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From nascar.com

Deciding that there was insufficient evidence to warrant criminal charges, an Ontario County (New York) grand jury will not bring any charges against NASCAR champion Tony Stewart for his involvement in a sprint car accident during an Aug. 9 race at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park that fatally injured fellow driver Kevin Ward Jr.

Ontario County District Attorney Michael Tantillo held a news conference Wednesday afternoon to deliver the findings, ultimately saying that "there was no evidence to charge Tony Stewart with a crime."

He said the grand jury examined the evidence and heard from two dozen witnesses for "the better part of two days" before reaching its conclusion.

The two charges it considered were second degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. In the state of New York it takes 12 of 23 votes from the grand jury to return charges. They delivered their verdict in less than an hour.

Tantillo said of the two dozen-plus witnesses that testified, they included two accident reconstructionists, eye-witnesses, track workers and medical responders along with photographs and two video recordings. He said Stewart was able to testify, but by law he could not reveal who else did or did not.

Tantillo indicated however there was a toxicologist report conducted on Ward and it found that Ward was under the influence of marijuana "enough to impair judgment."

Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, also the co-owner of the Force India Formula 1 team, is no longer a member of India's 100 richest men, even as fortunes of the country's super-rich have seen a significant growth since last year.

Mallya, who has been declared as 'wilful defaulter' by lenders following huge debts on his Kingfisher Airlines, is missing from the Forbes latest list of 100 richest released on Sept. 25.

Other reports mention that Mallya would seek compensation if his F1 team was forced to run a third car nest season.

Should the grid fall from 11 to just eight teams, a result that is feared given the financial difficulties of certain outfits, there is a rule in place forcing bigger teams to make up the numbers by fielding extra cars.

Sahara Force India VJM07-Mercedes. (Photo: WRi2)

However, Mallya declared such a move would put pressure on Sahara Force India and reduce the appeal of the sport.

"We were going to demand compensation to build a third car, we're not going to do it for free," he said.

"I'm sure the commercial rights holder realises that - he's got to make it economically viable. This year you see both Mercedes ahead of everybody else and in the last few years we had Red Bulls in front of everyone else. So now you want the entire podium to be occupied by one team. It doesn't make too much sense does it?"

The Indian billionaire added the struggling teams are being hurt by an "imbalance" in the way F1's revenues are shared.

"The bigger teams take a major slice and the smaller teams get less as a result. The best way of doing it is to make a more rational formula which gives everyone a chance to not just survive but also compete,” he said.

Brabham, one of the most successful and iconic names in motorsport history, is aiming to be back in the midst of racing once again at the highest levels and its target is the FIA World Endurance Championship.

David Brabham, ex-F1 driver, Le Mans winner and multiple sportscar champion, has today launched Project Brabham which is an innovative model of open source racing to build and fund a sustainable team. It is planned that the motorsport community can become a key part of the team and shape its future through crowd funding.

Sir Jack Brabham in Formula 1. (Photo: Brabham Project)

Brabham aims to return to the track in the FIA World Endurance Championship next season with a three-year LMP2 programme. In year four, the marque aims to return as a constructor by way of LMP1, with firm intentions of winning the only world title for sportscars and the greatest endurance race on earth, the Le Mans 24 Hours.

“Looking at the normal racing model was not exciting or sustainable enough for me to rebuild the team from scratch. For me to bring Brabham back we have to do things differently,” said David Brabham, son of three-time F1 Champion, the late Sir Jack Brabham.

“After careful consideration and research we have created a new model of open source racing, which will bring fans closer to the action, inspire drivers and engineers around the world and offer the rare opportunity to be a part of this new, but historical, race team.

“Project Brabham gives people the chance to be part of the team from the start. Once we have built a large community we will start to see the power of a collective force that will attract the funds and partners to make this journey a success. Come and join us and create another piece of history.”

