According to a new study released by MetLife, around 66 percent of those surveyed believe that drivers rely too heavily on technology while behind the wheel, and that reliance may contribute to unsafe driving. MetLife also found that drivers are more familiar with convenience tech than safety-oriented advancements.
Of those polled, 85 percent believe that cars are safer today than they used to be, and a whopping 90 percent are either very or somewhat familiar with GPS devices that can take attention from the road. In addition, 77 percent of those surveyed said that they were familiar with Bluetooth hands-free calling, despite the fact that a hands-free conversation can be just as distracting as driving while speaking on a cell phone.
In comparison, only 42 percent of those polled said they were somewhat familiar with electronic stability control while 31 percent of respondents said that they’d never heard of the system. Yes, these people are sharing the road with you. for a look at the full survey results.
The roles of the automaker and the car magazine are well delineated: The former makes the cars, and the latter reports on them. Once in a while, though, we see the two changing hats, as automakers produce their own brand magazines and magazines build their own kit cars and whatnot. But this collaboration, for better or worse, brings the two that much closer. And if any publication was going to break the mold, we suppose it would have to be Intersection.
For those not familiar, Intersection is a different kind of car magazine from what you typically pick up at the news stand – more for fashion-forward hipsters than for grease-monkeys and gearheads. The publication typically features spreads featuring skinny models in skinny jeans next to and vintage – or an – but for their latest project, the French edition of the magazine teamed up with for the special-edition you see here.
The unique hybrid coupe is distinguished by a matte beige paint job with orange steel wheels riding on matching orange tires for the summer, and black wheels with black tires for the winter. Eley Kishimoto outfitted the interior. It was unveiled just the other day at the Galerie Nikki Diana Marquardt in Paris, and while it looks to be a one-off for the time being, Honda France is reportedly considering a limited run for public consumption. for a video (in French) on the paint selection process and check out the images in the gallery for a closer look.
The is on its way to a dealership near you, and you can pick one up starting in November. Should you prefer to go with something wearing a , you don’t have to wait, but you’ll just have to be happy with , as Subaru is reportedly holding off on bringing revised examples of the hi-po Impreza sedans and wagons to market.
According to Car and Driver, plans to continue building the same well-liked Impreza WRX and STI until the new cars are ready, likely in a couple of years. The idea is to allow the revised Impreza to gain some traction before launching the furiously fast versions. Hopefully, the lag time between models will give Subaru boffins time to produce models worthy of wearing those special badges.
When it comes to engine suppliers, McLaren has had more partners than the girl you took home from the bar last night. It was driven by Cosworth for the first seventeen or so seasons on the grid, then switched to TAG- engines, won a few world championships with , and even dabbled with and Peugeot. But since 1995 it’s been exclusively powered by .
Until recently, the German automaker even owned a stake in McLaren – a partnership that extended beyond the racing circuit to produce the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren as well. Daimler has since divested from the team, though, opting to buy instead the Brawn team that was once Honda’s and leaving many to wonder how much longer Stuttgart and Woking would continue working together.
Well, we just may have our answer. According to the latest reports, McLaren is committed to staying with Mercedes-Benz for the foreseeable future – not only through the end of its current contract (which expires in 2015 and would take them through the swap to turbocharged V6 engines in 2014), but for years to come.
This would seem to put an end to earlier speculation that McLaren could distance itself from Mercedes by either building its own engines in-house (as it has done with its latest road cars) or acquiring another team’s engine operations (like those recently shuttered by , or ).
McLaren’s team leaders also dismissed any concerns that the Mercedes GP team could get preferential treatment from Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines (the outfit founded by and Roger Penske as Ilmor Engineering and which now builds Mercedes’ F1 engines). They are, after all, separate enterprises that happen to share a name and common parent company, but not facilities, making the relationship between the Mercedes team and its engine supplier about as close as it is to McLaren, with which it’s been collaborating for over sixteen years.
Thankfully, there’s plenty of programming on television for automotive gearheads: Top Gear shows and motor racing broadcast from locations around the world, car chase scenes in movies, the always-dysfunctional crew from American Chopper… heck, there’s even a whole channel called Speed. But it’s about to get some competition on the octane-drenched airwaves.
