Nelson Ireson, Senior Editor
Articles
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BMW, unlike some manufacturers, doesn't go around appending performance badges willy-nilly. When a car wears an M badge, you can expect it to deliver on track or off. For those that don't want quite...
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2010 Paris Auto Show Preview: BMW Concept 6-Series CoupeTwelve days remain until the 2010 Paris Motor Show opens to the press, and BMW is hitting the ground running, releasing the preliminary details on its coming attractions. The BMW Concept 6-Series Coupe shown here is a design study for a premium two-plus-two that takes the 6 marque into the next...
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Subaru's Version Of FT-86 Shooting For 260 HP Mark?The Subaru/Toyota joint project to build a rear-wheel drive performance coupe based on the FT-86 concept trudges onward despite recurring rumors of its impending death. New info out today says Subaru's version will be hotter than the Toyota variant, packing 260 horsepower instead of the 'Yota's...
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Video: BMW's Don'tBlogAboutThis Sheds More Of Its CocoonGenerally we'd be happy to take BMW's advice and skip the rather melodramatic Dont Blog About This site and concept, but a new video out today shows the car off in better form than ever. And with Paris just around the corner, it's probably worth taking a closer look. In the video we see a lot of...
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Driven: 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX SedanOn the surface, the 2011 Subaru WRX doesn't sound all that exciting. Sure, it's got a turbo 2.5-liter Boxer four, but only 265 horsepower? The Honda Accord makes more than that. Yeah, it has all-wheel drive, but so does the Lincoln MKS. It wears the widebody treatment of the WRX STI, but it's about...
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Study: Racing Video Games Really Do Make You A Better DriverNot only are video games good for your brain, playing action video games improves your ability to make the right decision, and to do so faster, according to a new study at the University of Rochester. Take that, Jack Thompson (and legions of "they'll rot your brain" parents). The study didn't...
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Audi just released a terse statement expressing sadness over the "helicopter incident" during filming of the Stanford/Audi autonomous TTS Pikes Peak car. Details are sketchy at the moment, but Audi...
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2010 Paris Auto Show: Saab's first EV, 9-3 ePower wagonIn what may be a case of too little, too late, Saab has unveiled its first electric vehicle ahead of its official debut at the 2010 Paris auto show. The 9-3 wagon-based EV is called the 9-3 ePower, and will see a prototype fleet of 70 vehicles built for testing in Sweden early in 2011. Powered by a...
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Jaguar Testing KERS-Like Flywheel Hybrid For XFJaguar Land Rover's efforts in the green arena are well-documented, and this week the push got a bit stronger at the Low Carbon Vehicle event at Millbrook, U.K. Showing off a joint-developed "flywheel hybrid system for premium vehicles" (FHSPV) on a Jaguar XF prototype, the company claims a gain of...
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Lamborghini Dealers To Get Early Look At Paris Cars Code-Named LB715-5 And 83XYou've seen the teasers for Lamborghini's upcoming Paris concept car and read the manifesto, but as yet it's not clear if it's the Murcielago-replacing Jota or an unannounced pure concept car. Today, a report puts a new spin on what's coming to Paris. The two cars, code-named LB715-5 and 83X, will...
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$10 Million Automotive X Prize Winners AnnouncedBoth electric and combustion-powered vehicles took home cash from the Progressive Automotive X Prize competition, though early favorite Aptera wasn't among the victors. All winners had to achieve more than 100 mpge (miles-per-gallon equivalent, as defined by the competition) to win in addition to...
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Spartan V: The Ducati-powered Aussie bike-engined carBike-engined cars. BECs. They're the ultimate goal of a good chunk of the truly speed-obsessed, especially those that can't get the sweet song of the 10,000-plus rev range out of their heads. If you're not up to welding your own tube-framed Midlana or Locost/Lotus 7, and the Palatov Motorsport dp4...
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Nanotechnology is still a science that lives largely in the realm created by Hollywood. Sure, there are practical, real-world applications right now and more on the horizon, but for the most part...
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2010 Mercedes-Benz Models Averaging 10 Percent Off Sticker PriceThat's right, folks, if you're in the market for a new luxury car, you'd be doing yourself a disservice not to at least consider a 2010 model Mercedes-Benz, according to Bengt Halvorson's latest Frugal Shopper column at TheCarConnection. The brand-new but superceded 2010s are sliding off dealer...
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2010 Paris Auto Show Preview: Chevrolet's Four World PremieresChevy will be hitting Paris hard this year, bringing four new world premieres to the floor. Of the four, only the 2012 Aveo is expected for the U.S., though we can lust after the mostly-attractive Cruze five-door hatch from afar. The 2012 Chevrolet Aveo, which we last spied in sedan form in July...
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Video: Corvette Racing Episode 10, TeamworkFeel-good hippie talk about teamwork and being a part of the collective doesn't often pique our interest, but having experienced firsthand the way a group of people can pull together despite widely disparate backgrounds, ages, and talents in the name of going fast on a racetrack, the latest episode...
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Video: Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Official Driving FootageThe 911 Carrera GTS hit the Web today and has some folks asking, "why not just get a GT3?" It's a fair question, for those that don't need a back seat or the comfort and convenience of the full Carrera treatment, but for those that do, this video shows the car off in its native environment...
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2012 Dodge Viper Revealed At Dealer Conference?The Dodge Viper died a quick and ignominious death shortly after Fiat partnered with Chrysler, though even then there was talk that the car would be revived for 2012. Now a report from Autoblog says Sergio Marchionne showed the 2012 Viper at a dealer meeting this week. There are essentially no...
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As enthusiasts, we've all decried the incessant bulking-up of our favorite vehicles over the years. Adding the necessary safety and emissions equipment to meet regulatory requirements has led to a...
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Video: MINI WRC Countryman Caught Testing In PortugalSounding like a cross between a pissed-off jungle cat and a million-strong cloud of very angry bees, the MINI Countryman World Rally car was caught testing in Portugal this week by an amateur camera. The footage isn't all that revealing--no more so than the officially released photo--but it does...
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New Photos Of 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS-ClassThree weeks ago Mercedes-Benz unveiled the 2012 CLS-Class ahead of its public debut at the 2010 Paris Auto Show, and today, we have a fresh new gallery of photos that show the car off in a much better light. Literally, the lighting is way better. Rather than the spotlight-in-a-cave shots loosed in...
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2010 Paris Auto Show Preview: 2012 Ford Focus ST Confirmed For U.S.Ford is going global with the Focus, and by global, it means really global. That's right hot-hatch lovers, we're finally getting the Ford Focus ST right here on U.S. soil. The "early preview model" of the 2012 Focus ST hatchback will be on display September 30 at the Paris auto show. It will be...
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Bentley Says Diesels A No-Go, Won't Sell In U.S., JapanBack in 2008 rumors that Bentley was planning a hyperlux diesel were rampant, and since then, there's been a steady whisper that it might yet come to pass, especially with Volkswagen's corporate parentage. But a new interview with powertrain chief Brian Gush reveals that a diesel Bentley very...
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Fireball Run: The RouteOver the eight days from September 24-October 2, Team High Gear Media will be driving a 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS, all but living out of it as we compete our way across the country. We'll be traversing 3,500 miles of the American heartland, from Henderson, Nevada to Galena, Illinois, and we won't be...
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