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Should a First Car Be a Supercar?

Last updated: Dec 12, 2019 at 4:05PM
Published on: Aug 18, 2015 by tgriffith

Life is good when your first car is a Lamborghini.

At least, it appears to be good if you’re the kid enjoying the attention your car generates. Onlookers, on the other hand, will assume the kid behind the wheel is either a spoiled a brat or a rebel secretly taking his dad’s car out for a spin.

Kids everywhere dream of owning a supercar as their first vehicle, but there aren’t too many in the world who actually see it happen. The ones who do are proof that no child, regardless of wealth, should ever get behind the wheel of anything but an Accord.

I sometimes participate on the Q&A website Quora, where this question was posed:

The Case for Self-Driving Cars Becomes Clear

Last updated: Dec 12, 2019 at 4:04PM
Published on: Aug 12, 2015 by tgriffith

I used to think that the advent of self-driving cars would be the downfall of society. I thought they’d take away our freedoms and turn us into mindless commuters.

I imagined people inside their smart vehicles, each buried in his or her smartphone, while the cars silently flow through interstates and arterials like ants slowly marching toward their queen.

Orderly. Efficient. Conforming.

I’m not the kind of guy who likes to conform. I don’t want to be just one of a billion ants locked into a life of mindless existence, thus my resistance to autonomous vehicles and a future where individuals must fall into line.

I think I’m starting to get it, though. Here’s why.

Why I Don’t Like American Muscle Cars Anymore

Last updated: Dec 12, 2019 at 4:00PM
Published on: Aug 7, 2015 by tgriffith

The American muscle car craze started with the 1964.5 Ford Mustang. That’s the car that showed Americans that high power could fit into a small package, be inexpensive, and look good at the same time.

The Mustang gave way to a new era of loud-and-fast rear-wheel-drive two-door cars powered by V8 engines. They defined a generation of rebels and teenagers who wanted to live fast and drive hard. The cars were different from sports cars of the time, because they lacked the grace and sophistication of European cars. To put it simply, American cars overcame that lack of grace with pure, raw muscle.

Buyers ate them up for the better part of the next 50 years. But as buyers aged, muscle cars came to represent something different. Instead of symbolizing youth and rebellion, the cars started to represent lost youth and cheap power.

Lexus RC 200t: Coming to America?

Aug 3, 2015 by tgriffith

Lexus RC F

Many years ago I did a lot of complaining about cars available in Europe that people in the United States weren’t able to own.

A lot has changed since then. Small economical cars and efficient diesels are now available on these shores, including the likes of FIAT and Alfa Romeo. We don’t have as many station wagons or hot hatches (the scorching new Honda Civic Type R won’t be sold here), but for the most part the cars here are just as cool as the cars there.

Lexus might tip the scales back in Europe’s favor, but if history is any indication, it won’t be long before new models introduced there end up over here.

The RC Series is the next test.

What’s Under Your Hood?

Jul 30, 2015 by tgriffith

In 2013, my wife purchased a new Subaru Legacy. She wanted the top-of-the-line Limited model with leather, EyeSight, Adaptive Cruise Control, roof racks, and so much more.

She found the car she wanted in the color she wanted and negotiated a good price. When I asked her what engine the car had, I received nothing but a blank stare.

This girl knows cars. Her first car was a 1974 Porsche 911, and she can identify nearly any car on the road. She’s definitely a car chick, but the question of what powerplant sat under the hood of her new car stumped her.

I don’t blame her, though, because she purchased the car as a safe family sedan, not a drag racer.

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