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From Grand-Am.com

Richard Westbrook earned his third pole of the season in Saturday morning's qualifying session at the Grand-Am Championship Weekend at Lime Rock Park presented by BMW ahead of this afternoon's Rolex Sports Car Series season finale.


Westbrook turned a best lap at 49.091 sec. (110.000 mph) in the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette DP, pipping DP points co-leader Scott Pruett by one tenth of a second. Pruett will start second in the No. 01 TELMEX BMW/Riley at 49.184 sec. (109.792 mph), and Jon Fogarty qualified third in the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Corvette DP at 49.189 sec. (109.781 mph).


John Edwards earned his class-leading fourth GT pole position of the season. His TOTAL Pole Award-winning lap in the No. 57 Stevenson Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro GT.R was a 53.983 sec. (100.031 mph) run.

Qualifying second in GT was Andrew Davis in the No. 59 The Brumos Companies Porsche GT3 at 54.248 sec. (99.543 mph) and Johannes van Overbeek was third in the No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 at 54.595 sec. (98.910 mph).



Qualifying results* - Lime Rock (Grand-Am)
1. Garcia-Westbrook (Corvette DP) - Spirit of Daytona - 49"091

2. Pruett-Rojas (Riley-BMW) - Ganassi - 49"184
3. Fogarty-Gurney (Corvette DP) - Stallings - 49"189
4. Angelelli-Taylor (Corvette DP) - SunTrust - 49"854

5. Dalziel-Popow (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 50"020

6. Donohue-Frisselle-Borcheller (Corvette DP) - ActionExpress - 50"197
7. Barbosa-Law (Corvette DP) - ActionExpress - 50"313
8. Negri-Pew (Riley-Ford) - Shank - 50"423

9. Goncalvez-Fuentes (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 52"496

10. Edwards-Liddell (Chevy Camaro) - Stevenson - 53"983
Etc.

*Unofficial results

Joey Logano completed a two-race sweep of the NASCAR series at Dover Delaware thanks to some careful planning by his crew.

"The both of us (including Adam Stevens - his crew chief) just know what it takes to get a car to go fast here and we've got one heck of a notebook. We know which direction the track is going to go and this time we did a good job in practice of tuning it in for the race. It's tough with lapped traffic for sure and timing is everything.

"It's all about looking about three laps in advance and it's just a lot of fun."

And, he took no prisoners, leading 184-laps of the 200-laper race just nine laps shy of the record set by Ryan Newman.

It was Logano's seventh Nationwide Series this year and 16th in his career.

In taking both races at the "Monster Mile" Logano carried on a trend started by Kyle Busch in 2010 and followed by Carl Edwards last year.

"Once the track rubbered up, it went right to where we thought it would," said Logano who drove a Toyota. "We were able to just stay out front most of the day after that."

With only two yellows, after a competition caution on lap 48, it was the fastest races in the last nine years.

Paul Menard finished second, followed by Michael Annett, who tied his career best finish in the series. Elliott Sadler finished fourth, and in doing so was able to extend his points lead in the Nationwide series.

The order of drivers remained the same, but most of the top-10 lost a little ground to Sadler. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. is now nine points back, and Austin Dillon slipped to 25 points behind Sadler.

Kyle Busch was fifth, while Cole Whitt, Brian Scott, Kasey Kahne, Stenhouse and Dillon rounded out the top 10.

The race ran at an average speed of 123.723 mph, making it the fastest NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover since the fall of 2003. 18 cars finished on the lead lap.

Two weeks after losing to Toyota at Interlagos, Audi claimed a 1-2 victory with the R18 e-tron in Bahrain.

Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish (Audi) started the race on pole position, but it was the Toyota that led the first laps of the race, before an electrical problem forced the Japanese prototype to stop in the pits to repair. Later, the TS030 driven by Wurz broke its suspension after a contact with a LMP2, and was forced to retirement.

Finally, it was the Audi driven by Lotterer, Treluyer and Fassler that took the lead, and eventually after six hours of racing the win, two laps ahead of the sister car driven by McNish and Kristensen. The winning drivers pull away in front of championship classification after their success.

In LMP2, victory went to Pecom's Oreca Nissan, while the GTE Pro class was won by AF Corse's Ferrari driven by Fisichella and Vilander. The Felbemayr Porsche takes win in GTE Am class.

