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Time was, automotive magazines used to do stuff that was awesome. This IMSA Pinto is evidence of that. Car and Driver built this car in 1974 to illustrate that racing on a big scale for a modest budget was possible. The car grabbed the pole position in half the races it entered that season and won outright at its second race at Charlotte. Surely more powerful than the emissions- and oil-crisis choked street Pintos of the day, this race car is better suited to road courses than hugging the wall at Talladega, but it’s likely loads of fun either way.

The car had been sold off by Car and Driver back in 1974, and was subsequently restored by Don Sherman, now of Automobile Magazine, but a C/D alum, in 2005. Sherman had his nostalgic fun with the car before selling it to Fox Motorsports. Fox has added some more beans to the Pinto’s powerplant, and now has it up for sale on eBay Motors. You’ve got seven days to scrape some dough together and go vintage racing in the car that started Pat Bedard’s respectable – if short – racing career.

[Source: Automobile]

eBay Find of the Day: C/D Pinto Project Race Car

The 19th century was the last time automobiles were on the vanguard of cutting-edge technology. While the ensuing ten decades have seen lots of automotive innovation, Fast Company magazine only came into being in 1995, and has been naming its top ten “Most Innovative” companies every year since. Ford has secured a spot smack in the middle of the list this year, the first time a car manufacturer has been invited to rub elbows with the likes of Amazon, Apple, and Google.

What has Ford done to deserve this honor? Swing open the door to a 2010 Taurus and it becomes clear. The Blue Oval’s rides are immersion tanks of technological integration. From the Sync system to the more comprehensive MyFord Touch, there’s been no let-up in Ford’s push to put premium tech features in all its models. Ford’s market research reveals that most buyers opt for the system, and at least a third of buyers think Sync was a critical enticement to their purchase. From our time with it, we agree, it’s some cool stuff, and the 1.5 million Sync-equipped Fords prowling the street agree.

The actual honor is a fifth-place finish for mobile technology, and Fast Company says “the automaker has taken a great leap forward.” Mark Fields backs that statement up by looking into his crystal ball (supplied by Visteon) and saying “Our relationship with Microsoft was just the beginning, as we’ve forged strong relationships throughout the mobile industry and look forward to even more.” More cool stuff on the way? We’ll take it. Press release after the jump.

Continue reading Ford named one of Top 10 Most Innovative Mobile Tech Companies

Ford named one of Top 10 Most Innovative Mobile Tech Companies

Honda hasn’t shared similar success with its various hybrid automobiles as cross-town rival Toyota, despite the fact that the two Japanese automakers introduced their first gasoline/electric models around the same time. The reasons for the sales disparity are many and varied, and at least due in part to the design of Honda Integrated Motor Assist drivetrain, which doesn’t quite match the level of sophistication and fuel mileage of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive.

Still, Honda is pushing forward with the next generation of its IMA system, and it will be added to larger, thirstier models within the next three years or so. The last time Honda put a hybrid powertrain in a larger car, the results were more than a little disappointing with the Accord Hybrid failing to meet sales or efficiency expectations. As such, it will be interesting to see how Honda improves the upsized hybrid system and whether it will be enough to compete with the likes of Toyota, Ford and General Motors.

In somewhat related news, Honda is apparently still working on diesel engines, though apparently not for the U.S. market. According to Tomohiko Kawanabe, chief operating officer of automobile research and development at Honda, “If you want to compete in markets like India, and also Europe, (a small diesel engine) is necessary.”

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]

Report: Honda’s large-car hybrid system getting closer

The desire to make more of the Ford Mustang and Mazda6, while improving efficiency and quality, is leading Ford to cut, not add jobs at its Flat Rock Assembly Plant. The plant’s 2,280-strong workforce is expected to decrease by 900, with Ford reducing the number of shifts from two to one and increasing the line speed by 35 percent.

Moving to just a single shift will help stabilize assembly at the plant, which produced 109,000 vehicles last year but experienced a lot of downtime when new vehicle sales cratered. In turn, the workers who remain to work the single shift should appreciate less idle time away from the job and stay sharper as a result, thereby increasing quality as well.

