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Posts Tagged “
Rally
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offbeat news
question of the day
What Would You Convert Into A Rally Car?
The photos today of the Ferrari 308 GTB rally car combined with the VW Thing (which rallied against the Allied Forces) got us thinking again about rally cars. Anything can be a rally racer, whether AWD/FWD/RWD or even 6WD. From the diminutive Kia Rio to the insane Suzuki Escudo, anything can be rallied. Anything... More »
retro
Minnesota, February 1967: Let's Go Racing!
Those crazy Minnesotans aren't going to let a little 20-below weather stop them from taking their Saabs and MGAs out for some racing, you betcha! My grandfather, a proud St. Paul native, was serious about rally madness and ice-racing lunacy back in the 50s and 60s, and he'd probably still be doing it today at age 91 if his eyesight were a little better and he still had the ol '356 (or the Corvair... or the Dauphine...). He's handed over some of his racing memorabilia to me, including his Curta Peppermill and some of his old Twin Cities Sports Car Club newsletters. Here's the February 1967 TCSCC newsletter, which shows how those tough-guy Minnesotans pretended they weren't freezing their nodules off in ludicrous weather conditions. Uff da! Yeah, it's not as cool as the 8mm movie film I have of actual races, but I haven't had a chance to get them digitized yet.
autorama
V8 Citroen 2CV For Safari Hoons
Amidst the sea of high-dollar muscle cars and carnauba-soaked hot rods, the last car you'd expect to see on the main floor of Autorama is a small French car. Any sort of Citroën 2CV would be distinct, but when it's one sporting safari survival equipment, off-road suspension, and a small block V8 under the hood, it looks fantastically wacky. Drivetrain and suspension bits come from an old Suzuki Samurai, hence this car's name: "Le Sami." No House of Kolor pearl ghost flames here; Le Sami has been
leap day celebration
Professional Hoonage: A History Of Rally Jumps
Ok, enough of all this drunken amateur Leap Day hoonage. I mean, I've got nothing against
retro
Fire Arrow In Action
Back when we had the 1980 Plymouth Fire Arrow DOTS, commenter and Project Car Hell Poster Child SeanKHotay included a link to the image above in the comments. Our laughter at the rebadged Celeste's inherent Malaiseness suddenly seemed inappropriate. Our memories, they are like elephants', and thus we now offer you a Plymouth Arrow Moment of Zen. Enjoy. [SpecialStage.com]
gumball 3000
2008 Gumball 3000 Rally Dates Set, Still Heading To North Korea
We just received the following press release from "Mad" Maximillion Cooper, the chieftain of the Gumball 3000, giving the dates of the annual road
racing news
Dakar Rally Rescheduled to Central Europe, Next Year in South America!
After the 2008 Dakar Rally was canceled in January due to security threats, everyone wondered if and when it would return. A few days ago, this years' race was confirmed to run from April 20 to 26 in sections of Central Europe. The 3000-kilometer race will start in Budapest, head east the Romanian city of Sovata, then head back to Hungary and finish in the town of Balatonfured. That is news on its own, but the bigger more interesting news is the 2009 Rally. More »
question of the day
What Would Make The Best American Rally Car?
Snow, slush, ice, mud, tornadoes and windstorms have led to less-than-stellar driving conditions in many parts of the country. It's not even safe to be driving a giant wiener. When the driving conditions get bad in this country we generally turn to trucks and sport-utlitly-vehicles for help. But there's a magical place, a place called "the rest of the world." And people who live in this mysterious land see a muddy road and think Ford Escort instead of Jeep Wrangler, Peugeot 205 instead of Chevy Tahoe and Renault Clio instead of Ford F-150. These are the people with the Spirit of the Rally. More »
racing news
Woodland Creature Costs Pastrana Victory At Sno*Drift Rally This Weekend
You're all well aware that we think racer Travis Pastrana is a bad ass. Sadly, superior driving skills don't exempt you from bad luck. This Pastrana learned during the last stage of the Sno*Drift Rally. All that stood between the Team USA WRX STI and victory was about 11 miles of icy Michigan roads and one adult deer. Christian Edstrom may be a talented co-driver, but there's no navigating around that at high speed, in the dark. Better luck next time guys. [Break.com and Sno*Drift]
offbeat news
French Cop Nearly Killed By Monte Carlo Winner
