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Curbside Classics Archives
About Author: Michael Ionno
Posts by Michael Ionno
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![6:00 am Saturday, last October. My son Josh and I are boarding a Southwest flight at Baltimore Washington International Airport for a one-way trip to Memphis via Dallas. I’m bleary-eyed […]](https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/1-Fiat-500L.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2015 Fiat 500L Urbana Trekking – I Bought One. That’s Got to be a Bad Omen For Fiat.")
COAL: 2015 Fiat 500L Urbana Trekking – I Bought One. That’s Got to be a Bad Omen For Fiat.
Posted on April 23, 2016 | 79 Comments6:00 am Saturday, last October. My son Josh and I are boarding a Southwest flight at Baltimore Washington International Airport for a one-way trip to Memphis via Dallas. I’m bleary-eyed […] -
![In the fall of 2013 I began to think about expanding the family fleet. My younger son Peter was in college. Like his older brother he had initially been indifferent […]](https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/1-Audi-TT.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2001 Audi TT Quattro Coupe – Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, Have You Reached a Verdict?")
COAL: 2001 Audi TT Quattro Coupe – Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, Have You Reached a Verdict?
Posted on April 16, 2016 | 35 CommentsIn the fall of 2013 I began to think about expanding the family fleet. My younger son Peter was in college. Like his older brother he had initially been indifferent […] -
![From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere. – Dr. Seuss Of course I had a smart car – for seven years – and yes, it […]](https://i2.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/0-2008-smart-passion-cabrio.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2008 smart fortwo passion cabrio – A Small Car with a Passion for the Open Road")
COAL: 2008 smart fortwo passion cabrio – A Small Car with a Passion for the Open Road
Posted on April 9, 2016 | 46 CommentsFrom there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere. – Dr. Seuss Of course I had a smart car – for seven years – and yes, it […] -
![“I learned to recognize the thorough and primitive duality of man; I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I […]](https://i2.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/1-2004-Subaru-WRX-Wagon.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2004 Subaru WRX Wagon – The Strange Case of Dr. Subie Wagon and Mr. WRX")
COAL: 2004 Subaru WRX Wagon – The Strange Case of Dr. Subie Wagon and Mr. WRX
Posted on April 2, 2016 | 28 Comments“I learned to recognize the thorough and primitive duality of man; I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I […] -
![We don’t often think about it, but we’ve all benefited from the popping of economic bubbles. You may recall the internet bubble of the late 1990s that burst at the […]](https://i2.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/0-1995-Mazda-MX-3-side-II.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1995 Mazda MX-3 – Sometimes The Right Car Just Finds You, Meet Lillian I and Lillian II")
COAL: 1995 Mazda MX-3 – Sometimes The Right Car Just Finds You, Meet Lillian I and Lillian II
Posted on March 26, 2016 | 26 CommentsWe don’t often think about it, but we’ve all benefited from the popping of economic bubbles. You may recall the internet bubble of the late 1990s that burst at the […] -
![Mazda has always been one of those smaller car companies who, despite the fact they are selling mostly mainstream cars, strives to appeal to a specialized audience. In 2015 Toyota was […]](https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/0-Mazda-Protege5.jpeg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 2002 Mazda Protegé5 – Small Wagon Zoom-Zoom")
COAL: 2002 Mazda Protegé5 – Small Wagon Zoom-Zoom
Posted on March 19, 2016 | 30 CommentsMazda has always been one of those smaller car companies who, despite the fact they are selling mostly mainstream cars, strives to appeal to a specialized audience. In 2015 Toyota was […] -
![It was the year 2000 and I had the itch to get a vintage car of some sort. I had actually considered doing so for a few years. I remember […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/1-1968-Porsche-912.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1968 Porsche 912 Soft-Window Targa – And The Number That Shall Never Be Spoken")
COAL: 1968 Porsche 912 Soft-Window Targa – And The Number That Shall Never Be Spoken
Posted on March 12, 2016 | 48 CommentsIt was the year 2000 and I had the itch to get a vintage car of some sort. I had actually considered doing so for a few years. I remember […] -
