The supercool NSU 1200TT on the track in Zandvoort, 1976
src: vroemmm
Category Archives: racing
Rally De Monte Carlo Historique: break them in!
These are some great photos from Rusty Nail Society, showing the raw and unfiltered side of classic cars being put through their paces at the Rally De Monte Carlo Historique——scarred and super cool. If only more automotive photography showed the real side of cars rather than the overpolished, overwaxed, shiny farce which is known popularly as automotive photography!
See the rest of these fantastic photos at Rusty Nail Society
foto of the day. S1 and RS3 and a tunnel.
I can only imagine the glorious 5 cylinder sounds coming into that tunnel as the Audi S1 quattro and an MTM-tuned RS3 pounded their way through the enclosed roadway. Beautiful photo.
src: Bennorz (via AudiSportFB)
Autodromo launches Chronographs!
Let me just say that i’ve really gotten into watches in the last 6 months; and much of this blame goes to Mr. Bradley Price, a great friend and a full-on fellow automobile enthusiast who launched his line of Autodromo watches last autumn to my standing ovation. As I type this post, I am wearing my black Autodromo Veloce with pride.
I can’t say enough good things about my Veloce. It feels great on the wrist, looks magnificent in any setting, and is built with quality I quite frankly never see in a watch of this price range. Sapphire coated glass, beautiful perforated black leather strap, total attention to detail, and hell it even came with an aluminium chassis card engraved with my watch number! How many watch companies include a chassis number with a watch!?
Autodromo is now introducing two new Chronographs based on the successful Vallelunga line. There is industrial prowess in these designs, and when he says the goal is to incorporate vintage and minimalist design ethos, he isn’t kidding. I think if there were two words which described these watches perfectly it would be vintage and minimalist.
As motoring enthusiasts, we often search for objects which are inspired by motoring, however in an artful, graceful, and gentlemanly way. Autodromo watches are functionally and artistically inspired by motoring; and those of us who understand the art of gauges and dashboards can appreciate this on first glance.
Oh and just look at the press release photos. No further words are needed. $550 for the Chronograph, and for precision control of your time while motoring.
Take a right turn over to the Autodromo website for more information:
foto of the day. Bonnet.
the Rene Bonnet which raced in Le Mans 1962; which eventually gave rise to the racing extravaganza which was Matra.
src: octane
NYC Premiere: Truth in 24 II
Last night I attended the debut showing of Truth In 24 II (Part 2, “Every Second Counts”) at the Audi Forum NYC. If you haven’t been to the Audi Forum in NYC, well it’s another lovely place for Audiphiles such as myself to hang out for an hour or two for special events such as this one. Set on Park Ave. and 47th street—it is open during the week to the public, and on the weekends for special events such as this one. Thanks to George (who makes a striking cameo in the film!) for getting me on the list for this.
I am a huge fan of the original Truth In 24, as I think it is one of THE great motorsports documentaries ever made. Jason Statham returns as the voice behind the action, with a slightly overdramatic tone—-however one that really does capture some of the excitement of the spectacle which is Le Mans.
So we all know the story here—-the 2011 Le Mans was one of THE greatest in the history of the La Sarthe beast…..and hence the idea behind Ti24-II was even stronger than the original. The race was even more interesting, the car was even more stunning (the R18 TDI is just blisteringly cool), and the storyline of that race creates a total atmosphere of how one team battled fierce competition against crashes, adversity odds during the race to become the outright winners.
You don’t have to be an Audi Sport fan to love this documentary—you just have to love the idea of motorsports. Part 2 lifts off where Part 1 closed the door—and it feels more like a continuation of the story rather than a new one. I was captivated by the documentary—by the beauty of the race cars, the trauma of watching a stressful race which I remember watching live last summer, and by the excellent narration, cinematography, and conversations with race personnel.
This is a must watch, as was the first one. Truth In 24 II will be made digitally and on DVD very soon, and will be showing in premieres around the country until then. Go see it.
