The crew at Fast Lane Daily have apparently scored the first official shot of the Ferrari 599 GTO ahead of its launch later this year, and while we’re still suitably skeptical about the pic, we’ve been assured by the show’s producers that this is the real deal.
So what’s have in store? If are to be believed, the GTO will be a road-focused version of the 599XX, packing a 700+ horsepower Enzo-derived 6.0-liter V12 capable of revving to 9,000 rpm. Shifts will be delivered in a mind-boggling 60 milliseconds, resulting in a 0-60 time of 3.2 seconds as it climbs to a claimed 217 mph top speed. Only 500 units will be produced – and likely made available to select Ferrari owners – each carrying a price tag somewhere north of $400,000. for Derek D’s insufferable commentary and photoshopped shenanigans, and expect the 599 GTO to be revealed in full in the coming months.
There are plenty of top-notch competitors in the American Le Mans Series looking to knock you out of contention, especially in this year’s hyper-competitive GT2 class. So it’s important not to hurt your own chances with bonehead mistakes. The Pratt & Miller Corvette Racing team knows this all too well after its own #4 C6.R GT2 collided with the #3 car early in this weekend’s season opening endurance race.
We’re not talking about a poorly timed maneuver during the heat of the race, folks. Instead, Jan Magnussen in the #3 car began leaving his pit box after an unscheduled stop to repair a power steering hose when Emmanuel Collard in the #4 Vette came out of nowhere and slammed into his side. The #4 car immediately went behind pit wall for repairs, but since the #3 car was already leaving the pits, it was forced to limp around an entire lap with a flat front tire before returning for repairs. The collision effectively took both Corvettes out of contention for a podium spot, though they did manage to finish the race in 8th and 9th place.
The mistake by Corvette Racing is all the more difficult to wrap our heads around considering how dominant this team has been in ALMS racing. That, however, was before the team switched classes from GT1 to GT2 in mid-2009. The going has been rough since then, including a particularly violent crash at Laguna Seca in last season’s final race. Nevertheless, when they aren’t bouncing their cars off walls (or each other), the Corvettes remain contenders to watch.
to view the video of this weekend’s incident for yourself.
With all of the lawsuits flying, at least knows its commercials are being watched. First, it was a problem with fellow Korean automaker using a ; now, Drive-In Music Company, Incorporated has tossed lawsuits at Kia, CBS, NFL Enterprises and creative agency David & Goliath, among others. At issue is the head-bobbingly catchy tune used in the , which debuted during the Super Bowl.
Drive-In Music agrees that the song is catchy, and contends that this is due to the fact that UK artist The Heavy’s sampled Drive-In’s artist Dyke and the Blazers. How Kia, CBS, D&G and everyone else becomes a party to this case of fair-use fuzziness is quite a head-scratcher, other than the obvious money grab, of course. There’s a marked similarity between The Heavy’s “” and Dyke and the Blazers’ “,” and it’s not a stretch to imagine that the original song was the source of the riff. Some producers have record collections that run incomparably deep with some of the most obscure cuts; it’s the way the became so ubiquitous, for example.
Sampling has always been a hot potato, and while Drive-In may have cast an excessively wide net in this case, you can’t blame the company for looking out for its interests. Still, it’s certain that D&G did its best to clear all of the music and characters featured in the ad, which portrays characters like Muno from Yo Gabba Gabba, an overgrown sock monkey and toy robot reveling in grown-up fun. When clearing The Heavy’s work with its label, the fact that the song had been released on the 2009 album “The House That Dirt Built” implies that label Counter Records had settled any samples contained therein. The fact that The Heavy’s song was used by Kia in a commercial aired during the Super Bowl shouldn’t make them targets. This issue appears to really be between Drive-In Music and Counter Records, though nobody stands to walk away with any money that way, which appears to be the whole point of tossing this cluster bomb in the first place. Videos posted for your review.
Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Valentino Balboni on mountain roads – Click above to watch the video
Talk about a perfect way to spend an afternoon. The boys over at Motor Trend got their hands on ’s hottest two-wheel-drive creation, the , but instead of taking it to the track or recording performance data, they decided to show what this car does best – attack winding roads with brute force and staggering beauty. We’d be lying if we said we weren’t just a wee bit jealous.