Click here to discover Project Brabham.
--- http://igg.me/at/project-brabham

From Ferrari

Discover the man who has now tested 350 Formula 1 cars that have been sold and has driven every Formula 1 car from 1974 to the present one, with the exception of the 1982 126 C2.

For a long time, he also held the Fiorano track record.

He is Andrea Bertolini, born in Sassuolo in 1973 and he has spent his entire career in Ferrari, he's a star in Endurance racing with the 458 Italia GT2 and GT3, as well as testing for Scuderia Ferrari and the customer owned Formula 1 cars, which he shakes down before they are returned to their owners after periodic maintenance in Maranello.

Andrea Bertolini. (Photo: Ferrari)

“I was 17 years old when I started to work in the factory. I worked on the test bench and at the same time I used to race karts, following my dream of becoming a racing driver,” says Bertolini.

“I hadn't passed my test yet when I got the chance to drive five laps of Fiorano at the wheel of a 355 Challenge. Those five laps changed my life, because the chief test driver, Dario Benuzzi, took me under his wing and taught me the job. In the morning I worked on the cars and in the afternoon I did kilometres with Benuzzi, learning precious lessons for my career.”

Formula 1 cars
“When Ferrari began selling its old Formula 1 cars, while still maintaining and preserving them in the garage, I was involved in the project. A driver was required to test them while they were being worked on,” he continued.

“I still remember the first Formula 1 car I drove, a 412 T2. It was an incredible car, 12 cylinders, really well made, to the point that, when he tested it for the first time, Michael Schumacher, who had just joined Ferrari, asked how it had never won the World championship. I still remember that day very well. I'm not the sort to get easily excited, but when I got in the cockpit and the mechanics fired up the engine behind me, I shivered with excitement.

“For a moment, I felt like a child again, when I used to go and watch the Ferraris running at Fiorano and my idol Gilles Villeneuve, and I told myself that one of my dreams was coming true, driving a Ferrari Formula 1 car actually at Fiorano. That moment is still the most exciting moment of my professional life.”

Andrea Bertolini in Nigel Mansell's Ferrari F1-90. (Photo: Twitter Ferrari)

“The oldest that came into my hands was the 312 B3-74, an incredible car, which I am very fond of. From that model onwards, I drove all the Scuderia's Formula 1 cars up to the 1982 car,” Bertolini continued.

“It's not easy to rate them in order. I am very keen on the 1974 car: it's like a kart, but a bit bigger and more powerful, very light and you can drive it in a controlled slide. It was dangerous and driver safety was pretty precarious, but it was like that back then. Then I love the 1988 F187/88, the last turbocharged Ferrari prior to the F14 T, easy to drive and incredibly agile despite its traditional gearbox. However, the essence of the ability to innovate that is typical of Ferrari is found driving the F1-90 with which Alain Prost came close to taking the title. I've already spoken about the 1995 car, then there are the cars from 1999 and 2002 and 2004, the record breaking cars, extraordinary cars with which I could have had my say...”

Ferrari 312 B3. (Photo: WRi2)

From GMM

Toto Wolff says F1's struggling teams would be the victims if a push to relax the engine development 'freeze' is successful.

As Mercedes continues to utterly dominate in the first season of the turbo V6 era, behind-the-scenes discussions have turned to allowing struggling rivals Ferrari and Renault to catch up.

"If we look at this year's season we're seeing that there's such a big disparity between the different engines," said Monisha Kaltenborn, whose Sauber outfit is using Ferrari power and having the "worst season in the history of the team".

Mercedes V6 turbo hybrid engine. (Photo: Mercedes-Benz)

For cost-cutting purposes, F1 operates under strict engine homologation rules, more commonly referred to as a 'freeze' that severely limits performance development.

Under the existing rules, engine makers will be able to change up to 48 per cent of their 2014 'power unit' design ahead of the next pre-2015 homologation.

But Mercedes' rivals, notably Ferrari, are pushing hard behind the scenes for even more freedom.

The current 'freeze' operates on the basis of allowing engine makers to exchange a certain number of FIA 'tokens' for performance-related design improvements.

