Police in the UK have begun investigating the cause of a 34-vehicle pileup on the country’s M5. The fiery collision claimed the lives of seven motorists and saw an additional 51 individuals injured. Of those, 42 were treated at local hospitals.
According to BBC News, a subsequent investigation has revealed that fireworks display by a local rugby club could be to blame for the event. According to police, the Taunton Rugby Club sponsored a fireworks display that led to a massive bank of smoke that obscured the roadway. The club is currently cooperating with the investigation and police are investigating the legality of the fireworks show.
A total of 15 individuals are still being treated for injuries sustained in the accident, which occurred Sunday. While all of the vehicles involved in the crash have been removed from the scene, police say that over 130 feet of asphalt has been ruined by spilled fuel, and an additional 197 feet of road surface has been destroyed by severe fire. to watch an Associated Press report on the incident.
Back in 2007 Congress, created the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing federal loan program to allow the government to loan up to $25 billion to car manufacturers. The federal loans were created to help provide the money necessary to retool factories and build more fuel-efficient vehicles, but now some members of Congress are looking to end the program well short of the $25 billion mark.
The Detroit News reports that Texas Congressman Bill Flores has introduced a bill to end the loan program. The Republican representative from Texas says he is introducing the bill to “save additional billions in unused taxpayer dollars.” Flores added that the funds should be provided for “an immediate need,” adding that the dollars have been tied up in an “inefficient bureaucratic process that has made little progress in the past three years.”
The bill is being supported by many Republicans, but Democrats, led by Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow and Representative Gary Peters, are against the bill.
So far, the funds have been difficult to come by, though received $5.9 billion to support 13 projects and protect 33,000 jobs. received another $1.4 billion, while and received over $1 billion in combined loans. But while those loans went through, Chrysler has been waiting for a $3.5 billion loan for over 18 months and has decided not to request any of the funds.
The loan money has come under increased scrutiny after solar panel manufacturer Solyndra LLC collapsed after receiving $528 million in loans. The White House last week launched a 60-day review of the program, likely delaying more loans until 2012.
It’s official, ladies and gents: IndyCar starlet Danica Patrick is moving up to the big leagues in NASCAR. The official announcement came in over the weekend that Patrick will be making her Spring Cup debut at no less lofty a race than the Daytona 500 come February 26, where she’ll be driving for Stewart-Haas Racing.
The move to America’s premier closed-wheel series comes after several lower-level stock car races in the ARCA and Nationwide series, efforts that saw Danica leading five times at the Subway Jalapeno 250 back in July.
In starting the Daytona 500, Danica will be only the third woman to contest the iconic race, joining the likes of Janet Guthrie (who finished 12th in 1977 and 11th in 1980) and Shawna Robinson (24th in 2002). You’ll find more details in the press release after the jump.
There’s no question that has done some radically impressive things with its , proving beyond the shred of a doubt that Japan’s mainstream automakers can stick it to Europe’s elite. But you don’t get to where Nissan has gotten with the GT-R by sitting back and letting it grow old. Yokohama’s finest spend day and night keeping Godzilla razor-sharp and ready for action. And to that end, they’ve launched a series of improvements for the latest model.
To say that the updated GT-R represents any sort of major step forward would be a gross exaggeration, but it does pack some new features. Among them are a retuned version of the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6 that now delivers more power – 542 horsepower instead of 523 – while returning higher efficiency and lower emissions. A recalibrated shift action, new differential lubricants, an even tauter frame, available carbon-ceramic brakes and an available “track pack” for hot-lap enthusiasts are also part of the improvements. Right-hand-drive models get an assymetrical suspension setup to compensate for the weight of the driver and steering column, there’s a new Bose sound system and a rearview camera now comes as standard.
The improvements are said to shave an astonishing eight to ten seconds off the GT-R’s already impressive Nürburgring lap time and drop the 0-60 time to as little as 2.7 seconds. Now that’s what we call progress. Click for the official video and press release.
Currently, the new model is being rolled out in Japan and Europe – set to debut later this month at the – but it’s probably only a matter of time until we get the improvements Stateside as well, where we expect it will debut soon as the 2013 model. So stay tuned. In the meantime, you can check out the huge batch of fresh high-resolution images and follow the jump for the video clip and Euro-spec press release.
If it seems to you that just about every year the powers-that-be change the classes in Le Mans racing, well, you’re not far off. The racing categories for various vehicles is constantly in flux, with organizers at the ACO forever seeking out the right balance between various categories to keep the racing action competitive. And so it should come as little surprise that the ACO has tweaked the regs yet again for the 2012 championship.
