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Vlad Mitrache

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Having the memory of an elephant suffering from amnesia, I'm the exact opposite of an automotive encyclopedia. That's exactly why you can very often find me studying the spec sheets of cars or asking my colleagues who are very much more knowledgeable than me about facts and figures. On the bright side, though, that means I get to learn new things every day.


Contrary to most of the people here, I didn't get my driving license right after my 18th birthday, but it wasn't because I didn't want to. I won't get into details, but three years later I was the proud owner of that piece of plastic and a piece of trash car with which I quickly established a love and hate relationship. Mostly hate.

However, driving I loved, so that's what kept me going until my first decent car. By this time, I started thinking about mixing my degree in Journalism with my passion for driving, and so there I was working as an editor for a car magazine. A few good years later, nothing much has changed. But don't take my word for it, I tend to forget stuff. Now, if I could just remember where I parked my car...
Tesla Motors Sells 3.1 Million Shares Raising an Estimated $738.3 Million, But Faces PR Issues
Tesla Motors Sells 3.1 Million Shares Raising an Estimated $738.3 Million, But Faces PR Issues

20 Aug 2015, 14:54 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / On the 13th of August, Tesla Motors announced plans for selling 2.1 million shares, with an underwriter option to buy as many as 315,000 more. The following day, 590,000 shares were added with an option for as many as 414,239 more. That adds up to ...

 
European Study Breaks Down Driving Personalities into Seven Categories, Which One Are You?
European Study Breaks Down Driving Personalities into Seven Categories, Which One Are You?

20 Aug 2015, 13:46 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / It's common knowledge that power doesn't change a man's personality, but only enhances it. Stepping at the wheel of a car equals instant power boost - or, as Jeremy Clarkson so controversially put it, when you're driving, you be...

 
Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Driver Carefully Scrapes Front and Rear Bumpers
Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Driver Carefully Scrapes Front and Rear Bumpers

20 Aug 2015, 12:23 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Here's one thing you may or may not know: in 1998, the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR - a limited edition model restricted to just 25 units built by AMG only so the racing car would receive its homologation - was declared the most expensive production ...

 
Average US Fuel Efficiency Has Only Grown by 3.6 MPG since 1923, Study Finds
Average US Fuel Efficiency Has Only Grown by 3.6 MPG since 1923, Study Finds

20 Aug 2015, 11:45 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / A recent study conducted by the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute on the fuel consumption of America's fleet of vehicles has come up with surprising results. The team analyzed data from each year starting with ...

 
2017 Mercedes-AMG C63 Coupe Is the Sportiest C-Class Ever. Also, Fabulous
2017 Mercedes-AMG C63 Coupe Is the Sportiest C-Class Ever. Also, Fabulous

20 Aug 2015, 09:20 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Mercedes-AMG C63 Coupe has got to be the most eagerly anticipated AMG model of the year. Not only does it look absolutely stunning, but history shows us it's also the best-selling AMG vehicle and forms the backbone of the company's succes...

 
Woman Fined in Spain for Posting Online a Compromising Image of a Police Car
Woman Fined in Spain for Posting Online a Compromising Image of a Police Car

19 Aug 2015, 16:09 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / We should warn you right from the off we're venturing into a pretty delicate zone. Lately, there has been an unprecedented surge in police abuse cases worldwide that have made a lot of people angry. In some countries, people feel the Police...

 
Rolls-Royce Phantom Nautica Is Yet Another Special Edition One-Off Model
Rolls-Royce Phantom Nautica Is Yet Another Special Edition One-Off Model

19 Aug 2015, 15:10 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / You have to wonder - with such a prolific range of unique or limited edition vehicles, could it be that their number is actually greater than that of the regular Phantoms? Cause if that were the case, you'd better hurry and buy one today, as t...

 
Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo Previews Company's New Design Language, Launches in Frankfurt
Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo Previews Company's New Design Language, Launches in Frankfurt

19 Aug 2015, 13:58 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / It seems like the first preview of the next Bugatti model will come in a virtual space as the company has announced it will be releasing its own interpretation of the Vision Gran Turismo at the Frankfurt Motor Show. This is a little unusual, es...

 
Audi RS7 Challenges a Mercedes-AMG GT S to a Rolling Start Drag Race and Loses
Audi RS7 Challenges a Mercedes-AMG GT S to a Rolling Start Drag Race and Loses

19 Aug 2015, 13:07 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Drag races will never get old. Why? Because they're a very condensed dose of everything we love about cars: speed, competition, a winner and a loser. Plus a very good opportunity to end debates and pit certain brand fanboys against each other,...

