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Forza 4 is set to hit stores on October 11th, and Turn 10 Studios wants you ordering the game before the leaves start to change color. A limited collector’s edition has been announced, which is chock full of goodies, both virtual and real. For $79.99, Xboxers will receive a special tin that contains the game, a 96-page photo book titled Cars of Forza Motorsport 4 presented by Top Gear, vinyl stickers and a slew of downloadable content.

Those who opt for the limited collector’s edition will be able to download the VIP Car Pack and Ship Bonus Car Pack. The former includes the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, Ferrari 458 Challenge, Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera, Noble M600 and Ruf Rt 12 R. The Cars of the Ship Pack are a 1965 Ford Mustang GT, Koenigsegg Agera, 1997 Lexus SC300, Ruf RGT-8 and Tesla Roadster. A pack of 10 muscles cars will also be available, as well the winning cars in a Forza-sponsored BMW design challenge contest.

Speaking of BMW, the 2012 M5 serves as the cover car for the limited collector’s edition version of the game. The furious four-door is, of course, also available within the game.

Forza Motorsports 4 gets the limited-edition treatment

The late Kenneth “Von Dutch” Howard is probably the pinstriper best known to non-hot-rodders – and not because he’s considered the father of the modern pinstripe, but because of the clothing label named after him. Yet the art is still practiced by those who care for genuine article, not its vinyl equivalent.

Josh Clason’s Depth of Speed series takes a look at one such artist, Andy Kawahara, who admits to pinstriping something every single night, whether it be a car or an old piston. The video after the jump tells the story, and does so beautifully.

Continue reading Take a look at the fine art of old school pinstriping

Take a look at the fine art of old school pinstriping

What a terrible feeling. You walk outside, ready to head out to work or maybe to a friend’s house, and your vehicle is gone. Auto theft is a $6.4-billion-per-year problem. In fact, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration built a handy infographic to illustrate just how big of a problem vehicle theft has become.

For example, in the time it took you to read this far, one vehicle has been stolen – statistics show that one motor vehicle is stolen in the U.S. every 33 seconds. By the time you’ve finished this post, there is a good chance two or three vehicles will have been lifted. And if you’ve already been relieved of the ownership of your vehicle, there is only a 57-percent chance of getting it back.

The likelihood of getting your vehicle stolen varies depending upon the state you live in. NHTSA tells us that California has the highest auto theft rates, followed by Florida, Texas, Illinois and Georgia. And if you live in Laredo, Texas, we’d suggest getting a club, and a lojack…. maybe throw in a pit bull to stand guard. After all, this Lone Star town has the highest auto theft rate in the nation. And we thought Laredo was best known for its authentic Tex-Mex…

While auto thefts are a huge problem, NHTSA points out that nearly half of all thefts occur because of mistakes like leaving the keys in the ignition or leaving the doors unlocked. Click on the image to the right to enlarge and take a closer look at some very sobering motor vehicle theft statistics.

Infographic: NHTSA helps you crack down on auto theft

We’ve seen all sorts of materials used in automotive construction. Steel, aluminum, titanium, fiberglass, carbon fiber… even ceramics. But this is a first.

Teaming up with Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur, Bugatti has created the one-off Veyron “L’Or Blanc” you see here. Its name means “white gold”, and the special Grand Sport uses porcelain to distinguish its body and interior in high swirly style.

The result, as you can see, is quite stunning, and anything but conventional. Only this one example will be made, with an asking price of €1.65 million – equivalent to $2.4 million at today’s exchange rates. Check it out in the high-res image gallery and the press release after the jump.

Continue reading Bugatti unwraps one-of-a-kind porcelain-trimmed Veyron L’Or Blanc

Bugatti unwraps one-of-a-kind porcelain-trimmed Veyron L’Or Blanc

It’s official – Australia’s V8 Supercars series is set to bash fenders in Austin, Texas in 2014. The news comes hard on the heels of the Austin city council approving the United States Grand Prix Formula One race at the Circuit of the Americas.

The FIA-sanctioned touring car series has signed a five-year contract and the two 124-mile (200-km) races will be televised live on SPEED. The 3.4-mile Circuit of the Americas will also play host to MotoGP bike racing, having sewn up that series from 2013 to 2022. Check out the full details in the press release after the jump.

