You worry about your teen while their driving, and rightfully so. A recent study has found that several “critical errors” are often one of the last in a chain of events leading up to a crash. And of these crashes, 75 percent were caused due to a critical teen driver error and three common errors were the cause of about 50 percent of all serious crashes.

The study, conducted by Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and State Farm Insurance, found that teens are involved in fatal crashes at four times the rate of adults. So what are these critical errors that are cited as reasons leading up to a serious crash? About 21 percent of these accidents happened because of a lack of scanning to detect and respond to hazards; another 21 percent because these drivers were going too fast for road conditions; and 20 percent occurred because the driver was distracted by something inside or outside the vehicle.

Many people believe that aggressive driving or thrill-seeking are the cause of most teen accidents, but researchers found that this was not the case. They noted that environmental conditions, such as poor weather, vehicle malfunction, aggressive driving or physical impairments such as drowsy driving were not the main reasons for teenage accidents.

Before you wrap your teen in bubble wrap and bury the car keys in the backyard, you can take some consolation that you can help prevent these errors from happening by teaching young drivers the proper skills during parent-child driving training. Be sure to teach your teen drivers to scan the road in the distance and anticipate future events on the road so they’ll be able to detect and respond to a hazard in time.

[Source: Polk]

Buying cars is not like what it used to be. You no longer need to go into a showroom and sit with a Brylcreamed salesman and look over color palettes.

Nowadays, any self-respecting car company has a modern website with a configurater, so customers can sit at home and virtually see what their next car will look like.

Some car companies are now going a step further and have developed app’s that can be downloaded to your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch.

Rolls Royce is certainly moving ahead with the times. It first introduced an app for their Ghost model, and now comes an app for the Phantom line-up. This app lets customers and dreamers configure any Phantom model in any way they would like. So not only can you choose your exterior color, you can trim the interior and all its details to your liking also.

If any one of the 44,000 color choices is not to your liking, you can create your own using a color matching function which will give you infinite possibilities. So if you want the exterior or interior to resemble your handbag or nail polish, you can do that.

So if you are looking to buy a new Rolls Royce, or just dreaming of one, you can go to the Apple App store and download this application to your device.

[Source: Motor Authority]

The Mercedes-Benz C 63 AMG has become DTM’s official safety car for the 2011 season and will debut May 1st at the opening race of the German Touring Car Masters season. The C 63 AMG will be slightly modified from its factory counterparts in order to meet the demands of being a DTM safety car and will give driver Jurgen Kastenholz a little more fun behind the wheel.

The DTM C 63 AMG is powered by a 6.3L V8 AMG-tuned powerplant that pushes out 487-hp, 30-hp more than the standard C 63 AMG thanks to AMG’s additional Performance Package that is available to the public. AMG also outfits the C 63 with a plethora of technology from the SLS AMG including short block components. Distinguishing features include a variable intake manifold in titanium grey and AMG’s high performance braking system.

Mated to the powerplant is AMG’s Speedshift MCT 7-speed sports transmission. Adjustable coilovers gives the C 63 AMG all the handling capabilities it needs while a set of lightweight AMG wheels in 19-inch sizing keeps it nice and sticky on the track.

And to make sure you’re aware of which vehicle is the DTM safety car, the C 63 AMG features DTM Safety Car logos, an LED light bar on the roof and LED flashing lights in the front and the rear. The interior of the car is equipped with a radio system and TV monitor while AMG sports bucket seats with four-point harnesses provides plenty of support for driver and passenger.

Official press release available after the break.

GALLERY: C63 AMG DTM Safety Car

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Famed Italian coach builder Zagato has built yet another tribute to Alfa Romeo’s 100th anniversary, the TZ3 Stradale, and has upped the ante by eschewing Italian underpinnings for a Dodge Viper ACR chassis and powertrain.

Previous iterations of the Zagato TZ3 Stradale have featured Alfa-based running gear and been purpose built for things like track driving, but the TZ3 is intended to be a pure street car, and undoubtedly privileges form over function.

If you squint really hard, you may see a passing resemblance to the Viper, but the car’s aesthetics are clearly Italian, with the design paying tribute to Alfa Romeo. Only 9 vehicles will be produced, and 2 are already spoken for, so any attempt to buy one will likely require some quick action and knowing the right people – aside from having a fat bank balance, of course.

Chrysler Group LLC has just announced that it plans to fully repay the loans it took from the U.S. and Canadian governments by the middle of this year.

In a statement from the auto maker, it says “Chrysler Group intends to complete the repayment during the second quarter of 2011 from proceeds of a new term loan facility and newly issued debt securities to be offered and sold to institutional investors in a private offering exempt from registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933.”

Chrysler wants to repay the government loans as quickly as possible due to their high interest rates, which stand at 14% for the U.S. loan and as high as 20% on loan from the Canadian Government.

