1992-1994 Acura Vigor: Silent Running
It’s as if Acura had tossed a stone in a pond and saw it enter not only without a splash, it also without even causing a ripple on the surface of the water. Such was the impact of the Acura…
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Suzuki X-90: Don’t ask Y
It doesn’t take more than one look the love or hate the Suzuki X-90. Appearance is the vehicle’s primary reason for being. After all, under the ski-boot styling is the chassis, engine and drivetrain of a 2-door Sidekick. Mechanically the…
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1975 Toyota Corolla Deluxe: The first “new Beetle”
History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek April 24, 1999; republished by the author Something amazing happened in 1975. For the first time in two decades, a company other than Volkswagen topped the U.S. imported car sales charts. Toyota, regardless of…
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1976 Mazda Cosmo: A hit in Japan, but an energy-crisis miss in the States
The Mazda Cosmo should have been a runaway success. After all, it was a car that Toyo Kogyo, as the Hiroshima-based Mazda was then known, specifically designed for the U.S. market and it arrived as car buyers were thinking “downsize.”…
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Mazda RX-7 convertible conversion, 1979-1987: Pacific Avatar and the Topless Californians
Originally included in Mazda RX-7 Sports Car Color History, by John Matras, published by Motorbooks International, 1994; republished by the author Just looking at the first-generation RX-7 was enough to provoke speculation about Mazda’s Rotary sportster’s appearance as a convertible….
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1997 Acura NSX
Originally published in The Complete Road & Track ’97 Car Buyer’s Guide; republished by the author Back in the mid-60’s, a serious sports car had to have its engine in the middle. Lots of reasons were cited for this, things…
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2017 Fiat 124 Spider Lusso quick drive review: Mostly familiar but different
Contemporary first drive review originally published in CarBuzzard, Nov. 1. 2016 There were two things we were worried about with the new 2017 Fiat 124 Spider. One was that it would be too much like the Mazda MX-5 Miata. The…
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Supercharging to the Rescue: 1994 Toyota Previa S/C
Contemporary new product report/review originally published in Popular Science April 1994; republished by the author It seemed that Toyota had painted itself into a corner. The four-cylinder 2.4-liter 138-horsepower powerplant in its Previa minivan just didn’t have the guts for…
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Dancing With Valves: Toyota Celica All-Trac Turbo versus Isuzu Impulse RS
Comparison review originally published in the Road & Track Performance Cars 1991; republished by author Some people might not consider the Isuzu Impulse RS versus the Toyota Celica All-Trac Turbo a fair match, putting a 160-bhp car up against a…