As we back in July, Discovery is gearing up to launch the Velocity channel, jam-packed with car-related programming, all broadcast in high-definition. Discovery has now announced that the channel will begin airing in place of the existing HD Theater on October 4 at 7 pm (Eastern Standard Time). But just what can we expect when it does?
Fortunately, the producers have hit us with details on network’s new lineup. Velocity wont be entirely about cars, targeting as it will “upscale men” in general. So there will be some NFL coverage, gadget shows, finishing programs and such. But what about the cars?
For starters, MotorWeek – the staple car magazine show that’s been on the air for over 30 years now – will be calling the network home. The initial line-up also includes American Icon with Chip Foose, Chasing Classic Cars, What’s My Car Worth, Inside West Coast Customs and the motorcycle show Cafe Racer – many of which were previously shown on HD Theater but which will debut their new seasons on Velocity. for more details, and check out the teaser video .
and are all we have to go on when it comes to the upcoming Subaru BRZ. We’ve had enough of that, however, and it seems is finally ready to show us a bit more of what’s in store for the future sports coupe. The automaker will unveil a concept version of the BRZ at the , and it will be wearing real sheetmetal this time.
The BRZ will make its official debut later on at the , where it will join its / siblings. All three versions of the car will wear similar body panels with the exception of the face. Subaru will apply its own mug, while the Toyota and Scion versions will be identical minus the badging.
Subaru will be responsible for production of all three versions, and the sporty coupe will be built at the Japanese automaker’s Gunma, Japan facility. There the cars will be fitted with 2.0-liter boxer motors, and paired with either a six-speed automatic or six-speed manual gearbox.
If this whole making cars thing doesn’t pan out, Victor Muller and his team at Swedish Automobile N.V. would appear to have an excellent career in magic ahead of them. The executives behind troubled automaker have earned the right to reorganize under government protection thanks to a ruling by the Court of Appeal in Gothenburg, Sweden. This, after being by the District Court in Vänersborg on September 8.
The Swedish government’s voluntary reorganization approval suggests that Saab representatives were able provide blueprints for the automaker that demonstrate a reasonable chance for future financial success. Saab has been waiting for the release of promised monies from Chinese automakers Pang Da and Youngman (deals hung-up pending approval by the Chinese government), and other parties have also expressed interest in supporting the marque. Saab insists it is merely looking for short-term funding and legal protection because it has longer-term financial partners and a business plan already lined up.
As a result of the new ruling, Saab will now have at least three months to undergo reorganization, though that deadline can be extended by the government if the court feels that reasonable headway is being made. During that three-month period, the Swedish government agrees to pay the wages of Saab employees.
As a result of this court victory, Muller and Swedish Automobile are also requesting the cancellation of bankruptcy filings by several of its unions. to read Saab’s official statement.
History lesson, folks. Those of you familiar with the classic Jensen Interceptor from the 1960s and 1970s can completely skip this introductory paragraph. For the rest of you, the Interceptor was a two-door GT Coupe (or convertible or hatchback) built by Jensen Motors between 1966 and 1976 in the UK. Powered by a V8 ranging from 383 to 440 cubic inches (some even equipped with the famous Six Pack trio of two-barrel carburetors, and a handful of FF models included all-wheel drive), the Interceptor married a muscular drivetrain with bespoke, hand-built coachwork.
Suffice it to say, like many British enthusiasts, we have a very soft spot in our hearts for the original Jensen Interceptor, so when we heard that , the company that already bought and is , was working on a revival, our interest was piqued. The company is being contracted by Healey Sports Cars of Switzerland (another classic British marque), which apparently holds the rights to the Jensen name.
CPP says the car will be developed in Coventry and built at a starting in 2014. There’s no word on what will power the revived Jensen, but anything short of Chryser’s 392 Hemi that powers the latest SRT8 models would be a bit of a disappointment. CPP promises to show the car off by late 2012, which is still a far way off, so here’s hoping everything moves forward smoothly. Check out the rather fetching official renderings in our gallery and the press release .
