Car News: Oct. 13

Anybody else already sick of the Toyota/Scion/Subaru rwd coupe? I just wish they would make it already. It has been in concept form for a few years now, so long that even the concept form has been refreshed because the look was getting old. Toyota and Subaru better get some good use out of this platform, they have spent a lot of money building different versions. The latest will be a pre-production racing car that will debut at the Nurburgring in the German VLN.
Electric cars are starting to pop up more often, each car company seems to be either making one or on the verge of producing a car propelled by electrons. The newest one to join the Nissan Leaf is the Mitsubishi i. I personally find it ugly and it looks similiar to the Tata Nano. Other markets have experienced electric cars, electric vehicles are more popular in Europe and Japan. Electric vehicles have been available over seas for the last few years. This new addition, the i, can travel just under 100 miles and takes a whole day to charge in a normal 110 volt. Here is a picture of the i and the Nano. The Mitsubishi is on the left in blue, the Nano on the right in white.

Looks like SAAB might be saved, and from China no less. China's economy has been improving and their auto industry is booming. They are starting to snatch up car companies when they can. They took Volvo and almost took Hummer. A Chinese company also bought the rights and tooling to an older SAAB model. And now another Chinese company is helping out SAAB. I wonder how long this can go on, how long SAAB can limp around. Just for kicks, enjoy this Buick Regal playing jump rope.

Modifications on a Budget: What to do now?

Are there any suggestions or requests for certain modifications for your car? I am still working on mine. There are some small things wrong with it, there is a small fuel leak and an oil leak I need to take care of. I have found the parts for it and just need to work on it and fix it. 

I plan on getting a wide band O2 sensor, it measures the air to fuel ratio. That will probably be it for a while, it is taking a lot more money and time than I thought to get the car fixed. 

What modifications have you done to your car? What modifications do you want to do to your vehicle? Leave a comment below. 

Car News: Oct. 11

Remember that Juke-R I talked about a few days or so ago? Well, here is a video roughly explaining how the feat is going to be done. I am still surprised that Nissan is going to build at least one of these, this little SUV is going to be insane.

Mercedes is known here in the states for premium luxury vehicles and the AMG branch is known to make some scary fast cars. Recently, AMG has come out with even faster cars and slapped on the Black Series tag. The newest Benz to join this family might be the C63 AMG, which is already quick enough. Word has it that only suspension modifications, including brakes and a larger oil cooler, are going to be fitted to the Black Series. Here is a picture of the C63 AMG Black Series driving around the Nurburgring. Thanks to autoblog for the picture.

After the many years that Mercedes' AMG branch and BMW's M division have been around, it seems like other companies are dipping their toes into a performance division line of their own. Ford has been on and off with SVT, Chrysler products use SRT, Lexus might have F, and recently Infiniti started with the idea of using IPL and might be using Sebastian Vettel in the future. Sebastian is some sort of race car driver, F1 I believe. It uses the same engine, but with a new intake and exhaust as well as a re-flashed ECU. Output is rated at 414 horsepower and claimed to reach 60 mph in 5.6 seconds. That isn't that much faster than stock, but it can reach a top speed of 186 mph. That is fast for anything, let alone an SUV. Here is what it will look like when it reaches production.
Do you enjoy Legos as much as I do? Then what is better than a Lego set that looks like a car? Enjoy the video.

Car News: Oct. 8

Remember Tesla? And no, I don't mean the crazy brained inventor, in my opinion he was way smarter than Thomas Edison and I am sad to know that he is not talked about enough. I mean the small electric car company located in California. A few years back they made the Tesla Roadster. It was a pure electric car based off the Lotus Elise and had an estimated range of 250 miles, which is insanely far for an electric car. Here is Jeremy Clarkson's ridicilous review of the Tesla Roadster.  As with all Top Gear reviews, it is all scripted and all entertainment. But, I still believe it has a valid point and it is entertaining. Tesla has come out with more information on their new car, the Model S. It is a 4 door electric car that can supposedly seat up to 7 people. Behind the rear seats is a rear facing bench, just big enough for little kids to sit in. Tesla claims a 0-60mph for the sedan at 4.5 seconds. That is pretty quick for a 4 door.

