Thursday, January 31, 2008

2008 Ford Bullitt Mustang

The 2008 Ford Bullitt Mustang made its debut at the L.A. auto show. With a price tag of $31,075, only 7000 will be sold in the U.S., with 700 destined for Canada. Dealers will receive cars in January, so don't lag if you want one.

Not as performance-oriented as a Shelby GT, but still sporting, the Bullitt lives up to the image of the 1969 fastback better than any previous Mustang. It lacks only the fastback and 4-speed. Driving the new car is surely easier, but it retains the cool image and sound of the original, thanks to special Dark Highland Green paint, unique wheels and a retuned exhaust to match the DVD sound track.

The 4.6-liter V-8 is bumped up to 315 horsepower and 325 lb.-ft. of torque. Equipped with a Ford Performance parts cold-air intake, an increase in peak rpm by 250, adaptive spark ignition that can measure fuel octane and a final drive of 3.73:1 the Bullitt pulls like it should and chirps the tires between full-throttle shifts, much like Steve McQueen does in the movie. As for how it handles the jumps, we'll have to wait and see.


2008 Ford Bullitt Mustang - Brian Blades, Road and Track



2009 Nissan GT-R

This is it! The most anticipated sports car in the U.S., the Nissan GT-R, has been revealed and is making its North American debut at the 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show. So what you see here is the full, undisguised GT-R in all its glory.

The most notable modification is to the face. Gone is the "running mascara" beneath the headlights, replaced by a body-colored bumper, which makes the face look much cleaner and more elegant. Some say the car looks like an F-18 fighter jet on wheels while others feel that it belongs on the set of Transformers. Either way, the styling speaks volumes of what this car is capable of on the open road.
Under the hood a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V-6 that pumps out 480 bhp and about 430 lb.-ft. of torque. Nissan claims that the GT-R runs to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds, which puts it in Porsche 911 Turbo territory. In fact, GT-R project chief, Kazutoshi Mizuno, says that the GT-R lapped the famed North Course at the Nürburgring faster than the Porsche 911 Turbo. Not bad for a car that we hear will cost about $70,000. The car goes on sale first in Japan, then in the summer of 2008 in the U.S. as a 2009 model. R&T was the only magazine to drive a U.S.-spec model. Check out our feature story in the January issue of Road & Track.

Monday, January 28, 2008

Maserati

"Società Anonima Officine Alfieri Maserati" was officially founded on December 14, 1914 in Bologna: a brand that was to become a legend on all the racetracks and the roads of the world.
Founders: The Maserati family constitutes seven brothers Carlo Maserati, Bindo Maserati, Alfieri Maserati, Mario Maserati, Ettore Maserati and Ernesto Maserati. The third brother who was also called Alfieri died in his infancy and hence the fourth brother was also given the same name. It was Alfieri who founded the company and begun producing some fabulous race cars that took his name and his brand "Maserati" across the world.
Alfieri efforts to manufacture world class race cars was ably assisted by his brothers Ettore, Ernesto and Bindo Maserati. Although Carlo was the first to venture in manufacturing cars, he breathed his last in 1910. It was his passion for cars brought his brothers to this field.

The first model that was produced under the flagship of Maserati's was a Tipo 26 in 1926, it was a two seater race car with 8 cylinder engine with 1.5 litre supercharged displacement that developed 120 bhp at 5300 rpm. Mario Maserati though did not venture his life into the engineering field like his brother also contributed; he presented a badge of the Trident that was evoked from Bologna famous statue of King Neptune.
The Tipo 26 made its debut in the racing tracks in Targa Florio, 1926 with Alfieri Maserati on the wheels and it emerged a superior racing car of its kinds. This was the first win for the Maserati with Alfieri the driving force behind the company and the car won his first victory. The company focused all its talent in producing other superior models for racing. Victories were sparse, Maserati's continued their domination in the racing sector and in 1929 they won the Tripoli Grand Prix and Mille Miglia. Alfieri never looked back and started venturing to improve his machines performances and subsequently the Tipo V4, 3.5 litres set the New World Speed Record.
Alfieri masterpiece design the Tipo 26M was one of the most renowned models that won him many victories in the racing circuits. Alfieri revolutionary ideas to fine-tune his engines brought 4 CTR a 4-cylinder, 1088 cc turbocharged model into existance, though that was his last designed car, since he died at 44 in 1932.

Maserati's brothers Ettore, Ernesto and Bindo Maserati took their respective places and revitalized their companies economic crisis and in the year 1933 the Maserati's 8C won the Belgian Grand Prix, Coppa Ciano and Nice Grand Prix. Everything looked stable and they continued to improvise the performances of their machines and the revolutionary model 8CTF won the Indianapolis 500, this is the only Italian car that had a triumphant victory in Indianapolis till date.
Though Maserati's dominated the racing circuits their financial conditions wooed and the Adolfo Orsi acquired Maserati in 1939. Under the new leadership the company was moved to Viale Ciro Menotti. Maserati re-entered the racing circuits under their new leadership in 1946 and won straight-away the Nice Grand Prix and Marseilles G.P. Maserati's desire to venture into manufacturing road cars were duly honoured by the introduction of A6, the first ever road car of Maserati. In 1957 Maserati continued its dominence in the racing circuits and sweeped all three places in Argentine Grand Prix and by the end of the season Maserati won the F1 Championship.