We highly suggest you take three minutes out of your day to watch this example of Italian supercar hotness storming through the mountains of California. It’s a treat for both the ears and eyes, and you can experience it for yourself by .
What happens when an unstoppable force encounters an immovable object? – Click above to see the video
We recently received the email below from a friend and felt like we had to share. We really think you’ll like this one.
How many times have you wondered how strong those cement barriers are, that you see in front of military base entrances? (Are all barriers created equal?)
This was sent by someone who works for the Army Corp of Engineers:
From time to time someone asks me what the concrete barriers are in front of controlled and secure buildings. When I tell them that the barriers will stop traffic, even trucks, from approaching the secured building I usually get a look of disbelief.
Is this a highway or the set of a new Bruce Willis flick? What appears to be a cell phone-wielding cameraman has captured some timely highway footage of a truck driver hauling more than just a few dozen tons of potentially hazardous liquid. We have no idea how a vehicle, apparently a Renault Clio, could possibly find itself in such a precarious and perpendicular position, but we’re even more puzzled as to how the truck driver could possibly pass other vehicles in traffic without noticing a 3,000 pound vehicle on its nose.
Assuming this is real and not some sort of staged stunt, we’re sure hope the driver of the Clio escaped this unfortunate incident unharmed, because otherwise we would feel really guilty about the fact that we laughed at the fact that the brake lights were flashing on and off. Like that was going to do anything. Check out the video for yourself by . The video footage is admittedly less than great, but we feel the bizarre nature of the subject matter is worth a look.
Tanner Faust tears up Mullholland Drive in his Scion tC – click above to
Look for the tire tracks. If you’ve ever been around drift cars, you know that with all that gumption, these beasts tend to break the tires loose. And when they cut loose, they leave synchronized patches of molten rubber in their wake. In the case of , we’re talking about 600 horsepower and an equally crazy amount of torque. Probably to the wheels. Meaning that Tanner’s car doesn’t just burn rubber, the little Scion incinerates it.
Why are we harping on this point? Why are we encouraging you to watch the video looking for tire tracks? That’s a tough question to answer without giving away the video, so we’ll just say that despite being fully within the city limits of big, bad, mega-metropolis Los Angeles, Mulholland Drive is a pretty pristine place. Er, it was before sunk his smoky, rubber claws into it. to watch how great Top Gear USA could have been and read the press release.
[Source: ]
drifts Mulholland Drive in his 600-horsepower Scion tC
2010 Dodge Viper ACR-X on the dyno – Click above to watch the video
There’s something about glowing hot metal that gets our hearts racing here at Autoblog. Whether it’s disc brakes on a racing prototype during an endurance night race or an exhaust manifold at redline during dyno testing, there’s something about metal resisting the forces of incredible heat that appeals to the gearhead in us. That’s why we took particular interest in this video of the new that shows Dodge’s engineers going through final testing of its 8.4-liter V10.
Because it’s built for the track and not the street, the ACR-X gets a few tweaks compared to the stock Viper V10. Gone are the catalytic converters and in go forged pistons, a modified calibration and long tube headers good for 640 horsepower and 605 lb-ft torque. Those headers not only look fantastic when the engine is off, they glow bright orange when the V10 is strapped to the engine dyno and revved to redline for sustained periods. You can see both the Viper ACR-X in action and the dyno tests in the video .
The all-new Touareg lightens up and flies right with new powertrains, more amenities and a features list that could finally endear it to U.S. buyers.
We’ll never understand people’s penchant for posting their illegal endeavors on YouTube, and one GT-R owner is learning the hard way that publicizing your crash isn’t the best way to make an insurance claim.
We got the scoop and now we’ve got the details. Lexus is readying a limited edition LFA that’s tuned for the track and inspired by the supercar’s Nürburgring experiences.
Also of interest:
cannibalizing sales of the Corvette?
investigation of runaway Prius begins to answer questions
Insurance Fraud GT-R? – Click above to watch the video
Why is it that people engaged in illegal activities feel compelled to record their indiscretions? It’s just a really, really bad idea. And a bad idea becomes an act of outright stupidity when said video is published on YouTube, where any random investigator can easily find evidence that can be used against the guilty party. This just makes sense, right? Obviously not for everyone.
