Car addict or not, you have likely heard at least a little bit about Ayrton Senna. He made history in Formula One while driving for Toleman, Lotus, McLaren and Williams. Unfortunately his career ended tragically when he was involved in a tragic accident on May 1st, 1994 during the San Marino Grand Prix.
Even though 19 years have passed since his fatal accident, people are still remember him. As a testament to his legacy, Hungarian magazine totalcarmagazine.com put together a very nice tribute video.
It presents the best moments from Senna’s racing history, but also the moment of the crash. To make the tribute even better, professional touring car driver Norbert Michelisz got behind the wheel of an Acura NSX and pushed it to the limit. The model was chosen because it was the model driven by Senna while donning the Honda helmet.
Check the video and let us know what you think about Ayrton Senna.
The V12 Vantage was previewed in 2007 by the concept V12 Vantage RS and a production version arrived two years later. Initially, Aston Martin planned to produce a total of 1,000 units and it had no intention of bringing the model to the U.S. market.
Things have changed though and the V12 Vantage was eventually homologated for the U.S. market and the production was increased to about 1,320 units. This number includes both the roadster version and the V12 Zagato.
Now, in an official later sent to its dealers, Aston Martin announced that no orders are being accepted for the V12 Vantage. It looks like the letter was sent on Friday April 19, 2013 and it basically confirms that the V12 Vantage is dead.
This news comes as a big surprise, considering it is rumored that Aston Martin will also offer a small run of V12 Vantage "Centenary Editions." If this is still the plan, then our assumption is that these Centenary models are completely sold out.
Click past the jump to read more about the V12 Vantage.
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After Volkswagen unveiled the BlueSport Concept at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, the possibility of getting a production version has been up and down more than a roller coaster.
In fact, last year at the Paris Auto Show Volkswagen confirmed for the last time that the BlueSport will not happen.
Just today, a Volkswagen official – design chief Walter de Silva to be more exact – in an interview with German magazine Auto Motor Und Sport has stated that "this is a vehicle that we particularly like, and we always had in mind."
de Silva also said in the interview that he is not the only one in the company that thinks a small roadster wouldn’t be a bad decision for VW and that several employees are pushing to put it into production.
While we are not very sure this is an official confirmation of a production version, we are pretty sure a new round of speculations is about to begin.
Click past the jump to read more about the BlueSport Concept.
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At the beginning of 2013, Mazda and Alfa Romeo signed an agreement that will bring a new roadster to each company: a new MX-5 for the Japanese company and a new Spider for the Italian one. Both models will be built at Mazda’s Hiroshima plant starting 2015, but each model will offer its own engines.
Until now, it has been rumored that the MX-5 would use a 1.3-liter turbocharged engine that features SkyActiv technology. However, new details suggest that the tiny roadster could also get a diesel engine. you read that right; we said diesel…
However, because a diesel roadster could be a tough sell to traditionalists, Mazda will still offer a gasoline alternative. Rumors suggest that this diesel engine will be a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter SkyActiv engine that produces approximately 130 horsepower. This would give the Miata its lowest horsepower output since it bumped the standard 1.8-liter four-cylinder to 133 horsepower in 1996.
As for the Spider version, it could be offered with a turbocharged 1.4-liter ‘TB’ engine with power ranging from 120 horsepower in the base model to 296 horsepower for the top versions. Both models will be offered with a six-speed manual gearbox.
Mazda will focus on offering modern materials and design techniques that could help keep the total weight down to about 1,760 pounds.
Click past the jump to read more about the next MX-5.
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The long awaited Audi A9 has been in limbo for the past couple of years with Audi seemingly taking its time to unveil its new flagship sedan. And that’s after word spread out that the German automaker trademarked the A9 and S9 names last year.
But there appears to be a groundswell of movement in Ingolstadt these days and according to Auto Motor und Sport, the A9 is expected to be launched in 2016.
Circle those calendars, fellas.
The date of the A9’s launch has changed multiple times, but the latest timetable seems to point to a more concrete expectation as to when the luxury sedan finally comes out and smiles to the cameras.
Another interesting tidbit surrounding the A9 involves the platform it’s going to use, which apparently is the same one that will underpin the next-generation Q7. Now, that’s interesting, considering that the Q7 is a pretty large SUV.
Guess it’ll be interesting to see what the A9 is going to look like, but fortunately, we made a rendering of the luxury sedan (above). Read more about the A9 after the jump.
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Car insurance companies are always trying to find some way to better monitor your driving style and habits to help adjust their premiums accordingly. In fact, yours truly fell for the Progressive scam of plugging a small transmitter into the data port on my Mazdaspeed MX-5 with the promise that I could “save up to 30 percent.” Well, this little gadget sensed every time I tapped the brakes a little too hard or pushed my little turbocharged roadster into a corner just a little harder than usual, then it would beep and upload this information to the company.
