Keep on driving! And drive fun! ... View more

The trouble is the post millennium cars from any particular maker have nothing in common with the cars of the '60s, or often even the cars of the '90s. I retain particular affection for '60s GM, and while I have not so much for the '70s and '80s, the '90s GM--the Caprice in particular, captured something of the old spirit. Today's Chevrolets have completely lost it. ... View more

So many character lines that that element looks like it was scribbled by a fourth grader on most teens cars. ... View more

I think those small side windows are ugly, and they sure don't help visibility. I suspect they're a reaction to safety regs, but with the lousy visibility, they may hurt safety as much as help it. ... View more

Great article. "Go crazy, adding lines that go nowhere and serve no purpose and the bodywork looks like it’s gone ten rounds street parking in New York before leaving the showroom." This sums up the problem with so many cars from the '10s--the worst decade for automotive aesthetics ever. And I would include the Lexus shown at the top of the article in this category. ... View more

Funny--more foreign cars being exported than US cars. And all the most common US exports except the Mustang are Chevies. ... View more

Solar and wind efficiency has skyrocketed in the last few years. ... View more

I'm with you on most of what you say, but for me at least, road trips via electrics won't be possible until fast recharging stations are common in the boonies as well as on the interstates. ... View more

I think it was Consumer Reports that did a comparison of total CO2 costs of BEV vs ICE. Somewhat more CO2 is used in the mfg of BEV, but the average BEV gets even with ICE after an extra 10,000-20,000 miles on CO2 emissions, and after that the BEV is superior. I say that as somewhat who plans to drive ICE for as long as I can into the future. My Civic's engine may not sound like Mozart, but it IS Salieri to the Boxster's Mozart. ... View more

Back in the early '70s, when my parents taught at Tufts, and I was studying there, I'd borrowed my father's car, a '68 Falcon wagon, and I was driving it on the campus. One of my friends came up to me as I was stopped at an intersection. "Is that the Dave-mobile?" he said, his voice conveying respect for the implied fact that I had a car. No, I said, it's my father's. "You mean the Chairman of the Economics Department drives around in THAT?!!" his tone having completely changed, and now suggesting that he'd ended his sentence with the definite article in order to avoid saying "POS". Like a lot of academics, my father had no use for status symbols. At that time, a lot of academics drove Plymouth Valiants, which had a reputation for lasting (my parents had one, for which they'd relied on my judgment when they purchased it). ... View more

Happy Independence Day. And down with the British! ... View more

The writer ("author" applies to books, not articles) is Sam Smith. Trahan is the photographer. ... View more

Princess Ann had a corgi or a Robin? ... View more

Great article. But I would have liked to see some mention of Paul MacReady, the founder of Aerovironment (mentioned in the article), who was the brains behind the Impact. (He also was the brains behind the pedal powered airplane that won a major prize for being the first such aircraft to cross the English Channel. I wish that after they decided to end production, GM had made the Impact into an ICE-powered economy/sports car. (But I don't know what the practicalities, or lack thereof would have been.) It's a beautiful car. Finally, the beautiful rear view photo of the Impact reminds me of my family of origin's 1950 Studebaker. (Note: I said "reminds me of" and not "looks like".) ... View more

To be even more precise, the first Corvette rolled off the line on this day--June 30th--1953. ... View more

I love the Brick Volvos. My father's last car was a '95 940, which I wish I'd kept after he died. Beautiful car, not much power, but a silky smooth engine. But I didn't appreciate these cars nearly as much in late summer, 1973 as I do now. Back then, I drove a 140 wagon Boston to Palo Alto for a Stanford professor (don't remember the year). The car was loaded to the gills with possessions that were fitted inside like the pieces of a 3D puzzle. In late Nebraska or early Wyoming, I noticed that one of the rear tires had begun to leak air. I put some more in and tried to tell myself it was my imagination, but several hours later, it was obvious. I stopped at a gas station in Rawlins to get the tire fixed, as I had no desire to mess with the luggage. The guy who owned the place made some comments about German cars, and after correcting him several times I gave up. Not having a Volvo jack, he went through contortions to jack the thing without inflicting damage. Once the tire was fixed, he admonished me that next time I crossed the country, I should be driving a Cadillac, and stop in his gas station to get the gas tank filled. But that was the last time I drove across the country (the next year I took the train, and the year after that I rode my bicycle). I'm hoping to drive cross-country again next year, in my Civic, but I plan to be taking the back roads. ... View more

Diamonds to boost the albedo is an interesting idea if it could be cost effective. I have no idea what the answer to that is. I also don't know how large scale floating islands would affect ocean life--on which we depend for our own sustenance, and which is also sequestered carbon. ... View more

That said, I'm planning to keep driving my ICE for the rest of my life, or until it becomes too inconvenient to find gas on road trips. To me, mechanical things have soul, electronic things don't. ... View more