According to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Jay Chen, the 21 year-old owner of a wrecked , apparently now knows this lesson all too late, as the accused street racer allegedly crashed his Ivory Godzilla on a Glendora mountain road in California. The SGVT reports that Chen and his sister Tracey gave insurance investigators conflicting testimony after the March, 2009 accident, sending up red flags. Chen later called the insurance company and informed them that he would pay for the damages himself, only to claim another accident three months later on 60 Freeway in Riverside, CA.
Unfortunately for Chen, during the paperwork processing following that ’second’ accident, the body shop informed Chen’s insurance company that it had been holding on to the mangled GT-R since March. Investigators then searched YouTube for any evidence of the incident, and apparently they believe that they’ve found it – the insurer alleges that incident shows damage consistent with that of Chen’s GT-R after a mountain run with a Mitsubishi Evolution IX MR goes awry. The actual crash doesn’t look all that bad, but the apparent $76,000 repair bill shows that near-supercars can cost a boatload of money to fix.
Regardless of the severity of the accident, as a result of the investigation, Chen has officially been charged with six felony counts of insurance fraud, and his sister has been charged with one count. If you are in your late teens or early 20s and you’re wondering why you’re paying over $300 per month to insure your battered Honda Civic, to see why.
Homemade flying hovercraft – Click above to watch video
Rudy Heeman, an inventor in New Zealand, has created a flying hovercraft. We’ll admit right now that it has little nothing to do with cars, but it is ridiculously cool. Heeman wants to make and sell them for only $13,000. Maybe it’s time for us to just sell the car and move someplace with waterways for roads. to check it out. Hat tip to Duy!
Ford Figo TV commercial for the Indian market – Click above to watch videos
Ford aims to take India by storm with its new Figo hatchback, designed to be the leader in its class from the outset. As you might imagine, the first television ads pushing the new ride frame the car as being perfect for Indian drivers. Mehendi ink on the dashboard? No worries! Super-cold A/C? Check. Plus, there’s room for your your lucky elephant – small or large. to check out two of the new Indian spots for the Ford Figo.
Gallery:
[Source: YouTube]
: Indian-market Ford Figo ads take on local flavor
American ingenuity FTW! 12″ Pypes stacks – Click above to watch the video
Really, there’s not much else to say here, other than that the guys at Pypes Performance Exhaust deserve a Nobel Prize or something. These 12-inch diesel stacks may well be the most gloriously redneck innovations ever devised by mankind. Or the most awesome. Or both. Don’t be a hater – you know you need a big diesel truck now. With these. For America. for the video demo.
As Chevrolet Racing team heads into its first full season of competition in the American Le Mans Series GT2 class, the first full episode of a new General Motors video series chronicling their journey has been posted on YouTube. The 12-part series will follow the team as it gets ready for the nine race series as well as the annual June treck to Le Mans for the 24 Hours.
Episode one begins with a look back at where 2009 left off. On the final corner of the race last October, Jan Magnussen slammed into a retaining wall with a 57 g impact after making contact with one of the Flying Lizards .
As soon as the cars returned to the team’s Wixom, MI shop, including preparing for the all-new 5.5-liter V8. First, though, they had to rebuild the #3 C6.R. Check out the first episode of the series .
Walter Rörhl throwing an Audi Quattro WRC racer up the Col de Turini – Click above to watch video
Can we pause for a moment and give it up for Walter Röhrl? Here’s a racer whose professional career began in 1973, first person to win the World Rally Championship twice, winner of the Pikes Peak race and the title Rally Driver of the Century in Italy and Rally Driver of the Millennium in France, and who simply never gave up the habit of winning or doing fast laps.
Autocar got the man back in the Quattro with which he won the 1984 Rally Monte Carlo – Quattros took the first three positions, in fact – and sent him up the Col de Turini to see if he and the car still had it. to find out, and for a little more context, there’s a video summary of that 1984 rally and a clip of Röhrl discussing and flying up Pikes Peak.
Corvettes don’t float – Click above to watch video
If there are two indisputable truths in life, they are that a man is not a camel and a is not a boat. The gentleman above needs to retrieve the C4 Corvette in the shed behind him. The problem is the pool of water between the Corvette and solid ground. His solution is as comical as it is regrettable… and expensive. It did, however, teach us a new way to use the word “yahoo” as a verb. for the fun.
