Category Archives: Automotive News

I don’t follow current events unless you count knowing who builds the awesomest cars in the world a current event.

Road & Track Compares the Subaru BRZ, Mazda MX-5 and Hyundai Genesis

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Not to be outdone by Motor Trend’s recent sub $28k sports car shootout, Road & Track rounded up the Subaru BRZ, Mazda MX-5 and Hyundai Genesis Coupe with the 2.0 liter turbo engine for a rear wheel drive comparison. Watch the videos before you read my take on them:


As an added bonus they got 2011 Formula D Champion, Daijiro Yoshihara, to see which one he liked drifting the most.


I have yet to see the Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ lose a comparison yet. The real kicker is that everybody says that it could use more power, but still pick it to win. That just goes to show that Toyota/Subaru really got it right by going back to the basics of rear wheel drive, low center of gravity and light weight. I was very worried that these cars wouldn’t be received well simply because they didn’t make enough power for a modern audience, but it seems that people are actually appreciating the engineering effort that was put into matching the power with the tires, suspension and chassis to create a really high level of overall balance. Even so, it seems Toyota is thinking about covering the power issue.

Source: Road & Track on YouTube

Audi R8 GT Parade

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The Audi R8 GT is the ultimate version of Audi’s mid engine, all wheel drive sports car. The GT is over 200 pounds lighter than the regular R8 and the engine output was raised to 552 horsepower. Only 333 coupes and 333 roadsters were made worldwide. 14 of those Audi R8 GT’s gathered together for a 7700 hp parade to wish the R8 LMS cars luck at the 24 hours of Nurburgring endurance race. It worked since R8’s placed 1st and 2nd.


Source: Motor Trend

European FT-86 Launch Videos

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These are the European launch videos for the Toyota GT-86 / Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ. They go into the development of the car more than any of the American promotional videos I’ve seen.

Part 1: Engine Development. The 2.0 liter boxer engine is perfectly square with 86mm bore and 86mm stroke. It uses both direct and port injection.


Part 2: Design. The design of the FT-86 follows the philosophy of functional shapes. The classic Toyota 2000GT was also used an inspiration while the car was in the clay modeling phase.


Source: CarBuzzMedia on YouTube

Subaru Advanced Tourer WRX Electric Turbo Hybrid

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Subaru Advanced Tourer Concept – 2011 Tokyo Auto Show via Carscoop

Motor Trend is reporting that the Advanced Tourer Concept (ATC) that Subaru unveiled last year is actually the prototype for the new WRX. The all new 2012 Impreza is currently for sale, but Subaru is looking to separate the WRX from the Impreza. The WRX’s chassis will be a heavily modified version of the Impreza’s, but it will be different enough to warrant it being its own model. Continue reading →