>Even with all the 911 variants and all the magnesium pieces in the new 911 GT3 RS 4.0, the Porsche 911 C2 still stands as the simple and pure everyday sports car. Here, TennXX, who regularly shares a number of automotive short films shot in Thailand, has convincing demonstrated why an honest 911 can be the car for Goldilocks. It’s just right!
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So after my last post on La Carrera Panamericana, I’ve been digging around for street circuit racing. Everyone knows the big ones– Monaco, Road Atlanta, Isle of Man, Adelaide, and so on.
However, no circuit has a more frightening right hander than Guia’s hotel turn. Honestly, it’s as if this track was designed to decapitate! Kudos to the racers… this is just too beast and I’m at a loss for words.
Happy Thursday ya’ll, we’re almost there!
>Just as the seasons occur in a cyclical order, so do fluctuations of fuel prices. This is no coincidence. Fuel is a consumable like any other. Its price variations are strongly influenced by supply and the demands of the consumer and we happen to drive more during the holidays and the warm months. In addition, after considering inflation rates, gas prices have not changed very much. Still, there’s no shortage of people who complain like clockwork when the prices start taking a hike. While most give the generic complaint about high prices. There’s a particular subset of whiner that really annoys.
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| inflationdata.com |
This subset consists of people who compare the fuel mileage of their first generation Honda Civic to the current model without any considerations outside that magical metric. They ruminate endlessly about their precious first Civic covering 40 miles before moving onto its second gallon of dead dinosaur. As they regain their self-awareness and refocus their eyes to the present, they realize that car is gone and their current model gets a paltry 34 mpg on the highway.
Yes, taking these numbers as they stand constitutes a travesty in itself as well as being a failure of modern engineering. Without getting into engineering jargon, let’s try to look at the whole picture here. And by whole picture I mean the entire car to see where that not so insignificant 15% went.
First off, the eighth generation sedan is about 28 inches longer, 10 inches wider, and 4 inches taller than the first generation version. All those extra dimensions equate to an increased curb weight of 1100 pounds and allow you to grab four buds and rock out pretty comfortably in between bars on the weekends. This can’t exactly be said for the Civic from the 70s unless you are all medically diagnosed midgets.
Though, the midget mobile does have one sweet party trick. It can instantaneously become an accordion (the instrument not its bigger brother in the lineup) in the event of a head-on collision. If those midgets want to survive in their 1-star crash rated petrol sippy cup, they better be priests and they better be praying hard. In other words, that extra 1100 pounds and 6 mpg hit will keep you alive. With standard ABS, a 5-star frontal crash rating, and a smorgasbord of airbags, crash survival for you and your four friends is a very good probability. To hammer this point home, here are the crash test videos:
At this point in the discussion, that nostalgic owner will say something about still being alive even after driving his old Civic for an indeterminately long period of time. This is all well and good except for the fact that according to the U.S. Bureau of Transit and Statistics there were over 250 million registered vehicles on the road in the United States in 2006. This is the result of a steady growth of 3.69 million vehicles per year since 1960. It’s much harder to avoid stupid drivers today than ever before.
Fuel prices of the past several years have been akin to a roller coaster ride that has left the consumer holding on for dear life. The current crop of small cars promises size comparable to mid-size family sedans of just 10 years ago without surrendering much in terms of efficiency. That growth in size is only surpassed by the growth in available safety equipment. While it’s not the most glamorous topic, nobody ever complains about too much safety.
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In 1950, Mexico had completed their stretch of the Panamerican highway. To celebrate this amazing feat, as well as to advertise and attract business towards an artery that will eventually stretch across 14 countries in the western hemisphere, the Mexican government organized a fiesta (see what I did there?) in proper 1950s fashion– La Carrera Panamericana was born.
Although similar to the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio in Italy, this sports car racing event on the open roads of Mexico, from 1950 to 1955, was often considered to be the most dangerous race of any type in the world. 27 deaths within five years (5.4/year) inevitably led to its cancellation by way of a simple announcement suggesting that the race’s original task of advertising the highway has completed.
But not to worry, La Carrera Panamericana had since been revived and remains very active today. In FotW #18, we are happy to present to you Hayden Groendyke & Charles Samples’ 1949 Carrera Panamericana Cadillac. The beauty of this car lies in its design and its preparation for a race it was destined to tackle. Not only is the magnificent Cadillac Series 62 impeccably restored but it is also built upon a chassis constructed by renowned industry leader of classic custom chassis, Art Morrison. Motivating what must weigh an equivalent to no less than 40 whales is a Corvette ZR1 derived LS9 motor mated to a Jericho 5-speed. The task of stopping the mammoth rests upon drilled and slotted Wilwood brakes. This Cadillac is simply a masterpiece of a harmonized past and present.
sources: panam2010.com, artmorrison.com, dogfightmag.com
*For those wondering why FotW skipped a week, FPH had been prepping for the New York Auto Show. I’m sorry, I’m sure you guys understand!
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Part 1 of our NYIAS wrap-up covered the media day unveilings that stood out to us. But there were unveilings that fell short as well– whether it may be the cause of a lukewarm product or because of a presentation that carried a lot of potential, but ultimately under-delivered.
Nissan
As previously mentioned, the compact/subcompact segment has been a focal point at the New York auto show, and will only grow more competitive in coming years. Last week, the Nissan Leaf won World Car of the Year, speaking volumes to just how in touch product developers of Nissan are to current trends.
