[LiveLeak]
(Thanks for the tip Nick)

For the moment we've got these four videos — about 27 minutes or so. If they go down, or if you want to watch the rest — feel free to hit the YouTubes and pop a new video in the comments below. Thus, where we get the "Open YouTube Thread" we speak of in the headline above. Enjoy.

Since this is a new ad agency we're sort of surprised this follows essentially the same trite pattern they use in the My Name Is Ram commercial. You know, mixing images and video of the car with inspirational pictures and video. And the imagery they chose? Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, a Trabant, a painting of Nelson Mandela and the Chrysler 300 mowing down a flock of doves. Seriously — talk about a mixed metaphor.

AdAge tells us Fiat Chrysler Group's Olivier Francois, the president-CEO of the Chrysler vehicle brand, tapped Armando Testa, his ad agency for Italian Lancia, to warm up a leftover Lancia commercial for the U.S. market.

Hmm, somehow we've got to believe hiring an Italian agency for the work may not sit well with American taxpayers, who bailed out Chrysler earlier this year with billions of dollars in loans. And this while several hundred staffers of Chrysler Group's longtime ad agency, BBDO Detroit, will be out of work at the end of January when the contract expires.

But back to the spot itself. It's a mish-mash of images that have nothing to do with the Chrylser 300C. All this does is continue to beg the question: Why the hell is Chrysler still alive and why did the American taxpayer help keep it alive?

Also, is that a European license plate? Make that a "what the fuck" times two.

[AdAge]

There were a few half-joking complaints about Jay-Z putting white stripes on the side of their brand new car, but it's the price you pay to have a trend-setter drive around in your car. Remember what "Hard Knock Life" did for sales of G-wagens and Annie cast recordings.

Having sat in an XJ for the first time, other than a few slightly questionable material choices, it's quite impressive. Large, stylish, comfortable like a Jag but without the feel of being stogies in a giant humidor.

Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

[video by JF Musial]

What makes it all the better is the cheesy porn-like music when it gets to the part of the news report dealing with the "potential other woman." Also, that's the worst rendering of the rear end of a Cadillac Escalade we've ever seen.

First, Fifth Gear needed to find out how fast he needed to go to hit the 40-foot-tall full-size Hot Wheels loop. The physics equations are pretty simple for finding what the minimum speed the car can have at the top of the loop to perform a successful loop. The answer, in this case, given the car's weight and the size of the loop, was 36 MPH.

A bigger issue, however, was the question of what that gravitational forces would exert on the car given that forward momentum. Given speed and weight, we can expect to see a sizable gravitational force — say, six G's — upon the occupant. So, will Fifth Gear's stunt driver be able to overcome that gravitational force? Well, yeah, duh. But let's watch it anyway.

For the moment we've got these four videos — about 32 minutes or so. If they go down, or if you want to watch the rest — feel free to hit the YouTubes and pop a new video in the comments below. Thus, where we get the "Open YouTube Thread" we speak of in the headline above. Enjoy.

(Obligatory fanboy plug: Long live the E30 M3, long live the Cossie-headed Mercedes, long live the Cosworth Fords, and mad props to Paul "Nockenwelle" Rosche, the coolest engineer this side of a currywurst.)

The XC70 Surf Rescue is one of the hottest to come out of watching the bay since... well... Baywatch.

Volvos race, believe it or not, and whether it's a gravity racer or a V8-powered Volvo they're always quixotic and wonderful.

Volvos make for great hot rods. Don't ask us why, they just do.

Most importantly, Volvos make being safe sexy. Someone, please, send us a mint 144 for Christmas.

You've got the name, the overall rating Euro NCAP crash test rating and, you know, the video, below. Enjoy!

Vehicle:Mazda 3
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Infiniti FX
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Citroen DS3
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Toyota Urban Cruiser
Rating: ★★★☆☆

Vehicle: Mercedes GLK
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Opel/Vauxhall Astra
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Peugeot 5008
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Mercedes E-Class
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Chevrolet Spark
Rating: ★★★★☆

Vehicle: Volkswagen Scirocco
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: Chevrolet Cruze
Rating: ★★★★★

Vehicle: BMW X1
Rating: ★★★★★

Some days, you just ache for a bit more civilized in your civilization, you know?

