We gave one cheaty Integra team a choice: take five laps or flip a coin, with heads giving them zero laps and tails resulting in a massive 1,200-lap penalty. They took the coin toss... and got tails! We saw our first-ever LeMons Cressida, our first-ever LeMons 928, and the best LeMons Super Bird ever. More on the Über Bird a bit later; for now, a gallery of BS Inspection photos for you.

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

[Timothy Raines]

Being scared of cars isn't unhealthy. Rather, it's a sign of respect for what four wheels, thousands of pounds of mass and gobs of power can do to yourself and others when forced to an immediate, screeching and metal-crunching stop. It's a good feeling. It makes you feel alive. Click "next" to see the cars that get our hearts racing.

Car: TVR Cerbera Speed 12

Why We're Afraid Of It: Starting with the obvious: it's a TVR. The specs almost match up with the Veyron except, you know, it's much lighter. And why is it so much lighter? No complex crumple zones, safety equipment, or electronic nannies to weight you down. But hey, you didn't buy one thinking you were going to live that long anyways.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Cubensis

Car: Dodge Viper SRT10

Why We're Afraid Of It: It'll burn you one way or another. It'll either leave a "Viper tatoo" of charred flesh along your calf as you exit or, if not given the proper respect, out the narrow front windshield. All power and no visibility make this a toy only for the well insured.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Us

Car: Caterham R500

Why We're Afraid Of It: If the Caparo T1 is like driving an F1 car, the Caterham R500 is like driving a motor and not much else. It does 0-to-60 MPH in... NOW. At a hair over 1,100 pounds it's got a power-to-weight ratio of 520 HP-per-ton. Windscreen and heart pills optional.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Arcsine

Car: Any Cobra Replica

Why We're Afraid Of It: Oversteer is a helluva drug. Shops like Factory Five have continued to pour more power into Cobra replicas and, in the name o fidelity to Shelby, not much else. It's basically the best way imaginable to piss your pants.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: VeeArrrSix

Car: Porsche 930

Why We're Afraid Of It: Though it's the best sort of being scared, the original Porsche 911 Turbo was one of the earliest production vehicles to feature turbocharging. With around 400 HP coming out of an engine hanging out the back, the physics of the 930 are questionable and become that much more frightening when you throw in überturbolag. Stay on the throttle and it'll, almost magically, get you around the corner. Lift and you're toast.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Jeb_Hoge

Car: Wienermobile

Why We're Afraid Of It: We enjoy driving the occasional commercial truck, but when you remove the box and throw on an awkward and top-heavy dog-in-bun costume things change a bit. Based on a GMC platform, the latest big Wienermobile is powered by a 300 HP, which is completely manageable. What scares us the most about this particular vehicle is everyone else on the road swerving into us while trying to take video with their cell phone. We hear it's worse than a Bugatti.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: PDQ2

Car: LS-Powered Cars That Aren't LS Cars

Why We're Afraid Of It: Whether LS1 or LS9 not all cars were intended for large, powerful V8 engines. And while throwing out a flat-head six in an old truck and dropping in an LSwhatever feels right, a Corvette-powered Chevy Aveo or Corvair is a proposition only for those without a history of heart problems.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Dmartino

Car: Dodge Caliber SRT4

Why We're Afraid Of It: Sure, 285 Horsepower isn't that much, until you consider it's been put in a vehicle barely designed to handle 100 HP. Buy hey, FWD cars with lots of power isn't necessarily bad, it's why God created differentials... except this doesn't have one. It has a "braking" diff that just hard-brakes one of the wheels on you. It's as comforting as it sounds.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Us one winter in Chicago.

Car: Caparo T1

Why We're Afraid Of It: It's considered the F1 car for the street. We'll reiterate: it's the F1 car for the street. Lots of power, not much weight, limited protection, and it nearly killed Jeremy Clarkson. Where do we sign up?

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Motor_Yakuza

Car: Chrysler Sebring

Why We're Afraid Of It: The Chrysler Sebring Convertible doesn't have half the power most of the cars on this list have, but it feels like it's made of tin, drives like its tires are coated with astroturf, and is so loud with the top down that you're sure death is but a pothole away.

Who Is Most Afraid Of It: Lprice

It's November in Michigan, and that means it's cold and dreary and dark, not the most appealing time to be out driving, but when GM tosses us the keys to it's latest Buick we actually felt a twinge of excitement. Over a Buick. This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's seen the accolades piled atop the Regal's twin the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia. Combined the two identical cars have racked up over thirty awards across Europe and have managed to claim top-seller status.

This is where you replay the last twenty years of General Motors history and put on your skeptic's hat. 'They'll decontent the car, turn the suspension into a squishy mess, the seats will be made of muppet soft cloth and the steering will feel like it's connected to the road through a damp rope.' This is a supposition any healthy car consumer should have, especially regarding a Buick made from an Opel. On all counts however, you'd be wrong.

The Regal in the US is different than the Korean market version in tuning only, it shares 95% of it's parts with the Insignia. Basically the changes come down to different headlights and tail lights per federal requirements, new software in the radio and navigation system, different rear view mirror glass, and all-season tires. They actually improved over the Insignia's NVH requirements, adding sound deadening material in the cabin to make it align with Buick targets.

We drove the European spec Insignia against the Regal and believe it or not, the Regal is better.

We drove Regals equipped with the 2.0 liter turbocharged inline four with both the six-speed automatic and the manual six speed. Off the line the car pulls hard with both the manual and the auto, squealing the tires through first, making use of all 220 HP and 258 lb-ft of torque on the way to a mid-seven second 0-60 MPH time. The transmissions are pretty respectable too, the manual shifts crisply and the engagement point is smooth, gears are well placed to work with the slightly heady engine and spirited driving is downright fun. The six speed auto isn't anything to sneeze at either, passing is a remarkably swift endeavor, it kicks down and away you go, pulling like a mule all the way. Steering under normal and spirited driving has an excellent on-center feel the thick-rimmed tiller has just the right weighty feel under turn-in and the car stays flat through hard sweepers. Potholes and heaves are soaked up though don't completely disappear, the car is tuned fairly stiff for a sporty communicative feel. If there's one thing we can fault in the Regal, it's the steering under hard acceleration, there is a tendency for the wheel to get light and darty, while it's not nightmarish vintage Saab-like torque steer, it's the one thing that could use improvement in the car. Did you catch that? One thing.

Everything about the car is solid, it feels overwhelmingly Germanic in nature. The build quality of the interior is on-par with modern VW's, the seats even look and feel like something out of Germany — firm, supportive, well bolstered and extraordinarily comfortable, they even have extending thigh supports. The leather is extremely high-quality but the cloth seats are nothing to sneeze at either. Buttons have a satisfying damped click, knobs are detented just right. The gauges are clear and communicative and the info center works without complaint. The car comes with all the latest gadgets like Bluetooth, satellite radio, navigation, and other widgets people seem to like. The entire layout is sculptural and quite handsome, though like the Buick LaCrosse, the sculpture results in storage that's somewhat lacking.

While we couldn't find a good place to put our camera and notepad, it didn't matter, just look at the thing, it's gorgeous. The looks which made us simultaneously jealous at the Europeans and furious at General Motors when they announced the Insignia for Europe translate to the Regal virtually unscathed. While following a train of maniac journalists through the twisty roads on the outskirts of Detroit, I regulaly found myself thinking 'Dayum! That's a good lookin' car up there.'

