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All children of the world are sure to get their Christmas presents on time this year, since Santa Clause won't use his good old sleigh but rather a brand new Lamborghini Aventador -- at least that's what the Italian automaker wants us to believe with this video.

How's that for a trade-off: 8 reindeer for 700 horses!

Mercedes-Benz Canada broke ground for a new dealership in Peterborough, Ontario on Thursday, December 19th. On hand for the event were Tim A. Reuss, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Canada, Daryl Bennett, Mayor of Peterborough, as well as Peter and Michael Santos, owners of Mercedes-Benz Peterborough.

Construction of the modern building will begin immediately on a two-acre site located on Crawford Drive, right off Highway 115.

The new 8,000 square foot showroom will triple the current sales capacity for Mercedes-Benz Peterborough. Meanwhile, the 10,000 square foot service area with seven state-of-the-art bays, including an oversized bay designed to accommodate the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, will double service capabilities.

Elsewhere, owners of the upcoming smart fortwo electric drive will have access to three dedicated charging stations.

The new Mercedes-Benz Peterborough follows the proprietary "Autohaus" concept, with extensive use of glass to maintain transparency and create a bright, open concept feeling -- similar to the recently announced new dealerships in Vancouver, BC and St-Nicolas, Quebec.

"We are extremely delighted to continue our investment and devotion to both Mercedes-Benz Canada and to the City of Peterborough," said Michael Santos, General Manager of Mercedes-Benz Peterborough. "We have seen tremendous growth in our business since its inception in March 2011, and this new facility is a monumental period in our company's development. We look forward to providing customers with an overall experience that is commensurate with the Mercedes-Benz brand when we are fully operational in our new home."

Photo: Mercedes-Benz

If the planet suddenly runs out of crude oil, how will we continue to commute and will this new mode of propulsion be fun?


The answer might just be in electric cars, and since there are many ways to generate and store electricity it might just be the solution we're looking for. Electric cars might be able to solve the problem, but will these vehicles appeal to the petrol heads of the world?

Tesla thinks they will. This California-based car company burst onto the scene out of nowhere just a few years ago, headed by the man who invented PayPal: Elon Musk.

His first car, the Tesla Roadster, was heavily based on the Lotus Elise. While the packaging worked, it was not without its problems, chief among them were the practicality and price.

I drove the Tesla Roadster a couple of years ago and simply loved the instant acceleration and the fact that this was an electric car that had a usable range. At the same time, it was just as difficult to get in and out of as a Lotus Elise, and had the ride quality of a skateboard. Oh, and at $125,000 for a base model it wasn't exactly affordable.

However, the Roadster is in the past; so what does Tesla have in store for the future?

To begin, they just launched their new car called the Model S. Unlike the Roadster, this is an all-new car with its own chassis -- which was designed by Huibert Mees, the same guy who did the chassis on the Ford GT. The body was penned by Franz Von Holzhausen, a former Mazda designer.

The Model S is the replacement for the Tesla Roadster. (Photo: Nauman Farooq)

At a recent Tesla drive event, I got to see this attractive vehicle firsthand. The design might remind some of the Jaguar XF from certain angles -- only better.

To check out the interior, you have to open the door by pressing on the flush-mounted handles, which pop out automatically. The design of the handles is very neat, but we'll have to see how well they work in the winter, with snow on the car.

Get inside and you'll find that the interior is not only very spacious (you can have either a Tesla Model S as a five-seater or in a seven-seat layout) and well put together, but is also a geek's paradise.

The main attraction is the 17" centre console touchscreen display. This screen not only allows you to control the climate control, stereo and navigation, but you can even access the web through it. You'll also use the screen to unlock the hood, the trunk and the flap that hides the charging point.

Techno wizardry is fine, but what is the car like when you use it as a car?

Get inside and you'll find that the interior is not only very spacious and well put together, but is also a geek's paradise. (Photo: Nauman Farooq)

To find out, I got the chance to take one on a short drive. The route had city and highway driving involved, which would give a good overview of what the Tesla Model S was like as an everyday car.

The first thing you'll notice is just how quiet it is. The Tesla Model S moves away so silently... In comparison, a spa might sound like a rock concert. The quietness remains even at higher speeds, so whoever did the sound deadening on this car knew what they were doing.

