Driving

Cars these days are sensible. For the most part, they've all got improved fuel economy and cleaner emissions. Safety ratings are up across the board. Comfort is a focus for many manufacturers. Performance benchmark standards are higher.

LAST week found me barrelling along the interstate behind the wheel of a turbodiesel Mercedes-Benz EClass, headed towards the beardy and heavily tattooed epicentre of the hipster universe, Portland, Ore. I was, as they say, putting a bird on it.

WITH the 40th anniversary of American Graffiti just past, many people have been telling me, "youngsters these days with their mePads and facetwitters - they'll never know what it was like to grow up when hot rods were around." Oh, horsefeathers.

FORTY years ago this month, the movie posters asked audiences, "Where were you in '62?" For most people, the answer was, "in a better place." The world in 1973 was not in great shape, and as far as cars go, was about to get a whole lot worse.

A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird: Acura takes NSX to the track in Ohio Oh good, more teasers about Acura's resurrected legend.

THE pride and joy of the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association is its 1912 Detroit Electric - yep, you read that right, a 100-year-old electric car. Take that, Nissan Leaf.

A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird: BMW builds last M3 Coupe Folks, the sky is falling.

Dear Editor: Regarding Brendan McAleer's June 14 column, Honda Builds Racer Fit for Fastest Soccer Moms: How timely, this article stating that the Honda Odyssey is entered in the Pikes Peak Hill Climb.

A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird: Nissan releases electric LeMans racer With the echoes of last weekend's 24 Hours of LeMans still ringing around the track, Nissan has just announced a new concept to take the famo

BY a curious coincidence, I stumbled across a group of touring pre-war Bentleys for the second time last week.