Saturday, July 9, 2011

Automotive Addicts

Automotive Addicts

Video: JDM Legends Brings New Life To Old Japanese Iron

Posted: 08 Jul 2011 07:33 AM PDT


JDM Legends tunes, rebuilds and resells old Japanese sports cars. Located in Salt Lake City, the shop blends art, engineering and craftsmanship in their restorations, and shop manager Eric Bizek admits to being a bit obsessive. They won't cut corners to save a few dollars, so don't expect JDM Legends to match the price of a "restored" Celica that you found on eBay.

I'll admit to having a bad jones for the '73 Celica pictured above. I always loved the lines of these cars, and they're a lot simpler mechanically than anything you can buy today. With proper care, feeding and rustproofing, they'll run for a long, long time and don't cost much to maintain. This example is for sale on the JDM Legends website, but they don't mention the asking price. That's probably a good thing, because I don't think the missus would believe that it followed me home. Enjoy Josh Clason's latest video on JDM Legends below.

HBTV: Depth of Speed – JDM Legends Restored from HBTV on Vimeo.

Source: Autoblog

It’s Over, Johnny: Lamborghini Kills The Manual Transmission

Posted: 08 Jul 2011 07:13 AM PDT


A Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera. Image: David Villarreal Fernández

The replacement for Lamborghini's Gallardo, due next year, will come only with a slushbox. Granted, it's a dual-clutch, paddle-shifted slushbox that will produce quicker and more precise shifts than a human ever can, but it's still an automatic transmission. Gone is the stunningly beautiful machined shift gate, and gone is the satisfaction of a perfectly executed downshift. You'll get better downshifts from a computer, but where's the sense of accomplishment in having a silicon chip apply the exact amount of throttle to match revs in the next lowest gear?

Adding insult to injury is Maurizio Reggiani, director of R&D for Lamborghini. Reggiani told Motor Trend, "A manual transmission is a break in the electronic chain of command that harmonizes absolutely everything that happens between engine combustion chamber and tire contact patch. The only way Lamborghini can guarantee soothing smoothness in city driving or back-thumpingly explosive acceleration on a winding road is for every system in the car to be interconnected. You can't rely on a driver to always shift gears without glitches."

Allow me to interpret Reggiani's statement for you: people who buy Lamborghinis aren't drivers, and they're more concerned with style and image than with achieving the perfect interface between man and machine. Lambo's client base wants to sip their non-fat-half-caff-Americano while conference calling with their attorneys; they don't care about mastering the delicate dance required to extract the last bit of performance out of a manual transmission. It isn't just Lambo, either, since the current California will be the last Ferrari to come with a manual gearbox option.

I might point out that women aren't cutting edge technology, either. After all, their design hasn't changed for thousands of years, they're overly complex and they require years of study to interface with proficiently. Using Reggiani's logic, we should all go out and buy ourselves a RealDoll latex playmate, and perhaps a dog for companionship. It's more efficient and far more logical than entering into relationships with the opposite sex.

As for me, I'll keep my six-speed manual and my wife. You can have your slushbox, RealDoll and non-fat-half-caff-Americano.

Source: Car Advice

Next BMW M3 Rumored to get 3 Turbos Feeding Small Displacement Inline-6

Posted: 08 Jul 2011 07:09 AM PDT


How many turbos would you like on that order? 1? 2? How about 3 turbos? As long as your ordering from BMW anything is possible as the rumor of the next generation BMW M3 is said to be powered by a 3.3-liter six-cylinder engine with 3 turbochargers. One of the turbochargers will supposedly be powered by electricity instead of the conventional exhaust gases.

Power output for the new 3-turbo engine is said to be 450 horsepower and we are sure the torque numbers should be outrageous considering the use of THREE TURBOS!

Considering how the new BMW M5 F10 continues a new tradition of turbocharged M-cars, the new M3 should be an air-fed screamer.

We know the government has been shoving efficiency down the throats of auto makers lately but will it warrant the use of 3 turbos to keep the performance that we have been accustomed too for so long now? We will see. Let's hope BMW makes the best of this new "innovation".

[source: Auto Express]
Posted by Didik Rg at 6:08 AM

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