BMW isn’t known for making small vehicles. The x5 isn’t exactly a space saver and the 7-series was based off of original blueprints for Noah’s Ark. But with Audi’s recently unveiled pocket-sized and incredibly attractive A1, BMW has officially announced to Autocar magazine that they too plan to enter the small car segment.
What does this mean?
Just like Audi and their A1, BMW will most likely offer a premium B-segment hatchback with front-wheel-drive and a typical German price tag. However, unlike the Audi the BMW will probably look better (even though the A1 is mmm mmm good) and forgo the electrical problems that come standard with every Vdub and their premium counterparts. And because of their ownership of Mini, BMW already has the hardware to jump straight into the B-segment end of the pool.
Now take a seat because here comes the buzzkill. We won’t see these cars till mid-2013 at the very soonest, and that’s if everything goes according to plan…which it won’t. But hey, that just means two years of spy shots and BMW teaser commercials that we get to report to you!
[AutoCar, Chad Waite]
March 9th, 2010 by Chad Waite. 3 Comments.
It’s back! A few days ago we saw the first spy shots of the new Ferrari 599 GTO, a car that should be nothing short of spectacular and damn pricey. Now new pictures of the Italian thoroughbred at its home stomping ground in Maranello have surfaced all over the intertubes. The pictures don’t reveal any major new visual changes but still leave us as excited as a sugar eating kid on Christmas morning.
With the pictures have come rumored details on the 599 GTO itself and it seems things are business as usual at Ferrari. Horsepower should hit around 700 from a big, loud Ferrari V12 with a redline of 9000rpm (tunnel driving anyone?). And that type of power means 0-60 is dealt with in a tidy 3.5 seconds (is it bad we wished it was quicker though?) and a top speed of over 210+ mph. It’s speculated that only 500 will be produced and to get one you’ve got to shell out a mind-blowing $410,000. Business as usual indeed.
[CarMagazine.co.uk, Chad Waite]
March 8th, 2010 by Chad Waite. 1 Comment.
Once again the South Town Expo Center in Sandy, Utah played host to a medley of cars and exotic vehicles at the Utah Autorama Car Show. Custom restorations of cars older than the state of Hawaii were the show’s bread and butter, however, amidst all of the 1930 roadsters and hordes of Mustangs were exotic head turners, custom bike displays, automotive vendors, BMX stunt rider shows, and celebrity appearances and autographs.
Our highlights started with a quite modern and very out of place Noble M400, surprisingly the second Noble we’ve seen in Utah in a year. A handful of other supercars were scattered about the showroom floor including a Lamborghini Gallardo and Mucielago, a 2008 Dodge Viper SRT-10, and an absolutely stunning red 1973 DeTomaso Pantera (or a Ford GT according to the brilliant 15-year-old kid behind me).
But our “holy crap!” moment came when we stumbled across a 1972 Fiat 500 in perfect condition and decorated with Ferrari symbols and a Scuderia racing stripe. It’s the Fiat that wants to be a Ferrari– how cliche yet absolutely wonderful! This small Fiat is, without a shadow of a doubt, the coolest car in the history of the world.
Moral of the story? We went to Autorama expecting to get another informative Utah Auto Expo. Instead we stepped into an entertaining time warp to a generation where ‘MPG’ didn’t mean a thing and Plymouth cars were ‘just swell.’
[Chad Waite]
March 8th, 2010 by Chad Waite. 5 Comments.
A few years ago, a good friend of mine and his dad decided they wanted to fulfill a dream of theirs and restore a 1974 Dino GTS. They found a proper chassis to start with, and together began a 2 year journey of show winning restoration. Luckily for us, they created a website dedicated to their project.
Some of you who aren’t in the know might ask, why the Dino? What makes it so special? Simple answer: Just look at it. Seriously, is there anything more gorgeous? But, apart from the heavenly good looks, there is the performance and legacy that can only come from a car linked to Ferrari.
Enzo Ferrari wanted to create a lower priced, more “affordable” sports car for the public; something to compete against the Porsche 911. At the time, all Ferraris were screaming V-12’s and Enzo wanted to keep it that way.
To help differentiate the cars, the “Dino” brand was created. The name “Dino” comes from Enzo’s late son, Alfredo Ferrari, who died after a battle with muscular dystrophy. The car, named in his honor, began life in 1968 as the Dino 206 GT. It had a mid mounted 2 liter V6 engine creating about 160 horsepower.
With a greater demand for power, the 246 GT and GTS evolved. The “S”, of course, stands for “Spyder” or as I like to say, hot automotive “Sex”. Both models came with a larger and more powerful 2.4 liter V6 that made between 175hp (U.S.) and 190hp (Europe). In a chassis that weighed only 2400lbs, the Dino was able to outperform its Porsche rivals across the board with a higher top speed and a faster 0-60 time of about 6 seconds.
Approximately 1200 Dino GTS’s were made between 1972 and 1974. Only the lucky few, like my friend and his father, are able to call one their own.
March 7th, 2010 by Brandon Christiansen. No Comments.
