Ciprian Florea
7,288 ARTICLES
Personal motto:
"If you can make black marks on a straight from the time you turn out of a corner until the braking point of the next turn, then you have enough horsepower." - Mark Donohue
You'll never catch him drooling over the latest supercar but he could spend hours talking about why he loves 1940s windshield visors, Mopars, and Studebakers. Naturally, most of his stories are about barn finds and rare classics.
He can give you several reasons why speed and power are more about motorsport than silly street wandering, and Can-Am machinery tops his ridiculously fast all-time favorite car list. He claims he could die happy after a Rattlesnake Raceway ride in a Chaparral and a cup of coffee with Jim Hall on the other side of the table.
Before landing on these pages, Ciprian's work has been published on outlets like TopSpeed, AmericanMuscle, and ThisWeekInMotors.
Mazda on Hybrid Technology: "It can wait"
9 Jul 2013, 14:48 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / While most major Japanese automakers are already selling hybrid vehicles, Mazda says the eco-friendly technology can wait for a few more years, especially on the European market. Speaking to AOL, a Mazda spokesman said the company is looking mai...
Ford Says No to Diesel-powered F-150 Truck
9 Jul 2013, 14:25 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / With Ram having already announced a diesel-powered 1500 pickup truck and Chevrolet having confirmed their oil-burner is under way, we were all eyes and ears on Ford, waiting to see if the Blue Oval is planning a diesel F-150. Believe it or not, ...
Maserati Releases New Ghibli Footage
9 Jul 2013, 14:06 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Three months have passed since Maserati unveiled the 2014 Ghibli, and it looks like the Italian automaker is pretty anxious about its new four-door luxury sedan. And given it’s supposed to boost company sales and open new market opportunit...
Subaru BRZ Sports Pack Launched in Australia
9 Jul 2013, 13:50 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Subaru Australia has announced the introduction of a new Sports Pack for its BRZ sportscar. The package will brand the BRZ model as a BRZ S and add a number of STI-branded enhancements. Exterior modifications include a new front spoiler, revised...
American Muscle’s Annual Show to Draw 1,400 Mustangs for Charity
9 Jul 2013, 13:24 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / If you own a Mustang or you’re just in love with Ford’s pony, then you should think about packing your stuff and head over to Philadelphia on August 11, when American Muscle’s 2013 Annual Mustang Show is set to kick in. The fif...
2014 Ford Mustang Boss 302S Goes on Sale
9 Jul 2013, 12:34 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Ford Racing Parts has announced that they are now taking orders for the race-prepped 2014 Mustang Boss 302S. The SCCA and NASA classes eligible factory-built race car comes with minor modifications for the 2014 model year, which will be the last to...
Volkswagen Working on XR1 Sportscar
9 Jul 2013, 12:10 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / German automaker Volkswagen is reportedly working on a lightweight sportscar using the know how gained while developing the XL1 hybrid. According to Car, the project is codenamed XR1 and the result could rival a base Porsche 911, but return the ...
Holden Takes the Colorado Out for a Sandy Spin
9 Jul 2013, 11:36 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Australian automaker and GM subsidiary Holden has released a new video featuring its Colorado pickup truck. Not available in the US in this form, the Holden Colorado is taken on sandy terrain by 4WD’s Simon Christie. Engineered as an entry...
Caterham 620R Headed for Goodwood Debut
9 Jul 2013, 09:49 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / This year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed will host the unveiling of Caterham’s brand-new 620R model, the most powerful road-going Seven version ever built by the British sportscar manufacturer. The 620R will be motivated by a superchar...
2014 Suzuki SX4 New Details, Pics Revealed
9 Jul 2013, 09:29 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / With about two months left until the 2014 SX4 goes on sale, Japanese automaker Suzuki has revealed further details about its brand-new compact crossover and published a comprehensive set of photos. Designed to compete with C-segment vehicles suc...
Fiat Buys More Chrysler Stock
9 Jul 2013, 09:00 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Fiat has exercised its option to purchase another 3.3 percent of Chrysler shares yesterday, as the Italian giant is looking to gain full control of the Detroit-based automaker. Having exercised three of its six options, Fiat now owns 68.49 perce...
2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 to be Unveiled at Detroit 2014
9 Jul 2013, 08:40 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Word has it the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 will be show to the public at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show. According to Jalopnik, quoting “a reliable source at Lime Rock Park”, both the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and the Corvette C7.R race c...
2014 Mercedes S500 Plug-In Hybrid Revealed
9 Jul 2013, 07:58 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / German automaker Mercedes-Benz has introduced the 2014 S500 Plug-in Hybrid version ahead of its public debut at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. Unveiled during a small press briefing, the hybrid flagship is powered by a six-cylinder gasoline engi...
2014 Corvette Stingray Officially Rated at 29 MPG
9 Jul 2013, 07:32 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / General Motors has announced official EPA-estimated ratings for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. According to the company, America’s most anticipated sportscar for 2013 will return 29 mpg highway and 17 mpg city when equipped with the se...
Suzuki Swift 4x4 Launched in the UK
8 Jul 2013, 15:53 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Japanese automaker Suzuki has announced the introduction of a 4x4 version for its Swift supermini in the United Kingdom. Set to go on sale this month, the Swift 4x4 is available with a VAT free offer (until September 30) from £11,516. Only...
2014 Lexus IS Configurator Goes Online
8 Jul 2013, 15:38 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Japanese luxury car manufacturer Lexus has launched the online configurator for its all-new 2014 IS sedan. Priced from $36,845, the new IS can be had in four flavors, and you can now build your own version on the company's official website. ...
2015 Skoda Polar Rendered
8 Jul 2013, 14:58 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / The fact that Skoda is working on a new crossover SUV based on the Volkswagen Taigun Concept is already last year's news. Rumored to hit the market in 2015, the Polar mini SUV will be Skoda's response to the Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008 and ...
Nissan GT-R Convertible Imagined
8 Jul 2013, 14:29 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Have you ever wondered what would happen if Nissan would introduce a convertible version for their high-performance GT-R? If Bugatti managed to engineer a convertible Veyron, Nissan could do it as well, right? Well, it's actually not that simp...
All Motor Fox-body Mustang Runs 9-Second Quarter Mile
8 Jul 2013, 14:02 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / The era of mass produced cars powered by high-displacement engines seems to have come to a halt, with most important automakers looking to fit their almost entire lineup with small turbocharged powerplants. The V8 engine won't disappear obv...
2014 Volkswagen Touran Rendered, Looks Ready for Production
8 Jul 2013, 13:37 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Introduced in 2003, the Volkswagen Touran filled the compact MPV hole in the company's lineup. Based on a stretched Golf 5, the Touran, which was smaller than the Sharan, was redesigned in 2010, when the second-generation was launched. Now ...