The Parking Letters
Los Angeles drivers love to leave notes on windshields—passive-aggressive, or just plain aggressive. A vigilante sets out to communicate politely with the city.
cars
A collection of 23 issues
IH8YRST8
Studying drivers across the country for signs of license-plate prejudice—or, why everyone loves Vermont drivers and hates Texans.
Cities Don’t ♥ Us
Our urban future is upon us, city planners tell us, but residents’ on-again, off-again relationship with their surroundings makes them want to say goodbye to all that.
A Man Enough
Eventually a man who’s always in motion, always fixing something, will stop. Decline of the patriarch reveals an entire family’s vulnerability.
Watch and Learn
YouTube tutorials are the classrooms of the 21st century. Are they enough to make you a better person?
Once Upon a Time in the Middle East
Driving from Lebanon toward Syria, across the Saudi Arabian desert to Dammam, in a taxi among the refugees of Beirut—quickly becomes the Wild West.
Tiny Castles of Doom
Read between the lines of a to-do list, and you'll find an artfully constructed maze of excuses. A challenge to complete five things before the end of summer, or before you die—whichever comes first.
How to Not Kill a Cyclist
A plea for safety from cyclists to motorists.
Columbus to Cambria and Back Again
From coast to coast, through bickering passengers and aggressive tumbleweeds, we've crisscrossed the U.S.--and often ended up in New York. For your next road trip, a guide to what you'll see along the way.
Six Cabs to Superior Understanding
Foreign correspondents love to interview local cab drivers for their political opinions. Or sometimes just to hear the best jokes.
How the Dead Live
There's a peculiar odor to burning hope--it's the smell of exhaust fumes, human sweat, and a fast-food container interred under a seat cushion.
The Fiery Furnaces Visit the Department of Motor Vehicles
The brother-sister duo's narrative inclinations take over during a license renewal.
How to Buy a Car
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we demonstrate to a wary customer how best to maneuver the purchase of a new car, while keeping accidental singes to a minimum.
The Year of the Grey Rabbit
In 1979, as the U.S. became embroiled in the events that would develop into the current political climate, one man set out in search of America. Today, he remembers who he—and the country—were.
The Backseat Killer
A maniac is chasing an innocent woman. She gets home and runs to her house, just as the pursuing car screeches in to the driveway. How will it end?
Like Pulling Teeth
Whether it’s experimental injections, sleep deprivation studies, or freelance writing, sometimes the best way to look after your health is to risk it.
High-Fives So Hard They Hurt
January in Minnesota can be harsh, though rarely more than in 1999, when a Vikings playoff victory slipped away. From his vantage point next to a stack of commemorative newspapers, one man almost saw what could have been.
Plain Air Dining
Americans love their cars--as chariots, mobile offices, and teenage make-out spots. But when did they become dining tables?
John Warner's Datsun B210 Is Underpowered, Ugly
Power, speed, performance: You won't find them here. Our reviewer is forced to put this once-sporty 1978 model through its paces. Part of a series of reports on the life of our writer.
Notes From the Storm
After a week of decisions, heartbreak, and travel, the lives of many exiled New Orleans families have been altered forever. A firsthand account of one family’s seven days of evacuation.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Toyota Prius
Tired of that gas-guzzler you've got parked in the driveway? Perhaps it's time you drank the antifreeze and experienced the future of the universe, and your reality too.
How to Road Trip
Driving at least once from Connecticut to California should be required for all Americans, but how to survive the trip is less understood. Timeless advice for a tiring journey.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation
There's a lot of land in the U.S., and it's covered with roads. Our writer takes a cross-country tour with one hand on the wheel and the other on the camera.