If you’ve clicked on this blog with a look of confusion on your face, please hold off on sending me your angry emails. I did not forget to take my medicine and I may not be the smoothest when it comes to the ladies or reading their minds, but figuring out what women want is an age old question that men will never be able to truly answer. Valentines day may be over but this Canadian Hyundai commercial says that it’s not about candy and flowers, it’s about getting her that engagement ring Hyundai Elantra she’s always wanted. What a great way to show some love to all those guys(and girls) out there driving around in their little Elantras. So even though your not driving the manliest car, this ones for you and you know who you are!

Whenever you get knocked down, you are faced with the decision to either stay down or you can wipe the dirt off and pick yourself up. For Ken Block and the #43 Monster World Rally Team it was an easy decision, the decision was there was no choice to be made. After a disappointing DNF at the Rally American season open in which he suffered from a suspension issue, Block and his team are determined to show that he did make an upgrade to the Ford Fiesta as he takes a few warm up runs at SayersBrook Bison Ranch in preparations for a possible 5th win at the upcoming 100 Acre Rally. Watch the video below and you can’t tell me that he isn’t driving extra spiritedly.

Finally the chance I’ve been waiting for, since I am currently just a few dollars short of owning a Tesla. I now have the opportunity to lease one, as a matter of fact all of us have this same opportunity. Tesla motors announced their new lease program for the Tesla Roadster and Roadster sport. So now all of us who can’t really shell out the $111,000+ price to own this electric sports car can instead drop about $12,500 toward the car and try and manage $1600+ a month payments for three years. But think about how cool you’ll look in this car, and the savings on gas. And if you like it after the three years just pay what’s left into it, cool huh. And the best part, leases and buyers get the same top notch service Tesla offers, that’s direct to your door servicing for only $1 a mile traveled. So the next time you see a sexy Tesla Roadster on the road, look behind the wheel, that guy just may be me.

Hummer, once America’s icon for hulking Sports Utility Vehicles takes a step closer to the automotive tar pits Wednesday after GM’s efforts to sell the brand to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machines Co. have fallen apart. Tengzhong apparently failed to get clearance from Chinese regulators within the allotted timeframe for the sale. Consequently, GM will start to dismantle a brand of gas-guzzling behemoths that were synonymous with pre-financial crisis wealth and luxury.

GM's Hummer deal with Chinese firm breaks down

GM has been trying to sell the environmentally challenged brand of SUVs for the last year and signed a deal with Tengzhong in October. But resistance from Chinese regulators who want to control the fast growing domestic auto industry, created difficulties from the get go. China currently has over 100 car makers nationwide and the acquisition of Hummer would only cause diffusion.

There was no immediate explanation of why GM couldn’t close the deal but Chinese regulators had reservations on the purchase for the very same reasons that U.S. motorists snubbed Hummer. Its sheer size and poor fuel economy were incompatible with the present scenario of soaring fuel prices, general economic downturn and growing concern about the adverse effects of vehicle emissions on the environment.

Tengzhong indicated that it intended to revise the Hummer and build a leaner, more fuel-efficient version of the vehicle, which topped out at 15 miles per gallon for the once-popular 2.5 ton H3 model. Hummer traces its origins to the U.S. military’s Humvee, which was built by AM General in South Bend, Indiana. It peaked in popularity in 2006, when it sold 71,524 units. However, it drew derision from environmentalists and sales never recovered after gasoline prices rose above $4 a gallon in the summer of 2008. By last year sales had fallen to 9,000 vehicles.

GM first put the brand up for sale in 2008, hoping to get as much as $500 million. The figure was consistent with GM’s bankruptcy filing last summer which suggested that the brand could bring in $500 million or more. Financial terms of the sale were not revealed, although Tengzhong’s offer was estimated to be closer to $150 million.

GM spokesman Nick Richards said the collapse of the sale does not change earlier plans to shut down the Shreveport facility by 2012. The company has stopped making the H3 in January at the plant that is still making the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon and is currently operating on a single 10-hour shift. The plant once employed about 3,000, but that payroll has been reduced to about 950. To date, only 2,521 Hummers remain in inventory at 150 U.S. and 220 foreign dealerships.

GM is jettisoning Hummer as part of its financial restructuring, along with Saturn and Pontiac. It managed to sell only Swedish brand Saab to Spyker Cars of the Netherlands. Pontiac is being discontinued and GM is now focusing its efforts on its four remaining brands: Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac and Buick.

