Posts tagged "Cars"

5 of the Coolest Concept Cars Ever

No buts about it, concept cars are cool. There is nothing more exhilarating for a gearhead of any age than to visit a concept car show and dream about what driving will be like in 20 years. Sure, not every concept is going to make it into your local showroom, but it’s still fun to dream. Here is a list of the top five coolest, most epic concept cars you may or may not ever get to drive.

Alfa Romeo 4C GTA Concept

Unveiled at the 2011 Geneva auto show, Alfa Romeo’s long-awaited 4C GTA is described by the company as “a compact supercar” that has everything you want from an Alfa Romeo – it’s lightweight with awesome Italian lines and a dramatic interior. The company is trying to show all you sports car purists that there’s more to life than horsepower. This four cylinder, 1,874-pound Italian stunner takes you back to the glory days when Alfa was truly a thing of beauty to both drive and gaze upon. Combine that with the car’s amazing interior, top speed of 155 mph and the ability to hit 60 mph in less than five seconds, and this is definitely the vehicle to put on your mental wish list. Look for the Alfa Romeo 4C to go on sale for a “modest” price sometime in 2012. Read more…

Consumer Reports Asks: Is VW Building Better Cars For Journalists?

The 2012 VW Passat

As an auto journalist, one of the perks of the job is a free new car, delivered to your door, each week. In exchange for this consideration, manufacturers want us to write objective reviews about their latest wares, emphasizing the things we liked more than the things we didn’t. That’s not to say that we won’t call out a car company for things that need fixing; instead, it’s more of an unwritten understanding that we won’t bash a particular brand because of personal bias or past quality issues.

Occasionally, we get cars that are pre-production models, which usually don’t have the same build quality (and in some cases, features) as a production car. When these cars are cycled through company engineers and press fleets, they’re sent to the crusher since pre-production models can’t be sold to the public. I’ve driven a few pre-production models that had some noticeable issues, but these were corrected by the time the car hit production. In other words, I’ve driven a few “worst case” examples, but I’ve never driven a car that was built as a “ringer,” with a higher emphasis on quality than production models. Read more…

Discover Amazing Wrecked Cars For Sale

If you’re available in the market for one thing to drive and you merely can’t afford the value of a brand new car, or perhaps a used one, you would possibly take into account procuring the hundreds of wrecked automobiles for sale. These are automobiles which were damaged to various levels and are sold with steep reductions as a result. They offer a beautiful option to save real cash on an in any other case expensive from of transportation and for some are the only real options.

Then again, possibly you aren’t in want of speedy transportation and are merely searching for a weekend challenge car. Buying a wrecked automobile matches in with this plan nicely. You can get a better finish or specialty automotive that needs work at a all-time low price and benefit from the time you spend making it highway worthy again. Of course that is assuming you might be desirous to do the work yourself.

There are times when folks purchase these automobiles for the deal, regardless that they can’t or don’t plan to fix them themselves. In lots of cases they may purchase the vehicle and leverage the expertise of their favourite physique store to appropriate the cosmetic harm and their trusted mechanic to get it operating again. If you realize what the repairs will price you can also make a wise decision on shopping for a automotive that has been damaged.

There is a bit to know of course. Buying many wrecked cars means buying a salvage title. This means the insurance coverage corporations have determined that the automobile is worth lower than the price for repairs. In such cases these cares are generally not worth the time and effort to repair, if they’re able to be mounted at all.

Then again, this could convey opportunity. A car with a salvage title will not be fixable, however there are the components to be considered. There is an excessive amount of cash to be made just by purchasing these automobiles and promoting them off one piece at a time. Usually talking the elements by themselves are sometimes worth well more than the car if it has been totaled.

In case you are trying to get into the salvage business you have to to learn the place and the way to get started. You can spend hours, days, and even months wanting by salvage yards and categorized ads, or you could possibly leverage the power of the internet. In this means you are exposing a much bigger inventory of both automobiles and parts.

There are such a lot of wrecked cars for sale your decisions are almost endless. They are great for elements, fixers, and even as a solution to start your own business. Store round on-line and discover the often hidden world of wrecked cars. You may be amazed at what’s available.

Want to find out more about auto auction, then visit Martha Cohls’s site on how to choose the best salvage cars for your needs.

Find Parts With Wrecked Cars For Sale

If you happen to be in the market for something to drive you might consider looking in to the number of wrecked cars for sale. They offer great options for those who simply don’t want to spend the kind of money a new or used car can cost. Buying a damaged vehicle can be a very good way to save real money on transportation.

