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Mircea Panait

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Personal motto:

"If in doubt, flat out." - Colin McRae

Senior Contributor
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Little did he knew back then, but a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO is what sparked Mircea’s interest for cars when he was just a kid. Despite studying mathematics and informatics in high school and economics in university, Mircea turned his passion for all things automotive into a job.
 
Interning for Top Gear was his first foray in automotive journalism, and not long after that, a full-time position was opened for Mircea to seal the deal. Just about three years later, autoevolution became his new home.
 
Especially interested in American ponies and muscle cars, Mircea also finds the Japanese domestic market appealing thanks to the quirkiness of kei cars. Full-size pickups like the Ram 1500 and off-roaders such as the Ford Ranger Raptor and Jeep Gladiator Rubicon are much to his liking as well.
 
A self-described master of pasta and an avid CCG player, Mircea’s past-time activities include playing his Epiphone Les Paul Special Vintage Edition electric guitar, discovering the wonders of the Carpathian mountains by foot, and driving to the Black Sea to get a well-deserved tan.
1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe Up for Auction
1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe Up for Auction

26 May 2014, 12:37 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Enjoying a very high profile in the Corvette enthusiasts community, the L88 Coupe is one of the most sought after Vettes ever made thanks to its timeless beauty, ultralow production run and serious firepower. Fortunately for the discerning colle...

 
Mrs. Hennessey Takes Supercharged 2015 Escalade Drag Racing
Mrs. Hennessey Takes Supercharged 2015 Escalade Drag Racing

26 May 2014, 11:28 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Being the wife of the successful man behind one of the most extreme tuning houses in North America certainly has its quirks. Cue Mrs. Hope Hennessey, who upgraded her family school bus to an all-new 2015 Cadillac Escalade supercharged to 557 horsep...

 
Rendering: Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Shooting Brake
Rendering: Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Shooting Brake

26 May 2014, 09:29 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / If 'jaw-tastic' isn't an officially recognized word yet, it should be. Admit it - the all-new Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat is spectacular by design and awe-inspiring performance-wise, but a shooting brake version is nothing less than...

 
2014 Fiat 500 UK Pricing Announced
2014 Fiat 500 UK Pricing Announced

26 May 2014, 08:32 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / In order to keep the little Italian city car fresh, Fiat operated a well-deserved but slightly too subtle update on its iconic Cinquecento. Nevertheless, the big highlights include a new range-topper dubbed 500 Cult and an all-new 0.9-liter TwinAir...

 
Buick Enclave Recalled In China Over Defective Seat Belts
Buick Enclave Recalled In China Over Defective Seat Belts

26 May 2014, 07:13 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Officially dubbed Shanghai GM, the Detroit manufacturer's Chinese joint venture announced it will recall over 26,579 Buick Enclave crossovers for shoddy safety belts. Over the last 50 years or so, we've seen quite a lot of carelessly b...

 
US Congress to Lift $35 Million Auto Safety Violation Penalty
US Congress to Lift $35 Million Auto Safety Violation Penalty

25 May 2014, 12:23 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / We imagine that every driver affected one way or another by the GM recall saga blames auto safety regulators for not imposing larger fines to deter manufacturers from doing very stupid things with potentially fatal outcomes. Fortunately for Stat...

 
Ford Mustang Runs Blistering 8-Second Quarter Mile
Ford Mustang Runs Blistering 8-Second Quarter Mile

25 May 2014, 11:03 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / If Dominic Toretto would've traded his 1969 blown Pontiac GTO for the car you're about to see in the video below, he would've managed to escape safe and sound from the train that totaled his father's pride and joy. Needless to s...

 
2015 Cadillac CTS Gets Revised Styling and Added Tech
2015 Cadillac CTS Gets Revised Styling and Added Tech

24 May 2014, 05:03 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The Cadillac CTS luxury sedan will return for the 2015 model year with a handful of visual enhancements, 4G LTE Internet connectivity, wireless smartphone charging and an assortment of safety features. Even though Caddy hasn't released offi...

 
American Drivers Hate Texters Most, Study Reveals
American Drivers Hate Texters Most, Study Reveals

24 May 2014, 03:53 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / With Memorial Day just around the corner, this weekend marks the start of the summer driving season. An estimated 30 million Americans are expected to take the roads these days, so expect a whole lot of slow traffic and less than courteous driving ...