Prior Design opted not to retune the car’s engine, choosing to concentrate on the aerodynamics of the R8.  Starting with the exterior, the company came up with a custom-made body kit for the R8 V8 and R8 V10. The sports car will get a new rounded engine cover, additional carbon inlets, a lower lip spoiler with a center fin and two smaller air intakes on the sides, a body color C-pillar side panel, new side skirts with a curved design, a new bumper including a carbon fiber diffuser that is optimized for better air exhaustion, and thus higher contact pressure.

Interior modifications were done by Kamp-Lintfort and you’ll surely get where the name comes from; the center console, handbrake handle and door handles have been replaced with carbon fiber trim. The materials in the engine compartment match those in the car’s interior but red carbon fiber is used to provide a colorful contrast. The package is finished with the car sitting on bi-color, 5-spoke design wheels-set in size 20×9 with 235/30/20 tires at the front and 20×11.5 with 305/25/20 tires at the rear to ensure perfect road grip and safety driving. The entire package will be available for order soon through the engineering firm’s website although pricing has yet to be announced.

Pop the hood and what you have is an eco-lab on wheels. It has a powertrain platform held up by two advanced propulsion proposals – plug-in hybrid and fuel cell. The plug-in configuration makes use of a V6 petrol rated at 300 hp and a hybrid module that generates 109 hp, for a total output of 409 hp that’s mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission. It uses lithium-ion batteries with a storage capacity of over 10 kWh and can be recharged either at a household power socket or at a charging station, and can solely power the car for up to 18 miles. Though it’s an eco-friendly powertrain, Mercedes says it performs like a sports car with a 0-to-60-mph time of 4.7 seconds and a top speed of 156 mph. The fuel-cell variant propagates a V6 engine that gives 136 hp and 214 lb-ft of torque while producing only water vapour as an emission. It uses parts from the B-class F-Cell, but unlike the front-wheel drive B-Class, the F800 has the fuel cell installed in the front, while the compact electric motor is located near the rear axle. The range in this setup is claimed to be 375 miles with a top speed of 75 mph.

The exterior of the F800 Style lives up to its name with a stately design which looks compact and sporty. It’s accented by headlights with LED tech and wears the wide grille, big logo face of the SLS AMG. Aside from the front design, the rear horizontal light bar also pays tribute to the 300SL. Also, the back doors are sliding so it looks like a car from another world as it unveils an interior which is simply amazing with its multitude of gadgets which appear to be everywhere particularly in the driver’s area which appears like the cockpit of a fighter jet. Another striking feature are the rims with some sneaky details giving the illusion that even when the car is stopped, it looks like it’s still running!

The five-seat, rear-wheel-drive F800 Style has a Command system evolved interface with a touchscreen  and a new camera touchpad that records images of the driver’s hand and displays it in transparent form above the center console. The touchscreen display controls the car’s AC, media system, internet access, GPS, the built-in phone, etc. There’s also a “range on map” feature that shows how far the car can go in electric mode. The interior also features wood parts and lightweight seats made of magnesium and carbon-fiber shells.

Safety-wise, Distronic Plus Traffic Jam Assistant makes its debut and gives the car the ability to steer through curves at speeds of up to 25mph. No worries though because drivers can override the system at any time. Also new is Mercedes’ Pre-Safe 360° system, which anticipates an imminent impact in the rear end. It reacts by engaging the brakes about 600 milliseconds before a back-end collision occurs to prevent a chain-reaction that would lead to hitting pedestrians or other vehicles in front of the car.

The 2011 Audi RS5 has been confirmed for production since May last year. It has now been revealed, although perhaps not in a manner that Audi would have liked. While the RS5’s styling may no longer be a secret, specific details of what lies beneath its skin remain highly confidential – at least for now. However, rumors have it that the RS5 will be powered by a 4.2L twin-turbo V8 with a total output of 450-hp with a maximum torque of 332 lb-ft. The engine is likely to be paired with Audi’s recently updated S-tronic dual-clutch gearbox, the first time an Audi RS product has featured twin-clutch technology.