As a genre, automotive journalists have seen (and done) some pretty stupid things done in some pretty stupid cars. Collectively, we’ve been airborne in more vehicles than are worth counting, roasted enough tires to make Al Gore weep, and generally made asses of ourselves on closed-course manufacturer track days. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.
Surprisingly, all of that stupidity has been eclipsed by the efforts of a few determined motorists in the Middle East. If the comments on YouTube are to be believed, the drivers and passengers in the slew of workaday family sedans in the video after the jump are participating in something called hajwalah, wherein drivers throw their vehicles into an extended slide before eventually correcting and continuing along their way. We’ve seen videos like this before out of the Middle East, and we’re thankful this one didn’t end in a crackup and bloodshed the way some others do.
Crazy drivers can be found the world over, and normally, most aren’t worth talking about. A few things are notable about this particular video, however. For one, the guys behind the wheel are kicking their vehicles around in what looks like full traffic in front of dump trucks and beside school busses. For another, none of them appear to be wearing seat belts. Finally, there’s a smattering of small arms fire from open car windows at the same time.
We’re nearly without the words to convey just how stupid this kind of driving is, but even we have to say, we didn’t know that humble family-toting iron like the , and could be pushed to such absurd slip angles – at least with such repeatability. to see for yourself.
daredevils go beyond the bounds of sanity… in family sedans
A Roush-tuned is a modern muscle car gone manic. Our own , which straddles the performance line between the and the . If you like the sound of that but are looking to get a vehicle that’s even more exclusive, Roush now has you covered with its RS3 Hyper-Series.
The Hyper-Series cars have everything that the standard Roush RS3 wears as far as performance upgrades go. The Roush team decided to dress these coupes up a step further, however, by offering one of four unique exterior graphic and interior color treatments. Buyers can choose between Mat It Mango, Gas It Green, Punch It Purple and Launch It Lemon. On the outside, a corresponding color stripe accompanies the side graphic while the interior receives matching suede door panels, shift boot stitching and a pair of shift knobs. One knob is black while the other matches the color choice of the vehicle.
Roush is only building 25 of each version, and each vehicle gets a unique serial number as well. The Hyper-Series hits the market beginning in October 2011. Check out the limited-edition 2012 Roush RS3 Hyper-Series Mustang in the gallery.
Marc Cameron and Paul “Moose” Curtis, are an artistic twosome that are exceedingly skilled at turning dirt, grime and muck into art. In fact, the pair have teamed up to create our favorite kind of art – the sort that features automobiles as the subject. Starting with a spot on a dirt-covered wall in Munich, Moose and Cameron remove the buildup of gunk in various layers leaving behind their desired image.
It’s called “reverse graffiti” or “grime writing,” and rather than covering a wall in paint, Cameron and Moose actually clean a portion of the area they’re working on. Some stencils, a few helping hands and a high-pressure power washer are the tools at work, and the resulting image not only illustrates how polluted public surfaces can be, it’s also wonderful spin on a form of art that’s typically frowned up.
to watch a reverse graffiti come to life, a project Cameron and Curtis coordinated with German’s . Also, click through the gallery to get a closer look at some more of Marc and Paul’s work, including the . If you are interested in learning more about Marc’s unique work, feel free to email him – Cameron @ Cameron2210.com or check out his website using the link below.
is there to make extreme supercars. That’s what it’s always done and that’s what it always will do. But even for the Raging Bull marque, some of its supercars have been more extreme than others. It broke new ground when it produced the , and then followed up with the Reventón Roadster, giving those with the scratch on hand a chance at owning a machine even more exclusive than the company’s “standard” offerings.
Sant’Agata is preparing to tap back into that customer base with the Sesto Elemento, a -sized concept car that is set to enter limited production as an exclusive track toy for those with the means. But will Lamborghini stop going down this road when all 20 examples of the Sesto Elemento are signed, sealed and delivered? Hardly.
According to the latest reports from the Old World, the Reventon and Sesto Elemento are destined to go down in history as the first in a long line of million-dollar exotics from the Bolognese automaker.