Instead of a car or truck for your primary transportation, you might be more interested in a project. If this is true, getting a wrecked automobile could be just the project for you. You can generally get more car for less, and if you do the work yourself you can come out way ahead.

Of course you might like the idea of a great deal but lack the time or the skills to complete the repair job on your own. In this case making use of a body shop for the interior and cosmetic repairs and a well respected mechanic to handle the engine repairs can be wise. If the price of these repairs is right, you can still get a wrecked vehicle with substantial savings.

There will be some things you need to know. When you by a wrecked car you often end up with what is known as a salvage title, more commonly knows as a totaled vehicle. In essence this indicates an insurance agent has determined the vehicle repairs will cost more than the its actual value. Still, all may not be lost.

There are opportunities to be had, even with a car that has been totaled by the insurance company. Even if the vehicle can not be restored, its parts may still be worth a great deal. As a matter of fact, the vehicle’s parts when sold separately are very often worth more than the when it is in one piece. Read more…

Top 5 cars you must test drive in 2011

Auto journos have a great job, at least on the surface, we get to test drive just about anything new under the sun for weeks at a time. We read the reviews and you through’em help your car or truck or another just for fun now.

Sometimes words are not enough. For this reason I joined the short list of vehicles to do for a short trip to find and share for themselves. Are all accessible cars and trucks and some on this list may surprise you.

There are tons of cars that are fun to drive, like the Ford Mustang GT 5.0 turbo or the Hyundai Sonata, but this list really shows how far some groups from the last time you bought a new car.

1.Nissan Juke

Funky 1.6L engine drives a turbine, the thing Juke seems like it. Be prepared to destroy your hopes! Read more…

Ready For Mind Controlled Cars?

Now here’s a really bad idea: let’s develop technology that allows motorists to drive with their brains and not with their arms and legs. After all, most people are totally focused when they’re behind the wheel, and not easily distracted by cell phones, text messages, Twitter feeds, greasy burgers, 55 gallon Uber Gulp drinks or thousand-watt audio systems. Really, what could possibly fail with a driving system that required 100% attention span behind the wheel and took time to process the driver’s inputs? Watch the video below and prepare to be horrified. Read more…

Hybrid Cars: 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Sedan review

That great looking, award winning, hot selling mid-size sedan you see turning heads is one of two versions the 2011 Hyundai Sonata duo: the 2.4-liter gasoline direct injection model or the Sonata turbo for those who like to add a little pepper in their driving. And now there’s a third Sonata — the new 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid – which completes the trio.

The Sonata Hybrid is the car for those who want to combine great design, amazing mileage in a vehicle that is environmentally and ecologically desirable. With an EPA rating of 35-mpg city, 40-mpg highway the Sonata Hybrid achieves a new level of highway fuel economy for a mid-size sedan. The company has said, “This is consistent with North American driving habits which average more than 50% of their driving mileage on highways.”

Sonata Hybrid’s fuel economy is powered by the industry’s first application of third-generation lithium polymer batteries which are more space efficient, lighter weight and offer higher energy density than existing nickel-metal hydride and pending lithium-ion applications. I’ve held the new battery which is about the size of a #10 business envelope that’s filled with a few pages of junk mail and was amazed by its small size and the fact that only 72 of these batteries are used in the Sonata Hybrid. Read more…

The Cars of Mercedes-Benz’s ‘Welcome’ Ad

When it comes to post-1965 American iron, I’ll put my ability to to name a year, make and model up against the best of them. It’s the legacy of growing up turning wrenches in the family garage, and I still identify people more by what they drive than by their names. Bizarre, perhaps, but it works for me. Unfortunately, I lack the same skill when it comes to identifying vintage German cars. Sure, we had a few customers who owned Mercedes sedans and roadsters, but not nearly as many as those who drove American or Japanese cars. When Mercedes ran their “Welcome” Super Bowl ad, most of the cars in it were a mystery to me, and probably to you as well. The video below should help to clear up some of that mystery.

It’s hard to spot some of the cars in the original video, since they flash by quickly or are filmed from odd angles. I had a hard time spotting the 1938 540K Special Roadster (worth $8 million), but had no trouble at all picking out the 1952 Le Mans winning 300SL W194 (at 1:20 in the video). The cars I really wanted to know more about weren’t even mentioned in this follow up video; what’s the story behind the red 300 SL Roadster rounding up sheep, or the Le Mans Prototype race car that Diddy’s standing next to at the end of the video?