Andrei Costea
343 ARTICLES
Personal motto:
Drive quick through turns, they're dangerous! - his driving instructor
His favorites include the 60s-70s American muscle cars, 80s-90s Italian super cars and contemporary mean machines like the Murcielago or the 599 GTO. He dreams that one day he'll have the opportunity to drive alongside renowned racers on a track, or at least do a time attack in a reasonably priced car on BBC's famous show Top Gear.
GM Contributes $4 Bn to Its US Pension Fund
2 Dec 2010, 14:27 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / GM recently confirmed the previously announced voluntary $4 billion cash deposit to its United States hourly and salaried pension plans, with $2.7 billion going to the hourly plan and $1.3 billion directed to the salaried plan. The contribution ...
Toyota Dismisses Rumors of Latest TSB Being a Recall
2 Dec 2010, 14:25 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Toyota, like other respectable automobile manufacturers, actively and continuously monitors field information regarding its vehicles. In some cases, the company may issue a Special Service Campaign (SSC), which provides owners with a free repair. I...
Mismatched Bumpers on Cars and SUVs Result in Costly Repairs
2 Dec 2010, 13:23 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducted crash tests to demonstrate that the mismatch of bumpers on cars and SUVs can lead to higher repair costs, despite the bumpers being a car's first line of defense against costly damage...
Michael Schumacher's 1998 Helmet on Sale for $25,000
2 Dec 2010, 11:31 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The Memorabilia Experience is an online marketplace of sometimes impossible-to-find souvenirs from the motorsports scene. This is where we found one of Michael Schumacher's helmets on sale for $25,000. Schumacher used this Bell helmet at th...
Subaru US Sales, Another All-Time High
2 Dec 2010, 09:51 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Subaru has released monthly sales results and has broken its US record for annual sales, set last year. The company was the only brand to boost its sales on the US market for three years in a row, selling 20,792 vehicles last month and 237,126 unit...
2011 Pirelli Calendar: Greek Gods and Julianne Moore
2 Dec 2010, 09:18 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Pirelli has revealed its famous calendar at a press event held in the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Theater in Moscow. The renowned designer Karl Lagerfeld was asked by the Italian tire maker to create this year's edition of the sexy l...
Former GM Designer Becomes Lincoln Design Director
2 Dec 2010, 09:18 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Lincoln announced that it appointed Max Wolff as their new director of Design. Wolff, who was in lead of the Cadillac exterior design team, will bring a new vision and help Lincoln grow into a world-class luxury brand. "Hiring a Lincoln des...
Gymkhana Grid to Be the Next Big Motorsport Series
1 Dec 2010, 17:07 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / After a series of Gymkhana Practice videos that managed to catch the eye of some 70 million viewers, and a few failed attempts in the World Rally Championship, Ken Block is at it again, this time trying to reenact Europe's famous Race of Champ...
Ford Mustang Boss 302S is Track Exclusive
1 Dec 2010, 16:12 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / If you find the regular 2012 Ford Mustang 302 unfit for your skills and the TracKey just doesn't match the lock on the gates to Heaven, then the guys at Ford Racing can help you. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Mustang Boss 302...
Fiat Bravo Goes to Brazil
1 Dec 2010, 15:33 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The Brazilian market is eager to get closer to the standard of mature markets, with each model launch quickly narrowing the gap. The medium-compact hatch segment, which was poorly represented up until now, has just received a new addition, the Fiat...
Renault Lessens its Car Range for 2011
1 Dec 2010, 14:37 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / With modern-day life getting more and more complicated, some automakers try to help us simplify our decision-making process when choosing a new car, by reorganizing their range. "Simplification", as the project has been called, will ensur...
Kia Sorento Sweeps Australia's Best Cars Award
1 Dec 2010, 13:59 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Kia is further increasing its fan base in the land Down Under, strengthening its image as a manufacturer of quality cars, at least in the eyes of the Australia's Best Cars judges. They have awarded the SUV in the Best SUV Under $40,000 categor...
Gert Volker Hildebrand to Retire from MINI Design Studio
1 Dec 2010, 13:14 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / After running the MINI design team for 10 years, Gert Volker Hildebrand will be leaving the company on December 31, 2010, relinquishing the position to Anders Warming. Gert Volker Hildebrand, aged 57, has been in charge of the design development...
Fiat's Blue & Me to Take the Lead from Ford's SYNC
1 Dec 2010, 12:07 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Ford may lose its technological upper hand, as Chrysler's alliance with Fiat is starting to become lucrative. Ford's 'Sync' revolutionary tool, jointly developed with Microsoft, enables voice control of phones and audio systems,...
Toyota Sues GM for NUMMI Shutdown, Demands $73 M
1 Dec 2010, 11:34 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Toyota said it filed a lawsuit against Liquidation Co, dubbed "old GM", the company that is auctioning leftover assets after GM closed some of its manufacturing plants. The Japanese carmaker hopes it will receive $73 million in damages re...
Volt Production to Be Doubled or Tripled, GM Says
1 Dec 2010, 10:16 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The new Chevrolet Volt appears to be the change of luck GM was waiting for, with about 240,000 potential buyers expressing interest in the vehicle. In spite of the Volt's great success with customers, GM will only deliver 10,000 units in 2011,...
Porsche's Share Sale Has Shareholders' Support
1 Dec 2010, 09:48 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Porsche investors approved a EUR5 billion stock sale to reduce the company's debt prior to its merger with Europe's largest carmaker, Volkswagen AG. Company shareholders voted in favor of the fund raising, half of which will come from the...
2012 Audi A6 Official Specs and Images
1 Dec 2010, 09:08 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / Audi is committed to become the game-changer in the mid-size luxury sedan segment, with the release of its newly revamped A6 model packed with new and ingenious solutions to problems we didn't even know we had. The Audi A6 heightens the pace i...
New Stratos GT2 in Development
30 Nov 2010, 16:39 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The "New Stratos" was revealed at the Paul Ricard HTTT track in France, alongside the original version. A new version that will compete in GT2 is reportedly in the works. The first glimpse of this race car was caught in a highly detailed ...
Government Loss as Low as $19Bn in Auto Bailout
30 Nov 2010, 15:55 UTC · By: Andrei Costea / The Congressional Budget Office said it expected the government's loss on the auto industry bailout to be around $19 billion, down from its initial estimate of $34 billion. This announcement comes after the government received $13.6 billion in...