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Online Ferrari 458 Configurator Changes a Man

Monday, January 16th, 2012

by Zack K

The Ferrari 458 Spider configurator has confused me. I clicked the link, and immediately changed it from the dark Rosso mugello to the traditional Rossa Corsa, because if I’m going to buy a Ferrari I want it to be “Ferrari red.” But since this is the internet where you can find a picture that caters to your fantasy about having a threesome with a Halo truck and a furry I decided to click through the other colors, just to see how they looked. I started with the usual blue, black and white but then kept going: Grigio ingrid (like sand), Blue Abu Dhabi, even one resembling British Racing Green-which felt somewhat sacrilegious- looked good enough to drive daily. I questioned my taste, “What the hell is wrong with me? I don’t want a teal car!” (more…)

16.01.2012 News, Video 1 Comment

Ferrari 599 Fire. What Year is it Again?

Monday, December 12th, 2011

 

Last week a Ferrari 599 GTB spontaneously caught on fire. It didn’t quite melt itself (video after jump) like a dead vampire in From Dusk Til Dawn but it did catch on fucking fire. I’m sorry but WTF?  What year is it again? 2011? And cars are still catching on fire? And not just any cars, these are some of the best  and most expensive cars on the planet. A $7,000 Versa doesn’t catch on fire. The “smart” car doesn’t.  Even my  shitty ’95 Miata managed to drive 300 miles spitting oil out its CAS seal without turning me into Kosher rotisserie. So why are Ferraris and Lamborghinis bursting into flames? Make the jump for a buffet videos featuring exotics on fire. Maybe we can find a commonality? (more…)

12.12.2011 News, Photos, Video 3 Comments

5th Gear Wuvvvs the Ferrari Spider (Video Review)

Friday, November 11th, 2011

One thing that often lacks in video reviews or driving videos is driver emotion. Cruise youtube and you’ll see a lot of people talking about cars the way your professor taught you about economics: Factual, direct, maybe some trite joke about cost of beer versus volume to keep everyone awake. Or it’s regular people driving really fast, with the same Terminator face we all wear when we’re trying to not die at the hands of several hundred horsepower.

 

But something is missing. It’s the feeling cars give us. Simply sitting down in my ERA Cobra makes me smile, laugh and make engine sounds. (But if you watch this, you’ll understand I’m not normal).  To be fair, not every car gives your brain a blowjob. I’m not going to laugh like a maniac while driving a new Passat (probably more tears of shame). But I will in a Caterham. That kind of childish emotional display is part of what makes Top Gear UK so great. It’s the difference between watching Steven Hawking and Chris Tucker commenting on Sophia Vergara’s tits.

 

That’s why I love this video of Fifth Gear’s Vicky Henderson reviewing the new 2012 Ferrari 458 Spider. I’ve never seen her have so much fun in a car, and that visible emotion tells me this car must be unbelievable.

 

-Zack K

 

11.11.2011 Editorials, Video 1 Comment

Best Motoring Goes out with a Pricey Bang

Monday, May 16th, 2011

Let’s cut the fluff shall we? Best Motoring is cancelled, and for their last race, their lineup was awesome: Lexus LF-A vs. Porsche GT2 RS vs. Corvette ZR-1 vs. Nissan GTR vs. Ferrari F430 GT3. There’s street cars, super-cars and might-as-well-be-a race-cars. The price is all over the board, as are the cylinders and countries of origin. Each of our favorite countries is represented in a cool, if not the best, way. Thanks Best Motoring, for all your hard *cough* work over the years. You’ve put together some of the coolest and most expensive super-cars in wheel to wheel races.

 

Make the jump to see who won. (more…)

16.05.2011 News, Photos, Video 12 Comments

TST Dream Garage: The Entire ALMS GT2 Grid

Thursday, January 27th, 2011

Text and Photos submitted by TST reader Nick Busato

Porsche 911 GT3 RS, F430 Scuderia, Corvette ZR1 and the M3 GTS are all names that will induce any automotive enthusiast’s mouth to water uncontrollably. Based on already ludicrously quick road cars, these thoroughbreds are seen as the ultimate track day toys. It seems to be an easy formula for any car manufacturer to follow; strip out unneeded bits, toss on some Brembos, coilovers and sticky tires, massage some more power out of the engine and for added bonus points put an “R” in the car’s badging. These are the speed machines that occupy the prised poster space of many car fanatics’ bedroom walls. If these cars are seen as the superior versions to their more limp wristed counterparts then surely an even more race bred car would be that much more illustrious.

