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World’s fastest Dodge Caravan for sale

Filed under: Aftermarket, Motorsports, Minivan/Van, Dodge, Specialty

1989 Dodge Caravan

World’s fastest Dodge Caravan – Click above to watch the video after the jump

That’s right, the world’s fastest Dodge Caravan is being hawked to focus on other projects, and the seller has set a reasonable $6,500 selling price for the rolling novelty. The van started life in 1989, hauling the Joneses to soccer practice and Walmart. When current owner Ryan got ahold of it, though, its m.o. changed dramatically.

The minivan’s engine and transmission were treated to thorough performance rebuilds, and the Chrysler four-pot got some much-needed oomph via a turbo. All that work yielded a stock-looking Dodge Caravan that’s good for 11.5 seconds at 115 mph in the quarter mile, if you’re brave enough.

You can see the original listing for the van here. Click past the jump to see a video of this family hauler turned dragstrip nightmare.

[Source: 1A Auto via Jalopnik]

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World’s fastest Dodge Caravan for sale originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 18:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geneva 2011: World Car of the Year finalists shortlisted

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Geneva Motor Show, Etc.

world car of the year award The list of finalists for World Car of the Year has been whittled down from 39 entries to just three, and the finalists were announced yesterday at a press conference hosted by Bridgestone at the Geneva Motor Show.

The finalists for overall Car of the Year are the 2011 Audi A8, the BMW 5 Series and the Nissan Leaf. The performance category is occupied by the the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and the Porsche 911 Turbo.

Representing the green catergory are the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt and the BMW 320d EfficientDynamics Edition. The green car of the year will be decided by votes from three of the world’s top green technology experts.

The final category in the World Car of the Year competition is design. In that category is the Aston Martin Rapide, Alfa Romeo Giulietta and the Ferrari 458 Italia.

The winner of the World Car of the Year award has to represent some aspects of each category in the competition and will be decided, along with the winners in from the other categories, at the New York Auto Show on April 21.

[Source: World Car of the Year]

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Geneva 2011: World Car of the Year finalists shortlisted originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 14:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geneva 2011: 2012 GTA Spano makes world debut with 820 horsepower

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Europe

2012 GTA Spano

2011 GTA Spano – Click above for high-res image gallery

GTA Motor has just rolled out its brand-new supercar, the V10-powered, 820-horsepower Spano here at the Geneva Motor Show. The car has a carbon fiber-kevlar composite and aluminum chassis, and will be limited to a run of 99 examples worldwide.

With all that power and very little weight, the Spano makes it to 60 mph in under three seconds, and GTA says it will top out at 217 mph. The car carries massive 380 mm (nearly 15-inch) six-piston caliper AP Racing disc brakes with ABS, and the brakes sap off speed with the help of a ridiculous wide set of Pirelli PZero Rosso 330s (19- and 20-inches wide, respectively).

The car is designed with performance in mind, but it’s not a totally stripped-out track-day car, keeping things civilized with a panoramic roof and a carbon fiber luggage compartment complete with fitted bags.

Gallery: 2011 GTA Spano

2011 GTA Spano 2011 GTA Spano interior

[Source: GTA Spano]

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Geneva 2011: 2012 GTA Spano makes world debut with 820 horsepower originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Volvo S60R returns to World Challenge with K-Pax Racing

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, Volvo, Racing

K-Pax Racing Volvo S60R

Over the past few years, the Volvo S60 has achieved considerable success in touring car racing around the world. The factory-supported Polestar team took the title in the Swedish Touring Car Championship a few years back before switching to the C30, and K-Pax Racing took the Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ trophies in the World Challenge GT Championship with the car last year.

Thing is, the touring car taking the honors is still wearing the bodywork of the old Volvo S60, so it was only a matter of time before its successor would be revealed. And here it is.

Although K-Pax will still use the old S60R in the first few rounds of the 2011 World Challenge, the new all-wheel-drive racer will be rolled out for the fourth round at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, in late April.

[Source: K-Pax Racing via CarScoop]

2011 Volvo S60R returns to World Challenge with K-Pax Racing originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 07:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Top 10 finalists announced for World Car of the Year

Filed under: Etc.

It’s that time of the year again, kiddies, to name the best car in the world. The selections for the World Car Awards awarded granted by an international panel of 66 automotive journalists, who have now announced their ten finalists.

Included on the shortlist are the Audi A1 and A8, the BMW 5 Series and X3, Jaguar XJ, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Nissan Leaf, Porsche Cayenne and Volvo S60/V70. The selections were made based on the jurists’ experience with each car through the course of their professional work, and each will be tasked with reevaluating the ten finalists before casting their final ballots to be tabulated by KPMG.

Intriguingly, although the Leaf EV was short-listed, the Chevrolet Volt didn’t make the cut. For an idea of the jurists’ tastes, consider the winners from years past: the Volkswagen Polo (2010), Volkswagen Golf in (2009), Mazda2 (2008), Lexus LS460 (2007), BMW 3-Series (2006), and the Audi A6 in 2005, the first time the prize was awarded.

The shortlist will be whittled down to three finalists to be announced at the Geneva Motor Show next month, followed by the awards to be given out at the New York Auto Show in April. Follow the jump for the official announcement, and check out our image gallery of the ten finalists below.

Gallery: 2011 World Car finalists

Audi A1 Audi A8 BMW 5 Series BMW X3 Jaguar XJ

[Source: World Car Awards]

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Top 10 finalists announced for World Car of the Year originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 16:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford opens its archive of images to the world

Filed under: Etc., Ford

1966 Ford GT Mk II

Ford opens up its image archive – Click above for high-res image gallery

The year 2011 marks Ford’s 108th year in business. Over the course of its long history, the automaker has collected millions of images. Most of these images are stored in boxes, away from prying eyes… but that is about to change. Ford is launching a brand new site that will give users access to thousands of these archival images.

