Kyle Ashdown

The automobile is so ubiquitous that even the most depraved individuals on Earth will have one at some point. Even from its genesis, the humble motorcar has been used as an instrument of evil; whether it be a getaway car for a bank job, an improvised explosive device, or simply a point-A-to-point-B method of transport for psychopaths and fascist dictators. The following 10 vehicles are just a small, but eerily fascinating, selection of some of the most notorious and nefarious things on four (or six) wheels.

At the beginning of 2014, the world price for a barrel of light sweet crude oil hovered around $100 USD/barrel. Within a year, the price of that same barrel of oil had collapsed to around $50 USD. In January of this year, the price oil hit a low of $28.50 USD, less than a fifth of what it was 9 years ago. Why did this happen? If you’ve been paying attention to the world markets, you’ve probably heard experts mention OPEC in the discussion of world oil prices; and for good reason.

If you’re one of those people that read books, you might have heard of the name Ayn Rand. And if you’ve heard of Ayn Rand, you’ve probably heard of Atlas Shrugged. It was Rand’s longest, latest, and some say even her finest work. Among the many groundbreaking theories of capitalism, philosophy and sociological ideology lies the Twentieth Century Motor Company, which was intended to be a parable of Fordism and socialism drawn to their extreme ends in the context of a car factory.

You’re probably wondering what a napper is. Well, I wouldn’t blame you, because it’s an idea that I just came up with in my bored stupor. But you could probably guess what I am getting on about. A napper, in my mind, is like a sleeper, except the visual cues are such that you know full well that you are looking at a fast car. The catch is that the uninitiated could still easily underestimate just how fast these next 7 cars really are…

I guess if I had to boil down the project to the tasks that absolutely needed to be done to the Ratsun, the most critical areas left to fix were, in no particular order: the rear brakes; rust repair; and the interior. Ideally, the brakes and the rust would have been the first two things to have been fixed, but I was starting to get pretty sick of the worn-out vinyl bench seat in the sweltering summer heat without air conditioning. To say that my back was uncomfortably hot on a regular basis would be the understatement of the year.

Sometimes, engineering brilliance is as simple as a bit of ghetto DIY.

Background When I mention the Chrysler 300, what’s the first thing that comes into your mind? If you’re anywhere near as young as I am, you’ll probably immediately conjure up the model produced from 2005 onward. You know, the proverbial “poor man’s Bentley”, the one used by wannabe rappers, drug kings and pimps the world over. The popular choice of both gangsters and grandpas, the “new” 300 could be thought of as the car that saved Chrysler from a slow death due to a lack of fresh product.

The boys and girls at Car Throttle weren’t exactly keeping a low profile at the office today. Certainly, you could see that there weren’t feeling very deflated, as Alex brought in a GTR3 racing tire for all to see. Going full Euro fanboy, Alex decided to see what the biggest things (read: people) he could fit in the tire were. This made for one hell of an entertaining Facebook livestream…(click here to watch).

Aside from being a grouchy petrolhead who thinks the world is going to pot at breakneck speed, I am a bit of a sneakerhead, too. It’s no surprise, then, that my shoes MUST be good for driving in. However, I’m not one to own a pair of flame-retardant, racing-grade boots just for taking a drive to the store. My shoes need to make as much sense in the real world as they do behind the wheel; and I suspect that, if you’re reading this, that you probably agree with my shoe-buying philosophy. However, as we all know, there are different shoes for different personalities.

Introduction 1981 was a big year in human history. That year, MTV, the IBM personal computer, and Jessica Alba were all born. We sent the Columbia into space for the first time, discovered HIV, and saw an actor become the President of the United States. That same man, Ronald Reagan, would survive an attempt on his life later that year, as would Pope John Paul II. The tragic events of Bob Marley’s death and Paris Hilton’s birth would also occur in that year. As would many, many other events.