Then there is the performance, which does depend on which model you choose. The Model S will be available with three different battery packs: 40 kWh, 60 kWh and 85 kWh. The base battery will give you a range of roughly 260 km on a full charge, while the midsize battery will extend the range by another 110 km.

The top-of-the-line 85 kWh battery allows you to travel roughly 480 km on a full charge, which is very impressive. A full charge from a 240 volt outlet takes roughly 4-5 hours for different battery sizes.

As a halo model, Tesla is even offering what they call the Performance version of the Model S, which sports the 85 kWh battery and produces 416 hp and 443 lb-ft of torque. This model can sprint from 0-96 km/h in just 4.4 seconds, and the top speed is electronically limited to 210 km/h. Power goes to just the rear wheels through a single-speed gearbox.

The version I drove had the 85 kWh battery, but it was not the Performance model. My test car had 362 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque, and it could do the 0-96 km/h sprint in 5.6 seconds and top out at 201 km/h.

My test car had 362 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque, and it could do the 0-96 km/h sprint in 5.6 seconds and top out at 201 km/h. (Photo: Tesla)

Trust me, this was quick enough. I loved how responsive the Tesla Model S is to your accelerator inputs, and also loved the feel of the steering (which has three firmness settings which can be selected by -- you guessed it -- the touchscreen display).

The Tesla Model S will be on sale in Canada by this October. Canadian prices have just been announced, and they start at $64,500 for the 40 kWh version. the 60 kWh version is yours from $75,200 and the 85 kWh version starts at $85,900. These prices do not include government green car rebates, depending on the province you're in.

Will the Model S work for everyone? Probably not at the moment. Our cities are just not set up for electric cars just yet, but that infrastructure is coming. Will the Model S be reliable? We'll have to wait and see, however, the battery does have an eight-year warranty. The car itself has a four-year, 80,000 km warranty.

The Model S might not be the perfect car for everyone, but it is a perfect example of what driving will be like in the future, and the future does look bright. In short, this family sedan is truly fun to drive. The fact that it's kind to the environment is just an added bonus.

I'm hoping vehicle manufacturers stop, look at the infotainment/hmi/in-car technology they have in the works, and ask, and#8220;Could a child use this system to the extent it was intended?and#8221; This is how simple these systems need to be in order to...

Fiat and PSA/Peugeot Citroen will continue their cooperation on light commercial vehicles despite PSA's alliance with General Motors.

Fiat's new Europe chief, Alfredo Altavilla, faces many daunting challenges to turn around the automaker's struggling operations in the region.

Toyota was the first automaker to bring a compact crossover to the United States. But since 1995, Toyota's dominance of the segment has eroded. It now resides in fourth place in the segment sales race.

Investors cheered General Motors' announcement last week that it will buy 200 million GM shares from the government. But what about car buyers?

Marc Heitz, a major Chevrolet dealer in Oklahoma, last week sold his hunting lodge-style store in Norman rather than change the facade and interior to comply with General Motors' facilities standards.

Light vehicle sales growth in the United States is projected to slow in 2013, though for the first time since 2007, most forecasts say dealers will sell more than 15 million new cars and trucks.

Lexus' 552-hp V-10 halo car, the LFA sports coupe, drives into the sunset at an awkward time for the luxury brand.

From IndyCar

Watch the stars of the IZOD IndyCar Series poke fun at themselves or each other.

From series press release

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin series competitors have received an early Christmas present with the release of their 2013 season schedule.

In its third year of existence, the thriving young series and its competitors will be challenged by several of Canada's finest racing venues.

The 2013 schedule will feature five race weekends highlighted by a new stop at the famed Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières and a return to the Grand Prix du Canada FIA Formula One World Championship weekend in Montreal.

"The 2012 season established the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin as the fastest growing single-make series in North America," said Steven Sewell, Director of the IMSA Development Series.

"For 2013 we're focused on further elevating the visibility and credibility of the championship. After sharing honours the past two years, the race at the Grand Prix du Canada is now solely in the hands of the Canadian series, and we've been successful in adding a second race to the weekend, bringing our season championship total to ten rounds across five signature venues."

