise and Mercedes-Benz apparel have also been hot sellers as companions for diehard brand followers blossoming...

Cold Feelings About Depreciated ICE?

Posted on Jan 10, 2017 in Editorials | 2 comments

Bruce writes: Hi Sajeev, In the comments for “QOTD: Are All These Turbocharged Cars Going to Last?” there was a long discussion on whether dashboard entertainment systems were also a weak point in modern cars. Well, it’s turned out to be a weak point in my 2004 Acura TSX. It’s a first-generation TSX with a 6-speed manual gearbox and a total hoot to drive, but...

The 10 Best Cars (and Trucks) Ford Ever Built

Posted on Jan 9, 2017 in Racing | 4 comments

What do we define as “best”? Vehicles that have achieved a real advance in terms of automotive engineering, design, capability, and/or public acceptance. Of course, we are always open to your comments, comebacks, challenges, etc. Ford has built an extremely wide range of vehicles over its lifetime. While some have certainly bombed, the company has a pretty high...

Man Wins Lamborghini, Man Crashes Lamborghini

Posted on Jan 8, 2017 in Safety | 5 comments

Regular people shouldn’t have access to supercars. The reason supercars cost so much is so regular Joe Schmo can never afford to buy one. Ever. Because everyone knows that if Mr. Schmo ever got his foot into the accelerator pedal of a supercar, there’s a high likelihood that he’d kill himself. Or someone else. Or spin out, fall off a roadway and end up stranded...

Aussie Cars Down Under

Posted on Dec 26, 2016 in Antique | Comments Off on Aussie Cars Down Under

Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It is already tomorrow in Australia. – Charles M. Schultz Aussie cars make my brain hurt. From the day I saw my first Holden Monaro, I considered the country to be something like a parallel universe. Cars like the Series I and II Monaro look strangely similar to American cars, but somehow alien and old...

Elio Motors Brings Latest Prototype, Stock Sale & Other News to Detroit

Posted on Dec 23, 2016 in Editorials | 2 comments

The small crew of folks who make up Elio Motors brought the latest, fifth generation, developmental prototype of their reverse trike to the 2016 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Paul Elio gave a press conference going over what progress the company has made moving towards actual production, including some details about their recent stock...

Bert and Ernie Guides TomTom GPS Through Sesame Street

Posted on Dec 20, 2016 in Technology | 1 comment

Sunny days keeping the clouds away. For almost every youngster of the past 40 years, these words are instantly assessed from memory as the cheery opening to the popular educational/entertainment program Sesame Street. Based on teachings that have led us down a direct path during childhood, how would you like having your favourite Sesame Street guide you through...

Look Out for 100,000 Pounds of Cheese on U.S. Highways

Posted on Dec 13, 2016 in Safety | 1 comment

Can U.S. bridges handle 100,000-pound trucks? Cheese doesn’t often make it into the headlines on these pages. However, this cheese is different, because it has plans to hit the country’s highways. If that happens, “The entire country’s motoring public will be put in grave danger.” Those are the words of John Lannen, executive director of The Truck Safety...

Mercedes-Benz Comes to Oaxaca to Show the SLS AMG GT3 and More

Posted on Dec 11, 2016 in Racing | Comments Off on Mercedes-Benz Comes to Oaxaca to Show the SLS AMG GT3 and More

The GT3 is not pretty; it’s all function. Mercedes and AMG have built a state-of-the-art machine that was unveiled in Mexico this week to a select crowd of journalists and, presumably, potential buyers. It was intended to be a shot heard round the sports-car world. M-B also brought other interesting cars to show—an actual 300SL Gullwing racer from the 1950s (to...

Five quick, easy, low-buck (or free) garage tips to make working on your car easier

Posted on Dec 2, 2016 in Featured | 2 comments

While working on a recent tech story for Hemmings Muscle Machines, I was reminded of a few of the things that I do or use in the garage that can make certain projects a bit easier to complete. I’m providing them here so you can benefit from them, as well. At the same time, we can open a dialog for you to share some of your garage ideas to help the rest of us....

Let’s Hear It for the Cellphone Ban!

Posted on Nov 9, 2016 in Safety | 1 comment

Yesterday, the NTSB recommended banning all cellphone use in cars. The proximate cause of this was the horrific crash in Missouri that tgriffith referred to below. The probable cause of the crash was “distraction likely due to a text messaging conversation…” Further NTSB details are here; more examples of what influenced the NTSB are here. We’ve written,...

The State of Estates

Posted on Oct 31, 2016 in Antique | Comments Off on The State of Estates

Women are like cars, we all want a Ferrari, sometimes want a pickup truck, and end up with a station wagon – Tim Allen Not long ago, I discussed the evolution of the modern estate car (station wagon as we call it in the US) in an article called “Taking Aim at the Shooting Brake.” In it, I highlighted some of the coolest examples of estates ever created, and...