Esure Car

Lotus Elise Amazing Price and Specs

2009-06-11T19:25:00.003-07:00

The Lotus Elise is a two-seater with rear-wheel-drive mid-engine roadster conceived in early 1994 and published in September 1996 by the English manufacturer Lotus Cars. The car has a hand on her hull in fiberglass and extruded aluminum chassis with a binder a rigid platform for the suspension, the burden of costs of production and maintenance to a minimum. The Roadster is capable of speeds up to 240 km / h (150 mph). The Elise is the name of "Elisa" Romano Artioli his niece, the chairman of the Lotus car at the time of launch.
Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise

Lotus Europa Pictures and Review

2009-06-11T19:25:00.001-07:00

In 2005, Lotus has the pictures for a new type of car called GT Lotus Europa SA was officially launched at the Geneva Motor Show, the 2006th Lotus Europa S production started in July 2006. The engine is a 2.0-liter turbo delivers 200 hp (197 kW hp/147) at 5400 rpm, with maximum torque of 272 Nm (200 ft lbf) at 5400 rpm. Delivery of 0-60 km / h in 5.6 seconds (0-100km / h in 5.8 sec.) With a maximum speed of 143 mph (230 km / h). Lotus has no plans to EsportMaßnahmen in relation to the states as well as Europe before 2008. Although the Dodge manufacturer is developing an electric vehicle in Europe, known as the "Circuit de Dodge, which is responsible for the release in the United States of 2010.
Lotus Europa

Lotus Europa

Lotus Europa

Lotus Europa

Lotus Europa

Lotus+Europa+Test+Drive

Audi TT Roadster Images and Specs

2009-06-11T19:24:00.055-07:00

In 2008, the first Audi to offer diesel version of the Audi TT Quattro model in coupe and roadster, the market.
Audi TT Roadster

Audi TT Roadster

Audi TT Roadster

Audi TT Roadster

Audi TT Roadster

Corvette c6 Pictures and Info 2010

2009-06-11T19:24:00.053-07:00

Chevrolet Corvette C6 is the sixth generation of the Chevrolet Corvette sports car. Introduced in 2005, is the first, the exposed headlamps C1-generation Corvette, the 1962.
Corvette c6

Corvette c6

Corvette c6

Corvette c6

Corvette c6

Skoda Roomster Great For Work

2009-06-11T19:24:00.051-07:00

The Škoda Roomster is a recreational vehicle by the car manufacturer Skoda Auto Czech. A model of production in March 2006 at the Salon de l'Auto in Geneva, with sales starting in June and "in the Škoda factory in Kvasiny. A panel van version is in practice.
Skoda Roomster

Skoda Roomster

Skoda Roomster

Skoda Roomster

Skoda Roomster

The Roomster is based on the concept car with the same name, originally in September 2003 showed the Auto Show in Frankfurt. The concept was légèrementcourt (4055 mm to 4205 mm) than the model producciónpero has a wheelbase (2710 mm to 2617 mm), and only one door on the passenger side, later by two swings doors.

i reports 4,000 scrap car trades in UK, reveals some surprises

2009-06-11T19:24:00.049-07:00

Governments all over the world have introduced Cash-For-Clunkers-style programs that are nothing if not controversial. While the stated intent of each of these schemes is to increase new car sales and remove older, dirtier and less fuel efficient vehicles from the road, some powerful organizations have voiced concerns that untold numbers of classic machinery may be lost forever for no good reason. Could it be that both sides are right? New car buyers in the UK are reportedly flocking to Hyundai dealers in droves with a bevy of older vehicles in tow. According to Tony Whitehorn, Hyundai UK’s managing director:

“For many [the scrappage scheme] is an opportunity to buy their first ever new car, and is enormously exciting. Some people look a little embarrassed when they turn up at a showroom with an old car which is literally falling to pieces but we’re happy to take anything as long as it meets the government’s criteria. Other buyers have taken the decision to wave goodbye to cars which have been in the family for a generation, but their sadness soon disappears when they get into their new Hyundai.”

So, just what kinds of cars are being traded in? The Korean automaker reports that both a Jaguar XJ-S and XJ6 have both been scrapped, as have 34 BMWs, 22 Audis and 32 vehicles from Mercedes-Benz. Six Mazda MX-5’s, seven MGFs, a 1966 Austin 1100 and a 1968 Morris Minor were also sent to the great scrapheap in the sky along with at least one Citroen that lost a wheel on the way to the dealership.

[Source: The Green Car Website | Photo: Matt and Kim Rudge]

The Ride - BMW F 800 GS takes on the RawHyde Adventure Rider Challenge

2009-06-11T19:24:00.047-07:00

BMW F 800 GS - Click above for high-res image gallery

Since its introduction back in 2004, the R 1200 GS has been BMW’s best selling motorcycle, and for good reason. Time and again, the big bike has proven itself surprisingly capable of traversing the gnarliest of terrain in the hands of riders all around the world. The German motorcycle maker invented the adventure touring category when it introduced the R 80 G/S way back in 1980, and since then, almost all of BMW’s GS series of bikes have featured the brand’s signature twin-cylinder horizontally-opposed boxer engine.

Lately, though, a new contender from BMW’s own paddocks has entered the fray using the brand’s more recent 800cc parallel-twin engine design, and we wanted to see how it compared to the R 1200 GS that we reviewed back in February. To that end, we jumped at the chance to ride the new F 800 GS at the RawHyde Adventures Rider Challenge in Castaic, California. Throughout the event, we also had access to the 1200, allowing us to ride the two adventure bikes back-to-back over similar terrain. Wanna know how they compare? Read on.

Gallery: Review: BMW F 800 GS

Kia Soul’ster headed for production

2009-06-11T19:24:00.045-07:00

One of the reasons automakers build concept vehicles is to gauge the public’s reaction to a new design. Apparently, the Kia Soul’ster garnered enough goodwill and interest after its debut at the Detroit Auto Show the Korean automaker is strongly considering putting the canvas-roofed Soul-amino into production. Previously, Kia’s Alex Fedorak said the Tonka-mobile was created “in a fashion that was production-capable.”

According to Kia-World, though the automaker isn’t officially saying the Soul’ster will be mass produced, unnamed Korean magazines are reporting it’s looking good and that a decision is on the way in short order. If there’s any truth to the rumors, we can expect to see the little subcompact pick’em-up truck on American roads in the second half of 2010.

Kia Soul’ster

Gallery: Kia Soul’ster Concept

[Source: Kia-World]

Hummer reportedly purchased by Chinese heavy equipment manufacturer

2009-06-11T19:24:00.043-07:00

According to sources at The New York Times, General Motors‘ Hummer division has been sold to a machinery company in western China. That company, Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Company Ltd., presently doesn’t build automobiles, it is known for making construction and maintenance equipment, but more recently it has segued into heavy-duty trucks.

The NYT says that the memorandum of understanding between GM and Sichuan Tengzhong needs to be signed off on by Beijing officials, as the government has the discretion to veto any purchases of overseas firms by a Chinese company, particularly those transactions valued over $100 million. Hummer’s final price

[Source: The New York Times]

Sneak Peek: Forza Motorsport 3

2009-06-11T19:24:00.041-07:00

We visited the official unveiling of Forza Motorsport 3, Microsoft’s latest racing title for the XBox, at the E3 expo. With graphics playing on numerous flat screens that, to borrow the phrase, moved the game on, and with the backing of an Audi partnership and a gleaming red R8 V10 on a plinth among the crowd, everyone involved was bullish enough on FM3 to make an actual bull think “Better watch out for those guys…” In fact, said Dan Greenwalt, the lead developer at Microsoft’s Turn 10 Studios, said “We already made the best racing game the last time, with Forza Motorsport 2.” Forza Motorsport 3, he said, signaled that “We were out to make the best game.”

Ferrari CEO outlines green plan, hybrid concept could debut at LA show

2009-06-11T19:24:00.039-07:00

By: Noah Joseph

While the intertubes are abuzz with Lamborghini's announcement of a comprehensive carbon emissions reduction plan, arch-rival Ferrari is keen to show it's keeping pace as the company's CEO has reportedly indicated the direction Maranello is heading with regards to its greenification.

Two approaches which Ferrari chief executive Amadeo Felisa confirmed the company is looking into include turbocharging and E85 bio-ethanol. Regarding the former, Felisa assures that the weight of Ferrari's technical know-how will be thrown into ensuring that turbocharged engines retain Ferrari's trademark high-revving feel, while he revealed that the ECU on the company's latest model, the California, is already ready to burn E85. But beyond turbos and corn-fuel, Felisa also revealed that they're working on a hybrid concept, likely to incorporate the F1-derived KERS regenerative braking system, to debut at an upcoming auto show in the United States following the Frankfurt Motor Show in September where Ferrari is expected to debut the replacement for the F430 line. Sources suggest Los Angeles as a strong possibility for the hybrid Ferrari's debut.

Hearses Destroyed in 2008 Colorado Tornado

2009-06-11T19:24:00.037-07:00

In Windsor, Colorado, one funeral director recounts the damage from last May’s EF3 tornado that destroyed several of his hearses and other things associated with his business.

Mark Long was in the Marks Funeral Home and Cremation Service on the day of the devastating tornado. “I had no clue it was a tornado,” he told a reporter. “I was listening to XM Radio and my only clue was the hail.”

But Todd Vess, a local firefighter and Long’s partner, warned Mark of the tornado which was reported in his area. “Once I heard that the tornado had hit the area where the funeral home was, I called Mark to tell him to take cover. I remember him saying before his phone cut out that ‘it’s here.’”

The EF3 tornado was so powerful that it knocked the 19-ton cremation oven four inches off of its proper place. It also destroyed two hearses that mark had parked in his parking lot. Neither one of them were Cadillac hearses, but that does not make the destruction any easier to endure.

Today, Long and his partner have rebuilt the funeral home. “We’re the only funeral home in Windsory. We wanted to stay here,” Vess explained. He feels lucky that business was slow at the time of the tornado so no bodies were destroyed as a result of the storm.

How Will New Efficiency Standards Affect GM Sales?

2009-06-11T19:24:00.035-07:00

With General Motors being the talk of the nation recently, one has to wonder how the new efficiency standards set forth by the federal government is going to affect GM sales. Here are some benefits and disadvantages you – the consumer – may experience with the new legislation.

• Pro - More efficient vehicles sooner

One of the main benefits of the new standards means more efficient cars on the roads. This is good for the environment and it will save consumers money at the pumps.

• Con – A tighter schedule means more cost

Since automakers will need to meet the new standards four years earlier than the previous plan, they will need to spend more to comply with the new schedule.

• Pro – Less dependency on foreign oil

The new standards will be equivalent to taking more than 175 million cars off the road. Just imagine how much cleaner the air will be when that happens!

• Pro – More exciting products for sale

Can you imagine driving a Tahoe or Suburban that gets more than 30 miles to the gallon? When the automakers comply with the new standards, you may just be able to find fuel-efficient versions of these SUVs at your Pennsylvania GMC dealer.

Can Hearse Drivers Drink and Drive?

2009-06-11T19:24:00.033-07:00

A hearse driver in Bogota failed to deliver a body to a waiting family last week because he stopped for a beer along the way.

The friends and family of Tito Vasquez waited for several hours last Sunday at the Campos de Cristo cemetery. They wanted to bury their deceased loved one but their plans were thwarted when the driver of the Cadillac hearse needed to stop for a beer.

The family could not understand what was taking so long because they had just seen the body at the funeral home earlier in the day. Eventually, the family was forced to reschedule the service for the next day. They decided to change the service after reporting Mr. Vasquez’s body as missing with the local police department.

Later, police found the body still in the hearse which was parked at the El Imperio motel. That’s where the driver stopped for his beer and that’s as far as he got.

Don’t stories like this make you mad? I know they make me mad. I mean, couldn’t the driver wait until after the service to stop for his beer or anything else for that matter? But instead, he keeps a grieving family waiting at the burial site for hours and hours. I hope they took this guy’s credentials away so he can no longer drive hearses in the funeral industry.

Veteran has Plans for Hearses Carrying Other Veterans

2009-06-11T19:24:00.031-07:00

Veterans deserve a special ceremony when they pass away. Whether they have given their life while serving our country or if they pass away many years later, they deserve something special.

John Zalewski, a veteran who owns several funeral homes throughout the New Jersey area, has a plan to give deceased veterans special provisions when they die. In addition to the flags draping the caskets, the Twenty-One Gun Salute and other ceremonial offerings, he would like to put a magnetic decal representing their branch of the service on either side of the Cadillac hearse. That way, people driving on the roads will know a veteran’s funeral procession is going by. In addition to that, he would also like to place an American flag on each car involved in the procession for even more attention. The drivers of the funeral cars would also be allowed to keep the flag as a keepsake from the event.

“Our staff has always felt that most people do not notice the American Flag draped casket in the back of the hearse,” explained Zalewski. “We wanted to do something more noticeable. Something that would alert everyone that a Veteran, one who has sacrificed so much for so many, has died and draw attention to the procession, giving the Veteran and their family the recognition and respect they deserve.”

Do Smaller Cars Increase Your Insurance Premiums?

2009-06-11T19:24:00.029-07:00

With everybody screaming about how big SUVs cost a fortune in gas, nobody ever mentions the possibility of higher insurance premiums when driving a smaller car.

According to a recent report released by Insure.com, switching to a smaller vehicle may save gas, but it may actually increase your auto insurance premiums. Researchers at the company studied the rates of four of the nation’s most popular auto insurance providers in various areas across the United States. They found that some of the popular small cars from two Japanese automakers have the highest insurance premiums in the entire group.

Why are smaller cars more expensive to insure than larger cars? The main reason is because they are not as safe as larger SUVs that you can get at your GMC dealer. In addition to that, drivers of smaller cars tend to get into more accidents. Since there is less protection, the accidents are often costlier because drivers and passengers in those cars get hurt whereas a driver of a larger SUV may only have damage to the vehicle.

“Small cars tend to increase insurance costs because they get into more crashes,” says Russ Rader, a spokesperson for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). “There’s a myth that a smaller car is more nimble and helps you avoid crashes, but smaller cars tend to have more collision losses.”

Does this convince you to invest in a larger car knowing that insurance companies consider them to be safer than smaller cars? Let us know your thoughts below.

New Truck Dealers Discuss Benefits of GPS Devices

2009-06-11T19:24:00.027-07:00

Have you been wanting a GPS device but you just don’t know what you would use it for? If so, you are in luck. GPS devices have come a long way since they simply told you the fastest route to your destination. Here are some other benefits you can enjoy when you invest in a quality GPS device.

• Increased value

When you install a GPS device into your car or truck, you immediately add value to your vehicle. That’s because people are more impressed by GPS devices installed in vehicles rather than the more common portable units.

• Lower premiums

Many auto insurance companies offer discounts on your premium if you have a GPS device in your vehicle. Check with your insurance provider to see if you could be saving money today!

• Road hazard alerts

Most GPS devices these days have features that will alert you when you are approaching a road hazard or traffic congestion. They will also provide a route that helps you avoid these problems.

• Finding services

If you are in an unfamiliar town and you want to find the nearest Red Robin Restaurant, your GPS device can help you find it. All you have to do is type in the name of your favorite place and you are on your say.

You may already find state-of-the-art GPS devices installed in the latest models at your GMC dealer. Check one out now and wonder how you ever lived without it!

Construction Debris Damages Hearse

2009-06-11T19:24:00.025-07:00

If you owned a funeral home with a few Cadillac hearses in your fleet, you would be pretty mad if a nearby construction site created debris that damaged those funeral cars.

That’s exactly what has happened at this North Carolina funeral home. In addition to damaging the hearses, Judie Rice and her 85-year-old coworker do not feel safe going to work at the Knotts Funeral Service on Graham Street because of the constantly falling debris from the construction of the Greenbridge condominiums.

The condo complex is going to be a 10-story multi-use facility once it is completed. However, workers at local businesses like the Knotts Funeral Service have complained that the construction has disturbed services in recent weeks because it rattles the walls as well as the nerves of the people at the chapel.

“It’s almost impossible for us to do what we do,” explained Lula Knotts, Thomas, the owner of the funeral service. But builders with the Greenbridge condominium towers say they have tried to make accommodations to make up for their mess and inconvenience.

“We have bent over backwards to accommodate Knotts from the outset,” said developer Tim Toben. The developers gave the funeral service owners $50,000 as well as replacing the air conditioning system because it became clogged with debris from the construction. Once the facility is complete, developers will also evaluate any structural damage and pay for repairs.

How do you feel about this story? Which side would you take in the argument? Let us know your thoughts below!