Audi R8 V10 Spyder parked in the Audi Forum.
Shamal.
How cool is the Maserati Shamal? So cool that plenty of people don’t even know what it is……to me, it is quite possibly one of the coolest Maseratis ever made. Bulging fenders, a nasty 325hp V8, and a strange but fluid Marcello Gandini design which evolved the BMW-clone understated BiTurbo design into something wonderfully weird.
The other day when Automobiliac, Motoring Con Brio, and myself were at a Skip Barber open house, Bradley from Automobiliac mentioned the Maserati Shamal to me and i clenched my jaws with excitement……it’s a car which really gets me excited! I’m not sure why….i probably shouldn’t like it—-but i really do. I think the obscurity of it is appealing, as well as it being from the ‘dark days’ of Maserati…..in a time where we associate the Maserati badge with a fair bit of failure…..but the Shamal was no failure…
Here’s a short, but slightly scary/cryptic video of a Japanese Shamal owners club GTG, to celebrate 20 years of the Shamal.
src : NFScars, carblueprints
Return of ALPINE: Friday May 25th as the “Zar” concept
UPDATE! Apparently the neu Alpine will be unveiled as the “Zar” concept. (thank you GentlemanScooper)
According to the excellent and interesting Renaud Roubaudi, the details are that Renault will debut a NEW Alpine 2 days before the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix! Details as follows:
(translated from french)
“I confirm that the new Alpine Renault will be officially unveiled in Monaco Friday, May 25, the surrounding of 13h30/14 h and a World Champion Formula 1. After doing some laps on the circuit, the Alpine will park in front of the barge moored in the Red Bull Monaco harbor which will be held the press conference. Carlos Tavares, Executive Vice President of Operations for Renault, Laurens van den Acker, Design Director of Renault and Alain Prost, Renault Ambassador , will present all three. And POA that will immortalize this memorable day on video …”
2 days before that update, Renaud Roubadi also posted this:
“New Renault Alpine to be unveiled as a concept Monaco Friday, May 25, two days before the Grand Prix Formula 1.Renault officially announces the presentation of an iconic car turns 50, but make no mistake, this is the Alpine 2012 which made a big comeback. We also learn in the press release it develops 400 hp and it will do some laps. Nice publicity stunt for global fallout this revival. We expect everyone to discover the beautiful design. Neo retro or new style? ”
400hp? that sounds weird. It better NOT be a GT-R or a 370z rebadged.
Is it true? I hope so and i hope not. I’m scared to see what Renault have planned for this ‘resurrection’…..my info has suggested it will be a lightweight sports car, possibly electric or gas/electric hybrid. All i know is that if it is a 370z with new badges, there is an 80% chance I will have a seizure from disappointment. Either way, a debut in Monaco sounds like a pretty flashy debut for a new Alpine, but with the A110’s grand history of Monte Carlo rally—-it seems somewhat suitable I must say!
idea of the day: closed cockpit F1?
Well that’s interesting to wonder if F1 cars could ever be closed cockpit. This rendering was done by Iacoski and apparently inspired by Massa’s accident in 2009 where he got nailed in the head by debris!
Whatever you think about it, the rendering is definitely nicely done and very interesting! Something to think about…
Etiqueta Negra: best decorated men’s stores in the world.
Although it seems a couple of these cars may be replicas (thanks Bradley) , it is still hard to ignore how excellent these cars look sitting in a store front! Argentina-based Etiqueta Negra carefully place epic cars such as a Bugatti Type 35b and the Alfa Romeo 8c Tipo (these 2 are replicas, as per article above) into their store fronts, amidst some pretty nice clothing as well!
I’m going to have to visit the Soho NYC location when I get the chance, but meanwhile here are some choice photos of some of their storefronts; worthwhile to remember that these are all in different stores across the US, Honduras, and Argentina.
Which cars shown are real and which are not? Well i think the Bugatti and the Alfa are reps….but the rest are real?