Turn: 1, First Half of Big Bend
Description: The entry speed corner comes at the end of the main straight, so you want to maximize what speed you're able to gather (about 110 MPH in the MX-5) by braking as late as possible. Since the entry is very wide and the curve is relatively gentle, that means you're going to be shedding that speed while turning.
Gear: Starting in 5, finishing in 3.
Difficulty: High
Method: Brake gently at the last braking marker and turn in, heading in a straight line towards the apex. Now brake harder, shifting into 4th, then 3rd. Keep the car around the middle of the track as you approach turn 2.

Turn: 2, Second Half of Big Bend
Description: A late apex in a decreasing radius corner that sets you up for a short straight leading into the following corner.
Gear: 3
Difficulty: Medium
Method: turn in late, lift slightly to tighten your line and hold the car against the curb to the point where it ends, then let the car track out to the left. You need to be at wide open throttle to maximize the short straight. If you do it right, you'll bounce off the limiter a few times, but changing up a gear, then down again for the next corner probably won't save any time unless you're very fast.

Turn: 3, The Left Hander
Description: As the name suggests, the only left hander at Lime Rock. Deceptively long, there's a couple of usable lines through it, but either way you need to be able to get all the way to the left of the track on the exit to set you up for the next corner.
Gear: 3
Difficulty: Medium
Method: Enter in the middle of the track, trail braking as you turn slightly. Once you can see the apex, turn in sharply, clip it, but hold the wheel to left as you use the throttle to exit. You need to hit the turn in point for Turn 4 all the way to driver's left.

Turn: 4, Entry On To No Name Straight
Description: A fairly standard right hander that sets you up for the following series of slight bends known as "No Name Straight."
Gear: 4
Difficulty: Low
Method: A basic corner with a textbook approach: just turn in all the way over at driver's left shift into 4th, clip the curbing at the apex and track out. Get the throttle fully open as soon as you're in 4th. Straight line the straight as much as possible, no need to hit curbs or anything.

Turn: 5, The Uphill
Description: A fairly straightforward right hander that's been made complicated by sticking a steep hill in the middle. If you don't have your wheel straight when you crest it, you'll spin and the barriers are very close to the track.
Gear: 4
Difficulty: High
Method: Brake lightly at brake maker 4, then turn in at marker 1. Clip the apex and get on full throttle pointed out towards the curb halfway up the hill on driver's left, then once you hit that hill use the compression to tighten your line the rest of the way. Hands straight as soon as you've done that and hug the edge of the track over the crest and down the short straight. It's easier than it looks.

Turn: 6, West bend
Description: A right hand sweeper that can be taken very fast. The inside curbing is very tall, so get close, but don't clip it. Sets you up for The Downhill, which is super important to lapping quickly, so the exit is all important here.
Gear: 4
Difficulty: Medium
Method: Brake lightly, then turn in for a normal apex, get fully on the throttle early and hold it there as you ride the curbing on the outside.

Turn: 7, The Downhill
Description: If you're going to crash at Lime Rock, it'll be here. A very fast downhill right hander with compression on the entry that aids turn in. Sets you up for the main straight, you'll lose lots of time if you don't get this corner right.
Gear: Start in 4, finish in 5.
Difficulty: High
Method: Very confident drivers only need to lift slightly down the hill in the MX-5, but I still brush the brakes a little for some added confidence. Make sure you're on maintenance throttle at turn in, which is just where the hill flattens out. You need to use the compression this transition creates to maximize front end grip on turn in, so predict where its going to happen and turn in aggressively just as the front suspension compresses. Roll on the throttle as you clip the apex, getting it fully open as soon as possible, then track out fully the left, shifting into 5th when revs dictate. Huge the left side of the track all the way down the straight.

Here I am trying to put what I learned into practice. The cars are Mazda MX-5 Cup racecars. Over the standard vehicle, they add a $5500 Mazda racing package that includes a new intake and exhaust, boosting power from 167 to 200 HP. There's also remote reservoir Eibach dampers, considerably stiffer Eibach springs, solid antiroll bars, racing brake pads and 225/45WR-17 tires. The cars are also stripped of their interiors and soft tops, have a full cage welded in and you sit in racing buckets with five-point harnesses facing a removable wheel. The whole thing weighs just 2,600 Lbs. In short, it's a real race car with much improved throttle response, steering and outright grip. It's an extremely neutral car that'll understeer if you push it too fast into corners and let you tighten your line if you lift the throttle, making it near perfect to learn on.