Following the streamlining of various GT classes into one GTE category, the ACO is preparing to launch a new GTC class that will allow less heavily modified vehicles to compete against each other amidst all the purpose-built racers.
The new class is similar to the GT Challenge category currently in place in the American Le Mans Series, however while the ALMS GTC category is currently limited exclusively to the , the European series has already added the F430 Challenge (which should be readily accessible now that it’s been replaced by the 458 Challenge) and the GT4/GTC to the expanding list of approved vehicles.
Drivers in the LMS GTC category will follow the same rules as the GTE-Am class, with one professional driver rotating with one or two additional amateur racers in each car.
Heads up, Forza fans; Turn 10 has just released the next downloadable content package for Forza 4. The November Speed Pack oozes lustworthy digital metal, including the and the . But the 10 new models aren’t all supercars. We’re particularly happy to see that the 2013 Ford Focus ST is part of the group and that players will finally get a chance to drive the 1992 GMC Typhoon as well. You can head over to the website for a full list of the vehicles in the DLC pack.
In addition to the new vehicles, the November Speed Pack also includes a Rivals mode that features the Aventador in a hot-lap battle. Turn 10 says that it will be awarding special unicorn cars to 100 random players every week. That all sounds good to us, especially considering that the pack is a mere $7. to check out a teaser trailer of the pack.
What’s in a name? More than you might think, particularly in Formula One where two teams have been fighting for use of the moniker for a couple of years now.
The battle, as you may recall, involves two outfits – neither of them directly owned by Lotus. One is based in Malaysia and licensed the name from Lotus’ parent company, Proton, before subsequently “acquiring” the name from a third party that laid claim to it. The issue was further complicated when Lotus itself teamed with the Renault F1 team (which also happens to supply engines to the other Lotus team), resulting in two squads called Lotus-Renault.
The two operations have now reached a compromise. The green-and-yellow Malaysian outfit known until now as Team Lotus be named Caterham in 2012 (having bought that company recently), while the Renault team will be cleared to use the Lotus name.
The move further distances Renault from direct involvement with any particular team, stepping back to a more traditional engine-supply role with teams like Lotus, Caterham, Williams and, of course, the world-champion Red Bull Racing team.
The F1 Commission also approved a name change for Virgin Racing, which will drop the name of Richard Branson’s company from its official moniker and adopt that of Marussia, the Russian exotic carmaker that last year. All three team name changes will require official ratification from the World Motor Sport Council of the FIA, but that’s seen as a pro-forma step that isn’t expected to derail any plans.
The devil is always in the details when it comes to industrial design. Sure, there are some ugly and disjointed consumer products that should never have been wrought upon the buying public, but the differences between most of the things we build and buy are subtle. Paying attention to the little stuff is important, especially in the auto industry, as it’s the collection of these details that add up to produce truly memorable vehicles.
Which brings us to this , where he’s posted 24 black-and-white images of speedometer designs dating back to 1941. (The 2002 Monte Carlo SS Dale Earnhardt Signature Edition speedometer pictured above is not one of them.)
Tracing the evolution of the fonts and layout of all these speedos is interesting in itself, but Annyas seems to have a more pointed motivation – trashing digital speedometers. He pictures a single digital unit, from the , describing it as “not an ideal situation.” To be fair, the Sonic’s speedometer wouldn’t be our choice if we had these to choose from, either. That honor would have to go to the trio of art deco 1940’s Chevytruck designs Annyas selected.
is celebrating 40 years of M with a special edition Competition Edition that is about as rare as they come. BMW is only shipping 40 of the coupes to the U.S., and each will be identical save for a few options.
The M3 Competition Edition will feature Frozen Silver exterior paint, black M3 GTS 19-inch wheels, dark chrome exterior trim and dark exhaust tips. The interior will be complemented with Black Novillo leather upholstery with Palladium Silver accents, an Alcantara M steering wheel and M logos throughout.
This limited edition car will feature the same 414-horsepower V8 engine as other M3s, but the 0-60 time drops from 4.7 seconds to 4.5 seconds. The Competition Edition M3 is 10 mm lower than the standard M3, has wider-offset wheels, and higher-threshold programming for the M mode.
It’s also more expensive than the standard M3. The Competition Edition M3 cost $81,060 with destination and handling, or a hefty $20,000 more than the base car.
Since BMW is has dubbed this M3 the “Competition Edition,” the automaker is also encouraging its U.S. dealer body to compete for the chance to sell one of them. The first 40 dealers to receive M Certified Center certification get first crack at the car. Hit the jump to read over the press release.
