By and large, the machines created for the SEMA show in Las Vegas are built for lounging around under convention center lights and not much else. All those go-fast parts we see bolted on do little more than collect lustful stares from from the crowd. But Creations n’ Chrome set out to discover just what their bolt on additions to its were good for. Under the outrageous 3dCarbon bodykit sits a Vortech supercharged 5.0-liter V8 good for around 580 horsepower at 8 psi of boost on stock internals. KW served up a set of Variant 3 coilovers, and Hotchkis took care of front and rear sway bars.
The crew rolled the blown Mustang out the to the Mojave Mile for a top speed run. The machine racked up a final velocity of 182.4 mph, though the final seconds of the run looked anything but stable (we hear there was a 20 mph crosswind). Still, we’re impressed at the machine’s performance. For perspective, the Boss 302 is only good for 155 mph. Check out the video for yourself .
Carroll Shelby’s passing, BMW 3 Series Wagon, Porsche sub-Boxster/Pajun, Google car in public, BMW 2 Series
Episode #282 of the is here, and this week, Chris, Dan and Zach chat about the passing of industry legend Carroll Shelby, the Wagon that’s coming soon, and its rumored small five-door, Pajun (along with plans for a baby ), Google’s self-driving car getting the go-ahead to roam Nevada’s streets, and the coming BMW 2 Series. Your questions and comments power the end of the ‘cast, and for those of you who hung with us live on our , thanks for taking the time. We’ve embedded our Q&A module for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #282:
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Runtime: 01:23:51
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The door has not yet closed on . Hoping for yet another 11th hour stay of execution, the defunct carmaker’s chief union, IF Metall, has written directly to President Obama, asking him to intervene, according to Just-Auto. While on the surface, this may seem silly, it’s actually rather clever, even if it has little likelihood of working.
With the United States government , the Swedish union is hoping it can appeal to Obama to pressure General Motors into granting licenses to continue manufacturing Saab vehicles, according to the report. It’s this sticking point that has , as GM fears that were it to allow continued production of Saabs developed under GM’s ownership, it would open up the possibility of , particularly if a Chinese manufacturer that competes with GM’s own Chinese partner, SAIC, .
You have to admire , as they clearly have not given up hope. But in this case, they just don’t have any other options: Unemployment in the Saab hometown of Trollhättan has hit 40 percent, according to the report.
It is exceptionally rare for Bernie Ecclestone to be shown the yellow flag when it comes to his Formula One business dealings, but that’s what happened with two of his projects. A month ago, Ecclestone agreed to terms with France’s sports minister David Douillet at the Paul Ricard circuit (which Ecclestone happens to own). The contract hadn’t been signed while minor details were settled, but the plan was that the French GP would alternate with the Belgian GP starting in 2013.
However, with the defeat of French president Nicolas Sarkozy and the election of François Hollande, new reports suggest that everything from the previous regime will come under review. And it seems unlikely that Hollande, who was voted in by taxpayers who wanted more for their money and their economic pain, will agree to have the state subsidize the race. Said the president-elect, “I do not think the French state should be responsible for any financial outlay. There are enough issues to consider without spending tens of millions of euros on a grand prix.”
And across the world in Singapore, the GP is safe but in the nation-state now has a question mark after it. The squalls in the market that have depressed stock markets everywhere have IPO insiders cautious on the endeavor. Word is that they’ll see how the imminent Facebook IPO fares and how the market responds before making a decision. There is also the matter of the not having signed the Concorde Agreement, and Daimler says it needs to get that settled before F1 can go public. According to Reuters, if the offering isn’t conducted by June then it – and the estimated $2 billion it is expected to raise – might have to wait until next year.
Let’s get one thing straight: We’ll never complain about a new performance model, and on paper, this new-for-2013 135is sure seems like a total hoot. But you have to understand, we’re still mourning the loss of the , a one-year model that we absolutely fell in love with when it debuted last year. To quote , the 135is is the “top performance model 1 Series for 2013,” and awesome as it may be, it just makes the 1M’s death seem all the more permanent. Le sigh.
Still, there’s plenty to be excited about with this new 135is. Available in both coupe and convertible body styles, the hotter 1 Series uses a more powerful version of the 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six from the 135i, boosted to 320 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque here – upgrades of 20 and 17, respectively, over the standard car. Both a six-speed manual and seven-speed dual-clutch transmission are available.
A revised sport suspension comes standard, as do visual upgrades like new 18-inch alloy wheels, a blacked-out grille and black mirror caps, in addition to all of the usual M Sport cosmetic changes.
The 135is is available to order as you read this, with the first deliveries taking place in the fall. Pricing starts at $44,195 for the coupe and $44,895 for the convertible, including the $895 destination charge. Give the 1 Series M a final wave goodbye and to take in all of the details about the 135is in BMW’s press blast.
