VW Golf TDI SportWagen concept is a taste of delicious things to come

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Wagon, Volkswagen, Diesel

Feast your eyes on the new longroof model of the seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf - something we've already seen with Variant badging overseas. This concept (yes, it really is a concept) previews the next Golf SportWagen that will go on sale in the US in early 2015, and makes its official debut next week at the 2014 New York Auto Show.

Why the concept designation? The car you see here uses a TDI clean-diesel engine and Volkswagen's 4Motion all-wheel drive. Oh sure, when the car comes to market next year, it'll be offered with both 1.8 TSI and 2.0 TDI engines - the former mated to either a five-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, the latter using a six-speed DSG dual clutch or six-speed manual - but as for all-wheel drive, well... that might not make the cut. A Volkswagen spokesperson told Autoblog that 4Motion is "under consideration" for the production model that'll go on sale next year, but as of this writing, the company is only planning to offer a front-drive SportWagen in our market.

We've always had a soft spot for the Jetta SportWagen (which is now, appropriately, finally using the Golf name in our market), and this new model looks like it will keep our interest piqued. We'll have more details on the concept when it's unveiled next week. In the meantime, scroll down for VW's official release.

Continue reading VW Golf TDI SportWagen concept is a taste of delicious things to come

VW Golf TDI SportWagen concept is a taste of delicious things to come originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 11 Apr 2014 11:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2014/04/11/vw-golf-tdi-sportwagen-concept-new-york-official/

Jim Hall Duncan Hamilton Lewis Hamilton David Hampshire

Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon pancaked the wall during practice at Darlington

Kyle Larson went to a backup car after bashing into the wall off of turn two during Friday's first practice session at Darlington.

Austin Dillon did the same thing, but he didn't hit the wall as hard. While the right side of his car was pancaked, it wasn't to the extent of Larson's.

Don't let the title of the video fool you. These were not Darlington stripes. These were almost accidents. After Larson hit the wall, NASCAR even threw a caution to check the track for debris.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Martin Truex Jr. and Alex Bowman hit the wall too, but not as severely as the other two drivers. Theirs were probably the closest to a Darlington stripe, a sight we'll see a lot on Saturday night.

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @NickBromberg

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/kyle-larson-and-austin-dillon-pancaked-the-wall-during-practice-at-darlington-175605429.html

Geki Olivier Gendebien Marc Genй Elmer George

Matt Kenseth wins pole for race at Auto Club Speedway

If there was ever a time where knockout qualifying resembled the previous one-car-at-a-time qualifying format, Friday at Auto Club Speedway was it.

Beause of the abrasive nature of the asphalt at ACS, most teams elected to make one qualifying lap in each of the three qualifying rounds, much like in a regular one-and-done format. The man on top after the third round? Matt Kenseth, who will start first for Sunday's race after he won the final session.

Brad Keselowski continued Team Penske's run of good qualifying form and will start second. His teammate Joey Logano is seventh. Between them are Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Jeff Gordon.

Teams are not allowed to change tires in NASCAR's new qualifying format. While speeds may increase throughout qualifying at other tracks due to minor adjustments and drivers' adrenaline, that wasn't the case Friday. The rough track meant that every additional lap on a set of tires meant a a slower maximum speed. If a driver didn't get the most out of his or her car on the first lap, a second qualifying attempt was monumentally tougher.

Some were successful at it thanks to cooling track temperatures, like Greg Biffle, who was able to knock out Jamie McMurray from the top 24 at the end of the first round. But most drivers didn't even elect to try a second lap.

ACS has been become a darling of NASCAR over the past couple of years, and for good reason. In addition to the great finish of last year (wreck excluded) amongst Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Joey Logano, the tire wear and multiple grooves at the track produce ample passing, especially for a two-mile circuit. But the same ingredients that produce a great race may not produce a great qualifying session.

Friday's qualifying wasn't unentertaining, but it may be proof that the recipe for what makes a good 400 or 500-mile race doesn't necessarily taste good for a qualifying format such as this. This qualifying format is predicated on drivers making multiple runs in a session. Granted, many drivers waited until the middle and end portions of the first 25-minute session to make their qualifying attempt, but it's obvious that a majority of 40+ drivers making a single lap in 25 minutes isn't the most dynamic of sessions. (With two minutes to go in the final session, just four drivers had completed a run.)

But just like the races on the Sprint Cup schedule, not everything can be incredibly entertaining. If qualifying drama is ratcheted down just a bit at the expense of the drama and qualiity of the racing that is to follow, you're not going to find too many people complaining.

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @NickBromberg

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/matt-kenseth-wins-pole-for-race-at-auto-club-speedway-005041164.html

Willi Heeks Nick Heidfeld Theo Helfrich Mack Hellings

McLaren set to power Formula E racing

WOKING, SURREY, UK - 12th November 2012 - McLaren Electronic Systems Limited today announced that it will provide the electric engine, transmission and electronics for cars that will participate in the FIA's exciting new Formula E race series. McLaren will...

