This is, simply, one of the greatest cars I’ve ever seen. It’s gorgeous, it’s fast, it’s powerful, it’s efficient and it’s technologically advanced. This is the Porsche 918 Spyder Concept, which made it’s appearance at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. You may have read about it already, you may be seeing it for the first time, but hopefully we are seeing the future of automobiles. Click to read more, watch the video, and voice your opinion. (more…)
I don’t know how many Hot Wheels cars I had as a kid, but it was a lot. Countless hours were spent sliding them around the house and driving them up walls, and my parents were still finding mini monster trucks in the yard when I was graduating college.
Minivans are boring, they just are. While they are incredibly practical, and achieve their goals with far more ease and speed than any wagon or SUV could dream of, they have the balls of a minnow. Add to that a driving experience of a Tuff Shed in a pool of Jell-O and you have a vehicle that was anything but exciting.
Toyota wants to change that.
For car that’s supposedly coming to an end in production, Pagani sure likes putting out new, special-edition Zondas every 6 months. The Zonda Cinque and Cinque roadster were supposed to be the final edition of the Zonda, closing the book on one of the greatest and most stunning hyper-cars ever built. They were a combination of the Zonda F and Zonda R, with a clutch-less sequential gearchange, intending to be a road-going track car. Right. Because the normal Zonda was just too soft and cuddly for racetracks.
What happens when the tuning world meets the Birkenstock-wearing world of hybrids? I never thought we’d find out, or at least not for another few years (Those modified Prius are just bags of money on fire, useless). Well we may find out sooner, because Honda is now working with Mugen on a CR-Z Type R. In principle it’s a good idea, if they can find a way to make a sporty hybrid, I’m all for it. But here’s what I don’t get: The Mugen CR-Z will have a 2.0 liter gasoline engine that produces 150hp. Honda had to upgrade the electric motor as well, so it gets a boost from the stock CR-Z’s 20hp to a 50hp unit, raising total output to 200hp. It will also have upgraded brakes, suspension, EM and throttle response. Sounds like friendly fire that will hit the Civic SI right in the face.
They say, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” We’ve all heard that line, and if you’re like me, it’s an infuriating thing to hear. It’s always said to you after something horrible happens. Perhaps an earthquake knocked down your garage…onto your new car…with Megan Fox inside.
This week we had a Nissan 370z Convertible to review. What better environment is there for a convertible sports car than a road trip? So we drove it to Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, in Pahrump, NV. We had planned to pit a Ford GT against a Nissan GTR and use a radar gun to see which could reach the highest speed down the back straight.
The radar gun never came.
Had life given us lemons? For a moment we thought our episode was lost. But then a very nice man from Lamborghini of Las Vegas said 7 very exciting words to Matt, “Would you like to drive the Balboni?” No, life had not given us lemons. In this case, life felt bad about the lemons, so it took them and made us lemon sorbet, which it fed to us while giving us a back-rub.
The momentarily-dark day turned into one of the best yet. The key players? A Lamborghini LP-560-2 Balboni Edition, a 1000hp Ford GT TT by Heffner Performance and a VF Engineering-Supercharged Audi R8. Check back Tuesday to see the incredible footage, and find out who was the fastest. For now, enjoy the behind-the-scenes pictures.
The R8. I haven’t known too many cars that induce drooling and heart palpitations, from so many people, as this car. It’s not just the gear-heads and auto-knowledge ninjas either. I know business women that love them, young kids that have chased them, and retirees that give an informed nod when I mention it. I will skip listing the numerous awards, accolades, press and 849568 posts online-that simply say, “I want one”-we all love it. It is an incredibly brilliant piece of automotive engineering.
Whenever I travel abroad, I am amazed at how many products are copied, badly, and sold on the streets. Fake Rolexes are the common example, but Louis Vitton bags, leather wallets, Ferrari jackets and even women (watch for adam’s apples) are poorly replicated around the world and sold to tourists looking to get luxury at a steal. I have no problem if someone wants to sell you a fake Burberry scarf for $10, because I think the fact an authentic ugly plaid one costs $350 is retarded. It’s not an attractive design, it’s just unique and lets the world know you have a nice bank account.
Who doesn’t like a badass-looking lifted truck? Sure, most of the ones we see are driven by tattooed jackasses that stand at 5 feet 3 inches and like to season their pizza with HGH, but the trucks still turn heads. That 5 year-old part of our brains that endlessly played with Tonka trucks and BIGFOOT models in the mud never completely goes away. So when I saw this truck, less than 50 feet from the swanky Ivy Restaurant of Bevely Hills, I had to cross the street to check it out. At first it looked like a normal 4-door short bed with a good lift kit; black truck, black wheels, yada yada. But something peaking over the roof caught my eye. What is that black, angle-cut cylinder poking up from the bed? Is it a tow hitch? The tip for Kim Kardashian’s lipo machine? No. It is the exhaust tip to end all exhaust tips. Fart cans of the world, this is your god. If you own a Nissan Altima, with an “R” badge and 6″ coffee can muffler, you are no longer leader of the idiots. I have seen plenty of trucks with the semi-style “smokestacks”, and while stupid, at least there was a connection. Semi-TRUCK, pickup-TRUCK. A thin connection, yes, but a connection nonetheless.
A few months ago we told you about Tesla’s ambitious plan to drive a Tesla Roadster from Los Angeles, CA to Detroit, MI(If you missed it, click here). The goal was to address the issue of an electric car’s range, answer those concerns, and put a nail in its coffin for good. The route was a 2700 mile journey through America’s heartland, with 19 stops along the way for interviews, PR, and to re-charge. But the Road Trip wasn’t planned for the middle of summer, along the gorgeous coast of California, where the temperature and climate vary between “partly cloudy and 80 degrees” and ” Heavenly.” No. The trip started in L.A. mid-December, went through the south and ended in Detroit in January, where the average temperature at night is 17.8 degrees. If you live in LA, your frozen double-decaf-nonfat-cuz-I’m-on-a-diet-but-yes-extra-carmel-latte is warmer than that. This trip was going to show people that the Tesla could not only travel great distances, but be used in any condition. As of January 8th, the trip is over, and the results are in.
Welcome into the new 4 door Aston Martin Rapide
