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Cristian Gnaticov

Staff Writer
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Growing up in the communist regime, little Cristian knew the local cars, whose models you could count using the fingers on one hand, by their sound. Scale models were a luxury back then, so he turned to old magazines for glimpses of famous models sold in the West.

Shortly after the regime fell, he started school and got his first four-wheeled toys. Not long after, he experienced the "brute force" of an old Dacia (long before the current Renault era) far away from public roads - and he instantly knew that his life won't have any meaning for the next 10 years or so, when he could get his license and take on the roads on his own.

As years slowly passed, his father started teaching him the basic parking and turning maneuvers. And before he knew it, he turned 18 and got his prized license.

He spent the next few years going to car meets and the occasional drag race, as part of local clubs, and when he finished school and started earning his first money, he knew what he had to do: modify an old Dacia (his first true love) and go rallying.

So the arduous process began. Finding a good engine, transmission and suspension, upgrading the brakes and reinforcing the chassis. An old Renault 5 Alpine supplied the power unit, whereas the suspension and brakes came from a Dacia factory rally car.

Countless sleepless nights later, his baby was almost ready to hit the asphalt, gravel and other fun surfaces. Unfortunately, a string of events that included a garage fire, among others, killed his dream. So, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living, and the rest is history.

He worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s.
West Coast Customs Officially Pimps the Chevy Silverado, Turns It Into a Low-Rider
West Coast Customs Officially Pimps the Chevy Silverado, Turns It Into a Low-Rider

4 Mar 2023, 17:32 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Back in the day, when Pimp My Ride was still a thing, Xzibit would say to the owner of this Chevrolet Silverado that they have officially been pimped. Nowadays, however, the pickup didn’t get its 15 minutes of fame on the blue screen, but on ...

 
Dodge Durango Hellcat Needs Only Three Friends: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
Dodge Durango Hellcat Needs Only Three Friends: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit

4 Mar 2023, 01:52 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Dodge sure knows how to keep petrolheads interested in their aging products, and the strategy here is simple: stuff a big V8 under their hoods, tweak the chassis, give them better brakes, a few sporty touches inside and out, and launch them as supe...

 
Should Toyota Boost Its GR Family With a Brand-New Celica Sports Coupe?
Should Toyota Boost Its GR Family With a Brand-New Celica Sports Coupe?

3 Mar 2023, 20:20 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Toyota pulled the plug on the Celica nearly two decades ago, and we haven’t heard much about it, from an official point of view anyway, ever since. The  last example of the seventh generation was made in Japan in 2006, and it was off...

 
How To Turn the Lamborghini Urus Into a Real Super Wagon in One Simple Step
How To Turn the Lamborghini Urus Into a Real Super Wagon in One Simple Step

3 Mar 2023, 18:02 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Lamborghini has struck gold with the Urus. Their best-selling model by far, which builds on the legacy of the iconic LM 002, is five years old, and it has been refreshed, with the family expanding to include the more track-focused Performante, in a...

 
Prior Design's BMW X5 Is a Fearless Warrior With a Plastered Nose
Prior Design's BMW X5 Is a Fearless Warrior With a Plastered Nose

3 Mar 2023, 16:10 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / While Prior Design was working on this widebody kit for the X5, BMW was working on the facelifted iteration. Now one of them is out, and it’s not the aftermarket bundle of upgrades, but the mid-cycle refresh of the fourth-gen premium mid-size...

 
Lambo's Urus PHEV Is Not Even Famous Yet, and Already Has Its Own Bodyguard
Lambo's Urus PHEV Is Not Even Famous Yet, and Already Has Its Own Bodyguard

3 Mar 2023, 11:04 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / With the S and Performante versions out of the way, Lamborghini can now concentrate on bringing the plug-in hybrid Urus to market. The first-ever electrified take on the super crossover has been testing for quite some time now, ahead of its premier...

 
An Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio Coupe Would Be a Proper Rival to the Likes of the BMW M4
An Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio Coupe Would Be a Proper Rival to the Likes of the BMW M4

3 Mar 2023, 10:24 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Alfa Romeo has given the Giulia a mid-cycle refresh. Alongside its crossover sibling, the Stelvio, the premium compact sports sedan premiered last fall with an updated design, and a few other tweaks, and they are bound to be followed by the Quadrif...

 
Does Ford Need a Super Duty Raptor for Quicker Commercial Business?
Does Ford Need a Super Duty Raptor for Quicker Commercial Business?

3 Mar 2023, 07:55 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / The Raptor moniker doesn’t have a long tradition with Ford. In fact, it was first used on the 2010 F-150 SVT, which was so well received that the Blue Oval eventually dropped a similar version of two more generations of the popular truck. ...

 
Flame-Spitting Dodge Challenger Is One Egg-Laying Step Away From Becoming a Dragon
Flame-Spitting Dodge Challenger Is One Egg-Laying Step Away From Becoming a Dragon

3 Mar 2023, 02:02 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Like all V8-powered muscle cars, the range-topping versions of the Dodge Challenger do not need any mods in order to stand out. Nevertheless, the owner of this black copy would beg to disagree, as they have turned their ride into a flame-spitting b...

