car Archives | Page 27 of 32

FBI reports car thefts at all-time low, but so are recoveries

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety

The Federal Bureau of Investigation reports that car thefts in 2009 were at their lowest level in 20 years. Last year, a total of 794,616 vehicles were stolen from their owners – a 17 percent drop compared to 2008. Without a doubt, those numbers are good news for car owners across the country, but the FBI report isn’t all roses and sunshine. The government agency also says that while theft numbers are down, so is the number of vehicles recovered after they’re stolen.

Last year, authorities were able to return just 42 percent of all stolen vehicles. That number marks a 25 percent decline compared to 2008. The reason? Law enforcement says that thieves are getting smarter all the time, and that most acts of vehicle theft are perpetrated by professionals who are skilled at their trade. Experts recommend following the usual tricks to make sure you’re not a victim, including locking your vehicle, keeping valuables out of sight and parking it well-lit areas to make sure your vehicle doesn’t wind up on the short list of those stolen in 2010.

[Source: Consumer Reports | Image: Peter Dazeley/Getty]

FBI reports car thefts at all-time low, but so are recoveries originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Sep 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spartan V track car is a motorcycle on four wheels

Filed under: Aftermarket, Convertible, Performance, Australia, Racing

Spartan V

Spartan V track car – Click above for image gallery

Just when you thought the communal fascination with Frank Miller’s 300 had all but washed away, a track machine dedicated to the ancient fighting Spartans hit the scene. Meet the Spartan V – a lightweight all-star with a heart borrowed from Ducati. That’s right, this machine hits the scales at less than 661 pounds and packs 170 horsepower from a 1200 cc Italian mill.

In other words, it should absolutely go like stink.

The company behind the project says that the Spartan V should be able to click off the 0-60 mph dash in less than three seconds on its way to a top speed of 173 mph thanks to a sequential six-speed gearbox. If you’re looking for a motorcycle on four wheels, this is it.

The vehicle uses a tubular space-frame chassis clad in plenty of carbon fiber to keep the pounds off, and those sexy double-hoop roll bars can be swapped out for an FIA-compatible single-hoop should you decide to enter the heat of competition. It all sounds good, sure, but if you want one you’ll have to shell out $84,321 at current conversion rates. Madness? This is the Spartan V.

Gallery: Spartan V

[Source: Spartan V]

Spartan V track car is a motorcycle on four wheels originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 15 Sep 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Next-Generation Toyota Avensis Touring Car previewed in sketches

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, Toyota, UK, Racing

Toyota Avensis touring car sketch

Toyota Avensis Next Generation Touring Car – Click above for high-res sketches

You’ve seen NASCAR’s Car of Tomorrow – now meet its British counterpart. Based on the Toyota Avensis, this Next Generation Touring Car is the first of a new breed of cars set to take over the British Touring Car Championship starting next season.

Although Toyota isn’t competing in the series with a works team, it has supplied the donor car and body shell to GPR Motorsport to use as the basis for its new touring car, built to revised BTCC regulations. The Avensis is, after all, a British-built car – one that enjoys broad sales success in the UK and across Europe.

The Avensis NGTC will make its debut at the last round of this season’s championship on October 9 at Brands Hatch, where two-time BTCC champion James Thompson will take the wheel. In the meantime, click below to view the first sketches of how the new contender will look, or follow the jump for the full press release.

Gallery: Toyota Avensis Next Generation Touring Car

[Source: GPR Motorsport]

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Next-Generation Toyota Avensis Touring Car previewed in sketches originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 14 Sep 2010 16:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi S4 named Esquire Car of the Year [w/video]

Filed under: Etc.

2010 Audi S4 - Esquire 2010 COTY

Esquire’s 2010 COTY is the 2010 Audi S4 – Click above to watch video after the jump

Esquire, the purveyor of printed pages packed with ads and male-centric eye-candy, has released its list of 2010 automotive award winners. The top award is the Car of the Year and the magazine is handing that title to the 2010 Audi S4. Esquire makes a strong statement behind its reasoning, and it’s hard to argue with its logic.