Few marques get auto collectors riled up quite like , and of classic Ferraris, few are as highly sought-after as the legendary Testa Rossa. We’re talking, of course, about the 50s-era roadster (as opposed to the 80s-era cheesegrater supercar), and the originals continue to fetch top dollar (or euro) whenever and wherever their fortunate owners are willing to part with them.
That when and where came this past weekend in Monte Carlo during the Historical Grand Prix of Monaco where RM Auctions sold some highly desirable classic metal. Topping the list was the rare 1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spider you see here, one of only two built, which sold for a whopping €5,040,000 – equivalent to over $6.4 million at today’s exchange rates. That’s considerably more than the that RM auctioned last year, but substantially less than the record in 2009.
Of course the Testa Rossa wasn’t the only car sold at the event, which brought in an astonishing €33.5 million (~$43m) in sales on 87 percent of all lots sold. In fact it wasn’t even the only Ferrari represented there, though it was the most expensive by a wide margin. A 1966 Ferrari 206 S Dino Spyder and a 1952 Ferrari 225 Sport Spyder ‘Tuboscocca’ (one of only 12 Vignale Spyders produced) each fetched €2.5 million ($3.2m), a rare factory Daytona Spyder brought in over €1 million ($1.3m), the car which Michael Schumacher drove to the 2000 Formula One World Championship and that each brought in over €800k (about a million greenbacks).
Other notable racing machinery sold at the auction included a Peugeot 908 LMP (which won several Le Mans Series races), a LP600 GT3 (raced by Blancpain CEO Mark Hayek in the Super Trofeo series), a Ferrari FXX Evoluzione and a pair of Ducati Desmosedici MotoGP racing bikes. Follow the jump for all the juicy details and scope out the headline Testa Rossa in the high-res image gallery above.
Those of you foolish enough to follow the Autoblog Podcast know I have a soft spot for . There’s just something amazing about a beaten old car secreting flawless mechanicals down below. The guys at Big Muscle have managed to track down what may very well be the queen of all sleeperdom in Dru Diesner’s 1972 Nova The machine wears its original faded green paint, plenty of dents and dings and a very dated interior, but there’s something special under the aged skin. Built with a twin-supercharged LS2, the Bowtie dumps 1,160 horsepower on its ultra-wide rear tires.
That’s my kind of magical. Mike Musto takes the machine out for a quick sprint around the back streets of Chicago and eventually talks Diesner into using the car to do what it does best: vaporizing its rear tires. to check out the clip for yourself. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have Chevrolet Novas to salivate over.
has officially put the finishing touches on the first prototypes of the company’s 918 Spyder, complete with a black-and-white livery scheme that pays homage to the 917 racers of old. Production is set to commence in a little over a year, and the German sportscar manufacturer says buyers can look forward to taking possession of the first examples by the end of 2013. The plug-inhybrid will command a heady price tag, though. Porsche the company will ask a whopping $845,000 per model, each with a 500 horsepower 4.0-liter V8 engine and two electric motors.
Altogether, the gas-electric drivetrain should be good for a 3.1-second 0-60 sprint and a top speed of 199 mph. Perhaps even more impressive is the news that the 918 will be able to propel itself with electric power at speeds of up to 94 mph. That little fact helps account for the news that the vehicle should be able to return around 78 miles per gallon on the EU cycle. Scroll down for the brief press release, but not before checking out the high-res gallery.
The current has soldiered on since the 2009 model year with few updates, so it is about time for a design change. But how much longer do we have to wait? Inside Line reports that the new G will arrive next spring with a new design, fresh engines and a possible hybrid variant.
VP Andy Palmer reportedly let loose the G’s tight time line, while providing room for us to speculate what engineering changes could come with the redesign. The high-ranking executive told IL that the partnership between Nissan and is progressing as planned, and we know that a four-cylinder engine is among the . In fact, Autocar reported that the next G will feature diesel and four-cylinder engines with Mercedes DNA.
Such a powerplant could replace the 2.5-liter V6 under the hood of the G25, and turbocharging could be on order as well. Palmer added that a turbocharged six could also be in the cards, noting that there is a business case for blown sixes that deliver V8 power with V6 fuel economy. Given that the entry Infiniti sedan doesn’t currently feature a V8 option, we’re all for more G-power for 2014.
The last interesting tidbit is the possibility of a G hybrid model. The addition of a battery-assisted G makes sense given that the automaker already features a hybrid option in its , and using the powertrain in more applications helps lower development costs.
Vilner has taken the time to give the F800R a once over to create the Predator. Built for a wealthy Russian businessman, the machine received a complete aesthetic redesign with plenty of components hewn from .