Final classification :
1 - Lotterer-Treluyer-Fassler (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) - Audi - 151 laps in 6h00'56”244

2 - Kristensen-McNish (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) - Audi - 2 laps

3 - Watts-Kane-Leventis (HPS ARX03-Honda) - Strakka - 6 laps

4 - Prost-Jani (Lola B12/60) - Rebellion - 7 laps

5 - Belicchi-Primat (Lola B12/60-Toyota) - Rebellion - 10 laps
6 - Perez Companc-Minassian-Kaffer (Oreca03-Nissan) - Pecom - 12 laps (1er LMP2)
7 - Tresson-Mailleux-Lombard (Oreca 03-Nissan) - Signatech - 14 laps

8 - Potolicchio- Kimber Smith-Sarrazin (HPD ARX03b-Honda) - Starworks - 14 laps
9 - Weeda-Rossiter-Liuzzi (Lola B12/80-Lotus) - Lotus - 14 laps
10 - Ragues-Panciatici-Rusinov (Oreca 03-Nissan) - Signatech - 15 laps

(...)
13 - Fisichella-Vilander (Ferrari F458 Italia) - AF - 21 laps (1er GTE Pro)

(...)
17 - Ried-Roda-Ruberti (Porsche 997) - Felbermayr Proton - 26 laps (1er GTE Am)
etc.

Four-time Formula One world champion Alain Prost tested a modern F1 car during a World Series by Renault meeting at the Paul Ricard circuit on Saturday September 29.

Frenchman Prost, who is an ambassador for Renault, took the wheel of the Red Bull Racing RB6 single seater to complete a series of laps behind Romain Grosjean in a Renault R30.

The 57-year-old last experienced contemporary F1 cars in 1996 as part of a test for McLaren.

"Recently I thought maybe it would not be too bad to know what modern Formula 1 is like," Prost told Autosport.

"It's not too different, it's just using the tools differently. The car is very stiff, and you just need to get used to it."

Max Angelelli and Ricky Taylor (No. 10 SunTrust Corvette DP) bagged their third consecutive Lime Rock Park victory in the Grand-Am season's grand finale.

Angelelli and Taylor managed to hold off Antonio Garcia and Richard Westbrook (No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Corvette DP), who in turn crossed the finish line ahead of Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty (No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Corvette DP).

In the championship showdown, Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas (No. 01 TELMEX BMW/Riley) ended up on top thanks to their seventh-place result. They cleared Ryan Dalziel by 12 points in Pruett's record-breaking fifth DP championship campaign.

In GT, titles had already been awarded at Laguna Seca three weeks ago, so the attention was turned to a dramatic race.

Robin Liddell and John Edwards (No. 57 Stevenson Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro GT.R) took advantage of Andy Lally's misfortunes (No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3), who surrendered the win in the dying moments of the race because of a mechanical failure.

Dion von Moltke and Jim Norman (No. 51 Audi R8 Grand-Am) earned Audi's first Grand-Am podium by finishing second. Third place went to Alessandro Balzan and Johannes van Overbeek in the No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458.



Race results* - Lime Rock (Grand-Am)
1 - Angelelli-Taylor (Corvette DP) - SunTrust - 167
2 - Garcia-Westbrook (Corvette DP) - Spirit of Daytona - 167
3 - Fogarty-Gurney (Corvette DP) - Stallings - 167
4 - Donohue-Borcheller-Frisselle (Corvette DP) - ActionExpress - 167
5 - Barbosa-Law (Corvette DP) - ActionExpress - 167
6 - Dalziel-Popow (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 167
7 - Pruett-Rojas (Riley-BMW) - Ganassi - 167
8 - Goncalvez-Fuentes (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 165
9 - Johnson-Wilkins (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 164
10 - Negri-Pew (Riley-Ford) - Shank - 163
11 - Edwards-Liddell (Chevy Camaro) - Stevenson - 159
12 - Norman-Von Moltke (Audi R8) - APR - 159
13 - Balzan-Van Overbeek (Ferrari 458) - Scuderia Corsa - 159
14 - Espenlaub-Putman (Mazda RX8) - Dempsey - 159
15 - Doyle-Pumpelly (Porsche 997) - TRG - 159
16 - Lally-Potter (Porsche 997) - Magnus - 159
17 - Curran-Said (Corvette) - Marsh - 158
18 - Assentato-Segal (Ferrari458) - AIM - 156
19 - Long-Foster (Mazda RX-8) - Dempsey - 155
20 - Nonnamaker-Nonnamaker-Nonnamaker (Mazda RX8) - Sahlen - 154
21 - Bomarito-Tremblay (Mazda RX8) - Speedsource - 154
22 - Cameron-Nonnamaker (Mazda RX8) - Sahlen - 110
23 - Foss-Hart-Lindsey (Porsche 997) - Horton - 107
24 - Turner-Marsal (BMW M3) - Turner - 97
25 - Davis-Keen (Porsche 997) - Brumos - 35
26 - Auberlen-Della Lana (BMW M3) - Turner - 34

*Unofficial results

The 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid is the Japanese automaker's sixth hybrid model and it just went on sale across Canada this month. The car has proven quite popular already, and one of its first owners is none other than acclaimed Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki.