GMC Dealer Discusses New Idea to Keep Teen Drivers Safe

2009-06-11T19:24:00.023-07:00

Teen drivers are some of the most "at risk" drivers on the road. With their inexperience and often careless actions, many of them end up in fatal accidents or they get injured. But one woman has an idea that may help teen drivers stay safe and you are part of the solution.

The idea behind the Tell-On-Me.com program is to be an extra set of eyes for parents when they cannot watch their teen driver on the roads. Parents can join the program and receive a bumper sticker that they can put on the car that their teen drives. The sticker has a phone number on it and asks other drivers to call the number and report the vehicle if the driver is being careless or reckless. The parents can then log on to the website and see if their teen driver has been reported.

The program costs $50 a year and that covers the cost of the bumper sticker and the program’s answering service.

Your Pennsylvania area GMC dealer wants to know how you feel about this program. Does it invade on your teen’s privacy or is it a clever way to keep them alive when they are behind the wheel?

GMC Dealers Address Rising Cost of Insuring Teens in NJ

2009-06-11T19:24:00.021-07:00

If you have a teen driver in New Jersey, you are probably paying a pretty penny for auto insurance. According to a new report released by Insurance.com, New Jersey has the second highest rates in the nation for insuring a teen driver.

Parents are paying an average of $6,200 to provide auto insurance for their teen driver. Louisiana is the only state with a higher average at just below $8,000. It can cost more than $2,100 to add your teen driver to your existing policy’s annual premium in New Jersey, too.

Luckily, there are some things you can do to cut those costs.

• Ask your insurance company about a “good student” discount. If your teen is a good student, there is a chance at getting a price break on their insurance. You can enjoy as much as a 15 percent price break with some companies.

• Spend time in the passenger’s seat. The more practice your teen gets, the less likely they are to get into an accident.

• Get a safer car for them to drive. Smaller and older cars cost more to insure than larger newer cars. Visit your Philadelphia area GMC dealer to find a larger vehicle that will meet their needs and cost less to insure.

• Check different companies. Some insurance companies could differ by as much as $2,000. All it takes is some research and patience to find the lowest price.

Gemballa Mirage GT Carbon Edition

2009-06-11T19:24:00.019-07:00

Gemballa the German car tuning firm has released the Mirage GT Carbon Edition based off the Porsche Carrera GT. Aiming to make this a super car, and Gemballa being famous for their great work, only 5 of these models will be made exclusively. From the factory the Carrera GT boasts 620 hp, but after some extra tuning those numbers were boosted to 670 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque. Those impressive numbers get this Mirage GT Carbon Edition moving, and its 0-62 mph time is 3.7 seconds while it can hit 200 km/h in only 9.7 seconds with a top speed of 335 km/h (208 mph).

The Carbon Edition in the name is derived from all the carbon fiber parts Gemballa installed and they even added aftermarket ceramic brakes. With all the carbon accessories the Porsche Carrare GT is transformed to the Mirage GT Carbon Edition and it looks stunning. Gemballa was even able to reduce the track times by .2, and some of that credit can go towards the carbon fiber and minor tuning.

[Source: 4wheelsnews]

Novitec Alfa Romeo MiTo

2009-06-11T19:24:00.017-07:00

The car tuning specialists from Novitec have revealed a new line of aftermarket accessories for the new Alfa Romeo MiTo hatchback. The Alfa Romeo MiTo from the factory receives a turbocharged 1.4-liter petrol engine capable of producing 155 hp without any tuning. With the Novitec Powerjet 2 control module the engine output is boosted to 186 hp which allows the Alfa Romeo MiTo to run from 0-100 km/h in 7.4 seconds, improving by .7 seconds from the stock time. For the diesel engines, Novitec released the Powerrail 5 control module for the 1.3 JTD and the 1.6 JTD. The diesel version boasts increases of 20 hp for the 1.3 JTD and 24 hp for the 1.6 JTD.

For the looks, the exterior received an aerodynamic styling kit that consists of a new front bumper, side skirts, spoiler for the roof, and a rear diffuser. An aftermarket exhaust with four tailpipes is another option for the customer, and to round it out wheels are also available. The 18-inch rims in either silver or matte black are fitted on all fours. To make the Alfa Romeo MiTo handle like a dream, an adjustable coilover suspension setup is included and it lowers the vehicle by 35 to 65 millimeters.

[Source: worldcarfans]

Vath Mercedes Benz C63 AMG Estate

2009-06-11T19:24:00.015-07:00

The latest project from the car tuning company Vath, is the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Estate, nicknamed the V63RS. Vath is known for tuning quality vehicles and they did so with this Mercedes C63 AMG, by giving it looks and performance gains. After some ECU tuning upgrades the new AMG Estate was able to dyno at 585 hp and 690 Nm of torque. With that amount of horsepower, this impressive station wagon can reach a top speed of 325 km/h! This makes it the perfect family vehicle because you can race any stock BMW, Audi, or Porsche, on your way to church and win!

Other parts installed are a new differential, aftermarket shock absorbers, a new carbon fiber lip on the front, carbon fiber hood with front vents, and a rear diffuser. Rounding out the package are 20 inch lightweight alloy wheels wrapped in high performance Michelin tires. Moving to the interior are several carbon fiber pieces including racing bucket seats, and as an option they will replace the rear seats with a roll cage while adding a TV/DVD unit.

[Source: 4wheelsnews]

Impul Nissan 370Z body kit

2009-06-11T19:24:00.013-07:00

Car styling company Impul has redesigned the Nissan 370Z body kit and it looks extremely aggressive. The new aerodynamic body kit is a little over the top and exaggerated in my opinion, especially in the rear. It features large air ducts in the front and rear that basically add zero performance improvements and are strictly for looks. Well…I guess the front bumper and lip combo doesn’t look too bad, there’s just too many Nissan 370Z out there now. The package is named the 934S v2.0 and is available now from Impul or their dealers around the country.

This kit will definitely make your Nissan 370Z unique, and I hope Impul will come out with a v3.0 soon with a different approach in their styling.

[Source: 4wheelsnew]

G-Power BMW M3 Tornado

2009-06-11T19:24:00.011-07:00

German car tuning firm G-Power got their hands on the powerful and new BMW M3, and added a touch of their own, calling it the BMW M3 Tornado. From the factory the BMW M3 comes with a V8 capable of producing 420 hp and 400 Nm of torque. G-Power decided to add a light turbocharger from ASA and tune it to 0.3 bars of boost to increase the numbers to 500 hp and 480 Nm of torque. Adding to the supercharger is an aftermarket intercooler and performance exhaust system giving it a nice powerful sound. It is equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission, and with the upgrades it can sprint from 0-200 km/h in only 13.5 seconds, compared to the stock 15.8 seconds. G-Power offers to remove the electronic speed limiter for the customers, and by doing so the BMW M3 Tornado can reach a top speed of 320 km/h or 199 mph.

G-Power also added a height adjustable coilover suspension kit with several settings for the perfect ride height. Silverstone alloy wheels come on all fours and are wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport tires measuring 255/30 ZR 20 in the front, and 295/25 ZR 20 in the rear. Other than the rims, the BMW M3 Tornado did not receive any exterior parts unlike the G-Power BMW M6 Hurricane CS or the G-Power BMW X5 Typhoon. The interior however, was upgraded with carbon fiber trim, speedometer with G-Power logo, leather treatment, and a pedal set.

[Source: carscoop]

The Reality of Racing

2009-06-11T19:24:00.009-07:00

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is “What’s it like to be a race car driver”? Most people are shocked or think I’m kidding when I start to explain what being a professional race car driver truly means.

From the outside looking in, driving race cars seems like living the high life. Money, women, parties and fast cars seem to be the name of the game when stereotyping a race car driver. But this is about as true as saying that a Canadian is someone who’s a lumberjack, wears plaid, and can talk to beavers.

Let me briefly give you a glimpse into the reality of life as a race car driver, and let me preface the following by saying that this is not a sob story nor am I looking for pity, as I truly am living a “dream”, but rather these are the choices I have made and chosen to live with in order to succeed.

Racing is a business first and foremost! If you can’t beat someone in the boardroom, you won’t even have the chance to beat them on the track. It is unlike hockey, baseball, football, etc where if you have the talent, chances are you will at least get a shot. Racing is the only sport in the world where talent guarantees you nothing!

Unless your parents, relatives, or a great friend are billionaires, the sport is extremely difficult to break into. In order to get a spot in many of the entry level professional racing series, young drivers are expected to find upwards of $250,000 to fund their race season. This cost sky rockets as a driver advances through the ranks and can reach multiple millions of dollars for a season in a series such as IndyCar.

As a race car driver with a considerable amount of talent you have 2 options, go home to cry and complain about how unfair things are … OR go out, pull up your socks, and attack the business of racing.

I won’t go into all of the business details here but I will clarify a negative stereotype of racing and business. Most people assume that when I talk to a potential sponsor I am looking for a boatload of money in exchange for putting their sticker on my car; this couldn’t be farther from the truth. Being successful at the business of racing means creating “Win-Win” partnerships between someone and yourself which usually entails the necessity to provide a huge return on their investment in you. I have put my Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) Degree to good use and have been fortunate to place myself in a position where a company would be better off investing in what I am doing rather than putting their marketing dollars in anything else.

When I started racing karts back in 2001, I cut everything else out of my life and made racing a total commitment. I dropped my football season tickets, I stopped going out for lunch, buying CDs, video games, or whatever else I would have spent money on at the time. Everything I had went into chasing what seemed like an impossible dream.

I turned 27 this month and little has changed. I rarely go for an evening out because I can’t afford gas, nor an activity, and one’s social life takes a pounding because of this. I still live at home with my parents so I can avoid rent payments for now, and fortunately we all get along. I have simply put everything I have into pursuing a career as a race car driver.

Fortunately I was able to use my talent and earn a spot racing for Volkswagen this season. This has significantly reduced my expenses for the season but still leaves me with having to meet a budget greater than most people’s annual income. By my shoestrings I am surviving.

Oh, did I mention crash damage yet? I am responsible for covering the cost of repairing any damage on Volkswagen’s race car…no matter how it happened! I could be lapping the track doing a fine job when another car could simply run into me, through no fault of my own, and I will be the one getting an invoice for up to $7,000. Imagine you’re parked at a red light and someone hits you from behind, or runs a stop sign and broadsides your car, now imagine getting an invoice for the full amount of damage in the mail…it’s a tough pill to swallow.

Try driving a race car at life-risking speeds around a track and have expectations to be the fastest driver there. Then pile on the fact that you can’t afford to race again if even a small scratch appears on your race car. Now try to race wheel to wheel against one of the lucky few that has a billionaire funding their racing and doesn’t care if they crash into you…welcome to life as a professional race car driver!

Driving race cars, and all that it entails, is the hardest thing I have ever had to do in life…but because of this, it is also one of the most rewarding. When I have given everything, am dead tired and question whether the hardships are worth it, all I have to do is look into the grandstands and realize I am one of the lucky few as there are 40,000 spectators who would love even the smallest chance to be in my position.

Mazda Celebrates Miata’s 20th Anniversary At Le Mans

2009-06-11T19:24:00.007-07:00

Sweet Jesus, has it been 20 year already? Yeah, yeah I guess it has. I remember in 1989 I was working for an aircraft manufacturer. There were four car guys in the office, including me. At the time, an ongoing topic of conversation was something along the lines of: “Why doesn’t Honda/some other Japanese car company take one of their four cylinder engines and sit it in a two door convertible body?”

And one day I walked into the office with the latest AutoWeek in my hands, dropped it on the conference room table and said, “Bob, Ernie. Take a look at this!”

There on the cover was a red, two-seat convertible that looked a LOT like a Lotus Elan. It was called the Miata, and would soon be hitting the showrooms of Mazda dealers throughout North America. A quick read of the captions told you all you needed to know:

Rear wheel drive

Two seats (and NO back seat, not even a jump seat)

Independent suspension

Disc brakes all around

1.6 four cylinder with four valves per and fuel injected

Folding top with a zip out rear window

“What’s up with the name?” asked Ernie

“Dunno. Old German word meaning something or other.”

“How Much?” asked Bob.

“Twenty thousand.”

“Really,” they both said in unison.

“Yeah … really … “.

And that was it.

A little over two years later, I was in a red 1990 package B Miata on my way rapidly south, down the Pacific Coast Highway, with a group of five other Miatas from the local chapter of the Miata Club of America. We were invitees of Mazda of North America to attend the Monterey Historic Races at Laguna Seca, a track I hadn’t been to since I was 11 years old, when I saw a Can Am race with my dad & brother.

On Friday night we were on our way back to the track from an early dinner at the Hog’s Breath Inn in Carmel (great French onion soup BTW), and up and over the twistys from the coast inland, the group of us happened upon a long white limo. I was number three or four in line, and about a quarter mile after he came up on them, the limo pulled over and we passed, each of us waiving our hands in thanks.

We get to the track, and head to the infield tent that Mazda had set up. They were showing their up-coming third-gen RX-7 to the press and the car crowd over the weekend. We were there for about 20 minutes when I noticed Bill, the guy who was our point driver when we passed the limo, talking with 4 Japanese guys, so I wander over.

“Hey Tony, these were the guys that were in that white limo,” Bill said.

“Oh really? Thanks for letting us by.”

“It was no problem,” said the youngest of the bunch in Japanese-accented English. “It would be a shame to slow you down on a road such as that.”

“No kidding. So what are you guys doing here?” I motioned to include the tent.

“We are the design team for the new RX-7″ he said, gesturing to the white, pre-production model RX sitting next to one of the original Mazda Cosmos.

“You ARE? That’s great!”

“How do you like our Miata?” he asked very politely.

“Like it? I love it! I grew up in a British car family and-” he cut me off with a half- suppressed laugh.

“Ah, I to had MANY Austin-Healy Sprites when I was young man,” he said with a grin, half shaking his head.

Sweet Jesus, has it been 20 year already? Yeah, yeah I guess it has. I remember …

Hat tip to Carscoop

Flickr photo from user Boats-n-cars

2009 Volvo C30 R-Design Review

2009-06-11T19:24:00.005-07:00

This week’s review is going to be a departure for us here at Automoblog. This won’t deal with how well a car deals with the grocery run, or whether it looks good while sitting in the driveway. This is a road trip. This is something special.

What kind of road trip is this? Well, it will include yours truly taking a three-day, 1,000 mile round-trip voyage from Columbus, Ohio to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, home of Road America. This will be the ultimate test of comfort, control and efficiency.

But what should we use for this unique adventure? Maybe a comfortable mid-size sedan? Or how about a new crossover sport-utility? No, this is going to take something truly different. As luck would have it, Volvo supplied me with the right vehicle that would complement this unique trip: A 2009 Volvo C30 R-Design.

THE CAR

As our long-time readers know, our fearless leader Chris tested a Volvo C30 last year, and was not a fan of it. He could not get past the styling and his car suffered from a serious electrical glitch. Would I end up in the same predicament?

When the Passion Red two-door arrived, I was a bit skeptical of this somewhat “in-your-face, back-to-the-old-days” styling.

The clean and crisp front-end comes from the S40 sedan and V50 wagon, which the C30 shares its platform. It does away with the box-on-wheels of Volvo’s past and incorporates a smaller grille as well as rounded fenders with a subtle flair above the wheels.

But the other end of the car is what will grab your attention. Gone is your typical sedan trunk or wagon box. The C30’s modern design is in full effect.

From the front to the rear, the waist line bends upward as well as pulled in towards the centerline of the vehicle, creating these curvaceous hips that bring a strong whiff of P1800 to your eyes. The roof slopes up from the front then down slightly in the rear to a larger spoiler and all-glass rear hatch. The taillights traveled from the spoiler down into the rear end and push out into those wide rear fenders.

With the top-ranged R-Design package consisting of a monotone paint scheme, ground effects all the way around and designed eighteen-inch wheels, the C30 will certainly have you doing double-takes.

Inside, you will find the same well-executed interior as the S40/V50/C70, but with subtle touches. For one, the gauges have a blue face instead of black, and there is a wonderfully thick-rimmed steering wheel. The floating center stack gets its own Andy Warhol-like pattern to it. The seats in the R-Design come with their own special two-tone black leather and white Flextech, a material designed to resist fade and damage from Mother Nature, which are imprinted with the R-Design logo.

Motivating this little sport hatch is Volvo’s 2.5 liter, turbocharged inline-5. It has been around for a while and now makes 227 horsepower and 236 lb. ft of torque on premium gas. Transferring this power to the ground is Volvo’s five-speed automatic, with Geartronic auto-manual controls.

LET THE TRIP BEGIN!

