Car Culture

Welcome to our Car Culture section which offers a selection of informative and entertaining Car Culture blog articles. Some of this content may include in-depth Car Culture reviews, comparison tests, breaking news, buyer’s guides and more. Many Car Culture articles feature corresponding photos, videos, and detailed statistics. The Horsepower Specs Editorial Team strives to make your experience in this resource as valuable as possible. If you have suggestions for ways we could improve, such as an Car Culture article topic you wish we would feature, then please let us know. Keep in mind that we are regularly adding to

Cars That Were an Embarrassment to Their Brands

The automotive world is a thrilling and exciting place, whether you’re interested in SUVs or sports cars. Manufacturers such as Ferrari and Porsche have given us the amazing F8 Tributo and iconic 911, some of the best cars the world has seen, but they’ve also created some less-than-desirable vehicles. The history of the automobile is littered with cars which turned out to be an ...

Google Street View Exotic Car Hunt

In early 2020 the world was blindsided by a major “event”. For months on end people around the globe could no longer entertain themselves the same way they always had as most entertainment related businesses were suddenly closed, permanently or temporarily, and people social distanced from others. While we have always liked searching Google Street View Maps for exotic and high-end cars, ...

20 Automotive YouTube Channels You Must Subscribe To

There is hardly any other online community that’s both united and as ardent as the automotive enthusiast world. From rubber burning, beefy muscle car lovers to JDM fans and F1 geeks, we are all over the web enjoying everything that comes with 4 wheels, an engine and a steering wheel. Since images speak 1000 words, videos do even more. YouTube has become one of the main sources of content ...

Cars Douchebags Love to Buy

In the automotive community, there is a limitless range of characters; from the urban cowboy polishing the 28” chromes on his body lifted Super Duty, to the heavily branded jort wearing middle aged Corvette guy. Within the car culture, it’s common to lightheartedly poke fun and tease each other for falling into these stereotypes, but one assortment that regularly falls short of being a ...

The Coolest Car Keys Ever Made

Car Keys. We don’t usually pay attention to them, but there are some really unique ones out there. From the rare and expensive to the downright bizarre, here are the coolest car keys ever made. Porsche 917 Porsche’s iconic race car was obsessed with lightness. It had to be to beat its competitors on track. They were so obsessed with lightweight that even the simple key used to ...

Jaw-Dropping Middle East Car Collections & Showrooms

In the past few decades, areas of the Middle East (or “Near East”) have emerged as world-renowned hotspots for car culture. Although Dubai probably comes to mind first, there are a number of other Middle Eastern locations with much to offer as well. Enjoy our list of the Middle East’s most expensive car showrooms and mind-blowing private car collections. SBH Royal Auto Gallery in Abu ...

LeMay America’s Car Museum Review

Although my experience with the LeMay America’s Car Museum had some negative points, overall it was remarkably positive. I’ll get to the negative part later, but first all the good stuff. America’s Car Museum has a whole lot to love. I’ve been to over two dozen prominent car museums in America, and this one is easily in the top 3. The Building American’s Car Museum is conveniently ...

75 Mind-Blowing Custom Flame Paint Jobs on Hot Rods

Nothing says Hot Rod quite like an incredible flame paint job. It’s virtually the official classic hot rod paint job. Sure, a car may be blown, chopped, louvered, bagged and sporting other custom touches, but without the right paint it can fall short of spectacular. Flames give it attitude. Flame paintjobs are as diverse in style as the rides they’re painted on, from new supercars to ...

Cool Classic Cop Cars

Most government issued vehicles are a far cry from being head turners for car enthusiasts. Well, with the exception of perhaps the Presidential limousine, “The Beast,” and some specialty military vehicles. Otherwise, most U.S. government automobiles are a base trim Suburban, Grand Caravan, Impala or Focus. Just look at your regional GSA Fleet Auction inventory in which nearly all are ...

Green Machines | 30 Classic Cars that Look Great in Green

Some cars look best in red, others in black, and still others seem to look good in any color, including green. One of the first cars sporting green paint was the 1893 Duryea Motor Wagon, which was equipped with a 1 cylinder engine producing a whopping 4 horsepower. Green is one of those car colors that not all vehicles can pull off. The following list of green cars is comprised of ...

Top 25 Frightening Car Names

While some car names sound harmless like “M5”, “Civic” or “F-150” and carry no sinister or scary meaning, others, however, range from ghoulish and ghostly to dreadful and dangerous. This is our list of the top 25 scariest, creepiest, meanest, most threatening and frightening car model names ever. AMC Gremlin Gremlin: A mischievous invisible being Campagna ...

Bad Automotive Ideas, Designs & Features

Everyone makes mistakes. Especially car designers, engineers, and corporate bean counters. Usually mistakes are made when trying a new daring design, or following a trend, or trying to get ahead of advanced safety technology. Unfortunately for them, when these mistakes hit the production line, they become infamous advertisements for the next few decades, showing off terrible ideas or poor ...

Classic Cars that Actually Look Good in Yellow

While certain car colors such as silver, black and white can look decent if not great, on most cars, others like purple, orange, green and yellow are more challenging to execute well. There is a reason why yellow cars are less likely to be stolen than silver. Yellow is a bold, bright and in-your-face color that demands your attention. If you drive a crapmobile then you’ll probably want to ...

Celebrity Gearhead: Jay Leno

Jay Leno is most recognized as a longtime host of The Tonight Show on NBC. A close second would be his passion for all things automotive. Leno is known for his in-depth knowledge of every vehicle he owns, and his openness with fellow fans. His 150+ car collection ranges from the common to the super rare and exotic, but it wasn’t always that way. James Leno was born April 28, 1950, in New ...

Pop Culture Face-Off: Mach 5 vs KITT

In TV land, there are two fantasy techno-wonder cars from simpler times that entertained millions and became cult hits. Speed Racer introduced many kids to their first Japanese anime, with mandatory terrible dialogue and nonsensical violence. Knight Rider brought a cartoon idea into sexy real life, yet it also somehow remained cartoon-like. Racecar vs crime fighter, kid vs cop, ‘60s vs ‘80s. ...

Worst Automotive Trends

We’re generally a laidback, forgiving bunch at HorsepowerSpecs, but a few car people sure try and push our buttons. I believe it’s not my place to criticize your modding choices, but there are a few automotive trends that make me scratch my head. Poking around various forums, it looks like I’m not alone. Take no offense if you see your car below; just know you’re in the top 15 worst car ...