When a supercar goes rallying: Porsche 959
Posted: October 17, 2012 Filed under: EVENTS / PLACES | Tags: 959, B, Car, Germany, Group, Mind, motor, Museum, Over, Paris-Dakar, Porsche, race, Rally, Road, Stuttgart 1 Comment »
In the 1980s Porsche decided to take the most advanced supercar they had ever made and go rallying with it. While original designs were for Group B, the car never actually partook. The 959 did win the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1986 though, coming in with a 1-2 victory. There were a few 959s at the Porsche Museum, in Stuttgart, the day I was there, including one of these rally monsters. Check out the comparison between the road car and the rally car, and just imagine seeing a monster-truck 959 barreling up behind you on a dirt road….. you’d move.
Spotted! KTM X-Bow combo, Austria
Posted: August 27, 2012 Filed under: Exotics, SPOTTED! | Tags: Austria, autobahn, Black, Highway, KTM, Mind, motor, on, Orange, Over, public, Road, spotted, Street, Traffic, X-Bow Leave a comment »
Not exactly sure where we were in Austria at the time, but these two track day specials stood out like a sore thumb on the highway amongst normal traffic. I had never seen an X-Bow in person before so seeing two, especially in these epic inverted colors, was quite a treat. Enjoy the pics. Read the rest of this entry »
Road Review: 2004 Volvo S80 T6 Executive
Posted: July 26, 2012 Filed under: Road Review, TEST DRIVEN | Tags: 2004, 268hp, Car, chassis, comfort, Driven, dvd, entertainment, European Delivery, Executive, Fast, Gothenberg, hp, I6, Luxury, Mind over motor, Nick, program, rear seat, review, Road, S80, Saloon, Sedan, surprising, Sweden, T6, Test, TV, twin turbo, Volvo, Walker 3 Comments »
Volvo S80 T6 Executive
This is my Mom’s Volvo S80, and it seems very boring. It is beige, one of a few selectable shades of beige, and it looks just like every other Volvo on the road. Volvos are known for very solid build quality as well as their huge emphasis on safety; they are great cars but they generally aren’t synonymous with the term “exciting”. Looking at this S80 you can see the design is very conservative, and while it does have clean lines it is still basically the same exact car Volvo has been making for years. It would seem then that this S80 is just a continuation of mundane motoring from Volvo, and hardly worth a second look. However, after 9 years with this car, I can tell you that is definitely worth a second look because this beige Volvo has some extra tricks up its sleeve. Read the rest of this entry »
Obscure Auto: Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale
Posted: June 27, 2012 Filed under: Obscure Autos, SHOWCASE | Tags: 18, 1967, 1968, 1969, 2.0, 230, 254, 270, 33, Alfa, Article, Auto, Autodelta, built, Car, curves, door, first, Fuel, Gull, hp, information, injection, Italian, Liter, made, Mind, motor, Nick, Obscure, Over, produced, Production, racing, Rare, Red, Road, Romeo, sexy, specs, SPICA, Stradale, Tipo, V8, Walker, wing Leave a comment »
Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale
This is the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale, and I’m sure your eyes have already informed you that it is one of the most beautiful cars ever built by anyone. The word “Stradale” of course means that it is street version of a racing car, and it is indeed. The Tipo 33 Stradale was made in 1967 as a road going version of Autodelta Alfa Romeo’s Tipo 33/2 racing car. Only 18 Stradales were ever built, making it one of the rarest, most sought after cars in the world. One that just gets more and more interesting with every new detail you uncover. Read the rest of this entry »
This really sums up the Dodge Challenger
Posted: April 24, 2012 Filed under: Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE | Tags: 392, 470, 8, Challenger, Dodge, Drive, hp, Mind, motor, Over, Road, SRT, Trend, Trip, video 1 Comment »The Challenger is big heavy and comparatively underpowered compared to many of its rivals, but for some reason I find myself still loving it. This video from Motor Trend does a good job of summing up why the car is still so cool despite lagging behind somewhat on performance.
-Nick
Cars 101: Video games and real driving
Posted: January 16, 2012 Filed under: CARS 101 | Tags: 2, 3, 360, a, aids, and, Best, child, Drive, Driver, driving, F1, Forza, Games, gaming, generation, Gran, How, kid, Learning, Mind, motor, Motorsport, new, Nick, Over, permit, person, Playstation, racing, real, reality, Road, Safety, school, simulation, student, teach, to, translate, Truth, Turismo, video, Walker, way, What, Xbox, young Leave a comment »
Forza's Kinect feature allows casual players to simply steer, and the game takes care of the rest. More hardcore players should stick with a controller though.
