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Ian Velvet Profile and Articles
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1). Auto trends
Fads come and go, sometimes on a whim, other times because of outside forces. Here at the halfway point of the new millennium’s first decade, car culture has sure taken some interesting turns.
Those of you who innocently took a test drive of a plain-Jane Nissan Altima when it was new in 2002, floored it, and nearly sprained your necks upon discovery of 240 horsepower, may have suspected that the standards of speed had risen a tad since the 90s.
2). Tips for customizing import tuners
So you’ve tacked a three-foot-high metal bar onto the back of your trunk, spent $200 on clear-colored taillights and another $600 on “VTEC” stickers, rented The Fast and the Furious three times, and you say your car still doesn’t go any faster? We’re just as baffled as you, but we have a few pointers that might help.
1. Even if the point is to build your own personal Import Tuner, it’s critical to start with a decent foundation.
3). Hot rods and their relation to American culture
For a good half-century now, the hobby of hot-rodding typically meant taking a cheap car, taking out any body part that didn’t matter (i.e. roofs, hoods, bumpers, fenders, seats, and other such nonsense), modifying the engine and/or dropping in a bigger one for greater performance (often protruding upwards from the hood), and fattening up the tires for extra traction.
4). What the future holds for hot rods
Eventually, all the muscle cars from the 20th century will return to the Earth in various altered physical states. The sport obviously can’t continue forever in current form.
But a great assurance of its future is the imminent resurgence in modern-day successors to the cars that hot-rodders worship so dearly. The new movement started in 2005 with the first new Ford Mustang since the late 70s.
5). The good, the bad, and the ugly about luxury cars
If a $20,000 car is what you got, then a $30,000 car would be better and a $40,000 car ideal, right? The answer to that is the one you all know and love: it depends.
The Good
Let’s start with the obvious: you’re movin on up and letting the world know it, whether or not it’s true. That means more respect, better valet treatment, more dates. Luckily, in most cases there’s some truth to back up the image.
6). Hot rod car clubs, what they’re doing, current events
All special-interest hobbies have their followings, and Hot Rod devotees are no exception. Every week in every major metropolitan area across America, you can count on at least a few enthusiast-run clubs meeting up to do what gearheads of all tastes do: race, swap parts, cruise around on lazy weekend afternoons, fill a major venue with its very own auto show, or simply hang out and eat.
7). Lifestyles of import tuner enthusiasts
Fast cars, fast women, and fast money? You must be thinking of Hot Import Nights, the constantly-on-tour event with chromed-out rides and non-stop hip-hop that’s more interested in showing skin than sheetmetal.
And for a whole bunch of people, it pretty much stops there. It’s a safe bet that a good three-quarters of the customized cars roaming the streets are of the all-show-and-no-go kind, most commonly a hopped-up economy car with wheels that scrape its fenders meant to give off the image of speed.
8). Why green is good for trucks
Today’s modern SUVs were originally based on trucks and with good reasons. Trucks are versatile machines, transporting soil from Home Depot; towing the yacht to the lake; to hauling family members, their belongings, and even a mid-sized car to use for jaunts to the local restaurant after parking the truck at one’s favorite camping spot.
So it’s surprising that truck owners have not embraced hybrid technology.
9). Top 10 cars with good gas mileage
Gas prices jumped right past $3 last year without warning and could do so again anytime. With so many great fuel-stingy cars out there, why take a chance? Below are the ten 2006 cars whose mileage numbers will best protect you from a pinch. Note that this is EPA’s estimated mileage, which comes with the fine print of “results may vary” thanks to its archaic testing procedures.
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