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Mircea Panait

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Personal motto:

"If in doubt, flat out." - Colin McRae

Senior Contributor
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Little did he knew back then, but a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO is what sparked Mircea’s interest for cars when he was just a kid. Despite studying mathematics and informatics in high school and economics in university, Mircea turned his passion for all things automotive into a job.
 
Interning for Top Gear was his first foray in automotive journalism, and not long after that, a full-time position was opened for Mircea to seal the deal. Just about three years later, autoevolution became his new home.
 
Especially interested in American ponies and muscle cars, Mircea also finds the Japanese domestic market appealing thanks to the quirkiness of kei cars. Full-size pickups like the Ram 1500 and off-roaders such as the Ford Ranger Raptor and Jeep Gladiator Rubicon are much to his liking as well.
 
A self-described master of pasta and an avid CCG player, Mircea’s past-time activities include playing his Epiphone Les Paul Special Vintage Edition electric guitar, discovering the wonders of the Carpathian mountains by foot, and driving to the Black Sea to get a well-deserved tan.
Alpine A110 RS Continues Testing, Le Mans 24 Hours 2024 Premiere Mooted
Alpine A110 RS Continues Testing, Le Mans 24 Hours 2024 Premiere Mooted

16 Apr 2024, 20:03 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / In production since 2017, the Alpine A110 harks back to the original from the 1960s with a four-cylinder engine and rear-wheel drive. A superb-looking berlinetta that also happens to be very light by modern sports car standards, the overly expensiv...

 
Stock Ram 1500 TRX Drag Races Hennessey H850 Cadillac Escalade-V, It's Not Even Close
Stock Ram 1500 TRX Drag Races Hennessey H850 Cadillac Escalade-V, It's Not Even Close

16 Apr 2024, 18:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Hennessey Performance Engineering recently introduced the H850 upgrade package for the Cadillac Escalade-V. Although it's not as impressive as the H1000 upgrade package, 850 ponies at the crankshaft are more than plenty in a full-size luxury S...

 
Tuned Cadillac Escalade-V Lays Down 695 Wheel Horsepower on the Hennessey Dyno
Tuned Cadillac Escalade-V Lays Down 695 Wheel Horsepower on the Hennessey Dyno

16 Apr 2024, 17:01 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Be it standard or long wheelbase, Cadillac's range-topping sport utility vehicle can be had with a choice of three powerplants, beginning with a torquey inline-six turbo diesel. Higher up the spectrum, customers are presented with either the 6...

 
2025 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Boasts New Infotainment, More Safety Kit, Two Battery Options
2025 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Boasts New Infotainment, More Safety Kit, Two Battery Options

16 Apr 2024, 15:58 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Pricier than both direct rivals from the Ford Motor Company and Stellantis, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter has entered the 2025 model year with even higher prices. The fossil-fuel range now starts at $50,900 sans the ridiculously high $2,295 destinatio...

 
Dodge Durango R/T Drag Races Acura MDX Type S, They're Worlds Apart
Dodge Durango R/T Drag Races Acura MDX Type S, They're Worlds Apart

16 Apr 2024, 14:59 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Which is quicker in the quarter mile between a Durango with the Eagle V8 and an MDX with the J30AC V6? Sam CarLegion is much obliged to answer that question with two drag races at Dunville Autodrome in the province of Ontario, Canada. Pictured i...

 
2025 Toyota 4Runner Gets Virtual Redesign, Double Handlebar Mustache Is No More
2025 Toyota 4Runner Gets Virtual Redesign, Double Handlebar Mustache Is No More

16 Apr 2024, 14:03 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Marouane Bembli, who is better known as The Sketch Monkey on social media, fired up the Photoshop suite in order to redesign the 2025 Toyota 4Runner. Best described as being a mild alternation of an otherwise great-looking sport utility vehicle, hi...

 
Ford Recalls Bronco Sport Fake Hood Scoop Because It May Detach While Driving
Ford Recalls Bronco Sport Fake Hood Scoop Because It May Detach While Driving

16 Apr 2024, 12:59 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Back in the olden days, hood scoops were – more often than not – functional. But when it comes to modern vehicles, hood scoops rarely serve a functional purpose. The Ford Motor Company's Bronco Sport 2021 – 2024 Air Desi...

 
2026 Mercedes-Benz C-Class EV Spied Again, Will Compete With BMW's New i3
2026 Mercedes-Benz C-Class EV Spied Again, Will Compete With BMW's New i3

15 Apr 2024, 23:28 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Due to reach dealers in the second half of 2025 for the 2026 model year, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class EV borrows exterior styling cues from both the mid-size EQE and the larger EQS. Also influenced by the forthcoming CLA EV, the newcomer will face sti...

 
2024 Ram 1500 TRX Successor Teased, 2025 Ram 1500 RHO Coming April 25 With TT I6 Muscle
2024 Ram 1500 TRX Successor Teased, 2025 Ram 1500 RHO Coming April 25 With TT I6 Muscle

15 Apr 2024, 22:28 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The Ram 1500 TRX will be retired after model year 2024. Its long-awaited replacement is the RHO, which – as implied – means Ram High Output. One can also make a case for Rebel High Output, for the Rebel comes with the standard-output Hu...

