While spending three days at last weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona , we learned two important things: First, the Grand-Am series appeared to be absolutely viable as a spectator-driven form of motorsport, and, second, skinny jeans have never been more in style. Particularly for the less-than-skinny. Indeed, the growing popularity of sports-car racing was evident from the moment we arrived. It was clear not only in the total amount of tickets sold (reportedly the highest total ever for a Grand-Am event at Daytona), but also by the sheer number of people who ponied up extra cash for garage-access privileges, in hopes of a chance encounter with their favorite driver. Still, there is an argument that racing is best enjoyed on television. There are no parking hassles and you get up-to-the-second coverage and replays—plus an absence of pathogen-incubating Porta Potties. But we joined the sunburned hordes shuffling through the humanity-clogged paddock and managed to capture a few items that illustrate why there’s no substitute for being there. Equipped with a simple point-and-shoot camera and no media pass, we interacted with the stars as anybody would, and emerged with the video and photo gallery below. Oh—we tried some skinny jeans, too, but switched back to shorts after developing a nasty rash from the chafing. Excerpt from: Trawling Daytona: Three Days at the Rolex 24 [Video and Photos] See the original post: Trawling Daytona: Three Days at the Rolex 24 [Video and Photos]

If the BMW 3-series is the quintessential sports sedan, then the M3 is the quintessential sports car in disguise. Ever since the launch of the first M3 in 1986, this BMW has enjoyed a fiercely loyal following of enthusiasts, as well as a distinguished racing career. It is the car that represents the essence of what BMWs should be. Keep Reading: 2014 BMW M3 Sedan Spy Photos – Future Cars Read the rest here: 2014 BMW M3 Sedan Spied: Bigger, Now with Downsizing The rest is here:  2014 BMW M3 Sedan Spied: Bigger, Now with Downsizing

President Barack Obama took time out from watching the Republican field eviscerate each other in Florida to visit the Washington D.C. Auto Show. He sat in roughly six cars, but seemed to focus on the 2013 Shelby GT500 , which he apparently called “sick.” Right on, Mr. President. More » Continued here: Barack Obama Thinks The Mustang GT500 Is "Sick" [Barack Obama] See the original post:  Barack Obama Thinks The Mustang GT500 Is "Sick" [Barack Obama]

VW taking microhybrid leadership to full hybrids soon 39 million micro-hybrids in the next five years New analysis by Lux Research suggests hybrid vehicles have a much bigger interim future than most might expect, especially here in America. Unfortunately, that future is driven by micro-hybrids, but at least that’s still a bit of an improvement. Thus, by 2017 micro-hybrids will achieve 42 percent market share in the light duty vehicle space. Mild hybrid cars are are also expected to make a jump forward. One of the more interesting points of the study is that a huge micro-hybrid market already exists. Only we don’t know about it here in America because the micro-hybrid is driven by Europe, especially by VW. Europe will continue to dominate the micro-hybrid in 2017, but China and America are also expected to make big jumps in adoption. Similarly, according to Lux, as battery makers begin building out supply chains and manufacturing capabilities for plug-ins, mild hybrids stand to experience great growth as well as they suck up spare capacity in the lithium-ion supply chains. Market share, however, is still projected to be less than 2 percent by 2017. That makes me wonder about full hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius or the new lithium hybrids coming from Ford. Why couldn’t these vehicles take advantage of the development of lithium supplies as well? By 2017 Toyota, for instance, could be well beyond 1 million hybrid sales per year according to previous company forecasts, and if lithium costs are conducive, Toyota has indicated it would make the switch to lithium batteries. Likewise, Ford could easily be producing a few hundred thousand hybrids per year as well if the plug-in build out provides cheaper lithium batteries for all. The Lux study apparently did not assess full hybrid potential under this same scenario. Anyway, a little disappointing how real world, cost-effective solutions for increasing fuel economy, such as microhybrids, turbo-charging, etc. are driven by the European market and not the US, but I’ll be getting back to that later. Source: GreenCarCongress Originally posted here: Forget plug-ins and the Prius. It’s a mirco-hybrid world by 2017

