Mircea Panait
20,326 ARTICLES
Personal motto:
"If in doubt, flat out." - Colin McRae
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 Challenger SRT Demon 170 Dyno Test: World's Most Powerful Muscle Car Makes 925 RWHP
21 Dec 2023, 22:46 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Mere days ago, John Hennessey took delivery of an extremely special muscle car. As implied by the headline, it's the world's most powerful series-production muscle car, a 1,025-horsepower land missile that runs 8.9 seconds in the quarter ...
2025 Aston Martin Valhalla Hits Silverstone With AMG Twin-Turbo V8 Plug-In Hybrid Muscle
21 Dec 2023, 21:54 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Aston Martin Lagonda has published four new pictures of the long-awaited Valhalla, with said photographs depicting a prototype at Silverstone in what appears to be cold weather. Equipped with racing car-style windows, the prototype isn't shown...
2024 Suzuki Swift 3-Door Version Masterfully Rendered
21 Dec 2023, 21:05 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / As opposed to the largest Japanese automaker in the world, the folks at Suzuki are specialized in both automobiles and motorcycles. When it comes to cars and crossovers, the Shizuoka-based company further specializes in sensibly priced small automo...
Porsche Recalls Certain Taycan Vehicles Over High-Voltage Battery Issue
21 Dec 2023, 20:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / More popular than Porsche's internal combustion-engined Panamera in terms of worldwide deliveries, the all-electric Taycan has been hit with a small recall. According to Zuffenhausen's favorite son, 205 vehicles produced for the 2021 to 2...
Audi Recalls 93,196 Electric Vehicles and Plug-In Hybrids Due to Fire Risk
21 Dec 2023, 18:14 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Back in September 2020, the Volkswagen Group-owned Audi brand became aware of incidents in which overheating and melting occurred at the industrial socket when charging with the 220V/240V industrial plug at 40 amperes. Between October 2020 and Dece...
2025 Ford Bronco Sport Prototypes Flaunt Larger Touchscreen, 360-Degree Camera System
21 Dec 2023, 17:09 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Twinned with the Ford Escape, the Bronco's unibody sibling is due a mid-cycle refresh in 2024 for the 2025 model year. As per the press release for the Ford Motor Company's Q3 2023 results, the Bronco lineup will be extended together with...
Honda Recalls 2.5 Million Vehicles in the US Market Alone Due to Fuel Pump Failure Risk
21 Dec 2023, 16:27 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Honda and Denso have collaborated since times immemorial but said collaboration proved nigh-on disastrous on a number of occasions. Indirectly controlled by rival automaker Toyota, which owns more than 30 percent of the auto supplier, Denso recalle...
Toyota Recalls Previously Recalled Corolla Cross Vehicles Over Safety Concern
21 Dec 2023, 03:11 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Back in May 2023, the Corolla Cross was recalled to the tune of 96,007 due to front passenger airbags that may not deploy as intended. The root cause? According to Toyota, a manufacturing error in the instrument panel where the airbag is located. ...
Matte Black-Wrapped Tesla Cybertruck Looks Fab With T Sportline Wheels
21 Dec 2023, 02:12 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Currently manufactured in limited quantities at Gigafactory Texas, the long-awaited Tesla Cybertruck was designed 18- and 20-inch wheels. The good folks at T Sportline offer no fewer than four alternatives for the bone-stock 20s, of which the most ...
Toyota Issues Massive Recall, 1.12 Million Vehicles May Feature Shorted OCS Sensors
21 Dec 2023, 01:09 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Toyota has issued a worldwide safety recall affecting 1.12 million vehicles. All based on the TNGA-K platform for FWD and AWD cars and crossovers from the D segment upward, the vehicles in question are equipped with occupant classification system s...
Dodge Hellcat Drag Races Tesla Model 3, Internal Combustion Fans Won't Like How It Ends
20 Dec 2023, 23:59 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Having been there when Chrysler introduced the Hellcat engine for the 2015 model year, it still amazes me that a $60,990 including destinate fee used to buy a two-door muscle car with 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet (881 Nm) of torque on tap. Sai...
Lotus Emira Hit With Three Recalls, All Three Are Safety Related
20 Dec 2023, 22:53 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Issuing three recalls in one day is both good news and bad news. Regarding the bad part, this shows that Lotus should have paid a bit more attention during the Emira's development and testing phases. On the other hand, the Emira is relatively ...
2024 GMC Canyon Configurator Goes Live, AT4X AEV Edition Package Price Not Listed
20 Dec 2023, 22:12 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Originally slated to enter series production on October 30, the 2024 model year GMC Canyon will – hopefully – start rolling off the assembly line on January 2. In addition to the UAW strikes and General Motors closing all North American...
Watch This Tesla Plaid-Powered 2001 Honda Odyssey Race a 1,111-HP Ford F-150 Pickup Truck
20 Dec 2023, 20:24 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / A while ago, Kyle Wade of BoostedBoiz bought a Tesla Model S Plaid off Copart to create a stripped-out racer dubbed E-Roy. In said configuration, Kyle removed almost 900 pounds (408 kilograms) of unwanted weight from the five-seat electric sedan. ...
Chrysler Pacifica Rated Acceptable in the IIHS Updated Side Crash Test
20 Dec 2023, 19:06 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The minivan segment's best-selling model isn't the safest minivan out there. Although awarded Top Safety Pick for its performance in a plethora of tests, including the all-important crashworthiness tests, the 2023 through 2024 Pacifica co...
Borla Debuts 2023 Chevrolet Colorado Exhaust System, 2.7L Turbo Doesn't Sound Inspiring
20 Dec 2023, 18:03 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / As you're well aware, Chevrolet replaced the S-10 in the US market with the Colorado. The second generation rolled out for the 2015 model year, and through 2022, it was offered with three powerplant choices: the 2.5- and 3.6-liter gassers, and...
2024 Subaru WRX Gets $2,130 More Expensive Than 2023 Model, New TR Version Is $41,655
20 Dec 2023, 16:06 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The WRX has gotten expensive. Originally priced at $29,105 for the 2022 model year, the VB retailed at $30,605 at the beginning of the 2023 model year. But for 2024, the MSRP is $32,735. Plus $1,120 for destination, that is, compared to $1,020 for ...
Honda Recalls CR-V Hybrid Over 12V Battery Cable Missing Fuse, 106,030 Vehicles Affected
20 Dec 2023, 15:06 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / American Honda Motor Co. has recently issued a mammoth recall over a rather shocking oversight. As it happens, an estimated 106,030 examples of the CR-V Hybrid have been produced with 12-volt battery cables that do not contain a fuse for the power ...
Hennessey Goliath 650 Supercharged GMC Sierra Races Bone-Stock Sierra, It's Not Even Close
20 Dec 2023, 02:55 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Hennessey Performance Engineering has recently launched a supercharged upgrade package for the GMC Sierra 1500 with the 6.2-liter small block. Pictured at the Texas-based tuner's Pennzoil Proving Ground, the half-ton pickup trucks in the video...
America's 2025 BMW M5 Touring Spied Testing With California Plate
20 Dec 2023, 01:41 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Word on the street is that BMW intends to sell the M5 Touring in the United States. The rumor took on a life of its own prior to BMW confirming the return of wagon-bodied M5 to the lineup, and these pictures all but confirm US availability for the ...