We know there’s lots of drama in NASCAR, and for some reason, Kyle Busch often finds himself in the middle of it. Back in June, Busch after a race courtesy of a fellow driver who felt the 26-year-old driver had intentionally bumped him during a cool down lap. Busch also recently after being caught by police doing 128 miles per hour in a Lexus LFA. Fortunately for Busch, NASCAR doesn’t require its drivers to have a valid drivers license to race.
Maybe they should, as Busch has again dove headlong into a heap of trouble after intentionally putting Ron Hornaday’s truck into the wall during Friday night’s Camping World Truck Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. The incident happened after the two drivers made contact on lap 13, which brought out a caution flag. At that point, Busch aimed his truck at the back of Hornaday’s and accelerated, sending his competitor – who happened to be competing for the series championship – into the wall and out of the race.
NASCAR pulled Busch from Friday’s race and then followed up by also suspending him for this weekend’s Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup races, as well. The governing body has said more penalties are possible and will be considered on Monday.
Busch has already released an open letter apologizing for the crash, which can be read .
Tanks are a unique form of wheeled transportation. Performance is measured not in terms of speed or quickness, but how much destruction a tank can dish out and absorb in return. Tanks played a huge role in the first and second World Wars, but in our modern age of unmanned drone warfare and undetectable teams of special operators, these iron-sided bears have become to military aficionados what a Duesenberg is to a classic car collector. And thus, owning your own tank may be as attractive a proposition to you as putting an MG in your garage.
This infographic is a good primer for tank ownership, and includes such information as where to buy one, how much you can expect to pay, and the legal requirements you’ll need to meet before you can call yourself the proud owner of a weapon of tracked destruction. You’ll also be in good company, as the infographic cites a number of other known tank owners, including novelist Tom Clancy, which makes perfect sense when you think about it. to see the infographic from top to bottom.
Video games are big business. Titles like Call of Duty can reach a billion dollars or more in sales, but racing games typically don’t fare quite as well. Maybe that’s why the Need For Speed team developed The Run; a cross-country thriller that combines fast cars, beautiful-yet-pixelated women (with real-life and Christina Hendricks) and abundant out-of-the-car action.
To show just how serious Electronic Arts is about Need for Speed: The Run, the franchise went to box-office ATM machine Michael Bay to cut the game trailer. Bay may not make the most critically acclaimed movies of all time, but they make serious bank, and he knows how to whip up the pre-release excitement with killer trailers.
to watch the action-packed trailer he cut together for The Run, then stay for a second video that gives a behind the scenes look at how Bay and his team assembled the teaser.
In Google’s relentless push to map and photograph the world’s public spaces, the search giant has prepared custom trikes to bring its Street View treatment to parks.
Using these , riders can take 360-degree photographs of trails and parks as they pedal through, providing would-be visitors a chance to see the sights without leaving the comfort of their couch.
One of the latest parks to get mapped is New York’s , a 1.5-mile elevated park that used to handle freight rail traffic track on Manhattan’s West Side. (If you ever visit the High Line, you’ll see that the park’s designers into the walking paths, in a nod to the park’s origins.) Other parks that have been similarly mapped include London’s and Tokyo’s .
to take a Street View tour of each park and check out a video of how Google photographed and mapped the High Line.
The is less than two weeks away, which means every automaker that will be in attendance is putting the finishing touches on what their executives will say during their respective press conferences. It goes the same for each automaker: An exec will talk about sales numbers, maybe brag about some newly bestowed industry award, and then a new concept or production model will be rolled out. There is one company, however, that will likely do none of that.
If you look over the for the LA Auto Show, you’ll discover that Nintendo has a spot near the end of the second day. Now, companies not endemic to the auto industry have hopped up on soap boxes during auto shows before, but none from any industry we hold so dear to our hearts as videogames.
What could Nintendo possibly have to say or show? We don’t know. There’s speculation that Nintendo could be getting into the business of automotive infotainment, but we’ve seen no evidence to support this hypothesis. Since Nintendo hasn’t leased any space at the show, guesses that it might announce some kind of partnership with an OEM. Whatever it is, Nintendo is remaining tight-lipped, saying only, “We’ll have more info coming soon, but nothing more to announce at this time.”
Want to sell cars in Argentina? Be prepared to get into the wine business. Or the rice, peanut, chicken feed, biodiesel or bottled water businesses. Or anything else of value, really.
Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (pictured above) has enacted a program to increase the country’s exports and boost its economy by requiring automakers to match, dollar for dollar, the price of its vehicle imports by exporting some other product from Argentina.
