Posted by Peter on
January 31, 2010
The 2010 Edmonton Motor Show Recap
The 2010 Edmonton Motor Show was this past weekend, in case you forgot to look at your calendar. As you would expect, CarEnvy was there in full force. Ok, so it was just me and a few friends, but at least someone went. The show was noticeably smaller than in years past. Almost depressingly so. It was as if the economic contraction of 2008 and 2009 had just sunk in now. No matter, there was still enough new exotic hardware to keep us interested.
The highlights included a pair of Spyker C8s (but no Saab in tow), a Gulf-liveried Ford GT (just like John Mayer’s!), a Bentley Continental Supersports, a Aston Martin DBS Volante, a Ferrari 599, a Ferrari California, and a type 993 Carrera convertible tuned by Ruf.
A gallery of their exquisite detailing is after the jump.
Posted by Peter on
January 30, 2010
Lotus Elise Racing: It Doesn’t Get Any Better
This video is far from new, but watching it again brings no shortage of joy to my cold, Canadian heart. This remains one of the best documented examples of wheel-to-wheel racing proficiency that I’ve ever seen. It is certainly good enough to warrant a quick visit over to eBay Motors. Lo and behold, a British Racing Green Lotus Elise with less than 5000 miles can me mine yours for aboot $30,000. So tempting…
Posted by Peter on
January 29, 2010
Jack Baruth: The Toyota Prius As A Luxury Car
Jack Baruth is as well known for his skill on the race track as his editorials on the internet. I’ve been reading Avoidable Contact for nearly two years now. Since then, Baruth decreed that the Nissan GT-R would be an abysmal sales failure in North America, he chronicled the advent of fake luxury, the joys of the Porsche option catalog, and published the seminal work on the futility of comparing lap times at the Nurburgring. I’ve always looked forward to Jack’s next instalment because he combines history, foresight, and a challenge to conventional wisdom. His brashly upstream style of writing is a refreshing change from the usual groupthink crap that floats around the web and print media.
For his most recent literary exploration, Jack likens the Toyota Prius, as a brand, to the Apple iPod. Both have undeniably had a halo effect on the other products their companies offer. This certainly holds true in light of the new iPad, a product that I want desperately to like but can’t seem to justify with anything resembling logic. Between my iPhone 3G and my 13” aluminum MacBook, I don’t see the gap in my life that Steve Jobs and Jony Ive created yesterday with the introduction of their plus-sized book reader.
Regardless, Jack’s argument is that since hipsters buy Apple products and hipsters buy Toyota Prii, all other computers and hybrid vehicles are second-rate and not “cool”. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Janaki on
January 28, 2010
Breaking: Williams F1 FW32 Spyshot
Autosport has managed to secure the first spy shot of the 2010 Williams F1 car as it broke cover and tested at Silverstone earlier today. For more on the FW32 and how it differs from 2009’s FW31, click the photo to read the Autosport article about it. Note: livery is not yet complete for this car, so this is likely not what the finished design will look like when it takes to the track for Bahrain on March 14th.
Posted by Janaki on
January 28, 2010
F1 News: Ferrari and McLaren Bring the Fight to the Future
Earlier today, Scuderia Ferrari unveiled their 2010 Formula One championship contender, which they’ve named the F10 in firm hopes of channeling some of their illustrious past victory. Will this herald a return to winning ways for the beleaguered team? We know about as much as you do on that score. Follow the jump for more, including a full gallery. Oh, and also, a video of something that isn’t quite the 2010 Mercedes Grand Prix car.
Posted by Peter on
January 27, 2010
One Of 25 Ferrari 166MM Barchettas Found In A Backyard In Arizona
Feast your senses on the sun-baked product of 1950’s Italian racing heritage and the Arizona heat. Left uncovered for most of the last 50 years, this rarity of rarities has been mechanically mended but the body is being left untouched by owner Manny Del Arroz. We dig a guy who loves his classics and wants to drive them, not leave them in hermetically-sealed containers as concours queens.
With a Gioacchino Colombo-designed 2.0L V12, the 166MM featured the same wishbone front suspension and live rear axle as its predecessor, the 125. The Ferrari 166 was used to win the 1948 and 1949 Mille Miglia, the 1949 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the 1949 Targa Florio. The only car to ever compete such a feat in the same year.
So how much Del Arroz pay for this non-running, sun-bleached find? Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Peter on
January 26, 2010
What Does A Honda N360 With Yamaha V-Max Headers Sound Like?
This is what a Yamaha’d kei car takes up for space. Not much. Not that an un-Yamaha’d kei car would take up any more room, but maybe I should just stop making up words and get on with it.
When the diminutive little thing hits the dyno, it fills the room with its presence. You might call it something of a natural public speaker. Toastmasters, Schmoastmasters.
Posted by Janaki on
January 25, 2010
Bugatti Veyron Mouse: That’ll Show NBC
You may have heard about the current Late Night Wars situation going on in the land of our fair neighbours to the South, especially since globally-renowned car fanatic nutball fanboy enthusiast Jay Leno is at the centre of the fray. In any case, now that it’s been confirmed that current Tonight Show host Conan O’Brien is leaving, he’s spent the past week taking out his frustrations in fine comedic form on his show. So far, it’s culminated in a huge uptick in viewership as people tune in to see what vitriol he’ll spew (hilariously, of course) next. Last night, O’Brien introduced a brand new budget-busting character to the cast of the soon-to-no-longer-be-his show: Bugatti Veyron Mouse. Bugatti Veyron Mouse’s theme song? The Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction”—which also commands crazy royalty money that is estimated to be somewhere in the realm of “like, WHOA.”
NBC has yanked the online versions of this clip from Hulu and NBC.com in order to avoid paying additional fees associated with the song being used in internet video clips, but you can still see it on YouTube until and unless they yank it there, too.
Posted by Peter on
January 19, 2010
Tangential Treatise #1: Why The Lexus LFA Needs 50 More Horsepower
The Lexus LFA isn’t getting the respect it deserves. “It costs too much”, they unimaginatively opine. “The shifts are too abrasive”, they continue. Was anyone this harsh on the ultra-expensive hypercars of the early part of the past decade? The Porsche Carrera GT, the Mercedes McLaren SLR, and the Ferrari Enzo have all occupied a similar stratum in motor car society; yet they all received near universal praise, despite their monumental costs. They were also all European offerings. So why isn’t the Lexus LFA, the first Japanese car in decades to even attempt the crown, being mentioned in the company its engineering justly deserves?
Posted by Peter on
January 18, 2010
Mini In A Winter Wonderland
Designed by Sir Alec Issigonis and first produced 51 years ago, the Mini was a revolutionary front-engined front-driver that maximized occupant capacity like no car before it.
Throw some maple syrup on there and you’ve got yourself a Cabane à Sucre.
