Country Singer Marty Robbins’ NASCAR Dodge Charger Heads to Auction

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Mecum Auctions is preparing to offer a very unique Dodge Charger from NASCAR at its event in Orlando. In addition to bearing the infamous Daytona bodywork that was banned by NASCAR for making the cars too fast, this one was driven by singer, songwriter, and actor Marty Robbins.

Who was Marty Robbins?

Marty Robbins competing at the NASCAR Miller 500 in 1972 | Gerry Stiles of The Enthusiast Network via Getty Images

Marty Robbins rose from childhood poverty in Arizona to become a star of country music and western movies in the 1950s and 1960s. According to his bio from the Country Music Hall of Fame, he won a Grammy award in 1961 for the iconic western ballad, “El Paso.” Robbins wrote the song himself and recorded it on the 1959 album, Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs. Over the years the multi-talented entertainer also appeared in several films, including the 1967 racing movie, Hell on Wheels.

Robbins did not compete full-time in NASCAR, but his racing career was fairly long. He began with micro midgets in the 1950s and reached the NASCAR Grand National series by 1966. Robbins suffered a heart attack in 1968 that sidelined him from competition until 1970. He bought a Dodge Charger 500 from fellow driver James Hylton and had it converted to a Daytona. After gaining clearance to race again, Marty Robbins returned to the driver’s seat. His first and only event in that car was the National 500 on October 11th, 1970.

What happened during the race?

A Dodge Daytona leads the field during a NASCAR Grand National race in 1970
A Dodge Daytona leads the field during a NASCAR Grand National race in 1970 | ISC Archives/CQ-Roll Call Group via Getty Images

Unfortunately, the Charger’s 426 Hemi engine suffered from mechanical problems and lasted only 105 laps retiring from the race. Afterward, Bobby and Eddie Allison removed the Daytona bodywork to campaigned the car under the revised aerodynamic rules in 1971. Neil Bonnett also drove it until a fiery crash in 1973, after which the car disappeared until 2005.

Restored and up for sale at Mecum

Ray Evernham’s Big Iron Garage in North Carolina performed a full rotisserie restoration, returning the Charger to the configuration raced at the 1970 National 500. Pictures and full details are available from the Mecum Auctions listing. The Mecum Orlando 2021 auction begins on Wednesday, July 28th. At the time of this writing, Marty Robbins’ Daytona is scheduled to cross the block on Saturday, July 31st.

RELATED: The Dodge Charger Daytona Was so Dominant NASCAR Had to Ban It

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Most Reliable Cars From the 1990s (Including the Toyota Land Cruiser)

by Gabrielle DeSantis

The 1990s were an excellent time for music, candy, and automotive design. The vehicles on this list were some of the most reliable cars on the road at the time, and yes, the ever-reliable Toyota Camry is on the list. But some of the options might surprise you or at least take you back to the good old days of cloth seats and headlight wipers.

Still one of the most reliable cars on the road, the Lexus LS400

Lexus LS400 is one of the most reliable cars from the 1990s | Toru Yamanaka/AFP via Getty Images

The Lexus LS400 is one of the quintessential 90s cars that you still see on the road to this day. The Lexus LS400 was big in Japan before it came over to the U.S. to become one of the most reliable cars of the 90s and remains steadfast to this day. For the most part, you can assume any Lexus LS400 you see on the road today was meticulously cared for in the past.

“To put this in perspective, the first LS 400 was so good that everyone overlooked the half-effort ES 250 and seemed to collectively assume that the real Lexus models yet to come would live up to that standard. Lexus wouldn’t be Lexus today if the LS hadn’t been so spectacularly good.”

Edmunds

Even the critics loved the LS back in the day, which says a lot.

Obviously the Toyota Camry is the most reliable car

The Toyota Camry was one of the best-selling cars of the 1990s and remained the top-selling car for 19 consecutive years once it hit the charts. Calling it one of the most reliable cars of the 90s is an understatement. Like the LS400, you still see 90s generation Toyota Camrys on the road to this day as long as they escaped Cash for Clunkers a few years back.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee made quite a splash

The Jeep Grand Cherokee sort of broke the mold when it came to design. It started under the American Motors Corporation (AMC) brand and was continued after Chrysler purchased it in ’87. It was offered in one powertrain and a few transmission choices when introduced in ’92. The Jeep Grand Cherokee wasn’t the most popular car on the road, but you still see one once in a while, chugging along.

The Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon was atriocious and is still well-loved

The Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon was essentially the crème de la crème of most reliable cars from the 90s. The design? Atrocious but perfect. The reliability? top of the line. It was huge and slow, depending on which engine you had. The station wagon back seats faced each other, and the sophisticated wooden finishing left nothing to be desired. This was it.

A huge option: the Lincoln Navigator

The Lincoln Navigator was one of the most reliable cars on the road that could fit an entire soccer team in one trip. If you think about it, the Lincoln Navigator was basically the last cool car Lincoln produced. Even though the Navigator is still in production, the 90s version hits differently. You can hear the optional in-seat DVD players and Britney Spears playing over the speakers. Someone is eating a strawberry-flavored Baby Bottle Pop somewhere in the back seat.

Still a favorite: the Toyota Land Cruiser

The Toyota Land Cruiser is a funny addition to the most reliable cars list because it is still one of the most popular cars out there. The 90s versions are hard to get because buyers purchased one back then and have never let it out of their sight. Land Cruisers seem to get better with age, which makes sense. The Land Cruiser is like the grandfather of popular 90s vehicles that other vehicles hope to grow up to be. When people say, “they just don’t make ’em like they used to,” they are referring to the Toyota Land Cruiser.

While some of the most reliable cars from the 90s are still cult classics, you can’t get these vehicles from the factory anymore. These cars encompass everything good about the 90s but don’t change any of the bad things because it’s all about balance, right?

RELATED: 3 Tips for Buying a Toyota Land Cruiser With 100,000 Miles

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Toyota Is Worth as Much as Netflix and Coca-Cola, but Tesla Blows Them All Away

by Gabrielle DeSantis

When Tesla was founded not that long ago, it had a secret master plan to electrify the world. While Tesla is still a ways away from doing that, in comparison to other automakers, it’s already got a huge leg up. Here’s a look at how much automakers are worth and how Tesla blows them all away.

Toyota is an extremely valuable automaker

The Toyota and Tesla logos on smartphones | Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

As many people may suspect, Toyota is one of the biggest automakers globally as far as car sales go. In fact, in the U.S., Toyota recently dethroned GM and became the best-selling brand in the country. This shouldn’t be too surprising since Toyota has a stellar reputation that most automakers can only dream of. 

On top of that, many of Toyota’s cars get great reviews, so customers are almost always considering a Toyota. Plus, since most Toyotas are affordable, they are a great option in pretty much any circumstance. As such, Toyota sells many cars every year, so it’s no surprise that Toyota is also a precious brand. In fact, according to CNA, Toyota is the second-most valuable automaker in the world right now.

Toyota’s currently valued at about $240 billion, making it as valuable as Netflix and Coca-Cola combined. However, company valuations change with the stock market, so that comparison may not last forever. Regardless, despite Toyota’s impressive value, Tesla blows it away.

Tesla has a ridiculously high valued worth

Tesla fans are probably well aware of how many critics Tesla has. In fact, Tesla has so many critics that many people are betting against Tesla on Wall Street. After all, Tesla is worth far more than Toyota is worth, even though Tesla makes far fewer cars. Indeed, according to CNA, Tesla is currently valued at about $650 billion, and that’s over twice as much as Toyota. 

According to CNA, that $650 billion valuation makes Tesla more valuable than major companies like JPMorgan Chase and Alibaba. However, like folks who own Tesla stock know, Tesla’s valuation changes a lot. For example, in 2020 alone, Tesla’s share prices jumped by over 700%. Those share prices have since leveled off, but they represent how valuable people think Tesla is right now.

However, Tesla isn’t alone as far as high valuations go. Other EV automakers are also seeing sky-high valuations, though many Americans probably haven’t heard of those companies since they are mostly Chinese automakers. Regardless, while EV automakers may have a high valuation right now, traditional automakers aren’t far behind.