If you’re into going too fast on two wheels, chances are the name has crossed your radar a time or two. The pilot of Need-for-Speed Duo Vance & Hines spread the word recently from Daytona International Speedway that a new spec series featuring the Harley Davidson will run this year along with select events.
The Vance & Hines XR-1200 Series, as it is officially being called, will kick off at this June in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, coincidentally, very close to Harley Davidson’s headquarters. Hmm. Question: How can one guarantee a Harley clad in Vance & Hines goodies will win races this year? Answer: You guessed it, the above-mentioned series is born. Looking on the bright side, at least the current economic state was taken into account when pricing the race kit.
For a mere $3,500, potential racers will get full exhaust and fuel management systems and race body work that includes a number plate, solo-seat and tail section, as well as the belly-pan valance. But wait, that’s not all. A 17-inch front wheel and matching front fender, steering damper, oil cooler relocation package and race graphics is also on the menu. Now that’s what we call a deal! Of course it will be available to the public as a street legal kit as well. The claim to fame is that anyone with an XR and a dream can get involved without significant investment.
Fact is, some top talent has made its way through the ranks as the result of spec class racing. Add to that, who doesn’t like to watch a good from time to time? It can be fun when the playing field is leveled a bit. Let’s hope the action is strong and the series spreads beyond it’s slated current boundaries (east of the Mississippi only) to give everyone a chance to hear the ever pleasant sounds of a big twin bouncing off the rev limiter at race-track near you.
2011 Dacia Duster – click above to watch the video after the jump
By and large, the Geneva Motor Show isn’t like U.S. auto shows in that grandiose press conferences just don’t exist like they do here. Or, at least, like they usedto here. Most vehicles just show up on the show floor and we snap photos at a fevered pace in an effort to get those pics to you as quickly as possible. The upside for us is that we can rip through posts at a fevered pitch for your enjoyment. The downside is that every once in a while we miss something, and this year we forgot to cover the Dacia Duster, though we did tell you about it in advance. Still, our bad.
is built to be affordable, attractive and capable, with a 30 degree approach and a 36 degree departure for relatively some serious off-roading. The Duster even comes diesel-ready, with a 105 horsepower, 266 pound-feet of torque powerplant that we’d love to try for ourselves. And if an earlier report from The Wall Street Journal is correct, Renault is even pondering to U.S. shores.
Until that happens, we have to make do with a couple of videos showing off just how capable the Duster is. The first spot shows us how the Dacia handles off-road chores and the second seeks to illustrate that it isn’t a dud on dry pavement, either. to watch the two videos for yourself.
Classic Mercury Tracer – Click above to watch the video
“It’s peppy,” the salesman said as an enticement to buy… It’s not that the 323/ Laser-based was a bad car, but the Escort apparently called stronger for our own hard-earned dollar, so we drove home in a brand new 1989 wagon. Ford apparently figured this out with the second-generation Tracer, which was joined with the Escort as part of a comprehensive redesign in the early 1990s.
Must have been a step in the right direction – that car managed to make it onto . A preponderance of Tracers seem to have been painted metallic teal, one of the hottest colors of the time, but even in its second iteration the Tracer was nothing more than someone else’s hardware with a badge/grille job.
Out of all the shelved model names it could choose from, Mercury is apparently going to for an interplanetary version of the new . Since the next-gen Focus appears to be so good, the new Tracer ought to follow suit, but why not take this opportunity to remember a time when power mirrors and a tachometer were “features?” On to the videos, then, .
The Nurburgring is the gold standard for any track not comprised of a banked oval, and it’s a blast to watch dashboard-mounted video of various vehicles taking on the best the Nordschleife has to offer. We typically share with you videos of and , but this time we have something a bit different. Achim Korden and co-pilot Guido Heindl of fame run the ‘Ring in reverse in an old school Mini () equipped with a 1.6-liter Honda drivetrain, and they mean business.
to watch the little Mini battle a rain-soaked Nordschleife while starting at the end and making their way to the beginning. It’s an odd experience and further proof that you don’t need to have big power to have big fun.