Source: http://www.motorsportsjournal.com/archives/2012/11/mclaren_set_to_power_form.php

Paul Goldsmith Josй Froilбn Gonzбlez Oscar Gonzбlez Aldo Gordini

Power Rankings: The battle is for third as Earnhardt Jr. and Keselowski separate themselves from the pack

Guess what's back, back, back again? Power rankings are back, tell a friend. Our weekly From the Marbles staple is back for 2014 and once again, it's far from a scientific formula as it's the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. Direct all your complaints to us at happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com.

And no, we're not expanding Power Rankings to 16 drivers.

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 1): We touched on it in the Chrome Horn Debrief, but it's worth mentioning again that crediting the new Chase format for Junior's decision to gamble on fuel is unfair to NASCAR history, even if Junior says the decision was motivated by the format. This is not the first time in NASCAR that someone has gambled on fuel mileage to attempt to win a race, nor is it the last. And besides, it's not like the No. 88 was three laps short and threw a Hail Mary.

2. Brad Keselowski (LW: 2): When you've got two guys separated by a single point in the standings and they each have a win this early in the season, we're going to the lowest finish tiebreaker. Keselowski's is third, while Junior's is second. Sorry Brad, you stay in second. But we promise that you're even a closer second than you were last week. Have a Girl Scout cookie.

3. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 5): Speaking of Girl Scout cookies, what's with the reaction to this ad? Check out some of the tweets that Johnson responded to. Good grief. On the track Sunday, Johnson finished sixth, his third straight top-six finish to start the year. Yes, it's even possible that Johnson and the No. 48 crew is having an "underrated" start to the season. Part of it is the exceptional performances of the two drivers ahead of him and part of it is the fact that Johnson still thinks his team is a tick off. Scary.

4. Jeff Gordon (LW: 4): Three races and three top 10s for Gordon. If yo're tiering the points standings, he's right with Johnson in the second tier. And hey, the early returns are promising over these first three races about the disappearance of the Gordon restart, in which Gordon loses multiple positions immediately after the green flag waves. But don't ask us if that has anything to do with the new points system, because we don't want to see how deep the abyss is.

5. Kevin Harvick (LW: 3): Once again, Harvick was the strongest Stewart-Haas car, but this time he didn't get the highest finish. After a broken left-front hub, Harvick was relegated to a 40th place finish and was actually last amongst his SHR comrades. Yes, he finished below Tony Stewart, though it's not impossible to think that Stewart wasn't racing the final half of Sunday's race. That car just disappeared.

6. Joey Logano (LW: 6): After finishing fourth, having Logano sixth doesn't seem fair. We'll totally admit it. But at the same time, can you really vault him above Harvick? He's ahead of Gordon by one point in the standings, so there's a slight argument there. And he's of course ahead of Harvick too. But if we're going to take the strength of Harvick's races (outside of the hub) and stack them against Logano's, Cupcake gets the edge. And besides, we need some variety.

7. Carl Edwards (LW: 9): We also mentioned this too on the Chrome Horn Debrief, but don't be too quick to jump on Edwards' Vegas performance as an endorsement of Roush. He was far and away better than Greg Biffle and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. all weekend. As an endorsement that Jimmy Fennig and Edwards are the best team at the shop? Sure. But nothing more than that at the moment.

8. Matt Kenseth (LW: 8): This was not the most compelling of race-title defenses by Flatline. He wasn't bad by any means -- he did a good job working his way up from a starting position that was settled in the first round of qualifying -- but it wasn't what we became accustomed to last year from this team either. Oh, and we'll also point out here that Kenseth didn't take tires and made a track position gamble for the win with 41 laps to go last year at Vegas. On Sunday, the final restart was with 42 to go.

9. Ryan Newman (LW: 12): It's two straight seventh-place finishes for Newman. We asked in last week's power rankings if he'd quasi-assume the role of Kevin Harvick in being far ahead of his two teammates. Well, after Sunday's race, there's been a different Richard Childress Racing car toting the bucket. If there's parity at RCR and it's not because one team came down to the level of the other two, it's great news for the organization.

10. Denny Hamlin (LW: 6): After the second-place finish at Daytona, Hamlin's finished outside the top 10 the last two weeks. But is it really that big of a concern? He's got two good tracks coming up in the next three weeks as well as one that he was a few football fields from winning at last year. On that note, how many times are we going to relive the Logano-Hamlin Bristol/California dustup over the next two weeks. 100?

11. Kyle Busch (LW: 11): Busch's car was super-fast over the first 100 laps of Sunday's race. From then on, yeah, not so much. After one restart late in the race, Busch's aggression made him some quick gains and you wondered if the car was back to where it was at the beginning of the race. But as soon as Busch made those passes, he started sliding backwards.