Continue reading V8 Supercar Series coming to Austin in 2013

V8 Supercar Series coming to Austin in 2013

Our long-term 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI started its year-long journey with us last month and spent the most amount of days in June under my care, so while I’ve already passed on its keys to a number of other editors, it’s my job to tell you how it fared in its first weeks.

As we mentioned when introducing our long-term Jetta TDI, this 2011 model is vastly different than the 2010 model we had last year. The most noticeable difference is that, unlike the 2010 Jetta and many model years before that, the 2011 doesn’t give a very good first impression. The exterior design is anonymous, the interior feels cheap, and every noise the car makes, of which there are lots, is anything but confidence inspiring.

The new Jetta, particularly when powered by diesel like our long-termer, impresses in ways that take more time to bubble up to the surface. You’re not going to know right away that it can easily clip along at a Prius-smacking 50+ miles per gallon on the highway, like it did for me on the numerous trips from Cleveland, OH to AOL’s offices in Dulles, VA. On my first trip to Dulles with the Jetta TDI, I was so shocked by the trip computer displaying an average of 53.2 mpg that I stopped near the end to fill up and manually calculate the fuel economy. The trip computer turned out to be conservative; I really averaged 53.31 mpg.

Keep your eyes locked on the official Autoblog Facebook page for the majority of our updates, as well as the official Autoblog Twitter account (@therealautoblog, look for the #ablongterm hashtag).

Continue reading 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI, June 2011

2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI, June 2011

The Saudi authorities have stepped in to temper the momentum of Saudi Women for Driving. It is against religious law for women to drive in the Arabian country, a fact of life that Saudi women have now decided to fight. The campaign began earlier this year, headed by Manal al-Sharif, with a video she produced and her taking to the streets behind the wheel of a car, then with a plea to Subaru to stop selling cars in The Kingdom. In early June, 40 Saudi women drove en masse, in an escalation of their efforts, and since then scores more have driven through the capital and other cities.

The authorities didn’t respond to those provocations, but they have to this latest one: five women were arrested while driving in the coastal city of Jiddah. There’s been no update on their situation, with another rights activist only able to wonder, “We aren’t sure what it means at this point and whether this is the start of a harder line by the government against the campaign.”

Five Saudi women in custody for breaking driving ban

Fast. Lightweight. Eminently enticing. There are a lot of things you could call a Lotus, but perhaps “ambitious” would be the most suitable. The company’s been snapping up former Ferrari personnel en masse, unveiled five new concepts at the same time last year, and plans on returning to producing its own engines to bring them to market.

Now it seems that Lotus has its eye on a rather boastful prize indeed: that of the fastest supercar built in the UK. That’s quite the goal when you consider it’ll be up against the likes of the McLaren MP4-12C and Aston Martin One-77. To get there, Lotus reportedly plans on turbocharging its new V8 up to 612 horsepower, and stripping out the new Esprit to pump up the power-to-weight ratio from both ends in Superleggera fashion.

As it stands, the naturally-aspirated V8 is anticipated to produce 562 horsepower from its 4.8 liters of displacement. Lopping off a couple of cylinders or chopping the block in half could also give Lotus six- and four-cylinder versions of the modular engine for use in a variety of cars. But while the engine may be raced initially (for example in a new LMP2 car) and shoehorned into the other products Lotus plans to bring to market, its first road-going application is expected to be in the new Esprit.

Lotus to turbocharge new Esprit into UK’s fastest supercar?

Formula One racing engines have been dropping cylinders like advanced trigonometry classes over the past couple of decades. The V12s gave way to V10s in the mid 90s. Those were replaced in turn by the current V8s in 2006, and now it’s been confirmed that by 2014 two more cylinders will drop off the block for V6 propulsion.

Confirmation comes from the FIA, whose World Motor Sport Council adopted via fax vote the suggestion put forth by the Formula One Commission after consultation with the teams. The new regulations will take effect in 2014 instead of the four-cylinder formula that was set to take hold in 2013.

