Etc : Car News And Reviews

If you find yourself stuck in the snow, you know that even the best winter tires or chains aren’t necessarily going to bail you out of the deepest banks. Enter Track N Go, a modification kit that lets you turn everyday pickup trucks into snow-eating tanks in less than 15 minutes.

TaxTheRich takes us on another unexpected ride in a supercar – this time tearing through grass and dirt of the countryside with the classic Jaguar XJ220. While the car now 20 years old, it still comes close to today’s top supercar standards, with a 542hp 3.5-liter V6, a sub 4.0 0-to-60 time, and a top speed of 213.1mph.

If you’re patient and can wait until the end of 2014, you’ll probably be able to pick up a production 2015 Ford Mustang GT for under $40,000. But one lucky bidder managed to score the very first production Mustang GT for a whopping $300,000 at auction.

While today we can enjoy Chevy’s impressive C7 generation Corvettes, let’s take a ride back to 30 years in the past to see how Chevy was pimping their then brand new C4 ‘Vette. This amusingly-dated commercial serves as both a time capsule and reminder of just how much automotive design and technology have evolved in the past three decades.

Chevrolet recently unveiled its stunning 2015 Corvette Z06, and they have also announced the Corvette C7.R race car, which shares a lot of technology with the street version. The two ‘Vettes share engineering and components, including chassis architecture, engine technologies and aerodynamic strategies.

We were recently provided the opportunity to speak with Ford about their partnerships and programs related to future energy technologies and the infrastructure required to support those technologies in our cities and towns and along our roadways. 

We’re looking forward to seeing Kia’s GT4 Stinger Concept at this year’s Detroit Auto Show, but Kia isn’t waiting until next week to unveil all of its new technology. Instead, they are showing off their new User-Centered Driver (UCD) concept controls at this week’s International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Behold: this car is the officially recognized Guinness World Record holder as the world’s smallest roadworthy vehicle and it’s going up for auction in Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale on January 12-19, 2014. Built by Austin Coulson, the vehicle has federally-approved safety glass for the windshield, fully functioning windshield wipers, and DOT-approved headlights, tail lights and turn indicators.

Moving in a very different direction from Mercedes’ own bulbous AMG Vision Gran Turismo, Kyrgyzstan designer Steel Drake decided to go with decidedly more angularity with his concept Benz, the SF1. The car is envisioned as a sharp-edged 2-seater, with a low center of gravity.

We’re guessing that if you live in a country where the wealthiest citizens tool around in Ferraris, Lambos, and Bugattis, you’d better give the police department something more than a Ford Interceptor to take down speeding suspects.

Pikes Peak champion Jeff Zwart won the world famous hill climb seven times, driving ten different Porsches over a period of 14 years. In this short video from Porsche, Zwart talks about his history with the 911 line, from first learning to drive in his father’s second-hand 911 to the rally racing he loves.

Volvo is a car company that has been obsessed with safety for quite a long time and has an excellent reputation for delivering on their goal of making some of the safest production vehicles available. Volvo has announced a new vehicle architecture that is designed to reinforce its leadership in vehicle safety.

When the roads are covered with snow and ice, do your thoughts turn to “time to get my $200,000 Bentley out of the garage and go for a spin?” If so, then the Bentley “Power on Ice” winter driving experience is for you.

Toyota asked two typographers to design a font using a Toyota car. The idea was to track the motions of the vehicle using overhead cameras and custom software to create the font. The typographers, Pierre and Damien, chose to work with driver Stef van Campenhoudt and interactive artist Zachary Lieberman, who created the custom tracking software.

Renault is showing off what it has achieved with its autonomous vehicle technology, knows as “PAMU” (Advanced Urban Mobility Platform). In this video, we see the PAMU test vehicle, a Renault Fluence Z.E. all-electric car, summoned by a driver as it leaves its designated parking space and picks her up on the roadside.