Articles
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Hooniverse Asks: What's the Worst Car Maker Website Build and Price Tool You've Ever Used?
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The Web has reinvented the car-buying experience. Where you once had to go to dealer after dealer appraising each’s inventory and perhaps settling on less than the ideal choice, you can now build your car on a web site, see the MSRP of that construct, and then see which dealer in your area has a close…
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Last Call: March 10th, 1921 Edition
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At 870-ccs, this radical radial engine was pretty big for the era. The longitudinally placed radial motor is only one of this early bike’s interesting features however. There’s also the enclosed shaft drive and the rear suspension by half-elliptical springs, and the jaunty French Lieutenant’s hat front fender. I’m frequently amazed at the technology of the…
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Blast from the Past: 1971 Citroën SM
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Nestled among the classic Citroëns at the Classic Motorshow’s parking lot, next to a slightly dented CX GTi turbo was a Feuille doree gold coloured 1971 Citroën SM. It wasn’t the only SM at the event, but it was the most interesting one I had yet seen. This particular “Special Maserati” was registered new in…
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Roadside Attractions – 1972 Mercedes-Benz 280 SEL 4.5 is a Diamond in the Rough
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Somewhere on 39 Highway, between Mt. Vernon and Miller, Missouri there sits an unusual creation. Chances are, you’ve never been to either town, and that’s OK. There are things like this to be found all across the country, in big cities and small towns. What I saw, though, was something large, old, and brown. I don’t see…
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Queen's English Cast Off: The 1974 Austin Marina 1.8
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Last week’s Queen’s English show at Woodley Park in the Los Angeles suburb of Van Nuys was an orgy of great British brands and a panoply of that island nation’s finest. There was also – off in a lonely corner – an Austin Marina.
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Track Tuesday: Name That Track
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Welcome to Track Tuesday where you are asked to identify a (maybe) famous race or test track from just one closely-cropped aerial image. This week, it’s a corner and some parking spaces. Good luck! Image: ©2015 Hooniverse/Robert Emslie, All Rights Reserved
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534ci Twin-Turbo Super Seamaster is Here to Shame Your GM Twin-Six
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In the late 50s, Ford sold (from the factory!) a 534ci twin-turbo marine V8. Such a thing has some pretty impressive numbers: over 1300lbs fully equipped, 440hp and 660lbf-ft of torque at a mere 3300rpm…ok, maybe one impressive number and two kinda not so impressive numbers. Aside from its size, the 534 SeaMaster sports an impressive…
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24 Hours of LeMons: Bow before the zoomiest of Judgemobiles
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When the 24 Hours of LeMons rolls into a racetrack, race organizers tend to pack lightly and so they occasionally politely ask for some accommodations from local racers. At the recent LeMons race at Gingerman Raceway, LeMons Supreme Court Justice Steve McDaniel asked for a loaner vehicle that carried ample judicial gravitas to command respect in…
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Hooniverse Asks: What Car Has the Best Butt Face?
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We human beings have a seemingly ingrained need to anthropomorphize just about everything, seeing human visages in anything from rock faces to wall outlets. Our automobiles are often designed to have a ‘face’ that engenders the car or truck’s personality, whether that be aggressive, or happy, or whatever the corporate marching orders deemed necessary based on…
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Last Call: What Were They Thinking Edition
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I wonder how many get rear-ended at this Bakersfield, CA intersection? Last Call indicates the end of Hooniverse’s broadcast day. It’s meant to be an open forum for anyone and anything. Thread jacking is not only accepted, it’s encouraged. Image: Imgur
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More of that Good Stuff from the Classic Motorshow 2015
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Eagle-eyed weekend readers might have noticed that there simply wasn’t an awful lot of weekend content posted on Saturday or Sunday. That’s entirely down to me: the schedule for me this past weekend was such a tight one, that there unfortunately was no time to put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. The good…
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About Last Week’s Track Tuesday
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Not surprisingly, no one guessed the identity of last week’s track. I’m going to give you another look today, and if it’s still not springing to mind – it is a totally obscure, but still actively used dirt oval – then you can click here to see what all the fuss is about. We’ll have…
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Formula Fun: Remembering Senna Edition
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[vimeo]https://vimeo.com/65432208[/vimeo] 21 years ago this past Friday, the greatest racer Formula 1 has ever seen passed away after massive head injuries sustained while racing at Imola. His death was part of F1’s so called “Black Weekend” where, Reubens Barichello had a massive accident, Roland Ratzenburger died after a crash during Saturday Running, and Aryton died…
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Hooniverse 24 Hours of Lemons Racing – The Buick is Back!
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We bought this Buick almost two years ago. Thus far it has been in five races, in two different crap-can series, with eight different drivers. It is now on its second engine and it is sporting various minor improvements. Our next race is The Real Hoopties of New Jersey, this weekend, May 9th and 10th. While many teams…
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Hoonivercinema: Monday Movie Trailer
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The tagline for the 2004 thriller Highwaymen is When Murder is no Accident, Revenge is no Crime. Yes, that’s pretty stupid, but the movie isn’t. Jim Caviezel plays Rennie Crey, who spends his time behind the wheel of a sweet ’68 Barracuda searching for the crazed – and wheelchair-bound – serial killer who took the…
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Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Special Editions Named for Females
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Car manufacturers have produced a lot special/limited edition models with tie-ins to famous people. Oleg Cassini. Eddie Bauer. Frank Sinatra. What do they nearly all have in common? They’re male. It’s actually rather difficult to think of a special edition car badged with the moniker of a famous woman. I know of two, and only…