Displacement will drop as well from 2.4 liters to 1.6, but don’t expect a big drop in performance, as the lost cylinders will be replaced by a turbocharger. The overall package, then, marks a little bit of history repeating. Until they were dropped in 1989, many of the cars on the grid were powered by 1.5-liter turbocharged V6 engines (like the ‘84-spec Honda unit pictured above), although this time they’ll be coupled to a new Energy Recovery System that will replace the current Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS). Official announcement after the jump.

Continue reading FIA confirms 1.6-liter turbo V6 F1 engines for 2014

FIA confirms 1.6-liter turbo V6 F1 engines for 2014

Sure, you want to save the environment (or a few bucks on gas), so you go out and buy a Toyota Prius. Starting that day, you’ll been missing a bit of sport in your life. Toyota wants to help you out. The automaker has announced the release of the Prius Plus Performance Package, and TRD had a hand in the creation of the components.

This is a limited-edition Prius, which is being offered with a choice between four exterior colors: Blizzard Pearl, Classic Silver Metallic, Black and Winter Gray Metallic. That paint work is also applied to the seven-piece aero kit. The Prius Plus Performance Package bodywork is comprised of front and rear lower spoilers, side skirts and a rear diffuser. It adds a touch of aggressiveness but also helps lower the car’s coefficient of drag.

This sportier (don’t laugh) Prius sits lower than the standard car, with a drop of 1.1 inches up front and 1.3 inches in the back. That lowered stance helps set off the 17-inch forged alloys that are snugly wrapped by a set of low-rolling-resistance 215/45R17 tires. A rear sway bar helps reduce body lean, and unique badges (surprisingly, not good for any horsepower gains) alert the neighbors that your Prius is a tick meaner than theirs.

This package will be offered for any existing Prius model. New Prius shoppers can add it on from the get-go by paying an extra $3,699 over the sticker on the Prius Two, Three and Four, or an extra $2,999 for the Prius Five. Interested? You can place your order starting this July. Click past the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading Toyota announces Plus Performance Package for Prius hybrid

Toyota announces Plus Performance Package for Prius hybrid

No automaker has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans as many times as Porsche. Not Audi, with its ten wins to Porsche’s sixteen, or Ferrari’s nine. But those were all a long time ago. In fact, Porsche’s most recent was with the 911 GT1 back in 1998.

Since then, Porsche has been pussyfooting around at the iconic round-the-clock race. The successor to the GT1 was aborted and turned into the Carrera GT road car. Sure, the RS Spyder (pictured above) has performed admirably in the LMP2 class, and 911s fielded by privateers have dominated the GT classes for years. But it’s been over a decade since Porsche has competed for an overall win.

That’s about to change, however, as Porsche has announced, through the video and press release after the jump, its intent to return to Le Mans to challenge for the win in 2014. To get there, Porsche plans a new LMP1 car, although it has released little in the way of details on what form that car will take.

If you’re wondering where this leaves Audi, which falls under the same corporate umbrella as Porsche, the Ingolstadt-based automaker’s team posted on Facebook that the decision was made independently by its Stuttgart-based sister company and that it looks forward to the competition. So we won’t expect Audi to be dropping out any time soon for lack of anything to prove, even after ten victories out of twelve years, nor supporting the Porsche entry like it did with Bentley’s in 2003.

Watching Porsche take on the likes of Audi, Peugeot, Aston Martin and the other automakers anticipated to be joining the field in the coming years ought to produce some nail-biting race action. But in the meantime, you can scope out the video and press release after the jump and the gallery of high-resolution images showcasing Porsche’s rich Le Mans heritage.

Continue reading Porsche gearing up for 2014 return to Le Mans [w/video]

Porsche gearing up for 2014 return to Le Mans [w/video]

While Victor Muller is on a money hunt, the rest of Saab is hoping to produce and sell cars. The Saab 9-5 SportCombi is one of those cars, and we’ve been itching to learn more about what version of the handsome wagon we’re going to get (provided the company is still around to produce them). Consider that itch scratched. A pre-launch brochure for the North American 9-5 SportCombi has found its way to the Internet, and it’s loaded with information.

According to the document, the 2012 Saab 9-5 SportCombi will utilize the 220-horsepower, 258 pound-feet of torque 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, which is paired with a six-speed automatic gearbox and Saab’s Cross-Wheel Drive system (XWD).