This is a video of ‘The Stuntbusters’ — Speed TV’s artisanal automotive show that I think just sets crap on fire — blow up and flip what looks like a 1974-1980 MG Midget 1500 at 1000 frames per second. More » View original post here: A Car Exploding In Flames At 1000 FPS Is The Most Awesome Video I’ve Seen Today [Video] Read the original here:  A Car Exploding In Flames At 1000 FPS Is The Most Awesome Video I’ve Seen Today [Video]

Hit play for an audio recording of a mystery car’s exhaust note, and then share your guesses or get a few hints from other visitors in the comments below. Be sure to check back on Thursday for the answer! Originally posted here: Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 122 See the original post here:  Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 122

The 50th Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona this weekend was one of the best ever, even if everyone didn’t get to go home with a shiny watch. Our friends at MotorSportMedia were there to bring you photos from the race. — Ed. More » Here is the original post: 50th Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona: Über Gallery [Car Porn] Read the original here: 50th Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona: Über Gallery [Car Porn]

The 50th Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona this weekend was one of the best ever, even if everyone didn’t get to go home with a shiny watch. Our friends at MotorSportMedia were there to bring you photos from the race. — Ed. More » View original post here: 50th Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona: Über Gallery [Car Porn] View original post here: 50th Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona: Über Gallery [Car Porn]

I like reading repair manuals, even if it’s for something I don’t own. I have a copy of How To Keep Your Volkswagen Alive ” even though I’ve never owned a Beetle. During my temp stints at publishing houses I’ve loaded up on books about turbocharging, metalworking, all kinds of stuff I’ll never do in this apartment — but maybe someday…. More » Read the original post: COTD: Assembly Is The Reverse Of Disassembly Edition [Commenter Of The Day] More:  COTD: Assembly Is The Reverse Of Disassembly Edition [Commenter Of The Day]

Rolex 24: The Stats DP 1st: Ozz Negri, John Pew, AJ Allmendinger, Justin Wilson, No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford/Riley DP 2nd: Ryan Dalziel, Enzo Potolicchio, Alex Popow, Lucas Luhr, Allan McNish, No. 8 Starworks Motorsport Ford/Riley DP 3rd: Felipe Nasr, Mike McDowell, Jorge Goncalvez, Gustavo Yacaman, No. 6 Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Ford/Riley GT 1st: Andy Lally, John Potter, Rene Rast, Richard Lietz, No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3 GT 2nd: Spencer Pumpelly, Steven Bertheau, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Wolf Henzler, Marc Goossens, No. 67 Sargent & Lundy Porsche GT3 GT 3rd: Leh Keen, Andrew Davis, Hurley Haywood, Marc Lieb, No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche GT3 Margin of Victory: 5.198 seconds (overall); 9.412 seconds (GT) Average Speed: 126.300 mph (overall); 118.031 mph (GT) Cautions: 13 for 64 laps The Numbers: 10 – Number of cars that led in both the DP and GT classes 66 – Lead changes among 24 drivers in the GT class 146 – Race-leading 146 laps led by Ryan Dalziel of the 295 laps led by the No. 8 Ford/Riley 281 – GT-leading laps led by the No. 59 Brumos Porsche 761 – Number of laps completed by the winners – one lap shy of the Rolex 24 all-time record set in 1962 Full Results and Timing www.grand-am.com Photo Credit: Halston Pitman/Trevor Andrusko MotorSportMedia – www.racemsm.com The rest is here:  Rolex 24: Final Results