While the plan will surely accomplish the goal of increasing exports, some experts are wary of its impact on the auto market. Marcos Ferrario, an economist who tracks the Argentinian auto industry, told Bloomberg: “It’s very difficult to counterbalance imports of luxury cars, which are worth about $150,000 each, with sales of olives or wines.”
As long as Argentina’s auto market is growing by about 30 percent per year, we’d expect automakers to do their best to keep dealerships stocked with vehicles. Long term, though, this sounds like a plan that’s nearly impossible to sustain.
With nearly 700 horsepower and a stunningly angular supercar skin, the is one impressive exotic. And speaking of impressive, the resume of Fifth Gear presenter Tiff Needell is nothing to shake a stick at either. Two titans in their respective fields, but do they go great together?
The racecar driver turned Fifth Gear star took the bull by the horns, experiencing the Aventador on the UK’s public roads and on the track. The Aventador was strong enough to achieve one very impressive Fifth Gear speed record, but does Tiff love it? About as much as a stiff neck. to watch Needell try to tame Lambo’s latest.
We’ve already seen some of Hyundai’s facelifted , expected to arrive shortly carrying a 2013-model-year designation. But this low-res image from TheCarBlogger.net appears to be our first official look at the car, sitting low and mean on a racetrack.
The outgoing Genesis Coupe’s front end was never exactly a model of simplicity, but this new one has a lot more going on, with an aggressive hexagonal grille and fascia opening that cribs from its new kid brother, the . There are headlamps and LED detailing on what looks like a higher-spec model, and a rather bizarre vented hood with an almost whaletail-like pattern.
We can’t see too much of the bodyside, but it appears has given the car new split five-spoke wheels. The model’s plunging rear quarter window appears unchanged.
No official word yet on what’s under the hood, but we’re expecting both four- and six-cylinder power, as before, but we have reason to believe that a . Thanks to and Rhys Millen Racing, we now know that Hyundai’s stonking 5.0-liter Tau V8 , but we’d be surprised if an eight-cylinder coupe shows up at this January’s .
UPDATE: Apparently the image above is , despite very much like the spy shots we’ve already been shown. Even so, it appears to give a realistic view of the 2013 model.
Yesterday, we got to see the , and today we have video of one of the missions. But wait just a second – this isn’t a video game, it’s real life.
An in-car video camera has captured footage of two unnamed Brazilian police officers going after some bad guys on a remote runway, Cops-style. One officer can be seen firing a machine gun, just before the driver rams the wing of a plane in an effort to prevent it from taking off.
According to the Associated Press, a Brazilian federal police spokesman indicates that the pilot and four others were arrested, but nobody was hurt in the takedown. The video does appear to show plenty of contraband electronics that were seized from the alleged smugglers, however.
After decades of dominating the pony car sales charts, the has finally met its match in the latest . Naturally, this high-profile segment, is one that is loathe to concede. After being infused with completely new engines in 2011, the Mustang will soon receive a visual refreshening that aligns this horse’s looks even more with the range-topping model.
Our spy photographers have snapped a Mustang GT prototype with just a thin layer of 3M vinyl hiding the changes. Up front, you can clearly see the GT500’s influence in this Mustang prototype’s protruding grille. Also note that the coupe has dropped the Mustang GT’s circular, grille-mounted foglamps, as well as swapped out its galloping horse badge for a new logo that’s been moved from the center of the grille to the side. Even the lower air intake is shaped like an open smile, just like on the current GT500. And, is that a splitter we see hanging off the car’s chin?
We can also see brand new projector beam headlights up front with some LED tech buried within, and out back, the rear end gets new taillights. That rear wing is also new, and the rear bumper has been slightly redesigned as well.
Ford clearly hopes to imbue the Mustang GT with the GT500’s aggressive looks, and these spy shots show they’re on-track to do just that. Will it be enough to boost sales above the Camaro? We’ll see. The more interesting question is once the Mustang GT looks like the GT500, what will Ford do with its most powerful pony car? With the impending arrival of the 580-horsepower Camaro ZL1, we’re sure Ford’s .
One Furiously Blue Swan Song For Porsche’s 997 911
While Las Vegas’ has been busy showing off the best and worst sides of the tuning market, we dashed to Leonberg, Germany, for a thorough taste test of this 711-horsepower TechArt GTStreet RS. If we can exaggerate a touch, about the only thing on this 911 GT2 RS-based blue meanie that is from Porsche – or not matte finish or covered in Alcantara – is its rear-view mirror. At least that’s the impact it makes when you first lock eyes on it and then drive it.
Initially shown at this past September’s , this particular $750,000-ish GTStreet RS will eventually make its way into the roped-off garage of a very enthusiastic Chinese car nut. Lucky him.
