(In January 2008, Nick was lucky enough to travel to New Delhi, India on behalf of Edmunds' AutoObserver, to cover the burgeoning New Delhi Auto Expo. Here are some links to his coverage of this exciting show!

• Q&A: India’s Tata Motors Chief Ratan Tata
• A-Star Shines at New Delhi Show
• A Look Back at India’s Automotive Future
• German Giants Battle for Slim Slice of Small India Luxury Pie
• For $500 more (or .2 Lakh ), Indians Can Buy a Bajaj Auto
• Hydrogen’s Three-Wheeled Future in India
• And Now, For Something Completely Different ...
• Economy and Environment in Conflict
• Tata Nano : The World’s Cheapest Car
• Tata Introduces New Indica -- Quietly

(excerpt)
"The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is routinely touted as being the longest-running motoring event in the world, the original having taken place on November 14, 1896. But for those who participate and the huge crowds who cheer from the curbside, the London to Brighton run is as much a 54-mile street party as it is automotive history in motion..."

(excerpt)
"Inching the priceless classic over one final sped bump and gingerly coasting to a stop, I tug the gear lever back into neutral and the chug-chug sound of the engine comes to an abrupt end. I've just driven the world's oldest Citroen 2CV..."

(excerpt)
"Despite excellent on-paper mechanical credentials, there is no escaping the polarizing aesthetics of the Megane R26. Even in grocery-getter form, the Megane is a bizarre-looking car, from its edgy snout to its pillbox rear-window treatment..."

(excerpt)
"With tires squealing and the thin rim of the steering wheel dancing in his hands, Ulrich Eichhorn isn't thinking about the 550 engineers he's in charge of at Bentley Motors. At the moment, the head of Bentley engineering is smiling like a little kid and focusing his attention straight ahead..."

(excerpt)
"Not all hybrids need big battery packs and generators. That's what Flybird Systems of Silverstone, England, is suggesting with its kinetic energy recovery system..."

(excerpt)
"From street-level, the garage housing Nicola Bulgari's cars looks like little more than an underground car park, tucked among a cluster of drab apartment buildings in Rome. Once inside, it's like stepping into another world. The room is dazzingly clean and full of cars. Vintage neon signs sparkle overhead..."

(excerpt)
"Though Aachen was once famous for sulfurous spring water and its status as Charlemagne's medieval vacation hot spot, today the North German town is best known to BMW fans as the home of AC Schnitzer...This respected outfit has spent 20 years turning everything even remotely associated with the BMW brand..."

(excerpt)
"The H3 Alpha is smooth, quiet and comfortable. It’s also an ego machine that guzzles gas and is about the size of Liechtenstein. If you can afford the constant fuel bills and have a large parking space, it’s the best Hummer yet. But, like gobbling two America-big cheeseburgers and supersize fries, it’s hard not to feel guilty about it...."

(excerpt)
"We joined the party halfway into the second day and, unfortunately, right in the middle of a rainstorm. Peering through the fogged up windows of the courtesy shuttle, we finally found our battleship grey 1955 300SL Gullwing waiting in parking spot number 89. Locating our car provied harder than we imagined, and the rain was only partly to blame..."

(excerpt)
"The base 335i Coupe carries a $40,800 sticker price, which puts the cost of entry for the modern twin-turocharged BMW coupe on par with a year at Harvard. A solid 2002tii, on the other hand, can still be had for community college-levels of cash, though with little change left over for pizza and beer..."

(excerpt)
"The steering is accurate, and the brakes - the largest fitted to the E Class - provide drama-free stopping power. Leaving the driver's seat for a short ride as a pampered passenger, we found the Binz quiet and the ride composed and comfy..."

(excerpt)
"Somewhere around 4000 rpm, the turbochargers ignate, and every rule you knew about driving fast is forgotten...Full acceleration doesn't just shove you into your seat; it knocks you down, slaps you in the face and steals your milk money..." (excerpt)

(excerpt)
"I'm strapped into the passenger seat of a modified Audi A4 DTM car, and my head is bouncing around like bobble-head doll as my chaffeur brakes, accelerates and slides his way around the 2.8-mile Hockenheimring in Germany...The ferocious acceleration presses me into the seat, while the blare of the engine makes it impossible to even hear my own screams..."

(excerpt)
"After spending years as a bench warmer among compact crossover utilities, the Mitsubishi Outlander is finally making a serious bid for the A-team. Redesigned for 2007, the Outlander combines carlike dynamics, S.U.V.-lite styling and a reasonable price tag - as long as you don’t get carried away with big-ticket option packages..."