So let's see what we have here; A gorgeous, fun-to-drive, quick, comfortable, well-equipped American sedan built with the quality of its German competitors... and it's a Buick. Who knew?

In J.G. Ballard's 1974 novel Concrete Island, a wealthy man becomes stranded (his Jaguar breaks down, natch) in a fenced-off section of highway overpass. He fills his days much as you'd expect –- he retreats into himself, meets people that don't exist, and generally turns into a raving nutbag.

Was the highway to blame for that guy's freak-out? Given that he was driving an old Jag, probably not. (Crusty Brit iron has been known to rot brains.) But if we were set to go crazy, these ten locations are where we would want it to happen. Nothin' says lost-mind lovin' like the elegant work of the civil engineer.

Photo Credit: Ken Ohyama / Flickr

Hakozaki Interchange, Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway

As cities go, Tokyo is a big one. Thanks to densely packed buildings and a labyrinthine road system, it can seem impossibly complex at ground level. The Hakozaki junction is just one of the town's many Say What? feats of engineering. And yes, it looks like a giant freaking octopus. (Come to think of it, so does I-5.)

Photo Credit: Ken Ohyama / Flickr

Nanpu Bridge, Shanghai

Much like Tokyo, Shanghai is home to some of the world's weirdest architecture. It also plays host to more circular on-ramps than you can shake a stick at. The Nanpu Bridge, completed in 1991, is barely more than a quarter-mile long, but it sports one of the coolest ramps this side of a shark-jumpin' Fonzie. No, you're not seeing things — that's three decks.

Photo Credit: Qiao Da Ye / Flickr

Interstate H-3, O‘ahu

H-3 starts near Pearl Harbor and ends near Marine Corps Base Hawaii, effectively bisecting the southern half of O‘ahu. Planning for the road began in 1960, but construction didn't begin until the late 1980s. When it was completed in 1997, it was derided for being one of the most expensive interstates ever built. ($80 million dollars per mile, for reference.) We don't care. It's gorgeous.

Photo Credit: Seth Ladd / Flickr

Volkswagen Automated Garage, Wolfsburg, Germany

It's twenty stories tall, it houses more cars than you can shake a stick at, and it's smarter than most college students. Volkswagen's automated garage is used during new-car deliveries at the firm's Wolfsburg Autostadt, or "City of Cars." (Think of it as half Disney World, half industrial fantasy.) The garage is 80% smaller than a standard one of similar capacity, but we can't bring ourselves to get excited about numbers — we just want to get in a car and ride the dang thing*.

*Before you ask, no, they don't let you do this. Yet.

Hokko Junction, Hanshin Expressway, Osaka

Yet another piece of Asian beauty masquerading as an ordinary interchange. The Hanshin surrounds the Japanese cities of Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto; if the name sounds familiar, that's probably because an enormous chunk of the allegedly earthquake-proof freeway fell over during the 1995 Kobe 'quake. Thankfully, the Hokko was spared — the drain pipes alone qualify as art.

Photo Credit: Ken Ohyama / Flickr

Plano-Dallas Tollway/President George Bush Turnpike, Texas

It's just elegant, isn't it? There isn't much more to say. (Bumper stickers we wish existed: "Everything is Elegant in Texas;" "Matt Hardigree is an Elegant Man;" "Our Highways Make Your Highways Look Like Sissified Lady Parts.")

Photo Credit: Austrini / Flickr

En-Suite Sky Garages, 200 11th Avenue, New York City

Admit it: You've always wanted a condo in the city where you can park within feet of your couch. Car elevator? Got it. Killer view? Got it. Oil stains tracked into the living room of your umpteenth-floor crib? Of course! (Wait, that kind of sucks.) As far as we know, this isn't the first building of its type, but we're pretty sure it's the first one in the United States, and it's definitely the only one in the greatest city in the world. Booyah.

[200eleventh.com]

Bhumibol Bridge, Bangkok

Thailand is part of Asia, and if you haven't noticed, Asia seems to have a thing for funky, modern roadways. The Bhumibol Bridge in Bangkok is a perfect example — it connects southern Bangkok with the Samut Prakan province, crossing the same river twice. Its two spans are held up by two diamond-shaped pylons, and they meet in the middle at a curving, delicate on-ramp.

Photo Credit: Harald Hopfes / Flickr

Ramp, Chonqinq, China

Most of the time, the simplest approach is the best choice. This double-decker ramp is relatively new, but it arcs through a parklike green space so gracefully that it looks older than dirt. (In case you were wondering, those taxis are waiting to get gas. China looks like a fun place.)

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Fukushima Gate Tower, Hanshin Expressway, Osaka

The Fukushima Gate Tower in Osaka has a highway running through it. Yes: a highway. The building is sixteen stories tall, and it was there before the freeway that passes through its belly. The highway doesn't make contact with the building; it's held up by external supports. (This is apparently how Japanese engineers settle civil arguments: Don't want to move your building? Eat me. I've got a road to build.)

The biggest difference between this 2010 and the old model first introduced in 2007 isn't the power and torque bump (from 500 HP and 480 Lb-Ft to 540 HP and 510 Lb-Ft), but rather the fitment of better suspension and particularly a whiz-bang stability control system that doesn't just make driving the live rear axle muscle car safer, but also much faster.

How does it do that? Not just by controlling wheelspin on the rear axle due to an overly enthusiastic right foot, but also by reigning in understeer. That means you can hold a tighter line in corners which, in turn, means you can go faster.

The system's got three modes: everything on, traction off, and full traction and stability off. It's that middle mode that you'll want to drive the GT500 in most of the time. It allows seven to eight degrees of rear wheel slide before intervening to stop you slamming into a tree. Yes, your ability to posture masculinely on the internet is reduced by admitting you use stability control, but it's just way more fun to drive the car like this. Not only because the car doesn't understeer so much, but also because you're free to really beat on the engine without worrying too much about bodywork repair bills.

Exterior Design: ☆☆☆☆☆
I'm an unrepentant euro car snob, but I love the 2010 ‘Stang's looks and they're even better in aggressive Shelby form. That huge grill, the hood-mounted air outlet, the dark wheels, the functional rear wing with a Gurney lip; all that just exudes menacing purpose. I literally dream about driving the GT500 down desert roads at night, all car commercial style. Now if I could just grow a five o'clock shadow it'd be perfect.

Interior Design: ☆☆☆
Some decent shapes and the huge Sync screen is nice but the interior just doesn't belong in a $48,175 car. The cue ball shifter is cheesy, the polka dot dash inlays are tacky, the seats feel cheap, the flimsy black plastic belongs in a ‘90s economy car. Worst of all, the steering wheel doesn't telescope so, thanks to my 34-inch inseam dictating my seat position, I'm stuck extending my arms fully to reach the steering wheel. This is not only uncomfortable, but is detrimental to car control too. At least the steering column is high enough that my long right leg can clear it for heel and toeing. We'd gladly sacrifice gimmicks like lighted door sills and changeable color clocks for a telescoping wheel. This applies to all Mustangs. Ford, you really have to fix this.

Still, the Mustang has a usable back seat and a big trunk. Can you name another 500+ HP two-door that does the same? Not for this money you can't, it's actually a fairly practical car.

Performance: ☆☆☆☆☆
How's driving a 540 HP Mustang on summer tires in 38-degree rain on winding roads in the Adirondacks? You'd probably guess frightening, sphincter tightening or at least white knuckled but I'm going to go with "fun."