420 x 420 sq miles would give us much more than we need. Go here for the big picture tinyurl.com/CheapSolar420x420sqmilesworld And here to dig into the weeds https://tinyurl.com/systemthatworksbest ... View more

It probably will become practical to produce a liquid fuel via bacteria one of these days, likely for both cars and planes. Maybe even in the next ten years. Synthetic biology is getting better and better. ... View more

We drove cross country three times when my brother and I were 6 and 4, and then 9 and 7, and 10 and 8. I LOVED watching the country go by, and terrain changing, etc. But having to sit while the Studebaker or the '57 Chevy charged would have bored the bejesus out of us, and we would have driven our parents crazy. I drove myself across country the first time in the 8 year old '62 Falcon, at 17. Again, can't imagine the boredom of having to stop every several hours. In fact, the few electric powered x-country trips described in the buff books have been boring. ... View more

You married well! ... View more

Guibo: https://www.turnermotorsport.com/c-941-bmw-guibos-and-flex-discs DGAF = don't give a (old anglo saxon term for sexual intercourse) ... View more

A book that might be helpful: Exercise is Medicine, by Judy Foreman. Foreman is a top science-medical writer. ... View more

From what I've been told, the best way to slow it down is to keep exercising. Also, a diet that gives you a surfeit of important nutrients and minimal junk is bound to help. And I hope they figure out how to stop it in its tracks--sooner rather than later. ... View more

Sam, you're still young. At 22, I climbed the Cascades, the Rockies, the Whites, and the Greens, all in one bicycle trip. At your age, I could have done it again, though I might have taken 10-20% longer at it. At my current age, well beyond that of your editor--sans high tech add-ons--it would probably take twice as long, so when I make the quintessential American voyage once again--both directions this time--I'll be taking the car, and getting my exercise hiking along the way, rather than running, to reduce the chances of temporarily hobbling myself by falling on a kneecap, as happens occasionally when the dog and I run in the local woodland. Drive fun! PS. The more you do, the more you can keep doing. My brother visited Tom Hornbein, our cousin who climbed Everest--the first to do so via the West Ridge--on the US expedition in '63. Then a fit 65, my brother said that hiking around in Estes Park, it was hard keeping up with Tom, who at the time was pushing 90. ... View more

I took two courses there and wrote them up. It was truly a fabulous time. I hope the place remains accessible for those of us outside of the 1%. http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/david-holzman-goes-to-the-skip-barber-shop/ ... View more

More on Dick Merritt https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/richard-merritt-obituary?pid=198066808 ... View more

This may be the best article on aging I've ever read. Certainly the most enjoyable. ... View more

That is a great story about his finding the early Ferrari generator at Hershey! ... View more

This is interesting to me because I knew a different side of Dick in the late '70s. At the time, I ran People & Energy, an energy activist's rag, and Dick was a big proponent of alcohol fuels. But I was not the car nut that I've been since the early '90s, so alas, I mostly missed this side of him, although I think I was aware of the Edsel connection (I vaguely remember that he was into Ferraris, with emphasis on the adjective). He was definitely a great guy. Sad to hear that he's gone. ... View more

We are sort of stuck. I recognize that global warming is an existential crisis. Heck, I learned about it back in 1975 from a class taught by John Holdren at UC Berkeley. (He later became Pres O's science advisor.)    But my biggest source of cognitive dissonance is my environmentalism and my love of cars powered by internal combustion. I've driven a Tesla Model S, and it IS a tour de force. But I was very happy to get back into my Civic. Like electronic things generally, the Tesla is soulless in my opinion.  ... View more

Re the last line: It's hard to imagine a Boxster sans internal combustion. I like to say of my Civic, it may not be Mozart, but it IS Salieri to the Boxster's Mozart. ... View more

I find non-humorous irony in promoting this thing as an autonomous car that can take your aging parent to a medical appointment, and it's having acceleration that matches that of today's sports cars. ... View more

I agree with you about the Blackwing's appearance. The teens were the worst decade ever for automotive styling, and the Blackwing--while not as good as '50s or '60s styling, or even as good as the best of the '90s--is a decent looking car--one I could see in my driveway. ... View more

That Blackwing is the first Cadillac I've ever lusted after, although I do like the styling on Caddys of the '50s and early '60s. (Inflation-adjusted, at $72K, that 1990 Lexus LS400 is actually not all that much cheaper than the Blackwing.) IMO, while the Model S, the only Tesla I've driven, is a tour de force, it's soulless, like all electronic things. I was happy to get back into my Civic (stick), and hear the sound of internal combustion (the engine may not be Mozart, but it is Salieri to the Boxster's Mozart). And, plotting a lengthy x-country drive for next year, I can't imagine having to search for chargers and stop for lengthy periods to charge when I could be driving or hiking. ... View more

