If you’ve looked into purchasing a new car recently, we likely don’t need to tell you prices are plenty lofty. According to TrueCar.com’s data, the average selling price of a new car sold here in the U.S. last month was $30,748, marking an all-time record (last year’s figure was just $28,771). While buyers are currently looking toward smaller, less expensive and more fuel-efficient models, overall vehicle sales have jumped ahead of the rest of the slowly recovering economy. In addition, manufacturers are keeping production more in line with demand, resulting in significantly scaled-back incentives.
As a result, the average transaction price has inched skyward even in the face of an uncertain economy and escalating fuel prices. In addition, small cars now carry significantly more content than before and prices to match, and crossovers just keep getting more and more popular. Buyers have proven none too wary of optioning B and C-segment vehicles well above MSRPs typically seen on mid-sized fare, and used car fleets are thin, raising prices and pushing buyers toward new cars instead. According to CNW Marketing, consumers now routinely option a vehicle to within 86 percent of the fully loaded cost.
The production crew for recently stopped by the Nürburgring to recreate Niki Lauda’s infamous Formula One crash during the 1976 Nürburgring GP. Lauda’s car suffered a catastrophic failure on the second lap, launching him into the guardrail and placing his crumpled machine in the path of Brett Lunger’s Surtees-Ford. The two collided and it wasn’t long before Lauda was trapped in burning wreckage. Lunger and a handful of other racers fought to pull Lauda from the flames. Those on hand succeeded in rescuing the Austrian, and while he lapsed into a coma and suffered disfiguring burns, he was back in the cockpit within two months.
Just before the race, Lauda had pressed for a boycott of the dangerous race. The area in which the crash occurred is now known as Lauda Links.
Rush will follow the volatile 1976 F1 season and two of the primary characters that defined the year: Lauda and James Hunt. to see bystander video of the stuntmen in action.
High gas prices burning through your checking account faster than a through premium? At least one analyst the pressure might drop soon. , senior analyst for thinks fuel prices have peaked for the year, with the national average sitting at $3.92 for the last week. According to USA Today, DeHaan expects average national gas price to fall to $3.70 before May.
If you’re the type to send Thank You cards, keep in mind all those owners who have sacrificed driving pleasure for greater fuel economy, and the leadership in who have kept things kind of quiet over there for a few days. Depending on your political bent, you can also thank either the and/or for fostering a slow economy. All those elements contributed to lower oil prices and, in turn, lower gas prices. In contrast, the Federal Energy Administration is still predicting a $4.01/gal peak next month.
Either way, don’t rush out and buy that gas-guzzling supercar just yet. Any number of factors could send fuel prices flaring. Meanwhile, enjoy your cheap, $3.92/gal regular while it lasts.
Early reports are filtering in this morning of an explosion at a General Motors Technical Center battery research lab in Warren, Michigan. According to The Detroit News, a battery exploded injuring one or two people.
According to the report, Warren’s fire department received a call at around 9AM this morning, only to find two injured and “a small fire” stemming from the explosion. A General Motors spokesman apparently put the number of injured parties at one, so there is still some confusion about the number of people affected by the incident at this point.
A HAZMAT team was dispatched to the Tech Center and the building has been evacuated, with all employees accounted for. Detroit NBC affiliate WXYZ is on the scene with a live feed that you can . The extent of the injuries and damage, along with what caused the explosion, are not immediately clear, but we will have more details as they become available, so stay tuned.
*UPDATE:Video added . ** UPDATE: In a statement added after the jump, GM now says the explosion was caused by “extreme testing of a prototype battery” that is “unrelated to the or any other production vehicle.”
According to a report from Car and Driver, documents submitted to the California Air Resources Board and to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration both point to a new arrival in the line: a turbocharged hatch called the 500T Sport. The NHTSA document was a key for decoding a car’s VIN, the “500T Sport” moniker appearing in the Series classification. The CARB paperwork approved California’s certification of a boosted 1.4-liter engine for an unnamed product, along with the the Dodge Dart and , which use the same engine.
There is currently a 59-horsepower spread between the 500 and the 500 Abarth, as well as a $6,500 difference in MSRP, which is a chasm offering plenty of space to mine a middle model.
C/D figures the 500T Sport will put out something around 130 hp and debut sometime over the next year, and a fan site, Fiat500USA, has found the car we’ll get.
History has a way of aggrandizing the fallen, but few drivers have been as dearly missed as Gilles Villeneuve. Renowned for his ability to wrestle blistering lap times – often sideways – out of some of the most difficult cars to handle, the French Canadian driver remains a fan favorite to legions of Formula 1 fans and tifosi the world over.
Tragically, Gilles died in a crash while qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix in 1982. With the thirtieth anniversary of his death coming up, is planning a tribute event at its Fiorano test track in Maranello that will reunite the Villeneuve name with the Scuderia to which he gave his life.
