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The new Smart ForTwo and ForFour will share up to 70 percent of their components with the redesigned Renault Twingo, but they will bear no resemblance to the new Twingo.

Forget NASCAR, Subaru found a competitor to race against in the arts and crafts aisle.

From GMM

Lewis Hamilton is still in the hunt for the world championship despite failing even to finish in Australia.

That is the view of Mercedes team chairman Niki Lauda, who revealed he consoled the Melbourne pole-sitter by harking back to his own F1 history.

After Hamilton retired at Albert Park only to see his German teammate Nico Rosberg go on to win, Lauda said: "I hugged him (Hamilton) and said 'This was only the first race.

"'In 1984 I also failed in the first race but I was world champion in the end'," Lauda recalled telling Briton Hamilton.

Indeed, while Lauda retired in the pits at Jacarepagua in Brazil, his McLaren teammate Alain Prost won the race.

But Niki Lauda went on to win the 1984 title by half a point.

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG. (Photo: WRi2)

Asked how Mercedes has managed to get off to such a strong start in 2014, Lauda told the Osterreich newspaper: "Because we have been best with the new engine regulations.

"Also last summer, when Red Bull was still focusing on the 2013 season, we were already developing our new car," he added.

Italy's La Repubblica declared after Sunday's Australian grand prix: "The F1 revolution has its leader."

But Mercedes chief Toto Wolff expects Red Bull to catch up.

"With these new cars," he told Kleine Zeitung newspaper, "the development curve is much steeper than usual."

He said the reigning world champions had already "caught up massively" between the winter season and Melbourne.

And Red Bull's increasingly confident Dr Helmut Marko said: "We know what is still to come in our car and the (Renault) engine.

"On the engine we are still nowhere near the maximum," he insisted.

McLaren's Jenson Button, however, thinks that at the moment, F1 has a clear leader.

He said: "Right now we seem to be able to fight against everyone -- except one."

From press release

This weekend, Western Fair District prepares for a show that is sure to get any car enthusiast's motor running.

The Speed & Custom Car Show, March 22 and 23 will fill over 85,000 square feet with old classics, bright racers, impressive model cars, as well as shiny new dream cars, sure to please the gear head in all of us.

Fanshawe College will be onsite to present their interactive display, where visitors can participate in a virtual painting demo, hydraulic and AC trainers in car, truck and farm fields.

The 1st Canadian Army Veterans Motorcycle Unit and Jet Aircraft museum have teamed up to present a display of their vintage military vehicles, including an airplane fuselage, tanks and motorcycles that are sure to attract attention.

We are excited to introduce the Hagerty Youth Judging Program to this year's event. 15 kids, each day, will be selected and have the opportunity to learn what it takes to judge the best-of-the-best, and will have their own opportunity to judge the cars for themselves with the help of Hagerty. The Hagerty Youth Judging Program winners will be presented each day at 4pm on our main stage.

S&L Auto Wreckers have crushed a car into a cube for us, but we can't guess what make and model it is. If you have an eye for detail, maybe you can "Guess the Car" to WIN.

Holy Toledo Batman! Back by popular demand; don't miss the return of the Bat-Mobile from the Classic Adam West Era Batman television series.

Another custom car will be appearing at the show, but this one gets its muscle from the sun. Western University's solar-engineered car, the "SunStang", will be showcased at the show. This car has competed in 8 international solar car competitions and is gearing up for the World Solar Challenge next year in Australia.

When you come to the Speed & Custom Car Show you experience more than just great looking cars; you'll be immersed in car culture including the lifestyle, music, fashion and car accessories.

In "Pinstripe Panorama", you can see the unique artwork of the Pinstripers community and even bring in your own items to be striped. In addition, the Kustom Kulture artwork will be for sale all weekend, with a live auction at 6:00pm on Saturday with all proceeds going to Autism Dog Services.

