Cant deny my driving roots...

The front row alone is worth more money than you or I will ever have.

As is tradition, the Porsches gathered on the straight between turns three and four for a group photo. As you can see, the collection of legendary racecars is unbelievable. Along with the Porsches that will be on track, special models will be on display from the Porsche Museum in Germany, and hundreds of owners have also traveled to Monterey to join in the festivities. Be sure to check back over the next few days for full galleries of the races.

SSC Plans To Build World's Fastest Electric Production Car

Shelby SuperCars already has the world's fastest production car title belt, now they're planning to up the ante, introducing the Ultimate Aero EV: The world's fastest electric production car, with a ten minute charge time.

Not only is SSC claiming that they're creating the world's fastest electric production car, but they're also claiming that it'll be one of the fastest charging electric cars in the world. Their Nanotechnology Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery pack is said to take only 10 minutes for a full recharge on a standard 110 volt outlet and will grant the driver a total of 200 miles on a single quick charge. Watch out Volt, Tesla and Fisker.

While the super fast charging time sounds great, it's the electric motor system that piques our interest. SSC has dubbed it the AESP, or All-Electric Scalable Powertrain, and what makes it unique is its scalable horsepower rating and liquid cooling in a single light-weight, compact package. The AESP is being developed to fit a wide assortment of applications from a 200 HP mid-size car; a 500 HP light truck or SUV and up to 1,200 HP with a "piggy back" setup for heavier duty trucks, buses and military equipment.

Source: Guess...

Beautiful Chicara motorcycles on display in NY

These Chicara Motorcycles aren’t meant to be driven. That’s a point you have to understand before you divert your eyes at the photos below. These are works of art — Million dollar bikes that are built for visual pleasure .

Mr. Chicara has built 13 bikes to date, 3 of them that can be seen at the Ippodo right now where you can also buy them for about a million each.

Madass 500. I want.

We all know about the 2009 Sachs MadAss 125 shown here, but I cant seem to find anything on the bigger brother, the Madass 500. Somehow Sachs has filled a gap I didn't know existed. The want factor Level : HIGH

ZR1 vs Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SuperVeloce

If you want the prestige you get with a Ferrari or Lamborghini, you have to pay, and pay dearly. If you want the performance you still have to pay, just not as much.

With companies like Devon, Shelby SSC, Saleen and others vieing for the supercar title, they all have to really take a close look at the good 'ole Corvette. Of course, not the base model but the 100k ZR1. It's a fraction of the amount you would pay for any of the above, ahead in refinement, rock solid warranty, and its as brutal and fast as the Italian boys.

This really is an unbelievable video. First of all, you got two of the hottest cars in the world. Second, the Lambo should be a bit quicker than the ZR1, right? It has around 30 more horsepower, weighs about 60 pounds less and has AWD, allowing it to exit corners more quickly. Plus, the Lamborghini has a factory driver at the helm while the Corvette is being piloted by (ugh) an auto journalist. Only thing is, well... watch for yourself.

One more thing – not counting the "joke's on you, rich people!" Reventon, the LP670-4 SV is Lambo's most expensive vehicle and the ZR1 is (obviously) Chevy's. Can you image a race between the two brands' cheapest vehicles? Aveo vs. Gallardo LP560-4. I got 5 on it.

TV goodies: Aug. 10-16, 2009 (American Le Mans Series, MotoGP, AMA ProRacing)

Please remember that times are eastern.
N = new : R = repeat.

Sorry, there's not too much this week! Next week, there's much more.

