Sean Szymkowski, Contributor
Articles
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Taking your car to a dyno is often a great way to produce bragging rights, especially after installing various aftermarket modifications. Following the results owners often swear by the figures, but...
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Say, what can you see? How self-driving cars view roadsWhen a self-driving car boots up and takes in the world around it, its vision is nothing like what a human driver finds familiar. Instead, a self-driving car uses data collection via radar, cameras, and lidar to "see" the world around it. How can humans begin to understand what the machine sees?...
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Katech 416 is a short-block V-8, long on 600-plus-horsepowerMost car enthusiasts are well aware that a project car comes with a whole lot of baggage, namely in picking and sourcing appropriate parts. The engine is especially important, and depending on the individual's goals, making a lot of horsepower can get really expensive, really quickly. Enter Katech...
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British police are using video games to hone high-speed driving skillsPerps on the run in the United Kingdom take note: police forces are stepping up their game—literally. The Lincolnshire police force is testing a new way to train officers in high-speed driving and it involves a whole lot of video games. Through a partnership with Sony's PlayStation, four...
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1917 Mitsubishi refitted with modern Outlander plug-in hybrid powertrainWhat's old is new again, at least at Mitsubishi. The three-diamond brand is celebrating its centennial this year. To mark the occasion, the brand tapped West Coast Customs to build a 1917 Model A—Mitsubishi's first car, as its name implies—with a plug-in hybrid powertrain plucked from...
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Polestar 1 is a carbon fiber-bodied 600-horsepower hybrid coupeVolvo was among the first automakers to announce intentions to phase out the internal combustion engine and move to a purely electrified portfolio of cars. In the process, Volvo's former in-house tuning division, Polestar, parted ways to become a standalone brand. Its mission? Build electrified...
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The CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX, Elon Musk, may have initially proposed the idea of the Hyperloop, but the legendary entrepreneur only began work on his own Hyperloop system recently after offering...
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. receives fitting NASCAR retirement presentThe 2017 NASCAR Cup Series will be Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s final season after he announced his retirement earlier this year. Through Earnhardt Jr.'s 18 seasons and more than 600 races, the star racer clinched two Daytona 500 wins in his career. So, what's a proper retirement gift for someone of...
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Elon Musk is "full of crap" with self-driving car promises, says GM execAutomakers and technology companies from around the world continue to press forward with their autonomous-driving technologies, but a handful remain standouts. Arguably, Tesla arrived on the scene first with its Autopilot system. However, despite its name, the technology is far from capable of...
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A hardcore SVX Land Rover Defender might be in the worksIt's unclear what the next-generation Land Rover Defender will bring when it finally arrives—Land Rover says it's "not far away"—but we do know the brand is absolutely committed to retaining its off-road appeal. Whatever go-anywhere capability it may have, Land Rover is reportedly...
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Audi's future might not include V-10, W-12 engines; V-8 safe for awhileAudi, like many other automotive brands, will focus on electrification and self-driving technology in the future. But, a shift in thinking will likely come at the expense of large engine displacements. Newcomer to the brand, Peter Mertens, came aboard this year as Audi's board member for technical...
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It's McLaren P1 GTR and Ferrari FXX K track timeWhen two hypercars take to the track to stretch their legs, it's time to put down everything and strap in for the ride. Today, it's the McLaren P1 GTR and the Ferrari FXX K, which arrived at Monza for a few hot laps. The video shows the two hypercars during different sessions, so it's not an actual...
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The Dodge Viper has once again departed the automotive landscape, but it won't be forgotten anytime soon. Why? Because it represented one of the purest sports cars a Detroit automaker ever...
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This time capsule 1979 Pontiac Trans Am has been driven just 65 milesPontiac's days of building excitement are long gone, though they arguably faded into the sunset long before the division was axed in 2009. Yet, classic Pontiac cars still remind us of the days before General Motors gave "badge engineering" its blessing. The Pontiac Firebird Trans Am is merely one...
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Volkswagen kills the Scirocco hatchback coupeIt's time to pour one out for Volkswagen's long-running two-door hatchback "coupe," the Scirocco. Volkswagen officially announced the Scirocco's demise and said it will not take additional orders for the car. Customers still seeking their own example will have to scour local European dealerships...
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Polestar cuts the crap with new electric performance coupe teaserPolestar is being blunt with the latest teaser for its upcoming electrified performance coupe. In the new video, the former Volvo in-house tuning division explains its ethos and says, "we [will] reveal a car that we would want to drive ourselves. Because when you build something for yourself, only...
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Better order now: Mercedes-Benz G550 4x4² production set to endHave your eye on a brand new Mercedes-Benz G550 4x4²? Take action soon because the German luxury brand announced production will cease at the end of October. The rugged G550 4x4² made a splash with its serious off-road credentials, which begins with a ride height that exceeds 17 inches...
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Mitsubishi thinks projected turn signals could be the futureMitsubishi is looking for ways to make sure pedestrians remain safe as self-driving technology becomes more commonplace. The Japanese automaker revealed what it calls the "Safe and Secure Lighting system" with intentions to make a car's actions better known to pedestrians. Basically, the system...
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Mercedes-Maybach revealed the ultra-posh G650 Landaulet in March at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show, at which time it was revealed that 98 of the planned 99 units were already sold.
What became of the...
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Daihatsu reveals cutesy DN Compagno concept carNorth Americans may not even remember Daihatsu, but the brand is alive elsewhere in the world, despite a fairly extensive global retreat throughout the 2000s. Now a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota, Daihatsu has done what it does best: compact cars. The latest exercise in its core competency is...
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California will allow self-driving cars with no human driver on public roads next yearCalifornia is anything but the wild West when it comes to testing self-driving cars. The state requires automakers and technology companies to adhere to strict regulations. Most notably, there must be a human driver behind the wheel of any self-driving car. Next year, California will change that...
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Nvidia aims to make Level 5 self-driving cars a reality with supercomputer chipNvidia may be best known for its computer graphics cards, but its new supercomputer chip may one day be a car's brain—and in the not-too-distant future to boot. The company revealed its latest artificial intelligence computer called Pegasus, and the company developed it with Level-5...
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Nissan built a GT-R operated by a video game controllerThe latest installment in the iconic "Gran Turismo" video game series, "Gran Turismo Sport," goes on sale next week, but Nissan threw a celebration of its own ahead of the launch. The video game itself may have coined the "Real Driving Simulator" tagline years ago, but Nissan took it to a new level...
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Aston Martin operates a bespoke secret club and it costs at least $2.6M to joinIt's not much of a secret now, but Aston Martin has, for some time, run a secret car-building operation inside its Prototype Operations. The team will build one-off vehicles for very special, private customers. But the price of entry isn't cheap. Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer recently told Road and...
Sean Szymkowski