If you’re like us, you cringe at the idea of handing your keys over to a valet. It doesn’t matter if you’re driving a Toyota Prius or a Lamborghini Gallardo, the thought of some random person driving your car is a scary one.

Unfortunately the owner of this Nissan GT-R from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia most certainly wishes he (or she) hadn’t. As is obvious from the photos, this GT-R was flipped on top of another car thanks to the handiwork of said valet driver.

It’s actually a little perplexing looking at the photos to try to figure out what caused the accident other than an overzealous driver getting behind the wheel of serious horsepower. Once they were able to get their car back on its four wheels, the devastation is a little heartbreaking and hopefully the driver was OK and learned a lesson. We’re certain the GT-R owner learned a good lesson too.

GALLERY: Valet Crashes Nissan GT-R

[Source: Zero to Hundred]

If you can wrap your head around that breathlessly exciting headline, then you can begin to understand the significance of a £49,995 Subaru taking on the likes of Ariel, Lexus, and Nissan’s GTR—and destroying them.

The Cosworth Impreza STI CS400 devastated the competition at the 1.2-mile Cholmondeley sprint circuit for the annual Pageant Of Power, with former British Rally Champion Mark Higgins behind the wheel. The 400-horsepower STI recorded a time of 66.08 seconds with an average speed of 65.45mph, which was enough to beat the Ariel Atom V8, the Lexus LF-A, and the Ford Focus RS500 in the wet.

“Ours was not only the fastest hatchback, but also the quickest vehicle in any class when the circuit was wet, which speaks volumes for its capabilities,” said Kenyon Neads, marketing director for Subaru UK. ”It was no surprise the Subaru stand in the paddock was a hive of activity throughout the weekend.”

In fact, the little Cossie (sounds strange to call it that when it’s not a Ford) was only beaten by the Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Performante, a car that, Subaru is quick to remind you, costs almost 4 times as much.

But you’ll be hard-pressed to find either one on the streets: given Subaru’s grand tradition of super-exclusive, limited-edition STI versions for the British market, all examples are most likely accounted for already. Hell, it will probably be easier to find the Performante Stateside than a Cosworth-edition anything.

More commonly known as Mr. Bean, Rowan Atkinson is a little hard to take seriously. In all of his acts, the oftentimes silent comedian can generate laughs with his facial expressions alone. That’s why when we heard that he was recently on Top Gear and even set the fastest time in their “Star in a Reasonable Priced Car” competition, we knew we had to see the clip. We all knew Atkinson was an automotive enthusiast, but being able to see him in action while piloting a car around a track is truly priceless.

Piloting a Kia Cee’d, Rowan Atkinson now sits on top of the leaderboard with a time of 1:42.2, besting the likes of Tom Cruise and Simon Pegg. In addition, Atkinson brought a V16-powered Rolls-Royce Phantom to the show, a vehicle he was granted the rights to use through Rolls-Royce themselves. It’ll be seen in his upcoming film Johnny English Reborn, where the 9.0L V16 Phantom will star with Atkinson. Supposedly Rolls-Royce had toyed with the idea of mass producing the 9.0L V16 Phantom but ultimately tossed the idea out the window. But prior to that, Rolls-Royce managed to produce three or four of them, one of which Atkinson was able to get his hands on.

We can’t wait to see what sort of comedy ensues in his upcoming film, despite having a more serious note than the majority of his previous work.

Check out the clip of Atkinson at Top Gear after the break.

[Source: Autoblog]

Continue Reading…

Following on from a demonstration back in February, at the DistribuTECH conference in San Diego, General Motors, in conjunction with OnStar, is in the process of launching a real world Smart Grid program for electric vehicles, beginning with a pilot project, set to debut later this year.

The project will see numerous utility employees driving leased Chevrolet Volts as every day vehicles, with the objective of accurately monitoring (and managing) the actual amount of energy consumed by each vehicle a utility operates, via OnStar’s Advanced Telematics Operations Management System (ATOMS).

From the data gathered, utilities will then be able to decide on the optimum times for charging EVs on the grid, the idea being, that charging them is done during off-peak periods.

Essentially, it works like this. The Smart Grid system actually incorporates two elements, the first of which records the current charging level of each car, as well as its charging history, via time and location information.

The second allows the utility in question to actively manage vehicle charging, by providing discounts or other incentives to motorists in an effort to encourage them to charge their vehicles during off peak times, such as the early morning hours, reducing the amount of strain on the grid and thus with it, the chance of brownouts and other supply issues.

“OnStar is the only telematics provider that can create a wireless bridge between electric vehicles and the grid, building on our learning from the Chevrolet Volts on the road today,” said Nick Pudar, the company’s vice president of planning and business development in a recent statement.