 
This AMG-Looking Mercedes-Benz G-Class Hides Diesel Power Behind Panamericana Grille
This AMG-Looking Mercedes-Benz G-Class Hides Diesel Power Behind Panamericana Grille

3 Mar 2023, 00:22 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Mercedes may only offer the second-generation G-Wagen in the G 550 and AMG G 63 flavors in our market. But on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, it is also being sold with a diesel engine, as an alternative to the gasoline-powered ones. There...

 
Sexiness Overload: Maserati's GranCabrio Folgore Shows Sleek Styling During Testing
Sexiness Overload: Maserati's GranCabrio Folgore Shows Sleek Styling During Testing

2 Mar 2023, 11:46 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / With the all-new GranTurismo out of the way, subsequent to last year’s unveiling, Maserati can now focus on the development of its open-top sibling. The GranCabrio has been spied testing multiple times, and in this instance, it was the zero-e...

 
2023 Toyota Aygo X Goes Undercover With New Fashion-Inspired Special Edition
2023 Toyota Aygo X Goes Undercover With New Fashion-Inspired Special Edition

2 Mar 2023, 10:52 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / After Mercedes’ collaboration with Moncler, which gave birth to the puffed-up G-Class art piece recently, it is now time for Toyota to join forces with Undercover’s head designer, Jun Takahashi, for a limited edition version of the Aygo...

 
Aston Martin DBX707 Super SUV Becomes the Official Medical Car of Formula 1
Aston Martin DBX707 Super SUV Becomes the Official Medical Car of Formula 1

2 Mar 2023, 09:54 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / When the 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship roars to life this coming weekend, it will see the debut of the brand-new Medical Car, the Aston Martin DBX707. Finished in the same colors as the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One race...

 
Kia Pumping Fresh Blood Into the Carnival, Minivan Spied With EV9-Inspired Design
Kia Pumping Fresh Blood Into the Carnival, Minivan Spied With EV9-Inspired Design

2 Mar 2023, 09:08 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Kia has started testing the facelifted Carnival in the open, some three years after production of the fourth generation kicked off. The minivan is getting new front and rear ends, which will bring it in line with some of the company’s new veh...

 
2024 Kia EV9 Shows Sleek Exterior on Video, Electric Crossover Due This Month
2024 Kia EV9 Shows Sleek Exterior on Video, Electric Crossover Due This Month

2 Mar 2023, 08:04 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Kia has started the teasing game when it comes to the EV9, and we all know what that means, don’t we? That’s right, the brand’s upcoming flagship electric crossover is about to be unveiled. In a short press release accompanying...

 
Audi R8 Makes the Lamborghini Huracan Proud by Starting a Fire in Florida
Audi R8 Makes the Lamborghini Huracan Proud by Starting a Fire in Florida

2 Mar 2023, 01:42 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / The full-blown supercar ownership comes with a lot of hassle, from the extremely costly maintenance to sourcing all kinds of parts whenever something goes wrong, and having to make do without it for weeks at a time. In certain cases, you may want t...

 
New Genesis GV80 Coupe Is Almost Here to Make the BMW X6 Uncomfortable
New Genesis GV80 Coupe Is Almost Here to Make the BMW X6 Uncomfortable

1 Mar 2023, 23:20 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / BMW may have started the whole crossover coupe craze with the original X6, but in the meantime, its biggest rivals have launched similar models. Mercedes has the GLE Coupe, Audi the Q8, Porsche the Cayenne Coupe, and Genesis is working on the GV80 ...

 
After the Laughable G-Class Coupe, Mansory's Rolls-Royce Ghost Is a Breath of Fresh Air
After the Laughable G-Class Coupe, Mansory's Rolls-Royce Ghost Is a Breath of Fresh Air

1 Mar 2023, 20:00 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / As much as some of us keep ridiculing most of Mansory’s projects, it’s obvious that they’re quite popular among the jet set, hence the tuner’s constant desire to impress with all sorts of builds, including those that are sim...

 
2024 MINI Countryman Isn't Hiding Its BMW DNA, Will Be Made Next to Its German Cousins
2024 MINI Countryman Isn't Hiding Its BMW DNA, Will Be Made Next to Its German Cousins

1 Mar 2023, 08:16 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / The brand-new MINI Countryman is right around the corner, and the British automaker, owned by the BMW Group, has just stepped forward to announce that it will be put together at Leipzig. This marks the first time that a MINI is assembled entirely i...

 
Do You Have a Moment to Talk About the Hypothetical Nissan Maxima Wagon?
Do You Have a Moment to Talk About the Hypothetical Nissan Maxima Wagon?

28 Feb 2023, 23:54 UTC · By: Cristian Gnaticov / Just like minivans, mid-size sedans, and vehicles from other segments, traditional wagons are slowly being killed by crossovers. However, it will be a while until the last mainstream estate leaves the assembly line for good, and that time will be d...

 

Stories by Cristian Gnaticov