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Brendan McAleer

Automotive Writer and Photographer

Vancouver, BC

Brendan McAleer

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Nissan Needs to Start Selling Restored 300ZX Twin Turbos

The year is 1996. The aging 300ZX is nearing the end of its run, and Nissan has no replacement at the ready. Instead, R&D dollars have been spent where most needed: on the growing market trend towards SUVs. Is any of this starting to sound familiar? It should, because Nissan finds itself in the same predicament today.
Road & Track Link to Story
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Godzilla and the Atomic Man: driving a Japanese juggernaut to America's nuclear wasteland

10:48 pm, September 26, 1944 – With no sound other than the hum of the cooling pumps, the B Reactor at the Hanford Site achieves criticality, the chain reaction producing plutonium-239. Scientists fuss over gauges, the unnatural material they're creating bound for a secret new weapon of terrifying destructive power.
Autoweek Link to Story
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The Mercedes-AMG C43 Wagon Is Better the Faster You Drive It

Here are some lesser-known facts about Canada. Our national bird is the Zamboni. The ministry of external cultural affairs is run by three brothers: Ricky, Julian and Bubbles. Our official motto is "In Gord We Trust." And, lastly, Canadians can currently buy a twin-turbocharged AMG C-class wagon.
Road & Track Link to Story
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The S600 coupe: Honda’s overlooked origin story in Canada

This year, Honda is loudly celebrating its 50th anniversary in Canada. As a nation, we love the brand. The Civic has been the bestselling car in Canada for more than a decade and the Honda factory in Alliston, Ont., has been in operation since 1986. There’s just one little problem. Like many middle-aged people, Honda is fibbing about its age.
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The R33 Nissan Skyline GT-R Is Way Better Than You Remember

Tokyo Drift. The 996-chassis Porsche 911. The third Jonas brother. Every dynasty has a weak link, and as the Nissan GT-R celebrates its 50th year, common knowledge will tell you that the R33 is the worst of the breed, a fat and lumpy branch on the Skyline family tree. Punt the R33 GT-R down a curving highway on-ramp, spool up the turbos, and find the truth.
Road & Track Link to Story
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The Quick and the Dad: 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt

The chase lasts nine minutes, forty-two seconds – and fifty-one years. Perched on a bench, a new young fan stares up, open-mouthed, as the two cars battle. The chase is a well-worn touchstone to any gearhead, but to her, it’s brand-new. And what does she think?
Autotrader Link to Story
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This Studebaker Avanti eats Hellcats

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy declared, “We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”. That same year, the Studebaker Corporation gambled it all on a flagship 2+2 grand tourer with V-8 power. One dream made it, one didn't.
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Driving the Mercedes-Benz and Audi cars built by Porsche

In 1988, Porsche wrapped up production of their 959 supercar and realized that it had a huge problem on its hands. The 959 was a bleeding-edge look at what the future of Porsche could be, with twin turbocharging and all-wheel-drive. As history (and the modern 911 Turbo) would bear out, Porsche had guessed correctly.
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The North Korean Designer Responsible for the 1967 Shelby GT500

Tucked in a strip-mall between a gas station and a Dairy Queen, on the outskirts of Minneapolis, the Chun Mee restaurant seemed like any other mid-western family eatery. Booths and chairs were covered in red vinyl, the curtains were floral print, tablecloths and silverware utilitarian, kung pao chicken and wontons on the menu.
Road & Track Link to Story
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Mings the Merciless and the Honda N600

You meet the nicest people on a Honda. Or, should you own a Honda N600, you inevitably meet Tim Mings. “Now's not good, I'll get back to you later,” he growls into a phone, before cutting the conversation short and turning back to me. “Just breaking in a new customer.”. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the tiny, two-cylinder Honda N600 arriving in the U.S.
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The Fabricator: A look inside a one-man shop, and the mind of the man behind it

East Vancouver, British Columbia – His hands are holey, gloves scorched and torn. Fingers spin a fragment against the belt sander, shooting little trails of sparks. It’s an icebox in here, breath hanging in the air, but the black-clad figure doesn’t seem bothered by the cold. He moves with economy from place to place, shaping, welding, drilling, assembling, creating.
Autoweek Link to Story
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Poised and polished, the Lexus RC-F Track Edition proves tuning is about more than big numbers

This is not a car for accountants. The numbers simply don’t make sense. Despite the wings and the carbon-fibre hood, this machine is clearly built only for Lexus fans. Or perhaps, judging by the front end, waffle-maker enthusiasts. But toss those spreadsheets out the window, fellow specifications nerds.
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About

Brendan McAleer

Brendan McAleer first drove a stick-shift at the age of eight, and it's been pretty much downhill from there.

He has written stories on everything from a mint-condition Hyundai Pony to a Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead. His work appears in the Globe & Mail, Time's TheDrive, Autos.ca, Road & Track, and elsewhere.

His inbox is always open to hearing about the machines that move us, physically and emotionally. He currently resides in North Vancouver, British Columbia.

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