SUZUKA SHENANIGANS
THIS WEEKEND, October 4 – 5, 2014, is the Japanese Grand Prix, held as it has been, on and off for years, at Suzuka Circuit in central Japan. I have … Continue reading
DARL’MAT SPÉCIAL SPORT ROADSTER
EMILE DARL’MAT apprenticed with French aviation pioneer Clément Ader and, thus, could have been an aircraft builder. But, instead, Darl’Mat chose automobiles. He started in 1923 with an auto repair … Continue reading
WHAT’S STYLISH FOR GM IS STYLISH FOR THE COUNTRY
MY TITLE is a paraphrase of a misquote, “What’s good for General Motors is good for the country.” What Charles Edwin “Engine Charlie” Wilson, ex-GM CEO and Eisenhower Secretary of … Continue reading
ARTFUL BUGATTIS
ONE COULD say that all of Ettore Bugatti’s automobiles are works of art, but here I’m thinking about the models, miniatures and sculpted versions of this famous marque. Over the … Continue reading
MILLE MIGLIA AVVENTURE
WHAT A great adventure for a comparison test! Take cars built in five different countries, go to Italy and follow the route of the famed Mille Miglia. As it worked … Continue reading
NASH-HEALEY—MORE THAN A SPORTY IMAGE
SOME CARS just don’t get no respect. Here’s one that had its genesis on the Cunard Line’s Queen Elizabeth. The car went on to best the likes of Cunningham, Jaguar … Continue reading
STILL OFF-SCALE AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
AUTOMOTIVE ENTHUSIASTS of a certain age (and retentive memory) still celebrate the Tapley Meter. This British piece of instrumentation thrilled us no end when it measured that a car’s performance … Continue reading
CURVES OF STEEL
IN 2007, Dennita Sewell of the Phoenix Art Museum curated an exhibition titled “Curves of Steel,” featuring 22 automobiles of world-class stature. The exhibition’s catalog is a handsome book of … Continue reading
TOOT A LOO, AMBY
HINDUSTAN MOTORS Ltd has shut down production of the Ambassador, as reported in a series of BBC News reports, August 27, 2014. It’s an event celebrated in India with mixed … Continue reading
WOODSMAN, PLY THAT TREE
PLYWOOD IS the world’s first composite material. This sandwiching of wood has been around for more than 200 years. It has numerous domestic uses. Its heritage in aviation is rich; … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 