Tag: video

Video: Forget kicking tires, VW dealer shows off GTI durability with enthusiasm

Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., Videos, Hatchback, Volkswagen, Humor

Dealer abusing a Volkswagen Golf GTI

Larry Roesch Volkswagen puts a GTI through its paces – Click above to watch video after the jump

Buying a used vehicle can be a scary experience. You just never know what kind of abuse the car has been subjected to by the hands of a previous owner, which is why plenty of people knowingly take the depreciation hit and buy new. After all, what kind of harm can a vehicle endure from the time it leaves the production facility until you sign on the dotted line? Quite a bit, according to the video after the jump. One very overzealous Volkswagen dealer set about taking to the YouTubes to demonstrate the sturdiness of his wares.

An innocent GTI was subjected to a few full-force door slams. That’s cringe-worthy enough in our book, but the wayward salesman wasn’t quite done. He then proceeded to use the full force of his body weight to jump up and down on the open driver’s door. While we appreciate a dealer’s desire to prove how well the vehicles he sells are built, we wouldn’t want that done to our own cars… and we’d hate to see what these guys do to the vehicles when the camera isn’t rolling.

Hit the jump to see the mayhem for yourself. Thanks for the tip, Mateusz!

Continue reading Forget kicking tires, VW dealer shows off GTI durability with enthusiasm

Forget kicking tires, VW dealer shows off GTI durability with enthusiasm originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 May 2011 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Ferrari 458 Challenge demonstrates evolution of the breed on Laguna Seca’s Corkscrew

Filed under: Motorsports, Ferrari, Racing

Ferrari 458 Challenge at Laguna Seca

Ferrari 458 Challenge at Laguna Seca – Click above to watch video after the jump

The Ferrari 458 Challenge made its racing debut last month at Monza, and the spec race car appeared for the first time here in the U.S. a few weeks later at California’s Infineon Raceway. While we couldn’t make it out to Sonoma for the latter, we did get our first look at the 458 Challenge this past weekend at the Ferrari Racing Days at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

As with its road cars, Ferrari somehow manages to vastly improve the performance of each generation of race cars, and the 458 Challenge is no exception. Ferrari says that the 458 Challenge can lap the Fiorano race track about two seconds faster than its predecessor, and that difference translated to Laguna Seca. The fastest 458 Challenge cars were turning in times more than three seconds quicker than the top 430 Challenge cars. Even the fastest 430 driver, who set a new class qualifying lap record of 1:31.630, was half a second behind the slowest 458.

You can see our photos of the 458 Challenge at the Ferrari Racing Days in the high-res gallery below, and follow the jump to watch a video of the cars tackle Laguna Seca’s famous Corkscrew.

Continue reading Ferrari 458 Challenge demonstrates evolution of the breed on Laguna Seca’s Corkscrew

Ferrari 458 Challenge demonstrates evolution of the breed on Laguna Seca’s Corkscrew originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 May 2011 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Tour the LAPD’s new Chevrolet Caprice PPV with Translogic

Filed under: Sedan, Government/Legal, Safety, Technology, Videos, Chevrolet, Police/Emergency

Chevrolet Caprice PPV

Chevrolet Caprice PPV – Click above to watch video after the jump

By now, you’ve probably committed every detail of the new generation of police cruisers to memory. With so many potential successors to the Ford Crown Victoria throne, it pays to know exactly which models to look out for on the road, especially if you dabble in extra-legal speeds. The guys from Translogic recently got the chance to get up close and personal with the new Chevrolet Caprice PPV courtesy of a tour by the Los Angeles Police Department. Along with getting the full scoop on what the vehicle has to offer in terms of officer and criminal comfort, we’re also introduced to some of the killer tech on board the new cruiser.

Officers are now treated to an easy-to-navigate touch screen that handles everything from HVAC controls to advanced crime-fighting tech. License-plate recognition software combines two front-mounted cameras with a criminal database to alert officers of potentially threatening drivers and an additional super-sensitive infrared camera can even detect a perpetrator’s footsteps at night. Go go gadget awesome.

Hit the jump to check out the video for yourself.

