Autos
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This Mini Ferrari Testarossa Is a Toy We Wanted Under Our Christmas Tree
Chances are that anyone who’s reading this had available to them at least some kind of ride-on car toy when they were young. We say “available,” because often these toys were and are expensive—even some pedal- and kick-powered cars from decades past cost the equivalent of a few hundred bucks today. But the ultimate, at least for kids growing up in the later half of the 20th century and on, would be a powered ride-on toy. Power Wheels are just so common, though, and who wants just any faceless go-kart? No, the pinnacle of kid transportation has to be a lifelike, miniature re-creation of the hottest cars on sale—like this Ferrari Testarossa Junior. See all 8 photos If you were a kid in 1987, and one of these glinted at you from a parking spot near the Christmas tree, consid...
DIY Kit Turns the Miata Into a Prewar Alfa Romeo Race Replica
It’s nice to know that even if you don’t have the financial health often associated with selling a unicorn startup to Google, you can probably at least (someday) afford the replica of your favorite historically significant car. Beyond the myriad Shelby Cobra, GT40, and Porsche 550 Spyder clones that clog your local Cars and Coffee, there’s more esoteric stuff to be copied. From the Ferrari 250 GT (GTO Engineering) to the Lola T70 (Broadley Automotive) to the Lotus 11 (Westfield), there’s a replica of just about anything available at a relatively reasonable cost—including a new Miata-based DIY kit for a 1950s Alfa Romeo Grand Prix car. Yes, you too can turn your old leaky, greasy, wheezy Mazda roadster into a rather excellent approximation of the Alfa 158/159 th...
The Weird and Wonderful AMC Rambler Marlin Was a Concept Car Come to Life
The Rambler Marlin remains a rare sight in the world of classic cars, but the car’s utterly unique appearance makes them a welcome visitor to any venue. Naturally, that time we heard the Marlin Auto Club was holding a “Gathering of Marlins” at the American Motors Owners Association (AMO) International Convention in Rockford, Illinois, we had to check it out. An even 10 Marlins—mostly 1966 models for their 50th anniversary—turned out for the Gathering, and a pre-production Rambler Tarpon clone even dropped by the AMO’s big show the second day. We also got a chance to talk to artist Vince Geraci, head of the American Motors Corporation’s design studio in charge of of the AMC Marlin, who gave a brief presentation on the car. See all 7 photos Marlin Preh...
The 1990–1993 Chevrolet 454 SS Is a Cheap Ticket to Smoky Burnout Fun
Pickups are fun and relatively cheap entries into the world of rear-wheel drive performance. Older trucks especially are simple to work on, offer sensational parts availability from both catalogs and scrap yards (where millions of their brethren sit waiting to be picked apart), and can be made to accept a wide variety of drivetrains and suspension setups with relative ease. Factory performance trucks are a relatively new concept, however. Although outliers like the Lil Red Express were around in the ’70s, it wasn’t until the early 90s that Detroit began to embrace the idea of building its own hot rods and testing the waters with its loyal pickups buyers. With flashy rides like the turbocharged GMC Syclone and, later, the supercharged Ford F-150 Lightning grabbing most...
Unique Off-Road SUVs that are Cheap, Cool, and Fun
See all 6 photos ZJ / WJ Jeep Grand Cherokee By far the most popular suggestion sent our way was to take a look at both the ZJ and WJ generations of the Jeep Grand Cherokee. The ZJ represents the first generation of Jeep’s full-size SUV, which embiggened the unibody construction and looks of the popular XJ Cherokee but added numerous creature comforts as well as an available 5.2-liter V-8 engine on top of the slow, but trusty 4.0-liter inline six. It also offered solid axles front and rear, along with several different four-wheel drive systems and, eventually, a larger 5.9-liter V-8 in the last year of its 1993-1998 production run. The WJ was the next step after the ZJ, and delivered essentially the same package matched with revised styling and according to Jeep, only 127 shared comp...
Fiat Kills the 500L and 124 Spider and I Alone Will Miss Them Both
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced the Fiat 500L and 124 Spider won’t live to see the 2021 model year. I happened to mention to my colleagues at MotorTrend (via Slack, of course, because this is still 2020) that I would miss both cars, particularly the former. This incited an avalanche of abuse directed toward both the Fiat 500L and me. “A piglet,” editor in chief Mark Rechtin wrote. “An imported car so bad even Consumer Reports hated it.” “A boring car so bad even Consumer Reports hated it,” features editor Christian Seabaugh corrected. “It looked like an upside-down encephalitic dumpster that careened through a Crayola factory,” editorial director of daily content Erik Johnson chimed in. “Horrible,” senior ...