An old automotive adage is “there is no replacement for displacement.” Engine displacements in mainstream vehicles have been trending downward though, thanks to more stringent fuel economy standards. In order to not have power outputs suffer, turbocharging and supercharging has more frequently been employed. Forced induction has a lot of benefits, enabling smaller engines that provide similar power outputs to their larger counterparts. For instance the new 2013 Fusion will be available with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine! That was rare in the mid-size segment a few years ago, with larger 2.2 and 2.5-liter units being the norm for four-cylinders. According to Lamborghini head Stephan Winkelmann, that trend is stopping in the exotic world with Lamborghini – but only for now. He spoke with Autocar about Lamborghini’s future engines, and for now they include exclusively naturally-aspirated units. He says it will remain this way for the rest of this young decade, but refused to rule out anything beyond that. “For this decade, I don’t see it happening in the super sport car business – although I would also caution against saying it could never happen..the future can take its own path when fuel regulations are involved. All I will say is that any development along those lines must be consistent with the DNA of Lamborghini” he said. That isn’t exactly a firm answer, but we do know the next-generation Gallardo is expected to continue with naturally-aspirated engines when it launches in two years. Audi is planning to launch turbocharged units a few years into the run of the next-generation R8. The Gallardo could follow, or it could continue with naturally-aspirated power in order to offer added space between the two. It’s not as if the exotic car industry hasn’t seen turbocharged cars before though – the Ferrari F40 and McLaren MP4-12C to name a coupe. We think those cars turned out just fine (sarcasm alert), so we aren’t worked up about it. Turbocharged Gallardo or not, it’s cool. Just keep making them outrageous. No related posts. Automoblog.net – A Car Blog for Auto Enthusiasts See the original post: Turbocharging Won’t Spread To Lamborghini – For Now

In the muddled order of the Chrysler Group’s brands, Dodge’s stated future mission is to be a performance brand. This ambition has led to a few different conundrums. What about the Journey, Grand Caravan or just released Dart? These are all as mainstream as they come, and in reality that is right where Dodge should be placed. Mainstream, with a bit of bolder performance twist. Despite the lofty talk, that is exactly where Dodge is right now. Alfa Romeo can focus on European performance and handling. Where Dodge has shone though is with SRT models. If the dreadful Neon had one redeeming model, it was no doubt the SRT-4. Same thing for the Caliber. The Dart looks to be a far more competitive model than either of those. That gives the performance trim level a much better basis to start off from. According to Motor Trend , Dodge and the team at Street Racing Technology has a Dart SRT-4 waiting in the wings. The high watermark of small car performance at Dodge was the Caliber SRT-4 with 285 horsepower. MT says the Dart SRT-4 will seek to surpass that. That will make for screaming performance – and if left as is with front wheel drive, probably some incredible torque steer too! With that much power we think the car would be better suited to having an all-wheel drive system. AWD in general is much better suited to performance applications. With AWD, the Dart SRT-4 would be a head-on competitor to the Subaru WRX and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. As for the Focus ST, it would be in the rearview mirror. That is if the Dart SRT-4 really gets close to the 300 hp though – we could see it coming in at less than that. For instance, 250 hp would still make for sprightly performance. To get to that figure, Dodge would have to either use the new Alfa Romeo 1.8-liter coming up or turbocharge the existing Tigershark engine. Adding turbocharging to the Tigershark is the most likely option, as the Alfa Romeo engine is considerably more expensive. Expect the Dart SRT-4 to land as a 2014 model. Hopefully by then more of the competition will want to get in on the performance action too. Related posts: Dodge Returns To Compacts With 2013 Dart 2013 Dodge Dart To Get 9-Speed (!) ZF Gearbox, “Tigershark” Engines Detroit: 2013 Dodge Dart Automoblog.net –...

