Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars

2014 Infiniti Q50S Hybrid, Al’s Take (Grade: A)

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20130815-Pebble Beach 2013 Thursday 392

Infiniti has been good at keeping itself in the news lately.  Last year, when they announced they would reshuffle their naming convention in their model lineup to use the word “Q” across the board, I decried the news as a poor decision which would confuse buyers and damage sales.  I’m still not sure if I said the right thing, or the wrong thing.  However, at the New York Auto Show last year, I did catch a glimpse of the new Q50, Infiniti’s replacement for the respectable G37 sedan, and took some time with it to see what it was like to sit in.  By the time Pebble Beach rolled around, Infiniti was offering this brown 2014 Q50S Hybrid for drives.  I eagerly took the keys to see what Infiniti had done with a new platform to fight the BMW 3-Series.

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Cars We've Seen

Morgan 3 Wheeler spotted at Amelia Island

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Morgan 3 Wheeler at Amelia Island 5

We went out to grab some things from the car during the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, and we found this stunning Morgan 3 Wheeler sitting in the media parking lot. I’ve seen a few of these things around now, but this orange 3 Wheeler has to be the most striking one yet. I just love the fighter plane inspired bits. It gives the car a fun and exciting character that is irresistible. I had to snap a few pics of it, and I think they came out well. Enjoy!

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Car Shows

1965 Chevrolet Corvette at the Radnor Hunt Concours, 2013

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American muscle cars were certainly well represented at the Radnor Hunt Concours late last summer, and this 1965 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray coupe was a straight, well-kept example.  Despite packing the base 327ci V8, this black-on-red stunner featured a great assortment of options not often seen on mid-Sixties Corvettes, such as a power antenna, power windows, power brakes, and power steering.  The 1965 model also featured four-wheel disc brakes, a first on the Corvette as a standard item.  Purchased by a wife for her husband as a 65th birthday present, this gorgeous ‘Vette still looked a million bucks on the grass at Radnor.  Enjoy the photos.

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Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

Jay Leno drives the Porsche 918 Spyder

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Going off of the feature we did earlier today, it seemed prudent to share a recent episode of Jay Leno’s Garage where Jay gets behind the wheel of the Porsche 918. Here’s to hoping we find a way to try one out for ourselves sometime, but until then enjoy this.

-Nick

Car Shows

Porsche 918 Spyder at Amelia Island

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Porsche 918 Spyder 1

During the festivities of the Amelia Island Concours weekend, Porsche had their new 918 Spyder hypercar  shown off prominently in the VIP parking section at the Ritz Carlton resort. Naturally it drew tons of attention from drooling spectators, as most of us Americans have yet to lay eyes on a 918 in person.

For those unfamiliar with the Porsche 918 Spyder, it is Porsche’s new flagship model. It utilizes a hybrid powertrain that nets 887hp at 8500rpm and will do 214mph, but get this, Porsche also claims it is capable of up to 78mpg if driven gently (not that anyone will ever want to do that). If, somehow, this is news to you, and you find your interest has been piqued, a 918 Spyder can be yours for the low, low price of just $845,000!!!

The more I learn about the 918 Spyder, the more I consider it my favorite among the current crop of hybrid hypercars, at least for road use anyway. We still don’t know which of the three is the “fastest,” but we do know that a 918 Spyder Weissach Edition made it around the Nurburgring in 6 minutes and 57 seconds, which certainly makes the 918 fast enough to get to work on time…. not that people who are buying this car have a boss to answer to. Until McLaren decides to just spill the beans on the P1’s Ring time, and until Ferrari stops hiding the LaFerrari from any form of objective scrutiny whatsoever, we will have to wait to see which one is “best.”

The Porsche is an incredible machine, though, and I think the fact that they haven’t held anything back about the 918 says everything that needs to be said.

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Cars We've Driven, Exotic Supercars

SRT Viper Review (7.5/10)

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SRT Viper Review 1

What is it?

The SRT Viper, formerly known as the Dodge Viper, is the iconic American sports car for people looking to get more out life than a Mustang or a Corvette can offer.

Intended to be a modern incarnation of the legendary Shelby Cobra, the Viper was developed by Chrysler with the help of Carroll Shelby to try and decimate the Chevrolet Corvette in the early 1990s. Where the Corvette of the time had a 300hp V8, the Viper went for the jugular with a 400hp V10. That was just the beginning, and as you will see, things have gotten even crazier since.