Those workers who have been cut will be moved to the Chicago assembly plant to help build the new Ford Explorer later this year, while others will be transferred to Michigan Assembly to build the new Ford Focus. Those not given new positions will be offered contract buyouts.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Neat Trick: Ford nixxing 900 jobs in Flat Rock while expanding production of Mustang, Mazda6

Around the Autoblog campfire, the second-generation Cadillac CTS remains one of our favorite sedans of recent years. For one thing, the interior of the gen-two CTS is vastly better executed than the original. But like the Corvette, it has one weakness: The seats. They aren’t terrible, just not great. That error has been rectified with news from Cadillac today that multi-adjustable power-actuated Recaro front seats are now available as an option. These same seats have been available in the supercharged CTS-V, but now buyers of the V6 sedan can get them as well.

At $2,800 the new seats don’t come cheap, but you will definitely be hooked once you sit in them and start taking a few hard corners. Adjustable side bolsters and extendable seat cushions for those of us with long thighs allow these new thrones to fit any driver. Frankly, we’d love to seem them installed in the Corvette ZR1 as well, but the engineers tell us they are a bit too wide for the C6. When the two-door, fast-back CTS coupe goes on sale this summer, these same seats will also be available in both the V6- and LSA-powered variants. Unfortunately, those who opt for the extra cargo space of the Sportwagon will have to make do with the standard seats.

[Source: Cadillac]

Continue reading Cadillac CTS gets Recaro seats just like V model

Cadillac CTS gets Recaro seats just like V model

Plenty has been written about the Aston Martin Cygnet, and much of it has been less than enthusiastic. After all, how does one connect the dots between a tiny, efficient, low-performance city car and the British sporting brand’s super high-performance models? Apparently, that would be with Aston’s signature front fascia along with an interior swathed in the requisite leather and unobtanium surfaces. Oh, and a suitably high price tag, no doubt.

Whether or not the Cygnet is a good idea, it certainly seems as if Aston Martin is pushing forward with the launch of the 3+1, which is based on the diminutive Toyota iQ. Proof of such can be seen in this series of spy photos, which show the Cygnet out and about in London’s fashion-forward Soho district. The mini-mobile will be offered first to current Aston Martin owners, then it may see a limited release in select European dealerships later this year, assuming sufficient demand is found. Thanks for the tip, Victor!

[Source: Secret New Cars]

Spy Shots: Aston Martin Cygnet tours the streets of London

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, but if you had the chance to attend GTLive back in 2004 at the California Speedway, you got a rare glimpse into the world of SuperGT.

Interspersed with one of the first D1 competitions in the States and your normal show car detritus, was an exhibition race of both GT500 and GT300 cars in their heyday. After the race, there was talk of SuperGT coming back to the U.S. for an official event, but those plans were laid to waste and six years later, the most exciting series out of Japan has yet to return to our shores.

Why brings this sad tale up? Because the video after the jump is as close as any of us are going to get to the 2010 SuperGT season unless we book a ticket to Narita for the season opener at Suzuka. If high-revving touring cars is your thing – and if you’re interested in getting an earful of the all-new Honda HSV-010 – click past the break for a little sample of this year’s contenders ahead of the big race next month.

Continue reading Video: Four minutes of sheer SuperGT bliss

Video: Four minutes of sheer SuperGT bliss

Our friends across the pond in Europe have always good things to say about the Ford Focus RS, leading to a great deal of angst in America since the Blue Oval Boys have never brought the hi-po Focus Stateside. News from Jost Capito, the man in charge of aligning Ford’s performance divisions all around the globe, has us anxiously awaiting the time when that gross oversight is finally corrected.

Automobile recently got the chance to sit down and chat with Capito, and the conversation quickly turned to the new global Ford Focus platform that was recently unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show. According to Capito, Ford is still deciding what to call the next-gen high-performance Focus, saying only, “I don’t see RS in Europe going away, and I don’t see SVT in the U.S. going away.”

Regardless of what it’s called, we could very well see the speedy Focus take on multiple forms – similar to the path Ford has taken with the car in Europe with both a Focus ST and top-level RS. Previously, we heard rumors that a 240-horsepower Ecoboost-powered Focus ST could hit the scene within 18 months, followed by the latest RS, which could sport a 350-horsepower all-wheel drive hybrid powertrain, within the next three years.

There are plenty more interesting tidbits in the interview, click here to follow along.

[Source: Automobile Magazine]

Ford to merge U.S. and European performance lines; Focus RS coming to America?