Ferrari is arguing for at least eight more tokens to be available to teams for a mid-season design tweak.

Ferrari V6 turbo hybrid engine. (Photo: Ferrari)

Predictably, field-leading Mercedes is not happy with the idea.

Toto Wolff told Auto Motor und Sport: "It would be stupid of us to argue that we have the best engine and so nothing else interests us. On the other hand, we must raise the question of costs.

"Eight tokens would cost tens of millions of euros," said the Austrian. "Who should pay, if not the customer?"

It is here that relaxing the engine 'freeze' will meet considerable objection.

The cost of renting engines from Mercedes, Ferrari or Renault for customer teams - some of whom are struggling merely for survival - has already gone up considerably in 2014 compared with the old V8 regime.

"We're paying about 20 million pounds for our engine in a period when we're trying to control costs in formula one," said Mercedes customer Williams' deputy chief Claire Williams.

Renault V6 turbo hybrid engine. (Photo: Renault Sport F1)

Even Kaltenborn, whose struggling Sauber team would benefit from a stronger Ferrari engine, is not keen on the idea of a 'freeze' relaxation if it means her bills are higher.

"We do support the idea that development of an engine is allowed within certain given parameters," she said, "but it not necessarily leads to the fact that we, as customers, should actually bear the costs for that."

From GMM

Lotus team owner Gerard Lopez, and the Fernando Alonso-connected Flavio Briatore, have played down the latest explosive F1 rumours.

Germany's Sport Bild claimed this week that Briatore, the former boss at Enstone and still playing a guiding role in protege Alonso's career, is behind an audacious bid to pave the way for a title bid at Lotus.

It all ties in not only with the rumours Alonso and Ferrari are in the obvious throes of divorce, but that Canadian retail billionaire Lawrence Stroll is interested in buying Lotus and paying for the struggling team's switch to F1-leading Mercedes power.

Faced with all the rumours, Luxembourger Lopez, the current Lotus team owner, is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport: "I read all about it for the first time on the internet yesterday."

Also commenting on the obviously complex situation was Briatore himself, although clear denials all on sides would sound different.

"Ferrari has not turned its back on anyone, but now is not the time to talk," he is quoted by Italy's Omnicorse.

Fernando Alonso, Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

Mercedes-AMG yesterday unveiled the next-generation C 63 sedan and wagon, which are “faster, greener, leaner and meaner” than the outgoing models, the company promises. The former will launch in Europe early next year, followed by the latter a few months afterwards.

Equipped with a new, hand-built, 4.0L, twin-turbo V8 engine, the Mercedes-AMG C 63 produces 476 horsepower, while the C 63 S tops 510 horsepower. They accelerate from 0-100km/h in 4.1 and 4.0 seconds, respectively.

Photo: Mercedes-Benz

The new C 63 also boasts a redesigned front bumper with deep air dams, a unique grille, and a new hood. The wider front fenders feature subtle ‘V8 biturbo' badges above a set of similarly discreet sill extensions. Out back, the newly styled rear bumper is designed to house the new quad exhaust pipes below a small wing mounted on the trunklid.

Pricing for the new Mercedes-AMG C 63 sedan and wagon will be announced at a later date.

Source: Mercedes-AMG

Photo: Mercedes-Benz

The new Ferrari 458 Speciale A (A as in Aperta) will make its global debut at the Paris Auto Show on October 2nd as a celebration of the dazzling success of the various versions of the 458, a model that has collected multiple international automotive media awards and track victories.

Production will be limited to 499 units.

As the most powerful spider in Ferrari history, the 458 Speciale A uses a 605-horsepower V8 engine to sprint from 0-100 km/h in just 3.0 seconds and 0-200 km/h in 9.5 seconds.

Outside, the unique triple-layer yellow livery combines with a Blu Nart and Bianco Avus central stripe as well as five-spoke forged wheels in Grigio Corsa. Meanwhile, the aluminium retractable hard top, which takes a mere 14 seconds to deploy or retract, helps reduce the weight difference with the Speciale coupe to just 50 kg.

