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From press release

Johnathan Schwemler Race Cars (JSR) is pleased to announce the formation of the first Canadian Motorsports Program for injured and ill, retired and current members of the Canadian Armed Forces.

The program has the goal of participating in all Canadian races of the 2014 Optima Batteries ChumpCar World Series (OBCWS).

JSR Owner/Driver Master Corporal Johnathan Schwemler, a 12 year member of the Canadian Army, recently won the Rookie of the Year Title in the Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup Series (LOSC).

While the LOSC program will continue as the primary team for JSR, the new program fulfils a goal of Schwemler's developed when he left Canada to serve in Afghanistan.

"Since the moment I started my tour in Afghanistan, I wanted to make sure that I gave back to my brothers and sisters in arms and their families," stated Schwemler. "This new team is the chance to achieve that goal. The benefits of involvement in motorsport for military personnel have been proven by other teams in countries around the world."

Inspired in part by the world record-holding Dakar Rally-Raid team of Race2Recovery from the United Kingdom, members of the new program will have the experience of being active full-fledged members of a motorsport team, learning all aspects of the sport at the grass roots level. In addition, the OBCWS team has the benefit of being able to tap into the experience and advice of the Race2Recovery team.

The new JSR team will race under the Soldier On / Sans Limites banner and be managed by Ancaster, Ontario's Jerry Simmons.

Simmons, who has 32 years of experience as a driver, team owner, and crew member in road course and endurance racing, will provide guidance, advice, and mentoring to the team.

He has competed in the Trans/Am Series, the American LeMans Series, and the IMSA GT Championship. Simmons' racing resume includes winning the 1983 and 1984 Canadian National GT1 Championships, one professional race win and one professional pole.

JSR is able to provide opportunities for members of the OBCWS team to move up into the LOSC program when they are ready to compete at a higher level. In addition, JSR plans to grow the OBCWS team into a professional motorsport team capable of being competitive in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and/or the Canadian Touring Car Championship over the next two to three years.

The team is hoping to take to the track for their first race on May 3 and 4, 2014 at the ICAR Circuit at Mirabel Airport near Montreal, Quebec for a grueling 24 hour endurance race.

From GMM

McLaren may not have given up on signing Fernando Alonso for its new Honda-powered era beginning in 2015.

Team boss Martin Whitmarsh, who openly tried to woo the Spaniard back to Woking for the 2014 season, this week skipped attending the prestigious Autosport Awards in order to travel to Madrid.

In the Spanish capital, Alonso was launching an exhibition featuring the memorabilia of his entire career collected by his father.

Indeed, Whitmarsh was photographed with Alonso alongside representatives of the two-time world champion's other F1 bosses, including Giancarlo Minardi, Stefano Domenicali and Flavio Briatore.

Daily Mail correspondent Jonathan McEvoy said Whitmarsh was so keen to attend Alonso's exhibition that he delegated McLaren's managing director Jonathan Neale to collect the trophy in London to mark the team's 50th year in F1.

Photo: WRi2

"It is understood that Whitmarsh is keen to develop a channel of communication to Alonso with an eye on bringing in the Spaniard for the 2015 season," said McEvoy.

The news ties in with the latest comments made by F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, who said he was disappointed with Alonso's performance for Ferrari this year.

"I thought he gave up a little bit which is proof that he was looking for another team," Ecclestone wrote in the foreword to the official 2013 season review.

But at the very same time, Alonso's manager Luis Garcia Abad denied the 32-year-old has already agreed to move to Honda-powered McLaren for 2015.

"What you're saying is formula one fiction," Abad, also in Madrid, told Spanish radio Marca.

"You cannot have two signed contracts, as when you sign one, you must notify the body that controls it. So it is technically impossible. And an unsigned agreement is not an agreement."

Asked if Alonso intends to fulfil the terms of his entire Ferrari contract, which runs to 2016, Luis Garcia Abad answered: "Fernando has said the same this year in three press conferences in different languages."

From press release

Honda has released the first visual of its 2014 World Touring Car Championship challenger reflecting the all new technical regulations for the FIA WTCC which will come into force for next year.

The Honda Civic WTCC render shows the subtle style of the wheel arch extensions, larger diameter wheels, sleeker aero package and extended rear spoiler.

Add all this to increased engine power and the 2014 Honda WTCC racer is clearly ambitious to retain Honda's Manufacturers World Championship crown and enable the drivers to challenge for the World Champion title.

