autoevolution
 

Aurel Niculescu

9,650  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.
Dodge Charger Daytona Twice Drags Corvette, Then Ram and Challenger, ICEs Everyone
Dodge Charger Daytona Twice Drags Corvette, Then Ram and Challenger, ICEs Everyone

3 May 2024, 09:26 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Starting with the 2024 model year, the eighth generation Dodge Charger is with one eye on the past and the other on the EV plus downsizing future. Some would say it looks cockeyed because of that, right? So, the all-new 2024 Dodge Charger follow...

 
All-Black Ram 1500 TRX RS Edition Rides on 24s and Hides an Aqua Surprise Inside
All-Black Ram 1500 TRX RS Edition Rides on 24s and Hides an Aqua Surprise Inside

3 May 2024, 08:47 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Unfortunately, the 2024 model year is the final hurrah for the mighty 702-hp Ram 1500 TRX equipped with the 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 and all the off-road goodies Stellantis could find around the world. Sure, life will go on, and the US au...

 
All-New Ferrari 12Cilindri Gets Celebrated by the Aftermarket Realm With CGI Goodies
All-New Ferrari 12Cilindri Gets Celebrated by the Aftermarket Realm With CGI Goodies

3 May 2024, 08:15 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / HRE Performance Wheels, one of the most essential American aftermarket wheel producers, has been trying to set the industry standard since 1978. However, they are not afraid to use all the latest technologies, even if they embrace tradition –...

 
Ford Mustang Mach 1 Drags F-150s, Audi, BMW, and Dodge's Hellcat, Someone Gets Stomped
Ford Mustang Mach 1 Drags F-150s, Audi, BMW, and Dodge's Hellcat, Someone Gets Stomped

3 May 2024, 07:38 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The good folks over at the racing-focused ImportRace channel on YouTube have a favorite quarter-mile venue - Island Dragway – but also an off-shoot. So, John Torres, the host from ImportRace, also has an all-new YouTube channel aptly nam...

 
3-Door Toyota 4Runner Goes Back to Origin, Digitally Hunts 2-Door Bronco and Wrangler Prey
3-Door Toyota 4Runner Goes Back to Origin, Digitally Hunts 2-Door Bronco and Wrangler Prey

3 May 2024, 06:52 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Japanese automaker has unleashed a storm of mid-size CUVs and, SUVs, and trucks all over America during the past few months – 2024 Lexus TX and its Toyota Grand Highlander sibling, the all-new N400 Tacoma (including with i-Force Max hybri...

 
Rendering: Is the Chevy Silverado ZL1 a V8 Supercharged Answer to All Sport Truck Prayers?
Rendering: Is the Chevy Silverado ZL1 a V8 Supercharged Answer to All Sport Truck Prayers?

3 May 2024, 06:15 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Last year, right in time for the fall season, The Blue Oval company debuted a substantial exterior and interior refresh of the best-selling F-Series asset, the 2024 F-150. Naturally, Ram Trucks followed suit and came up with the 2025 Ram 1500 famil...

 
Subtly Restyled 2025 Toyota Corolla Gets an Unofficial Presentation, Inside-Out 
Subtly Restyled 2025 Toyota Corolla Gets an Unofficial Presentation, Inside-Out 

2 May 2024, 11:11 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Japanese automaker has been deeply preoccupied with its mid-size crossovers and SUVs over the past few months – the 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander and Lexus TX three-row family CUVs, the N400 Tacoma pickup truck, the returning 2024 Land Cru...

 
2025 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Digitally Lowers Its Posh Roof Waiting for Summer
2025 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Digitally Lowers Its Posh Roof Waiting for Summer

2 May 2024, 09:20 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / In China, where the great Auto China 2024 or 18th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition is still in full swing until May 4 at the China International Exhibition Center in Beijing, China, everyone wanted a piece of the red carpet's spotli...

 
2025 Mazda CX-5 Gives Up on the ICE Lifestyle, Goes All Electric in Fantasy Land
2025 Mazda CX-5 Gives Up on the ICE Lifestyle, Goes All Electric in Fantasy Land

2 May 2024, 08:34 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Have you seen the many novelties – including the international ones – stemming from Auto China 2024? Yep, the 18th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, which takes place between April 25 and May 4 at the China International Exhi...

 
Renault Debuts Symbioz: Another Compact CUV, Featuring E-Tech Hybrid Power
Renault Debuts Symbioz: Another Compact CUV, Featuring E-Tech Hybrid Power

2 May 2024, 07:30 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / If the name somehow sounds familiar, it might be due to reminiscing about The Apprentice memories, but the 'fresh' Renault Symbioz is actually just another C-Class crossover SUV tucked between the Captur and Austral plus Arkana. The F...

