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For months now, I've been carefully following everything that's been going on around the upcoming movie from Ron Howard, Rush, which is about Formula 1.

Hollywood never really bothered with F1. Over the years, we've only been treated to a few (horrible) movies, and a racing-glove full of (just as horrible) small-screen series. The list of reasons why it was mostly bad is almost endless: bad understanding of racing, bad actors, bad stories, bad sense of reality...

For example, just think of Sylvester Stallone's dreadful, Driven. F1 really dodged a bullet when Rambo picked ChampCar to base his movie on.

The only title to really stand out as good is John Frankenheimer's Grand Prix, which dates back to 1966.

NASCAR had its moment on the big screen too when Days of Thunder (featuring the one and only Tom Cruise) came out in 1990.

Other than that, there's been nothing to set your nomex underwear on fire.

This time, though, it's serious. Rush traces back the tumultuous 1976 season of the F1 World Championship during which James Hunt, an eccentric British playboy, goes head-to-head with a cold, meticulous Austrian known as Niki Lauda.

Photo: RUSH official website

The turning point of their fight is that season's German Grand Prix, at the Nürburgring, where Lauda's Ferrari 312 T2 spectacularly burst into flames after a heavy impact. The championship leader spent almost a full 60 seconds sitting in the furnace of his car burning down.

Only six weeks later, Lauda was back in the ring to fight Hunt, albeit bearing scars of his trip to hell.

Truth be told, the story of the 1976 F1 season is already worthy of the best Hollywood movies, so it was an excellent starting point for Ron Howard. However, the most staggering thing about Rush is the surreal attention to detail.

Everything was thought through from the cars racing on the track to the bell-bottom pants worn by the ladies following Master James around. They went as far as giving actor Daniel Brühl a denture to make him look even more like Lauda.

We're talking documentary level reconstruction of the past here.

I think that's why people will be interested in the Lauda-Hunt confrontation, which is out of the ordinary but maybe a bit arduous for non-F1 fans, otherwise. I think that's why people will like Rush.

If everything goes about like it sets out to, maybe Rush will turn out like The Big Blue of Luc Besson, a story of two fearsome competitors and friends who live for their sport.

Loved for his frugal ways, Pope Francis recently took delivery of a used 1984 Renault 4L with more than 300,000 kilometres on the clock. It's a gift from Rev. Renzo Rocca, who used it for 25 years to serve the poor and sick in Verona.

Pope Francis, who once owned a Renault back in his native Argentina, personally called Rocca to thank him. He's already taken the white beater for a spin.

Despite having a number of service vehicles in his garage, Pope Francis prefers to ride in a minibus around the Vatican.

Source : lefigaro.fr

Photo: Renault

From GMM

Kimi Raikkonen's return to Ferrari could spell the end of race engineer Rob Smedley's career at the Italian team.

As rumours of the Finn's signing became clearer at Monza last weekend, some insiders could not hide their sniggering at the thought of Briton Smedley working hand-in-hand with 'iceman' Raikkonen.

"They would have to supply his (Smedley's) headset without a microphone," Germany's Auto Motor und Sport quotes one paddock wag as chuckling.

That's because 39-year-old Smedley is famous for his close, and almost fatherly relationship with the departing Felipe Massa.

Indeed, Smedley is known for talking at length on the radio with Massa, often calling the Brazilian 'Felipe-baby' and issuing detailed driving and tactical instructions.

Rob Smedley and Felipe Massa. (Photo: Ferrari)

Italy's Autosprint reports that Ferrari pairing Raikkonen - who last year earned cult status by telling his race engineer to 'leave me alone, I know what I'm doing' - with Smedley is highly unlikely.

In fact, Smedley has been linked with a return to Williams for 2014. Just before beginning his F1 career with Jordan, Smedley worked for Williams' touring car team.

Autosprint said Smedley would likely not be a mere race engineer at Williams, but rather will take on a role with greater technical or engineering responsibility.

From press release

Sebastien Ogier made an impressive start to his bid to clinch the FIA World Rally Championship drivers' title at Coates Hire Rally Australia by dominating today's opening leg.

Having won the second of last night's two short curtain-raising speed tests in the centre of Coffs Harbour, the Frenchman was fastest on all six of today's country stages and one of the repeat town tests in his Volkswagen Polo R to overnight with a 20.0sec lead.

Mikko Hirvonen enjoyed one of his best days of a tough year. Despite a far from ideal road position, he held third before using the benefit of the swept roads to displace Citroen DS3 team-mate Kris Meeke from second this afternoon.