The world's best selling car Forget just US sales, let’s think worldwide Before the end of this decade, Toyota believes the Prius family will outsell the Camry. Whatever. Why not shoot for the moon? Within this decade, could a car like the Prius C help the family outsell the Corolla, and I mean in terms of total worldwide sales? I must admit even the idea of outselling the Camry first sounded a bit lofty to me, especially based upon today’s hybrid adoption rates, but Toyota has been pretty accurate with its hybrid forecasts for many years now, so I bet the Prius will top the Camry before the end of this decade. But the Corolla and its massive world-wide sales are another matter. In the recent past we’ve pitted the Toyota Prius C Versus non-hybrid compacts and subcompacts . Still, there is some gray area around whether the Prius C is a compact or a subcompact, for instance, and how this impacts pricing and perception. The C is larger than a Yaris, for instance, and offers the same total interior volume as a Corolla, but in hatchback form. So what’s the right comparison? Regardless, the sub-$19,000 C is fairly competitive against the competition, typically recovering its hybrid premium in just a few years, while offering a huge gasoline savings if owned long term. Add a gas spike or two and the Prius C really could be a bargain. And it was that kind of thinking — managing gasoline costs — that made the Toyota Corolla the world’s best selling car according to The Bottom Line . Obviously, however, the Corolla didn’t require a hybrid premium. It offered cheap upfront price and better long term fuel economy, and that’s a big difference this time around if the Prius is to eclipse the Corolla. But energy spikes are a lot more common this time around as well. Besides, even if the US taps Canadian oil sands, or fracks the hell of its massive shale supplies, I still bet the long term fossil fuel price story is inevitably higher. It’s simply going to be hard to move fast enough to offset rising worldwide demand for fossil fuels, and we’re certainly not moving that fast. Anyway, based on today’s gasoline prices, if you compare a comparably equipped Corolla to the Prius C, the long term Prius story...

It’s not often we think of any SUV as being fun to drive. But consider this: The BMW X3 truly fits that description. And seeing as how the original X3 basically invented the upscale sporty compact SUV segment, it’s refreshing that the latest version continues this tradition, while adding functionality. The X3’s fun factor is enhanced by its standard 240-hp six-cylinder engine, which provides satisfying acceleration yet still returns 22 mpg—the best among its peers. The smooth-shifting eight-speed automatic also helps the X3’s performance. In our testing, we found the X3’s handling agile, taut and confident in the corners. The steering is especially quick to respond and provides good feedback from the road surface. Inside, the X3 is well-finished with big panels of wood trim and a padded dashboard. But with BMW’s usually nice interiors brings the car company’s complicated controls. The shifter, for example, takes some practice to get right: you push forward from Park into Reverse, and Park is a button on top. This can throw off first-time users. At least iDrive, BMW’s multifunction control system, has gotten easier to use over the years. But some functions, like manual radio tuning, can require going through several on-screen menu pages. The front seats are firm and supportive, and the rear seat is reasonably roomy for two or even three average-sized people. But all this fun love comes at a fairly steep price. Our modestly equipped test car stickered at over $43,000. Still, the X3 doesn’t just dazzle you with a prestigious label on the hood. The small SUV does a lot well for this price by rewarding drivers with enjoyable performance, a nicely finished cabin, and very decent fuel economy. Check the video and complete road test for further insights. Read more from the original source: Test complete video: 2012 BMW X3

As people keep their cars longer, oxidation of commonly used plastic headlight lenses is an increasing problem. Oxidation creates a haze that is not only unsightly, but it can also reduce headlight illumination. This dulling happens over time, and it can be a true creeping danger. Fortunately, there are do-it-yourself products available to restore the shine. We recently tested four headlight cleaners to see how they measure up. We tried the products on dozens of headlights, and our tests show that even the poorest performer of the bunch can dramatically improve light output, depending on how badly the lenses are weathered. All cost less than $25. In our test: 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System 29008 ($15) Fast Brite Auto Headlight Restorer Kit ($17) Sylvania Headlight Restoration Kit ($21) Turtle Wax Headlight Lens Restorer ($9) Most kits involve several steps for cleaning, and can take as much as an hour for both lenses. One kit, the 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System, also requires the use of an electric drill and sanding discs—a slip-up could result in scratched paint. Using cars with clouded headlights belonging to CR staff volunteers, we evaluated products for their effectiveness and ease of use. We measured the change in light transmission with a light meter before and after working on them in one of our labs, using controlled room lighting. Mounted on a stand, the light meter was positioned in the brightest part of the light beam, and left in the same position for the ‘after-cleaning’ measurement. After returning the cars to their owners, we brought them back into the lab eight weeks later to re-check the light transmission and see how the products held up over time. The results varied, but we found that even the poorest performer in our group can dramatically improve light output on badly weathered lenses. It is clear that you have to do a thorough job, though, for the best results. Read our full report on headlight cleaners for more details. Read more here: Tested: Headlight lens cleaning kits that restore shine