The season kicks off with the Victoria Day SpeedFest at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park on May 19. The 10-turn, 2.459-mile permanent road course in Bowmanville, Ontario has held races for more than 50 years.

The Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars will then head to Canada's biggest racing weekend, the Grand Prix du Canada in Montreal. The Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin series will race as part of the high profile FIA Formula One World Championship weekend on the street-based Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Following Montreal, the series will return to the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on July 21 to run in conjunction with the American Le Mans Series.

The next stop in the 2013 racing season will be for the festival atmosphere of the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières. The Grand Prix began in 1967, and in 2012 it featured competition from six different racing series. The legendary street circuit is enjoyed by race enthusiasts and families alike, resulting in one of the top-five highest attended motorsports events in Canada each year.

The 2013 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin series season will culminate at Calabogie Motorsports Park on Sept. 8. The Alan Wilson design in Calabogie, Ontario, boasts the longest track in Canada at 3.05 miles with 20 turns.



2013 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada schedule
May 19 - Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Bowmanville, ON)
June 9 - Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve (Montréal, Qc)
July 21st - Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Bowmanville, ON)
August 11 - Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières (Trois-Rivières, Qc)
September 8 - Calabogie Motorsports Park (Calabogie, ON)

Three-time World Touring Car champion Andy Priaulx finished his first season in the German DTM touring car series 13th in the standings. The Brit is adamant he can step up his game next year.

"It was great last year driving in a completely different series and I can't wait to go into year two," the 39-year-old said at BMW's award night last Saturday.

"I know I shall be able to make use of all I learnt this year driving my Crowne Plaza Hotels BMW M3 DTM," he added. "No two series are the same so I was always aware the DTM would have its challenges."

For starters, he will face teammate and series defending champion Bruno Spengler as a challenge, again in 2013. The Canadian had a very strong 2012 season, year one of BMW's comeback to the DTM.

In comparison, Priaulx, a Guernsey native, was BMW's first point scorer, but then failed to match his sixth place result afterwards.

"I had some highs, which included being the first BMW driver to score points in the opening round, and lows, with some non-finishes," he admits.

"However, that was 2012 and now the focus is 2013."
 

From Supercar News

The Canadian Supercar Series (Supercar) is proud to announce its 2013 schedule. This first full-season calendar will feature eight races over four weekends on several of the most famous road courses in Canada.

The Canadian Supercar Series (Supercar) is a car racing series for high performance and exotic race cars with typically over 400 horsepower. Supercar provides an environment for drivers to showcase their cars and to challenge other car makes of similar performance. Supercar encourages hard but fair competition under a code of respectful driving.

Opening this first season on May 18th and 19th at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for the Victoria Day Speedfest weekend will be an exciting challenge for the racers as this event attracts a large audience. Two events are planned in Québec, one of which will take place at Circuit ICAR in Mirabel on July 6th and 7th.

A must stop for Supercar is definitely the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières on August 9th to 11th. In 2012, Supercar presented its inaugural race where the historical Mayor's Cup was rededicated and won by the Trifluvian Jean-François Dumoulin.

The final and fourth event of the season for Supercar will be on September 6th to 8th at Calabogie Motorsports Park.

“Having experienced great success this summer in Trois-Rivières, and with the enthusiasm of the participating drivers, this first full-season calendar answers their wishes”, mentioned John Bondar, President of the new Canadian Supercar Series.

“This series is in development and my expectation for this series is to fill a demand. This first full-season schedule allows for the drivers to get acquainted with the format and the rules that encourage hard but fair competition under a code of respectful driving.”

Supercar 2013 Schedule
May 18-19 - Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Bowmanville, ON)
July 6-7 - Circuit ICAR (Mirabel, QC)
August 9-11 - Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières (Trois-Rivières, QC) September 7-8 - Calabogie Motorsports Park (Calabogie, ON)

We can't stress enough how texting while driving is illegal and extremely dangerous. In fact, those who do it are 23 times more likely to suffer a crash.

A number of devices are available to block text messages for drivers. Mashable.com recently listed five smartphone applications that do a pretty good job.

AT&T's DriveMode, automatically sends pre-set replies to incoming texts to let people know you are driving. Once the app is launched, all calls, texts and emails are silenced -- both the ones you receive and those you would try to send.

