autoevolution
 

Aurel Niculescu

9,644  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.
Virtually Bagged Widebody Toyota Prius Has a Massive Wing and Big Dual Exhausts
Virtually Bagged Widebody Toyota Prius Has a Massive Wing and Big Dual Exhausts

22 Jun 2024, 21:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / It turns out that even though some people thought the novel EV lifestyle was all the rage, Toyota was right in its assessment that hybrids can still win the day – and the proof is the skyrocketing sales of its 'Hybrid Reborn' Prius ...

 
Why Is the Summer Always Riddled With Special Editions? Are They Hotter Now?
Why Is the Summer Always Riddled With Special Editions? Are They Hotter Now?

22 Jun 2024, 15:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Unfortunately, the summer is upon us - with record-breaking temperatures (because there is no such thing as global warming, of course), and the automotive industry is still backtracking from EVs because they say that few customers want them. Ah...

 
Lucid Air Twice Drags C8 Chevrolet Corvette, ICE versus EV Destruction Is Double Absolute
Lucid Air Twice Drags C8 Chevrolet Corvette, ICE versus EV Destruction Is Double Absolute

22 Jun 2024, 07:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The videographer behind the Wheels Plus channel on YouTube is always a big fan of The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and recently found a couple of ICE vs EV brawls – which is always a good reason to stick around for the silent electr...

 
2024 Acura ZDX Gains Virtual Shadow Line and Dark Aftermarket Wheels, Looks Digitally Cool
2024 Acura ZDX Gains Virtual Shadow Line and Dark Aftermarket Wheels, Looks Digitally Cool

22 Jun 2024, 01:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The all-new, all-electric, second-generation 2024 Acura ZDX Type S will be the first all-electric pace car at the 102nd edition of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 23. So, they have faith in it. Do you? Acura's first-ever pre...

 
ICEd 2025 Jeep Wagoneer Redesign Virtually Ignores the New Wagoneer S for a Tougher Look
ICEd 2025 Jeep Wagoneer Redesign Virtually Ignores the New Wagoneer S for a Tougher Look

21 Jun 2024, 22:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Jeep has kept the 'most patriotic brand in America' title for the 23rd year ahead of Ford and Levi Strauss and is now thinking of new ways to embrace the latest EV trends. For example, after they came out with the eagerly-awaited 2024...

 
2025 Chevrolet Camaro Concept Visualizes Seventh-Generation Rival for the S650 Mustang
2025 Chevrolet Camaro Concept Visualizes Seventh-Generation Rival for the S650 Mustang

21 Jun 2024, 21:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The American muscle car 'society' seems a bit in disarray these days. That's mainly the fault of Stellantis and General Motors, though, not the Blue Oval company. Ford soldiers on with the S650 seventh-generation Mustang in EcoBo...

 
'All-New' 2025 Jeep Compass Third Generation Shines Brightly In the Virtual Studio
'All-New' 2025 Jeep Compass Third Generation Shines Brightly In the Virtual Studio

21 Jun 2024, 20:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Stellantis recently recalled no less than one million Jeep, Ram, Dodge, and Chrysler vehicles in America because of software issues – but that's no reason to stop buying them, according to the imaginative realm of digital car content cre...

 
All-New 2025 Infiniti QX4 Digitally Revives the SUV Nameplate for a Land Cruiser Brawl
All-New 2025 Infiniti QX4 Digitally Revives the SUV Nameplate for a Land Cruiser Brawl

21 Jun 2024, 11:17 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Nissan Pathfinder has been around since 1986, and over the years, it has evolved from a compact SUV (1985-1995) to a mid-size SUV (1995-2012) and, most recently, into a mid-size crossover SUV with five generations under its belt. Curiously,...

 
2025 Hyundai Staria and Staria Load Prove Minivans Aren't Dead in the Land Down Under
2025 Hyundai Staria and Staria Load Prove Minivans Aren't Dead in the Land Down Under

21 Jun 2024, 10:33 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The South Korean automaker Hyundai announces the 2025 model year for the five-door minivan and commercial van models in Australia, with pricing starting from AUD 49,500 (passenger version) and 46,740 (MLP), respectively. The carmaker is taking ...

 
Video: Audi Sport RS 3 Prototype Beats the M2's Compact Car Lap Record on the Green Hell
Video: Audi Sport RS 3 Prototype Beats the M2's Compact Car Lap Record on the Green Hell

21 Jun 2024, 08:42 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The new Audi RS 3 pre-production model with the "legendary five‑cylinder engine" under the hood has achieved a homologated new lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife: 7:33.123 minutes. Let's face it – with a serious...