My little Datsun 720 diesel pickup. 5-speed manual, SD22 normally aspirated diesel engine with an earth-shattering 61 horsepower and 102 lb./ft. of torque! Proud to call this little trooper my first truck! (Sold in June 2017)

50 years of production in a row is a long stretch in the automotive world, and you can’t achieve that rare feat without a certain amount of greatness. Certainly, the Ford Mustang hasn’t always been the greatest car out there ( cough cough, Mustang II, cough ), but the Mustang is more of an icon than a mere form of transportation. It is almost a Deity among mere mortals, a stallion that refuses to go to the glue factory, so to speak. If the Volkswagen Beetle was the original “people’s car”, the Mustang was the original sportscar of the working-class in America.

Introduction Not to get the annoying children’s song stuck in your head, but there’s an old saying that “the more we get together, the happier we’ll be.” In business, this is far from a universal truth, but that hasn’t stopped key players in big industries from trying to partner with, or take over, other firms in the playing field.

Introduction OK, it may or may not be a secret that I am really proud to be a Canadian. Being a gearhead as well, I think that Canada doesn’t get near enough credit for the role it has played in the automotive industry. I would like to change that. So, while you read this article, grab a bottle of Canadian whisky, throw on a hockey sweater (or bunnyhug), put some maple syrup on your Canadian bacon poutine, and sit back on your Chesterfield and read why I think that Canada is one of the most underrated countries in the petrolhead universe.

Introduction Many of you have heard about the poor fellow in Singapore who bought a secondhand Tesla Model S…and had it slapped with a $15,000 emissions tax. Now if you think this is absurd, you certainly wouldn’t be alone. Even the CEO/Personality Cult of Tesla Motors, Elon Musk, has weighed in on the debacle. Being a student of economics, I couldn’t help but investigate the mechanics behind Singapore’s carbon tax, as well as the reason why an electric car was subjected to a tax equal to the highest-emitting passenger cars on sale in Singapore.

We all make mistakes, no matter how professional we are. Sometimes, something that seemed like a good idea at the time turns into an unmitigated disaster. This can even happen to some of the most respected names in automotive journalism. These 10 cars looked great from the press’ point of view at the time, but they never lived up to the hype. Here are 10 cars that the editors of their respective automotive magazines would like to have back.

Although my experience pales in comparison with those who actually depend on them, I learned how to drive on ice roads before I learned how to drive on pavement. No, I am not talking about a road with a layer of ice on top. I am talking about actual roads made out of ice. That’s right, roads made out of frozen H2O, sub-zero dihydrogen monoxide, or solid aqua fresca. It’s a skill that the majority of CTzens might not have the opportunity to exercise, but the few that do experience it won’t forget it.

Many safety experts recommend fitting your vehicle with winter tires if you live in an area that frequently experiences snowy, slippery driving conditions during the winter season. Winter tires are awesome , and I strongly recommend having a set. Having said that, there are many reasons why you may not want to have a set of winter tires. Perhaps you cannot afford them (like me). Maybe you live in an area that doesn’t get a low of snow. Maybe you have no space in your garage to keep a spare set of tires.

For the 2016 model year, Honda quietly made some minor updates to its sport compact hatch. And, no, I am not talking about the Civic Type R. In case you forgot (and I wouldn’t blame you if you did), I am talking about the CR-Z, the de facto successor to the legendary CR-X. The already sporty-looking hatch gets a few minor cosmetic updates, along with some new features. However, the powerplant, drivetrain and chassis remain pretty much the same as the original model, introduced in 2010.

When I’m not on CarThrottle mercilessly roasting the rides of my fellow CTzens, working my fingers to the bone or studying fruitlessly in order to pass my classes for the semester, you can find me exploring the globe for the most epic road trips to go on my “bucket list”. I’m going to try something a little different: I would like to share some of what I’ve found to be the most spectacular roads and destinations that I have found, not only for petrolheads and driving enthusiasts, but for adventure seekers and world travellers as well.

As word broke earlier this week that the DeLorean Motor Company will be going back into production, I couldn’t help but think of John DeLorean and the road that led to the DeLorean DMC-12’s immortalization in the minds of petrolheads and sci-fi fanatics worldwide. Although its stardom came too late to save the DeLorean Motor Company, the DMC-12 lives on today, most notably after its depiction in the Back to the Future movie series.

“What do you think about the Lincoln MKX?”