Car news

It is hard to think of anything more stupendous than an actual plane racing a car. It is like a seven-year-old’s dream becoming reality. Pure madness. Usually, extremely hard to pull off too. Well, over the years, some did try to race a plane against a car, and I am here to tell you about the five most memorable instances of that happening. Recently we saw the Huracan Performante racing the Indian Mig 29k in that horribly filmed video, so I am not including that one on the list, but I am including five others. You are about to see how a Bugatti Veyron, Tesla Model S, Porsche 911, Corvette ZR1, and an actual F1 car fair against an RAF plane, Airliner, Red Bull Air Race Plane, U.S. Navy Fighter, and an F-18 Hornet. This is the list of the most epic car vs. plane races ever attempted.

Sure, I may have missed some, but I feel that these five races definitely deserve to be on the list.

You don’t have to look hard to find some mighty impressive road cars these days. Whether the badge says Koenigsegg, Pagani, Bugatti, or Ferrari, the number of multi-million dollar vehicles available for purchase is staggering. But what if you don’t want to outright buy one of these machines? What if you’d prefer to lease one instead? Well, there are several companies out there that can help.

Continue reading for the full story.

Alfa Romeo’s plan to flood the market with 26 new and updated models is well-documented. We also know that at least two of those models will be the scintillating 8C supercar and the Giulia Quadrifoglio-based GTV Coupe. Now it looks like a third performance model is in the works, specifically a convertible version of the aforementioned 600-horsepower GTV Coupe that will be released more than a year after the coupe version drops and takes all our money away.

Forty-three years and six generations in, the BMW 3 Series remains the standard-bearer among compact luxury sedans. It’s gone through multiple iterations, but the 3 Series still holds court in a segment that has no shortage of rivals. Now that the sixth- and current-generation model is on its last legs, the seventh-generation model with chassis code G20 is about to enter our lives when it makes its debut at the 2018 Paris Motor Show this October. Ready, get set, go. The seventh-gen BMW 3 Series is coming.

Pininfarina’s up-and-coming PF0 luxury electric hypercar is headed to the Geneva International Motor Show next year, but before it drops in Switzerland, the Italians will reveal a fresh concept version in California. The PF0 is slated to go on display at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance next week, and to stoke the flames of excitement, Pininfarina just released a series of new teaser shots showing off the car’s interior.

Continue reading for the full story.

Infiniti’s teasing game of its Pebble Beach-bound concept continues, and the latest tease finally gives us a good look at the car in all its entirety. Not surprisingly, the new concept, called the Prototype 10, looks nothing like the Prototype 9, the retro stylized concept vehicle Infiniti unveiled at last year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The Prototype 10 is a modern, maybe even futuristic, interpretation of an electric, track-spec speedster that may or may not end up in production.

In the light of recent Abt Sportsline announcement that it will bring a number of power upgrades specifically tailored for Audi and Volkswagen vehicles to the U.S. car market, I am giving you a list of awesome Abt Sportsline tuned cars. Only the ones they tuned over the past couple of months. These will prove just how effective Abt Sportsline is with its modifications, and it will give you a glimpse into what this company is capable of. After all, Abt Tuning roots can be dated all the way back to 1967. Granted, the work they do usually circles around an ECU remap but, every once in a while, Abt Sportsline takes things to a whole new level. To a level of reinventing an entire tuning principle, just like they did with the Audi RS6-E Prototype revealed only a few weeks ago.

One of Ferrari’s weirdest one-off concepts just re-emerged in the wild, and now it’s headed to Monterey Car Week as a crazy ‘70s throwback.

Continue reading for the full story.

Despite changing networks — ok, Amazon isn’t a traditional network — and continents, the trio of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May are still massively popular in the U.K. That much was proven by a report from British broadcasting regulator Ofcom, which revealed that the second season of The Grand Tour was the second-most streamed show in the U.K. The only show that beat it happens to be a 24-year old sitcom about buddies that ended its run 14 years ago. Outside of that, The Grand Tour’s popularity in the trio’s old stomping grounds is a good sign that their fans haven’t left their side.

Anxiously waiting for Ford to launch the Shelby GT500? So are we, but you need to forget about it for a while as the Blue Oval just introduced the fastest and most powerful Mustang ever! For drag racing that is. Meet the 50th Anniversary Mustang Cobra Jet!

