December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics, Ferrari, Canada

2009 Ferrari Challenge at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant - Click above for high-res image gallery

We’ve always found the idea of going on safari or a diving expedition rather intriguing. But while we can appreciate those willing to spend their precious vacation time and hard-earned cash to see nature’s most beautiful creatures in their natural habitats, most of us here at Autoblog aren’t exactly the nature-adventure types. We’re car guys. The Ferrari Challenge… now that’s more like it.

Like a lion in the Sahara or a bear in the forest, Ferraris belong on the race track. But the unfortunate reality is most end up sitting in tiled garages adjoining big mansions in prestigious locations. We get to see more than most, but more often than not they’re perched on an auto show stand under floodlights and flash bulbs. So when Ferrari invited us to join them at the legendary Circuit Mont Tremblant for a round of wheel-to-wheel racing, we could hardly resist. Follow the jump for more.

Photos copyright (C)2009 Noah Joseph / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading The Little Nürburgring: Ferraris in their Natural Habitat at Mont Tremblant

The Little Nürburgring: Ferraris in their Natural Habitat at Mont Tremblant originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-07-30 12:50:41. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Coupes, Economy, Hatchbacks, Daimler, SMART, Lifestyle

Last October we advised you not to hold your breath for Daimler’s Car2Go program to come to America. You can breathe again. If you live in Austin, Texas you’ll be able to rent a mild hybrid Smart ForTwo by the minute this fall. Austin was chosen because of its university population and its concern for the environment.

Car2Go makes its fleet available on-demand, with a clear price structure, and you can keep the car as long as you wish. Those in the program access the vehicles by swiping a tag on their driver’s licenses over a card reader on the car. As with the pilot program in Ulm, Germany the service will start in Austin with an initial fleet, expected to consist of around 200 Smarts that will be available to city employees first and then expand to public use at the conclusion of a trial period.

[Source: Canadian Driver]

Daimler’s Car2Go program coming to Austin, Texas this fall originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-04-22 20:14:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Aftermarket, China, Etc., Supercars, Ferrari

GhettEnzo - click above for gallery

Well, the rendering looked great. The end result, not so much. Customizers in China are so hardcore, they always earn an “A” for effort. This time, though, all that work out in the elements with zero protective gear in sight has resulted in a Geely coupe that might cause one to choke back vomit. It’s not like the Geely Beauty Leopard is attractive to begin with, looking like a Saturn Coupe with Supra headlamps grafted on.

What emerged with scissor doors and a beaky face is a Ferrari Enzo clone. Sort of. Let’s just say that the reproportioning effort to afford the Geely’s wheelbase some Maranello visuals has not gone altogether well. It’s rendered us speechless, so hit the gallery and draw your own conclusions.

Gallery: GhettEnzo

[Source: Carscoop, Photos: gaibar.com]

GhettEnzo: Enterprising Chinese creates Ferrari-aping replica out of Geely coupe originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-07-30 12:49:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Carsumer Advocacy

It’s time once again to wield the hammer of Carsumer Advocacy. In today’s episode, however, it’s not the consumer being oppressed by the big, bad corporation, but rather the small business owner defending himself against a customer. We take you to our scene set in sunny Ocala, Florida where a tuning shop called JapWorks is under siege by a 16 20-year-old kid. The shop owners are Aaron and Brandon, and the kid in question is Joe D who commissioned JapWorks to build out his Celica to the tune of $16,000. When the job was finished, Joe D denied ever agreeing to that much work despite having conversations with the owners in which he insisted that the bulk of the charges be paid upon delivery of the vehicle. Joe sent his mom and even his girlfriend to pick up the car, the latter even offering $60 and asking if her boyfriend could set up a payment plan.

What has ensued is one epic thread on the TampaRacing.com forums in which Aaron and Brandon have continually kept the community up to date on Joe’s attempt to retrieve his Celica, which, by the way, was only recently financed by his mother who was told by her son that “sponsors” were paying for the car’s customization. Aaron and Brandon also discovered that Joe has scammed people before after a number of victims came forward in the thread to identify shady dealings with him. The police and State Attorney’s Office are now involved, and the car is tucked away in a secret location. Aaron tells us that wheels are in motion with state authorities to bring this dispute to a close, which will likely result in he and his partner taking possession of the car and selling it get their money back.

We highly suggest hitting up the forum thread below and following this madness across some 120 pages of posts. It gets especially interesting when Joe shows up to defend himself. Also, if your heart goes out to Aaron and Brandon who are bearing the weight of this financial burden, you can donate to help pay for the shop’s legal fees here. Good luck guys!

UPDATE: We don’t have the space to tell the whole story here, but Joe did put some money down and provided many parts and materials at the beginning of the project, though the shop owners realize the rest of their good faith was taken advantage of. And yes, Joe is 20 years old, not 16.

