Author Archives: Tabitha

Raymond Loewy
Legends Aug 10, 2015

Legends_LOEWYOverview

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Description

He can take full credit for the shape of many consumer items developed during the 20th century, including locomotives, ocean liners, sewing machines, photocopiers, cameras, vacuum cleaners, dishes and pencil sharpeners. Loewy’s design work also extended to aircraft, including the supersonic Concorde passenger liner. Along the way, he also found time to design automobiles.

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Cut weight?
Let’s start with the owner’s manual.
Aug 10, 2015

Untitled-4.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.

What is Auto Edit?

Welcome to AutoEdit, a new and slightly more irreverent weekly feature from Wheelbase Media.
Rather than your pages being a collection of random auto stories, the AutoEdit feature is intended to be the glue that holds it all together. Just as your editorial page is intended to be the pulse of your newspaper, Auto Edit can also be the pulse of your auto pages.

Auto edit runs 500-550 words and is all about your readers becoming more familiar with our key staff members via their personal views on the automotive world. Of all 18 of our weekly features, AutoEdit is the only one intended to provide weekly commentary. Journalistically speaking, this is just common sense since such commentary does not belong in our other news-type features.

Whether your readers agree or disagree with what’s written, they’ll know exactly how the writers of AutoEdit stand on their chosen topics. And, quite frankly, a little spirited debate is a healthy thing and that seems to be missing from more and more newspapers these days. AutoEdit is all about soul, getting back to the basics of solid content and showing readers that there are real people behind the nine-point typeface.

Story Intro

Automakers are pulling out all the stops to cut the weight of their vehicles. Less weight is easier to move around and therefore helps reduce fuel consumption. But I’ve found an easy way to lose a bitmore. Precisely, 5.14 pounds more.
Yup, the owners manual in this Lexus ES350 tips the scales at 5.14 pounds, according to the food scale in my kitchen. Translated into meat, that would feed a family of 12.

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Does this falling white, fluffy stuff seem familiar?
Full Throttle Aug 10, 2015

Rhonda_Mug_shotOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to read this and other feature stories from Wheelbase Media, visit www.shiftweekly.com to subscribe to Auto Shift Weekly newsmag, available for your Apple iPad or for your home PC or laptop in pdf format.

Use: Media professionals looking to diversify their automotive readership with women authors who provide their views on a wide variety of topics.

What it is: Courtney Hansen, America’s favorite Garage Girl and the former host of The Learning Channel’s Overhaulin’ auto makeover show, a new-book author and the host of Spike TV’s weekend “Power Block,” has teamed up with Wheelbase Communications for this exclusive column. If you’re looking to build more regular readership and to bring more women into the pages of your print publication and Web pages with the help of a friendly and outgoing automotive celebrity, this bi-weekly column that alternates with our own Rhonda Wheeler is a must.

Product specifications

  • About 800-900 words; Word text file plus high-resolution art files for print and Web use.
  • Mac and PC layout with accompanying text and art files for maximum work flexibility.
  • High-resolution artwork suitable for print.
  • Coming soon! Multi-platform page layout that opens with either Quark Xpress or Adobe Indesign.

Description

For all you newcomers who have just landed here on planet Earth, winter is about to arrive. That’s right. Every day, the mercury is dropping a little farther. Shocking, I know.
Of course I’m being cheeky, but hear me out.
We’re rapidly — and frustratingly — approaching the annual epidemic of amnesia that sweeps through the streets whenever winter comes.
It’s that aggravating memory loss you inevitably see when the first snowfall comes: when some people drive like they’ve forgotten what snow is.

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The Auto Sleuth
Aug 10, 2015

Untitled-1.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.
Use: Voted the best automotive news column available: you need it.

What it is: If you could have only one automotive feature, this should be it. At Wheelbase Communications, we’ve chosen to stay away from providing an automotive-news column until we could do it in a non-traditional way. And here it is: the Auto Sleuth. Our worldly gumshoe has his ear to the ground, digging up the latest news on everything from product launches and updates to names in the news. The column is solely driven by reader interest. No boring statistics or auto-company pap here, just the straight goods peppered with the Auto Sleuth’s commentary and speculative, gossipy-style.

Product specifications

  • Mac and PC print layout with separate text and art files for maximum work flexibility.
  • High-resolution artwork suitable for print.
  • Multi-platform layout opens with either Quark Xpress or Adobe Indesign.
  • Layout is 8×16 inches (newspaper), but can be reconfigured by your designer to fit most spaces.
  • PDF of layout included.
  • About 850 words: separate text file included.
  • Fonts are not included, but we attempt to stay with standard system fonts. If not, just change the fonts to match your style.

Please contact us to order this feature.

Shift!
Aug 10, 2015

Untitled-2.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.
Use: Media professionals demanding automotive content on technology and vehicles designed to reduce pollution and save readers money.

What it is: The first “green” feature. One of our most popular new weekly features takes a look at the auto world from the unique perspective of fuel efficiency and technology as it relates to the environment, from hydrogen, hybrids, electric power and other alternative methods of propulsion. “Shift” is exactly that: a shift in thinking. What will the vehicle of tomorrow look like? Your readers can find out today in Shift. This predesigned module can be used as-is or reconfigured to fit just about any space.

Product specifications

  • Mac and PC page layout with accompanying text and art files for maximum work flexibility.
  • High-resolution artwork suitable for print.
  • Includes Photoshop layers file of main “Shift” art.
  • Multi-platform page layout opens with either Quark Xpress or Adobe Indesign.
  • Layout is 8″x13″, but can be reconfigured by your designer to fit most spaces.
  • PDF of layout included.
  • About 900 words: separate text file included.
  • Fonts are not included, but we attempt to stay with standard system fonts. If not, just change the fonts to match your style.

