Automotive News

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos

Click above for F1 gallery from Goodwood

While we’re the first to admit that we are better with a DSLR than a camcorder, we did have a video camera with us at Goodwood and captured a few passes. This particular clip shows some of the current F1 cars doing their thing and the parade down to the start line. The F1 cars were prohibited from doing full speed runs a few years ago because their terminal velocity is far too great to keep the spectators safe at Goodwood. So rather than going for fast times, the cars and drivers are there to entertain the fans. Even in the rain, they managed to do just that. Follow the jump for the YouTube clip produced, which is also posted by our buddy over at SoCalSpeedZone. And if you haven’t seen them yet, don’t forget to check out our galleries from this year’s Festival of Speed.

Thanks, Duane!

Continue reading VIDEO: Goodwood - Formula 1 cars

 

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Filed under: Gadgets, Etc., Euro, Mercedes Benz

Click to view the Mercedes eyewear collection in our high resolution image gallery

Still recuperating from its failed venture with Chrysler, Mercedes-Benz is embarking on a new cooperative venture of a different kind, one that looks a hell of a lot cooler. At its Fashion Week event that concluded yesterday in Berlin, the German automaker unveiled a new range of sunglasses and eyeglass frames in cooperation with Italian eyewear company Allison SpA.

Rather than tipping its toe in the proverbial water of a new market, Mercedes and Allison are going in head-first with a collection of 40 optical models. Selling in Europe through selected retailers, the collection ranges from €169 to €239 ($233 - $330) for the eyeglass frames and €159 to €259 ($220 - $357) for the shades.

[Source: Carscoop]

 

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Filed under: Aftermarket, Etc.

Every once-in-a-while we come across something wacky enough to get us to stop in our tracks, suppress a giggle, and point-and-shoot. While at the Art Center Car Classic this weekend, we had one of those moments. A Prius with a pretty pronounced proboscis caught our eye while we were checking out the parking lot. As strange as it seemed, we remembered seeing it somewhere before. And then we saw Kustom Kar King George Barris at the other end of the lot and it clicked. This Prius was done by Barris and shown at SEMA last year. We even did a post on it way back in 2005.

We did a quick search and found this info about the green (and gold) machine. The wheelwells were stretched by 2 inches and eyebrow-style flares were added to accommodate the American Racing 18-inch chrome wheels. The wheels have green centers and are wrapped in BF Goodrich low-profile tires. The paint is hand detailed with pinstripes and teardrops. There’s even a ducktail spoiler out back. Funky and fun, but we’ll pass, thanks.

 

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Filed under: Etc., Volkswagen

Jalopnik recently launched a new site design, and realized its new look required a vehicle giveaway to keep them near the head of the class. You won’t hear any argument from us. A previous re-do brought speculation of an engineless early 80’s El Camino, but unfortunately that never happened.

This time around they wanted something unique and stylish, and decided to break the bank with an audacious fully custom VW Microbus, nicknamed “Samba.” Breaking the bank meant the piggy bank on Wert’s desk, so what they settled on was a Maisto G-Ridez edition 1:10 scale Volkswagen R/C Van. While the scale is no way indicative of their place in the blogosphere (Number forty-two in your program, number one in your hearts), the van seems a good fit for their demographic, which puts a premium on non-conformity and anti-social behavior. Click through the read link to find out how you can win Samba for yourself.

 

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Filed under: SUVs, Land Rover

With Ford selling off parts of its Premium Automotive Group (PAG) one at a time, it remains uncertain if Land Rover and Jaguar will end up under the same ownership in the future. In the meantime, Land Rover is collaborating with Jaguar on a future flagship model that will draw on Jaguar’s expertise to produce a new Range Rover with a lighter-weight construction that could expand both upmarket and down.

Based on a new aluminum structure called Premium Lightweight Architecture, the next Range Rover is anticipated to shed about 40% off the unpainted unibody’s weight, and some 800 pounds off the curb weight. Applying the magic formula of less weight and more power from a revised engine line-up, also benefiting from Jaguar collaboration, would contribute to improved performance and fuel economy. An all-new 5.0-liter V8 could produce about 350 hp, or as much as 460 supercharged, while the existing range of diesels are anticipated to be bored out from 2.7 liters to 3 and from 3.6 liters to 4. If Land Rover chose to shoehorn in the smaller Jaguar/Land Rover turbodiesel into the lightweight Range Rover, it would create a lower model in the range, while the top-end, supercharged version could fetch as much as $200,000 and feature a full spectrum of luxury equipment to anchor the SUV’s position at the top of the luxury sport-ute market.

A new styling direction, led by new design chief Phil Simmons, is expected to include shorter overhangs and de-emphasized greenhouse to give a tauter and less top-heavy appearance. If given the green light for development by Ford or by any future parent company, the Range Rover would be the first in a series of new models from Land Rover, to be followed by a new Discovery (LR2), Freelander (LR3), Defender and Range Rover Sport.

[Source: Motor Authority via AutoWeek]

 

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Filed under: Etc., Videos, Volvo, Driving

For any self-respecting driver that has a car with a manual transmission, there are two things that cast shame; stalling and grinding. It doesn’t matter if you’re the only one in the car or if there are no other motorists on the road, the embarrassment associated with these gaffes is omnipresent. To save myself from shame and for fear of wrecking my transmission, I hadn’t tried clutchless shifting (also called powershifting) until very recently, after I saw it done on YouTube. I knew this was something that could damage my synchros (it’s my personal car), so I figured I’d do it once and record it, so you don’t have to do it yourself.

