autothing.com's October 2007 News Room Archives (back)

Sunday, October 14th 2007

Not Just For Aircraft Anymore

For wealthy NASCAR teams who can afford $500/hour lawyers, Windshear of North Carolina now offers $4,000/hour rentals of its new 180mph wind tunnel. Built expressly for automobiles, this mechanical bad boy uses a 1mm thick steel belt to offer a real world testing environment, albeit indoors. We humans think of everything!

Need additional information on this massive contraption?  more...

Sunday, October 14th 2007

All Aboard The Halloween Crazy Train
Yes, it's another edition of "What Are Hollywood Stars Driving?!?"

Not a day goes by without the lovely Britney Spears gracing us with her mug. And of course she was at a Starbucks yet again! After she filled herself with a 10,000-calorie cup of sugar slop, she drove to a gas station and while someone else was pumping her gas, she read a book! At least she's continuing her education.

Sunday, October 14th 2007

OK, Now We're Confused

Let's get this straight. Nissan will be releasing their new Skyline model (which looks identical to its sister model, the Infiniti G37) and they expect it to actually sell? While the Toyota Camry looks different enough from its sister model -- the Lexus ES350 -- the new Skyline looks just like the G37! What's the point of a cheaper car that looks like the expensive one? Well ok, that will be a great deal for some folks, but doesn't it cheapen the appeal of owning the "unique" expensive version?

Alright, we'll quit our bitchin' now and go back to cutting our Sunday coupons!

Saturday, October 13th 2007

Another Waste Of Four Doors

What the heck was BMW thinking when they decided to go forward with their idea of a four-door M3 sedan? It makes no sense at all! They have their iconic two-door M3 and a powerful four-door M5, so are we following a warped sense of logic here? Everybody must protest this dumb decision by purchasing ONLY the two-door M3.

Next up: protesting the end of our free Showtime preview period on ComCast cable!

Friday, October 12th 2007

What Is The Point Of This?

The Beyonce cell phone?! Samsung unveiled the new, limited edition "B'Phone" today. Basically, the thing is a piece of junk! Her weave glue is probably worth more than that cheap ass phone. The phone does come with a song she recorded when she was a little girl.

Beyonce told Billboard, "When I was 10, I recorded a song called '632-5792' -- a phone number. It's a little embarrassing but it's cute. There's a recording of that song on the phone exclusively for my fans. I wanted to make sure people got a feel for who I really am. It's only through this phone that you can get this close to my life."

Girl just wants to get paid! Let's be real!

We wonder if the phone teaches you how to lip-sync, lie your age, make sure that weave is tight and backstab your best girlfriends. Just like Beyonce!

Friday, October 12th 2007

The 2011 Chevrolet Corvette C7

With Ford's 100th anniversary come and gone, Chevrolet is the next big American icon preparing to celebrate the century mark. In 2011, the company is also planning to roll out the next Corvette, also referred to as the C7.

We at autothing.com love our Ford Mustangs, but they're a totally different animal compared to the Corvette, which is literally a bargain supercar. We mean that in a very good way too!

If Chevy can make a very slick looking Corvette in 2011 and offer it up in some fantastic 100th Anniversary Limited Edition, we promise to be first in line to at least check it out. We hope it has some neat new features including: all-around exterior LED lighting including headlights, more unpainted carbon fiber accents (front bumper lip, etc.) and perhaps new ultra-high-metallic paint colors. And on the goofy request list, power-folding side mirrors! Those things are sooooo awesome.

Ugh, we just excited ourselves out of another calming yoga session, damn it!

Wednesday, October 10th 2007

We Finally See The Magnificent Audi R8!

Our local dealership, Audi of Schaumburg (in Illinois) has an actual Audi R8 in their parking bay and it's the first time we've seen the car in person! Let us tell you, the damn thing is low, slick and totally gorgeous in an industrial sort of way. Yeah, that made no sense, but work with us here. The R8 even had keys still hanging in the exterior door -- so tempting... Anyways, here's some more pictures to drool over. There's just something amazing about a supercar being photographed in a realistic environment versus those middle-of-nowhere car magazine photographs.

While you're still slightly interested in Audi's new exotic, here's some new owner of an R8 driving around a city (somewhere in Europe) while some dork with a camera follows him just to film the public's reaction around the car. God we're jealous.

Tuesday, October 9th 2007

Pontiac Is Movin' On Up!

Shown above is the 2008 Holden VE Commodore Sportwagon, a model available down under in Australia. However, Pontiac is basing their new G8 on the same exact car, so logic dictates that the wagon may hit the U.S. shores as well.

It kind of looks like a design by Audi, which is definitely a plus. Many of Pontiac's previous models had smooth surfaces with odd bulges and such, but they're definitely pushing into the high-end design market where subtle creases and curves take precedent over say, Infiniti's one-curve-fits-all style. Of course, we'll take anything that doesn't resemble the Pontiac Aztek!

Tuesday, October 9th 2007

Told You So!

The four-door Porsche Panamera has finally been spied naked and just like we said, it looks like a big land yacht. It could look much worse, so we'll take the positive side of this and say how much we... umm... err... like it. That was easy!

Sunday, October 7th 2007

One Last Hurrah...

The 2008 Jaguar X-Type has received over 500 cosmetic changes, but don't mistake that for naive hope. This model will definitely be discontinued once the new Jaguar XF hits the road next year and that's that.

The X-Type was built on the same platform as the last Ford Taurus (not the newly renamed one), so it shared LOTS of identical components. Potential buyers quickly realized that unfortunate fact and the car was doomed.

Unlike Mercedes and BMW -- two luxury brands using their own singular automotive platforms -- Jaguar is (or was if you read this post in the year 2009) owned by Ford and tried to be economical. Those foolios didn't realize that wealthy people would buy Chevrolets and Toyotas if they wanted affordable, economical cars!

Thursday, October 4th 2007

It's Actually Very Pretty

Nissan has gone and designed this neat concept for "people with discerning taste." First, people with discerning taste don't buy Nissans, they buy Bentleys! Second, this car really, REALLY looks like one of those Maybach models from Mercedes-Benz...

Wednesday, October 3rd 2007

A National Hero!
Yes, it's another edition of "What Are Hollywood Stars Driving?!?"

This woman deserves the Presidential Medal of Honor! After getting pissed at all the paparazzi that hound Britney Spears during her hourly visits to Starbucks, the unknown woman sacrifices her own Starbucks coffee drink and throws it on both them and Britney's Mercedes-Benz (while she's driving it). Turn up the volume, but be warned -- those paparazzi have VERY foul mouths on them...

Tuesday, October 2nd 2007

Street Art That Rocks!

Here's some more of that 3D street art that lots of people are entertained by. You know, similar to how 9 week-old kittens are entertained by pairs of socks rolled up into little balls. This stuff takes time to create, so you better appreciate!   more...

Tuesday, October 2nd 2007

Australian Hottie

We're kind of jealous! Ford is keeping the Mondeo in Australia while we Americans get stuck with the Ford Fusion. Don't get us wrong, the Fusion is nice; however, the Mondeo is just a lot nicer.

Monday, October 1st 2007

Bad News For Mazda & Company

If you were in the market for a $30,000 convertible, would you buy a Mazda Miata, Nissan 350Z or a BMW 1-Series? Well that's the problem for the first two non-luxury brands: will buyers consider their convertibles after seeing BMW's new and very affordable 1-Series. We predict that as the median age group of the buyers hovers near the 30 year-old mark, the BMW will simply be viewed as the best investment.