(excerpt)
"Despite all the signs and markers, for a Nürburgring newcomer every corner seems to flow directly into the very next one. Our heads bob left and right as the G-forces build. Suddenly, Schmitz kicks the M5's tail out at more than 60 mph...."

(excerpt)
"Someone told me that there is no sleep better than the sleep after the 24 hours of Le Mans. But 23 hours into the race...no one on the Corvette Racing team was close to dozing. Every pair of bloodshoot eyes stared at the banks of television monitors on either side of the team's garage...."

(excerpt)
"What you call the Kia Rondo depends on how far you bend to the fickle winds of autospeak. The boxy upright shape shouts minivan, even if marketers prefer hipster labels like 'crossover utility' or 'multi-purpose vehicle'...."

(excerpt)
"Even in the tiny sliver of Mediterranean glitz and glamour known as Monaco, a Venturi automobile still has the attention-grabbing force of a swift smack to the face with a Louis Vuitton handbag...Throngs of tourists scrambled to take photos as we pulled in between rows of Ferraris and Bentleys.."

(excerpt)
"The Four Stroke Design Rumen looks a lot like a classic 1938 Bugatti 57SC Atlantic, just one that was left in the dryer for way too long...Whether you love or loathe the pocket-sized retro design, there is no denying that the Rumen is full of clever details."

(excerpt)
"We never turn down the keys to a Mercedes-Benz, especially if it's black and chrome and looks evil. And if it weighs 18 tons, so much the better. That's how we came to drive the Mercedes-Benz Actros Black Edition, a 612-horsepower limited-production heavy-duty truck with more menace than a pistol-toting pit bull....."

(excerpt)
"Tune-ups that cost more than an off-lease Camry, a phobia of parking lot dings or scratches and free-fall depreciation are a few of the politely less talked about aspects of sports car ownership. Add a classic car to the equation, and you've got the prospect of endless restoration bills, iffy reliability and enough engine leaks to turn your driveway into an impromptu Jackson Pollack painting...."

(excerpt)
"We take the B5 to the closest stretch of unrestricted autobahn to test Alpina's ethos. As the red needles on the classy blue dials creep higher and higher, the roar of the engine takes on a sharper, more menacing timbre...With foot to the floor, the B5 surgers forward, despite already traveling at speeds that, in the States, would guarantee a jail visit..."

In April 2007, Nick was proud to assist The New York Times once again in its online coverage of the New York Auto Show.

FIRST GLANCE REVIEWS:
-Saturn Vue and Astra
-Infiniti EX Concept
-Bentley Brooklands

VIDEO REVIEW:
INFINITI EX CONCEPT

(excerpt)
"...Four years attending university in a small Southern town prepared me for this music appreciation bluff. After all, my heart belongs to cars, not ballads about lost loves or dearly departed hound dogs... I just never expected this automotive romance to lead here, to Nashville, the cradle of country music. "

(excerpt)
"Change is in the air and the streets of Paris will never be quite the same again. This is because French microcars have suddenly gone sexy, with wide-eyed headlights, bulging fenders and even convertible tops. For decades, French micros have looked like telephone booths on wheels, but a new day has dawned at last."

(excerpt)
"We were thrilled to be invited to Tuner Test Days, the third installment of a tuner-car showcase held at the Hockenheim racing circuit near the old university town of Heidelberg, Germany. On hand would be some of the newest and most notable tuner cars in Germany — along with a couple of the strangest ones..."

(excerpt)
"The Geneva show is also known for being eclectic, and that description fit well this year. The halls of the Palexpo center were filled with electric cars, upright minivans, exotic supercars and bizarre vehicles that tried to be all of the above. Back-to-back press conferences, often barely 10 minutes long, kept the air thick with PR spin and manufactured excitement. Here are some highlights from the introductions this year:...."

(excerpt)
"Nick Mason was impressed and pretty darned excited, and the reason had nothing to do with his multimillion-dollar 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sitting nearby. Surrounded by journalists and ringed by a select choice of cars from cars from his formidable collection, the longtime car fanatic (and drummer for Pink Floyd) admitted this was his first visit to Retromobile..."

(excerpt)
"The dainty wand for the column-mounted shifter feels light and clicks into its gears with ease. On the busy streets of Nashville, the Y-yoke front suspension and solid rear axle effectively soak up bumps and the car keeps up with traffic - no doubt slowed somewhat by drivers craining their necks to check out the Divan..."

