autoevolution
 

Dan Mihalascu

302  ARTICLES

Personal motto:

"When you're racing, it's life. Anything that happens before or after is just waiting." (Steve McQueen's character from the Le Mans movie, 1971)

editor photo
Fascinated by automobiles since he could barely walk, Dan quickly started dismantling toy cars only to reassemble them (eventually), much to his mother’s despair. After learning how to read, he began collecting piles of car magazines, again driving his mom mad.

Finally, something good came out of his passion as he decided to turn it into a career. Since he was better at writing than changing spark plugs, he chose to study journalism instead of becoming a mechanic - thank God for that! And while most of his college colleagues fantasized about winning the Pulitzer prize, all he wanted was to drive cars and write about them. He started doing that right after graduation when he landed his first job as a car magazine writer.

When his mom thought he finally got settled, Dan started racing and entered his first hill climb event at 26 in a Peugeot 205 GTi. The debut went pretty good but the second race ended with a totaled car. Of course, he blamed that on the poor choice of tires in the wet. Being too fired up and inexperienced to keep a cool head on a damp course never crossed his mind as actually being the problem. While the racing bug never really went out of his system, Dan ended his racing career after two seasons amid financial difficulties and his family’s persistence that motorsport was not worth the risk of dying. Tragically, two of his colleagues lost their lives in crashes during that period.

He never really stopped writing, though. After a long hiatus that saw him work as a writer and editor for several international car news websites, Dan has returned to autoevolution, the place that kick-started his writing career for a global audience more than a decade ago. He has taken up a new role as a coordinating editor, and his obsessive attention to detail and quest for factual accuracy should serve him well in his daily tasks. Unless he spends too much time to find the perfect choice of words, that is.
Massa Denies Button's Blocking Claims
Massa Denies Button's Blocking Claims

15 May 2010, 17:46 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Felipe Massa has denied accusations of blocking Jenson Button during qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix. The McLaren driver expressed his anger at the Brazilian after he slowed down right in front of Button while the Englishman was about to compl...

 
New Engines for the Alfa Romeo Brera and Spider in the UK
New Engines for the Alfa Romeo Brera and Spider in the UK

15 May 2010, 17:43 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Alfa Romeo UK has recently introduced its new 200 hp 1750 TBi petrol and the 170 hp 2.0 JTDM diesel engines to the Alfa Brera coupe and Alfa Spider convertible, following the unveiling of the powerplants in the Alfa 159 late last year. The new A...

 
New Details on the Future Front-Wheel Drive BMW
New Details on the Future Front-Wheel Drive BMW

15 May 2010, 17:40 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / New details emerged about BMW’s future front-wheel drive hatchback. The German automaker will roll-out in 2013 new entry-level models to its range, all front-wheel drive. According to Autocar, the new cars will be based on the next-generat...

 
Mark Webber on Pole for the Monaco Grand Prix
Mark Webber on Pole for the Monaco Grand Prix

15 May 2010, 15:28 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Mark Webber was the fastest driver in the qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, with the Australian having his strongest opponent in Renault's Robert Kubica. The Renault ace emerged quickly as the man to beat, posting a Q3 time 1.1 s...

 
How Diesel-Electric Hybrids Work and Why They Aren't on Sale Yet
How Diesel-Electric Hybrids Work and Why They Aren't on Sale Yet

15 May 2010, 08:22 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Hybrid vehicles have been with us for a while now and it seems they will get more and more common all over the world in the coming years. At least until full-electric vehicles solve their range and power station problems. If you take a look at ...

 
Pirelli Wants to Be Formula 1's Sole Tire Supplier
Pirelli Wants to Be Formula 1's Sole Tire Supplier

14 May 2010, 10:50 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Pirelli has revealed it is not interested in competing in Formula 1 with other tire suppliers. The Italian tire manufacturer submitted an application to replace Bridgestone as the F1’s sole tire supplier. The Japanese company intends to r...

 
British Radio Host Buys $17.7 Million Ferrari 250 GTO
British Radio Host Buys $17.7 Million Ferrari 250 GTO

14 May 2010, 09:54 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / RM Auctions announced it has found a buyer for a very rare and expensive Ferrari, the 250 GTO (Gran Turismo Omologato). Only 36 of these were built between 1962 and 1963 in order to receive the FIA homologation for GT racing. The road-going 250 ...

 
Porsche Lines Up 33 Cars for the Nurburgring 24 Hours Race
Porsche Lines Up 33 Cars for the Nurburgring 24 Hours Race

14 May 2010, 08:44 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Porsche will compete at this weekend’s Nurburgring 24 Hours race with an army of 33 cars from different backgrounds. The title defenders from Manthey Racing take up the race at the wheel of the number one car, the new, 480 hp 911 GT3 R, p...