Enter the realm of the American Le Mans Series GT2 class where you will find the dreamiest racing versions of road going sports cars. While other series like DTM, Nascar and Grand-Am may have fairly recognizable body shapes the cars actually share very little if any parts with their production counterparts. In contrast, the ALMS GT2 cars are based on their respective production variants and must use the same chassis and primary bodywork. What you are left with is a car with no comprises made in the interest of comfort, they have a single purpose: to go fast.

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27.01.2011 Editorials, News, Photos 7 Comments

Inaugural California Cars and Cockpits Event – Mega Photo Gallery!

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

The Smoking Tire was fortunate enough to be able to attend the first-ever “Cars and Cockpits” event at the Lyon Air Museum this past weekend. It was a great change of pace from the usual Cars and Coffee and Supercar Sunday, because not only were there several million dollars worth of metal in the parking lot, but also the museum opened its doors to us, so we could appreciate some fine vintage aircraft and military vehicles. Some highlights of the show included the famous “triple black” Ferrari Enzo (pictured above), many other Ferrari’s, Lamborghini’s, Aston’s Bentley’s, Nissan GTR’s, BMW’s, Porsches, and crazy tuner cars, including the world’s ugliest vehicle, the Mansory Panamera Turbo. In the gallery, check out the yellow F430 Spider, which isn’t special except that it’s fitted with carbon fiber hand controls so its wheelchair-bound owner can wind out the 4.3L V8 using his right hand. Inside the Lyon Air museum, we were treated to some elegantly restored World War II-era aircraft and vehicles, my favorite of which was the minimally restored and completely functional 1934 Mercedes 6-wheel parade car, formerly owned by Adolf Hitler. Hit the jump for the 80-image mega gallery of the event.

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26.01.2011 News, Photos 3 Comments

P 4/5 Competizione is Really, Really, Ridiculously Good Looking. And Street Legal. (Update! Now With Video)

Thursday, January 13th, 2011

We’ve seen people piss their money away on some really stupid things here at The Smoking Tire, but others come up with some fantastically brilliant ideas to make a small fortune by starting with a large one. Like, for instance, personally re-founding the N.A.R.T. (that’s North American Racing Team, a non-factory Ferrari team from the 1960′s), and building a race car for the 24 Hours of Nurburgring? How about then making the race car look like a miniature copy of the Ferrari P4/5, Jim’s one-off, re-bodied Ferrari Enzo? Pretty crazy, right? It gets better. P 4/5 Competizione, the beautiful, 430 Scuderia based racing car pictured above, is street legal, and has the plates to prove it. More pictures and details (including the license plate photo)  after the jump.

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13.01.2011 News, Photos 6 Comments

Video: Sir Mix-A-Lot’s “Carz” – The Smartest Rap Video Ever.

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

I love Sir Mix-A-Lot. In addition to “Baby Got Back,” Mix had a track on the sountrack to Beavis and Butt-head Do America called “Monsta Mack” that cracks me up every time I hear it. But up until now I had no idea what a huge car enthusiast Mix was, and how he drops actual real car knowledge into his newest music video, “Carz.” Before you laugh and assume he’s talking about big rims, Escalades, and “Ice Cream Paint Jobs,” please take a minute to watch the video. This is, no joke, a fully comprehensive review of awesome sports cars in a rap video. Me and Tom just watched this shit like 3 times and we’re laughing every time.

And Mix, if you read this, can we please hang out? Video after the jump.

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23.11.2010 News, Video 14 Comments

TST Dream Garage: 1995 Ferrari F50

Thursday, October 14th, 2010

“Because there’s no rubber in the suspension, Bang! You turn the wheel and it’s just incredible! I know of no car that turns into a corner like this one.”

A wild haired, thinner, round-sunglassed, and potentially even more exuberant Jeremy Clarkson shouts over the wind noise and howling exhaust note of the car that was primarily responsible for my passion for cars: The Ferrari F50. Clarkson’s quote comes from an old episode of Top Gear where he and co-host Tiff Needell pit Alain Prost’s 1990 Ferrari F1 car against the recently released F50. That single clip did for me what riding a bicycle for the first time did for Lance Armstrong, and the first airplane flight did for Chuck Yaeger. It ignited a dream.

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14.10.2010 News, Photos 11 Comments

Video: Ultimate On-Board Footage Compilation

Wednesday, September 29th, 2010

Sometimes, when we film The Smoking Tire, we drive really, really fast while shooting on-board footage. Here’s a compilation of some of our favorite shots. It doesn’t matter who was driving, as long as it’s not Matt or Tom, which, obviously, it never was. Video after the jump.

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29.09.2010 News, Video 7 Comments

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