12. Paul Menard (LW: NR): PFM's first top-three finish since 2012 is worthy of an appearance in Power Rankings. Menard was an early-2013 Power Rankings staple before sliding out as the summer hit. Will he be able to repeat the effort in 2014? All it'll take is a few more top 10 finishes

�

The Lucky Dog: Martin Truex Jr. finished 14th after a not-so-stellar first two weeks of the season.

The DNF: He finished the race, but Stewart gets it this week.

Dropped Out: Greg Biffle

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @NickBromberg

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/power-rankings--the-battle-is-for-third-as-earnhardt-jr--and-keselowski-separate-themselves-from-the-pack-152742258.html

Kerry Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr Carl Michael Edwards III

MOUNTAIN VIEW RACING TEAM REPORT NHRA Nationals

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas Another final round for Nobile in Las Vegas LAS VEGAS (October 29) - still one week shy of his 21st birthday, Mountain View Racing Pro Stock driver Vincent Nobile has never...

Source: http://www.motorsportsjournal.com/archives/2012/10/mountain_view_racing_team.php

Max Jean Stefan Johansson Eddie Johnson Leslie Johnson

Brother-in-law of Jimmie Johnson killed in San Diego skydiving accident

The brother of six-time Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson's wife Chandra was killed in a skydiving accident Sunday afternoon in California.

Jordan Janway, 27, had over 1,000 jumps of skydiving experience and was training other employees at Skydive San Diego when the accident occurred. The owner of the company said he believed Janway collided with the person he was jumping with.

From NBC San Diego:

Buzz Fink told reporters that the victim was practicing a maneuver called tracking when he collided with his jump partner. At this point, Fink believes Janway may have been knocked unconscious and unable to open his parachute.

The other jumper involved in the midair collision was not injured and was able to safely land in the drop zone.

Johnson released a statement Monday asking for prayers and privacy.

"The Johnsons are saddened by the tragic passing of Chandra?s brother, Jordan Janway, 27," the statement said. "Jordan was an incredible son, brother, uncle and friend and will be dearly missed. Please keep the Janway family in your thoughts and prayers. The family asks for privacy at this time."

Janway was reported missing at 4:30 p.m. Sunday and was found at approximately 5:15 p.m. The training jumps were happening from an altitude of 13,000 feet and the collision happened between 10,000 and 6,000 feet.

The owner of Skydive also said the parachutes have an embedded chip that automatically deploys the chutes if a diver is falling too fast. However, Janway's chip was under maintenance and he chose to jump without it. Because he had so many jumps, he was not required to have the chip in his chute and Fink said he chose to jump without it.

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @NickBromberg

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/brother-in-law-of-jimmie-johnson-killed-in-san-diego-skydiving-accident-232645148.html

Charles Robert Hamilton IV Charles Robert Hamilton V Kevin Michael Harvick Virgil Ernest Irvan III

Paul Menard's third place finish at Las Vegas was his highest since at Kansas in 2012

Yes, that was Paul Menard briefly side-by-side with Jimmie Johnson for second with less than 50 laps to go in Sunday's Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas.

Right after Menard pulled alongside Johnson, the caution flag flew and the field was jumbled after pit stops. But Menard drove through the field throughout the race's final 42 laps and finished third. The last time he finished third? in October 2012.

Menard has one Cup Series victory. It came at Indianapolis in 2011.

"When that caution came out, we knew that we were going to pit," Menard said. "The question was whether or not to take right sides or gas only. Took gas only, spun the tires really bad on the restart.Everybody on the outside lane seemed to really spin their tires. Whoever had clean air seemed like they checked out.� You saw the 2 do that earlier, the 88 did it at the end. So clean air obviously is still very important, but I felt like our car, I could move lanes and we could race people and pass people, which was obviously really important"

Yes, very important. While drivers like Kyle Busch and Joey Logano found their cars hard to handle in traffic, Menard was able to make headway with relative ease.

There was a chance that Menard was going to miss Sunday's race too. His wife, Jennifer, is due to have the couple's first child on Tuesday. Matt Crafton, the 2013 Camping World Truck Series champion who drives part-time for RCR in the Nationwide Series, was on standby for Menard in case he had to fly back to North Carolina.

"My phone is back at the hauler so she might have called, but I told her to call," Menard said. "Matt Crafton is my backup and he really wants to get in the car, so I told Jennifer if it's important, call Matt because he's sure as hell going to tell me.I didn't get the call, though, so I guess everything is good."

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @NickBromberg

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/paul-menard-s-third-place-finish-at-las-vegas-was-his-highest-since-at-kansas-in-2012-010442421.html

Kevin Paul Lepage William Ashton Lewis Jr Sterling Burton Marlin Mark Anthony Martin