Plug-In Hybrid Jeep Wrangler 4xe Rubicon Costs Over Fifty Thousand Dollars
Early EV adopters paid a hefty premium for the right to say “they got it first.” Tesla, for example, didn’t release its budget-friendly Model 3 until six years after the luxurious flagship Model S made its debut. New 48-volt mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid tech has followed the very same trend, often ending up in pricier versions of a given model. The BMW X5 xDrive45e, for instance, is the most expensive X5 you can buy outside of the M-branded performance models. Ditto the Toyota RAV4 Prime plug-in. Jeep is following much the same trend with the new Wrangler 4xe, and placing it near the tippy top of the already pricey Wrangler lineup. The plug-in hybrid Wrangler 4xe will be available in two of the Wrangler’s nicer trims—either Sahara or Rubicon, and both will be...
Barn Find! 1969 RS/SS 396 Big-Block Chevy Camaro Found After Almost 40 Years!
Barn finds are something we all dream about discovering, but few of us actually do. Today the term “barn find” refers to any really cool classic car that’s found stuffed away in some dusty corner, old field, or the like, so it doesn’t actually have to be a barn (although that is a pretty cool bonus). See all 19 photos This time around, the find in question is a pretty iconic ride, namely a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS big-block 396 (325 hp). This one was built at the Van Nuys, California, plant and originally sold by Bob Coyle Chevrolet in San Jose, California. The great news is this classic Camaro came with a ton of original documents, including the original Protect-o-Plate (a small metal or plastic plaque GM started including with cars in the ’60s to help tra...
Give the Gift of the Ultimate Japanese Project Car: A Barn-Find 1973 Nissan Skyline GT-R
Surprising your significant other with a new car payment on a Lexus this holiday season? Not cool, bud. If you’re going to make rash, irresponsible financial decisions, you gotta think bigger than some lame ES350 in Moonbeam Beige Metallic from a December to Remember—we suggest hopping on this heaping scoop of “rotisserie restoration” and “dealing with trans-Pacific international customs” and scooping up this barn-find 1973 Nissan Skyline GT-R currently for sale in Hokkaido, Japan. The sale was recently reported by The Drive and resurfaced a few months ago on Reddit. Look, I know you were all jazzed up about presenting your guy or gal with an anodyne mid-grade crossover lease complete with the big ol’ red bow, but don’t forget you can buy...
The Lamborghini Jalpa Is a Forgotten Lambo Supercar
Lamborghini Jalpa Essential History Despite the myopia of popular car culture, the Countach wasn’t the only Lamborghini produced in the 1980s. Even with the public’s overwhelming fixation on Lambo’s superstar V-12 wedge, a small number of V-8-powered mid-engine sports cars were sold alongside the bigger, badder, and significantly more expensive Countach. They don’t get nearly as much attention then, either, but compared to the rarer and even lesser-known Urraco and Silhouette, the Lamborghini Jalpa, produced between 1981 and 1988, was the most popular entry-level Lamborghini until the Gallardo’s arrival in the early 2000s. Stylistically, the Bertone-designed Jalpa is very much an evolution of the earlier Silhouette, incorporating the Silhouette’s transve...
Near-Original 1969 Dodge Daytona Pulled Out of Storage After 45 Years
The accepted number of 1969 Dodge Daytonas produced in total is 503. No doubt, the 1969 Daytona ranks high on the desirability scale. The sole reason for the car’s existence is due to NASCAR‘s homologation process in 1969. If it wanted to race its cars, Chrysler had to produce 500 road-going examples. In civilian trim, there were only two engines available: the 440 Magnum, rated at 375 horses, and the extra-cost 426 Hemi, which was rated at 425 horses. Both engines were available with either a 727 Torqueflite automatic transmission or an A833 four-speed manual gearbox. Because these were extremely low-production vehicles with a single purpose, the final assembly of the Daytona was contracted to Michigan-based Creative Industries. Brand-new 1969 Dodge Charger R/Ts were load...
Alpha Motor Ace: A Retro-Cute EV With Charm in Spades
Just a few years ago, electric vehicles were soulless cages, commuter appliances begrudgingly produced to meet real or anticipated EV mandates. Automakers hardly wanted to develop and sell them, and consumers were even less enthusiastic. Something’s changed recently. A lot of credit goes to Tesla for making EVs uniquely cool, with the electric drivetrain part of the appeal rather than a big asterisk. Lately, other automakers have been exploring the cute end of the spectrum; witness the adorable, eminently desirable Honda E. Now that such possibilities have been demonstrated, EVs both proposed and real are getting much, much more interesting. Take the Alpha Motor Corporation’s Ace. See all 5 photos It’s more in the Kyocera Moeye vein of things, which is to say it’s r...
