Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
Lining up a ride in a car you don’t have to maintain or work on is as easy as swiping and tapping a few times on your smartphone. Soon you’ll be able to do that through Lyft and get picked up in a new Jaguar or Land Rover vehicle.
Until recently, New Zealander Mitch Evans had never been to New York City before. That had to change. He has a big FIA Formula E Championship race there coming up soon, so he had to get familiar with the area before he races through it as part of the Panasonic Jaguar Racing team.
When you watch the following video, it’s clear that the Jaguar XE SV Project 8 knows how to go. It also knows how to stop – and we’re not just talking about its new Carbon Ceramic Braking system.
Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) did more than just throw a big engine into Jaguar’s smallest sedan to create the XE SV Project 8. A lot more.
As magical as the luxury and technology features in Jaguar Land Rover vehicles may seem, it takes actual work to write the code and design the electronics that make them work.