Numbers and stats are starting points, but we believe that the Esquire Car of the Year should make you feel something deep in your gut. You should lust for it and dream about it, but it shouldn’t be an impossible goal. It must be attainable for the average man. It should sit in front of your house or office without drawing attention to itself and tackle four seasons of day-to-day transportation with ease. Yet crucially, sometimes, without warning, it must make you snatch the keys off the wall, haul off to the country and just drive.

After putting our own butts in the driver’s seat, we felt the B8 S4 was a wonderful leap forward over the past B6 and B7 iterations, particularly with the new supercharged V6 and trick torque vectoring sport differential.

Esquire hands out more than just a COTY award as well. The magazine scoured the current crop of automotive excellence and handed out check pluses for: Domestic Car of the Year, Hybrid of the Year, Most Awe-Inspiring Car Built This Year, Compact Car of the Year, Most Beautiful Car of the Year, Truck of the Year, Diesel Car of the Year, Best Foreign Comeback, Best Domestic Comeback and Best Expression of Automotive Passion. Who wins? You’re going to have to make the jump to find out. And there’s a nice little video of the Audi S4 happily accepting its award.

Gallery: Review: 2010 Audi S4

Photos copyright (C)2009 Damon Lavrinc / Weblogs, Inc.
[Source: Esquire]

Continue reading Audi S4 named Esquire Car of the Year [w/video]

Audi S4 named Esquire Car of the Year [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 13 Sep 2010 18:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Top 10 car songs picked by AOL Radio listeners; Do you agree?

Filed under: Etc.

AOL Radio’s top car songs – Click above to see the list

UK company HPI recently put out a list of top ten road trip songs as chosen by its customers, with Lynyrd Skynyrd über alles. Now AOL Radio has put together its own list of car songs chosen by listeners, but these are songs about cars, not necessarily the ones you’d choose to play in cars.

Not quite as oddball as the HPI list, it still runs through eras and categories: Tracy Chapman (Fast Car), Foghat (Slow Ride), Metallica (Fuel) and the Clash (Brand New Cadillac) are among the chosen, as well as Gary Numan – who’s been popular lately – with Cars. At number one: War’s Low Rider. Take a little trip to the link below for the rest of the list and to have a listen.

[Source: AOL Radio]

Top 10 car songs picked by AOL Radio listeners; Do you agree? originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 11 Sep 2010 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Terrafugia flying car to start production by end of year

Filed under: Etc., Plants/Manufacturing, Technology, Specialty

Terrafugia Transition flying car

Terrafugia Transition flying car – Click above for high-res image gallery

Terrafugia, the Massachusetts-based flying car company, has announced that it is one step closer to putting a road-and-air-going flying car in your driveway. A suitable production facility has been located in Woburn, MA, just down the road from the company’s headquarters. A story posted on USAToday.com states that production could begin within three months, and that Terrafugia plans to hire 50 skilled workers over a period of three years. Extensive testing will begin on two prototypes – one will focus on flight behavior while the other will stick to the ground. If that’s the case, three months seems pretty optimistic.

Regardless, we are getting closer to realizing many a young person’s dream. A flying car evokes romantic visions of picking up a date then soaring through the clouds. Sure, the styling of the Terrafugia Transition is a cross between a PT Cruiser and a Paul Walker Pep Boys special, and yes, we are also aware that the skies will eventually become clogged with traffic and flying down the Air-405 will be a nightmare. Still, it’s not often you get to see a childhood fantasy come to life.

Gallery: Terrafugia Transition – First Flight

[Source: USA Today]

Report: Terrafugia flying car to start production by end of year originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Infographic: The Unstealable Car

Filed under: Etc., Safety, Technology

The Unstealable Car infographic

What a theft-proof car requires – Click above to view the image after the jump

According to HomeSecurity.net, one million vehicles (worth a total of $7.5 billion) were stolen in the United States last year. If you don’t want to join a top ten list of vehicles dominated by Honda and Toyota, there are seven key technologies you’d install to create “The Ultimate Theft-Proof Car.” No, one of them isn’t The Club.

