Which is to say, not all that differently from any medium-to-large size city, USA North America. Beijing’s automotive taste, if this heavily-edited film is to be believed, appears to be commensurate to that of twentysomething American and Canadian males who are interested in modified cars (to our European readers: “tuning culture”).
Nice video, but we want to see the real Beijing! We have a hard time believing that this is it.
It’s only business.
BMW and Toyota will collaborate on a midsize sports car, the automakers revealed today. As part of a larger long-term collaboration, the two automakers will jointly develop a midsize sports vehicle, fuel cell system, research lightweight technology, and even lithium-air batteries that are said to provide a much greater energy density than lithium-ion batteries…
While the lightweight rear-drive Toyota GT86/Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ triplets were a joint project between Toyota and Subaru, some speculate that the new BMW-Toyota midsize sports car could yield a new Supra. Expect to see a concept giving us an idea of what to expect from the platform by the end of 2013 (source+more here).
Interested in seeing what they come up with, but we neither approve nor disapprove of this union. The result could be good, though we don’t expect it to be very attractive. (That ship has already sailed— for both manufacturers.)
Thanks to Sean K. for the tip!
Who doesn’t love the Volkswagen Corrado? Certainly not the automotive press. Tiff Needell once said, “Handling-wise, the Corrado is classic front-wheel drive, and it’s really very, very good indeed,” while Richard Hammond praised it as “a kind of classic waiting in the wings”, “really rather special”, and “fantastic” (source). But don’t take an aging British motoring presenter’s word for it* — we invited Corrado owner Steven Moy to talk about his.
MCB: Why the Corrado?
SM: The Corrado’s relative rarity is its main selling point. Only about 2000 were made each year of its existence, which in the US was from 1990 to 1994 (and only from 1992 to 1994 for the VR6 model). But not only is it rare, there are also many things that make it unique, especially when compared to other cars of its era. For example, it has a motorized rear spoiler, it’s a compact car with a six-cylinder engine, it has a luxurious interior, and there is a unique camaraderie of its owners that make it a joy to own. I’ve made some lifelong friends who drive Corrados!
You don’t see or read about this too often (anymore):
The BMW V12 LMR was a Le Mans Prototype built for sports car racing from 1999 to 2000. The car was built through an alliance between BMW Motorsport and WilliamsF1, and was the successor to the failed BMW V12 LM of 1998. It is famous for being BMW’s only overall victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (source+more here).
That’s right: AMG 250. We didn’t even know the W114/W115 Mercs had AMG variants, but apparently they did. We think we’ve found our newest favorite Mercedes.
Doesn’t take a German speaker to figure out what this means:
This on the other hand..
And a manufacturer-produced film on the W114— lots of neat period engineering on full display here:
(Image credit: TuningHistory)
Alfa Romeo Brera S. Bet you didn’t see that one coming 🙂
It’s an older review from his Drivers Republic days. Without the slick editing and camera work, it’s a bit like watching an early audition tape!
Compared to two of his most recent reviews:
If you had to put pen to paper and compose thoughts into words, what would you say makes an aircooled Porsche 911 so desirable? Over the course of the following interview, David R., the owner of the 1984 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.2 you see above, puts forth about as compelling a case for one of these cars as any we’ve ever heard. If you read on, you may find yourself wanting one more than ever. You’ve been warned.
MCB: Why the 911?
DR: It’s an iconic shape, an unforgettable driving experience, and is beautifully made. I also wanted to learn how to drive a rear-engine car properly.
Motoring Con Brio 