The first half of my excursion would take me west on I70 towards Indianapolis. A quick jaunt around Indy I465 would lead me north on I65 straight through Gary. Hop on the Chicago Skyway and coast through Chicago on into Milwaukee. Then it would be a straight shot up Route 57 to the racetrack.

The weather was predicted to be nice, and traveling during a weekday would leave traffic less hectic, leaving me time to enjoy the drive and take many photos along the way. However, I think the gang from Top Gear would best describe this impending trip: Ambitious, but rubbish.

It was mostly sunny in Columbus on Tuesday morning. I had my luggage secured below that big rear window, the AAA TripTik in the passenger seat ready to lead me to my ultimate destination, almost 530 miles away.

I started my trip around the sprawling campus of Ohio State University, one of the largest universities in the country and home of major sports venues such as the John Schottenstein Arena and, of course, the Horseshoe. Luckily for me, it was the off-season, so I had the perfect opportunity to travel around and check out the campus before hitting the road.

Pulling onto I70 W, I got the first opportunity to use all 227 horses to accelerate ahead of a tractor trailer that refuses to move into the center lane. The five-cylinder does not pull quite as hard as a Mazdaspeed3, but the five-speed automatic kicks down quickly to put you in the right gear for maximum pulling power. And boy, does it sound terrific doing it, emitting a deep throaty roar from the exhaust.

Once down to safer cruising speed and putting some miles between me and Buckeye Country, I quickly realized two potential issues. One was the dark clouds rapidly approaching over the horizon in front of me; the second one was how unbelievably flat and boring this stretch of road seemed to be.

Sadly, both became a reality just outside of Dayton. The skys opened all the way to Indianapolis, which cut down on any outdoor activities, and flat farm land surrounding me at every viewpoint, it gave me a chance to become a bit more familiar with the C30’s interior.

I liked many of the interior treatments in this car. The cool two-tone seats were providing good support for my back and hips, and the HVAC was doing a good job keeping me cool while keeping the windows from fogging up. The thick-rimmed, R-Design wheel felt perfect in my hands, with these two small extensions for your thumbs which were a nice touch.

It is quite roomy up front too, and there is adequate room for two people in the second row. Trunk room is snug though, with the steep rake of the rear end cutting into valuable storage room.

One thing kept nagging me though. Where was the style, the look that matches the exterior? There are wonderful materials throughout and the dash carried the stigma of Volvo efficiency, but it just didn’t make a style point like the exterior did.

Just outside Indy, the rain dissipated enough for me to find my way onto the 465 beltway. However, traffic had picked up and my paced had dropped. Frustration was setting in, only a few hours into the calculated nine hour drive.

To take my mind off things, I turned on the optional Dynaudio upgraded sound system to see if I could find something to listen to. Lucky for me, this C30 comes standard with Sirius satellite radio. Turning to Classic Vinyl on channel 14, I found the 360 watt, 11-speaker a bit flat. Thankfully, this system, with Dolby Pro Logic II surround, had an adjustable five-band equalizer for both front and rear speakers. A little tweaking and I had CCR flooding the car with a rich, deep sound.

Finally relieving myself of traffic, I made my way onto I65, which would take me right into Chicago, and would make me lose my mind. Now, I have no problem with the state of Indiana. I like downtown Indy. I respect the Indianapolis Colts. But is this state mind-numbing to drive through.

I thought my trip from Columbus was bad, this section is downright torture. As far as you can see, (and you can see for miles in some places) there wasn’t anything to actually witness. No trees, no tended farmland; just flat land and straight highway. The only saving grace was seeing the Subaru plant, and I almost missed it.

Oh, and the rain started again. Can you see me smiling through the smeared windows? Thankfully this car has the optional automatic wipers that actually worked when it was raining, and their sensitivity was adjustable as well.

Not helping was the ride of my C30. On smooth asphalt, it was as quiet and comfortable, but rolling down the pock-marked Indiana highway, the Pirelli PZeros drone loudly. The suspension was absorbing the smaller potholes pretty well, but bigger ones would cause the front suspension to crash and jounce, sending wave after wave into my seat.

The R-Design comes standard with what Volvo called Dynamic Chassis. The suspension tuning offers a stiffer spring and dampers as well as thicker anti-roll bars. While I applaud the R-Design for handling tight on-ramps with tons of grip and flat cornering, it’s not enough to compensate for the harsh ride.

Merrillville, Indiana outside Gary is when I give myself a break and took care of the lighted gas pump symbol glowing from the dash. The rain is still falling, but that’s not what I am concerned about.

An older gentleman in a Bentley Flying Spur sedan pulls up behind me while I’m topping off the 15.9 gallon tank with fresh premium. I’m not so much focused on the car as I am the driver, who has stopped talking into the cell phone stuck to his hear to stare at the C30’s design cues. Then I noticed a woman filling up her Ford Focus giving the car a once-over as well. This car seems to be a real eye-catcher.

Back on the soggy road, I began to think about the design. Did I like it? Was it too much?

The answer is I thought it was a damn good-looking car. I love the uniqueness of the rear, without being overdone. It was graceful, yet striking. That small window was actually useful to load the 12.9 cubic feet of trunk space as well as reach the rear seats to fold them down. The chrome exhaust tips brought a more upscale touch. Not too much, but just right.

The rain ceased as I crossed into Illinois, and the clouds began to part. It looked like my trip was finally making a turn for the better. Unfortunately, the joy was short-lived. Just a few miles after the bridge, I was greeted by the Windy City with a four-mile long traffic jam. That added an extra hour to my trip, but at least I got a lovely view of the Sears Tower.

Traffic thinned enough for me to make it to the northern suburb of Winnetka, where I had an early Chipotle dinner with an old fraternity brother. Six hours into this trip and I still didn’t feel any physical pain, nor was I even hungry, and I’m always hungry. Could the C30 have pulled off a magic trick where I didn’t dispel any energy? This trip is getting stranger by the hour.

I left my friend and began to enjoy the wonderful road construction that has consumed most of I94. Here, the stiff suspension reared its ugly head again and began pitching the car. Every heave and dip turned the little Volvo into a bobble-head convention.

As I entered Milwaukee’s smoother roadways, my fondness for the C30 started growing again. I love the right amount of power and sound coming from the engine. The just-right size let me squirt around slower traffic, even if the steering wasn’t as sharp as I like. I appreciated how the controls for the radio and ventilation were laid out in an easy to use manner. The gauges and handy trip computer were read at a glance, even though the blue faces didn’t match anything else in the car.

After yet another boring stretch of highway called Route 57, my destination thankfully appeared out of nowhere, shining like a bright beacon calling me to keep going. Its sedate front offices would have been passed had it not been for the large Kohler race car leading to the paddock.

Nine hours and 531 miles from Columbus and I made it. My little Volvo survived the trip unscathed. Outside of the ride, I felt little to criticize after my extensive trip. The seats gave me no aches or pains, and I felt physically ready go to while my brain was ready for sleep. I averaged 26.5 miles per gallon, which is quite good considering it’s a forced induction engine with an automatic. But it was late and I had two long days ahead of me, so off to the Days Inn in Sheboygan for some much needed rest.

The Trip Back

After two days of flying around Road America’s four miles of racetrack at insane speeds in cars you could only dream about (you’ll read about it all in future articles) and passing out business cards to PR people and fellow journalists, it was time to head back home.

Rain, my old nemesis, appeared early in the morning and kept me company the first half of the trip. But it was accompanied by its cousin no one likes, Fog. Luckily, the C30 R-Design comes equipped with front and rear fog lamps, the latter came in handy on more than one occasion.

On the way back, I followed I-41 down to I90/I94. But instead of going back through Indianapolis again, I took Route 31 across Indiana into Ohio and down Route 23 into Columbus. Figured it would give me something else to look at. At least I had hoped.

Milwalkee and Chicago were encased in fog, the roads were soaked and every single person decided to hog the left lane. I was happy to get off these interstates and enjoy a slower paced back road.

There were several stoplights on this stretch of the trip and it gave me a chance to really test the brakes, and goose the engine some more. While the brakes had a surprising amount of travel before they bit the rotors as well as being somewhat soft, they were reassuring and quite strong, even after multiple full-panic stops. Only once did the ABS engage. Did that engine note sound good.

On the flip side, there were a few apparent design flaws. The minor ones were the poorly placed ignition slot, which may have been useful if it weren’t stuck behind the windshield wiper controls. On the passenger side, the raised door sill actually chopped off the bottom of the mirror, which greatly threw off my depth perception.

But the big issue was the cause of cool design. In the rear, those tucked in body lines and flared rear fenders created a massive B-pillar, which caused a terrible blind spot over your left shoulder. Even looking over my shoulder and using the mirror, I ended up cutting off more than one person in my travels. I learned quickly to be careful.

After making it back to Columbus, I was sad my journey was over. Not because I enjoyed driving in the rain so much or the fact that the Midwest is the most boring part of our country, but I really enjoyed this Volvo.

It may not be the sportiest car in its class, and it’s certainly not cheap, but it was comfortable, fun to drive at 8/10s and it looks great. I had zero problems with the car and it loved the open road. And when you’re out there in your C30, you’ll be in a rare club, since I only laid eyes upon one other C30 during my entire trip. Hope you like the attention.

Base Price: $25,950

As Tested: $30,265

Architecture: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive four-passenger coupe

Drivetrain: Turbocharged 2.5-liter DOHC I5 with five-speed automatic transaxle

Length: 167.4 inches

Wheelbase: 103.9 inches

Mileage: 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway

Weight: 4092 lbs.

From Road America To Your Home

2009-06-11T19:24:00.003-07:00

There are certain perks to be a journalists, and one of those is being invited to a racetrack to thrash around in several vehicles at once.

At the end of April, I attended the eighth-annual Spring Rally hosted by the Midwest Automotive Media Association. The event took place on and around Road America, located in the tiny Wisconsin resort town of Elkhart Lake. I spent two days pushing sports cars to the extreme on the track as well as testing them in everyday situations on the street. Now, I’m going to tell you, the reader, all about these vehicles.

Starting Tuesday, I’m going to share my thoughts and feelings on some of the vehicles I got to sample, both on the street now, and some that haven’t been released yet. So tune in to see the good, and the bad. You will find something you will like, I guarantee it.

I love my job.

McLaren/Mercedes GP Season From Hell

2009-06-11T19:24:00.001-07:00

You could start by saying something biblical, like the lord giveth, and the lord taketh away but it’s actually more prosaic than that. McLaren/Mercedes has been having a hell of a season (in a bad way) in this year’s grand prix competition. And this past weekends race at Turkey is one of their worst in memory.

A lot of people are scratching their heads, but the actual reason as to why things are so bad and why they’re getting whopped is a little more easily understood and prosaic.

The thumbnail sketch goes like this:

McLaren/Mercedes, one of the best grand prix racing teams out there, and the defending champions of the drivers title have been completely lost at sea since the drop of the flag at the first race of the year in Australia. It’s nothing specifically wrong, it’s everything. No grip, no speed, no straight-line acceleration, and they’ve been trying to get a handle on the new KERS system, and that hasn’t been so good either.

McLaren has not been alone, though. Doing only slightly better is last year’s constructor’s champions, Ferrari. And there in lies one of the reasons why McLaren is having such a bad time of it this year.

Most importantly, there have been a whole new raft of rules implemented for the ‘09 round of the Grand Prix World Championship. Slick tires are back, there’s huge aero changes (bigger front wing, much smaller rear, “simplified” underbody etc.), and you can now run a KERS (Kinetic Energy recovery System) hybrid drive if you’d like. Any one of these would have meant a lot of time and trouble for a team, but McLaren are big enough to handle that. All of the changes combined though, that’s a pretty steep hill to climb … And McLaren (along with Ferrari) didn’t start trying to climb it until way late in the game.

See, the two teams were so damn busy trying to knock the stuffing out of one another last year (the titles weren’t decided until literally the last corner of the last lap of the last race), that they didn’t get started on the 2009 cars (the ones with all the changes) until very, very late in the game.

That’s strike one.

The other bad news is that some of their competition, most noticeably Red Bull, Toyota and “newcomers” Brawn, had been working on their ‘09 cars for a long while. Brawn, in particular, have been working on their car since May of 2008. But that was when Brawn was known as Honda, and Honda’s ‘08 season was going so bad, they simply threw in the towel on the whole season, and literally said, ‘Screw it! We’ll just start working on the 2009 car instead.’

That’s strike two.

And on top of all this, most of the teams looked at the new-for-09 rules and said, “OK, the new underbody has to look like XXX.” Toyota and, most significantly Brawn, looked at the rules as they were written, and saw a HUGE loophole and built a very smart diffuser design.

That’s strike three.

It’s not so much that McLaren came up with a bad design, it’s that the competition came up with a better one. McLaren didn’t fail so much as the others have succeeded.

Ah well, so it goes in the racing world. Keep on boys. Look at it as a development year, and concentrate on what the 2010 car should be.

Here’s the McLaren/Mercedes presser (being as upbeat as they can):

GP Türkei: Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen 13th and 1414

Stuttgart, Jun 07, 2009

LEWIS HAMILTON

MP4-24-04

Started: 16th Finished: 13th

Fastest lap: 1m28.662s (15th) Pitstops: one (Pr-Op)

Championship points: 9 Championship pos: 11th

Starting with a heavily fuelled car, Lewis was unable to start the race aggressively and slotted into 17th. Adopting a single-stop strategy from the off, he pushed hard throughout, always maximising the car’s potential and, by virtue of passing the two-stopping cars pitting ahead of him, worked his way up to 10th before making his sole pitstop on lap 32. Switching from the Prime to the Option tyre, he rejoined in 16th, was passed by Nelson Piquet but put in another strong stint to recover to 13th by the chequer.

“It was quite an uneventful race but I actually enjoyed myself this afternoon,” Lewis said. “I was very heavy at the start but I just pushed and pushed. That’s why I can smile – because I think I drove to my full potential.

“The most important thing is for us to keep our heads up and to keep pushing. I see my role from now on as helping the team to cure the problems with this year’s car and to make next year’s car the best it can possibly be. When the team gives me a car to win, I will win.

“Now we look ahead to Silverstone – I really wish Jenson all the best: he did a fantastic job today. Personally, I hope I can come away from my home race with a great feeling from my home fans. I hope they won’t give up supporting me.”

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN

MP4-24-03

Started: 14th Finished: 14th

Fastest lap: 1m29.174s (18th) Pitstops: two (Op-Pr-Op)

Championship points: 4 Championship pos: 13th

Making a strong start, Heikki was able to slot into 11th by the end of the first lap, settling into an enthralling cat-and-mouse battle with Rubens Barrichello, who had slipped down the order at the start. Defending hard against the faster car, Heikki continually stayed ahead of Rubens, using his KERS to push back past on the startline after Rubens had nosed ahead out of the final corner. The dice concluded on lap eight when Rubens attempted to look up the inside into Turn Nine and the pair touched, pitching Heikki into a brief tank-slapper and Rubens into a harmless spin.

Thereafter, Heikki pitted on laps 19 and 42 and ran to the chequer in 14th after the team elected to reduce his engine settings to preserve the Mercedes-Benz motor.

“This was a character-building race for everybody in the team,” Heikki said afterwards. “At the start of the race, I really got the maximum out of the car and I’m pleased about that. I had a good fight with Rubens too – it was great to be racing hard and fair and it was very satisfying to keep a faster car at bay with some good old-fashioned racing tactics and also our KERS hybrid.

“In the final stint, the engineers elected to turn down the revs to protect my engine. Still, we have to be realistic: we finished 14th and we all know we can do better. We’ve had some great days in the past and we’ll continue to push hard to enjoy some great days in the future.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH

Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“In extremely frustrating circumstances, both Lewis and Heikki performed very impressively this afternoon. They both tried their hardest throughout the race, and we’re grateful for their sterling efforts. Of course, it’s frustrating that two such forceful drives went unrewarded in terms of world championship points, but the fact is that our car just isn’t as quick as we’d like it to be. So, now, we’ll go back to Woking and we’ll work hard to rectify its deficiencies, but there’s no magic cure. No, instead, the remedy will be found via hard work, and one thing our team isn’t afraid of is hard work – which, it goes without saying, I’m also extremely grateful for. But, returning to the subject of today’s race, the fact that Rubens, in an extremely competitive car, was unable to make anything of his afternoon once he’d got bogged down at the start, demonstrates all too clearly that, in modern-day Formula 1, as close-fought as it is, it’s more or less impossible to make useful progress from the back of the field. That may be frustrating, but it’s true nonetheless.”

NORBERT HAUG

Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“We knew that this type of circuit would be difficult for us. Whereas the car works okay in sector three with its long straightaway and tight corners where we are as quick as anybody, we struggle massively on the quick parts of this racetrack. We have to make fundamental improvements and everybody in the team is aware of that. Thanks to Lewis and Heikki who both drove faultless races and extracted the maximum from their cars.

