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10- And then, out of nowhere, suddenly, #corollattack in Geneva! Hey, the assignment was “moments” from the show floor. I'm still shaken by this one -- and what's with the tailpipe?

Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre

Continue reading Matt's Top 10 Geneva Autoshow Press Day Moments

On February 15th, our European colleague, Emmanuel Rolland wrote a blog about the necessity for today's aspiring race car drivers to bring lots of cash to the table.

It's nothing new, actually. In the earliest forms of auto racing (dating back about a century ago) most race car drivers were wealthy people, such as princes and barons.

Then, in the glorious '70s, only skills mattered. The best drivers could often make a career with the full support of oil companies, which were heavily involved in the sport.

Unfortunately, that's no longer the case nowadays. While Formula 1 is supposed to pit the world's top drivers against each other, only a gifted few (such as Vettel, Alonso, and Hamilton) actually make money. The others have to spit it out to retain their spot.

Consider Brazilian driver Luis Razzia, whose main sponsor failed to complete the second planned payment that would have allowed him to race for Marussia. A French rival, Jules Bianchi, immediately replaced Razzia.

Modern-day F1 is a merciless shark tank fuelled by money, not talent.

Small, cash-strapped teams demand ridiculous sums just for tryouts. Rumour has it that one of them asked $350,000 from young drivers to participate in a single day of test laps in Abu Dhabi.

This plague affects other racing series, mind you. Some NASCAR and IndyCar teams put their cars up for bid throughout the season, switching from one driver to another to earn the most dollars. That's why you see a different name behind the wheel of certain cars from one race to the next.

As I once illustrated in a blog titled “Show me the money!", imagine a rookie hockey (or baseball or football) player having a great training camp and then being told: ''Look, you're very talented, and we really like you. Just come back with $2 million (or euros), and you'll be hired!''

That's how absurd auto racing is today. With the global economy still idling, and promoters opting to invest their precious money elsewhere, the sport has become excessively expensive for just about everyone.

I believe that the most pressing issue is to address is significantly cutting operation costs at all levels of racing, from karting to F1. When F1, IndyCar and NASCAR teams finally trim their budget, they'll once again hire the best available drivers rather than the wealthiest ones.

Photo: Marussia F1 Team

www.wrc.com

World Rally Championship leader, Frenchman Sebastien Ogier has rejected comparisons between himself and nine-time champion, fellow countryman Sebastien Loeb.

Ogier, who drives for Volkswagen leads Loeb by three points in the drivers' standings after two rounds of the 2013 campaign. He has often been frustrated by attempts to liken him to Loeb, with whom he had a fractious relationship whilst team-mates at Citroen in 2011.

Sébastien Ogier, Volkswagen Polo R WRC (Photo: VW Motorsport)

Asked at Rally Mexico what he thought of claims that he was the ‘new' Loeb and would go on to dominate the WRC in the way his fellow countryman did, Ogier responded strongly. “I can tell you, I'm not the new Loeb, I am Ogier. I heard so many times this comparison - we do not need it any more,” he said.

“We have 10 years difference between us and are from a different generation. If I was 10 years older then we might have a big fight between us. Now I do my best and continue to drive fast. To compete against him was a great experience for me to push to my limit,” said Ogier.

At the opening round of the season, Rallye Monte-Carlo, Ogier became annoyed at attempts to compare his speed with Loeb, who is tackling just four rounds this year.  He finished second behind Loeb, before beating him at round two in Sweden. 


Thanks to Apple, the Ferrari FF, the first-ever Ferrari with four-wheel-drive, as of today offers direct access to its infotainment system through the Siri Eyes Free voice command technology.

Rear passengers can watch movies, play video games, or browse the Internet thanks to two iPad Minis integrated to the seatbacks.

Photo: Ferrari

NASCAR officials announced that driver Denny Hamlin was fined $25,000 “for comments he made following the March 3 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway.”

In a statement NASCAR said “following the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event last Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway, Denny Hamlin made some disparaging remarks about the on-track racing that had taken place that afternoon.

While NASCAR gives its competitors ample leeway in voicing their opinions when it comes to a wide range of aspects about the sport, the sanctioning body will not tolerate publicly made comments by its drivers that denigrate the racing product.”

After Phoenix Hamlin, who drove his JGR Toyota to third place said “We learned a lot. I don't want to be the pessimist, but it did not race as good as our generation five cars. This is more like what the generation five was at the beginning. The teams hadn't figured out how to get the aero balance right. Right now, you just run single-file and you cannot get around the guy in front of you.”

