With the recent success of Chevy‘s Corvette Racing series and the new “America Still Builds Rockets” Corvette commercial, the marketing folks at GM are going full swing to promote the ‘Vette.

The latest effort is equally awesome, with GM inviting F1-turned NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya out to the company’s Milford Proving Grounds to test out the new Chevy Cruze, the Camaro and, of course, the Corvette ZR1.

Montoya certainly seems to enjoy himself (and who wouldn’t behind the wheel of a ZR1).

But enough chit chat. Check out the tire-shredding, sideways sliding video after the jump:

Continue Reading…

Several years ahead of a major overhaul for all Chrysler brand products, all models are getting tweaks to help keep them competitive in the marketplace. The latest model do go under the knife is the Jeep Wrangler (and Wrangler Unlimited), getting an updated interior and a new body-colored hard top as an option for Sahara trim models.

Included in the interior update is a new steering wheel, center stack, instrument panel and large rear windows to improve visibility. There’s also a locking console, a new armrest and an overall improvement in the use of materials in the cabin. New features include a USB interface and Bluetooth streaming audio. Jeep also increased the sound deadening to help keep out road noise.

New colors will be available for the 2011 model year as well, which include Bright White, Cosmos Blue, Deep Cherry Red, Detonator Yellow, and Sahara Tan.

Check out all the pics (especially the interior ones) below:

GALLERY: 2011 Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited

Official release after the jump:

Continue Reading…

Kia appears to have quietly killed-off its Rondo MPV in response to a continued slide in sales. Visitors to the Rondo page on Kia’s U.S. website are greeted with the news, “Thank you for inquiring about the Rondo. As the saying goes, ‘all good things must come to an end’ But with endings, come new beginnings…” Below that message is an image of the new 2011 Kia Sportage, directing customers that that page where they can check out the stylish new compact crossover.

The Rondo’s demise was stumbled upon by the team at Autoblog, who then contacted Kia and received this response. “Kia has not yet decided on a 2011 model, but the 2010 is still available in dealerships.”

Kia managed to move just 14,206 Rondos last year, a 50 percent drop from 2008 when the company sold 28,645 units. The Rondo would seem to be the latest casualty in the Kia lineup with the Korean automaker recently dropping the Borego full size SUV.

This move also looks to be a part of a larger product switch from Kia away from old models and old designs towards fresh and exciting new products. Unfortunately for those few looking at a Rondo, the Sportage simply doesn’t offer the same utility.

Of note, Kia Canada isn’t following suit with any message on its website, suggesting the Rondo will continue on there. This isn’t surprising as sales of MPVs like the Rondo and Mazda5 are strong in Canada.

[Source: Kia via AutoBlog]

Back towards the end of May, we were teased with renders of a 1969 Ford Mustang that Vaughn Gittin Jr. would be building for SEMA 2010. Now the RTR-X is taking clear form and Speedhunters.com has revealed even more photos of the build. We have to say we’re quite impressed and can’t wait to see the finished project. This is undoubtedly one of the coolest cars we’ll set our eyes on… ever.

Almost all of the chassis work has been done on the car, and it’s on the ground and rolling, looking absolutely killer. Steen Chassis has done a fantastic job executing the project from bottom-up and the custom metal work is of impeccable quality.

The car is now off to Twins Turbo for all of the finishing touches and StitchCraft Interiors have already met with Gittin Jr. himself to go over the interior modifications. The post reveals the widebody being fitted on and it looks like they’ve got quite a bit to go in the engine bay.

We have to applaud the team in executing the project in a timely fashion. SEMA is still a couple of months away, but for anyone that has ever been involved with a build for SEMA, two months is not a lot of time. Given the level of detail and quality that is being put into this RTR-X, we expect them to finish without a single flaw and the car to be a true masterpiece once it touches ground on the show floor. This will be at the top of our list when we head over to SEMA to check out in person!

Make sure to hit the source for all the new pics.

[Source: Speedhunters]

If you’ve ever performed an engine swap you probably have your fair share of funny or scary stories to share. Recently we ran across this video, and despite it probably being staged, it’s still funny mostly because we can relate. Anyone that has ever taken apart a car always anticipates the worst and well, this video is probably the worst.

It looks like these guys were swapping in a new motor in a Honda Civic, which these days has become pretty easy and straightforward. But as the guy unbolts the last engine mount bolts, the motor drops and along with it goes the front bumper, headlights and everything else imaginable in that vicinity. It’s clearly staged since no one would be unbolting headlights or even a front bumper for an engine swap, but we gotta love the end tag line stating that cherry pickers are for wimps anyway.

Video after the break.