Car accessories like subwoofers, amplifiers, subwoofer enclosures will be for sale at blow-out prices from Kicker Audio. Just in time for spring, so you can "soup up" your own vehicle before the summer months.

With approximately 100 vehicles on display, the competition will be tight for awards such as "Best in Show", "Best Club Display", "Cool Pics" and many, many more. Winners will be crowned on our main stage Saturday evening at 7pm.

Show Information: Dates & Times: Saturday March 22 10am-10pm; Sunday March 23 10am-6pm

Location: Western Fair District: Progress, West Annex and Canada Buildings, 900 King St, London, Ontario

Tickets: $12 in advance at westernfairdistrict.com (until 11:30pm Friday March 21) // $15 at the door // $7.50 for students with valid student card // Children 10 & under are free

Parking: FREE

Social Info: Twitter hashtag #LDNCarShow

McLaren Formula 1 team CEO Ron Dennis told rookie driver Kevin Magnussen to keep his feet in the ground after the Dane's surprising second-place finish in his F1 debut at the Grand Prix of Australia Sunday.

The young Dane performed well all weekend long. He took the start of the race from 4th place on the grid and drove a strong race to cross the line third, only to be promoted to second after the disqualification of Daniel Ricciardo in the Red Bull.

Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (Photo: WRI2)

“It was unbelievable, really,” the 21-year-old Magnussen told The Telegraph on Monday.

“The team have taken care of me so well and I am proud of the team. It does not feel real. It is so strange that this is happening. I have been dreaming about this for my whole life. I have now done my first F1 race, I was able to get on the podium and I did it with McLaren. It is my dream.”

“No [I will not celebrate],” he assured reporters, with a severe Ron Dennis watching on. “We know we are not the quickest so we have to keep our work rate up and keep it flat out.”

But if he was in any doubt, the 66-year-old Dennis was ready with the kind of tale he has become famous for.

“A very wise old man went into his house and nailed to the celling was a pair of shoes,” Dennis. “I asked what they were for, and he said they were his son's shoes. 'Every time he sees them it reminds him to keep his feet on the ground', [the man said]. I will put some in your [Kevin's] hotel room.”

From press release

Race Time Radio (RTR) is back for the 2014 season with the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour, bringing fans far and wide closer to the action with five races confirmed to be streamed live via www.racetimeradio.com.

RTR has been streaming races on the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour since the 2012 season, making Canadian motorsports history at the IWK 250 that year by airing the event live to Satellite Radio, which became the first stock car race in Canada to be aired live on the platform.

Two races at Riverside International Speedway and a trio of races at Scotia Speedworld will be streamed live this season, which include some pivotal events within the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour season. The season opener on Saturday, May 24th and season finale on Saturday, September 13th will be live via www.racetimeradio.com, along with both extended 250-lap events on the season, the IWK 250 on Saturday, July 19th and the 15th Annual Atlantic CAT 250 on Saturday, August 9th.

The first race at Riverside International Speedway this season, the Ron MacGillivray Chevrolet Buick GMC 150, will also be live to air on the RTR website on Saturday, June 14th.

Race broadcasts will be available for listeners absolutely free, no subscription necessary via www.racetimeradio.com by clicking the "Listen Live" links in the upper right of the page, or by downloading their smart phone App, for iPad, iPhone, & Android.

Over 30,000 fans streamed the 2013 Atlantic CAT 250 live, which was won by Terence Bay, Nova Scotia's Craig Slaunwhite.

The season comes to life at Scotia Speedworld on Saturday, May 24th. Racing action begins at 4:00 pm. For more information on this event, or any of the 12 races on the 2014 schedule, visit www.maritimeprostocktour.com.

From Ferrari

The scenario suggested by winter testing turned out to be true in Australia, at the first Formula 1 Grand Prix of the year.

There was little doubt that all the teams would be facing reliability issues, or that these will continue to be a decisive factor throughout the course of the season.

