YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Consumer Reports cuts loose, compares Scion FR-S against Subaru BRZ. What 60 Ferrari F40s look (and sound) like. Biggest ever parade of Ferrari's finest supercar 23/07/12 -- A world record 60 Ferrari F40s took to the full Silverstone Grand Prix circuit during Sunday's Silverstone Classic powered by the AA event to mark the Italian supercar's 25th birthday.
The phalanx of scarlet red F40s led a glittering parade of marques, models and car clubs celebrating special milestones in the sun at the world's biggest classic motor racing festival. On Saturday it had been the turn of hundreds of BMW's Z1, Z3, Z4 and Z8 sportscars to lap the famous GP track as part of the UK's first 'Z-fest'. The F40 was the world's first 200mph road car when it appeared in 1987 and is still rated by many to be the finest supercar in history. It was also the legendary Enzo Ferrari's 'supercar swansong' before his death in 1988. About the Silverstone Classic The Silverstone Classic powered by the AA (20-22 July) is firmly established as the world's biggest classic motor racing festival.
Hydrogen fuel cells may get a shot at batteries after all. What Changed DOE Secretary Steven Chu's Mind About Hydrogen Fuel Cells Natural gas now being retrieved from shale provides an enormous source of hydrogen. He'll never use the word "fracking," but thanks to that new drilling technique, the U.S. Secretary of Energy now admits he's changed his mind about hydrogen fuel cells.
That's because the abundance of natural gas now being retrieved from shale also provides an enormous source of hydrogen that, when coupled with new reforming technology, produces energy with a low carbon footprint. When Steven Chu, a Nobel Prize winning physicist, was named Secretary of the Department of Energy in the Obama Administration, he quickly redirected much of the Department's automotive research efforts into battery electric vehicles. So much so that proponents of hydrogen fuel cells complained loudly that the Secretary was starving their research efforts.
Automakers will no doubt welcome the Secretary's change of heart. And it's about to get worse. Production Jaguar C-X75 will make 500 HP from 1.6L twin-charged four. Much has been said about the upcoming C-X75 from Jaguar, but now we have some real, tangible news. The hybrid supercar will be fitted with a 1.6-liter turbocharged inline-four capable of, apparently, 500 horsepower. According to Autocar, the diminutive engnine is able to acheive this output through twin-charging, or the employment of both a supercharger and turbocharger.
They are able to boost power at varying RPMs, thus making for a wide powerband. Oh, and speaking of revs, the engine is said to redline at a towering 10,000 RPMs. Jaguar engineers estimate that the eco-friendly performance machine will achieve a top speed of 200 miles per hour, and 0-60 time of below three seconds. The supercar never runs on gas alone, as the mid-mounted four-pot constantly charges up the 600-volt battery pack. The price for all of this high-tech low-emissions gadgetry? Researchers developing washless coating for cars. We could have easily filed this under "Too Good to Be True" or "Snake Oil," but it sounds legit, and certainly has our attention. Researchers in The Netherlands' Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) have developed a self-healing vehicle coating, meaning that one day, you may not have to wash your car.
Catarina Esteves of the department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at TU/e and her team claims to have invented a solution to the problem of minor scrapes. Apparently the nano-capsule technology features special chemical groups that are able to re-orient themselves in the event that a surface with this compound is scratched. The potential automotive use for this technology is obvious; it allows for the development of coatings that are not only water-resistant, but scratch resistant. The implementation of this technology is not limited to the automotive world – it can also be employed on contact lenses, smartphone screens, and solar panels. Aspid unveils menacing new GT-21 Invictus hammerhead [w/video]
Aspid Cars releases images of GT-21 Invictus hi-tech sports car Aspid Cars has released the first dramatic images of its new GT-21 Invictus, which features a distinctive semi open wheel appearance at the front of the car. The multi-million Euro project will create up to 200 hi-tech jobs and builds on advanced lightweight technologies developed for the Aspid Super Sport technology demonstrator unveiled at previous motor shows. Discussions are nearing completion with investors to determine the most suitable manufacturing location. Both cars are expected to enter production within two years. "The GT-21 Invictus complements the Aspid Super Sport, but is bigger and more powerful," says the car's chief designer and company founder Ignacio Fernández Rodriquez. "It has been a challenging styling exercise, but fortunately we have a really talented design team in the company.
They have done an excellent job evoking the values of the company in the car. " 24 Hours of Le Mans is even cooler in high-def slo-mo. Autoblog - We Obsessively Cover the Auto Industry. Herausgeputzt.