What we have here just might be the greatest piece of community-service rap ever written. The backup singers alone are worth the price of admission.

Full disclosure: I grew up in Louisville, and I remain fond of both TARC (the Transit Authority of River City, the city's bus system) and the town's quirky, offbeat vibe. If you're ever there, try the breakfast at Lynn's Paradise Cafe. It's like love on a plate.

Click on the images marked with a play button to see the 5-Series in action. [via BMW Blog]

[Autocar]

For the moment we've got these four videos — about 38 minutes or so. If they go down, or if you want to watch the rest — feel free to hit the YouTubes and pop a new video in the comments below. Thus the "Open YouTube Thread" we speak of in the headline above. Enjoy.

According the Connecticut Post, the cruiser in question was traveling at more than 70 mph when it collided with a Mazda at an intersection. Footage of the accident was captured by the dashboard camera of a second cruiser. The video offers no suggestion as to why either car was traveling so quickly. The officer involved in the crash has been charged with two counts of manslaughter by the Connecticut State Police.

This just gives us chills.

[Connecticut Post]

Would you ever have guessed that shooting in-car footage was possible way back in 1935? Yet that is just what you can see in the above video, a summary of the 1935 Pau Grand Prix. At a brisk 84 seconds, it is teeming with excellent visuals, including cars speeding past placid swans on a lake.

The first race at the city circuit of Pau—a town in Southwest France near the border with Spain—was held in 1901 and it was the very first motor race called a grand prix. Over the years, it has been organized in various guises, slipping in rank from pre-war Formula Libre and post-war Formula One races to Formula Two, 3000 and Three, all the way to the WTCC races held since 2007 (on a sad note, after an unbroken run of events since the 1957 Formula One race, the 2010 Pau race has been cancelled).

Courtesy of the great motor racing encyclopedist Leif Snellman, this is how the 1935 race went, held over 80 laps of 1.71 miles each on a sunny February 24:

It had been raining at Pau the night before the race but when the cars lined up the conditions were perfect. The Ferrari Alfa Romeo cars of Nuvolari and Dreyfus were the favourites and they faced Maseratis from Étancelin (in his old 8CM as the 6C-34 was not ready), Falchetto, Soffietti and Brunet. Rüesch had got stuck at the customs and was a non starter. Nuvolari’s new Alfa with reveresed rear suspension proved to be fastest in practice with a time of 1:53

Just as expected the Ferrari cars took control over the race with Nuvolari leading from Dreyfus. The only driver being able to challenge them was Étancelin but he had to retire with a broken oil pump. At half distance Dreyfus led Nuvolari by 2 seconds with Falchetto third, one minute behind. Five laps from the finish Nuvolari passed Dreyfus and the Alfa Romeo drivers then cruised home to give Nuvolari a straight win in his comeback race for Ferrari. Four minutes behind them two Maseratis were fighting for third place and the cars actually collided once they had passed the line.

Just one of many victories over Nuvolari’s remarkable career, with a hat trick of pole, fastest lap and race win.

[Thanks for the tip, Bob!]

It appears to us Boston Dynamics is nearing the robot apocalypse event horizon. Best start getting your preferred apocalypse vehicles and supplies sorted now.

For the moment we've got these four videos — the first 37 minutes or so. If they go down, or if you want to watch the rest — feel free to hit the YouTubes and pop a new video in the comments below. Thus the "Open YouTube Thread" we speak of in the headline above.

Part I of IV

Part II of IV

Part III of IV

Part IV of IV

And unfortunately, that's all we got for now. Have a more complete set of YouTube vids? Drop in the comments below. Until next week...good night!

This was the story according to the Galveston Daily News:

The man, who refused to give his name, was looking at real estate in Galveston.
About 3 p.m. a low-flying pelican distracted him as he traveled north on Interstate 45 just south of the hurricane levee near Omega Bay.
The man jerked the wheel, dropped his cell phone, and the car's front tire left the frontage road and entered a muddy patch, which foiled his attempt to maneuver away from the lagoon.

Yeah, that's not what happened at all according to this video.

This was recorded by a Facebook user who appears to be taping it with a phone or digital camera just at the right moment. Warning, they do swear appropriately at the event. Incredible.

