Tommi Mäkinen is mackin’ it hard in this video, released to today by Subaru’s parent company Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. The vid is part of an advanced R&D project carried out at the world-famous the Nürburgring racetrack in Germany, using a 2011 model year Subaru WRX STI four-door sedan test mule.
His time (7’55″00) is Subaru’s fastest lap time ever for a WRX STI and is four seconds faster than its previous best lap in 2004.
Yesterday I went to a Pirelli Ride and Drive where I drove on Pirelli’s newest “Green” tire – Scorpion Verde All-Season – back-to-back against the Michelin Latitude H/T A/S in identically-prepped BMW X5 35d xDrive diesels.
Conveniently, there was a handling course set up for us – consisting of a quick four-cone slalom leading into a sweeping right-hander with rumble strips followed by a tight R-L S-bend before a short straightaway and hairpin left into a stop. Continue reading Testing Pirellis greenest tire
Today is my birthday, but my present came early this year…
Fellows testing the Cragar Wheels C6 Corvette at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch
About a month ago, I was back in Pahrump, Nevada to attend the 2010 Canadian AMG Performance Tour at the Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch. I’d first come here to drive the Nissan 370Z coupe when it launched.
So, while I was here to drive an exclusive collection of current AMG models, including the 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, on the facility’s most technical 1.5-mile race track, Canadian-born racecar driver Ron Fellows was out testing his yellow #2 Cragar Wheels Corvette on a longer section of the same tarmac ribbon.
Spring Mountain is actually home to the Ron Fellows Corvette Racing School where average Joe’s can learn to tame the ZR1, C6 Z06 and C6 Z51 with the man himself. Rest assured, the only thing getting schooled in these photos is the car itself. Continue reading Ron Fellows testing in Pahrump
“When I picture a Mercedes-Benz in my head, the original SLR gullwing, iconic G-wagon and classic SEL saloons usually dominate the space between.
Now, the B200 Turbo is no SLS AMG; and, for the price of a SLR McLaren, you could have at least a dozen fully-loaded versions in which to scoot around your compound.
To be completely honest though, I’ve never given the B-class much credence, let alone a second glance in its five year run in Canada. That said, the littlest Benz surprises and impresses at every turn during my week-long test.”
“The 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander has more in common with the automaker’s current super-performing Lancer Evolution and Ralliart than it does the original that went on sale in Japan nearly a decade ago.
A facelift, more power and the availability of Super All-Wheel Control (S-AWC) with an active front differential (AFD) are the biggest changes to Mitsubishi’s popular compact SUV that is essentially the same vehicle that arrived here in 2007.”
Read my review — Evolution of cool — and check out photos at AutoNet.ca.
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