Sebastien Ogier in Australia. (Photo: Volkswagen Motorsport)

Meeke won qualifying yesterday to earn the best start position. His thoughts were set on securing a solid points finish rather than chasing victory, and he looked certain to overnight in third until he stalled at the start of the final test and slipped to fourth

Neuville was the beneficiary of Meeke's error, the Belgian 0.5sec ahead and 18.1sec behind Hirvonen in his Ford Fiesta RS. He admitted to feeling ‘lost' on this morning's slippery roads but his confidence and pace improved along with the grip this afternoon.

It was a similar story from Jari-Matti Latvala. The Finn cut a downbeat figure as he ended the opening loop in eighth in a Polo R. But he fought back to fifth, aided by fastest time in the final stage, and is 19.6sec behind Meeke.

Rounding off the top six is a frustrated Mads Ostberg. The Norwegian felt he drove well but was disappointed with his times. He was lucky to survive a sideways impact with a rock in SS8 that was so hard that the door of his Fiesta RS flew open.

Andreas Mikkelsen, who led after last night's opening tests, is seventh in a Polo R. He lost time with an overshoot but remained ahead of Russia's Evgeny Novikov.  Ostberg, Mikkelsen and Novikov are covered by just 7.5 sec.

GMC today unveiled the all-new 2015 Yukon, Yukon XL, and Yukon Denali models, which will deliver greater capability and refinement, with more power, new fold-flat rear seats, and a quieter interior.

The first two are motivated by a 5.3L EcoTec3 V8 engine that produces 355 horsepower, while the Yukon Denali gets a 6.2L EcoTec3 V8 rated at 420 horsepower.

Features include an 8'' colour touchscreen with enhanced IntelliLink and available navigation, as well as keyless entry and push-button start.

Numerous options can be ordered such as a power rear liftgate, a Blu-ray/DVD rear-seat entertainment system, 18'', 20'' and 22'' wheels (standard 20'' wheels on Denali), and illuminated, power-retractable assist steps (Denali).

Deliveries of the 2015 GMC Yukon are scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2014.

Photo: GM

Henry H. Bliss probably would have liked to make history for a different reason. On September 13th, 1899, he became the first known pedestrian to be killed by a car in the U.S. Arthur Smith, the guilty taxi driver, was arrested and charged with manslaughter but later acquitted on the grounds that it was unintentional.

In 1999, a plaque was dedicated at the site to mark the 100th anniversary of the accident. It reads:

“Here at West 74th Street and Central Park West, Henry H. Bliss dismounted from a streetcar and was struck and knocked unconscious by an automobile on the evening of September 13, 1899. When Mr. Bliss, a New York real estate man, died the next morning from his injuries, he became the first recorded motor vehicle fatality in the Western Hemisphere. This sign was erected to remember Mr. Bliss on the centennial of his untimely death and to promote safety on our streets and highways.”

The Western Hemisphere actually includes all land of the hemisphere west of Greenwich, but there were two earlier such deaths. Mary Ward was killed by a steam-powered car in Ireland in 1869, and Bridget Driscoll got hit by a car as she was crossing a street in England with her daughter in 1896.

Source : wikipedia.org

Henry H. Bliss (Photo: Wikipedia)

Starting this fall, Jeep will produce and sell its new Wrangler Dragon Edition in limited number. Canadian pricing and on-sale date have yet to be announced, but this model will be priced at $36,095 in the U.S.

Based on the 4-door Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara, the Dragon Edition comes exclusively in black with Bronze Satin Gloss accents inside and out. It features a black, 3-piece hard top, as well as a Dark Charcoal dragon decal that starts on the hood and runs along the driver's side of the vehicle. There's also a black spare tire cover with the same dragon decal. Unique 18'' 5-spoke matte black alloy wheels with a Satin Bronze high-gloss outer edge complete the exterior.

The cabin of the Jeep Wrangler Dragon Edition offers heated black Nappa leather seating surfaces with Satin Bronze Dragon Scale on the outer bolsters, centre armrest, and steering wheel. A dragon graphic overlay can be seen in the gauge cluster.

Photo: Jeep

From GMM

Ferrari has put together a potentially "explosive" driver lineup for 2014, according to former team champion Michael Schumacher.

The great German, who became F1's most successful driver ever by delivering five consecutive titles to the Maranello team last decade, was referring to the appointment of Kimi Raikkonen to be current 'number 1' Fernando Alonso's new teammate.

