Călin Iosif
96 ARTICLES
When he’s not balancing writing for autoevolution and working on his journalism degree, Călin busies himself with his latest pet project: building his very own “rally-spec” Dacia 1300!
This 2001 Acura Integra Type-R Is VTEC Heaven, for All You Purists out There
28 Jun 2023, 09:23 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / I always hear people say you need a rear-wheel drive or an all-wheel-drive car to hit the track and properly go fast. But, there is a car that defies every stigma about front-wheel drive. A vehicle born from Honda's performance division that b...
This 2018 Dodge Demon Is Ready To Put Up a Fight Against Its Brethren, the Demon 170
25 Jun 2023, 11:53 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Drag racing is the simplest form of racing - two cars going down the quarter mile as quickly as possible. This form of competition spawned some insane, high-horsepower builds. But what happens when an entire company puts resources into creating suc...
Summer Is Here, So Let's Enjoy It With This Happy-Go-Lucky 1965 VW Bus
24 Jun 2023, 16:39 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / It's finally summer. I can't wait to finish my exams and head to the beach. But what should I drive there? There are many options for what I could use to go there, but one rises above all. I am, of course, talking about the cute VW Bus. S...
This 2003 Porsche Carrera 4S Hides a Sacrilege Under the Hood, Called the LS3 Engine
23 Jun 2023, 15:40 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Porsches are a work of art. Everything from the looks, driving dynamics, and glorious flat sixes is automotive nirvana. But, some people think that a 911, arguably one of the best sports cars, needs something more than the flat-six. And that is how...
This Duramax-Powered 1970 Chevy Chevelle Is an Environmentalist's Worst Nightmare
17 Jun 2023, 15:08 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Someone once said horsepower is how fast you hit a wall, but torque is how far you move the wall. That may not be a perfect explanation for the difference between horsepower and torque, but If you love the feeling of your stomach being pushed into ...
This 1963 Chevrolet Impala Z11 Is Retro Racing Bliss
15 Jun 2023, 11:14 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / As in every car category on the face of the planet, be it Euro or JDM, people always tend to disagree a lot on whether or not a particular model is good, and American Muscle is no stranger to this phenomenon. But, I have to say that there is one ca...
This 1964 Lincoln Continental Is an American Luxurious Extravaganza
12 Jun 2023, 09:13 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Do you want to get tired just from walking around your car? Do you want to make a 30-point U-turn? Well, boy, oh boy, do I have the vehicle for you. This car is the most American thing out there: it’s unnecessarily massive, it has a big honke...
Hot Take: Pretty Sure Chrysler Never Imagined Just How Iconic the Viper Would Become
10 Jun 2023, 13:33 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Picture this: It’s the ‘80s, and you are Chrysler. You are getting absolutely dragged through the mud by rivals Ford and GM. In that situation, you need something groundbreaking, and you need it yesterday. So, if you are Chrysler, what ...
This 1970 Dodge Charger R/T Is Ready To Flex All of Its 440 American Muscle
5 Jun 2023, 12:48 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / There's no replacement for displacement. We've all heard that before, and in the world of insane technical advancements and crazy tuners, it proves that the saying is kind of false, at least on paper. Because there are very few things tha...
This 1967 Shelby Mustang GT500 Is V8 Goodness in All Its Glory
3 Jun 2023, 17:35 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / There is nothing cooler than cruising in an old-school American muscle car. The exaggerated lines, excessive chrome use, and roaring V8 under the hood make for quite a fantastic experience. If you want all of that, you can't go wrong with a &#...
This 1972 Modified Volkswagen Super Beetle Is the Perfect California Dream
30 May 2023, 14:56 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / What started as a murderous dictator's dream of transporting the masses became a symbol of peace and love all over the globe. So, give me a second to put on my Hawaiian shirt, grab my Ukulele, and talk about the Volkswagen Beetle. I'v...
This Modified 1992 BMW 850i Is a Dreamy BMW Parts-Bin Special
28 May 2023, 17:22 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / When you think about a cool car, a coupe body with a long hood and short rear end might come to mind. Add pop-up headlights and a big V12 under the hood, and you have the perfect formula. You'd be wrong if you thought that might be the stuff o...
This 2012 Ford Mustang Shelby 1000 S/C Is What the American Dreams Are Made Of
26 May 2023, 09:12 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / The Ford Mustang is the quintessential American car. It's the first thing that pops into your head regarding V8 muscle from the Land of the Free. While they are labeled as crowd killers, and everyone on the internet argues about whether they a...
This 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 65 Black Series Is AMG Lunacy at Its Finest
22 May 2023, 09:27 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Nowadays, the whole car world transits towards small engines with massive turbos and electrification. But, not too long ago, there was a time when big engines, a lot of noise, and raw, brutal power were the norm. In this world of lunacy that is the...
This 1971 Datsun 240Z Is the Godfather of JDM Culture
20 May 2023, 09:17 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Japanese car acceptance in the good ol' States of America starts with the car we discuss today. If it weren't for this car, JDM import culture, at the very least in the state we know today, wouldn't exist. We owe much of what we know...
Are Communist Era Cars Really That Bad?
20 May 2023, 08:30 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / As petrolheads, we all wax-lyrical about the raw muscle of American cars, the tunability of Japanese ones, and the driveability and build quality of German cars. But, while the whole world was thriving after World War 2, Eastern Europe had a differ...
Can You Still Enjoy a Slow Car In This High-Horsepower Climate?
13 May 2023, 20:37 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / Social media has led us to believe that we, as car enthusiasts, need a minimum of 500 hp to enjoy the car community and feel like we are a part of it. But I don't think that's the case, so let's take a deeper look at why social media...
This 2002 Mazda MX-5 Special Edition Proves That the Miata Is Always the Answer
10 May 2023, 08:24 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / The time has come to swallow my pride and talk about the forbidden Japanese car, the Miata. I've said before that the Miata is an overrated, dull car that doesn't deserve the hype it has around it. But things have changed, so let's s...
This 1987 Porsche 928 S4 Is the Ultimate Autobahn Cruiser
7 May 2023, 19:54 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / The first thing that might pop into your head whenever you hear Porsche is the 911 lineup. The 911 set the benchmark of what a sports car can and should be. So what happens when they take that formula and do the exact opposite? Well, a pretty amazi...
This High-Mileage 1992 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ80 Is Ready To Take On Even More Adventures
6 May 2023, 19:11 UTC · By: Călin Iosif / There is nothing the car we are talking about today can't take. From the scorching desert to the unforgiving jungle and mall parking lots, the Toyota Land Cruiser is ready to conquer anything easily. But what makes it the first choice for hard...