As would car performance, which, from what was seen in Albert Park, means that all the teams will be working either to close the gap, as is the case for Scuderia Ferrari, or to maintain it in the case of Mercedes.

Reliability was certainly again encouraging for Ferrari, even if there is still room for improvement to ensure that the new and complex power unit works at its best.

However, the main task facing the team at the moment is increasing the efficiency of the F14 T, as the Scuderia's technical director, James Allison explained to www.ferrari.com.

James Allison and Kimi Raikkonen. (Photo: Ferrari)

“While we can take some satisfaction from the reliability shown by the F14T, it is clear that we have our work cut out to improve our car in order to compete on equal terms with the Mercedes team,” said Allison.

“There is plenty about the F14T that is working very well: The starts and the pace in the corners - especially the high speed ones - are particular strong points, but we need to work further on the stability under braking and the speed on the straights.”

While it might be stating the obvious, in Maranello, the work goes on round the clock to achieve the improvements Allison mentions as soon as possible.

“All the recent seasons in F1 have been characterised by a fierce development battle from March until November. With all the new regulations this year, the opportunities to improve the car are legion and we can expect the race to improve the cars to be even more intense than normal,” Allison added.

Therefore, after the Australian Grand Prix, the lesson has been learned and there is a great desire to get the homework done.

“Our competitiveness was not acceptable in Melbourne. But we intend to fight our way back up the grid with the improvements that we will bring to the car,” the British engineer said.

Just when you thought you seen and/or heard the craziest things about NASCAR something new amazes and amuses you.

We've had the pothole and exploding track dryer at Daytona in years past. This year there have been rain delays, but that's nothing new.

There have been phantom debris cautions, but what about a truly phantom caution?

At Bristol Motor Speedway late Saturday night the long rain-delayed race was about to conclude with Carl Edwards cruising to his first win of the 2014 when caution came out with about two laps remaining.

Carl Edwards, Bristol, 2014 (Photo: Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)

Only there was no wreck, no debris, and -at the time of the caution- no weather conditions apparently giving a reason for the caution. It did start to pour again shortly after the caution flags waved.

As Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition and racing development, explained it “after review of the situation post-race, what had happened in the closing laps of the race, it appears that in the flag stand one of the flag people had leaned on the switch that is the manual override for the caution lights, and so that happened.

We've got times here, but anyway, that happened, and at that time when the flag stand realized that the caution lights were illuminated, the flag man threw the flag, and then after that happened we froze the field from the tower.

It appears that in, not all, but most of the flag stands have a manual override for the caution lights, and due to the weather and due to other things, there's an area that it couldn't have been ‑‑ it wasn't secured properly, and the flag person leaned against the switch and turned the caution lights on.

We tried to turn them off, and we realized that the override switch was on and they were hung on caution. It was a stupid error.”

Edwards actually saw the caution as an opportunity.

“Yeah, concern is not really a strong enough word, but it definitely got my attention. But at that point, hey, I've seen a lot of things happen in a racecar, and I know that I knew, hey, we're probably going to win this race if a caution doesn't come out,” said Edwards.

“The caution did come out, and I went; now we're going to have an opportunity to prove we deserve to win this race. Honestly it might have been more exciting. With everything like that there's always an opportunity, but yeah, I did not want to see that caution. I did not at all. So I'm glad that the rain came. I think there was some higher powers at work that. That worked out great.”

After a long day at the track including approximately four hours of rain delay I guess it will be hard, even for the natives of Pisa, Italy, to complain about the leaning tower official of NASCAR.

After narrowly escaping bankruptcy in 2011, Bertone continues to face major financial setbacks. In fact, the famous design studio could indeed go bankrupt this time around.

Despite more than €20 million in revenue last year (mostly from China), several employees and suppliers are still waiting to be paid.

Autocar reports that Bertone, which recently fired 160 workers, is facing a number of lawsuits from creditors.

Former design chief Michael Robinson resigned in December, leaving Bertone out in the cold.

