The first journalist to drive it was also the last Bill Thomas didn’t know he was making history. Nobody at Bentwaters Park on August 19th, 2008 thought they were making history. They thought they were making a magazine feature. Top Gear had arranged a photo shoot with Mazda’s Furai concept at the former RAF airbase … Read more
The American supercar that needed the Space Shuttle to not melt itself In January 1995, Ford had an engineering problem that no car manufacturer had ever needed to solve before. The exhaust system of its most ambitious concept car generated so much heat that it could melt the carbon fibre body panels surrounding it. The … Read more
Lancia Stratos HF Zero: the wedge that was 33 inches tall and won three world titles If you grew up watching Group B onboards, or if Sanremo and the Acropolis mean something to you because of Munari and the orange-and-white livery, you already know the Lancia Stratos. What you probably don’t know is that the … Read more
BMW GINA: the fabric-skinned car Chris Bangle spent seven years building in secret to ask one question Chris Bangle is, depending on who you talk to, either the man who destroyed BMW or the man who saved it. Probably both. If you read any British or American motoring press from the early 2000s, you’ll remember … Read more
Lamborghini Marzal: One lap of Monaco, then forty years of nothing There’s a photograph from May 7th, 1967 that tells you everything you need to know about the Lamborghini Marzal. Grace Kelly is sitting in the passenger seat. Prince Rainier III is driving. The car has glass doors that run from the roofline all the … Read more