Vettel and Alpine A110 (updated with original photos)
I had earlier in the week posted photos of Sebastian Vettel & an Alpine A110—-photos which I’ve found out have been ruined and over-processed by others! Anke Luckmann is the photographer of these excellent photos and contacted to let me know that they were far from the original photos as were meant to be shown.
She has been gracious enough to send me the original photos from the photoshoot for GQ (Germany), which by the way are much nicer than the ones I had posted before. So thank you to Anke and make sure to check out her site with more amazing photography by her on her site:
NOTE: If you are going to repost these photos, please repost 3 and then provide a link to this blog, as these were mailed to me by Anke for use on IEDEI.
1973 Kyalami in silence.
There’s something very peaceful about watching silent, vintage, 8mm race footage. This is from the 1973 9-hour race at Kyalami. Quite beautiful.
auction of the day. 908 V12 HDi
Well this is a bit sad, isn’t it…..recently Peugeot pulled out completely from Le Mans 2012 and as an Audi Sport fan, I was very let down by this news. Peugeot and Audi had such a fantastic rivalry over the past few years, and it really made for great sporting and great racing. Le Mans has been uber exciting to watch the past few years, and last year’s Le Mans will go down in history as one of THE most exciting races ever run at the La Sarthe.
Since then, i’ve heard of Peugeot selling their entire Paris offices, and liquidating lots of their assets. GM now owns a fraction of the company, and It’s hard to figure out exactly how fast Peugeot-Citroen are falling—-however it’s plain to see they are.
Next up on the chopping block? Some of their endurance racers. This is the 2007 Peugeot 908 HDi Fap that is going up on RM Auctions. I’m tired of hearing people long for the ‘older’ Le Mans cars saying that modern Le Mans cars aren’t that cool….nonsense! Modern Le Mans cars are amazing, and this is a great example of why. It is, however, sad to see Peugeot selling their history.
Some notable achievements of this #2 car:
• 2009 Le Mans Works entry
• 1st Overall at Monza, Silverstone and Spa
• Groundbreaking HDi diesel-powered V-12 engine
• Run by the Works-Peugeot factory race team
Auction estimate? 1.5 to 1.8 million Euros. I guess it’s time to cancel my Veyron order….
src: RMauctions via l’Endurance
foto of the day. Gulf Aston.
This really shouldn’t work…..but oh man does it work! Aston Martin V8 Vantage with Gulf livery. Beautiful….one of my most favourite coupe designs ever…
src: warspite1915
Lewis vs. Yao.
We all know that F1 drivers are ‘compact’ and lightweight, like the cars they race——but this photo really did crack me up this morning! Yao Ming (NBA) and Lewis Hamilton from F1.
(thanks to LateApex for sharing)
art: Leonello Design.
Leonello Design is a design company affiliated with the likes of Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, Zagato, and Touring Superleggera—-working on scale models and designs for them and other projects.
I’m not sure if any of them are available as prints or not, as not much is mentioned on their site.
Art:
src: Leonello
video of the day. Truth in 24 Part 2 official trailer!
If you haven’t seen the original “Truth In 24” you are really missing out. There is no reason you should NOT have seen the original! It is an amazing piece of filmmaking and a must-see for anyone into motor racing.
The exciting news is that part 2 is coming out about the R18 TDI’s dramatic win at the 2011 Le Mans. Very exciting stuff. That race was remarkable and now its been documented and will be released to coincide with the upcoming 2012 Le Mans!
Go here and watch the trailer for Part 2 and if you haven’t seen part 1, it is available FREE as a download through iTunes at the Audi USA site HERE
src: fourtitude
foto of the day. IEDEI business cards.
Now I just have to find people to give them to!
foto of the day. 50s.
“Four Audi 50 racing cars fighting for the lead at a Touring-Car-Race at Hockenheimring in the early 80´s” – eLKayPics
IEDEI 