autoevolution
 

Aurel Niculescu

9,645  ARTICLES

Staff Writer
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Once upon a time there was a little boy that didn't know his age but dreamed of reaching high in the sky alongside the absolute best aviators. He was passionate about reading books (action and Sci-Fi), grew up with many great authors and soon discovered the mirage of cinema.

There he understood anything is possible if you work hard and passionately strive to follow your imagination. This is how at the age of 16 he managed to fulfill the first dream – flying alone in a glider plane. He was no Tom Cruise, of course, so young adulthood brought him back to reality.

With every kick in the familiar *utt comes a chance to step forward, so a seemingly unimportant ad in one of his favorite automotive magazines brought a dilemma - follow through with the current job or dare to achieve greatness by deploying (previously) unknown literary skills.

Since 2006, he’s been perfecting them at Automondial, Supercar, Cox, Autoshow, Autopro, Auto Motor & Sport, and more magazines plus their online versions. After driving some of the best and worst cars in Europe and around the world, he’s part of the autoevolution team, where he aims to develop his best-ever form.
Rare Find: Dual Tone 1967 AMC Marlin Looks Glorious, It's Cheaper Than a Modern Pony Car
Rare Find: Dual Tone 1967 AMC Marlin Looks Glorious, It's Cheaper Than a Modern Pony Car

1 Jun 2024, 15:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / While the current S650 seventh generation 2024 Ford Mustang kicks off at an MSRP of $30,920 (sans destination) with the 315-hp EcoBoost inline-four turbo mill, this old-school AMC Marlin personal luxury car is a negotiable $29,900. But first, w...

 
R35 Nissan GT-R Drags 750-hp Isuzu D-Max Diesel Truck, Prepare to Be Surprised Twice
R35 Nissan GT-R Drags 750-hp Isuzu D-Max Diesel Truck, Prepare to Be Surprised Twice

1 Jun 2024, 06:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The good folks over at the CSL AutoTime channel on YouTube have yet another unusual drag racing setup between a veritable legend of the JDM car world and something that you could never think capable of spectacular quarter-mile performance – a...

 
What If Alfa Romeo's 2027 Electric SUV Was Set for US Production and Presented Today?
What If Alfa Romeo's 2027 Electric SUV Was Set for US Production and Presented Today?

1 Jun 2024, 01:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Stellantis is on a roll with the electrified lifestyle, even if only marginally – in Europe, they have new stuff like the Jeep Avenger 4xe, Fiat 600e, or the recent Lancia Ypsilon HF boasting 237 horsepower. Meanwhile, in the United States, D...

 
Rendering: Fresh 2025 Toyota RAV4 Lands With Prius Genes and Less Rugged Appearance
Rendering: Fresh 2025 Toyota RAV4 Lands With Prius Genes and Less Rugged Appearance

31 May 2024, 22:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Last year, the best-selling SUV in America was, of course, Toyota's iconic RAV4, with almost 435k units. It was followed by the Tesla Model Y rising star and the eternal runner-up, Honda's CR-V, of course. During the first four months of ...

 
What's Better, CGI-Slammed: 1968 California Special or a Fresh Chevy Camaro ZL1?
What's Better, CGI-Slammed: 1968 California Special or a Fresh Chevy Camaro ZL1?

31 May 2024, 21:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / During the early 1960s, Ford set in motion an interesting phenomenon – they unleashed the compact yet sporty Mustang and kicked off the muscle car hornet's nest with the associated creation of the pony car sector. Many have tried and...

 
Jeep Trackhawk Drags Challenger Hellcat and Mustang GT, It's a Veritable Massacre
Jeep Trackhawk Drags Challenger Hellcat and Mustang GT, It's a Veritable Massacre

31 May 2024, 20:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / What's the common denominator between the mighty Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, the feisty Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, and a Ford Mustang GT? Actually, there are two of them. Firstly, if the latter is an S550 sixth generation, they'...

 
2025 VW Golf R Teased Again, Hopefully, It Won't Take Them Another Half Year to Reveal It
2025 VW Golf R Teased Again, Hopefully, It Won't Take Them Another Half Year to Reveal It

31 May 2024, 11:37 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / It was late January 2024 when the German automaker produced a tale of snow and ice to showcase the upcoming 2025 Volkswagen Golf R. However, the brand's most powerful hot hatchback currently in production was still clad in a distinctive '...

 
Wacky Hyundai Kona Gets Some Virtual Designer's Love With Kit and Three New Wheels
Wacky Hyundai Kona Gets Some Virtual Designer's Love With Kit and Three New Wheels

31 May 2024, 10:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The South Korean automaker Hyundai is always across our newsreel – most recently because it might hide features behind a paywall, due to its great Ioniq 5 N, which continues to amaze, because of the rumor about their hydrogen-powered supercar...

 
Supercharged Corvette Drags Old Camaro, Older Dart, ZR1, Someone's a 0.00-Second RT Boss 
Supercharged Corvette Drags Old Camaro, Older Dart, ZR1, Someone's a 0.00-Second RT Boss 

31 May 2024, 09:18 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The C8 Chevrolet Corvette is the flagship supercar killer of the automotive industry, for sure. And it will only get better with the promised ZR1 version and the potential Zora hypercar variant. However, the model series rightfully dubbed as &#...

