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 at the telltale sign of a pair of ears above the tall dry grass. With a “Yonder, Pardner,” I’d be dispatch in pursuit, always in vain. With casual contempt, the […]
Herbert Austin’s 7: Britain’s version of the Model T
History originally published in AutoWeek June 13, 1983 Ford’s Model T, they say, put America on wheels. Certainly there were earlier automobiles, even earlier Fords, but it is the Model T that more Americans can remember growing up with than any other model. Henry Ford produced his first automobile, an experimental two-cylinder buggy, in 1896. […]
1991-95 Hyundai Scoupe: The coupe scoop
History originally published in Sport Compact Car in September 1999 Hyundai already had made a name for itself selling cars, the penny-squeezing Excel and the luxury-stuff-on-a-budget Sonata. So it was no surprise the Korean manufacturer’s sport coupe, introduced in the 1991 model year, was what marketing types call a “value leader.” It was cheap, and […]
Turner 1500 MKIII: Out for a spin at the track
History originally published in AutoWeek March 21, 1983 How embarrassing. I had spun the Turner, depositing in the dirt in a shower of mud and dust. Naturally enough, I had stopped spinning facing the track so that I had to witness the procession of seemingly everyone out on the track. All of whom have been […]
Singer Roadster: The Last Aria of a Dying Diva
Originally published in AutoWeek in August 8, 1983. It must’ve been rather bleak at Singer Motors as 1956 approached. The Birmingham firm predated the automobile as a manufacturer of bicycles, and it entered the motor business in 1901. By 1928, Singer ranked third among all British private car manufacturers. But sales had slackened through the […]
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