The cockpit of the Ferrari 458 Speciale A has a distinctive race-inspired look and features newly designed seats in Alcantara with contrasting stitching as well as blue carbon fibre on the dash, moulded door panels and central tunnel.

Source : Ferrari

Photo: Ferrari

Remember that new prestige model set to join the Cadillac lineup in 2015? We now know what it will be called: CT6.

While it doesn't sound particularly exciting, the name indicates a coming shift to a simplified naming convention for future Cadillac models. Familiar lettering like “CT” will be used for car models, with the number indicating the relative size and position of the cars in the hierarchy of Cadillac models.

“As we expand the portfolio, we can assist consumers in placing the cars within a structure, as they compare cars both within our showroom and across the market generally,” said Uwe Ellinghaus, Cadillac's chief marketing officer. “However, this will be an evolutionary process - we will only change a product's name when the product itself is redesigned or an all-new model is created, as in this instance.”

Currently in development, the new rear-wheel-drive sedan will use advanced, lightweight materials and new body construction techniques to reduce fuel consumption while enhancing driving dynamics and safety.

Source: General Motors of Canada

From McLaren

The very first world championship Grands Prix saw racing drivers appearing in short-sleeved cotton polo shirts, leather shoes and string-backed gloves.

The primitive crash helmet, if that were the correct term, was simply thin leather skullcap. Yet it has become the defining icon of a Grand Prix driver, and has endured almost as many leaps in technology as the cars themselves.

Here, we take a look at the advances in crash hat safety since McLaren arrived on the grand prix scene in the 1960s.

Photo: McLaren

Bruce McLaren 1970

By the start of the 1960s, pilots had migrated to wearing open-face helmets such as this, often matching it with a face-protecting neckerchief and a pair of goggles - often blanked off with tape to provide protection from the glint of the sun. This is the very helmet Bruce was wearing when he was killed testing his M8D CanAm car at Goodwood in 1970.

Photo: McLaren

James Hunt 1976

Three-time world champion Sir Jackie Stewart spearheaded the safety revolution of the 1960s and 1970s - a crusade that saw improvements to guardrails, circuit medical facilities, fuel tanks and seatbelts, and also saw the introduction of full-face helmets. This James Hunt helmet from 1976 also included additional safety measures that were common for the time - a Velcro strip around the base, to which a fireproof neck protector was attached, and a pipe fitting for an in-cockpit oxygen supply - activated in the event of a fire.

Photo: McLaren

Alain Prost 1988

With the silhouette now in place, helmet design became more of an iterative science - in the 1980s, internal padding and construction was improved. Nevertheless, this Alain Prost helmet from 1988 was still a relatively simple affair, featuring only minimal ventilation and the simplest of onboard radio communication systems.

Photo: McLaren

Ayrton Senna 1993

Has there been a more iconic helmet in Formula 1 history? Ayrton Senna's distinctive yellow crash helmet sent out a marker to the great Brazilian's rivals - they'd catch sight of the brightly coloured lid in their mirrors and know they'd soon be overtaken. This is Ayrton's helmet from 1993 - with pit-to-car radios now the norm, this was internally routed for radio cables and tiny microphone, fitted into the chin bar.

Photo: McLaren

Mika Hakkinen 2001

This helmet is representative of the era's brief flirtation with aerodynamically shaped helmets - many lids around this time feature a sculpted front bib and a contoured rear spoiler to more effectively channel airflow around the cockpit and engine airbox. Ventilation was also becoming more sophisticated and efficient.

Photo: McLaren

Jenson Button 2014

Into the modern era, helmet safety progressed along two key paths - the introduction in 2003 of the Head And Neck Safety (HANS) device, a support that restricts neck movement in the event of a crash, and, in the wake of Felipe Massa's 2009 accident at the Hungaroring, the addition of a Kevlar protective strip to strengthen the visor. Nowadays, drivers regularly apply different paintjobs, or introduce a particular colour scheme to mark a particular event - such as this pink helmet introduced by Jenson Button at Silverstone in 2014 to celebrate the life of his father, John.

