this composite was made by Atomic80 from the M5Board.
duo.
as an Audiphile, i have to admit this made me laugh a bit! however i am most definitely interested to see what is being released…as the “duo”. Seems like it will be a bicycle…supposed to debut this weekend at the Audi Collection.
http://www.audi-collection.com/duo
Automakers, of course have a history of making bicycles—–and Audi is no different. Here’s one of their previous bicycles called the ‘Audi Design Cross’….quite nice, although i’m not really a bicycle person—so i have no idea whether it is any good or not.
foto of the day. 2000 HF
The superb Lancia Flavia 2000 HF!
RIP David E. Davis
Huge in the US automotive journalism world; with Car & Driver, as founder of Automobile Magazine, and later Winding Road. He was articulate and interesting and had a large amount of influence on the creation of automotive blogging and writing. He died of cancer at the age of 80. (thanks to Fourtitude for finding the video)
“Anatomy of a pothole”
I drive a lot through New York City—-and everyday I find myself wondering HOW the potholes in the road just get bigger and bigger. They fix them, they come back. After several years of commuting by car through NYC city streets; I have learned areas where the road is worse than others, in my mental data bank of pothole summaries. That being said, there are always new surprises which bubble up.
So how are potholes made!?
“It’s hard to believe those chasms in the pavement aren’t the remnants of miniature explosions. Instead, they’re carved by plain old water. The process usually starts with one little crack that fills with H2O. When water freezes, it expands, and when the water inside the crack expands, it pushes the asphalt outward and upward—a lot like when you forget a soda in the freezer and return to find a frozen volcano bursting from the bottle. “
read the rest of this interesting article here:
Anatomy of a Pothole – U.S. Roads and Infrastructure – Popular Mechanics
2012 Alfa Romeo Giulia?
I loved the latest Alfa Giulietta when i was in Italy last week—it is beautiful and probably the best looking hatchback i’ve seen in recent memory….far better in person than any photo can do it justice. Found this pic scattered across the web; obviously a low likelihood for ‘the truth’ since Autoxpress, the fine purveyors of automotive lying are behind it—–however it is an interesting rendering, and I think it looks quite nice. As I mentioned in my post-Italy post….i think the Alfa 159 is a thing of utter beauty, so it is difficult to follow it up, but I think if the Giulia looked anything like this, it might be possible.
MotoGP official pace car: 1M
the uber cool BMW 1M is the official pace car for the MotoGP series this year—here are some promo pics.
you can find many other pics over at BMWBlog:
http://www.bmwblog.com/2011/03/18/debut-bmw-1-series-m-coupe-motogp-safety-car/
art of the day. zandvoort.
an original programme from Zandvoort, 1968
foto of the day. more trans-am.
1968 race at Lime Rock.
(click to enlarge)
vintage trans-am racing fotos.
There are just wonderful photos. from the 1970 Road America race
credit: Carpenterdesign (Autosport)
BMW 1M vs. Audi TT-RS
Car & Driver is improving!!—-good on them to test the 2 cars we have all been waiting to see a test of against each other—the wicked Audi TT-RS and the majestic BMW 1M. I love both of these cars—kind of torn because of my ‘Audiphile’ nature telling me to prefer the TT-RS, however deep somewhere in my head it’s the 1M that captures my imagination massively. I do despise the looks of the TT-RS, as i think they pretty much ruined the 2nd generation of the TT—a car that deserved to evolve better from the timless MK1. To me, the 1M’s styling makes it one of the best looking cars of my lifetime. Imaginative, toy-like, and just aggressive.
The Infiniti G37 IPL is also in this comparison, however doesn’t really match up to the other 2 in terms of size, style, or performance. The TT-RS posts a 0-60 time of 3.6 seconds (!!!!!) and beats the other two in lap times and most performance criteria. No surprise there, but by price, i have to say the BMW 1M is such a great car starting at $47k. I don’t think the owners of either of these 2 monsters will be dissappointed….i think the Porsche Cayman R would have been a good 3rd car in this comparison. Meanwhile….please excuse me while i continue to have wet dreams about that orange 1M.
