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1903 Winton Bullet #2: Alexander Winton’s Great Red Hope

1903 Winton Bullet #2: Alexander Winton’s Great Red Hope

BMW 1600-2 Cabriolet: Blue-sky Never

BMW 1600-2 Cabriolet: Blue-sky Never

Iso Grifo: The Lion and the Eagle

Iso Grifo: The Lion and the Eagle

AC Aceca Bristol: Predecessor of the “Snake”

AC Aceca Bristol: Predecessor of the “Snake”

Jaguar Mk IX: Great Britain’s Grandest Cat

Jaguar Mk IX: Great Britain’s Grandest Cat

Saab Sonett II:  Different strokes from Swedish folks

Saab Sonett II:  Different strokes from Swedish folks

Saab Sonett I: The open sports car the Swedes should have produced

Saab Sonett I: The open sports car the Swedes should have produced

Berkeley: Tiny but not insignificant

Berkeley: Tiny but not insignificant

Holden Monaro GTS: Very American, very GM-like, yet very different as well

Holden Monaro GTS: Very American, very GM-like, yet very different as well

1989-1994 Mercury Capri XR2

1989-1994 Mercury Capri XR2

1971-74 De Tomaso Pantera: Ford’s “affordable” exotic at home among the classics

1971-74 De Tomaso Pantera: Ford’s “affordable” exotic at home among the classics

The De Tomaso Mangusta: The best car in the world, the worst car in the world

The De Tomaso Mangusta: The best car in the world, the worst car in the world

1980 Dodge Omni 024 De Tomaso: Phony Label but Still Avant Garde

1980 Dodge Omni 024 De Tomaso: Phony Label but Still Avant Garde

What’s This About?

-Automobile Reader

“You should make a book out of all the things you’ve written.” I’m John Matras, and during a career of freelance auto writing,

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 What’s New

Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car
Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car

Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car

History originally published is Illustrated Volvo Buyer’s Guide (1993) by John Matras It left as quickly as it had, leaving hardly a ripple to mark…
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Type 49 Bugatti: Mme. Abry’s piece de resistance
Type 49 Bugatti: Mme. Abry’s piece de resistance

Type 49 Bugatti: Mme. Abry’s piece de resistance

History originally published in AutoWeek November 26, 1983 The Schlumpfs: Hans and Fritz, brothers, textile industrialists of Alsace, fanciers of classic automobiles,, fanatics for Bugatti’s.…
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Triumph 2000 roadster: It was anything but a Triumph
Triumph 2000 roadster: It was anything but a Triumph

Triumph 2000 roadster: It was anything but a Triumph

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek June 17, 1985 If ever there was an automobile company with a death wish, it was Triumph. Seldom has…
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The Monster: Saab goes double or nothing
The Monster: Saab goes double or nothing

The Monster: Saab goes double or nothing

History originally published in AutoWeek July 19, 1999; republished by the author It looks so innocent, like any other Saab 93 there in the Saab…
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All1-3 2-stroke1-cyl1900-19201921-19401941-19501951-19601961-19701971-19801981-19901991-20002-stroke2001-20102011-20204-inlineAbarthACAcuraAlfa RomeoAllardAlvisAmerican MotorsArnoltAsardoAston MartinAudiAustinAustin-HealeyAustraliaBentleyBerkeleyBMWBrewsterBristolBugattiBuickCadillacCallawayChevroletChryslerCitroenCordCrosleyCunninghamCurtis-WrightDAFDaimlerDellowDeTomasoDeutch-BonnetDodgeDual-GhiaDuesenbergEagleEnglandEvansExcaliburFerrariFiatFordFranceGermanyGhia-AigleGinettaH-12H-2H-4H-6HoldenHondaHyundaiI-2I-3I-4I-4 dieselI-5I-6I-8IntermeccanicaIsoIsuzuItalyJaguarJapanJeepJensenKaiserKiblerKoreaKurtis-KraftLamborghiniLanciaLand RoverLincolnLolaLotusMaseratiMatraMazdaMercedes-BenzMercuryMerkurMeskowskiMGMitsubishiMorganNashNetherlandsnewpostNissan-DatsunNSUOldsmobileOpelOther StuffPackardPeugeotPlymouthPontiacPorscheRenaultRolls-RoyceRotaryRotusSaabSaturnShelbySimcaSimplexSingerSpecial EditionsSubaruSunbeamSuzukiSwedenSwitzerlandTalbotToyotaTriumphTurnerUncategorizedUSAV-10V-12V-2V-4V-6V-8VauxhallVolkswagenVolvoW-12WintonYugoYugoslavia
Yugo GV and GVC: Yugo, he gone
Yugo GV and GVC: Yugo, he gone

Yugo GV and GVC: Yugo, he gone

History originally published in Examiner.com 7/17/2010 and news item November 16, 2008 What a deal it was! Look, Ma, a new car--they call it a…
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What’s New… Dodge Omni GLH Turbo
What’s New… Dodge Omni GLH Turbo

What’s New… Dodge Omni GLH Turbo

Contemporary review originally published in AutoWeek February 11, 1985 When I was a boy, my grandfather would stop his Chevy pickup on East Texas prairie…
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Volvos 480ES: The Immigrant that wasn’t
Volvos 480ES: The Immigrant that wasn’t

Volvos 480ES: The Immigrant that wasn’t

History originally published in Sport Compact Car, December 1997 Of all the “could’ve beens,” perhaps the saddest ever is the Volvo 480 Turbo. Volvo hadn’t…
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Volvo V70 Hunter Arctic Tested
Volvo V70 Hunter Arctic Tested

Volvo V70 Hunter Arctic Tested

Review/driving impressions originally published in Road & Track’s Open Road, Spring 1997; republished by the author There isn’t much Norway north or east of here.…
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Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car
Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car

Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car

History originally published is Illustrated Volvo Buyer’s Guide (1993) by John Matras It left as quickly as it had, leaving hardly a ripple to mark…
Read More
Volvo 122-S and 123GT, Sporty Volvos: Did You Say Peppy, or Preppy?
Volvo 122-S and 123GT, Sporty Volvos: Did You Say Peppy, or Preppy?

Volvo 122-S and 123GT, Sporty Volvos: Did You Say Peppy, or Preppy?

History originally published in AutoWeek, January 9, 1984 By some strange twist of circumstances, the automobiles produced by one Swedish manufacturer have come to represent…
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