Tag: nationwide

Raikkonen moves up the NASCAR ladder with respectable Nationwide Series debut

Filed under: Motorsports

Kimi Raikkonen

Between the Indy 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix – both packed with nail-biting action right to the finish line – there was no lack of excitement for racing fans this Memorial Day weekend. But open wheels weren’t the only ones turning yesterday as NASCAR headed back to its heartland at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. And while the top-tier Sprint Cup was the headline event, our eyes were on the second-step Nationwide Series as Kimi Raikkonen made his next step up the stock-car racing ladder in the Top Gear 300.

Following his solid debut last week in the Camping World truck series, the former F1 champion turned rally driver took the next step up, driving the #87 Toyota Camry fielded by NEMCO Motorsports and prepared by the same Kyle Busch Motorsports with the same Perky Jerky sponsorship from his truck debut.

So how’d he do? Not bad. Not amazing, but not bad, considering this was only his second oval-track race, his second outing in a stock car and the first in the Nationwide Series. Kimi was up to fifteenth for much of the race, running on the lead lap and taking advantage of green-flag restarts to gain position. He struggled, however, with the car’s front-end handling, as well as heat burning his feet inside the cockpit, and dropped down several laps after a series of disadvantageous trips to the pit lane – one for fresh fuel and rubber, one to remove debris from a crash and another to serve a drive-through penalty.

In the end Raikkonen finished 27th out of 43, running but four laps down on the race leaders. Sprint Cup drivers ended up dominating the race, with Matt Kenseth taking the checkered flag. So what’s next for Kimi? Well he’s back in the WRC next month for the Acropolis rally in Greece, but there’s no telling when he might be back Stateside for more NASCAR action. The Sprint Cup road-course race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, could give Raikkonen a chance to shine, but his team fears there’s precious little time to put it together with less than a month to go.

Raikkonen moves up the NASCAR ladder with respectable Nationwide Series debut originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 30 May 2011 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Charlotte NASCAR Nationwide race renamed Top Gear 300

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Celebrities

Top Gear USA

In an effort to gain some viewership, Top Gear America has teamed up with NASCAR to rename the May 28 Nationwide Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway the Top Gear 300. To tease season two of the American spinoff of the so-far superior English car show, clips from Top Gear America will be broadcast during the race.

Top Gear America clips will also air on Charlotte Motor Speedway’s 200-foot high-definition jumbotron, the biggest high-def TV in the world. That’s gonna make Rutledge’s head look extra big, no? (Just kidding, Mr. Wood, your head’s just fine.)

Details are scant as to what TGUSA paid for all this, but we can’t imagine it came cheap. The green flag waves on the Top Gear 300 at 2:30 EST on May 28. Only time will tell if this move ends up boosting TGUSA’s ratings for season two.

[Source: UPI.com]

Charlotte NASCAR Nationwide race renamed Top Gear 300 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Come and get it: Chevy Volt available nationwide by end of the year

Map of Chevy Volt roll out plan for U.S.

If you’ve been craving a Chevy Volt, but it isn’t available in your area, take heart: The plug-in sedan is coming to you by the end of the year. Because of strong customer demand, the rollout is being sped up by six months, making those rumors of huge increases in production far more plausible. Speaking at the DC Auto Show, GM’s Ed Welburn said, “This accelerated plan, which had stretched into 2012, is the right thing to do for our customers. Demand was that strong.”

Apparently, GM’s 40 35-mile plug-in hybrid has so piqued the car-buying public’s interest that the company says it bringing people to showrooms who might not have previously considered a GM purchase. According to Chevy dealer Harry Criswell III:

The Volt is clearly bringing new customers to Chevrolet. We are seeing 10 to 15 customers a week who are seriously considering buying a Volt. Many of them own competitive brands and now have a Chevy on their shopping list because of the Volt.

Looks like all that investment just might pay itself off sooner than later. To see when your state goes Volt, check out the color-coded map above. Official press release after the break.

[Source: GM]

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Come and get it: Chevy Volt available nationwide by end of the year originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: LaHood mulling nationwide ban on all in-car mobile phone use?

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Technology

Ray LaHood at Distraction.gov lectern

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood wants to make our roads a safer place. Distracted driving is arguably his number one issue, and LaHood is waging a concerted campaign to try and curb it. Is he taking things a step too far, though? According to Automotive News, LaHood has now stated that he believes motorists are distracted by any use of a mobile device while driving. This includes making hands-free calls through the use of in-car or in-ear Bluetooth devices. LaHood’s department is going to begin researching all types of mobile device usage to see how they affect drivers. He also plans to meet with automakers to try and gain support for his campaign to eliminate distracting driving.

According to the report, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration feels that Ray LaHood is focusing too closely on one area of motoring safety, rather than the bigger picture. NHTSA officials are quoted as saying that current distracted driving crash statistics may be inflated because not all law enforcement agencies are properly trained to recognize a distracted driving accident. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety even went so far as to release a study showing that new texting laws have not influenced accident rates in a positive manner.

Ray Lahood has quite an uphill battle on his hands. Even if he and his team can prove that hands-free usage of mobile devices increase accident rates, the practice is so deeply ingrained in the brains of the overall driving public – not to mention the businesses associated with it – that it will be difficult to convince motorists to not use their phones while driving at all. LaHood is optimistic, however,

“The bottom line for me is to get where we’re at with seat belts and with drunk driving. When those programs were started, people were very skeptical that you could get people to buckle up.”

So don’t adopt the “You can pry my iPhone from my cold dead hands” attitude just yet. Secretary LaHood is merely investigating the matter at this point. There are no plans to call for a ban just yet, but at least one NHTSA official admits it’s a possibility.

[Source: Automotive News – sub. req.| Image: Mark Wilson/Getty]

Report: LaHood mulling nationwide ban on all in-car mobile phone use? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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