“The Brawn car and Jenson Button are in a league of their own – so none of their competitors can currently be satisfied and certainly we least. Congratulations for the sixth win from Jenson in the seventh race of the season and a big thank you to our engine guys who have put in a perfect effort so far.”

Fuel Efficiency Adviser - Gadget Review

2009-06-11T19:23:00.039-07:00

When we get a new test car to review each week, I love when they include an Instant MPG reading on their information display. More and more new cars are displaying this information built-in, which is meant to help you get the best fuel efficiency possible. And it works! I notice myself paying attention to the display, seeing how high I can keep the MPG reading, and being lighter on the throttle, which gets me much better fuel economy in everyday driving. Most cars do not have this read-out, however.

A new device on the market will add this functionality to any vehicle (1996 or newer,) along with several other useful features you won’t find built-in to any new cars. Fuel Efficiency Adviser plugs into your OBD-II port, usually under your dash, and gathers readings directly from your car’s computer. After the software connects to the car’s computer (only takes a few seconds,) the Fuel Efficiency Adviser instantly displays four readings - Instant MPG, Average MPG, Current Trip Cost ($) and Cost so far today. Mount the device somewhere convenient with the included velcro strips, and start driving as the screen updates with your fuel economy numbers. That’s not all…

Along with reading your MPG and displaying it in a useful fashion, the Fuel Efficiency Adviser can display loads of other data which you can customize, displaying up to four metrics on-screen at once:

Speedometer

Tachometer (RPM)

Manifold Pressure

Battery Voltage

Coolant Temp.

Intake Air Temp.

Engine Load

Ignition Timing

Throttle Position

Open/Closed Loop

Maximum Speed

Average Speed

Maximum Coolant Temperature

Maximum RPM

Driving Time

Driving Distance

Fuel Used

Distance to Empty

Time to Empty

Fuel to Empty

The device can also read and clear “check engine” codes, helping you diagnose problems with the car without taking it in to the mechanic.

We tested a Fuel Economy Adviser, and found it to help increase fuel economy just as much as a built-in MPG reading. The Current Trip Cost and Cost so far Today readings help remind you why you’re doing this, once you see how much driving actually costs in fuel. While you can just plug it in and go, you won’t get accurate readings until you configure some settings. Going into the menu, the first things to set are engine size, gas tank size, fuel type (gas, diesel, propane, hybrid,) and units of measure. For some reason, you can only input tank size in whole numbers, so if your tank is 16.2 gallons, round to 16.

The box it comes in has everything you need, including the cable, velcro strips, a manual, and a quick start guide. Pay attention to the quick start guide, because it quickly shows you how to set up the device and what to do on your first and second fill-ups, where you input the price and amount of fuel you pump. This helps keep the cost readings accurate.

Navigating around the different screens is unintuitive, and can get confusing when you’re trying to find a certain screen or menu, which could be better laid out in the software. The problem mostly stems from the outdated LCD matrix screen, which causes menu obfuscation and requires the display to show strange abbreviations that are hard to remember due to the lack of available characters. This needs to be replaced with a larger, slightly more expensive (but invaluably more intuitive) graphic LCD display.

Ultimately, the Fuel Efficiency Adviser is a great little device to keep you conscious of your driving habits and increase overall fuel efficiency, while providing even more functionality for those of us who like extra data. The nice thing is that it actually does help save fuel, unlike many of the devices you’ll find in the back of car magazines promising to increase fuel economy by 30% from putting a magnet around your fuel line. The manufacturer says you will make up the cost of the device in fuel savings in only 12 weeks. Without doing the math, I think it will take most drivers a bit longer than that, but it will pay for itself regardless.

Would I recommend buying it? Yeah, I think most drivers would save money if they kept it connected to the car all the time. Make sure to mount it in a place that you will be looking at it regularly, but making sure it’s not in the way of other gauges. Also be sure you place it somewhere you won’t be hitting it all the time. The picture above shows it mounted below the climate controls, and I’ve seen it mounted at the bottom of some instrument panels.

Leave a comment below if you’ve used the Fuel Efficiency Adviser or similar device, or if your car ha built-in MPG meter, and if it helps you save fuel.

Viper: “No Sale” Says Chrysler

2009-06-11T19:23:00.037-07:00

Gah! Isn’t there a specialty manufacturer out there with the cash and the guts to guy Viper? It would seem the answer is no, at least according to Chrysler, as they try to sell their high performance brand to anyone with the interest and capital wherewithal to scoop it up

OK, yeah, I know … these are hard economic times and all that, but isn’t there someone out there interested in buying the Viper brand? Chrysler has had both the Viper and its Corner Avenue production plant on the block for several months, but there’s been little interest. According to a newly available court documents, Chrysler has received little interest, even if the asking price is a paltry $10 million for the whole package. None of the offers so far have even approached that asking price.

“We received no purchaser interest. The market for such assets is extremely depressed at this time,” said Chrysler chairman Bob Nardelli in an amazingly obvious statement to Automotive News.

The only offer for Viper, as revealed by the court documents, has been from Devon Motor Works for $5.5 million for the Viper nameplate and also included a bid to lease the Corner Avenue facility for one year, but there was no assumption of liabilities. Ergo, no sale to Devon Motor Works. There have been noises about a group of Polish investors interested in Viper, but they have yet to make an offer.

OK, for 10-mill here are my thoughts:

Carroll Shelby, Jack Roush, or Roger Penske!

C’mon, one of you guys could easily step in and buy Viper (and you even get an assembly plant thrown in AND a dedicated work force).

If not any of them, how about Bill Gates or Paul Allen … or for that matter, how about ten Microsoft kids get together, chip in 1-mill each, and just take it from there?

Source: LeftLaneNews

Photo from Flickr user stevelyon

Spring Rally 2009-American Muscle at Road America

2009-06-11T19:23:00.035-07:00

In a time when the American car companies are holding on for dear life, consumers’ savings have all but evaporated, and more stringent CAFE regulations looming in the future, the Big Three are giving us power-hungry, tire-thrashing car lovers a goodbye party with the cars listed below. I’m sure there will be fighting for supremacy from loyalists of each brand, but what we all have to remember is this may be the last time we see anything like this from Detroit.

I hope everyone gets a chance to enjoy one of these vehicles, because I certainly did…

2010 CHEVROLET CAMARO

After an eight year abcense, the 2010 Camaro is back on the streets using General Motors’ Zeta platform. Compared to the previous generation, this new one has 11.2 more inches in its wheelbase, but is three inches shorter overall. It’s also an inch wider.

Grunt comes from two engine choices, the 3.6-liter, 304 horsepower DOHC V6 out of the Cadillac CTS will power the LS and LT trim levels. Or for those of you with gas running your veins, check out the 426 horsepower 6.2-liter LS3 V8 in the SS. Each can be had with either an automatic or manual transmissions pushing power to the rear wheels.

The Camaro SS loaded to the gills with leather, twenty-inch wheels and the six-speed manual was taken out for a drive around the country roads surrounding Road America. First impression are the ungodly amount of thrust produced. From a standstill, there is a touch of wheel spin, but the tires hook up quickly and you are gone. This car is unbelievably powerful, and its V8 roar sounds terrific.

In the corners, you can certainly feel the 3700 lbs. the Camaro has to hustle, but it feels very capable of handling anything you can throw at it. The standard Brembo brakes felt up to the task of stopping you in short distance, and the steering, while having to use a ship’s helm for a wheel, delivers good force and acceptable feel.

But the looks are what will pull people in. It is a mixed bag of love and hate for the new Camaro from others, but I love the look. This has been the only car in recent times that has pulled off the whole “modernizing retro” look. It mixes yesteryear nostalgia with modern touches. It got that intimidating front end, high lines and a blunt rear end. This thing screams power. Even the interior plays on that theme, but is not as successful. I love the gauges and the old-school gauges below the center stack, but it’s illumintated with this hideous green glow. Make it red, make it angry.

The only fault, outside the slightly off-key interior is the manual transmission. It was impossible for me to drive this car smoothly. Hustling a one-two shift caused the imprecise shifter to not fully engage and pop out of gear. The clutch was also a nightmare, with an odd engagement point at the top of the pedal. I stalled more than once. I’m going to chalk it up to being a pre-production model and will report back with a full review when I take delivery of one later this summer.

2009 DODGE CHALLENGER SRT8

While not the freshest vehicle you see in this article, it certainly is worthy of mentioning. It may not be as aggressively styled like the Camaro, but it carries the old-new look over at about 70 percent. It looks good with it’s tight lines and that rear taillight bar really sets off an otherwise boring rear.

The Challenger has an impressive level of different options to meet any buyer’s needs. The base Challenger SE comes with the well-known 3.5-liter, DOHC V6. Then there is a choice of two V8s. The mid-range R/T has the 5.7-liter pumping out 372 horses and 400 lb. ft of torque. But those who want the cream of the crop, look no further than my test vehicle, a fully-loaded SRT8 six-speed. This puppy with its 6.1-liter Hemi sends 425 horsepower and 420 lb. ft of twenty-one inch wheel shredding power. Either engine can be had with a five-speed automatic or the aforementioned six-speed manual.

This is a big car, there’s no denying it. With a curb weight of over two-tons, it may be as well be the elephant of the muscle cars. But it doesn’t feel quite as big as most expect. The big lumbering V8 will move the SRT8 with authority and produce a sound God would envy, but it lags behind the Camaro’s brutal acceleration. The transmission and dual-plate clutch are much better than the BowTie’s, with an excellent feel to the clutch pedal and much more positive shifts using that big pistol-grip shifter.

Handling is good, but it wasn’t as much fun pushing it hard. The SRT8 is capable of running on a track, stringing itself out in the straights and taking longer, wider corners with aplomb. In tighter turns, though, you can really feel every single ounce in this car. Cornering very flat and with plenty of grip, it feels unsure with all that girth, and the unfortunate lack of steering feel doesn’t help the situation much. The brakes don’t feel very reassuring either. This will all be analyzed more thoroughly in a full test next month, but for now, just stick to cruising down your favorite boulevard or a road with soft curves.

The interior gets a well-needed bump in quality. The dash is now covered in a soft vinyl and most of the plastics have been upgraded. The seats are La-Z-Boy comfortable and offer excellent support all-around. There’s even room for regular people in the backseat. If you can get over the black hole of the interior, this is a nice place to be.

2010 FORD MUSTANG GT

Not to be outdone by the new Camaro, Ford has retuned and retooled their pony car to better handle their competition. From the sleeker, more modern body on the outside to the wonderfully redone interior, the 2010 Mustang will not be left in the dust.

The new body looks infinitely better than last years. The Mustang looks as though the design team hit the old model with a heat gun to shrink it down, making it look much more aggressive and cleaner. The rear still retains that 1969 look, but it’s sculpted cleaner, making the rear have a more distincitive look.

Inside, everything has been thrown out from the old car and replaces with good feeling materials throughout. Even the center stacks looks much better, getting away from the carryover controls for radio and ventilation which was found in almost every other Ford vehicle.

The suspension has been tuned for better body control and improved handling characteristics. It has paid off ten-fold. This new Mustang feels so much smaller now, so much more chuckable in the corners. There is still too much body movement in the corners, but that can be overlooked by the more positive feel from the better steering, stronger-feeling brakes and how light it feels compared to is competitors. This was the easiest of the three to fling around the racetrack.

The only disappointment with this car is the engine. The carryover 4.6-liter, four-valve V8 gets a very modest power and torque boost, to 315 and 325 respectively. The 110 horsepower difference over the other two by the light weight, but it doesn’t feel as quick as the others. It doesn’t feel an urge to run all out. Thankfully, the 2010 Mustang has a very good clutch, with a nice progressive engagement, and the five-speed manual with it’s white ball shifter is very easy to shift and find the right gear.

Luckily when driving it, a feeling of Frank Bullitt trying to catch that Challenger in his GT Fastback washes over the interior when the throttle is opened. Why? Because this GT will barely stay with the Challenger, but it will sound piped in will instantly remind you of what you’re after.

BMW Showcases Low Carbon Technology In London

2009-06-11T19:23:00.033-07:00

BMW, a company that has been obsessed with technology since they started, recently showed off a bunch of what it considers answers to offsetting carbon emissions in London. Makes sense. London has been on the forefront of emissions regulations in Europe, and is also a large market for what BMW makes.

The real question is whether BMW’s low carbon technologies will make it to the States.

It was all part of BMW’s participation in the annual conference for the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LCVP), which was held in London. The Bavarians showed off their MINI E all-electric vehicle and the BMW 116d diesel, which has lower emissions than the BMW 118d - last year’s World Green Car of the Year. BMW also had the electric MINI hit the road. It ran in the Brighton to London Revolve Eco-Rally, which finished up at London City Hall and was welcomed by Mayor, Boris Johnson (they have a mayor named Boris?!).

The MINI E will go on a twelve-month field trial in Germany this year to assess the technical and social characteristics of living with an all-electric vehicle in the real world. BMW is planning on expanding the trials to include England, and the first electric MINI was recently delivered to its new owner here in the U.S. as part of the same field trials.

“We believe the MINI E is an excellent vehicle for trialling this alternative form of sustainable mobility. And what better time to do this than in the year we celebrate the 50th birthday of MINI. We look forward to extending our German and American trials to the UK and I am delighted to see it running so impressively on British roads for the first time,” said BMW Group UK Managing Director, Tim Abbot.

Yes, but what about here in America? Besides the E-MINIs that are now out there, does this mean that BMW will be bringing more efficient, less polluting cars to our shores?

They haven’t announced it, but I’d be surprised if they did not. BMW has always seemed like one of those carmakers that thinks pretty far ahead. Apart from their horrid styling of late, it’s seemed that BMW has always had four or five answers already tucked away in their hip pocket.

“Oh, we need to start hitting that new XYZ reg? Yeah, no problem. We’ve had the plans standing by.”

Add that to the fact that both environmental concerns AND mileage standards are about to go up, way up, in America, and I’d bet that BMW will be bringing to our shores what they’ve just shown in Jolly Old England.

Photo from Flickr user Rutger Blom

Spring Rally-The Good Economy

2009-06-11T19:23:00.031-07:00

I remember ten years ago when you could buy a car with zero luxury features for very little money, depending on the size of the vehicle. People were content with their choice, although much else in their life was as exciting as their mode of transportation. But as time, and people’s tastes, have changed, so have the cars.

Vehicles today come with normal extravagances such as power windows, air conditioning and a CD player. Of course, those of us who need it all can get home theater-quality sound systems, navigation system that can direct us around traffic, and temperature-controllable seats to make sure our fannies stay at the optimal temperature.

But more importantly, these economy cars are now fun to drive. No longer do you have to deal with numb steering, lifeless brakes, and a floppy chassis. Now, you can do the daily commute in comfort, but have fun on the weekends. Here are some cars that will give you both worlds.

2010 Ford Fiesta 5-Door

Ford has been making strides to turn around their image, and I have to say, it’s working. Both cars offered enough of a thrill, but are still be docile for the rush hour slog.

The 2010 Fiesta available was the European version, but it’s pretty much ready for its American debut. Available next year as a sedan and hatch (pictured), the Fiesta carries the majority of the styling from the concept cars, with the stretched headlamps and rounded front end in the front to the chopped rear end. It’s not the prettiest, but we in the West have never been big fans of European simplicity.

Inside, you’ll find a very futuristic-looking dashboard, with a curvaceous center console that has the radio controls high and the HVAC controls separate, making it easy to use. The white-on-black gauges are huge, and everything is made with acceptable plastics and vinyls. It’s surprisingly funky for a car expected to price around $12,000.

Front seat occupants are treated to a high seating position and loads of room in thinly-bolstered seats. Rear seat passengers do not get the same amount, with little legroom to enjoy. Space beneath the hatch is surprising good considering the short rear overhang.

The drive is what you expect from an economy car though; good, not great. The engine under the hood was a 118 horse, 1.6-liter four-cylinder with variable cam timing. It’s not the quickest, but it is surprisingly smooth and moves the little five-door with good acceleration. The steering is light, but responsive and the five-speed is effortless to shift.

2010 Kia Soul

To continue on funky hatchbacks, Kia has given us the Soul, a funky urban cruiser designed to work well in tight spaces while being affordable.

Lets get the bad over with first shall we? Well, it’s not the Heidi Klum of the auto world, nor is it Uma Thurman attractive. The Soul has this tiny grill stuff in-between two headlights that were cut and then reattached crookedly. What’s up with that fake plastic guard on the front? It’s front-wheel-drive for pete sake. Rear isn’t much better, with its odd fender flares and toaster-oven shape.

