Long before carmakers filled dashboards with screens, an important piece of engine information was displayed outside the windshield. Early automobiles often carried their radiator filler caps at
Open the door of a large American sedan from the 1950s and the front seat looks less like a modern cockpit than a particularly comfortable sofa. There is no center console dividing driver and passe
Changing a car battery used to be one of the cleaner bargains in home mechanics. Remove two terminals, undo the clamp, lift out the old battery and fit the new one. The clock might need resetting a
One tire wanders across the painted line and the previously quiet cabin erupts with a harsh mechanical growl. The steering wheel trembles, the seat vibrates and, for half a second, it feels as if some
The car feels perfectly normal around town. At 35 mph, nothing rattles. At 50, there may be the faintest tremor. Reach highway speed and the steering wheel begins a steady dance between the driver&rsq
The tires are new, the wheels are back on and the invoice is folded into the glovebox. Before handing over the keys, the technician mentions one final detail: come back after a short period of driving
There is no graceful way to discover how ABS feels for the first time. Something enters the road. The brake pedal goes down hard. Then, at precisely the moment when calm would be useful, the pedal beg
There is something wonderfully unhelpful about the traction-control symbol. It shows a car wriggling across the road, which makes the button beside it look like the obvious thing to press when the roa
Winter rubber mats are excellent at catching snow, salt and the gray slush that somehow finds its way into every corner of a car. The temptation is to place them directly over the carpet mats alrea
A minivan recall never sounds dramatic at first. It sounds like paperwork. A letter in the mail. A service appointment to squeeze in between school pickup, groceries, work, and the 47 other t