Bush's Auto Blog: May 2009

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Supercar BBQ: Three Ferraris, a Lamborghini and a McLaren All Burn This Month

Within the past 30 days, supercars have been inexplicably catching fire and is begging the question, what's the deal? The only thing I can think of is the fact that most of these cars have probably been sitting for many months through winter and spring and now are emerging from their hibernation.

Most likely, while sitting, small problems could arise and very well be enough to result in a fireball of epic proportions. At least, that's what those in Maranello and Sant'Agata want us to think.

So far, just within the past 30 days, we've seen a McLaren, Lamborghini Gallardo, Ferrari 612, F430 and Enzo all suffer a fiery death. I wrote about the $2mil McLaren burning earlier this month and you can read the full story here. As for the others, here's a brief run down.

This unfortunate Lamborghini Gallardo met it's demise in Greece, in front of plenty of passing motorists. The cause of the fire is unknown, however as you can see from the next picture, there was hardly anything left to identify the car by.

The Gallardo after the fire was put out (above).

As for this Russian Ferrari 612, it's new owner was only behind the wheel for 30 minutes after noticing things getting a little too hot. From there, flames ripped through one of Maranello's finest, again leaving little to identify. As Ferrari 612's are a "hot" commodity in Russia, this one carried a price tag of nearly $850k.

Next, we head over to Eastern Europe, Romania to be exact. Where this Ferrari F430 went down in a blaze of glory following a crash.

Finally, we end our supercar barbeque in Okanagan Falls, BC, Canada. Where an unsuspecting, Ferrari Enzo owner would have to jump for his life after his $1million+ piece of automotive excellence would soon be engulfed in flames. The following report comes from an ADVrider board member (bross) who gave this account of what happened.

We rolled past and walked back to the scene. Jodie stopped and asked a man walking along the road if he knew what happened. He said "Yeah a guy was driving his Enzo Ferrari, it caught on fire and he jumped out." Jodie said "We saw that Ferrari drive by us in OK Falls, is the guy OK?" He said "Yeah, I'm the guy!" Then Jodie was struck speechless and said "I'm sorry"

The whole time he's not really looking at Jodie just texting furiously on his phone. He then went and sat down on the side of the road beside his duffel bag, all that he had left.

So there you have it, aluminum to ashes and carbon fiber to dust. If you're one of the lucky few to own a car such as these, do yourself a favor and get that scheduled service a little early.

Source: Jalopnik (1,2,3,4)
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Wednesday, June 3, 2009

AmericanMuscle.com You Kill it, We Grill It Barbecue Cook off Contest

It’s come to our attention that not all of our customers are out cruising the streets or lighting up the tracks in their super-tuned Mustangs 24/7. As it turns out, many of them spend ample time pony’d up to the barbecue searing, smoking and delivering meticulously rubbed and marinated meatiness to fork and knife pounding carnivores everywhere.

Well let it be known that we at American Muscle are hungry too. We’ve been known to sink our teeth deep into a hearty steak and chew like rabid dogs thrashing our heads until only bone remains. But we digress. With the summer grilling season now upon us, we are asking our customers to submit their favorite Ford Mustang-inspired recipes for the grill. Be it your 1/4-Mile Race Strip Steak, or your explosive NOS-Infused Filet Mignon, or your Extra Greasy Rack ‘n Pinion Ribs, you send us your favorite recipes and we’ll have our very own professional chef (Yes, we actually have a professional chef on staff, because that’s just how we roll.) prepare ‘em per your exact instructions.

And when all the grillin’ is done, the Official AmericanMuscle.com Eating Team, a select group of world-renowned barbecue aficionados who also just happen to work for us, will devour your delectable eats and proclaim a winner, or vomit, but hopefully the prior.

To the winner goes a Grand Prize package valued at more than $300 that includes a stainless steel Keg-a-Que portable grill, a deluxe 18-piece barbecue tool set, a manly American Muscle chef’s hat and apron (because you’ve gotta dress the part), an Extreme Barbecue Cookbook, and an Omaha Steak Gift Package that will be lucky to escape the building.

So get your entries in ASAP over at the AmericanMuscle Blog and let the good recipes roll!

The AmericanMuscle BBQ Contest
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Tuesday, June 2, 2009

G-Power Introduces 500 hp Supercharged BMW M3 Tornado

G-Power is far from new to the BMW tuning game. The company's name is nearly synonymous with "super-fast BMW." Their latest creation, the G-Power M3 Tornado is no exception.

Creating a very impressive 500 horsepower from the BMW M3's 4.0 liter V8 is achieved with the use of a T1-518 ASA centrifugal supercharger. With only 0,3 bar of pressure created, the supercharger helps to add 80 horsepower. Just enough to hit the 500 hp bragging point. In addition to added horsepower, torque is also upped from 295 lb/ft to over 350 lb/ft.

The added power and torque is enough to rocket the Tornado from 0-200 km/h (124 mph) in only 13.4 seconds. Which is a great improvement over the stock M3's time of 15.8 seconds. The Tornado's top speed is also worth bragging about, topping out at 200 mph.

In addition to the above mentioned engine mods, the Tornado also sports 20-inch G-Power Silverstone Diamond wheels, 4-trim muffler, carbon fiber interior accents and plenty of badging to let everyone know this is no run of the mill M3.

Source: G-Power via World Car Fans
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$2 Mil McLaren F1 Goes Up in Flames

The owner of this McLaren F1 had just brought his beloved $2 mil supercar out of a 6 month hibernation only to see the rare automotive masterpiece catch fire in one of the most expensive bonfires ever imagined.