How other automakers’ net worth stack up

When it comes to big automakers, there are really only two as far as sales go. Toyota routinely is in first place, but Volkswagen is a close second. In fact, Volkswagen sometimes overtakes Toyota as far as worldwide sales go. Regardless, due to VW’s size, it’s the third most valuable automaker in the world, according to CNA. VW is currently valued at about $140 billion.

A Chinese EV automaker, BYD, is in fourth, as it’s worth $100 billion, according to CNA. Daimler AG, which owns Mercedes-Benz, is roughly tied with General Motors in terms of worth, as they’re both valued at about $80 billion. These were some of the bigger automakers by valuation, and the others didn’t crack the list.

In fact, according to Yahoo News, popular automakers like BMW are only worth about $64 billion. Toyota’s big competitor in Japan, Honda, is only worth about $52 billion. Furthermore, despite how well-known the brand is in the U.S., Ford is only worth about $49 billion. 

RELATED: Tesla Fell to Ford for 2021 EV of the Year, but Don’t Get Too Upset

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The 2021 Subaru Crosstrek Standard Transmission Comes With a Lot of Safety Features

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Subaru is synonymous with safety, at least as far as consumers are concerned. The 2021 Subaru Crosstrek safety features are plentiful in the standard transmission SUV . Which features does it come standard with, and how do you get more of the optional ones in the manual transmission version?

2021 Subaru Crosstrek | Subaru

Which safety features should an SUV come with?

Consumer Reports recommends a slew of advanced safety features that car shoppers should consider. The reason behind this is simple; more safety features (as long as they’re effective), increase the safety of the vehicle. Some safety features have better data backing them, like forward collision warning. Other features, like blind spot warning, are getting better but still have a ways to go. 

No matter which vehicle you’re considering, you should always take a look at the safety features it comes standard with, and consider opting for those which you can purchase. As more car manufacturers are increasing the number of safety systems in their vehicles, this is becoming easier to do. At the same time, you do need to be careful and not assume that a solid car manufacturer name is definitely going to come with what you need. In the case of the Subaru Crosstrek, you’ll get mostly what you need, unless you buy the manual transmission. 

What do all of these safety features do?

Forward collision warning can detect a potential collision. Automatic emergency braking (AEB) can pre-charge the brakes once it detects a potential collision, and some AEB systems even apply the brakes for you if you don’t respond to the warning in time. Pedestrian detection can detect pedestrians that are in, or may enter, the path of the vehicle. Some can detect cyclists. 

Lane departure warning uses cameras to monitor the vehicle’s position between road lines and alert the driver. Lane-keeping assistance slightly adjusts the car to keep it from crossing into other lanes. 

Blind spot warning alerts a driver if a car is moving into their blind spot. Rear cross traffic warning will alert the driver of cars approaching the side and rear of the vehicle when the vehicle is in reverse. 

Antilock brakes keep the wheels from locking while hard braking. Traction control limits how much wheels spin during acceleration so that the driver can retain control. Daytime running lights are lights that come on whenever a vehicle is running for maximum visibility. 

Which safety features does the 2021 Subaru Crosstrek come standard with?

The 2021 Subaru Crosstrek standard transmission as well as they hybrid version come withSubaru EyeSight, which includes forward collision warning, lane departure warning, lane keeping assistance, and adaptive cruise control. 

You won’t get blind spot warning unless you pay for it; it isn’t even an option on base trim Crosstreks. If you buy a hybrid or top-of-the-line Crosstrek, you’ll get it though. Consumer Reports notes that this system has its limitations, so perhaps it isn’t a deal-breaker if you don’t get it. 

Unfortunately, Subaru EyeSight doesn’t come with manual transmission Crosstreks.

Although the 2021 Subaru Crosstrek is the top-rated subcompact SUV, if you want a manual transmission, you may want to reconsider purchasing the Crosstrek. However, if you’re looking for a standard transmission – and especially if you want the top-of-the-line Crosstrek, it’s still a great choice.

RELATED: Fido Friendly: The 5 Best Cars for Dog Owners

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