TARMAC N TORQUE
The archive

News & Features

Everything we've published, from track-side reporting to slow Sunday reads.

The Impossible Race: How a Buffalo-Built Car Won a Trip Around the World in 1908
Features

The Impossible Race: How a Buffalo-Built Car Won a Trip Around the World in 1908

Six cars from four nations set out from Times Square to drive to Paris — the long way, through Alaska, Japan, and Siberia. Only three finished, and the winner didn't cross the line first.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20266 min read
Fifty Years Since Bergwerk: The Crash That Ended Formula 1's Deadliest Circuit
Features

Fifty Years Since Bergwerk: The Crash That Ended Formula 1's Deadliest Circuit

On August 1, 1976, Niki Lauda's Ferrari caught fire on the Nürburgring Nordschleife. He survived, nearly won the title anyway, and the sport never raced a championship round on the full circuit again.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20266 min read
The 75th Pebble Beach Concours Is Giving Japanese Le Mans History Its Own Class
Features

The 75th Pebble Beach Concours Is Giving Japanese Le Mans History Its Own Class

Ferrari headlines the 2026 field as the diamond-anniversary featured marque, but a new class built around Mazda, Toyota, and Nissan's Le Mans campaigns says as much about where the world's most tradition-bound car show is headed as any of the six-figure restorations parked on the 18th fairway.

Mitch HAugust 1, 20265 min read
Only 51 Tucker 48s Were Ever Built. Here's What Actually Killed the Company.
Features

Only 51 Tucker 48s Were Ever Built. Here's What Actually Killed the Company.

Preston Tucker's 1948 sedan had safety features decades ahead of Detroit. The company that built it collapsed within a year — and the reason isn't the industry conspiracy the movie tells you it was.

Mitch HJuly 16, 20265 min read
Renault Put a Championship-Winning F1 Engine in a Minivan
Features

Renault Put a Championship-Winning F1 Engine in a Minivan

To celebrate the Espace's 10th anniversary, Renault and Matra built one with a genuine 820-horsepower Williams Formula 1 V10 in the back. It still exists.

Mitch HJuly 16, 20264 min read
He Invented the Modern Seatbelt in a Year. His Employer Gave the Patent Away for Free.
Features

He Invented the Modern Seatbelt in a Year. His Employer Gave the Patent Away for Free.

Nils Bohlin spent years designing aircraft ejection seats before Volvo hired him to fix a problem that had been killing people in cars for decades. What Volvo did with his solution is the more remarkable part.

Mitch HJuly 16, 20264 min read
The Real Bullitt Mustang Spent 28 Years Hidden in a New Jersey Garage
Features

The Real Bullitt Mustang Spent 28 Years Hidden in a New Jersey Garage

The actual hero car from the most famous chase scene in movie history was daily-driven by a schoolteacher's wife until the clutch died, then vanished from public view for nearly three decades before selling for $3.74 million.

Mitch HJuly 16, 20265 min read
How to Actually Import a Car From Japan: The 25-Year Rule, Step by Step
Features

How to Actually Import a Car From Japan: The 25-Year Rule, Step by Step

The door-jamb date decides whether a car is legal to bring home. Here's the real process — auction to driveway — plus what a reputable importer actually does for you.

Mitch HJuly 12, 20267 min read
Larry Kosilla Left Wall Street to Wash Cars. Now He's the Most-Watched Detailer in the Country.
Features

Larry Kosilla Left Wall Street to Wash Cars. Now He's the Most-Watched Detailer in the Country.

The AMMO NYC founder turned a Harrison, NY car wash into an educational empire — and a philosophy he calls 'drive and protect.'

Mitch HJuly 6, 20265 min read
Hagerty's 2026 Road of the Year Is a 109-Mile Pennsylvania Backroad Almost Nobody Drives
Features

Hagerty's 2026 Road of the Year Is a 109-Mile Pennsylvania Backroad Almost Nobody Drives

Route 144 climbs through the Pennsylvania Wilds and descends a canyon along Hall Run Creek — a century-old lumber road turned recreation corridor.

Mitch HJune 1, 20266 min read
The Honda Accord Turns 50 — and Its Next Chapter Might Be Its Sportiest Yet
Features

The Honda Accord Turns 50 — and Its Next Chapter Might Be Its Sportiest Yet

From a 68-hp hatchback in 1976 to 25 million sold worldwide, with a fastback hybrid concept hinting at where it goes next.

Mitch HMay 8, 20267 min read
The Only White Ferrari 250 GTO Ever Built Just Sold for $38.5 Million
Features

The Only White Ferrari 250 GTO Ever Built Just Sold for $38.5 Million

"I didn't think I'd be able to buy it, but I decided to play anyway," said the buyer — setting a new company record for Mecum in the process.

Mitch HFebruary 5, 20266 min read
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