Saab has decided to fill the inside of this new 9-5 SportCombi with upscale standard equipment, so it’s likely to be on the pricier side. The standard equipment list includes a panoramic moonroof, heated seats, keyless start, a cooled glove box and a navigation unit that’s controlled via eight-inch touchscreen. Bundled option groups include the Technology Package (lane-departure warning, park assist, bi-Xenon cornering lights, and head-up display) and Rear Passenger Package (rear seat audio, dual eight-inch screens with DVD player and wireless headphones and tri-zone HVAC).

No word yet on pricing, so stay tuned, but in the meantime, you can check out the brochure in its entirety by checking out the gallery below.

Saab 9-5 SportCombi specs revealed for U.S.

Most available choices at your local car rental agency are tame appliances built to shuttle you from Meeting A to Hotel B. Back in the day, however, things were a bit different thanks to Shelby and Hertz. In 1966, the rental car company and Carroll Shelby partnered up to offer a custom Ford Mustang. Shelby built 1,000 units, Hertz rented them out and a horde of happy customers used them to rip up their local dragstrips and main streets. In 2007, the duo joined again joined forces to supply some muscle into the rental fleet. Now comes word that Shelby is looking to celebrate its 50th anniversary with an all-new rent-a-racer.

According to Automotive News, Shelby plans to team up with Hertz to bring a new generation of the Mustang GT-H into the world. Starting with a 412-horsepower Ford Mustang GT, Shelby will reportedly take the two-door and juice it up a notch before applying gold stripes to either a black car or a white one. The details of the mooted 2012 Shelby GT-H program have yet to finalized, but keep an eye out for distinctive Mustangs sitting at Hertz lots in the not-to-distant future.

Shelby to bring back rent-a-racer program?

Word on the web is that engineers at Ram are dabbling in air-ride suspensions. PickupTrucks.com has pointed out that the company’s gargantuan Long-Hauler Pickup Concept rocked an impressive auto-leveling and load-sensing air-suspension package from the people at Kelderman. It’s no secret that Ram has been trying to civilize its full-size pickup offerings. The company recently abandoned the traditional rear leaf-spring suspension setup for heavy-duty coil springs, and the addition of an air-ride option would provide even greater versatility.

As PickupTrucks.com points out, air suspensions use pneumatic bladders in place of springs, and an onboard compressor can vary the amount of pressure within each vessel. Lower pressure delivers a comfortable ride, while more pressure can give the vehicle additional ride height and load capacity. As a result, the vehicle can offer a comfortable ride while still being able to handle heavy cargo. It’s the same technology found on road tractors and trailers.

The fact that Ram is dabbling in the systems on its concept vehicles leads PickupTrucks.com to believe that we may eventually see air suspensions on the company’s heavy-duty hardware. The move would seem to be the perfect compromise between civility and capability.

Chrysler thinking about offering air suspension on its Ram pickups?

Carlos Ghosn has the honor of being the highest-paid foreign executive of any Japanese company. The Nissan CEO brought home a staggering $12 million for his efforts at the automaker last year alone, which marks a 10-percent increase over his take-home pay last year. For the sake of comparison, The Economic Times reports that Akio Toyoda, the president of Toyota Motor Company, drew just $1.6 million in compensation and stock options last year.

It’s not as if Ghosn has been sitting on his hands, though. The executive helped lead Nissan to increase its net profit from $524.6 million from March 2008 to March 2009 to $3.95 billion the following year, and he doesn’t seem to be anxious to slow down anytime soon. Ghosn just unveiled a new business plan for Nissan called Power 88, which is supposed to help Nissan capture a total global market share of eight percent. Currently, the automaker holds onto around 5.8 percent of total market share.

Nissan’s Ghosn earned $12M in 2010, making him Japan’s highest-paid foreign exec

Combine rising raw materials costs, reduced production capacity and manufacturing bottlenecks, and the result for the world of tires is this: not enough hoops to satisfy automaker demand. According to Automotive News, even before The Great Recession hit, a Bridgestone tire executive said that plant closures alone killed 71 million units of capacity in the U.S. New factories and factory expansions are on the way, but they won’t run at full power until 2013.

