Contemporary review originally published in Road & Track Sport and GT Cars 1993 The six-cylinder XJS makes sense, but I have to admit I was relieved by Jaguar’s announcement of a special limited-edition, powered by a bigger, more powerful version of the V-12. It sounded like my kind of decadence. The XJR-S is the product […]
Cord 810 Westchester: Wurlitzer on wheels
History originally published September 7, 1984 America was a different place in the Thirties. It was a land of coal and coke, iron and steel. It was a time when motor oil was judged by where it came out of the ground. Man was muscle and sweat was honest. The throb of the foundry was […]
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 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 […]
Model T speedster: Hot rod of an earlier age
History originally published in AutoWeek February 16, 1987 The crackle of the exhaust was like nothing you’ve ever heard, popping and snapping it idle, booming down the solid brass 4.0 inch diameter pipe that ran almost the length of the car. This crisp bark wasn’t the plebeian putt-poutt-putt of the Ford Model T. It certainly […]
Intermeccanica Italia: Italian-American with an identity crisis
History originally published in AutoWeek April 2, 1984 I was skirting the Virginia shore of the Potomac River on the downstream side of Washington, DC, the Italia’s chino-creased fenders framing the asphalt and vintage geometry of the George Washington Parkway, when the Mustang appeared in my peripheral vision, coming in from an entrance on the […]
Honda CVCC: Compound Vortex Controlled Combustion
History originally published in Sport Compact Car January 2000 In the early 70s, carmakers were staring at impending emissions regulations and the OPEC fuel embargo like they would the business end of a double barreled shotgun. The tough 1975 California emissions standards threatened entire car lines, and the only manufacturer with a proven ability to […]
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