All hope is not lost, however: A Turkish company is reportedly willing to purchase Bertone for €2.7 million. Seven other firms from Italy have shown interest, too.

Source : gtspirit.com

Aston Martin Rapide Bertone prototype (Photo: Bertone)

I do so love me a hot hatch. There's something about lots of power and performance in a teeny-tiny package that gets me going. Perhaps it's my kindred feeling of all things little (being vertically challenged myself), and the fact that I'm always so impressed when something so minute can do so much.

Immediately, Shakespeare's words from A Midsummer Night's Dream came to mind. Yes, the Fiesta is little, but it is fierce and that's what makes it so enjoyable to drive and well worth the dollars Ford demands for it -- and I'd own one, without a doubt.


What is the Ford Fiesta ST?
Essentially, the Fiesta ST is a regular Fiesta all hopped up on a fabulous combination of speed and steroids. The Fiesta nameplate has been around at Ford since the mid-‘70s, but this latest iteration hit our North American shores in 2010. With fancy new looks, loaded to the gills with technology and an EcoBoost engine under the bonnet, the Fiesta ST is a hot hatch if ever there was one.

2014 Ford Fiesta ST Price & Specs
While the basic Fiesta starts at $14,499, the overzealous and rambunctious Fiesta ST will set you back a bit more with a starting price of $24,999. Is it really worth the $10k more? Hell, yes.

The 2014 Ford Fiesta ST comes one way only (as in: you can have any colour you want, as long as it's black): with a 1.6L EcoBoost turbocharged I4 engine coupled with a lovely 6-speed transmission that'll push 197 horses and 202 lb-ft of torque. That's OK in my books. No transmission options are offered, and power is pushed out the front wheels only.

Sometimes fewer options are better, and really why would you want to change something that's already put together and executed so well?

With fancy new looks, loaded to the gills with technology and an EcoBoost engine under the bonnet, the Fiesta ST is a hot hatch if ever there was one. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

Driving the 2014 Ford Fiesta ST
Did I have fun? You bet. Did I have plenty of room for my 2-year-old son in the back all week? Of course. Did I drive as easily on snow-covered roads as I did on dry cement? Surprisingly, yes. Would I do it all again week after week? Damn straight.

Power-to-weight ratio is fabulous and feels similar, if not on par, with the MINI Cooper S. This is a well-balanced, easy-to-pilot hot hatch that's willing to give then give some more. The EcoBoost engine is performance driven, and no matter what gear you're in the 2014 Fiesta ST has oomph. Turbo lag is nearly non-existent, and rowing through the gears (up or down) is a breeze. Pedal placement is ideal for sporty manoeuvres, and steering is spot-on with great response (though I do wish the wheel were a bit smaller).

My only complaint, truly, is the suspension. It's great for cornering and evasive play on the road, however, it is quite harsh in everyday circumstances. When your 2-year-old says the word “bumpy” more than he says the word “go” in the backseat of the Ford Fiesta ST, you know there's an issue somewhere.

Did I have fun? You bet. Did I have plenty of room for my 2-year-old son in the back all week? Of course. Did I drive as easily on snow-covered roads as I did on dry cement? Surprisingly, yes. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

Inside and Out of the 2014 Ford Fiesta ST
I adore the proportions of the Ford Fiesta ST; squat, short, and a little round I feel a kindred connection to the ST. It's not all bubbles and soft lines though, as the ST has an aggressive front lip and side skirts, as well as a sporty roof spoiler off the rear. Decked out in Performance Blue, with a slate-grey interior, my Fiesta ST looked the part of hot hatch from nose to tail.

Inside the 2014 Ford Fiesta ST, the most noticeable and talked about feature are the standard front Recaro bucket seats that are also heated. Tight fitting and comfortable, these seats are designed to hold you in place no matter how hard you throw the little Fiesta ST around. While I fit quite well, I think larger (taller and wider) occupants will find the seats a tad too snug, and perhaps even uncomfortable.

