Automobile blog

Barrichello Says He Threw the Steering Wheel to Quickly Get Out of the Car

Rubens Barrichello has talked about the aftermath of his accident in the Monaco GP, when he threw the steering wheel onto the track before exiting the car. The Brazilian has denied claims that he put his F1 rivals in danger by throwing the steering wheel on the racing line. Barrichello had a massive crash due to a technical problem while going up Beau Rivage at high speed. The strength of the impact bent the Armco barriers on both sides of the track. When the car came to a halt, the Williams … (read more)

BMW Concept Gran Coupe to Turn 6 Series Gran Coupe

The latest rumor coming from BMW’s garages is that what was believed to be an 8-series precursor, the Concept Gran Coupe presented at this year’s Beijing auto show, will in fact turn into the future 6 Series Gran Coupe in no more than two years’ time. According to BMWblog, the future 6er Gran Coupe, already approved for production in BMW offices, will use the same platform as the current 5 Series (including GT) and 7 Series. It will be powered by six and eight cylinder engines, paired with a… (read more)

Viper Receives a Snakebite: 2010 Dodge Viper Final Edition

Since 2008, Chrysler Group has been playing mongoose  to the iconic Dodge Viper. In recent weeks, the end appears near for the American supercar as Dodge has announced a highly-limited 2010 offering known as the Dodge Viper Final Edition. While this is not the first that the Dodge Viper is being delivered in a Final Edition package (360 cars are sold in 2002 as the Viper transitioned to the 2003 model), the 2010 Viper SRT10 Final Edition will arrive with uncertainly for the supercar’s future.

Reflecting the somber occasion, the final 50 Dodge Viper SRT10s (20 Coupes, 18 Roadsters and 12 ACR-prepped cars) will share a dark coloured interior and exterior treatment. Outer panels wear a graphite clear coat with a black stripe running lengthwise down the center of the hood. A subtle red striping  accent frames the black center striping of the Viper SRT10 Final Edition. For the interior, a deep satin black floods the two-seat Dodge Viper cabin. A handsome use of red through the seat stitching and around the instrument cluster gauges provide a fitting contrast to the black.

Fitted as an appearance package only, the Viper SRT10’s beloved 8.4 liter V-10 engine is left untouched. Exploding to produce 600 horsepower and 560 pounds-feet of torque, should there be any additional expectations from the race-proven powerplant.

Put into production in 1992, the Dodge Viper served as a beacon to American performance. Even before its official release the Viper to showrooms, the Chrysler supercar combed over what was a controversial choice even the Dodge Stealth was originally slated to be the 1991 Indy 500 pace car. Conceding to opposition over the choice of the Japanese-built Stealth, a prototype version of the Dodge Viper was readied to lead the world famous race. The shear beauty of Dodge’s American supercar stole the show on race day and instantly earned fanfare. Thanks to the high-profile appearance, the Viper also drew eyeballs to the  entire Chrysler auto company which was undergoing a radical revamp of their lineup. With the LH cars, Ram pickup and Neon, these vehicles anchored by the Dodge Viper sparked a brief resurgence of the Chrysler Corporation.

Also becoming a championship fixture within auto racing through GT series competition, the Viper sports car holds victories at the 24-hour races of Daytona, Le Mans, and the 12-hours of Sebring. Away from the racetrack, the Dodge Viper would find itself to be an idolized figure in American culture. In fact, a crime-fighting show in the 1990s called “Viper” chronicled an highly-advanced version of the supercar. The Viper TV Series lasted 4 seasons and 78 episodes (much longer than the rebooted 2008 Knight Rider series).

Sending the glorious American production supercar on its way, Chrysler Corporation is going to let the loud, thundering exhaust of the Dodge Viper trumpet the departure the current production run. Besides the Final Series, a race track-only Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR-X are just now moving out of the factory for 10-race Dodge Viper Cup Series slated to start in July.

Without even as much as a recent concept car available to judge supercar, there has yet to be an official pledge by Dodge to a new high-performance sports car. However, the press information clearly defines the Final Edition is “To celebrate the final year of production for the current-generation Dodge Viper”.

Photo Provided by Chrysler Group

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JE Design Previews 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Tuning Kit

JE Design has released a set of sketches previewing its tuning kit for the new 2011 Volkswagen Touareg. The German tuner will offer a wide body kit that will offer an aggressive look to the VW SUV. The front bumper will receive an add-on, which will come with a protection element and additional air intakes. The package will also include special wheel arch extensions. At the rear of the Touareg, the tuning house will fit a new apron, which will feature a protection element, a roof edge spo… (read more)

Miss Tuning 2010 Winner Announced – Kristin Zippel

Finally, the wait is over and we are able to show you photos of this year’s winner of the Miss Tuning contest which took place the past weekend at the world’s largest tuning fair in Germany. Tuning World Bodensee 2010 crowned 26-year-old model Kristin Zippel as the new ambassador of the tuning industry for the year to come. I am both surprised and happy at the same time. Although I’ve flirted with the Miss Tuning title, I never expected of actually winning it, Zippel was quoted as saying by … (read more)

VW Scirocco, the Fastest Front-Wheel Drive Car at the Nurburgring 24 Hours

Volkswagen managed a one-two-three podium at the Nurburgring 24 Hour race in the class for cars with alternative power, with its three Sciroccos powered by bio natural gas. Volkswagen also obtained an excellent 16th place overall with the Scirocco driven by Vanina Ickx, Nasser Al-Attiyah, Dieter Depping and Klaus Niedzwiedz. The three bio natural gas powered cars completed a race dominated by many retirements, also recording a third consecutive year without mechanically related retirement… (read more)

Schumacher Handed Penalty for Alonso Pass

Fernando Alonso eventually finished the Monaco Grand Prix in 6th place, after the race stewards decided that the move performed by Michael Schumacher over the Spaniard in the last hundreds of meters of the race was illegal. The FIA issued a statement in which it confirmed the 41-year old German was handed a 20-second penalty for the overtaking maneuver. According to the FIA stewards, rule 40.13 of the F1 regulation clearly states that if the race ends whilst the safety car is deployed it will… (read more)

Switzer Unleashes Own Version of the 911 GT2 RS

Some people just can’t wait for their favorite car to be released. And when we are talking about tuners, the lack of patience can lead to incredible results. Here’s an example: Switzer Performance got tired of biting its nails in anticipation for the market release of the most extreme version of the Porsche 911, the GT2 RS, and decided to create a new mutated version of the RS2. The result? A 911 hp Porsche 911. Dubbed GT2 R911S, the new tuned creation is based on the tuner’s P800 GT2 pac… (read more)

Nissan Leaf Reservations Opened

Nissan North America opened the reservations programme for the Nissan LEAF zero emission, all electric vehicle to the general public. Select customers, who had registered on NissanUSA.com were offered the possibility to place priority reservations for the Leaf starting from April 20. During the priority window, Nissan registered 9,500 requests for the EV. "After the start of priority reservations, interest in the Nissan LEAF only has continued to grow," said Brian Carolin, senio… (read more)

Ford Debuts New Green Initiative

Ford has debuted another green initiative including its sustainability strategy: 600 Ford employees and retirees in the Ford Volunteer Corp have joined forces with non-profit partners to tackle water conservation and environmental projects at over a dozen locations during the Ford Accelerated Action Day. Ford has offered over $60,000 in mini-grants for the projects, including one at the entry of Humbug Marsh, part of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, where Ford Volunteers are i… (read more)