UPDATE: Thanks to some great follow up reporting by the Galveston Daily News and their sister paper, we now know the man is Andy House of Performance Auto Sales in Lufkin, Texas. The shop, ironically, specializes in repairing wrecked exotics. We contacted House for a comment and here's what he said:

I had dropped my phone, people dont know what happened, the arnold story was made up to by the wrecker driver. What it appeared to been was a reflection.

We'll continue to cover this interesting story as it unfolds.

UPDATE 2: Follow up story from the Galveston Daily News

UPDATE #3: We've finally put one and one together. Andy House not only crashed his Bugatti Veyron into a lake, he also owns the now-repaired Eddie Griffin-crashed Ferrari Enzo!

UPDATE#4: Here's the full post-Lake Crash Bugatti Veyron mega gallery showing the aftermath.

(H/T to Houston_AG!)

[via CreativityOnline]

In the video, we learn a little about the car, but most of this just seems like them boasting. "We drove around the Arctic Circle!" Also, the car is seen here in full camouflage even though we've seen lots of photos of it. Either it's old footage or they're really overprotective. Either way, we can't wait to get some seat time in it.

McLaren Automotive video series takes viewers inside McLaren and reveals MP4-12C development plans
McLaren Automotive today launches the first in a series of broadcast-quality short videos, which present a rare insight into a performance car testing programme from the development team behind the new McLaren MP4-12C.
As a brand new car company, McLaren Automotive has a unique and engaging story to tell prior to its first model going on sale in Spring 2011. Meanwhile, 2009's intense testing and development programme is clearly demonstrating the 12C's potential and McLaren Automotive is presenting rare company footage and insight that reveals its plans, processes and challenges.
In a short film entitled ‘Inside McLaren: developing the MP4-12C', viewers take the first steps to understanding how McLaren Automotive will fulfil its ambition to launch the MP4-12C as a genuine challenger to the world's best high performance sports cars. Highlights include:
• An introduction to the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC) and the MP4-12C test programme by McLaren Automotive Technical Director, Dick Glover
• Chief Test Driver Chris Goodwin on how the 12C performs in extreme test conditions 
• An overview by senior engineers of the integrated approach to development on roads and tracks around the world and, virtually, back at MTC
• 12C development (XP) prototypes on road and track in England and Germany, and extreme hot weather testing in Bahrain
The challenging and comprehensive development programme has taken in some of the world's most famous race circuits and most inhospitable driving environments; from the dry and cold, ice and snow of the Arctic, to the hot and humid, sand-soaked air of the Middle-East.
Combined with cutting-edge simulation programmes, Formula 1 techniques, personnel and processes, and thousands of miles of ‘real world' on-road driving on the UK's notoriously poor tarmac surfaces, the tight-knit testing team has taken giant strides through 2009 in the 12C's development. The result is ‘pure' McLaren: a revolutionary high performance sports car that features unique engineering solutions to deliver new standards in comfort, driving dynamics, economy and performance in the ‘core'* sports car market.
*'Core' market according to McLaren Automotive are performance sports cars priced between £125,000 and £175,000
Dick Glover, Technical Director at McLaren Automotive is responsible for the 50-strong Testing and Development team and the eight development (XP) cars that have featured in the 2009 programme: "I am really proud of what the team has achieved this year," he said.
"Having to develop a brand new range of cars from scratch to the standards expected of McLaren, featuring ground-breaking new structures and powertrain is the ultimate challenge and one we are relishing.  Sure, we have challenges – that is why we go to these places that absolutely push the cars to their limits and beyond – but now we know just what the 12C is capable of, we are able to push on into 2010 and deliver cars of which McLaren will be rightly proud."
The 2009 testing programme has focused heavily on two of the most famous tracks in the world – the notorious Nordschleife Nurburgring and the circuit seen by millions on-screen, the BBC Top Gear test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome. Both tracks push cars to their limits. But the success of the programme will also rest on McLaren's technological innovation and experience.
The results of a testing session's road and track performance are rapidly assessed within MTC. Simulation and rapid engineering practices – two core aspects of a successful Formula 1 team – are then employed to re-calibrate the XP test cars in-situ ready for the following day, or night's, development targets.
Chris Goodwin, professional racing driver and Chief Test Driver at McLaren Automotive, summed up the self-imposed pressures on the development team: "McLaren has always set itself the highest standards. We are the most successful ever motor racing team, we designed and built one of the world's most iconic sports cars in the world in the McLaren F1, and pioneered carbon fibre development on race and road cars.
"We took those standards into the development programme for the MP4-12C in order to launch a new high performance sports car comparable with past achievements and offering new levels of performance for the future. For us, these targets were simply starting points and that attitude requires the most thorough development possible. We believe that our global testing is delivering incredible strides for the 12C."
Other highlights:
• Simon Andrew (Vehicle Development Engineer) sends back detailed daily reports from all test sessions to McLaren Automotive personnel in a wide range of functions, not just other members of his team.  This ensures that the full range of the company's engineers, designers and management are able to contribute their experience.
• Rob Tyers is one of many team members introduced from the McLaren Racing division, bringing their experience of rapid decision-making in a highly competitive environment to bear on a traditionally slower-paced industry.  No other car company in the world offers this combination and experience of motor racing and road-car development personnel under one roof.
• McLaren Automotive has developed a unique programme inspired by the rapid development requirements of Formula 1.  This brings together the whole development team at one venue over a period of up to two weeks. Huge strides are gained during these intense testing periods as all car systems are stretched to their limits in combination and as a whole, rather than part by part in sequence.