[Source: FailBlog]

Continue Reading…

Still got World Cup fever. What’s the cure? Take ride in a Hyundai football car and call us in the morning.

To celebrate their association with the 2010 Football World Cup, Hyundai UK commissioned two very special i10s – and now, one of them has been sold for £5005 (that’s about $7,808 U.S.) on eBay.

The football cars were designed by car artist Andy Saunders, which showcases grass bodywork (AstroTurf), a giant football on the roof and goal posts. The 09-plate 1.2-liter Hyundai i10 World Cup football car comes with seats that were trimmed in plastic grass coverings, while the dashboard is painted white to go along with the soccer theme. This particular model was one of two Hyundai i10s lent to Jeremy Clarkson for his 2009 video Duel (you can watch the video after the jump).

Proceeds of the sale will go to BEN, which is a UK automotive industry charity for those who work, or have worked, in the automotive and related industries, as well as their dependents.

[Source: Born Rich]
Continue Reading…

This certainly isn’t the first time we’ve seen chrome-wrapped cars, (or gold ones) but there is certainly a craze happening out in Russia with the style. And apparently chrome and gold cars come in all shapes and sizes out there including Bentleys, Lamborghinis and various Mercedes-Benzes in various models.

But this one is all about a brand new BMW X5 M that came in a sleek but boring black. Erik, the owner, decided to add yet another shiny gold car to his collection and opted to have the vehicle wrapped. What is interesting is that no other modifications were done to the car. One thing is clear about this elite group of chrome/gold-wrapped cars; they want to be spotted from a mile away and be notoriously known for their style.

[Source: Jon Sibal]

GALLERY: Gold Wrapped BMW X5 M

Video of Erik and the car after the break.

Continue Reading…

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Chrysler‘s Mopar group has announced a full scale assault on the Woodward Dream Cruise, with a prominent display set up on the corner of 13 Mile Road and Woodward. Features will include the Limited Edition Mopar ’10 Dodge Challenger (see above in the video); a Mopar modified Challenger R/T; a special Mopar edition Chrysler (the first ever); the Raminator Monster truck; plus a fistful of Mopar accessorized Jeeps, including a Wrangler that made its debut at the Moab Jeep Safari earlier this year.

Given that some have labeled this decade a return to the 1970s, it’s good to see that Detroit hasn’t forgotten the enthusiast market and the Mopar display should prove a hit at the World’s largest car party this year. Estimates already have 1.1 million people attending the Dream Cruise.

GALLERY: Mopar ’10 Dodge Challenger

Available starting next month is famed Porsche tuner TechArt’s package for the 911 Turbo S. And as with all TechArt tuning packages, we’re thoroughly impressed inside and out with its numbers. Horsepower is increased by 90-hp to 620-hp and torque goes up 89 ft-lbs for an impressive 605 ft-lbs of torque.

Acceleration is clearly at a blistering speed with TechArt’s 911 Turbo S hitting 62 mph in merely 2.9 seconds. A top speed of 207 mph is also possible once the modifications are done. No pricing has been released yet, but the tuning package consists of everything you’d expect: TechArt air filter, manifold, exhaust system and a pair of pressure sensors. While the bolt-ons obviously help let the engine breathe, we’re going to guess a bulk of the performance increase comes from the retuned ECU.

GALLERY: TechArt Porsche 911 Turbo S Tuning Package

Continue Reading…

How bizarre does this sound? A single pedal that can be used for braking and accelerating could change the way we drive – but are we up for it?

This invention, which has been around for 20 years, is finally getting some attention. It’s brainchild of Japanese inventor Masuyuki Naruse, who claims that putting the brake and acceleration pedals side-by-side is dangerous. His solution is the Naruse pedal, a contraption that puts accelerator and brake on the same foot-activated lever.

Here’s how it works: the accelerator control on Naruse’s pedal is placed on the side of a larger brake pedal, and the foot can nudge it to the right to increase acceleration. To stop the vehicle, the driver just presses down on the pedal. According to Naruse, this will prevent accidents caused by drivers hitting the wrong pedal, accelerating into peril when they are trying to brake.

The recent surge of accelerator-related recalls has made created interest in the idea. Swedish regulators are already testing a single-pedal contraption, and the Naruse pedal has been declared street legal on about 130 individual cars in Japan.

Of course, when a new idea is introduced, there are going to be some nay-sayers. The biggie would be the need for people around the world to relearn the ingrained skill they’ve developed over a lifetime of two-pedal driving. But from engineering and safety standpoints, a single-pedal design actually makes a lot of sense.

Do you think it’s a safer way to drive? Would you be will to drive a car outfitted with this type of pedal? Leave us your comments below.

[Source: Popsci]