 
Aston Martin DB4 Series V Vantage Is One More Reason to Play the Lottery
Aston Martin DB4 Series V Vantage Is One More Reason to Play the Lottery

19 Aug 2015, 12:25 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / The Aston Martin DB4 was born too early to become a James Bond car, but its venerable age makes it one of the most collectable models from the British brand. This car in particular being auctioned at Silverstone Auctions’ Salon Privé...

 
Formula E Gets First Full-Time Female Driver Starting Next Season
Formula E Gets First Full-Time Female Driver Starting Next Season

19 Aug 2015, 09:41 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / We look forward to the day when a woman racing driver will not be a newsworthy subject, but with the current status-quo in motorsport, a move such as this remains something that needs pointing out. We do this in hope of more and more women gain...

 
Ural Sidecar Bikes Cross Rather Deep Raging River Like It Was Nothing
Ural Sidecar Bikes Cross Rather Deep Raging River Like It Was Nothing

19 Aug 2015, 09:06 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / We know everything's tougher in Russia, but we figured in this case things would be even: tough Russian motorcycles meet tough Russian river. But the encounter is far from a boring stalemate as the video below clearly shows. If we're ...

 
Lumma CLR G 800 Is the Lairiest Looking GLE63 Coupe Conversion Yet
Lumma CLR G 800 Is the Lairiest Looking GLE63 Coupe Conversion Yet

19 Aug 2015, 08:03 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Let's face it, the Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe isn't the sportiest looking car out there, even when talking about the GLE63 Coupe. It is muscular, yes, but it just doesn't exude the kind of athleticism you'd expect from a car capabl...

 
Aston Martin Rapide EV Will Reportedly Come With 800 HP, AWD, Guaranteed Huge Smile
Aston Martin Rapide EV Will Reportedly Come With 800 HP, AWD, Guaranteed Huge Smile

18 Aug 2015, 17:10 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / We sincerely hope the number of EV detractors has dwindled over the years after they were given proof of their unfounded resistance to change by a series of wonderful machines, with Tesla leading the way. If the electron-powered Aston Martin Rapide...

 
Mercedes-AMG C63 S Coupe Showcases Its Rear Axle Differential With Electronic Lock
Mercedes-AMG C63 S Coupe Showcases Its Rear Axle Differential With Electronic Lock

18 Aug 2015, 16:34 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / There are a lot of things that make the Mercedes-AMG C63 S Coupe drive as well as we expect it to, and few would think to rank the rear axle limited slip differential with electronic lock very high among them. Even though they should. Back in th...

 
Fiat Planning a Range Splitting Strategy to Retake European Market
Fiat Planning a Range Splitting Strategy to Retake European Market

18 Aug 2015, 15:21 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / In all honesty, a true Fiat comeback was long overdue, the Italian brand lately relying too heavily on the small 500 model both as an image vector and for driving the sales. Soon, though, the 500 will be spearheading only one of the two future wing...

 
Google Shifting Its Attention Towards Your Rooftop, Checks If It's Solar Panel Worthy
Google Shifting Its Attention Towards Your Rooftop, Checks If It's Solar Panel Worthy

18 Aug 2015, 14:21 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Free of charge, unlimited miles behind the wheel of your car. That's every driver's dream and with the advent of EVs, it could someday become a reality. For the moment, though, unless you're the proud owner of a full-size wind turbin...

 
Individual Technology Development Might Spell Automotive Doom
Individual Technology Development Might Spell Automotive Doom

18 Aug 2015, 12:19 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / Now here's something a lot of us never stop to think about: a lot of wayward cash spending could be avoided if automakers were more inclined towards working with each other on developing new technology. It's true that a large number of...

 
Minor Accident Temporarily Shuts Down Tesla Plant in Fremont, California
Minor Accident Temporarily Shuts Down Tesla Plant in Fremont, California

18 Aug 2015, 11:17 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / It makes sense that you can't build an electric car without electricity, doesn't it? The Tesla employees working at the Fremont plant in California found that out the hard way last Friday when a minor incident cut power for the whole fact...

 
Nikki Lauda Has Grown Tired of Today's Formula 1: "MotoGP Is More Interesting"
Nikki Lauda Has Grown Tired of Today's Formula 1: "MotoGP Is More Interesting"

18 Aug 2015, 10:00 UTC · By: Vlad Mitrache / We've all thought about it, but we're not Nikki Lauda. Watching a Formula 1 Grand Prix these days is the best natural surrogate for a sleeping pill. Even the noise isn't what it used to be, so you don't even have to turn the vol...

 

Stories by Vlad Mitrache