By a show of hands, how many of you have heard of the British supercar manufacturer Noble Automotive? Not very many. Well then, even less of you have heard of the Noble’s sister car, the Rossion Q1. This is a pretty unusual car that deserves some attention, but before we delve into the Q1, it is necessary to cover a little backstory first.
What is it that makes certain cars more collectible than others? Certainly the car’s condition, its documentation, and any unusual factory options can affect a car’s value. However, I think the most important factor is rarity. The less common a car is, the more valuable it becomes.
Sometimes car manufacturers deliberately make small runs of cars, ensuring that they will become instant collectibles. Take a look at some recently produced exotic cars and their prices:
Lexus LF-A Supercar – 500 units – $375,000 each
Aston Martin One-77 – 77 units – $1,000,000 each
Lamborghini Veneno – 3 units – $3,000,000 each
It boggles my mind that automakers can produce a run of $1 or $3 million dollars cars and have no trouble selling all of them. However, it wasn’t always this way. There was a time when automakers had a hard time finding buyers for hyper-expensive cars. One of the first manufacturers to create a ridiculously high-priced supercar was none other than the Hudson Motor Company.
Lately, I’ve been noticing a trend among import car owners. Back in 1999-2004 these “Rice Rockets” or “ricers” were modified to mimic the cars seen in the movie The Fast and the Furious. During that time, some of these import cars used to actually be fast. They had turbo kits, nitrous oxide, custom wheels, aftermarket body kits, and high-end stereo systems. It would seem the days of the traditional ricer (that might actually be fast) have come to an end.
Now, the import car scene has changed. Cars are still being modified, but the emphasis is not on speed, drag racing, or going fast. Instead, they have become more of a fashion statement. Continue reading
Everyone likes the idea of vehicles that have good fuel economy. The more efficient a vehicle is, the less money you have to spend on gas.
There are a lot of different approaches people take to getting better mileage. On one hand, you’ve got a bunch of sub-compact cars with tiny gas engines like the Smart Car, Mini Cooper and the Fiat 500. On the other hand, you’ve got a bunch of hybrid cars like the Toyota Prius, Nissan Altima, and some Hyundais.
Still other people think the problem can be solved with pure electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model S. Then there’s the Chevrolet Volt crowd preaching the plug-in hybrid. There’s also a growing community behind the idea of bio-diesel powered vehicles. Whatever the approach, the underlying idea is the same: to stretch a gallon of fuel as far as you possibly can.
One method that people use to try and increase fuel economy is a risky and stupid practice called “hypermiling.” Hypermiling is a specific style of driving that tries to maximize fuel economy. Some techniques include:
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I remember seeing this poster a lot when I was a child. As far back as elementary school, I found myself wondering what kind of cars I would put in my own dream garage. My tastes in cars have changed since elementary school, and I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what I would put in my dream garage if I were to win the lottery today. Here’s what I have come up with:
I wasn’t born a car nut.
I didn’t grow up watching my dad, grandpa, or uncle work on cars. My parents never had any cool cars when I was a kid. I never raced go-karts or flipped through mail-order catalogs building dream engines in my head.
In Arizona you can get your learner’s permit at age 15 and 7 months. I never got around to it until I was 17. I’ve only ever owned one car: a crappy 90s GM front-wheel drive econobox. At the risk of losing my last shred of credibility with my readers, I never learned to properly drive a stick shift.
So, what got me into cars?
