RideLust

According to Wikipedia acronyms are: Abbreviations that are formed using the initial components in a phrase or name. We here at Ridelust.com began to think about these acronyms and how they’ve related to certain automobile manufacturers over the years. In the end we came to the conclusion that just about every one of them has had a few shots taken at them over the years, so we decided to compile as many as we could and post them up. Now I know we didn’t get all of them, so if you guys have any new ones feel free to throw them up in the comments section and add we’ll them to the list.

Read More…

Want to own a piece of racing history? How about a 1971 AMC Javelin, built by Roger Penske and driven by Mark Donohue? Up for grabs at the Canepa Collection, this car is said to be the last car driven by Mark Donohue before his retirement from Trans Am racing, and is the only car built by Roger Penske Racing in 1971. Originally constructed for the 1970 Trans Am season, car number 6 was rebodied in 1971 to feature wider fenders and a revised rear deck.

Read More…

The past thirty years have not been kind to automakers who sell cars in the United States. We’ve seen financial collapse, rising distribution and product liability costs, skyrocketing oil prices and a fickle buying public that no longer understands the concept of brand loyalty. Selling cars in the U.S. of A, it seems, requires deep pockets for marketing and promotion: if you’re not constantly in the face of the American consumer, chances are you won’t be a brand for very long.

Toyota’s recent $16.4 million fine got me thinking about how many automotive brands, good, bad and otherwise we’ve lost over the past 30 years. Following is a collection of car logos that have received last rites in the United States since 1980. Some of these companies continue to enjoy success in the EU or Asia, while others are dead and buried, with no chance of resurrection. It begs the question of how different the automotive landscape will look in another 30 years, assuming we’re still driving cars at all.

Read More…

Looks like it wants to slice you open at the shins, doesn’t it? It’s the AMX/3 prototype, a mid-engine super car designed by the legendary Dick Teague in 1969. It was AMC’s answer to the Pantera—a slick, lightweight sports car with wicked good looks and vicious acceleration. There’s a thumping, roaring 390 c.i. V-8 under that sexy bodywork, producing the kind of torque and horsepower that gives tires nightmares. It handles, too. The chassis work was done by Giotto Bizzarrini, the legendary madman known for stuffing 327 c.i. Corvette V-8s into sexy Italian bodies. Unfortunately, the AMX/3 never made it to full-scale production; the Oil Crisis killed any hopes of making the gas-swilling American rocket ship. A total of five running cars were built. Only a few of them survive today.