 
Dodge Recalls Ram 2500, 3500 For Clutch Interlock Fault
Dodge Recalls Ram 2500, 3500 For Clutch Interlock Fault

24 May 2014, 03:10 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation on a number of 2004 to 2006 model year Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks due to a clutch interlock switch failure. Circa 110,000 pickups could be affected by this ...

 
Hertz Spruces Up the Ford Fiesta ST
Hertz Spruces Up the Ford Fiesta ST

23 May 2014, 16:58 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / By all means, the Ford Fiesta ST is one of the prettiest hot hatchbacks out there thanks to its form follows function design and very clean lines. But as the Dutch branch of Hertz demonstrated, you can easily enhance the looks of the pocket rocket ...

 
2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat: Brutal Exhaust Sounds
2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat: Brutal Exhaust Sounds

23 May 2014, 15:40 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / After revealing the facelifted Challenger back in August at the New York Auto Show, Dodge took the wraps off the most anticipated muscle car of 2014 just a few days ago. Needless to say, the all-new Challenger SRT Hellcat roars and growls through i...

 
2015 Ford F-150 Pickup Boasts Over 100 New Patents
2015 Ford F-150 Pickup Boasts Over 100 New Patents

23 May 2014, 14:17 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / It's no longer a secret that everyone has very high expectations from the next generation of light-duty pickup trucks. In order to meet those expectations, the Blue Oval's 2015 model year F-150 is loaded with innovative features. The s...

 
Abarth 695 Biposto Appointed Official Car Of the Gumball 3000 Rally
Abarth 695 Biposto Appointed Official Car Of the Gumball 3000 Rally

23 May 2014, 13:20 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / 50 years since the original model was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, the modern version of "the most Abarth of all Abarths" will make its on-road debut at this year's edition of the Gumball 3000 rally. Being the only official ...

 
All-New 2016 Chevrolet Camaro Is Just Around the Corner
All-New 2016 Chevrolet Camaro Is Just Around the Corner

23 May 2014, 12:11 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / According to a recent press release from the golden bowtied car manufacturer, the 2015 model year of the Chevrolet Camaro is the last hurrah of the fifth-generation model. Some reports hint that an all-new Chevrolet Camaro will land Stateside ea...

 
Revised Chrysler Ypsilon UK Range, Pricing Announced
Revised Chrysler Ypsilon UK Range, Pricing Announced

23 May 2014, 11:26 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Fiat Group Automobiles UK today revealed details and pricing for the revised Chrysler Ypsilon, featuring new entry-level and premium models, additional equipment and tech on the mid-ranger and a fresh palette of colours. Simply put, the former S...

 
Ford's Social Media Chief Leaves the Company
Ford's Social Media Chief Leaves the Company

23 May 2014, 09:09 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Scott Monty is pretty well known in the world of corporate digital communications for leading the Blue Oval's Global Digital Communications team for almost six years. However, the social media guru announced it will leave Ford for an undisclos...

 
2015 GMC Terrain Gets OnStar 4G LTE
2015 GMC Terrain Gets OnStar 4G LTE

23 May 2014, 08:26 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Starting with the 2015 GMC Terrain and Terrain Denali, the OnStar 4G LTE system will also be available on the 2015MY Sierra light-duty and HD pickups, the all-new Canyon mid-size truck, as well as the Yukon and Yukon XL. OnStar 4G LTE capability...

 
2016 Audi R8 Interior Revealed In Latest Spyshots
2016 Audi R8 Interior Revealed In Latest Spyshots

22 May 2014, 18:50 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / This just in from Germany: the second-generation Audi R8 borrows the virtual cockpit of the all-new TT, featuring a fully digital instrument cluster housed in an Lexus LFA-esque binnacle. Spotted by our carparazzi today while hitting the gruelin...

 
1991 Holden Commodore Makes Mincemeat Of Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG
1991 Holden Commodore Makes Mincemeat Of Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG

22 May 2014, 17:33 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Most of you would imagine the seventh generation Holden Commodore as a simple and reliable point A to point B car. However, don't get fooled by the sleeper look of the one featured in the video below... Owned by a bloke called Dan, the 1991...

 

Stories by Mircea Panait