Driving in California in the summer we said the new GT500 could keep up with AWD cars in corners. In these conditions it wouldn't, but it's a hell of a lot more involving. There's just a lot to be said for the feeling you get when you slowly squeeze the accelerator towards the floor out of a wet corner, correct a slide safe in the knowledge computers will take over if things get too crazy, hear the supercharger whine scream louder and louder, grab third then stay flat into fourth and then the hood full of overnight ice flies up onto the windscreen completely blocking your vision as you get close to the 155 MPH speed limiter. You still have to drive the GT500, it just does what you tell it now.

Even on warm, dry, smooth roads the GT500 has a hard time putting its power down completely, hence the somewhat disappointing 4.3-second 0-60 time for a car that weighs 3,917 Lbs, yet has all that torque. In October in New York the Shelby will spin its wheels under power all the way through fourth gear if you're not smooth with the throttle.

Ride and Handling: ☆☆☆☆
For 2010 the GT500 gains firmer springs and stiffer dampers all round. Intended to reduce roll, squat and dive, they enable a thinner front swaybar, spec'd to dial out some more understeer. The steering shaft is also stiffened with stronger couplings. All this transforms the GT500's handling but it remains a relatively unsophisticated setup with front struts and a live axle rear, so it can't work miracles. Handling is improved, but the ride is stiffer. But do you really expect a 540 HP Mustang to ride like a Jaguar?

The previous cars understeer, then snap oversteer has been cured by this arrangement as has its tendency to float around imprecisely rather than behave like a sportscar. Even without the stability control system, this would be a drastically better car to drive, but the system elevates it to an entirely new level. As expected, you're going to have trouble putting your power down on wet, cold, bumpy roads, but now the slides those conditions produce are predictable and controllable.

Toys And Tech: ☆☆☆☆
It's got the latest version of Sync, our favorite sat/nav communication thing operated through a huge eight-inch touchscreen. Unlike OnStar you actually get a map to look at and you don't have to talk to Jimmy Joe Bob from Arkansas in order to get directions somewhere in New York. Even I can connect my phone to for hands free use, but don't tell Ray, "I'm Driving" is my favorite excuse to ignore his calls. Sync and the huge screen alone are worth five stars, but I'm subtracting one because Ford considers MyColor a legitimate Toy on a car designed for adults.

Value: ☆☆☆
Not only is the GT500 the cheapest car you can buy from a major manufacturer with 540 HP, but it's basically the $79,995 2009 Shelby GT500KR for $30,000 less. We like to think of the GT500 as the working man's supercar, but numbers aside, it's not much more fun to drive than the 2010 Mustang GT with the Track Pack, yet costs $18,000 more.

Overall: 80%
Fast, fun, challenging, rewarding, great looking but suffers from the regular Mustang's crappy interior and struggles to offer more than numbers over the cheaper GT. Despite all that, we'd love to own one of these. The Shelby GT500's combination of power, control, practicality and looks is completely unique.

Suitability Parameters: Who Should Buy This?
● Speed Merchants
● NASCAR Dads
● Penny Pinchers shopping for supercars
● Jalopnik Road Test Editors

Suitability Parameters: Who Shouldn't Buy This?
● Poseurs
● Treehuggers
● High Falutin' City Folk

Also Consider:
● Chevy Corvette: better handling, even worse interior, just as fast

● Dodge Challenger SRT/8: a competitor in looks only

● Camaro Z/28 (if/when it happens): All speculation at this point, but if it gets the LS9 it'll be faster

● Mustang GT with Track Pack: just as much fun if quite a bit slower

Vitals:
Model Year: 2010

Make: Ford

Model: Shelby GT500

Trim: N/A

Price, Base/As-Tested: $48,175/$48,175

Engine: 5.4-liter supercharged, 32-valve V8

Horsepower & Torque: 540 HP @ 6,200 RPM, 510 Lb-Ft @ 4,500 RPM

Transmission: 6-speed manual

Curb Weight: 3917 Lbs
0-to-60: 4.3 secs (manufacturer quoted)

Top Speed: 155 MPH (limited) 
Crash Testing, Front/Rear/Side: *****/*****/*****

Fuel Economy, EPA: 14/22 MPG

We'll admit to a perverse lust for the Morgan Aero 8 so any time we get to run pics of that car for any reason is a plus, however, the other cars on created in this set aren't too shabby either. They're the handiwork of Mark Brown and Marc Cameron at Se7en Magazine, and we think they did a great job creating some of the most iconic cars on the road these days. Surprising they didn't make a Se7en.

Light Graffiti Cars

When the worlds of art and cars come together, they can generate some truly beautiful output - evident in the BMW Art Cars created by the likes of Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and Olafur Eliasson. Now the work of light graffiti photographer Mark Brown is set to reinforce this ideology, by demonstrating just how amazing iconic cars can look when recreated using in light graffiti.

The brainchild of project manager Marc Cameron (owner of Se7enmagazine.com) and brought to reality by Brown, Light Graffiti Cars is a series of images of iconic cars created using light graffiti.

The popularity of light graffiti has been on the rise over the past couple of years, with the groundbreaking work of the brilliant Michael Bosanko, Patrick Rochon, and Lichtfaktor bringing to light this truly wonderful and magical art form. Even the X Factor is now trying to get in on the act with the light dancing ads shown just before and after the commercial breaks.

"Mark and I both studied photography at the same university, and we were introduced by our former lecturer," says Marc Cameron.

"I instantly found Mark's images of light graffiti - shot against rural backgrounds - truly breathtaking, and it left me thinking about the range of possibilities for this emerging art form. As a massive fan of cars, I came up with the idea of capturing iconic motors in light graffiti, and Mark's images are the manifestation of this concept."

"Using an original technique of light painting I aimed to create simplified graphic versions of each of these classic shapes. The timeless, current and forward thinking design of each model has made creating these representations a massively inspiring experience," says Mark Brown.

"Choosing cars with eye-catching style and innovative design, I was able to construct images that capture the clean lines in each concept. The Iconic design of such models as the classic VW camper Van and Beetle to the equally iconic, but more modern styling of the Audi R8, the Morgan Aero and many more are works of art in their own right so lend themselves very well to this type of imagery. Every design that I have chosen, in my eyes, lives to be viewed."

We're hoping to raise interest in the possibility of featuring these images in either a leading photography show or a calendar.

For further information about Mark Brown's work visit: www.markbrownphotography.co.uk/

[Se7en Magazine]

(We're taking a step back from 500 HP Week to bring you a timely first drive of a new vehicle. Sorry, these damn automakers are always messing with our timelines. — Ed.)

No, you're not seeing things –- that's a Mitsubishi Lancer's snout tacked onto the nose of a seven-passenger truck. This is the 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander. Do not adjust your screen.

We know what you're thinking: That is one big nose job.

In the industry, this sort of thing is known as a mid-cycle face-lift, a planned rejuvenation that occurs roughly halfway through a vehicle's production life. In these face-lifts, cosmetic updates are usually paired with a handful of mechanical and electronic refinements; the goal is to give sales a small boost and retain interest in the model until its replacement is ready for sale.

But enough with the background. We mention all of the above only so we can tell you this: Rarely is a face-lift this extreme. In one fell swoop, the Outlander has made the jump from relative nonexistence to something else entirely, something both polarizing and compelling. (Go ahead: Try and remember what the 2005-2009 Outlander's nose looks like. Five bucks says you can't.) It's like John Travolta's shift in Pulp Fiction –- at some point during that dance with Uma Thurman, Vinnie Barbarino began to matter again. And somehow, by borrowing a face, Japan's most anonymous SUV became interesting.

