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Home
The Car
The Make
- Abarth
  - AC
  - Acura
  - Alfa Romeo
  - Alvis
  - American Motors
  - Arnolt
  - Asardo
  - Aston Martin
  - Audi
  - Austin
  - Bentley
  - Berkeley
  - BMW
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- Austin-Healey
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- 1951-1960
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Land Rover Defender 110: No doubt, the redoubtable Brit

Land Rover Defender 110: No doubt, the redoubtable Brit

Contemporary review originally published in Road & Track Sport-Utilities, Pickups & Vans Buyer’s Guide 1993; republished by the author

Mazda Cosmo Sport: RX-7’s honorable ancestor

Mazda Cosmo Sport: RX-7’s honorable ancestor

History originally published in AutoWeek May 7, 1984 The thrill was back, they told us, and how right they were. Emissions controls, beginning in the…

1992 Eagle Talon TSi AWD: Now all the grip with twice the grins

1992 Eagle Talon TSi AWD: Now all the grip with twice the grins

Contemporary review originally published in Road & Track Special Sports & GT Cars 1992 If two years seems like a short lifecycle, that only shows…

1966 427 Cobra: More powerful than a locomotive, yet well-mannered at rest

1966 427 Cobra: More powerful than a locomotive, yet well-mannered at rest

History originally published in Autoweek February 8, 1988 I had watched the morning mist rise and seen the sun come up, casting first light and…

2017 Fiat 124 Spider Lusso quick drive review: Mostly familiar but different

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…

1967 DAF 55

1967 DAF 55

History/driving impression originally published in Sport Compact Car March 2000; republished by the author The Amsterdam Automobile Show in early 1958 was an unlikely venue…

1967-73 Saab 96 Sport & Rally: Swedes maximize potency of “stunt plane for the road”

1967-73 Saab 96 Sport & Rally: Swedes maximize potency of “stunt plane for the road”

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek July 22, 1991 Eager and alert and minus only wings, tail structure and propeller, this Saab 96 resembles a…

Lancia Fulvia 1.6 HF: Lancia’s great rally champion

Lancia Fulvia 1.6 HF: Lancia’s great rally champion

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek December 2, 1985 The little car growls over the upgrade, barking at the up shifts, snapping at the down,…

2016 Ford Shelby GT350R Mustang track drive review: Flat-plane geometry and monster brakes

2016 Ford Shelby GT350R Mustang track drive review: Flat-plane geometry and monster brakes

Car review originally published in CarBuzzard May 21, 2016 There’s a sort of chicane, and the 2016 Shelby GT350R Mustang tags the curbing on the…

AC Aceca Bristol: Predecessor of the “Snake”

AC Aceca Bristol: Predecessor of the “Snake”

Originally published in AutoWeek November 15, 1982 AC Aceca Bristol; photos by John Matras AC was on a roll. Its roadster, the AC Ace, had…

Renault 8 Gordini: Semi-rhapsody in blue

Renault 8 Gordini: Semi-rhapsody in blue

History originally published in AutoWeek April 16, 1984 Saying “Gordini” in France is like saying “Shelby” in America. Not only do both names mean automotive…

Rules-Royce “Silver Ghost”: R-R’s 40 – 50 HP: Before there was the name, there was quality

Rules-Royce “Silver Ghost”: R-R’s 40 – 50 HP: Before there was the name, there was quality

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek March 14, 1988 What a name! It has magic to it, that certain…rightness. Righteousness, even as good as the…

Robert Valpey’s Allard J2: The first Cad-Allard

Robert Valpey’s Allard J2: The first Cad-Allard

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek September 2, 1985 When Sidney Allard introduced the Allard J2 in 1949, it was to be powered by war…

1956 Morgan Plus-4: Old-fashioned at birth, it was a winner right out of the box

1956 Morgan Plus-4: Old-fashioned at birth, it was a winner right out of the box

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek March 28, 1988, republished by the author The banjo-strung Blumel’s Brooklands steering wheel is close, good for huddling for…

1998 Volvo C70 Coupe and Convertible

1998 Volvo C70 Coupe and Convertible

Preview originally published in European car, November 1996; republished by the author coup de main: a sudden action undertaken to surprise an enemy coupe from…

BMW 3.0 CSiL: The Homologator

BMW 3.0 CSiL: The Homologator

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek May 5, 1986; republished by the author. When the final history of the Nurburgring is written, when the last…

Trouble Afoot

Trouble Afoot

Feature about how I lost my driver's license (and more) due to epilepsy, originally published in AutoWeek June 26, 1995 Can I go home now?…

Alfa Giulia Spider: Simpatico never was more Italian

Alfa Giulia Spider: Simpatico never was more Italian

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek March 11, 1985 There is something there that loves an Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider. There is an aura, a…

Ferrari 330 GTC: A sexy, sophisticated 12-cylinder grand touring car

Ferrari 330 GTC: A sexy, sophisticated 12-cylinder grand touring car

History originally published in AutoWeek December 21, 1987 In the early autumn when the wind begins to blow and the leaves began to scurry before…

1990 Saab 9000 2.3: John Matras traveled to the deep South – Talladega – to test the new engine from the far north

1990 Saab 9000 2.3: John Matras traveled to the deep South – Talladega – to test the new engine from the far north

Contemporary review originally published in VW & Porsche and European Automobiles in August 1990 Talladega’s Turn One rises ahead like a 40-footer at the Banzai…

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1956 Lancia Aurelia Spyder: Simple, golden

1956 Lancia Aurelia Spyder: Simple, golden

History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek, September 3, 2001; republished by the author When the roll is called up yonder for great cars that no…

1998 Volvo C70 Coupe and Convertible

1998 Volvo C70 Coupe and Convertible

Preview originally published in European car, November 1996; republished by the author coup de main: a sudden action undertaken to surprise an enemy coupe from…

1960 Plymouth Fury: The tale (fin) of the 1950s

1960 Plymouth Fury: The tale (fin) of the 1950s

History/driving impessions originally published AutoWeek September 27. 1999; republished by the author If there is a single icon for the automotive 1950s, it’s the tailfin.…

1992-1994 Acura Vigor: Silent Running

1992-1994 Acura Vigor: Silent Running

History/driving impressions originally published in Sport Compact Car, October 2000; republished by the author It’s as if Acura had tossed a stone in a pond…