Priced at $35,700 (before applicable government incentives), the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid offers seating for five and 443 litres of cargo capacity. A full charge takes as little as 90 minutes when connected to a 220V dedicated socket, or 3 hours when connected to a 110V socket. It allows a range of 25 kilometres and a top speed of 100 km/h in electric mode while achieving a fuel efficiency rating of just 2.0Le/100km (city-highway combined).

The 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid automatically switches to its full hybrid system once the electric power is depleted.

Photo: Toyota

PSA will stop production in Slovakia for 21 days in the fourth quarter due to weak demand. PSA builds the Peugeot 208 and Citroen C3 Picasso models in the western Slovak town of Trnava.

Ferrari, Bentley and Lamborghini are bracing for slower growth as the European debt crisis saps demand even for high-priced toys for the wealthy.

GM dismissed claims made in a $3 billion lawsuit filed by Saab's parent that the U.S. automaker deliberately bankrupted the Swedish company by blocking a deal with a Chinese investor.

GM dismissed claims made in a $3 billion lawsuit filed by Saab's parent that the U.S. automaker deliberately bankrupted the Swedish company by blocking a deal with a Chinese investor.

The new Canadian labor contracts secured by the Detroit 3 automakers this week are unlikely to lower costs enough to persuade the industry to make fresh investments in the country and reverse a decade-long contraction.

Ferrari, Bentley and Lamborghini are bracing for slower growth as the European debt crisis saps demand even for high-priced toys for the wealthy.

History/Description: Challenging the Chrysler 300 for American sedan supremacy, Ford resurrected the “Taurus” name on a refreshed version of a large sedan they'd formerly marketed as the “Five Hundred.” Taurus packed plenty of room for five, a generous helping of luxury, standard 6-cylinder power and available all-wheel drive (AWD). Look for SEL and Limited models, representing nicely loaded and fully loaded models, respectively.

2008 Ford Taurus (Photo: Philippe Champoux)

All models got a 3.5L V6 with 263 horsepower, a 6-speed automatic transmission and standard front-wheel drive. Feature content included heated leather, a sunroof, navigation, premium audio, automatic climate control, remote access, power seats and plenty more. The Ford “keypad” unlocking system was on board, as were a set of power-adjustable pedals for optimal comfort.

What Owners Like: Size, comfort, driving position, trunk space, assembly and build quality, and ride quality were all highly rated by owners. Many report a safe, secure and planted driving feel as well.

What Owners Dislike: Common complaints include an isolated, “floaty” ride, lack of steering feel, and a large turning radius. Some owners wish for better fuel mileage, and several noted a decrease in ride quality on rougher roads -- possibly on models with larger wheels.

Common Issues: Check for proper operation of the climate control system, switching it between various settings and listening for a ticking or thumping noise from behind the dashboard. Numerous owners reported issues with actuators that operate ducts within the climate control system, so be sure it operates as expected.

Ensure the transmission in the vehicle you're test driving shifts cleanly, smoothly and with no slippage or hesitation. Some owners reported issues with the transmission in their Taurus, which may or may not occur with the presence of a warning or “check engine” light. It's unclear if this is a mechanical or electronic problem, however, if the gearbox in the Taurus you're considering doesn't operate as expected, have the vehicle checked out by a Ford mechanic or move to another model.

2008 Ford Taurus (Photo: Philippe Champoux)

Continue reading 2008-2009 Ford Taurus Pre-owned

In the process of merging together, the Grand-Am and ALMS series have announced a shared weekend on their respective 2013 calendar.

The shared venue is a first for the two biggest sports car racing series on the continent. The said venue is set for August 10-11, in Road America.

Furthermore, Grand-Am revealed it would visit three other new tracks next year: Circuit of the Americas (Austin, Texas), Road Atlanta (Braselton, Georgia) and Kansas Speedway (Kansas City, Kansas).

“Last year we raced for the first time at Indianapolis and Detroit, and Grand-Am will continue to break new ground in 2013,” said Ed Bennett, Grand-Am president and CEO.

“We're excited about going to historic Road Atlanta - plus the new road courses at Austin and Kansas City - for the first time. And with the combined event at Road America, sports car fans will get a glimpse of the future.”