![It’s interesting how we form bonds. We pick colleges, sports teams and even lifetime mates using subtle and often mysterious criteria. It’s the same with cars. I remember my first […]](https://i2.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/0-Jaguar-XJS.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1993 Jaguar XJS – BRG, Biscuit and Bond")
COAL: 1993 Jaguar XJS – BRG, Biscuit and Bond
Posted on March 5, 2016 | 21 CommentsIt’s interesting how we form bonds. We pick colleges, sports teams and even lifetime mates using subtle and often mysterious criteria. It’s the same with cars. I remember my first […] -
![In the summer of 1992, about a year after I had acquired last week’s Audi Coupe, we decided to replace Audi 4000 that had been passed along to us by […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/1-Audi-200-Avant.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1989 Audi 200 Avant – A Kid Hauler That Hauled")
COAL: 1989 Audi 200 Avant – A Kid Hauler That Hauled
Posted on February 27, 2016 | 23 CommentsIn the summer of 1992, about a year after I had acquired last week’s Audi Coupe, we decided to replace Audi 4000 that had been passed along to us by […] -
![In retrospect it was inevitable that I would gravitate to an Audi at some point. Audi AG’s modern era in the United States began with the Audi 100 in 1970 […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/0-1986-Audi-Coupe-GT.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1986 Audi Coupe GT – Influences and Perspectives")
COAL: 1986 Audi Coupe GT – Influences and Perspectives
Posted on February 20, 2016 | 30 CommentsIn retrospect it was inevitable that I would gravitate to an Audi at some point. Audi AG’s modern era in the United States began with the Audi 100 in 1970 […] -
![Last week’s COAL on my Datsun 510 ended ignominiously in the Catskills when I borrowed my boss’s car and drove from Vermont to New York to retrieve my belongings from […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/1-Saab-1.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1975 Saab 99 EMS And 1971 Saab 95 – Different Thinking From Sweden")
COAL: 1975 Saab 99 EMS And 1971 Saab 95 – Different Thinking From Sweden
Posted on February 13, 2016 | 60 CommentsLast week’s COAL on my Datsun 510 ended ignominiously in the Catskills when I borrowed my boss’s car and drove from Vermont to New York to retrieve my belongings from […] -
![It was 1979. I was still in Vermont and after almost a year with last week’s Dodge Dart I was ready for something that could better scratch my driving itch. […]](https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/1-Datsun-510-e1454709329838.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1971 Datsun 510 – It Was The Best Of Times, It Was The Worst Of Times")
COAL: 1971 Datsun 510 – It Was The Best Of Times, It Was The Worst Of Times
Posted on February 6, 2016 | 32 CommentsIt was 1979. I was still in Vermont and after almost a year with last week’s Dodge Dart I was ready for something that could better scratch my driving itch. […] -
![It’s the Summer of 1978 and I am enjoying life in Vermont. As mentioned in last week’s Fiat 124 Sport Spider COAL I traded the little convertible fearing its […]](https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/1-1967-Dodge-Dart.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1967 Dodge Dart Sedan Slant-6 – A School Teacher Car")
COAL: 1967 Dodge Dart Sedan Slant-6 – A School Teacher Car
Posted on January 30, 2016 | 64 CommentsIt’s the Summer of 1978 and I am enjoying life in Vermont. As mentioned in last week’s Fiat 124 Sport Spider COAL I traded the little convertible fearing its […] -
![The Fiat 124 Sport Spider was Italian sensuality in automotive form at a price point the little guy could afford. Competing against the MGB and the Alfa Romeo Spider, the […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/1-Fiat-124-Sport-Spider.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1969 and 1979 Fiat 124 Sport Spider")
COAL: 1969 and 1979 Fiat 124 Sport Spider
Posted on January 23, 2016 | 37 CommentsThe Fiat 124 Sport Spider was Italian sensuality in automotive form at a price point the little guy could afford. Competing against the MGB and the Alfa Romeo Spider, the […] -
![Many of you might be familiar with the Subaru 360 primarily from seeing and reading about it online or in print but honestly, have you ever met someone who bought […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/97-Subaru-360-e1452831625142.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "COAL: 1969 Subaru 360 – Really")
COAL: 1969 Subaru 360 – Really
Posted on January 16, 2016 | 60 CommentsMany of you might be familiar with the Subaru 360 primarily from seeing and reading about it online or in print but honestly, have you ever met someone who bought […]