 
Digital Ford Thunderbird GT Concept Hypothetically Proposes a Mid-Engine C8 Corvette Rival
Digital Ford Thunderbird GT Concept Hypothetically Proposes a Mid-Engine C8 Corvette Rival

21 Jun 2024, 08:02 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / We heard – thanks to the latest official teaser – that something cool and feisty is coming out to play on July 25, 2024. That would be the latest Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 of the C8 generation, all set for the 2025 model year. Back in ...

 
Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Drags Non-ZL1 Chevrolet Camaro, Prepare to Be Amazed
Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Drags Non-ZL1 Chevrolet Camaro, Prepare to Be Amazed

21 Jun 2024, 07:37 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The good folks over at the racing-focused ImportRace channel on YouTube are not at their usual venue - Island Dragway in Great Meadows, New Jersey, but at Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas. This videographer has recently expanded his reach t...

 
2025 Dacia Bigster Arrives Fresh Across Imagination Land, Has a Familiar Design
2025 Dacia Bigster Arrives Fresh Across Imagination Land, Has a Familiar Design

21 Jun 2024, 06:51 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Romanian automaker Dacia is not exactly a global affair – but it's a true love story addressed to the automotive industry's simpler times. After all, they have French patrons, and France is renowned for its romanticism. Joke...

 
Hypothetical 2028 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Gets Digitally Compared to BMW 7 Series
Hypothetical 2028 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Gets Digitally Compared to BMW 7 Series

20 Jun 2024, 20:04 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The German trifecta has become a staple of the automotive industry for decades – and the war manifests across time and space – but also the car segments. One of the oldest brawls, of course, is between the Audi A8, BMW 7 Series, and Mer...

 
2025 BMW X3 M50 Gets Touched By a Digital Tuning Fairy, Rocks New Colors and Large Alloys
2025 BMW X3 M50 Gets Touched By a Digital Tuning Fairy, Rocks New Colors and Large Alloys

20 Jun 2024, 14:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / After seeing the BMW 1 Series and M135, the refreshed 2 Series and M2, plus the all-new 2025 X3 compact luxury crossover SUV – all models from the Bavarian automaker that appeared officially during the first month of summer, some will have so...

 
Mansory P950 Takes Mercedes-AMG S 63 E Performance to New Levels: 950 HP & 1,154 Lb-Ft
Mansory P950 Takes Mercedes-AMG S 63 E Performance to New Levels: 950 HP & 1,154 Lb-Ft

20 Jun 2024, 12:00 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The luxury car, SUV, and truck modification experts from Brand, Germany, have done it again. Mansory now finally has a full program for the flagship S-Class variant, the AMG S 63 E Performance. While it's growing long in the tooth and will ...

 
2026 BMW X4 Gets Virtually Previewed in Unofficial Renderings With 'Fresh' X3 Styling
2026 BMW X4 Gets Virtually Previewed in Unofficial Renderings With 'Fresh' X3 Styling

20 Jun 2024, 10:05 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The Bavarian automaker BMW is on a roll this summer – they presented the refreshed 2025 M2 with 20 more hp to reach the same power level as the base M3 and M4; the 2025 BMW 2 Series also got a nip and tuck, its subsidiary Alpina boosted the 3...

 
Citroen C3 Aircross Full Details Revealed, Has Up to 7 Seats, ICE, Hybrid and EV Models
Citroen C3 Aircross Full Details Revealed, Has Up to 7 Seats, ICE, Hybrid and EV Models

20 Jun 2024, 09:10 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / Following the initial preview in April, Stellantis has now allowed its French subsidiary Citroen to give us the fool scoop on the latest subcompact crossover - the C3 Aircross joins the family alongside the fresh Opel Frontera and Fiat Grande Panda...

 
Virtual Ford F-150 'Fighter' Is a Short and Stubby Raptor Looking for a 1980s Summer Trip
Virtual Ford F-150 'Fighter' Is a Short and Stubby Raptor Looking for a 1980s Summer Trip

20 Jun 2024, 08:34 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The second-largest US automaker saw its May sales up 11.2% on the strong showing by hybrids, trucks, and EVs. Most recently, it seems the winning formula is trucks plus hybrids. The Ford F-150 Hybrid and Maverick Hybrid were particular standout...

 
Hellcat Races Mustang, 'Vette, Challenger, and Rolls Everything, But Mach 1 Begs to Differ
Hellcat Races Mustang, 'Vette, Challenger, and Rolls Everything, But Mach 1 Begs to Differ

20 Jun 2024, 07:38 UTC · By: Aurel Niculescu / The good folks over at the racing-focused ImportRace channel on YouTube are still not back at their usual venue - Island Dragway in Great Meadows, New Jersey, but they continue their reports from BMP and MIR. The videographer seems content ...

 

Stories by Aurel Niculescu