Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/caranddriver/blog/~3/Z81YQZQYKlg/
Saturday
Audi RS7 Dynamic Edition to Debut in New York, Will Hit Dealers in Early Summer [2014 New York Auto Show]
With looks to spare and a 560-hp 4.0-liter V-8 providing the muscle, Audi?s RS7 is the perfect vehicular pallet for showcasing the wide range of customization options available through Audi?s exclusive personalization program. To get the ball rolling and draw some attention to the program, Audi is debuting the exclusive RS7 dynamic edition in the […]
Friday
Targeted Spending Helps Boost Kansas City?s Walkability
The Alliance for Biking and Walking released a big new report yesterday that measures the nation’s progress on active transportation.
Kansas City has been investing in safer streets, and it’s moving up in walkability rankings. Photo: BikeWalkKC
There’s a ton of data to nerd out on, but one thing that might be particularly interesting to local advocates [...]
Kansas City has been investing in safer streets, and it’s moving up in walkability rankings. Photo: BikeWalkKC
There’s a ton of data to nerd out on, but one thing that might be particularly interesting to local advocates [...]
Source: http://streetsblog.net/2014/04/17/targeted-spending-helps-boost-kansas-citys-walkability/
Kerry Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr Carl Michael Edwards III
Thursday
2015 Dodge Challenger gets 6.4L 485-HP V8 Scat Pack
Filed under: New York Auto Show, Coupe, Performance, Dodge
While it's not seeing the drastic facelift of its brother, the Charger, at the 2014 New York Auto Show, the 2015 Challenger is packing some upgrades of its own. It wears even more retro-inspired styling cues, and there are new 6.4-liter Scat Pack and Shaker trims.
If you thought the Challenger looked retro before, Dodge is taking things even farther with inspiration for the refresh coming from the iconic 1971 model. Up front, it has a new split grille, a larger power bulge in the hood and projector fog lights. At the rear, the classic inspiration continues with split LED taillights with Gloss Black trim, and a rear valance panel redesigned to make the 2015 model look wider and lower.
The '71 motif is carried inside as well with a high-sill center console and aluminum gauge bezels. There's still more than a touch of modernity, with an available 8.4-inch Uconnect infotainment system and 7-inch customizable display between the retro-inspired speedometer and tachometer. For better safety, the Challenger is also now available with forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross path detection. Stability control and electric power steering are standard across all models too.The biggest mechanical change for the refresh is that the TorqueFlight eight-speed automatic is now available throughout the range. It's standard on the SXT trim and optional on all other models.
Dodge is also adding the new 6.4-liter Scat Pack and Shaker models. The Scat Pack rumbles with Chrysler's venerable 6.4-liter (392 cubic-inch) V8, now with 485 horsepower and 475 pound-feet of torque, offered with either a six-speed manual or the eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters. It also wears Brembo brakes to slow it down, and 20-inch wheels for style. Dodge predicts the big V8 with the automatic will hit 60 miles per hour in the mid-four-second range and sprints the quarter mile in the low 12-second range. The package also adds a bumblebee tail stripe, HID headlights and a gloss black grille surround.
The Shaker is available with either the 6.4-liter or 5.7-liter V8s and boosts performance with a functional hood scoop mated to a cold-air intake. It also comes standard with the Super Track Pak suspension package with Goodyear Eagle F1 tires, a black graphics package and sport seats.
Dodge must think that the retro style of the Challenger is one of its major selling points because it's leaning hard into the look for the refresh. Mixing it with more modern safety equipment is probably a good idea, though. Scroll down to read about all the changes for the 2015 model.
Continue reading 2015 Dodge Challenger gets 6.4L 485-HP V8 Scat Pack
2015 Dodge Challenger gets 6.4L 485-HP V8 Scat Pack originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Apr 2014 00:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.autoblog.com/2014/04/17/2015-dodge-challenger-official-photos-new-york/
Wednesday
Volvo S60L Petrol Plug-in Hybrid is the full package
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Volvo, China
At next week's Beijing Motor Show, Volvo is set to introduce a new member of its plug-in hybrid family. The company has had success with the world's first diesel PHEV, the V60 plug-in hybrid, but the new S60L is dubbed a PPHEV. The extra P stands for petrol.
