Ciprian Florea
7,287 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.
Audi to Sting LaFerrari, McLaren Competition with Scorpion Supercar
11 Apr 2013, 11:58 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Audi’s future diesel-electric supercar will be developed under the Scorpion codename. Based on the Le Mans-winning R18 e-tron quattro, the Scorpion will be designed to rival the likes of LaFerrari, McLaren P1 and Porsche 918. According to ...
AMG Says No to Diesels
11 Apr 2013, 10:11 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / While BMW and Audi have introduced the diesel engine in their high-performance vehicle lineup, Mercedes-Benz’s AMG brand rejects the idea of a diesel-powered model. At least for now... "We should never say never to a diesel or anythin...
Ford Denies 3-Cylinder Fusion Rumors
11 Apr 2013, 10:09 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Ford Motor Co. denied recent rumors saying the Fusion mid-size sedan will be offered with the three-cylinder engine recently launched for the Mondeo in China. Speaking to AutoGuide, a Ford spokesman revealed the company will make an important of...
Tesla Pondering High-Performance Electric Truck
11 Apr 2013, 09:31 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk said the company is looking to build a new facility in Texas and could develop an electric pickup truck in the future. “When we do establish a manufacturing plant outside of California, Texas would be a leading c...
General Motors Returns to Facebook After Embarrassing Split
11 Apr 2013, 09:03 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / General Motors is now friends with Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg likes this. Ford chuckles. Eleven months after deciding to split with Facebook over “ineffectiv ads”, General Motors has returned to the popular social media website to lau...
Nissan Teases Friend-ME Concept Ahead of Shanghai Debut
11 Apr 2013, 08:37 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Japanese automaker Nissan has revealed a couple of teaser photos of their all-new Friend-ME concept car, scheduled to debut at the 2013 Shanghai Auto Show later this month. Announced two weeks ago, the Friend-ME concept car is designed for the &...
GM to Invest €4 Billion in Ailing Opel Division
11 Apr 2013, 08:07 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / General Motors has announced plans to invest €4 billion ($5.23 billion) in its Opel subsidiary over the next four years, stating that the German brand “has GM’s full support”. Although Opel lost no less than €1.38 bil...
Henry J Gains Hemi V8 and Vortech Supercharger
10 Apr 2013, 16:23 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Some of you probably never heard of the Henry J, a compact two-door sedan built in the early 1950s by the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation. Designed as an affordable car for the average American, the Henry J was a simple vehicle without the fancy features...
Volkswagen California Celebrates 25th Anniversary
10 Apr 2013, 15:13 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its iconic Volkswagen California camper van at Techno Classica, an event scheduled from April 10th through the 14th. Introduced in the late 1980s on the Volkswagen T3 platform...
Unique Bertone-Bodied Aston Martin Goes Under the Hammer
10 Apr 2013, 14:40 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / The unique Aston Martin DB4 GT-based Bertone Jet will be auctioned at the Bonhams’ Aston Martin Works sale scheduled next month in Newport Pagnell, England. Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro while he was working for Gruppo Bertone, the Berton...
Toyota Says Corolla Outsold Ford Focus in 2012
10 Apr 2013, 14:11 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Japanese automaker Toyota claims its Corolla compact car was the world’s best-selling vehicle in 2012, despite Polk’s report that handed the honors to Ford’s Focus range of models. Toyota US vice president of communications Mik...
Porsche Confirms Flat-Four Engine, Says It’s Not Due Before 2016
10 Apr 2013, 13:36 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / German automaker Porsche has confirmed yesterday’s rumor about developing a turbocharged flat-four engine, but revealed that the new unit won’t see the light of day until 2016. Speaking to Autocar, an unnamed Porsche representative s...
George Bush’s Ford F-150 King Ranch Auctioned for Charity
10 Apr 2013, 12:58 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / A 2009 Ford F-150 King Ranch pickup truck that belonged to former US president George W. Bush fetched $350,000 at the Barrett-Jackson auction that took place in Palm Beach, Florida, last weekend. All proceeds from the sale of the truck will bene...
Ferrari F50s Clash in Rally Showdown, Tire-Burning Tug of War
10 Apr 2013, 12:43 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / If having a rare supercar in your garage is something to be proud of, having one and putting it to good use on tire-shredding courses makes the owner a ...? We’ll let you answer that... Moving on, the video posted below marks the comeback ...
Next Hyundai Sonata to Gain Evolutionary Styling
10 Apr 2013, 11:54 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Set to arrive in 2014, the next-generation Hyundai Sonata will feature a evolutionary design and won’t be too different than the current model, the South Korean automaker revealed. Speaking to WardsAuto, Hyundai US CEO John Krafcik said th...
Citroen Berlingo Electric Launched in UK
10 Apr 2013, 11:03 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / The Citroen Berlingo Electric, the EV version of the French commercial vehicle, made its UK debut at the CV Show scheduled in Birmingham this week. The new Berlingo Electric is said to incorporate the latest EV technology and offer a range of up...
2013 Ram Trucks Recalled Over Parking Brake, Engine Cover Issues
10 Apr 2013, 11:03 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Earlier today we reported that Chrysler Group LLC has recalled no less than 246,000 vehicles over several issues and is seems that Auburn Hills has some problems in truck sector as well. About 9,300 2013 Ram 1500 pickup trucks will be recalled t...
Chrysler Recalls Over 240,000 Vehicles, Jeeps & Dodges Included
10 Apr 2013, 09:54 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Over 240,000 Chrysler Group LLC built vehicles assembled between 2007 and 2012, including Jeep and Dodge SUVs, are being recalled for several issues. Chrysler’s new recall campaign started yesterday with 78,500 2007-2008 built Jeep Liberty...
Nissan Altima Coupe Getting the Axe
10 Apr 2013, 08:47 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Japanese automaker Nissan will probably discontinue the Altima Coupe, a US company representative said on Monday. Speaking to Automotive News, Nissan US sales boss Al Castignetti has revealed that the low volume selling Altima Coupe will probab...
Fisker to File for Bankruptcy Protection
10 Apr 2013, 08:25 UTC · By: Ciprian Florea / Left with only 25% of its employees and taken to Court for dismissing its workers without advance notice late last week, Fisker is about to file for Chapter 11, also known as “bankruptcy protection”. According to a report issued by A...