Sebastian Loeb piloted his Citroen C4 to his record fifth victory at the Monte Carlo Rallye on Sunday, and we think we know how he managed to shave some seconds off his total time. It takes a little team work, a little luck and a little willingness to take a few risks. In this case, Loeb had to bet that this French policeman was going to be quick enough to not get a colostomy from his Citroen. Maybe the Ninja rally fan became a French cop. (Thanks to Franzouse for the tip)
racing news
2008 Dakar Rally Canceled
We were eagerly anticipating Saturday's start to the running of the 2008 Dakar Rally. Unfortunately, the fifteen day, 9,723 kilometer race has been canceled due to concerns of terrorist sabotage. Multiple sources are reporting that local tensions resulting from the December murders of four French tourists in Mauritania and threats from North African terror organizations have pushed the risks beyond reasonable. More »
novelties
What do you get when you cross a baker and a ninja? A dead baker. Never cross a ninja. What you see here is all the proof you need that rally fans are the most hardcore racing fans out there (Oh, you say you camped for a day outside the Texas Motor Speedway in your 38-foot luxury RV? It just doesn't measure up to spending the night with two of your friends cramped into a LeCar on a freezing night along the Vistula just to see your favorite rally drivers, four seconds at at time). A driver spins his hatch towards the crowd and this fan transforms into a ninja to avoid getting crushed. [DPCCars]
Ninja Rally Fan Avoids Peril, Plots Revenge
What do you get when you cross a baker and a ninja? A dead baker. Never cross a ninja. What you see here is all the proof you need that rally fans are the most hardcore racing fans out there (Oh, you say you camped for a day outside the Texas Motor Speedway in your 38-foot luxury RV? It just doesn't measure up to spending the night with two of your friends cramped into a LeCar on a freezing night along the Vistula just to see your favorite rally drivers, four seconds at at time). A driver spins his hatch towards the crowd and this fan transforms into a ninja to avoid getting crushed. [DPCCars]
rally
Down on the D1 Grand Prix: Ford RS200
Oh snap, Jalopnik went drifting. We were there live when Japan's Nobushige Kumakubo and his Team Orange EVO won five rounds of Sudden Death! to capture the crown. And we'll get to that, in good time. But, Jalopnik being Jalopnik, our palms got way sweatier looking at this baby than they did watching three hours of choice precision driving. Sue us. Yeah, that's an RS200. Well, OK, it's a replica. But still, it's an RS200. You want details? Click here. You want to drool? Leaf through the gallery. When we asked if the engine was tuned to between 650 and 800 horsepower we were told, "Probably." Snap snap, snap snap.
found on ebay
1969 Simca 1204 Factory Rally Car
You know why our readers are so good? Because they find us fodder like this. That's right folks, step right up and grab your very own 5-lighted edition of the Simca 1204 Factory rally car! Chrysler actually entered these suckers. Some of your fathers might remember that Simcas were indeed sold in the US of A from 1969 until miserably flopping in 1972. But hey, us press types loved them. In fact, the Simca TI is largely credited with inspiring not only the Volkswagen Golf, but the GTI as well. Almighty Allpar.com claims that GTI stands for "Golf TI." No matter really, but the auction is sitting at $2,275 and you got just 4 days left. And Harvey prefers winning. Hurry! (Tip of the mighty and arrogant sombrero to Simon for the link) [eBay.com]
la auto show
LA Auto Show: 1981 Mitsubishi Lancer EX 2000 Turbo Group 4 Rally Car
Here it is children, the primeval Japanese street-fighter. Mitsubishi has it at their display to help showcase all ten generations of Lancer Evolutions. The EX 2000 Rally Car packed 280 hp. In 1981. We friggin' heart it. Look at the fog lights, all four of them. Look at the riveted on rear rubber fender flares. Even the trunk latch rules. We're thinking we have little else to say. So, enjoy the gallery.
racing
There's nothing like a good rally driver-POV video clip to kick a lazy Tuesday into the troposphere. This, from Belgum's Rally de Wallonie in 2005 shows a Porsche GT3 996 being piloted by a driver unafraid to wave back at the crowd following tricky cornering maneuvers. That's what we call rally spirit. Oh, and no crap Euro synth pop to ruin the whole thing. [Thanks to Travis for the tip.]
Waving to the Masses: Driver POV From Rally de Wallonie 2005
There's nothing like a good rally driver-POV video clip to kick a lazy Tuesday into the troposphere. This, from Belgum's Rally de Wallonie in 2005 shows a Porsche GT3 996 being piloted by a driver unafraid to wave back at the crowd following tricky cornering maneuvers. That's what we call rally spirit. Oh, and no crap Euro synth pop to ruin the whole thing. [Thanks to Travis for the tip.]
in memoriam