Rob, consider yourself very lucky that they don't inflation adjust the purchase prices of your cars. ... View more

We do pay property taxes to our towns, but I don't know what they use the car taxes for. I will tell you that at least in Lexington, which is socioeconomically equivalent to Rob's town, the property taxes have become outrageous. I pay more than $12 Gs. When I bought the house from the estate, in '04, I was paying less than half that. When my parents bought the same house in 1962, in inflation adjusted terms, they were paying the same. So after staying pretty much constant for 42 years, the taxes doubled in less than 16 years. That probably reflects socioeconomics. When I was a kid in the '60s, there was one Mercedes in the neighborhood, but most of the cars were Chevies, Plymouths, and Fords, with a handful of Peugeots (these were not expensive), a single Buick station wagon... Now, at least 10, probably 12 Teslas, and climbing (but only one S), a handful of BMWs, some Volvos, etc. (I pay $42.50 for the excise on my Civic.) ... View more

A lot of us libs love 'em just as much as you do. Anyone with any sense knows the small numbers of classic and other collector cars in the world are not sufficient to cause pollution problems. ... View more

Bon voyage! Drive fun! ... View more

I savored the article before I noticed the byline. Once I did, I thought, no wonder the article is so good. I first encountered Tatras in the summer of 1966, in Czechoslovakia, as a 12 year old, traveling around Europe in a Peugeot 404 wagon with my family of origin. The next time I encountered Tatras--3 or 4 of them!--was at the big, early October Rockville Maryland car show in 2001. ... View more

What a great story! I'm glad your mother lived a long life despite the strokes, and I'm sorry she's not around to see your Dad's car again, but it's wonderful to see you reunited with that car. So many of us have childhood cars we'd like to see again (in my case it's a 1965 Peugeot 404 station wagon https://www.hagerty.com/media/driving/a-60s-summer-in-paris-leads-to-a-search-for-a-good-peugeot-404/) and it's great to read stories where that happens. ... View more

No video snippets that far back! But this really was wonderful. ... View more

Damn what a great story! I say that as someone who's crossed the country multiple times by car, and once by bicycle. What a wonderfully resourceful woman Ramsey was! I bicycled the 3000 miles from Seattle to Boston (cutting up into Canada at Sault St. Marie and back down into the US at the northeast corner of New York state) faster than she did the 2800 or so miles NYC to LA--45 vs 59. But 1972 bicycle technology was much more advanced than 1909 automotive tech, and the roads were far, far, far better in 1975, so I'd definitely count her voyage much more of an achievement than mine. (I did pack the bottom bracket bearing at Alvin's Lawnmower Shop in Havre, Montana, and I had to fix multiple flats on one companion's bicycle and do a few other minor repairs, and I had to put on a new rear tire after 2000 miles, but I did not suffer any flats--again, my fixes were minor operations compared to Ramsey's.) That $1800 purchase price for the Maxwell amounts to $51,700, inflation adjusted, according to this CPI based inflation calculator https://www.in2013dollars.com/. ... View more

Inflation adjusted, those Le Cars were costing LaConner (LaConner???!) around 16 grand. Top of the mornin' Officer! ... View more

I like my ICE, and I like it straight, like my bourbon. But Forester, you've got a lot of bad info. Wind turbines are not particularly loud (I'm noise sensitive, and I've been right next to some big ones without being bothered) and they are sighted to minimize bird kills (tall buildings also kill birds, and cats kill many times more birds than wind turbines do. Solar panels last a helluva lot longer than five years, and their prices have plummeted in the last decade, to where they are competitive with natural gas. With EVs coming online, you and I are not going to have to pay high prices for gasoline in another five years. ... View more

What wonderfully quirky characters--both Jessie and Junkyard Barbi. Saturn would probably still be around if they'd kept the original styling, and had improved the reliability. I had a '93, which was the best looking car I've ever had (if I don't count the '63 Impala), and one of the best looking cars of the last three decades. It was also a lot of fun to drive, although it could have used more power. But it needed a new engine as by 65k it was using a quart every thousand miles; an alternator at 80k, and after 130k I was taking it in every 2-3 months to fix something. If I could have the original styling with the same handling and more power, I'd buy one. ... View more

My brother and sister in law had a '75 Matador for a while, a hand-me-down from her parents. We used to call it "the frog" because it had frog-like eyes and a frog-like stance. ... View more

The Nash gets the prize. Nothing else is as much of an oddball. And yet I'm happy to see it, although I'm not sure I'd want it in my driveway. I'd love to know what the designer was thinking. ... View more

The Phaeton didn't sell because it had no beauty, and no character. It was the automotive equivalent of an overcast sky over Toledo. The Magnum--Hagerty nailed it. No stick. ... View more