Continue reading Tour the LAPD’s new Chevrolet Caprice PPV with Translogic

Tour the LAPD’s new Chevrolet Caprice PPV with Translogic originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 May 2011 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Ferrari Racing Days at Laguna Seca: F1 Clienti bring the Formula 1 experience closer to the masses

Filed under: Motorsports, Ferrari, Racing

Ferrari F1 Clienti at Laguna Seca

Without a doubt, the highlight of this past weekend’s Ferrari Racing Days at Laguna Seca was the F1 Cliente. Ferrari started the program in 2003 to allow their most significant and wealthiest customers to own and operate old Formula 1 cars at some of the world’s best racing circuits under the guidance and supervision of a dedicated team of Ferrari’s own mechanics and engineers. Participants in the program need only to show up – Ferrari takes care of the maintenance, care and transportation of the cars. The crew will even bring the owner’s racing suit to each of the events.

For the event at Laguna Seca, a total of six F1 cars were in attendance, ranging from a 1972 312 B2 driven by Jacky Ickx to an F2007 test car driven by Michael Schumacher. Two other Schumacher race cars from 2001 and 2004, an F2003-GA driven by Rubens Barrichello, and a Berger/Mansell F1-89 filled out the rest of the lineup.

The best part about the F1 Clienti is that Ferrari allows a relatively good amount of access to see the cars up close. Just try walking into the Ferrari garage at an actual Formula 1 race. To see and hear the cars in person is also an entirely different experience than watching on television. The zoom lenses of the television cameras betray the actual speed at which an F1 car can travel. The 599XX and FXX actually seemed slow in comparison.

You can watch the Ferrari F1 Clienti at Laguna Seca for yourself in the video after the jump, or check out our photos from the event in the gallery below.

Continue reading Ferrari Racing Days at Laguna Seca: F1 Clienti bring the Formula 1 experience closer to the masses

Ferrari Racing Days at Laguna Seca: F1 Clienti bring the Formula 1 experience closer to the masses originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 May 2011 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: BMW Group design boss von Hooydonk talks 328 Hommage

Filed under: Concept Cars, Classics, Convertible, Performance, Europe, Videos, BMW, Misc. Auto Shows, Luxury

BMW 328 Hommage Concept

BMW 328 Hommage concept with Adrian von Hooydonk – Click above to watch the video after the break

While at this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza at Villa d’Este (yeah, we’re roughing it here) we grabbed BMW Group chief of design Adrian von Hooydonk for an interview about his team’s latest two-person open-top concept car, the 328 Hommage.

The 328 Hommage marks 75 years since the launch of the gorgeous 1930s icon, the 328, and carries on the tradition of that car in its lightness. While the 328 six-cylinder was underpowered on paper in its day, it kicked butt on the race circuit due to its very light weight and superior dynamics.

The 328 Hommage frankly looks more like an homage to the 1950s sex-tastic 507, but at least the concept gets the open sides, leather straps, and wingnut wheels fairly correct. And we like that the tall kidneys on the grille make a modern return.

Von Hooydonk admits that the 328 Hommage isn’t proportionally much like the 328 of old, but, he says, “Any sports car today needs to be wider and lower anyway.” We, however, harken back to the 2006 Mille Miglia coupe concept, which simply blew one and all away. That car also went directly from its public unveiling into the BMW museum in Munich, never to be seriously driven.

Click through to the jump to continue reading and to watch the video.

Continue reading BMW Group design boss von Hooydonk talks 328 Hommage

BMW Group design boss von Hooydonk talks 328 Hommage originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 May 2011 19:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Fifth Gear tracks Porsche 911 Carrera against Lotus Evora S

Filed under: Coupe, Videos, Lotus, Porsche

lotus evora vs porsche 911

Lotus Evora S vs. Porsche 911 – Click above to watch video after the jump

How focused do you want your sports car? While you can go out and twist the track-ready dial to 11, some folks only want a dash more punch than the next guy. A daily-drivable hoon machine is what’s required, and Fifth Gear lined up two of them to battle it out at the Dutch TT Circuit Assen.

The Lotus Evora S squares off against the Porsche 911, and Fifth Gear’s Vicki Butler-Henderson pushes both coupes around the course. Is Germany’s icon quicker than this blue British bomber? Click past the jump to find out.

Continue reading Fifth Gear tracks Porsche 911 Carrera against Lotus Evora S

Fifth Gear tracks Porsche 911 Carrera against Lotus Evora S originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 May 2011 18:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: 21-year-old Filipino carves amazing wooden car sculptures

Filed under: Etc., Videos, Toys/Games, Design/Style

Franco Cagayat and his auotmotive sculpture

Franco Cagayat and his automotive sculpture – Click above to watch video after the jump

We’ve seen some pretty amazing things happen when talent mixes with the proper medium, but this takes the cake. Top Gear Philippines magazine is featuring a story on Franco Cagayat, an autistic 21-year-old sculptor who specializes in carving detailed vehicle models from a single block of wood. Complete with doors that open and close, full interiors and complete engine bays, the vehicles are unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Cagayat says he got started by drawing every vehicle he saw and eventually learned to translate that talent into sculpting.