Also, Mitsubishi gave it an updated interior, the aforementioned differential, and ten more horsepower. We have thoughts on all of this.

Exterior Design ☆☆☆☆

This is one of those things that's entirely up to taste. The last Outlander suffered from anodyne looks and a wallflower vibe that encouraged parking valets to mistake it for a turkey sandwich. The truck you see here is as extroverted as its predecessor was sleepy; the gaping hole in its maw is either a killer shout-out to the Evo's rally heritage or a tribute to the everlasting glory of the Mississippi River catfish. We like it, but we also like bourbon milkshakes and playing the music of John Philips Sousa very loudly at three o'clock in the morning. We acknowledge that such things are not for everyone. Your call.

Interior Design ☆☆☆

Excellent use of space. A mix of above-average and below-average materials. (On a recent press launch, a certain journalist accidentally scratched the bejesus out of an Outlander's dash by simply skittering his fingernails across it. Diamond-like fingernails, or an interior in need of slightly more attention to detail? You be the judge.)

The Outlander's interior has the same refreshing sparseness and black-coffee simplicity found in all current Mitsubishis; things are occasionally boomy over rough pavement, but the thin pillars and good visibility prompt you to throw the truck around in ways that you probably shouldn't. The thickly bolstered front seats may not suit the girthier folk of middle America, but they hold you remarkably well when dropping into seemingly bottomless off-camber turns with one wheel in the air. (Not that we would know.)

Performance ☆☆☆

Make no mistake: There's no Evo firecracker under the Outlander's hood. Mitsubishi's 230-hp, 3.0-liter V-6 lives in the GT's scowling snout, and while it's competent and smooth, it's by no means overly potent. As with the old Outlander, the standard 6-speed automatic — intuitive and quick to respond to a prod of the shifter or the column-mounted paddles — is the best part of the package. (Interesting question: Would we take an Evo drivetrain if it were available? Sure, even though it would probably send the Outlander's sticker price through the roof. But we doubt that anyone else would want one.)

Ride and Handling ☆☆☆☆

Handling is the Outlander's main party trick — it's blessed with decent steering feel and a suspension just sharp enough to be handy in the hills. The Super All-Wheel Control business is Japanese embroidery for the electronically controlled front differential; it shuffles torque between the front wheels when it senses wheelspin, but most people won't notice it in action. (The "Tarmac/Snow" setting on the console knob simply modifies how aggressively the system does its job.)

All told, the end result is something that sneaks up on you. The Outlander will hustle down a country road or blaze down a freeway with surprising speed, but it doesn't have any interest in throwing its talents in your face.

Toys and Tech ☆☆

Items of note: a 710-watt Rockford Fosgate stereo with a ten-inch subwoofer in the trunk; a sunroof; an optional navigation system. The stereo can store songs on its internal hard drive, and there are iPod and video jacks in the center console. Given the price point, this is a respectable, but not remarkable, amount of icing.

Value ☆☆☆

At $29,990, the Outlander GT is almost three grand more than the base Outlander ($27,130). Neither is a bargain, and both feel a bit too expensive for what they are. It's kind of like eating out in California if you're from the Midwest –- the food is generally pretty good, but you can't shake the feeling that there's a better deal just down the street.

Overall: 76%

A good SUV, but not a great one. That said, the GT is a more well-rounded truck than the base Outlander, and it's definitely worth paying a premium for. On top of that, the competition — specifically, the offerings from Nissan, Hyundai, and Ford – isn't anywhere near as much fun to drive. This is what you buy if you have to have a mid-size crossover and don't want to spend a lot or drive an appliance. It'd be nice if both this and the regular Outlander were a bit cheaper, but you can't have everything.

Suitability Parameters: Who Should Buy This?

● Tuner Crowd
● Soccer Moms
● Rally Freaks who breed

Suitability Parameters: Who Shouldn't Buy This?

● Penny Pinchers
● Speed Merchants
● Treehuggers
● People who think the Mercury Mariner handles just fine

Also Consider:

● Ford Escape
● Honda CR-V
● Mazda CX-7
● Nissan Rogue

Vitals:

Model Year: 2010
Make: Mitsubishi
Model: Outlander
Trim: GT
Price, Base/As Tested: $29,990/$29,990
Engine: 3.0-liter SOHC V-6
Horsepower & Torque: 230 hp @ 6250 rpm/215 lb-ft @ 3750 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Curb Weight: 3860 pounds
0-to-60: 7.5 sec (est.)
Top Speed: n/a
Crash Testing, Front/Rear/Side: n/a
Fuel Economy (EPA): 18/24 mpg

This is for those of you who think that modern machinery is dull, that there isn't anything out there worth pawning a kidney for. We're talking series-production stuff here; microscopic manufacturers need not apply. Hang onto your valuables and leave all sharp objects at the door. These engines is nuts.

Mercedes-Benz AMG 6.2-liter V-8 (C63 only)

What: 6.2-liter, DOHC, 32-valve V-8. Aluminum block, aluminum heads. 451 hp @ 6800 rpm; 443 lb-ft @ 5000 rpm.

Why: Because it crackles and snorts at idle. Because it will actually pop and spit on overrun if you toe in a little bit of throttle. Because it sounds like a cross between the pits at Englishtown and a DTM car that wants to break your face. Stuttgart sticks this engine in almost everything it builds, but it's somehow louder, angrier, and coarser in the C63 than it is anywhere else. A diabolical V-8 built by crack-smoking German engineers with a fetish for good hamburgers and the music of Glenn Danzig.

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: Wonder how much more awesome Talladega would be with a touch of balls-out blitzkrieg.

Photo Credit: The Car Spy / Flickr

Cadillac 6.2-liter "LSA" V-8 (CTS-V)

What: 6.2-liter, 16-valve V-8. Iron block, aluminum heads. 556 hp @ 6100 rpm; 551 lb-ft @ 3800 rpm.

Why: It's big, it's has pushrods and a supercharger, and it's in a Cadillac. (A Cadillac, people.) It pulls until Christmas and doesn't seem to care that it's hauling around four doors and a dairy farm's worth of leather. As a factory-backed, 100,000-mile-durable proposition, the LSA is nuts. Between a CTS's front fenders, it's undiluted madness.

(Those things on the left? Those are the blower rotors. They're art. When was the last time anything in a Cadillac's engine bay qualified as art?)

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: Throw away any and all doubt you have about the talent of Detroit's engineers. Look up the word "whompy" in the dictionary. Giggle.

Porsche 3.8-liter H-6 (911 GT3 only)

What: 3.8-liter, DOHC, 24-valve flat six. Aluminum crankcase, cylinder jugs, and heads. 435 hp @ 7600 rpm; 317 lb-ft at 6250 rpm.

Why: The movie Le Mans, that's why. Or maybe the titanium connecting rods, the seven oil pumps, and the fact that it sounds exactly like a 2.7-liter Carrera RS sounds in your head. (Hint: It's hollow and made almost entirely of love.) This is the heritage freak-out, the motorsport-focused mill that revs to the moon and produces all of its power at the north end of the tach. Words don't do it justice, except to say that there is no earthly reason why a modern engine should sound this wonderful, be this single-minded, and be available to ordinary men.