While it won't block incoming messages, DriveSafe.ly actually reads your text messages, calls or emails aloud. Drivers also have a choice of pre-set replies, or they can respond by voice using the hands-free interface.

Textecution and Text-STAR are two apps that disable texting functions when you are travelling at more than 10 mph (16 km/h).

You like rewards? DriveScribe assesses your driving performance by giving you points, based on how well you stay within the speed limit and obey traffic signals. These points can then be redeemed for gift cards and discounts at certain stores.

Remember: No excuse is good enough, so stop texting while driving now!

Source: Mashable

The team that clinched the previous two Formula 1 World Championships turned the initially cumbersome Red Bull RB8 into a fantastic race-winning machine, and collected a third consecutive title in 2012.

Red Bull Racing started the season as hot favourites, but it quickly became evident that Adrian Newey's lastest creation was really suffering from the ban put in place by the FIA on the infamous exhaust-blown diffusers for this year.

However, like Ferrari, Red Bull Racing worked day and night to solve the problem, and it turned the Renault-powered RB8 into a race leader despite being relatively slow on the staightways.

Sebastian Vettel, triple world champion with Red Bull. (Photo: WRi2)

The team, led by Christian Horner, finished the year with a total of 460 points, 60 more than second place Ferrari.

Sebastian Vettel
World Champion with 281 points
Best place in qualifications: 1st (6 poles)
Best race result: 1st (5 wins)
Retired once

Mark Webber
6th in the Driver's Championship with 179 points
Best place in qualifications: 1st (2 poles, Monaco and Korea)
Best race result: 1st (3 wins, Monaco and Great Britain)
Retired twice (2 consecutive races, Abu Dhabi and USA)

The ban on exhaust-blown diffusers robbed RB8 of a predecessor's dominance. In fact, Vettel scored only one victory in the first 13 races of the season. The German had to wait until the fourth round in Bahrain to score his first pole position, and race victory of the season.

Photo: WRi2

Meanwhile, Adrian Newey continued to push technical boundaries, drawing controversy over floor holes, engine maps, flexible nose cones, and more. Red Bull's season was also marred by a series of very costly alternator failures.

Vettel then managed to score four consecutive victories in Singapore, Japan, Korea, and India. He controled the latter part of the season to beat arch rival Fernando Alonso in treacherous conditions in Brazil; a race that saw Vettel being spun around during the opening lap of the race.

In just 101 Grands Prix and six F1 seasons, Vettel has clinched 26 wins, 36 poles and scored 1,054 points.

His teammate, Australian Mark Webber, bounced back from disappointments in 2011, fitter, more motivated, and much more consistent.

Victories in Monaco and Silverstone made him Red Bull Racing's leading title contender at the season's midway point, but second half was not nearly as strong and he ended the year sixth in the standings. It must be noted that Webber's car was often hit by technical issues, especially failures of the KERS during races.

Mark Webber, Red Bull RB8. (Photo: Red Bull Racing)

I've been away for a few months trying my very best to be a new mom. While I was away, I was relegated to driving the same car every single day, my WRX. Not such a bad thing, but it was getting a bit redundant. Being back in the office this week has been a welcome change, especially when I found out I'd be handed the key to the fabled and legendary Nissan GT-R.

Apparently, they like me around here or something... But I digress.


Murderous mug
When the GT-R landed in North America a few short years ago, the country was abuzz with anticipation. After “driving” the GT-R for months via a controller or keyboard in the popular Need for Speed series, finally enthusiasts were going to get the chance to see Godzilla in the flesh. I was no different. The idea of getting behind the wheel of one of the automotive industry's legends heightened my senses, gave me goosebumps and made me feel all giddy inside.

Not much has changed since 2009, and I was just as childishly happy when the key landed on my desk. I couldn't wait to get behind the wheel. But wait, I needed to take it all in.

Approaching the 2013 Nissan GT-R in the parking lot, I felt a bit like I was walking towards a feral animal. Looking deep into the GT-R's gaping front grille is hypnotizing. Move your eye to the aggressively slanted headlights, along the beefed-up hood, linger for a moment on the beast's hood-vent nostrils and thoughts of medieval dragons come to mind. Wide, menacing gills sit behind each front wheel, dragging your attention to the shoulderline of the vehicle that stretches back to the fabulously fat rear end that houses pod-like taillights and quad tailpipes.