On May 8, Gilles’ son Jacques Villeneuve will pilot the Ferrari 312 T4 that his father drove to three victories and four second-place finishes to help Ferrari secure the constructors’ title and his teammate Jody Scheckter the drivers’ title.
It may prove the first time in Jacques’ career that he’ll drive a Ferrari F1 car. A former world champion himself, Jacques had reportedly been offered a seat at Ferrari after winning the title in 1997, but turned it down to pursue the opportunity to build up the British American Racing team that would later be taken over by , win the title as Brawn GP and rebrand itself under the banner under which it races today.
It’s not much of a stretch to imagine plonking down the six figures it would take to drive home in a , assuming your pocketbook were so well endowed. After all, when it comes to boulevard cruisers, it doesn’t get much more luxurious. That’s what most might do, but Roland Hall is not most people. Instead of simply dropping by the local Rolls dealer and ordering his DHC, he commissioned Pininfarina to build him something more unique.
The result was the the Hyperion – a one-off convertible penned by no less regarded a talent than Jason Castriota. The car was rumored to be up for sale off and on, but has now popped up at a showroom in Abu Dhabi where it is for sale at an undisclosed price. Previous reports put its MSRP at around $6 million, and if anyone has that kind of scrap to blow on the ultimate status symbol, they probably live nearby.
has a knack for creating some of the concept world’s most lustworthy creations, and they are made all the more desirable by their functionality. This year, the star of the Easter Jeep Safari was the company’s Mighty FC Concept. Penned as tribute to the old Willys Forward Controls of yore, the Mighty FC boasts high-dollar portal axles and a cab-forward design.
Motor Trend caught up with the big blue machine as it lumbered around the desert this year with Mark Allen, head of Jeep design, behind the wheel. Allen took the time to explain some of the challenges behind bringing the Mighty FC to life as well as the origins of some of the components on board.
As it turns out, Jeep used a snowboard bag for the seat inserts and arm rests. With a cab lifted straight from a standard Wrangler, engineers had to come up with some steering trickery to make sure the vehicle drove like a standard SUV instead of a school bus.
MT even found an old-school Forward Control to bomb around in for a spell as well. Very cool. to see the video for yourself.
The is due for a major update, having last been redesigned for the 2006 model year. Yes, it’s gotten some tweaks since that time, but the compact crossover market is an ever-evolving place filled with tough competition from around the globe, and needs the RAV4 to maintain its hard-fought market share.
According to our spy photographers, the RAV4’s next redesign is right around the corner. Judging from these photos, it would appear that Toyota is keeping its little ‘ute to the confines of pavement – a wise decision, as vehicles of this ilk never venture very far off the beaten path. That said, the sharply angular lines of this new model’s head and taillamps bring its styling more in line with the latest Camry and Avalon sedans while still putting its occupants over the heads of shorter machinery.
Rumors suggest that the 2013 RAV4 will enter production in the fall of ‘12, powered by a range of four-cylinder engines and possibly a hybrid. We’d be a bit surprised if the automaker’s 3.5-liter V6 weren’t available, as well. See the spy shots for yourself in our high-res image gallery above.
Formula One has many homes: the Formula One Management company that controls its commercial aspects is based in London, the FIA that governs its sporting aspects is based in Paris, and you’d certainly have a point to make if you asserted its spiritual home was in Monaco. But none of these places are where its stakeholders are looking to float its Initial Public Offering. No, that place is Singapore.
CVC Capital Partners – the investment group that owns the majority of Formula One – has been toying with floating an IPO on the Singapore Stock Exchange for several weeks now, and according to reports is gearing up for the move. Both Bloomberg and Reuters are expecting that the stock issue would constitute about 20% of the business, likely to come mostly out of CVC’s end which amounts to 63.4 percent, and not that of its manager Bernie Ecclestone whose stake comes to 5.3%. (Lehman Brothers holds another 15.3%, Ecclestone’s ex-wife Slavica owns 8.5%, with the remaining 7.5% divided up between various minority investors.)
With the overall value of the business estimated at $10 billion, the 20% tipped to be offered on the open market is expected to bring in $2 billion in capital for its sellers, however CVC could opt for the minimum 15% to raise $15 billion. So… why Singapore? The vital Asian business capital has apparently been chosen to help F1 drum up support in the Far East, a region where grands prix are held in Malaysia, China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore itself.
By the early 1950s, Alfa Romeo had grown tired of dominating (and spending huge sums of money on) grand prix racing, and shut down its program. Along with it, a program to develop a small-displacement two-liter V8 was aborted. But Alfa couldn’t keep away from racing altogether for very long, and by the early 60s the factory noticed that its customers were competing in endurance sportscar races and set about fielding its own works effort.