Schumacher, who at the end of 2006 was pushed into his first retirement when Ferrari signed Raikkonen, said of the 2014 pairing: "For motor sport fans it will certainly be a blast, and make for a tough competition.

"It will be exciting to watch," the 44-year-old told Bild newspaper.

"But Ferrari with Fernando and Kimi -- it sounds like an explosive mixture," added Schumacher.

Stand Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

Another former Ferrari driver, four time world champion Alain Prost, also described the combination of fiery Latin Alonso and unflappable and odd Finn Raikkonen as "a risky move" for the Italian team.

"Speaking as a fan I would say it is good to have two number ones together," Prost told a French television broadcast.

"I think it's a choice born from a certain tension between Fernando and the Scuderia that has been clearly evident during the year. Now he will no longer be the undisputed number 1, at least not initially, and I'm not sure Stefano Domenicali has the ability of a Jean Todt or a Ross Brawn to handle a situation like this. In Italy the press applies a lot of pressure, so I presume that sooner or later there will be trouble," added Prost.

Before Raikkonen's Ferrari move was decided, McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh refused to rule out making a bid to sign the Finn for 2014.

He told Finland's Turun Sanomat he is not sure Alonso and Raikkonen is an ideal combination.

"I cannot imagine they will be happy together," said Whitmarsh. "Kimi generally doesn't care about who is at the wheel of the other car, but Fernando will not deal with it well. Of course, both of them are clearly among the best drivers in formula one, so Ferrari has an incredibly strong lineup, but it could also put the team in a difficult situation."

Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso, in 2007. (Photo: WRi2)

The Italian press broadly agrees. La Gazzetta dello Sport, the influential daily, said Ferrari's 2014 choice is "bold but dangerous".

"They are two roosters in one henhouse, so they say, even if Kimi is not a rooster at the level of Alonso, Vettel and Hamilton. But it will no longer be a team at the feet of one driver," the publication added.

The 65th edition of the Frankfurt Auto Show turned out to be quite the event. This was my first time visiting this massive 12-building (including Audi's homemade one) venue, and I was not let down.

The scale and importance of this event is demonstrated by the worth and importance of the cars and products unveiled during the two press days.

So, here's my top 10 list of the best unveilings that took place at the 2013 IAA:

Audi Sport Quattro Concept

Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre

Audi stole what little thunder Acura built with its NSX. For the last year, more enthusiasts have been waiting on the return of the legendary Quattro's modern replacement than any other car.

Sure, the LaFerrari was anticipated, but the Quattro is a whole other kettle of fish for real car and driving enthusiasts. Its rawness, power, grip, and legendary pedigree make it irresistible.

Continue reading 2013 Frankfurt Auto Show: Top 10 Unveilings

Bowmanville, ON - Hyundai: A Seoul, South Korea based car company officially founded in late 1967 is celebrating 30 years in Canada in 2013. Didn't realize that did you?

From Pony-plagued humble beginnings to delivering an expected 140,000+ units in 2013 in Canada, Hyundai is the definition of determination, and according to those in power at Hyundai Canada, the company is here to stay. I tend to believe them.

There are many keys to Hyundai's massive accomplishments in Canada, and one that remains on top is value. As of late, styling has climbed to the near top of consumers' reasons for purchasing these cars. From this, I can extrapolate that buyers are not only getting lots of kit for their money, but that they are also enamored by the looks of the relative bargain.

This position, where Hyundai has managed to blend emotion and rationality, is without a doubt the most desirable for a car manufacturer to be in. Other makers struggle to create a similar blend with varying levels of success.

So, how does a company celebrate such an achievement? Simple: by bringing together a number of auto journalists to the Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (aka Mosport, herein referred to as CTMP) and letting them run rampant with their cars.

Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre

2013 Veloster Turbo and cones
One of the exercises, devised in order for us to experience this car's abilities, was a timed slalom course lap. This now highly competitive activity pits driving abilities to the Veloster Turbo's gripping, accelerating, and braking abilities.

As we journalist types tend to be quite competitive, the heat was on. A very strong initial time was set by The Korean Stig, and fortunately one journalist was able to beat it. I sadly, could not. However, I was the second best auto critic of the day or the first loser...

The Veloster Turbo performed flawlessly despite the massive abuse inflicted on the car while we attempted to get the most out of its turbocharged 1.6L, 4-wheel disc brakes and chunky 18” tires.

Photo: Justin Pritchard

Continue reading A fun day with Hyundai