What isn’t stitched from composite is coated in chrome, and the company’s engineers set about shortening the bike by almost 10 inches. Vilner also ditched the dual saddle for a single seat variant and remade the headlight array. Red LEDs have replaced the standard bulbs, and a set of repurposed turning indicators are now part of the action.
The Predator remains largely unchanged mechanically, though Vilner threw in a new, hand-built exhaust system. That means this machine still yields around 87 horsepower from its 800cc engine. to check out the quick press release as well as a video of the bike.
We’ve heard for years that Chinese automakers hoped one day to export their wares to the United States. Ironically, the global economic slowdown could be what gives the Chinese incentive to finally make it happen.
Chinese automakers ramped up production capacity to meet surging demand at home only to see the local economic conditions slow from 30 percent growth in 2010 to just 2.5 percent in 2011. On top of that, the Chinese auto marketplace has now become crowded with foreign and domestic competitors.
“The rapid growth phase of China’s auto market is coming to an end, and we see exports as one possible outlet for all the capacity we have built up,” Xing Wenlin, vice president in charge of overseas markets, tells . Great Wall’s (pictured above) was shown a few years ago as a possible export model.
While most Chinese-made cars aren’t up to American quality expectations, developing automotive markets like Egypt, Ukraine, Brazil and Indonesia are clamoring for cheap, reliable transportation. Chinese automaker Chery it would be selling cars in Europe by 2015.
Geely’s in 2010 has boosted the Chinese company’s automotive technology expertise and could help it achieve its goal of doubling exports to 70,000 units this year. While the U.S. is still out of reach for most Chinese automakers, Geely may begin selling a Chinese-made car in the UK by the end of this year. If successful there, a logical next market would be North America.
Michael Arbaugh, chief designer of interiors, describes center console space as “oceanfront property” – already fully populated, with more tenants trying to move in every year. Speaking to the Automotive Press Association in Detroit, Arbaugh said one tenant he’d like to evict is the CD player because it’s dead weight for audio Luddites.
Ok, so he didn’t say that exactly. But Arbaugh believes they’re out of fashion with people under 30, and that growing lack of interest means they occupy space that could be better employed. CD players also add weight that has to be countered somewhere else in the march to meet CAFE regulations, an endeavor with nearly aerospace tolerances anymore.
The CD-less car is just talk at the moment, but there’s no doubt it’s coming. More and more computers are being sold without optical drives, and as it goes in the tech world so it shall go in the car-tech world. If we could just get carmakers to properly integrate connections for other PMPs that can play lossless codecs and don’t mutilate the music, we wouldn’t mind at all.
It’s been five years since shifted production to its new facility in Gaydon, Warwickshire, but after years of operating at Newport Pagnell, it could never shake the legacy of its historic home. So while the current model line is produced an hour away (probably less if you’re actually driving an Aston), the company has inaugurated a new facility at its spiritual home.
Actually, truth be told, the old factory at Newport Pagnell was kept as-is under historic preservation laws, so the new facility is actually situated across the street. Its showpiece is a 10-car showroom that will serve as Aston Martin’s flagship dealership. If you’re thinking that Aston doesn’t offer ten different models, well… it actually offers nine, between the , , , , , V12 Zagato, , Cygnet and the One-77 (although we hear they’ve of the latter). And even more if you take the V8 Vantage S variant and five convertible versions into account. But the showroom will also be displaying a variety of hand-picked and pristine classic Astons for sale, too.
That’s because the space is attached to Aston Martin Works, which has spruced up its operations as well. The division is charged with restoring and servicing Astons old and new with its staff of over 60 employees, handling some 2,500 cars every year for everything from an oil change to a full restoration. It also handles the company’s own fleet of historic vehicles and the catalog of new Q by Aston Martin accessories. for the full press release and a breakdown of Aston Martin Works’ activities.
We’re almost ready to record Episode #282 of the Autoblog Podcast, and you can check out the topics below, add your own to the and join us live via , as well, and we’ve embedded our UStream player Thanks for listening!
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #282
Actor Patrick Dempsey is no stranger to racing. After his wife sent him to a three-day Skip Barber driving school, the actor fell in love with road racing has gone on to compete in Grand-Am for the last several years. McDreamy even got the chance to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2009, finishing in 9th in the GT2 class behind the wheel of a Ferrari F430 GT.
After getting a taste of Le Mans, Dempsey now has aspirations to return to the legendary endurance race, but this time with his own team and his own car. At the 12 Hours of Sebring earlier this year, Dempsey Racing announced that they would be fielding a car in the P2 class for part of the 2012 ALMS season with the eventual goal of competing at the 2013 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Dempsey and his team took the first steps towards their Le Mans goal this past weekend by debuting their new V8-powered Lola B12/87 race car in the P2 class at the . This was Dempsey’s first time driving a modern prototype race car, and he admitted there would be a steep learning curve.