Inside gets better. The Soul’s interior is following a similar playbook the Fiesta is using: funky, yet functional. The radio sits almost on top of the dash, with the ventilation controls right below it. Depending on which trim you choose, you can have half the interior in either bright-red or a mocha-like color with separate eye-catching designs sewn into the seats. There’s plenty of room for both passengers and their cargo.

Driving around town, the Kia feels solid and peppy. The 2.0-liter four cylinder produces 144 horsepower and 137 lb. ft of torque. (A smaller 1.6 can be had in the less-expensive models.) In the street car, the four-speed automatic was just acceptable, with a bit too much gear hunt for me. The five-speed is good if a little knotchy. On poorer surfaces, the stiffer suspension and bigger 18-inch wheels on the Sport gave it a butt-busting ride, but helped in the control department.

Handling is sound, with good steering feel and weight. It felt very eager to be pushed harder, but doing so invokes very bad understeer. It will work around town very well, with a zippy engine and small stature.

Prices start at just under $14,000. If you want the top of the line with the wheels, and upgraded stereo and a garrish interior, you’ll pay just under $18,000. (We will be covering this vehicle in greater detail later on this summer.)

2010 Mazda3 Hatchback

Since the Mazda3 came onto the market in late 2003, it has been a very popular choice over the more mundane Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra, to name a few. It was the best of bunch in terms of relability, quality and fun-to-drive. But has this new second-generation changed any of that? No, not in the slightest. It may have grown an inch in length and it has put on a few pounds, but this little five-door still offers copious amounts of luxury and thrill for very little money.

Still available in four-door or five and two engine choices with various trim levels, the Mazda3 can offer something for everyone. With a base sedan starting in around $15,000 and a hatch for a few thousand more, you get power everything, six-speaker stereo, 6 airbags, 16 or 17-inch wheels, disk brakes with ABS, and seating for five.

There is a lot new for 2010, but I will just skim the surface as we are scheduled to be receiving a few different variants next month. First is the new interior. It’s been designed with more attention to detail than ever before. The top of the dash houses two small screens for the radio and HVAC display as well as the optional navigation screen. From there, the center console gracefully flows downward to house the vents and radio controls, then curves back towards the firewall to house the recessed temperature controls. The gauges and dash are still lit by a mixture of blue and red lighting.

There is also some new parts under the hood. The 2.3-liter has been bumped up to 2.5-liters and now produces 167 horsepower and a surprising 168 lb. ft of torque. Your choice of transmission includes either the five-speed automatic or a new six-speed manual, which was what the test car had. It all works well to make the Mazda3 quick to scoot and fun to drive with a terrific clutch engagement and nice, short throws from the gearbox.

Under way, the drive is just as how you remembered the older Mazda3, with a touch more softness to everything. The ride is less harsh over bumps, but there is still that razor sharp steering and stable body control that made this car such a treat. It loves to be pushed hard in the corners, where turn-in is crisp and there is plenty of balance from the sturdy chassis.

My initial complaints are few. For one, I think the dashboard is not efficiently designed, with the presets split around a mess of other buttons and the volume knob. It’s easily learned, but it shouldn’t have to be. Second, with the higher end trims with the Bluetooth and navigation, the steering wheel also becomes too convoluted with switches and buttons.

But lastly, and certainly not least, is the new exterior. I love the older models, with their clean, aggressive lines that gave the car a much more upscale look. Now, it’s almost smiling, trying to appeal to those who care more about looks than performance. And I truly do not like the character line down the side.

If you can get past the looks, it’s still one hell of a car.

Most Ugly Camry Modified

2009-06-11T19:23:00.029-07:00

Wire wheel covers: check. Colored tape on the headlights: check. Mass amounts of chrome trim: check. Fake triple side-exit exhaust: check.

I swear this guy isn’t even a teenager. The owner is almost eighty years old and is retired. At least it sounds good, even great. But still...

More Pics ---> Cardomain

McClaren F1 Up In Smoke

2009-06-11T19:23:00.027-07:00

Wow, I can't believe I missed this because I was in Santa Rosa yesterday, and I was two blocks down from where it had happened. Read here for the full story ---> PressDemocrat

BREAKING NEWS: Supreme Court clears the way for Chrysler-Fiat deal

2009-06-11T19:23:00.025-07:00

With the temporary stay issued yesterday lifted, the Supreme Court will allow the government-backed sale of Chrysler to Fiat. The high court rejected the request from Indiana pension funds and consumer advocates to delay the deal, clearing the way for the sale and setting a precedent for General Motors in its own bankruptcy proceedings.

Read on here ---> Bloomberg

Mercedes-Benz CL-Class AMG Convertible Conversion

2009-06-11T19:23:00.023-07:00

With every passing year, there seems to be more convertibles on the market. But if you live in a sunny clime like California's, enough sunshine is never enough. That's where convertible chop-shops like Newport Convertible Engineering step in. The folks at NCE will take just about any automobile and turn it into a custom cabrio to a buyer's specifications. The company's portfolio includes recent conversions of a Dodge Challenger, Toyota Prius, Cadillac CTS, Hummer H2, Toyota FJ Cruiser, and this Mercedes-Benz CL AMG. Unfortunately, from the photos seen here, the soft top doesn't seem to collapse quite flush with the rear deck, leaving something to be desired in terms of aesthetics – to say nothing of rearward visibility. Here's hoping there's a snug-fitting cover lurking in whatever trunkspace remains.

More Pics ---> Auto Blog

1954 Bentley R-Type on eBay Motors - Find of the Day

2009-06-11T19:23:00.021-07:00

Have you got two-hundred grand to drop on a Bentley Continental? Well, then you're more fortunate than most of us, but before you head down to the local luxury dealership and place your order for the same car that everyone else in your tony gated community already owns, why not consider something with a little more character? May we suggest this 1954 Bentley R-Type fastback racer.

Crafted on special order in the post-war period, this Chassis #B77ZX has earned a bit of a following from its appearances in concours events, participation in historic races and inclusion in books on Bentley history. Different from the other 2,300+ R-types built, this example features a louvered hood, custom competition wheels, rally lamps and a set of white racing stripes leading over the British Racing Green bodywork from the color-keyed grille surround all the way to the elegantly sloping fastback tail. It's being offered for sale by The San Diego Collection with a buy-it-now price of $195,000, but reasonable offers and trades are also being considered. Check out the images in the gallery below for a closer look.

More Pics --> Auto Blog

Sepang 1000km Race

2009-06-11T19:23:00.019-07:00

Sepang International Circuit organized a race called Sepang 1000 km (S1k). The event takes place at Sepang International Circuit (SIC), Selangor. Below are the details which eventually starts today.

Date: 04/06/2009 - 06/06-2009

Venue: Sepang International Circuit (SIC), Selangor

Organizer: Sepang International Circuit (SIC)

Contact no: +603-87782200

Website: http://www.sepangcircuit.com/node/1/43

Perodua MPV D46T Teaser

2009-06-11T19:23:00.017-07:00

More and more news about another local MPV, specifically from Perodua reveiled. And now, the Perodua MPV D46T teaser is out. Below are some of the pictures. Seems that the figure getting clearer by day. Soon I believe that we can spot some of them on the road, doing the test drive.

Bumblebee Chevrolet Cruze Version

2009-06-11T19:23:00.015-07:00

A transformer fanatic has transformed his original Chevrolet Cruze into the famous transformer character, the Bumblebee. Seems like he/she really love Bumblebee that his/her car is converted to it. Before this we have heard the limited edition of 2010 Chevrolet Camaro Bumblebee Package, but now, the Bumblebee Chevrolet Cruze?

2010 Volvo C70 Based on the S60 Concept

2009-06-11T19:23:00.013-07:00

It is believed that the new 2010 Volvo C70 is based on the S60 Concept. It will has 227 hp turbocharged 5 cylinder engine. Below is a picture of the 2010 Volvo C70 snapshot.

2009 SUPER GT International Series Malaysia

2009-06-11T19:23:00.011-07:00

The greatest GT battle is now coming to Malaysia. Yes, the super GT will be held on the 19 June 2009 till 21 June 2009 and the battle field is as usual, at Sepang International Circuit (SIC). The GT is not only known as the craze mean machine but also the gorgeous GT babes, queen, ladies or whoever you want to call them.

The race will feature a two groups battle in one race, which are the GT 500 (for 500 hp cars) and GT300 (for 300hp cars) and is believed to have 40 cars in 54 lap race. The 2009 Super GT International Series Malaysia will also feature the new GT3 Asia series, the Formula V6 Asia, ATC Max1500 and the Aston Marin Asia Cup as the support races.

You may buy online ticket at: SIC Online Ticket

Alternatively, you may visit its official website: 2009 Super GT International Series Malaysia

There is also some Roadshow & Promotion here: Roadshow & Promotion of Super GT Malaysia

Source: sepangcircuit.com

Another Kancil Mira Classic Spotted at Shah Alam

2009-06-11T19:23:00.009-07:00

Another Perodua Kancil converted to Mira Classic was spotted in Shah Alam. This time the picture is not so clear as it was taken with outdated phone camera. Sorry. ANyway, do enjoy them.

David Beckham Son’s Car

2009-06-11T19:23:00.007-07:00

Well, I believed these pictures are way back, but just received it by email, so I would like to share what they said as the David Beckham son’s car. Look at it, wish I got this during my early days..

No related posts.

NCE Mercedes-Benz CL AMG Convertible

2009-06-11T19:23:00.005-07:00

The NCE is offering a convertible version of Mercedes-Benz CL AMG Coupe. Below are some of the pictures.

Mini John Cooper Works World Championship 50 Limited Edition

2009-06-11T19:23:00.003-07:00

A new body color for Mini, the Connaught Green with Pepper White roof and bonnet stripes, the limited edition Mini John Cooper Works World Championship 50 is based on the Mini John Cooper works, powered by a 1.6L 4 cylinder twin scroll torbocharger and petrol direct injection. This gives 155 kW/211 hp with maximum torque of 260 Nm or even 280Nm. The car can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.5 seconds with top speed 238 km/h.

Other special feature:

Bi-xenon headlights with black interior surfacce

Additional driving lights with black housing

A plethora of carbon fibre features (bonnet scoop on the bonnet, rear diffuser, exterior mirror caps, tailgate handle)

Special unique numbering on the side scuttles finishers

Full leather sports seats (black with red piping

Red knee rolls

Red armrests

Red stitching on the floor mats, gearshift & handbrake gaiters

Carbon fibre facia and door grips

Sports Steering Wheel

Alcantra Rim

McPherson struts on the front axle and a central-arm rear axle

Electromechanical Power Steering (EPS)

A Sport Button

Large sports brake system with red aluminium callipers

Dynamic Stability Control (DSC)

2010 Chevrolet Camaro Goes to Middle East Pictures

2009-06-11T19:23:00.001-07:00

2010 Chevrolet Camaro was launched in the Middle East. The new 300 hp V6 powered LT model and the 422 hp V8 Camaro SS sales will begin later in summer. Here are some of the pictures of the car running around Middle East.

Pojas glavu čuva

2009-05-28T20:03:00.037-07:00

Ako niste pravilno vezani, tada vam ni vazdušni jastuci, ni sva ostala sigurnosna oprema (deformacione zone, sigurnosni kavez itd.) neće pomoći. To je pokazalo testiranje nemačkog ADAC-a, u kojem su istovremeno sprovedeni testovi na dva Golf-a 2.0 TDI, s lutkama za testiranje. U jednom vozilu su svi bili propisno vezani, a u drugom je simulirana situacija kada vozač nije vezan, a dete ne sedi u stolici predviđenoj za to ili uopšte nije vezano.

Crash test je sproveden prema standardu Euro-NCAP, pri brzini od 64 km/h, uz 40-postotno preklapanje. Takav test simulira najopasniji frontalni sudar, u kojem i strada najviše osoba u saobraćaju. U slučaju pravilnog vezivanja pokazalo se da tada ne bi došlo do povreda, to jest vozač i putnici bi prošli bez povrede. “Osobe” koje se u istom automobilu u istim uslovima nisu vezale ili su sedele nepropisno zadobile su teške i po život opasne povrede.

Time je potvrđeno ono na šta stručnjaci dugo upozoravaju: vazdušni jastuk nije dovoljan, jer ako vozač ili suvozač nisu vezani, tada vazdušni jastuk ni približno nije od koristi, a u određenim okolnostima može povećati opasnost od teških povreda. Posebno su ugrožene osobe niskog rasta i deca, kod kojih eksplozivno naduvavanje vazdušnog jastuka može izazvati teške povrede glave.

Prvi sigurnosni pojas fiksiran u tri tačke ugrađen je pre više od pola veka, 1958. godine, u modelu Volvo 121 Amazon. Taj sistem ubrzo je postao standard, a masovna ugradnja počela je krajem šezdesetih godina, što je doprinelo sigurnosti. Zatezači smanjuju pravu snagu udara. Svi novi automobili opremljeni su zatezačima programiranog zatezanja. Naime, prvi sigurnosni pojasevi su bili kruti, pa su povećavali povrede grudnog koša i trzajne povrede vrata. Zbog toga su pojasevi spojeni elastično, kako bi smanjili dinamički udar, a posle toga pirotehnički zatezači povećavaju silu zatezanja, kako ne bi došlo do udara tela o ram automobila ili upravljač.

Ovim sistemom upravlja elektronika koja reaguje na informacije koje dobija od senzora dinamičkog udara. Mercedes-Benz je pre deset godina projektovao sistem Presafe, koji u situaciji kad je sudar siguran zateže sigurnosne pojaseve, kako bi se vozač pripremio na udar. Ispitivanja su pokazala da se time rizik teških povreda može smanjiti za više od 30 odsto.

Izvor: Internet Krstarica

Video klip: ASR, ESP, ABS

2009-05-28T20:03:00.035-07:00

Hayabusa-Powered VW Polo Burns The Right Tires [Tuner Cars]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.033-07:00

We were displeased to see VW’s annual Wörthersee concepts were relatively tame. Thankfully, these gents stepped up with a RWD, Hayabusa-powered Polo.

When you’re driving a window vehicle like a Polo if you really want performance,you might as well put an end to the back seat. It’s just extra weight. But the sort of to re-establish it with? Clearly, a turbocharged motorcycle engine. And if you’re going to go end the trouble to put a motor out back it’s just another easy step to attach a chain-driven rouse axle. It only makes judgment. Finally, a VW concept wörth seeing.

[TMR Tuned]

Buy Mitsubishi, Get Goat For Free [Ad Watch]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.031-07:00

Proving that “Flight of the Conchords” is completely accurate, Mitsubishi New Zealand is giving away free goats with every Triton truck. But what about goat flu? One of the best press releases ever in this world.

You really need to read all of this hilarious (and we think maybe unaffected) press release to capture the abounding comedic estimation.

Mitsubishi offers free goat
22 May 2009
In a drive to help the rural community stave off the recession, Mitsubishi Motors is supporting primary productivity by offering a free goat with each new Triton sold before August.

“We firmly give credit to that New Zealand’s recovery is in the hands of the pastoral sector and they’re the people who are buying our utes,” said MMNZ not particular manager of sales and marketing Peter Wilkins. “Goats, analogous our Tritons, are hardy, versatile units, which will integrate directly into existing farm operations”.

“Goats improve farm productivity by providing an environmentally friendly plea against noxious weeds and they’re a lot cheaper than toxic sprays”.

“Goats also provide export commodities that be possible to help improve our balance of payments. They be augmented a defecate micron wrap in misty clouds, much like the renowned Merino, which can be used to produce high-quality garments. Goat’s milk provides a nutritious alternative for the growing number of lactose intolerant people and while goat meat is seldom featured in Western restaurants, developing countries consume immense quantities,” said Mr Wilkins.

“And, most importantly, there is no such thing as Goat Flu – so no threat to tourism. It’s hard to observe a downside,” he added.

“At MMNZ, we are aware that three years of drought has severely depleted sheep and beef populations, in this way the kind of better particular period to ‘float the goat’?” said Mr Wilkins. “We’ll supply a free goat with every Triton sold before August and do our bit to loosen the seize of the recession”.

“On the off befall that the vendee already has enough goats or feels that goat herding is better left to those in drier climes, we’ll supply a ‘no goat package’ consisting of a five-year/100,000km extended warranty, five free WOF inspections, 5,000km road user charges, five years of roadside assistance and $500 of genuine or approved Triton accessories,” Mr Wilkins said.

(Hat Tip to Nick!)

[Mitsibushi]

2010 Mustang Gets Some Serious Wheel Weights, Too [2010 Mustang]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.029-07:00

We’re familiar by the Camaro brake weights issue, in like manner when we saw tons of wheel-balancing weights upon the Camaro Indy pace car, we thought it strange. Turns out the 2010 Mustang is just as bad.