A year ago we got our first peak at the new Citroën DS3 in a darkened alcove off the French brand’s main stand in Geneva. As Citroën prepares to start building the DS3 for the road, it’s tasked its racing department – the same division that’s created so many WRC-winning rally cars – to create a hotter version, and the DS3 Racing is headed to the Geneva Motor Show.

Only 1,000 examples of the DS3 Racing will be built when production begins in the second half of this year. All of them will be motivated by a 1.6-liter turbocharged inline-four that has been extra pressurized to bump output from 156 horsepower to a full 200 hp. Getting power to the ground is always a challenge in a front-wheel drive car, so the suspension and steering have been worked over by the motorsports crew. More robust springs and dampers and a new wheel and tire package lower the car by 15 millimeters and extend the track by 30 mm. Four pot calipers on the front help to dissipate kinetic energy when the time comes to slow down the party.

Assorted carbon-finished (we’re not sure if its actual carbon fiber) bits around the bumpers, wheel arches and rocker panels add to the “performance” image while the show car in Geneva will be further “enhanced” with DS3 Racing graphics. Inside, the front seats have been swapped in favor of more bolstered buckets to fully utilize the handiwork of the rally team’s modifications. Given how much fun a John Cooper Works Mini can be, we expect the DS3 Racing will be equally up to the task of bombing the back-country. Full details in the press release after the jump, along with a video of the DS3 Racing in action.

[Source: Citroen]

Continue reading 200-HP Citroen DS3 Racing confirmed for Geneva [w/video]

200-HP Citroen DS3 Racing confirmed for Geneva [w/video]

According to a report by Automotive News, the House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to former Toyota lawyer Dimitrios Biller requiring him to submit secret documents to Congress in advance of a February 24 hearing about the Japanese automaker’s unintended acceleration issues. Biller is required to submit the reported four 18-inch bank boxes of documents to Congress by February 23. Biller filed a federal racketeering suit against his former employer over the summer.

Just one week ago Toyota won a temporary injunction against Biller barring the lawyer from releasing any of the secret documents. Biller’s lawyer, Jeffrey Allen, says the congressional subpoena supersedes the injunction and that Biller intends to supply the documents by the February 23 deadline. Biller contends that Toyota destroyed multiple documents that could have implicated the automaker in SUV rollover cases. In late September, Texas Judge T. John Ward ordered Toyota not to destroy any crash informaton.

Toyota is suing Biller for $33.5 million for divulging confidential information and Biller’s lawyer contends that Toyota’s ex-lawyer flew to Japan and tried for four days to get executives to air his concerns over the handling of the information. Biller was then reportedly asked to resign and given a severance.

The February 24 House Oversight meeting has still more drama due to the fact that Toyota President Akio Toyoda will testify before the committee. Toyoda originally planned to leave the testifying to Yoshimi Inaba, president of Toyota’s operations in North America. That changed when committee chairman Edolphus Towns (D-NY) sent a formal letter to the Toyota president requesting his presence.

We’re not sure how the alleged SUV rollover info is relevant to unintended acceleration, but the bigger picture may be that congress is looking into whether Toyota has a history of hiding evidence that could potentially paint the company in a bad light.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req. Image: Junko Kimura/Getty Images]

Report: House subcommittee petitions Toyota for secret documents

Mitsubishi has officially rolled out the Japanese market version of its new RVR crossover, which will also be dubbed ASX for the European market when it goes on sale later this year. The automaker has said that it has plans to bring the new small CUV to the United States, but no official nomenclature has been confirmed for the vehicle that will land on our shores. The European version will officially debut to the public at next month’s Geneva Motor Show.

In Japan, the RVR is offered with a new 1.8-liter gasoline four, producing 139 horsepower and mated to a continuously variable transmission with column-mounted paddle shifters. Both front- and all-wheel drive versions will be available, and earlier reports have stated that European customers will have the choice of a few diesel powerplants, including a 1.8-liter unit mated to a six-speed manual transmission.

Have a click through our gallery to see the new Mitsubishi crossover from all angles, and expect more photos and information live from the Geneva show floor next month.

[Source: Drom.ru, Carscoop]

Pics Aplenty: Mitsubishi RVR Crossover

Ask us what Euro-only model we’d import to the States and the Volkswagen Scirocco would be near the top of the list. It combines everything we love about the GTI into a more attractive, racy package and, just like it’s boxy brethren, it’s packed with tuning potential.