Audi’s R-tronic dual-clutch transmission or a six-speed manual is likewise expected, packing seven forward gears to channel drive to the rear-biased quattro all-wheel-drive system. 0-60 mph should come in the low 4-second range. Aside from the awesome power, the RS5 employs active aerodynamics, including an active-rear spoiler similar to that found on the Audi R8. It will also feature a huge diffuser, two oval exhausts, drilled-disc brakes and has previously been spied sporting the RS6’s alloy wheels.

Fans of the Audi RS4 now have something to cheer about, the spirit will live on with the Audi RS5 version. The RS5 was intended as the perfect rival for the BMW M3 Coupe. Even though some features are missing such as the hump on the hood and the carbon fiber roof, the RS5 makes up with the huge air intakes, the sassy spoiler and huge exhausts. The auto-world will surely witness some sharp duels at car magazines and TV shows.

The RS5 is scheduled to go on sale later this year and will be followed by an RS5 Roadster next year. So stay tuned for more details…

DDM Tuning has been a major source for HID kits, DEPO lights, and accessories. They’re also a strong influence in the European car community, especially BMW. So I’ll see you there since I’m going for the cars, or maybe the food, but honestly It’s for the models. Like I said before, when it comes down to those three categories, I’m a sucker for them all.

The lovely Joanna Mata. Just in case you needed a reason to go.

]]> http://www.carz.com/blog/blog/2010/02/19/ddm-tuning-euro-dyne-huntington-beach-grand-openingcar-meet-22810/feed/ 0 http://www.carz.com/blog/blog/2010/02/19/the-2010-mercedes-benz-sls-panamericana-body-package/ http://www.carz.com/blog/blog/2010/02/19/the-2010-mercedes-benz-sls-panamericana-body-package/#comments Fri, 19 Feb 2010 17:50:42 +0000 http://www.carz.com/blog/?p=788 Following the release of the Mercedes Benz SLS in Frankfurt, the team of Gullwing-America started working on their design for a body package that would give the car a retro-look similar to the classic Gullwing 300SL. Texan tuner Arturo Alonso, GWA chief engineer, went back to the drawing board and came out with an amazing idea: to make this remarkable car, the flagship of Mercedes technology, into a 300SL for the 21st century. Hence, the 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS Panamericana Body Package materialized.  This wasn’t the first time Alonso drew inspiration from the past.  GW America previously designed a much-liked upgraded version of the Gullwing with a 5.5-liter V8 that’s good for 370 horsepower.

It comes with a sleek grille, ribs on the fenders and hood and other details that make the original Gullwing such an unforgettable car. This newest addition to Mercedes-Benz long line of high-end luxury cars certainly has a lot to offer. Named after the 300SL, the term “Panamericana” refers to the conversion kit that is composed of seven body parts which are all made from Hybrid Aluminum and carbon fiber. The kit includes: a series of chrome detailing (which includes a grille frame), two side vents, new oval dual Xenon headlights, a set of GWA custom five-point star wheels (19″ on front and 20″ in the back), a sport tuned muffler system, and a lot more.

The 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS Panamericana Body Package boasts of a magnificent interior detailing as well. Arturo Alonso used the “classic” red as interior color and left everything else almost original, except for the options of an Alcantara center piece insert for the seats with special contrast stitching that mirrors the plaid design of the past. The Panamericana logo is also emblazoned on new, lit aluminum door sills. The legendary racing stripes on the front fenders and exterior color can be customized on request. The parts will be distributed only by GWA, and they will be manufactured in Germany Prices and availability will be released later on their web site, www.gullwing-america.com.

The tragedy occurred early Wednesday morning after a twin engine Cessna took off from the Palo Alto Airport in the San Francisco Bay area. The Cessna was cleared for takeoff even though visibility through the fog was minimal. It appears the Cessna had clipped electrical wires in Palo Alto and crashed into a heavily populated area.

Debris was scattered across numerous lawns and homes, with the majority of the damage occurring at one Palo Alto residence home. Onboard were three employees from Tesla Automotive. They were on their way back to their headquarters in San Carlos California. Tesla Motors is the company that helped to mainstream the electric sport cars and make it appealing to the ever-growing echo conscience consumer. Although the identities of the three Tesla employees were not released, Tesla’s chief executive had this to say, “Tesla is a small, tightly knit company, and this is a tragic day for us.”

It’s a tragic day for Tesla Motors, and we can only keep those involved in our prayers. My dearest condolences for those family members of those three employs of Tesla. As time moves on more details will be released about the accident. An investigation is under way as to the cause of this tragedy.