But has the Viper become too crazy for the times? Those of you who follow the car industry will know that Viper sales are in the toilet, so much so that Chrysler has actually had to halt production and even pull its Vipers out of racing competition. The Viper could have a serious problem here, and its survival may well be on the chopping block as we speak. Having finally sampled a Viper for myself, I will will use my experience with the car to muse on why it is that the sales of this beast are struggling.

It may seem cold and heartless to us car enthusiasts, but sales are the end-all-be-all in the car industry, especially for low volume production cars such as this. Ferrari and Lamborghini no longer offer manual transmissions in their cars because, plainly, nobody bought them, and now the Viper may be facing a similar situation.

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Car Shows

1969 Chevrolet Chevelle SS396 at Cars and Coffee Amelia Island

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1969 Chevrolet Chevelle SS396 Front
1969 Chevrolet Chevelle SS396 Front

The day before the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, the Ritz Carlton on the island opened up their golf course for anyone with an interesting classic to show up and park among their peers across the fairway.  While talking to a few people and enjoying the sun-kissed weather, I found a car bathed in enough sunlight to make the world shine.  Enter this eye-catching yellow 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle SS396.  This happens to be done up exactly how I’d want it on the outside.  The sunflower yellow paint was free of faults, and the whole package (with the Magnum 500 wheels and white-letter tires, along with the black stripe and shined up chrome) looked just as smart now as it probably did back in the days of Richard Nixon, Woodstock, and free love.  Of course, this car would be happier leaving tire tracks all over Main Street, USA than ferrying drugged up hippies to and from an enormous rock concert, but I bet it would be fun for anyone in the era.  I was glad to see one this nice that morning, and my eyes are still stinging from that yellow.  Enjoy the photos.

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Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

America’s Most Obsessed Saab Collector

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On this segment of Jalopnik on Drive we get an inside look at a man, Bruce Turk, who is probably America’s most obsessed Saab enthusiast and collector. These quirky cars inspire the hearts of many people, and Bruce is a great example of how to Saab properly. Enjoy!

-Nick

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

Drive looks at the Koenigsegg One:1

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Drive takes us inside the new Koenigsegg One:1. The car is named after its power to weight ratio (1hp/1kg) and Koenigsegg claims it to be the first “megacar” because it produces 1 megawatt of power (1360hp). Great video!

-Nick

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

Custom Pickup Truck at the Festivals of Speed, Amelia Island

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Nick was far too busy photographing a nifty Volkswagen parked at the back of the show to take fair notice of something that was even cooler just next to it.  This custom pickup truck is too insane for words.  The frame is out of  Toyota Pickup, the engine is a Chevrolet LT-1 V8 from the early Nineties, and the interior is completely custom-made, with a No Smoking sign forming the backdrop panel for the radio and a custom instrument panel.  Meanwhile, the body is a cream-and-brown 1954 Dodge stepside regular cab, and the entire thing is fitted with an adjustable air suspension.  I spoke to some buddies of the owner who said that some passerby snickered and said “What’s this doing here?”, smirking the entire time.  In my opinion, the joke is on them–this is one of the coolest customs I’ve ever seen and absolutely belonged in the show.  Note some of the more quirky touches, such as the set of ratchet wrenches standing in for a gas pedal and a sculptured middle finger in place of a rear view mirror.  All in all, this custom pickup truck at the Festivals of Speed is one of the coolest customs I’ve ever seen.  Enjoy the photos.

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Car Shows

Fiat Dino Spider at Amelia Island

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Fiat Dino Spider at Amelia Island

We caught this blue Fiat Dino Spider at the cars and coffee event during the Amelia Island car weekend. This is a rare car with the same Ferrari V6 under its hood as found in the Dino 206, and Dino 246 for later models. We did a post featuring Petrolicious’ video on the Fiat Dino a few months ago, and it was awesome to get to see one up close in person.

-Nick

Cars We've Driven, Exotic Supercars

Ferrari 458 Italia Review, Al’s Take (GRADE: A)

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Ferrari 458 Front Angle

At the end of the morning after the Fourth of July, the mercury was slamming 112 degrees outside of Las Vegas, and it was nice and somewhat cool inside the tent with all the exotic cars I’d been driving.  After prepping myself with a drive in a Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera, I had one car left.  Thanks to the heat, the F430 Scuderia I’d wanted had gotten sunburned and whimpered back to its lair, but the newer 458 Italia in the tent was just tanning in the searing sun, ready for me to drive it.  Of course I obliged, and found out what’s possible with a 562bhp V8 stuffed a few inches behind the back of my ears, other than making me nearly go deaf. Continue reading Ferrari 458 Italia Review, Al’s Take (GRADE: A) →