Man, we miss that sound. The new AMG “63” engine (M177 I think?) is not the same, it’s pretty good though, but still not exactly like this one was. Also, does it bother anyone else where the emergency lights were placed on the C63?
Viper T/A vs. Viper ACR at Laguna Seca
Darius takes his Black Viper T/A to a Laguna Seca trackday, and gives a Viper ACR all it can handle. Great video, great driver.
Awesome camera work on James Golding’s Dunlop V8 Supercar Crash
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3Cxc_aGZuw
Just incredible how the slow-mo camera captures the smoke coming off of the bottom of the tires when the car goes sideways at the 1:40 mark, and Valvoline certainly got their money’s worth of exposure on that slow-mo!
And in regards to the camerawork, this is a great shot. The camera operator made all the right moves which comes from tracking vehicles over and over on the same turn and having muscle memory to help compensate for how fast everything is happening.
A little bit of luck, a lot of skill, and practice practice practice pays off with a once in a decade shot like this. Beautiful.
Audi reveals the 610-HP 2016 R8 ahead of Geneva debut
Feast your eyes upon these official next-gen Audi R8 photos.
With a 610-HP V10, 205+ MPH top speed, light-weight aluminum and carbon fiber structure, and an new AWD system – this new R8 is a true exotic.
At launch, the new R8 will be offered in two 5.2-liter V10 engines – the first making 540 hp, while the second will up the performance significantly to 610 hp.
Audi says that the faster V10 model will hit 62 mph in just 3.2 seconds and a top speed of over 205 mph!
Paired with an all-new Quattro AWD system, and Audi’s 7-speed dual-clutch transmission – the German manufacturer claims 100 percent of the engine’s torque can be sent to either the front or rear axle.
Using a new chassis shared with the Lamborghini Huracan, the R8 has a dry weight of just 3,205.5 lbs, a total of 110.2 lbs less than its predecessor.
Inside, the R8 gets a clean new look with digital gauges, while the most critical controls can be operated by the driver on the steering wheel. Another notable change is the addition of a push-button ignition, absent on the previous generation car.
In a release Audi claims that additional versions of the R8 are in the works and even hints that a second-generation E-tron electric model could be a part of the plan with a range of almost 600 miles.
Sales of the new R8 will begin in Europe this summer, though no details on North American availability have been announced.
The 2016 Audi R8 is (officially) scheduled to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcj90kVF1fQ
15 minutes of Nostalgic Drag Racing (2015 Gasser Reunion)
If you watch this video and listen to some of these cars, you will quickly realize how amazing some of those ‘ol Gasser Funny Cars sound. They have such a unique sound only found from that era of V8. All V8’s sound great, of course – but something about these early supercharged V8’s make them sound like a different animal altogether. Enjoy
Koenigsegg Agera R vs Bugatti Veyron: High-speed oval
Very impressive performance, and we would take either one.
While the Koenigsegg Agera R is ridiculously fast, the Bugatti has the amazing build quality that the Koenigsegg can’t rival – especially from a luxury stand point. Both phenomenal cars. Why do people have to like and hate one? Both are great.
Twin Turbo Lambo v. Whipple 3.4 Cobra (and others)
Man, even 1100hp wasn’t enough!
All awesome rides, it’s crazy at 820rwhp being slow – those UGR cars are just ridiculous. Nice to see that they had the 3rd pedal too!
BTW, we picked the wrong career.
NASCAR is on the rebound, but we still miss the ‘ol days
I am a new writer with HorsepowerKings.com. I am only 30 years old – but I have been watching NASCAR Cup racing pretty closely since the early 90’s.
You know, the Winston Cup days.
I vividly remember the likes of Rusty Wallace, Dale Earnhardt Sr, Sterling Marlin, Darrel Waltrip and Kenny Schrader workout out their differences in front of packed-grandstands on Sunday afternoons.