Seems we stirred up the pot with our moderate observation and the guys over at Super Chevy got curious about the competition’s car, so they went poking right and left some 2010 Mustangs and found an well-nigh identical length of balancing weights. The regular wisdom says granting that this much weight was needed, either someone doesn’t know what they’re doing or in that place’s something wrong with the wheel or tire. We’re starting to think these kinds of long strips will be getting to a greater degree common as large wheels remain popular and lead wheel weights get phased out of usage after the California ban. (Hat Tip to Pres) [Super Chevy]

An Elegy for Six Missing Cylinders [Crazy Euro Car Boy]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.027-07:00

If you’re spotting Lamborghinis in Eastern Europe, watch out for chronic cylinder shortage.

In his last article published by The Atlantic—How to Get a Nuclear Bomb, which later became the first chapter of the main division The Atomic Bazaar—William Langewiesche recalls a dialogue with an operator in Russia’sitting nuclear bureaucracy. Their discussion is about the ease with which nuclear weapons can be acquired by any state willing to build them:

“Once a country has made the decision to become a nuclear-weapons power, it will get to be person heedless of any guarantees. You needn’t be rich. You needn’cheek by jowl have being technically developed. You can be Pakistan, Libya, North Korea, Iran. You can be …” He searched for a country even more absurd in his estimation. He said, “You can be Hungary.”

Stinging though it may be for my fellow Hungarians, the Russian’s quick analysis is certainly place on. While starving North Korea has detonated a Hiroshima-size nuke this Monday, the last glory days of Hungarian military ability were way back in the 15th century, when the Black Army of King Matthias Corvinus romped about Central Europe under one hell of a military flag, wreaking havoc every what one. way. It’s been all downhill from in that place.

So it is certainly an occasion when a Lamborghini Countach is bespotted on the streets of this sad, lonely outpost on the real edge of Western civilization. But then you bring forth to remember that in outposts, appearances can deceive. Which entails that when you start counting a Countach’s cylinders, you come to a sudden halt after six:

And effect that it’s probably not a Countach after completely, but a Pontiac Fiero with a dead body kit.

The only solace for a rueful Hungarian nationalist would have existence the fact that we would have neither nukes nor the car that induce America on wheels without Hungarians (1, 2, 3, 4).

Photo Credit: Balazs Keki

What Are The Least Attractive Stock Wheels? [Question Of The Day]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.025-07:00

Yesterday, you all teed-off on the greatest in quantity attractive stock wheels and introduced us to some fine wheels. But what in an opposite direction the opposite? What are the minutest attractive stock wheels?

The first generation Viper has a curvaceous and powerful visage that remains attractive in greater numbers than 15 years later. In many ways, the original Viper is after that the most attractive of the short-lived nameplate. Yet, as impressive and timeless as the car was, the wheels were dated the force they debuted. It’s rare a carriage be able to pull the three-spoke look off (we’re looking at you Saab) and the sharp angles of the wheels, rather than contrast by the round shape, merely draw your eyes away. Another car to carry a similar design is the mid-90s Pontiac Grand Am and, honestly, they look better without ceasing the Pontiac.

(QOTD is your chance to answer the day’s most pressing automotive questions and experience the opinions of the insightful insiders, practicing pundits and gleeful gearheads that make up the Jalopnik commentariat. If you’ve got a suggestion on the side of a good “Question Of The Day” send an email to tips at jalopnik dot com.)

Man Hand-Building Hummer H1 From Ford Scraps [Custom Cars]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.023-07:00

A insane person Ford nut is hand-building an incredible Hummer H1 replica on the bones of a junker Ford F-150. The full scope of this construction fest can only be appreciated in the huge gallery below.

We’ve only ever seen this level of insane skill before in the basement-built Lamborghini Countach of Ken Imhoff, mete craftsmanship and the mid-level dementia of the builders is all these vehicles share. This H1 isn’t some surplus rebuild or fiberglass small pail, it’session all-steel, hand fabricated to a near-military spec aim of quality. The frame comes from a rough 1987 F150 4×4, the rear axle was pulled out of a E250 van, the engine is a fiend 7.3 liter Powerstroke diesel from a shuttle van, and pretty much everything else is the outcome of a press-brake and and whole lot of welding. The product has been dubbed the Hummer H150.

We were a small degree worried, about half-way through the 48 pages of tribunal details on FullSizeBronco.com where he admitted his wife would be given the choice of paint scheme and she picked out a two tone white and grey through a tribal line in the middle. Thankfully she came to her senses and a lovely orange was chosen in lieu. Though the traffic isn’t quite done yet, a whole lot of the major work is through. The body electronics just got the experiment and transmission has been sourced, so after buttoning up the powertrain it’ll be ready for a maiden run. This build has taken some five years thus far, but considering for what reason far this guy has come the last few steps are practically babe’s play.

There aren’t many vehicles manlier than the original Hummer H1, but building your own from mark with a scratch puts you in rare company on the testosterone scale. We can’t wait to see how the Hummer H150 turns out. Hat tip to Mike! [Full Size Bronco Forums]

Electric Brammo Enertia TTR Motorcycle [Motorcycles]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.021-07:00

Electric Brammo Enertia TTR motorcycle to race Isle Of Man TT [Hell for Leather]

So You Say You’re A Red Wings Fan [Picture Of The Day]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.019-07:00

The Detroit Red Wings will subsist facing off against Pittsburgh for the Stanley Cup. We think we be assured of who these guys are pulling for.

DETROIT - MAY 17: A Detroit Red Wings themed car drives downward the street outside the arena prior to Game One of the Western Conference Championship Round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Chicago Blackhawks on May 17, 2009 at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

Report: GM To File Chapter 11 Bankruptcy On Monday [Carpocalypse]

2009-05-28T20:03:00.017-07:00

GM plans to toothed with regard to Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday, then sell most of its assets to a new collection. The bankruptcy should last 60-90 days and be financed with $50 billion of Treasury money. [Bloomberg]

Save Money with a Biodiesel Kit

2009-05-28T20:03:00.015-07:00

With the rising gas prices of today many folks have begun to look for an alternative way to state in language fuel in their cars
. A biodiesel kit fits the bill for many people who have started making this oil saving fuel in their have backyards. And for what cause not contribute your own material for burning, the hit to wallets and bank accounts with high gasoline prices makes finding alternative fuel sources imperative these days, particularly with the price of gas and oil in the news on a daily basis. A biodiesel kit is a great persons way to save a substantial amount of money on your fuel costs
. The basic function of such a kit is to convert vegetable oil into biodiesel, a firing source that can be used in vehicles that currently run on diesel combustible matter. It is important to annotation that not all car companies guarantee the use of biodiesel fuel in their vehicles and direct void the warranty suppose that an engine is damaged by its use. Be sure to research this control buying a new vehicle with a diesel engine. For older diesel cars and trucks there are engine conversion kits that will ascertain by enumeration the change to cleaner burning biodiesel much easier. There is a minimal amount of stores needed to use a biodiesel kit. You will need basic tap water, methanol and access to a beneficial amount of vegetable oil, which can usually be obtained from restaurants and such. You can set the kit up just about anywhere, although greatest in number the public do put them outside in a shed or under an overhang. You will be making a fuel oil thus setting up in the house may not be a real good idea. When it comes to pricing a kit the added features to be found the more expensive the kit. The most expensive models are built to prevent fumes and odors from escaping during the refining process. Having an odorless refining process may be important for those wishing to refine their combustible matter near their home. If you live on a farm or a large acreage this may not have existence as important as the kit can be located farther from the house. Of order if you can afford it reach ahead and get the more expensive closed system just because they are very easy to application. If for some reason you already have a large sum of cooking oil that you need to dispose of then a biodiesel kit would work accurately. It does take more time to process used oil but the results are the same, a more environmentally well-disposed fuel that can be induce into a diesel powered vehicle. Considering that the price of gasoline is on any ever rising run making biodiesel with a view to personal use can be seen viewed like a pungent move. Having your own biodiesel small tub producing a constant give of a low cost environmentally friendly fuel right in your own backyard would remove the sting of high pump prices.
http://www.articlesbase.com/automotive-articles/save-money-with-a-biodiesel-kit-942417.html

Vw Golf Mk2 Car Tuning

2009-05-28T20:03:00.013-07:00

Car Tuning means getting the maximum performance out of your car. Whether you own an exotic or just drive stock, with some car tuning tips and parts, you can not only increase the performance of your vehicle easily, but make it much more fun to drive and more attractive to others. I found this image for this wonderful and thought to share it with you and tell you something about Car Tuning.

Car tuning is both an industry and a hobby, in which a car is modified in order to improve its performance and handling and improve the owner’s driving style. As most cars leave the factory set up for average driver expectations and average conditions, tuning has become a way to personalize the characteristics of the vehicle to the owner’s preference. For example, cars may be altered to provide better fuel economy, produce more power at high RPM or the ride comfort may be sacrificed to provide better handling.

Car tuning is related to auto racing, although most performance cars never compete. Rather they are built for the pleasure of owning and driving such a vehicle. Another major facet of tuning includes performance modification to the car exterior. This includes changing the aerodynamic characteristics of the vehicle via side skirts, front and rear bumpers, adding spoilers, splitters, air vents and light weight wheels.

More information about car tuning.

Bugatti Veyron Amazing Gallery and Specs

2009-05-28T20:03:00.011-07:00

The Bugatti EB Veyron 16.4 is a mid-engine car produced by Bugatti headquarters in Château St Jean in Molsheim (Alsace, France). It is the name of the French pilot Pierre Veyron, who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1939 while racing for Bugatti. 200 examples of the Veyron is known have been built and delivered since production began.
Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

There will be a total of 300 built. All editions support Veyron 300 under construction. Issues that contribute Veyron, Veyron 16.4 While Sang, Hermes Edition, Black Blood, Targa, Winning cenet and blue. It is replaced by the Grand Sport, which is essentially a convertible Veyron.
Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron Race

Corvette z06 The Most Fast Car

2009-05-28T20:03:00.009-07:00

Generations produced to date, sometimes referred to as C1 (the first), C6 (today), each has different versions with different characteristics, for example, C6 includes ZR1, which is the most powerful engine in the Corvette production data . Over the years, versions of the car has won awards from such magazines Motor Trend and Car and Driver and organizations like the Society of Automotive Engineers, det used, sometimes the pace autolunga career in the Indianapolis 500 from 1978.
Corvette z06

Corvette z06

Corvette z06

Corvette z06

Corvette z06

Corvette z06 Race

Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery and Top specs

2009-05-28T20:03:00.007-07:00

For the 2009 model year LX and Touring trim down, leaving only the Limited. In addition, the Company is also 2.4 liters 4-cylinder and the price for the same price as the 2008 Touring model. And in 2009, was modified Sebring rear plate slightly.
Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery

Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery

Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery

Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery

Chrysler Sebring 2009 Gallery

Funeral Cars Just One Feature to Consider when Shopping

2009-05-28T20:03:00.005-07:00

When shopping around for the funeral home at which you want to have your service when you pass away, the price of funeral cars is one of the costs you will need to consider . But many people get a little squeamish when it comes to shopping around at funeral homes.

Your funeral, however, is probably the third largest purchase you will ever make behind your home and your car. That is why it is so important to shop for a funeral home you like in much the same way you shop for your home or next car so you can get exactly what you want without getting ripped off.

"You’re more likely to make a hasty financial decision in an emotionally charged situation," said Connie Perna-Pellegrino, the owner of Perna-Pellegrino Funeral Home near Buffalo, New York. "People need to be educated consumers so they’re making sound decisions rather than reacting to a crisis situation." Although we would like to think that funeral directors have our best interest at heart, they are still in business to make a profit and one way they make a profit is to sell their products.

One of the options you have if you really want to "go out in style" is a luxurious Cadillac hearse . On Wednesday, we’ll discuss this idea further and tell you how you can be thriftier with your money while pre-planning your funeral.

Cadillac Hearses Just One Option to Consider

2009-05-28T20:03:00.003-07:00

When preplanning your funeral,Cadillac hearses are just one option you will need to consider. But if you do decide to preplan your funeral, it is important to make financially sound decisions to avoid spending too much or getting scammed. Here are some things to keep in mind when it is time to make the preplanning decision.

• Get an itemized price list. When you are planning a funeral, the director is required to give you an itemized price list at the start of the discussion. This will give you an idea of how much you will be spending right away. You can also choose items from the list separately rather than an entire package if you choose.

• Ask if there are caskets not listed on the price list. Some funeral homes may not list their lower-priced caskets. If the director says they are out of stock, ask how long it would take to get one because many of them can be delivered in a matter of hours.

• Go online and make phone calls. Funeral directors are required to tell you prices over the phone for professional services. Many of them may even list their prices online to make your “shopping” experience even easier.

These are just a few things to consider when shopping for a funeral home. If you stay calm during the process and ask a lot of questions, you are more likely to be comfortable with your purchase.

Modellista Toyota Prius

2009-05-28T20:03:00.001-07:00

The all new Toyota Prius will be launching in 2010 and the Japanese automakers designed several car tuning kits exclusively from Modellista. There are several performance and styling modifications available so they made it easy by designing three separate kits. All three packages are unique and named Modellista Versions 1, 2, and the Aero Tourer kit. The Aero Tourer kit looks to have the same stock front bumper, however improvements in the grille for better aerodynamics was the focus.

Improving the handling was done as well, by adding 16 inch alloy wheels, and installing a new set of lowering springs that drop the vehicle 20 mm. At first, it is doubtful that these kits will be available outside of Japan, but after some time you will probably be able to find a retailer and then there’s always eBay.

[Source: leblogauto]

Winner of the Top Gear Season 10 DVDs Announced

2009-05-28T20:02:00.051-07:00

Two weeks ago we started a contest for readers of Automoblog.net to win two copies of the new Top Gear Season 10 on DVD. All they had to do was come up with the best and most creative new challenge for the Top Gear guys to do. The best two entries win.

We got some really good ideas, and it was hard for us to choose just one winner, but here they are:

Samantha:

Being the way that the economy is, I would like to see Top Gear save some money and get some ‘not so good’ cars off the road. What the three hosts, and possibly the Stig as well, should be given 500 punds each to purchase a older car and enter into a demolition derby. It would Give Mr. May some retaliation towards the other two presenters. It is not about speed but who has purchased the best car and can last the longest. And it would make some good television.

Stewart:

I want to seem them take normal town cars and strip them down (even the engine) to see which is the best car to “Flintstone” around town.

I will be contacting the winners via email to have their DVDs sent to their home.

Automoblog.net writers Tony and Will also came up with some very good ideas:

Tony:

From Land’s End to John O’ Groats via Citroen 2CVs?

Can any of the hosts make it through a slalom quicker than The Stig; the hosts drive forwards & The Stig drives backwards?

Can they make it from London to Edinburgh in a Bugatti Veyron quicker than a commuter airline flight?

Who’s quicker doing a lap of the ‘Ring in Forza Motorsports, the hosts, The Stig, or some British kid?

I especially like the last one!

Will:

How about actually designing a car? Get all the hosts together, along with the Stig, and have them each design their own car. Have it custom made, and then see who’s car is the fastest around the Top Gear track. Their constantly critiquing cars, so let’s see how they do when given the chance to make their own.

All entrants to this contest are being sent to the BBC, so hopefully they like some of these ideas and use them in the show. Head on over to the Top Gear Contest page to read the rest of the entries.

Thanks to all the participants in this contest, and don’t worry, we’ll be having another Top Gear contest here soon.

MTM Bentley Continental GT Birkin Edition

2009-05-28T20:02:00.049-07:00

German tuner MTM’s latest creation has beaten Bentley themselves for the title of “Fastest Bentley in the World.” They’ve taken a regular Continental GT, and added power and suspension upgrades, along with a few other minor changes.

MTM has managed to squeeze 650 horsepower out of the Bentley’s twin-turbocharged W12 engine, which is 90hp more than from the factory. Torque is increased from 479 lb-ft to 586, and is available at only 1700 rpm. These power upgrades allow the tuned Continental GT to hit a top speed of over 205 mph, and it took three seconds off the standard GT on the short Hockenheim circuit, as well as three seconds off the 0 to 200 km/h sprint, which the MTM achieved in 15.9 seconds.

Along with the engine upgrades, the MTM Continental GT also receives a new stainless steel exhaust system, custom 21-inch alloy wheels, bigger brakes, and a tuned and height-adjustable suspension.

MTM didn’t change any of the body except adding a chromed grille, but the lowered suspension, new wheels, and four-pipe exhaust give the MTM Continental GT an overall sportier and more aggressive look.