Development of the high-revving 2.0-liter V8 picked up again, finding its way into a variety of prototypes and GTs, but this was arguably the most alluring. Shortly after its debut in 1967, the T33/2 scored an impressive 1-2-3 class finish (and 5-6-7 overall) in the 24 Hours of Daytona, giving the car its nickname. And while Alfa and its racing partner Autodelta kept notoriously sketchy historical records on their racing cars, chassis 75033.029 is believed to be one of the most successful.
The extensive history of the vehicle you see here – regarded as one of the most desirable of racing Alfas of an era that stretches from the 1960s through the 70s – includes victory at the 500 km of Imola in 1968, punctuating a series of races campaigned by the works Alfa/Autodelta team and various privateers that followed. You can read more about the Tipo 33/2 Daytona in the text after the jump ahead of its consignment to the RM Auctions event in Monaco next month, or you could let the pictures in the high-res image gallery speak for themselves.
There are lots of automotive videogames, from realistic racing games like Gran Turismo and Forza to fun driving games like Mario Kart to social games like Disc Drivin’ for iOS. But there is only one Grand Theft Auto.
No other video game brings the dark humor inherent in mayhem like the GTA franchise, and it looks like a new installment will be here in a scant six months. According to a report on Joystiq, a Linked In resume for an animator and employee at game developer Rockstar was spotted listing Grand Theft Auto V with a shipping date of October 2012. Since then, the resume has been removed from the site and Rockstar is not commenting, according to the report.
Of course, the video game industry is as notorious for slipping shipping dates as it is for rumor mongering, so while you might want to place your preorder on Amazon, don’t be surprised if you’re still waiting come Christmas. Joystiq is skeptical about an October shipping date, pointing out that Rockstar’s parent company, Take-Two Interactive, has already announced BioShock Infinite for an October launch, which would put the two titles in unnecessary competition.
Until then, we still have the , which you can see if you scroll down.
While we’ve already reported that BMW’s from is , this footage all but confirms it. Britain’s Car magazine has over a minute of video showing a rather sporting three-door testing at the Nürburgring.
Of course, this latest bit of news only for us North American lovers. We’ve yet to see a 1 Series hatchback of any sort for sale on our shores, and whether the new F20 hatch is headed our way is entirely up in the air. Outside of the bizarre , BMW has been reticent to sell a hatch here since the E36 318ti, which has been out of production for a solid decade now.
While we loved the , now that its one-and-done model year is over, it would be dandy if BMW would throw us a bone and ship the M135i here. With rumors of all-wheel-drive availability and 300-plus horsepower coming from BMW’s TwinTurbo, three-liter inline-six, it looks to be one heck of a car.
These days, most models are about as likely to get your pulse up as the latest hardware from Frigidaire. But it wasn’t always so. There was a time when Toyota counted itself among the world’s sports car manufacturers with vehicles like the Supra, Celica All Trac and MR-2. Those two-doors helped forge generations of enthusiasts before the company shuttered its go-fast ambitions, a door that is only now starting to open again thanks to the new GT 86/ codeveloped with . Now, according to Automotive News, the company has unveiled a new development and manufacturing framework designed to aid in producing more exciting vehicles. According to CEO Akio Toyoda, the revamped system will allow the company to design multiple models at the same time to reduce costs.
It will also cut the number of executives tied to the design review process to streamline decisionmaking. The company says that with too many people involved, vehicles have been built by “eliminating negatives” instead of focusing on their strengths. Added cooperation between the automaker’s planning and design units may foster more innovative styling, including models with lower centers of gravity and better aerodynamics. Think .
The Toyota New Global Architecture will first be applied to front-wheel drive models.
Do you miss the opportunity to buy a Volkswagen Scirocco? You’re not alone. Of all the Group products offered overseas but not in these United States, the Scirocco tops our list. (Though we understand there are plenty out there pining for a Transporter van.) Discontinued in its previous iteration in 1988, the Scirocco made its triumphant return to the market in 2008, but with the global financial crisis setting in around the sometime, Volkswagen wasn’t up to spreading itself thin enough to bring it here.
That could change with the next-generation model, however. According to Automotive News, Volkswagen is working on a next-generation Scirocco, and this one could very well make it Stateside. This according to Volkswagen of America CEO Jonathan Browning, who admitted as much while speaking with journalists at the this past week. While it’s unclear if he’s referring to a facelifted version of the current model (expected to launch next year) or an all-new model, the prospect of finding a Scirocco – any Scirocco – in U.S. showrooms is tantalizing.
While he was at it, Browning reportedly also suggested the – which was shown in “concept” form in New York – could be sold here in diesel form, which strikes us as tantalizing (if expensive). Further, Browning reiterated that the company is looking into a mid-size crossover to slot in between the and the , something we’ve heard before and fully expect to happen.