(these scans were uploaded by Superchargedcarman from 1addicts)
CLICK TO ENLARGE
foto of the day. P57
One of my favourite F1 cars ever….the BRM P57 driven by Graham Hill at the 1965 Belgian Grand Prix.
ad of the day. Cimarron!
At least they got the driving gloves right!!! I’ve never seen a dash where the radio is visible through the corner of the steering wheel!
“the sound”
For me, there are no race cars (aside from Can-Am cars) which even come close to the insanely sinister snarling, crackling, popping, growling, wastegate ditching roar by the rallye quattro. I had read an article in the past, which commented that the quattro made other rally cars of that era sound like family estate cars. I could listen to this all day…
foto of the day. RS in snow.
This winter has been a lot of fun. I’m going to miss it……
Porsche 911 Carrera RS (possible replica…) playing in the snow….
BMW 1-series M….hmm…
I have always been a fan of the 1-series—–almost traded for one 2 years ago, however I changed my mind after sitting in one for a little while. I still love them though—-to me they are the only BMW on sale today that gets me interested. So the upcoming 1-series M seems like a pretty badass version of an already stellar performer in the 135i.
That being said…i just priced a 1M at $49k+ using the BMW build-your-own feature on their website. Part of me thinks sub-$50k is a bit of a bargain for such a nicely equipped, limited edition, smaller version of the M3…..but is that really a reasonable price? Sometimes I think it is—-whereas other times I think it is an absurd price for a hotted up 135i, which can be had for significant discounts. I’m not really sure what to think. But i like the alcantara-coated interior, i like the vulgar wide fenders, and I like the sound of 335hp under the bonnet, M3 bits, massive brakes and the look of pure aggression overall It’s not as quick as the upcoming TT-RS and it’s not as well recognized or respected as the M3—-but for someone who had $50k to spend….and really loved the purer side of BMW’s M division——i think this car is a nice example of how BMW can get it right sometimes….assuming you’ve got the cash! IF i had the cash, i would most certainly buy one in a heartbeat.
BMW site with specs:
http://www.bmwusa.com/standard/content/vehicles/2011/m/1seriesmcoupe/default.aspx
911 GT3 RS colour of the day.
A combination I haven’t seen before—–reminds me of ‘Nimbus Grey’. Love it. If i had one of these in my garage, i’m pretty sure the colour scheme would be quite close to this one….
hatchbacks: Suzuki Swift Sport
After my trip to Italy, I found myself with a new appreciation for ‘small’ hatchbacks one can throw around into parking spots—-one of my favourite hatchbacks i saw in Italy was the Suzuki Swift Sport. Firstly, their interiors are very cool and little hot hatch-ish goodness—i like their boxy, functional lines, and they have a very planted look to them in person. I didn’t see many of these during my trip—-but the 2 or 3 of them I did see convinced me I liked them. Rumour has it that Suzuki will introduce this car to the US market this year—–hey Suzuki—-DO IT! pioneer the ‘new’ hot hatch movement in the states!
I just went to the UK Suzuki site, and found that this 125 HP, 2400 pounds….for 12,995 GBP. If they brought this car over here for $15k, it would be absolutely stellar……hey Suzuki…..DO IT!
btw, here’s the latest Suzuki Swift S-Concept presented in March at the Geneva Auto Show….a little ‘overdone’ in styling, but upgraded performance likely makes the upgrades worth it. Digging the functional and tidy interior as well.
foto of the day. quattros.
3 of my favourite race cars ever made…together…
separated at birth: BMW 2002 GT4 & Audi 100 Coupe S
I have never found much similarity in BMW and Audi’s overall designs, however I had never really looked at photos of the superb 100 Coupe S side by side with the ‘rare’ Frua design study 2002 GT4 side by side. It’s amazing to know that both of these designs first debut’d in 1969 at around the same time; however whereas BMW rejected many of Frua’s designs for their cars (however ultimately using the ideas in the Frua penned E12 5-series), Audi ended up producing a limited edition run of 100 Coupes. They may not be identical designs, however i think this may be the closest Audi and BMW ever got, and probably will ever get in terms of design studies. Personally I think they are both fantastic with their heavy Italian influences; and while the 2002 GT4 went into prototype obscurity—the 100 Coupe S maintains its popularity amongst dedicated enthusiasts.
IEDEI 