 
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT Rugged Trim Level Spied Testing, Features All-Terrain Rubber
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT Rugged Trim Level Spied Testing, Features All-Terrain Rubber

15 Apr 2024, 21:07 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Hyundai brand's idea of rugged is XRT, a trim level introduced by the Santa Fe a few years ago. Now available on Santa Cruz, Tucson, and Palisade as well, the XRT grade will be expanded to the South Korean marque's electric vehicles later...

 
Alfa Romeo Milano Who? Italian Automaker Begrudgingly Renames Small Crossover
Alfa Romeo Milano Who? Italian Automaker Begrudgingly Renames Small Crossover

15 Apr 2024, 19:57 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Champagne is a type of sparkling wine exclusive to the Champagne region of the French Republic. There is a parallel to be made with Parmigiano Reggiano, an Italian cheese specific to the provinces of Parma and Reggio Emilia. The Italian Parliame...

 
2024 Ford Ranger Raptor Races F-150 Raptor 37, Should Have Stayed Put
2024 Ford Ranger Raptor Races F-150 Raptor 37, Should Have Stayed Put

15 Apr 2024, 18:58 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / For the first time ever in Raptor history, the Ranger Raptor is available stateside. Manufactured at the Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne alongside the Bronco, the 2024 model year Ford Ranger Raptor features the same 3.0-liter EcoBoost twin-turbo V...

 
2024 Mercedes-AMG GT 63 Coupe Laps Anneau du Rhin Faster Than Mercedes-AMG SL 63
2024 Mercedes-AMG GT 63 Coupe Laps Anneau du Rhin Faster Than Mercedes-AMG SL 63

15 Apr 2024, 18:08 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Not to be confused with the GT 4-Door Coupe, the GT Coupe is best described as the SL's hard-topped brother. The 2+2 sports tourer may weigh a lot more than Mercedes-AMG's first-generation GT, but 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive makes a world of ...

 
Maserati Debuts GranCabrio Folgore, Zero-Emission Convertible Packs 751 Horsepower
Maserati Debuts GranCabrio Folgore, Zero-Emission Convertible Packs 751 Horsepower

15 Apr 2024, 17:06 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The latest Maserati to receive the Italian automaker's three-motor electric powertrain is the GranCabrio. The Stellantis-owned marque originally promised up to 1,200 horses, but alas, maximum discharge capacity limitations result in 751 horsep...

 
2025 Bentley Continental GT Spied Inside and Out, W12 Makes Way for Hybrid V8
2025 Bentley Continental GT Spied Inside and Out, W12 Makes Way for Hybrid V8

15 Apr 2024, 15:56 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / 2024 is a turning point for Volkswagen Group-owned Bentley Motors Limited. In production since 2003, the Continental GT will drop its trademark W12 engine in favor of electrified powerplants. Introduced by the D2-generation Audi A8, the aforemen...

 
Supercharged 2024 Ford Mustang GT Makes Almost 800 Wheel Horsepower
Supercharged 2024 Ford Mustang GT Makes Almost 800 Wheel Horsepower

15 Apr 2024, 15:01 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Palm Beach Dyno big kahuna Ken Bjonnes recently tested a 2024 model year Ford Mustang on the dyno. The before and after beggars belief, but there's more to it than a sixth-generation Whipple supercharger. First and foremost, Ford quotes 480...

 
NHTSA Investigates 2023 Cadillac Lyriq Over Braking System Issue
NHTSA Investigates 2023 Cadillac Lyriq Over Braking System Issue

15 Apr 2024, 13:55 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The somewhat uninspiringly-named Lyriq has been hit with a probe from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. According to the Office of Defects Investigation, the federal agency is aware of multiple field reports from owners alleging a...

 
2025 Land Rover Defender OCTA Continues Nurburgring Testing, Might Debut July 11
2025 Land Rover Defender OCTA Continues Nurburgring Testing, Might Debut July 11

14 Apr 2024, 01:02 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Many people, but especially Defender enthusiasts, bashed the L663 series for being a unibody rather than a body-on-frame sport utility vehicle. Certain voices also expressed worry in regard to the Defender getting too upmarket. It's alright to...

 
Spy Photos: German Police Pulls Over 2025 Lamborghini Urus PHEV at the Nurburgring
Spy Photos: German Police Pulls Over 2025 Lamborghini Urus PHEV at the Nurburgring

13 Apr 2024, 12:10 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / Lamborghini continues testing the electrified replacement for the Urus S and Urus Performante. Pictured at the Nurburgring, the camouflaged Urus PHEV prototype got pulled over by the German police for – most likely – the lack of a front...

 
2024 Toyota Camry Drag Races Segment Rivals, Winner Needs 14.5 Seconds
2024 Toyota Camry Drag Races Segment Rivals, Winner Needs 14.5 Seconds

12 Apr 2024, 13:25 UTC · By: Mircea Panait / The Camry is a bit of a snoozefest because it was designed with three things in mind: affordability, reliability, and frugality. Equipped with a free-breathing V6 rather than a four-pot engine, TRD isn't as frugal as the Camry can be. However,...

 

Stories by Mircea Panait