Automobile
The June 2008 cover of Automobile
The June 2008 cover of Automobile featuring an Pontiac Solstice and a Volkswagen Scirocco
EditorMike Floyd
CategoriesAutomobile magazine
FrequencyMonthly/10 issues per year[1]
Total circulation
(2016)		278,238
FounderDavid E. Davis
First issueApril 1986 (1986-04)
Final issueFebruary 2020 (2020-02)
CompanyMotor Trend Group
CountryUnited States
Based inLos Angeles
LanguageAmerican English
Websitewww.automobilemag.com
ISSN0894-3583
OCLC31735584

Automobile was an American automobile magazine published by the Motor Trend Group. A group of former employees of Car and Driver led by David E. Davis founded Automobile in 1986 with support from Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation,[2][3] using the credo No Boring Cars.[4] Automobile distinguished itself as more of a lifestyle magazine than the other automotive publications, an editorial theme that Davis greatly expanded upon from his tenure as the editor of Car and Driver, though it was a sister publication to Motor Trend.

Unlike other automobile magazines, Automobile didn't often conduct instrumented tests of cars or provide much technical data. Instead, the reviews of vehicles were subjective experiential reports with the cars in their naturally intended, real world environment. Additionally, Automobile reserved a good portion of each issue for covering vehicles no longer in production, but still relevant to collectors or automotive history as a whole. For example, the magazine included features such as "Collectible Classic," an in-depth review of a particular older car, and reports from recent classic and antique car auctions. Automobile also had a regular column by former General Motors designer Robert Cumberford, who analyzed styling elements of current production models and show cars, often linking their design to those of older cars.[5]

In December 2019, Motor Trend Group subsidiary TEN Publishing announced that it would discontinue publication of Automobile.[6] Its final issue was dated February 2020.

Publishers

Awards

Automobile of the Year

From 1990 to 2014, Automobile awarded their "Automobile of the Year" to one car annually.[7]

Automobile All-Stars

In 2015, Automobile replaced their "Automobile of the Year" award with the "Automobile All-Stars", naming multiple cars on the list annually.

Design of the Year

References

  1. ^ Floyd, Mike (June 15, 2017). "Automobile Magazine Gets Bigger, Bolder, Better". Automobile. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Grimes, William (2011-03-28). "David Davis Jr. Dies at 80". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-11-06.
  3. ^ "Auto Magazine Founder David E. Davis Jr. Dies". SFGate. Hearst Communications. 2011-03-28.[dead link]
  4. ^ "David E. Davis, Jr., Automotive Journalism's "Hemingway on Wheels," Is Dead". Insideline.com. 2011-03-28.
  5. ^ "Top 10 National Automotive Magazines - Cision". 26 June 2013.
  6. ^ "Exclusive: TEN Publishing Is Shuttering 19 Car Magazines". Folio. 2019-12-06.
  7. ^ "25 Years of Automobile of the Year". Automobile. November 18, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  8. ^ "2015 Automobile All-Stars". Automobile. January 1, 2015. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  9. ^ St. Antoine, Arthur (March 22, 2016). "2016 Automobile All-Stars: The Winners". Automobile. Archived from the original on 2016-12-07.
  10. ^ "2017 Automobile All-Stars: The Winners". Automobile. March 11, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  11. ^ "2018 Automobile All-Stars: The Winners". Automobile. March 10, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2019.

External links

Motor Trend Group
Categories