As always, Ford's SYNC system was tolerable but not perfect. Bluetooth worked 60% of the time without being prompted and the touchscreen was slow to respond most of the time (which was sometimes due to the extreme cold temperatures we experienced that week).

Inside the 2014 Ford Fiesta ST, the most noticeable and talked about feature are the standard front Recaro bucket seats that are also heated. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

Comparing the 2014 Ford Fiesta ST
What a fabulous category filled with superbly fun-to-drive hatchbacks. From the Volkswagen GTI to the MINI Cooper S, and even the Honda Civic Si and Chevy Sonic RS, there are some fantastic choices in this segment. Each has its redeeming qualities, and most are in the same price range. Truthfully, I'd spring for the MINI Cooper S over the Fiesta ST, but if I was on a tighter budget (under $30k final price), I'd take the Fiesta ST home every time.

Things are spiralling down for General Motors following a claim that 303 deaths are possibly related to now-recalled GM vehicles where the airbags did not deploy, and another 12 casualties resulting from an ignition switch failure.

The automaker today announced three new recalls affecting more than 1.5 million vehicles in North America. These aim to address various issues related to airbags, seat belts, and brakes.

“Today's announcement underscores the focus we're putting on the safety and peace of mind of our customers,” insisted GM CEO Mary Barra in a news release on Monday.

GM estimates that it would take a US$300 million charge in the first quarter of this year to fix the various problems.

More specifically, the latest recalls affect:

• 300,000 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans (25,000 in Canada) due to instrument panel issues related to unbuckled passengers;
• 63,900 Cadillac XTS sedans (1,446 in Canada) due to brake booster corrosion that may result in overheating;
• 1.18 million Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, Chevrolet Traverse and Saturn Outlook SUVs (70,000 in Canada) due to side airbags that may not deploy during a crash.

Further details about these recalls will come shortly.

Source: thestar.com

The Verizon IndyCar Series held its first open test of the upcoming season at the Barber Motorsport Park.

The Penske squad showed its great form by finishing with the three fastest times in a session that was cut short due to poor visibility in the morning.

Will Power ended-up at the top of the chart followed by his teammates Juan Pablo Montoya and Helio Castroneves.

Juan-Pablo Montoya, Penske-Chevrolet. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Reinging IndyCar champion Scott Dixon was fourth for Ganassi, while AJ Foyt Racing's Takuma Sato rounded up the top five in the fastest Honda-powered car.

Reigning champion Scott Dixon, Ganassi-Chevrolet. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Ryan Briscoe was sixth quickest in the second Ganassi car, ahead of Justin Wilson, Simon Pagenaud, James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay, who completed the top 10.

James Hinchcliffe, Andretti-Honda. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

Pos  Driver  Team/Engine  Time Gap  Laps
1. Will Power  Penske/Chevy  1m07.6492s   48
2. Juan Pablo Montoya  Penske/Chevy   1m07.7170s   +0.0678s   55
3. Helio Castroneves  Penske/Chevy  1m07.7214s  +0.0722s  51
4. Scott Dixon  Ganassi/Chevy  1m07.8225s   +0.1733s  40
5. Takuma Sato   Foyt/Honda  1m07.8619s  +0.2127s   39
6. Ryan Briscoe  Ganassi/Chevy  1m07.8834s   +0.2342s   44
7. Justin Wilson  Coyne/Honda  1m07.8863s  +0.2371s   31
8. Simon Pagenaud  Schmidt/Honda   1m08.0682s   +0.4190s  35
9. James Hinchcliffe   Andretti/Honda   1m08.1629s  +0.5137s  32
10. Ryan Hunter-Reay   Andretti/Honda  1m08.3194s  +0.6702s   30
11. Charlie Kimball  Ganassi/Chevy  1m08.3209s  +0.6717s  41
12. Tony Kanaan  Ganassi/Chevy  1m08.3254s  +0.6762s  42
13. Mike Conway   Carpenter/Chevy  1m08.4734s  +0.8242s   42
14. Graham Rahal   Rahal/Honda  1m08.4907s  +0.8415s  37
15. Josef Newgarden  Fisher/Honda   1m08.5798s  +0.9306s   25
16. Sebastian Saavedra   KV/Chevy  1m08.6539s  +1.0047s  50
17. Marco Andretti   Andretti/Honda   1m08.6688s   +1.0196s  28
18. Mikhail Aleshin  Schmidt/Honda   1m08.7296s  +1.0804s  28
19. Jack Hawksworth   Herta/Honda  1m08.9223s  +1.2731s  36
20. Carlos Munoz   Andretti/Honda  1m08.9299s  +1.2807s  42
21. Oriol Servia   Rahal/Honda  1m09.2164s  +1.5672s  7
22. Sebastien Bourdais  KV/Chevy  1m09.6668s   +2.0176s  11