Unsurprisingly given the debut location, the S60L PPHEV is a vehicle that is destined for the Chinese market. Volvo says the car should arrive in "early 2015" after production starts at the company's Chengdu plant. There is a chance that China-built Volvos will make their way to the US at some point, but whether that invasion fleet includes the S60L PPHEV is difficult to predict at this point."This is our most technologically advanced powertrain ever" - Peter Mertens
Similar to the V60 PHEV, the plug-in S60L mates up a four-cylinder, 238-horsepower Drive-E turbo engine with a 68 hp electric motor fed by an 11.2-kWh lithium-ion battery pack to be, "an electric car, hybrid car and high-performance car all rolled into one," Volvo claims. The two power sources provide 350 and 200 newton meters of torque (258 and 148 pound-feet), respectively. The torque is routed through an eight-speed automatic gearbox and the whole package uses just two liters of fuel per kilometer (the equivalent of 117 miles per gallon) in default hybrid mode. All-electric range is a solid 30 miles. In a prepared statement (available below), Volvo's senior VP of research and development, Peter Mertens, called the setup, "our most technologically advanced powertrain ever." If it's that good, Volvo, go ahead and sell the car worldwide.
Continue reading Volvo S60L Petrol Plug-in Hybrid is the full package
Volvo S60L Petrol Plug-in Hybrid is the full package originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 16 Apr 2014 10:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsSource: http://green.autoblog.com/2014/04/16/volvo-s60l-petrol-plug-in-hybrid/
Tuesday
2014 Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race Interview With Scion FR-S #3 Phil Keoghan
Phil Keoghan relates the many different situations where he was exposed to driving experiences that would have prepared him for this challenge ... including driving an IndyCar as well as the international driving situations presented to him during his many years at being the host of "Amazing Race."
Source: http://www.motorsportsjournal.com/archives/2014/04/2014_toyota_pro-celebrity.php
Scott Russell Riggs Hiroshi Fushida Beppe Gabbiani Bertrand Gachot
Monday
Power Rankings: Carl Edwards maintains the top spot
Our Power Rankings are far from a scientific formula. In fact, it's the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. And you think we dislike your favorite driver, so it makes sense, right? Direct all your complaints to us at happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com.
No. 1 Carl Edwards (LW: 1): Your last memory of Edwards from Sunday's race is probably his struggles with a flat tire on the apron of turns one and two, right? Well, after getting fresh tires on the final caution flag, Edwards ended up 10th. It's the type of run that good points days are made of, if those were something that could still be publicly lauded by drivers without fear of straying from the script.
No. 2 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 2): We can definitely get on board with the theory supported by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski that the bumps along the backstretch at Auto Club Speedway put too much load on the tires. Repaving the backstretch only? That's not something that should impact the quality of racing, and could even serve to enhance it. Oh, Junior finished 12th after having two tire issues on Sunday.
No. 3 Jeff Gordon: (LW: 4): Here's where we have to balance the next three drivers, because they all fell victim to circumstances out of their control that derailed great runs. For Gordon, it was the final caution of the race that sent everyone to pit road. He restarted seventh, was trapped on the inside as the field went into turn one and finished 13th. We can use "Gordon Restart" here as a joke, but he got going well enough, he just didn't have anywhere to go through the corner.
No. 4 Jimmie Johnson (LW: 5): Here's the odds-on favorite for the win on Sunday. Martinsville probably played into Johnson's comments a bit on Friday, as Vader knew that a track where he routinely kicks (historic) ass at was coming up. And hell, that win almost happened at Auto Club anyway, until he cut a tire with seven laps to go.
No. 5 Brad Keselowski (LW: 3): Keselowski ultimately couldn't recover from his tire issue, but there was one problem he had that had nothing to do with anything the No. 2 team did. Keselowski, along with Gordon and Clint Bowyer, didn't pit under an early caution because while the flagman at the end of pit road was waving the pit open flag, the light above was red. NASCAR says the flag is greater than the light -- and that the official got his uniform caught in the fence -- but the top three saw the light and bailed. Keselowski and crew chief Paul Wolfe elected to stay out instead of pitting a lap later and fell like a rock to the back of the pack. But they shouldn't have had to make that choice in the first place.
No. 6 Kyle Busch (LW: NR): From nowhere to the top half of Power Rankings. Seems fitting for our fifth winner in five races. We ask this not having checked, nor sure where to start, but who would be the last driver to win consecutive races at a non-restrictor plate track with last-lap passes? While uncommon, it's had to happen before, right?