When not racing his Alfa Romeo P3, giving the Germans a bloody nose at the Nürburgring or taking photographs, Tazio Nuvolari—or rather, his spirit turned muse—was an inspiration for pop. The greatest hit on Italian singer-songwriter Lucio Dalla’s 1976 album Automobili is named after the great man in the yellow sweater.

While Italian is unfortunately a language I do not speak, the undoubtedly wonderful lyrics are given a further twist toward great fun with the use of Google Translate. Witness:

Nuvolari is small in stature, Nuvolari is below normal

Nuvolari has fifty pounds of bone Nuvolari has a great body

Nuvolari’s hands are like claws,

Nuvolari was a talisman against the evils

His look is of a hawk for the children,

his muscles have muscles exceptional!

The birds lose their wings in the air as it passes Nuvolari!

When running Nuvolari frightening …

because the engine is ferocious roar while cutting the plain

“The birds lose their wings in the air as it passes Nuvolari!” Brilliant, brilliant stuff. And now it’s time to sing along!

Having been forced to watch the original Twilight movie I can relate the plot to you very quickly: A high school girl with greasy hair falls in love with a 100-year-old, but still young looking vampire whose main powers are looking moody and sparkling. Ignoring the pedophilia and concentrating instead on the fact that the two don't have sex, Christians the world over have seized on the movie as a wonderful example of abstinence (Should I have sex with a sparkle vampire? What would Jesus do?) and encouraged their pubescent daughters to obsess over the movie's star, the dreamy Robert Pattinson.

At some point during all the ridiculousness and sparkling, there's some brief message about protecting the people you love. Volvo's seized on this, pushing its products heavily in the movies and now running an ad campaign to tie in with the sequel, New Moon, which opens next week.

Ignoring for a second the bizarre Christian thing that's going to insure that a generation of girls grow up with an incredibly fucked up idea of sex, the target demographic for this teen marketing campaign movie is 12-year-old girls. Is that really the market for Volvo XC60s? We mean, they can't even drive yet!

Then there's the direct parallel Volvo's drawing between the website it's using to promote its product placement and that creepy Christian thing the movies have going on. The website's name? What Drives Edward? Would Jesus be that creepy?

Frankly, the video's worth it just to see Obama advisor Austan Goolsbee defend the administration's impact on Truckasaurus.

[The Daily Show]

UPDATE: We have video of the Bugatti Veyron crashing into the lake. As well as a response from the driver!

UPDATE: Here's the full post-Lake Crash Bugatti Veyron mega gallery showing the aftermath.

UPDATE: From the Galveston Daily News:

The two-seater, with 16 cylinders and four turbo chargers, can reach speeds of more than 250 mph. New models sell for about $2 million.

The man, who refused to give his name, was looking at real estate in Galveston.

About 3 p.m. a low-flying pelican distracted him as he traveled north on Interstate 45 just south of the hurricane levee near Omega Bay.

The man jerked the wheel, dropped his cell phone, and the car's front tire left the frontage road and entered a muddy patch, which foiled his attempt to maneuver away from the lagoon.

The Veyron's powerful engine gurgled like an outboard motor for about 15 minutes before it died.

[via EVO]