Takuma Sato, Foyt-Honda. (Photo: LAT / IndyCar)

From GMM

Daniel Ricciardo thinks he has a good chance at winning back his Melbourne podium.

Red Bull has vowed to appeal the stewards' decision to throw out the Australian's popular home race result due to irregularities with fuel flow into his Renault engine.

Early on Monday, having learned the bad news only at midnight after Sunday's race, the 24-year-old told the local Herald Sun: "I'm not really in a place ... not in the mindset to talk about it right now."

But after jetting from Melbourne to his native Perth for a few days of training before Malaysia, Ricciardo told the West Australian newspaper that he is confident Red Bull will prevail.

"Otherwise they wouldn't (appeal). It's a lot of time for them and some money as well so they have confidence that we can turn it around, but it's going to take a while until we know," he said.

Daniel Ricciardo on the Australian podium. (Photo: WRi2)

F1's other two engine suppliers, however, are siding with the FIA, despite Red Bull team boss Christian Horner insisting all three manufacturers had trouble with the mandatory fuel flow sensor in Australia.

But Ferrari's Stefano Domenicali said: "We need to rely on the fact that it is a situation that is well managed by the FIA."

And Mercedes' Toto Wolff was also quoted by the Guardian newspaper: "The FIA is obviously controlling fuel flow and checking with all the teams, and it is a question of learning by doing it between the FIA and the teams."

But Daniel Ricciardo said he thinks Red Bull has solid grounds to be unhappy with the Melbourne ruling.

"They feel that it's not black or white, it's a little bit shaded, so that's why they're going to fight it and we'll see how they go," he said.

It could take some time before the FIA schedules the actual appeal hearing, but Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko thinks the matter needs to be at least clarified urgently.

"The device that measures the flow rate has weaknesses," he told Kleine Zeitung newspaper. "In our opinion we were within the regulations.

"This has to be clarified by the next race, because at the moment there is not a reliable measurement," Marko insisted.

F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, meanwhile, thinks the entire rule limiting the flow of fuel into the engine should be scrapped.

"The whole regulation, to me, seems a bit of a joke," he told the Mirror.

Bernie Ecclestone said he thinks the rule limiting each car to just 100 kilograms of fuel per race is enough.

"If you use too much you are going to run out of fuel. It seems to be that simple and if it isn't, it should be," he said.

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone has vowed to get to work on making formula one loud again.

The F1 chief executive said he is "horrified" by the purring tones of the new turbo V6 era, arguing it will drive race promoters and spectators away.

Ecclestone was critical of the new engine formula long before the first 1.6 litre 'power unit' was fired up, but his latest comments follow Melbourne race organisers' claim the low volume may even be a breach of contract.

"It's not what we paid for. It's going to change," Australian Grand Prix chairman Ron Walker told Melbourne's Age newspaper.

Start of the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. (Photo: WRi2)

Ron Walker said he has spoken to his friend Ecclestone already, while Ecclestone admitted he has been on the phone to FIA president Jean Todt.