So what will the next billionaire’s Lambo entail? Far too early to say, but according to reports citing CEO Stephan Winkelmann, don’t expect it to follow the same extreme-lightweight approach as the Sesto Elemento, as improving on that formula would be too much even for Lamborghini. Given that a good three years separated the debut of the Reventón from the debut of the Sesto Elemento last year, it’ll be 2013 at the earliest before we have any idea.
was once an automaker known for its two-door sportscars and coupes. There was the Celica. There was the Supra. There was the Lexus SC. But while those have all long since departed, the Japanese auto giant is clawing its way back to the territory it once owned.
The is one heck of a first salvo, and the FT-86 is around the corner. There’s a world of space between those models, though, and according to the latest reports, Toyota is planning to fill that space, too.
Rumor has it that, while not officially sanctioned, a team of engineers is working on a rear-drive successor to the , though where the project stands and what future it may have remain big question marks. A second front-drive luxury hybridcoupe is also tipped to be in the works from , adopting much of its underpinnings from the .
Before those arrive, though, we look upwards to the LFA. The convertible version has reportedly been postponed if not axed entirely, but word has it that a special edition is to be presented at and named for the . The model would reportedly be distinguished by bare carbon-fiber panels for the roof and spoiler and a significant price premium over the stock model.
If 300 horsepower is good, 320 horsepower is better. And when that 20-horsepower boost comes at a cost of just $599, it’s really a no-brainer as far as we’re concerned.
hopes you agree, as it’s officially announced two new Power Kits for the , and certain models that boost the power of the 3.0-liter turbocharged inline six by the aforementioned twenty ponies. Just as welcome is a boost in torque from 300 to 332 pound-feet (when equipped with an automatic transmission) and 317 lb-ft (when equipped with a manual or DCT transmission).
The increase comes courtesy of what BMW is calling Version 1 Power Kit, which basically amounts to a reflash of the car’s computer system, and it can be applied to any 135i or 335i and all X6 models produced before April of 2010. These power figures bring the turbocharged machines up to the specification of the .
A second option is the Version 2 Power Kit, which adds an auxiliary water cooler and “enhanced” radiator fan to the reflash on 1 Series and 3 Series models. The V2PK costs $1,199, a modest increase over the $599 of Version 1 considering the added hardware. Both kits also include an “exhaust burble sound during engine overrun conditions.” BMW is quick to point out other modifications may be necessary and that installation isn’t included in that price.
In case you’re thinking this all sounds rather familiar, BMW did indeed . While that press release heralded the option for new buyers of the 2011 335i, this one indicates the availability of current owners to get the upgrade retrofitted to their cars while their warranties remain intact. For all the details, for the press release.
Some of the faithful are up in arms over the automaker’s decision to go with a rear-wheel-drive setup for . Why did the engineers opt to send power out back when they could have utilized the company’s signature symmetrical all-wheel-drive system? You would expect the answer to lie firmly on the backs of , which is the other half of this joint venture. , and according to them, that’s not exactly the case.
Toyota has been adamant that a rear-wheel drive sports car was to be the ultimate product of this sports coupe joint-venture. More surprisingly, Subaru officials say they were interested in creating just such a vehicle from the very beginning. To hear them tell it, they aren’t just all-wheel drive experts. Subaru produces front-wheel drive vehicles for markets outside of the States, and rear-wheel drive allows them to show off just how far Subaru engineers can push handling and traction levels regardless of which wheels drive the car.
Be it the front wheels, rear wheels or all four wheels, Subaru engineers are clearly eager to prove that they’re accomplished at making grippy cars. So… do you buy the explanation, or do you think it’s just spin? More importantly, do you think a RWD Subaru is a good idea? Have your say in Comments.
is mulling a U.S. factory to offset some of its exposure to fluctuations in the dollar. One thing the automaker definitely will be doing is expanding its presence in the U.S., and a manufacturing facility would certainly make that way easier.
A U.S. Volvo plant would join factories in Sweden, Belgium and two plants in China. Volvo has been making a push on the Chinese market after sold the Swedish company to Geely last year.
