One of the best elements of Auto Racing is the occurrence of David beating Goliath, and such was the case last Sunday when 29 year old Jenson Button, considered a washed up has-been driver, finished first in the Australian GP. Considering that his team was assembled just weeks ago, driving a car assembled and tested only a handful of times; he and his partner Ruebens Barrichello managed to make history as the second ever team to finish 1-2 in their first attempt; the first being Mercedes with in the 50’s.
This season marks a dramatic change for F1, as the shape and powerplants are all new this year. Gone are bargeboards, shark fins, and grooved tires. In their place, narrow wings, KERS, and slicks. Also important to note, the victor of the drivers championship will be based on victories instead of points, making this season extremely interesting to view.
Previously dominant teams have shown struggles with this new set of rules as Ferrari was unable to finish, and Mercedes was only able to place Hamilton in fourth after an 18th place qualifying finish.
When Henry Ford built the Model T generations ago, he envisioned a car for the common man; and he would look at the Nano as a continuance of his dream. I am sure that you have heard about the Nano, Tata’s new vehicle which goes on sale in Asia as we speak. This car has little to offer as a performance vehicle, but it truly is the most radical car made in a generation.
Why is it so amazing you ask? No, no huge engines, flashy wheels, or monster TV screens…this car is way more than that. The Nano will be the car that replaces the motorcycle in the developing world, finally allowing families the added comfort and convenience of a car. It will do so with it’s price tag, or lack there of; it will only cost $2,000.oo. What do you get for this money? a mid engine, rear wheel drive 2 cylinder producing 60 horsepower. Mated with a four speed manual, in-dependant suspension all the way around, and four wheel drum brakes. Realistically, it is everything you need, nothing you don’t; and it will be making it’s way to Europe and possibly America.
Keep in mind that the least expensive domestic, the Chevy Aveo, costs over $7500.00; and interestingly enough made by another Asian company, Suzuki. Although the Nano will need to grow a pair of front disk brakes and a set of airbags, it is said that in ‘American’ trim it may still only cost $3500.00; so you could own two Nano’s for the price of one Aveo.
In 2004, you could venture out and buy yourself a wide range of retro vehicles from the any of the big three automakers, including the Tony Soprano 300C, the puke worthy Magnum, the ever popular Crustang, or the Pontiac GTO. Sadly, as the vast majority of American performance car buyers are products of incest, the GTO was quickly pushed aside, for little more than aesthetics.
So, lets make this the first speaking point, as I find the GTO a very attractive GT car that looks something like the accidental love child of a BMW and Chevrolet. The sides bolster, the hood is long and slumping, the front is simple yet angular, and the hunkered stance screams ‘Get the hell out of my way!” So where did it go wrong? Well, it didn’t look enough like the original ’64 and ’67 GTO’s, thus somehow making this one less desirable. But to some point, as a buyer you may not always want cars that look like they are from the 60’s; I mean, what screams mid life crisis more than a retro styled car? For instance, I once worked at MINI Cooper, a car designed by BMW to attract young drivers, but was instead adopted by 50-somethings who were ‘trying to relive their younger years’. I think Pontiac knew this too, as they even made a 2005 GTO in Viagra purple.
So instead of fixating on why it all went wrong, let’s instead focus on all that is right with this car, and there is just so very much going right here. Lets begin with the two power plants offered in the GTO, the LS1 and LS2 v8’s. The LS series is one of the very best ever made in regards of efficient, light, and tremendously powerful units. Developed for the c5 Corvette, the LS has since served in nearly every performance car developed by GM, and continues to offer incredible performance in every application ranging from the CTS-V to the ZR-1 Corvette. In the GTO, expect power figures between 350-400 horsepower, and with a few tweaks you can find production reaching 450 whp. Statistics? 0-60 in 4.6 seconds and a 1320 score of 12.8 seconds at 100+mph; beating out the likes of Ferraris, BMW M3’s, and AMG Mercedes.
But one of the best points of the GTO is that you do not sacrifice comfort for performance, and you will find one of the very best interiors in the GTO in recent years. Which is really quite unusual for an American car, which is usually held together with spit and wood chips. Jump into the GTO and find embroidered seats, leather wrapped steering wheel, well placed and readable gauges and buttons, and a laundry list of options.