The Birkin Edition kit will cost a little over $28,000 USD, and can be applied to the standard Continental GT, GTC, Flying Spur, GT Speed, GTC Speed and Continental Supersports. See below for more pictures:

HAMANN BMW 7-Series

2009-05-28T20:02:00.047-07:00

HAMANN, a German tuner long associated with BMW and all things efficient, Teutonic and powerful (although they never say why their name is in all caps like that), has just released the details on their latest working over of BMW’s 7 series flagship. HAMANN calls it ” Individualisation on the highest level”, but if you want it shortened to just three words it would be “Power. Power. Power.”

OK, for all you pendants out there that are getting ready to screed in about “Individualisation on the highest level”, yeah, I know it’s not Individualisation, it’s Individualization. That’s the way HAMANN spells it, and I was quoting direct, so go buy a flight to Laupheim Germany and bug them, not me.

OK, that said, what’s up with HAMANN’s new 7?

The short list includes such goodies as stainless steel exhaust systems with a “sporty and earthy sound”, aerodynamic bodywork that reduces lift, and light alloy rims from 19 to 22 inches. On the inside there’s lots of leather and floor-mats in matching colors as well as non-slip aluminum pedals.

There are LED daytime running lights which are integrated in the new front skirt, which the company says, “render a sporty-dynamic look and increase the passive safety.” And by ” passive safety” I figure they mean the aero work keeps this beast o the ground at Autobahn speeds (sure, that counts as safety to me). There’s also a roof spoiler and the rear spoiler that also cut lift and gives ” the upper class limousine a new, attractive overall appearance. ” Yeah, that’s what they think, but to me it looks like dad’s car was taken over by the boy-racers and given the Vin Diesel treatment.

There’s also side skirts with an available rear shield insert for the side skirt of the model 730d and 740i allows fitting the four-pipe muffler with four round stainless steel end pipes clocking in at 90 millimeters in diameter that produce that “powerful, earthy sound” (which is just an hilarious way to mention it … what are they talking about, sounds like a review of a 70s jazz fusion concert).

HAMANN goes over the chassis. There’s four progressively coiled springs which lower the center of gravity by 40 millimeters at the front and rear axles, and HAMANN also says that it gives the 7 a “dynamic appearance. ” There’s also a lowering kit for the 750i and 750Li.

And they also do some cool stuff with the diesel version of the 7. Variable turbine geometrics are already in the works that will increase the oil burners power output by 45 HP up to 245 hp.

Here’s HAMANN’s press release:

PRESS RELEASE

May 2009

Individualisation on the highest level

The HAMANN refining programme for the new BMW 7-series

Individualisation on the highest level – this is the motto under which HAMANN presents its refining programme for the new BMW 7-series of the model range F01 and F02. Already since 1986, the Laupheim-based company develops and produces products for the individualisation of BMW automobiles. Thereby, the HAMANN technicians profit from hundreds of successful motor sports participations. The competence which was gained there is the basis for the development of new HAMANN products and renders the highest level for product quality and processing. The result: stainless steel exhaust systems with a sporty and earthy sound, aerodynamics components reducing the lifting forces and striking light alloy rims from 19 to 22 inches. Interiors perfectly fitted with leather and combined with floor-mats in matching colours as well as non-slip aluminium pedals extend the accessory range.

Already when establishing the design, HAMANN perfectly adjusts the individual components of the aerodynamic pack. The result is an exciting styling with an optimised air flow across the car silhouette. LED daytime running lights which are integrated in the new front skirt, render a sporty-dynamic look and increase the passive safety. Simultaneously, in combination with the roof spoiler and the rear spoiler, the lifting forces are reduced and give the upper class limousine a new, attractive overall appearance. The visual connection between the front and rear part are the HAMANN side skirts which are available for the model series F01. The optionally available rear shield insert for the side skirt of the model 730d and 740i allows fitting the four-pipe sport end muffler. Four round stainless steel end pipes with a diameter of 90 millimetres perfectly enhance the rear part of the 7-series BMW and produce a powerful, earthy sound.

A performance enhancement for the Diesel engine with variable turbine geometrics is already under construction. By this first tuning stage the serial measure of the 730d (180 kW / 245 hp) increases by approximately 33 kW/45 hp.

A technical highlight of the offered tuning programme is the one-piece HAMANN-aluminium wheel called DESIGN HM EVO 22 inches. A hallmark of the modern styling is the glossy black paint with the diamond-grinded rim star and the discreet deep rim well. Five elongated and over-vaulted triple spokes document visual and technical finesse. Struts inside the spokes render additional stability. Modern production processes and the use of special aluminium alloys guarantee highest bearing loads at a low weight. Here, HAMANN recommends the dimensions 9.0Jx22 inches with 265/30ZR22 tyres at the front axle and 10.5Jx22 inches with 295/25ZR22 tyres at the rear axle.

The four progressively coiled chassis springs which lower the centre of gravity with the models 730d, 740i by 40 millimetres at the front- and rear axles, render a dynamic appearance. For the models 750i and 750Li, there is a lowering kit consisting of two chassis springs and an evening kit.

In addition to the existing, serial interior equipment, HAMANN accessories made first-class aluminium, pedals and foot-rests render motor sports air and perfectly match the embroidered HAMANN floor mat set. If desired, even a complete leather equipment can be produced with expert precision.

Caddy Rolls Out All-New SRX Crossover & CTS Sport Wagon

2009-05-28T20:02:00.045-07:00

Caddy has decided to get more into the, er, crossover game by setting two new models loose on the roadways of America this summer. One is the all-new SRX Crossover and the other is a Sport Wagon variant of their CTS small sports sedan.

Essentially, they’re both station wagons, no matter how the PR and marketing flacks try to get you to use the term “Crossover”.

The all new 2010 SRX Crossover, scheduled to begin production this summer, will have a starting priced of $34,155, which ain’t all that bad for a Cadillac if you think about it. The SRX is a 5-door, 5-passenger front engine transaxle with front-wheel-drive/all-wheel-drive and Caddy calls it a “midsize luxury crossover”. There are two engines available. Standard is the 3.0L DOHC V-6 direct injection, variable valve timing, four valves per cylinder, and there’s an optional 2.8L DOHC turbocharged V-6, four valves per cylinder mill to be had.

The trannys hooked up to the two engines are, respectively, a 6T70 Hydra-Matic six-speed transverse, electronically controlled, automatic overdrive transmission and a AF40 Aisin Warner six-speed transverse, electronically controlled, automatic overdrive transmission. Which is about what you’d expect. Both engines come with traction control and the steering is via hydraulic-power-assisted rack-and-pinion for V-6 models. Brakes are discs on all four corners, and the curb weight comes in at 4224 pounds.

The CTS Sport Wagon is a four-door wagon, that is available in either RWD or AWD. There are two engines available. A 3.0L DOHC V-6 direct injection, variable valve timing, four valves per cylinder power unit or a 3.6L V-6 VVT (variable valve timing) with spark-ignition, direct injection mill. The three liter cranks out 270 HP @ 7000 RPM and the 3.6 puts out 304 HP @ 6400 rpm. The torque figures are 223 pound feet @ 5700 and 273 pound feet @ 5200 rpm respectively.

The transmission choices for the wagon are either an Aisin sourced AY6 fully synchronized 6-speed manual with single overdrive or a Hydra-Matic 6L50 6-speed, RWD/AWD, electronically controlled, automatic overdrive with torque converter clutch. The weight of the wagon is yet to be announced.

Either way, these look like two fine vehicles that have the usability of an SUV, without the jerk factor (if you can stand to be seen driving a wagon).

Here’s Caddy’s presser:

Cadillac Launches Two New Vehicles This Summer

* All-new SRX Crossover starts at $34,155

* CTS Sport Wagon strengthens CTS model lineup

* SRX Crossover Specifications

* CTS Sport Wagon Specifications

DETROIT – Cadillac’s model lineup expands with two dramatically-designed new luxury vehicles that also bring new dimensions of versatility and efficiency to the marketplace. Cadillac announced today that the 2010 SRX Crossover, scheduled to begin production this summer, will be priced aggressively starting at $34,155.

Later this summer, the acclaimed CTS family will expand again with the arrival of the CTS Sport Wagon. Together with the all-new SRX, these two dynamic new Cadillac models are in sync with the changing priorities of today’s luxury consumers.

“In a tough market the new SRX and CTS Sport Wagon are the right products at the right time, says Steve Shannon,” executive director of marketing for Cadillac. “They offer new dimensions of versatility and fuel efficiency, along with Cadillac’s signature design and technical features.”

The all-new SRX launches into the strong luxury crossover vehicle segment, a category that now accounts for nearly one-fourth of all luxury vehicles sold in the U.S. market. The SRX features new downsized and fuel efficient engines in a completely redesigned vehicle that delivers a dynamic alternative in terms of visual appeal and driving character.

“We believe the Cadillac SRX offers emotional appeal to a segment previously devoid of much of that,” says Shannon. “At the same time, it also has very practical new features such as advanced All-Wheel-Drive, and an efficient standard 3.0-liter Direct Injection V6 engine. And with an entry price of $34,155 the new SRX presents an attractive offer to consumers, while taking on the traditional segment leader aggressively.”

The new CTS Sport Wagon offers the same design and technical features of Cadillac’s centerpiece model, the CTS sport sedan – but in a wagon body style that effectively doubles the car’s cargo space. The new Sport Wagon includes the same 3.0-liter Direct Injection engine that serves as the standard engine in the new SRX. In the Sport Wagon, highway fuel economy is estimated to reach 28 mpg.

Both the new SRX and CTS Sport Wagon will be presented in a special video webcast from one of Cadillac’s design studios. Visit www.cadillacstudiolive.com for an inside look at the highlights of both new models.

2009 Volvo XC70 T6 Review

2009-05-28T20:02:00.043-07:00

Once in awhile, a manufacturer will produce a new vehicle which attempts to create a new segment in the automotive market. However ambitious the company is, most do not seem to make it through their expected lifespan. Remember the Pontiac Aztec, or the Chevrolet SSR? What about the Subaru Baja?

Not all of them are failures though. Take for instance the Volvo V70 XC, Volvo’s idea of taking their regular V70 wagon, mixing in a bit sport-utility DNA, and making a crossover-wagon “hybrid” for the mass market. The XC70, as it is called today, came with an increased ride height, all-wheel-drive, and two-tone plastic trim on the exterior.

Since its inception in 1998, the XC70 has been a popular choice with the suburban crowd, with the rugged exterior of a sport-ute but without many of the penalties associated with owning one.

However, I have never understood the appeal. I felt the added plastic bits ruined the clean look that is a Volvo trademark and the additional ride height decreased the handling while giving the car no real off-road benefits. Then there is the lack of overall space when going with a wagon over a comparable SUV, or to a greater extend, a minivan.

Would a week with the third generation of Volvo’s subdivision wagon change my mind? Or would I think this vehicle should have gone the way of the other vehicles listed above?

Let’s start with things that surprised me.

With the added 2.1 inches to the suspension, I figured the XC would flop in the turns and wallow down the highway every chance it would get. However, it was perfectly tuned for both high-speed interstate travel, arterial roads or your favorite illegal racetrack.

On any surface, the Volvo felt quiet, comfortable and composed. No bump big or small would make its way to any part of your body, nor will any crosswind have you fighting to keep the wagon straight. There is some float when the road dips, but it almost imperceptible to most people. On side streets and back roads, some smaller potholes can be felt through the seat at low speeds, but overall it is as smooth as you would want.

Handling is typical Volvo, and that is a good thing. Steering is nicely weighted without being too heavy and turn-in is very acceptable. It is very easy to point the car where you want it, and in parking lot maneuvers, the XC is a breeze to park.

To make up for the slight communication problem, the XC70 rewards you with a nice stiff chassis and plenty of grip coming from the seventeen-inch Continental tires. Even with the increased height and the knobby tires, the wagon corners with surprising flatness and balance. Pushing it too hard in the bends will produce predictable understeer, but it still feels balanced.

The handling is just the tip of the iceberg with this car.

New this year under the hood of the XC is the optional 3.0-liter turbocharged six-cylinder (a less powerful 3.2-liter V6 is standard). First appearing in the new S80, the engine uses new technology, such as Continuous Variable Valve Timing, Variable Intake System and Cam Profile Switching. Add all the technology together with the metal snail, and the engine produces 281 horsepower and 295 lb. ft of torque. After more turbo lag than I would like down low, the turbo spools and the two-ton wagon quickly disappears into the distance. Scooting ahead of a semi while merging is no problem for this wagon. And while you are hauling ass, it makes a very pleasing growl with a touch of turbo whistle. It is a delightful sound, and returned a respectable 18.5 mpg in mixed driving.

Attached to this heady engine is Volvo’s Geartronic six-speed automatic as well as Volvo’s All-Wheel-Drive system. The all-wheel-drive is something special, as it can move power from just the front wheels to all four, to just the back if the front has no traction. In addition, power can be moved from side to side or to just one wheel if need be. It even comes with the Hill-Descent Control, which acts like a low-range when you encounter something more serious than wet leaves or a dusting of snow.

Finally, we get to the interior, which was my favorite part. I love the Swedish for being efficient and incredibly functional, while using high quality materials to produce it. The XC70 keeps with that tradition, but this time around, they add a bit of style.

The controls on the center console are simple to see and use. At the top is a bright LED screen surrounded by controls for the various audio selections. Below are the controls for the radio presets and standard Bluetooth controls. Right below are the controls for the ventilation and heated seats.

All of this was floating on a waterfall-like dash. It is like Ikea came in, handled the interior and made it special.

Even the gauges are that way. The Volvo has a very straight forward instrument panel with no extraneous gauges cluttering up the dash, like a Volvo should be. But again, they infused a little bit of style by making the tach and speedometer look very upscale, almost like two stainless steel Swatch watch faces are placed behind the glass.

What I loved most, though, was how well everything felt and looked. The gaps between panels were paper thin. The plastics have an excellent feel. The seats were supportive and wrapped in Natuzzi-grade leather, with brilliant optional dual booster seats build into the rear seats. Even the optional wood treatments in the dash and door panels are exquisite. It wasn’t that glossy stuff you find in other cars. It almost like they just cut it out from the tree and placed it in the dash. Just perfect.

So you suppose that I loved this car and I will end my review here, a glowing rave? Sorry to disappoint, but there are some issues which need to be addressed.

One would be the transmission. It is a good automatic, with smooth shifts both up and down. But downshifts at half-throttle were painfully slow, and the Geartronic was a letdown. When using the system, the shifts are sluggish, and when shifting up a gear, there is a slight jerking sensation from the drivetrain. I found myself not using it after a few attempts.

Continuing with drivability, lets talk about feel. In the case of the XC, there is none. The steering, while quite good, lacks any feel at all. Same goes for the brakes. The four ABS-assisted disk brakes stop strongly when you need them, but the pedal is similar to stepping in a deep bowl of mashed potatoes, in both consistency and depth.

Then there is the overall room inside. There is room up front, with 38 inches of head room and 42 inches of leg room. But rear passengers only have 31 inches, which leaves passengers begging for more room. Storage capacity is quite large with the second row folded, at 72 cubic feet, but that is ten less than the comparable Volvo XC90 with both its rear rows folded. There’s third row either, which is an important feature for today’s family.

But the worst thing about this car (and I really tried to be open about it) was that plastic monstrosity covering this otherwise stylish vehicle. The exterior is very shapely on the regular V70, with clean design lines and good-looking rear hips leading to the taillights. But with the XC, it looks cheesy and fake, like it always has.

This vehicle came as quite a shock. The XC70 drives nicely, has a gorgeous interior, and costs thousand less than anything from the Germans. This specific car, with the bigger engine, all-wheel-drive, sumptuous leather, metallic paint, sunroof, the excellent Dynaudio stereo, Xenon headlamps that swivel, and more airbags than you can count came just a tick under $47,000. If you do not need the extra power, anyone can squeeze into a XC with the 3.2-liter for $37, 250. Nothing can give you this same amount of luxury, quality and style for that much money. If you can get past the looks, you can’t go wrong.

XC fans, rejoice.

Base Price: $37,250

As Tested: $46,395

Architecture: Front-engine, all-wheel drive five-passenger wagon

Drivetrain: Turbocharged 3.0-liter DOHC V6 with six-speed automatic transaxle

Length: 190.5 inches

Wheelbase: 110 inches

Mileage: 15 mpg city, 22 mpg highway

Weight: 4092 lbs.