 
Schumacher Encouraged by Mercedes’ Pace
Schumacher Encouraged by Mercedes’ Pace

14 May 2010, 08:00 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Michael Schumacher thinks Mercedes has a good chance to qualify near the front of the grid in Monaco, after both its cars were in the top five in Thursday’s second free practice session. Nico Rosberg finished second, after Ferrari’s ...

 
Volkswagen Premieres GTI Excessive Concept at Worthersee
Volkswagen Premieres GTI Excessive Concept at Worthersee

14 May 2010, 07:24 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Volkswagen premiered at this year’s edition of the GTI meet two special Golf GTIs: the adidas and the Excessive. We brought you details about the former so now we’ll focus on the latter. If the GTI adidas will enter production next m...

 
Alonso Tops Second Practice Session in Monaco
Alonso Tops Second Practice Session in Monaco

13 May 2010, 14:35 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Alonso was once again the fastest driver in the second practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix. The Ferrari ace beat Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg by 0.109 seconds and Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel by 0.195 seconds. After the start of the s...

 
Wheel Nuts' Designs Blamed for Hamilton's and Vettel's Problems in Spain
Wheel Nuts' Designs Blamed for Hamilton's and Vettel's Problems in Spain

13 May 2010, 13:58 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / 2010 wheel nut and hub designs are to blame for recent failures in Formula 1 cars, according to German magazine Auto Motor und Sport. The journalists claim that technical solutions adopted in order to speed up pistops this year are related to the m...

 
ART Grand Prix Has Submitted F1 Entry Bid for 2011
ART Grand Prix Has Submitted F1 Entry Bid for 2011

13 May 2010, 12:30 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / French GP2 team ART Grand Prix has revealed it applied to enter Formula 1 in 2011, becoming the thirteenth outfit. "Yes, we have applied to join the world championship in 2011," Frederic Vasseur, co-founder ART Grand Prix, confirmed t...

 
Team Bosses Accused of Wanting "Controversy" at the Monaco Grand Prix
Team Bosses Accused of Wanting "Controversy" at the Monaco Grand Prix

13 May 2010, 10:59 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Michael Schumacher and Martin Whitmarsh have accused some team bosses of wanting "chaos" and "controversy" on the streets of Monaco this weekend. At a meeting held last week in Barcelona, team bosses rejected a drivers' pro...

 
Alonso Fastest in Monaco GP First Practice Session
Alonso Fastest in Monaco GP First Practice Session

13 May 2010, 10:36 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Fernando Alonso edged Sebastian Vettel by just 0.073 seconds in the first practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix. The Spaniard and the German were closely followed by Renault’s Robert Kubica, who posted a time only 0.089 seconds slower tha...

 
2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee Cheaper than Outgoing Model
2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee Cheaper than Outgoing Model

13 May 2010, 09:32 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Jeep has announced U.S. pricing for the all-new 2011 Grand Cherokee SUV. Prices start at $32,995 for the base Laredo 4x4 model (shipping included), $465 less than the equivalent 2010 model. The Chrysler Group began making Grand Cherokees at its ...

 
Toyota, Honda, Alfa Romeo and Ford Reportedly Interested in WTCC Entry
Toyota, Honda, Alfa Romeo and Ford Reportedly Interested in WTCC Entry

13 May 2010, 08:33 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Four new important automakers could join the FIA World Touring Car Championship, according to Marcello Lotti, promoter of the competition, quoted by Auto123. Toyota, Honda, Alfa Romeo and Ford could join BMW, SEAT and Chevrolet into the FIA sanc...

 
Kubica Worried about Renault's Lack of Aero Updates for Monaco
Kubica Worried about Renault's Lack of Aero Updates for Monaco

13 May 2010, 07:53 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Robert Kubica has admitted he is worried about whether Renault is fully prepared to perform on the streets of Monaco this weekend. The Pole, who switched to the Enstone based team following three and a half years of driving for BMW, said he has ...

 
Porsche Design Launches New Perfume
Porsche Design Launches New Perfume

13 May 2010, 07:21 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / Porsche Design has launched a new perfume called The Essence Summer Ice, just after engineers at the car division finished work on the 911 GT2 RS. Like the most powerful street-legal Porsche of all times, The Essence Summer Ice Perfume comes in a l...

 
Green Technology Patents Dominate GM's 2009 Filings
Green Technology Patents Dominate GM's 2009 Filings

13 May 2010, 06:48 UTC · By: Dan Mihalascu / More than half of the 1,300 patents filed by General Motors Co. in 2009 are green innovations, according to a press release of the company. “The move toward electrification is requiring us to reinvent the DNA of the automobile, requiring m...

 

Stories by Dan Mihalascu