Leading the way is a radio-frequency transmitter, which is alone responsible for 90 percent of theft recoveries. Following that are a secure identification device like a fingerprint reader, some sort of GPS tracking system, SIM-card operated GSM communications that allow the car to call its owner when broken into, an interior motion detector, keyless entry and a passive immobilizer. Or you could just get an Abrams M1 tank – we hear they’re pretty hard to lift. Follow the jump for the complete infographic.

[Source: HomeSecurity.net]

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Infographic: The Unstealable Car originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mini Countryman rally car shown testing for WRC

Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Europe, Hatchback, Mini, Racing

Mini Countryman WRC

The more we hear about Mini’s quest to run the Countryman in the World Rally Championship, the less and less it sounds like a publicity stunt. The company has just finished testing its prototype rally beater at Prodrive’s private test facility, putting the car through its paces over four days and multiple road surfaces. According to Mini, most of the abuse took place on a tarmac circuit, though the team did spend plenty of time getting the car situated on a few low-grip stages. The R&D was prep for an excursion to Portugal, where the team plans to put the Countryman through a full week of gravel testing.

Despite the psycho-swirly camo, Mini says that the racer is currently wearing “an interim body and aero package” while the minds at Prodrive concoct the final lines. It remains to be seen who the company will come up with to helm its high-riding missile. We’re just happy to see Mini back in the WRC. Hit the jump for the brief press release.

[Source: Mini]

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Mini Countryman rally car shown testing for WRC originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BMW’s dontblogaboutthis.com car revealed on forum

Filed under: Concept Cars, Spy Photos, Coupe, Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Paris Motor Show, BMW, Rumormill, Specialty

dontblogaboutthis BMW

dontblogaboutthis BMW – Click above for high-res image gallery

Yesterday we brought you a few strange images and even weirder videos showcasing an odd BMW. Today, more images have hit the web, proving this is more than a BMW 6 Series with skinny tires and a missing tailpipe. The car may be wearing 6 Series skin from the a-pillar back, but the front is a different animal. It appears to be similar to the face found on the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept vehicle.

There are a lot of ways these “spy shots” can be perceived. The above image and the extremely quiet running sound from the clips certainly led us to believe this car is utilizing a new EfficientDynamics powertrain. This would mean the above mash-up mobile is powered by a 1.5-liter inline three-cylinder diesel as well as a pair of electric motors set on the axles.

A viral campaign complete with dark photographs of a mysterious vehicle? It must be auto show season! The Paris Motor Show is right around the corner and we hope someone BMW will be ready to spill their precision-engineered beans.

Gallery: DontBlogAboutThis.com BMW

DontBlogAboutThis.com BMW

[Source: dontblogaboutthis, e90post forums]

BMW’s dontblogaboutthis.com car revealed on forum originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: 2011 Dodge Charger Pursuit police car leaks out

Filed under: Sedan, Videos, Dodge, Police/Emergency

Dodge Charger police pursuit vehicle revealed

Dodge Charger police pursuit vehicle revealed – Click above to watch the video after the jump

This all seems a bit backwards. Chrysler has yet to release the official details and images about the 2011 Dodge Charger, but we already have the skinny on the Charger Pursuit, Dodge’s work-ready police car set to hit the streets in just a few months. And while only one official image of the Charger cop car has been revealed, a new video gives us a walk-around of Chrysler’s latest pursuit vehicle.

Recorded at what appears to be some sort of police fleet convention, this poorly-lit amateur video gives us a nearly complete view of what the 2011 Charger’s exterior will look like when gussied up for police duty. Furthermore, it shows off the new lines of the Charger sedan, including that Challenger-inspired rear end.

Can’t wait for Chrysler to unload a high-res image gallery of 2011 Charger photos? Feed your impatience by watching the video after the jump. Hat tips to Edgardo and Dave W!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: 2011 Dodge Charger Pursuit police car leaks out

Video: 2011 Dodge Charger Pursuit police car leaks out originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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