"What I've said is that we need to see whether there is some way of making them sound like racing cars," the 83-year-old Briton told the Telegraph.

"I don't know whether it's possible but we should investigate. I think let's get the first few races out of the way and then maybe look to do something. We can't wait all season. It could be too late by then," said Bernie Ecclestone.

From GMM

Sauber insists its Russian rescue deal remains on track.

Originally set to feature the teen Sergey Sirotkin on the 2014 grid, talk of the Swiss team's Russian buy-in has now quietened in the F1 paddock.

Asked if the deal is still on track, team boss and co-owner Monisha Kaltenborn insisted: "Yes. We are continuing to move in that direction."

She told the Russian website f1news.ru that "active negotiations" are currently taking place with Russian companies.

"The lesson we have learned in recent months is that when you are dealing with organisations such as this, you have to understand their notions of time.

"We also need to understand that in these negotiations, sometimes other circumstances that are maybe more important to these companies than formula one will interfere," Kaltenborn added.

Adrian Sutil, Sauber, leading Caterham and Lotus. (Photo: WRi2)

So while an earlier priority was to quickly get Sirotkin a super license and push him onto the grid, Kaltenborn said the 18-year-old is now more focused on the Formula Renault 3.5 series.

"At the moment, everything is going according to plan," she said. "He has a seat with Fortec, I am sure he can get great results, and then we'll think about the next step."

A more immediate priority for Sauber is to improve its 2014 car, after the Ferrari-powered machine struggled badly on the straights at Albert Park.

Switzerland's Blick newspaper said the car is significantly overweight and underpowered.

"Last year we managed to turn the corner," Kaltenborn said, "and we will do it again."

From GMM

Eric Boullier insists McLaren 'supremo' Ron Dennis is letting him get on with his new job.

Boullier, previously in charge at Lotus, was drafted in to replace the ousted Martin Whitmarsh after McLaren's disastrous 2013 season.

The Frenchman's first race in charge was in Melbourne, but lurking nearby was the McLaren supremo Dennis, who has returned to the formula one paddock on a mission to rescue his beloved team that "lost its way" last year.

66-year-old Dennis will not wear a team uniform at the races and, during the pre-season, he insisted "he is not going to be on the pitwall", according to the Daily Mail.

But "What's the betting he will be (on the pitwall) before the season is over?" said correspondent Jonathan McEvoy.

Indeed, in Melbourne, Dennis was spotted walking to the pitwall, apparently to tell Boullier what to do.

"He was not (telling me what to do)," Boullier insisted to the Telegraph. "He came to visit a couple of times."

Ron Dennis said he is just an observer at the races this year.

Ron Dennis and Eric Boullier, McLaren. (Photo: WRi2)

"I'm a racer, so the thought of not understanding and contributing doesn't come across my mind," he said. "When you observe things it's good to say 'why not this?' or 'why not that?'"

The bigger McLaren-themed story after Melbourne was the surprisingly good debut performance by rookie Kevin Magnussen.

But another F1 rookie, Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat, also caught the attention of the experts, like triple world champion Niki Lauda.

"These guys are, first of all, huge talents," he said.

The old guard is impressed at how the youngsters are arriving on the grid with almost no track testing and performing at the highest level.

Niki Lauda says it's a generational thing.

"It's like my kids, who are four and a half and already better at computer games than me. They are made quite differently than in my day," he smiled.

If we in the West think much about Vladivostok, it's mainly as a punch line when a faraway, frigid place serves to help a joke land; a Timbuktu of frigid climes.

As bad as the General Motors ignition switch recall is, the storm still doesn't match the hysteria whipped up four years ago by Toyota's unintended-acceleration crisis. The Toyota recall was, and still is, the benchmark mammoth recall of our time.

The Italian design house Bertone is reportedly nearing bankruptcy again, according to a report from

Porsche recalled all 785 2014 GT3s on the road last month for