Chrysler and Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said that these loans would cost $500-million in just interest, which would severely affect the company’s ability to make a profit. In order to pay off these loans, Fiat is looking to buy an additional 16% stake in Chrysler at a reported $1.27-billion. Fiat currently owns 30% of Chrysler Group LLC. Chrysler will also look at private investors to see if it can essentially get a better interest rate compared to the government loans, which currently sit at $7.53 billion.

Fiat can only purchase the extra stake in Chrysler once this debt is wiped clean. This debt-refinancing deal is the only hope for the struggling car maker to start earning a profit in the near future.

Breaking news is striking our industry as word has come that 2&4 Motoring, publishers of Best Motoring and Hot Version for over 24 years, will be forced to shut down both operations effective next month.

This is tragic news to many of us who grew up watching some of the greatest JDM vehicles battling it out on the track or in Touge battles on lonely mountain passes. Quite easily one of the biggest influences on the import car culture, both Best Motoring and Hot Version were religiously received by many in anticipation every time a new one was released.

7Tune is reporting that many of the staff will be parting ways and pursuing new endeavors with many of them possibly returning in some form or another in video media. Our hope is that they’ll resurface together rather than fragmented, delivering us hot video goodies online.

[Source: 7Tune]

It’s not that often you here about new automotive job creation in the United Kingdom these days, but Jaguar is planning to do just that, by building a factory to produce a brand-new V6 engine for its XF and possibly XJ models.

Although in North America, Jaguars are currently only available with a 5.0-liter V8; in Europe, a pair of turbo diesel engines (a 2.2-liter four and 3.0-liter V6) are offered, along with the hoary old 240 horsepower 3.0-liter Ford V6.

Needless to say, given recent fuel price spikes, Jaguar needs an entry-level V6 model for U.S. buyers and this new motor will no doubt fit the bill very well. No specifics are available yet, but it is likely that this engine will be paired with the new eight-speed automatic transmission and crank out somewhere in the region of 300 hp, which will give it equal footing to current V6 offerings from the likes of the German competition, namely Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Whether diesel Jaguars will make it to our shores, remains to be seen, but given the brand’s current status, along with its product mix here, that’s probably unlikely, at least in the short term.

[Source: Car & Driver]

The Chevrolet Corvette gets a lot of grief for having a less-than-opulent interior, but the upgraded 2012 models will not only get some new materials on the inside, but the Z06 and ZR1 performance models will get new tires and a couple handling packages designed to boost performance.

Interior upgrades include new seats and a re-designed steering wheel. A new Bose stereo, padded interior surfaces and an infotainment system package with GPS navigation and a heads-up display are also offered, although pictures have not been made available.

On the performance front, the Z06 is now available with a carbon fiber hood, the MSRC magnetic shock absorber system, new Michelin Pilot Sport tires and Performance Traction Management. The ZR1 gets the same tires, a new spoiler and alloy wheels, as well as revised gearing that gives it a 2 mpg bump in highway mileage.

The revised 2012 ‘Vette is expected to go on sale in July, but if you can’t wait that long, check out the video below to see the car in action.

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Alarm set for ungodly early hour: check. Good china set out to enjoy tea and crumpets while watching the royal wedding: check. Perfect ride to celebrate the nuptials of the year: check. Wave a stately hand out of the window to your adoring subjects as you drive the Swarovski-studded MINI Cooper S, in celebration of Kate and William’s wedding.

The king of bling, otherwise known as the Royal MINI Cooper, was designed by Berlin-based company Bling My Thing, who teamed up with Swarovski for this majestic work of art. Adorned with 300,000 Swarovski touches applied by hand, it will brighten up the rainiest British day.

To make its grand entrance, the Royal MINI Cooper was presented by a Royal look-alike couple last Saturday in Westfield, London. Flaunting SwanFlower patterns on the body (made from different sized crystals as small as 1.8mm), the entire roof is covered with thousands of crystals that come together to form the Union Jack.

And what do we have to say about this car? We are not amused.

[Source: BlingMyThing]

Hyundai‘s Veloster sports coupe will have its North American introduction delayed by two months due to a labor dispute involving a union at its South Korean factory.

A labor dispute involving changes to the shift structure at the Veloster’s plant in Ulsan caused a production slowdown, which saw the plant operate at 33 percent capacity. Labor disputes and strikes are extremely common in the South Korean auto industry, with one occuring every summer for a 20 year period from 1988-2008.

While North American launch plans are still on track for the second half of this year, Hyundai has been forced to go ahead with a limited roll-out in South Korea, with a target of 18,000 cars sold. The Veloster is a key product in both markets, with the car being both a push into the “premium” market at home, and a way to bring in young customers in the United States.

[Source: Automotive News]

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