 
Ram Trucks Head of Advertising Hints at Upcoming "High HP Vehicle With Three Letters" 
Ram Trucks Head of Advertising Hints at Upcoming "High HP Vehicle With Three Letters" 

2 May 2024, 06:54 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Jeff Summers, Head of Advertising, Ram Trucks, posted a lengthy LinkedIn explanation of 'The Convoy,' the video featuring the 2025 Ram 1500 RHO and other trucks that will ensure a Mopar bonanza for the foreseeable future. Last month, ...

 
2024 Ford Mustang GT Drags S550 Predecessor: Are You Ready to Get Astonished?
2024 Ford Mustang GT Drags S550 Predecessor: Are You Ready to Get Astonished?

2 May 2024, 05:40 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The iconic Ford Mustang pony car just turned 60 last month, and the celebrations include an upcoming 2025 model year 60th Anniversary package reserved for just 1,965 examples – that's a pretty exotic collectible, right? As far as the...

 
Nissan Z Nismo Takes on Australia's Lake Mountain, Comes Out Ready for Ordering at $61k
Nissan Z Nismo Takes on Australia's Lake Mountain, Comes Out Ready for Ordering at $61k

2 May 2024, 05:07 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Japanese automaker says it has taken Z performance to new heights - one of the Land Down Under's "most challenging — and exhilarating — hill climbs," Lake Mountain in Victoria, Australia, a well-known cross-country sk...

 
All-New 2024 Kia Picanto Launches in UK With Simpler Lineup and Two Engines From £15,595
All-New 2024 Kia Picanto Launches in UK With Simpler Lineup and Two Engines From £15,595

1 May 2024, 12:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Over in America, you can't shrink a Kia any further than the five-door Rio or a Soul if we're talking crossovers. But in places like Australia, Europe, or the United Kingdom, the refreshed Kia Picanto is the smallest member of the family....

 
Rendering: 2025 Toyota GR86 Packs a Facelift and a Stunning Custom Body Kit to Go Along
Rendering: 2025 Toyota GR86 Packs a Facelift and a Stunning Custom Body Kit to Go Along

1 May 2024, 09:19 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Japanese automaker is heating things up close to the boiling point in America, where it's breathing in the neck of General Motors after the tally for the first quarter sales revealed a difference of less than 30k vehicles between them. ...

 
BMW M240i Drags Charger Daytona, Two Mustangs, Teaches Everyone 11-Second Lessons
BMW M240i Drags Charger Daytona, Two Mustangs, Teaches Everyone 11-Second Lessons

1 May 2024, 08:34 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The good folks over at the racing-focused ImportRace channel on YouTube are at their usual venue - Island Dragway - for some daytime Import vs. America brawls. Well, at least no crossovers or trucks are involved, right? BMW is one of those ...

 
2025 Hyundai Tucson Debates If Shadow Line and Aftermarket Wheels Are Virtually Better
2025 Hyundai Tucson Debates If Shadow Line and Aftermarket Wheels Are Virtually Better

1 May 2024, 07:47 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Hyundai recently announced that its all-electric Ioniq 5 N hot hatchback will try to compete for the electric production crossover/SUV record at the upcoming Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. That was one of the few interesting tidbits prepa...

 
2024 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport Has Some (But Not All) Goodies From All-New Triton
2024 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport Has Some (But Not All) Goodies From All-New Triton

1 May 2024, 07:08 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited (MMAL) has neither killed off the old-school third-generation Pajero Sport nor brought it to the standards imposed by the all-new fifth-generation Triton (L200) mid-size pickup truck. The Mitsubishi Pajero Sp...

 
Second-Generation BMW X2 Launches Its Quirky Styling in the Land Down Under From $49k
Second-Generation BMW X2 Launches Its Quirky Styling in the Land Down Under From $49k

1 May 2024, 05:53 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The second iteration of the fashionable or cringy (depending on your POV) BMW X2 Sports Activity Coupe (SAC) arrives in the Land Down Under with ample choice - including the all-electric iX2 and the X2 M35i xDrive performance model. The Bavaria...

 
Mercury Mystique Springs Back to Digital Life to Make US Feel Like It's the 1990s Again
Mercury Mystique Springs Back to Digital Life to Make US Feel Like It's the 1990s Again

1 May 2024, 05:19 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Unfortunately, unlike GM, Stellantis, or 99% of the Asian competitors, the Ford Motor Company doesn't have a four-door sedan left in the family, neither at Lincoln nor at the namesake Ford brand. However, there are virtually zero chances of on...

 

Stories by Aurel Niculescu