Nissan managed to make a car look menacing from any angle -- and I love it.

Hunched over 20” super-lightweight forged-alloy wheels sitting atop 15” Brembo brakes, even parked the Nissan GT-R looks like it could murder any vehicular competitor that dares challenge it.

Nissan managed to make a car look menacing from any angle. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour)

Fire-breathing
When I finally stopped staring at the white dragon parked before me and popped out the flush door handle to get behind the wheel, my heart was racing. Adrenaline pumping, I surveyed the scene before me: massive stationary gear paddles positioned behind a steering wheel sporting a huge, in-your-face GT-R logo. Behind said steering setup sits typical analog gauges - save for the speedometer that stops at the staggering 340 km/h mark.

It's rather pointless to talk about interior space and storage capacities, because if you're reading this review you either couldn't care less about that or you know you're not about to purchase this vehicle because it has a good-size trunk and decent cup holders.

Where the interior of the 2013 Nissan GT-R differs from the norm is in the driver-configurable multifunction display system; a rather fancy name for the onboard computer that lets you see virtually everything and anything about the car while you're driving. From oil temperature and pressure to cornering g-force readings, this is where the GT-R meets the needs of the Apple generation with its gadgetry. Across 11 different screens you can fiddle with settings till you're blue in the face. It was almost too much for me and, in all honesty, I barely touched it. I just wanted to drive it, plain and simple.

And drive it I did.

Where the interior of the 2013 Nissan GT-R differs from the norm is in the driver-configurable multifunction display system. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour)

And heat-inducing
As I fired up the hand-built 3.8L twin-turbocharged V6 engine with the bright red start/stop button nestled in the middle console -- selecting “R” mode for traction, drivetrain and suspension settings -- I took a moment to breathe deeply before popping the Nissan GT-R into drive.

I feel the need to point something out here: There should be no illusions about what this car was built for and meant to do. The Nissan GT-R is a track monster. It's meant to shred corners, devour straightaways and go nosebleed fast. It is not meant for comfy, cozy Sunday drives to grandmomma's for tea. Do not expect this when you get into one. It's rough, loud, raw (uncomfortable even), and it makes some pretty funky mechanical noises most of the time. But that's all part and parcel of the GT-R experience. This vehicle is meant to drive and be driven. Sure, it can seat four people, but do you really want the extra weight holding you back?

With 545 horses and 463 lb-ft of torque at my disposal, I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself. As I took to the open road, windows down, I couldn't wipe the smirk off my face. In full manual mode, I tried my best to reign in the dragon, but the GT-R is so raring to go at all times, sometimes it's hard to keep things smooth. Add to that the uber-stiff suspension (in “R” mode) on our fabulous local roads, and it makes for a rather jerky ride at times.

But that's OK too. Because it's a GT-R.

With 545 horses and 463 lb-ft of torque at my disposal, I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour)

A savage amongst socialites
Known as the “Porsche Killer” the Nissan GT-R has managed to get a pretty hardcore reputation across the automotive world -- and with good reason. Despite its near 4,000 lb weight, it still manages 0-100 km/h sprints in under 3 seconds with launch control. That's breathe-catching fast, and should have those aristocratic rides shaking in their Louis Vuitton wheel covers. Like a bare-knuckle brawler showing up to a country club, the GT-R is not to be messed with.

After four years on the road, the Nissan GT-R still garners quite a bit of attention. From thumbs up to cheers of elation as I passed on the street, this car gets noticed. And why shouldn't it? Barking exhaust, architecturally stunning and rather different from anything else on the road at the moment, kudos to Nissan's engineering and design team on this one.

Starting at over $100k, the GT-R falls into the prestige realm of vehicles. It might be what the rich would call “new money” but it still very much belongs in that realm.

Automakers have fewer reasons to wonder whether online marketing blitzes are translating to sales.

The Treasury's plan to sell its remaining stake in GM is a leap forward for the Obama administration's effort to end a $418 billion bailout program that in four years was transformed from a political albatross to a winning campaign issue.