Events returning on the Grand-Am calendar include Mid-Ohio (June 15), Laguna Seca (September 8), and Lime Rock (September 27-28).

From GMM

Sergio Perez is no longer a "pay driver", McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh insists.

Mexican Perez, also backed by Ferrari, started his F1 career by bringing millions in Carlos Slim-linked Telmex dollars to Sauber.

But he is now moving to McLaren, amid speculation Telmex might eventually replace the grandee British team's title sponsor Vodafone.

The Telegraph, however, quotes Whitmarsh as insisting there are no "side deals" to McLaren's Perez contract.

"I did have a conversation with Carlos Slim yesterday but we have made an offer to Sergio, we are paying him well and there are no side deals," he said.

"I'm not saying that ultimately there won't be other fresh partners coming forward because of it but that wasn't the motivating force," insisted Whitmarsh.

He is quoted by Sky Sports F1 HD channel: "He (Perez) is not a pay driver, he is being paid a lot of money.

"Sponsorship was not a factor, we picked Sergio because he is the most exciting young talent in formula one.

"Do I believe there will be some exciting commercial opportunities in the future?  Yes.  Have we looked at them yet?  No."

In order to get a head start on the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, Kurt Busch will take over the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet beginning at the October 13th Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The 2004 Sprint Cup champ had originally been announced to leave James Finch Racing and start the next season with Furniture Row. But the team announced, at Dover Speedway, pushing the agenda a little fasters.

“In order to get a jump on developing a driver/team chemistry for the 2013 season, both Kurt and Furniture Row Racing felt that this was an important move to make happen,” said Garone. “While the goal of this decision is to better prepare for 2013, the main focus for the final six races remains the same and that is to reach a competitive level.”

Garone also stated that Smith's Furniture Row Racing contract, which expires at the end of the season, will be fully honoured.

Busch said that he was eager to get the transition started as soon as possible.

“We want to come out of the chute next year ready and raring to go,” said Busch, the 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion. “Driving the Furniture Row Chevrolet in the final six races of this season will obviously give us a big advantage in our preparations for 2013. The energy level is quite high and I can't wait to get out to Colorado to meet all the guys and begin this exciting new journey.”

But Busch was also defensive when asked if this was a lateral move.

“Barney Visser (team owner), this program, they are committed. Their alliance with Richard Childress (Racing), it's there and it's solid. That's why, when you say a lateral move, I don't like it so much. It's a slap in the face to Barney Visser, but everybody in this garage area knows... if you have a hard card (a NASCAR annual credential), you know the differences in the teams.”

Augusto Farfus (BMW) set the pole position in Valencia, for the 9th round of the DTM championship, while the title contenders stand way back on the starting grid.

As often, the Valencia circuit provided plenty of surprises: Farfus emerged as quickest at the end of a session that saw the main championship contenders in trouble. Jamie Green (Mercedes), third on provisional classification, was first out of the qualifying session, failing to qualify for Q3.

He is only in 18th position on the grid for Sunday's race.

His teammate Gary Paffett (Mercedes), championship leader, was not much better. The Brit made it to Q2, but failed to progress any further, as he could not manage any than 16th.

Bruno Spengler (BMW) had the opportunity to take benefit of his rivals' misfortune, but failed to make it outside Q2. He will start from 12th.

Mercedes' qualifying session was the worst of all, the best C Coupé being Rob Wickens', in 14th position. The seven other Mercedes cars are down in the last seven spots of the grid, with Ralf Schumacher dead last.

Pole sitter Augusto Farfus was followed by Audi drivers, Edoardo Mortara, Filipe Albuquerque, Adrien Tambay and Mike Rockenfeller.

Valencia - Qualifying :
1. Augusto Farfus - BMW M3 DTM - RBM - 1'26''446 - Q4
2. Edoardo Mortara - Audi A5 DTM - Rosberg - 1'26''756 - Q4
3. Filipe Albuquerque - Audi A5 DTM - Rosberg - 1'26''894 - Q4
4. Adrien Tambay - Audi A5 DTM - Abt - 1'26''981 - Q4
5. Mike Rockenfeller - Audi A5 DTM - Phoenix - 1'26''789 - Q3
6. Andy Priaulx - BMW M3 DTM - RBM - 1'26''824 - Q3
7. Timo Scheider - Audi A5 DTM - Abt - 1'26''849 - Q3
8. Mattias Ekström - Audi A5 DTM - Abt - 1'26''936 - Q3
9. Dirk Werner - BMW M3 DTM - Schnitzer - 1'27''039 - Q3
10. Miguel Molina - Audi A5 DTM - 1'27''040 - Q3
Etc.