No. 7 Matt Kenseth (LW: 8): Did you know Flatline finished fourth? After starting on the pole, it was a similar run to what Denny Hamlin had last week. Kenseth quickly lost the lead but maintained his spot in the top 10 for the rest of the race. But since Kenseth really didn't challenge for the lead after a six lap stretch that ended on lap 126 or was involved in the four-person race to the checkers, he was as much as an afterthought as you can be with a very good car.
No. 8 Tony Stewart (LW: 12): Had Stewart's car stuck to the bottom of turns one and two on the final lap, might he have been in victory lane instead of Kyle Busch? Stewart went for it in those corners and the car almost stayed glued to the track. Instead, he had to get out of the throttle and that opened the door for Busch and Larson to drive through. After two bad finishes in three races, it was Stewart's second-straight top five.
No. 9 Kevin Harvick (LW: 7): Since this is three different calamities in three races for Harvick and things come in threes, he's done with the mechanical failures for a while, right? Tires were Harvick's undoing as a left-rear tire failure messed up the bodywork of his car and even the gas line. The camera shot of his team fixing and gassing the car as the gas spilled all over pit road was fantastic.
No. 10 Kyle Larson (LW: NR): After Larson's win in the Nationwide Series and second-place finish Sunday, he deserves to be here, right? He's improved his finishes in all five races after a bad showing in the Daytona 500 and scored a top-10 at Bristol. Though to continue the streak would mean a win at Martinsville and that seems unlikely. Many people have been quick to say that Larson will win this year, and it's entirely possible. However, it's also entirely possible he won't. He's still a rookie. If he doesn't, let's not view it as a disappointment.
No. 11 Jamie McMurray (LW: NR): McMurray got the good finish that he deserved at Bristol by finishing sixth at Auto Club. Had he not been forced to retire at Bristol after getting caught in the oil from Kevin Harvick's car, he would be somewhere in the bottom half of the top 10 in the points standings. Instead, he's 12th. Don't think that Larson is the most likely Ganassi winner just yet.
No. 12 Joey Logano (LW: 6): Logano takes a big fall after issues plagued his team's speed at Auto Club over the weekend. After being forced to go to a backup car with a fast primary car, the backup car was just as fast. But a week after suffering a power steering failure, the rear gear broke on the backup car and Logano ended up 39th.
Lucky Dog: How about Kurt Busch, who finished third? Or Brian Vickers, who was seventh?
The DNF: After making his 2014 Power Rankings debut, Aric Almirola finished last when he crashed with Brian Scott.
Dropped Out: Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Denny Hamlin
Trevor Bayne Out! Pet Care Toyota Jason Leffler David Carl Allison
Sunday
NASCAR's new Air Titan promises even more drying time reductions
On the heels of Air Titan, NASCAR's new track drying system that was just expanded to the entire Sprint Cup Series circuit for the 2014 season, there's now Air Titan 2.0.
Yes, there's really a decimal there.
When announcing the newer version of Air Titan, which will be a self-contained unit on the back of a Toyota Tundra truck. Because it's smaller than the previous version, the sanctioning body says that more units can be used at each track and drying time can be cut 25-50 percent and less fuel will be used.
But it's 25-50 percent of what?
When the original Air Titan was introduced, NASCAR said that it hoped to cut track drying time by up to 80 percent on previous track drying efforts with jet dryers. That was obviously a long-term goal, and one that still seems to be far in the future.
February's Daytona 500 was delayed by rain and after the rain finally stopped, it took 2 hours and 15 minutes to dry the track with Air Titan and assorted jet dryers. Based off NASCAR's original estimate at last February's annoucement, track-drying time at Daytona with jet dryers was 2 hours and 30 minutes.
Yes, for all of the hoopla surrounding Air Titan, it was a 15 minute reduction. Taking the best-case 50 percent from that, it's still a dry time of over an hour at Daytona. NASCAR CEO Brian France's bold proclamation of a 30-minute drying time at Daytona is still a long way off. Heck, some tracks still have never had an Air Titan on its premises yet.
Any efforts to help reduce track drying time and get races started and resumed as quickly as possible are noble ones. No one likes waiting around. But the increases in drying efficiency to-date have been modest at best. And if they continue to be modest increases, so be it. Progress is usually measured in small steps rather than giant leaps. It just looks disappointing when we're all being teased about a world-record long jump.
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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
Miguel Бngel Guerra Roberto Guerrero Maurнcio Gugelmin Dan Gurney
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