This manufacturing push is part of the company’s initiative to double sales to 800,000 cars per year worldwide. The company also intends to invest $11 billion over the next five years, with the crosshairs squarely on the Chinese market.
Ever been so mad in traffic you wish you had more than just a horn and a finger? Ben Hallert has your answer. It seems he got so tired of bad drivers that he decided to make his car horn sound a little more forceful. Now his Pontiac sounds like a line of cars blaring their horns.
To achieve that effect, he bought a couple of cheap (think $20) Harbor Freight Tools air horns and wired them independently. Thus, by hitting the regular horn and two horn buttons on the dash, he can make his car sound like another couple of angry motorists. This may not be the most utilitarian mod ever, but we like the intent. Video of the madness .
Our friend Christopher from is an expert-level Internet tracker of all that is cool in the world of art. We shared some , but . In fact, we think you’ll find he’s broken the scale, especially if you happen to be a fan of classic muscle cars.
Artist Jonathan Brand likes working with a variety of mediums, but he is wildly skilled when it comes to handling paper. Brand is also a fan of the 1969 . Combining his passion for both in a way that only a skilled artist can, Brand has set about the task of building the full-scale entirely out of paper. Not just the shell, mind you, but every single item on the original car will have been born from a tree.
So far, the Brooklyn, New York artist has completed the engine, a wheel and tire, and one of the doors. The accuracy he can achieve in this medium is amazing, and we are eagerly awaiting the day when he folds that last piece and the whole thing comes together. We’re guessing it’s going to be a while, but we’ll be waiting. While you’re waiting, check out .
Consider this a sign of the times: Even though is readying its highest-performance ever, General Motors executives are reportedly already hedging their bets that over 50 percent of all 2012 ZL1 orders will be for automatic transmission models.
The high expected order rate for automatics paired with the not only follows a growing market preference for two-pedal vehicles, it also suggests that even sporty car buyers are noting that advancements in design have all but eliminated the performance deficit long associated with this type of transmission.
Low take rates also means that fewer models are even available with manual transmissions, and it’s a problem that’s only getting more acute. With fewer new cars being fitted with manual transmissions, opportunities for learning how to drive a three-pedal car (along with people who can teach how to drive them) are fewer and further between. The result? Even fewer manual transmissions.
According to the Ward’s Auto report, fully 89 percent of 2010 model-year passenger cars were fitted with automatic gearboxes. In the case of Chevrolet’s Camaro, even the existing SS model is trending at 70 percent automatic, and that’s higher than the 65 percent take rate among base purchasers.
The Oshawa, Ontario-built Camaro ZL1 is expected in dealers in the first quarter of 2012.
Many of you have been following the 2011 Targa Newfoundland here on Autoblog, what with our own . Perhaps you were surprised to find out that rare supercars like a MC12 and a Enzo had entered the demanding race.
Unfortunately, the Enzo has bowed out early after taking a turn for the worse when it lost control and dove into the Atlantic Ocean off a coastal road. The Enzo was piloted (and owned) by Zahir Rana, who also owns . Ferrari produced 400 Enzos, and of them, Rana’s was one of the fastest that road-legal after being modified to similar specifications as an FXX. It was tuned in Germany to deliver a bewildering 850 horsepower and held a 0-60 mph time of 2.8 seconds.
We were able to get a few quick glimpses of the Enzo with Rana and his navigator, Roland Linder, heading for the ocean thanks to . and was waiting in anticipation for their to come around the same bend in the road.
Rana has posted a video, which you can find , that clearly states his disappointment, but also his reasoning and reflection on what happened. He definitely has the right mindset, explaining how things like this happen in racing and he is lucky that he and his teammate were left unscathed in the incident. He also makes a point to sadly say, “It’s only a car, it’s not a big deal.”
We agree wholeheartedly with Rana, but by the same token, having the incident happen to a car currently valued at $1.5 million is like throwing salt on the wound of enthusiasts and car insurance adjusters everywhere.
Follow the jump to see the devastating video of Rana’s Enzo coming down a hill and landing in the ocean, along with a walk-around video of the car before the Targa Newfoundland began.
