Secret internal documents from Lotus GP leaked to AUSmotive show that Romain Grosjean’s “accident” with Mark Webber at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix wasn’t an accident at all. In fact, young Romain was simply following orders from his senior teammate, Kimi Raikkonen, and Mark was caught up in a case of mistaken identity.
The full document, which details Kimi’s mischevious plan in its entirety, can be seen after the break.
[Thanks to Justin for the tip]
Finland, Finland, Finland! The country where I want to be. 😉
As we edge closer to our southern hemisphere summer, why don’t you consider taking the kids on a holiday to Finland to visit Santa Claus. They’ll love it and you’ll be living off the brownie points for years to come. “You’re the best Dad,” they’ll keep saying.
Oh, and while you’re in Finland you may as well check out the Porsche Driving Experience Winter program. It’d be a shame not to, really. Here’s what Porsche has to say on the matter:
Winter for many a time of calm an contemplation. However, we see things a little differently – very differently, in fact. This winter at the Porsche Driving Experience, we have a number of challenges for you on snow and ice. These take place in the far north of Finland at temperatures of up to 30 degrees below zero, on specially covered snow tracks or a frozen lake prepared exclusively for Porsche.
Go on, treat yourself your family this Christmas, you only live once!
If you like exclusive limited-run motor cars then Mercedes-Benz has come to your aid with this SLS AMG GT3 “45th Anniversary” model. Only five will be made and you’ll be needing to find €450K to get your hands on one.
Mercedes describes the car as an “exclusive collector’s item” and it has been announced to celebrate the 45th anniversary of in-house tuners AMG. Of course, we all know that AMG was originally an aftermarket tuning house, but Mercedes bought shares back in 1990, before taking full control in 2005.
So, back to this fancypants GT3 model then. AMG brand ambassador, multiple DTM champ and F1 safety car driver Bernd Schneider has been involved in the production process, including assisting the AMG engine fitter with installing the 6.3 litre V8. You’ll even get a personally signed certificate from Bernd confirming as much.
The SLS AMG GT3 45th Anniversary features prominent use of CFRP body panels that have been finished off in designo magno graphite matt paint. The trick paint colour has also been applied to the lightweight 20″ alloys and roll-cage to ensure everything matches nicely. Because you need that in your take home racecar.
And just so you don’t confuse your SLS AMG GT3 with your neighbour’s Gullwing, the limited-run model is adorned with special graphics to let everyone know this is the 45th Anniversary edition.
When you go to the AMG factory in Affalterbach to collect your new toy you’ll be greeted by Schneider who’ll show you what all the buttons do. You’ll also be taken on an exclusive tour of the site. Almost sounds worth it, don’t you think!
Now where have I put that spare AU$570K?
Pistonspy brings us a great series of spy shots showing a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series prototype on a testing run. For the first time we get to see the front of the SLS Black with no disguise. Assuming the bodywork we see here is not a ruse, take note of the new front quarter panels to allow for a wider track. The extra width carries down the car to the rear arch as well.
We reckon the extra air intake capacity on the front of the car will have more to do with brake cooling than feeding air into the engine. There’s a chance 6.2 litre V8 could be force fed more air, but we think Mercedes will stick with a normally aspirated engine.
Actually, there may even be a chance to increase the capacity of the famed Mercedes V8, we’ll see. Best guesses for now say the standard 560-odd horsepower from the regular SLS will be pushed to the other side of 600hp, maybe even as far as 650hp.
Also for the first time on the SLS Black we can see a massive fixed rear wing. From what we can see with these spy shots it doesn’t appear as though the wing will have any electronic trickery to it that could allow for on the fly adjustments.
[Source: Pistonspy]
Here’s your routine F1 picture fix, with over 90 images from the Japanese Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel was on top, cruising to an untroubled victory. The late afternoon sunlight was captured with great skill by some of the traveling F1 snappers. We trust, as always, that you will enjoy their work.
We’re sorry that we’re bringing you even more Porsche 918 Spyder content. But when Walter Röhrl speaks, we tend to listen. Okay, in this promo piece from Porsche, Walter doesn’t really say a lot. Consider this, though; Walter Röhrl, the Nürburgring and Porsche’s latest supercar—it’s a combination that can’t be ignored. Don’t you agree?