Those drivers were so admired by the fans partly because they were older racers – men that were fully grown into their wisdom, strength, skillset and basically encompassed the old-school-full-man status. These guys were like your friend’s dad – the guy that worked construction, had a strong moustache, wore steeltoe boots and worked hard – and you never thought about crossing them. These drivers drove Cup cars in an age where they all respected their fellow competitor, because one wrong move could mean the end of a human life. Speed, not safety, was a priority in those days.
And as fans we just sat back in awe and admiration of these guys. They were tough, older, wise and were driving cars that were far more dangerous (and even faster) than today.
You combine these older drivers with cars that were balanced more towards speed than safety, and the final result is the hero. The hero that was bigger than life. Even older folks looked up to these men, not just the younger generation.
I remember going to Fontana for it’s inaugural race in ’97 and seeing Earnhardt Sr. walk by (I am grateful to have seen him in the flesh and on the racetrack in person). I remember older gentleman were even intimidated by his presence. Same for Rusty Wallace, etc. It was like this elite, exclusive club of seasoned, hard, racecar drivers that couldn’t wait to get into their cars and race flat-out for 500 miles. Much less glamor, much more grit.
We just don’t see that anymore. Tony Stewart may be the last of those, but even he (as awesome as he is) still doesn’t quite have that brawn that those earlier drivers had.
Today we have the younger driver, highly talented but not fully developed and it’s just not as cool. Some of these kids can’t even grow facial hair – and as talented as they are it’s just hard to look up to them, especially if you are on older fan. Even older guys still need someone to look up to.
I love NASCAR and will always will be passionate about this amazing sport, but if we had modern day Dale Earnhardt Sr’s, Rusty Wallaces, Sterling Marlins – I would be exponentially more fanatical about racedays. Those guys didn’t care about the camera, all they cared about was wiping the grease off their face and getting in a car and driving the piss out of it.
These guys were men among men and we all looked up to them.. I know times change and the sport has evolved and we now have a different, modern interpration of a ‘man’ (don’t get me started) but we bring these rough n tough types back it will change the dynamics of the sport, in a good way.
Kyle Busch suffers compound fracture in nasty crash at Daytona (Video)
Kyle Busch will not race in the Daytona 500. Busch has sustained a right lower leg compound fracture and left mid-foot fracture. A return date has not yet been determined. He has been admitted to Halifax Hospital. He is awake and alert. Driver Matt Crafton will replace Busch for the Daytona 500 tomorrow.
Let’s look at one positive: The HANS device did it’s job. Thankfully we have those these days!
In all honesty, however – iff you really consider the nature of the sport – 42 different, 3,500 lb stock cars – running around wide open at 200+ MPH for 3.5 hours – and they do it three times a weekend (Trucks, NW, Cup), it really is amazing that we don’t see more injuries. I think we take it for granted how safe our sport is now, but objectively speaking it is just screaming for disaster.
Yes, the safer-barrier should have been installed, but we think, and need to realize that the Speedway and NASCAR really do have drivers best interest in mind.
Even if the sport has greedy intentions, a driver dying is bad for business no matter how you look at it.
With that said, it’s completely inexcusable that tracks do not have SAFER barriers everywhere. Especially a track that has been making such a big deal out of it’s $400 million renovation. Every single year we see drivers hit bare concrete walls.
NASCAR and the tracks need to be proactive instead of reactive. This is straight up unacceptable.
We’re just glad Kyle doesn’t have life threatening injuries.
Ferrari 488 GTB makes Maranello World Premiere
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaYGKDTgGR4
The Ferrari 488 GTB has finally made it’s public debut. The turbocharged 458 Successor is expected to make 670hp at 8,000rpm, which is 100hp more than the 458 – and 65hp more than the Speciale.