Well, after noticing what this gizmo was up to, I quickly unplugged it and overnighted it to Progressive with a thanks-but-no-thanks letter. Well, now more insurance companies are getting into the tracking game with even more technology. In fact, State Farm has taken it a little further by installing an app on your Android 4.0 (or higher) smartphone. According to State Farm this app will collect “basic information about your driving,” but the insurance giant doesn’t offer a bit of info about what it will use this data for.
So, why would you allow your insurance company to track how, when and where you drive? Because they grease your palm, of course; State Farm is offering up a $50 gift card to the first 5,000 volunteers to give up their driving privacy and test the system. In fact, you don’t even have to be a State Farm customer to do this test and get the $50.
We say stay away from this deal and the insurance tracking devices altogether, regardless of how much they choose to offer you in return. Chances are that this information could potentially jack up your car insurance just because you park in a less-than-ideal area semi-frequently or brake a little harder than others. Plus, having your insurance company knowing what you’re up to at any given time is pretty dang scary.
What’s next, health insurance companies strapping devices on us to monitor our food intake and exercise?
Lamborghini was founded back in 1963 and by doing simple math you will see that 2013 marks the company’s 50th anniversary. 50 years on a market is a great reason to celebrate, and as far as we have seen, it will be quite a celebration.
Up to this point, Lamborghini has dropped the Veneno supercar and the Aventador LP720-4 50° Anniversario, and will continue with a "Grande Giro.” This "Grand Tour" will bring together a convoy of 350 Lamborghini super sports cars and will start on May 8th.
The "Giro" will start at Lombardia and will continue on to Toscana, Lazio, Umbria, Emilia Romagna, Forte dei Marmi, Grosseto, Roma, San Giustino Valdarno and will arrive in Bologna on May 10th. On the last day — May 11 — the convoy will depart again for Sant’Agata Bolognese.
An interesting fact: the 350 cars will measure about 4.5 km (2.8 miles) in length and will deliver more than 190,000 horsepower in total.
Click past the jump to read more about Lamborghini’s history.
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Jaguar announced its intentions to release a coupe version of the F-Type once the roadster version hit the market. Until now, however, the car has never been spotted testing anywhere around the world, so we had to just trust Jaguar’s word.
Today, we can add some substance to Jag’s claim, as leaked patent drawings of the F-Type Coupe have made their way onto the Internet and they reveal the final design of the sports coupe. Not that it’s very hard to imagine how an F-Type Coupe would look like, since you are essentially slapping a fixed roof on top of the F-Type Roadster. Reports point toward everything else being borrowed from the roadster version, including the exterior look and the engine lineup.
The F-Type Coupe will arrive on the market sometime in 2014 and will be followed by a more powerful R version. A Sport Brake version has also been rumored, but we doubt we are ever going to see it.
Click past the jump to read more about the F-Type Roadster.
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Rockstar Games has dropped a new trailer for the upcoming Grand Theft Auto V, revealing more cars and action from the upcoming video game. The game’s main characters are Michael, Franklin and Trevor, and it looks like next to the cars, the new GTA V will bring into focus lots of motorcycles, airplanes and helicopters.
In the new GTA V, players will enjoy replicas of cars like Audi R8 Spyder, Aston Martin DB5, Dodge Charger, Jaguar XF-R, lots of SUVs, pickup trucks and more. The action takes place in fictional Los Santos in the state of San Andreas and its surrounding areas, a city based on modern-day Los Angeles and Southern California.
Grand Theft Auto V is coming September 17, 2013. The game is now available for pre-order.
Be aware, the video contains violence, bad language and scantily clad women, so it is not appropriate for children!
Early last year it was rumored that BMW could offer an M version for its i8 hybrid supercar. It was supposed to drop the hybrid powertrain in favor of a conventional V-8 powerplant with an output of about 600 horsepower. Sounded pretty great, right?
Now - one year later - it appears that BMW has dropped the idea of developing such a model. While no other explanation has been offered, it looks like the M8 is "no longer part of the program." We do not understand why this decision was made, considering the i8 platform can easily accept front-wheel-drive, rear-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive alternatives.
So, while we are hoping that the company will change its mind in the future, we’ll just have to wait for the i8. It will arrive sometime later this year and comes with a driving range of about 20 miles in near-silent, zero-emission mode. This figure, combined with a 0 to 60 mph sprint time of 4.9 seconds, and the top speed of 156 mph makes it the ideal car for both city and track.
Click past the jump to read more about the rumored BMW M8 supercar.
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