Car FYI

Pictured here, the opulent multi-colour interior of the 1955 Packard Caribbean Convertible included a dazzling chrome column shift lever. (Photo Credit: Chris Nagy/Car FYI Canada)  The important role of a transmission paired with an internal combustion engine has been established for more than 100 years in facilitating the efficient flow of power through the drive wheels. Eventually through the evolution of automobile design, the familiar placement for a gearshift lever was mounted on the floor. However, for a time, it was also popular to find a gear shifter behind the steering wheel attached to the steering column. The Birth of Three on the Tree Although column shifters would become synonymous with automatic transmissions, the first appearance of the gear shift behind the steering wheel came with a manual gearbox. Referred to in brochures as remote control shifting, the 1939 Plymouth introduced the shifter positioning behind the steering wheel. The novel remote control shifting ...

The original trophy awarded to the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year winner, this trophy was sponsored by Indiana meat company Stark and Wetzel. For 2025, an all-new Ray Harroun Trophy was given to this year's top rookie. (Photo Credit: JeromeG111 Link to image here )   As Spain’s Alex Palou claimed the ultimate prize at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend by winning the 2025 Indy 500, a race for a desirable secondary trophy was fought for throughout practice, qualifying as well as the race. For this year’s event, the Indianapolis 500's Rookie of the Year award was handed to Robert Shwartzman who stunned the motorsport world by taking pole position driving for Prema Racing (also an IndyCar newcomer for 2025). The honour being given to Shwartzman despite a forgettable 26th place result in the 500-mile race is the latest example for the somewhat unique criteria used in crowning the achievement. First given out in 1952, the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award as...