See that jumbled mass of plumbing over there? We used that snoozy picture for a reason: Like most modern Porsche powerplants, the GT3's six looks like little more than a horny water heater. Never judge a book by its cover.

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: Instantly conclude that your entire life has been a complete waste of time. (Did you design this thing? I don't think so. Go twiddle your thumbs, Bunkenheimer.) Deutschland über your mother.

Ferrari 4.3-liter V-8 (F430 Scuderia/Scuderia Spider 16M)

What: 4.3-liter, DOHC, 32-valve V-8. Aluminum block and heads. 503 hp @ 8500 rpm; 347 @ 5250 rpm.

Why: It's a Ferrari V-8. More specifically, it's an F430's flat-crank V-8 with higher compression and higher output. It's busy, it's nervous, and in Scuderia/16M tune — especially in the roofless 16M, where the yowl is loud enough to liquefy your eyeballs — it wants to crack your skull open and dry-hump your gray matter.

Remember that noise from Animal Planet, the one that cheetahs make when they're about to leap into a pack of running gazelles? Speed that up, bump up the pitch, and play it through a speaker the size of the Chrysler Building. Nothing built by human hands should sound this unhinged.

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: Get pregnant. Even — wait, no, especially — if you're not a woman. (You're essentially driving undiluted sex. What did you expect?)

Anything They Put In The Ariel Atom

What: Depending on where and when you bought it, anything from a Honda K20A four-cylinder to a 3.0-liter, 500-hp V-8.

Why: The engine's main air intake is literally five inches behind your ear. When you stab the throttle in an Atom, your brain gets sucked down that duct and spit into next Tuesday. If you're wearing a helmet, you'll probably be OK; if not, you'll wake up naked and carless in the Falklands wondering why your tongue hurts. (Lesson? Whatever you do, don't screw with the Brits.)

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: Go deaf. Whirring, whistling, sucking, screaming, agony-of-Armageddon deaf. Loud doesn't even begin to describe it.

RUNNER-UP: Lexus 4.8-liter V-10 (LFA)

What: 4.8-liter, DOHC, 40-valve V-10. Aluminum block and heads. 553 hp @ 8700 rpm; 354 lb-ft @ 6800 rpm.

Why: Lexus is trying to reinvent itself, and nothing screams reinvent like a supercar with a weight-obsessed design team and a set of hydraulic shift paddles. This from the company that gave the world the Camry Hybrid. Anything that goes under the LFA's hood is crazy on principle, much less a V-10.

Thing You Will Do The First Time You Floor It: We're not quite sure, largely because Wes is the only one who's driven it. He communicates in a language all his own. (Much like the Burger King chicken fry, Siler is a mystery to modern science. Also, he wears tight pants. You can't trust anybody in tight pants.)

Despite its horrendous brake overheating issues, Jaguar is a brand that we desperately want to love. It's got the history, it's got the personality and it's getting better and better products. Sadly, those products still lack the completeness of those from better funded rivals like BMW and Mercedes. Maybe it's our fault for going into each new Jaguar hoping to find a car that's genuinely competitive, but whatever the reason, we walk away from each successive product underwhelmed. That's exactly the word we used to describe the 2008 Jaguar XKR after finding that it didn't handle with even an ounce of precision, had an automatic gearbox that refused to do what it was told and an interior that was partially amazing hand-stitched leather and partially parts sourced from a 1990s Ford Fiesta. It was fast though, the 420 HP supercharged 4.2-liter V8 was enough to spin the rear wheels up virtually everywhere.

So what's new for 2010? A sharper looking front bumper, LED taillights, different lower valance on the rear, body-color side vents, nicer leather door trim, a new steering wheel with a leather bottom spoke, the rotary drive selector from the XF operating a six-speed ZF automatic gearbox, an active limited-slip differential and continuously variable electronic shocks. So not a huge change except for the last and most important thing, the 510 HP, 461 Lb-Ft, 5.0-liter supercharged V8.

Did Jaguar just put a bigger engine in a car that didn't need more power to make up for all its other flaws? Yes. Yes it did.

Exterior Design: ☆☆☆

It's not like the 2010 XKR isn't a handsome car, it is, but the changes amount to very little and don't alter the boring headlights, the awkward front bumper (thank you pedestrian crash test regulations) with its distinct horizontal hood shut line or the impractical proportions. The XKR is a huge car outside, yet tiny on the inside.

The low roof-line means the top of my head sticks out over the top of the windscreen, making me look like a circus clown and forcing me to hunch down to see forwards. Dropping the top cures the horrendous rear 3/4 blindspots, but its inevitably going to rain sometime and when it does, if you don't want to get wet, that means you're not going to be able to change lanes confident in the knowledge that a car is 100% not next to you.

Interior Design: ☆☆

Despite the lack of vision while up, the XKR Convertible has convinced us that fabric convertible roofs are far superior to folding hard tops. It takes up only a tiny space in the trunk and is dead quiet while shut. It's even lined in nice material, creating the illusion that it's a real roof over your head.
Other than the rotary gear selector, which we're learning to like if only for its novelty (it brings no functional benefit over a standard selector, but does clean up the center console), the interior appears virtually unaltered over the old car. I guess there is the single leather-wrapped steering wheel spoke, but that leaves two nasty painted plastic spokes which just happen to be the ones you'll actually be touching.

Forgive me for going on a little bit of a rant here. Silver-painted plastic is possibly the worst material a luxury car maker could be using in a material right now, it's evocative of cheap, shitty phones and happy snap digicams from 1998. Consumer electronics have moved on to glass, metal and piano black, why can't cars? You'll find that horrible material not only on the steering wheel, but also on the door-mounted seat controls and on the controls for the sat/nav stereo and HVAC. Those are all parts you'll be looking at and touching regularly.

Elsewhere in the interior, things are much, much, much better with classy piano black taking a cue from iPhones and looking super nice. The contrast stitched leather used on the dash and seats is dreamy. It's also used on the rear seats, which appear to be there for no reason other than to hold shopping bags. There's probably better shopping bag storage solutions than pretend seats complete with seatbelts, but Jaguar must be hoping to really cash in on that doll collectors market.

Performance: ☆☆☆☆

Giving the XKR four stars is hard for me. It has probably the ultimate fast luxury car engine, but makes using it frustrating with an awkward gearbox. Developing its maximum torque of 461 Lb-Ft at just 2,500 RPM, you can safely apply every cliched auto journalist hyperbolic metaphor to its performance. It accelerates to 60 in a stump pulling 4.0 seconds. It rockets towards the horizon like a Saturn V. It does all that while delivering smoothness, refinement and a uniquely crisp exhaust note all Jaguar's own. We haven't driven this motor alongside the stronger LSA in the CTS-V, but we think we'd take the Jaguar's simply for its smoothness. The transition from cruising to light speed takes only a wiggle of your big toe, while plaid is delivered any time you plant your foot. It's a Druish miracle that I'm not writing this from a jail cell after playing with the car all over Brooklyn.

BMW take note, this Jaguar V8 makes all your torque-free M-car engines look limp wristed in comparison.

Thanks to that active differential, the XKR's ability to put its power down without wheelspin is now drastically improved, but unfortunately for your tire budget, Jaguar upped the power so much that it overcomes that newfound traction. That's part of the reason it can be so frustrating to try and tap into the performance, but the other is the gearbox.