[Source: TampaRacing.com, JapWorks.com]

Carsumer Advocacy: 20-year-old tries to bilk shop out of $16k job originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-04-22 21:10:57. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Aftermarket, Tuners, Videos, Supercars, Nissan

Click above to watch a video of the Hennessey GTR700 run the 1/4 mile after the jump

You name it and John Hennessey will make it faster. From Vipers to Vettes to Challengers, Hennessey Performance will take competent sports cars and make them into tire-shredding speed demons with more horsepower than any street-going vehicle should ever logically have. The latest creation to come from the Texas tuner is the GTR700 based on the Nissan GT-R. The upgraded Godzilla now sports 715 horsepower and 662 lb-ft torque thanks to numerous modifications including a stainless steel exhaust system, new ECU programming, modified turbos with larger compressor wheels, 100mm cold air intake, high-flow fuel injectors, transmission cooler, clutch pack upgrades, and more. The result is stupefying. Sixty mph comes up in just 2.8 seconds, 100 mph in 6.7 seconds and 150 mph in 14.5 seconds. Compared to a stock GT-R, the GTR700 reaches 186 mph in less than half the time. Someone needs to take this thing to the Nurburgring. Hit the jump to watch the Hennessey GTR700 hit a full 1.0g during acceleration on its way to a 10.87 sec @ 132 mph quarter mile run.

Continue reading VIDEO: Hennessey GTR700 rips 2.8s 0-60 with launch control off

VIDEO: Hennessey GTR700 rips 2.8s 0-60 with launch control off originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Apr 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-04-22 20:10:04. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs

Now that the USF1 team has received the go-ahead from the FIA as one of the three new teams to join the grid next year, the boys in Charlotte are working away in preparation of an anticipated launch of their first chassis before the end of October. According to team principal Ken Anderson, the design is almost finalized, and they’re just waiting for $5 million in machinery and the specs on the new Cosworth engine they’ll be running to arrive before they can begin manufacturing. Currently the team employs some 20 staff, but have another 20 to 30 arriving next month.

Aside from the chassis itself, USF1 is said to be evaluating several logistical options. First is its European base, for which the team is considering either the Paul Ricard or Aragon circuits in Spain. Meanwhile YouTube is reportedly in the mix as a main sponsor after co-founder and chief executive Chad Hurley has reportedly met with team executives. And though Danica Patrick may have ruled out an F1 debut with the team, former world champion Jacques Villeneuve is tipped to fill one of the seats on the strength of his developing experience.

[Source: Autosport and F1-Live]

YouTube and Villeneuve rumored on board as USF1 gears up for October launch originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 22 Jul 2009 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-07-30 12:31:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 29th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

December 27th, 2009 by Byron Thurman

Filed under: Motorsports, Ferrari, Renault

In a development mirroring countless racing movies, Felipe Massa’s doctors say that the injured driver is showing progress in his recovery, but that he may never race again. The Brazilian pilot, who narrowly missed winning the title last year, was knocked unconscious on Saturday by a loose component off the car of fellow countryman Rubens Barrichello - who coincidentally used to hold Massa’s seat at Ferrari - and taken to the hospital in Budapest. Although Massa’s injuries are no longer considered life-threatening and he was reportedly able to move limbs according to doctors’ instructions, severe damage to his left eye could spell the end of his career.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo visited Massa at the hospital together with team principal Stefano Domenicali, who will stay with Massa’s family - including his pregnant wife - another day while doctors determine how much longer he should stay at the Hungarian military facility before being moved closer to home. While Felipe’s projected recovery time remains unclear at this point, it looks like he will be out for at least the rest of the season, meaning that the Scuderia will need to find someone suitable to fill his seat. The last time Ferrari had to temporarily replace an injured driver was ten years ago when Michael Schumacher broke his leg at Silverstone. The team then elected to bring in Mika Salo, who supported team-mate Eddie Irvine in securing the constructors’ championship for the team, rather than promoting one of its veteran test drivers.

Massa’s injuries follow hot on the heels of the Henry Surtees incident that saw the son of former world champion John Surtees killed in a Formula 2 race a week ago, throwing the FIA into action to prevent further incidents. The Renault team was handed a one-race suspension as a penalty for a stray wheel that broke loose from Fernando Alonso’s F1 car on Sunday and bounced dangerously down the track on the thirteenth lap of this past weekend’s race. The FIA ruled that the team should have alerted its driver to the improperly secured wheel nut, and will subsequently have to sit out the upcoming European Grand Prix at Valencia, considered a home race for the penalized two-time world champion.

UPDATE: We’ve added a gallery of images taken during and after the incident, though should warn you that the gallery includes a shot of Massa after the accident occurred. It is not for the faint of heart, so don’t look if you can’t stomach seeing injuries well.

[Sources: Boston Globe and New York Times | Image: MAURICIO LIMA/AFP/Getty]

REPORTS: Massa recovering but may never race again, Renault suspended for safety infraction [UPDATE] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally posted 2009-07-30 12:31:32. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

December 27th, 2009 by Byron Thurman