this space has been left unattended for a month at the very least, but I now have the opportunity to share with you what we’ve been doing over at www.auto-kinesis.com. We have car reviews up with several more on deck, a multitude of photos and our first original videos!
This is our first venture into cutting a video for the site. It’s more of an exercise in what we hope to accomplish in the near future.
Also live is our long overdue review of the 2011 Hyundai Sonata Limited, a car I enjoyed but learned a painful lesson about time management and the delaying of writing a review. I have several new ones to write and I’m desperately trying to avoid repeating the same pattern.
It’s Steve McQueen’s birthday today, so here’s the beginning of the race in the 1971 classic Le Mans, a film that proved you could satisfactorily replace dialogue with the droning of race car engines.
It’s also R. Lee Ermey’s birthday, but that doesn’t have a whole lot to do with cars….
…ahh, what the hell, here’s him shouting. Happy B-day, gunny.
Feast your eyes on mechanics and test drivers showing off the Ferrari 599XX in Valencia’s Ricardo Tormo circuit while the rest of us sit in front of our computers and weep as if viewing the Gods fraternize on the unobtainable peak of Olympus. I want one of those bad-ass Stilo helmets with the carbon fiber stripes down the middle to permanently replace my face.
Remember Rendezvous? theClaude Lelouch-filmed speed run through the streets of Paris in 1978? We talked about it once briefly because the sheer bravado of the stunt, coupled with the setting and perspective truly engrossed us. Watch it here if you haven’t seen it yet.
Today Jalopnik put this video up of Jay Leno mapping out his own rendezvous course in his backyard through the hills of Los Angeles in the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. While the video isn’t super exciting, it is fun to watch, the route itself is pretty interesting, and the engine soundtrack is phenomenal. Check out the video below, and after that, we took the liberty of putting up a map of the route in case you’re in the L.A. area and want to tackle it safely and legally see it yourselves. Looks like the starting point is where Mulholland and Coldwater Canyon meet.
What’s your Rendezvous run? let us know.
UPDATE: Autoblog has the same video up, along with a “making of” video. check it.
Last week, me and my trusty Mustang participated in the 2nd annual Vanderbilt Cup Autocross, the exciting addition to the Vanderbilt Cup concours d’elegance. Here’s some photos and video:
Clam chowder is something I’m not particularly keen on, but when you’re the company of the Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society, you tend to keep this to yourself. Or blog about it later. The Internet can keep a secret, right? Well, in writing this, I am sharply reminded that the internet remembers everything.
I spent St. Patty’s day canoodling with my fellow “chowderheads,” all gawking at our guest of honor, the Tesla Roadster.
With all the noise and vitriol going back and forth between D.C. and Detroit, the concept of a fully electric car is a much more relevant issue than it was a year ago. Hybrids are part of the norm and the argument between tradition and change in luxury toys takes to the bench as the entire nation discusses the very real future of electric sedans, wagons, and SUVs.
It’s with a more open and experienced mind that I approach the Tesla to view it not as the harbinger of doom for petrol power, nor the chariot of the green elitist, but simply as a sports car.
The Tesla Roadster is indeed a sharp enough looking car to gather a crowd, and the combination of media attention and green-laden parade goers (i.e. drunks) made for interesting observations. It’s as low to the ground as you can expect with it’s Lotus heritage with an interior that’s just as spartan, if not more when you consider the lack of clutch and about 5 gears. Crawling into the passenger seat was as graceful as descending into a bathtub while a group of strangers eagerly watched.
Irish.Car.Bombed.
With a turn of the key, the car…um, turned on. that’s it. I knew getting in that it would be silent, I was unprepared as to just how quiet it really is. The surreal experience of sitting in a car and then having it roll away at some speed can be equated to releasing the handbrake to a car parked on a steep hill. The Roaster will only treat you with an interesting “wooooop” that rises in pitch as the motor spins faster.
The ride was little more than a trip around the block, but I managed to talk the ear off of the extremely patient Tesla rep about transmissions, charge time, and the mysterious “model S” for the duration.
The Roadster can also consume pigeons for extra fuel.
I had to say that this more formal introduction to the Roadster piqued my curiosity: How does it really drive? is it as fast as they say? does it make a decent sports car? I really can’t say until I get behind the wheel. until then….
a recent post by Blind_Io andBubs360 at finalgear reminds us that cars and stupidity are never far away from each other. With this, here are a handful of reminders:
(note: if it seems like I’m posting a lot of videos, it’s because I am. A substantial and exciting report is coming after Tuesday. stay tuned)
Are they really your friends?
He’s ok, really.
Take a hint, lady.
Easy now…
Yes, you “got that shit on videotape” you hyena loser…
The 2009 Formula 1 season begins the weekend of March 27th, and I couldn’t think of a better birthday present for me. Remind me to send Bernie a ham.
Last year was a fantastic season, rich with drama and action, and this year should be just as exciting. Many new rules have been implemented, like mandatory lifespan extensions for the engines, a return of slick tires, and radically new changes to the cars.
One of the more intriguing developments for ’09 is the KERS system that will store kinetic energy in a battery for a limited boost in horsepower when activated by the driver.
The following video, featuring BMW driver and Australopithecus Nick Heidfeld, demonstrates that activating KERS can’t be explained to German people without the use of David Hasselhoff.
(skip to the :50 mark)
Here’s an informative rundown of the changes being made for 2009.