Current production is also slowed down by having to construct low-volume tires and niche sizes, with more specialty cars and more sizes on the market. On top of that, the prices of materials like steel, carbon black and rubber that go into tires have risen an average of 52% in each of the last two years, sending tire prices “up very sharply.”

Although it’s predicted that “the shortage won’t be resolved any time soon,” from the looks of it car manufacturers are in control of the situation – as well they must be, since they can’t sell cars without tires. OEMs haven’t discussed what its done to the bottom line – or how much of the cost is passed on to buyers – but if you see spec sheets begin to list more tire makes as original equipment, maybe this is why.

Today’s scarce automotive supply? Tires

A car like the Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé isn’t about raw power and performance. It’s not about the latest technologies. It’s not even about bragging rights. More than anything else, it’s about making the owner feel special. But this particular DHC is more special than most.

Created specially for the Masterpiece London 2011 luxury goods show, this one-off packs a suede Asprey jewelry case in the glove box with intricate rings, cufflinks and earrings and a trunk full of matching leather fitted luggage. The one-off is also the first come painted in Mazarine Blue, the latest of 44,000 colors available to Rolls-Royce buyers, and features Santos Pallissander wood veneers (whatever that means) inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

Check it out in the high-res image gallery and the press release after the jump.

Continue reading Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé for Masterpiece London is especially special

Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé for Masterpiece London is especially special

Bentley and Bugatti may be under common ownership these days, but back in the day, they were bitter rivals. That rivalry lead one Ettore Bugatti to deride his English competition as “the world’s fastest lorries” (the British term for commercial trucks). He was speaking figuratively, because while the notion of a Bentley sport-ute has been rumored every now and then, the company doesn’t actually make trucks. This, then, stands as an exception.

This classic started life in 1956 as a Bentley S1, purchased by the owner of a large retail chain before changing hands to the Earl of Stradbroke who had it converted to a pickup. The work was carried out in New South Wales, Australia, where they’ve always been bonkers for utes. They painted it yellow and gave it a woody-style pickup bed.

The car was donated by Stradbroke to the Trinity Grammar School, which is now auctioning the vehicle through insurance broker Shannons to raise funds to build a new library. The vehicle will hit the auction block during the Australian Motor Show on July 10, where it’s expected to fetch between $22,000 and $32,000 in Australian funds, or about $23,600-$34,400 in equivalent American greenbacks.

Custom 1956 Bentley S1 ute up for charity auction in Australia

“If you buy this truck, I’ll come deliver it,” Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally told his friend Rob Johnston. Proving that his pledge was more than just an empty sales tactic, Mulally stayed true to his word and dropped in at Satcher Ford in Aiken, South Carolina to personally hand over the keys to Johnston’s 2011 Ford F-150. Johnston’s likely still marveling at the luck that comes from having friends in high places, chuckling that “the CEO of Ford brought my little truck down to me” while taking delivery last Friday.

Maybe it’s a new type of sales perk Ford could offer. Who wouldn’t want, say, a Boss 302 dropped off by Parnelli Jones? There’s a rich tapestry of Ford drivers in NASCAR available for Ford Fusion buyers, too. It could even be a line-item on the order form. Pay a little more for personal celebrity delivery, and the public figure of your choosing gets a vacation in an unlikely spot, like the overnight Mr. Mulally spent at Aiken’s Willcox Hotel. If anything, it’s a way for Mr. Mulally to spend time outside of Dearborn and speak with the public that buys his company’s products.

Ford CEO Alan Mulally personally delivers F-150

Take three wheels, add one 115-horsepower V-twin engine, a five-speed manual gearbox and barely enough metal bits and pieces to hold it all together. Blend and half-bake. What do you get? The Morgan Threewheeler. We’re in lust.

If we were to strap ourselves into one of these crazy contraptions, we can think of only one accessory needed to truly do the machine justice, and you can see exactly what we mean in the video after the break. An old-timey Morgan deserves an old-timey set of goggles, no?

If you happened to find yourself sitting behind the three-spoke steering wheel of a Morgan Threewheeler, what would you do? How about a bunch of donuts followed by a one-wheel burnout in the middle of an empty parking lot? Yep, sounds about right.

Live vicariously through the man with the goggles in the video after the break.

Continue reading Morgan Threewheeler drifts back into history

Morgan Threewheeler drifts back into history