I have some very sad news for all Honda fans everywhere, the rumored Mugen version of the CRZ has been cancelled. Though most guessed this would happen, it is still heart breaking to see it come to pass. All of us Honda fans were cheering for it to come to production, or just any hot hatch from the CRZ body frame. We were all hoping for a CRX Si revival of some sort. Well, all we can do now is adore the pictures and wish what could have been. Enjoy.

Modifications on a Budget: Join the party

I have recently discovered another way to save money on modifications to your car. Just like anything, it is cheaper to buy used. One way to do this is to join a forum or group that is based on your car or make. If you don’t think there is one, I imagine there has to be a fan base out there somewhere. If there is a fan group for the Chrysler PT Cruiser, there has to be a fan base for any car.

In these groups are people that love cars and can help you out on what you should do next and give you some good ideas. Of course you are going to get a range of expertise within the group. There is usually even local forums you can join. For example, I am part of Utah Hondas group. Through this, I was able to buy a rear disc brake conversion kit for ¼ the price it would cost brand new. Also, if you just like to hang out with other car guys some places have meetings. I believe Salt Lake has recently started a Cars and Coffee type deal where enthusiasts of any kind gather to talk. I believe the meetings are Saturday mornings.

You can also read the stories of what others have done to their rides and ask questions. It would be worth it to Google search for a local car club or some type of internet forum you would be able to join. 

Car News: Oct. 6

Chevy has taken its new Camaro ZL1, the uber Camaro that makes 580 hp, around the famous Nurburgring. Though times on this track are never official, it is always a good bragging point for automakers. They claim a time of 7:41. Not a bad time, not great, but not bad. For comparison, that is just a tad slower than the Ferrari F430 Scuderia.
Speaking of Ferrari, the successor to the polarizing Enzo is due to come out soon. Every 10 years Ferrari comes out with an ultimate super car and that time is up. All that is known is that it will have a V12 and some sort of hybrid system. I am hoping for the kinetic energy recovery system that has been shown in concept form on the 599. This gives the driver an extra shot of boost at the push of the button. The system recovers the energy lost from braking and stores it in a battery unit to be used later.

In true Bugatti fashion, their 4 door Galibier has been post-poned  until 2015. The reason being design issues between the concept and a production car that might actually be called the Royale. Here are a couple pictures of the Galibier concept. I love those openings on the engine, they are stunning. I hope those make it into production. While the 8 tips on the exhaust might be a little much.
What is the coolest/scariest undercover cop car you have seen? The only cop car I have spotted before was a Dodge Charger. What about a Nissan GTR? Ever thought you could run from the cops? Think again, this is one of the fastest accelerating production cars ever made. Here is a youtube video of the super cop car. No word on what department has it or where. The engine is said to be kept stock. Keep an eye out for the GTR police.

Modifications on a Budget: The Junk Yard

Are you a handy man and like to fix things yourself? Or would you like to learn this trade to save some serious cash? Well I have some great news for you, well it is new to me at least. Today I visited a magical place known as the junk yard. It is a great place to learn how to take apart a car, cause if you mess it up, who cares? It isn't your car. I needed a part that a mechanic would charge me over $100 for, got it for $6 at the yard. Plus, it was a lot of fun taking part of the car apart to get to the little pump that I needed. If you know what is wrong with the car and what part needs to be replaced, it is a great way to save lots of money.
Also, it could be a way to change your car up a little bit. A popular thing to do is to add Acura Integra seats to pretty much any small car. If you can find them at a junk yard, it would be a cheap way to add some good seats. Or there are other aftermarket parts left on cars there that are available, for instance I found a racing steering wheel on a older Honda CRX, but I was in a hurry and couldn't grab it. There was a 300ZX there as well, but someone already grabbed the twin turbo set up.

If you know what you are doing and what you are looking for, a junk yard could save you a lot of money.
This isn't the exact junk yard I went to, but it was a similar set up.