“It feels familiar but so much more intense – the braking, the acceleration, cornering and power, it is all on a much more dynamic level than the GT cars I have driven,” Dempsey said after a practice session with the car. “It’s an amazing machine and it is incredible to even have the opportunity to race in a car like this at this level, and what better track to start with than Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.”
Dempsey and his team eventually finished 30th overall and fourth in class – not bad for a brand new team with a rookie driver. They plan to compete in several more races this year and will be running the full ALMS season in 2013.
You can see photos of the Dempsey Racing Lola B12/87 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the gallery above.
When McLaren was bringing its new MP4-12C to the United States, there were fears that Americans wouldn’t recognize the name. After all, the team from Woking is known principally for competing in Formula One, which has had a spotty presence in the U.S. at best. Those fears proved to be misplaced, as customers in the States have been snatching up all the McLaren supercars they can get their hands on. And part of that might come down to the days when McLaren didn’t only race in America, it dominated.
The bulk of McLaren’s victories on this side of the Atlantic were notched up in the Canadian-American Challenge Cup, a radical form of sports-prototype racing campaigned in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, which Bruce and company won five times in a row. But Can-Am wasn’t the extent of McLaren’s success in America.
In 1970, the team entered into the Indianapolis 500 with its own car design. The following year, McLaren came back with a radically different design that scored pole position and finished the race in second place. And the year after that, the legendary Mark Donohue piloted his McLaren M16B fielded by the Sonoco-Penske team – complete with its Offenhauser four-cylinder turbo engine producing upwards of 700 horsepower – to the checkered flag.
Not only did McLaren win at Indy that year, but it also won races in Formula 1, Formula 2 and Can-Am, entering the history books as a force to be reckoned with. It would go on to win at Indy twice more in 1974 and 1976, and became the first car to exceed 200 miles per hour on the famed oval in 1977.
Now forty years later, McLaren is celebrating the first of its Indy by showcasing the #66 Sunoco-Penske car at the second annual Celebration of Automobiles in the speedway’s infield. There it will be displayed alongside the current MP4-12C to showcase just how far the company has come since then. You can check out the historic high-resolution images in the gallery and the details in the press release for more info.
We record Episode #282 of the Autoblog Podcast tonight, meaning you can drop us your questions via our Q&A module below and chime in to direct our conversation. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast if you haven’t already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
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It’s been for years, but according to Car and Driver, an event recorder mandate could soon become law. The Senate has already voted to adopt a transportation bill that would make the so-called “black boxes” mandatory by the 2015 model year. According to the report, the House of Representatives is also expected to pass a similar statute.
While the specifics of the bills are “vague” – to use C/D’s words – they’re also likely to change before becoming law. What probably won’t, according to the report, is the standard data set that the Department of Transportation has set forth, that include direction of acceleration, throttle position, and time that the airbags fired, among others.
This raises the specter of government snooping, of course. The Senate version at least specifies that the data contained in the little electronic box is actually owned by the owner of the vehicle, according to the report. Johnny Law can still come around with a warrant to gain access to it, however, and first responders and paramedics would be able to do so without the warrant, provided they needed the information to respond to the emergency.
We see some fairly radical machinery come up for sale on occasion, but few creations manage to raise our eyebrows so high as Project Sea Lion. Created to nab amphibious land speed record, the machine uses a 13b rotary engine for propulsion, and its creator says the drivetrain is good enough to launch the vehicle to 180 miles per hour if there’s enough roadway. Given that the current record sits at 125 mph, the Sea Lion should have no problem nabbing that title.
Top speed on the water may be a bit more cumbersome, however. The quickest amphibious vehicle can get to 60 mph right now, and Sea Lion’s builder says the creation will need more horsepower to make that happen.
He suggests a Renesis conversion. We tend to agree.
Made from tig-welded aluminum and a variety of CNC-machined components, the car comes only with a bill of sale. That means we can forget all about driving/floating this thing to work. If you like what you see and what to give the amphibious land speed record a go for yourself, Project Sea Lion is for sale over at Fantasy Junction for the low price of $259,500. for a quick video and be sure to check out for more details and photos.
Safety features like airbags are supposed to keep us safe in the event of a collision. But one driver allegedly met with a nasty surprise when an airbag in his car reportedly sliced his ear in half.
According to the Detroit Free Press, the incident occurred on April 7 when an unnamed owner of a 2012 was in a crash. Apparently the side curtain airbag on the driver’s side rapidly inflated (like it’s supposed to) but took with it a metal bracket (which it’s not). The result was a severe laceration to the driver’s ear in an automotive reenactment of Holyfield-Tyson II.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is apparently looking into the event, but has yet to issue a recall. Hyundai for its part insists the incident was isolated, and that it has not received reports of anything similar happening to any other drivers.