Economic crisis hit the company badly and the Maserati announced their decision to pull out from the racing arena and decided to manufacture racecars and their road versions. It was after this period Maserati (1957 - 1975) produced many successful cars in the Italian Car History. To sum up their successful models produced during this era are A6, A6G, A6G/54, 3500 GT Touring coupé, Vignale, 5000 GT, Shah of Persia Touring version, Vignale Sebring, Quattroporte, Mistral, Ghibli, and Indy.
In 1968, Citroen acquired Maserati from The Orsi family and they introduced the series of cars with Two Centre-Engined Models The Bora, Merak and Khamsin. It was the period of the worst Oil crisis the motor market subsided and Maserati was taken up by Alejandro De Tomaso and GEPI in 1976 and new model was introduced the same year in the Geneva Motor Show, The Kyalami. Maserati remained close to the market pace and it produced cars of diffferent models.

In 1993 Maserati was taken by the Motor Giants "Fiat" and currently it is managed by The Ferrari Management. Ferrari's technical strength and experience with Maserati's elegance proved to be very strong and they contributed much more powerful version of 3200 GT.

Maserati remains a Passion for both the F1 G.P. racers and the owners who own them.


Saturday, January 26, 2008

Prius Most Popular Car in Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley has more than it's fair share of brains, which is probably why the Prius is now the best selling car in the area. 1,627 were bought and registered in May alone. Rod Diridon, executive director of the Mineta Transportation Institute at San Jose State University, said, "Are we ahead of the curve, or what? The intellectual capacity within Silicon Valley is amazing. That higher level of education reflects a higher level of understanding of the terrible consequences of global warming."

The increase in availability has also helped. Waiting lists are all but gone, and Toyota are producing far more of the model than they previously were. However, the Prius only represents one percent of car sales in the US, so there is still plenty of room for growth.

Diridon has owned a Prius himslf for five years, so finds it easy to see the appeal of the vehicle, "I love it. It's quick, spacious. It takes four people comfortably and can carry a couple of sets of golf clubs or luggage. I get over 40 mpg, and I'm heavy-footed."

The news comes at a bad time for the motoring industry, but a good one for the environment, as national car sales figures are down 1.5% on the previous year. ::San Jose Mercury News via ::Valleywag

Friday, January 25, 2008

Acura RDX 2007

The Acura RDX is a smaller, five-passenger alternative to the midsize MDX. It is also Acura’s first vehicle with a turbocharged engine, which underscores its importance to the lineup. (Japanese parent Honda’s reputation is built on its engines.)

On the outside, the Acura RDX is a more stylish, powerful and comfortable alternative to the cookie-cutter assortment of compact, car-based SUVs. Aimed at what Acura calls “high-energy urbanites,” it competes in the growing market niche of small SUVs sometimes called “crossovers,” with car-like handling and no plans for serious off-road driving. Competing models include the BMW X3, Land Rover LR2 and Lincoln MKX.

Get an Acura RDX price quote

Built on a new light-truck platform that will form the basis for future Honda and Acura models, the Acura RDX features a muscular-looking exterior with oversize wheel arches, a steeply raked windshield and a short rear overhang. The rear hatch features an easily replaceable body panel. That not only adds to its potential for customization, but it potentially reduces the cost of repairs in low-speed rear-end collisions.

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Most Popular Car in America

To be the most popular car in America, a model has to posses a wealth of features- reliability, safety, inoffensive yet attractive styling, power, and good gas mileage. Considering these design features, what is the most popular car? These desirable traits come together in the Toyota Camry, making it the highest selling and most popular car in America since 2002.

Launched in limited numbers in America in 1982, the first Camry was compact cars available in hatchback and sedan body styles. A second generation model followed in 1987, upgrading available engine power and offering new safety features such as anti-lock breaks and all-wheel drive. The hatchback model would vanish, replaced by the wagon body style. First sold in America in 1992, the third generation of the Toyota Camry ditched its compact roots to become a mid-size family sedan. 1997 saw the debut of the restyled fourth generation Camry, followed by the introduction of the Camry Solara coupe in 1999. Available as both a hardtop and a convertible, the Solara was built with more graceful and youth-oriented styling than the Camry. In 2000, the Camry became the highest selling car in America for the first time in its history, with reported figures of 422,930 sold. The next timely iteration to the Camry occurred in 2001, when America’s most popular car became much taller and roomier. The wagon body style was dumped for the fifth generation Camry. The sixth generation, launching in 2006, marked a decided change in the Camry’s styling. The aggressive front fascia compliments the available 3.5L V6, giving the new Camry much more power than any of the previous versions. America’s most popular car is now also available as a hybrid, using Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive technology.

Toyota Camry Hybrid

The Toyota Camry classically performs well in crash safety tests, with all models since 1997 receiving a “Good” frontal crash rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Strangely, the fifth generation Camry receives a “Poor” rating in side impact tests from the IIHS when not equipped with side-impact airbags. The side airbag option, introduced in 2004, improves the side impact rating to “Good”.

Sales of the Camry in America peaked in 2006, with the nation’s most popular family sedan selling 448,445 units. The Camry’s future includes a foray into the increasingly popular NASCAR Nextel Cup, making it the first non-domestic car to compete in NASCAR in recent years. 2007 also expects to see the Camry produced in America for the first time, finally bringing America’s most popular car a little closer to home.

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