Denny Hamlin, Toyota Camry (Photo: Getty Images/NASCAR)

NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton told journalists at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Thursday "we give them quite a bit of latitude," he said. "You can't slam the racing. You can't slam the product. That's where it crosses the line.”

When generation five cars came out Tony Stewart called it a “flying brick.” Kyle Busch won the 2007 Bristol race and said that the CoT “I can't stand to drive them. They suck.” Neither driver was penalized for those derogatory statements.

Hamlin said that he would appeal the fine, and if he loses the appeal would not pay the fine.

"Ultimately, I'm not OK with it. This is the most upset and angry I've been in a really, really long time, about anything, anything that relates to NASCAR. You have strong opinions about a lot of things, whether it be Clements' suspension, things like that. A lot of people hold their tongues, and some people don't — like Brad (Keselowski).

Hamlin has ten days to file his appeal; in the meantime he may continue to compete in Sprint Cup races as NASCAR has not said how long he may have to pay it. After the driver files an appeal the penalties are held in abeyance until a decision is reach. The Appellate body has the ability to uphold the penalty, overturn the penalty or even increase the penalty.

“As far as I'm concerned, I'm not going to pay the fine,” he said. “If they suspend me, they suspend me. I don't care at this point,” added Hamlin.

Kyle Petty, a former Sprint Cup driver, now commentator on SpeedTV, supports Hamlin.
“I'm going to stand behind Denny on this one. Just because its NASCAR's ball and their ballpark and they make the rules doesn't necessarily mean that there can be censorship, and there appears to be a lot of censorship in this fine. NASCAR wants drivers to have personalities and character and to express themselves but only if they say positive and not negative things. I don't know anyone who can do that.”

Hamlin issued this statement on his Twitter account:
“The short of the long of it is I believe I was severely disrespected by NASCAR by getting fined. I believe that the simple fact of us not even having a conversation about this issue before I was hit with a fine has something to say about our relationship. What I said was 1 sentence taken completely out of context. Most drivers will tell you that we constantly have our AND NASCAR's best interest in mind when speaking. On the other hand I am a person that worked very hard from the BOTTOM to get where I am today and someone telling me that I can give my 100 percent honest opinion really bothers me."

"Since being fined in 2010 I have been a lot more careful about what I say to media and I felt this past weekend felt completely in my rights to give a assessment of the question asked. I feel as if today NASCAR lost one of its biggest supporters vocally of where our sport is headed. So in the end there are no winners. I said today I would not pay the fine. I stand by that and will go through the process of appealing. Trust me, this is not about the money.. It's much deeper. I will now shift my focus on giving FedEx and my team what they deserve this weekend, a win.”

Carl Levin, the six-term Democratic senator from Michigan known for his steadfast backing of the U.S. auto industry, won't run for re-election in 2014, his office said.

The stage has been set to honor the Porsche 911's 50th birthday at the 18th annual

Public electric-vehicle charging may have just become a whole lot easier.

Safety enhancements helped Honda and Volvo earn top safety picks from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Having peered under concepts to check for real engines and suspension systems, and gently interrogated multiple industry executives in the quest to slake readers' insatiable thirsts for knowledge, Glenn Brooks now reports his findings.

Hyundai says its 2014 Equus full-sized sedan will get more-refined interior materials and an improved ride from the outgoing version.

This 1984 Volkswagen GTI MkI is listed for $5,100 at Bring a Trailer and located in Chelmsford, Mass.

Linamar, Canada's second-biggest auto parts maker, reported a 14 percent rise in fourth quarter earnings on Wednesday, helped by higher demand in the United States and Asia, although results were tempered by softer demand in Europe.

Subaru of America is recalling up to 47,419 cars and crossover vehicles in the United States equipped with remote starters because the engines could start on their own.

R.L. Polk, one of the auto industry's most widely quoted sources for data, said today it has retained an investment banker to "explore strategic growth opportunities."

TRANSCRIPT

News 7 Mar, 2013

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News 7 Mar, 2013

Scratch shield paint is set to adorn Vettel and Webber’s race cars in 2013

News 7 Mar, 2013

Nissan is to launch Nismo versions of every model, including the Qashqai

Pininfarina revealed the one-off Sergio supercar on Tuesday at the Geneva motor show.