Conspiracy . . . or Merely Convenient?
Many new cars are optimized for ethanol - "flex-fuel" compatible is how it's usually described. The problem, of course, is that a majority of cars in service are not optimized for...
Another Measure of How We’ve Been Gypped (and Fooled)
Before I write a new car review, I like to do some background research - which helps provide context and hopefully makes the published review informative. Well, I found some interesting...
Pontiac GrandVille convertible, 1971-1975
The sudden demise of the Catalina convertible in 1972 left Pontiac with just one capital ship convertible in its inventory - the mighty (but short-lived) GrandVille.
It was basically a two-door version...
The Electric Suicide of Harley-Davidson
Imagine a Harley that doesn’t vibrate. No bark through the straight pipes when you push the starter button. No nothing through the pipes - which aren't there anymore.
There is no starter...
Retro Review: AMC Marlin Fastback Coupe, 1965–1967
Pontiac's GTO, which appeared in 1964, had every other American automaker rushing to cash in on the emerging youth market for big-biceped intermediate muscle coupes— including AMC.
AMC, however, decided on a...
Pepe le Pew . . . On Wheels
Other than the captive nations of the former Soviet boc, no one built consistently awful - or downright bizarre - automobiles better than France's Big Three: Citroen, Renault and Peugot.
Thankfully, we've...
In the rearview: Pontiac Aztek
Well, it wasn't a bad idea.
Then again, neither was the Titanic.
The great ship ended up at the bottom of the ocean as the result of a lethal combination of bad judgment,...
A Sabot in the Gears?
People sometimes accuse me of being a technophobe or even a Luddite because of my critiques of modern vehicles. But it's not fear of technology that drives me.
It's cost-benefit analysis.
Increasingly, the costs...
1974–1978 Mustang II, Cobra II, and King Cobra
By 1974, the muscle car frenzy of the 1960s had petered-out like an all-night kegger at sunrise. After a ten-year bender with 100-octane leaded premium and 300-horsepower V-8 engines, Ford Motor...
When Clovers Kill (Or Try To)
You may have seen the video.
A guy on motorcycle, girlfriend riding along, blitzes by some cars. Well, he tried to. An aging psychopath in the lead car by the name of...