My generation was the first to grow up with video games that could really simulate reality to a high degree. There are titles out there now that can simulate the likes of ruthless combat, dog fighting a fighter jet, and of course racing a car. Every generation after us will continue to grow up with these simulating games, and will wind up trying to use the experience they have gained in these games when it comes time to get behind the wheel for real. Many people out there do not believe such games hold any real merit in such skills as driving a car, but they would be hugely mistaken. Much can be learned from experience in realistic video games, but it is important to understand what translates into reality and what does not. Read the rest of this entry »
Test Driven: Range Rover Evoque, Nick’s Take
Posted: December 30, 2011 Filed under: Off-Road Able, Sports and Executive, TEST DRIVEN | Tags: all, AWD, Beach, beauty, California, Car, Concours, Cross, Crossover, cylinder, design, Drive, driving, Evoque, four, fun, Impressions, Inline, Land, Luxury, Mind, motor, off, Over, Pebble, Range, review, Road, Rover, Style, SUV, Test, turbo, Turbocharged, versitile, wheel Leave a comment »
Range Rover Evoque
As soon as I first laid eyes on the Evoque I knew it was going to be a game changer. It was a completely new formula for a luxury SUV that, not only, drastically redefined style, but also drivability and usability as well. Being the founding member of what seems to be an emerging segment in the high end market, the Evoque sets the precedents for future entries. I have pointed out this segment before in articles concerning the Nissan Juke and Mini Countryman, however the Evoque represents the first full on luxury offering of this sort. This past year, at Pebble Beach, Land Rover was holding Evoque test drives, so having been eager to try it out since I saw it, I signed the papers and took one out for a spin. Read the rest of this entry »
The glorious Mclaren F1 in action
Posted: September 23, 2011 Filed under: Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE | Tags: 240mph, 6.1L, 627hp, BMW, by, F1, fly, Mclaren, Mind, motor, on, Over, Ride, Road, shmee150, sound, Street, the, V12 Leave a comment »Youtube car man Shmee150 lands his lucky self in a Mclaren F1 for a nice ride and some great flyby shots. Such a stunning car. Enjoy.
-Nick
Obscure Auto: Mega Track
Posted: August 16, 2011 Filed under: Obscure Autos | Tags: 1995, 394, 400, 6.0, 95, Aixam, Auto, Car, Exotic, France, French, Group, hp, L., Mega, Mercedes, Mind, motor, Obscure, off, Over, Rare, Road, supercar, Track, V12 2 Comments »
Mega Track
This epic monster is a very special supercar called the Mega Track. It is basically a supercar taken to an entirely different level in that it is off road capable. Back in the mid ‘90s there was nothing else like it, and today there isn’t either. Read the rest of this entry »
EVO: Roadsters in the Italian alps
Posted: August 14, 2011 Filed under: Auto Idolatry | Tags: 3.8, 4.2, 4.7, 6, 8C, 911, 997, Alfa, Alps, Aston, Audi, Cabriolet, Comptetizione, Drive, Evo, Flat, great, GTS, Italian, L., Magazine, Martin, Mind, motor, Over, Pass, Porsche, R8, Road, roads, Romeo, six, sound, Spider, Spyder, Stelvio, Test, V8, Vantage, volante Leave a comment »Video from EVO Magazine from their test in the Italian alps. The contenders are the drop-top versions of the Audi R8 4.2, Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Alfa Romeo 8C, and the Porsche 997 GTS. They ask which car sounds the best, and which one you’d have if you were to pick. While the Audi or Porsche are almost certainly the fastest, I would pick the Alfa Romeo hands down because it speaks to my soul. What would you pick for a blast through the Alps? Tell us in the comments.
-Nick
Cars 101: Proper Lane Merging
Posted: July 22, 2011 Filed under: CARS 101 | Tags: Change, defensive, Drive, driving, idiots, lane, laws, merging, Mind over motor, on, proper, Road, Safety, smart, the, to, Traffic, way Leave a comment »
Merge Sign
This is one of those things that should be simple and not worth talking about, but during my daily commute I have realized that it is, in fact, beyond the comprehension of a rather alarming number of people. Read the rest of this entry »
Why should you care about cars? The answer may surprise you.
Posted: June 20, 2011 Filed under: AUTOMOTIVE INSIGHTS | Tags: bad driver, car problems, Cars, driving, good driver, Mind over motor, Road, Safety, Test, Value for money Leave a comment »
The Beautiful Girl in the Ferrari from National Lampoons American Vacation, looks like she's having some fun 
The automobile is an integral part of our existence, so important that all of the “developed world” is based around it. Most people that are able to read this article drive cars on a regular, if not daily, basis. It is estimated that the average American spends over 500 hours per year traveling in a car, the same figure is around half that in Europe. That is a rather large amount of your life if you think about it, so if you are going to devote such a large amount of time to something like driving a car, surely you should take at least some interest in it. In my opinion you would be a fool not too because if you aren’t thoroughly enjoying those 500 or so hours then what are you doing with all that time? It will actually improve your quality of life if you take an interest in cars or driving. Read the rest of this entry »