FIA press release

The WMSC approved for the FIA to proceed with an agreement with The Sportsman Media Group and Red Bull Media House to become the new global Promoter of the FIA World Rally Championship from 2013.

The Promoter will be responsible for investing and developing the WRC with a view to increasing its profile, reputation and commercial value. In particular, the Promoter, working in close collaboration with the FIA, will be focused on introducing live television and an innovative digital media strategy in the next years.

As part of a cost-reduction process and to attract greater entries, WRC Teams competing in the 2013 FIA World Rally Championship will now only have to contest one non-European event. WRC Teams must however still nominate and take part in a minimum of seven events.

The structure of the support Championships has been revised to reflect the interests and demands of the competitors. From 2013, the current Championship for S2000 cars will be replaced by the WRC-2 Championship including cars with four-wheel drive (R5, R4 and S2000).

A specific cup for cars in the Group N category will also form part of the FIA WRC-2 Championship, and titles for teams, drivers and co-drivers will be awarded to those who have scored the most points in six of the seven events in which they have taken part.

The current Production Car World Rally Championship will be replaced by the FIA WRC-3 Championship, including Group R cars with two-wheel drive (R3, R2 and R1). Titles for teams, drivers and co-drivers will be awarded to those who have scored the most points in five of the six events in which they have taken part.

The current FIA WRC Academy will be re-named the FIA Junior WRC Championship.

The 2013 FIA World Rally Championship calendar is confirmed as follows:

20 January: Rally Monte Carlo
10 February: Rally Sweden
10 March: Rally Mexico
14 April: Rally Portugal
5 May: Rally Argentina
2 June: Rally Acropolis (Greece)
23 June: Rally d'Italia
4 August: Rally Finland
TBC: Rally Deutschland
15 September: Rally Australia
6 October: Rallye de France
27 October: Rally de Espana
17 November: Rally Great Britain

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone is determined to scrap F1's engine regulation change for 2014.

The F1 chief executive recently visited Ferrari's Maranello headquarters, where he heard the tamer sounds of the incoming turbo V6 engine.

"Even (Ferrari president) Luca di Montezemolo said it sounded terrible and didn't like it," Ecclestone told the Hindustan Times.

The 81-year-old Briton tipped FIA president Jean Todt to "get rid of it".

"I think Luca is also saying we should suspend it for two or three years.  I think it is sensible to get rid of it and stick with what we have got," added Ecclestone.

Tom Kristensen and Alan McNish (Audi) will start from pole position on Sunday for the Bahrein Six Hours.

The pair, that switched to an Audi R18 e-tron hybrid for the remaining races of the season instead of their R18 Ultra diesel, set their best lap in 1'45''814. They were faster than teammates Fassler, Lotterer and Treluyer, leaders in provisional championship classification.

Wurz and Lapierre's Toyota, which was victorious in Interlagos two weeks ago, set the third best performance ahead of the Rebellion's Lola Toyota, best of the privateer cars.

In LMP2, the best performance was set by Starworks' HPD driven by Potolicchio, Kimber-Smith and Sarrazin.

In GT, the Aston Martin driven by Mucke and Turner was quickest in GTE Pro, while the best GTE Am car was AF Corse Waltrip's Ferrari F458.



Bahrain - Qualifying :
1. Kristensen/McNish - Audi R18 e-tron - Audi - 1'45''814 (1st LMP1)
2. Fassler/Lotterer/Treluyer - Audi R18 e-tron - 1'45''888
3. Wurz/Lapierre - Toyota TS03 hybride - Toyota - 1'46''254
4. Prost/Jani - Lola Toyota - Rebellion - 1'47''638
5. Leventis/Watts/Kane - HPD - Strakka - 1'48''446
6. Brabham/Chandhok/Dumbreck - HPD - JRM - 1'48''784
7. Potolicchio/Kimber-Smith/Sarrazin - HPD - Starworks - 1'51''798 (1st LMP2)
8. Martin/Graves - Oreca Nissan - ADR Delta - 1'52''368
9. Nicolet/Lahaye/Pla - Morgan Nissan - OAK - 1'52''368
10. Baguette/Kraihamer/Brundle - Morgan Nissan - OAK - 1'52''609
(...)
18. Mucke/Turner - Aston Martin 2'00''243 - 2'00''234 (1st GTE Pro)
(...)
22. Kauffman/Aguas/Vicker - Ferrari F458 - AF Corse Waltrip - 2'02''812 (1st GTE Am)
Etc.