Please contact us to order this feature.

X factor
The Octane Lounge Aug 10, 2015

Untitled-16.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to read this and other feature stories from Wheelbase Media, visit www.theoctanelounge.com to subscribe to Auto Shift Weekly newsmag, available for your Apple iPad or for your home PC or laptop in pdf format.

Description

Electric-car company Tesla has taken the wraps off its latest production vehicle and it is truly something to behold.
The Tesla Model X wagon, which will go on sale in the next six to 12 months, seats seven people and when equipped with the proper set of options is capable of Ludicrous Speed. No really, that’s what Tesla calls its high-performance mode.

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2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
Aug 10, 2015

Untitled-16.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.

What is Auto Edit?

Welcome to AutoEdit, a new and slightly more irreverent weekly feature from Wheelbase Media.
Rather than your pages being a collection of random auto stories, the AutoEdit feature is intended to be the glue that holds it all together. Just as your editorial page is intended to be the pulse of your newspaper, Auto Edit can also be the pulse of your auto pages.

Auto edit runs 500-550 words and is all about your readers becoming more familiar with our key staff members via their personal views on the automotive world. Of all 18 of our weekly features, AutoEdit is the only one intended to provide weekly commentary. Journalistically speaking, this is just common sense since such commentary does not belong in our other news-type features.

Whether your readers agree or disagree with what’s written, they’ll know exactly how the writers of AutoEdit stand on their chosen topics. And, quite frankly, a little spirited debate is a healthy thing and that seems to be missing from more and more newspapers these days. AutoEdit is all about soul, getting back to the basics of solid content and showing readers that there are real people behind the nine-point typeface.

Story Intro

The Sport is actually based on the Lancer sedan platform, but is kin to the larger Outlander. With the arrival of the significantly reworked 2016 Outlander, the 2015 Sport now looks quite dissimilar (it will receive similar updating for 2016.)
Not that there’s anything visually askew with the current Sport with its open-mouth grille that can be easily spotted from afar. For anyone who considers the look too over-the-top, consider the equally sizable frontages on a number of current Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

Please contact us to order this feature.

Fine Lines: Ford Bronco
FineLines Aug 3, 2015

Untitled-7.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.
Use: Media professionals demanding top-quality automotive content for their print products and/or Web sites. Professional artwork, editing.

What it is: Many of you asked if we could put our expertise to work to create a feature that covers not just classic cars, but those vehicles that have left an indelible mark on car culture. The Fine Lines series examines significant vehicle marques, their backgrounds and their contributions to the history of the automobile. All this, with real artwork.

Product specifications

  • Mac and PC page layout with accompanying text and
    art files for maximum work flexibility.
  • About 850 words: separate text file included.
  • Layout is 8×21.5 inches (newspaper), but can be
    reconfigured by your designer to fit most spaces.
  • PDF of layout included.
  • High-resolution artwork suitable for print.
  • Includes Photoshop layers file of main art.
  • Multi-platform page layout opens with either Quark
    Xpress or Adobe Indesign.
  • Fonts are not included, but we attempt to stay with
    standard system fonts. If not, just change the fonts to
    match your style.

Description

Sport-utility vehicles moved from the fringe to the mainstream when Ford built the Bronco.
The success of the company’s off-roader also pushed General Motors and Chrysler into developing similar products and ultimately led to the popularity of this hot segment.
Before the Bronco, Jeep’s CJ was the reigning champion of the sport ute set. Its only rivals were few and far between and included the International Scout as well as a trickle of British Land Rovers that managed to make it to our shores.

Please contact us to order this feature.

Profiles, Emerson Fittipaldi
Aug 3, 2015

Untitled-8.inddOverview

Don’t wait for stories to appear in the store when you can become a member of Wheelbase Media’s weekly news service and save more than 50 percent while gaining instant access to the new features as they’re produced. Click here to get started.

If you are not a member of the media, but still wish to check out some of our stories online, visit www.theoctanelounge.com, which is owned by Wheelbase Media.Use: Media professionals demanding top-quality automotive content for print/Web.Professional artwork, editing. What it is: Cars are nothing without the people who create them and those who own, collect and preserve them. Profiles is designed to bring prominent, interesting car people to your readers’ attention. Fun, informative and masterfully designed, like most Wheelbase features, Profiles comes to you as a Quark Xpress/Adobe InDesign module that is completely editable for any space within your print pages or automotive Web site.

Product specifications

  • Mac and PC page layout with accompanying text and art files for maximum work flexibility.
  • High-resolution artwork suitable for print.
  • Includes Photoshop layers file of main art, where applicable.
  • Multi-platform page layout opens with either Quark Xpress or Adobe Indesign.
  • Layout is 8×21.5 inches (for newspaper use), with some depth variation from week to week, but can be reconfigured by your designer to fit most spaces.
  • PDF of layout included.
  • About 850 words: separate text file included.
  • Fonts are not included, but we attempt to stay with standard system fonts. If not, just change the fonts to match your style.

Description

Was it really all that much to ask?
All he wanted to be was the best the world had ever seen. Mistakes weren’t an option. He knew that early and thought about it often.
So it wasn’t much of a surprise when a 16-year-old Brazilian boy nicknamed “Rato” (Portuguese for mouse) had a change of heart about what he wanted to do in life.
Rato and his brother “Tigrao” (big tiger) were out racing boats when Rato’s brother flipped at 70 mph and landed upside down.
In a flash, Emerson Fittipaldi’s career was decided.

Please contact us to order this feature.