We only hope that Porsche does the right thing and releases a full onboard video of Röhrl and the 918 completing their 7:14 lap of the Nordschleife.
The monthly update from VFACTS brings word that 94,627 vehicles were sold in September, an increase of 9% (7,808 vehicles) on the same month in 2011.
Increases in the sales of hybrids helped to boost the result, so too the ongoing demand for SUVs. While government sales remain on the decline.
Toyota remains miles ahead of anyone else in overall sales, thanks to its 17,300 buyers. Mazda, though, has cracked the 10,000 monthly sales barrier for the first time (10,093) and found itself as the country’s second best selling marque last month. Holden (8,955) was demoted to third.
Year-to-date figures show 822,674 new sales have been recorded in 2012, 9.4% increase (70,546 vehicles) compared to the same period last year.
The high selling Mazda3 was Australia’s favourite purchase, with 4,276 September sales. The Toyota HiLux (3,479) was in second on the sales charts, ahead of the Hyundai I30 (3,144).
Today the sporting world is rightly in awe at the achievements of Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena, who are now nine time world rally champions. Remarkably, they’ve reached their insurmountable tally in an unbroken sequence which began in 2004. Simply, it is a remarkable effort that, at this point in time, seems impossible to repeat, let alone better.
With two rallies still to race, it is fitting that title number nine was secured thanks to a 15.5 second win over Ford’s Jari-Matti Latvala in Loeb’s home event, the Rallye de Francc Alsace.
Helping to claim Citroën’s highly impressive eighth manufacturer’s title was Mikko Hirvonen coming home in third place. With Loeb set to take on a reduced program in 2013, Hirvonen will be looking forward to spearheading Citroën’s defence. Although, what chance of Loeb defending his own title while completing only three quarters of the events?
After the break we have a short video from Citroën Racing. It sets the tone really well, and never mind if you can’t speak French, we reckon you’ll appreciate the enormity of what has been achieved.
WRC’s own Sunday wrap video can be seen HERE and we should also point out that Chris Atkinson was the first MINI home, finishing in eighth place.
[Source: Citroën Racing]
UPDATE 9 October: Four new pics added below.
While Sebastien Loeb was busy showing off by winning another world championship, Petter Solberg admitted defeat early and used the stunning scenery of Rallye de France to do a spot of impromptu wine tasting.
We have video of that for you here, and you can see that Petter needed two bites at the, err, grape in the Alsace region, before doing as all good drunks do and finding relief in the form of a telegraph pole.
Seriously, for a moment, this bizarre incident held some rather frightening potential, which you’ll see when the sparks start to fly. We’re thankful that nobody was injured and we can make light of the situation and hope that Solberg enjoys better luck next time around.
Friggen awesome, is the answer to that question!
In this video, from noted YouTube contributor marchettino, we see a fleet of Ferrari 599XX and 599XX EVO models being thrashed around an otherwise empty Monza racetrack. It’s all part of Ferrari’s Corse Clienti program, where the mega-wealthy get to enjoy Ferrari’s hospitality at dedicated track days. Which is the only outlet available to 599XX owners, as the car cannot be raced and cannot be road registered.
Anyway, when watching the video after the break make sure you crank up the volume way beyond 11.
Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena have just claimed victory in Rallye de France and in doing so have collected their ninth World Rally Championship title. It’s a quite an astonishing record, really. Loeb’s win today also wraps up the 2012 constructors’ title for Citroën, their eighth world title.
We’ll be back later today when Citroën updates us with their official post-race update. In the meantime ponder this question: is Loeb the best racer ever, in any discipline?
That’s what Prodrive claimed when they tweeted their congratulations to Loeb: “Well done to Seb Loeb, amazing achievement, which will never be repeated. Arguably now the greatest driver of all time in any discipline.”
These days the Bugatti Veyron is almost the forgotten hypercar. Bugatti addressed this back in March by revealing the Grand Sport Vitesse at the Geneva Motor Show. Now they’ve reminded us of their creation by releasing a new video to YouTube, with the accompanying intro:
Watch the revised video of Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse in action. 1200HP, 0-100km/h in 2.6 seconds and a top speed of 410km/h are just a few of the car’s vital statistics. However, words alone will never do justice to this automotive masterpiece. This is a car that demands to be seen, a car guaranteed to send shivers down your spine the moment you hear the distinctive roar of its W16 engine.