The artist first became a fan of Top Gear when a classmate offered to trade him a copy of the magazine for a wooden Ferrari Testarossa. We think Cagayat probably got the short end of the stick on that one, but he now uses the photos in the publication for reference when it comes time to carve the newest supercars of the world. Hit the jump to take a look at a video interview with Cagayat.

Continue reading 21-year-old Filipino carves amazing wooden car sculptures

21-year-old Filipino carves amazing wooden car sculptures originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 May 2011 17:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Obama’s limo gets banged up in Ireland

Filed under: Europe, Government/Legal, Videos, Cadillac, Police/Emergency, Celebrities, Humor, Specialty

Presidential Limo gets stuck in Ireland

Presidential limo gets stuck in Ireland – Click above to watch the video after the break

This is no ordinary limousine. Rumored to be built on a heavy-duty truck chassis, this stretched Cadillac boasts armor plating all around, window glass thick enough to stop bullets and enough high-tech communications equipment to run the entire United States from the comfort of its leather-lined back seat. You’d think it would take a nuclear bomb to halt the progress of President Obama’s black Cadillac.

Apparently, all it really takes is one particularly nasty speed bump.

Just below the break you’ll find a video shot by a casual passer-by that shows the Presidential Limousine (also known as “The Beast”) getting high-centered on the apparently oversize down-ramp that exits the parking lot of the American Embassy (in other words, on U.S. soil) in Dublin, Ireland.

Nobody can say for absolutely sure (except for the Secret Service, and they ain’t talkin’) whether POTUS was actually in this limo or not. Some are suggesting that this may have been a decoy, and, due to the quick response from the Commander in Chief’s safety crew, we can’t really say for sure how this fiasco ended up for President Obama or the First Lady, or if they were even in the car.

In any case, you should definitely check out the video after the break… if only to see – and more importantly hear – The Beast getting stuck entering Ireland. Thanks for the tip, Jay!

Continue reading Obama’s limo gets banged up in Ireland

Obama’s limo gets banged up in Ireland originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 May 2011 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Vintage crash compilation shows how far racing has come

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics, Europe, Videos, Racing

Killed Myself when I was Young

Killed Myself When I Was Young – Click above to view videos after the jump

This compilation of racing crashes in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s is a jarring reminder of when auto racing really was a life-or-death venture. Put simply, if you drove a race car during this period, you were as likely to be killed as you were to retire.

Thanks to ever-increasing speeds and no regard for driver and spectator safety, it was common for races to turn deadly. Because of the sacrifices these drivers made, racers, teams and sanctioning bodies have since come together to make racing safer than ever.

If “Killed Myself When I Was Young” interests you, check out the hour-long YouTube video “Grand Prix: The Killer Years,” detailing the fight for even basic safety measures in Formula 1. Be advised that neither video is for the faint of heart; both are embedded after the jump.

Continue reading Vintage crash compilation shows how far racing has come

Vintage crash compilation shows how far racing has come originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 22 May 2011 20:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Watch the Ferrari Superamerica 45 flip its lid

2011 Ferrari Superamerica 45

2011 Ferrari Superamerica 45 – Click above to view video after the jump

It’s a real shame that Ferrari is only building one Superamerica 45, because the car is gorgeous. Besides the lovely Blu Antille paint, the flying buttresses that mold the roof structure into the rear bodywork, and the body-colored wheels, this thing has one of the slickest roof mechanisms out there.

Hit a button, and the lid on the 599 GTB Fiorano-based roadster does a full backflip, executing a perfect landing on the car’s rear deck. It’s quick and sleek, and really helps sell the entire package. Like we said earlier, the Superamerica 45 is a one-off, built especially for collector Peter Kalikow.

Kalikow commissioned the car to be a modern version of the 1961 Ferrari Superamerica 400 that graces his collection. Color us envious. Check out the video after the jump.

Continue reading Watch the Ferrari Superamerica 45 flip its lid

Watch the Ferrari Superamerica 45 flip its lid originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 21 May 2011 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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