August 13-16, 2009

6:00P-7:00pm Death Road (History Channel)
7:00P-8:00pm Modern Marvels - Superhighways (History Channel)

Friday : August 14, 2009
10:30A-11:00am MotorWeek (N) (Speed)

Saturday : August 15, 2009
12:00A-12:30am The Grid - Ep 21 (N) (Speed)
7:00A-7:30am MotorWeek (N) (Speed)

:00P-9:00pm AMA Pro Racing: American Superbike 1 - VIR (N) (Speed)
9:00P-10:00pm AMA Pro Racing: Daytona Sportbike 1 - VIR (N) (Speed)

Sunday : August 16, 2009
2:00P-3:00pm MotoGP 250 - Brno (N) (Speed)
3:00P-6:00pm American Le Mans Series - Road America (live) (Speed)
6:00P-7:00pm MotoGP - Brno (N) (Speed)

Monday : August 17, 2009
12:00A-1:00am AMA Pro Racing: American Superbike 2 - VIR (N) (Speed)
1:00A-2:00am AMA Pro Racing: Daytona Sportbike 2 - VIR (N) (Speed)

Source: big thanks to Big Sue on vwvortex

The vector was a truly sad failure.

Preston Tucker beat the odds and design/developed a product superior to what the big three were producing before they teamed up to crush him.
Although John Deloreans company failed, some would consider it a success in that the product was good (eventually) and the high numbers of cars on the road today back that up.

Gerald Weigerts company Vector Areomotive, was one that was high on concept, high on technology, bad on timing and awful with management. The cars that they produced over the years are legendary in the automotive world, but not all legends are good. The most famous being of the unfinished vector that was sold to Andre Aggassi, who returned it in short order after it caught fire on the highway.

However, when the car was on, it was ON. Amazing angular design that evolved with the times (it was the 80's) and performance that was heralded by journalists. The car had an attitude that made the outrageous top speed claims of 220+ mph seem reasonable.

Twin turbo, aluminum block v8, 3 speed automatic tranny, aluminum and fiber honeycomb chassis that was bonded and riveted together, Liner slide gauges patterned after jet fighter gauges, etc. The car had so much potential. It could have been Americas supercar.

There are many sites telling the tale of Vector's rise and fall, This being a particularly detailed one.

On a personal note, I'm a major fan of this car and the concept behind the company. When I was 10 I wrote Gerald a letter telling him so and asking for advice on how to create a car company. He never responded. Extremely disappointing.When I did get to meet him 17 years later, I shook his hand a little tighter than I should have.

He noticed.

500bhp Lazareth Wazuma quad. ONLY a v12...

You know what? I don't think this is crazy. As automotive racing evolves, people will be looking for new and more exciting (i.e dangerous) was to race. The Dodge Tomahawk started a trend, with bigger and crazier things to come.

Cramming a BMW V12 and a turbocharger into a quad bike wasn't enough for French bike builder Ludovic Lazareth, he needed more power, so he added ethanol.

Better known as a bio-fuel favored by Iowan farmers; Ethanol, or E85 in this case, has a higher octane rating (typically 100-105) than traditional pump gas, which allows higher compression ratios and more power. The engine actually makes only 350 HP in its current form, with the 150 necessary to take that figure up to 500 HP coming soon in the form of a turbocharger.

There's no fancy traction or stability control keeping all that power in check, so it's all going to be up to the rider being careful with the throttle and quick with the countersteering. Luckily, the rear track is much narrower than the front, which should work to counteract a quad's naturally tendency to dump riders on their heads, encouraging rear slide over grip.

Nurburgring's production lap record going down. Maybe.

This is the Devon Motor Works GTX supercar, which has been track testing ahead of its unveiling at this week's Pebble Beach Concours.

The GTX, which is due to go on sale next year, is being funded by businessman Scott Devon. These are the first official pictures of the car; previous images have been artist's renderings.

Although little information has been released about the car so far, its makers have announced that they will be chasing the Nurburgring production car lap record with it.

To this end, it has hired endurance racer Justin Bell, son of Le Mans legend Derek, to undertake the bulk of the development driving.

The Nurburgring's production lap record is currently held by Radical's SR8, which lapped in 6min 55sec.

Although unconfirmed, reports suggest the car will have over 650bhp and an ultra-light carbonfibre body. It also has a distinctive glass roof section, demonstrating the car hasn't been designed purely with track work in mind.

The interior is said to be close to production ready, and mixes a state-of-the-art electronic dashboard with a gear lever that harks back to the 1970s muscle car era.

The car has been designed by Daniel Paulin, the man responsible for the Fab 1 Thunderbird and the Focus C-MAX concepts for Ford.

Source: Left lane