Showcases of various cars for various purposes.
On this episode of Drive, Chris Harris shows all of us not only his spectacular driving skills behind the wheel of AMG’s newest monster, the SLS Black Series, but also the lengths that Mercedes-Benz went to lighten up the big supercar to make it more athletic and more fun on the track. Take ten minutes off and watch this video–it’s ten minutes well worth your time.
-Albert S. Davis
Today was the first day of Spring, and the weather, while still a bit chilly by most standards, was nice enough to take my MX5 Miata out for some roofless fun. I met up with my friend Dan, whose photos have been featured on this site many times, and we went for a nice long drive, two Miatas tearing hard through the woods. This was one of those days where you just forget everything else in your life, and enjoy cruising along. For me, such cruising is like a form of meditation, very in the moment, and focused on enjoying the little things in life. An MX5 allows you to enjoy the world even more, because with the top down you are truly outside, connected with your surroundings. Toward the end of the drive I had a huge grin on my face, and I got to thinking about exactly what it is that makes this car so great, for so many people. Continue reading Mazda MX5 Miata, the enthusiast’s Ace in the hole
This Pagani Zonda F has been custom painted with most people’s favorite caped crusader, Batman. Nothing more really needs to be said.
-Nick
This is really, and I mean really, significant. I had heard the idea of replacing camshafts with individual electronic actuators for each valve in an engine a few years ago, but the folks at Koenigsegg have developed a tangible prototype. This video from Drive’s Inside Koenigsegg series shows the system close up. Christian Von Koenigsegg claims the finished system should see an increase of 30% for horsepower, torque, and fuel economy on a gasoline engine. So, look out in your driveway and do the math on your own car, and just think how badly you can’t wait for this technology to be in widespread production.
-Nick
Jay drives an immaculately built Datsun 510 owned by one of his co-workers on The Tonight Show. I love custom cars like this that seem to embody the personality of the person who built it. Enjoy.
-Nick
I’ve always loved trippy things, so I decided to turn a few of my photos into some psychedelic car art. I used different approaches for each of them, so the distortion varies, but I’m pretty happy with how they all came out. Let me know what you think in the comments, and there may be more to come in the future. Enjoy.
The Mercedes R-Class is not the last word in anything. It’s probably a good example of a blue-chip company laying an egg at the worst possible time. Mercedes-Benz is a full-line automaker in most of Europe but in America, it’s better known for luxury cars. Of course, the top brass at M-B didn’t quite know what to expect when the R-Class came out. Made in Alabama and Mexico, it wasn’t a normal Mercedes. But, once AMG saw it, they couldn’t resist doing what they do best: shoehorn a ridiculous engine into it, put it on wide tires and lowered suspension, and sell it like sliced bread. Only this time, sliced bread sold like New Coke. Continue reading Secondhand Saint: Mercedes R63 AMG
Someone who shot this video must be quite the music and car buff. For today, we have a Ferrari Enzo drifting around a bunch of dirt trails, set to the background music of Beethoven’s Symphony No.9, “Ode To Joy”. This is most definitely an ode to joy–it’s a drifting Enzo. I bet a lot of people are cringing at the sight of someone thrashing an Enzo, but this still some spectacular driving and camera work–even if one cameraman drops his camera at the very end. If you’ve got two minutes or three, watch this video–it’s a few minutes well-spent.
-Albert S. Davis
Enjoying the snow here in the Northeastern US in my Subaru WRX STi. Went out drifting, and then did some celebratory donuts right in front of the house. Many performance cars have to stay in the garage during a blizzard, but rally cars are meant for this stuff. Snow drifting is surely one of my favorite things to do in this car. Hope everyone else is having fun today as well, wherever you are.
-Nick
This pristine Ferrari 250 LM was in attendance for the 2012 Radnor Hunt Concours d’ Elegance. It is owned by the Simone Foundation Museum in Philadelphia, PA. The 250 LM came about when Ferrari finally decided to give up on front-engined GT racing cars. The 250P was the first mid-engined Ferrari that saw major success, and was a contemporary of the legendary 250 GTO in the early 1960s. Seeing the success of their rivals with mid-engined racing cars, Ferrari decided to end the 250 GT cars, and carry on competition with a development of the 250P. And with that, the 250 LM was born.
The 250 LM was very similar to the 250P, except it had a roof and was built from a higher gauge of steel. The LM used an enlarged version of the 250 GTO’s 3.0L V12. At 3.3L the LM’s V12 produced 320hp, and it only had to propel a car which weighed under 1900lbs, lighter than the GTO. The result was a car that was very fast, and despite being denied homologation as a GT class, it still saw success in the Prototype class. 250LMs won 10 out of the 35 races they competed in, and in 1965 the NART team won the Le Mans 24 Hours. This would be the final outright Le Mans victory for Ferrari to this day, ending an era of Ferrari dominance in the late 50’s, early 60’s.
A total of 32 250 LMs were produced, making it on par in rarity with the GTO, and certainly worth a solid fortune in its own right. Seeing a car like this up close, with no barriers to keep people away is a rare treat indeed. I stuck around after most people had left the show, and had the privilege of some quality, un cluttered photo time with this epic car. Enjoy the gallery below.
Nissan’s R32 Skyline dominated touring car races in the late 80s and early 90s. This Calsonic Nismo R32 Skyline GT-R featured here was the most successful of them all, and helped create the GTR’s “Godzilla” image it has today. Enjoy.
-Nick
One of the biggest fears of any car enthusiast is being paralyzed, and not being able to drive. This video, from Jalopnik on Drive, is about Michael Johnson, a guy who was paralyzed in an accident, but has still managed to become a professional race car driver. Michael has a very real chance of making his way to the IndyCar series, all without the use of his legs. No joke, this may be the most inspiring thing I have seen in quite some time. Hopefully we will see Michael spraying champagne at the Indy 500 in the coming years! Enjoy.
-Nick
Mind Over Motor 