Two works cars will be run by JAS Motorsport for Gabriele Tarquini and Tiago Monteiro with two further cars to be entered by private outfits Zengö Motorsport and Proteam Racing for Hungary's Norbert Michelisz and Moroccan Mehdi Bennani respectively.

Photo: Honda Racing

From GMM

F1 cars could be matched for pace by the single seaters of its support series next year.

That is the fear and warning of Enrique Scalabroni, a well-known name in the F1 paddock, having worked as a technical chief at teams including Williams and Ferrari.

He set up his own GP2 team last decade, and now thinks the support field of 2014 could match for pace the new-generation, V6 turbo-powered F1 cars.

As well as featuring smaller engines, next year's F1 cars will also be heavier, have less downforce due to the significant aerodynamic changes, and probably more conservatively-designed and selected Pirelli tires.

"I hate to be alarmist," Scalabroni is quoted by Spain's El Mundo Deportivo newspaper, "but I would not be surprised if a GP2 car is as fast as a F1 (car).

"You only have to make simple calculations to see that this could occur, at least at the beginning of the development phase in F1. Some (people) are concerned with this possibility," he added.

Fabio Leimer, 2013 Champion GP2 series, on the starting grid. (Photo: GP2 Series)

Maserati has officially entered the 100th year of its history, and the celebration will culminate on December 14th, 2014 -- exactly a century after the Italian company was founded in Bologna by Alfieri, Ettore and Ernesto Maserati.

Called Tipo 26, the first Maserati race car debuted in 1926 with a victory in the Targa Florio, the first of an endless string of wins which include two editions of the Indianapolis 500, 9 Formula One Grand Prix, and the 1957 F1 World Championship.

A long series of activities will be organized in all major Maserati markets around the world to celebrate the brand's first 100 years. A special Centennial website, www.maserati100.com, has also been created.

Photo: Maserati

Dubuc SportLightCar (SLC), a small manufacturer based in Quebec City, will present the Tomahawk kit car at the 2014 Montreal International Auto Show (January 17-26). This cutting-edge, two-seat sports car with a central engine can be assembled approximately eight times faster than comparable vehicles.

“Three out of five kit car projects never get completed because their owners run out of patience and motivation.We've worked for eight years on numerous concepts before coming up with an easy-to-build kit,” said Dubuc SLC president Mario Dubuc.

Photo: Dubuc SportLightCar

Tomahawk features:
• Ergonomically designed cockpit that can comfortably sit a 6'3", 275-lb driver;
• Aluminum monocoque frame with an ultra-light polymer body, ready to receive Corvette C4 suspension components;
• Doors that open 75 degrees wide;
• Targa top and sideview mirrors.

The entire kit car weighs less than 2,000 lbs and retails for $19,995. Factoring in the engine and other components, a skilled individual can build a Tomahawk in just 250 hours, for a total budget of $30,000 and more.

Dubuc confirmed that about 50 units have already been pre-ordered by customers in Canada, the U.S., and even Europe.

Source: Montreal International Auto Show

Starting next year, 100 self-driving Volvo cars will use public roads in everyday driving conditions around the Swedish city of Gothenburg, the automaker announced. The goal is to launch these vehicles on the market by 2017.

The ground-breaking project ''Drive Me -- Self-driving cars for sustainable mobility'' is a joint initiative between Volvo Car Group, the Swedish Transport Administration, the Swedish Transport Agency, Lindholmen Science Park, and the City of Gothenburg.

The pilot will involve self-driving cars using approximately 50 kilometres of selected roads in and around Gothenburg. These roads are typical commuter arteries and include highway conditions and frequent jams.

The various partners will study how autonomous vehicles bring societal and economic benefits by improving traffic efficiency, the traffic environment and road safety; infrastructure requirements for autonomous driving; typical traffic situations suitable for autonomous vehicles; customers' confidence in autonomous vehicles; and how surrounding drivers interact smoothly with a self-driving car.

Photo: Volvo

From Infiniti

For the duration of the 100 days between December 4, 2013 and the day before the free practice sessions for the 2014 Australian Grand Prix on March 13, 2014, Infiniti GP will provide a constant source of digital Formula 1 editorial content each day.

The official campaign is coded hashtag #4F1fans.