However, I was extremely disappointed with the unveiling of their new Versa. With 30 city/37 highway at an extremely low price of $10,990, the Versa is one of the least expensive new cars sold in North America today and it is obviously trying to bring on the heat to the South Korean brands.
The price, unfortunately, comes with with a price. The Versa suffers from a bland exterior that whimpers anonymity in addition to plastic composite touch points in the interior that conjure childhood memories of Fisher Price. The press conference ended with restrained and scattered applause. Oh no is right. This can’t be good.
Lotus
Lotus caused one of the largest buzzes in recent memory when they simultaneously unveiled at the 2010 Paris Auto Show an unprecedented five unique products– Lotus Eterne, Esprit, Elite, Elan and Elise.
Since the show, skeptics and fans alike questioned whether or not Lotus indeed had the ability, in finances and resource, to meet its promise. With the presence of the Lotus Esprit concept and some major suits, including industry icon, legend, and former GM vice chairman, Bob Lutz, who is now a part of the Lotus advisory board, the venue had everything one could need to inject confidence to the public.
Unfortunately, nothing in depth was ever brought to attention. Sure, the new Evora S and Evora IPS were unveiled but rather than running across sales figures, company performance outlooks, and product improvements, Lotus did little talking at all. Instead, they’ve brought promotional videos to out attention and followed up with an agonizingly long discussion of Lotus’ IRL racing activities. Disappointingly, the only thing the promo videos revealed were gorgeous models in sheer bikinis walking around a Esprit concept while a remix of La Roux’s “In for the Kill” played in the background. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the video. But that wasn’t why FPH came to the Auto Show.
Moreover, as significant manufacturers reported double digit sales growth in the past year, we can be confident that this won’t be our last NYIAS. After our first visit, we met many enthusiasts, both green and veterans of the industry, that have been gracious to us and embraced FPH. After all, an industry is nothing without its people and that’s what made it even more special to be there. FPH is looking forward to cover more press events in the future and we hope to keep in touch with the friends we’ve made and to make new ones as well.
-Danny Choy and Danny Chin
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Like most auto enthusiasts, I’ve been going to car shows on a yearly basis for as long as I can remember. The gleaming sheet metal, new car smell, and the future promises held by concept cars are absolutely intoxicating. As exciting as all that is, nothing prepared us for our first media day at the New York International Auto Show.
Upon entering the show, there was a sense of occasion. Industry honchos gave their state of the union addresses, manufacturers had elaborate setups for their press conferences, and celebrities of the automotive world were just as excited as we were at unveilings. While all this is very grand in its own right, we’re here for the cars. Here are the unveilings that stood out:
Scion
Scion came to New York with both barrels locked and cocked. When it came time for the press conference, they held nothing back. While their FR-S has been seen in various other guises on the auto show circuit as a Toyota, this latest, more production ready variant was an absolute stunner. Even amongst the seasoned automotive press, the car created quite a buzz. The car is amazingly proportioned, if not achingly beautiful. When’s the last time anybody said that about a Toyota?
Mercedes-Benz
From one end of the automotive world with Scion to the other with Mercedes, it just goes to show there isn’t any reason for a manufacturer to rest on its laurels. Mercedes did this by showing off their brand new SLK and C63 AMG coupe. They definitely brought their A-game with the unveiling of the A-class concept. It brings a lot of style to the entry level Mercedes that will be sure to attract a younger demographic. That younger demographic interrupted the whole press conference to show their appreciation for the car.
Kia
For years the affordable subcompact segment filled an important but uncelebrated niche. However, last week’s small car unveilings showed that it is arguably the most competitive market today. Subcompact segment press conferences definitely stood out from the rest this year and off the top of my head, new small car debuts for 2011 include the new Honda Civic, Subaru Impreza sedan and five-door, Nissan’s new Versa, Hyundai Accent, KIA Rio, Mini KISS Countryman, Volkswagen Beetle, FIAT 500, Mercedes Benz A-Class.
With an industry leading sales growth of 36.6%, Kia has been enjoying one of the greatest turnarounds in industry history! Rather than going the Ford and Hyundai route with a middle of the road “start-up family” conscious press conference, Kia introduced their Rio 5, Rio sedan as well as a facelifted Kia Soul on one of the brightest and loudest stages at the expo thanks to Brianna, the cute DJ!
At sub $14k, I predict the 148 horsepower, 40mpg highway, 1.6 liter 4 cylinder Rio 5 will be a real contender.
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| Love its SEAT dad |
Fiat
Fiat is a returning player in the North American market. Needless to say, first impressions count and Fiat delivered. Thanks to a very pretty presenter as well as a very chic, very unique display with a vertical unveiling, the quirky 500 Cabrio surprised every journalist that attended. This is not a joke; the Fiat 500 was so popular, I never got the opportunity to snap a photo of the car without someone standing next to it. (To those of you that are curious, the handsome chap wearing a suit in the photo below is James Riswick, editor of Edmund’s Inside Line)
A little more than a year ago, I recall an article revealing that the redesign of the Fiat 500 model will be heavily influenced by Apple’s marketing and product development strategies. And now, one of the key attractions to the 500 right now is the Eco-Drive application. Driving information from your commute can be stored and shared so that fellow owners of the Fiat 500 can compete to see who can score better gas mileage. By making “saving the world” a game based on an app designed for young buyers, this car is hitting all the right buttons.
Finally, having finally seen the 500 in the flesh, it quickly made it onto my shortlist of cars I’d heavily consider owning.
Stay tuned for part 2!
I hope everyone’s having a good weekend so far!
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