Try to take off from a stoplight quickly in manual mode and you'll hook up pretty well in first, but when you grab second with the cheap plastic paddle, there's a good two-second delay between selection and engagement, spoiling what little fun you can have at low speeds. Much less powerful cars will easily beat you when the road slims down to one lane on the other side of an intersection. That shouldn't happen in a 510 HP 2+2. Things are much more predictable in automatic mode. The previous car's tendency to shift down two gears at unpredictable points in the throttle travel has been cured, probably by the plethora of torque making downshifts unnecessary, but when it does shift it's intrusively clunky. In Sport or Manual, it's difficult to come to a smooth halt with the shift into first coming with a pronounced jerk.

Combining a powerful engine with an auto transmission isn't necessarily a recipe for performance disaster, as proved by another small, troubled car manufacturer with the 2009 Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT S.

The brakes are powerful, easily modulated and, surprisingly, I couldn't convince them to fade.

Ride: ☆☆☆☆

The constantly variable dampers can be firmed up by selecting Competitive Mode, but they're always on the firm side of comfortable when you're cruising and on the soft side of taught when you're hauling ass. Luckily, they're bolted to a very strong aluminum frame so there's no scuttle shake even while tackling the East Coast's most challenging off-road course, the BQE.

Toys and Tech: ☆☆

Other than the rotary gear knob, there's nothing new to play with in the Jaguar's interior. We should probably count the 525-watt Bowers & Wilkins stereo as a toy, but you'll have to use it through Jag's horribly obtuse touch-screen interface and won't be able to hear it with the top down and the engine working and your head sticking out over the top of the windscreen anyways.

Value: ☆☆☆

The $102,000 XKR is cheaper than a $107,900 BMW M6 or a $135,000 Mercedes SL63, but cheaper cars do a better job of both performance and luxury, most notably the $88,800 Porsche 911 Convertible.

Overall: 60%

Does the new engine transform the XKR into an entirely different car? Surprisingly yes it does. But, it's an entirely different car with the same old problems. Very fast, pretty nice looking, fundamentally flawed. Thanks to the amazing new engine we're no longer underwhelmed with Jag's flagship, we're just frustrated that its still not able to live up to its now greater potential.

Suitability Parameters: Who Should Buy This?

● Poseurs
● Very Serious Businessmen
● Girlfriends of Sheiklets
● Jews who won't buy German
● Men who want handjobs

Suitability Parameters: Who Shouldn't Buy This?

● Penny Pinchers
● Speed Merchants
● Men with bald spots

Also Consider

● BMW M6 Convertible: torque-free engine, better handling, real back seats
● Mercedes SL63 AMG: just as fast, more fun to drive, bad image
● Porsche 911 Convertible: slower, yet way more fun
● Audi R8 Convertible: gorgeous, fast, fun, capable

Vitals:

Model Year: 2010
Make: Jaguar
Model: XKR Convertible
Trim: base w/20" wheels
Price, Base/As-Tested: $102,000 / $108,000
Engine: Supercharged, 32-valve, 5,000cc V8
Horsepower & Torque: 510 HP @ 6,00 RPM, 461 Lb-Ft @ 2,500 RPM
Transmission: 6-speed slushbox
Curb Weight: 4,079 Lbs
0-to-60: 4.0 secs (estimated)
Top Speed: 155 MPH (limited)
Crash Testing, Front/Rear/Side: not tested
Fuel Economy, EPA: 15 MPG City / 22 MPG Hwy

Well, Russ didn't actually say that. He's too nice to say something like that. But, what he does say seems to refute Toyota's inference that IIHS selectively choose certain vehicles for testing and the insinuation that the IIHS was trying to mislead the public by only selecting three cars to fail an "extreme" test. Russ tells us

"Toyota was notified in January that roof strength would be a new test. The IIHS asked automakers to flag any vehicles they'd like to have included. Toyota had plenty of opportunity to flag other Toyota, Lexus or Scion models — including being present at roof strength tests at the IIHS facility — but choose not to. So IIHS assumed that there were no models that met the new guidelines. If there are other vehicles Toyota would want to include they were able to submit them at that time or at any time in the process — including right now."

So basically, bring it Toyota, don't sing it.

This doesn't refute Toyota's other contention that the new test is "extreme." As we said before, we're not sure whether or not the new roof-crush test is extreme, but we will point out again that not only did other automakers have vehicles that passed it, but the 'yota Camry passed it as well. We'll also reiterate we're not sure how far the argument of "it was too hard" will go with consumers and the general public.

Toyota would probably do more to show it stands by their vehicles ability to pass this new roof-crush test by flagging their entire lineup to allow the IIHS to test it. Unless, of course, they know the vehicles won't pass — which, in essence, proves the IIHS point.

Toyota's claiming the roof crush test — only applied to three Toyotas — the RAV4, Camry and Yaris — is harder than federal standards:

"This is the first year IIHS has included its own roof strength tests, which exceed federal standards, for TSP consideration. All Toyota vehicles meet or exceed Federal Safety Standards for frontal and side impact, roof crush resistance and rollover protection."

So, let's get this straight: you're upset because your cars don't meet a tougher standard than the federal guidelines — a standard other automakers are capable of meeting — and you expect the consumer to accept that argument? Really? Seriously?

But wait, there's also the fact that the Camry actually passed this much more difficult roof crash test. So why didn't the mid-size get a Top Safety Pick? Well, because, as the IIHS said in their press release late last night,

"The midsize Toyota Camry would have qualified with good ratings, except for its rear crash evaluation. This car's seats and head restraints are rated marginal for protection against whiplash injury. A change to good would have earned the Camry a Top Safety Pick for 2010."

Where's Toyota's explanation for why the Camry failed to garner a Top Safety Pick this year? It certainly wasn't the more-stringent roof crush test.

Full response from Toyota below:

2010 IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards Tells Just Part of the Story

On November 18, 2009, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) issued a news release headlined: "27 Winners of 2010 Top Safety Pick Award." Within the release, IIHS states: "Missing the mark: Not a single model from the world's biggest automaker by sales is represented among this year's winners. Toyota and its Lexus and Scion subsidiaries had a strong showing in 2009 with 11 winners but were shut out for 2010."

Toyota is confident its vehicles are among the safest on the road today and is committed to the highest levels of vehicle safety and quality.

In 2009, Toyota won more IIHS Top Safety Pick (TSP) awards than any other manufacturer. Toyota continues to improve vehicle passive and active safety, including improvement of past winners of IIHS TSP.

IIHS' statement that Toyota was shut out for 2010 is extreme and misleading, considering there are 38 Toyota, Lexus and Scion models, and only three were tested for roof strength by IIHS: Camry, RAV4 and Yaris.

This is the first year IIHS has included its own roof strength tests, which exceed federal standards, for TSP consideration. All Toyota vehicles meet or exceed Federal Safety Standards for frontal and side impact, roof crush resistance and rollover protection.

While passive collision protection is very important, Toyota also provides an array of active, passive, pre-collision and collision avoidance features. The "Star Safety System" is standard equipment on all Toyota and Lexus models.

The Insurance Institute's ratings are one of many vehicle safety and quality metrics.

Irv Miller
Group Vice President, Environmental and Public Affairs
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.

