Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Hatchbacks with Dramatically Curved Rear Quarter Glass
Peter TanshanomiQuite out of the blue, Mrs. Tanshanomi suggested that my weekly adventure in pedantry should task all of you with…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Cars Named For Tracks – That Aren't Also Cities.
Two Mondays ago, when I asked you all to name Cars Named For Cities, some of the comments understandably strayed…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Slashed Names
No, not car names that were ruthlessly discontinued, or hacked by a machete-wielding maniac. Today's automotive quandary involves the slash…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Cars Named After Cities
Vehicles named for exotic places are pretty common: racetracks, mountains, deserts, pretty much every place name has been mined for…
Two-Wheel Tuesday: 5 Days, 8 States* & 1,970 miles
*Technically, seven states and one Canadian province. Mrs. Tanshanomi and I just returned from riding the first Smackdab Solstice Ride.…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Chrome-Free Cars
A co-worker of mine has a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. We were discussing its appearance one day when he said, "The…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Native American Names
I'm on the road this week, and as I was crossing a Sioux reservation in North Dakota, I was thinking…
Two Wheel Tuesday: Tracking Down the Hejira Rotax 500
A few years ago, I wrote a profile of the Rotax Type 486, one of my favorite two-stroke engine designs…
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Aluminum Bumpers
In the Malaise Era, manufacturers were eager to embrace whatever weight-saving, efficiency-enhancing technology and techniques their engineers could think up.…
Two-Wheel Tuesday: Test Riding the KTM 390 Duke
The KTM factory demo fleet showed up at my local dealer recently, and I took the opportunity to sneak away…