The second coming is finally here, and it goes by the title of the 2013 Porsche Cayenne GTS. Porsche has put 20 more horses under the hood to bring matters to 420 horsepower, and to get more out of them it has lowered the chassis a further 20 mm and installed a lower final-drive ratio. The one unkind note: whereas the first GTS was available with a six-speed manual, this one is fitted exclusively with Porsche’s eight-speed Tiptronic S paddleshift gearbox.
In the search for improved fuel economy, stop-start is standard, and when things get underway, the extra go-fast means a 5.4-second roar from zero to 60 mph. Along with unique side skirts and wheel arches, features only on the GTS include new Peridot Metallic (as shown) and Carmine Red paint, unique 20-inch wheels and eight-way GTS seats inside. There’s an available Sport Chrono package to keep tabs on your 162-mph SUV, but that won’t be included in the $82,050 base price (which includes $975 in delivery fees).
The GTS will be revealed at the later this month, but you can find out more in the video and press release and get few choice glimpses in the gallery of high-res photos.
What is thought to be a band of thieves broke into eight cars at a park-and-ride lot in Salem, New Hampshire. Then it is thought they went next door to Cars, Inc. and stole a , a and a 2003 . The and getaway drivers reportedly went on about their business quietly. The driver, on the other hand, decided to flaunt what he got: at 2 a.m. he drove eight miles over the border to Methuen, Massachusetts, pulled into the local police station and did donuts in their front lot.
But wait, there’s more: he took off, entertained himself for two hours, then went back to the police station at 4 a.m. and whipped up a few more hot, rubbery circles. A police cruiser was on scene and gave chase, but the 911 pilot got away.
A little later in Lawrence, MA, two miles from Methuen, someone called police to report a rolled 911. The stolen wheels were recovered, the thief in question was not. We have no doubt the Methuen PD – once the screaming stops – is preparing to put that through a forensic and DNA investigation that would make CSI proud. for the news report from WHDH.
More than two years ago, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began investigating the 1997-2008 Econoline/E-350 and E-450 over faulty HVAC temperature controls. According to The Detroit News, stories of melting switches leading to smoke and hot buttons on the dash were recounted in 1,036 complaints received by NHTSA. Two years ago, the government agency upgraded the case to an engineering analysis, but its testing has led to the case being closed without determining that a recall is required.
Two fires due to the short circuits were also reported, but NHTSA found that the layout of the switch tended to prevent a fire when it went bad. Although there won’t be a recall, Ford has redesigned the switch and is informing dealers and customers about replacing the switch and electrical connector.
The vans that were under the agency’s microscope overlap with the 1999-2008 models in question in a . Still, for perspective, the E-Series has been America’s best-selling full-sized van for decades, and according to Ford, those from 1997-2008 have done more than a billion miles.
Stand at the business end of a doing a smokey burnout and you’re bound to get a lung or two full of all kinds of noxious chemicals. But if a showboating isn’t at your disposal, soon you’ll be able to light up a Lamborghini cigarette.
The Raging Bull smokes are reportedly being launched by South Korean tobacco giant KT&G on April 18 in collaboration with (read: under license from) Tonino Lamborghini. The brand already offers an of high-end cigarette lighters (like the one pictured at right), cases, ashtrays and other smoking paraphernalia.
Tonino Lamborghini, we should note, is a merchandising brand that – while founded by supercar and tractor guru Ferruccio Lamborghini’s son and bearing a similar logo – has nothing more to do these days with the automaker than that. So if you find the correlation a bit too commercial, you’ll just have to look to the models standing next to the company’s supercars at any given auto show, the ones stepping out of them onto the curbs outside any city’s hottest clubs or the temperature of their engine’s cam covers for your official dose of Lamborghini-grade smokin’ hotness.
Well, now we’ve seen everything. Meet Hangover Heaven: A bus service offering hydrating, vitamin-enriched IVs that will apparently take you from “I feel like death” to “Let’s do some shots!” in a scant 45 minutes. Where can you find this rolling cure-all? Las Vegas, of course.
Assuming you make it back to your hotel after a long night of partying hard on the Vegas strip, the Hangover Heaven bus will gladly pick you up from a number of big name casino/hotels, including the Hard Rock, Paris, Bellagio and Cosmopolitan. Too floored to make the trek down the elevator? Hangover Heaven will send someone up to your room, IV in hand, with services starting at $150. That’s certainly more expensive than the usual Vitamin Water and Extra Strength Tylenol regimen, but if it’ll take you from zero to hero in under an hour, hardcore party animals could certainly make a case for the added cost.
According to Hangover Heaven, all of the medication and equipment is FDA-approved. Of course, drinking in moderation is always recommended, with the company stating, “Our buses can work magic, but they cannot bring you back from the dead.” for a high-production-value video testimonial.