A friendly Autoblog warning from our own Dan Roth: Trying this out a couple times probably isn’t going to grenade any gearbox that’s in good shape, but you really shouldn’t make clutchless shifts a regular part of your repertoire. While fine for a racing-duty “dog” gearbox, it’s torture on the synchros in your street transmission. The inevitable grinding you’ll perpetrate on the transmission while practicing clutchless shifting also means more particulate matter floating around inside your tranny. Think of it as a neat parlor trick, maybe try it out in case you should ever have a problem with your clutch actuation system, but otherwise, treat your gearbox with love.

Hit the jump to watch the video.

Continue reading VIDEO: Autoblog tries clutchless shifting but you shouldn’t

 

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Filed under: Coupes, Sports/GTs, BMW

click above image to view a gallery of the new BMW M3

Since its creation, nearly everything about the M3 — cylinders, horsepower, weight, price, you name it — has grown. The 2,866-lb, 4-cylinder, 192-hp E30 M3 cost a little more than $30,000 dollars when it was new, and sold 18,000 units. The new E92 M3 weighs in at 3,650 lbs with its 420-hp 8-cylinder lump, and will leave you more than $60,000 dollars lighter. It’s more than twice the car at more than twice the money, and BMW wants to move more than five times as many of them, hoping to shift 100,000 models.

Said Carsten Pries of the M division, “With every new model, we want to offer a better product and sell more.” That’s only a 10,000 unit increase on the 3rd generation M3 that ceased production last year. With the variants to be offered on the new model, reaching the goal shouldn’t be a challenge. But the move to a greater mass market draw also explains the pealing choir of journalists declaring that while it’s still a fantastic driver’s car and a lot of fun… it’s soft. Of course, “soft” is a relative term in this case, and there could be worse things than having to see more M3s on the road.

[Source: Auto News]

 

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Filed under: Etc.

John Robert Patterson, a 45-year-old Australian with a distaste for cell towers is being held without bail tonight after he (allegedly) took his privately-owned armored personnel carrier out for 90-minute destruction derby session, during which several cell towers, a pair of relay sheds, an electrical substation, and a lot of fencing fell victim to his black-painted machine.

The police were finally able to get him into a set of Smith & Wesson designer bracelets when the APC stalled on its way to knock out yet another cell tower. Sounds like someone might have overreacted a smidge to not having enough bars on his Nokia. According to the accused’s attorney, he claims that “he certainly had the authority to behave in such a manner.” Right. That’ll definitely sway the court when the case goes to trial. The judge who denied the request for bail also recommended that Mr. Patterson receive medical treatment and — big surprise — psychiatric attention.

[Source: news.com.au]

 

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Filed under: Motorsports

By now most have heard that F1 will not hold a race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2008, meaning that the fate of F1 in the U.S. is in question. Don’t shed a tear for Indy, though, as it’s just been announced that MotoGP will bring the new Red Bull indianapolis GP to the Brickyard on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008. Incredibly, this will be the first time in almost 100 years that motorcycles have raced at Indy. The last time was August 14th, 1909, according to Indy.

For the event, Indy is constructing a new 16-turn, 2.601-mile motorcycle road course on which riders will travel counter-clockwise, which is rare for a road course event at Indy. The event organizers promise lots of passing and side-by-side racing, as well. Like any big motorsport event, the Red Bull Indianapolis GP will be a three-day affair with supporting races and qualifying that begin on Friday, Sept. 12, 2008.

Together with the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix that’s held at Laguna Seca, MotoGP now hosts two big races in the U.S. The current defending champion, Nicky Hayden, is also from the U.S., Owensboro, KY to be specific, so MotoGP’s arrival at Indy is both appropriate for the motorsport and extremely exciting. While losing F1’s USGP was a hit to Indianapolis, the storied track has recovered nicely with the announcement of MotoGP’s pending arrival, and we’ll be eager to see how it goes.

Thanks for the tip, Thor!

[Source: IndianapolisMotorSpeedway.com]

 

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Filed under: Spy Photos, Coupes, Hyundai

click above image for more spy shots of the mysterious RWD coupe from Hyundai

The Veracruz, the rear-wheel-drive Genesis luxury sedan and various other new rear-wheel-drive offerings will take Hyundai into segments it’s never been, but the one vehicle about which we’re most excited is this, a rear-wheel-drive coupe from Hyundai.

These new spy pics, reportedly taken in Korea, show the new coupe out on public roads. It appears to be similar to the vehicle we saw in a previous set of spy shots, right down to the same type of wheels. The problem is that there’s much more we don’t know about this vehicle than what we do know. Will the rear-wheel-drive coupe be branded as the next-generation Tiburon or be sold alongside the automaker’s front-wheel-drive coupe? Is it based on the same rear-wheel-drive platform as the Genesis? Will it feature a supercharged or turbocharged V6, Hyundai’s new Lambda V8, or both?

Thanks for the tip, Chris!

[Source: NewTiburon.com]

Continue reading Spy Shots: Hyundai’s rear-wheel-drive coupe

 

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