 
2026 Ferrari Four-Door EV Looks Tasty and Fast but Only Across Imagination Land
2026 Ferrari Four-Door EV Looks Tasty and Fast but Only Across Imagination Land

31 May 2024, 08:32 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Everybody's going over the hills and far away (downtown) because Jeep just announced its first global all-electric vehicle (Jeep Avenger is a regional affair), the 600-hp and 300-mile 2024 Jeep Wagoneer S kicking off at home in America at $72k...

 
600 HP & 300+ Miles of Range - Is That Enough for Jeep's Wagoneer S To Beat Tesla at $72K?
600 HP & 300+ Miles of Range - Is That Enough for Jeep's Wagoneer S To Beat Tesla at $72K?

31 May 2024, 08:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The big, multi-million-dollar question is simple - does Jeep have what it takes for the 2024 Wagoneer S to crack open the tough Tesla nut, especially the best-selling Model Y? As promised, Jeep has announced its first global battery-powered veh...

 
Refreshed 2025 Mazda CX-30 Reveals Everything Inside-Out, Though Only Virtually
Refreshed 2025 Mazda CX-30 Reveals Everything Inside-Out, Though Only Virtually

31 May 2024, 07:18 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / In North America, Mazda reported an increase of almost 9% in sales through April to more than 131k vehicles. Just about every model series is up, but some of them have had an outstanding evolution, indeed. Even the Mazda3 passenger car was up w...

 
2024 Jeep Wagoneer S Debuts As Brand's First Global EV, Will Fight Tesla With Its 600 HP
2024 Jeep Wagoneer S Debuts As Brand's First Global EV, Will Fight Tesla With Its 600 HP

31 May 2024, 06:40 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / As promised, Jeep now has a Wagoneer S in the lineup, all-electric but with 4xe capability, "impressive performance," and sleek looks, plus the latest technologies. Fresh off the reports citing Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares confirming...

 
Twin-Turbo LS-Swapped Mustang Drags Modded Nissan GT-R, Absolute Destruction Comes Twice
Twin-Turbo LS-Swapped Mustang Drags Modded Nissan GT-R, Absolute Destruction Comes Twice

30 May 2024, 20:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Over time, the Hoonigan YouTube channel's notorious 'This versus That' series has morphed into a not-so-traditional drag racing story, but this episode comes back to the 'classic' roots of 'America versus Import.'...

 
1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS Has a Few Additional Dark Tricks Up Its 350 V8 Sleeve
1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS Has a Few Additional Dark Tricks Up Its 350 V8 Sleeve

30 May 2024, 11:35 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Unfortunately, the S650 seventh-generation 2024 Ford Mustang is currently left alone on the pony and muscle car market to rule undefeated. All the while, the Dodge Charger is reinventing itself, and the Chevy Camaro is dwelling around the retiremen...

 
All-New Third-Gen 2025 Audi Q3 Strips Down the Camouflage for Inside-Out CGI Presentation
All-New Third-Gen 2025 Audi Q3 Strips Down the Camouflage for Inside-Out CGI Presentation

30 May 2024, 09:52 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Ingolstadt-based luxury automaker is trying to come out of its self-imposed boring cone of shadow and catch up to its classic BMW and Mercedes-Benz rivals with an onslaught of refreshed and all-new models, both ICE-powered and all-electric. ...

 
Refreshed 2026 Toyota Corolla Cross Dares to Be Stylish, Albeit Only Virtually
Refreshed 2026 Toyota Corolla Cross Dares to Be Stylish, Albeit Only Virtually

30 May 2024, 09:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Japanese automaker Toyota, at least in America, has preoccupied itself with the rising fortunes of the mid-size category – and everyone and their mother now think it's time they start focusing on the compact roster too. Let'...

 
2026 Hyundai Palisade Visits Imagination Land, Can't Decide What Attire to Wear
2026 Hyundai Palisade Visits Imagination Land, Can't Decide What Attire to Wear

30 May 2024, 08:05 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Hyundai Ioniq 7 or 9 (or whatever they're calling it) may be one of the most hotly anticipated new SUVs that's set to arrive in the coming months alongside models like the Jeep Recon, Cadillac Escalade IQ, Lucid Gravity, the Scout SUV...

 
Great Dodge Challenger Drag Racing Moments - Something to Remember When It's Gone
Great Dodge Challenger Drag Racing Moments - Something to Remember When It's Gone

30 May 2024, 06:44 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Dodge, the American brand that's been around for almost 124 years, was founded on December 14, 1900! Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, it was set up as the Dodge Brothers Company by Horace Elgin and John Francis Dodge, and it even preda...

 
Fully Restored 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A 340 Six Pack Looks Stunning Inside and Out 
Fully Restored 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A 340 Six Pack Looks Stunning Inside and Out 

29 May 2024, 14:22 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Created as a belated response to the success of the 1964 Ford Mustang, the Dodge Challenger arrived in 1969, and the original iteration lasted solely for model years 1970 through 1974. After that, it had a convoluted history. The first Dodge Ch...

 

Stories by Aurel Niculescu