autoevolution
 

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.
Dodge Hornet and Alfa Romeo Tonale Recalled for Incorrect Weight Capacity on Label
Dodge Hornet and Alfa Romeo Tonale Recalled for Incorrect Weight Capacity on Label

8 Mar 2024, 19:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Stellantis messed up the maximum vehicle capacity weight value on the tire placard label fitted to 36,093 crossovers produced for the US market, plus 5,878 more for Canada. The affected population comprises the 2023 to 2024 model year Dodge Hornet ...

 
Kia Recalls 3.3L TT V6-Powered Stinger and K900 Sedans for Potential Oil Leak
Kia Recalls 3.3L TT V6-Powered Stinger and K900 Sedans for Potential Oil Leak

8 Mar 2024, 17:15 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Kia's US and Canadian divisions have issued separate recalls concerning the 2018 through 2023 model year Stinger and 2019 through 2020 model year K900. The problem is exclusive to vehicles equipped with the 3.3L twin-turbocharged V6. Over i...

 
2025 Renault 4 E-Tech Subcompact Crossover Spied, Will Compete Against Fiat's 600e
2025 Renault 4 E-Tech Subcompact Crossover Spied, Will Compete Against Fiat's 600e

8 Mar 2024, 03:40 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The 5 E-Tech might be Renault's main focus right now, but in the not-so-distant future, a brand-new 4 will join the subcompact hatchback. Spied mere hours after the 5 E-Tech made its debut on February 26, the 4 E-Tech returns into the spotligh...

 
Immaculate 1988.5 Lamborghini Countach 5000 QV Hits the Dyno, Lays Down 320 HP
Immaculate 1988.5 Lamborghini Countach 5000 QV Hits the Dyno, Lays Down 320 HP

8 Mar 2024, 02:05 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Few supercars are capable of stirring emotions quite like a Countach does. The V12-powered icon may not be Marcello Gandini's first rodeo in the wedge-shaped automotive design space, but even so, this is the supercar that defined the 1970s. ...

 
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Vans Recalled in the US for Electrical Issue
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Vans Recalled in the US for Electrical Issue

7 Mar 2024, 21:12 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Sold by Daimler Vans USA rather than Mercedes-Benz USA, the Sprinter has been hit with yet another safety recall that raises a few questions about Merc's build quality and quality control. More specifically, incorrect routing of the main wirin...

 
New Audi RS 5 Avant PHEV Spied, Will Challenge Mercedes-AMG C 63 With Two More Cylinders
New Audi RS 5 Avant PHEV Spied, Will Challenge Mercedes-AMG C 63 With Two More Cylinders

7 Mar 2024, 20:19 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Restricting the 206 series to four-cylinder lumps only is a big deal, and – most likely – a mistake on Merc's part. Who, in the name of all things holy, would ever consider plonking down 115,174.15 euros on a brand-new C 63 with fo...

 
2024 Land Rover Discovery Sport Recalled Over Improperly Fastened A-Pillar Bolt
2024 Land Rover Discovery Sport Recalled Over Improperly Fastened A-Pillar Bolt

7 Mar 2024, 18:18 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Historically speaking, Land Rover has a reputation for notoriously bad quality control, which leads to incredibly unreliable vehicles. The latest example in this regard is the Discovery Sport, of which 47 units were produced for the US market with ...

 
New Audi Q6 e-tron Electric SUV Will Debut March 18 With Porsche Macan Underpinnings
New Audi Q6 e-tron Electric SUV Will Debut March 18 With Porsche Macan Underpinnings

7 Mar 2024, 17:08 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Volkswagen Group brand Audi prepares to unleash its new electric vehicle. Twinned with the second-generation Macan on the Porsche- and Audi-developed Premium Platform Electric, the Q6 e-tron will "overtake your expectations" on March 18. ...

 
Ford Recalls EcoSport Accessory Rear Seat Covers Due to Safety Concern
Ford Recalls EcoSport Accessory Rear Seat Covers Due to Safety Concern

7 Mar 2024, 16:09 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Ford has recently identified an issue with a certain rear seat cover. More specifically, EcoSport owners who purchased accessory rear seat covers bearing part numbers VNJ1Z-6163812-A (taupe) or VNJ1Z-6163812-B (charcoal) are urged to take them off ...

 
France Gets Two-Seater Tesla Model Y Commercial Vehicle, It's Exempt From VAT
France Gets Two-Seater Tesla Model Y Commercial Vehicle, It's Exempt From VAT

7 Mar 2024, 15:12 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Tesla senior account manager Clement Maguet has confirmed a very special type of Model Y for the French market. By reducing the number of seats to merely two, Tesla created a van-like Model Y exempt from the value-added tax. The standard rate i...