It will include a mixture of:
• New video content featuring Sebastian Vettel
• Unique photograph series
• In-depth feature stories
• Interviews and opinions from those in the know
• Infographics explaining 2014 technical regulations
• Fan competitions and giveaways

Rights-free content will be available to download and share from Infiniti GP's dedicated content hub via http://bit.ly/IoNoy4 or www.infiniti-gp.com.

Content will also be shared across Infiniti GP's social media channels including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Sebastian Vettel. (Photo: Red Bull Racing)

This past weekend, Subaru Canada invited Auto123.com to attend the Rally of the Tall Pines, which marked the final and decisive round of the 2013 Canadian Rally Championship.

The first thing I noticed upon arriving in the small town of Bancroft, some 100 kilometres north of Belleville, Ontario, was the extreme cold. In the night of Friday to Saturday, the recorded temperature of -23 degrees Celsius was actually the lowest in the entire province!

Battling for the title were Antoine L'Estage (Mitsubishi Evo) and Patrick Richard (Subaru Impreza WRX STI). The former had to finish at least in 6th place to secure his sixth CRC crown.

Photos: René Fagnan

The 43rd Rally of the Tall Pines featured 16 special stages covering a distance of 140 kilometres (226 kilometres overall). Some of them took place on ultra-tight forest roads flanked by evergreens, while others consisted of wide-open icy roads that saw cars blasting at nearly 140 km/h.

The weather conditions were so harsh that 20 of the 33 teams had to withdraw from the event.

Top guns like ''Crazy'' Leo Urlichich (broken camshaft), Richard (numerous flat tires, seized differential), and L'Estage (a faulty sensor cost him five good minutes) all ran into their share of troubles.

In the eyes of spectators, however, these guys put on a real show: Remarkable control, extremely precise drifting, assertive steering manoeuvres, superb, ballet-like slides, and a markedly strong desire to attack the road were all on display.

In the end, Toronto's Chris Martin (Subaru), a former kart driver and ice course racer, won the Rally of the Tall Pines by brilliantly avoiding all the pitfalls along the way.

L'Estage finished right behind him after dropping to 14th place, so he was crowned champion for the sixth time in his career.

The holiday break will be a short one as the 2014 Canadian Rally Championship starts in less than two months with the Rallye Perce-Neige in Maniwaki, Quebec (February 7-9). I look forward to being there, even if it's freezing!

Audi has confirmed that an all-new vehicle will expand its Q family of crossovers starting in 2016. The Q1 will be built in Ingolstadt alongside the A3, A4, and A5.

With this addition, Audi aims to strengthen its international competitiveness. The Q1 is part of a model offensive that will broaden the current lineup of 49 models to more than 60 by 2020.

Of course, it's way too early for Audi to announce the Q1's markets and specifications.

Photo: Audi

The UAW is considering hiking membership dues by 25 percent, the first increase since 1967, as it faces dwindling membership and rising costs, a top UAW official and several union sources said.

Always considered the redheaded stepchild of the

A Goodbye to Paul Walker

Here I am, watching The Fast and the Furious for the thousandth time, feeling a little lost.

Paul Walker? Influential in my life? Come on. No way. But here I am, watching The Fast and the Furious for the thousandth time, feeling a little lost.

Photo Gallery: A Goodbye to Paul Walker - Automobile Magazine

A Goodbye to Paul Walker | Digg It | Add to del.icio.us

Auto supplier Federal-Mogul has agreed to acquire European bearings supplier DZV Bearings Co., based in Dimitrovgrad, Russia.

Ford will get a new hearing in its bid to collect $445 million in interest on overpaid taxes from the IRS, as the Supreme Court told a lower court to take a fresh look at the case.

Volvo Car has chosen Grey, London, as its new global creative agency effective January 1, a top company executive said. The account shift will include Volvo's $50 million creative business held by Havas-owned Arnold in the United States.

Volvo Car has chosen Grey, London, as its new global creative agency effective January 1, a top company executive said. The account shift will include Volvo's $50 million creative business held by Havas-owned Arnold in the United States.

Porsche is in hot water with German authorities following an accident involving a prototype version of the gasoline-electric hybrid-powered

New car sales in Spain were up again in November for a third consecutive month.

A breakthrough in recharging electric vehicles is possible following the announcement by Osaka based Daihen Corporation that it has developed a cordless recharger that could work on a wide range of electric vehicles.