FordImages.com currently has over 5,000 images available to be licensed. The site adds hundreds more every week and is shooting to have 10,000 available by January of 2012. The seemingly endless galleries of images cover everything from key products and personnel to historic motorsports shots and all Ford vehicles through the ages.

The site offers more than just images, however, with a wide range of signs and artwork also offered. Limited-edition photos of cars like the Ford GT and Shelby GT500 are available and signed by Dan Gurney and Carroll Shelby respectively.

If you’re a Blue Oval fan, this may become your new favorite web site. There’s enough material here to decorate your office, home and garage. All those boxes of stored photos mean there’s plenty more where these came from. Check out the gallery below for a few examples of what Ford will offer and be sure to read the full press-release waiting after the jump.

Gallery: Ford opens up its image archive

[Source: Ford]

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Ford opens its archive of images to the world originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Feb 2011 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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World, Green and Performance Car of the Year finalists announced

Filed under: New York Auto Show

The minds behind the 2011 World Car of the Year Award have managed to slim down the contenders in all three of the accolade’s main categories – World Green Car, World Performance Car and World Car of the Year. A total of six contenders are fighting out in the green car category, including eco warriors like the Chevrolet Volt, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, Nissan Leaf and Smart ForTwo Electric Drive. Those entries are also joined by the BMW 320d Efficient Dynamics Edition and the Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-Cell.

Meanwhile, the performance car lot is littered with 10 potential winners ranging from the Aston Martin Rapide to the Renault Megane III. Both Porsche and Mercedes-Benz managed to snag two spots each on the list, and the Cadillac CTS-V sedan is the only American-made product to make the cut.

And what about the coveted World Car of the Year? Judges have managed to thin that herd to just 10 picks ranging from the Audi A1 to the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Audi and BMW were the only two automakers to take home two nominations each.

We can expect a final decision in each of the three categories when the winners are announced at this year’s New York Auto Show on April 21st. If you can’t wait that long for your award news, the top three finalists in each category will be announced at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Hit the jump for the press releases.

[Source: World Car of the Year]

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World, Green and Performance Car of the Year finalists announced originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 01 Feb 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: A1GP back this fall as A10 World Series

Filed under: Motorsports

A1GP

Open-wheel racing fans may recall A1GP, self-styled as the World Cup of Motorsport. The spec racing series pitted national teams against each other in identical machinery – the final iteration having been developed and powered by Ferrari – on circuits across Europe and around the world. It was a promising idea (at least once organizers positioned it as a viable step on the ladder to F1 and not as a rival series), but financial troubles saw the series liquidated by the end of 2009.

Reports of A1GP’s revival have been circulating ever since, but according to Autosport – the publication of record when it comes to international motor racing – the series will be back by next fall.

Few details were revealed, except to say that a “leading motorsport figure” (we’d guess a former F1 champion) will head the group of investors behind the effort, and that it will be renamed the A10 World Series (which hopefully won’t be confused with the World Series by Renault).

While the previous A1GP series was balanced between European and overseas races, the new one will reportedly focus on emerging motorsport markets. So, figure on an Asia-heavy calendar with a number of races in the Gulf emirates and the Far East. As for the machinery, the new series could adopt the abandoned Ferrari chassis or go with a different design altogether.

[Source: Autosport]

Report: A1GP back this fall as A10 World Series originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 23 Jan 2011 13:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: 19 teenage girls cram into Smart ForTwo for new world record

Filed under: Etc., Videos, Hatchback, Smart

19 girls in a Smart Fortwo

19 girls in a Smart Fortwo – Click above to watch the video after the break

It’s the question that’s been racking the brains of the best and brightest the world over, and finally, we have an answer: 19. No, it’s not the answer to life, the universe and everything… it’s the number of teenage girls that have managed to cram themselves inside a Smart Fortwo in Pakistan.

Because you’re dying to know, we’ll gladly inform you that the previous record, set in Australia, saw 18 girls – crucially one fewer than 19 – poke and prod their way into a Fortwo. Naturally, the event was witnessed by representatives from the Guinness Book of World Records, so we can all expect to see the new record in the next installment of the group’s massive book of ridiculous achievements.

Video? Come on now, did you really have to ask? Find it after the break. Thanks to everyone for the tips!

[Source: ePakistanNews via YouTube]

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Video: 19 teenage girls cram into Smart ForTwo for new world record originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 12:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: BMW Motorrad wishes the world happy holidays

Filed under: Videos, BMW, Motorcycle, Humor

BMW Motorrad holiday greeting

BMW Motorrad holiday greeting – Click above to watch video after the jump

The weather outside may have a rather large portion of the country’s motorcyclists pining for spring, but that hasn’t stopped the two-wheel obsessed crew over at BMW Motorrad from wishing the world a very merry Christmas in its own special way. Using a little electric guitar and some Stomp-esque percussion work by a team of helmeted riders, the Bavarian motorcycle maker has turned out a special holiday tune just for the occasion. You can check out the flick after the jump, but that’s not all.

If you like what you see, you can even work up your own version of the video to send as an e-card to that certain someone special. Nothing says, “Honey, I want an R1200 GS Adventure under the tree this year,” quite like a holiday greeting from a gaggle of leather-clad motorcycle heathens. You can even upload a photo of yourself into the card and craft your own personalized message. Head over to the BMW Motorrad site to get started.

[Source: BMW Motorrad]

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Video: BMW Motorrad wishes the world happy holidays originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 13:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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