Welcome to Must Read, where we single out the best stories from around the automotive universe and beyond. Today we've got reports from Yahoo! Autos, ESPN, and Wired:Autopia.
A detailed look at NASCAR's France family and their interesting negotiating tactics.
August 1961. Jimmy Hoffa's Teamsters are attempting to organize NASCAR drivers. Such a union would overthrow the dictatorship established by Bill France Sr., "Big Bill," when he founded and seized control of NASCAR for himself and his heirs in 1947. "No known Teamster can compete in a NASCAR race, and I'll use a pistol to enforce it," Big Bill decrees, according to NASCAR historian Greg Fielden. It never comes to a gunfight, but the Teamsters are banished for keeps.
Damon Lavrinc told me he was going to get a Fiat 500e. He is a liar. He got a ZERO DS electric motorcycle.
Over the course of the next six months, I’ll be living full-time with a Zero DS, the dual-sport, 11.4 kWh version of the Santa Cruz-based company’s latest all-electric motorcycle. It’s a perfect fit, with nearly 70 lb-ft of torque and a range that’s good for triple-digit trips. While its 400-pound curb weight is as big of a bummer as its $15,995 price tag, I’d rather go electric than be tempted by the liter-powered exotica I could get for a fraction of the price.
Looks like Justin Hyde has added a new writer and we're all the better for it.
#4: 1965 Shelby GT350 Mustang: While everybody liked the original Mustang, Ford needed to up its image. They approached Carroll Shelby and asked him to turn this pleasant car into a fire-breathing monster. The ’65 GT350 was built specifically to qualify for entry into sports car races. So from a street-driving standpoint, they were pretty crude. They had no backseat, uprated Koni shocks and a Detroit locker rear-end. The exhaust came out of the side, making it excessively loud. It was built to race, at the detriment of build quality and ride. But at around 305 hp, it elevated the status of the Mustang to a true muscle car.
Photos: AP, Zero Motorcycles
Inside The Most Powerful Family In Sports