Yesterday, before the McLaren could even stretch it's legs, an onlooker alerted the owner of apparent smoke coming from the car's carbon fibre engine bay. Before anyone could react, carnage ensued. Fire from the 6 liter BMW V12 quickly spread and engulfed the entire car. Unfortunately, the damage deemed the car a total loss.

Of course, the owner was insured. In fact, though valued at nearly $2 mil, the engineering masterpiece was insured for $3 mil. Still, it's hard to place a value on such an amazing piece of machinery. I'm sure the owner would much rather have his McLaren safe inside of his garage than a $3 mil insurance check, at least I would.

Source: Press Democrat, Bay Area Riders Forum via Jalopnik
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Sunday, May 31, 2009

No RS For You! Ford Focus RS Not Coming to the US

Autocar recently interviewed Ford's Global Performance Vehicles and Motorsport Business Development director, Jost Capito and found out some bad news for US consumers. The Ford Focus RS will not be coming stateside.

Capito explained why the Focus RS will not see US shores; "We'd like to, but the base car isn't homologated for North America, and that's too costly a job to carry out just for a niche vehicle like the RS," said Capito.

So there you have it, apparently we, as US car enthusiasts are not worth the added cost or effort to accommodate such an awesome car from a car maker who depends on our dollars to thrive. You would think they would have engineered the Focus RS to work in both the European and US car markets instead of "homologating" the car just for Europe. Thanks Ford!

Source: Autocar via World Car Fans
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Volkswagen Scirocco R Revealed

As any Volkswagen fan will know, models featuring an "R" designation are far from mundane. Featuring 265 horsepower, the VW Scirocco R is no exception. Here are the details and some great hi-res photos.

The Volkswagen Scirocco R features an updated version of VW's 2.0T engine currently found in the 5th generation GTI. Upgrades include a higher pressure turbo and larger intercooler which is enough to produce 265 horsepower and 258 ft/lbs of torque. A standard 6 speed manual or optional DSG semi-automatic transmissions will help put that power to the Scirocco's front wheels. Yes, unlike the all-wheel drive GTI R32, the Scirocco will sport front wheel drive in an effort to save weight.

Performance should fall in line with the current GTI R32 4motion with a 0-62 mph time of 6.5 seconds.

Look for the VW Scirocco R to reach European showrooms by the fall of 2009. Unfortunately, Volkswagen has no plans at the moment to bring the car stateside.

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Video: First Drive of the Volvo S60 Concept

The crew over at Swedish based, Teknikens Varld were lucky enough to go for a spin in the all-new Volvo S60 Concept. Documenting the entire trip, the video is entirely in Swedish. In case you do not speak the language, the main points are that the car features a 1.4 liter engine with automatic transmission and will be available in production form spring/summer of 2010. Also, it's noted that the value of the prototype they are driving is worth $2.6 mil!

Source: Teknikens Varld via Carscoop
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Sunday, May 17, 2009

1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Sets New Auction Record

You may recall an early post of mine about the 1957 Ferrari 250 TR Testa Rossa that was to be auctioned by RM Auctions. At the time, many speculated that this car could fetch the most money ever paid for an automobile. Well, it has indeed, to the tune of 9 million Euros!

This rare 1957 Ferrari 250 TR crossed the auction block today in Maranello, Italy. When the gavel struck, the winning bid was €9,020,000 ($12.1 million). As many had expected, the 250 TR broke the previous record of €7 million for James Coburn's 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder, making this 250 TR the most expensive car in the world.

“The historical significance of this car attracted a bidding war as collectors from around the world - both in the room and on the telephone – competed to secure one of the most alluring and iconic of all Ferrari racing cars,” said Max Girardo, Managing Director of RM Europe.

“The eyes of the world were watching today’s sale as cars of this quality are so rarely offered to the market. The quality and the provenance of the Testa Rossa speaks for itself and the price we achieved today is testament to that. We are delighted with the result the car achieved today,” he added.

Auction Photo: Sports Car Digest
Source: RM Auctions (click for press release)

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Fast and Furious Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R Stolen

If you've seen the latest Fast and Furious movie, you'll know this car at first glance. The blue Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R driven by Paul Walker in the movie has fallen victim to one fast and possibly furious car thief.

Swiped from a garage housing a number of collectible cars, the Skyline was the only car the thieves made off with. In the process though, they managed to scratch a Studebaker Silverhawk and Porsche Boxster as they made their way out of the garage.

Seeing as this car is not the most "low key" ride to boost, I'm sure it won't be long for someone to recognize it and alert the authorities. That is, unless this car is on it's way to one die-hard Fast and Furious fan who plans to keep the car from ever seeing the light of day.

According to the report, the car was worth $75,000 and unfortunately was not insured.

Source: Jalopnik
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Spied: 2010 Rolls Royce Ghost Spotted in Production Form

Formerly known as the 200EX or "Baby Rolls," the Rolls Royce Ghost has created quite a buzz this year. From spy shots to the debut of the 200EX concept at the Geneva Motor Show, the Ghost has been one of the most talked-about Rolls Royce's in quite some time. Now, new spy shots reveal the closest thing to a production version of the car yet.

The car was spotted by an amateur spy photographer as it was waiting for a ferry at the Calais-Dover crossing. As you can see, there is hardly any camouflage on the car with the exception of the blacked out grille and rear RR badge.

All in all, the car looks nearly identical to the 200EX we saw in Geneva. The only differences are the lack of visible exhaust pipes, headlights and wheels. From the interior shot, again the car is nearly the same as the concept.

Look for the Ghost to sport a new 507 horsepower, 6.6 liter, turbocharged V12 and to debut at this fall's Frankfurt Auto Show.

Source: Autojunk via Carscoop
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Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Sunday, May 31, 2009

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Bush's Auto Blog Archive