Car FYI

Photo Credit: Maserati North America Inc. Founded more than 105 years ago, Italian luxury car builder Maserati has manufactured creations blending the exclusive, high-end luxury with passionate sports car athleticism. While Maserati spent recent years championing their Levante sport utility vehicle as well as the Ghibli and the heavily-updated Quattroporte premium sedans, fans of the brand eagerly awaited the time more personalized driving experiences connected to the Trident logo. The long-anticipated replacement to the GranTurismo and GranCabrio grand tourer line, excepted to borrow design language communicated with the elegant Alfieri concept car, is planned for sale either next year or 2022. With September 9th MMXX: Time to be audacious” event, Maserati took the covers off their exceptionally powerful, lightweight MC20. Radiant in an elegant yet race car-like appearance, the Maserati MC20 is said to be the start of a new era for the Italian automobile company. The MC20 (a name com...

Photo Credit: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles North America The figurehead of the Jeep brand, the image of the Wrangler is a storied shape in automotive history created by necessity. The military-developed four-wheel drive vehicle related to the modern Jeep Wrangler was manufactured as a specialized mode of transportation for reliability handling rough terrain. Since the end of the second world war, the vehicle was steadily contemporized over the decades improving its looks, function and comfort. When the latest generation Wrangler was introduced in 2018, FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) retained much of its rugged off-roading personality but applied the flexibility to accept advanced technologies. Along with a powerful Pentastar V-6 engine, the 2018 Jeep Wrangler arrived with the choice of a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that included the additional electric power punch of an eTorque system. For 2021, the introduction of the Jeep Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid allows drivers to ch...

Photo Credit: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Celebrating 75 years as a brand in 2020, Jeep has always emphasized versatility in conventional and unconventional means. Though the four-wheel drive and impressive off-road capabilities initially defined Jeep’s identity, there was a long-running marketing push by the marque to present their vehicles as an upscale product that can reach peaks few sedans would reach. Starting in the late 1990s, a growing driving consumer base entered the domain of the Jeep brand.   First appearing in the 1963 model year, the Jeep Wagoneer was a longtime entrant in the sport utility vehicle category as a modern, premium product for its time. Sculpted by highly influential industrial designer Brooks Stevens, the original Jeep Wagoneer presented features attracting urban and suburban dwellers as much as drivers requiring a durable four-wheel drive vehicle. The SJ platform version of the Wagoneer endured the Jeep brand’s ownership by Kaiser Motors, American M...

Photo Credit: Joe Skibinski   The Indianapolis 500 ran for its 104th time in history under less than traditional circumstances for 2020. Held on a date in late August without any fans in the stands, the open wheel race on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval operated in a less than traditional way. However, the combination of the national anthem and “Back Home Again in Indiana” being sung, track owner Roger Penske gave the command to start engines and the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Pace Car took a 33-car field off pit lane towards the green flag provided an illusion close to the typical Memorial weekend 200-lap contest. Becoming the first Japanese driver to win the Indianapolis 500 in 2017, Takuma Sato is now in the illustrious company of multiple winners of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing”. Taking the lead of the 500-mile race on lap 185, Sato fended off charges from New Zealand native Scott Dixon through the late laps until a caution on lap 196 solidified his pl...