Jean-Marc Gales, Chief Executive Officer of Group Lotus plc, has confirmed that
Lotus is fully committed to the North American market and will produce a 2016 Evora that will be fully compliant for Canada and the U.S.

No release date has been announced yet, however.

Consequently, Lotus will not be producing a 2015 model year Evora, but there will be limited availability of 2014 models. The Lotus Elise S Cup R and the Lotus Exige V6 Cup R are also sold in Canada and the U.S. for race and competition use only.

“I know that this will be welcome news to our thousands of owners and fans in North America, but the reality is that there was never any intention to leave,” said Gales. “The North American market is vitally important for us and we intend to expand our dealer network and grow our sales volumes in the future.”

Lotus currently has 45 dealers in North America and plans to open additional dealers in key market areas over the next few months.

Source : Lotus

Photo: Lotus

From nascar.com

In the midst of a career-best season, Joey Logano has signed a new "multi-year" agreement with Team Penske NASCAR Sprint Cup team, the team announced Thursday.

Logano will continue to drive the No. 22 Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the No. 22 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR Nationwide Series under the terms of the deal.

"Joey Logano has been everything we hoped he would be, both as a driver and as a representative of our organization and for our partners," team owner Roger Penske said.

"He continues to put points on the board for us and the continuity and chemistry he has developed within the team has been terrific. We believe he can be a leader and championship-level driver for Team Penske for years to come."

Logano is currently second in the points' standings and, with his win last week at New Hampshire, has guaranteed himself a spot in the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

He has four wins, 12 top-fives and 17 top-10s this year.

Eric Boullier, director of racing at McLaren Formula 1 team Thursday said that it was now too late for the big teams to enter a third car in 2015.

Speaking during a McLaren media teleconference on Thursday about the time required for adding third cars, Boullier explained teams “need six months' notice” to add a third car.

Boullier added it would take six months to have all the logistics in place. With the 2015 F1 season due to begin on March 13th in Australia, that leaves them with too little time already.

“The chassis and third car logistics and people around - we would need at least six months' notice,” he declared.

Team principals of the smaller teams have said the sport should distribute its revenues more fairly to aid the smaller teams to prevent three-car teams being necessary. That includes Vijay Mallya of Force India.

“He's not in really favour of this and I can understand why,” said Boullier.

“I think it's a debate which is in the wrong timing. We have to wait, obviously, [until] there is a need to run three cars and then we will see. So you can question many things about revenue, about whatever. I think at the end if one day we are called and asked to help F1 and run three cars we have to,” Boullier said.

The fund created to compensate for deaths or injuries linked to General Motors vehicles with faulty ignition switches this week made its first cash offers to about 15 people, the office of the lawyer overseeing the program said on Wednesday.

Cadillac will name its new, lineup-topping sedan the CT6, marking the start of a top-to-bottom overhaul of the luxury brand's nomenclature.

AutoNation, in a move to cater to the tuner crowd, began providing customers with performance upgrades at its 27 Chevrolet dealerships this month through a new partnership with aftermarket tuning house Hennessey Performance.

Audi says the softtop on its new TT Roadster is lighter and opens faster than on the model it will replace. Audi revealed a photo of the cabriolet Wednesday ahead of its public debut at the Paris auto show next week.

Audi says the softtop on its new TT Roadster is lighter and opens faster than on the model it will replace. Audi revealed a photo of the cabriolet Wednesday ahead of its public debut at the Paris auto show next week.

China's cash-strapped National Electric Vehicle Sweden said it would lay off up to 200 employees at its Saab car plant in Sweden as production is unlikely to resume anytime soon.

China's cash-strapped National Electric Vehicle Sweden said it would lay off up to 200 employees at its Saab car plant in Sweden as production is unlikely to resume anytime soon.