The laconic Finn’s premature exit was the talk of the sport for most of the year, especially after Ferrari’s 2009 car turned out to be quite a dud. Nowhere was Räikkönen’s indifference more stark than at the Malaysian Grand Prix, where during a break forced by torrential rain, he wandered about the pits with a bar of ice cream instead of remaining by his racing car:

Räikkönen was forced to leave Ferrari at the end of the season to make way for Fernando Alonso. There were talks with Toyota, hampered by Räikkönen’s high price and ultimately by Toyota’s exit from Formula One, then there were talks with his former team McLaren, which fell through. One has to wonder whether Räikkönen’s exorbitant salary demands—rumored to be close to $50 million, very much not in synch with his performance over the last two seasons—were a deliberate move on his part to ease his exit from the sport.

Going where many Finn have gone before, Räikkönen is set to continue his career in rallying. He has, in fact, already debuted in the World Rally Championship: Räikkönen drove a Super 2000 class Fiat Grande Punto Abarth for Tommi Mäkinen Racing at this year’s Rally Finland in August.

He leaves the sport after nine seasons, with occasional displays of devastating speed and a lucky world championship in 2007, when he exploited the rivalry between McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton and the hubris of the latter to beat both at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix, claiming the title which had eluded him at McLaren.

Photo Credit: Mark Thompson/Getty Images, Massimo Bettiol/Getty Images

Though BMW and Toyota aren't the only major automaker to not make the list of 27 vehicles, they're the most notable considering Chrysler managed to get four vehicles on the list and Volvo managed the same despite having belts on their XC60 disengage in a side-crash.

Click on the thumbs in this gallery and you can see the full list of IIHS-ordained cars in each category. For the most part, it's a sign of the cars you're least likely to want to drive. For instance, they explicitly exclude the WRX and SI versions of the Impreza and Civic.

Large Cars:
Buick LaCrosse
Ford Taurus
Lincoln MKS
Volvo S80

Midsize Cars:
Audi A3
Chevrolet Malibu built after October 2009
Chrysler Sebring 4-door with optional electronic stability control
Dodge Avenger with optional electronic stability control
Mercedes C class
Subaru Legacy
Subaru Outback
Volkswagen Jetta sedan
Volkswagen Passat sedan
Volvo C30

Small Cars
Honda Civic 4-door models (except Si) with optional electronic stability control
Kia Soul
Nissan Cube
Subaru Impreza except WRX
Volkswagen Golf 4-door

Midsize SUVs
Dodge Journey
Subaru Tribeca
Volvo XC60
Volvo XC90

Small SUVs
Honda Element
Jeep Patriot with optional side torso airbags
Subaru Forester
Volkswagen Tiguan

View Larger MapLook up and you'll see the splattering above the house on Milner Road. [Google Maps via Geekologie]

Mercedes-Benz have been racing cars for over a century now, but since 1955, they have been doing it in disguise: as AMG, as Sauber, as McLaren.

This is set to chance in 2010: Brawn GP will become Mercedes-Benz’s factory team as Mercedes Grand Prix.

The new team, headed by Ross Brawn, will have quite a history to match. The most famous Mercedes-Benz racing cars are the Silver Arrows, named for their unpainted aluminum bodies: two groups of cars which competed in the 30s and the 50s and won most of the races they were entered in.

Here they are.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W25
Year: 1934–1936
Engine: 3.3-liter straight-8
Power: 354 HP
Claim to fame: The first Silver Arrow

The rise of Mercedes-Benz’s grand prix team paralleled the Nazis’ ascent to power in Germany. After Adolf Hitler became Germany’s chancellor, he was approached by a Daimler-Benz executive and they agreed to a deal where the German state would sponsor the Mercedes-Benz racing team, which was then in deep financial trouble. There is dispute about the precise amount of sponsorship, with various sources pegging it between 10% and 40% of expenses.

The W25 was created for the 750-kilo formula: cars could weigh no more than 1650 pounds. It is not precisely clear how they lost their German racing white to became silver, but the most widely quoted story is that team manager Alfred Neubauer and driver Manfred von Brauchitsch devised the scheme to strip the car of its paint to squeeze it below weight regulations.

In any case, after early teething problems were overcome, it was a very successful car, winning many races in 1934 and taking the 1935 European Grand Prix Championship for Rudolf Caracciola. In its last year, it was eclipsed by Auto Union’s Type C, driven by Bernd Rosemeyer.

Like every Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrow which would follow, the W25 had a supercharged engine which emitted a characteristic whistle under acceleration. If you’re interested, Jenson Button drove it at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, where I captured the whistling on video.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W125
Year: 1937
Engine: 5.6-liter straight-8
Power: 646 HP (← not a typo)
Claim to fame: Most powerful Grand Prix for decades

The W125 was supposed to be a stopgap for the 1937 season, before new rules for 1938 would come into effect, but what a stopgap it’s turned out to be! Developed by young engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut, who could drive it on the Nürburgring at race speeds, it rectified the W25’s handling problems and received an engine which would not be matched for power until Can-Am cars became truly mad, a good three decades later.

Rudolf Caracciola used the W125 to retake his European Grand Prix Championship title from Bernd Rosemeyer. As displacement rules changed for 1938, the car was retired after its single successful season.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W125 Streamliner
Year: 1937
Engine: 5.6-liter straight-8
Power: 646 HP
Claim to fame: Won fastest ever Grand Prix race

This was a version of the W125 entered for the ludicrous AVUS race, held on two straight stretches of Autobahn with banked corners to connect them. The cars reached speeds of 240 MPH on the straights. Hermann Lang, who won the race in the car pictured, described the sensation as more akin to airplane acrobatics than auto racing.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W125 Rekordwagen
Year: 1938
Engine: 5.5-liter V12
Power: 736 HP
Claim to fame: Holds land speed record on public road

Mercedes-Benz also used the W125 to run speed records attempts on Germany’s newly built Autobahns. On a January morning in 1938, Rudolf Caracciola drove this W125 at 268 MPH on a measured mile between Frankfurt and Darmstadt. To this day, it remains the highest speed ever achieved on a public road. Caracciola would describe the experience of running under overpasses at such speeds as trying very hard to stick a piece of thread through an eye of a needle.

This image is also testament to the troubled relationship Mercedes-Benz has with its past, where great racing success happened to coincide with Nazi power. Look close and you’ll see a swastika airbrushed into moderate oblivion on the driver’s headrest.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W154
Year: 1938–1939
Engine: 3-liter V12
Power: 425 HP
Claim to fame: Beat Auto Union

For 1938, Mercedes-Benz designed a brand-new car, in keeping with the new regulations, which limited displacement to three liters. The resulting W154 was a low-slung technological marvel, running on a mixture of methyl alcohol, nitrobenzene, acetone and sulfuric ether, a gallon of which would propel it for a mere 2.8 miles. Auto Union’s rival Type D was no match for it, and Rudolf Caracciola used the car to take his third and last European grand prix crown.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W165
Year: 1939
Engine: 1.5-liter V8
Power: 254 HP
Claim to fame: Took revenge on sneaky Italians

In the 1920s and 1930s, Tripoli—the Libyan capital, then part of an Italian colony—was host to a glamorous grand prix with high prices. By colonial tradition, it was an Italian home race. Following Hermann Lang’s back-to-back wins in 1937 and 1938 for Mercedes-Benz, the Italians suddenly changed the rules to allow only 1.5-liter cars for the 1939 years—cars which Alfa Romeo and Maserati, as opposed to Mercedes-Benz, happened to possess.