HPA has been at the forefront of VW and Audi modifications for years, and the Canadian tuning firm has worked out a deal with V-Dub to import a handful of Sciroccos into British Colombia each year to finally offer North American gearheads the hot hatch we deserve. But naturally, they’re not leaving good-enough alone.

Although the Scirocco tops out in R trim with a 265-horsepower 2.0-liter TSI four-cylinder, HPA will swap in a fully-built 3.2-liter V6 complete with a pair of Garrett H25 turbochargers, along with all-wheel drive. The result is the FT565, good for 550 hp and 500 pound-feet of torque. Bump it up to the Stage 2 package and torque swells to 600 lb-ft and the 0-60 time drops to 3.4 seconds, with a quarter-mile time of 11.3 seconds. Top speed? HPA claims 200 mph… in a hatchback.

In addition to the engine mods, the stock brakes have been swapped out in favor of 14-inch, eight-piston units in front and 13-inch rotors out back, with 19-inch aluminum BBS coated in Dunlop SP Sport Maxx tires.

As you’d expect, such a conversion and importation doesn’t come cheap: HPA only plans to build 10 FT565 Sciroccos each year, at a cost of $150,000 a piece. And no, there’s no word on whether the Scirocco will be available here in the U.S. Dammit.

[Source: HPA via Automobile]

Want a 550-hp AWD Volkswagen Scirocco? Save up $150k and move to Canada

It takes a ton of engineering prowess to create any functional internal combustion engine, but especially one that’s capable of spinning itself up to 14,200 RPM… without blowing itself to bits in the process, of course. Such high rotational speeds are rarely seen on the street – except in high-performance motorcycle engines such as the BMW S 1000 RR’s new 1000cc four cylinder mill.

BMW’s most powerful production motorcycle engine cranks out 193 horsepower at 13,000 RPM and 82.5 pound-feet of torque at 9,750 RPM. Reliably. Perhaps the most impressive piece of engineering in such a high-strung engine is the valvetrain, which in this case is comprised of two intake and exhaust valves per cylinder made of lightweight and strong titanium. Each valve is operated by tiny single cam followers with camshafts driven by a very short sprocket driven via an intermediate gear.

This technology was borrowed from BMW’s Formula 1 racing endeavor and is put spectacularly on display in the video that you’ll find after the break. Trust us, seeing the valves clicking away at 14,200 RPM is not to be missed, and be sure to keep an especially close eye on those springs as they spin on their perches while constantly being pounded into submission from overhead. Amazing.

[Source: BMW Motorrad USA via YouTube]

Continue reading Video: BMW S 1000 RR valvetrain at full bore shocks and awes

Video: BMW S 1000 RR valvetrain at full bore shocks and awes

Granted, we’re a little weird around here, but we’ve been dreaming of a multi-stage nitrous system since the sixth grade. We saw our friend’s big brother lay down some fat rubber marks all around the cul-de-sac in his primer’d and blown ‘72 El Camino and BAM!, we were sold on the idea that increasing the air part of the air/fuel equation was the smart, righteous thing to do.

Sadly, nitrous ain’t all that legal in most places. Mississippi was one of the dozen remaining hold outs until some idiots in a blown car decided to take some police on a high speed chase that ended in the death of Trooper Steve Hood. As such, NOS is now illegal in Mississippi street cars, and is the 39th state to pass such a law.

As far as the specifics go, no one’s sure exactly how the law is written. We know (for instance) that in California you can have a nitrous oxide system in your car and the bottle can even be hooked up, however said bottle must be 100% empty. In other states you’re not allowed to have the bottle screwed in. Still, in others, a NOS system is illegal period.

Our pals at Bangshift.com (who know a whole heck of a lot more about this subject than we do ) are telling Mississippi residents, “Seeing as though this is a law fresh in the minds of law enforcement and represents an emotional event for the Mississippi State Troopers, we’d stow our bottle well away from the mount when headed to the race track.” Sage advice, and much wiser than our hide-a-NOS-system in a fake battery ala Smokey Yunick suggestion.

[Source: Bangshift]

No Laughing (Gas) Matter: Mississippi becomes 39th state to ban nitrous in street cars?