It’ll be interesting to see how this new Smart Grid system fares during the trial period and whether from the results gathered, it can truly provide a worthy solution to one of the biggest on-going problems concerning EVs.

Today, a report was released regarding the possibility of Tata motors entering a joint engine-development program with Jaguar Land Rover. Tata is currently India’s leading automaker by sales, and presently obtains engines from Jaguar and Land Rover models from the brand’s previous owner, Ford Motor Co.

Tata feels that the joint engine-development program would allow another step forward to establishing the brands’ independence from Ford(Tata bought Jaguar Land Rover from Ford in 2008). ”To optimize the synergistic strengths between JLR and Tata Motors in India, an examination is also under way on a joint engine development program which would have manufacturing facilities both in the U.K. and India,” explained Ratan Tata

Tata Motors sold 62,090 Jaguar and Land Rovers globally for the fiscal year, up 9 percent from the previous year, according to the company. Jaguar Land Rover North America sold 23,702 vehicles in the U.S in the first six months of 2011, up 13.9 percent over the first six months of 2010.

[Source: Automotive News]

Chrysler has taken the title of number one light-truck seller in Canada from Ford in the first half of 2011. Deliveries in the light truck segment have grown at twice the rate of the rest of the Canadian auto industry, and Chrysler led in sales last month for the first time in 2011.

The Dodge Journey has seen a boost in sales by 50 percent to 16,069 in Canada, and is touted as Canada’s best-selling crossover, while the Grand Caravan, Ram pickup and Jeep Wrangler also had their best Canadian sales month ever this June. According to a report by Bloomberg, an upsurge  in the construction industry is responsible for the light truck segment’s sales climb.

[Source: Bloomberg]

How sweet is this ride? Australians were treated to a Mini Copper covered with 3,000 macarons, as it drove around Melbourne, causing sugar cravings of epic proportions.

Covered by different colors and flavors of macarons made by pastry chef Pierrick Boyer of Le Petit Gateau, the MINIron was the creation of Melbourne Macaron. The group, which is funded by the Melbourne Awesome Foundation, took 180 hours to complete by 22 volunteers. The group’s mission was to create a buzz in Melbourne around this cosmopolitan cookie, and we have to say that it was mission accomplished.

Check out all the pictures of the MINIron on its Facebook page. We’ve even got a video of the making of MINIron after the jump. Bon appetit!

Continue Reading…

General Motors has its hands in all corners of the globe, and while most consumers know about their operations in Europe and South Koreas, their arm in the former Soviet Republic of Uzbekistan is shaping up to be quite the powerhouse in the all-important Russian market.

Despite only being in existence since November, 2008 GM Uzbekistan’s operations are credited with a 40 percent rise in sales in the first half of 2010. With 45,217 Uzebkistani-made vehicles sold, GM ranked 10th overall in the Russia market. While GM produces mostly modern Daewood-engineered vehicles in Uzbekistan, consumers can also buy the Chevrolet Nexia (pictured above) based on the wretched Pontiac LeMans which originally debuted in 1986.

Toyota has clarified their position on the 2012 RAV4 EV and the car will be sold to the general public. The RAV4 EV makes use of Tesla’s electric drivetrain and has been tested with 160 users receiving positive feedback, according to Geri Yoza, Toyota’s national business planning manager of advanced vehicle marketing.

Testers charged the RAV4 more frequently (around 10 times a week), costing $150 for six weeks. Toyota will also be bringing the electric Scion iQ stateside, which will be marketed to fleet and car sharing programs only.

This is Toyota’s first RAV4 EV after first launching the vehicle 15 years ago in 1996. The EV is the first vehicle in the world powered by nickel-metal hydride batteries, capable of achieving 78 mph (125 km/h) and a maximum range of 120 miles (190 km). The RAV4 is expected to arrive in the U.S by the first quarter of 2012.

GALLERY: Toyota RAV4 EV

Important dates for the release of the Volkswagen Up! models have been leaked. The highly anticipated city vehicle will have its world premiere on August 22 in Paris. Following the premiere, the Up! vehicle will be present at the Frankfurt auto show in September 2011, and the official release for the 3-door hatchback is scheduled for the end of 2011. The bigger 5-door hatchback will be released at the end of 2012, and the first MPV Up! and electric-powered models will be available in early 2013.

The three-door five-seater will feature a 1.0-liter gasoline engine and a 1.2-liter diesel engine, with an all-electric version to follow. The Up! will be half the size of a Volkswagen Golf and will cost around $10,000. The Up! variants will compete against the Toyota iQ and other very small compact cars.

[Source: VW Up! Blogspot]