With only 8 months to go, Mercedes-Benz had their work cut out for them. A skunk works was formed, which took the 3-liter W154 and downsized it for Tripoli, finishing the car just in time. Hermann Lang didn’t waste the opportunity and rounded out his hat trick of Tripoli titles to the Italians’ great irritation.

Four months later, Europe was at war and motor racing came to a halt.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: W196 Type Monza
Year: 1954
Engine: 2.5-liter straight-8
Power: 257 HP
Claim to fame: Returned Mercedes-Benz to Grand Prix racing in high style

Barely a decade after World War Two, the Mercedes-Benz team was back in action. Team manager Alfred Neubauer and engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut returned to lead a new team, luring Maserati’s world champion Juan Manuel Fangio to drive their new car, the W196. The team debuted at the 1954 French Grand Prix, where they proceeded to take a 1–2 win.

The streamlined body was good for high-speed tracks like Rheims and Monza but unsuitable for most other circuits. After two races, Mercedes-Benz dropped the streamliner and introduced an open wheel version of the W196 which was used for the rest of their time in Formula One.

Photo Credit: Louis Klemantaski

Name: W196
Year: 1954–1955
Engine: 2.5-liter straight-8
Power: 257–290 HP
Claim to fame: Won back-to-back Formula One World Championships

The W196 was one of the most successful cars ever constructed for Formula One. It debuted and exited with a victory and won a total of 9 races between the 1954 French Grand Prix and the 1955 Italian Grand Prix. During that period, it was only beaten three times.

Of those nine wins, eight went to Juan Manuel Fangio and one to Stirling Moss.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: 300SLR
Year: 1955
Engine: 3-liter straight-8
Power: 310 HP
Claim to fame: Won World Sportscar Championship

You probably know this car already! The 300SLR was a two-seater version of the W196, with the engine enlarged to three liters. In 1955, Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson drove it to an incredible victory at the Mille Miglia, averaging 100 MPH over one thousand miles of Italian public road, a record which still stands.

The 300SLR also won the RAC Tourist Trophy and the Targa Florio, which was enough to beat Ferrari for the 1955 World Sportscar Championship title.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: 300SLR, Le Mans version
Year: 1955
Engine: 3-liter straight-8
Power: 310 HP
Claim to fame: Killed 85 people, caused Mercedes-Benz to withdraw from motorsports

On June 11, 1955, it went all wrong for Mercedes-Benz. Running a customized high speed version of the 300SLR in Le Mans against the Jaguar D-Types, Pierre Levegh’s 300SLR catapulted into the air and slammed headfirst into a wall of spectators, killing scores. The car was made of a highly flammable magnesium alloy called Elektron, which did not help things. The burned-out husk you see on the picture is what remained of Levegh’s car.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

Name: 300SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé
Year: 1955
Engine: 3-liter straight-8
Power: 310 HP
Claim to fame: Fastest road car of the 1950s

Had Mercedes-Benz not retired at the end of the 1955 season, this is the car they would have raced at Le Mans. A coupé version of the 300SLR race car, it was instead used by Rudolf Uhlenhaut as his daily driver. The car could run at 170 MPH on the public road, which Uhlenhaut, a driver of almost Formula One quality, exploited to the last drop.

As the 300SLR itself was based on the W196 Formula One car, a way to imagine its devastating speed would be to install a canopy on Jenson Button’s championship-winning BGP–001 and use it as a daily driver.

New Formula One cars are usually introduced in January, so expect the next Silver Arrow to crop up sometime in January 2010. We’ll be here to tell you all about it.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz

The initial reports from the scene raised some eyebrows when the driver reportedly said the crash was the fault of a "low-flying pelican." The video seems to indicate otherwise. Or does it? JCwhitless thinks he's found it:

On behalf of fairness, the film clearly shows the bird being killed.

Please refrain from throwing the guy under the bus as the Pelican has already been thrown under the Bugatti.

Although the pelican's a compelling argument, especially with the frame-by-frame screen grab, but Christopher Schull disagrees:

The only thing clearly established is JCWhitless has a vivid imagination and is willing to present it as factual. It is laughable to say a pelican can "clearly" be seen anywhere near the front of that car at any point in the video. It just didn't happen. I truly hope JCWhitless is never called on as a witness for anything that matters.

I live right down the road from that spot and I went there this morning. The object in the first square of the picture he posted is trash on the side of the road, looks like one piece due to the point of view which is a few hundred feet before the second image. In reality it is two pieces one right behind the other from that angle.

The objects in the second square is the same two pieces of trash but viewed further down the road nearly next to them. You can see the seperation and the way they are laying that from the other view they could appear as one.

There was no bird. I video taped the scene and the two pieces of trash are obvious, no dead bird to be found and as flat and open as the road is (no shoulder drop off at all even) it is ridiculous to believe anything other than the guy gently steered the car right into the water. I will post the video of the scene on YouTube if needed.

Coming back from Galveston on I-45 this section of feeder is only around a half mile long, the only way on it is to exit after crossing Highway 3. Then you have to either get back on the freeway very quickly or you will be forced to U-turn under I-45 and head back the other way. There is absolutely nothing on the feeder and there is no reason to get on it if you are heading back from Galveston. The spot where the Veyron ran into the water is beyond the point that you have to get back on the freeway, leaving only the choice of U-turning to go the other way, so so much also for the BS story about heading back from Galveston eh?

This crash is a publicity money making scam along the lines of Balloon Boy and this guy should be promptly arrested for fraud....

Reader NitrousOxide sees either a pelican or a blackhawk helicopter in this screen-capture from the grainy video.

B3ND3R avails himself of every possibility with the following breakdown:

OK, for the record I never meant to imply that I definitively thought it was a scam, just that my BS meter is pegged and people need to open themselves up to the possibility.

Note:

A. This is 1 of 15 Veyrons in the entire US. The odds of anyone, let alone a car enthusiast, even spotting a Veyron are about 1 in 7.3 million provided that all 15 Veyrons were on the road on this day (and I'm betting most were not).

B. Veyrons are horrendously expensive to maintain. First scheduled maintenance - $22,322. Tires must be replaced every 2,500 miles at a cost of $10,347 per set. The entire set of wheels must be replaced every third tire change (7,500 miles). Extended warranty? Sure, that will be $103,062 for 2 years.

C. Restoring exotics pays well, but does it pay well enough to purchase a $1M+ car. I happen to personally know a concourse restorer of vintage Ferraris, and his income would be categorized as upper middle class. Previous poster stated the driver lives in a $147K home, but driver claims to own the Veyron.

D. The engine was left running for 15 minutes underwater.

E. Both the pulling of the car out of the water and the accident were very conveniently filmed.

So, for those who buy the whole story, you can safely commit to the fact that:

1. There is no possibility that this guy was in over his head and wanted an insurance payout.

2.There is no possibility that he didn't have the whole thing filmed so that he could prove he wasn't driving recklessly.

3. There is no possibility he didn't want the car totally destroyed (engine and all) and thus risk getting stuck with the car when it was repaired.

4. There is no possibility that this wasn't embarked on as a publicity stunt by one of the very few people in the country who specialize in restoring wrecked exotics.

OK. I don't know the guy or the situation other than what has been disclosed, so just maybe this is one set of amazing coincidences.

And if this is just one set of big coincidences, then both the driver of the Veyron and the kids filming it need to go out and buy a few thousand dollars worth of lottery tickets.

Whatever the case, there's a pot of gold in there somewhere for someone as many of you pointed out, and Rogue180 captured, there's a rainbow at the end of this story.