Slightly Modded
For this week’s hidden gem, I wanted to select a car that was very present in our community just ten years ago, and has seemingly fallen into the white noise of our attention. Let me put it this way, what if I said to you that I could go out and find a platform delivering 220 horsepower, four wheel drive, loads of options, and great looks…all for less than $5,000? Sounds great don’t it? Throw into the mix a massive community and aftermarket support, and you get a wonderful project vehicle; which is what Hidden Gems is all about.
The 1995-1999, Second Gen Mitsubishi Eclipse was a joint venture with Chrysler, as the two companies paired to also make the Talon, Stealth, and 3000GT [great cars by the way]. All of these cars shared components, engines, and transmissions making some models less desirable than others; at least in terms of performance. My fiance once owned a ‘97 RS model with the 420a engine, and ran strongly the entire course of ownership. But for my money, I would skip the Neon powered RS, and even the GS model for the superior GST and GSX versions, with one of the very best engines around; the 4g63.
The 4g63 is a wonderful engine, which was first developed by Mitsubishi in a DOHC format in 1988 for the Galant VR-4 [think of it as the granddad of the EVO]. Two versions are best known, the ’six’ and ’seven’ bolts, referring to the number of bolts attaching the flywheel to the crankshaft [six from 1st gen, seven from 2nd gen], this is worth knowing as the seven bolt version is less stout, but very much a great start point for any project. Heck, it was good enough to win four World Rally Championships with Tommy Mackinen.
Also consider the fact that if you happen upon a good GST of GSX, you are starting with an already boosted platform unlike any Honda product out there, so instead of building a second hand turbo kit and mostly going insane, you can begin with everything already there. The styling is great, as the 95-99 Eclipse is often refereed as the ‘baby’ Supra; so you might actually get attention from the ladies [sorry fellow, it will be the car getting their glances, not you].
Let me give you a very odd, and not so new Hybrid vehicle. The Cayenne has been around for some time, and as our society moves into the hybrid era, so must high performance SUV’s [one supposes]. So, what does a Hybrid Porsche look like on paper? Well, 385 horsepower and 545 lbs. of torque…not very economical sounding[?] All this power comes from a 3.0 liter Audi v6 and a three phase electric motor working together to achieve mind numbing power. With an eight speed automatic in use, fuel consumption should be much better than…well honestly, it must still be awful. Consider additional weight on an already portly automobile, and a bunch of unnecessary bits inside well, the question begs to be asked, why make a hybrid of a vehicle that is so inherently audacious?
Although we can all dream of driving a Ferrari 599XX through the windy Alps roads, realistically the majority of us will never be able to even get close. Thus, the most relevant additions are those involving real world cars, or the ones that people like us can actually buy and enjoy.
Ford motor company has been doing a very good job of realigning themselves, and developing new cars that actually compete in the global marketplace. One of the cars responsible for this, has been the Ford Ka that has bolstered European and Third World sales for some time. The Ka is a very great, very small compact that offers competent handling, reasonable power, and generally good looks. Here, check out the newest Ka based upon the Fiat 500, and regarded as the next benchmark for micro-class cars.
[You may have seen it in the recent Bond movie, 'Quantum of Solace']
All in all, its a great package; and in the new world of eco-friendliness just such a car would make tremendous sense in the US would it not?
Well, in Ford’s infinite wisdom we instead get something very different, a platform called the Verve [although the name may change]. As we can see here, this vehicle is much more a crossover/new age wagon versus plain jane micro, and I am not sure how I feel about it. On one hand you get added functionality, but at the cost of mpg due to added cost…and I am also on the fence with the design…so help me out! Leave your comment, and vote to see which you prefer!
On Sundays I will try to add a blog devoted to racing happenings, mostly F1, ALMS, Rolex Daytona, and other Sports Car venues. [Sorry, no NASCAR, couldn't care less about what they do in the south...] As we all know [and are suffering through] the economy is in the tank; effecting our sport through the loss of several prominent companies in many of the series that we love. One of those companies was Audi, who decidedto pull out of ALMS in spite of their decade long domination of the category. But this seems to be only half true, as the historic Audi race team will be returning to America, and even better still, in a new car.