Article Source: Piston Heads
Author: Dan Trent
Follow Dan on Twitter
So, farewell screaming normally aspirated V8s in mid-engined Ferraris. Yes, the Ferrari 488 GTB has finally made it’s debut, and the replacement for the much loved 458 Italia is turbocharged. Muttering into your beard about the end of an era and technology spoiling the fun? You might want to pause when you hear the stats – 670hp at 8,000rpm for starters, 100hp more than the 458 and 65hp more than the Speciale. Or how about 560lb ft of torque, up from the standard 458’s 398lb ft and now yours from 3,000rpm rather than the 6,000rpm. More numbers? OK, try 0-62 in three seconds dead and 0-125mph in 8.3 seconds – eight tenths faster than a Speciale. Eight tenths! Top speed is 209mph or thereabouts and the 1min 23sec Fiorano time is half a second quicker than the Speciale too.
Still not convinced? Let’s look back at the last time Ferrari put turbos into a mid-engined V8 Berlinetta and ponder the heritage of the 288 GTO and the F40 it spawned. Yeah, forced induction Ferraris are so dull aren’t they…
If that outright performance gain isn’t enough for you consider also that the 488 GTB has active aero, a blown rear wing and combines 50 per cent more downforce and reduced drag. Putting that power to the road is a gearbox we’ll presume is based on the familiar dual-clutch seven-speed unit (Ferrari doesn’t say) featuring Variable Torque Management which “unleashes the massive torque smoothly and powerfully right across the rev range” as per the turbocharged California T.
The 488 also features an “evolved” version of the Speciale’s supernatural Side Slip Angle Control – Ferrari’s face saving technology that allows even the ham-fisted look like driving gods thanks to its management of the F1-Trac stability control and E-Diff. SSC2 now works with the active dampers too, Ferrari tactfully saying it gives “track-level performance that can be enjoyed to the full even by non-professional drivers in everyday use.”
Meaning, basically, Ferrari has simply raised the bar for the level of muppetry required to wrap the 488 round a piece of Mayfair street furniture. How long before an owner obliges with a demonstration? Place your bets…
Moving swiftly on, consider also that even with all this additional tech the 1,370kg 488 GTB weighs 10kg less than a standard 458 Italia, albeit with the caveat that Ferrari’s quoted weights are always recorded dry and as the small print reveals “with lightweight options” fitted. The initial press release doesn’t mention construction materials but Ferrari has previously stated its intention to stick with aluminium spaceframes for all but LaFerrari-grade specials. At this point you’ll be looking for the inevitable comparison with the all-carbon McLaren 650S, the coupe version of that car starting at 1,330kg dry.
The adoption of turbos may be considered by some as a dilution of the character that made the contest between the McLaren and Ferrari V8s so compelling. Boosty, whooshing McLaren or screaming, hot-blooded Ferrari – each brilliant in its own right and making for one of the great supercar rivalries of recent times. To remain competitive in important markets like China Ferrari needed to go sub 4.0-litre – the McLaren is of course a 3.8 – and turbos were inevitable; you can be sure much effort will have gone into making the 488 sound as good as the 458 and Ferrari promises “a new soundtrack that is full, clear and totally distinctive.”
This, of course, leaves the 5.2-litre V10 Huracan as the last bastion of big capacity naturally aspirated power in this class. A rebellious USP that plays well to Lamborghini tradition if not sales potential in those markets with punitive taxes on big engines.
With this, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, Aston’s track-ready Vantage GT3, a much-updated Lotus Evora and (no doubt) more besides Geneva is shaping up to be a vintage show for lovers of fast and exotic motors. Don’t forget McLaren’s offering too, the new 675 LT featuring a provocative 5hp of additional bragging rights over the new Ferrari in a high rollers’ game of Top Trumps we can all enjoy.
FERRARI 488 GTB
Engine: 3,902cc V8, twin-turbo
Transmission: TBC
Power (hp): 670@8,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 560@3,000rpm
0-62mph: 3.0sec
Top speed: 209mph
Weight: 1,370kg (Dry, with “lightweight options”)
MPG: 24.8mpg (NEDC combined)