We’ve recently discussed about the possibility of BMW making an M version of the X7 in a speculative review. While such a model has yet to be confirmed officially, BMW is testing its full-size SUV on the Nurburgring, a sign that a performance version is indeed underway.

Hertz is a tried-and-tested name in the rental car game, and its latest offering is going to scratch a lot of sports car itches. As part of the company’s 100th-anniversary celebration, Hertz is offering 100 special edition Chevrolet Corvette Z06s at the cost of just $199 per day. Throw in other fees and taxes and that total bumps up to almost $300, but still, that’s a relative bargain to pay for the chance to spend a day with one of these black and yellow beauties.

Forza Motorsport 7 already has a litany of cars in its fold. Adding more is becoming a little excessive, and yet, the game’s latest downloadable content, the Formula Drift Car Pack, is going to be welcomed with open arms by fanatic gamers like myself. More importantly, the pack is actually coming to both Forza 7 and Forza Horizon 4. That means that you can still go drift-crazy even if you don’t own a copy of the FM7. And the best part? The Car Pack is free!

The wait is finally over. The first leaked photos of the next-generation BMW Z4 have arrived courtesy of Bimmerpost Unless a complete swerve happens in the coming days, these leaked photos of the new Z4 appear to be the real deal. We’ve waited a long time to see the roadster in the flesh, and in true auto industry fashion, we get an unauthorized sneak peek at the Z4 ahead of its official unveiling on August 23 at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

Update: 8-15-2018: Official-looking press images of the new, 2019 BMW Z4 have been leaked online ahead of its debut. Check out the latest images in our special section below!

China may be ground zero for hundreds of startup EV automakers, but that doesn’t mean success is on the horizon for a lot of these companies. That’s the sentiment shared by NIO Capital Managing Partner Ian Zhu, who told Bloomberg that 99 percent of all Chinese startup electric car makers will fail to get off the ground because of a lack of significant investment in the technology.

It would seem that the most important goals for any manufacturer today are continuity and clarity. If you do cheap cars, do only them. If you do sports cars, focus only on them. If you are premium, adapt to what the people think is premium and push.

Alfa Romeo had a problem with its mission, vision, and continuity. Since the Eighties, it seems to have shifted its vision two or three times basically confusing buyers when it comes to what the brand truly represents. Now, it is eager to find its footing with what it should have done all along - sports character, upscale styling, and premium nature.

At a press conference held earlier this year Tim Kuniskis, Global Head of Maserati and Alfa Romeo said: “We know our future depends on staying true to our sports car roots. We have learned that when we stay true to Alfa DNA, we can stand out in any segment.”

Thankfully, the brand seems to have found what it wants to be the best at. To communicate this noble vision to the automotive lunatics and solidify brand recognition, Alfa Romeo has to do some extraordinary things. Having the Giulia Quadrifoglio and the Stelvio Quadrifoglio was only a start. Now, the company needs to go further, and that further comes in the shape of the 8C.

Recently, the late Sergio Marchionne hinted at the new 8C only months before his death. Moreover, the plan FCA displayed in June clearly showcases a planned super sports car called the 8C, and it will appear in the next three or four years.

Ford is all set to reveal an all-new model at the Woodward Dream Cruise this weekend, and by all accounts, that “all-new” model is going to be a Ford Mustang Cobra Jet. The revelation comes to us by way of Ford Performance Global Director Mark Rushbrook, who flat out told Autoweek that the mysterious production model that will be unveiled at the Woodward event is, in fact, the Mustang Cobra Jet. The debut is expected to take place at the Ford Media Club House on August 16, 10 A.M. Eastern time.

A bridge in the northwest Italian city of Genoa collapsed on Tuesday, killing 26 people, injuring 15 others, and sending cars crashing from heights of more than 150 feet on to rail tracks, buildings, and a river. The catastrophic scene unfolded just as heavy rains pummelled the Italian city. It’s unclear what led to the bridge’s collapse, but Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo has vowed to get to the bottom of the issue, including holding those responsible accountable for the disaster.

Patent filings are flying all over the place as automakers rush to protect their home-grown inventions. The latest company to do so is General Motors, which has secured patents for a number of active aerodynamic components that could soon find their way to the Chevrolet Corvette. All in all, GM was recently awarded three new patents involving adaptive aero technologies, specifically Active Side-Skirts, Active Spoilers, and Downforce Generating Ducts..