Since 1999, Audi has won every Le Mans 24 and has also dominated in almost very race in both American Le Mons including the Petit Le Mons, and the Sebring 12. Most of this success came from a major rule change that pushed out many other manufactures, but also impressive reliability and team management. The R8 was the Audi halo race car for several seasons, and if you include the Bentley Speed 8 as a sister vehicle; won a historic six in a row in France. The R8 was powered by a twin turbocharged 3.6 liter v8 producing over 600 horsepower, and coupled with a six speed electro-pneumatic gearbox making it a very formidable foe.
That all changed in 2006 as a new car and a whole new technology revolutionized endurance racing forever, the R10 TDI. The R10 picked up were the R8 left off, but did so with the use of a diesel power plant that handily dominated traditional petrol LMP1 cars, including privately run R8’s. The R10 uses a 5.5 liter twin turbo, direct injected v12, developing over 700 horsepower yet weighing as much as the R8’s 3.6 liter v8. Also consider that the R10 must be developing well over 1000 lbs. of torque, no one really knows exactly including Audi [oh snap!].
Thus it’s successor, the R15, should make for an even more impressive display of technology. All that is currently known is that this vehicle has a diesel, and has several major aerodynamic changes to improve upon the marks set by the R10. Much of this new development must be the result of Peugeot’s new resolve with their LMP effort, and as a fan I am very thankful for this new rivalry. Enjoy this pic, the only released image of the next generation of Audi domination.
A recent article from CNN has focused upon some serious doubts held by the accountancy group in charge of keeping GM’s books, stating that they will be in dire need for even more money in order to keep from going under. All of this, even after a 13 billion dollar loan already given within the past few weeks. This, coupled with even worse sales translates into a situation were GM could be completely lost within the next calender year. So today’s entry is on three GM vehicles that you could actually live with, as they stand as quality platforms that easily rival foreign entrants.
here is the link… http://money.cnn.com/2009/03/05/news/companies/GM_10K/index.htm
First, the Pontiac G8, a good looking sedan with massive v8 power. Like the forgotten GTO, the G8 is an Australian product reworked for our marketplace, but this one has been reworked and I feel is much more compelling as a true street bruiser. Keep in mind that you get a new GM LS series v8, and for less than $30,000; not bad.
But we are just getting started, and if bargain performance is your game look no further than the new Cobalt SS turbo. The previous SS used a supercharger to boost it’s output to over 230 whp, but this one produces nearly 260 whp! With a magnificent six speed that requires no clutch engagement for up shifts and a full outfit of upgrades, this car seriously competes against WRX’s, Si’s, the lot.
The final entrant is a car that I truly want, especially in hopped up format. The Cadi CTS is just an amazing design, as it’s lines embody both power and grace. Now that we are on the subject of power, the CTS-V is an absolute steroid junky, using the LS7 v8 from the ZR-1 Corvette to develop over 550 horsepower. So, you can get great looks, all the toys, and more horsepower than a Ferrari 430 Scuderia…for a fraction of the cost. Best of all, your friends can come along too!
To begin I want to convey that I am a huge fan of Honda, as I have owned two already, a 1999 Acura 3.2 TL and a 2007 Honda Accord VP. Both have been absolutely wonderful, with solid build quality, reliability, smart ergonomics, and clean designs. That is why one of my first posts will be dedicated to a new Acura offering, the newest gen TL.
As a previous owner of a TL, I was very displeased with the latest model. Keep in mind, on paper they seem absolutely fantastic. You have the choice between a 3.5 [280 hp] or 3.7 [305 hp] liter v6, front or four-wheel drive; all of which using a five speed transmission with tiptronic. Weight is a modest 3500 lbs., so expect good handling and about average fuel consumption.
But this segment has little to do with the numbers, rather it has everything to do with styling. Honda is known for classic designs, like the NSX and S2000; but nothing ever over-the-top; intill now. Let me introduce you to the Acura TL of 2009…Disclaimer, please hide the children!!!…
If you look closely, you can see some very odd items, like the monster front grill, lack of lower air inlets, and a very busy rear end. But after some spotting about, you can see that much of this design came from the most recent Camry. Both have a narrowed front end, both have a lack of inlets, and both share a ‘caved in’ rear end. The Camry comes off well, whereas this Acura looks shameful. Sadly other models are following a similar theme, making nearly all of the Acura line a bunch of terrible looking vehicles.
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