Volvo XC70

2009 Volvo XC70

From 15/23 mpg | MSRP from $37,250

View used Volvo XC70 classifieds
1. 2008 - 2009
  
  2008
  
  2009
2. 2005 - 2007
  
  2005
  
  2006
  
  2007

VW & Chinese Firm BYD Partner For Electric Cars

2009-05-28T20:02:00.041-07:00

Volkswagen seems to be on a real tear these days with continuing rumors of them acquiring Porsche outright, and sales numbers indicating that they could displace GM and become the second largest automaker in the world. And now word comes out that VW will be partnering with the Chinese automaker BYD to make electric cars.

A memorandum of understanding was signed last week between Volkswagen and Chinese automaker BYD to partner “in the area of electric mobility” and vehicles using lithium-ion batteries. “Hybrids and electric vehicles will play an increasingly important role [for VW], of course. Particularly for the Chinese market, potential partners such as BYD could support us in quickly expanding our activities,” said Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board for Technical Development at Volkswagen.

A memorandum of understanding (or MOU as the MBA types like to say – essentially it’s the legal version of a promise ring) was signed by BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu and VW’s Martin Winterkorn in Wolfsburg, Germany last week. Chairman Wang Chuanfu seems to be quite the interesting guy in addition to working with VW. There are reports on the net that he drank (as in swallowed) battery fluid as a stunt recently. I don’t know any more than that, and I didn’t really want to know … the rumors are creepy enough.

Anyway, this is very interesting news that seemed to pop up out of nowhere and caught everybody by surprise. Sure, VW, like very other carmaker on the planet, is interested in EVs and getting as much of a jump as possible. And partnering with a Chinese firm makes a lot of sense, especially if China decides to start taking care of the environment (no grantees there yet). And perhaps VW was spurred to action by another German automaker (cough-cough, Daimler) hooking up with another EV (cough-cough, Tesla) automaker, but who knows.

What is known is that Volkswagen is one of the biggest selling brands in China, and that EVs are going to be pushed into the mainstream, kicking and screaming if necessary, by a combination of proactive government regs, carmakers’ desires to maintain profitability, and the environment letting us know that burning oil is a real killer.

What will come of VW partnering with BYD? Obviously some sort of EV product for the home (Chinese) market, and potentially for the Euro market as well. North America? Time will tell, but by inking this partnership, Volkswagen could have an arrow in its quiver all ready to go if the need or opportunity presents itself in the North American market.

Source: AutoBlogGreen

Refreshened 2009 Mazda RX-8 (JDM)

2009-05-28T20:02:00.039-07:00

Original RX-8 was tuned to gives additional comfort and convenience. Below are the specs and the features of the 2009 Mazda RX-8 (JDM):

Water-cooled, in-line 2 rotor (654cc x 2)

RWD Drive

4 Grades (Type G & Type E with 6-speed AT - Activematic transmission, Type S & Type RS with 6-speed MT transmossion)

Rain-sensing windshield wipers

Auto-light system

Water-relellent coating (on the front door windows and door mirrors)

Mazda’s advanced keyless entry and engine start system

Addtional 2 new body colors on top originally 5 colors - Aluminium Metallic & Metropolitan Fray Mica

Revised model grade lineup

Audio-less specification standard

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X FQ-400

2009-05-28T20:02:00.037-07:00

Currently, FQ-400 is the fastest and most extreme and powerful Mitsubishi Lancer Evo in the market. Its power comes from an advanced, lighweight aluminium 20. litre turbocharged Mitsubishi Innovative Valve timing Electronic Control (MIVEC) petrol engine. Peak power of 403bhp @ 6,500rpm with peak torque of 525Nm @ 3,500rpm. In only took 3.8 seconds from 0-62mph and the top speed 155mph.

To make sure full utilization is done, the Mitsubishi’s sophisticated Super-All Wheel Control (S-AWC) four wheel drive system is used. It combines a few electronic systems which enhance the performance and safety, with Active Stability and Active Centre Differential, Active Yaw Control and Sport ABS.

In terms of stability, Eibach springs and Bilstein Shock Absorbers are used. To add, lighweight 18 inch, nine spoke alloy wheels fitted with Toyo Proves R1R tyres. Braking is much more better with the use of aerospace grade aluminium alloys and floating sealed discs grabbed by high performance pads.

Below are some more important info about the FQ-400

Heavily vented bonnet - helps heat escape from engine

New lightweight composite front bumper

Mitsubishi’s trademark ‘Jet Fighter’ grille (carbon-fibre elements)

Additional lighting and High Intensity Discharge (HID) lights

30mm drop in front ride height

composite side skirts

a re-styled rear bumper with a carbon fibre diffuser

a rear wing incorporating a gurney strip

a roof-mounted ‘Vortex Generator’

Alcon brakes on the front

Recaro bucket sports seat

Liveried handbrake handle

Carbon fibre gearknob

Bluetooth hands-free handphone connection

CD-tuner with 30G hard drive

DVD satelite navigation

Privacy glass

Remote central locking

Automatic headlamps

Automatic windscreen wipers

FIVE STAR score in Euro NCAP’s independent crash tests.

2010 BRABUS Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe

2009-05-28T20:02:00.035-07:00

The 2010 BRABUS Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe is powered by the BRABUS 6.1 litre, four valve V8 enigine which produce 462 hp (456 bhp)/340 kW and maximum torque of 615 Nm at just 3,100 rpm. It can go from 0-100 km/h in 4.7 seconds with top speed of 315km/h.

Special Edition Mini Cooper Mayfair & Mini Cooper Camden Pictures

2009-05-28T20:02:00.033-07:00

In conjuction with its 50th birthday, Mini is releasing 2 special edition of its creation, named as Mini 50 Mayfair & Mini 50 Camden. Both are available with 2 petrol engine & one diesel. For petrol engines, the model is known as Mini Cooper S 50 & Mini Cooper 50 Mayfair for Mayfair, Mini Cooper S 50 Camden & Mini Cooper 50 Camden for Camden. While for diesel, the model is known as Mini Cooper D 50 Mayfair & Mini Cooper D 50 Camden. Below are some of the pictures of the special edition Mini Cooper Mayfair & Mini Cooper Camden.

VIPER PASSES VIABILITY TEST

2009-05-28T20:02:00.031-07:00

The challenge facing Fiat in reviving Chrysler has been underlined by a report that concludes only two of the Detroit carmaker's vehicle lines are going concerns.

The popular Jeep Wrangler and the high-powered Dodge Viper sports car are singled out in the report, compiled by Capstone, one of Chrysler's financial advisers, commissioned to provide an analysis of creditors' recoveries in a possible liquidation.

A New York bankruptcy court is set to give the green light on Wednesday for the creation of a "new" Chrysler centred on a far-reaching alliance with Fiat.

The court order could lay the groundwork for Chrysler to emerge almost immediately from Chapter 11 protection, according to a person familiar with the proceedings.

It had originally set a July 1 target for emergence but the Obama administration's automotive task force has been pushing for Chrysler to complete its restructuring before a potential bankruptcy filing by its bigger rival, General Motors, likely on May 31.

Chrysler has stressed since seeking protection on April 30 that its long-term survival hinges on a speedy restructuring. Almost all its plants are currently closed.

Fiat will initially have a 20 per cent stake and aims to use its small car technology and global distribution network to rectify Chrysler's two main weaknesses: its heavy dependence on pick-up trucks, sports utility vehicles and minivans; and its limited business outside North America.

George Magliano, director of automotive research at IHS Global Insight, a consultancy, said: "Even with Fiat, Chrysler must still prove they can survive prior to the recovery in light vehicle sales in late 2010." He puts the odds on the carmaker going under at 20-30 per cent.

The new Chrysler will be a far leaner company and the US government has offered up to $6bn to keep it afloat.

Under the restructuring, it will jettison eight assembly and parts plants, a quarter of its total capacity. It also plans to revoke the franchises of almost 800 underperforming dealers, a quarter of the total.

It will need to rely on its existing product line until the Fiat-designed cars become available, probably in late 2010 or early 2011.

A liquidation analysis compiled by Capstone this year identified two other Chrysler lines - the Dodge Ram and Dakota pick-up trucks, and mid-sized cars built at a plant outside Toronto - as viable.

However, the latest report says that subsequent analysis shows these two businesses recorded operating losses last year owing mainly to higher-thanexpected discounts and other incentives required to generate sales. Chrysler has recently offered the highest incentives of any major carmaker.

Analysts expect Chrysler's market share to drop markedly in coming months.

Tuning Cars from Japan

2009-05-28T20:02:00.029-07:00

tuning japanese cars

2009-05-28T20:02:00.027-07:00

carros tunados rox

2009-05-28T20:02:00.025-07:00

kamion sa NOS

2009-05-28T20:02:00.023-07:00

Search Upload * Upload Video File * Record from Webcam Vectra Rooger-Power Tuning

2009-05-28T20:02:00.021-07:00

carros tunning

2009-05-28T20:02:00.019-07:00

el tuning mejor del mundo

2009-05-28T20:02:00.017-07:00

SVEĆICA

2009-05-28T20:02:00.015-07:00

Svećica ima zadatak da obezbedi stvaranje varnice u velikom dijapazonu temperature i pritiska koji vladaju u cilindru.

telo svećice

centralna elektroda

telo izolatora

bočna elektroda

navoj

zaptivač između navoja 1 i 3

zaptivač

šestougaonik tela

navrtka za pravougaonike

Gornji deo tela svećice izrađen je u vidu šestougaonika pomoću koga se vrši pričvršćivanje svećice. Na donjem delu se nalazi navoj pomoću koga se svećice uvrte u glavu motora. Telo svećice se od kvalitetnog čelika. Temperatura svećice ne bi trebalo da bude niža od 500 C. Ukoliko je temperatura veća od 800 C dolazi do uvijanja elektroda što ima za posledicu samozapaljenje radne smeše. Kroz središte svećice prolazi centralna elektroda, dolazi struja visokog napona, dok bočna elektroda prestavlja pol. Zazor između ovih elektroda iznosi 0,5-0,6 mm.

Postoje svećice sa dugim i kratkim navojem.

Ovo je tekst o pravilnom radu vaše svećice i o tome kako bi ih trebali servisirati.

Svećice su jedna od značajnih komponenata motora, a opet retko ima pravilnog objašnjenja o ovom važnom delu svakog motora. Ljudi često kupuju jeftine i neodgovarajuće svećice misleći da one obavljaju jednak posao kao i svaka druga svećica.

Za 150 godina svećica je pretrpela razna poboljšanja, najviše primenom naprednih i pažljivo odabranih materijala. Njena namena i princip rada ostali su isti, ali su se uslovi rada značajno pooštrili. Svećice su konstrukciono prilagođene određenom motoru i njegovim radnim uslovima. One moraju pravovremeno stvoriti i do više hiljada jakih varnica u minuti, pritom pouzdano paleći smešu. Taj zadatak treba da ispunjavaju dugi niz kilometara, zatvarajući prostor sa agresivnom sredinom, gde temperatura može biti preko hiljadu stepeni, a pritisak premašiti 50 bara. Zbog raznolikosti konstrukcija benzinskih motora, kao i njihovih uslova i režima rada, razlikovaće se i toplotno opterećenje koje svećice trpe. Ali u svim motorima zahteva se isto: svećica ne sme preći temperaturu od oko 850 stepeni da ne bi došlo do samopaljenja smeše, ali opet mora biti dovoljno ugrejana da bi se na njenom vrhu sagoreo garež, za šta treba da ima temperaturu oko 450 - 500 stepeni. Idealno bi bilo kada bi motor stalno radio u istom režimu, što u vozilima nikako nije slučaj, pa odvođenje toplote sa svećice mora biti precizno usklađeno da bi se ona mogla prilagoditi svim pa i ekstremnim režimima rada motora.

Toplotni broj

Toplotni broj svećice je mera brzine odvođenja toplote sa vrha svećice i iskazana je brojem u oznaci tipa svećice. Tzv. tople svećice imaju niži toplotni broj, time manje odvođenje toplote sa vrha i namenjene su motorima kod kojih se mogu očekivati umerena toplotna opterećenja. Nasuprot njima, hladne svećice mogu brže da odvode toplotu i imaju viši toplotni broj, pa su prema tome namenjene ugradnji u toplotno opterećenije motore. Pod uslovom da motor nije prepravljan za trke ili nešto slično, u njemu trebaju da budu isključivo svećice koje su preporučene od strane proizvođača - nije bitna toliko marka svećice koliko ostale karakteristike. U oznaci tipa svećice kriju se podaci vezani za toplotni broj, prečnik i dužinu navoja, oblik elektroda i podaci o materijalima od kojih su sačinjene, kao i neke druge relevantne informacije. Radi tumačenja oznaka i izbora svećica koriste se katalozi i uporedne tabele različitih proizvođača, jer oznake svećica nisu unificirane.Viši toplotni broj od predviđenog (hladna svećica) neće imati kobne posledice po motor osim zaprljanja svećica. Ali, niži toplotni broj (pretopla svećica za taj motor i njegove uslove rada) može dovesti do teških oštećenja motora, kao što je progorevanje čela klipa usled abnormalnog sagorevanja!

Važno je znati da svećice ne proizvode toplinu kao što većina misli, nego je otklanjaju. Svećica radi kao prenosnik topline tako da odvodi neželjenu toplotnu energiju od komore za sagorevanje u sistem za hlađenje. Toplotna vrednost se definise kao mogućnost svećice da rasprši toplinu.

Toplotna vrednost svećice nema nikakve veze sa voltažom koja prolazi kroz svećicu. Mera toplotne vrednosti se određuje sa nekoliko faktora: dužinom središnjeg keramičkog izolatora, mogučnošću upijanja i prenošenja topline i materijala od kojih je napravljena centralna elektroda.

Radni vek - kada ih zameniti?

Na intenzitet habanja bočne i centralne elektrode svećice utiču materijal od kojeg su načinjene, vrsta motora i radni uslovi. Prva faza habanja svećice je zaobljenje ivica elektroda, a zatim dolazi do povećavanja zazora. Zato sa pređenim kilometrima počinje da raste napon potreban za nastanak varnice, opterećujući elemente sistema za paljenje. Proizvođači svećica tvrdi da je normalno povećanje zazora zbog habanja od oko 0.10 do 0.15 mm na pređenih 10000 km.

Svećice kakve danas poznajemo na prvi pogled ne razlikuju se mnogo od prvih svećica, koje su svetlo dana ugledale dvadesetak godina pre pojave prvog automobila.

Intervali zamene klasičnih svećica koji se preporučuju, u zavisnosti od vrste vozila su: Automobili 15.000 - 20.000 km gradski automobili 7.000 - 10.000 km Motocikli 3.000 - 5.000 km Naravno, drugačiji oblici i materijali elektroda svećice čine da njihov vek bude duži, prema navodima proizvođača. U svakom slučaju, svećice se moraju zameniti pre nego što počne izostajanje paljenja u pojedinim cilindrima. To ne znači samo pad snage nego i povećanje potrošnje goriva. Korišćenje svećica do kraja njihovog radnog veka nije ekonomski opravdan jer nesagorelo gorivo i produkti nepotpunog sagorevanja mogu oštetiti katalizator, čija cena mnogostruko nadmašuje cenu jednog kompleta svećica.

Zazor i njegovo podešavanje

Zazor svećice je najmanji razmak između bočne i centralne elektrode. Zazor se podešava pomeranjem bočne elektrode, ukoliko je to predviđeno. Manji ili veći zazor od potrebnog loše utiče na rad svećice, time i samog motora. Merenje zazora može se uraditi sa lisnatim merilom (špijunima). Veći zazor kod svećica koje imaju bočnu elektrodu iznad centralne, može se smanjiti laganim kuckanjem vrha svećice o čvrstu i čistu podlogu. Povećanje zazora je malo složenije i iziskuje primenu sile, ali tako da se nikakav alat ne odupire o keramički izolator niti centralnu elektrodu.

Postupak zamene

Za zamenu svećica nije potrebno biti visoko kvalifikovani mehaničar, ali kao i kod ostalih radova na motoru, moraju se poštovati potrebna pravila struke da bi se izbegle neželjene posledice po motor.

1 - Kablove sa svećica skinuti hvatajući ih za kapice, ne vući kabel.

2 - Uzeti ispravan i odgovarajući nasadni ključ za svećice, da bi se izbegla oštećenja svećice ali i okolnih elemenata motora;

3 - Očistiti okolinu svećice komprimovanim vazduhom, nečistoća ne sme dospeti u cilindar;

4 - Kada neka svećica pruža otpor odvrtanju, ne koristiti prekomernu silu. Ako je malo krenula napolje, naneti antikorozivno sredstvo na navoj, pa je uvrnuti nazad i ostaviti neko vreme. Navoj u aluminijumskoj glavi se lako može oštetiti odvrtanjem na silu!