 
BMW Recalls i4, i5 Electric Sedans Over Battery Issue
BMW Recalls i4, i5 Electric Sedans Over Battery Issue

7 Mar 2024, 14:01 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / BMW AG has recently identified a safety concern affecting a limited number of battery packs. More specifically, the laser welding process connecting the cell contacting system to a cell terminal may not have been performed appropriately. The insuff...

 
Nissan Recalls 2023 – 2024 Models Over Driver's Airbag Inflator That May Absorb Moisture
Nissan Recalls 2023 – 2024 Models Over Driver's Airbag Inflator That May Absorb Moisture

6 Mar 2024, 22:57 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Just over 350 units of 2023 to 2024 Nissan sedans, utility vehicles, and pickup trucks were produced with driver's airbag modules containing potentially defective inflators. The suspect airbag inflators may allow moisture to enter due to misal...

 
Ferrari 296 With Novitec Exhaust Sounds Insanely Nice
Ferrari 296 With Novitec Exhaust Sounds Insanely Nice

6 Mar 2024, 21:58 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Ferrari discontinued the internal combustion-only F8 series in 2023. Although not a direct successor to the V8-powered model, the 296 replaces the V8-powered F8 in the Italian automaker's lineup. The biggest change from the F8 isn't pl...

 
Porsche Recalls 911 Over Improperly Manufactured Windows, 8K Vehicles Affected
Porsche Recalls 911 Over Improperly Manufactured Windows, 8K Vehicles Affected

6 Mar 2024, 21:02 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Porsche Cars North America has recalled 8,101 examples of the Neunelfer. The affected population was assembled between July 8, 2019 and October 30, 2023 for the 2020 through 2024 model year. Supplied by UK-based Pilkington San Salvo, the front a...

 
Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 Drag Races Tesla Model S Plaid, Makes ICE Loyalists Proud
Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 Drag Races Tesla Model S Plaid, Makes ICE Loyalists Proud

6 Mar 2024, 19:18 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Herman Young (a.k.a. Demonology on social media) recently had the opportunity to race his Challenger SRT Demon 170 against one of the fastest EVs out there. Pictured at the Texas Motorplex, the blue-painted muscle car obliterated a Model S Plaid ov...

 
Ford Recalls Medium Duty Trucks Over Parking Brake Issue, Remedy Under Development
Ford Recalls Medium Duty Trucks Over Parking Brake Issue, Remedy Under Development

6 Mar 2024, 18:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Ford has recalled the Dearborn-based automaker's Medium Duty line of trucks for incorrectly manufactured parking brake handles. According to the Blue Oval, certain components with suspect dimensions may allow the parking brake handle to diseng...

 
2025 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Successor Sports Huge Grille, Might Be Called Vanquish
2025 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Successor Sports Huge Grille, Might Be Called Vanquish

6 Mar 2024, 17:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Due to fuel economy and emission regulations, V12 engines are – without a shadow of a doubt – living on borrowed time. According to Aston Martin Lagonda's former chief executive officer Tobias Moers, the AE31 twin-turbo V12 wil...

 
Nissan Rogue Gets Recalled Over Incorrectly Manufactured Seatbelt Pretensioners
Nissan Rogue Gets Recalled Over Incorrectly Manufactured Seatbelt Pretensioners

6 Mar 2024, 16:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The Nissan Rogue's driver and front passenger seatbelt pretensioners are supplied by Mexico-based ZF Occupant Safety Systems. According to documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, almost 10,000 examples of the...

 
Watch the McLaren GT Exceed Its Claimed Top Speed at the NASA Shuttle Landing Facility
Watch the McLaren GT Exceed Its Claimed Top Speed at the NASA Shuttle Landing Facility

6 Mar 2024, 15:12 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The McLaren GT is often dismissed as the least rousing Macca of the modern era, but still, the naysayers ignore a few things about it. For starters, the predecessor of the GTS wouldn't have been possible without the awe-inspiring Speedtail. We...

 
BMW Recalls Certain X5 and X7 SUVs for Improperly Manufactured Instrument Panel
BMW Recalls Certain X5 and X7 SUVs for Improperly Manufactured Instrument Panel

6 Mar 2024, 14:11 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / BMW of North America has issued a safety recall affecting fewer than 10 examples of the X5 and X7. Supplied by South Carolina-based Yanfeng Automotive Interior, the instrument panels of said vehicles may not have been manufactured according to spec...

 

Stories by Mircea Panait