In January 2007, Nick was proud to assist The New York Times once again in its online coverage of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

FIRST GLANCE REVIEWS:
-Maserati Quattroporte Automatic
-Kia Kue Design Study
-Acura Advanced Sportscar Concept

VIDEO REVIEW:
MAZDA RYUGA

(excerpt)
"Driving away from the rocky mount and past fields of fluffy French sheep, the 197 begins to shine; the steering offers linear feed back through tight corners and the traction control lets you lean on the car's limits. Those limits are surprisingly high, and could be one reason the 197 has come in for some criticism in the press..."

(excerpt)
"Despite being held in the swanky Place Vendome, entries were not limited only to upper-crust clasics. Chripy little Wolseley Hornets sat bumper to bumper with a bevy of Morgans, a row of Aston Matin DB4s - strategically placed in front of the Ritz hotel - and a stately 1949 Bently Mark VI..."

(excerpt)
"While boasts about fuel economy and lower emissions make for good PR, high horsepower and swept back silhouettes are still the stuff that makes for auto show excitement. The crowds around the Audi R8 sports car and the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione coupe prove that even for an industry in turmoil, there’s no substitute for sex appeal."

(excerpt)
"I recently spent a week with an Accent GLS as well as the Fit and Yaris. You can say this about the little Hyundai: While it isn’t the fastest thing on the freeway, it would make a great getaway car. It slipped through traffic without notice, never drawing a stare, prompting a comment or raising an eyebrow. The only thing more stealthy may be Wonder Woman’s invisible jet..."

(excerpt)
"Now Fusion owners can head out on the town wearing a Ford-issue happy face. A special line of Fusion eye shadow, called Curve Hugger, has been produced for the automaker by Benefit Cosmetics of San Francisco.
The set includes three subtle hues...that Benefit describes as a “sexy trio of shimmering nude eye shadows."

(excerpt)
"Twenty minutes into the drive, the roads finally begin to twist, the views get grander, the sun gets hotter, and the entire Eos experience becomes a lot more entertaining. The steering wheel rim is a little thin and a tad too slippery—a minor flaw that only becomes glaring when there are sharp rocks on one side of the road and the cool blue Aegean Sea on the other."

(excerpt)
"From a dead stop it sets off smoothly, thanks to a forgiving clutch. This is one of those cars that immediately feels comfortable and very, very fast. On the narrow country lanes near the factory, the GT2 shows its willingness to dawdle along or, with a poke of the throttle, pin us to our seat. Acceleration is astonishing—the car squats down and simply blasts towards the horizon."

(excerpt)
"Paul weaves in and out of cars, scooters and tour buses along the 90-minute Essence Tour, which at €50 per person is the most popular choice and includes key sights such as Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Champs Elysées and the Eiffel Tower. Left hand firmly on the wheel, Paul alternates his right hand between pointing out historical facts and shifting the umbrella-like shifter sprouting from the dash."

(excerpt)
"You’re looking at a racing champion and maybe one of the original muscle cars, an American performance machine built a decade before the era of scoops, stripes and garish graphics. The Lincoln Capri won’t challenge the ’Cuda at the drag strip and yes, it is slathered in chrome and weighs in at 4250 pounds. Still, the Capri is an unlikely hero of 1950s road racing, a luxury car that earned fame in the grueling 2135-mile Carrera Panamericana. Rugged, rapid and well-engineered, 1952 to 1954 Capris were especially strong competitors."

(excerpt)
"Barely 20 minutes into my weekend with a 2006 Citroën C6, and already the car's rivals are pushing its nose out of shape — literally. Stuck in Paris' Friday night rush hour, at the every-man-for-himself Place de la Concorde, I watch incredulously as the driver of a black Mercedes-Benz CLS comes to a stop in front of me, and then reverses several feet and into the snout of my shiny new C6. I know that the top-of-the-Citroën-range C6 is targeting some swanky German luxury sedans, but I never expected things to get physical!"

Sample of Nick's monthly contribution of International News to Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car

Nick contributes automotive news from France, Italy and Germany to this new publication from publishers of Hemmings Motor News.

(excerpt)
"Few cars make a Lotus Elise look luxurious, or a Ferrari Enzo look slow. Even fewer manage to do both at the same time. The Caterham CSR is the exception, the new king of supercar-slaying performance for a sports car with a sub-six-figure price tag. It's set to go on sale in the U.S. early in 2006, but we didn't want to wait that long to drive this 260-horsepower, 1,265-pound rocket of a road car...."