Day: September 26, 2021

Motor Bella comes roaring back after rainy start

By Betty C. Morrow 4 weeks ago

Pontiac — Car enthusiasts came out in droves on a sunny Sunday morning at Motor Bella, a clear departure from the rainy start of the auto event last week at the M1 Concourse in Pontiac. 

Folks wandered around the sprawling display, lining up to test drive the newest models and stopping to admire restored vintage cars at the Detroit Auto Dealers Association’s mostly outdoors replacement of its twice-cancelled North American International Auto Show. 

“It’s kind of a mom and son thing,” said Keymari Eddings, 26, who attended with his mother, Karen Eddings-Howell, 49. “We’ve been doing this ever since I was a kid, every year except for the last year.”

Eddings-Howell, a nurse assistant, said her dream car was the Lincoln Aviator she and Eddings were circling. They both love cars, she said, and for them, Motor Bella is a chance to potentially shop but also to just take in

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‘Car Talk’ Ends Its Radio Run. Here’s What Ray Magliozzi Hopes You’ll Remember

By Betty C. Morrow 4 weeks ago

All road trips eventually come to an end. On Saturday, The Best of Car Talk will air on WBUR for the final time.

Car Talk launched as a local show on WBUR in 1977, with brothers Tom and Ray Magliozzi of Cambridge behind the microphones. A decade later, the show went national and became an enormous and enduring hit for NPR.

Tom Magliozzi, behind, and Ray Magliozzi celebrate 20 years on the radio at the WBUR studios on June 13, 2007. (Ted Fitzgerald/WBUR)
Tom Magliozzi, behind, and Ray Magliozzi celebrate 20 years on the radio at the WBUR studios on June 13, 2007. (Ted Fitzgerald/WBUR)

Through it all, the Magliozzis offered callers and listeners their advice as auto mechanics and — more remarkably — provided an endless supply of warm-hearted wit, curiosity, goofiness and laughter.

Now, almost seven years after the death of Tom Magliozzi at the age of 77, his little brother Ray joined WBUR’s Weekend Edition to reflect on the Car Talk era.

Below are highlights from the conversation,

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Famous race cars to thunder around Pontiac track at 1st Speed fest

By Betty C. Morrow 4 weeks ago

Famous race cars that set records and pioneered new technologies will take to the track at the first American Speed Festival Sept. 30-Oct. 3 at M1 Concourse in Pontiac.

The inaugural event will also feature two days of live racing by classic cars on M1’s 1.5-mile track, famous drivers, a tour of local automotive events and a charity dinner.

 The centerpiece of the weekend is a tribute to the legendary 1960s and ’70s Can-Am race cars, which became famous for unlimited engine power and technical innovation.

Watkins Glen Can-Am 1970. Jackie Stewart debuts the Chaparral 2J Ground Effect Vehicle, aka "the Sweeper," with its 2nd motor that drove two fans to extract air from the interior, thus creating downforce independent of the vehicle speed. This climbing section of the circuit used to be known as "Graham Hill." Photo by Pete Lyons 1970 ©2020 Pete Lyons

Driver and car designer Jim Hall will receive the ASF’s first Master of Motorsports award. Several cars from Hall’s museum in his native Texas will be present, demonstrating the design innovations and performance that made Can-Am one of the most entertaining and influential racing series.

Master innovator bringing cars

“As we honor Jim Hall, we are also showcasing racing innovation.” M1 Concourse CEO Tim

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