Motor Trend has an article and a photo gallery with the first shots of the 2009 Corvette ZR-1. The ZR-1 was not initially part of the plan for the C6. However, that all changed at an early program review:
[T]he Z06’s proposed aluminum frame, carbon-fiber parts, and LS7 engine so impressed CEO Rick Wagoner that he reportedly wondered aloud, "Geez, if that’s what you can do with $60,000, I wonder what a $100,000 Corvette would look like?" With no more formal authorization than that, Juechter’s posse launched a skunkworks effort dubbed "Blue Devil" — a nod to the boss’s Duke alma mater.
And a devil it is, suspected of pushing 620 hp and 600 lb-ft of torque! After having had a chance to see the C6 up close this summer at Bloomington Gold, I am excited to see how the ZR-1 turns out at final production. I won’t have the $100k to drop on one of these in 2009, but it never hurts to dream, does it?
Over the weekend, Chris and I went to Bloominton Gold, the annual Corvette show. We went with Joe, Cristina and Carl. This is the first time that any of us have gone to Gold (unless Carl had been before, I’m not sure of that), and it was awesome.
The last time I had seen that many Corvettes in one place was the summer after my junior year at IWU. That was one of the years in the recent past that Gold was back in Bloomington, and I was living in Normal for the summer. Actually being at Gold easily blew away those distant memories of driving around Bloomington-Normal during the event just to catch a glimpse of the Corvettes cruising down Main and Central, on Veterans Parkway or on I-55.
We saw some pretty awesome vehicles, as well as a few cars that would have made good projects if we had the cash and a trailer to bring one home. By far my favorite of the day was a classic reborn. I do not recall what year it was, but I would have to guess it was before ‘57. It had a custom paint job that included airbrushed flames. The custom paint extended to the engine compartment, where an LS2 engine sat with painted engine covers. Once I upload my pictures to Flickr, I’ll link one.
The Silver Salute featured Vettes from 1982, while the GoldYear field showcased the 1957 models. It was great to see the variety of cars, even among a single year. You would have 100% stock vehicles parked right next to total custom jobs with nitrous and racing slicks.
That being said, unless I am struck by good fortunes and win a jackpot, or Chevrolet puts out something spectacular that I just have to see at Gold, I am probably content with not attending Gold for another three or four years. It was great to attend it this year, but without having one of my own any more, the show lacks a certain something for me.
GM is requesting that its Saturn dealers put a Toyota Camry on their showroom floors. Saturn dealers can put a Honda Accord on the showroom floor instead of or in addition to the Camry. According to Toyota’s Wade Hoyt, this just takes the trash talking of the competition one step further.
Through focus groups, GM has discovered that many customers liked the Saturn Aura over its competition when compared side-by-side without any brand name badges. I have not had to buy a car straight from a dealership. If I did, I would appreciate being able to see the competition without having to trek across town to visit the other dealers. Then again, I would probably choose a car before leaving the house, and only visit the dealer for a test drive and to seal the deal.
For my second YouTube post of the morning, Nick Heidfeld pilots his BMW F1.07 on the Nürburgring. According to the video’s description, this is the first F1 to run the course in years. Heidfeld makes it look easy:
Now, I think I’m a pretty good driver, but in no way do I think I am prepared to run the Ring at anything more than a stroll.
Over the past three or four weeks I have been covering my ears in the shower and in the car every time a Toyota commercial was playing. "But, Mark, you like Toyotas. What’s the problem," you ask? At the end of the newest Toyota commercials, right when they announce the Toyota tagline (which I cannot recall), is a very annoying and painful high pitch noise that makes me want to poke holes in my eardrums!
After every commercial, I wonder to my self, "Does anyone else get bothered by this, or am I a freak?" Well, after a few quick searches on Google, I don’t know that anyone has bothered to complain about it online. So, here is my post proclaiming the terrible choice of noises in the Toyota commercial. I think this ad campaign takes points away from Toyota every time an ad airs. Customers are literally being driven away from the brand, and it is all because of a screeching, ear-piercing noise.
So, thank you Toyota for choosing an ad agency that is helping to drive your potential customers to the competition, simply for playing a high-pitched noise in every commercial. Any positive message about Toyota contained within the ads is lost when the noise jostles it out of my head.
Over at WIRED Blogs, I saw a post today about the Nissan Altima Hybrid and how much of a better deal it is over the 2.5S model and the Toyota Camry Hybrid. At a retail price of $24,400, it is not a cheap car to drive off the lot, but it pays for itself in savings in no more than four years.
That is with a worst-case scenario that gas maintains the national average of $2.16 per gallon (not likely), you drive it 12,000 miles a year and get a combined fuel economy of 39 mpg. Did I mention that the hybrid has a net 198 hp, versus the 175 hp of the base Altima? To put that in perspective, my current car is a 192 hp model, and it is probably heavier than the Altima Hybrid. I am guessing this puppy can run.
Unfortunately, it looks like I will have to wait to do a test drive. According to Car & Driver, “The hybrid, powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine as well as an electric motor, initially will be sold in California, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Pennsylvania starting in January.” Neither Illinois nor its border states are on this initial list. After seeing a few of the 2007 Altimas on the road, I like the new design, especially the headlamps and taillights. Of course, that feeling will only last about eight months, just in time for me to see the 2008 models. The 2008 Altima Coupe, with G35 design cues, can be seen on the Nissan website.
A little more than a year ago, I posted a video about the Nürburgring Ring Taxi. I found another video, this one is a documentary film about the Nürburgring commisioned by BMW. The R&D that BMW puts in at the track is quite impressive, as is the development of a Nürburgring simulator to test cars without actually bringing them out on the track.
It’s just amazing! I would still love to travel to Germany and take a lap in a Ring Taxi. I’m thinking that will be one of those "when I retire" trips.
Motor Trend has an article and a photo gallery with the first shots of the 2009 Corvette ZR-1. The ZR-1 was not initially part of the plan for the C6. However, that all changed at an early program review:
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