Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the staging lane, a funny car shows it’s unpredictable nature and voracious appetite for human flesh. Like a mechanical great white shark, this four wheeled killing machine swallows its victims whole…
Actually, a broken stud got sucked into the supercharger, which cracked the supercharger housing and lifted the injector. This opened the throttle, causing the carnage you see here. No one was hurt, although the team is taking donations for a new supercharger housing. And accepting applications for new crew members.
Just about every automotive journalist out there has beaten the upcoming Chevrolet Volt to death in regards to current information. We’ve talked about its claimed 40 miles on a single charge, its 220 volt charging capacity, the lithium-ion batteries etc. The car hasn’t even been released yet and it already feels like it’s and old model that’s in need of a redesign, and that my friends is a very bad thing. Conceptually the Volt is a great idea, but the problem is that technology has yet to find a way to make the Volt inexpensive and efficient over the long term.
Although I’m reasonably confident that none of our readers actually drive a Toyota Avalon, I’ll give you a heads up on this recall anyway. Maybe your parents drive one, or more likely your grandparents. In any case, Left Lane News tells us that Toyota is recalling some 373,000 Avalon models, from model year 2000 to model year 2004, to replace a defective steering column bracket. Due to a potentially bad casting, this bracket can crack, making the steering wheel difficult to unlock when the car is stationary.
When reason, logic and common sense take a dump bad things usually happen. Things, that unfortunately for the person in question, end up costing big money. Take these two gentleman for example. One is Matt Farah, the host of The Smoking Tire, and the other is Rob Ferretti, the creator of the Super Speeders series of DVD’s. I know both of these gentlemen personally and unfortunately for them, so do most of the police officers in various States around the country. Both love cars, both drive cars, but after this contest I’m not sure for how much longer. The basic idea was to take out two super cars and see who could get nicked first by the police, Rob or Matt. I really just hope these guys have some super high-powered attorneys because from the looks of this video, they’re going to need it.
For me a good vacation consists of a great car, the open road and no cops. Sure beaches and cities are nice but there is nothing that can quite compare with the feeling of chewing up miles and miles of open tarmac at speed. In the last four years I’ve amassed well over 50,000 miles just road tripping across the United States and truth be told, if the opportunity presented itself, I’d leave again tomorrow. That’s how much I enjoy driving. Before I head out on any trip though there are three things that I must have with me. First is a nice big cup-holder as I need my coffee by my side, second is my trusty Valentine 1 radar detector and third is a compilation of the right tunes to play in the stereo as I’m cruising. I like everything from Elvis to bluegrass and techno to classic rock, so if you play it, then I’ll most likely dig it.
Just when you were ready to write off Audi for building boring but luxurious cars comes word that Audi will import the RS5 into the United States. The V8 powered, 450 horsepower, two-door hoonmobile will grace these shores sometime in 2012 if Kicking Tires is correct.
U.S. buyers can currently opt for the V8 powered, 354 horsepower Audi S5, which will get you to sixty in 4.9 seconds from a standing start. The ride is more “GT car” than sports car, so S5 buyers looking for a track-day toy may want to wait until the stiffer, faster RS5 hits Audi showrooms. Audi isn’t giving out details on pricing, but an 2011 S5 coupe currently stickers at $55,175. Expect the RS to fetch a substantial premium over the S, which will put it in the same league as Cadillac’s higher horsepower CTS-V Coupe. The CTS-V Coupe, which packs a supercharged 565 horsepower V8, has a sticker price starting at $62,165.
The Automotive X-Prize, a $10 million competition to build the next generation of fuel efficient or battery powered vehicles, has come down to the final stages. Performance testing is complete, and only the validation stage remains; of 136 vehicles and 111 teams that started the competition, only 9 vehicles and 7 teams remain. Here’s a breakdown, by class, on who’s left:
If you’re being charged $49.95 plus tax, as is the case in this ad from Porsche Center of San Antonio, the answer is a resounding “no”. Despite this ad’s claims, nitrogen does nothing to improve ride quality or fuel economy, and won’t prevent false tire warning lights any better than plain old air will. The key to getting a smooth ride, maximum fuel economy and no tire pressure warning lights is simple: regularly check your tire pressure when your tires are cold.
The 2011 Shelby GT500 Mustang is no slouch when it comes to power output as it produces 550 horsepower and 510 ft.-lb. of tq. It has an aggressive look and feel but with its solid live axle out back, its handling performance is somewhat limited. Then there is the new Firebreather Camaro. A car that produces 600 hp, has fully independent suspension and was created as the hero car for the upcoming movie JIN, a movie for which I could find absolutely no information on. Matt Farah of The Smoking Tire recently took the 2011 Shelby GT500 Mustang convertible on a 5000 mile road test during this years Bullrun Rally so he’s got a pretty good idea of what he’s talking about when it comes to this car. He was also able to put Classic Design Concepts Firebreather Camaro through its paces as well. Click play to find out what he thinks about both.
Based on popular demand and serious customer interest, Porsche will build the eco-friendly 918 Spyder. The concept car received near universal praise when it debuted at this year’s Geneva Auto Show, even if some of Porsche’s performance claims seem a bit optimistic. Porsche claims that the 918 Spyder will go from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour (62 mph) in just 3.2 second and turn laps on the Nürburgring in 7:30, a hair slower than the Porsche Carrera GT (7:28.71). Porsche also claims combined fuel economy of 78 mpg in EU cycle testing, but stopped short of saying the 918 Spyder would save the South American rainforests and prevent the extinction of the spotted owl.
